Today’s post will be a short one to update you on my quest to join the General Society of Mayflower Descendants (or “Mayflower Society). In part two of this series, I mailed off my Preliminary Review Form for the California Mayflower Society and sent off requests for four certified birth certificates. I got a phone call on Tuesday from Thurston County, Washington, saying that two of those birth certificates were on their way, but I haven’t received them yet.
What I did receive just yesterday was the oldest of the four birth certificates that I’ve so far requested—from 1860. I thought this would be the hardest of the four to secure, yet I received it first. Without further ado, here it is:
| 1. Name of child, | |
| 2. Was born at | Rockville |
| 3. Date of birth, | June 22– 1860 |
| 4. Sex of child, | Male |
| 5. Name of father, | Alonzo Bailey |
| 6. Name of mother, | Catherine Bailey |
| 7. Age of parents, | father, 59; mother, 33 |
| 8. Residence of parents, | Rockville |
| 9. Color of parents, | White |
| 10. Occupation of father, | Manufacturer |
| 11. Remarks, | {signature?} |
| Dated at | Rv— this 23 day of June 1860 |
At first glance, not having a name may seem a crippling fault for this document, but as long as I can establish with some other document(s) that William Noble Bailey was born on this date (ideally with information about one or both of his parents), that should make up for the missing name here.
I also heard back from the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the Sate of California, and my preliminary review form was accepted with similar remarks as were given by the national headquarters (that is, my descent is accepted through Seth Vinton and Polly Rider, but I must prove my connection to them through the next seven generations). The next step is to pay a $90 entrance fee, a $45 pedigree fee, and $40 for the first year’s dues (so $175) and formally apply for membership. If I can’t establish my connection to Seth Vinton and Polly Rider, the $40 dues will be refunded, but not the entrance fee or pedigree fee. This seems fair, given the amount of work that California Mayflower Society historians will be doing on my behalf to help me establish the connection.
In addition to the documents I’ve written away for, I’ve located copies of a few other documents. First is the marriage record of William Noble Bailey and Ellen Caroline Severson in 1886:
I also have a record of the marriage of Vernon Cornelius Black and Dorothy Ruth McMurry (using the last name of Jordan from her first marriage that ended tragically on her honeymoon) in 1940:
As I was looking for my own birth certificate, I stumbled upon a pile of certificates that I had completely forgotten I had already obtained more than 20 years ago. The apparent memory loss portion of getting old is fantastic, I tell you. Here’s what I found:
Another (this time, certified) copy of the marriage certificate of Vernon C. Black and Dorothy Ruth (McMurry) Jordan:
Additionally, I found not just one, but two certified copies of my father’s 1942 birth certificate requested four years apart—in 1992 and 1996. Plus there’s a certified “Certificate of Live Birth” for him that I got in 2005. And now I’ve sent off for a fourth copy. So it’s not age after all; I’ve apparently been forgetful for quite some time. It is definitely time to finally set up a formal filing system for all these records, instead of having them tucked into ever so many bankers boxes.
OK, so I think we’re good on my father’s birth documentation.
I also found a certified copy of Dorothy Ruth McMurry’s 1917 birth certificate that I apparently requested in 1996, so I’ll have two copies when the new one arrives. Sigh.
I also found a certified copy of the 1912 marriage return of Frank Ross McMurry and Lucinda Tracy Bailey that I got back in 1990:
I also found a non-certified copy of my parents’ marriage certificate. I’ve doctored the area where my mother’s name is, as she’s still living:
Finally, I found a copy of my birth certificate, but I won’t be posting that here for obvious reasons.
Here’s a first draft of a more visual record of what’s been proven and what still needs to be proven. My aim is to get everything proven (indicated by dark blue font color). Light blue font color indicates a possibly proven fact, and light brown font color indicates a fact that still needs to be proven. The people in the left column are the people in my Mayflower bloodline, while those in the right column are their spouses. I suspect that I won’t need as much documentation (i.e., perhaps no birth certificate are needed) for the people in the right column, but we’ll see.
Not bad for one week’s progress. I should have Lucinda Bailey’s birth certificate in my hands this week. The remaining two birth certificates will almost certainly prove more difficult, given their early dates:
- Catherine Noble, born February 20, 1826, in South Willington, New London County, CT
- Dorcas Vinton, born May 13, 1802, in Willington, New London County, CT