10. Winfield Scott Kenyon - Painted Hills Genealogy Society

Transcription

Chapter 10 of
The Kenyons of Cattaraugus Co, NY
Winfield Scott Kenyon
Richard L. Kenyon
This chapter is one of a series of 24 chapters which cover the lives and descendants
of the pioneer Kenyon and Kinyon families of Cattaraugus Co, NY. Their Kenyon
ancestors are traced all the way back to the first Kenyons to arrive in the Colony of
Rhode Island. Hall, Champlin and Mayflower ancestors are also included.
List of Chapters
Chapter
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
24.
23.
24.
Title
Madison S. Kinyon (m1 Polly Warner, m2 Sarah Fults)
James and Elizabeth Kenyon
Erastus and Amy (Kenyon) Champlin
Ancestors of Erastus and Amy Champlin
Merritt and Lovisa (Fuller) Kenyon
Remington and Thankful (Barber) Kenyon
Jeremiah and Sarah (Emerson) Kenyon
Addison and Mary (Hunton) Kenyon
Horace and Delia (Lake) Kenyon
Winfield Scott Kenyon (m1 Mina Milks, m2 Olive Guernsey)
Nathan T. and Anna (Hall) Kenyon
Samuel and Clarissa (Trowbridge) Kenyon
Freeman and Mary (Reynolds) Kenyon
Josiah Kenyon and family (married 5 times)
Asa B. and Betsy Kenyon
Identifying M. S. Kinyon’s father and grandfather
Identifying M. S. Kinyon’s brothers
John S. (Sr.) and Susan (Sheldon) Kinyon
John S. (Jr.) and Eliza (Sherman) Kinyon.
Silvester S. and Tenta (Root) Kenyon
Mathew S. Kinyon (m1 unknown, m2 Rebeca Stanley)
Nelson S. and Louis (Smead) Kinyon
The first Kenyons in America
Thomas W. and Sylva (Saunders) Kinyon
The first Kenyons in America
Chapter 10 of
The Kenyons of Cattaraugus County, NY
and his descendants
Richard L. Kenyon
Jan 16, 2011
E-mail: rlkenyon@cox.net
32 Almond Tree Lane, Irvine CA 92612-2230
1. Introduction
Winfield Scott Kenyon was one of the seven children of Horace and Delia Kenyon,
pioneer settlers in Cattaraugus County, New York. This family and their Kenyon
ancestors are described in Chapter 9, “Horace and Delia (Lake) Kenyon.” So
much is known about Winfield Scott Kenyon and his descendants that we have
prepared this separate chapter to cover the subject in detail.
Winfield Scott was a Civil War veteran who was captured at Gettysburg. He was
married twice. He had a son by his first wife Mina Milks, and five children by his
second wife Olive Guernsey. His daughter Bernice and her husband were the
victims of one of the most shocking murders in Cattaraugus County history, which
is widely remembered even today. The murder inspired the historical novel
Coldspring by Cheri Mancuso and John Scarano.
This chapter is organized as follows:
Introduction ....................................................................................... page 1
Youth and the Civil War ................................................................... page 2
First marriage: Mina Milks ............................................................... page 3
Second marriage: Olive Guernsey.................................................... page 3
Children of Winfield Scott Kenyon .................................................. page 5
The Murder of Harold and Bernice (Kenyon) Farnsworth................ page 12
Postscript ........................................................................................... page 14
Acknowledgements ........................................................................... page 14
Sources .............................................................................................. page 15
Appendix: Page from Scott’s Civil War pension file ....................... page 19
11 Winfield Scott Kenyon
Page 1
He is posed with campaign hat, Civil War medals, and cigar.
(collection of Cheri Mancuso)
Youth and the Civil War
Winfield Scott Kenyon was the fourth child of Horace and Delia Kenyon. He was
born Dec 12, 1839 in New Albion, Cattaraugus Co. NY. He was probably named
after the famous general who had fought in the Buffalo and Lake Erie region
during the War of 1812, and who later played a major role in the Indian Wars. He
was variously called Winfield Scott, W. Scott, W. S. or just Scott.
Scott was almost 23 when he joined Company B of the 154th Regiment of the New
York Infantry. Known as the Hardtack Regiment, it consisted of volunteers
recruited from Cattaraugus and Chautauqua Counties to fight in the Civil War.
The 154th mustered at Jamestown, NY, on Sep 24, 1862. Their first battle began
May 1, 1863 at Chancellorsville, VA. They suffered 228 casualties (men killed,
wounded or missing). On Jul 1, 1863, at Gettysburg PA, they were again engaged
by Confederate forces, and suffered 200 casualties. Scott was captured by the
enemy during this battle and taken to Richmond, VA, where he was imprisoned.
He was later released. The Regiment was dissolved at the end of the war, and
Scott was discharged Jun 25, 1865, with the rank of corporal.
Page 2
First marriage: Mina Milks
On Feb 28, 1858, when Scott was 18 years old, he had a son Allison by Frances
Mina Milks (known as Mina), the daughter of Prince* William and Elizabeth
(Philbrick) Milks of Napoli, Cattaraugus Co. Mina was born in 1841 in
Cattaraugus Co. Their marriage date is unknown. They were divorced in Erie Co,
PA (adjacent to Cattaraugus Co) on Feb 23, 1871. We doubt that Mina raised
Allison, for Allison, age 2, appears in the 1860 census living with the Horace
Kenyon family, while Mina is living with her parents and using her maiden name.
In 1870 and 1880 Allison lived with Scott and Mina was again not present. After
the divorce, Mina married a Mr. Whitacaer and then Clarendon Day. Allison was
Mina’s only child. Mina died in 1920, probably in Little Valley, Cattaraugus Co.
Second marriage: Olive Livonia Guernsey
J. W. Taylor, Randolph, NY
Blessing Studios Salamanca
On Dec 5, 1871, in Randolph, Cattaraugus Co, Scott married Olive Livonia
Guernsey, daughter of Dr. Oliver and Sally (Crowley) Guernsey of Randolph.
Olive was born May 6, 1841 in Randolph. She joined the DAR (Daughters of the
American Revolution), as did her daughters Bernice and Morna. Their ancestor
who fought in the Revolutionary War was David Bent Sr., born 1730 in
Massachusetts and died there in 1798.
Sally (Crowley) Guernsey
Dr. Oliver Guernsey, Jr.
The parents of Winfield Scott Kenyon’s wife Olive Guernsey
(Collection of Cheri Mancuso)
* Prince is his first name and is not a title.
Page 3
Olive (Guernsey) Kenyon and husband Winfield Scott Kenyon
Dora
Edith
Morna
Bernice
Children of Olive and Winfield Scott Kenyon
Page 4
Scott was awarded a Civil War pension in 1865, on the basis that service-related
disability partially prevented him from earning a living by manual labor. Doctors’
reports indicated that he had rheumatism and a weakened heart. But Scott did not
really earn his living by manual labor. He bought and sold real estate, and is
known to have had oil lease income from property he owned in Derrick City, PA,
not far from where he lived. He also owned a piano and organ store in Randolph.
Scott was an enthusiastic member of the Sherwood post of the GAR (Grand Army
of the Republic), an association Civil War veterans). He also served as president
of the Western New York Association of Ex-prisoners of War, organized in
Randolph about 1886.
Scott and Olive lived for many years in Randolph, moving to Salamanca about
1901, to a home at the edge of the Alleghany River.
The family home on Front Ave. in Salamanca was across from the Allegheny
River.
—collection of Cheri Mancuso
Olive died at age 68 in Salamanca on April 16, 1910. Scott died March 13, 1919,
at age 79, at his home at 29 Front Ave, Salamanca. The GAR attended the funeral
as a group. His remains were taken by train to Randolph for interment in
Randolph Rural Cemetery (as was also the case for Olive).
!
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1. Son Allison by first wife Mina
Allison was born Feb 28, 1858 in Otto, Cattaraugus Co, NY. He died at age 57 on
Jul 22, 1915, in the town of Frewsburg, Chautauqua Co, NY. On Dec 22, 1888 in
Jamestown, NY, Allison married Lephe Angela Guernsey, daughter of Oliver
Page 5
Crowley and Laura (Wyman) Guernsey. Lephe was pronounced “Leefee.”
Lephe’s father was a brother of Winfield Scott Kenyon’s second wife Olive.
Lephe was born May 8, 1856 in Randolph, NY, and died in Frewsburg at age 62 on
Mar 21, 1918.
Lephe Angela Guernsey, wife of Allison Kenyon. No photo of Allison has been
found.
—Photo by J. W. Taylor, Randolph, NY, Collection of Barbara Williams
Gravestone of Allison and Lephe Kenyon, Maple Grove Cemetery, Frewsburg,
Town of Carroll, Chautauqua Co.
—photo by Barb Cessna
Page 6
Allison was a farmer. The family lived about 3 years in South Valley and then
moved to Randolph. Six years later they moved to New Albion. By 1902, they
moved to Frewsburg, Chautauqua Co, NY, which is not far from New Albion.
Allison and Lephe are buried in Maple Grove Cemetery, in Frewsburg.
Allison and Lephe had two children:
a. Ray Guernsey Kenyon: Born Jun 30, 1891 in South Valley, Cattaraugus
Co, NY, and died at the age of 86 on Aug 4, 1977. Married about 1921 to
Cathren Ann Van Arsdale, the daughter of Frank and Alice Van Arsdale.
She was born May 2, 1891 in Frewsburg, and died there Dec 22, 1959, at age
68. Ray and Cathren are buried at Maple Grove Cemetery in Frewsburg. Ray
was a Private in the US Army in World War I, serving in France with the 59th
Engineering Division. His last employer prior to retirement was in the paint
shop of Art Metal Inc. Ray and Cathren had two children and five
grandchildren:
i. Doris Kenyon: Born Sep 8, 1921, Jamestown. Died at age 80 Apr 7,
2002. Married to Clifford E. Gustafson, son of Ernest and Anna
(Sadowski) Gustafson, who was born Jul 9, 1917 and died Sep 15, 2006
at age 89. Children:
1. Barbara Gustafson: Living in Jamestown, NY. Married to
Donald Williams.
2. Karen Gustafson: Living in Jamestown, NY. Married to Ronald
Oberg.
3. Linda Gustafson: Living in Torrance, CA. Married to John
Dahlgren.
ii. Rosemary Kenyon: Born Sep 29, 1926 in Jamestown, Chautauqua Co.
Living in Chautauqua Co. Married to Wildrick Ward, who was born
Dec 3, 1922 and died Mar 17, 1991 in Frewsburg, NY. Two children:
1. Steven Ward: Born in 1900. Died in 2005.
2. Susan Ward: Living in Frewsburg, NY. Married a Mr. Brunecz
from whom she is divorced.
b. Arthur Scott Kenyon: Born Mar 13, 1894 in Randolph, Cattaraugus Co,
NY. Died at age 26 on November 12, 1920. On Dec 30, 1914 he married
Goldie James, daughter of Alfred and Oliva James. Goldie was born Aug 23,
1894 in the village of Ashville, town of Jamestown, Chautauqua Co. After the
premature death of Arthur, Goldie married Carl O. Peterson. He died Jan 23,
1957. Goldie died Feb 6, 1966 at age 71 and was buried in Maple Grove
Cemetery, Frewsburg, beside her first husband Arthur. Arthur and Goldie
were survived by two daughters, and five grandchildren:
i. Ruth Kenyon: Born about 1916, Frewsburg, Chautauqua Co. Married
Ed Beckstrom. Both are deceased. Two children:
1. Bruce Beckstrom: No additional information.
Page 7
2. Bonnie Beckstrom: No additional information.
ii. Dorothy Kenyon: Born about 1918, Frewsburg, Chautauqua Co.
Married Harold Hanson. Both are deceased. Three children:
1. Patricia Hanson: Living in Tonowanda, NY. Married to a Mr.
Erickson.
2. Joyce Hanson: Deceased by 2003. Married Andrew S. Passinger,
who is living.
3. Kenyon Hanson: Living in Jamestown, NY. Married to Vicky.
Few photos of Ray and Cathren Kenyon and family have been found. At top: Ray
and Cathren. Bottom left: Ray as an infant. Bottom right: and Ray and Cathren’s
children Rosemary and Doris.
All photos are from the collection of Barbara Williams via Karen Oberg.
photographed by M. S. Lovell, Randolph, NY.
Ray as an infant was
Page 8
Gravestone of Arthur Kenyon and his wife Goldie at Maple Grove Cemetery, Town
of Carroll, Chautauqua Co, NY. After Arthur’s untimely death at age 26, Goldie
remarried to Carl Peterson, but she is buried with her first husband.
Gravestone of Cathren and Ray Kenyon at Maple Grove Cemetery.
Curiously, there is a second gravestone for Ray Kenyon commemorating his
World War I service.
—all three photos by Barb Cessna
Page 9
Scott’s children by Olive
Scott had five children by his second wife Olive:
2. Morna G. Kenyon: Born Jun 18, 1873 in Randolph, Cattaraugus Co. Died in
Salamanca, Cattaraugus Co, Jun 27, 1962 at age 89, and buried in Randolph
Rural Cemetery. She did not marry. She was a graduate of the Chamberlain
Institute, Randolph, and taught music for many years. She was the organist at
the First Congregational Church, a charter member of the Madrigal Club of
Salamanca, and member of the DAR.
2. Dora G. Kenyon: Born Sep 30, 1874. Died in Salamanca in 1940 at about age
66, and buried in Randolph Rural Cemetery. No occupation. She did not
marry.
3. Edith G. Kenyon: Born Oct 16, 1877. Died at age 69 on Jun 23, 1947 in
Salamanca. Married John Lynn Blessing (known as J. Lynn Blessing) about
1903. He was born Feb 1879, the son of John H. and Addie Blessing. He died
Oct 26, 1947, at age 68, in Salamanca. He was a professional photographer in
Salamanca, first working with his father, and then taking over the business. He
retired in 1945. Both Edith and Lynn are buried in Wildwood Cemetery,
Salamanca. Children:
a. John Winfield Blessing: Born Jul 18, 1907 in Salamanca. Died at age 55
on Dec 9, 1962 at the State Hospital in Gowanda, Cattaraugus Co, NY.
Interred in Wildwood Cemetery, Salamanca.
b. Rupert Lynn Blessing: Born Oct 20, 1908 in Salamanca. Died at age 21
on Sep 15, 1930, in a hospital at Seneca Falls, Seneca Co, NY, the victim of
an auto accident. He was a pharmacy student at Hobart College. Buried in
Wildwood Cemetery, Salamanca.
c. Olive Kenyon Blessing: Born Nov 7, 1911 in Salamanca. She died at age
90 on Nov 5, 2002 in Modesto, CA, and was interred in Wildwood
Cemetery, Salamanca. She married Joseph Carlson in 1969. He died in
1993. Olive was a graduate of Salamanca High School, Buffalo State
College, and the University of Rochester. She taught in Salamanca Central
Schools and Jamestown Public Schools for 35 years, retiring in 1969. She
was the family historian.
d. Robert William Blessing. Born Apr 15, 1923 in Salamanca. Robert died
of a heart attack at age 46 on Jan 29, 1970, and was buried in Wildwood
Cemetery, Salamanca. He served in the Army in World War II. After
graduation from High School, he moved to Rochester, NY, where he worked
for the Eastman Kodak Co. in Rochester, NY. He married Jeanne E.
Woodruff.
4. Bernice G. Kenyon: Born Oct 19, 1878. Died Mar 5, 1935 at age 56 in
Coldspring, Cattaraugus Co. Occupation: Court Stenographer and secretary to
the presiding judge in Salamanca, Cattaraugus Co. She was a DAR member.
Married 1934 to Harold C. Farnsworth, who was born Aug 20, 1897 in VT,
and who died Mar 5, 1935 in Coldspring. Bernice and her husband were
murdered. See Section 5 for a complete account.
5. Son: Born Jun 2, 1882, died Jul 1882.
Page 10
Dora
Morna
Edith and her husband J. Lynn Blessing
Bernice
Children of Olive and Winfield Scott Kenyon
—Photos from the collection of Cheri Mancuso
Page 11
The murder of Harold and Bernice (Kenyon) Farnsworth
Winfield Scott Kenyon’s daughter Bernice and her husband Harold Farnsworth
were victims of one of the most shocking and tragic murders ever to occur in
Cattaraugus County.
Bernice Kenyon at age 50
—collection of Cheri Mancuso
The following account was published in the Dunkirk Evening Observer, March 9,
1935:
Randolph, N. Y., March 9 (UP)—Death at the hands of a murderer has ended the
strange romance between Harold Farnsworth, 36, reformed convict, and his wife, the
former Miss Bernice Kenyon, 57, stenographer in the court in which he was
sentenced.
The bodies of Farnsworth and his wife were found yesterday in their immaculate
lamp-lit cottage in the seclusion of the Cattaraugus backwoods. Farnsworth had been
shot to death; his wife hacked to death with a double-edged axe. The axe was found
but the gun which fired the fatal shots was missing. The couple had been dead since
Wednesday. A search was started for an unnamed hired man, also believed to be a
man with a criminal record.
Farnsworth and his wife were married last summer after his release from prison.
They met for the first time five years ago, when the murdered man appeared in
Salamanca court to answer a charge of illegal possession of weapons—his third
offense. The then Miss Kenyon was [court] stenographer and secretary for Judge Orla
A. Block, the presiding jurist. A friendship between the two blossomed despite the
unfavorable conditions.
When Farnsworth was sentenced to serve five years at Auburn and Great Meadows
prisons, he promised Miss Kenyon that he would be a model prisoner and “go
straight” after he was released. His good behavior won him freedom under parole last
summer.
Page 12
The money he received from the state upon his release was all that he had in the world
but was sufficient to take him back to Salamanca to the middle-aged woman who had
written him continually while he was confined in prison, encouraging him to maintain
his resolution to reform. Miss Kenyon aided him and a few weeks later they were
married and settled down in the lonely backwoods farmhouse Mrs. Farnsworth
purchased to escape her lover’s past and to start life anew. Their nearest neighbor
was one mile away.
Cattle were purchased and milk sold at Steamburg to provide an income.
Yesterday, a hired man of the nearest neighbor went to the farm to aid the
Farnsworths in carrying wood. He found the cows in the barn bellowing from hunger
and lack of milking. Neither Farnsworth nor his wife were in sight. He reported back
to his employer who discovered the bodies and notified Sheriff Lester Carlson.
Farnsworth’s body was found at the foot of stairs leading to the upper story of the
house. He had been shot three times. The body of his wife was found horribly
mutilated in the cellar of the house where she had apparently sought to escape the
killer’s fury.
A widespread search for the hired man was started and the aid of state police asked.
The man was believed to have escaped in Farnsworth’s automobile. Motive for the
slayings was not known.
The house in which the Farnsworths lived, although isolated in the backwoods, gave
evidence of refinement. The house was tastefully furnished and contained picturesque
bric-a-brac. Polished oil lamps furnished light.
From the appearance of the home and from stories told by farmers in this area it was
apparent to investigators that the couple had lived happily since their marriage.
Suspicion immediately fell on Alfred Lindsay who was the prison cellmate of
Harold and had been released on the same day. Unable to find work, the
Farnsworths, as an act of compassion, had given him employment as a hired hand,
but fired him after finding him incapable of honest work.
The killer had looted Bernice’s cash box and stolen her car to make his getaway.
The stolen car was found abandoned in New York City. On March 11, 1935,
NYPD detectives Walter Clancey and John Notheis noticed a man in a 6th Ave
restaurant who seemed unusually nervous, and was wearing gloves despite the
comfortable temperature in the restaurant. They asked him to remove his gloves,
and they saw the words “true love” tattooed on his fingers. This corresponded to
the description of Albert Lindsay on a wanted sheet. They arrested him on
suspicion of the murder of Bernice and Harold Farnsworth.
As reported in the Dunkirk Evening Observer on Apr 1, 1935:
Little Valley, April 1—(UP)—. Denied a change of venue, Alfred J. Lindsay, 29,
paroled convict, was scheduled today to go on trial today charged with first degree
murder in connection with the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Harold C. Farnsworth on their
farm in the Cattaraugus county backwoods near Randolph.
Lindsay and Farnsworth were prison mates. The accused man was employed by
Page 13
Farnsworth after their release from prison.
Lindsay, who will be tried specifically for killing Mrs. Farnsworth, admitted the
slayings but claimed that they resulted from an argument over money and that he had
been compelled to defend himself.
Self-defense might have been conceivable for killing Harold Farnsworth, but
Lindsay was tried only on the charge of killing Bernice. No jury would ever
believe that the 29-year-old Albert Lindsay needed to slaughter a 56 year-old
woman in order to defend himself. The jury promptly found him guilty of firstdegree murder.
The appeals process went unusually quickly and Albert Lindsay was electrocuted
at Sing Sing Prison on August 29, 1935.
Another sensational murder preceded that of Bernice and Harold, and it took place
very close to the same location. On January 3, 1874, Caleb Owens, age 60, was
brutally murdered with an axe by his stepson William Bourne. It took place in the
village of Steamburg, which was the closest village to the rural location where
Bernice and Harold lived. It is said that there is an Indian legend of a previous axe
murder close to the same location.
The book Coldspring, by Cheri Mancuso and John Scarano, is a historical novel
based on the murder of Bernice and Harold Farnsworth, and events that preceded
and followed it. Volume 1, Coldspring, was published in 2009. Volume 2,
Coldspring: the Trial, was published in 2010. Volume 3, Coldspring: The
Resolution, is currently in preparation. In preparing this chapter, we did not use
Coldpring as a source, preferring instead to use documented information dating
from the time of the event. This does not lessen the value of Coldspring as an
engaging, and very thought-provoking literary work, and we feel that it is well
worth reading.
8 Postscript
This chapter is part of a series that documents the Kenyon families who lived in
Cattaraugus County, New York, during the 19th century, and traces their
descendents and Kenyon Ancestors.
Readers are urged to contact the writer if they have any questions, additions,
corrections, or if they wish to be informed of newly discovered information.
Page 14
Acknowledgements
I am very grateful for extensive help from many people, without which this chapter
would have been impossible to write.
Cattaraugus County Historian Sharon Fellows found a large amount of important
information for me in the Cattaraugus County Museum and Research Library.
Barb Cessna, a Town of Carroll Historian, and researcher for the Fenton History
Center, did an exceptional job of finding information on the descendants of Scott’s
son Allison Kenyon. She also photographed the gravestones for me. Through
Barb, I located a number of living descendants of Allison, including Karen Oberg
who supplied additional details and the photos from the collection of Barbara
Williams.
Salamanca Public Library director Thomas Harbaugh and his staff were
indispensable for providing copies of Cattaraugus Co obituaries, and for alerting
me to the newly published book Coldspring, which was inspired by the life and
death of Bernice Kenyon.
I contacted the authors of Coldspring, Cheri Mancuso and John Scarano, and found
them to be extremely helpful. Cheri had inherited the family history collection of
Olive Blessing, a great granddaughter of Horace and Delia, and a granddaughter of
Winfield Scott Kenyon. The photographic portraits of Scott and his family came
from this exceptional collection—many thanks to John Scarano for scanning them
for me. The collection also provided sources for information on Winfield and
Olive Kenyon’s descendants.
Websites utilized to locate source material included the LDS Family Search,
Ancestry, Rootsweb, the Painted Hills Genealogical Society, and the Cattaraugus
Co Genweb.
Questions, Corrections and Additions
I welcome questions, corrections and additions. I can be contacted at the
e-mail or postal address at the top of page 1.
Sources
A note on birth dates: Relatives may notice
a few birth dates that differ from their records.
The birth dates of many people in this chapter
are from an era where it was not important to
know and prove one’s exact date of birth.
Thus the year of birth that was accepted many
years later is sometimes contradicted by early
records. When this occurs, we have used the
year of birth based on the age in the first
census in which the person appears. We
explain each of these situations individually.
Winfield Scott is included in the 2005
Garnsey Guernsey Genealogical Dictionary,
by Judith L. Young-Thayer (hereinafter
abbreviated Young-Thayer) in connection
with the Guernsey ancestors of his second
wife Olive Guernsey (p 198), and the
Guernsey ancestors of Lephe Angela
Guernsey who married Scott’s son Allison (p
160). Young-Thayer gives W. Scott Kenyon b
Dec 12 1843, but we have corrected the year
Page 15
to 1839 based on age 10 in the 1850 census
and Dec 1839 in the 1900 census. Scott’s
death date and place is from an affidavit in his
Civil War pension application file #381804.
His obituary appeared in the Salamanca
Republican, Mar 13, 1919, p 1, from which
details of the funeral were taken.
Scott’s marriage to Mina Milks is from a a
document in his Civil War pension file. It is
also included in Young-Thayer 2005.
Minas’ parents and her birth and death dates
are from History and Genealogy of the MilkMilks Family by Grace Croft, 1956, p 220221. Mina’s birth date agrees with age 9 in the
1850 census, NY, Cattaraugus Co, Napoli, p
69, living in the family of Johnathan Milks, a
brother. Her living with her parents and using
her maiden name after the birth of Allison is
from the 1860 census, NY, Cattaraugus Co,
Napoli, p 1106. After her second marriage
appears in the census as follows:
1900 NY Cattaraugus Co, New Albion, p 20A,
with husband Clarendon Day
1905 NY Cattaraugus Co, New Albion, p 1, with
husband Clarendon Day
1910 NY Cattaraugus Co, New Albion, p 8A,
with husband Clarendon Day.
1920 NY Cattaraugus Co, Little Valley, p 1B
residence of Mina Day, widow
The census confirms that Mina was married 3
times and had only one child.
Scott’s marriage to Olive Guernsey is from a
certificate executed by the presiding
clergyman (there is no public record) now in
the collection of Cheri Mancuso. In an
affidavit in his pension file, Scott gave a date
one day later (see Appendix).
Scott’s military service is from his pension
application file #381804 in the National
Archives.
The description of the 154th
Regiment is from the web page
www.hardtackregiment.com.
The casualty
statistics are from New York in the War of the
Rebellion, 3rd Ed, Frederick Phister, 1912.
Scott’s GAR membership is from his obituary
and gravestone inscription. His membership
in the Western NY Association of ExPrisoners of War is from the Olean Democrat,
Mar 10, 1887. Scott’s occupation is from the
census (piano and organ dealer 1875, oil
operator 1880, farmer 1892, speculator 1900,
real estate agent 1905, real estate 1910), and
from his granddaughter Cheri Mancuso. His
pension and medical details are from his Civil
War pension file. The year of moving to
Salamanca is from his wife Olive’s obituary.
The most definitive source for details on
Scott’s second wife Olive is Scott’s Civil War
pension file. Additional sources are YoungThayer 2005, p 98-199 (which includes her
ancestors), and Olive’s obituary, Salamanca
Republican Press, Apr 16, 1910. Her DAR
membership and Revolutionary War ancestor
are from the NSDAR database available on
their website www.dar.org.
Scott appears with his family in the census as
follows:
1875 NY Cattaraugus Co, Randolph, p 242,
family of W. S. Kenyon
1880 NY Cattaraugus Co, Randolph, p 77C,
family of W. Scott Kenyon
1892 NY Cattaraugus Co, Randolph p 1, family
of W. S. Kenyon
1900 NY Cattaraugus Co, Randolph village, p
14B, family of Scott Kenyon
1905 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 46, p
46, family of Winfield Kenyon
1910 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 5B,
family of Winfield S. Kenyon (indexed as
Winford).
The Ancestry transcription of
names of family members is flagrantly in
error.
Sources for the children of Winfield
Scott Kenyon
Scott submitted a list of his 5 children to
the Federal government.
The list is
included in his Civil War pension file, and
we have reproduced it on page 19. YoungThayer 2005 adds the son who died in
infancy.
1. Allison Kenyon: Birth date and place
from his Chautauqua Co death certificate, but
year corrected from 1857 to 1858 from age 2
in 1860 census. Feb 1859 was given in the
1900 census. His obituary was not found. His
marriage is from the census and his wife’s
obituary. His wife’s birth date and parents are
from Young-Thayer 2005. The places lived
are from the census and Young-Thayer 2005.
His death death date is from his death
certificate. Wife Lephe’s birth date, place,
Page 16
and parents are from Young-Thayer 2005, p
160. Her obituary is from Jamestown Journal,
Mar 26, 1918. Death notice: Jamestown
Evening Journal, Mar 21, 1918. Burial
information is from the gravestone photo on p
6. Allison and his family appear in the census
as follows:
NY 1892 Not found
NY 1900 Cattaraugus Co, New Albion, p 19B,
family of Alison Kenyon
NY 1905 Chautauqua Co, Carroll, p 13, family of
Allison G. Kenyon
NY 1910 Chautauqua Co, Carroll, p 6B, family of
Allison S. Kenyon
(a) Allison’s son Arthur Kenyon: Birth date
from Young-Thayer 2005, p 160. Death date
from obituary clipping in an unidentified
paper, Henderson-Lincoln Funeral Home
Scrapbook, Fenton History Center collection.
Marriage from Lois Barris, Genealogical
Information Reported in Evening Observer,
Dunkirk, NY, Jan 1, 1911 thru Dec 31, 1915,
Chautauqua Co Genealogical Society, 1994, p
86: “Kenyon, Arthur, married Dec 30, 1914,
to Goldie James, formerly of Dunkirk.”
Arthur’s wife Goldie F. Peterson: Birth date
and place, parents’ names, name and death
date of second husband, and place of burial
from her obituary, Jamestown (NY) PostJournal, Feb 7, 1966. Same date of birth in
the Social Security Death Index, SSN 071-109601.
Her gravestone in Maple Grove
Cemetery (see photo p 9) makes it clear that
this was the same Goldie who was first
married to Allison. The children of Allison
and Goldie are from the census and their
parents’ obituaries. Arthur’s family appears in
the census as follows:
NY 1920 Chautauqua Co, Jamestown, p 6A,
family of Arthur Kenyon.
NY 1930 Chemung Co, Elmira, p 3A, family of
nd
George H. Peterson (Goldie’s 2 husband)
(b) Allison’s son Ray Kenyon: Birth date
and place from Young-Thayer 2005 p 160.
His obituary gives the same date, but a
birthplace of the Town of Carroll, Chautauqua
Co. We are inclined to think that YoungThayer is correct. Allison’s obituary is from a
clipping from an unidentified paper in a
scrapbook at the Fenton History Center titled
the “Earl Morley Barracks of World War I
Veterans, Frewsburg.” Ray’s wife Cathren:
Obituary: Jamestown Post Journal, Dec 23,
1959 and funeral notice: Jamestown Post
Journal, Dec 28, 1959. Death date illegible in
the obituary but clear in the funeral notice.
The children of Ray and Kathren are from the
census and their parents’ obituaries. Burial
information from gravestone photos, p 9.
Ray’s family appears in the census as follows:
NY 1920 Chautauqua Co, Jamestown, p 6A,
family of Ray Kenyon
NY 1930 Chautauqua Co, Jamestown, p 11B,
family of Ray Kenyon
2. Morna G. Kenyon Born Jun 18, 1873 per
Civil War pension file of father, and YoungThayer 2005.
Young-Thayer erroneously
gives her name as “Norman.” Biographical
detail from her obituary, Salamanca Press,
Jun 27, 1962. DAR membership mentioned in
the Salamanca Republican Press, Jun 9, 1918.
Death date from obituary and gravestone
inscription, Randolph Rural Cemetery (online
at paintedhills.org).
3. Dora G. Kenyon Born Sep 30, 1874 per
Civil War pension file of father, and YoungThayer 2005. Death date from gravestone,
Randolph Rural Cemetery, online at
paintedhills.org.
4. Edith G. Kenyon Year of birth from Civil
War pension file of father. Death dates of
Edith and husband from Salamanca City
Clerk.
Edith’s obituary: Salamanca
Republican Press, Jun 24, 1947. Lynn’s
obituary: Salamanca Republican Press, Oct
27, 1947, which provided the biographical
detail. Gravestone inscriptions: Randolph
Rural cemetery online at paintedhills.org.
Lynn’s parents are found in the census as
follows:
1880 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 119D,
family of J. H. Blessing.
family of John Blessing
1905 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 7,
family of John H. Blessing
1910 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 8A,
family of John Blessing
family of John H. Blessing
1930 NY Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, living
with son Lynn (which see)
Page 17
The family of Edith and Lynn appears in the
census as follows:
NY 1910 Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 8A,
family of Lynn J. Blessing
NY 1920 Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 4A,
family of Lynn J. Blessing
NY 1930 Cattaraugus Co, Salamanca, p 9B,
family of G.[sic] Lynn Blessing
Children of Edith and Lynn: 1) Data from the
above censuses. 2) From the collection of
their daughter Olive via the present owner
Cheri Mancuso.
3) From gravestone
inscriptions
at
Wildwood
Cemetery,
Salamanca. 4) From the following obituaries:
Rupert Blessing: Olean Times, Sep 17, 1930.
Robert: Salamanca Republican Press, Jan 31,
1970 and funeral notice Feb 4, 1970. John:
Salamanca Republican Press, Dec 10, 1962.
Olive: Salamanca Press, Nov 29, 2002, p 2.
5) Robert’s US World War II enlistment
record.
5. Bernice G. Kenyon Birth date from Civil
War pension file of father, and Young-Thayer
2005 p 198-199. Year consistent with age
reported the 1800 census. However her
driver’s license issued May 21, 1934, gives
the year as 1879, and that is the year used by
her relatives.
Her marriage to Harold
Farnsworth is from their marriage certificate,
collection of Cheri Mancuso. Harold’s birth
date is from the marriage certificate.
The funeral of Harold ad Bernice was reported
in the Olean Times Herald, Mar 11, 1935.
The gravestone inscription at Randolph Rural
Cemetery is online at paintedhills.org.
6. Son: He appears only in Young-Thayer
2005 and apparently died in infancy.
Sources for the murder of Harold
and Bernice (Kenyon) Farnsworth:
The murder was widely reported in the press.
The sources consulted were:
Olean Times Herald, Mar 9, 11, 12, and 15,
1935; Apr 3, and 4, 1935; Aug 29,
1935; Jul 11, 1935; Aug 16, 1935
Syracuse Herald, Mar 12, 1935
Dunkirk Evening Observer, Mar 9, 1935,
Apr 1, 1935
The account of Lindsay’s arrest is based on
the Olean Times Herald, Mar 9, 1935.
The murder of Caleb Omans is from the
Salamanca Republican Press, Jan 8, 1874
Page 18
Appendix
Excerpt from the Civil War pension file of Winfield S. Kenyon
The following document, signed by Winfield S. Kenyon, lists his children and their
birth dates, and his marriage information.
Page 19

10. Winfield Scott Kenyon - Painted Hills Genealogy Society

Transcription

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