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Resources for tracing your Family Tree and Ancestry The book of Birmingham The book of Birmingham, by Hornady, John R. CLICK HERE FOR THIS RESOURCE Category: Places: Cost: Free Find it on Archive.org Find it on OpenLibrary.org Find it on FamilySearch.org Find it on GoogleBooks Find it on HeritageQuest* *HeritageQuest is free but you must be logged in to access the material. Click here for more information . BACK TO GENEALOGY DASHBOARD

Fairbanks, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska No resources found specifically for Fairbanks, but you may be able to find information about Fairbanks in materials for Fairbanks North Star Borough and/or the State of Alaska using the links below. If you know of any genealogy resources specific to Fairbanks, please share the details in the comments below! RESOURCES SPECIFIC TO THIS TOWN: RESOURCES SPECIFIC TO THIS COUNTY: A FEW RESOURCES SPECIFIC TO THIS STATE: More resources for Alaska RESOURCES COVERING ALL STATES: Load More My blogs containing 'Fairbanks' View More Art & Illustrations Genealogy resources for Fairbanks, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska ​ Alaska > Fairbanks North Star Borough > Fairbanks Towns in this County MORE RESOURCES: More resources for Fairbanks North Star Borough More resources for Alaska Genealogy Dashboard Fairbanks on Wikipedia Cemeteries in Fairbanks, AK Fairbanks books on FamilySearch Google Search Vital Records Find Fairbanks Town Clerk (Google) Choose another State Save Close An error occurred. Try again later Your content has been submitted Loading... Ancestors born here Title Branch Date Birth Place Ancestors married here Title Branch Date Marriage Place Ancestors who died here Title Branch Date Death Place Ancestors buried here Title Branch Cemetery Burial Place Ancestors counted on the census here Title Census Aunt Bette's Homemade Pecan Pie Rockin’ Rocky Road Ice Cream Tom’s Heavenly Apple Strudel Joe’s Divine Butter Tarts

Charles Russell Leonard died on Monday, Nov. 23, 1908. Notice of his funeral was printed in The Journal (Groton, New York) on November 25, 1908, and a "card" of thanks was published on December 2, 1908, by Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Wells and Mrs. Chas. Leonard. It took a long time to find this obituary, simply because Charles' name was abbreviated as "Chas." and it doesn't offer much information. A more interesting notice was published the following week. "A Card...to thank neighbors and friends for their kindness and sympathy during the illness and death of Charles Leonard". It was signed "Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Wells" and "Mrs. Chas. Leonard". It seems safe to assume "Mrs. Chas. Leonard" is referring to Luella, his second wife, who he was living with in Groton in 1905 , but who were Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Wells and how were they involved? A search for men named Charles Wells in the Groton area in 1908 produced two matches: Charles E. Wells in Groton in 1900. He was married to Ina Legg, but he died in 1904, prior to this notice being published. Charles Hyde Wells who was born in Pompey, Onondaga County, New York, abt. 1839. He was counted on the census in Pompey until 1880. [ FamilySearch]   In 1865 there was a "Boarder" named John Leonard, age 26, living in the Wells home in Pompey. He was formerly in the Army. [ FamilySearch ] On the 1892, 1900, 1905, 1910, and 1920 censuses Charles Wells was living in Cortland, where he died on June 30, 1922. His wife's name was Lydia L. Wells. Her obituary claims she was born in Pompey, Onondaga County, on Aug. 8, 1840. The closest matches in Pompey in 1850 were: Lydia L. Haskins (b. 1844), Lydia A. Marsh (b. 1836), and Lydia L. Rice (b. 1837). Charles & Lydia Wells had five children in their home: Amelia (Wells) Dunn, William H. Wells, John Wells, Eugene Charles Wells, and Nellie E. (Wells) Wood. I spent a few days sorting through the paper trails hoping to find a connection, to no avail. Following is a summary of what I found and shared on Charles Hyde Wells' Wikitree . Timeline of Events: 1850 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Asa Wells (age 76?), born in CT Chloe Wells (age 72 or 77?), born in CT Levi Wells (age 43) - born in NY Jane Wells (24) - born in NY Mathew Wells (age 40) - born in NY, Laborer Elzada Wells (age 31) - born in NY Charles Wells (age 12) - born in NY, Farmer Asa Wells died Feb. 4. 1854, age 79 yrs 6 mos. He is buried in Pompey Hill Cemetery. Findagrave memorial for Asa Wells 1860 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Elzada N. Wells, Female, age 40, b. NY, Farm Laborer Charles Wells, age 22, b. NY, Farm Laborer Lydia Wells, age 18, b. NY Cloe Wells, age 82. b. CT Hamilton Squires, age 16, Farm Laborer, b. NY 1865 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Elzada Wells, (Female) age 46, b. NY (1 child, married once, widowed) Charles H. Wells, age 27 "Child", Farmer, (married once, married) Lydia Wells, age 25 "Wife", (2 children, married once, married) Lydia (Chloe?) Wells, age 86, "Mother", b. CT (8 children, married once, widowed) Amelia Wells, age 4, "Grandchild", b. Onondaga County William Wells, age 1, "Grandchild", b. Onondaga County John Leonard, age 26, "Boarder", Farmer (Single, formerly in Army) From the Cortland Democrat, Sept. 17. 1868: "Sept. 11 - In the guardianship of John S., Eugene C., and Nellie E. Wells. Petition for appointment of guardian filed, guardians oath and bond filed and letters of guardianship issued to Lydia Wells, of Cortlandville." 1870 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Charles Wells, age 32, farmer $3500 real estate and $2625 personal estate Lydia Wells, age 29, wife b. England? Amelia Wells, age 10, b. NY Nellie Wells, age 8, b. NY John Wells, age 4, b. NY (lived in Los Angeles, CA in 1935) Charles Wells age 2 mos? b. NY Alzada Wells age 59, b. NY Chloe Wells, age 92, b. CT Chloe Wells died on Jan. 4, 1872, at the age of 93, and is buried in Pompey Hill Cemetery in Pompey. Findagrave memorial for Chloe Hyde Wells 1875 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Charles Wells, age 38, b. Onondaga, Married, Mail Carrier Liddia Wells, age 34, Wife Amelia Wells, age 13, Daughter Willie Wells, age 11, Son John Wells, age 8, Son Eugena Wells, age 5, Son Elzada Wells, age 56, "Mother" 1880 Census Pompey, Onondaga, New York FamilySearch : Charles Wells, age 41, Farmer, Married Lydia Wells, age 38, Keeping House William Wells, age 16, Son John Wells, age 13, Son Eugene Wells, age 10, Son Nellie Wells, age 3, "Son" (Daughter?) Elzada Wells, age 63, Mother Elzada Wells died March 23, 1891, in Cortland. From the Syracuse Standard, Tues., Mar. 24, 1891, p. 3: "Mrs. Elzada Wells died yesterday morning of consumption at the age of 72 years. The funeral will be held at the residence of her son, Charles Wells, to-morrow morning. The remains will be taken to Pompey." From the Cortland Democrat, Fri., Mar. 27, 1891: "DIED...WELLS- In Cortland, N.Y., March 23, 1891, Mrs. Elzada Wells, age 72 years." 1892 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : Charles H Wells, age 55, "Teamster" Lydia M. Wells, age 52 Nellie E. Wells, age 16 From the Cortland Standard, Wed., Sept. 7, 1898: "Invitations are out for the wedding of Mr. Frank Steward Wood and Miss Nellie Elzada Wells which will take place at the home of the bride's parents, Mr. and Mrs. C. H. Wells, 167 Railroad Street in Cortland on Wednesday evening, Sept. 14, at 8 o'clock." "WOOD-WELLS. Two Cortland Young People United in the Bonds of Matrimony. A merry gathering of friends at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Wells of 167 Railroad-st. last evening witnessed the marriage of their daughter, Miss Nellie B. Wells, and Mr. Frank S. Wood of Cortland. The ceremony was performed by Rev. W. H. Pound, pastor of the Congregational church, in the presence of a few invited guests. The rooms were neatly trimmed for the occasion, and the ceremony took place under an arch of evergreens. A fine wedding supper was served, and then Mr. and Mrs. Wood left on the late train for New York, from which place they will go to New Haven, Ct., for a visit with relatives, and on their return will reside at 107 Railroad-st." From The Syracuse Weekly Express, Thurs., Sept. 25, 1890: "HOMER, Sept. 18 .- Eugene Wells of Cortland and Miss Belle Lawson of this village were married on Tuesday at the Methodist parsonage by the Rev. A. N. Damon." 1900 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : (167 Railroad Street, Cortland) Charles Wells, born Jan. 1838, age 62, married 42 years, "Night Watch" Lydia Wells, born Aug. 1840 in NY, age 59, married 42 years, five children all still living in 1900 Nellie E. Wood, "Daughter", born Dec 1876, age 23, married 2 years, no children, parents born in England. Frank S. Wood, "Son-in-law", born Apr. 1873, age 27, married 2 years 1905 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : (167 Railroad Street, Cortland) Chas. H Wells, age 68 (est. 1837) "Night Watch", b. NY, parents born in NY Lydia M. Wells, age 65, 1910 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : (167 Railroad Street, Cortland) Chas. H. Wells, age 72, married 51 years, Night Watchman at Lumber Yard Lydia Wells, wife, age 62, married 51 years, 5 children, all still living in 1910. From The Cortland Standard, Mon. Aug 28, 1916: "Mrs. Clarence Dunn of Pompey and Mrs. Charles Wells of Cortland visited at the home of their brother and son, Eugene Wells in Wall-st., on Saturday." 1920 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : (South Ave) Frank S. Wood, age 47, "Com. Traveler; Groceries" Nellie F. Wood, age 43 "Wife" Chas. H. Wells, age 82 "Father-in-law" Lydia Wells, age 79 "Mother-in-law" Charles H. Wells died on June 30, 1922, in Cortland, New York. From the Cortland Democrat, Fri., July 7, 1922, p. 5: "DIED...WELLS - In Cortland, June 30, Charles H. Wells, aged 84 years, and 6 months." From the Binghamton Press, Wed., July 5, 1922: "Charles H. Wells died Saturday at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Frank S. Wood at 130 South Main Street. Mr. Wells was born in Pompey 84 years ago. He is survived by his wife and two daughters, Mrs. Clarence Dunn of Pompey and Mrs. Wood of Cortland, and three sons, Eugene Wells of Homer, William H. Wells of Groton, and John B. Wells of Denver, Col. The funeral was held Monday." 1925 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : Lydia M. Wells, age 84 "Mother-in-law" 1930 Census Cortland, Cortland, New York FamilySearch : Frank S. Wood, age 56 Nellie E. Wood, age 53 Lydia Wells, age 89 "Mother-in-law" From The Syracuse Journal, Sat., Jan. 12, 1935: "Mrs. Amelia H. Dunn - Mrs. Amelia H. Dunn, 74, died here Friday. Surviving are three brothers, William Wells of Groton, John Wells of Los Angeles, Calif., and Eugene Wells of Homer; a sister, Mrs. Frank Wood of Cortland; a granddaughter, Mrs. Leora M. Wright of Georgetown; a grandson, Clarence B. Van Brocklin of Manlius; a great-grandchild and several nieces and nephews. Services will be conducted at 2 o'clock Monday afternoon in the rooms of C. G. Hall, funeral director, in Lafayette. Interment will be in Pompey." Other Sources Walworth, Reuben Hyde, Hyde genealogy, or, The descendants, in the female as well as in the male lines, from William Hyde, of Norwich (Albany, 1864), Vol. 1, p. 412-413 Other possible connections: From The Dryden Herald, Wed., Apr. 13, 1904: "Mrs. Charles Wells was called to Cortland on Saturday by the severe illness of her daughter, Maude , who is suffering from an attack of the measles. The condition of the patient was reported on Monday to be slightly improved. Charles Wells went to Cortland on Tuesday to see his daughter." From Dryden Rural News, March 30, 1938: "Extracted from a letter written by Mrs. Charles Wells in Anchorage, Alaska, to her brother Egbert McMasters of Brooktondale ..." (regarding her trip to Alaska). From The Syracuse Weekly Express, Thurs., Oct. 9, 1890: Montezuma - "Mrs. Charles Wells and her children of Auburn and her mother, Mrs. Josephine Rogers of Rose Valley, were visiting friends in town last week". If anyone knows the connection between Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wells and Charles Leonard, please share! See the Leonard page for more. Research Notes: Before finding these, I searched the following newspapers for Charles Leonard's obituary: Moravia NY Republican Register 1908 - 1912 Auburn NY Democrat Argus 1908 - 1909 (Mentions: Herman Leonard's estate and heirs: Susan Leonard, widow, George H. Leonard, son, and David E. Wallace, stepson. (April, 1908). Also, Patrick Leonard, father of Mrs. Michael Coleman.) Union Springs NY Advertiser 1908-1911 - (Mentions: Charles Leonard of Farmer) Interlakin NY Interlaken Review 1908-1910 (searched as given, sic) Newspaper Auburn NY Weekly Auburnian 1885 - 1888 #Leonard #leonard #charlesrussellleonard #obituary #death

One thing I learned during my research is that “times really have changed”. The old cliché has a more literal meaning than many people realize. The calendar as we know it has a very interesting past. Why is this important? In old town records, church records, tombstones, epitaphs and written genealogies, dates were sometimes written as “1st month”, “2nd month”, etc., as opposed to writing out the name of the month. It seems reasonable to assume that when a record says “on ye 12th day of ye 7th month in the year of our Lord 1743” it is referring to July 12, 1743, however, this assumption would be incorrect. Today we consider the first month to be January, however, this was not always the case. In ancient times, the new year was marked by the Equinox which was observed, twice a year when for just a moment, the center of the sun is aligned in the same plane as our equator. Today this occurs between the 20th and 21st day of March and again on the 22nd and 23rd day of September. So, according to the equinox the first month was actually March. The Julian calendar was made in 45 B.C., under the reign of Julius Caesar, the Equinox was fixed to the 25th of March, though it was later changed to the 21st of March. It was determined that the Vernal Equinox occurred every 365.25 days (365 days + 6 hours) at that time and the calendar year was divided into months, which Caesar named, mostly after pagan deities and Latin words. In order account for the extra six hours per year not included in the 365 day calendar, the wisest scholars and mathematicians of the day came to the logical conclusion that adding one day to the calendar every four years would compensate for the 24 hours difference accumulated over a period of four years. Thus, to this day we add one day to February every 4th year, known as the “Leap Year”. As a point of interest, to determine which years are leap years the following simple mathematical rule applies: The year must be exactly divisible by 4, however it is never exactly divisible by 100, except in the case it is equally divisible by 400. For example: We can determine that 2000 was a leap year because it is divisible by both 4 and 400 equally (2000 ÷ 4 = 500 and 2000 ÷ 400 = 5). We can also see that 2011 is not a leap year because it is not divisible by 4 equally (2011 ÷ 4 = 502.75). We can see that 2012 is a leap year because it is divisible by 4 equally (2012 ÷ 4 = 53). The calendar seemed to be in sync with the seasons for a time but after 125 years, the Equinox happened a day earlier than expected and it gradually appeared earlier in the month than the day specified on the calendar, revealing that the annual cycle was actually almost eleven minutes shorter than they had originally measured. Today the Vernal Equinox occurs once every 365.2425 days (365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 12 seconds). After 325 years went by, the Julian calendar’s date for the Equinox was about two and a half days after it had already passed. By 1582 the Equinox was falling on the 11th day of March, ten days earlier than the calendar stated. So that year, under Pope Gregory XIII, ten days on the calendar were “skipped” after the 4th day of October in order to realign the calendar with the Equinox. The following day which would have been the 5th of October, was declared the 15th instead. This temporarily restored March 21st as the date of the Vernal Equinox. Roman Catholic countries immediately adopted the new Gregorian calendar, while Protestant countries were hesitant. Some Christians were hesitant to sway from their belief that Easter was during the Festival of Unleavened Bread, a Jewish feast. Later, the Protestant Christians, too, would conform to the Gregorian calendar (also called the Western calendar, or Christian calendar). England changed from the Julian calendar, also referred to as the “Old Style” (or O.S. for short) on the 2nd day of September 1752, skipping eleven days following that date so that the “New Style” began the following day, which was called the 14th of September instead of the 3rd. Furthermore, the last three months of 1751, January, February and March were removed from that year and became the first quarter of 1752. Double-dates were used for those three months to differentiate. For any events that happened during those three months, the year was written “1751-52” or “1751/52”. Therefore, until 1752, the seventh month was actually September, which can be seen by researching the etymology of the word “September”. So when we see “on ye 12th day of ye 7th month 1643” we now know it refers to September 12, 1643. Keep this in mind for dates written in this format prior to 1752. Unfortunately, over the years, this important fact sometimes causes transcription errors. If you are using this as a resource for clues and are looking for a person said to have been born in a particular month before 1752, but cannot find a match in other records, try looking for one born two months after (or even before) the presumed month, as transcriptions may contain this common error. This is something genealogists should be aware of. Knowing about Old Style dates is important when researching colonial ancestors. For example, recently I was adding a child of John Leonard to Wikitree. He was born Sept, 1679. When I saved it, Wikitree gave me an error, saying two brothers couldn't have been born within less than 9 months of each other. On his profile, I saw his parents had a son named Joseph, born in January, 1680. Impossible! How can two children be born within four months of each other? I checked the town archives for the original copy to confirm the dates and parents of these boys and I felt the anxiety rush over me, thinking of what a nightmare it would be to identify and sort this family if there was another couple with the same names in the same town at the same time. Then I remembered Old Style dates and it all made sense. This illustration should explain it better than I can! #myblog #history #calendar #dates

While searching for information about my ancestor, John Burrill , I got side-tracked, once again, and dragged myself into a long, two-week project. It started when I found reference to a man named John Burrill, among the names of militia and minutemen who fought at the battles of Lexington and Concord and Menotomy (now Arlington). It was a book called " The battle of April 19, 1775 ", by Frank Coburn. It contains many names of the men who rose to the call of duty and defended the colony at a pivotal moment in American history. April 19, 1775, essentially the first day of the American Revolution, is considered a holiday, "Patriot's Day", but only in six States - Massachusetts, Maine, Florida, Wisconsin, Connecticut, and North Dakota. Battle reenactments are performed and the Boston Marathon is held each year in remembrance of Patriot's Day. ( Source : Wikipedia ) "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it". - Winston Churchill Reflecting back on learning about the American Revolution in school, I remember not being very interested, frankly. Just like most things, freedom is easy to take fore-granted when you have it and I had never really stopped to think what our ancestors endured to obtain the freedom we enjoy so freely. This is a critical error among our children and population, in general, today. Most Americans can't conceive the idea of losing freedoms, and therefore don't fear losing it, but it is very possible, even more so today with technological advances. Every American should be prepared to guard and defend it at all costs, just as our ancestors did. “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” - Benjamin Franklin In my school days, history lessons seemed to be "someone else's history", because I didn't know anything about my family beyond my great-grandparents. If I had even realized that there were a lot more names in my family tree besides my parents' last names, I probably would have felt more of a personal connection and interest in the lessons. I believe if students knew there was a good chance their grandfathers were involved, they might be more interested in history. Let's understand that each of us had at least 256 great-grandfathers living in the late 1700s . Depending on when you were born, you could literally have had hundreds of grandfathers who fought in the American Revolution. Men who were living in the mid-late 1700s were my 6th or 7th and 8th great-grandfathers, so I could have had anywhere between 128 and 512 great-grandfathers who participated. Anyone with colonial roots in this country probably had dozens of grandfathers who were members of militias and/or fought in the Revolution, because nearly all able-bodied men in New England did. Before I became interested in family history, I didn't know that any of my grandfathers fought in America's wars, but over the years of research, one by one, I've discovered that at least 14 of my grandfathers fought in the Revolutionary War, whereas I had known of none. ( See my family's Wall of Honor here ). I share this not to brag, but to encourage others to do the same and to honor their service and memory. I am glad to have been able to track down and restore so much of the family's history for future generations. I believe it is important to remember the past and recognize all the effort that has gone into getting us all to the places we are now. "People will not look forward to posterity, who never look backward to their ancestors." - Edmund Burke As I learn about the Battles of April 19, 1775, I am in awe of the patriots - men who were so brave and bold as to hold secret conventions, raise militias, and physically fight to the death for America's independence. Their gumption and courage on that day inspired thousands of others to join the cause, resulting in a major victory the following year. These men were heroes and are worthy of recognition, especially as we approach the 250th anniversary ( United States Semicinquentennial ) of the independence they won for us. If you had ancestors who lived in Middlesex County, Essex County, Norfolk County, or Sussex County, Massachusetts during the late 1700s, there's a very good chance your family was involved in the conflict and battles of Patriot's Day. Over 4,000 men from Beverly, Danvers, Lynn, Acton, Arlington, Bedford, Billerica, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Framingham, Lexington, Lincoln, Malden, Newton, Reading, Stow, Sudbury, Watertown, Westford, Woburn, Brookline, Dedham, Medford, Needham, and Roxbury (Boston), responded to the alarm alerting colonists to the impending attack by the British. For my Leonard cousins and Reese cousins, we had ancestors in Framingham, Concord, Reading, Cambridge, and Newton. You can see them at the bottom of the Middlesex County, Massachusetts, page . There were also relatives in Norfolk, Sussex, and Essex Counties. Try a free search of my new Massachusetts Militia database to see if your family names are included! Don't miss this opportunity to encourage your children and grandchildren to love learning about American history, because it's not "somebody else's history". It is the history of US! Our grandfather's literally fought for the freedom we have enjoyed for the past 250 years. Some individuals were left with lifelong disabilities or lost their lives in combat. Their wives and mothers were left to handle households and children on their own. Widows and mothers who lost their sons emerged from these hardships. These resilient individuals were our ancestors, and their DNA is ingrained within us. Let us not forget them. We honor these heroes today and always! Get your commemorative certificate to display! Proud Descendant of Massachusetts Militia ~ In Memory of The Massachusetts Militia & Minutemen For more information, see my Massachusetts Genealogy Resources . From there you can find county and town resources as well. For military records, try my Military Resources page .