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And then there were none

Published by

Laura Aanenson

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In the 1870 census, the Clark family of Funkstown Maryland looked like many families of their time. As the head of the household, Morgan was a shoemaker. His wife Susan stayed home to take care of their eight children:

1870 US Census MD Clark, Morgan Henry
The Morgan Clark family – lines 30-39

The next census tells a drastically different story:

1880 US Census MD Clark, Morgan Henry
Morgan Clark – line 32

Morgan lived with his sister Henrietta and her husband Thomas Downey in 1880. Susan had died sometime after giving birth to the couple’s eleventh child who was born in 1877.

So if Morgan is living alone at his sister’s, where are those 11 children?

Because Norman A Clark was born on this day in 1862, I wanted to focus on him (see line 44). But if you look a few lines above him (on line 27), you’ll see his little brother Elmer:

1880 US Census MD Clark, Norman

Thankfully the children remained close most of their lives.

Despite circumstances that prevented them from growing up together.

For the cousins wondering how Norman and his family connect with us:

Relationship_ William Edwin MUELLER to Morgan Henry CLARKE

5 responses to “And then there were none”

  1. Amy Avatar
    Amy

    How did you make the chart? I like it also and readers often tell me it’s hard for them to keep track of who’s who.

    What a sad story. So many children without their mother.

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    Reply
    1. Laura Aanenson Avatar
      Laura Aanenson

      Hi Amy, thanks for asking about the pedigree chart! It’s one of the options available on Family Tree Maker. The visual seems to help my cousins (and me frankly!) keep track of who’s who in our tree.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. Amy Avatar
        Amy

        Great—I have FTM. I will take a look.

        Like

  2. Miss Donna Avatar
    Miss Donna

    You have a very nice blog. I like your angle of comparing the censuses. I’ve been thinking about including Ancestor Profiles in my posts. When I noticed your relationship chart, I checked my software (LFT); and it has the same thing. I might try it that way.

    Like

    Reply
    1. Laura Aanenson Avatar
      Laura Aanenson

      Thank you for the compliment; I’m glad to hear you enjoy my blog! Initially I typed the path from my generation to the subject of each post – too time-consuming! The charts make it visually easier for my cousins who are trying to follow along. So many names, so little time! LOL

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

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Hello,

I’m Laura

and I’m interested in all things genealogy. Join me as I continue my decades-long quest to learn more about my family history and the lives of my ancestors.

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