The Barker Surname

My Uncle Tony recalled that his grandmother, Lucy Burr Wadhams, thought of her husband [Abram Barker] as a “Johnny-come-lately” without the deep historical connection to America (and Goshen specifically) of her lineage. My Uncle Tony mused that the family name was associated with a carnival barker, yet it seems more likely that the surname derived fromContinue reading “The Barker Surname”

Sons of the American Revolution

Joseph Eggleston was a soldier in the American Revolution who appears to have served for a total of nine days from September 6, 1781 only to be discharged on September 15, 1781. His mustering onto the roll is recorded as starting in 1774 in Rev. Samule Orcutt’s (1878) History of Torrington, Connecticut from Its FirstContinue reading “Sons of the American Revolution”

Taft / Messinger Lineage

Daniel Edwards Messinger married Eliza Carter Nichols on October 31, 1848. They lived in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, before becoming members of Adin Ballou’s “Hopedale Community” (the dale of hope) in 1852. Their placement in the Messinger line and their connection to Uxbridge and Hopedale are documented in The Descendants of Henry Messinger of Boston, 1637 (privatelyContinue reading “Taft / Messinger Lineage”