To date, no one has offered to step forward and edit the Crabb Newsletter so I will continue in that capacity for the foreseeable future. After 13 years of editing the newsletter, I really thought it was time to give someone else a chance, but no one seems crazy enough to take the job.
In 13 years, I have printed about 520 newsletter pages considering 10 pages per quarterly. I spend approximately two weeks an issue writing, editing, printing, folding, stapling, and stamping each issue. In 13 years, that makes 104 weeks, or 26 months, or over of two years of my life, but it has been a pleasure to learn and write about all of the Crabb descendants of the past and present. I hope you enjoyed reading about our interesting family as much as I in writing about it.
Reports From England
The Wiltshire, England, genealogist sent more information from the parish records of St. Mary's in Marlborough, Wiltshire, to add to the Marlborough Quaker Crabbs presented in last summer's newsletter, but the following Crabbs have different given names than the Quaker Crabb families listed in the summer newsletter and thus don't seem to be related. The genealogist noted that there were no other Crabb baptisms or burials in this parish between 1685-1837. I combined the list of Crabb parish baptisms and burials into families since the father was given in each case. St. Mary's Parish, Marlborough< /p>
Baptisms 1581-1700, Burials 1602-1700.
I. Will Crabb
children
1. Mary Crabb b. 3-25-1663, bp. 3-31-1663.
2. Will Crabb bp. 9-20-1666
3. Elizabeth Crabb bp. 1-12-1667/8
4. Sarah Crabb bp. __, bur. 12-1 -1671
I. James Crabb bur. 5-29-1685
m. Edith __ bur. 12-22-1685
children
1. Will Crabb bp. 1-14-1667/8
2. James Crabb bp. 9-12-1669, bur. 10-23-1669
3. Jane Crabb bp. 12-18-1670
4. Martha Crabb bp. 8-25-1672, bur. 9-13-1682
5. Solomon Crabb bp. 7-9-1674, bur. 9-13-1675
6. Frances Crabb bp. 6-7-1677, bur. 4-1-1678
7. Frances Crabb bp. 1-9-1678/9, bur. 9-13-1682
8. Idith Crabb bp. 12-3-1680
9. Martha Crabb bp. 12-21-1682
10. Rachel Crabb bp. 2-5-1684/5< /p>
New details were found in the records of St. Peter's Parish, Marlborough, to add to the Crabb Quaker Index printed in the summer newsletter. Families of nonconformist religions such as the Friends were usually required to register their births and burials with the local state church.
St. Peter's Parish, Marlborough
Baptisms 1607-1700, Burials 1607-1700.
I Thomas Crabb of Marlborough, Wiltshire, England
m. Sarah __
children
1. Thomas Crabb Jr. b. 1-1-1648/9, bp. 3-1-1649/50
2. Sarah Crabb b. 2-7-1652, bp. 4-7-1652
3. Ann Crabb b. 1-2-1655, bp. 3-2-1653/4 (the birth or baptism entry must be an error).
4. Laurence Crabb b. 1-29-1657, bp. 3-29-1657, bur. 11-2-1658
5. Laurence Crabb b. 2-10-1659, bp. 3-10-1659
6. John Crabb bp. 4-10-1661
7. Rachell Crabb b. 10-23-1663, bp. 12-23-1662 (the birth or baptism entry must be an error).
7. Isaac Crabb b. 12-25-1664/5
8. Hester Crabb b. 9-9-1667, bp. 11-9-1667, bur. 11-6-1667/8 (dates?)
9. Hester Crabb b. 9-24-1668, bur. 10-1-1668
10. Martha Crabb b. 1-10-1669/70 Devizes, bp. 3-12-1668/9 (the birth or baptism entry must be an error).
II. Thomas Crabb Jr. (Thomas Crabb)
b. 1-1-1648/9 Marlborough, Wiltshire, England
d. 4-17-1729 Marlborough
children
1. Thomas Crabb b. 2-25-1676
2. Sarah Crabb b. 8-24-1679
3. Mary Crabb b. 8-6-1681
The "junior" was noted in the parish records.
All of the above of St. Peter's were born and buried at Marlborough except Martha Crabb b. 1669/70 who was born in nearby Devizes. The Thomas Crabb born in 1676 is of the right time period to be the Thomas of Charles Co., Md., [pi 10] but there are no documents to prove it. In Maryland, Thomas Crabb was an active member and elder of the Church of England, not the Quaker faith.
The following Will Crab was not listed in the Quaker Index printed in the summer newsletter. Daughters Mary and Elizabeth and son Will may be the same as those in St. Mary's Parish printed above suggesting that the two Will Crabbs are probably one and the same. Will could have attended both St. Mary's and St. Peter's Parish churches in Marlborough.
I. Will Crabb
m. Mary __ bur. 2-5-1692/3
children
1. Will Crabb b. 3-14-1661/2, bp. 3-19-1661/2, bur. 4-3-1662
2. Mary Crabb bp. 3-31-1663
3. Sarah Crabb bp. 6-27-1665, bur. 6-30-1665
4. Will Crabb b. 9-21-1666, bp. 10-21-1666, bur. 9-27-1666 (dates?)
5. Elizabeth Crabb b. 11-4-1667/8, bp. 1-12-1667/8
6. Sarah Crabb bp. 2-22-1670/1
The genealogist noted that there were no other Crabb baptisms or burials in the St. Peter's Parish records through 1837. The only Crabb baptism or burial in the nearby Warminster Parish from 1556-1700 was that of a Mary Crabb, wife of William, bur. 9-21-1664, which suggests there was an older William Crabb, or this Mary was Will's first wife.
Wiltshire Marriage License Bonds
Ralph Whitehart, 23, yeoman m. 12-4-1668, Mary Clarke, 28, single person, both of Easton Royal Parish, bondsmen John Whitemarsh an innholder of Salisbury & George Crabb a chandler of Easton Royal Parish, Bishops' Marriage Bonds.
Hugh Crabb m. 9-3-1669, Bridgett Bowdick both of Chardstock, Dorset, bondsmen Hugh Crabb & Bridgett
Bowdick both of Chardstock, Deans' Marriage Bonds.
Robert Waunesbury of Fisherton Delamere m. 9-11-1669, Melliar Minty, single person, of Inber, Wiltshire, bondsmen Nathaniel Crabb, yeoman of Beckington, Somerset, & John Lawarne, innholder of Salisbury, Wiltshire, Bishops' Marriage Bonds.
Edward Bell m. 5-28-1698 St. Peter's, Deborah Deerdale, widow, both of St. Peter's, Marlborough, bondsmen Thomas Crabb & John Brabant, both of St. Peter's, Marlborough, Bishops' Marriage Bonds.
Charles Dobson, 29, bachelor, of Martin, Wiltshire m. 1-20-1697, Alice Pinkney, 25, single person, of Alderbury, Wiltshire, bondsman William Crabb of Chilmark, Bishops' Marriage Bonds.
Noah Webb, 26, gentleman, of Marlborough, m. 1-21-1667, Christian Sadler, 23, single person, of Wroughton, bondsmen William Crabb, grocer & Hamell Leonard, both of Marlborough, Bishops' Marriage Bonds.
William Quinton, 21, gentleman m. 2-22-1667, Hester Tap, 18, single person, both of Marlborough, daughter of Honisiphorus, yeoman, bondsman William Crab, chandler, of Marlborough.
Wiltshire Nimrod Marriage Index
Ralfe Whitharte m. 4-27-1607 at Easton Royal Parish, Agnis David. Agnis was a servant of Thomas Crabb.
Thomas Crabb m. 10-8-1610 Easton Royal Parish, Edith Parries.
Wiltshire's Varied Nimrod Index
1678, Mary Crabb, infant daughter of the late Henry Crabb, settlement certificate from Trowbridge living in __?
1674, Nicholas Crabb, clothworker, settlement certificate from Chardstock, Dorset, living in Bradford.
1674, Richard Crabb, clothworker, settlement certificate from North Bradley, living in Bradford.
1696, William Crabb, serge maker, removed (moved) from North Bradley.
If a reader sees a connection between the above English Crabbs and any of the American and Canadian Crabb families printed in the Crabb book, please write the editor.
This fall, I plan to again contact the Wiltshire and Bristol genealogists along with a London researcher. The Bristol genealogist noted that the IGI (International Genealogical Index produced by the Mormons) has hundreds of Crabbe baptisms and marriages in the counties across the British Isles. See last summer's newsletter for all of the Crabb names in Gloucestershire County. On another page of this issue, you will find some of the Wiltshire Crabbs listed in the IGI. Future issues of the newsletter may print Crabb names found in other English counties. Many libraries in America as well as local Mormon church libraries have the IGI sometimes even on computer.
Lost Forever
After numerous decades of working on family history, I am always amazed at all the records from the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th century that are still available in libraries, archives, court houses, cemeteries, the National Archives, Salt Lake City, on the internet, etc. The Hall of Records in Annapolis, Md., still has deeds, church records, justice of peace papers, records of service in the legislature, and the will, inventory, and probate details of my direct ancestor Ralph Crabb [p!60] who died almost 270 years ago in 1734 in Prince George's Co., Md. The first United States census of 1790 is still available for study in addition to every decade's census up to 1930 except for a large part of the 1890 census which was destroyed in the 1921 fire in Washington, DC. Many records in this country go back to the 1600's.
What is sad is what has been lost through the centuries by our own relatives and ancestors. I know of case where the mother who had extensive family files and photos died and the children boxed up all the old family pictures and papers and hauled them off to the dump. They had no interest in the present family or any of the history of the family.
Rhoda's aunts once stored family photos, letters, books, and Bibles in the attic of the coal house with a leaking roof where the mice chewed everything into small particles for nests. Antique stores across the country have shelves of old family photos, Bibles, scrapbooks, and account books. All of these family treasures are lost forever.
Sometimes close relatives are not available at the death of someone, and strangers see no reason to save anything from the estate. Most family records and photos have no monetary value and appear to some as worthless. Usually the heirs divide the possessions of the deceased in a hurry so they can dash back to their homes. Photos, heirlooms, and historic documents are thus scattered in households all across the country to never again be seen by the rest of the family.
Perhaps you have watched the recent "Antique Roadshows" on public television and noticed that sometimes a few unique family materials of historic interest have been handed down from generation to generation, not just the items of monetary value. What Can We Do About It?
While you are still alive, be sure to inform someone who seems to be interested in what you possess that might be important to future generations and inform them where it is located. There is usually a relative or two in every family who is interested in history and would love to have the family genealogical heirlooms. But, there are still individuals who think history of any kind is worthless and consider family members who collect family data and records as nuts. Most heirs want something from the estate that they can take to the bank.
It is also important to sort, arrange, and properly store the papers, letters, photos, etc. Sometimes a deceased person has failed to identify the people in the photos and when and where they were taken. This needs to be done while we are still above ground. I have spent many a day trying to identify a mystery face in an old tintype, glass-plate negative, or even a printed photo. I still have a few photos in which the people will forever remain anonymous. M23 What I wouldn't give for more information and stories about my Crabb ancestors who left from England (the town still undocumented), crossed the Atlantic in small wooden ships, settled along the Patuxent River in Maryland, operated plantations (farms), owned slaves, served in the legislature, and lived during the Rev. War and War of 1812. Succeeding generations migrated over the mountains to Shelby Co., Ky., near the Ohio River and Louisville, moved north across the Ohio to Jackson Co., In., when it was a wild frontier, farmed on the White River bottom and faced floods, and then watched another generation farm in Wayne Co. on the Ohio near the Ohio state line. When the oldest son inherited the farm, my great grandfather was forced to migrate west to Warren Co., II., serve in the Civil War, and watch most of his children leave Illinois for Iowa where I was born. I am missing the personal history of many generations, their characters, their dreams, problems, joys, fears, even photos up until the late 1800's. Today, with computers, printers, cameras, sound CD's, and paper and pen, there is no excuse for not passing on more information of our generation to our grandchildren and descendants into the 22nd century. We need to start now before it is too late and everything is lost forever.
In Summary
1. Write the names, dates, and places on the backs of the old photos. Use a special archival pen or pencil that doesn't damage the picture.
2. Store family photos, letters, and papers in archival safe albums and containers.
3. Tell an interested relative about the significance of everything and where it can be found.
4. Create a list of your genealogical books, papers, photos, etc.
5. In the computer age, the family archives may be on a hard disk so be sure to check the computer & CD's of the deceased. Our Heritage on the Printed Page
Much of the record of the human race and our knowledge has been recorded in books for centuries. Once we had paper, printing presses, and libraries, knowledge and education took a great leap forward. In spite of the all the information and history that is available in libraries, one is surprised at how poorly taxpayers support and use libraries across America. Much of the history of the Prall and allied families since the 1600's is stored on paper in libraries, in archives, and personal collections.
The May-June, 2003 of the DAR magazine American Spirit listed the following ways to preserve paper documents and records.
1. Don't store items in areas subject to extreme temperatures. Attics, basements, and garages are off-limits. Dark, cool, dry, locations are best.
2. Make sure the space is clean and well ventilated. High humidity will cause mold and mildew.
3. Don't store books in cardboard boxes or wrap them in newspaper or plastic. Acid-free alkaline folders, polyester film folders, or alkaline mats are best for storing paper products.
4. Shelve books upright (except for very large books), and don't overcrowd bookshelves.
5. Make sure storage folders or boxes provide adequate support for items.
6. Ultraviolet (UV) rays can damage paper collections. Avoid storing your objects in sunny rooms and under fluorescent bulbs. Manuscripts and newsprint are particularly sensitive to light, and sunlight can fade the leather and cloth covers of books.
7. Handling paper objects too much can ruin them. The oils from fingers can cause staining, and folding and unfolding can lead to creases and tears. If you need to use a document, make a copy of the original for use. Even copy machines with bright UV light will cause damage with repeated use.
8. Never use tape to repair paper pages. Even "invisible" tape .has a high acid content that will destroy the paper over time. Lamination, too, adds acid and is irreversible.
9. Airborne pollutants such as ozone, car exhaust, and heating systems can cause damage. Protect your objects from dust and dirt.
10. Monitor your keepsakes for evidence of rodents, silverfish, and in other insects such as book lice and bookworms, which can eat, soil, and damage paper.
11. Many books are damaged when they are pulled off the shelves by the top of their spines. Instead, push the adjoining books inward and remove the book by grasping the spine.
12. Never have food or drinks near manuscripts, journals, and books.
13. Don't use paper clips to mark pages or use rubber bands or string to tie up a document or book. Both can cut into brittle pages and damage covers. And don't fold down page corners. The post-a-note book page flags can pull the print off a page.
Picnic and Reunion Food
To pass the time while we drove the 600 miles through the beautiful countryside from Salt Lake City to Albuquerque the 7th of August, Rhoda read passages from Jill Conner Browne's 1999 book The Sweet Potato Queens' Book of Love. The book is good for a few laughs, but what interested me was Browne's description of all the delicious food prepared at home and served at funerals and wakes in the old days in the chapter entitled, "The Brighter Side of Death." Every female attending the funeral worked long hours in a hot kitchen just to show up all of the others who brought food for the bereaved family. In the old days, homemade pies, baked cakes, fried chicken, special recipe casseroles, an many other wonderful dishes made funerals an event worth attending in spite of the fact that the occasion required a death.
I recall family gatherings when I was a kid where the home-cooked food was the central focus of the day. We dined on delicious stewed old hen with homemade egg noodles, real mashed potatoes, or skillet-fried chicken, real mashed potatoes, home-canned green beans, and baked bread fresh out of the oven or a baked ham, real mashed potatoes; you get the picture and probably had to rush to the refrigerator before finishing this story. The home-baked pies, cakes, and other desserts were also worth traveling to gathering and visiting with all the relatives, especially for a growing young man.
One can tell when attending the annual Prall Picnic in Carlisle, la., every September that some of the cooks still spend a good deal of time in the kitchen. But for the most part, picnics, family gatherings, and reunion food have turned to Kentucky Fried Chicken, bags of potato chips, cartons of dips, and frozen pies from the super market. Although somewhat edible, the "fast food" will never measure up to what grandmother cooked over the old wood range. Sadly, the fast food probably has more fat and calories than grandma's rich cooking.
While driving along through Moab, Cortez, and Farmington, I started to wonder if one of the reasons for the low turn out at reunions is the food. Rhoda and I attended a Holeman (see story this issue) family reunion in Salt Lake City, and only 15 were present from Utah, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, California, and Alberta, Canada. For lunch we ate fast food at the food court in a shopping mall. There was a wide range of fast foods to choose from, but enough said. We ate supper at the historic Lion House just off Temple Square where there was a choice of prime rib or fish. Since most prime rib is usually still raw enough to walk in to the table, I selected the fish. I don't think grandmother could have stomached the fast food in the mall, the raw prime rib, or the over-baked fish.
I wish I could offer a solution to the food problem at family reunions, but since we are usually a long way from our own kitchens and in a strange town, there may not be a solution. Catered food might be too expensive, plus today, everyone eats deep-fried fast food and thinks it is great. I did find the food at the Crabb reunion in Dallas a few years way above average, tasty steak at a steak house and soft-shell crab at Joe's Crab Shack. Sorry to say, Joe's Crab Shack south of Salt Lake City and the one in Tempe, Az., don't usually have soft-shell crab. They claimed the locals didn't know what to do with the Maryland crab in the shell which is such a treat on the East Coast; thus, they don't offer it on the menu.
The next time you attend a family gathering, at least one close to home, remember grandmother, and take the time to surprise everybody with your cooking skill. Food is one of the great pleasures of life. If the food were better, one might take up attending funerals, even funerals of strangers. One could always avoid the more serious memorial part of the service.
Research In Salt Lake City
Hopefully, you have had the pleasure of researching your ancestry in the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. There is no place in the world that has so much microfilm and so many books on all the families around the world.
Rhoda and I spent nearly two weeks in Salt Lake last summer trying to learn more about our histories. This trip, I spent most of the time on my McPherson ancestry. Martha Jane McPherson Miller was my paternal great-grandmother.
The McPhersons were Quakers who left North Carolina because they didn't believe in slavery and migrated north in the 1830's to Morgan County Indiana just southwest of Indianapolis. Rhoda read in one book that Quakers were the ones who most thoroughly educated their children. Wherever they settled, the Friends established schools notable for their high standards. Quaker girls were the only females in the colonies consistently exposed to a curriculum more demanding than "readin', writin', and rithmetic."
After reading miles of microfilm, I still wasn't able to learn more about Duncan McPherson who left Scotland in the late 1700's, married a woman named Sarah, no last name, and just vanished in the region of Chatham Co., NC. We already knew that John Templeton McPherson (my line) who died on his homestead in Nebraska in 1876 and brother Randal McPherson who died in Northern Iowa in 1883 were children of Duncan and Sarah McPherson. With the help of cousin Peg Lamkin of Rice Lake, Wi., we recently learned that Duncan and Sarah had also a daughter Margaret who married a James Rawnsley in North Carolina. Perhaps there are other siblings which I wasn't able to document while in Salt Lake City.
Rhoda and I enjoyed playing Sherlock Holmes for two weeks, and there is always next year. If you haven't been to the Salt Lake City Family History Library, you are missing a chance to expand your knowledge of who you are and where you came from. Someday, others will study our lives and the times we lived in the 20th and 21st centuries.
More Crabb Data from Salt Lake City
Rhoda found the following Susan Crabb named on page 19 in the book Ipswich Emerson 1636-1900 by Benjamin Kendall Emerson & George A. Gordon.
I. Robert Emerson (Robert Emerson of Great Dumnow & Bishop's Stortford)
bp. 10-25-1561 Great Dumnow Co., Essex, England
d. 1-6-1620 Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, England.
m. 11-24-1578 Bishop's Stortford, Susan Crabbe d. 11-20-1626, bur. Bishop's Strortford, age 70.
children
1. Alice Emerson bp. 11-22-1579 Bishop's Stortford
2. Margaret Emerson bp. 2-21-1582 Bishop's Stortford, m. T. Browne of Southwark.
3. Thomas Emerson bp. 7-26-1584 Bishop's Stortford
4. Anne Emerson m. 7-1-1611 Bishop's Stortford, J. Rogers.
5. Robert Emerson bp. 4-12-1590 (1596) Bishop's Stortford, d. bef. 1620.
6. John Emerson, mentioned in father's will 1620.
II. Thomas Emerson (Robert Emerson)
bp. 7-26-1584 Bishop's Stortford
m. 7-1-1611 Bishop's Stortford, Elizabeth Brewster.
Thomas and Elizabeth are the ancestors of famous American poet and essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson b. 5-25-1803 Boston, d. 4-27-1882 Concord, Ma. It is great to see that a Crabbe was part of Emerson's ancestry. Rhoda is a distant cousin to this Emerson family by way of Hazen and Grant families. Now, I need to determine whether Susan Crabbe is connected to my Maryland Crabb ancestors which if so would make Rhoda and me somehow related although there are numerous Crabb lines in England and Scotland so it isn't very likely. My late father, Dwight Emerson Prall was named after Ralph Waldo Emerson.
James Smith Crabb [p645] 1797-1862
James was noted in the Wayne Co., In., probate records. On 5-1840, James was listed as guardian of Rebecca and Polly Ann Adington in the estate of Silas Adington. On 11-1840, James was again noted as the guardian of heirs in relation to the estate of Silas Adington. On 7-15-1843, James was a buyer in the sale of the estate of Thomas Brumfield. On 8-11-1843, James was still listed as guardian of minor Adington heirs. On 12-9-1844, James as guardian of the minor Silas Adington heirs was sued by John Black. On that date there was a request for an additional bond for James Crabb, and he resigned as guardian.
James Smith Crabb was the editor's great-greatgrandfather so it was good to see his name in more of the Wayne Co. records.
Social Security Records
While checking some social security records on the internet while in Salt Lake City, I discovered some Crabb cousins. The following brothers were sons of Nathan Haddock "Doc" Crabb who was the younger brother of my grandfather Daniel Thomas Crabb [p729]. Thomas Dean Crabb [p713] b. 1-29-1911 la., d. 9-23-1998
Escondido, San Diego Co., Ca. 92025 Marvin Victor Crabb [p714] b. 3-6-1913 la., d. 9-9-1918 Hemet, Riverside Co., Ca. 92543
If you have a name or social security number, you can search the Social Security records on the internet. There are hundreds of Crabb names in the files.