(EDITOR'S NOTE: Carolyn Mead Hildebrand, who lives in California's San Joaquin Valley, began her cross-country search for distant relatives four years ago. She suspected her fourth great grandfather was Eli Mead, who was born in Nine Partners of Dutchess County in 1762. Here's how the relatively new genealogical science of DNA helped her trace her family tree.)
By CAROLYN HILDEBRAND
I began to search for my Mead roots four years ago. Through census records, internet research and family message boards, I learned my great, great grandfather might be Elkanah Mead, born in Wantage, New Jersey, in 1802.
A lady from Canada informed me her ancestor, Henry Mead, was born in New Jersey about that same time. Henry supposedly had a brother, Elkanah, and their father was Eli Mead. But, substantiating my research was difficult, as Elkanah's name was never spelled the same. I could not be sure my Elkanah was Henry Mead's brother.
Then, I learned about the Family Tree DNA Surname Project. This genealogy tool compares the Y Chromosomes of men with the same surname to determine the probability that they share a common ancestor. The Y Chromosome is passed from father to son virtually unchanged for generations. Testing the Y Chromosome provides a genetic fingerprint which can be used to prove or disprove relationships with others of the same surname.
Family Tree recommends beginning with the simplest test, the 12-marker Y Chromosome test, which costs $99 and is sufficient to determine if two men are related.
Each of the 12 markers is designated by a number. A match on all 12 numbers indicates a 50 percent chance the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) is within the last 14 generations. However, when used in conjunction with conventional genealogical research, it is possible to identify the MRCA. I hoped that research linking Elkanah to Henry Mead could be substantiated through DNA testing. There was no Mead DNA project at the time, so I became the administrator of the Family Tree DNA Mead Surname Project.
The Canadian descendant of Henry Mead has a brother who was willing to participate in the project. My 89-year-old father was the first member of the Mead Surname Project. Obtaining his test sample was easy and painless. The procedure consisted of swabbing the inside of the cheek with what appears to be a tiny toothbrush to obtain a saliva sample. The swab is placed into a small vile for transport to the testing lab. The test is repeated a few hours later. All instructions are very clear and a mailing envelope is provided.
About six weeks later, I received notice that my father's DNA and that of Henry Mead's descendant were a 12/12 match. My research was confirmed. Eli Mead was my great, great, great grandfather. My aged father and a Canadian gentleman had provided genetic fingerprints proving they share a common ancestor who lived five generations and more than two centuries ago.
As is the case with so many genealogical researchers, I hit a "brick wall" trying to determine the identity of Eli's father. The only documented research uncovered was a Revolutionary War Pension Deposition given by an Eli Mead, who was born in Nine Partners, NY, in 1762 and lived in Wantage, NJ, between 1790 and 1838. Last October, my husband and I went to Sussex County, NJ, but were unable to uncover any additional information on Eli.
Then, a new member joined the Mead DNA Project, who has proven lineage to William Mead's line through the descendants who settled in the Nine Partners area of New York. My father's DNA is also a 12/12 match with that of William's descendant, indicating my ancestor, Eli, came from William's line.
Future research may show a more recent common ancestor or a more distant one. My father's test is in the process of being upgraded to a 37-marker one, which is more refined and able to give a greater probability of a MRCA. I expect the additional information will be valuable now that I know my lineage comes from the mass of Meads who lived in Dutchess County, NY, in the 1700s.
As more members join the project and paper trails are compared, it is believed various Mead lines will be identified and genetic fingerprints can be provided that link them, not only to William, but to Gabriel and the Quaker and Irish Meads, as well.
If this article has aroused your interest, please go to www.familytreedna.com. There you will find some answers to your questions, a wonderful tutorial on DNA 101 and an opportunity to join the Mead DNA Surname Project, which is open to all males who carry the Mead, Meade, Mede, Meed or Meagh surname.
(FOOTNOTE: Carolyn believes her ancestors accompanied Darius and Eli Mead to Pennsylvania where they founded the town of Meadville in 1788. They are descendants of the William-John I-Jonathan II line. For further information on DNA, Carolyn can be reached by e-mail at www.noelcaro@aol.com.)
Every Tom, Dick and Harry is named William!
By VANCE MEAD
One of the greatest problems about researching the first Meads in America is that so many of the early immigrants were named William. Many researchers must wish the parents of these settlers had shown more consideration for future genealogists and given their children distinctive names such as Engelbert or Marmaduke.
This is particularly true in the case of the William Mead who lived in Bucks County of Pennsylvania in the early years of the 18th century. There were six or seven William Meads in Maryland and Pennsylvania during the period between 1680 and 1720.
On Oct. 8, 1681, William Mead was among about 25 men of Cecil County, Maryland, who wrote a petition complaining about the "rude, imperious and insolent behavior" of Edward Inglish, sheriff of Cecil County.
On Nov. 12, 1683, William Mead of Middlesex, aged 27, signed an indenture with the agent John Smith to sail from London to Virginia on the Mary under Capt. Tippett. He was to be an indentured servant for a period of four years. Of the 11 indentured servants on this voyage, nine went to Maryland and two went to Virginia.
In Oct. 1687, William Meades was an executor of the will of John Cobreath "of the Clifts" in Calvert County, Md. Born in about 1650, William Meades, the elder, planter, of Calvert County, left a will dated May 21, 1720. In it, he mentions his wife, Jane; son, William, and daughters Sarah Hardesty (wife of William) and daughters Ann Sanders and Mary Jarman, the wife of Robert Jarman. And, in April 1721, William Meades of Calvert County, probably the son of the William Meades and Jane, left a will in which he mentions his wife, Eliza, and his daughter, Mary. One of the witnesses was Thomas Hardesty.
William Mead appeared several times in the judicial records of Somerset County, Md, on the Delmarva Peninsula, starting with a court case in May 1588.
On Nov. 28, 1689, there was an address of loyalty from the inhabitants of Somerset County to the new king and queen of England, William and Mary. In the long list of names was William Mead. In 1691, also in Somerset County, William Mead was a witness to the will of William Hearne. The will was proved in open court by the oaths William Mead and Peter Dent, the tenth day of Nov. 1691. In Sept. 1692, he was living on a plantation "near to Dividing Creek" in Somerset County. William Mead, bricklayer, was a witness in cases in June and Nov. 1693 and in Jan. 1695/96. Also in Somerset County, in 1692, John Meads was the commander of the ship, Samuel.
In 1693, in a tax list for Chester County, Pa., in the township of Chester on the Delaware River, there was an item, "John Childe for William Meade." This may mean that John Childe, the deputy master of the rolls, paid the tax for William Meade.
In 1703, William Mead witnessed a deed in Bucks County, Pa. He was in the Bucks County records several times during the next 10 years or so. On March 7, 1725/26, William Mead's son, also named William, was mentioned in the will of Martha Darke of Falls Township, Bucks County. Martha's niece, Ellen Worrell, married William Mead, the younger.
On the second day of December, 1726/27, i.e. Feb. 2, 1727, William Mead and Ann Abrell, daughter of Richard Abrell of Cecil County in the Province of Maryland, were married at the New Garden Quaker Meeting in Nottingham in the County of Chester, Pa. Richard and Elizabeth Abrell were present at the marriage, but William Mead was not, perhaps because he was no longer living by then.
Which brings us full circle. It seems likely John was the son, or possibly grandson, of the William Mead first mentioned in Cecil County in 1681.
I don't have any information about William, where he came from or what his parents' names were, but I will bet his father's name was William. Or, if not, John.
VERMONT HERITAGE
A strong Mead family presence
MEAD MEMORIAL CHAPEL IN MIDDLEBURY
By LEE MEADE
(All photos for this article were taken by LANCE MEAD, a Vermont native)
The State of Vermont is one of the nation's smallest, remotely hidden in the upper northeastern reaches of the U.S. without much fanfare, however, when its rich continental history is examined, few others can stand beside it as rivals.
For the Mead family, which stood at the very beginning of 18th Century exploration, Vermont represented both a challenge and an opportunity. Perhaps, early Mead pioneers had seen the state's rich forests and inviting valleys waiting as tempting areas to be settled. But, when James Mead arrived at Center Rutland in the fall of 1769, he likely couldn't believe the beauty he had come upon.
Today, nearly 300 years later, the adventurous and many creative accomplishments of Mead and those who followed him, are afixed across the state among government, education, commerce and the pride of its overall heritage.
James Mead was a fourth generation American and the son of Timothy Mead and Martha Weeks when he came to Vermont from Greenwich, Ct., by way of Nine Partners in Dutchess County, N.Y. When his wife died in 1823, she was the progenitor of 12 children, 92 grandchildren, 154 great grandchildren and 10 great, great grandchildren.
THE FALLS AT RUTLAND, VT
When Col. James moved to Vermont in 1769, the Meads were believed to be the first white people to settle in the state. They spent their first night in an Indian wigwam on the banks of Otter Creek near Rutland. Later, he built a log cabin about six blocks west which eventually became one of the state's historic sites.
William, the 11th child of James and Mercy, eventually settled near Granville, Ohio, where his tombstone carries the inscription: "He was the first white child born in Rutland." This was later disproved since there were French inhabitants who lived in the area earlier. But, William may well have been the first English-born Vermonter.
MEAD TAVERN IN RUTLAND
Another story which describes the difficult life early pioneers endured concerned the Battle of Bennington. When a band of hostile Indians raided the Mead farm in 1777, Mercy Mead grabbed her two youngest sons and carried them on horseback, one in front of her and the other behind, to safety.
Much of the historic preservation which has occurred in the state was the result of Dr. John Abner Mead, a prominent governor of Vermont and president of one of its largest manufacturing companies. He built the Mead Memorial Chapel and dedicated it to the memory of his uncle, John W. Mead, who died in 1840 at the age of 19 while attending Middlebury University. John Abner also was president of the Howe Richardson Scale Company.
MEAD BUILDING IN RUTLAND, VT
Vermont, best identified as the location of the Green Mountain Range which runs the length of the state from south to north, has less than a million population. Its largest metropolitan areas are Burlington and Rutland. Its capital is Montpelier.
Strategically located along the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, Vermont was a key battleground in the early wars among the American colonists and British against the Canadian French and Indian settlers.
Between Us ...
LISA MEADE KIRKBRIDE
By LEE MEADE
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, the most important thing in my life was the outcome of a softball game my daughter, Lisa, was about to play. She was 15, the youngest of our four athletically gifted children. Her team had won the Minnesota state championship the previous year and had competed in the national tournament at Meridian, Miss., losing both its two starts.
The coach of that team had resigned since his daughter was moving up to a higher classification. With nobody to take his place, I volunteered. Now, this was just a neighborhood team of young girls, but, as defending state champions, there was some pressure on its new coach to repeat.
When the time arrived, we were ready. We won our first game by a dozen runs or more. And, we carried that momentum through much of the season. But, late in July, the time came when we had to win to qualify once again for the state tournament. Our opponent was a team we already had beaten and didn't seem to pose too much of a problem. However, they scored first and kept on scoring until we faced a "there's no more tomorrow" in the bottom of the seventh inning.
I glanced at the lineup to see who we would send to the plate. We had battled our way back, but we needed six runs to tie the game. I saw no way for us to win. But, our team rallied and closed the gap. Finally, we were within two runs and Lisa was coming to bat with baserunners on first and third. Two batters already were out.
My daughter was not a long-ball hitter. Generally, she hit a line drive over second base. She was, at best, a double hitter. But, that would tie the game, so I called time out and motioned for Lisa to meet me between third and home.
"We need a two-base hit," I told her. "But, don't watch the ball, watch me." Then, I had another thought. "If it goes into the outfield, just start running ... and watch me."
Lisa hit a solid fly ball directly over second base and past the defensive outfielder. As the tying runs scored, I focused on the defender as she chased the ball. She was just picking it up as Lisa made the turn at second. From my coaching box on third base, I waved frantically for her to keep on coming. Then, I sent her home, and she slid across the plate ahead of the throw with the winning run. We were in the state tournament again!
* * *
THESE WERE THOUGHTS that came back to me in February as Helen and I drove across Arizona on a spring vacation. Lisa went on to earn a Bachelor's Degree in fine arts at Wisconsin State University at Stout and is a self-employed sales rep now, working out of her home in Chanhassen, Minn. In her first year, she won the company's Rookie of the Year award. We seldom phone her in the morning so we do not interupt her work. But, call it a mother's tuition or whatever, Helen decided to phone. I knew immediately from the expression on her face it was not good news.
"Lisa has been diagnosed with breast cancer," my wife told me. As happens frequently to "other" people, our life's direction changed in a moment. We headed for Minnesota to be with our daughter.
She has since underwent surgery, and is doing well. She has chemotherapy ahead of her and still faces the long recovery process. The other day, Lisa sent us a card thanking us for the gift of a hat she will wear while re-growing her hair: "It has meant so much to me to have you by our side through this all. I hope we all learn how precious life and our families are and make a concentrated effort to live life to the fullest. I love you!"
It has made me proud to watch Lisa and her husband meet these unknowns of life. It gives me confidence to realize she will be swinging for the fence and hitting more home runs as she faces the difficulties that lie before them.
Our life has been blessed as parents. Until now, we have lived it without experiencing problems we have only read about, but to those among our readers who have endured, we send our empathy and God-filled wishes.
This publication is supported totally by donations. If you would like to help, contributions can be sent to the Mead-e Family Tree at the address above. One hundred percent of any funds received will be used to defray the expenses of producing the newsletter and are tax deductible.
Queries and requests for information
If you need help on locating Mead/Meade/Meagh family information, let us help. We will attempt to send you information on all requests. Please include e-mail and address.
Awesome website
One of the best new websites on Mead/Meade/Meagh family information is www.meadresearchers@yahoogroups.com. The webmaster is Wanda Mead Campbell. The site attempts to trace the family tree in America, beginning with its earliest known start in the 17th Century colonies. Life in Greenwich, CT, and the Nine Partners area of Dutchess County, NY, are featured.
The "Hit" Parade
The last issue of the newsletter was the most popular since we began last year. A total of 1,406 viewers read the issue. Past issues were viewed by 846 last spring, 934 last summer and 862 last fall. The total for four issues is 4,053. We thank you for your support.
