I haven't done a lot of research on these families yet, so this post is to document what I have so far. My great-great-grandmother Ruth Edna Adams was born in May 1840 in Delaware and married William Martin Willis in 1859. William was born in Maryland in January 1828 and was the son of Senah B. Willis and Elizabeth Todd. I have seen quite a bit of research on the Todds, but not as much on the Willis or Adams families. Ruth's middle name caught my eye since my Willis grandmother was named Edna.
A marriage bond for William and Ruth is signed by William M. Willis and William I. Adams, so William I. Adams may be Ruth's father.
In the 1850 census, there is a Ruth E. Adams born about 1836 living with
another family in Milford or Mispillion Hundred, Kent, Delaware, but I don't know if this is my Ruth.
In the 1860 census, the Willis family is in Dover Hundred, Kent County,
Delaware and there is a Mary Adams, age 55 living with Ruth and William.
I've wondered if Mary was Ruth's mother, but haven't been able to find
any proof so far.
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| 1860 Dover Hundred, Delaware census |
In the 1870 census, the family is living in Mispillion Hundred, Kent, Delaware, the same place as the Ruth E. Adams in the 1850 census.
There are several children: James, Esther, Henry, Georganna, and Francis. Mary Adams and Sarah Adams are living with them.
Georganna was a colorful character that I've posted about before.
In the 1880 census, they are still in Mispillion Hundred, Kent, Delaware and my great-grandfather Eugene Willis is 1 year old. Other children are James, Henry, Georganna, Frank, William, John, and Thomas. John's middle name is Van Berkalow which I would think is another surname in the family, but I haven't found any connections so far.
By 1900, the family had moved to Centerville, Queen Anne's County, Maryland.
From another researcher's note, Ruth and William are buried in the Chesterfield Cemetery, Centerville, MD.
I was curious about what the "hundred" meant in the place names in Delaware. From
Wikipedia,
"Hundreds are unincorporated subdivisions of counties, equivalent to townships, and were once used as a basis for representation in the Delaware General Assembly. While their names still appear on all real estate transactions, they currently have no meaningful use or purpose except as a geographical point of reference. The divisions, or "hundreds" as they are called, comes from the times when Delaware and Maryland were colonial holdings of Great Britain. While Delaware alone retains the use of "hundreds", the origin of most place names in both states can be traced back to the times of British rule."
Here are a few items for my "to do" lists on these families:
- See if I can find any info on Ruth and William after 1900.
- Look into the Van Berkalow surname
- Look for info on Ruth's parents
- Review research done on the Todd family
I would love to hear from anyone else researching these families!
