Children of Harvey S. Wampler (1828-1885) and Martha Jane Harrison (1840-1914)

This posting serves as an update, of sorts, to information shared about Harvey S. Wampler (1828-1885) to share a little more about his children (than was previously shared).

Harvey S. Wampler married Martha Jane Harrison 30 Nov 1862 in Knox county, Indiana. Per the US Census reports, they resided in Washington Township and had at least six children: Joseph A., Elizabeth, Mary Ashby, Flora Ardelia "Della", Lillian M. "Lillie", and Nellie Dove Wampler. Martha Jane and the children remained in Washington Township after Harvey's death per the 1900 US Census.

Joseph A. Wampler was born, per census reports, in Jan 1864. His California death records list the full date of birth as 22 Jan 1864 and it was from those records where I got his middle initial. By 1910 he is in Washington and his occupation is listed as Logger for that year's census. In 1930 he is listed in Stockton State Hospital for Insane in Stockton, California. He died 18 Dec 1967 and was cremated. In the 1910 US Census he is listed being Single, in 1930 US Census and his death records his marital status is stated to being Unknown. I have not located his 1900 and 1920 US Census to help peg down around when he left Indiana for Washington and/or left Washington for California. I have not located marriage records - so he may have been a bachelor at time of death.

Elizabeth Wampler appears only in the 1870 US Census with estimated birth year for her is 1869. This leans thoughts to she probably died between when the census was taken in 1870 and before it was taken in 1880. Her burial location is unknown.

Mary Ashby Wampler was born 5 Apr 1871 and she married Jesse D. Grigsby. Together Mary and Jesse Grigsby had eight children. Mary died 3 Apr 1946 in Vincennes, Knox county, Indiana and is buried in Sumner, Lawrence county, Illinois next to her husband.

Flora Ardelia "Della" Wampler was born 3 Oct 1872 and she married twice; first marriage was to Clinton Wood and together they had seven children, and Della's second marriage was to F. W. Griffin in Arkansas, which did not have any children. Della, per online trees, passed away in 1935 in Arkansas (I have not yet located death records), and this would mean that she and Clinton Wood divorced as he passes away in 1949.

Lillian M. "Lillie" Wampler was born Apr 1877. In the 1910 US Census she is listed in her mother's household in Washington Township, Knox county, Indiana and, per this census, Lillie had a daughter born, out of wedlock, 5 months prior and Lillie is also listed as giving birth to one child with that child still living, which helps determine that the little girl listed in the household is Lillie's daughter. Lillie later married Jesse Wilbur Johnson in 1916 and they had a daughter in 1917. In 1920 US Census they are residing in Terre Haute, Indiana, and Lillie's oldest daughter is listed with the Johnson surname. In the 1930 and 1940 US Census, Jesse and Lillie Johnson are back in Knox county and residing in Vincennes. I came across 3 marriage records, two of which were in Ohio, for the daughter Lillie had with Jesse Johnson - but, for Lillie and Jesse, I have not come across further info for them past the 1940 US Census. Lillie's oldest daughter's paper trail also seems to go cold after the 1920 US Census.

Nellie Dove Wampler was born in 1881. She first married Louis Riley Hemry and resided in Palmyra Township, Knox county, Indiana where they had two daughters prior to Louis Henry's 3 Nov 1914 death. Louis was the son of James and Margaret McMasters Hemry, and when researching him also look for him as Lewis Hemry or Lewis/Louis Henry. Nellie D. married Jesse J. Jones in the fall of 1915 in Knox county, Indiana and they had two children together. I have not located a death date for Nellie D.; she may have died in Toledo, Lucas county, Ohio as she and Jesse Jones are listed living there for the 1930 and 1940 US Census after the 1920 census that had them in Washington, Daviess county, Indiana.

So Harvey S. Wampler and Martha Jane Harrison did have children, and grandchildren as well.

Alexander Wampler (1812 - around 1845) and children born after his death

Had an error pop up in the family tree program I use saying I had a couple kids in the tree listed being born after the death of a parent.

So, sure enough I had this gal listed as being born 2 years after her father died. Which would be impossible - even if the mother was pregnant at the time the father passed "around 1845".

Found the gal's FindAGrave memorial page, it has her birth info being 4 Jul 1846. Which theoretically works with the father passed "around 1845" thoughts. Her FindAGrave has her name as Lee Ann - However, in other online trees and such, I've seen her more often listed as Leanna J. and listed with a birth year of 1848.

Alexander Wampler (son of Christopher Wampler and Elizabeth Kettering) was born 3 Sep 1812 in Wythe county, Virginia. He married a Matilda Brown in 1835 in Smyth county, Virginia ... I don't have her parents, yet, and she is said to been born around 1819.

In the 1850 US Census in Smyth county Matilda Wampler, per how the census taker listed the people, is recorded as to living two other women and their children. Matilda is listed with 3 children transcribed (from the handwritten census) as to being: Mary (F-6), Stephen (M-5) and Sander Wampler (M-3). Matilda is marked in one column as to being over 20 years in age and cannot read or write.

This appears to be the first census error shared for Matilda Brown Wampler and/or her children. The transcription is correct in some aspects. However, if looking at the image of the census page itself, we notice that Nancy has a " shared for her last name which means she shared the same surname as the person above her ... which we see an older male, Billingsley Roberts, is listed on the line above her, as shared in the screenshot below, who probably should been listed as the Head of the family instead:

No Lee Ann/Leanna J. Wampler listed with Matilda there. However I think Sanders may been a mistaken transcription of the handwriting, and what is thought to be an "S" is an "L" - and so maybe the census taker had written Leande(r), which could actually be Leanne and she is miss-marked as being a male child? Possible that is what happened as it has happened before. Recall that census takers did not take the large form around with them, but would take notes and then add that info from their notes to the form itself. So if he had sloppily written Leanne and just her age, then later on - when looking over the notes, he may thought he wrote Leander or something, which would been a male name.

Between the 1850 and 1860 US Census Matilda apparently remarried to a John Anderson (b. around 1804/9 time frame in Virginia) and the family is now living in Tazewell county of Virginia. Mary Wampler (the oldest daughter I have for Alexander Wampler and Matilda Brown) married Andrew J. Gillespie in Jan 1860, so she wouldn't appear in the mid-summer taken US census with her mother. Stephen is listed to being around 15 - which works with his paper trail info on him being born in 1844. No Sander Wampler listed, and he would been around 13 if he was 3 in 1850). Leanna J. Wampler is listed being around 11 (but her FindAGrave has her being born in 1846, which would had her being 13/14 years old - which would match up to the missing Sander/Leander Wampler's age and also help tilt the scale she was a daughter of Alexander Wampler, maybe born within a few months of his death if he passed in last half of 1845, with her being in the 1850 and 1860 US Census with Matilda). So I am going with the 1846 birth year for Lee Ann/Leanne J. Wampler in the family tree. although some online trees list her birth year as 1848.

The above image is a screenshot of John and Matilda Anderson's portion of the 1860 Census, but also shares census taker error number two? After Alexander's death and between 1850 and 1860, Matilda had at least three more children who are listed on the 1860 census as well: Emily (F-8), John (M-2), and America (F-under the age of 1) - all listed with the surname of Wampler. Which Alexander has been passed away for well over a decade by now - but apparently he nor Matilda Brown didn't have real good luck with census taker folks, in relation to how census takers handle recording their kids. Emily is probably a daughter of John Anderson (unless Matilda had a marriage between Alexander and him that Emily was a child of). The younger two are very likely children of John Anderson and _not_ Alexander Wampler, but .... they are being listed in family trees, by others, as Emily Wampler, John Anderson Wampler and America F. Wampler to being post-mortem children of Alexander Wampler due to a census taker in 1860 giving all the children in John Anderson's household the surname of Wampler.

In John and Matilda Anderson's 1870 US Census, taken in Tazewell county, they only have three children in the home: John A. and America F. Anderson, so that helps clear up the 1860 US Census error that had them listed with the surname of Wampler. Emily C. is still in the household, and she is listed with the same estimated birth year of 1852 and with surname of Wampler. If Alexander Wampler was her biological father, this would have his death thoughts change from "around 1845" to "around 1851/52". Emily C. never married and passed away 6 Sep 1882 in Smyth county, Virginia - on her death records she is listed as Emily C. Anderson and that her father was John Anderson. This record doesn't help explain why in 1860 and 1870 US Census she was listed both times with the surname of Wampler, even after Mary, Stephen and Leanna/Lee Ann were no longer with their mother.

With Matilda, I have seen her listed as to passing away in 1860s or 1870s, either in Wythe county or in Indiana. Appears neither of those thoughts are correct, but Matilda Anderson (nee Brown) passed away later, in 1888 in Smyth county.

Now that I got Lee Ann/Leanna J. figured out to being a child of Alexander Wampler, which started off this confirmation trek of sorts, and that the last two children (John and America) are not Wamplers but Andersons - where was Sarah Elizabeth (Jan 1841 - 1924) who is oft-listed in online trees being a child of Alexander and Matilda? She's not listed with Matilda Brown Wampler Anderson in the 1850 nor 1860 census. As images share, can't rely on online trees' info since majority of those, including the FamilySearch one world tree one, gave Alexander 3 children well after his death date thoughts ... and without the birth years of those later children raising the question, by folks' willingly sharing it, of how Alexander could have been the father. The only child, listed on paper, that is "up in the air" on being Alexander's biological child is Emily C. who is listed with an estimated birth year of 1852.

Christina Wampler Graybill 1753-1844 (or maybe 1771-1844?)

This is likely going to be re-visited (to add in more) or oft-linked to posting, as part of this is like a can of worms in untangling dates and (similar) names and such, then throwing in family lore thoughts.

In trying to research For Christina Wampler, said to be a daughter of Hans Peter Wampler Jr and his 1st wife, Anna Barbara, I came across two to three birth years given - here and there - for her: 1753, 1760, and 1771. There are also marriage dates for her and Johannes/John Peter Graybeal/Graybill of 1779 and 1786. Which I guess leads to Johannes/John Peter Graybeal/Graybill getting multiple birth year thoughts as well as I have come across 1750, 1755, 1762 and 1768/69 shared for him.

Now, due to the family lore that Christina Wampler was one of the children of Peter Jr and Barbara who were kidnapped in 1757 and later returned, through a treaty, in 1764 ... that would lean folks to using the 1753 birth year to have her fit into that narrative. Which would lean to Johannes/John Peter Graybeal/Graybill having a birth year of 1750 to 1755 to have him being close to her in age.

John Peter Graybill died in 1842 and the headstone inscription says he was around 70 years old when passing. Which mathematically would give him a birth year thought of 1771/1772. However his FindAGrave memorial page shared 1762 as his birth year. Why? I don't know, the page manager did not explain the 1762 birth year thought shared.

Christina Wampler Graybill is stated to have died in 1844, and buried in same cemetery, has a headstone inscribed saying she was around 74 years of age at passing, which would mathematically place her with having a 1770/71 birth year.

So where does the 1760 birth year for her stem from? Maybe from some of the transcriptions shared on Ancestry** of her marriage records, for 1779 and 1786, listed her birth year being 1760. No image file is shared of the handwritten record used for the transcriptions to get a bit of a look at the handwriting. Problem I personally have with the online shared transcriptions is that two very different marriage years is listed for the couple and 6 to 7 years apart.

Decisions, at least on my side, come into play on which to use for "birth year" source: kidnapping year thoughts, the online shared transcriptions of marriage records or headstones where the inscription likely was based on information shared by Peter and Christina's family/children? The marriage record transcriptions would have her born after the other children were abducted and so would nix the kidnapping story, shared in later years by her children and their children, about her identity being confirmed due to her, after the return, singing a lullaby/children's song that her mother used to sing to her (and the other children). However, another tree branch also claims it was their mother whose identity was confirmed due to her recognizing/singing that same song - so can't really rely on the story if more than one branch is claiming it as "their (grand)mother did it". The headstone inscription itself, however, does not mathematically work with Christina and the kidnapping narrative though - she would had to been closer to around 94 when she died if using estimated birth year of 1753.

So, going back to touch base with birth year of 1771/1772 for Christina. Hans Peter Wampfler/Wampler Sr. had a brother, Johannes Christian Wampfler/Wampler, who came to America later, in 1747, who had a son named Hans Georg(e) Wampfler/Wampler - who had a daughter born September 7, 1771 in York county, Pennsylvania, named Christina. Could there been two Christina Wamplers born in 1771? Yeah, it's possible.

When looking at the marriage dates, which I came across two for this couple then bringing in the headstone inscriptions, for the same couple ... well, the headstone information nixes the 1779 marriage year. Which would also nix several children, attributed to them, being their children. The 1786 marriage year is slightly better, as Peter - if he had been around 70 years in age in 1842 - would been around 18 years old, if using the 1768/69 birth year, or around 15/16 years old, if going by 1771/1772 birth year via the headstone, when marrying in 1786. Which the 1760s and 1770z birth year thoughts would also work more easily in having him being a son of Johannes/John and Hannah - using the 1737 or 1747 birth year thoughts for the parents. In using the 1771/72 birth year for Christina would work for the 1786 marriage year as she would been around 14/15 when marrying. But they have children (Henry ~1778, John ~1780, and John Peter ~1783) attributed to them, but the birth years would only work with 1753 or 1760 birth year for Christina ... which would have to bump John Peter to the 1750/55 birth year as well.

One thing that is consistent, even with the marriage records' transcriptions on Ancestry, is that she is listed to being a daughter of Peter Wampler. Her mother's name is not listed, but Peter Wampfler/Wampler Sr. is not attributed to having a daughter named Christina - and his brother, Johannes Christian, did not have a daughter named Christina either. Hans Georg(e) Wampfler/Wampler's daughter, Christina, is said have passed away before 1817.

However, once past that, the rest is a can of worms. If I go with the headstones' information then it goes against the grain of those who feel she was born in time to been one of the kidnapped children but also the parentage thoughts of some children attributed to the couple. If I go with the 1753 date, that throws John Pater's parentage into a loop unless I have her marrying someone almost 10 years younger than her. If I go with 1760 date for Christina's birth thoughts, that doesn't work with the kidnap thoughts but does work for the kids attributions with either marriage year ... which the 1771 birth year doesn't work for the 1779 marriage year thoughts at all, so would have to go with the latter 1786 marriage year which doesn't work at all with at least 3 of the children.

So, for now, I am going with the headstone inscriptions, which - as I already said - likely was based upon information from her and/or her children closer to the time of Peter and her passing and will list the other year thoughts about birth in a notation for Peter and Christina. However, going this route would mean a 1779 marriage year would not work for either one of them and so throws parentage/age of three kids up in the air. Which means I will have rely more on paper trail thoughts to try helping have the children properly attributed. And I will have to see how it goes from there ...

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** as a notation, given majority of Ancestry's records require a paid subscription to view, I am debating on sharing links that some people would not be able to use/find of use due to not being paid subscribers of a site - so that goes for MyHeritage, FindMyPast, et al that also have paid subscriptions to view majority of the records. This is not a negative as it forces me to try to locate more citations to add from my side of the researching online thoughts.