Book Reviews

Book Reviews Record of Indentures of Individuals Bound Out as Apprentices Servants, Etc. and of German and Other Redemptioners in the Office of the Mayor of the City of Philadelphia October 3, 1771, to October 5, 1775. [Excerpted and reprinted from The Pennsylvania-German Society Proceedings and Addresses, XVI (1907), with a New Index.] (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. 364 p. $15.00.) Probably more immigrants from Europe came into the port of Philadelphia during the early 1770s than into any other Atlantic port. This reprint in facsimile of basic reference material should therefore be welcomed by researchers interested in such immigration during that period. In this work ports of departure noted include London, Bristol, Liverpool, Glasgow, Dublin, Londonderry and Rotterdam. With this supply of English, Irish, Scots and Germans to choose from, it is not surprising that people came from fairly distant parts of the country in order to acquire servants or apprentices to train: from Augusta County and Alexandria in Virginia, from Cecil and Frederick Counties in Maryland, from Kings County in New York, from "Caskaskey in the Illinois," from various places in New Jersey and in New Castle County, as well as from all the counties in Pennsylvania. The present listing is arranged in seven parallel vertical columns on facing pages. Reading from left to right, the person being bound out is named first, then, if an immigrant, his port of embarkation is given. If no port is named, the assumption is that he was a local resident. Next is named the master who is obtaining the redemptioner and his place of residence, then the occupation of the redemptioner — servant or apprentice in a specific trade — and the "freedom dues" to be granted, the term of service, and lastly the amount paid by the master to the importer for a servant. No money passed for apprentices. No occupations are given for the masters, but when he acquired an Apprentice, the occupation in which the apprentice was to be trained is indicative of the master's trade. For example: Henry Scheesman (sic) of Philadelphia on 23 October 1771, acquired Conrad Crumbach, Jr., who was to be "Taught the tailor's trade, have one quarter evening schooling" and was to serve for "3 yrs., mo." (p. 14, 15). Henry Slessman (Schloesmann), who had married Maria Cathartna Lohrmaenn on 19 October 1761, by the pastor of St. Michael's Lutheran Church, was rated in 1771 and 1774 in Upper Delaware Ward as a tailor. The addition of a name index of the redemptioners (p. 327-364) is a useful addition to this record, but it would have been even more helpful if an index to masters' names had been included. The original manuscript record of these redemptioners bound out before Mayor John Gibson, 1771-1772, and Mayor William Fisher, 1773, is in the Collections of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. It should be noted, however, that a portion of Mayor Gibson's indentures (those made from 5 December 1772, to 22 May 1773), which appear on pages 170-228 in the present volume, appeared in a slightly different form in The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, )(XXIII (1909), 476-491, and XXXIV (1910), 99-121, 213-228. Those are from the manuscripl record in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. HANNAH BENNER ROACH 100 Book Reviews 101 Genealogical Notes on the Founding of New England, My Ancestors' Part in that Undertaking, By Ernest Flagg. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. [Facsimile reproduction of the 1926 edition.] 440 p. $10.00.) M6 Flagg compiled for his family a book of his ancestors, including a narrative history of the part some of them had taken in the colonization of New England (pages 11 through 106, chapters 1 through 9) and a chapter (10) entitled Superlative Genealogy, in which he discusses the spurious British ancestry published for the Pomeroy family and for the Seymours, and records for his family the falsity of their identification of the immigrants. He then goes on to disprove the statement in Burke's History of the Commoners, p. 65, vol. 3, regarding the Vanderhorst ancestry. Following chapter 10 we come to the charts. These are outline ascending pedigree sheets, 17 of them (pages 118-128) used as an outline index for the biographical material which follows. His numbering system for ancestors is unusual, but entirely understandable. A cross-index of these names, paired with the numbers they bear, is given on pages 129-131- This is the only index in the volume. Pages 135 to 358 following are "family sheets" for each of these numbered persons, done in standard and usable form, with all children of each pair of parents listed on their mother's sheet. Pages 305 to 358 cover what he has discovered on English Antecedents, and pages 359 to 388, Notes on some families about which there is some confusion, and on which he offers some clarification. An appendix covers pages 389 to 440, on the Everard and Flegg pre-Colonial pedigrees. The material here presented is of a high order. Despite the unusual format this is a valuable and recommended book. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. By Ethel Stanwood Bolton. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973- Reprint for the second time of the 1931 edition. 235 p. Index. $7.50.) Immigrants to New England, 1700-1775. This is a compilation of names of immigrants and basic vital records concerning them, taken from a variety of published works, all identified The immigrants are listed alphabetically for easy reference, and they are not included in the index, which is used only to locate other persons whose names appear in the biographical sketches. Though it contains material that may require later verification, this is a useful reference work. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. Port Arrivals and Immigrants to the City of Boston, 1715-1716 and 1762-1769, compiled under the direction of William H. Whitmore with a Reconstructed Index. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. 92 p. Index. $8.00.) This is a facsimile reprint of pages 229-317 of A Volume of Records Relating to the Early History of Boston Containing Miscellaneous Papers, no. 29 in the series of "Record Commissioners' Reports," and contains nearly 3,000 names. These include passengers, masters of vessels, members of the crews. Some of these passengers were certainly immigrants, but these are entries in port logs and are primarily concerned with the shipping, and not with immigration. The new pagination and the addition of an adequate index makes this little known material more readily available to both genealogist and historian. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD. JR. 102 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine The Winthrop Fleet of 1630, An Account of the Vessels, the Voyage, the Passengers and their English Hornet from Original Sources. By Charles Edward Banks. (Baltimore Genealogical Publishing Co., 1972. [3rd facsimile re-printing of the edition of 1930.] xu, 119 p. Appendices, index. $7-50.) Mr. Banks' work in the study of group migrations in the colonization of New England, and his efforts in identifying their sources are primary and basic to any research Into the antecedants of the first waves of these colonists. This little book covers the history of the Winthrop migration and names all the vessels that are known to have participated. The first three appendices cover: "A" (pages 57-99) an alphabetized list of all identified passengers m these vessels, summarizing what he had been able to learn about each and his English home; "B" (pages 100-105) the same for the passengers of the Mary and John; and "C". (pages 106-107) a brief account of the voyage of the Lyon. "D" and "E" provide brief one page sketches of Capt. Milburne of the Arabella and Mrs. Anne Pollard respectively. Then follow seven pages of indexes which do NOT include the passengers who are listed alphabetically in the appendices. This work should be in every genealogical library and every historical collection dealing with this period. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. Compiled by Sebastian V. Talcott. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973' [Facsimile reprint of the original edition of 1883.1 xvi, 747 p. Indexes — 1-XXXiX. $15.00.) Genealogical Notes of New York and New England Families. This is a volume of miscellaneous materials collected by M6 Talcott, apparently in the course of compiling other printed works. It includes (pages 1-481) single-line sketches of 28 New York families, primarily Dutch, and containing some collateral information, followed by transcripts of manuscript records; very early (17 and 18th century) family Bible records; burials in the Dutch Church grave yard, 1722-1757; miscellaneous notes; and a good glossary of Dutch given names with their English equivalents. Starting with page 485 and running to page 747 the author offers single-line sketches of 24 New England families, chiefly in western Massachusetts and Connecticut. There follow indexes of intermarriages. 1) of New York State families, 2) New England; then an index to the 1) section covering the New York families, and 2) the New England single-line sketches. There is a lot of material here that is not readily found elsewhere and though some of it is outdated, it is still a good starting point for work on the specific families involved. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, New Jersey Biographical and Genealogical Notes, From the Volumes of the New Jersey Archives, With Additions and Supplements. By the late William Nelson. (Balti- more: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. [Facsimile reproduction of the edition of 1916, when it was published as volume IX, Collections of the New Jersey Historical Society.] 222 p. Index. $10.00.) The Prefatory Note says in part: "This volume consists of the more important biographical footnotes appearing in the various volumes of the New Jersey Archives with 103 Book Reviews the corrections and extensive additions made by the late Mr. William Nelson, Corresponding Secretary of the New Jersey Historical Society." It is a rather disappointing collection. The items vary in length from a single short biographical . paragraph of a few sentences to a few three or four generation incomplete genealogies. The longer and more useful studies include Allison, Bloomfield, Borden, Bryant, Budd, Coxe and Shinn. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. Muster Rolls and Other Records of Service of Maryland Troops in the American Revo(Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1972. [Facsimile lution 1775-1783. reprint of Volume XVIII of the Archives of Maryland, 1900-1 736 p. Index. $30.000 War. By Carlos E. Godfrey, M.D. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1972. [Facsimile reprint of the Washington, D.C. edition of 1904.) 302 p. $12.50.) The Commander-in-Chief's Guard, Revolutionary Them two are standard works long out of print. The first, compiled by the Maryland Historical Society, contains all the data that in 1900 could be located covering Maryland troops, and includes muster and payrolls together with acts and resolutions relating to them. The four column index at the end covers 75 pages. The second is an historical and biographical study built up by Dr. Godfrey from many sources to include all persons whom he could identify with the guard of General Washington, including thirteen (unnumbered) pages of signatures, presumably from payrolls. A roster of the guard W added, covering seven pages, and most usefully a 162-page compilation of biographical data on all the men named. One of the privates left a diary, and the book concludes with eighteen pages of excerpts from it covering the years of the war. Dr. Godfrey has most usefully included at the end a complete set of calendars for the years 1776 to 1783, making it easy for the student to identify the day of the week for any date. The book ends with a bibliography. The lack of an index is to some degree offset by the alphabetical arrangement of the bibliographical material. These two books contain primary source data for the Revolutionary War researcher. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. Edited by Albert Leon Richardson, with a new introduction by P. William Filby, Director t Maryland Historical Society. Three Parts in One. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. [Facsimile reprints of the Bulletins of 1906, 1910 and 1913 bound together.] 75 p., 105 p., 128 p. $10.00.) The Maryland Original Research Society of Baltimore, Bulletins. Mr. Filby, who as Director of the Maryland Historical Society should know, says, "This reprint will be of inestimable value for those needing genealogical information concerning the Eastern Shore of Maryland." Certainly most if not all of what is included in these Bulletins deals with that locality. The valuable material appears to be primarily tombstone inscriptions, marriage license records, a few family Bibles, oaths of fidelity for Talbot and Dorchester Counties, and militia lists. It would be a lot more useful if it were paged continuously and indexed. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. 104 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Virginia Wills Before 1799. A complete abstract register of all names mentioned in over six hundred recorded wills, arranged alphabetically from Adams to Wright. Copied from the Court House Records of Amherst, Bedford, Campbell, Loudoun, Prince William and Rockbridge Counties. By William Montgomery Clemens. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. [Reprint of the edition of 1924, reprinted 1952 and 1958 by the Southern Book Co.] 107 p. $7.50.) Early Virginia Immigrants, 1623-1666. By George Cabe11 Greer. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. [Re]ssue of the 1960 facsimile reprint of the edition of 1912.] 376 p. $10.00.) Both these volumes have use as "finding" lists. Since both are re-issues there is little the reviewer should add to earlier comments. The first volume carries on its spine only the first four words of the title, giving the casual user the unfortunate impression that more than six counties have been covered. There is no foreword, and the title carefully refrains from stating whether all recorded wills in these counties have been included. The assumption is that they have not. Only name and county of the testator, and names of wife and children appear. There is no mention of witnesses or executors, or other names that may appear casually in a document (despite what the title says), and the only date is that of filing. There is no indication when the wills were dated. Obviously it will be necessary for the genealogist who finds a document of interest here to go to the original record. And the absence of an index makes it impossible to identify the parents of a married daughter if only her married name is known. The second volume lists alphabetically the names of all immigrants that the compiler has been able to discover in the Land Office, together with that of "the patentee or party bringing him over." The absence of an index will prevent anyone from using this volume in reverse — that is, to obtain from it the names of all inunigrants brought over by a specific person — without scanning every one of the 376 pages. The author states+ "The search has been systematic and thorough and every name from 1623 (when the records begin) down to 1666 has been noted with date of appearance." WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR, The New Extinct Peerage 18844971, Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant & Suspended Peerages with Genealogies and Arms. By L. G. Pine. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1973. xxvii. 313 p. 19 plates. 13 p. index. $27.00.) This work covers the period starting with the publication of Burke's Dormant, Abeyant, Forfeited and Extinct Peerages and up to the year 1972. It follows the same format as Burke and includes a useful 14 page essay on Peerage in History and Law. The reader will recall that Mr- Pine was the editor of Burke's Peerage not too long ago, and was responsible for the elimination from its pages of some of the more fanciful pedigrees and for the improvement of many others. Genealogists have been in his debt for much of this. Some of the pedigrees of the older titles collected here will be familiar from the more recent editions of Burke. But many of them have been much shortened, and there are some changes. The author wisely cites the new Complete Peerage for additional information on many of these families. This is a welcome addition to the reference shelves, and we hope that Mr. Pine will now devote his considerable talents to a corrected edition of the earlier work — Burke's Dormant and Extinct Peerage. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD. JR. Book Reviews 105 The Royal House of Stuart, the Descendants of King James VI of Scotland, James I of England, volume II. By A. C. Addington (Charles Skilion, Ltd., London, Eng., 1972). 409 p. 37 illustrations. £12.60. In the Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine. volume XX, page 196, this writer offered a review of volume I of this prodigious work. At that time the author planned to publish the index for both volumes at the and of the second, but it was not to be. The text outgrew the space and now .mstead of three volumes there are to be four. The third will include the index, notes, and addenda applying to the first two volumes, and the fourth will supply such illegitimate descendants as the author is able to identify and to follow. An extensive joint review of these two volumes appeared in September in the London Times Literary Supplement (volume II is copyright dated 1971, but appeared in July 1972) and there seems no need to duplicate the material there offered or the description of the work provided by this writer's earlier review. It should be noted, however, that these two volumes show a fascinating interrelationship between all the nineteenth and twentieth centuries crowned heads of Europe, and including all the major pretenders to the now extinct thrones: Spain, France (both the Bourbon and the Bonaparte lines), Italy, Portugal, Russia, Greece, and so on. And along with them the common ordinary type American. When the fourth volume appears there will be included some American families such as the Calverts of Maryland. The mammouth size of the task undertaken can be compared only to the high quality of the scholarship of the author WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. Notices Members of the LeVan Family, descendants of the five children of Daniel LeVan and Marie Beau who settled in Berks County — Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Daniel, and Anna Elizabeth (who married Sebastian Zimmerman) — have formed the LeVan Family History Association. One of its primary aims is to prepare a second edition of the LeVan Genealogy published by Rev. Warren Patten Coon in 1927. Interested persons are asked to write Box 137, Oley, PA 19547. Publication has begun of The Anderson Quarterly, a surname publication designed to help all persons interested in tracing the Anderson line. Further informatio 6 may be obtained from Merrill Anderson, 2232 Franklin East, Seattle, WA 98102.