Monday Madness, Just Another Roadblock- Thomas Darwin Lillie

This is an old post that I am bringing to the front for MONDAY MADNESS. Thomas Darwin Lillie has truly driven ME to madness! I have searched high and low, all over the place and just can not figure out what happened to him, here is his story as I know it;

Thomas Lillie is the father of my great-grandmother, Melissa Jane Lillie Raeburn.

Thomas disappeared sometime after the 1870 Michigan census recording. Here’s a little history:

Thomas b abt 1826 in New York, possibly in Cortland County his father is found on census[s] there during this time frame. The first census I found Thomas on was the 1850 census next door to his parents Joseph & Esther Lillie in Harrison Twp, Potter County Pennsylvania. Thomas was listed with his wife Anna [Youker] and son John G. Lillie.

Thomas has 5 known siblings William, Elizabeth, James, Charles and Emily.
Elizabeth married Rhodes Wilkinson and stayed in the area.
William married Thankful [nee Rice I believe] and later moved to Wetzel County West Virginia and is found [only] on the 1880 census.
Charles and Emily “disappear” after the 1850 census as do parents Joseph & Esther, and are not found in area cemeteries.

Thomas and his brother James take their families to Lynden twp, Washtenaw County, Michigan and are listed on the 1860 census there as one household. Thomas now has 6 children John, Esther, Frank, Melissa, Nelson and Simeon. By 1870 both families are listed in the Springport Twp, Jackson County Michigan census as neighbors. Both men are farmers. After this census Thomas disappears. Death records have been searched at the Library of Michigan for Thomas.

James Lille [Thomas's brother] along with Thomas’s son John are found in the 1872 Gazetteer & Directory of Nottawasaga Twp, Simcoe County ONTARIO as joint owners of Cons 9 Lot 13, land adjoining the Raeburn’s. No death record or other record for Thomas was found in Ontario. He is still MIA....

Thomas’s wife Anna is found with her children on the 1880 census in Blair Twp, Grand Traverse County, Michigan near her brother[s] families. Anna is listed as MARRIED, and son John is the head of the household-apparently back from Ontario. Thomas is not found in the Grand Traverse County death records, cemetery lists or census.

James is found on the 1880 census in Fontanelle, Adair, Iowa with his family. No sign of Thomas. Perhaps there may be another mad story on Thomas..providing I ever find him.

There is no family folklore on him...we didn't even have his name correct-it was written as John [which is really his son's name]

WHAT ON EARTH HAPPENED TO THOMAS????

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Your Paternal Grandmother's Patrilineal Line

Deleted post.

Smile For The Camera, 11th Edition~~brothers & sisters

Byard, Barbara, Lee, Dean & Beth Raeburn~brothers & sisters
My dad and his siblings were definitely a one for all and all for one clan. Aunt Beth isn't in this photo for some reason...perhaps because she was the baby of the family like me and was 7 years younger than my dad [the two youngest of 5] The Raeburn clan grew up in Sault Saint Marie Michigan. This photo was taken sometime just before WWII.

Left to right top row: Marjorie Lee Raeburn Bates, Byard Raeburn, my cousin Michael Craig Durwin~Barbara's son, my dad Dean Raeburn
Middle row: Barbara Raeburn Durwin, Mae Wheeler Mathews my grandma's sister, my grandma Ethel Wheeler Raeburn, Ida Wheeler Panter~sister of g'ma,Ida~a friend
Bottom row: Esther Dittman Raeburn [my dad's 1st wife], Violet Raeburn~Byard's wife, Barbara's husband Oscar Thomas Durwin, Marjorie Wheeler Wilms ~g'ma's sister, 'Fuzz'O.N. Wilms

Dorothy Elizabeth Raeburn, 'Beth'

Rambling again...

Being the baby of the entire Raeburn family, born much later than my siblings and cousins, I know virtually nada about the entire clan. I became interested in genealogy about the time my oldest son had to do a family history in his 10th grade social studies ? class. Many of the family members had passed away, luckily my Aunt Barb gathered what information she had obtained from her mother and wrote it down. Much of it correct but a lot I had to dig deeper and subsequently found a lot of unknown information. This really intrigued me. More digging. I have plenty of stats and now what I lack are photos and a sense of who the folks were and what they did. I realize I will need to do more digging yet!

I started this blog with blinders on, concentrating on the roadblock of wondering who were William Raeburn Sr’s siblings and parents. I may never really find that out...and be left with only my conclusions. So I need to expand this blog to the ENTIRE paternal line and branches! I have plenty of other roadblocks, and I need to find a way of “seeing” who these people of mine were....and connecting with people is always a bonus.

I have contacted a cousin of my fathers and now will contact yet another. Could I possibly convince them to jot down their memories? It all helps and just by the conversations I have had, what they remember is certainly interesting even though they may have thought it wasn’t.

Well, lets see what I may learn.....