Tag Archives: Starkey family

Della Starkey Ramsey: The Grandmother I Never Met (52 Ancestors #52)

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There are countless inspirations for beginning the quest to discover your family’s history. For me, it started with my two grandmothers. My paternal grandmother Adah Young Johnson, the first of my “52 Ancestors” this year, was the keeper of the family stories and the family Bible. In many ways, she was our family’s historian. But it was my maternal grandmother, Della Starkey Ramsey, who inspired my first search.

I never met my Grandma Ramsey. She died when my mom was only 8. She had suffered a miscarriage and developed peritonitis. Though the condition is still serious, today it is much more easily treated. People typically don’t die from it today. She was only 27.

Grandpa remarried about 4 years later. Mom still had contact with the Starkeys (her mom’s family), but she was closer with the Ramseys. Consequently, Mom didn’t grow up with the stories or the heritage from that side of the family. It wasn’t until I started researching that she knew the maiden name of her Grandma Starkey (Della’s mother).

Mom hasn’t told us many stories about her mom. I hope she won’t mind me sharing this one.

The day of the funeral was rainy. Like a typical 8-year-old girl — and one who is trying desperately to find a sense of “normal” when her world has turned upside down — my mom was worried that her brand new hair ribbons would be ruined. Her father gently assured her that if they did, he would buy her some new ones.

I only have one photograph of my grandmother. Though she is in profile, I love how content she seems and how happy my mom looks.

scan0002Della Starkey Ramsey was born 4 February 1911 in Perry County, Ohio, the fourth of Edward and Clara (Skinner) Starkey’s eight children. She married Ralph Ramsey in 1929. She died 12 July 1938 in Perry County and is buried at the top of the hill in Olivet Cemetery.

Susan Orr Skinner: A Lesson in Family Dynamics (52 Ancestors #50)

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Martha Harris was married twice, each time to one of my 3rd-great-grandfathers. Her first marriage was to William Orr. After his death, she married John Starkey, himself a widower.

To quote Douglas Adams, “This is not her story.”

I’ve mused before about how strange/odd/unusual/funny/weird that it is that Martha married two of my ancestors. (And, yes, I’m also thankful that she didn’t have children with the second husband. That could have potentially made for a pretty awkward family tree.) Apparently, some wrinkle in my brain has been musing on this, too, because it suddenly hit me that it may not be all that odd. In fact, it might be perfectly logical.

Susan Orr was born in 1850, the daughter of William Orr and Martha Harris. She married George Skinner in Perry County, Ohio on 2 March 1869. Together, they had 10 children. Unlike George’s mother (the oft-married Matilda Debolt Skinner Crossen Brown McFillen) and most of George’s siblings, George and Susan stayed put in Perry County.

When you’re raising 10 kids, you need all of the help and support you can get. That help wouldn’t have come from George’s side of the family; they had scattered across Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois. It stands to reason that Susan would have relied upon some assistance (even if only getting advice) from family nearby — including her mother.

When Martha Harris Orr married John Starkey, she didn’t just gain a husband — she gained several step-children. This also means that Susan gained several step-sisters and step-brothers, including my great-great-grandfather Peter Starkey. Since they were all living nearby, it seems logical that Susan would have interacted regularly not only with her mother, but also with her step-siblings.

Realizing this possible (even likely) family dynamic, it makes me wonder if that is how my great-grandparents met. Did Clara Skinner (daughter of Susan Orr Skinner) and Edward Starkey (son of Peter Starkey, Susan’s step-brother) meet at gatherings of the extended family? Is Susan actually the link between my Starkey line and my Orr line… and that it really isn’t odd that Martha was married to two of my ancestors, because in doing so, Susan’s children would have interacted with the children of her step-siblings.

When Martha Harris Orr married John Starkey, Susan Orr and Peter Starkey became step-siblings.

When Martha Harris Orr married John Starkey, Susan Orr and Peter Starkey became step-siblings.

A Genealogical Lesson

Ancestor charts are great ways to visualize our family trees. But they can also prevent us from seeing some relationships. When we look at an ancestor chart, we see our relationships to those who are listed. But sometimes it’s not about us. When the tree twists and turns, as it does in this case, we need to consider how those people relate to each other.

Susan Orr wasn’t just my great-great-grandmother. She was also the step-sister of my great-great-grandfather Peter Starkey. Realizing that relationship makes other things so much clearer.

An Overlooked Couple: John Starkey and Mary Monroe (52 Ancestors #47 & 48)

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(Bending my own “rules” here regarding the 52 Ancestors challenge. I’m purposefully combining John Starkey and Mary Monroe since we are oh-so-close to the end and I’m running out of days to catch up!)

As I was preparing this post on my 3rd-great-grandparents John Starkey and Mary Monroe, I realized that I have pretty much overlooked them in my research. (Yes, I’m hanging my head in shame.) Part of it is because I found them in my early days of tracing my family tree. It seems like we don’t revisit those early discoveries often enough. I think that another part is that I allowed myself to ignore them because of their connection with Licking County, Ohio. Licking County can be tough to research in, due to a major courthouse fire in 1875.

That having been said, I’m fortunate with John and Mary, as their marriage record survived that fire.

FamilySearch.org, Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1997, John Starkey and Polly Monroe marriage, Licking County marriage vol. 1, p. 258.

FamilySearch.org, Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1997, John Starkey and Polly Monroe marriage, Licking County marriage vol. 1, p. 258.

Did you catch the part in the lower left-hand corner? “Father present.” Unfortunately, it doesn’t give his name. For that matter, it doesn’t specify whose father. Was it John’s or Mary’s? Both of them would have been of legal age in 1827, so why was it noted that the father was present? Who is John W. Patterson? Is he a minister or a justice of the peace? If he’s a minister, what church is he with — and do they have records?

John and Mary lived in Thorn Township, Perry County, Ohio in 1830,1)John Starkey household, 1830 U.S. census, Thorn Township, Perry County, Ohio, page 418. just a couple of households away from John’s mother Elizabeth. I need to take a closer look at Thorn Township and the surrounding area. Who are the Monroes? Can I connect them with Mary?

Mary is last enumerated in the 1860 census.2)John Starkey household, 1860 U.S. census, Thorn Township, Perry County, Ohio, p. 123, nos. 899/872. By 1870, John was married to Martha Harris Orr (who, coincidentally, is my 3rd-great-grandmother on another line).

Looks like I have a good puzzle to work on in the new year.

References   [ + ]

1. ↑ John Starkey household, 1830 U.S. census, Thorn Township, Perry County, Ohio, page 418.
2. ↑ John Starkey household, 1860 U.S. census, Thorn Township, Perry County, Ohio, p. 123, nos. 899/872.

Peter Starkey: Living Just Below the Radar (52 Ancestors #34)

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Have you ever researched an ancestor and had the feeling that he wanted to stay anonymous? Not to say that he didn’t want to be found, just that he didn’t want you to find out too much about him. That’s the feeling I get with my great-great-grandfather Peter Starkey.

Peter was born in Ohio (probably in Perry County) 3 November 1830, the second son of John and Mary (Monroe) Starkey. He married Elizabeth Denune 21 June 1854. Throughout his entries in the census, he is listed as a farmer. Yet, like John Kelley, his 1860 agricultural census entry didn’t tell a whole lot. He had $50 worth of farm equipment, 2 horses, and 1 cow.

He registered for the draft in 1863, but as far as I’ve been able to determine, he never served.

Ohio started keeping death records in 1868. The earliest records were kept in the county Probate Court in ledgers. While I’m thankful they started keeping them, these earliest records typically do not name the parents unless it was an infant who died. (It wasn’t until December 1908 when Ohio started with more “modern” death certificates that we start to see parents listed as a matter of course.)

So when did Peter die? December 11, 1907.

(Yes, I know that I’ve identified his parents and that I really don’t need a modern death certificate for him. I think that dying in December 1907 was his final way of “Ha! You’re not going to find out much about me!”)

Peter is buried in Olivet Cemetery in Perry County, not far from his son Edward.

Peter and Elizabeth Starkey tombstone, Olivet Cemetery, Perry County, Ohio. Photo by Amy Crow, 30 May 2004.

Peter and Elizabeth Starkey tombstone, Olivet Cemetery, Perry County, Ohio. Photo by Amy Crow, 30 May 2004.

Edward Winfield Starkey: What a Name (52 Ancestors #30)

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I’ve reflected before about how some of the names of my ancestors fascinate me. Perhaps my children should be thankful that I hadn’t discovered Abisha Danison or Melzena (Kelly) Ramsey before they were born 😉

Another such ancestor is my great-grandfather Edward Winfield Starkey. Where in the world did “Winfield” come from? There aren’t any others in the family (at least, not that I’ve found so far). Edward was born in 1881. Could the middle name have come from Winfield Scott Hancock, who was the Democratic presidential nominee in 1880? If so, that would shed some light on the politics of his parents, Peter and Elizabeth Starkey. At this point, it is just conjecture.

Edward Winfield Starkey registration card, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, Ancestry.

Edward Winfield Starkey registration card, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, Ancestry.

Edward was born 7 March 1881 in Perry County, Ohio, the youngest child of Peter and Elizabeth. Edward married Clara Skinner on 10 October 1901. He worked various jobs, including as a laborer for Central Silica (a quarry company). Edward died 13 September 1960 and is buried in Olivet Cemetery in Perry County.

Edward and Clara Starkey tombstone, Olivet Cemetery, Perry County, Ohio. Photo by Amy Crow, 2004.

Edward and Clara Starkey tombstone, Olivet Cemetery, Perry County, Ohio. Photo by Amy Crow, 2004.

The Twist in the Tree: Martha Harris Orr Starkey (52 Ancestors #18)

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It’s not unusual to find a female ancestor who has married more than once, especially those whose husband died while there were young children at home. What’s unusual about Martha Harris Orr Starkey, my 3rd-great-grandmother, is that I descend from both of her husbands. (Does that make me my own grandma?)

Martha Harris was the daughter of William and Mary (Myers) Harris. She was born in 1817, likely in Licking County, Ohio. Around 1839 (based on the age of her first child), she married William Orr. William died in 1850, leaving Martha to raise five children under the age of 10. One of those was infant daughter Susan, who became my great-great-grandmother.

Between 1860 and 1870, Martha had remarried John Starkey. John was a widower, his wife Mary having died sometime after 1860.

Here’s the twist: John Starkey is my 3rd-great-grandfather through his son Peter.

My tree showing Martha Harris with her first husband William Orr and her second husband John Starkey.

My tree showing Martha Harris with her first husband William Orr and her second husband John Starkey.