10/5/07 edition--still in draft form and not fully accurate. More info and
documentation to come. This is a work in progress.
Note: Sources are noted conservatively to allow the text to be more readable as this
is a family story and not a pure research project. Information is documented as
accurately as currently possible, but in some cases the information is probable or
possible—or sometimes theoretical. Sources are noted within the book chapters and
referenced at the end of the book. The information is only as good as the sources.
In cases where researchers differ on their acceptance of information, debate is
included and the reader can decide for themselves. This is a work in progress which
will be further researched as generation chapters develop. There may be some typos
and some misinformation due to invalid sources. Please send comments,
corrections, and adds to CoachBob@CoachGlover.com
THE STORIES AND HISTORY OF
THE BENTLEY FAMILIES
by H. Ross Glover and Robert H. Glover
FOURTEEN PLUS GENERATIONS OF BENTLEYS FROM 16th CENTURY
AMPTHILL/ELSTOW, BEDFORDSHIRE CO., ENG.; TO KINGSTOWN, WASHINGTON
CO., RI; TO MILLPORT, CHEMUNG CO., NY; TO SOUTH DANSVILLE, STEUBEN CO.,
NY; TO DANSVILLE, LIVINGSTON CO., NY
Including the Thornton, Burger, Smalt, and Glover Families
Dedicated to ADELIA MARTHA BENTLEY BURGER, grandmother of Robert H. Glover;
and to CORINNE HARRIET BURGER GLOVER, wife of H. Ross Glover, mother of
Robert H. Glover
****************************************
Copyright Robert H. Glover, 2007. All rights reserved. Permission granted to use all
information for family genealogy with (thank you!) appropriate credits. No part of
this document may be used for commercial use without express consent from Robert
H. Glover in writing.
*****************************************
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction
---Migrations of the Bentley Families
---Starting “The Stories and History of the Bentley Families”
---“Bentley” or “Bently”
---Bentley History of Patriotism
---Documentation: Bentley Fact and Fiction
---Abbreviations
---Team Bentley: Key Bentley Researchers and Advisors
PART I: THE EARLY BENTLEYS OF ENGLAND—GENERATION 1 & 2
Introduction
--Theory of Captain James Bentley as the father of William Bentley (G1)
--Theory of Robert and Mary Bentley (died 1613 a widow) as the parents of
William Bentley (G1)
Chapter 1: WILLIAM BENTLEY (GENERATION 1): THE PROGENITOR OF OUR
BENTLEY FAMILY BRANCH
Born prob betw. 1578-1581 in prob Ampthill, Bedfordshire Co, Eng; died before June
27, 1632, poss 1628, in prob Elstow, Bedfordshire Co., Eng.; prob buried in the
churchyard at Elstow. Prob. the son of Mary Bentley (died a widow in 1613 in
Elstow); poss. the son of Robert Bentley (poss. christened Mar 24, 1560 in
Dunstable, Bedfordshire Co.; poss died in 1605 in Elstow)
Married Mary Goodwin (born prob 1580 or 1584 in prob. Bedford; buried a widow
July 1, 1632 in the churchyard in Elstow) on May 18 or 20, Bedford, Bedfordshire Co.
Parents of 7 children christened in Elstow:
1. Mary Bentley (born poss. 1602)
2. Margaret Bentley Bunyan (christened Nov 13, 1603; died June 10, 1644 in
Elstow), who was the mother of famous author John Bunyan (Pilgrim’s Progress)
3. Elizabeth Bentley (christened Oct 23, 1605)
4. Thomas Bentley (christened July 12, 1607)
5. JOHN BENTLEY
6. Rose Bentley Bunyan (christened July 12, 1612)
7. Emma (or Annie) (christened Feb 8, 1617)
Chapter 2: JOHN BENTLEY (GENERATION 2)
Christened Nov 5, 1608, Elstow church; buried at Ampthill on Mar 26, 1666
Married Mary Betts (poss. born Aug 2, 1607 in Ampthill; poss. died 1673 in Ampthill)
on Oct 3, 1630 in the Ampthill church
Parents of 6 children baptized in Ampthill:
1.Robert Bentley (bapt. Mar 25, 1631)
2. Mary Bentley Chad (bapt. Nov 11, 1632)
3. John Bentley (bapt. July 20, 1634; buried July 22, 1686 in Ampthill)
4. Thomas Bentley (bapt. Apr 10, 1636; buried Jan 11, 1667 in Ampthill)
5. James Bentley (bapt. May 6, 1638; buried Jan 28, 1696/7 in Ampthill)
6. WILLIAM BENTLEY
PART II: THE EARLY BENTLEYS OF RHODE ISLAND—GENERATION 3 & 4
Chapter 3: WILLIAM BENTLEY, SR. (GENERATION 3): FIRST BENTLEY TO MIGRATE
TO COLONIAL AMERICA in abt. 1671
Prob. born Aug 29, 1640 (perhaps in 1637) in Ampthill, was christened Sep 13, 1640
in Ampthill; died prob July 9, 1720 in Kingstown, RI
Married Sarah (Eldred?) (poss. born abt Oct 10/19, 1650 in Yarmouth, MA; died
Dec 28, 1731) in abt 1674.
Parents of 5 children born in Kingstown, RI
(not yet fully researched)
1. WILLIAM BENTLEY, JR.
2. James Bentley (born May 26, 1679; poss. died 1768)
3. Jane Bentley Wightman (born abt 1674-1681; died prob. 1729)
4. Thomas Bentley (born June 19, 1685; died Mar 8, 1778, Exeter, RI)
5. Benjamin Bentley (born Mar 27, 1690)
Chapter 4: WILLIAM BENTLEY, JR. (GENERATION 4): FIRST BENTLEY BORN IN
AMERICA; FATHER OF 13 CHILDREN
Born July 8, 1677 in Kingstown, RI; died before Mar 21, 1760 in prob. Richmond, RI.
Married Elizabeth (Gardiner?) (born prob. May 22, 1673; died prob. 1723) in abt
1702
Married Bathsheba (Noyes? Greene?) Lewis (born abt 1699 in prob. Westerly, RI;
died after Oct 1785 in prob. Richmond, RI) on Aug 1, 1734 in Westerly, King Co., RI.
Parents with Elizabeth of 8 children born in prob. Kingstown or Westerly, RI (not yet
fully researched):
1. John Bentley (born poss. June 22, 1700 in Kingstown or poss. Aug 12, 1703 in
Richmond, RI)
2. George Bentley (born poss. abt 1701 in prob. Westerly, RI; poss. died in 1802)
3. Elizabeth Bentley (born poss. abt 1703 in prob. Kingstown, RI)
4. Tabitha Bentley (born poss. abt 1705)
5. Caleb Bentley (born poss. abt 1707; died poss. 1793). Possibly the father of 20
children.
6. Ezekiel Bentley (born poss. abt 1710)
7. Ruhamah Bentley James (born poss abt 1715)
8. Mary Bentley James (born poss abt 1717)
Parents with Bathsheba of 5 children (not yet fully researched):
1. William Bentley III (born May 29, 1735, Westerly, RI; died Sep 20, 1800, Troy
City, NY). Apparently murdered his second wife with an ax.
2. Thomas Bentley (born Apr 9, 1737, Westerly)
3. James Bentley (born June 6, 1739, Richmond, RI; poss died 1822)
4. GREENE M. BENTLEY, SR.
5. Benjamin Bentley (born Jan 11, 1744 in Richmond, RI; died poss. June 1830)
PART III: THE GREEN BENTLEYS OF RHODE ISLAND AND MILLPORT, VETERAN, NY—
GENERATION 5 & 6
Chapter 5: GREENE M. BENTLEY, SR. (GENERATION 5): FRENCH & INDIAN WAR,
AND REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIER; FIRST BENTLEY TO MIGRATE TO NEW YORK
STATE
Born Mar 23, 1741 in Westerly/Richmond, RI; died prob. 1823 in Millport or Havana,
NY; buried in the old Bentley Cemetery, Millport. A state marker honors him there.
Migrated to North Kingston, Washington Co, RI in abt 1766; to Kent, Litchfield Co,
CT in abt 1770; to Warwick, Orange Co, NY in 1775; to Northumberland Co, PA in
abt 1784; to the Village of Wellsburg, Chemung Twp, Chemung Co, NY in abt 1788;
to what is now the Village of Millport, Town of Veteran, Chemung Co, NY in abt
1798. He was the first settler of Wellsburg and Veteran.
Married Dinah (Diana) Straight (Strait) (born abt 1737-1742; died prob. after
1810) in abt. 1759/1760.
Parents of prob. 8 children: (not yet fully researched):
1.Sheba Eunice Bentley Bennett (born Jan 19, 1762 in prob Richmond, RI; died Dec
21, 1799 in Chemung, Chemung Co., NY). Sheba and sister Hannah married
Bennett brothers Thaddeus and Ephraim.
2. Diana Bentley (born poss. abt 1763 in prob. Richmond RI) --poss a daughter of
Greene
3. Hannah Humility Bentley Bennett (born Jan 2, 1765 in prob. Richmond, RI; died
Mar 1, 1836, Willardsburg, Tioga Co, PA; buried Montour Falls, NY)
4. Elizabeth Bentley (born abt 1767 in prob. Kingstown, RI)—poss. a daughter of
Greene
5. Sarah Bentley Coryell (born abt 1770 in prob. ???Warwick, NY; died 1818; prob.
buried in Montour Falls, NY)
6. Benjamin Bentley (born Sept 24, 1771 in Kent, Litchfield Co, CT; died Sep 7, 1854
in Tioga Co, PA)
7. Rhoda (Herodias) Bentley Teeples (born Jan 2, 1774 in Kent, Litchfield Co. CT;
died Jan 2, 1837 in Oakland, MI). Mother of George Bentley Teeples who was born
in Dansville, Livingston Co., NY and became a Mormon and migrated to Utah.
8. GREEN BENTLEY, JR.
Chapter 6: GREEN M. BENTLEY, JR. (GENERATION 6)
Born in Warwick, Orange Co., NY Jan 8, 1778; died Nov 10, 1820 in Millport,
Chemung Co., NY; buried at the Millport Cemetery.
Married Olive Hopper (born July 25, 1778 in Orange Co., NY; died Nov 14, 1862 in
Millport, NY; buried at the Millport Cemetery with second husband Oliver Greeno) in
prob. 1797 in prob. Millport, NY.
Parents of prob. 8 children (not yet fully researched):
1. James Bentley (born Dec 21, 1798 in prob. Veteran, NY)
2. GEORGE CARGILL BENTLEY
3. Ezekiel S. Bentley (born June 9, 1803, Millport/Veteran; died May 20, 1826;
buried at Millport Cemetery)
4. William C. Bentley (born Jan 20, 1806, Warwick, NY; died Aug 24, 1883,
Taylor, Shelby Co., MO.) He married his step-father’s daughter Experience
Greeno/Greenough.
5. Esther Bentley Greeno (born abt 1811/1813 /Greenough in prob. Veteran, NY;
died Jan 25, 1894, Benton, Nebraska). She married her step-father’s son David
Greeno/Greenough.
6. Elisha M. Bentley (born Mar 21, 1813, Warwick, NY; died abt 1895, Iowa)
7. Eunice Bentley Lane Page (born abt 1812 or 1815)
8. Margaret Bentley Thiers Craig (born Mar 14, 1818, Millport; died Dec 8, 1912,
Clay Center, Kansas).
PART IV: THE GEORGE BENTLEYS OF SOUTH DANSVILLE, NY—GENERATION 7 & 8
Chapter 7: GEORGE CARGILL BENTLEY (GENERATION 7): FIRST BENTLEY TO
MIGRATE TO SOUTH DANSVILLE; FATHER OF 14 CHILDREN AND 2 STEP-CHILDREN
Born Apr 27, 1801, Bentley Creek, Bradford Co., PA; died Dec 26, 1861, South
Dansville, Steuben Co., NY; buried Lakeside Cemetery at Loon Lake, Wayland,
Steuben Co., NY.
Married Lucinda Cleveland (born July 15, 1802, Sugar Creek, Bradford Co., PA; died
July 14, 1856, South Dansville; buried Lakeside Cemetery, Wayland) on Sep 9, 1821
in Millport, NY.
George married Phebe (Phoebe) Ann Welcher Thomas (born abt 1817 in New York)
in 1859.
Parents with Lucinda of 13 children (not yet fully researched):
1. Green Bentley (born Oct or Dec 27, 1822, Millport, NY; died Mar 19, 1846,
Millport; prob. buried Lakeside Cemetery, Wayland, NY)
2. Mary Bentley Tripp (born Mar 6 or 26, 1824, Millport, NY; died 1902; buried
Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY)
3. Loretta Bentley Bullock (born Feb 8, 1826/7, Dix, NY; died Sep 13, 1908, in
prob. Wayne Co., Iowa)
4. Almira Bentley (born Aug 25, 1828, Dix, NY)
5. Charrie (Cherry, Charry) Bentley (born poss June 5 or July 4, 1830 in Catlin,
Chemung Co., NY)
6. Ephraim Cleveland Bentley (Born May 12, 1832, Dix, NY; died prob. 1860 in
prob. South Dansville, NY)
7. Isaac Swartwood Bentley (born May 19, 1834, Millport, NY; died Aug 8 or 25,
1925, Sargent, Nebraska; buried Mount Hope Cemetery, Sargent, Nebraska). Twin of
Hannah. Married Lucinda M. Pinchin, a cousin of Martha Pinchin, who married Nelson
Cobin, the father of Addie Cobin, who married Burt Gelser, the father of Daphne
Gelser, the wife of A. Ross Glover, the father of H. Ross Glover, the husband of
Corinne Burger Glover.
8. Hannah Swartwood Bentley (born May 19, 1834, Millport, NY; died July 10,
1834, Dix, NY.
9. John Wixom Bentley (born Sep 12, 1836/7, Dix, NY).
10. Eliza Cleveland Bentley Root (born Oct 1, 1832; died June 1, 1878; buried
Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY)
11. Adelia Bentley Smith (born June 4, 1839, Catlin, NY; died Apr 21, 1911 in
prob. Fresno, CA)
12. Lucia Octavia Bentley (born May 27, 1841, Dix, NY; died Apr 10, 1843 in
prob. South Dansville, NY; buried at Lakeside Cemetery, Wayland, NY)
13. GEORGE EUGENE BENTLEY
Parents with Phebe of:
1. Ernest Cargill Bentley (born Mar 4, 1860, South Dansville, Steuben Co., NY;
died, Chicago, Cook Co., Ill Dec 21, 1931; buried Oakside Cemetery, Hillside, Ill.)
Chapter 8: GEORGE EUGENE BENTLEY (GENERATION 8): CIVIL WAR SOLDIER
Born Sep 12,1843 in Dix, Chemung Co., NY; died May 5, 1907 in South Dansville,
Steuben Co., NY; buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville.
Married Susan A. (born abt 1845 in Ohio; died betw 1880-1888) in abt 1869.
Parents with Susan of 2 children:
1. Clarance D. Bentley (born Apr. 1870; died June 5, 1870; buried at Forest Lawn
Cemetery, South Dansville);
2. WILBUR DUVILLO BENTLEY
George married Christine (born July 1841 in New York; died after 1910) in abt 1888.
PART V: THE WILBUR BENTLEY FAMILY-----GENERATION 9
Chapter 9: WILBUR DUVILLO BENTLEY (GENERATION 9):
Born May 10, 1871 in prob. South Dansville, Steuben Co., NY; died in 1949 prior to
March 17th in prob. Rochester, Monroe Co., NY; buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery,
Rochester.
He lived in South Dansville, Auburn, and Rochester, NY.
Married Harriet M. Thornton (born May 29, 1873 in England; died in 1905 in prob.
Rochester; buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery, Rochester)
Parents with Harriet of 3 children:
1. Ethel Bentley (1900-1910; buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery);
2. ADELIA BENTLEY BURGER;
3. George Henry Bentley (born Mar 28, 1904 in NY; died Feb 16, 1977 in San Luis
Obispo Co., CA; married Ilo Erbe Wikle (born May 28, 1912 in Milo, Iowa; died Nov
19, 1992 in Palmdale, CA) in Nov 1942. They are buried at Arroyo Grande District
Cemetery, CA. They are the parents of Carolyne Sue Bentley Gibson (born 1944)
Wilbur married Edna Smith Rice (1875-1947; buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery in
Rochester) in abt. 1906.
Parents with Edna of 2 children:
1. Dorothy Bentley Kleehammer (Born May 23, 1907; married Elmer Kleehammer
Sept 18, 1930; died Nov 26, 1933; buried at Mt. Hope);
2. Vera L. Bentley Baldwin (born Aug 4,1910 ; married Floyd Baldwin in abt 1930;
died Feb 10, 1991, Lacey, WA.)
PART VI:
THE ADELIA BENTLEY BURGER FAMILY---GENERATION 10
Chapter 10: ADELIA MARTHA BENTLEY BURGER (GENERATION 10)
Born May 22, 1902 in Auburn, NY; died Nov 20, 1980, Noyes Memorial Hospital,
Dansville, Livingston Co., NY; buried Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville,
Steuben Co., NY.
Moved with her parents to Rochester, NY by 1905. Married Carl Leo Burger (born
Mar 26, 1897, South Dansville, NY; died July 13, 1989 at the Hornell, NY Nursing
Home; buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY) on Mar 25, 1922 in
Rochester, NY, and moved to South Dansville, Steuben Co, NY where she lived the
rest of her life.
Parents of 5 children:
1. Hollis William Burger (born Dec 14, 1923 in South Dansville and died prob.
that same die or shortly after)
2. CORINNE HARRIET BURGER GLOVER
3. Doris Mae Burger Smalt (born Feb 1,1927, Hornell, NY). She married Larry
Norbert Smalt (born Oct 15, 1928 in Wayland, NY) on July 31, 1948 at the United
Methodist Church, Dansville. They lived for two years in Wayland and thereafter in
Dansville, NY
They are the parents of 6 children, the first born in Wayland and the rest in
Dansville, NY:
1, Linda Kay Smalt Weiler (born 1949)
2. Jean Marie Smalt Glover (born 1953)
3. Dianne Louise Smalt Daniel (born 1955)
4. Dan Martin Smalt (born 1957)
5. Jon Eric Smalt (born 1961)
6. Lorraine Sue Smalt Wilson (born 1965)
Doris’ children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are 12th, 13th and 14th
generation Bentleys.
4. Wilbur Charles Burger (born Mar 14, 1928, Hornell, NY; died Jan 27, 2004,
South Dansville, NY; buried Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY). He
married Anita Lemen (born 1929) on July 30, 1955.
They are the parents of 5 children:
1. Maureen Burger Cornell (born 1956)
2. Roy Burger (born 1958)
3. Janice Burger Layton (born 1960)
4. Bonnie Burger (born 1964)
5. Nancy Burger Hepburn (born 1965)
Wilbur’s children and grandchildren are 12th and13th generation Bentleys.
5. Lyle George Burger (born June 24, 1929 in Hornell, NY; died June 21, 2002,
Noyes Memorial Hospital, Dansville, NY; buried Forest Lawn Cemetery, South
Dansville, NY)
PART VII: THE CORINNE BURGER GLOVER FAMILY----GENERATION 11
Chapter 11: CORINNE HARRIET BURGER GLOVER (GENERATION 11)
Born April 4, 1925, Bethesda Hospital, Hornell, Steuben Co., NY; died Sept 11, 2006,
Highland Hospital, Rochester, Monroe Co., NY; buried Forest Lawn Cemetery, South
Dansville, NY)
Married Harold Ross Glover (born Dec 2, 1924, Canaseraga, Allegany Co., NY) on
Dec 31, 1945 in Dansville, Livingston Co., NY. They lived in Dansville for their entire
married life and celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary there at the Sunrise
Restaurant on Dec 26, 2005.
H. Ross Glover is a WWII army veteran who earned the Bronze Star and three purple
hearts. He lives in Dansville, NY, and North Port, Sarasota Co., Florida.
They are the parents of two children:
1. ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER
2. Donald Carl Glover (born 1949)
He is the parent of 4 children (13th generation Bentleys):
1. Matthew James Glover (born 1978)
2. Mark Francis Glover (born 1978)
3. Michael Paul Glover (born1981)
4. Daniel Joseph Glover (born 1988)
PART VIII: THE ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER FAMILY----GENERATION 12 & 13
Chapter 12: ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER (GENERATION 12)
Born Nov 17, 1946, Dansville Memorial Hospital, Dansville, Livingston Co., NY. He
moved to Rome, Oneida Co., NY in 1972; to New York City in 1975; and to Sleepy
Hollow, Westchester Co, NY in 1994 to present.
He is the parent of 1 child with first wife Virginia Long:
1. CHRISTOPHER ROSS GLOVER
Married Shelly-lynn Florence in Sleepy Hollow, Westchester Co., NY in 1995.
Chapter 13: CHRISTOPHER ROSS GLOVER (GENERATION 13)
Born in 1981 in New York City, NY.
He lives in Washington Heights, New York City.
PART IX: BENTLEY REFERENCE SOURCES AND KEY RESEARCHERS
****************
INTRODUCTION
MIGRATIONS OF THE BENTLEY FAMILIES
Bedfordshire Co, Eng. to RI (Narragansett, Kingston, Westerly, Richmond); to
Litchfield Co, CT; to Orange Co., NY; to Northumberland Co, PA; to Chemung
Co/Tioga Co, NY.; to South Dansville, Steuben Co, NY; to Rochester, Monroe Co.,
NY; to South Dansville, Steuben Co, NY; to Dansville, Livingston Co, NY; to New York
City; to Sleepy Hollow, Westchester Co., NY.
STARTING “THE STORIES AND HISTORY OF THE BENTLEY FAMILIES”
This project started in the summer of 2006 with limited resources. Bob Glover (G12)
was working with his father H. Ross Glover on the genealogy of his Glover, Gelser,
and Cobin families and inquired of his mother, Corinne Burger Glover (G11), about
her Bentley and Burger family history. She provided a list of family birth, marriage,
and death dates going back to her grandparents Wilbur Bentley (G9) and Harriet
Thornton Bentley. It listed Wilbur’s children, including their spouses and children,
with his first wife and second wife (Edna). The list had been handwritten by
Corinne’s mother Adelia Bentley Burger (G10) and then retyped by H. Ross Glover
for his wife Corinne. So then we had some information on generations G9-G13, but
who came before them was unknown.
We contacted Carolyne Bentley Gibson, the niece of Adelia and daughter of George
Henry Bentley. She recalled that when she was 13 years old in 1957 she visited the
Forest Lawn Cemetery in South Dansville with her father and saw a tombstone for a
George E. Bentley who was a Civil War veteran. She was told by her father that he
was an ancestor, but couldn’t recall exactly the relationship. At that point neither of
the daughters of Adelia Bentley Burger----Corinne Burger Glover and Doris Burger
Smalt----knew anything of the man who was their mother’s grandfather. This
despite having spent many hours as children working with their father Carl Burger at
the South Dansville Cemetery where George E. Bentley is buried. H. Ross Glover
located that old tombstone which noted that George E. died in 1907 at age 63.
Thus he would be the right age to be the father of Wilbur, but no family member
recalled Wilbur having been from South Dansville, rather than from Rochester, NY.
In the 1880 Census for South Dansville, Bob Glover found George E. Bentley as the
father of 9 year old Wilbur Bentley. Both were the right age. A Civil War record for
George E. Bentley matched the information on the South Dansville tombstone. G9
was now established as George E. Bentley. But who was his father? The Census
noted that his father was born in PA.
After the death of Corinne Burger Glover on Sept 11, 2006, among her possessions
was found a wooden box passed on to her from her mother. Corinne was very proud
and protective of that box, made by Wilbur Bentley for his daughter Adelia‘s
keepsakes. In it was a list of family history, and several photos of the Burgers and
Bentleys. Also found in the box was a book of notes written to Harriet Thornton
Bentley by her husband Wilbur in 1899 in Auburn, NY, and notes from her brother
Harry, sister Clara (dated 1883, Montreal) and friends from Canada and England.
This was our first clue for the Thornton family research. We also were able to
research from this starting point the descendants of Wilbur Bentley, his first wife
Harriet, and his second wife Edna. The box also included the only known photo of
Harriet Thornton Bentley, from whom Corinne Harriet Burger Glover got her middle
name but never met as Harriet died young in 1905.
Among the photos in the box was a labeled one of George Eugene Bentley. Now we
knew his middle name and that he for sure was connected to Wilbur and Adelia
Bentley. Also in the photo were Ephiram Bentley, Mary Tripp Bentley, Eliza Bentley
Root, and Catherine Adelia Bentley Mehlenbacher. Were they the brother and sisters
of George E.? Was Adelia Bentley Burger named after the sister of her grandfather
George E. Bentley? The photo seemed to list the married names of the sisters and
this helped open more doors to the past.
An Internet search revealed a George Cargill Bentley, born in PA, listed by Ellen
Bates (9) in her research for the Church of Latter Day Saints as the father of a
George E. Bentley. Also listed were the other names in the photo as some of the 14
children of George C. An 1860 Census showed George C. Bentley of South
Dansville, born in PA, as the father of George E. Bentley. G7 was now established as
George Cargill Bentley. More Internet research found that George C. was the son of
Green Bentley, Jr. (G6), who was the son of Green Bentley, Sr (G5), who was a
soldier in the French and Indian War, and the Revolutionary War. From there the
research became more confusing as the information was often in conflict. But it all
indicated that the Bentleys migrated from England to Rhode Island before coming to
New York State.
Unfortunately, one of the key sources of our Bentley branch has disappeared.
According to Carolyne Bentley Gibson, Adelia Bentley Burger once had a handwritten
Bentley family history –which Carolyne witnessed---going back to the original
immigrants from England (we believe that being William Bentley, Sr. (G3) in the
mid-17th Century). Adelia sent a mimeographed copy to Carolyne’s mother, Ilo
Bentley, the wife of George Henry Bentley, the brother of Adelia. At one point Ilo
told Carolyne that she discarded the information. The handwritten history that was
the possession of Adelia has also disappeared.
H. Ross Glover researched and photographed tombstones of Wilbur, Harriet and
Edna Bentley at Mt Hope Cemetery in Rochester; Wilbur’s father George E. Bentley
at Forest Lawn Cemetery in South Dansville; and his father George C. Bentley at
Lakeside Cemetery, Loon Lake, Wayland, NY. Internet research located a
transcription of Green Bentley, Jr ‘s (father of George C.) tombstone at Millport
Cemetery, NY as well as a state marker for his father Greene Bentley, Sr. at the
Bentley Cemetery in Millport.
But prior to the Green Bentleys still remained muddled.
Then a comprehensive Internet search by Bob Glover found a wealth of Bentley
information. Research by and communication with Bentley descendants Elaine
Cowan (6) and Marlin Criddle (7,8)---who Bob Glover contacted after discovering
their Bentley genealogy online-- were key to the earlier Bentley history as were
books by professional genealogists Emilie Sarter (pub. 1953) (12), and Bentley
descendant Cameron Stewart (pub. 1986) (11). In particular, Elaine Cowan’s
comprehensive web site postings and email communication helped unravel many of
the mysteries of our Bentley genealogy. These sources established the first four
generations of our Bentley branch as: William (G1) and John (G2) of England;
William (G3) of England migrated to Rhode Island; and William (G4), first born in
America, of Rhode Island .
In July 2007, Bob Glover posted a note in the guestbook for a website by Bentley
descendant Scott Rode (5) which started a dialog that led to the coordination of this
book with his Bentley website. Further, Scott put me in contact with Sean Bentley
(27) who had traveled in 2005 to the ancestral homeland in England of the early
Bentleys and photographed the 1632 will of Mary Goodwin Bentley, wife of William
Bentley (G1). This opened up more doors to the past, as did the discovery by Sean
at the John Bunyan (the famous author of “Pilgrim’s Progress” and grandson of
William and Mary) Museum of a biography of Bunyan which noted the name of
William’s (G1) mother, Mary.
Also, Bob Glover in July 2007 found a year 2000 message board posting by Kathy
Popovich who was searching for information on George Cargill Bentley (G7) and his
son (her g grandfather) Ernest Cargill Bentley. Bob Glover had thus found his
“closest” Bentley researcher “cousin, ” who contributed to the more recent history of
our Bentleys.
In July 2007, Scott Rode posted this “Stories and History of the Bentley Family” on
his family history websites (5) to enable other Bentley researches access to our
work. Team Bentley was formed as an advisory group to provide concerned
feedback on the development of these “Stories” and the websites. This team consists
of H. Ross, Bob, and Shelly Glover; Scott Rode; Elaine Cowan; Sean Bentley; and
Kathy Popovich.
AUG 20 START ANCESTRY SITE
We hope this research matches the handwritten family history that was passed on to
Adelia Bentley Burger by her father Wilbur.
BENTLEY OR BENTLY?
One of the challenges of researching the Bentley ancestors is the spelling of the
family name. In modern times, since George Cargill Bentley’s birth in 1801, our
branch of the family name has consistently been spelled “Bentley.” Prior to that,
however, it was often spelled “Bently,” and many times the same person is listed in
various documents as both “Bently” and “Bentley.” In some instances it was listed as
"Bantley." Some theorize that going back to 1100-1400 in England, the name was
“De Bentley” or “De Benthall.” We can only substantiate that for our branch the
name has been “Bentley” and “Bently” back to 16th Century England.
Perhaps at one point the family name was “Bently” and it was “Americanized” over
time to “Bentley?” This similar to our Gelser family name which was Americanized
from Goltzer and Goelzer. Perhaps some of it was simply due to the fact that those
writing the names, whether family members or census takers/record keepers, were
not literate and “Bently” seemed correct to them?
Cameron Stewart’s genealogy book on the Bentleys uses “Bentley” but where the old
spelling appears in research notes as “Bentl(e)y.” Most of our family researchers
simply keep it consistent and use “Bentley” in their listings. Since that is how our
family branch has spelled our surname for the last 200 years, we will use that
spelling throughout other than when directly quoting from sources that used
“Bently.”
Tombstones
Green Bently----state marker for Green, Sr.
Green Bently, Jr.—transcription of tombstone
George C. Bentley—actual photo
George E. Bentley—actual photo
Wilbur D. Bentley---actual photo
BENTLEY HISTORY OF PATRIOTISM
William Bentley (G3) migrated to Colonial America in about 1671, and thus is
considered to be a colonist founder of America.
Greene Bentley, Sr. (G5) served in the French & Indian War, and the Revolutionary
War (4th Regiment of the Orange County, NY Militia).
Green Bentley, Jr. (G6) served in the New York Militia with the 79th Infantry
Regiment .
George Eugene Bentley (G8) served in the Civil War with Co. D, 104th Infantry
Regiment, N.Y.
H. Ross Glover, husband of Corinne Burger Glover (G11), served in World War II
with the 36th Infantry Division. He saw service in North Africa, Italy, France,
Austria, and Germany. He received many combat medals and three Purple Hearts.
He has been a member of Dansville’s Daniel Goho Post 87 since 1945, and in 1970
was the first World War II member of the post to receive the prestigious Life
Membership Award. He is a past commander of the post.
Robert H. Glover (G12) served in the Vietnam War in Phu Bai with the XXIV Corps
Artillery.
Adelia Bentley Burger (G10) and Corinne Burger Glover were eligible to become
members of the National Society of Colonial Dames (William Bentley G3 an approved
colonist), the Daughters of the American Revolution (Green Bentley, Sr G5 an
approved Revolutionary War soldier), and the National Association of the Daughters
of Founders and Patriots (William Bentley G1 a Colonial America founder and Greene,
Sr. a Revolutionary War Patriot).
DOCUMENTATION: BENTLEY FACT AND FICTION
We will quote professional genealogist Cameron Ralph Stewart (11) as his thoughts
in his book pertain here as well:
“A strong attempt has been made to authenticate the known existence of named
relatives of the past and present by introducing available evidence from many
different sources. The information utilized has been in appearance both valid and
reliable. The material is believed suitable for publication at this time.
Perhaps the best proverb to follow is: “Don’t believe anything that you hear.
Believe only one-half of what you see; and then doubt that.” Some of the most
tempting sources of documentary evidence may prove to be neither valid or reliable.
Some of the “evidence” can be found to be in conflict with other delectable “facts.”
The sincere genealogist continually faces the challenging task of decision-making—
whether to accept, to reserve comment on, or to reject “evidence” from whatever
source it may come. He has an obligation to the reader, however, in identifying these
various sources.
The reader is not asked to accept all that he reads in blind faith. Wherever he is
able, the reader is asked to carefully weigh the evidence on the basis of the indicated
sources. Appropriate credit has been given to the known sources.
Primary-source documentation is desired for most of the links between the direct-line
descendants of a common ancestor. Some minor errors would be expected.”
We make no claim to be as professional as Cameron Stewart. Much of the early
Bentley history in our work is based on his fine work. Our sources are noted
conservatively and listed at the end of the book to allow the text to be more
readable---- as this is a family story and not a pure research project. Surely the
purist genealogist would prefer precise footnoting and a more thorough attempt to
find primary sources rather than depending at times on secondary sources, but to
do so would mean this book would never get done.
One of the biggest difficulties in writing the “Stories and History of the Bentley
Families” is the lack of consistency between information gleaned from various
sources. Add to that the lack of accuracy that sometimes exists with what should be
accurate primary and secondary sources, as well as innocent typing mistakes
(including our own) that come with such massive volumes of work. There are
instances where tombstone dates, family trees and records, census records,
cemetery and death index records, birth and death certificates, obituaries, wedding
announcements, military reports, genealogy website info and more have been
proven to be in conflict and/or in error. Old, handwritten records are hard to read
which adds to the dilemma. Even the recollections of our closest relatives have
sometimes proven to be less than accurate. Unfortunately, one of the obstacles we
face is erroneous information that spreads and spreads from researcher to
researcher until it appears to many to be fact. Some researchers are rather sloppy
with their work, but even the most careful can err. Surely with the huge volume of
this book there will be some innocent errors. Surely over the years some will find
errors in this work that will horrify us when brought to our attention. Some will have
been by accident, others simply because we were mislead.
The best we can do is attempt to verify accuracy from several sources. When
feasible, we will note sources (but, again, this is a story and not a book of data). In
some cases we will note inconsistencies and other times we will note unsubstantiated
“theories.” We will at times offer debate over data that are acceptable by some
researchers but not others. Primary sources are noted when possible, and other
times we note secondary sources that sometimes note primary sources.
Unfortunately, many times in order to keep the story going we have to note
undocumented secondary (and often well beyond that as the info spreads over the
Internet) sources. We attempt to cover these situations by noting that these are
“claims,” “theories,” etc. Or, we go with what researcher Elaine Cowan calls “the
researchers best friend: “about,” “probably,” and “possibly.”
Bob Glover has found that the only thing about the Bentley family genealogy he
knows for sure is the date of his wedding, his son’s birth, and his mother’s death ---as those he witnessed.
NOTE: If a maiden name is not known, the married name is used to enable better
indexing and searching. If a date for birth, marriage or death is not known, an
“about” date is used to enable better indexing and searching.
ABBREVIATIONS
b. - born
c. - christened
bapt. - baptized
m. - married
w. - wife
h. - husband
ch. - children
dau.- daughter
d - died
bur. -- buried
LDS ---Church of the Latter Day Saints genealogy resource file
abt. --- about
poss. --- possibly
prob. ---- probably
********
PART I: THE EARLY BENTLEYS OF ENGLAND—GENERATION 1 & 2
INTRODUCTION:
We begin the stories and history of our Bentley family with William Bentley (G1), (b.
prob. betw. 1578/1581), as he is the oldest ancestor of our branch that is
documented and thus the progenitor of our Bentleys.
There has been a lot of confusion concerning the early William Bentleys prior to
William (G3), who immigrated from England to Rhode Island. Bentley researcher
Elaine Cowan states that this was due “ mainly to errors appearing first in turn of the
century genealogists which are still being perpetuated today. Having discovered the
existence of several William Bentleys in colonial records, early searchers tried to
classify them as grandfather, father and son. However, closer examination of the
data does not support this idea.”
**THE WILLIAM-WILLIAM-WILLIAM THEORY
Many Internet listings show William (G1)-William (G3)-William (G4) as the family
lineage. Sounds good, but the numbers don’t fit. Indeed, there are several
conflicting listings of William Bentley, Sr. (G3) with differing dates of birth and death,
wife, children etc. as researchers “tried to make it fit.” The Cameron Stewart
research documents the lineage as: William (G1)-John (G2)-William (G3) –William
(G4)-Greene (G5)-Green (G6). From there Bob Glover was able to connect to
George C. (G7), George E. (G8), Wilbur (G9), and Adelia Bentley Burger (G10)---and
on to Corinne Burger Glover (G11), Robert Harold Glover (G12), and Christopher
Ross Glover (G13).
**THE CAPTAIN JAMES BENTLEY AS FATHER OF WILLIAM (G1) THEORY----GOING BACK TO DE BENTLEY IN YEAR 1100
Adding to the confusion are the various theories for the Bentley family line prior to
William (G1), most starting with Captain James Bentley as the father of William (G1)
(b abt 1560 in High Bentley, Eng.) and going back to abt 1100-1400 in England
when the name was “De Bentley” or “De Benthall.” See Ancestry.com’s One World
Tree for the Bentleys (18) as an example. This is a community tree where anyone
can add or delete and no documentation is provided, and since it has huge exposure,
misinformation can spread wildly.
This theory makes “our” William Bentley (G1) the 17th generation Bentley. Wouldn’t
that be nice!
All these theories are seemingly guesses and there are many holes in the
undocumented listings. Genealogist Emilie Sarter (12) stated in 1949 after a careful
investigation of this theory: “Bentley descendants in this country are inclined to
connect William Bentley (G3) of Rhode Island with Thomas, a half-brother of Dr.
Richard Bentley (a noted classical scholar). Such search as has been made here has
revealed nothing in the nature of proof. It may be possible, however, to find the
connecting link in English records.” Indeed, the various sites list as half-brothers
and sons of Captain James Bentley a William and Thomas Bentley—with Thomas the
father of the scholar Dr. Richard Bentley.
Cameron Stewart (11) reprinted Sarter’s remarks, and begins with William (G1), not
following the path of Captain James.
It is our opinion that Captain James Bentley was the father of a different William
Bentley who was a contemporary of our William G1, and that this other William was
the uncle of Dr. Richard Bentley the scholar, that this William migrated to America
well before our William G3, and spread his family to the south in Virginia and North
Carolina. And that some sources mistakenly paired “our” Mary Goodwin Bentley with
the wrong William. It is possible, perhaps even likely, that this other William Bentley
and Dr. Richard Bentley and Captain James Bentley are some sort of relatives to our
branch.
Interestingly, Doris Burger Smalt, daughter of Adelia Bentley Burger and aunt of Bob
Glover, told Bob in 2007 (without any knowledge of this research) that she recalls
being told by her mother that they were related to a Doctor Reverend Richard
Bentley and a Captain James Bentley. So does this mean that our family received
this misinformation half a century ago or that we are barking up the wrong Bentley
tree? We will follow the lead of professional genealogists Emilie Sarter and Cameron
Stewart unless at some point this position is proven wrong.
***THE MYSTERIOUS ROBERT AND MARY BENTLEY AS PARENTS OF WIILLIAM
THEORY
We perhaps can extend our family another generation to Robert and Mary Bentley of
Elstow, Bedfordshire, England. Or at least we can do so with some confidence with
the mother of William (G1), if not the father.
The mother of William Bentley (G1) was Mary Bentley. This seems to be proven by
the biography of John Bunyan, although professional genealogists would prefer to
find a primary source. Sean Bentley (27), a 13th generation Bentley (maybe we can
claim 14th generation for him?), posted on his family history website:
“
In August 2005 I visited the Ancestral Home of the Bentleys (at least as far
back as I've been able to trace somewhat definitively so far) in Bedfordshire,
England. Aside from prowling around Elstow and Ampthill I visited the John Bunyan
Museum in Bedford (his mother was Margaret Bentley).”
Sean wrote to family researcher George Nelson Bentley in Sept 2001:
“I was at the Bunyan Museum in August; they showed me a biography of Bunyan
that listed William and Mary Goodwin and GAVE WILLIAM’S MOTHER”S NAME AS
MARY AS WELL, SURNAME UNKNOWN.”
The biography Sean viewed most likely was the highly respected work of John
Brown. In “John Bunyan: His Life, Times, and Work” by John Brown (28),
published first in 1887, the author notes on page 35 in reference to Margaret Bentley
Bunyan, the wife of Thomas Bunyan and mother of the famous author John Bunyan
(“Pilgrim’s Progress”):
“Margaret Bunyan, the tinker’s wife, and the Dreamer’s mother, like her husband,
was a native of Elstow, being born there in the same year in which he was born, as
the following entry from the Transcript Register shows:1603. “Margarett Bentley, daughter of Wm. Bentley, was C. (christened) the xiij
of November.”
(NOTE: The Bedfordshire Records show she was christened Nov
13, 1603 per letter from the Senior Clerk to Cameron Stewart).(11)
“Though her parents, William Bentley and Mary Goodwin were married, in 1601,
at St. Paul’s Church, in Bedford, we may infer that since MARY BENTLEY, HER
GRANDMOTHER, DIED IN ELSTOW, AS A WIDOW, IN 1613, the Bentleys, like the
Bunyans, had been long resident in the Parish. Their names do not occur in the
Court Roll of Elstow between 1542 and 1550, but are found in the earliest Transcript
Register.”
Note that John Brown was not just a nobody with a bunch of theories. He was a
Congregational minister who served at Park Chapel, Manchester, England, from 1855
to 1864 and at Bunyan Church, Bedford, from 1864 to 1903 (during the time he
wrote the Bunyan biography). He was the Lyman Beecher lecturer at Yale in 1899.
Brown wrote broadly in history and biblical studies but is best known for his Bunyan
work. He edited Bunyan’s “The Pilgrim Progress,” “Holy War,” and Grace
Abounding,” and Bunyan’s complete works for the Cambridge University Press.
Some 100+ years ago and being connected so closely with the Bunyan Church near
Elstow, he certainly had access to records that we are less likely to find now. His
position that Mary Bentley was the mother of William Bentley (G1) should be highly
respected and we have accepted this position as most likely and thus refer to her in
this book as the mother of William (G1). Thus our first Bentley mothers were Mary
(unknown surname) Bentley, Mary Goodwin Bentley, and Mary Betts Bentley.
William Bentley (G1) had as his mother, wife and daughter-in-law Mary Bentley, and
he had as his grandson and great grandson William Bentley. Got that? And there
were a whole bunch more of William and Mary Bentleys over the years causing a lot
of confusion (and errors) among Bentley researchers.
But who was this earliest Mary Bentley’s husband, the father of William (G1)? John
Brown made no mention of the grandfather of John Bunyan in his biography, nor did
Cameron Stewart in his massive 1986 Bentley history. Seems they would have if
they had evidence. But he did state that Mary died a widow in 1613, thus we know
her husband (Robert or otherwise) died prior her death.
Cameron Stewart wrote to Lawrence H. Bentley (29) on Sep 18, 2002: “that Robert
Bentley, buried June 30, 1605 in Elstow Churchyard, Bedfordshire, England may
have possibly been the father of William Bentley. This has not been proved.”
Sean Bentley notes:
“In 2005 George Nelson Bentley sent me some photocopies from a correspondence
with Cameron Stewart from 2002.
In a footnote with this document it says "Apparently the only other Bentleys buried
there [Elstow Churchyard] in this time frame were Robert Bentl[e]y, bur 30 June
1605 and wife Mercy, bur 7 Apr 1612...." Cameron just theorizes that these might
be William's parents.”
Sean responded to George Nelson Bentley in regard to the John Brown statement
that Mary Bentley died in 1613 but Stewart found a Mercy, husband of Robert, bur 7
Apr 1612:
"Of course, perhaps Mercy/Mary is an error one way or the other - between illegible
handwriting and bad spelling I've run across a lot of discrepancies here and there.
For example, one of William's children I've seen listed as Annie, Amie, and Arnie!
One interesting thing is that I've seen the transcribed parish records for
Ampthill/Elstow ... going back to 1602… and didn't see an entry for Robert's death,
so I'm wondering where Stewart's data comes from. A frustrating mystery!”
George Nelson Bentley to Sean Bentley in 2005:
“I assume that you consider Robert to be the father of William as a Robert Bentley
is buried in the same graveyard as this Mary or Mercy. No one I know has confirmed
that, however it is logical. Unfortunately, according to Cameron Stewart, Bunyan’s
paternal line is well documented, but his maternal line ends at Mary. Perhaps some
day the John Bunyan Museum in Bedford woud help find a connection.”
So Mary could have died and was buried in 1612 or 1613---or the Mercy/Mary buried
with Robert in the Elstow courtyard is the wrong family. Although they are common
names, the fact remains that a Mary Bentley was the mother of William (G1) and she
died abt 1613 a widow and that is a close match to the Mercy (which might be
Mary). And her husband, Robert, died in 1605 and William’s (G1) father died before
his mother. So it is a highly possible fit!
Sean wrote Bob Glover in July 2007:
As far as I know Cameron did not find an actual tombstone for a Mary or Mercy -- or
Robert! Frankly it would be miraculous if he did, given the older stones' condition. I
don't know where he got his data but presumably from a church record.
Bob Glover found this listing at familysearch.org which may be a match for Robert
Bentley, father of William (G1):
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/search/frameset_search.asp?PAGE=ancestorsearc
hresults.asp
Robert Benteley
Christening 24 MAR 1560
Dunstable, Bedford, England
-----right name, right age range, right county. Could this then be the same
Robert Bentley buried 30 June 1605 at the Elstow, Bedford, England courtyard and is
he the father of William (G1)?
SUMMARY OF THE ROBERT AND MARY THERORY:
The "Mercy" Bentley that Cameron Stewart found either in the cemetery at the
Elstow Churchyard or in records as buried the wife of Robert and with burial date of
Apr 7, 1612 is likely the same Mary Bentley as noted in the Bunyan bio. The bio
could have been off a year or the burial date off a year. Further, the Robert Bentley
buried there died in 1605. The Bunyan bio notes Mary died a widow in 1613.
Thus Mary Bentley is very probably the mother of William G1, died abt 1613 or poss.
died prior to burial April 7, 1612, was buried a widow, poss. the wife of the Robert
Bentley buried in the Elstow courtyard. Mary Bentley likely was age 18-21 when
William (G1) was born and thus was probably born in about 1560 or so.
Robert Bentley (Benteley, Bently) was poss. christened Mar 24, 1560, Dunstable,
Bedford, Eng. He was poss. buried in the Elstow churchyard June 30, 1605 and was
poss the husband of Mary Bentley, and thus poss. the father of William G1.
We are of the opinion that the listing of Mary Bentley as grandmother of John
Bunyan (and thus the mother of William (G1) in his bio is HIGHLY LIKELY, and that
the "theory" of Cameron Stewart in regard to Robert and Mary Bentley buried in the
Elstow courtyard as the parents of William (G1) is VERY POSSIBLE.
Although we shall list Mary Bentley as the mother of William (G1), genealogists
follow the family line through the documented Bentley men. So for now, our
Bentleys begin in the late 16th Century England with the proven William (G1), rather
than his unproven father Robert Bentley.
**************************
Chapter 1: WILLIAM BENTLEY (G1) (b prob. betw. 1578-1581; d bef June 27,1632,
poss 1628); husband of MARY GOODWIN BENTLEY (b prob. 1580 or 1584; d 1632);
father of John Bentley; grandfather of William Bentley, Sr.; g grandfather of William
Bentley, Jr.; gg grandfather of Greene Bentley, Sr.; ggg grandfather of Green
Bentley, Jr.; ggg g grandfather of George C. Bentley; ggg gg grandfather of George
E. Bentley; ggg ggg grandfather of Wilbur D. Bentley; ggg ggg g grandfather of
Adelia Bentley Burger; ggg ggg gg grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover; ggg ggg
ggg grandfather of Robert H. Glover
THE PROGENITOR OF OUR BENTLEY FAMILY
William Bentley key data:
BORN: prob 1578-1581, poss 1573, in prob. Ampthill, Bedfordshire Co, Eng.
MARRIED: May 18 or 20, 1601, St Paul’s Church, Bedford to Mary Goodwin
DIED: before June 27, 1632, poss. in 1628 in prob. Elstow.
Genealogist Cameron Stewart (11) documents the key links for the early generations
of our Bentleys. He wrote to the Records Department of Bedfordshire Co., Eng. on
Feb 12, 1978 inquiring as to the Bedfordshire Bentleys. He received a response
dated Feb 20, 1978 from A. F. Cirket, Senior Records Officer, Bedfordshire Council,
County Hall, Bedford, Eng. which reads in part (11—page 1631):
“Wm. Bentley (G3) was baptized in Ampthill church on 13 Sep. 1640. He was the
son of Jn. Bentley (John—G2) who married Mary Betts, also in Ampthill church on 3
Oct. 1630………Jn. Bentley above….was the son of William Bentley (G1) who married
Mary Goodwin in St. Paul’s church, Bedford on the 18 or 20 May 1601 (parish
register and transcript do not agree on the day).
…….I enclose a list of persons who do professional searches in our County, as
requested, as we cannot undertake further research on the subject. I also enclose a
rough outline pedigree of the Bentley family of Elstow and Ampthill.”
Stewart then lists from the pedigree:
“THE BENTLEYS OF BEDFORDSHIRE
Bedfordshire progenitor William Bentley, m May 18/20, 1601, Bedford, St. Paul’s, to
Mary Goodwin, bur July 1, 1632 (widow)………….”
-----This letter thus establishes William (G1) as the father of John (G2) and the
grandfather of William, Sr. (G3), as well as the husband of Mary Goodwin. Further,
it documents that Mary was buried in Bedfordshire Co. as a widow on July 1, 1632.
Thus, it establishes that William died prior to that date.
BIRTH AND DEATH DATES OF WILLIAM BENTLEY AND MARY GOODWIN
William Bentley (G1), all seem to agree, was born in Bedfordshire Co., Eng, but there
is no agreement or documentation as to what town. Bedford is the choice of Cowan
(6); Elstow is the choice in several LDS files. Allan Bentley (23) lists Dorchester, but
he likely has the wrong William, son of Captain James.
Stewart wrote in 1986 (p. 1552): “Contrary to the statements of most Bentleyfamily genealogists and most of the so-called “knowledgeable descendants,” this
searcher INSISTS that the home in England, where the progenitor was born, was
AMPTHILL, BEDFORDSHIRE, ENGLAND. Corroborating evidence in Bedfordshire is
being examined.” Both Ampthill and Elstow are presently smaller towns a bit to the
south of the large town of Bedford in eastern England, and their boundaries are very
close--- and may have changed over the years. Likely Mary Goodwin was also born
in this area of Bedfordshire Co. She may, in fact, have been christened at St. Paul’s
Church in Elstow.
Sean Bentley (27) wrote at genforum.genealogy.com in 2005:
“I recently visited the Ancestral Home of the Bentleys (at least as far back as I've
been able to trace somewhat definitively so far) in Bedfordshire, England.
The county records had much peripheral documentation of local Bentley descendents
(birth, marriage, death, and tax records) transcribed from Elstow and Ampthill parish
and legal records, but these only went back to about 1602.
I walked around Elstow, where William was born (Stewart notes as nearby Ampthill),
as well as John Bunyan. A pretty little suburb of Bedford with much Bunyaniana in it.
The actual "Slough of Despond" still runs through it! And we visited Ampthill, also a
charming village. Graveyards in both places had no Bentley stones in evidence, and
any stones older than about 1790 were eroded and illegible.”
But when were William and Mary born?
William Bentley was b. abt 1581 according to Cowan; Marlin Criddle (7) lists his birth
as abt 1578; the Gayle King Repository with LDS lists 1580 as does Allan Bentley
(23). LDS files note he was born in 1573. The problem is that none of these birth
dates are documented.
Scott Rode wrote Bob Glover: “My date of William of 1578 are taken originally from
the documented pages I got from George and Violet Bentley, they lived in
Clearwater, MN and they did all of this with the help of Betty Sonnek of Waldorf, MN
in May of 1999. I got it from my mom who got it from her mom who was Merle Viola
Bentley and a direct descendent of William Bentley of 1578.
There were no sources sited.”
A 1573 birth would mean he was age 28 when married in 1601, which is possible but
unlikely. Most men in those days married abt age 20-22. William’s son John (G2)
married at age 22. Birth dates of abt 1578 and abt 1581 would yield a marriage age
for William of abt. 20-23. So it is most likely that the various birth dates noted in
family histories is based on the “assumed” age of William upon his marriage. But
what if it was his second marriage at age 28?
What of Mary? Criddle lists Mary as born abt 1581; Cowan as abt 1583; Dreyer (22)
lists Sep 1580. The Gayle King Repository has Aug 2, 1573 as born to John
Goodwyne (b 1510) and Alice (b 1512). How did Stewart handle it in his book? For
birth dates for both William and Mary he notes: “?”
The transcription of Mary’s will (below) was preceded by this note, indicating that
Stewart uncovered key information well after his book was published:
“Correspondence from Cameron R. Stewart dated Sept. 18, 2002
From the Bedfordshire Archives Record Office, Bedford, England Transcript of the Will
of Mary Goodwin
`Mary Goodwin Bentley--Widow-- Will ABP/W1632/52 -- 6 Apr. 2001--4cc”
This seems to indicate that Mary died at age 52, meaning she was born abt. 1580. If
it can be verified that this was her age in 1632 then this would solve the puzzle. But
wait, this Stewart note followed the transcription of the will:
“See St. Paul’s Church records, Bedford, for Mary’s baptism in 1584.”
So was Mary born in abt 1580, born and baptized in 1584, or perhaps born in abt
1580 and baptized in 1584? At this point we lean toward 1584.
***************************
When did William die and where were William and Mary buried?
It seems some researchers misunderstood Stewart’s note on the death date for
Mary, confusing it to be that of William. Some list 1632 as the death date for
William. On page 1632 of his book Stewart notes: “Mary Goodwin, bur Jul 1, 1632
(widow).” But since it follows text about William it seems some misunderstood this
as the burial date for him. It certainly was confusing. But on page 1062 Stewart lists
Mary’s burial date and widow status on a separate line from William so this was
clearly his ruling. Some LDS files list his death date as 1628 but provide no
documentation.
According to Mary’s will (below), she instructed that she be buried in the churchyard
of Elvestoe (Elstow). According to LDS files, Mary was buried July 1, 1632 at the
Elnestae Church Yard, Bedfordshire, Eng. The will did not mention that she was to
be buried with William but it was likely. Since William was not listed in the will, we
assume he died prior to the date of the will (June 27, 1632).
Elstow, Elvestoe and Elnestae are likely the same as the handwriting of records was
hard to read. As Mary noted that she was from Elstow in the will dated a few days
before her death then most likely she died in Elstow.
********************************
SUMMARY ON BIRTH, DEATH OF WILLIAM AND MARY
For now, we will go with:
William: “b prob. betw. 1578-1581 in prob. Ampthill; d. before June 27, 1632,
poss. 1628, in prob Elstow; prob bur. in the churchyard at Elstow.”
Mary: “b prob 1580 or 1584 in prob. Elstow; died betw. June 27, 1632 after
reading of her will and before July 1, 1632 burial in the churchyard at Elstow.”
****************.
WHO WERE THE PARENTS OF WILLIAM BENTLEY:
ROBERT AND MARY?
As noted in the introduction, the Captain James Bentley as the father of William
theory was not accepted by genealogists Emilie Sarter and Cameron Stewart. Sean
Bentley notes on his site (27): “William's father may have been Robert Bentley (d.
1605); his mother was Mary (surname unknown) d. 1613.”
Sean visited Bedfordshire in 2005 and noted at genforum.genealogy.com: “Visiting
the John Bunyan Museum in Bedford (his mother was Mary Bentley's daughter
Margaret) afforded one hitherto factoid unknown to me, that William's mother was
also named Mary (surname unknown as well as husband's name). This data came
from a John Bunyan family tree they had.” Sean thus did not find a Robert Bentley
as the father of William from this source.
The fact that William Bentley’s (G1) wife was named Mary (Goodwin) and that his
son John’s (G2) wife was named Mary (Betts) leaves us to wonder if three straight
generations of our Bentley’s married a Mary. Perhaps there was some confusion in
the records?
As noted in the introduction to this section, Cameron Stewart wrote to Lawrence H.
Bentley (28) on Sep 18, 2002: “that Robert Bentley, buried June 30, 1605 in Elstow
Churchyard, Bedfordshire, England may have possibly been the father of William
Bentley. This has not been proved.”
***********************
MARY GOODWIN BENTLEY’S WILL
The will of Mary Goodwin Bentley is described in “Dictionary of National Biography,”
London: Smith, Elder, & Co.,1886:
http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bbunyan.html
“The will of John Bunyan's maternal grandmother, Mary Bentley (d. 1632), with its
"Dutch-like picture of an Elstow cottage interior two hundred and fifty years ago,"
proves (J. Brown, Biography of John Bunyan, to which we are indebted for all these
family details) that his mother "came not of the very squalid poor, but of people
who, though humble in station, were yet decent and worthy in their ways."
Sean Bentley notes at genforum.genealogy .com:
“I visited Elstow and Bedford England last month (2005) and looked at the
Bedfordshire county records. When you get back as far as William and Mary of
Ampthill, there's nothing in the transcribed church records - too early! EXCEPT:
incredibly they had the Will of Mary Goodwin Bentley (d. 1632), which they
photocopied for me. Here’s a copy:
http://s_s_bentley.home.comcast.net/ssb/bentleygen.html
The will is also posted at the Scott Rode sites (5).
Sean wrote in 2007:
“Hi Bob,
When I visited the Bedford archives I was just casting in the dark, hoping actually to
find anything at all about William. It was a surprise to me to have them find Mary's
will.
I had communication only from Larry Bentley after I'd returned and posted the
graphic.”
Sean wrote to Scott Rode: “So, here`s what I have re: the transcribed will of Mary
Bentley, from Larry Bentley. It looks pretty close to me, but yeah, that original is
practically unintelligible! “ Scott posted the below transcription at:
http://scottrode.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=scottrode&view=0&pid=4251
&rand=83461#moreinfo_
The transcription of the 1632 Will of Mary Goodwin Bentley:
Correspondence from Cameron R. Stewart to Lawrence H. Bentley, dated Sept. 18,
2002:
From the Bedfordshire Archives Record Office, Bedford, England Transcript of the Will
of Mary Goodwin
`Mary Goodwin Bentley--Widow-- Will ABP/W1632/52 -- 6 Apr. 2001--4cc
(1) In the name of God, Amen. This 27th day of June 1632 I, Mary Bentley,
(2) of Elvestoe (Elstow) in the county of Bedford, widow but being sick in body but of
perfect mind and memory I thank my heavenly father.
(3) I do make this my last will and testament in manner and form following that is to
say first I bequeathe
(4) my soul unto almighty God my Maker in whom I hope to be saved through Jesus
Christ my Savior and my
(5) Body be buried in the churchyard of Elstow aforesaid. Item, I give and bequeath
to John Bentley, my son
(6) one brass pot, one little table, and all painted cloths about the house and the
standing bed in the
(7) loft. Item, I give to my daughter Margaret the joined stool in the chamber and
my little .... Item, I give to
(8) my daughter Rosse the joined form in the chamber and a hogshead and the
tumblestole. Item, I give to my daughter Elizabeth
(9) the little kettle and the big platter, a flaxin sheet and a flaxin pillowbeare, a
trundle bed and a
(10) copper in the chamber and the ..... Item, I give to my daughter Annie my best
...., my best cuffe, my gowne, my best
(11) petticoat, the presse in the chamber, the best bolster and blanket and the coffer
above
(12) and the kettle, the mortar and pestle, platter, and the other trundle bed, a
harden sheet and pillow beare. Item, all my other goods
(13) and chattels whatsoever I unbequeathed I give and bequeath to my daughter
Mary whom I appointed
(14) to be soul executrix of this my last Will and testament whom I will se honestly
buried and my
(15) burial discharged in witness whereof I have hereunto set my and and seal the
day and year
(16) above written.
In presence of John Welle, Clerk The Mark of Mary Bentley The Mark of Margerie
Jaques, widow (Latin) The Will proved Oct. 6, 1632`”
Cameron Stewart:
“See St. Paul’s Church records, Bedford, for Mary’s baptism in 1584, Mary’s marriage
to William in 1603. Mary also the maternal grandmother of John Bonionn or
Bon(n)ion(n) known more popularly as John Bunyan, author of “The Pilgrim’s
Progress” b 1628, d. 1688. Margaret Bentley, chr. Nov 13, 1603 married Thomas
Bunnion, May 23, 1627.”
NOTE: The will was written June 27, 1632 and Mary was buried 4 days later on July
lst, so likely she knew that she was close to death. The Will proved Oct. 6, 1632.
Mary signed the will with her mark, an “X,” indicating that she was likely illiterate
(although she could have been too weak to sign). Interesting that her son John
Bunyan, the famous writer, had a mother that could not write. But then his
biography indicates that he had little formal education and educated himself by
reading books, including those passed on to him by his first wife after her death.
And what of William Bentley’s will and the tombstones of William and Mary? Sean
Bentley wrote:
“If the records office in Bedford didn't pull out William's will when I asked them
to look up him and Mary, I must assume that his is not in existence there.
My understanding is that the local church records have all been collected in
Bedford, so his probably either is nonexistent after half a millennium or
is stuffed in someone's trunk somewhere! The gravestones I saw in
Elstow/Ampthill from that period were so weathered that they were
indecipherable, alas.
That said, it's fascinating to prowl around the old homestead.”
--------------------------------
THE 7 CHILDREN OF WILLIAM BENTLEY AND MARY GOODWIN BENTLEY
The number of children of William and Mary and their names is somewhat of a
mystery, but then going back 400 years one must expect that.
Children from the Bedfordshire Records
The Feb 20, 1978 letter from the Senior Records Clerk of Bedfordshire Co. to
Cameron Stewart noted in regard to William Bentley and Mary Goodwin:
Their seven children appeared on the chart in this order:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
MARGARET, baptized November 13, 1603, at Elstow;
Elizabeth, baptized October 23, 1605, at Elstow;
Thomas, baptized July 12, 1607, at Elstow;
JOHN, baptized November 5, 1608, at Elstow;
Rose, baptized July 12, 1612 at Elstow;
Emma, baptized February 8, 1617, at Elstow;
Mary, executor of mother's Will. Note: Is Mary the eldest (no birth date)?
Stewart assumes that the mother would choose the oldest child as the executrix of
the will, but perhaps she was chosen because she cared for her mother to the end?
Children from Mary’s will of 1632
Mary’s will lists 6 children in this order: John, Margaret, Rosse (Rose), Elizabeth,
Annie, and Mary. It seems she listed the women after the men, and Thomas is
missing. So did he die by 1632 or did Mary leave him out of the will? Margaret,
Elizabeth and Rose are next in the same order as the baptisms. Named last in the
will is Annie, but it was Emma in the will. Likely she either went by both names or
the handwriting of the will was misread.
What then of Mary, the last daughter listed in the will? In both the Parish Records
and the will she is listed as the executrix. Is Mary the eldest child, as usually the
executrix would be? If so she would have probably been born abt 1602 as her
mother married in 1601 and had Margaret in 1603. Emma (or Annie) would have
been but abt 15 yrs old when her mother died, leaving her parentless. So Mary, the
daughter, listed last in the will could not have been the youngest child---as she is
listed on some websites. Most likely then Mary was the oldest and born in abt 1602.
Thus it seems that William and Mary had 7 children, two boys and five girls. Note
that the dates of the christening prove only that the children were born prior to those
dates---we don’t know their exact dates of birth but it was likely in those times
within a week.
1. MARY BENTLEY was prob born in 1602.
2. MARGARET BENTLEY BUNYAN was c. Nov 13, 1603. See below for more.
3. ELIZABETH BENTLEY was c. Oct 23, 1605.
4. THOMAS BENTLEY was c. July 12, 1607 and presumed to have died prior to his
mother’s death in 1632 as he is not listed in her will.
He may have married Priscilla Weathers (b abt 1609) in abt 1625 and had child John
Bentley (abt 1627) (22)
5. JOHN BENTLEY was c. Nov 5, 1608. The Bedfordshire pedigree also states in
regard to William’s son John: “m Oct 3, 1630, Mary Betts at Ampthill; John was bur
March 26, 1666, at Ampthill.” See Chapter 2 for more on John Bentley (G2).
6. ROSE BENTLEY BUNYAN was c. July 12, 1612. According to the letter from the
Senior Records Officer: “Their third daughter, Rose, married Edward Bonnionn,
born before 1602, brother of Thos. and uncle of John the writer.” They married Aug
31, 1629 in Elstow (22, 23). That is, the Bentley sisters Rose and Margaret married
the Bunyan brothers Edward and Thomas . Rose and Edward had children Rose
(1633) and Anne (1634). (22)
7. EMMA (or Annie) BENTLEY was c. Feb 8, 1617.
MARGARET (MARY) BENTLEY BUNYAN, DAUGHTER OF WILLIAM AND MARY, MOTHER
OF FAMOUS AUTHOR JOHN BUNYAN
The letter from the Senior Records clerk also noted: “Margt. married Thomas
Bunnion, jun. (himself baptized at Elstow on 24 Feb. 1602), on 23 May 1627 (she
being his second wife). Their eldest son, John (baptized on 30 Nov. 1628), was the
author of “The Pilgrim’s Progress.”
Margaret Bentley and Thomas Bunyan, Jr. had two children other than John, the
first-born: (22, 23)
1. Margaret (c. Mar 7, 1630 in Elstow; bur. July 24, 1644 at age 14 in Elstow).
Note: Stewart had the same dates.
2. William (c. Dec 1, 1633 in Elstow).
Thomas married his first wife, Anne Pinney (b abt 1605) on Jan 10, 1623 at the
Elstow Church (28). She died Apr 13, 1626 in Elstow. (22) Died 1627 childless (28)
Margaret died June 10, 1644 in Elstow (11, 22); Thomas was bur. Feb 7, 1676 in
Elstow (22, 23)
Thomas Bunyan, Jr.’s father was Thomas Bunyan, Sr. (b abt 1575 in Elstow; d.
1641 in Elstow). Thomas, Sr. first married abt 1600? (wife unknown.,b abt 1583)
and had 3 children including Thomas, Jr and Edward (who married Margaret
Bentley’s sister Rose); she died perhaps abt 1603 after birth of John as Thomas Sr
married later in 1603
and then married Elizabeth Leigh Nov 18, 1603 and had 7 children. (22)?????? B
abt 1585?
Had 3d wife Anne named in will
See John Brown
Allan Bentley (23) notes of Thomas, Jr.:
http://www.blessedhopeministries.net/pplesson1.htm
"Thomas married when he was 19 and was a widower four years later. He then
married Margaret Bentley and their firstborn was John.
Thomas was a brasier and had a forge at the home place. He would mend leaking
pots, kettles and pans from the surrounding area. John would sit and watch his dad
as he worked soldering and repairing these utensils, or else play in the field that
sloped down to a small stream in the front of cottage. The basic needs of life were
met, but little more could be provided for John."
Edmund Venables writes of Margaret in “The Life of John Bunyan” (23):
“The mother of the immortal Dreamer was one Margaret Bentley, who, like her
husband, was a native of Elstow and only a few months his junior. The details of her
mother's will, which is still extant, drawn up by the vicar of Elstow, prove that, like
her husband, she did no t, in the words of Bunyan's latest and most complete
biographer, the Rev. Dr. Brown, "come of the very squalid poor, but of people who,
though humble in station, were yet decent and worthy in their ways."
John Bunyan's mother was his father's second wife. The Bunyans were given to
marrying early, and speedily consoled themselves on the loss of one wife with the
companionship of a successor. Bunyan's grandmother cannot have died before
February 24, 1603, the date of his father's baptism. But before the year was out his
grandfather had married again. His father, too, had not completed his twentieth year
when he married his first wife, Anne Pinney, January 10, 1623. She died in 1627,
apparently without any surviving children, and before the year was half-way through,
on the 23 rd of the following May, he was married a second time to Margaret
Bentley. At the end of seventeen years Thomas Bunyan was again left a widower,
and within two months, with grossly indecent haste, he filled the vacant place with a
third wife. Bunyan himself cannot have been much more than twenty when he
married. We have no particulars of the death of his first wife. But he had been
married two years to his noble-minded second wife at the time of the assizes in
1661, and the ages of his children by his first wife would indicate that no long
interval elapsed between his being left a widower and his second marriage.”
“Dictionary of National Biography,” London: Smith, Elder, & Co,, 1886:
http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bbunyan.html
Thomas, Jr. …later had a third wife, Ann, after Margaret died in 1644. Thomas, Jr.
was buried at Elstow on Feb 7, 1676. “In his will, while leaving a shilling apiece to
his famous son and his three other children, he bequeathed all he had to his third
wife, Ann, who survived him four years, and was buried in the same churchyard as
her husband on 25 Sept. 1680.”
“John Bunyan's father, Thomas Bunyan, Jr., was what we should now call a
whitesmith, a maker and mender of pots and kettles. In his will he designates
himself a "brasier;" his son, who carried on the same trade and adopted the same
designation when describing himself, is more usually styled a "tinker." Neither of
them, however, belonged to the vagrant tribe, but had a settled home at Elstow,
where their forge and workshop were, though they doubtless travelled the country
round in search of jobs.”
Note that “Bunyan” has been found spelled no fewer than 34 ways various ways
according to the Wholesome Words bio, including “Bunnion,” “Bonnionn,” and
“Boynon.”
*************
JOHN BUNYAN, AUTHOR OF PILGRIM’S PROGRESS, SON OF MARGARET BENTLEY,
GRANDSON OF WILLIAM BENTLEY (G1)
C Nov 30, 1628, Elstow
d.
Aug 31, 1688, London
Cameron Stewart concluded from the Bedfordshire Records that both William Bentley
(G3), the Rhode Island progenitor, and John Bunyan, the famous author, were
grandsons of William Bentley (G1) and thus first cousins. (11—p. 1067)
John Bunyan was c. Nov 30, 1628 in Elstow according to the Bedfordshire Records.
His bio at Wholesome Words notes his death in 1688:
“In the spring of that year he had been enfeebled by an attack of "sweating
sickness." He caught a severe cold on a ride through heavy rain to London from
Reading, whither he had gone to effect a reconciliation between a father and a son. A
fever ensued, and he died on 31 Aug. at the house of his friend John Strudwick. He
continued his literary activity to the last. Four books from his pen had been
published in the first half of the year, and he partly revised the sheets of a short
treatise entitled "The Acceptable Sacrifice" on his deathbed. He was buried in Mr.
Stradwick's vault in the burial-ground in Bunhill Fields, Finsbury.”
View his tombstone at the London cemetery:
http://www.thecemeteryproject.com/Graves/bunyan-john.htm
which reads:
“John Bunyan, Author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, OBI 31st Aug 1688, Age 60”
His book is the second best-seller of any book in history, second only to the Bible,
and well ahead of the one million best-selling books on running sold thus far by
Robert H. Glover.
.
John’s ancestry was traced back to the 14th Century in a biographical sketch of the
author In “The Pilgrim’s Progress”:
“In the year 1327, records show that William Boynon and his wife Matilda, lived
about a mile from Elstow, on the very spot where, three hundred years later, John
Bunyan was born. John was born November, 1628, a mile from Elstow, and the same
distance southwest of the town of Bedford.”
A detailed bio of John and a review of his ancestors can be viewed at the Wholesome
Words site, which copied it from “Dictionary of National Biography,” London: Smith,
Elder, & Co,, 1886. http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bbunyan.html
“Dreyer Roots and Many Branches” (22) includes a significant amount of information
about the Bunyans, including the wives, children, and grandchildren of John Bunyan,
the author. The website does not offer documentation, however much of it is
corroborated in the John Bunyan bio at Wholesome Words and the John Bunyan bio
at wikipedia.org.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=cathys_clan&id=I03839
Dreyer Roots:
John Bunyan, the author, married Mary (b abt 1627 in Elstow; d. abt 1658 in
Elstow) in 1648 in Elstow. John and Mary are listed as having 4 ch.: Mary (1650,
blind from birth), Elizabeth (1654), John (1654, twin of Elizabeth),Thomas (1656).
John the author married Elizabeth (b 1641; d. 1691) in 1659 in Elstow. John was
imprisoned just after the marriage, leaving Elizabeth to care for his four ch. by his
first wife. John and Elizabeth had 2 ch.: Sarah (1665), and Joseph (1672).
Dictionary of National Biography:
“In his sixteenth year (June 1644) Bunyan suffered the irreparable misfortune of the
loss of his mother, which was aggravated by his father marrying within two months
of her decease. The arrival of a stepmother seems to have estranged Bunyan from
his home, and to have led to his enlisting as a soldier.”
“He and his wife were "as poor as poor might be," without "so much household stuff
as a dish or spoon between them." But his wife came of godly parents, and brought
two pious books of her father's to her new home, the reading of which awakened the
slumbering sense of religion in Bunyan's heart, and produced an external change of
habits. Up to this time, though by no means what would be called "a bad character" - for he was no drunkard, nor licentious -- Bunyan was a gay, daring young fellow,
whose chief delight was in dancing, bell-ringing, and in all kinds of rural sports and
pastimes, the ringleader of the village youth at wake or merrymaking or in the
Sunday sports after service time on the green. As a boy he had acquired the habit of
profane swearing, in which he became such an adept as to shock those who were far
from scrupulous in their language as "the ungodliest fellow for swearing they ever
heard." All this the influence of his young wife and her good books gradually
changed.”
Of his preachings in 1675: “He frequently visited London to preach, always getting
large congregations. Twelve hundred would come together to hear him at seven
o'clock on a weekday morning in winter.”
**************
From the Publisher’s Forward of his spiritual autobiography “Grace Abounding to the
Chief of Sinners:”
http://www.ccel.org/b/bunyan/abounding/grace.htm
“In Grace Abounding,” Bunyan describes his descent as "of a low and inconsiderable
generation." He had particular disdain for his father's house; to him it was "of a rank
that is meanest and most despised of all the families in the land."The Bunyans were
not homeless; they were landowners, but of peasant stock.
Bunyan's schooling was of brief duration, and it wasn't long before he was assisting
his father and learning the tinker trade himself. On his sixteenth birthday Bunyan
joined Cromwell's New Model Army, introducing him to the Puritan movement. After
this military stint, he settled down as a tinker ("brazier") and married at the age of
twenty.
In 1653 Bunyan joined the Puritan Free Church in Bedford, and in 1657 he took on
his first assignment as a "field preacher." At this time there were scores of men,
most with little education, who were preaching to Nonconformist audiences
throughout England. With the restoration of Charles II to the throne, these preachers
were suspect and subject to arrest. Refusing to refrain from preaching, Bunyan was
arrested in 1660 and imprisoned-for more than eleven years.
“Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners,” written during this imprisonment, is the
spiritual autobiography of Bunyan, the traveling tinker who became the eminent
preacher and author. It is not a detailed account of Bunyan's early life, for it tells us
very little of his youth, education, military experiences, and marriages.
Written in 1666, “Grace Abounding” chronicles Bunyan's spiritual journey from a
profane life filled with cursing, blasphemy, and Sabbath desecration to a new
creation in Christ Jesus.”
**************
Information on John Bunyan from wikipedia.org:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bunyan (including a copy of the painting of him by
Sadler, National Portrait Gallery (also 11-- p. 1272)
John Bunyan , a Christian writer and preacher, was born at Harrowden wrote The
Pilgrim's Progress, arguably the most famous published Christian allegory.
Bunyan had very little schooling (about 2-4 years). In his autobiographical book,
Grace Abounding, Bunyan describes himself as having led an abandoned life in his
youth; but there appears to be no evidence that he was, outwardly at any rate,
worse than the average of his neighbours: the only serious fault which he specifies is
profanity, others being dancing and bell-ringing. He followed his father in the Tarish
Tinker's trade, and served in the parliamentary army at Newport Pagnell (1644 1647); in 1649 he married a pious young woman, whose only dowry appears to have
been two books, Arthur Dent's Plain Man's Pathway to Heaven and Lewis Bayly's
Practice of Piety, by which he was influenced towards a religious life. He was
received into the Baptist church in Bedford by immersion in the River Great Ouse in
1653. In 1655 he became a deacon and began preaching, with marked success from
the start. He lived in Elstow till 1655 (when his wife died) and then moved to
Bedford. He married again in 1659. John converted to Puritan after his first wife
died. Bunyan became a popular preacher as well as a prolific author (who penned
about 60 books), though most of his works consist of expanded sermons. In theology
he was a Puritan, but there was nothing gloomy about him
The Pilgrim's Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come, an allegorical
novel, was published in 1678 after being written in 1675 while Bunyan was
imprisoned for conducting unauthorised religious services outside of the Church of
England. He was jailed for nearly 12 years for attacking the teaching of the Quakers
and “preaching without a license.” An expanded edition appeared in 1679, and the
Second Part appeared in 1684. This work is regarded as one of the greatest classics
of literature. Bunyan has the distinction of having written, in The Pilgrim's Progress,
probably the most widely read book in the English language, and one which has been
translated into more tongues than any book except the Bible. The charm of the work,
which gives it wide appeal, lies in the interest of a story in which the intense
imagination of the writer makes characters, incidents, and scenes alike live in that of
his readers as things actually known and remembered by themselves, in its touches
of tenderness and quaint humour, its bursts of heart-moving eloquence, and its
pure, idiomatic English. The novel was made into a film in 1912. Another film
version was made in 1977 starring Liam Neeson in the title role.
Review the “Pilgrim’s Progress” online at at
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Pilgrim%27s_Progress
Article and photo of the book cover at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pilgrim%27s_Progress
**************
Chapter 2: JOHN BENTLEY (G2) (1608-1666), son of WILLIAM BENTLEY and MARY
GOODWIN BENTLEY ; husband of MARY BETTS BENTLEY (b 1607); father of WILLIAM
BENTLEY, SR.; grandfather of William Bentley, Jr.; g grandfather of Greene Bentley,
Sr.; gg grandfather of Green Bentley, Jr.; ggg grandfather of George C. Bentley; ggg
g grandfather of George E. Bentley; ggg gg grandfather of Wilbur D. Bentley; ggg
ggg grandfather of Adelia Bentley Burger; ggg ggg g grandfather of Corinne Burger
Glover; ggg ggg gg grandfather of Robert H. Glover
BORN: chr. Nov 5, 1608, Elstow church
MARRIED: Oct 3, 1630 in Ampthill church to Mary Betts
DIED: buried at St. Andrews Church, Ampthill on March 26, 1666
The 1978 letter and pedigree (11-p.1631) from the Senior Records Officer of
Bedfordshire documents John (G2) as the son of William (G1), husband of Mary
Betts, and father of William (G3):
“William Bentley G3) was baptizes in Ampthill church on Sep 13, 1640. He was the
son of Jn. Bentley who married Mary Betts, in the Ampthill church on 3 Oct 1630.
Jn. Bentley….was buried was buried at Ampthill on 26 Mar. 1666……Jn. Bentley above
(who married Mary Betts) was the son of William Bentley who married Mary
Goodwin…..”
The Bedfordshire letter also noted that John Bentley was chr. Nov 5, 1608 in Elstow
church.
Lawrence Bentley (28) notes that John was buried at St. Andrews Church in Ampthill.
MARY BETTS BENTLEY
Stewart lists her date of birth (p. 1817) as “?” and also lists no date of death.
Cowan and Criddle and several others list: Mary Betts Bentley was b. Aug 2, 1607 in
prob. Ampthill ,Bedfordshire Co., England; and d. in prob. Ampthill. But they offer no
documentation. Some list her as dying in abt 1673 in Ampthill.
Ancestry Family Trees lists 1607-1673 and 1613-1674
Allan Bentley notes that she was chr. Aug 2, 1607 in Ampthill and “place of
christening and date were obtained from the LDS IGI files of Bedfordshire, England
which also showed her father was Robert Betts.”
THE CHILDREN OF JOHN BENTLEY AND MARY BETTS BENTLEY
John and Mary had 6 children born in Ampthill according to the Senior Records
Officer of Bedfordshire and Parish Records of Ampthill: Robert, Mary, John, Thomas,
James and William. (11)
bap. below indicates dates of baptism for children of Jn. both from the Parish
Records of Ampthill (11-p. 1045), and the Pedigree Chart from the Bedfordshire
Records (11-p. 1632). According to Lawrence Bentley the baptisms took place at St.
Andrews Church in Ampthill.
bur. below indicates burial dates from the Bedfordshire Records
m. below indicates marriage dates (11-p 1046) from the Parish Records of Ampthill
1. ROBERT BENTLEY was bap Mar. 25, 1631, at Ampthill. We have located no
additional info on him, he may have died young.
2. MARY BENTLEY was bap November 11, 1632, at Ampthill. She m. Hen (or
Henry) Chad or Chadd Sep 28, 1674 in Ampthill.
3. JOHN BENTLEY was bap July 20, 1634, at Ampthill; bur at Ampthill, July 22,
1686. He married Margaratt (Margaret) Bowth Nov 3, 1656 in Ampthill. Ancestry
Family Trees lit as 1636-1675. The Parish Records show that Margaret Bowth Bentley
was bur Aug 18, 1675 in Ampthill.
The Ampthill Parish records listed the following as the children of a Jn., which are
likely the grandchildren of John (G2): Mary, chr. Aug 6, 1657; Elizabeth, chr. Aug 8,
1664; Thomas chr. Jan 18, 1668. Criddle (7) also lists the same as the children of
John and Margaret.
Stewart’s list from the Parish Records seems to show that John Bentley then married
Rebecca Michell (or Mitchell) on Nov 15, 1678 in Ampthill, and they had a daughter
Rebecca christened there Oct 18, 1679. Rebecca, the mother, apparently remarried
after the death of husband John:
Bently m 9.28.1687 Rebecca h Wm Holis
And John’s daughter. Rebecca Bentley, may have twice married:
Bently m 5.19.1694 Ann h Jn Neale??????????????????
Bently m 10.11.1707 Rebecca h Thos Harbor (Harbour)
4. THOMAS BENTLEY was bap April 10, 1636, at Ampthill; bur at Ampthill, Jan 11,
1667 (Thomas died just 9 ½ months after his father). He m. Mary Abes Oct 8, 1655
in Ampthill. Stewart notes the Ampthill Parish Records listed the following as ch. of a
Thos., (which are likely the grandchildren of John (G2): Ann chr. Sep 27, 1650; Mary
chr. Jan 19, 1654; Jn. chr. July 20, 1656. However, Allan Bentley lists Ann as c. Sep
27, 1660. Since Thomas didn’t marry until 1655 most likely the 1660 date is
correct. Allan Bentley listed only Ann as a child of Thomas and Mary.
5. JAMES BENTLEY was bap May 06, 1638, at Ampthill; bur at Ampthill, Jan 28,
1696/7. The Ampthill Parish Records listed the following as ch. of a Jas., which are
likely the grandchildren of John (G2): Francis chr. Sep. 29, 1661; Elizabeth chr.
Aug. 13, 1663; Jas. chr. Sep 23, 1664; Elizabeth chr. June 24, 1667. Also listed as
dau. of Jas. Bentley and Mary: Ann chr. Apr 8, 1670. Criddle (7) lists Mary as the
mother of these 5 children with James.
Note that two daughters named Elizabeth are listed. Perhaps one died and the next
took her name, or it could have been an error in listing one of the names? Both
would fit in the time frame. Dryer and Allan Bentley list the first Elizabeth and not
the second, and do not list James.
Also listed as dau. of Jas. Bentley (or Benkley): Frances b. June 13, 1698, chr. June
24, 1698.
6. WILLIAM BENTLEY (G3) was bap Sep 13, 1640, at Ampthill. His burial and
marriage dates are not listed by Stewart with these records. He d. prob, July 9,
1720 in Kingstown, RI. (6, 7,11, 23); and m. Sarah (Eldred?) in abt 1675 (7, 12,
13). Children of William and Sarah: William (1667), James (1679), Jane (1681),
Thomas (1685), Benjamin (1690). See Chapter 3 for more info.
Scott Rode (24) added Elizabeth (b abt 1637) and Jasper (b abt 1643) to bring his
list to 8 children, and placed them in a different order than the Rhode Island Records
(which most likely would be correct)
Also birth records Rob. Bunyan---Eliz, Jn., Thos. 1665-1667-1654
Also listed by Stewart from the marriage records of the Parish in Ampthill:
-----------------------------------------
FOLLOWING SECTIONS STILL IN DRAFT FORM—MORE INFO AND DOCUMENTATIO
TO COME
***************
PART II: THE EARLY BENTLEYS OF RHODE ISLAND—GENERATION 3 & 4
Chapter 3: WILLIAM BENTLEY, SR. (G3)(1640-1720); son of JOHN BENTLEY and
MARY BETTS BENTLEY ; husband of SARAH ELDRED BENTLEY (1650-1731); father of
William Bentley, Jr.; grandfather of Greene Bentley, Sr.; g grandfather of Green
Bentley, Jr,; gg grandfather of George C. Bentley; ggg grandfather of George E.
Bentley; ggg g grandfather of Wilbur Bentley; ggg gg grandfather of Adelia Bentley
Burger; ggg ggg grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover; ggg ggg g grandfather of
Robert H. Glover---FIRST BENTLEY TO IMMIGRATE TO COLONIAL AMERICA
William Bentley, Sr. (#2) was christened Sep 13, 1640 in Ampthill, Bedfordshire Co.,
Eng; and died July 9/11,1720 in Kingstown, RI. (6, 7,11). Davidson notes he was
born Aug 29, 1640 in Gravesend, England. Rode lists him as b Aug 29 as well, but in
Ampthill. *****Most likely he was b Aug 29, 1640 in Ampthill, and christened there
on Sep 13.
d-----see RODE**
However, Stewart’s research found in The Record, Rhode Island Historical Society,
Providence, RI:
Date?
“William Bently Born in Ampthill in Bedfordshire, England and Departed this Life in
Kingstown 83 yrs and 11 days of His age.”
Which would mean he was born 2 or 3 yrs prior to 1640. Cowan: “The two plus
year discrepancy in the date of baptism and age as given at death could simply be a
failing of memory, not uncommon as one grows older.” That is there could have
been an error in the recording of his age.
Since his father was born and died in England and William (#3) was born in England
and died in Rhode Island, we know that he was the first Bentley in our part of the
family to migrate to America. The date when William migrated to the colonies is not
known for sure. The “New England Genealogical and Historical Register” gives, “Wm.
Bentley came to New England on the “Arabella,” May, 1671.” (10) Samuel Gardiner
Drake wrote in “Founders of New England”, 1860: “William Bentley was probably the
William who sailed from Gravesend, England, May 27, 1671 in the ship, “Arabelle.”
(13) Davidson states the vessel landed at Boston, Mass. It seems that William
either landed in Boston and then went to Narragansett, RI (formerly part of South
Kingstown), or he in fact landed in Narragansett. We know that he arrived in
Kingstown, RI by July 8,1677 as that is when William, Jr. was born there.
Cowan:
///Various records show:
-a William Bentley arriving in Virginia in 1624. He received land in
Elizabeth City, Virginia the same year. ( Perhaps early searchers
confused Elizabeth, New Jersey with Elizabeth City, Virginia ).
-a John Bentley to Virginia July, 1635 age 34 years
-a Mary Bentley to New England July, 1635 age 20 years
-a William Bentley to New England September, 1635 age 47 years **
-a John Bentley same ship age 17 years
- Alice Bentley same ship age 15 years
-a William Bentley to New England May, 1671 no age given (Tepper's
"Ships Passenger Lists")///
After the end of the 1675-1676, King Phillip’s War, which pitted the English colonists
of New England against the Indians, there was a lot of unrest in the Narragansett
area. Connecticut and Rhode Island both claimed the area. “Bentley Gleanings” lists
a note from the Narragansett Historical Register in regard to the 1700 wedding of
Jane Bentley to John Wightman, which states “her father, Wm. Bentley, was a
resident of Narragansett, 29 July, 1679.” A note dated July 26, 1679 from
“Ancestors of the Bentley’s of Chautauqua County, N,Y.” by Eleanor Trisman reads:
“William Bentley and forty-one others of Narragansett sent a petition to the King,
praying that “he would put an end to those differences about the government
thereof, which has been so fatal to the prosperity of the place; animosity still arising
in the people’s minds, as they stand affected to this or that government.” (13)
In 1696, William was a freeman. He was a currier (one that prepares tanned hides
for use) in North Kingstown. “When in 1705 the town granted him liberty to erect
his tan hose (a tannery for the making of leather), the land allotted for the purpose
was not apparently other occupied. However, when the “vacant lands” were in 1709
“platted” and “laid out” to Captain John Eldred from whom on December 14, 1716
William Bentley bought eight acres which included the tan house and “garding” on
which he continued to live until his death in 1720 when if fell to his youngest son
Benjamin as his inheritance.” (11)
WILLIAM AND SARAH
William’s wife Sarah was poss. born Oct 10 or 19, 1650 in Yarmouth, Mass (7);
married William abt 1674 (6), and died Dec 28, 1731.
July 10, 1978, Davidson took a photo copy of the handwritten, frail, old Bible
transcriptions from the Rhode Island Record that Stewart notes in his research. It
stated:
“Sarah Bently She the Wife of ye above William Departed this Life December ye 28
1731.”
Various sources list Sarah’s maiden name as Leithfield , Litchfield, and Eldred.
Eleanor L. Trishman’s “Ancestors of the Bentleys of Chautauqua County, N.Y.”
seems to clear up why some list Leithfield as Sarah’s maiden name: Stating it was
the name of her first husband:
”Sarah Eldred by her first husband (Leithfield) had two sons. Sarah’s mother was
Ann Lumpkin who was the daughter of Tamazine amd William Lumpkin from
Norwich, England. Ann Lumpkin married William Eldred in 1647.” Lobdell adds:
“William Bentley whose wife was Sarah Leithfield was at Kingston, R.I. July 1679.
“(10)
Criddle (7) has Sarah the daughter of William Eldred (abt 1622, Suffolk Co., Eng-abt
1679, Yarmouth, Mass., and Anne Lumpkin (abt 1624, Lincolnshire Co, Eng-Nov 1,
1676, Yarmouth).
Criddle doesn’t list a Leithfeld as a first husband but lists as the husband of Sarah
after William died as Henry Brightman, married in North Kingstown, RI Mar 16,
1721. (7, 14) He died in 1728 in Freetown, Bristol, Mass (7, 12)
Others, including Cowan, aren’t convinced that Sarah Bentley was Sarah Eldred.
Seems most logical that Eldred was her last name as several records show the sale
of land involving Bentleys (including her sons William, Jr and Thomas) which were
witnessed by Eldreds ; and a 1696 list of freemen in Kingstown includes several
Eldreds along with Thomas Bentley (who would likely be Sarah’s son), and records
show that in 1716 William bought land from a Captain John Eldred. Davidson refers
to a document stating: “Aug 1,1718 His wife, Sarah testified that Samuel Eldred,
father of her cousin John Eldred, did dwell upon the land where John now dwells, fifty
years ago.” So likely then that Sarah was also an Eldred like her cousin?
So for now we will go with Eldred (?) as Sarah’s maiden name.
Dolores Davidson on William, Sr.: “In 1720 he died and his wife Sarah and son
Benjamin were appointed executors under his will. There were bequests to his eldest
son William, an also to sons James, and Thomas, and Benjamin, and to his daughter
Jane Whitmore.”
The Rhode Island Record notes the birth dates of the sons of William and Sarah
below but doesn’t mention daughter Jane. Instead, it is noted: “Mary Austen Born in
ye year 1670.” This perhaps could have been a daughter born in England who
died? Or more likely the same as the Jane mentioned as William’s daugher in his
will?
1) William Bently Born in Amphill in Bedfordshire
2) England and Departed this Life in Kingstown
3) 83 yrs and 11 days of His age and Sarah Bently She
4) the Wife of ye above William Departed this Life
5) December ye 28 1731
6) Mary Austen Born in ye year 1670
['...a William Bentley to New England May, 1671 no age given (Tepper's "Ships
Passenger Lists").....IF this is OUR WIlliam--then he was not in this country when
Mary Austen was born in 1670.....]
7) William Bently Son of William Born July ye 8 day __1677 (note-Mr Stewart says
the month could be Jan or June)
8)James Bently Son of William Born May ye 26 dy ___ 1679
9) Thomas Bently Son of William Born June ye 19 dy ___1685
10) Benjamin Bently Son of William Born March ye 27 dy ___ 1690"////
****
CHILDREN OF WILLIAM AND SARAH: William, Jr., James, Jane, Thomas, Benjamin.
1. WILLIAM BENTLEY, JR (#2) was born July 8, 1677 in Kingstown and died before
Mar 21, 1760. (7, 11) Davidson lists as born in 1674. See Chapter XX for more
info.
2. JAMES BENTLEY was born May 26, 1679 in North Kingstown, RI. (7, 11)
Davidson lists as died 1768.
In 1710 he served for 169 days in a military campaign against Port Royal, Nova
Scotia, in the War of Spanish Succession, known to the colonists as Queen Anne's
war. (6)
He married Dorothy Albro (b abt 1680/84) in abt 1700; and then married Hannah
abt 1716. (7, 12). Davidson has the marriage with Dorothy as Dec 28, 1710.
James had one daughter with each wife: Jane b 1702; and Hannah b Dec 15, 1718
(7)
Cowan/Criddle list second wife married abt 1716/17 as Hannah and with a daughter
Hannah b Dec 15, 1718.
----------3. JANE BENTLEY WIGHTMAN was born abt 1681 in Kingstown, RI. (7) She may
have been the first child of William and Sarah, or she may have been #2 or #3.
Cowan lists as b bet 1675-1680. The Narragansett Historical Record notes that
Jane’s father, Wm. Bentley, was a resident of Narragansett on July 29, 1679, no—
James then
(10)so perhaps that is when and where she was born.
Jane died before June 29, 1729 (6)
Rootsweb/Genweb History of Kingstown (6):
“JOHN WIGHTMAN, son of George, Sen., b. April 16, 1674. He married, Jan. 6, 1700,
Jane Bentley, dau. William…..He died in 1754.”
Jane and John had 8 children born 1702-1719 in North Kingstown. (6, 7)
John later married Virtue (b abt 1678) in June 1729 (7, 12)---but note this is the
date listed for Jane’s death. Virtue then married James Tefft Dec 25, 1757. (7)
“Jane Whitmore” is noted in the will of her father. (13) Seems the name was spelled
many ways:
ROOTSWEBGenwebRI online
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HISTORY OF THE WHITEMAN OR WIGHTMAN FAMILY.
“the same names being variously spelled by different town clerks - Weightman,
Wightman, Whiteman, and Whitman.”
Jane and John had 8 children from 1702 to 1719 (7)
------------4. THOMAS BENTLEY was born Jun 19, 1685 in Kingston, Washington Co., RI .
(7/11) He died Mar 8, 1778 in Exeter, Washington Co., RI. (7/12) He was a
“cordwainer” (shoemaker).
Thomas had two wives. He married Elizabeth Chamberlain (b 1685 in N. Kingstown,
d 1718 in RI) on June 6, 1706. She the daughter of Jacob Chamberlain and Mary
Childe. They had 6 children from 1707-1717. He then married Mary Reynolds (b
1702 in North Kingstown to Joseph and Mary Reynolds) on May 20, 1720 in North
Kingstown. They had one child, Thomas Bentley (1730-1816). (7/14)
Cowan: “According to the information in Mr Stewart's book, Thomas' will was drawn
June 15, 1772 and probated April 15, 1778. If these dates are correct it would
appear that the Bentley men tended to live to a ripe old age!” Thomas lived to age
93 if this is correct, and indeed many of the early Bentley men lived well past 80
which was unusual in those days.
The 6 children of Thomas and Elizabeth as listed in the Rhode Island Record: Jane
(Oct 25, 1707), Mary (Feb 22, 1709), William (Dec 18, 1710), Benjamin (Jul 5,
1714), Thomas, Jr (July 11, 1717). Benjamin died March 15, 1799. William III died
Dec 25, 1800, Beekman, Dutchess Co., NY. (7, 13)
The Record in Rhode Island also notes: “Mary Bently the wife of Thos Bently was
Born June ye 27 in ye of the Lord 1702.” This apparently his second wife whom he
married likely after the death of Elizabeth. That is, Thomas' second wife Mary Bentley
was born in 1702 and his child Mary Bentley with his first wife was born in 1709.
Thomas married Mary Reynolds May 20, 1722. (13)
-----------5. BENJAMIN BENTLEY was born Mar 27, 1690 in North Kingstown, RI (7/11); and
died before June 8, 1772 in Warwick, RI (7)
In 1709 Benjamin Bentley served for five months with the rank of sergeant in a
colonial expedition to French Canada during the War of Spanish Succession.
In 1710 he served with the same rank in the expedition against Port Royal, Nova
Scotia. When his father died in 1720 he inherited his father’s tannery and was a
currier like his father in Kingstown. (6)
Benjamin married Patience Rathbone (b Nov 14, 1690 Block Island, RI) in abt
1715. (7) She was the daughter of the very wealthy Captain Thomas Rathbone and
Mary Dickens of Block Island. They had 5 children from 1717-1725. (6)
Did Benjamin have a second wife? Cowan notes: On June 08, 1772 in Warwick, the
inventory of the estate of Benjamin Bentley, deceased, was taken, the administration
to his wife Barbara. Lobdell lists him as marrying Barbara Pearce/Pierce (b 1738) on
Nov 21, 1762 in Warwick, RI and having 3 children from 1764-1769. If so, he
married her at age 72 (and she age 24) and fathered his last child at age 79. Could
have been the wrong Benjamin?
************
Chapter 4: WILLIAM BENTLEY, JR. (William G4) (1677-abt 1760); son of WILLIAM
BENTLEY, SR. and SARAH ELDRED BENTLEY; husband of ELIZABETH GARDINER
BENTLEY (1673-1723); husband of BATHESHEBA GREENE BENTLEY (b abt 1699);
father of GREENE BENTLEY, Sr; grandfather of Green Bentley, Jr; g grandfather of
George C. Bentley, gg grandfather of George E. Bentley; ggg grandfather of Wilbur
Bentley; ggg g grandfather of Adelia Bently Burger; ggg gg grandfather of Corinne
Burger Glover; ggg ggg grandfather of Robert H. Glover ---FIRST BENTLEY BORN IN
AMERICA
William Bentley, Jr. (#3) was born July 8, 1677 in Kingstown, RI (7, 11); and died
before March 21, 1760 when Richmond Township, RI probate records show an
inventory was made. (7) Davidson lists him as born in 1674 and states that he was
a cordwainer: somebody who makes shoes and other articles from fine soft leather.
Thus he followed his father in the leather business.
WILLIAM AND ELIZABETH
William’s first wife Elizabeth’s maiden name is not known for sure, but Alden G.
Beamon theorized in the “Rhode Island Genealogical Record” that it may have been
Gardiner.” Criddle has William as marrying Elizabeth Gardiner in 1702 at the
Stonington First Church, New London, CT . (7/11)
But first child born in 1700-1703?
Emilie Sarter notes Elizabeth was born May 22, 1673, and died in 1723. Cowan
lists Elizabeth as born abt 1678/1680 and died abt 1732/33. Criddle and Davidson
have as Elizabeth’s parents George Gardiner (1647-1724) and Tabitha Tefft (16531722). Cowan: “However, there does not appear to be an Elizabeth in the Gardiner
family who was born about 1676-1680, which would make her the right age for the
first wife of William Bentley .” To add to the confusion, William and Elizabeth’s eldest
son, John, married an Elizabeth Gardiner (b May 17, 1708 to George and Elizabeth
Gardiner) in 1727. (7) But others list her as “Gardner” not Gardiner.
William had 6 of his 8 children with Elizabeth in Kingstown. In abt 1715 he moved to
Westerly, Washington Co., RI, where two more of his children with Elizabeth were
born. (6)
8 CHILDREN OF WILLIAM AND ELIZABETH: John, George, Elizabeth, Tabitha, Caleb,
Ezekiel, Ruhammah, Mary
(note: Cowan has birth range from 1699 for John to 1717 for Mary; Criddle has
1703-1717 range which fits with wedding date of 1702, and the order is different
with Ezekiel the youngest)
(Note: Some, including note from Henry W. Bentley in “Bentley Gleanings,” list Mary
Elliott as the wife of William and mother of the below children. Cowan and Criddle do
not agree and state Elizabeth is correct)
1. JOHN BENTLEY was born June 22, 1700 in Kingstown, RI (13) (Criddle giving an
alternate date of Aug 12,1703 in Richmond, RI). John Bentley of South Kingston m.
Elizabeth Gardiner May, 1727 . (14) The name is also listed in places as Gardner. A
deed in Exeter Land Evidence states: “dated 23 January 1750, in which Elisha
Bentley of Richmond, son of John Bentley, sells 100 acres in Exeter to Isaac Gardner
"being that tract of land which my great grandfather George Gardner gave unto my
mother Elizabeth Bentley by a deed bearing date the 18 of October 1709 ." (6/10)
So did William Bentley (#3) marry an Elizabeth Gardiner in 1702 and then their son
John Bentley married an Elizabeth Gardiner in 1727? Or was at least one of them a
“Gardner” and not a “Gardiner?”
This Elizabeth Gardiner/Gardner was b abt May 10, 1708, and John and Elizabeth
had three children born abt 1730, 1741 & 1744 in Richmond, RI. (6) One named
“Gardiner” Bentley. But there is a gap of 11 years between birth of the first and
second child. Perhaps there were other children? Cowan lists the Elisha Bentley
noted above as born abt 1730.
John Bentley of Richmond, m. Mary Cottrell of Westerly, 21 Dec 1749 in Richmond.
(14) They had 4 children born 1750-1757 in Richmond. (7) However, Arnold’s Vital
Records show those children as also of William and Elizabeth. Most likely they are
from the second wife, Mary, given the gap from 1744 to 1750 with no children born
of William.
John married 3d wife Mary Vaughan on Apr 25, 1765. They had 2 children (13)
------------------2. GEORGE BENTLEY was born in 1705 in Westerly. (7) Cowan lists abt 1701 and
Davidson abt 1702. Criddle/Davidson list his death as 1802.
He married Ruth Barber (b June 23, 1705 in N. Kingstown to Moses Barber and
Susannah West; d Sep 21, 1755 in Stonington, New London, Ct) on Mar 4, 1724 in
Kingstown. (7/14) They had 10 children from 1726-1746, including John Bentley
(1726-1807) who married Patience Shaw and was the father of the Eldred Bentley
(1756-1853) who is the subject of “The Family of Eldred Bentley” compiled by
Dolores Davidson.
George’s son Caleb (B 1742 in RI; d 1828) was a soldier in the Revolutionary War
and built the first two mills in Berlin, NY according to his grandson Caleb Bentley in
1904. (10)
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nanc/hewitt/aqwg01.htm
Which included: Mary married Caleb Bentley Nov 27, 1782 in Little Hoosick,
Rensselaer Co. Caleb was born in Berlin, Rensselaer Co.
See Stewart page 1168
----------3. ELIZABETH BENTLEY was born abt 1703 in prob. Kingstown and died aft 1749.
(6) Criddle has b 1707 in Richmond, RI. She married Nathaniel Potter (b Apr 15,
1700) on May 31, 1727 in S. Kingstown (14)
4. TABITHA BENTLEY was born abt 1705 (Criddle 1709, Westerly) ) prob in
Kingstown. (6) She married Thomas Sweet (1703-1763) on Apr 11, 1728 in S.
Kingstown (14) They had 6 children.
5. CALEB BENTLEY was born abt 1707 in prob Kingstown and died abt 1793 in prob.
Exeter, RI. (6) Criddle has b abt 1715; d abt 1790/1792; Davidson has him born
abt 1711. He married first Dorcas Gould (b abt 1715) on Jan 21, 1738 and they had
11 children born 1738-1751; and he married Tabitha Gould (b Jul 12, 1738) in
1759/60 and they had 9 children from 1757-1777. (7) If Criddle’s info is true, Caleb
fathered 20 children from abt age 23 to abt age 62!!
Alden G. Beaman (a descendant of Caleb) noted that 19 names of children appeared
in his will of 1790, Exeter, RI., excepting Elizabeth who was deceased., plus three
grandsons, and his second wife. (6)
Cowan has notes that Caleb first married Tabitha. Stewart notes that Caleb married
second Dorcas Gould.
6. EZEKIEL BENTLEY was born abt 1710 (Criddle: 1717, Westerly) in prob.
Kingstown and died aft. 1751. (6)
7. RUHAMAH BENTLEY JAMES was born in Westerly, RI. in 1711 (Cowan, 1715)
and married James James (1714-1806) on May 28, 1738 in N. Kingstown. They had
two sons. (7)
8. MARY BENTLEY JAMES was born in 1713 in Westerly (Cowan, abt 1717), and
married Thomas James bef Aug 18, 1748. (7)
WILLIAM BENTLEY AND BATHSHEBA (GREENE?)
Cowan: You know, we can blame Israel for the fact that we do not have Bathsheba's
maiden name. In the (civil) record of their marriage--he calls her his '... now
wife....'. And their first child was born 4 or 5 months after the ceremony. IF they
were married by a Baptist preacher, there is no record available. If she was an
unwed mother--cast out by her family-- that could explain the omission of her last
name.
William Bentley married Bathsheba Lewis on Aug 1, 1734 in Westerly, King Co., RI.
They were married by Samuel Wilbur, Justice. (14) Lewis was the name of her first
husband.
Criddle has her as born 1699 prob in Westerly, RI; Davidson notes she died aft Oct
1785, prob in Richmond, RI.
Was Bathesheba’s maiden name “Greene” (or Green) and thus the interesting first
name of her son Greene Bentley, Sr.?
Elaine Cowan: “Maybe. Bathsheba has proved to be one of the most frustrating
targets of our genealogical investigations. While she is often mentioned in official
records and in articles by other researchers, the exact identity of her parents
remains unproven. Virtually everybody who has written about her believes she was a
Greene. The fact that a son of her second marriage, to William Bentley, was named
Greene M. has most certainly given rise to that belief.”
“I have found many assertions, but never any real proof that Bathsheba's maiden
name was Green/Greene. I read that monumental GREEN book by LaMance who
states, without documentation that Bathsheba was daughter of George Green--son
of Edward Green etc. I never found a George Green in the RI records we checked,
who could qualify.”
“Family of Ezekiel Bentley” by Mrs. Cyril M. Edmunds:
“”Bathsheba Green born abt 1698 of Westerly daughter of George Greene (br 1665)
and Mary Tibbets (br 1670)” (13)
Cowan: “The fact that William and Bathsheba named a son Green is given as proof.
But it could have been that her favorite color was green!” It turns out that Green
has been a name used throughout history as there are many Green Bentley’s listed
in the records of ancestry.com, including from the states of Alabama, Georgia and
Michigan, which are highly unlikely to have begun with the maiden name of
Bathsheba Greene Bentley. In fact, many of them are listed under race as “African
(Black).”
Cowan: “Bathsheba had three husbands. It should be remembered that her first two
marriages took place at WESTERLY. She was likely born and/ or raised in Westerly.”
Bathsheba first married Israel Lewis (b June 22, 1695, prob. In Westerly; d abt
1732) on June 30,1720 in Westerly. (14) Israel and Bathsheba had 7 children from
1720 to 1732, including Bathsheba Lewis.
Lobdell notes that “Vital Records of Rhode Island” show “Bathsheba Bentley, 1740,
member of Sabbatharian Church of Hopkington, R.I.”
After her second husband William Bentley died, on Mar 29, 1761, Bathsheba married
her third husband, blacksmith John Bissel (b Apr 1707) in South Kingstown on May
29, 1761 (7, 14)
Bathsheba didn’t waste much time, marrying William less than 2 years after Israel
died, and then marrying John less than 2 months after William died. But then she
had 7 Lewis kids and then 5 Bentley kids---a total of 12 children born from 1720 to
1744—for whom to provide. And add to that the 5 children (from 1728-1737) John
Bissell had with first wife Anna Albro. (7)
William fathered two of five children with Bathsheba in Westerly. Betw 1737 and
1739 he moved to Richmond, RI where three more children were born to Bathsheba,
including Greene. William then spent the remainder of his life in Richmond. (6,7)
FIVE CHILDREN OF WILLIAM AND BATHSHEBA: William, Thomas, James, Greene
Sr., Benjamin. Info from Cowan and Criddle:
According to A.S. Bennett: “Among the Bentleys who served in the Continental line
in New York State are the names of Benjamin, Thomas and Green M. “ (19)
1. WILLIAM BENTLEY III was born May 29, 1735 in Westerly, RI. ; died Sep 20,
1800, Troy City, Rensselaer Co., NY; married Abigail Milleman, both of Richmond,
21 April, 1754. (14) Arnold’s Vital Records lists 4 children born 1755-1762 in
Richmond. Criddle lists 8 children born 1755-1772, in Richmond, RI, including a
Bathsheba Bentley. Abigail died abt 1783, and William married Phebe Paine abt
1785. (13) Phebe b Oct 21, 1746; d Oct 15, 1799. (7) Davidson notes that Phebe
had been widowed twice before and had children from both marriages. She had 4
children with William Bentley betw1787-1792.
Davidson:
“William was known to be a Baptist minister, which was not a popular religion
outside of Rhode Island. There is one reference to him as a “weaver.” However, in
1785, he was ordained in Bennington, VT , and there is evidence that he served as a
Baptist minister in Hoosick, Rensselaer Co., NY.”
NOTE: The above needs some correction. This William was not ordained in
Vermont, but rather in Hoosick, NY. According to “History of the Shaftsbury Baptist
Association” from 1781 to 1853, compiled by Stephen Wright, the first organized
Baptist Church in the town of Hoosick was situated in the vicinity of the Bennington
battle ground in the northeast part of town. More correctly, it was located near what
is now called North Hoosick. …….it held the name First Baptist Church in Hoosick.
……William Bentley was ordained by and called to the Hoosick Baptist Church as its
first pastor on the date of its organization, 16 March, 1785.” (10)
-----Would William have been ordained at the age of 50? And in the same year he
married is second wife Phebe? Doubt this is our William. And the William described
below as a party to lawsuits doesn’t fit with a minister?
Abstracts from the minutes of the Baptist Church of Stephentown, NY (Rensselaer
Co) Indicated that Brother William Bentley was not satisfied with the church in
1796-1797 and threatened to leave. The minutes of Aug 22, 1801 state “Brother
William Bentley Requested to be given up to the Church at Black River that
fellowshipped on the 20th of this instant August and answered his request by giving
him up and ordered the Clerk to give him a letter.” Mrs. Jas. H. Lobdell. (10)
Davidson:
“William was a party to numerous court actions, in few of which he emerges the
winner. He was sued by his mother and step-father (Bathsheba Greene Lewis
Bentley Bissell and John Bissell) because he did not maintain her in a good decent
manner during her natural life although she had signed her dower rights to him. He
was later sued for debts by two men and his property was confiscated by court
order.”
According to Davidson, William murdered Phebe with an ax—a story that we have
not been able to verify but included it as it is fascinating. However, if the Brother
William Bentley who was a minister with the Baptist Church of Stephentown was with
the church in 1801, he could not have been the ax murderer in 1799. Seems the ax
murderer and debtor more applies to William than the Baptist minister? And the
below ax murder story is perhaps too detailed to not be true?
Davidson:
“Phebe’s brother Barnabus wrote of he “horrid abuses and inhumanity” of their
marriage, which was brought to a conclusion October 23, 1799. On that day, William
struck his wife with a shoemaker’s hammer on one of her arms which was broken in
two places; she attempted to escape and had proceeded some way towards a
neighbor’s home when he overtook her and struck her repeatedly with the edge and
head of an axe on her head and shoulders. She survived only a few hours.
William was tried and convicted. He was sentenced to hang, but died in prison
before the sentence could be carried out. There is some evidence to suggest that he
took poison.”
------------2. THOMAS BENTLEY was born Apr 9, 1737 in Westerly or Richmond, RI. Likely the
same who served in the Old French and Indian War with Co. Harris’ Co in 1760.
Davidson has him as marrying Mary Reynolds. Lobdell notes “Vital Records of Rhode
Island”: “List of those who signed the covenant, 31 March, 1770, Mary and Thomas
Bentley (deceased).” Likely this shows Thomas died by Mar 1770.
3. JAMES BENTLEY was born June 6, 1739 in Richmond, RI. (14) Cowan: He
probably married a Eunice before 1766 and had 3 children.
He may have died in 1822. Likely the same who served in the Old French and
Indian War in Capt. Greene’s Co. in 1757. And was that Capt. Greene perhaps
related to James’ mother Bathsheba Greene Lewis Bentley?
4. GREENE M. BENTLEY, SR. was born Mar 23, 1741 in Richmond, RI (14), and died
abt 1821/1823 in Veteran (Millport), Tioga Co, NY (7) See Chapter XX for more
info.
5. BENJAMIN BENTLEY was born Jan 11, 1744 in Richmond, RI; lived in Elmira, NY
in 1800; and died June 1830. (7) Arnolds’ Vital Records show b 1758 but must be
in error.
According to Criddle, he married Nancy Northrop.
He married Deborah Baker bef 1773 and possibly had at least two children in Kent,
Litchfield Co., CT. (6) Perhaps the same Benjamin who served in the Old French ad
Indian War with Co. Harris’ Co in 1760.
WILLIAM’S WILL
Cowan: “Richmond (RI) Probate Court Records (LDS film # 0930847) contain
several references to our Bentleys. Some of the entries are difficult to read and for
many, it is difficult to determine the exact date, since they do not always appear in
chronological order.
-- August 18, 1748 William's Will, in which he describes himself as weak and sick in
body....
He leaves a small amount of money to: Eldest son John; son George; son Caleb; son
Ezekiel; Eldest daughter Elizabeth Potter; daughter "Tabithy" Sweet; daughter
"Ruhamer" James, they all having received their portion already. Daughter Mary
James is left a slightly larger amount of money .."she having received in part her
portion.." To wife "Barsheba" , whom he names executrix, he leaves the rest of the
estate to be used to bring up his younger children. Certain real estate (including the
homestead) is to be sold when the youngest son, Benjamin, reaches the age of 14,
and the money is to be divided equally among the five youngest children: William,
Thomas, James, Green and Benjamin.signed William his W mark Bentely
Witnesses: Jonathan Tefft, Enoch Lewis (Enoch Lewis was name of Israel and
Bathsheba's first born), Elizabeth her X mark Utter
The above will entered in the Record 12th day of August 1760.
Richmond (RI) Probate Court Records Entered in the Record June 1, 1761
March 31, 1760 is the date of the inventory of William's estate, which amounted to a
little over 486 Pounds.”
Apparently Bathsheba didn’t like the part of the will where she was directed to sell
the homestead she shared with William when Benjamin reached the age of 14 (which
would be 1758) and give the proceeds to the children.
Richmond, RI court records
of 1760 reveal a bitter struggle between Bathsheba and the Town Council, which
voted to have her arrested and jailed until she would take an oath regarding
William’s estate.
In June of 1772 the Council "voted that the Clerk Grant a Warrant to Bring Bershaba
Bissel before Town Council in order to render on oath an account of her last legal
Settlement and of what Right She hath to reside in this town.” Looks like Bathsheba
refused to give up the land to the sons from William’s first marriage
*******************************************************************
*************
PART III: THE GREEN BENTLEYS OF RHODE ISLAND AND MILLPORT/VETERAN,
NY---GENERATION 5 & 6
Chapter 5:
GREENE M. BENTLEY, SR. (G5) (1741-prob. abt 1823); son of WILLIAM
BENTLEY, JR and Bathsheba Greene Bentley; husband of DINAH (DIANA)
STRAIGHT (STRAIT) BENTLEY (abt 1745-1803); father of Green Bentley, Jr.;
grandfather of George C. Bentley, g grandfather of George E. Bentley, gg
grandfather of Wilbur D. Bentley; ggg grandfather of Adelia Bentley Burger; ggg g
grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover; ggg gg grandfather of Robert H. Glover—
REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIER; FIRST BENTLEY TO MIGRATE TO NEW YORK STATE
BORN: Mar 23, 1741
MARRIED: abt. 1760
DIED: prob. abt. Mar 4, 1823
Greene M. Bentley, Sr. was born Mar 23, 1741 (14). Criddle states that he was born
in Westerly, Washington Co., RI and “the record of his birth is recorded in the
records of the Richmond township, even though it was not created until 18 August
1747.” (8) The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR)
documentation for descendant Viola Tripp Weber (daughter of Mary Bentley, the
daughter of George C.—G7) lists his birth in East Greenwich, RI, which is near
Richmond. Whatever, Greene was born in the Richmond, RI area.
Criddle, Cowan and others list no middle initial for Green Sr or Jr, but A.S. Bennett
notes it as “M.” for both father and son. (19) Noted on the Tice site: “Chemung Co
patriots: Town of Veteran: Green M. Bentley.”(17)
Criddle (8) notes from S.B. Bennett (16): “A few details of Green Bentley’s physical
appearance have been noted. A cane in the possession of his grandson, Charles M.
Bennett, indicated that he was a very tall man. He was also said to have had red or
light hair. “
xUpdated all sources
THE MYSTERIES OF THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF GREENE BENTLEY
The exact date of death and location of the death and burial for Greene, Sr. is not
known for sure. Claims have been made that he died in 1820, 1821,
and 1823. And where did he die, and where is he buried?
Did Greene die in 1820?
Brinkerhoff (13, 15) quotes E.T. Bentley, grandson of Greene: “My grandfather died
in Chemung County, New York, 1820.” Yet Stewart (11) notes that E.T. “wrote that
Green Bentley d 1821 at Bentley’s Creek, Chemung Co., NY.”
This E.T. Bentley has been proven to have made a few errors in his memories.
Davidson (13) in “The Family of Eldred Bentley” notes Greene died Mar 4, 1820 in
Tioga Co, NY. (but later includes info from Wisby stating he died in 1823).
Criddle (7) gives first a preferred death date of Mar 4, 1820 in Elmira, Chemung Co,
NY, but in 2007 stated (8): “that claim is incorrect, since it is known that he granted
property to his daughter-in-law Olive Bentley after that date on March 13, 1822.”
Criddle documented that he had read microfilm of this deed of Tioga Co (v. 15, pp
498-499). Greene is not listed in the 1820 Census as a head of household, however
Green, Jr. is listed with a male over age 45 living with him in Town of Catherine,
Tioga Co., NY and that likely was his father Greene, Sr.
Thus, it seems that the 1820 death date noted in many sources was in error.
-------------------Did Greene die in 1821?
A marker provided by the state and placed at the old Bentley Cemetery in the village
of Millport, Town of Veteran on Route 14 north of the village reads:
GREEN BENTLY
1741-1821
SERVED IN SULLIVAN-CLINTON
CAMPAIGN AND WAS A PIONEER
IN MILLPORT. DEDICATED BY
BOY SCOUTS OF MILLPORT
But this is a state marker, not his original tombstone. So how did the state
determine the year of death? This marker must have been placed, per a saved
newspaper clipping from the MacDougall family noted below, prior to 1909 (and most
likely in 1899) so perhaps back then someone had evidence of when he died or
perhaps had viewed his original tombstone? The clipping notes that a noted
historian of the area was the key speaker at the dedication of the marker. But
perhaps the 1821 date on the marker was based on false hearsay? Perhaps from
E.T. Bentley’s memory? Or simply a state government mistake that was never fixed
(which in fact happened to a Cobin relative with his Civil War plaque)? Criddle (8)
notes in regard to the March 13, 1822 deed: “On the same date Green Bentley
acknowledged the deed before Francis Catlin, Commissioner.” So it seems Green
was alive in 1822, likely died in 1823, and the marker is incorrect.
----------------Did Greene die in 1823?
A.S. Bennett noted (10, 19): “Green M. Jr, died about 1820---three years before his
father.” That would have Sr. die in about 1823. The Tice site states he died abt
1823. An article by H.A. Wisby, Jr. (13) states “Greene Sr. died prior to Sept 6, 1823
when land from his estate was transferred by deed.” Cowan adds: “Greene Sr.
spent his last years in the area of Catherine Town in Tioga County, New York. The
town of Veteran was formed from Catherine on April 16, 1823, probably close to the
date of Greene's death. All of the local histories make it clear that Greene Bentley Sr
was one of - if not THE - veteran for whom the town was named.”
Titus (11, 25) states Greene died in 1823 in Millport, NY. Criddle (7) lists the
possible death date as 1823 in Montour Falls, NY. The DAR documentation for Viola
Tripp Weber lists Green as died in 1823 in Havana, NY. Allan Bentley (23) states
that the DAR Records note that Greene died Mar 4, 1823 in Tioga Co., NY on a farm
near Havana, NY. Green M. Bentley is listed in the index for the “Havana, NY History
Book.”
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyschuyl/HavIndex.html
Note: Havana later became Montour Falls, which is where Greene’s daughter
Hannah was buried with husband Ephraim Bennett, as well as several of their
children. Perhaps Greene Bentley, Sr. after the 1820 Census, when it appears he
was living with Green, Jr., stayed with his daughter Hannah in Havana/Montour
Falls, died at their farm, and then was buried on his old Bentley farm in Millport. The
1820 Census shows Hannah and Ephraim as living in the Town of Catherine near the
property of Green, Jr. The Town of Veteran (made from Catherine), which includes
the village of Millport, in now Chemung Co. borders Montour Falls. Tioga Co. once
included much of the territory. So the geographic picture is rather muddled.
SO WHEN AND WHERE DID GREENE DIE?
It seems most likely that he died sometime between March 13,1822 when he deeded
land to his daughter-in-law Olive Hopper Bentley and September 6, 1823 when land
from his estate was transferred by deed. The Town of Veteran was named after
Greene when formed on April 16, 1823. It is most likely that this happened shortly
after his death to honor his memory. Thus the DAR Records listing March 4, 1823 as
his death date is very possible.
It is likely that in 1820 the 80 yr old Greene was living with Green, Jr and Olive
Bentley since an age 45+ male is listed in the household of Green, Jr. for the
Census. Greene, it seems, disposed of all of his real property in the deed of 1822.
It is likely that in 1823 when he died that he was living either with his daughter-inlaw, the widowed Olive, in the Town of Catherine (later Veteran), village of Millport;
or near Havana/Montour Falls with his daughter Hannah Bentley Bennett. Or it could
be that he was living with Olive, but that farm was near Havana.
---------------Where was Greene buried?
A 1925 publication by the Daughters of the American Revolution, “Graves of
Revolutionary Soldiers Buried in New York,” (7,8) lists Greene as buried near
Millport, Veteran Twp, Chemung Co., NY.
According to the 1879 “History of Tioga, Chemung, Tompkins, and Schuyler
Counties, New York ” in the chapter on the Town of Veteran, in regard to Green
Bentley: (20)
“The men who first settled here have long since passed away, leaving few traces of
their existence, and not often a stone to mark their final resting place; yet enough
remains in the memory of a few of their descendants to establish the fact that they
were men of great endurance and indomitable courage……. His remains now rest in a
little burying ground on the old Bently farm, a short distance below Millport.” (So his
remains in 1879 were on the old farm “below” Millport. But does this mean “south”
of Millport or “down the hill.” And was this accurate?)
Marlin Criddle (8, 16) refers to S.B. Bennett’s statement that Green was “buried in a
private plot upon his land. Recently the people of Millport have taken steps to
remove the remains to their public cemetery and there to erect a suitable
monument.” This from his book which was published in 1899, thus perhaps Greene’s
body was removed to the public cemetery in Millport at about that time? Or was this
an incorrect statement?
The MacDougall clipping (17) noted: “Saturday afternoon, Sept. 18 the citizens of
Millport and vicinity will dedicate a tablet to the memory of Green Bently, the first
settler in that locality, the ceremonies taking place at the little cemetery a little north
of the village, where his remains rest. The cemetery in which his remains rest was a
part of his original plot of land purchased in 1798.”
In “History of Central New York” by Harry R. Melone (1932), in the chapter on
Chemung Co., it states: “In a little burying ground on a farm a short distance from
Millport, lie the remains of Green Bentley.” Wisby (13) noted: “He was buried in the
family cemetery north of Millport, site of a State Historical Marker.”
SO WHERE IS GREENE BENTLEY?
It seems that Greene was buried on his old Bentley farm outside Millport. But were
his remains ever moved to the old Bentley Cemetery north of Millport nearly 80
years after his death, or rather is this old cemetery located where he was buried on
his farm?
He may or may not have ever had a tombstone, whether he was moved or not, as
many of the old tombstones were destroyed over time. What Bennett referred to as
“a suitable monument” apparently ended up being a simple, standard state marker
placed along the road where it was convenient to the public. It is not likely at the
exact spot where Greene’s remains are located, and most likely nobody knows
exactly where Greene is now. Why didn’t they give him a tombstone in addition to
the marker? Most likely Greene is somewhere under the ground on his old farm at
the old Bentley Cemetery somewhere near where the state marker (with the wrong
year of death) was placed. But at this point only Greene knows where he is resting.
*************
WHERE IS THE BENTLEY CEMETERY?
Marlin Criddle wrote Bob Glover in March 2007: “When our family was traveling in
New York in the summer of 1962, I happened to notice a grave marker for Green
Bentley, on the west side of the road outside of Millport. I didn't take a picture, but I
did transcribe the grave marker. It seems to me that I read somewhere that the
highway had been widened, and the graves had to be moved. Do you know anything
about this?”
INDEED! Bob and Shelly Glover visited the Bentley Cemetery on Aug 31, 2007 and
took photos……….
Joyce Tice notes along with her 1999 photo of the state marker for Greene, Sr. and
what is left of the Bentley Cemetery :
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/greene.htm
Veteran, Chemung County, New York
Greene / Bentley Cemetery/Green Bentley Cemetery
“This small cemetery is located on the West side of NYS Route 14 North just as you
leave the village of Millport, Town of Veteran, Chemung Co., N.Y. (This is between
Route 17 at Horseheads to the south and Watkins Glen/Seneca Lake to the north. It
is on the left after you leave the few places of business in Millport and just before an
ice cream stand) When the new road was put through this area many years ago,
approximately half of the stones in the cemetery were destroyed.” But did that
include the stone of Greene Bentley? When did this happen? Apparently before
1930 as a DAR listing of tombstones on the Tice site had about the same 15 names
(which DID NOT include Greene Bentley, Sr.) as the 2006 version and that is about
what Bob Glover witnessed on Aug 31, 2007.
The new road destroyed about half of the cemetery but this is the list of what is
there now, and those marked, that were destroyed. The part left is abandoned and
grown to brush.
NOTE: This is not the same as the Millport Cemetery where his son Green, Jr is
buried. Bentley Cemetery is to the west of Route 14 north outside of Millport,
whereas Millport Cemetery is to the east of Route 14 and north of 6A which
intersects with 14 in Millport. It is located on the brink of the escarpment on the
east side of the village. It appears that the Bentley Cemetery is inactive and the
Millport Cemetery is still active and much bigger.
GPS coordinates for these cemeteries:
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/articles/gpsvetrn.htm
--------------------DEDICATION OF THE MARKER FOR GREEN BENTLEY IN MILLPORT
Photo of the Green Bentley marker and clipping of announcement of the dedication
Tice (17) http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/clippings/tcobt131.htm
THE STATE MARKER
Below the statement by Joyce Tice in regard to the clipping in announcing the
dedication of the marker for Green Bentley at the old Bentley Cemetery. The date of
the newspaper article is not included, but it had to be prior to 1909 when the
clippings were presented. Most likely is was in Sept. 1899.
Tice: “Following clippings are submitted by Walter R. Samson, Rock Creek, OH. His
mother was Helen MacDougall Samson.”
Samson: “In 1909 my Grandmother Berneice Reed MacDougall made a Christmas
present for her mother Sophia Emmeline (Emma) Webster Reed. It was a booklet
with fancy edges cut from card stock containing envelopes, and found with a red
ribbon. In each envelope were newspaper clipping of interest to the family, mostly
centered on activities in Chemung Co., NY.”
IMPRESSIVE OBSERVANCE PLANNED AT UNVEILING OF MARKER FOR GREEN
BENTLEY - ONE WEEK FROM SATURDAY MARKER FURNISHED BY STATE WILL BE
UNVEILED AT GRAVE OF PIONEER SETTLER AND REVOLUTIONARY ARMY SOLDIER IN
OLD CEMETERY AT MILLPORT—ABNER C. WRIGHT OF WELLSBURG WILL BE
PRINCIPAL SPEAKER IN LODGE ROOMS, G. ARCHIE TURNER AT GRAVE
Saturday afternoon, Sept. 18 the citizens of Millport and vicinity will dedicate a tablet
to the memory of Green Bently, the first settler in that locality, the ceremonies
taking place at the little cemetery a little north of the village, where his remains rest.
An elaborate program has been arranged, which will begin at 2 p.m. The first part
will take place in the Masonic Lodge rooms of Old Oak Lodge, Charles Sleeper will
introduce Abner C. Wright, local historian for the Town of Ashland and the Village of
Wellsburg, who is well versed in history of this section of the country, and well
informed in the facts concerning Green Bently and who will be the principal speaker
at the lodge hall. The meeting will be opened with prayer. Selections by a local
quartet will also be a part of the program.
Following the meeting in the lodge hall, a procession will be formed in which will be
delegations from the Grand Army of the Republic, the Spanish War Veterans, the
Veterans of the World War, all preceded by the fife and drum corps of Watkins Glen
and Montour Falls.
The procession will move to the cemetery where the dedication ceremonies will take
place, G. Archie Turner delivering the dedication address. Following the address the
Boy Scouts will take a solemn pledge to keep inviolate and undesecrated the little
plot of ground on which the marker will stand. This will be followed by a salute by
the firing squad and “Taps” the service to be ended by benediction. It is expected
that many from outside the community will be in attendance.
Green Bently was born about 1741, was a soldier of the Revolution and from his
known character as a patriot, when the town was organized it was given the name of
Veteran in honor of him.
The cemetery in which his remains rest was a part of his original plot of land
purchased in 1798. About a year ago, the Boy Scouts held a field day and among
the guests invited was the Elmira Heights troop. During the day the scouts ascended
the pinnacle near the pinnacle near the village, where, it is said the Masons in
Sullivan’s army held communication. In order to understand the history of the spot
Err Locke was invited to and did explain the situation. It was suggested at that time
that the resting place of Green Bently be marked in some manner, but it was not
until the past spring that the matter of a marker was finally decided upon.
The proposition was brought to the attention of the Chemung County Historical
Society, and application was made to Dr. A. C. Flick, state historian, for the marker,
which will be dedicated Saturday. The Boy Scouts have taken a great deal of
interest in the matter since a year ago, and it is under their auspices that the
celebration will be held.
Millport has always been a patriotic community, contributing liberally to all causes for
the benefit of the country. In all wars they have contributed their full quota in the
service of the State and Nation.
Under a committee of local citizens, the cemetery has been improved and presents a
creditable appearance, the ground leveled and the stones straightened. Many of the
oldest citizens were buried there, previous to the purchase of the cemetery to the
east of the village.
------------------GREENE OR GREEN??????????
Bently or Bentley, and was Bathsheba a Greene (or Green) and thus named her son
by her maiden name?
The Rhode Island Vital Records state he was born as “Greene Bentley.” (10, 14).
Cowan chose to go with “Greene” but Criddle with “Green.” Bates went with
“Greene, Sr.” and “Green, Jr.” The Rhode Island Colonial Servicemen records for
the French and Indian War notes “Greene” for the father, but the New York Militia
Records list “Green” for the son. On the Tice website, the various histories go with
“Green” as the first settler of Veteran. The minutes of the Baptist Church in
Wellsburg use “Green” for father and son. The state marker for the father and the
tombstone for the son note “Green.”
Since he apparently was born as “Greene” and died as “Green,” we will go with
“Greene” for the father and “Green” for the son, who was born as “Green.”
Of our branch of Bentleys, Greene (Green), Sr. and Green, Jr were only the first of
that name. Green, Jr. had a son Green Bentley. Green, Jr’s son George C. Bentley
had a son Green Bentley. Green, Sr.’s son Benjamin had a son Green Bentley. Two
of Greene, Sr.’s sisters had sons with Green as first name and Bentley as the middle
name: Hannah (Green Bentley Bennett), and Sarah (Green Bentley Coryell). And
there were many more Green Bentleys among the descendants of Green Bentley, Sr.
-------------------to be updated
RELIGIOUS HISTORY OF GREENE BENTLEY
Criddle (8) refers to several sources of Greene’s religious affiliations. He notes that
“Elisha Tucker Bentley, grandson of Green Bentley, said that his grandfather was a
Baptist and was driven out of Connecticut because he would not pay tithes to the
Church of England. “(15).
Stephen Beers Bennett wrote in his 1899 book that Greene Bentley:
“was, in religious matters, a follower of Roger Williams, and would neither support
nor attend any but Baptist preaching. This resulted in annoyance and vexatious
litigation, and being arrested and subjected to fines, he concluded to try a residence
among the Quakers, who also had hard lines in New England. He had started
westward with all his possessions when the sheriff overtook and proposed to detain
him, but Bently, backed by his old flint-lock musket of Canada in 1757, safely
convoyed his expedition across the State line.”
On September 2,1789 the settlers, including Greene, organized the Chemung Baptist
Church at Wellsburg, NY (8)
It seems that the Wellsburg Church records didn’t catalog births, marriages and
deaths, only, the deeds or misdeeds of the members.
Church records (17) show that Greene Sr and, especially Green Jr. and his wife
Olive, had some difficulties with the church which in those days seemed to be the
keepers of moral behavior. For example, records of 1792 show that the Church
disciplined members for “disguiised by drunkenness, refuse wed damsel in distress,”
for “raffling & drinking ,” and for “Vain Dancing & refusing to hear the church.”
The below records apparently refer to Greene, Sr:
Dec 3, 1791-- Apointed Brother Justice Bennitt To Labour with Ebinezer Green On
account of his refusing to join In the Constitution of the Church 2ly appointed
Elizabeth Townsand to labour with Green Bently for the same cause
Feb 4, 1792--- The Church met in fellowship & having had no answer from Brother
Bently again apointed three Brothers Viz: William Buck & Thomas Keeny & Joh
hillman To Labour with him.
Mar 3, 1792- Met pursuant the brothers that was appointed To Visit Brother Green
Bently Inform the Church They found him wishing to retract his wrong.
----------see Greene history in documents
THE MIGRATIONS OF GREENE BENTLEY, SR.
Elaine Cowan traced the migration of Greene Bentley at:
http://www.migrations.org/individual.php3?record=32504
Greene was born in Westerly/Richmond, Washington Co, RI. on March 23, 1741.
Criddle: “On Sept 22, 1766, Green Bentley and his family were given a certificate
from Richmond to North Kingstown.” (8, 11) Cowan: “We can only assume that the
family went from North Kingston, Rhode Island to Kent, Litchfield Co., CT sometime
between 1766 and 1770.” It is believed that his first children were born in Rhode
Island before the move to Connecticut, where Benjamin was born in 1771 and Rhoda
in 1774.
Then, Greene was the first Bentley to migrate to New York State:
“In 1775 Green Bentley and several other families immigrated to Warwick, Orange
Co., NY, “with a view of settling in the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania, but fearing
difficulty with the Indians, they remained at Warwick, where he joined the
Revolutionary army.” (20) Greene apparently served in the army from abt 1775 to
abt 1783. He apparently made at least some trips home as Green, Jr. was born in
1778 in Warwick, NY
The newspaper article about the dedication of the Bentley/Millport Cemetery marker
for Greene Bentley traces his movements starting in abt 1784: (17)
“At the close of the Revolution, he with several other families (NOTE: which included
the Ephraim and Thaddeus Bennett family---later two Bennett brothers, apparently
sons of this Ephraim, married two daughters of Greene, Sr.), who had started from
Rhode Island with him, removed from Orange County to the Wyoming Valley in
Pennsylvania
(NOTE: property and tax records show he lived in Northumberland Co., PA from
1783-1787 and he owned two horses and one cow (8))
where he remained for three years, when the quarrel arose between the New
England settlers and the followers of William Penn, with reference to the title of the
land; the former claiming it under the new Connecticut charter, and the latter as
coming within the charter given to William Penn, both of which had been granted by
the King of England. (NOTE: This was called the Pennamite Wars).
The quarrel proved serious and many deaths resulted, and as the New England
people were in the minority, it became obvious that their only chance for peace and
safety depended on their leaving the valley. Green Bently with sixteen other heads of
families (including the Bennetts) built a boat, on which they placed their effects, and
pushed and poled it up the river, while others drove the cattle and horses along the
banks. In 30 days they reached what is now Wellsburg, where Bently purchased all
the land lying between the river and the Pennsylvania line, including about three
hundred acres at the point where the creek since known by his name, Bently’s Creek,
enters the Chemung River. .
This was abt 1788-1789.
The chapter on the Town of Veteran (20) notes: “The first white man who settled in
this town was Green Bentley.” Criddle (8, 20) notes: “Green Bentley and his group
were the first European-American settlers of the area. In the spring of 1789 Green
Bentley erected the first house within the present limits of Ashland, on the banks of
the creek that now bears his name, near the village of Wellsburg.” The first United
States Census in 1790 listed Green Bently as head of household in Chemung Twp,
Chemung, Co, NY. on Aug 2 with a household consisting of two free white males age
16 and above (Greene and Benjamin), one free white male under 16 (Green, Jr), and
three free white females (likely wife Diana and two daughters).
NOTE: The Town of Veteran, at least partially named after the veteran Greene
Bentley, Sr., was formed in 1823 from the Town of Catharine. The village of Millport
(where Greene’s marker is located) is within the Town of Veteran. The town is in
Chemung Co, NY, which is adjacent to Schuyler Co, NY (north), Tompkins Co, NY
(northeast), Tioga Co, NY (east), Bradford Co, PA (south), Tioga Co, PA
(southwest), and Steuben Co., NY (west). The county lines changed many times and
thus various villages and towns were at times in different counties. Greene Bentley,
Sr. and his family at various times lived in these counties---whether by them moving
or the county lines changing. Bentley Creek runs from PA into NY. George Cargill
Bentley, the son of Green, Jr., was born in Bentley Creek, Bradford Co, PA and
migrated to South Dansville, Steuben Co, NY.
The newspaper article on the Greene, Sr. marker continued from when he settled the
Town of Veteran and first purchased land there:
“Here he stayed until 1798, when he sold out and bought three hundred acres of
land, on a part of which Millport now stands. He built a log house upon it.” That
house was directly opposite the house built later by his son, Green Bentley, Jr. (17)
Greene, Sr. died in about 1823 in probably Millport, Town of Veteran, NY.
"History of The Genesee Country (Western New York)" edited by Lockwood R. Doty,
Vol II, 1925
page 1443: "In 1788 Green Bentley settled near the site of Wellsburg and two years
later the Wells family, the Traceys, Isaac and Henry Baldwin and Ebenezer Green
made settlement." "Other early settlers were...Elder Roswell Goff"
NOTE: Rev Goff the feared leader of the Wellsburg Baptist Church of which
Green, Sr an early member
page 1444: "One of the first settlers of the town of Veteran was Green Bentley in
1798. He had previously settled near Wellsburg, but purchased land in Baldwin in
the year mentioned. Grants of land were given to Preserved Cooley, John Pazley,
John Carpenter, Henry Wisner and to John Nicholson. The town of Veteran was
formed from the town of Catherine April 16, 1823, and the unusual name given to
honor the military record of Green Bentley, who had served in both the French and
Indian and Revolutionary wars.
XXXCENSUS
Q2---1800 Census lists Green, Jr as head of household but it is marked off as 3
people living there---male and female over age 45 and female age 16-25. But Green
and Olive married 1798 and were only 22 in 1800. So this an error and age 16-25
male should have been checked off for head and the female 16-25 was Olive? And
the male and female over 45 was Green Sr and Diana? 1800 Census doesn't list
both Sr and Jr separately as head of households as in 1810 Census. Just one
listing. Was this Sr and Diana in 1800 with age 16-25 female being Phebe? if so,
where were Jr and Olive? Perhaps in a household with a relative?
Q2---1800 Census lists Green, Jr as head of household but it is marked off as 3
people living there---male and female over age 45 and female age 16-25
PHEBE BENTLEY is listed by Criddle as b abt 1784 in White Deer,
Northumberland Co., PA.
I agree that either -- whoever transcribed the Census made an error in the age
ranges OR it has to refer to Greene Sr and Dinah. However, I have never found any
evidence of a Phebe. I stumbled on some Tax records that showed Greene Sr in PA
with some of the Bennetts. And the only NARA Military records for Greene Sr.,
concern his witnessing a letter sent by some Bennetts to their old Militia officer about
their back pay.
IF Criddle found a birth record for such a person, I would like to have a copy.
Also, their known daughter Sarah, who married Daniel Coryell, would fit in that age
range.—but Sarah b 1770 and married bef 1790 so not her
--likely refer Sr + Diana + ? w/ Jr missing and living elsewhere
Seems unlikely that Green Sr and Diana would be living with Jr in 1800 and head of
nearby household in 1810 and then back with Jr again in 1820? At age 60, 70, 80
maybe? If it should read Sr then Diana is with him but who the age 16-26 female?
Can't be Sarah. Phebe exists? And then it means Jr and Olive not head of a
household but living in area with a relative? Maybe her parents? Possible at age
22. And by 1810 had their own household.
but according to this Sarah married before 1790. See Coryell reference from
Criddle. He has no reference for Phebe. Will most likely drop her before I go final.
Green, Jr is noted in the1820 Census as head of household and Sr is not listed as a
head---at abt age 80 he was likely living with his son Green, Jr. and that Census
reports a male over age 45 in that household.
So in 1800 and 1820 Green Jr listed as a head but not Green sr; in 1810 they are
both listed living nearby. Likely the over age 45 living in 1820 with Jr is Sr. So then
Sr and Jr accounted for in 1810 and1820. But what of 1800 when Jr listed and not
Sr but ages match Sr and not Jr?
1800 ---Green Bentley, Jr .(now abt age 22) listed as head of household in
Newtown, Tioga Co., NY with one male age 45 and older, one female 16-26, and one
female age 45 and older. But---Green Jr. and wife Olive (m 1798) were abt age 22.
Who were the male and females listed age 45 and older and why was Green Jr listed
on Census but his age range not checked off? And who the female age 16-26? If
not Olive then perhaps the Phebe who may be daughter of Sr. and b abt
PHEBE BENTLEY is listed by Criddle as b abt 1784 in White Deer, Northumberland
Co., PA.
So was 1800 Census an error and listed Jr. after Green and it should have been
Sr. and Sr and Diana lived there with daughter Phebe?
XX1810 has both Sr and Jr nearby—Jr with several kids
In 1810 Green (no noted as JR.) was listed as head of household in Catharines,
Tioga Co, NY with the same household numbers as in 1800. That is husband and
wife over age 45 and a female age 16-26.
Greene does not appear in the1820 Census as head of household---at abt age 80 he
was likely living with his son Green, Jr. and that Census reports a male over age 45
in that household.
Greene, Sr. apparently died and was buried on this Bentley farm land in abt
1821/1823.
To be updated
MILITARY HISTORY OF GREENE BENTLEY
According to the newspaper clipping for the dedication of his state marker at the
cemetery in Millport, “Green Bently emigrated from Rhode Island to Warwick in
Orange County in 1775, just before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. There he
joined the patriots and served as an officer during that long struggle, and was ever
after known as Sergeant Bently. It is said that he also served in the French War.”
(17)
According to the “Rhode Island War Servicemen,”posted at ancestry.com, Greene
Bentley served in the Old French & Indian War in the campaign of 1762, as noted in
the 1925 “”A List of Rhode Island Soldiers and Sailors in the Old French and Indian
War” by Howard M. Chaplin.
E.T. Bentley claimed of his grandfather: “At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War
in 1775 he enlisted and served seven years.” (15) If this is accurate, it means
Greene served from about 1775 to about the end of the war in 1783. Greene initially
served as a private in Capt. Richard Baly’s company of the 4th Regiment of the
Orange County Militia (Florida,NY and Warwick, NY) districts.
(8, 6)
Stephen Beers Bennett (16) questioned in his 1899 book whether Greene was an
officer, Criddle wrote in reference to this: “It was said that Green Bentley was a
major in the Revolutionary Army, but it does not appear that he rose above the rank
of private. Often ex-soldiers would naturally secure prominent places in local militias
and have applied to them the term of their rank. Later it would be assumed that
they were of the same rank during the war, an assumption that the soldiers were not
quick to correct, and after their deaths the error would be perpetuated. No record
has been found relating to Green Bentley’s affiliation or rank within a local militia.”
Cowan: “Whatever active military service Greene or his unit may have seen is
unreported. There were battles fought in the area of Orange county (at Tappen on
December 07, 1776 and September 28, 1778. Also at Tarrytown August 30, 1779
and July 15, 1781). He (evidently) never made a claim for a pension or bounty land
but this does not mean he was not entitled to these benefits.
His service was probably typical of that of most soldiers who were not members of
the regular Continental Army but who fought for short periods, not far from there
homes as the tide of war ebbed and flowed across the Colonies.” NOTE: Robert H.
Glover, ggg gg grandson of Greene Bentley, Sr., lives in Tarrytown/Sleepy Hollow,
Westchester Co., NY.
DAR—Viola Tripp Weber: Green M. Bentley (1741-1823) served in Hawthorn's
regiment; also Captain Bailey's company, Colonel Wisner's regiment, New York
militia.
http://home.frognet.net/~bobt/Sources%20of%20Additonal%20Info/Trippdar/Tripda
r11.htm
The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution Volume 103
page 170
[p.170] Mrs. Viola Tripp Weber.
DAR ID Number: 102555
Born in Dansville, N. Y.
Wife of Valentine Weber.
Descendant of Green M. Bentley, as follows:
1. Simeon Tripp (1809-77) m. 1846 Mary Bentley (1824-1902).
2. George C. Bentley (1801-61) m. 1821 Lucinda Cleveland (1802-56).
3. Green M. Bentley, Jr. (1778-1820), m. 1798 Olive Hopper (1781-1862).
4. Green M. Bentley m. Diana Strait.
Green M. Bentley (1741-1823) served in Hawthorn's regiment; also Captain Bailey's
company, Colonel Wisner's regiment, New York militia. He was born in East
Greenwich, R. I.; died in Havana, N. Y.
Also No. 62370.
To be updated
GREENE BENTLEY AND DINAH STRAIGHT
Cowan—Dinah
Criddle—Diana
Arnold—Dinah
Stewart-Titus---Diana
DAR--Diana
Not much is known of Diana and most of her children.
Greene married Dinah Straight in abt 1760. The Daughters of the American
Revolution, Lineage Book (7) notes she married in 1759; Stewart notes she married
in 1760 in East Greenwich, CT; Cowan estimates she married 1761-1763. Ancestry
tree lists as married Aug 1, 1734 in Newton, Tioga, NY
Dinah was born in abt 1742 in possibly Greenwich, RI (6). Stewart notes she was
possibly born in 1737 , per Titus (11,25); Criddle in 1745. Ancestry tree lists as Mar
23, 1748 in East Greewich, Kent, RI and died Mar 4, 1820 Newton, Tioga, NY
She was the daughter of Thomas Straight/Strait (b abt 1707/1710 in E. Greenwich,
RI; d Aug 16, 1749 in W. Greenwich, RI), and Herodias Gardiner/Gardner (b abt
1710/1712 in poss. Kingstown, RI. (6, 7)
Ancestry tree has Thomas Straight (b Apr 5, 1713, Greenwiich, Kent, RI; d. Aug 16,
1749, W. Greenwich, Kent, RI) and Herodias Gardiner (b 1710 in E Greenwich, Kent,
RI; d. Aug ,1749 West Greenwich) And married Mar 3, 1731, E Greenwich, Kent, RI
Ancestry Tree has Herodias father as Joseph Gardiner (1671-1726) and mother
Hannah Briggs (1685-1727)---see tree for going back more for Thomas and
Herodias.
In 1775 she was listed as a member of the Old School Baptist Church, Warwick, NY.
The female over age 45 listed with Greene in the 1810 Census must be her, so she
died sometime after that.
----------------THE CHILDREN OF GREENE BENTLEY, SR. and DINAH STRAIGHT BENTLEY
The exact number of children (7 to 9), their names, when and where they were born
is in question as there doesn’t seem to be a lot of information, and often what is
available is in conflict. Further, Criddle’s info on his website doesn’t always match
that in his history of Greene and Diana. A.S. Bennett lists 7 children, but Cowan
has 8, Criddle lists 9. Bennett does not include Eunice. Criddle is the only to include
Phebe.
Their children: Sheba Eunice, Diana, Hannah, Elizabeth, Sarah, Benjamin , Rhoda ,
Green, Jr ----and perhaps Phebe.
1. SHEBA EUNICE BENTLEY BENNETT was born Jan 19, 1762 according to a
Thaddeus Bennett handwritten recording in his family bible (6). Criddle lists her as b
Jan 2, 1765 in prob. East Greenwich, RI. (8) Cowan notes her birth as abt 1761 in
prob. Richmond, RI. Ancestry Famiy Trees lists as born Jan 19, 1762 in Litchfield, Ct
and d Dec 31, 1799 Chemung
Cowan noted: Eunice Bentley Bennett died two days after giving birth to their son,
Jehial Bennett. Her death date is listed in the family bible as December 31, 1799.
Stewart lists Jehiel as born Dec 19, 1799 in Chemung Twp, Chemung Co (8, 11) so
perhaps she died on Dec 21, 1799 in Chemung Co.
Thaddeus’s family bible notes that he married Sheba Eunice Bentley on Sept 10,
1780 in Orange Co., NY. (6) Criddle notes from “Jehiel Bennett: His Forebears and
Descendants” (1959, by Bernardine Smith Ray) that they married in 1782.
Criddle also lists her as Sheba for her first name, but Cowan lists her as Eunice.
Sheba is likely the shortened version of Bathsheba, the name of her grandmother
Bentley (wife of William #3).
Thaddeus is apparently the son of the Ephraim Bennett who migrated from Rhode
Island to Orange Co, NY to the Wyoming Valley, PA, to the Chemung Co, NY area
with the Greene Bentley, Sr. family. We assume then that Thaddeus and Sheba
were members of these family migrations as they were growing up. The brother of
Thaddeus (Ephraim) married the sister of Eunice (Hannah).
Another note listed with Cowan:“According to Thaddeus' handwritten record in his
family bible, he was born on May 9, 1760, in Warwick, Rhode Island. Ancestry Family
Trees lists the same.
His tombstone lists his birth date as February 28, 1764. “ (So was he born in 1760 or
1764? The tombstone notes that he served in the Revolutionary War. He was also,
perhaps, a Baptist preacher. (6)
Criddle notes from “Jehiel Bennett: His Forebears and Descendants” that “Thaddeus
Bennett died Jan 8, 1834 and was buried in the Stockdale Cemetery, just outside of
Porstmouth, Scioto, Ohio. His will, recorded in Sept 1834 indicates that he was a
man of some wealth at the time of his death.”
Ancestry Family Trees lists his death thee sam in Harrisonville, Scioto, Ohio
Although Thaddeus married a Bentley, he had some problems with Sheba;s family
according to the Wellsburg Baptist Church:
“Jeneary the 5 1799 and heard a Complaint aginst Brother James Bentley and Green
Bentley By Brother Thaddeus Bennit in their refusing him his Right to the Skin of a
dear which they had Kild to geather and when Consid[er]ed By the Church there
judgement was that the Skin ot to Be Eaqually divided.” (6, 17)
Eunice and Thaddeus had 9 children born 1782-1799. (6)
According to the Jehiel Bennett book (8), in 1817 the widowed Thaddeus and his
family traveled from New York state by covered wagons and rafts and arrived in
Scioto, OH in 1818. He married Rachel Mead and they had several children. Cowan
notes her as Elizabeth Meade and that they had 5 children (giving Thaddeus a total
of 14). Cowan also notes Elizabeth died May 7, 1826, and that Thaddeus married his
3d wife Rachel Chaney Aug 17,1828 in Scioto, Ohio.
-----------2. DIANA BENTLEY was born abt 1763 in Richmond, RI. (6) Criddle lists her as
“Dianna,” b abt 1786, Northumberland Co, PA. Cowan:
“Everybody has this child on their list but nobody seems to know anything about her.
Perhaps she died young.”
-------------3. HANNAH HUMILITY BENTLEY BENNETT was born Jan 2, 1765 in prob. East
Greenwich, Kent Co, RI. (8) She married Ephraim Bennett, Jr (#3) on Feb 7, 1781
in Goshen, Orange Co, NY. (7, 8, 10) She was barely 16 yrs old when she married
and was not yet 17 when she bore her first of thirteen children.
In 1820 they lived in the Town of Catherine, Tioga Co. NY near her parents Green
and Olive Bentley.
Hannah died Mar 1, 1836 in Willardsburg, Tioga Co, PA.; and was buried in the town
cemetery, Montour Falls, Schuyler Co., NY with her husband. (6) Hannah was visiting
her brother Benjamin Bentley in Tioga Co. PA when she died. (6, 16)
Ephraim was born May 1, 1762 in Warwick, Kent Co, RI, (8, 11). He served with the
Orange Co, NY Militia. (8) In 1833, at age 70 years Ephraim applied for and
received his Revolutionary War pension. (6, 16) Ephraim bereft after the death of
his wife, made his home with his son, Col. Green Bentley Bennett, where he died
suddenly of apoplexy, October 26th, 1843. This in Dix/Montour Falls. NY. (6)
His grave marker at the town cemetery in Montour Falls Cemetery reads: (8)
A Revolutionary Soldier
Born 1762 in Rhode Island
Died Oct 26, 1843 in Town of Dix, NY
Age 86 yrs, 5 mos, 26 days
The Funeral Book Records, Havana, NY (presently Montour Falls), indicates that he
was moved from an old burial ground that was transferred to another site, probably
in 1860, as were at least three of his children (6):
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyschuyl/FunBook1.html
“Ephraim BENNITT [BENNETT], lot 59-1-, age 81y-5m-26d, d. 26 Oct 1843, moved from old burial ground. [A Soldier of the Revolution] [his wife was
Hannah BENTLEY, 1765 – 1839.” Note that the records show he was 81 when he
died and the transcription of the tombstone states he was 86. The transcription is
likely wrong as it also states he was born in 1762 so he would have been age 81
when he died.
Ephraim (#3) was the third consecutive male of that name, we think. Ephraim
Bennett (#1) was born in 1705 in Fairfield, CT and died in 1788 in Warwick, Orange
Co, NY. He married Hannah Benedict (b abt 1708 in Fairfield Co, CT) May 29, 1730
in Ridgefield, CT. The documentation on the birth of Ephraim #2 to Ephraim #1 and
Hannah Benedict Bennett is sketchy, but one researcher theorizes that might be
because the British burned the courthouse in Danbury, CT in 1777 and that is likely
where he was born. Ephraim #2 was perhaps born Apr 30, 1732 and died Oct 20,
1813 in Montour Falls, NY. Ephraim #2 married, according to many researchers
including Criddle, Mary Stafford. Cowan firmly states that he married Susannah
Lobdell, which does seem a better fit.
Whatever, Ephraim #2 is apparently the father of Ephraim #3. And Ephraim #2 was
also the father of Thaddeus Bennett who married Eunice (Sheba) Bentley, the sister
of Hannah Bentley and daughter of Greene Bentley, Sr. That is, two Bennett brothers
married two Bentley sisters. Hannah and Ephriam #3 accompanied their families as
they migrated together from Rhode Island to New York.
And to make the story more intriguing, it appears that Hannah Benedict Bennett, the
grandmother of Ephraim Bennett #3, who married Hannah Bentley Bennett (who is
the daughter of Greene Bentley, Sr, who is the ggg gg grandfather of Robert H.
Glover) may be a relative of Shelly Florence Glover (wife of Robert H. Glover,
daughter of Sally Benedict Florence and granddaughter of Walter F. Benedict (19102004)). Walter Benedict, in fact, helped Elwyn Benedict research “Genealogy of the
Benedicts in America.” That genealogy begins with the first Benedict to migrate to
America in 1638: Thomas (b 1617) who was the great grandfather of Hannah
Benedict Bennett. To date, a missing link still hasn’t been solved which would tie
Walter Benedict to Thomas Benedict #1. If so, what kind of relative does that make
Robert H. Glover and Shelly Florence Glover?
Hannah and Ephraim had 13 children. None was named Ephraim #4, but one was
named Greene Bentley Bennett for her father, and another Thomas Strait Bennett for
her mother. The first child, Samuel, was born in 1781 in Goshen. The other dozen
were born from 1783-1807, probably in Chemung Co. According to the History of
Schuyer County, NY (abt 1885), Town of Dix: Col. Green Bennett was
superintendent of the Chemung canal, and for many years was prominent in the
affairs of Chemung county. http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyschuyl/dixhist.htm
*******************
4. ELIZABETH BENTLEY was b abt 1767 and Cowan notes: “Everybody has her on
their list but nobody seems to know anything about her. Perhaps she died young.”
Criddle lists her as b abt 1780 in Warwick, Orange Co., NY in the Green Bentley
history, but on his website he lists Mary Elizabeth b ab 1780 in Warwick.
*************
5. SARAH BENTLEY CORYELL, according to descendant Burr N. Coryell, was b abt
1770 and d 1818. (6, 7) She was prob b in Warwick, NY.
Before abt 1790, Sarah married Daniel Coryell (7, 11) who, according to the
descendant, was b abt 1770, and died Dec 23,1811 in Montour Falls, NY. (6, 7) He
was the son of Michael Coryell and Rebecca McCarty (7)
Sarah and Daniel had 9 children b 1792-1808 in Chemung Co,NY, including Green
Bentley Coryell named for Sarah’s father. (8) Their son Daniel, Jr was b Feb 5,1811
and d Jul 27, 1864 in Marietta, Ga. He was killed in the Civil War according to Burr
N. Coryell and buried at the Marietta National Cemetery. (6, 7)
************
6. BENJAMIN BENTLEY was b Sep 24, 1771; and died Sep 7, 1854 in Tioga Co., PA
(7, 8). Some list his birth as 1772 but Kent, RI Vital Records show 1771. According
to his son Elisha he was born in Litchfield Co., CT (8) and was the first of Greene’s
two children to be born there. He was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery, Tioga
Township, Tioga Co., PA. (6, 11, 17))
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemt/evergren.htm
transcription: Bentley, Benjamine, died 1854, age 82
Bentley, Mary, died 1815, age 24, wife of Benjamin
Bentley, Jane, died 1866, age 84, wife of Benjamine
He was referred to as Major Benjamin Bentley by a descendant (6) An article on the
Tice site states : “In 1810 he was commissioned by Governor Snyder a major to
serve in a regiment commanded by Colonel Ambrose Millard, and received notice
during the war of 1812 to hold himself in readiness for marching orders; but the war
closed without requiring his services.” (6, 17)
Benjamin married Mary Keeney Feb 11, 1791 in Wellsburg, Chemung Co., NY (7,
11) She was b abt 1772 (7); and died Sep 14, 1815 in Keeneysville, Tioga CO., PA.
(7, 10) She was buried at the same cemetery as her husband (7, 11) Her parents
were Thomas Keeney and Mercy Lamb. (7) Benjamin and Mary had 8 children b
1792-1815, including Bathsheba Bentley (named for Benjamin’s grandmother
Bentley) and Greene Bentley (named for Benjamin’s father). (7, 8)
Benjamin married Jane Otterson Apr 19, 1816 in Springfield Twp, Bradford Co, PA
(7, 10, 11) She was b Nov 28, 1781 in Windham, VT; died Jan 18, 1866 in Tioga
Co., PA; and was buried at the same cemetery as Benjamin (7, 11, 17) She was the
daughter of Joseph Osterson. (7) Cowan: She was an aunt of Franklin J. Otterson,
long connected with the New York Tribune as associate editor.
Benjamin and Jane had three children b 1817-1821 (7, 8), including Elisha Tucker
Bentley, who has contributed several memories to Bentley history, not all of them
being accurate. Elisha married Almira Edsel Mitchelll (7, 11), who it is claimed (19)
by Elisha was the sister of Hon. John I. Mitchell, ex-United States Senator.
from Kathy Popovich
MRS. MARY MOORE DENTON.
62370
Born in Tioga, Pa .
Wife of Elmer A. Denton .
Descendant of Thomas Keeney and of Grean Bentley .
Daughter of John T. Moore (1840-1910) and Fanny Bentley (b. 1849), his wife,
m. 1867.
Granddaughter of Elisha T . Bentley (1821-98) and Almira Mitchell (1829-97),
his wife, m. 1845 .
Gr-granddaughter of Thomas Keeney Mitchell (1799-1862) and Elizabeth Ann
Roe (1809-87), his wife, m. 1824 ; Benjamin Bentley and Jane Otterson, his
wife .
Gr-gr-granddaughter of Richard Mitchell (1769-1845) and Ruby Keeney (1771-
1842), his wife, m. 1792 ; Grean Bentley and Dinah Straight, his wife .
Gr-gr-gr-granddaughteri of Thomas Keeney and Mercy Lamb (1748-1839), his
wife, m. 1769.
Thomas Keeney (1751-1840) served as private in the Connecticut
troops under Captain Bissell and Colonel Pitkin . He was a pensioner
in 1832 . He was born in Connecticut ; died in Chemung,
N. Y.
Grean Bentley (1741-1823) served in Hawthorn's regiment ; also Captain
Bailey's company, Colonel Wisner's regiment, New York
militia, Northumberland County, Pa . He was born in East Greenwich,
R . I . ; died in Havana, N . Y.
With two wives, Benjamin fathered 15 children, some who died early (6)
As with his brother Green Bentley, Jr., Benjamin seemed to have his conflicts with
the Wellsburg Baptist Church: “1803 December th 3rd 3 ly Rec’d an accusation by
Elder Goff against Brother Benjamin Bently for gitting in a pation and thretening to
whip Daniel Ripenbarck and Chalenging Adam Ripenbarck to fight.”
Further minutes of the Church showed he regained favor:
“February the 7th 1801 3ly Voted that Brother Benjamin Bently Should take charge
of the Church Store
April the 18th 1801 4ly that Brother Benjamin Bently shuld be Set apart for a Decon
of this Church.”
But then it appears he got in trouble again:
“1803 December th 3rd 1803 Rec’d an accusation by Elder Goff against Brother
Benjamin Bently for gitting in a pation and thretening to whip Daniel Ripenbarck and
Chalenging Adam Ripenbarck to fight.”
“January the 14th 1804 ly took into consideration the case of brother Benjamin
Bently and found him gilty of a breach of covenant and Neglect to hear the church
for which --?-- the Church is under gospel obligation to with Draw the hand of
felowship from him.”
(6, 17)
Elaine Cowan: “IF THIS IS BENJAMIN, son of Greene Sr and Dinah Bently, it sounds
as though he was disenchanted with the Baptist church—or at least with the
administration of that church at Wellsburg.
However, a granddaughter says he was always a Baptist and, apparently, in 1813 he
started a Baptist church in his new home in Tioga Twp, PA.”
Cowan: “THE TIOGA CHURCHES.
Baptist Church.--(Furnished by Rev. S. D. Merrick.)
One the 24th of April 1813 a few Christian people assembled at the house of
Benjamin Bentley in Tioga (at that time almost an unbroken wilderness) for the
purpose of organizing a religious conference, with a view of ultimately becoming a
regular Baptist church
Cowan adds this info on her website: TIOGA TOWNSHIP AND BOROUGH. By Henry
H. Goodrich. Sketches of the Pioneers
....Major Bentley always took an active part in church affairs. He united with the
Baptists at Chemung, Elder Goff pastor, and brought a letter, as did his wife Mary,
from the church thereto to those of the same faith at Tioga, where a complete
church organization was formed in 1816. Before this event, however, his wife Mary
died, September 14th 1815, and was buried in the old Bentley graveyard. April 19th
1816 he married Jane Otterson. A granddaughter of Major Bentley says of him:
"He was a man of sterling integrity, indefatigable perseverance, and a pure,
conscientious Christian. In creed he was a Baptist, as were his ancestors as far back
as there is any record. He was a lover of justice and honor, and fond of improvement
and progress.”
1800 ---Green Bentley, Jr .(now abt age 22) listed as head of household in
Newtown, Tioga Co., NY with one male age 45 and older, one female 16-26, and one
female age 45 and older. But---Green Jr. and wife Olive (m 1798) were abt age 22.
Who were the male and females listed age 45 and older and why was Green Jr listed
on Census but his age range not checked off?
Living next to him was Benjamin Bentley—one male under 10, one male 26-45, one
male over 45, one female under 10, one female 16-26
***********************************
did Criddle-Cowan, need do Census
7. RHODA (HERODIAS) BENTLEY TEEPLES
She is listed in the Kent Vital Records as being born as “Horad” Jan 2, 1774
in Kent, Litchfield Co. CT (6, 11) Cowan lists her as Herodias. It seems she was
officially named for her grandmother Herodias Gardner Straight but the “Herod”
became the nickname “Rhoda” which she seemed to go by.
She d Jan 2,1837 in Oakland, MI. (6, 11) and was buried there as was her husband.
According to the Natasha Cottrell website
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=natashacottrell&id=I15298
Rhoda married Jacob Teeples in 1793 in Elmira, Chemung Co., NY. Jacob was b
May 12, 1763 in Tewksbury Twp., Hunterdon Co;, NJ. (7,11). He died in abt 1831 in
Oakland, MI (7), but Cottrell states he died in Rochester, NY and was buried in
Oakland, MI.
Or m. 1790
Jacob’s parents were George Teeples and Margaret Shippman. Jacob was in the
military in Northumberland PA bet 1776-1781. (7)
In 1794, Jacob paid taxes in Elmira, Chemung Co, NY. (7) Cottrell lists 10 children
b from 1794-1819, with births in 1794 and 1796 in Elmira; 1799 and 1803 in Town
of Dansville, Livingston Co, NY; in 1805 in Leicester, Livingston Co, NY; in 1807,
1811, 1812, 1819 in Rochester, Monroe Co., NY
George Bentley Teeples was b Mar 17, 1803 in Town of North Dansville, Livingston
Co., NY (7) This is where Robert H. Glover was born in 1946. And next to South
Dansville, Steuben Co., where Green Bentley, Jr.’s son George C. Bentley (nephew of
Rhoda Bentley Teeples) migrated and where his son George E. Bentley lived and
was buried. George E. buried in the same Forest Lawn Cemetery as Adelia Bently
Burger and Corinne Burger Glover, the grandmother and mother of Robert H.
Glover.
George m Huldah Clarinda Colby (b June 4, 1812 in Holland, Erie Co., NY) in
Oakland, MI Oct 1, 1828. They had 10 children b 1830-1856 in Michigan, Missouri,
Illinois and Utah. On Sep 24, 1848 he moved to Salt Lake City, Utah according to
the “Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel (1847-1868) (7). The first Mormon pioneers
arrived in the valley of Salt Lake City on July 24, 1847 so George was one of the first
to settle there and as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(LDS).
On Feb 20,1856, George married Joanna Case Worden (b Feb 17, 1822 in Antwerp,
Jefferson Co., NY) in Salt Lake City. Since Huldah didn’t die until June 10, 1881 in
Salt Lake City, they either divorced or George took a second wife which was common
then in Utah. George had 4 children with Joanna for a total of 14. She had 7
children from her first marriage. Joanna d May 5, 1900 in Vernal, Utah. (7) Cottrell
notes that Joanna d in 1902; and that at some point Geoge may have had a third
wife, Polly Tibbets.
George died Sep 18, 1884 in Holden, Utah and was buried there in City Cemetery
according to the grave marker transcription by Marlin Criddle and the Oct 2, 1884
Deseret Evening News of Salt Lake City.
Much of the research on Green Bentley Teeples was by Marlin Glenn Criddle of Salt
Lake City, Utah who is a primary source for this “Stories and History of the Bentley
Families.” He is an ancestor of Green Bentley Teeples
************************
8. GREEN M. BENTLEY, JR. was b Jan 8, 1778 in Warwick, Orange Co., NY; and d
Nov 14, 1820 in Millport, NY. (6) See Chapter XX for more info.
9. PHEBE BENTLEY is listed by Criddle as b abt 1784 in White Deer, Northumberland
Co., PA. There is no further information on her and she is not listed with Cowan.
*******************************************************************
*********
Chapter 6: GREEN M. BENTLEY, JR. (G6) (1778-1820); son of Green Bentley, Sr
and Diana Straight Bentley; husband of OLIVE HOPPER BENTLEY (1778-1862);
father of George C. Bentley; grandfather of George E. Bentley; g grandfather of
Wilbur Bentley; gg grandfather of Adelia Bentley Burger; ggg grandfather of Corinne
Burger Glover; ggg g grandfather of Robert Harold Glover
**redo---Gleanings AS Bennett says born abt 1778 in Orange Co. Davidson says
born Jan 8, 1778. Criddle (8)—abt 1778 prob Orange
Green M. Bentley, Jr., was born Jan 8, 1778 in Warwick, Orange Co, NY; died at age
42 on Nov 10,1820 in Millport, NY; buried Nov 14, 1820 in Millport Cemetery. (6)
Green, Jr. died a year to three years prior to Green, Sr.
******************
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nychemun/cemetery/millp01.htm
BENTLEY GREEN Jr. 11/10/1820 42y 10m 2d An excellent shale tombstone.
This death date yields a birth date of January 08, 1788, just what we have. Now we
know where Greene Jr was buried, and that his son Ezekiel is buried in the same
cemetery.
(seems not the same as Bentley Cemetery, Veteran where marker of Green Sr)—
also there son Ezekiel, Olive and Oliver Greeno
Millport Cemetery, Town of Veteran, Chemung Co.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp01.htm
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp21.htm
On edge of Village of Millport, North of Co. Rt. 6A, and east of State Rt. 14
Located on the edge of the Village of Millport on "Cemetery Hill", North of County
Route 6A and east of New York State Route 14.
NOTE: This appears to not be the same location as the Bentley Cemetery in Veteran
where his father Greene, Sr. was buried. Bentley Cemetery is on the west side of
the road north of Millport on Route 14; Millport Cemetery is to the east of Route 14
and north of 6A (which intersects with 14 in Millport). Millport Cemeter is much
bigger and appears to be still active.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp01.htm
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp21.htm
tombstone photographed 9/3/07 by Shelly Glover:
Green, Jr. is in the very last row all the way to the left by the woods and just above
a big drop off. The shale stone is in good shape as the deep surrounding woods
shield it from the weather. The stone reads:
Green
Bentley, Jr.
died
Nov 10. 1820
Ae 42 Y
10 M &
2D
Thus he was born Jan 8, 1778. Green, Jr. the father of George Cargill
Bentley.
The transcription of his shale tombstone at Millport Cemetery reads:
Bently, Green Jr.
d. 10 Nov 1820 age 42y10m2d”
************************************
As with his father, “Green” at times was referred to as “Greene” for first name, and
more often as “Bently” for last name. Although his tombstone states Bently, we will
go with Bentley as that is the spelling used by our more recent ancestors.
GREEN AND OLIVE
Green, Jr. married Olive Hopper in prob 1797 in prob. Millport. She was born prob
July 25, 1781*** in prob Orange Co., NY (or Litchfield, CT ) died Nov 14, 1862 in
Millport, NY; buried (tombstone notes Olive Greeno) Nov 17, 1862 in Millport
Cemetery . DAR records for Viola Tripp Weber list her as b. in 1781. Cowan as July
25, 1782: We have 25 Jul 1782 for Olive. Probably came from one of Aunt Holly's
Bentley researcher friends that she traded info with back in the 80's
D 1862 AGE 81 at death means b. in 1781*****
Her parents were Cornelius Hopper and Hannah Rockwell Hopper.
ONE TREE
He was born
1756-02-08
Clarkston,Rockland,New York,USA—Cowan TAppen, Orange
died1814-02-14
Millport,Tioga,New York,USA
She was born: 1760-10-06
Ridgefield,Fairfield,Connecticut
d. 1839-04-07
Millport,Tioga,New York,USA
m. Dec 25, 1777 Warwick
---Hannah’s parents---ancestry
Jonathan Rockwell III
B Jan 10, 1738 Ridgefield
D Sep 3, 1784 Big Flats, Tioga
M Hannah Bennett Jan 1, 1760 Ridgefield
Hannah Bennett
B 1741 Ridgefield
D 1819 Elmira, Tioga
Cornelius father: matthew Hopper
B 1720-03-13
Ny City,,New York,USA---Orange Co
D 1760-06
Tappen,Orange,New York,USA
m. Aeltje Elsie Cooper
Nov 9, 1741, Tarrytown, NY----Cowan says NYC:
Actually their marriage was recorded at the DRC in New York City
http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~rbillard/na_marriages_1639-1801.htm
New Amsterdam DRC Marriages 1639-1801
-Records of the Reformed Dutch Church in New Amsterdam and New York
-Samuel S. Purple
-Dates show Banns registration NOT marriage date until 9/20/1673
1741 09 Nov; Matthys Hopper; Aaltje Kuyper
Ancestry tree:
Name:
Matthias Paulus Hopper
Birth:
13 Mar 1719 in New York City, [county], New York, USA
Death:
Jun 1760 in Tappen, Orange, New York, USA
Father:
Paulus Hopper (1690-1740)
Mother:
Marritje Quackenbosch (1695-1669)
Spouse:
Elsie Cooper (1722-1799)
Spouse:
Aeltje Cuyper (1722-1799)
Elsie Cooper 1722-02-17
New York,NY,New York,USA
1799
Clarkston,Rockland,New York,USA
Ancestry tree:
Name:
Elsie Cooper
Birth:
17 Feb 1722 in New York, NY, New York, USA
Death:
1799 in Clarkston, Rockland, New York, USA
Father:
Cornelius Cooper (1693-1759)
Mother:
Dirckje Smith (1695-1759)
Spouse:
Matthew Mattheus Hopper (1720-1795)
Spouse:
Matthias Paulus Hopper (1719-1760)
Spouse:
Matthew Hopper (1720-1760)
Spouse:
Cornelius Voorhis (-)
Her death notice appeared in the Chemung Co. Newspaper on Nov 29, 1862: (17)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/clippings/1862elwa.htm
In the village of Millport, November 14, after an illness of a few days, Olive, wife of
Oliver Greene, aged 81 years. The subject of the above was one of the first settlers
of Chemung County, having lived on the same farm on which she died sixty-one
years. The writer of this has often heard her relate thrilling scenes in her history of
the early settlement of this country, in which she bore a part. From the early age of
sixteen she was a member of the Christian Church. She was no ordinary christian.
The christian graces were fully illustrated in her experience and practice. She was
kind, fruitful in all the relations of life, as wife and mother, or as friend her record
stands untarnished and bright, leaving behind her fragrance at once grateful and
desirable. She leaves a husband, aged eighty to mourn her loss. (Name was Greeno)
OLIVE’S TOMBSTONE---far end of cemetery by woods. photographed 9/3/07 Millport
Cemetery by Shelly Glover reads:
OLIVE
WIFE OF
OLIVER GREENO
DIED
NOV 14, 1862
81 YRS
2-26-1797 -- OLIVE HOPPER received by confession of faith.
According to Mr Close, the Wellsburg Church records don't catalog births, marriages
and deaths, only, as he says, the deeds or misdeeds of the members.
It seems that it was in this area, Bentley Creek, Millsport, Chemung, where the
Bentley, Hopper and Rockwell families came together, rather than in Orange County.
It appears that Olive Hopper and Greene Bentley Jr. were most likely married in the
Wellsburg Church, sometime after February 26, 1797
In about 1798 or 1799, Green, Jr., after marrying Olive, built a log house in the
vicinity of the present village of Millport, NY. The 1800 Census lists him as the head
of the household in Newtown (later Elmira), Tioga Co, NY. The 1810 & 1820 Census
lists him in Catherine (later to become Schuyler), Tioga Co., NY. His household in
1820 in addition to himself and his wife consisted of one male under age 10, one
male age 10-16, three males age 18-26, three females under 10, plus a male over
age 45 which was likely Green, Sr. The death of Green, Jr. in Nov 1820 thus left his
widow Olive with a houseful of young children.
According to Tice, the second saw mill in the Town of Veteran was built in about
1820 by Green, Jr.
(20) The first sawmill was built by a Mr. T. old, of Geneva, about 1805, on Catharine
Creek, near what were afterwards known as the Arnot Mills, and the second about
1820, by Green Bently, Jr., near Allen and Bank’s flouring mill. From this time they
soon multiplied, in 1832 they were over 20 sawmills and the Valley.
******************
According to Elaine Cowan:
Not a great deal is known about Green Jr. In "The Report of the State Historian", he
is listed in Tioga County, 79th regiment, in 1812 as "Green Bentley, junior, ensign";
in 1818 as a lieutenant in the 79th regiment of infantry; in 1820 he has been
promoted to captain in the same unit (there is no month for this entry, however, you
will note we have his death date as November 11, 1820. We know he was alive at
the time of the 1820 census. The enumeration is usually performed in the summer June to August, but at some point the "offical date" became June 01 - all persons
alive as of June 1st). The entry for 1822 is "....Bently, deceased; Oliver Greeno,
lieutenant.."
Perhaps Green Jr. had made the military his career. He certainly was involved in the
state militia for a long period of time.
We have no evidence in the form of official documents, but according to an article
about his father, Greene Sr., written by Herbert A. Wisbey Jr., he served in the War
of 1812.
**************
RELIGIOUS HISTORY OF GREEN BENTLEY, JR
Gossip from the records of the Chemung Baptist Church, Wellsburg, NY show that
Green, Jr and Olive Bentley were---like Green, Sr. and several of Jrs. brothers and
sisters---not on good terms with the church leaders because of their hard partying.
Cowan notes: In a letter from a Bentley researcher to the Chemung County
Historian (January 22, 1951) we find that Wellsburg Baptist Church records show
Greene Jr was in trouble on two occasions in 1800, April 16 and again on May 3, for
"sugar boiling on the Sabboth" - do you suppose the little dickens was making some
'white lightening'?
We know Cornelius Hopper (father of Olive Hopper Bentley) got in trouble for 'hard
drinking'.
----------------------------------------------------------Joyce Tice Tri-County Site Wellsburg Church records
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/church/welsbg43.htm
The following could have been either Green, Sr or Green, Jr:
Mar 5, 1796---Green Bently received upon confesion of his past conduct on a
certificate of his being Baptised by Elder David Jayne Upon the profesion of His faith
in Christ
Apr 19, 1798--- Met pursuant to adjornment and considered Brothers Bentlys
Request for arear hearing in the Matter of his and Ripenbarks and the Church
injoined it upon the Same Brethren to reconsider the Matter and a burden alledged
against Brother Bently By Brother Keeney for a wrong in forming the Church
Brethren chosen to Settel the Matter of his kiling his Dog In saying he and Thaddeus
Bennit Folloed the track of the dog in the rain to the trap whare he kiled him and in
the dogs Being so hid that he was not to be seen til he uncovered him and in the
track of the dog Being playing [plain] to be Seen in the Spring rain and that he could
prove it by Thaddeus Bennit
July 7, 1798-The hand of feloship with drew from Green Bentley for not payin ripenbarack
Sattisfaction given to the Church By Cornelious Hopper
Jan 5, 1799-- heard a Complaint against Mary Ripenbark for Disobedance to her
Parrents and for ronging the truth Respecting M--?--- which was Maid to apear to be
the truth for which she was Laid under Sensure and heard a Complaint aginst
Brother James Bentley and Green Bentley By Brother Thaddeus Bennit in their
refusing him his Right to the Skin of a deer which they had Kild to geather and when
Consid[er]ed By the Church there judgement was that the Skin ought to Be Equally
divided
July the 7 1799
The Church then Met in feloship .......The hand of Brot feloship with drew from Green
Bentley for not payin ripenbarack Sattisfaction given to to [sic] the Church By
Cornelious Hopper
November the first 1799
The Church them[sic] Met in felowship Meeting Opened by prayer and then
proseeded to business. Hannah Rockwell for Vain Dancing and sinful Mirth laid it over
til our next Meeting} apointed to Labour with Junr Green Bently and his wife for
sugar boiling on the Lords Day
-----------------------------------------------------April the 16th 1800
the Church then Met in feloship and.......... and appointed Labourers with Brother
John Squires and his wife Sister Vancamp & Sister Burnham for Neglect of Meeting
and sugar Boyling on the Sabboth Labour with Green Bently for the same to hannah
Rocwell Junr Marcy Rickey and Ephraim Bennitt for sugar Boyling
---------May the 3rd 1800
The Church then Met in feloship and
Received Satisfaction with Green Bentley Junr
----------------------------------------------Nov 1 1800
Rules of the church Rec’d an allegation against Sarah Rockwell by her ---?--(MOTHER)Hannah Rockwell for Vain Dancing and sinful Mirth laid it over til our next
Meeting} apointed to Labour with Junr Green Bently and his wife for sugar boiling on
the Lords Day or Sabbath
-------------------January the 3rd 1801
took up the Matter of Labour Respecting Green Bently Junyer and his wife and
appointed Brother Townzend and brother Joseph Green to Site them to our next
Meeting} Then took up the matter of Labour Respecting Cornelous W Low for
Refuseing to Marry a Damsel Who had a child by him for which we this Day Withdrew
the write hand of fellowship from him
------------------------Feb 7, 1801--- The church considered a matter of Labour Respecting Green Bently
Junior and his wife and withdrew the Rite hand of fellowship from them both for a
breach of Saboth and allowing Vain frollicking in their House & when called up by the
Church Refused to make gospel satisfaction
Nov 11,1808-- Voted to send Olive Bently a letter of a probating her co[n]fession
Desiring her to meet with the Church the first opertunity and give a Relation of the -?-- of her mind
April first 1809
Brother Green Bently came forward to the Church and menifested a wish to retain
his place in the Church again the Church wished him to take up his miss conduct by
public confessing his rong which he Did the Day following and agreed to pay Br
Ripenbark all the Damages he sustained by a lawsuit between Bently and Ripenbarck
3ly sister Hannah Roberts gave satisfaction to the Church for sensuring sam’l Bennitt
by public confession
---------Oct 7, 1809-- voted to give Brother Green Bently a letter of Dismissal from this
Church when Joyned to another of the same faith and Gospell order
1810 July the 7th 3ly Rec'd sister --- ? --- Bentley by public confesing her Rong and
gave her a letter of Dismistion from this Church when Joyned to any other of the
same faith and gospel order
February the 1st 1812 1stly voted that Sister Hannah Hopper have a Letter of
dismission from this Chh when Joined to another of the Same Faith and Order
MILITRY HISTORY
See Green Sr census
CENSUS REPORTS
es: 0 to 10, 10 to 16, 16 to 26, 26 to 45, 45 and older
1800 ---Green Bentley, Jr .(now abt age 22) listed as head of household in
Newtown, Tioga Co., NY with one male age 45 and older, one female 16-26, and one
female age 45 and older. But---Green Jr. and wife Olive (m 1798) were abt age 22.
Who were the male and females listed age 45 and older and why was Green Jr listed
on Census but his age range not checked off? Green, Sr. either doesn’t appear as
head of household in 1800 or this is him and not Jr. In which case, where was Jr
and Olive? Perhaps living in the household of a relative as they were newly married?
Living next to him was Benjamin Bentley—one male under 10, one male 26-45, one
male over 45, one female under 10, one female 16-26
1810
The 1820 Census lists Green Bently in the Town of Catherine, Tioga Co., NY within
the division allotted to Andrew Purdy. This would be prior to Nov 10 of that year
when he died. No names of family are listed but it appears to denote Green (age 2645) and wife Olive (age 26-45), his father Greene, Sr. (over age 45) , 3 sons age 1826 “engaged in agriculture, “ and 3 daughters under age 10. They had 4 sons who
were age 18-26 for this year, but James married and is listed in Catherine as the
head of his own household. They had 4 daughters under age 10 but for some reason
only 3 listed.
Nearby is the family of Ephraim Bennett including a male and female over age 45
who are likely Green’s daughter Hannah and husband.
**********************
Stories from “The Lives of Green Bentley, Sr.” by Marlin Criddle:
***PAGE 8---redo
In March 1822, a deed of Green Bentley, Sr. to Olive Bentley and her male heirs,
James, George, Ezekiel, William, and Elisha Bentley gave one hundred acres of land
purchased from Benjamin (the first son of Green, Sr.) and Mary (Keeney) Bentley,
“so long as she shall remain the widow of Green Bentley, Jr., and in case of her
marriage, to above male heirs.”
In spite of this restriction, Olive Hopper Bentley later married a Captain Greenough,
by whom she may have had additional children. The property passed into the hands
of the Greenoughs and was occupied by them to the dissatisfaction of the Bentleys.
(Not only did the property not pass on to the sons of Green, Jr., but upon the death
of Olive Bentley Greeno, Oliver married a third wife who eventually inherited the
land).
----Note: This is proof that Green, Jr. died prior to Green, Sr. --- Green, Jr. died
Nov, 1820 and Sr. in 1821-1823
Olive's husband Green, Jr. dies in 1820. Greene Sr lives with her, deeds her his
property on condition she not remarry. He dies in 1822-1823. She marries Oliver
Greeno in 1823 and keeps the land despite a dispute. And then her son with Green,
Ezekiel, dies in 1826 and she gets his saw mill and possessions. Olive dies in 1862
and Oliver remarries within a year and his 3d wife ends up with the Bentley property
after he dies in 1867,
The Life and Descendants of Daniel Greeno by Todd Farmerie
http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~farmerie/greeno.htm#Daniel
5. Oliver GREENO, b. 17 Aug. 1783, (Daniel) he was in Catherine, then Tioga (now
Chemung) Co., NY by 22 Oct. 1809 when he was appointed one of the guardians for
his sister Polly. He had already had his oldest son, David, born in 1805 prior to his
marriage. He is first wife, who he married 23 Aug. 1809, was Polly COE, daughter of
David and Sarah (SQUIRE) COE. She was b. 23 Aug. 1781, and d. 7 Jan. 1823, being
buried in Parsons Cem., Veteran Twp., and he remarried Olive (HOPPER) BENTLEY,
widow of Green BENTLEY, b. ca. 1783, NY. She was still living in 1855, but on 5 Nov.
1863, he married his third wife, Ann MALLETT. In 1839, he appears in Leroy Twp.,
Bradford Co., Pa., selling to his brother Samuel the next year. He was an early
member of the Millport Methodist Church. He died 17 Oct. 1867, Millport, NY, being
buried at Horseheads, NY. His widow was still living in Millport in 1880.
******************
THE CHILDREN OF GREEN BENTLEY, JR. AND OLIVE HOPPER BENTLEY
Green and Olive had 8 or 9 children. Cowan on a statement from her ancestor
Margaret Bentley Craig: “Mother had six boys before she had a girl.” Five boys were
named in the 1822 will of Green, Sr: James, George, Ezekiel, William, and Elisha.
Criddle lists a Rockwell Bentley b abt 1803 with no further info, so this may have
been the sixth son. The girls were: Esther, Eunice, and Margaret.
X—Criddle, Cowan and Census
X1. JAMES BENTLEY was b Dec 21, 1798 according to information from Elaine
Cowan ancestor Margaret Bentley, the sister of James. Thus he would have been
born in the Millport/Veteran, Chemung Co., NY area. He likely died prior to Sept
1850 as he does not show up in that Census with his family. It is possible that the
James Bentley buried at the Roushy Cemetery, Town of Ashland, Chemung Co. NY is
our James. The transcription has him b July 14, 1796; d Feb 2, 1846 at age 49 yr, 5
mo, 19 da. (17) However, an Ezekiel Bentley buried there is listed as born in
Vermont.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/roushycm.htm
James married Eunice Nichols (b abt 1800 in NY) (7,10,16) prior to 1820.
The below is based on Census and other records which appear to be of our James
Bentley.
1820---James apparently married and had a son prior to the 1820 Census where he
is listed as head of household in the Town of Catherine, Tioga Co., NY with a female
age 26-45 and a son under age 10. So they prob. married in abt 1818/1819 and the
child was likely b in 1819/1820James is listed as engaged in agriculture. The same
Census lists his father and family (apparently including his grandfather, Greene, Sr)
in the same township, from which Veteran, Chemung Co. was later formed. That
Census shows 3 of the 4 sons of Green, Jr. as living with him as farmers. Which is
further evidence that James was head of his own household at that time.
1823---Cowan: Tioga County Deed Records “shows James Bently and wife Eunice
selling land to Oliver Greeno in December, 1823, which was James' share of the land
deeded by Greene Bentley Sr to Olive Hopper Bentley and her five sons. “ This was
abt the time that Oliver married James’ widowed mother Olive Hopper Bentley.
1825—Cowan: “A deed of December, 1825 from James and wife Eunice to Ira
Dodge.” This seems to indicate that they moved. Apparently to nearby Tioga Co,
PA.
1830—The Census for Brookfield, Tioga Co., PA lists a James Bentley (age 30 to
under 40) with two males under age 5, two males age 5 to under 10, one female
under age 5, 1 female under age 10, one female age 30 to under 40 (Eunice). So
that’s 6 children under age 10. One of the boys under 10 could be the same as
listed in the 1820 Census if he was an infant in the 1820 Census.
1840---Census still lists James in Brookfield, now as a male age 40-50, with one
female under age 5 and one female age 15-20. No adult female is listed and where
are the rest of the kids? Could be an error? Or the wrong James.
1841---But this further links our James to Tioga Co, PA.
Cowan: "Abstracted from various Tioga Co. (PA) newspapers 1839-1887
June 2, 1841
Eunice Lane vs. Elihu Lane
Eunice Lane by her next friend, James Bently......................" a James Bentley who
attended Eunice Bentley Lane at her divorce hearing in Tioga County, PA.
----This the sister of our James Bentley
1850--- The Sept 4, 1850 Census lists a 50 yr old (b abt 1800) Eunice Bently in
Veteran, Chemung Co, NY with children 26 yr old Olive Allen, 24 yr old Oliver Bently,
18 yr old Daniel Bently, 16 yr old Oscar Bently plus 30 yr old John Allen (assume the
husband of Olive). This likely the right Bentley family with the daughter named for
her grandmother Olive Hopper Bentley. The men are listed as boatmen for
occupation. We assume they thus worked on the Chemung Canal, perhaps under
the direction of Col Green Bentley Bennett, who was at one point the supervisor of
the canal. He was the son of Hannah Bentley Bennett, the sister of Green Bentley, Jr
---and thus the uncle of James Bentley. James Bentley is not listed in the Census
and thus we assume he died prior to then.
CHILDREN OF JAMES BENTLEY AND EUNICE NICHOLS:
James and Eunice had at least 5 children according to Criddle (7) and the 1850
Census: Benjamin (b 1823), Olive (b abt 1824), Oliver (b abt 1826), Daniel (b abt
1832), and Oscar (b abt 1834).
Davidson (13) lists as dates for their first son Benjamin: born April 30, 1823 in
Millport; and died May 2, 1849 in Millport. Which means he died at age 26 years, 2
days. Bob and Shelly Glover on Aug 31, 2007 found and photographed ---among the
few stones remaining of the old Bentley Cemetery north of Millport on Route 14--- a
stone that matches up with Benjamin. Thus he was buried on the old Bentley farm
of his great grandfather Greene Bentley, Sr. The tombstone reads:
BENJ. BENTLEY
DIED
MAY 2, 1849
AGE 26 YRS
2 DAYS
******************************
2.GEORGE CARGILL BENTLEY, b Apr 27, 1801, Bentley Creek, Bradford Co., PA; d
Dec 26, 1861, South Dansville, Steuben Co., NY.
See Chapter XX for more info.
*****************************
X3. EZEKIEL S. BENTLEY was b June 9, 1803, Millport/Veteran, Chemung Co, NY.
(6, 17)
According to his sister Margaret's letter to S.B. Bennett, Ezekiel suffered from an
incurable malady and never married. (6, 17). He likely was one of the 3 sons listed
as living with Green Bentley, Jr in the 1820 Census .
His tombstone at Millport Cemetery, Town of Veteran where his father was also
buried reads: (6,17)
Bently, Ezekial d. 20 May 1826 age 23y 11m 11d s/o Green & Olive Bently
Photographed 9/3/087 by Shelly Glover. Stone was leaning forward and Bob Glover
propped it up. Stone is next to his father, Green Bentley, Jr. It reads:
EZEKIEL
SON OF
GREEN &
OLIVE BENTLY
DIED
MAY 20, 1826
Age 23 YRS
11 Mos 11 Days
Cowan reviewed a poor copy of his will: “The Will itself is dated January 13, 1825.
Ezekiel leaves all his personal estate, together with his share of a saw mill to his
mother, Olive and, after her death, to his three sisters, Esther, Eunice and
Margaret.” Likely this the second saw mill in the Town of Veteran which was built in
about 1820 by Green, Jr. (17)
*********************************************
X4. WILLIAM C. BENTLEY was b Jan 20, 1806 in Warwick, NY; d Aug 24, 1883,
Taylor, Shelby Co. Missouri. (8)
He married Experience Greenough (b abt 1807 in NY; d before May 1847 in prob
Washington Co., Iowa) in abt 1830/1832 in prob Millport, NY. (7, 10, 16) They had
6 children b from abt 1830/32—1842. (7) Experience was the daughter of William’s
mother Olive’s 2d husband Oliver Greenough/Greeno and Polly Coe. That is, William
married his step-father’s daughter. But wait----Oliver Greenough and Polly Coe’s
son David Coe Greenough married William Bentley’s sister Esther.
The below is from Census and other records which appear to be of our William
Bentley.
1830—The William Bentley listed as head of household Veteran, Tioga Co, NY is over
age 40 and not our William. But the William in Brookfield, Tioga Co. PA is the right
age and a James Bentley, likely his brother, was listed there as well. There were two
males listed age 20-29, one female age 20-29, and one female age 10-14. This
would be the right ages for William and Experience, but where did the child that age
come from? Perhaps the daughter of a male relative living with them?
1840—The William Bentley listed as head of household in Granville, Bradford Co., PA
is the right age and that county is next to Tioga Co, PA. He is listed as male age 3039 with wife age 30-39, son age 5-9, a daughter under age 5, and a daughter age 59. Ages for wife and kids also fit.
1847---William married Abigail Robbins (b abt 1815) on May 10, 1847 in Washington
Co., Iowa. They had 3 children b abt 1847-1859, including a George E. Bentley. (7)
1850—June 1 Census lists a William, b abt 1805 in NY, living in Washington Co,
Iowa with wife Abigail. Cowan notes from an ancestor of William:
“Here is our interpretation based on a great Aunt remembering
one of her Uncles, and many times magnification of the census-two
separate copies:
William Bentley, 45, m, born New York, Abigle, 35, f, b NY, David, 17, b NY; Harison,
16, b NY; Cecelia, 12 b NY; Archibald, 8, b Penn.;
Gray/Greg 7, b Penn, Mariah, 2, b Iowa, William, 1/2, b Iowa.
From the census, Mariah and William are issue of William & Abigail, the older children
can belong to either William and Experience or to Abigail from a previous marriage
as she is about 37 when she marries William so probably was married before.”
1860 & 1870—June 1 Census lists William and Abigail as living in Salt River, Knox
Co, Missouri with Abigail. He was a farmer. (7)
1880---June 1 Census lists as a 74 yr old farmer in Taylor, Shelby Co, Missouri with
64 yr old wife Abigail, and 20 yr old son George E. Bentley. (7)
1883---William died in Taylor, Shelby Co., Missouri (7)
*********************************
need Census—done Criddle-Cowan
5 .ESTHER BENTLEY was b abt 1811 (7, 10, 19) in prob. Catherine, Tioga Co., NY.
Cowana bt 1813 She d Jan 25, 1894 in Benton, Nebraska.
Esther married David Coe Greeno/Greenough (7, 10, 16) in abt 1825 (8) in prob.
Tioga Co, NY. He was the son of his mother’s 2d husband Oliver Greenough and
Polly Coe, and brother of Experience Greenough Bentley, wife of Esther’s brother
William. That is, she married her step-father’s son. David was b Sep 9, 1805; and d
May 19, 1839 in Veteran, Chemung Co, NY. (7) His tombstone is at the Millport, NY
Cemetery (6, 17)
Their children were: Oliver General Greenough (b Dec 5, 1827),), Olive Greenough
(b abt Jan 1836), and William Bentley Greenough (b abt 1839). William enlisted in
the army for the Civil War Aug 1862 in Hagar,MI and was killed Dec 17, 1862 in
Nashville, TN. according to “The Life and Descendants of Daniel Greeno” by Todd A.
Farmerie (7) Olive Greenough d at 2 months according to her tombstone at the
Millport, NY Cemetery (6, 17)
1830—David C. Greeno—Veteran
Esther Bentley, Margaret's sister, married and with 2 boys under 5 years, by 1830.
She probably was close to the 20 end of the 15-20 bracket. Probably b. ca 1810-11
Esther married Charles G. Maynard Oct 11, 1840. He was b in 1819/1820 in NY; and
d Oct 26, 1909 in Stanton, Colfax, Nebraska. They had Olive in 1843, and Jane in
1846 in Iowa. Yes, that’s a lot of Olives and Olivers! The 1870 Census lists Charles
as a farmer in Blair, Washington, Neb. (7)
6. ELISHA BENTLEY b Mar 21, 1813, Warwick, NY; d abt 1895, Iowa per Criddle.
Married Bethia Schoonover (b Nov 1814 ) in abt 1832. He divorced her. They had
one child in 1833. He married Mary Mitchell (1822-1904) in abt 1844. They had 7
children born 1844 to 1865, including Green Sylvester Bentley (b Aug 1,1844 in
Washington Co., Iowa,-d July 13, 1912 in Parkville, MI); and George Charles Bentley
(b Jan 1, 1846 in Washington Co., Iowa)
7 .EUNICE BENTLEY, b abt 1812 or 1815 (ancestry fam tree 1815 Litchfield, CT).
Married Elihu Lane June 1, 1832 and divorced him June 2, 1841 in Wellsboro, Tioga
Co. PA.. Married Trumbull Page.
Cowan: "Abstracted from various Tioga Co. (PA) newspapers 1839-1887
June 2, 1841
Eunice Lane vs. Elihu Lane
Eunice Lane by her next friend, James Bently......................" a James Bentley who
attended Eunice Bentley Lane at her divorce hearing in Tioga County, PA.
8.MARGARET BENTLEY, b Mar 14, 1818, Millport, NY; d Dec 8, 1912, Clay Center,
Kansas. Married William Thiers (1811-1867) on Oct 13, 1836. They had 5 children
from 1837-1854. She married Andrew Craig (1815-1900) in Clay Center,Kansas in
1882.
Elaine Cowan (who descends from Margaret) notes: Of Greene Bentley Junior's
younger children, at least two (Margaret and Elisha) and perhaps three (Eunice was
divorced there) married Pennsylvanians. And two that we know of (Elisha and
Eunice) were divorced in an era when, while it was not unknown, it was not common.
NOTE: Bates lists a Rockwell Bentley (the maiden name of Olive’s mother was
Rockwell) as born in abt 1803. Criddle lists him with no information.
OLIVE HOPPER BENTLEY AND OLIVER GREENO/GREENOUGH
Captain Oliver Greeno (Greenough, Greene)---2d husband of Olive Hopper Bentley
The mother of George C. Bentley was left with a house full of young kids when Green
Bentley, Jr. died in late 1820.
According to “The Life and Descendants of Daniel Greeno” by Todd A. Farmerie:
Oliver was the son of David Greeno (b 1751/2) and Lydia Rice Greeno. During the
Revolutionary War, Daniel was a member of several militia companies, and is said to
have participated in the Battle of Bennington, where Lydia is said to have served as a
nurse. Daniel and Lydia had 11 children: Daniel, John, Moses, Samuel, Oliver,
Leonard, Emerson, Amasa, Polly, Clara, and one who died in infancy.
Oliver Greeno, b. 17 Aug. 1783, Rutland, VT. He was in Catherine, then Tioga (now
Chemung) Co., NY by 22 Oct. 1809 when he was appointed one of the guardians for
his sister Polly. He had already had his oldest son, David, born in 1805 prior to his
first marriage. His first wife, who he married 23 Aug. 1809, was Polly Coe, daughter
of David and Sarah (Squire) Coe. She was b. 23 Aug. 1781, and d. 7 Jan. 1823,
being buried in Parsons Cem., Veteran Twp., NY (her tombstone reads “Polly Greene”
but could be Greeno and not clearly visible; and it notes she is the wife of Oliver
Greene) and he remarried Olive (Hopper) Bentley, widow of Green Bentley.
On Nov 5,1863, he married his third wife, Ann Mallett.
Oliver died 17 Oct. 1867, Millport, NY, being buried at Horseheads, NY. His widow
was still living in Millport in 1880.
Millport Cemetery, Town of Veteran, Chemung Co.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp01.htm
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp21.htm
On edge of Village of Millport, North of Co. Rt. 6A, and east of State Rt. 14
Located on the edge of the Village of Millport on "Cemetery Hill", North of County
Route 6A and east of New York State Route 14.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp01.htm
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/cemc/millp21.htm
Millport Cemetery
Oliver Greeno d Oct 14, 1867
Olive Greeno, d Nov 14, 1862, 81 yr, w/o Oliver
The children of Oliver and Polly Greeno (per correspondence from an Oliver Greeno
descendant): David Coe Greeno (b 1805), Daniel Greeno, Lydia Ann Greeno (b
1810), Lorinda Greeno (b1812), Sarah Greeno (b 1815), Caroline Greeno (b
1817/19).
David Greeno, first son of Oliver, married Esther Bentley, the daughter his stepmother Olive and Green Bentley, Jr. Their children were: Oliver General Greeno (b
1827), William Bentley Greeno (b aft 1825), Olive Greeno (b 1836 in Ohio). David
died 19 May 1839, and is buried in Veteran Twp., Chemung Co., NY. She remarried
to C. G. Maynard, and lived in Michigan, and later, Stanton, Colfax Co., Nebraska.
Their son William Bentley Greeno was unmarried when he enlisted in Aug. 1862 at
Hagar, Mich., in Co. M, 4th Mich. Cav. The following 15 Dec. he was wounded in
battle outside of Nashville, and died in a hospital there two days later. Thirty years
later, his mother applied for a pension on his behalf.
Children of Oliver and Olive (Hopper Bentley) Greeno: Laton M. (b Jul 12, 1824),
Polly M. (b May 12, 1827)
*************
Cowan’s research notes that Oliver may have had a daughter Experience Greenough
(b abt 1807, d before 1847). This would be the same who married William Bentley,
the son of Green Bentley, Jr. But this could have been a relative of Oliver rather
than his daughter?
So perhaps two children of Oliver Greeno from his first marriage –David and
Experience---married two children of his second wife Olive Hopper Bentley Greeno?
This very strange on top of an Oliver marrying an Olive, and Olive marrying Green
(Bentley) and then a (Oliver) Greeno.
Todd Framerie wrote to Elaine Cowan in regard to the list of children of Oliver Greeno
he received from a descendant of Oliver:
This list does not include Experience Greeno but there were two brothers of Oliver in
Veteran in 1830, Samuel and Emerson, and while I have a list of Emerson's children
that is thought (by a descendant) to be complete, for Samuel I have just ticks in the
columns. Perhaps Experience belongs with him, rather than being a sister of David.
--------So Oliver’s first wife, Polly, died in 1823 and Olive’s first husband, Green, Jr., died in
1820. Thus Oliver and Olive married after 1823 but prior to 1824 when son Laton
was born
According to the 1830 NY Census, Oliver Greeno (aged 40-50) lived in the Town of
Veteran as head of household including one male age 5-10, one age 10-15, one age
15-20 along with one female age 40-50 (which would have been Oive). Living nearby
was Oliver’s son David Greeno (by his first marriage) who had two sons under age 5.
In the 1850 Census, Oliver Greeno lived in the Town of Veteran, Chemung Co. He is
listed as a farmer living with 67 yr old wife Olive. Their household includes 14 yr old
Marvin and 11 yr old Adelia Greenough—although Cowan notes: “Olive was age 67
years, per Census, when the kids were age 14 and 11. It is very unlikely that she
was still having children in her 50's!” Adding to the mystery, the information from
an Oliver Greeno descendant to Framerie included Marvin and Adelia Greeno as the
3d and 4th children of Oliver and Olive. So was it that the Census was wrong, or
that these were children Oliver and Olive took in? And perhaps that the descendant
saw the same Census and erred?
In the 1860 Census, Oliver Greene (b 1783 in VT) lived in Veteran, NY with 78 yr old
wife Olive. He is listed as a farmer.
After Olive died in 1862, Oliver soon remarried with his third wife Ann.
According to the Sept 3, 1865 will of Oliver Greeno, he was living in Veteran, NY. In
his will per Cowan:
Ann Greeno is called his beloved wife and most of the estate is left to her. Included
is an 8 acre piece of land "...being the north half of a lot formerly set off to E. S(J??)
Bently in the division of the GREEN BENTLY FARM"
The will was evidently presented to the court for probate on October 22, 1867. The
last date is December 09, 1867. Oliver died Oct 14, 1867.
----Thus the property of Green Bentley that was to be passed on to the male heirs of
Green, Jr. if Olive remarried ended up going to the 3d wife of Oliver
Greenough/Greeno.
Below transcriptions of tombstones at the Millport, NY Cemetery (Tice):
Greeno, Olive d. 14 Nov 1862 ae 81 w/o Oliver
Greeno, Oliver d. 14 Oct 1867
Olive's husband Green dies in 1820. Greene Sr lives with her, deeds her his property
in 1822 on condition she not remarry. He die1822-1823. She marries Oliver
Greeno in 1823 and keeps the land despite a dispute. And then Ezekiel dies in 1826
and she gets his saw mill and possessions. And then later Olive dies so Oliver gets
all the property which passed on to his 3d wife after he died. Maybe that Bentley ax
murdered played a hand in all of this?
*******************************************************************
*
PART IV:
THE GEORGE BENTLEYS OF SOUTH DANSVILLE, NY—GENERATION 7 & 8
Chapter 7: GEORGE CARGILL BENTLEY (G7) (1801-1861); son of Green Bentley
and Olive Hopper Bentley; husband of LUCINDA CLEVELAND BENTLEY (1802-1856);
father of George E. Bentley; husband of PHEBE ANN WELCHER THOMAS BENTLEY
(abt 1817); father of 14 children; great grandfather of Adelia Martha Bentley Burger;
gg grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover; ggg grandfather of Robert Harold Glover—
FIRST BENTLEY TO MIGRATE TO SOUTH DANSVILLE
Documentation?
GEORGE CARGILL BENTLEY was born Apr 27, 1801 in Bentley Creek, Bradford Co,
PA; and died at age 60 on Dec 26, 1861 (One Tree has Dec 16) in South Dansville,
Steuben County, NY. He married Lucinda Cleveland Sep 9, 1821 in Millport,
Chemung County, NY. She was born July 15, 1802 in Sugar Creek, Bradford Co., PA;
and died July 14, 1856 in South Dansville, NY (death notices, Steuben Courier, Bath,
NY per “Death Notices from Steuben County, New York, Newspapers 1797-1884”
compiled by Mary S. Jackson and Edward F. Jackson).
He later married Phebe Ann Welcher Thomas in 1859 in South Dansville. She was
born abt 1817 in NY.
George C. Bentley and Lucinda Cleveland Bentley along with infant daughter Lucia
are buried at Lakeside Cemetery, Steuben Co, Wayland, NY., Route 21 on Loon
Lake. This is very near South Dansville. Also near them is the tombstone of a Green
Bently who is likely the first child of George C. and Lucinda.
Their tombstone as photographed by H. Ross Glover May 1, 2007 reads:
BENTLEY
GEORGE C. 1801 – 1861
HIS WIFE
LUCINDA C. 1802 – 1856
Lucinda Cleveland was born, died….see OneWorld adds BG Site
the fourth of 9 children of Ephraim Cleveland (b Jul 21, 1773, Salisbury, CT ; died
Jan 5, 1815, Chemung Co, NY) and Keziah Noble (b Nov 22, 1774, Salisbury, CT;
died May 10, 1814, Cincinnati, OH). One World Tree/ancestry.com traces the
Clevelands to Richard Cleveland, b abt 1555, St Mary Elms, Ispwich, England; died
abt 1655, Ispwich. The first of the Cleveland line to immigrate was Richard’s
grandson Moses who was born Feb 2, 1620 in Ispwich, England; died Jan 9, 1702 in
Woburn, MA.
*CENSUS REPORTS ON GEORGE C. BENTLEY
The 1820 Census shows three males ages 16+ living with George C.’s father, Green
Bentley, Jr., in the Town of Catharine, Tioga Co, NY.
The 1830 Census has George C. and Lucinda living in Catlin, Tioga Co, NY with one
male age 5-10, 2 females under age 5, 1 age 5-10,
The 1840 Census has George C. and Lucinda living in Dix, Chemung Co, NY with one
male under 5, two age 5-10, one 15-20; and two females under 5, 3 age 12-15, one
age 15-20.
*1843 Lucia buried Wayland, NY ; abt 1845/1846 son Green believed to be buried in
Wayland
The June 1, 1850 Census shows George (a farmer) and Lucinda in South Dansville
with Loretta, Cherry, Ephraim, Isaac (a farmer), Eliza, and George E. Thus
sometime between 1845 and 1850 George C. moved to South Dansville with his
family, including George E.
According to the June, 1860 Census, George C., a year before he died, lived in South
Dansville with his second wife Phebe Ann (age 43), four children (Isaac, John, Eliza
and 16 yr old George E.) from his first marriage; Phebe’s children Charles and Mary,
and 3 ½ month old child Sidney E. Bentley (likely a grandchild). ????????WHERE IS
ERNEST AT 3 MONTHS OLDGeorge C. was listed as a farmer, whose land is worth
$6,000. And he was listed as born in PA
In 1880, 63 yr old widow Phebe lived in Decatur, MI with their son Ernest.
***14 CHILDREN OF GEORGE C. BENTLEY—see ages vs Censu
George C. Bentley fathered 13 children with Lucinda, one with Phebe--ERNEST???,
and was the step-father to two of Phebe’s children.
188
The children of George C. Bentley and Lucinda Cleveland Bentley (per Bates, One
World, Sergent---not all fully documented) were:
NOTE: BATES lists several of the earlier children as born in Bradford Co., PA
XX = completed search ancestry, roots, LDS
(30)—Popovich sources for names, spouses, birth dates etc.
XX1.GREEN BENTLEY, b Oct 27, 1822, Millport, NY (30); died Mar 19, 1846, Millport,
NY. He was named after his grandfather and great grandfather Green Bentley.
These dates are posted on websites and not documented so there is room for error.
No further info has been found on him.
Mysterious is the tombstone next to that of George C. Bentley, Lucinda Cleveland
Bentley and their daughter Lucia at Lakeside Cemetery, Loon Lake, Wayland, NY. It
reads as photographed by H. Ross Glover in 2007:
Green Bently
died
March 19, 1810 (could be 1846 as hard to read)
Aged 23 years—if 1846 and b 1822 fits
---this Green Bently would have been born in 1787 or 1793 and these dates do
not fit with Green Bentley, Sr. and Green Bentley, Jr. or any of their children or
siblings that we can determine. It would seem that with the unusual name of
“Green” and that the George C. Bentley family was buried near him, that this man
was somehow related. But wait---the stone says this Green Bently died at aged 23
yrs. That is about right for the dates of the son of George C.
So perhaps he was buried with his sister who died in 1843 at Lakeside Cemetery in
Wayland, NY by the parents and the stone is not clear? Note the info is that he died
on March 19 and the stone does read March 19. But the stone looks like it reads
1810 or 1816 and not 1846? But it very well could be a worn “4” that looks like a
“1.” Can find NOTHING on this Green Bentley other than undocumented websites so
their info could be wrong by a bit.
I say that Green Bentley, son of George Cargill Bentley, died 2 or so years after his
sister Lucinda and since George C. was still alive he buried them together on the
family plot.
SEE TRIPP WEBSITE FOR MORE---see websites as doc.
Much of the below information from U.S. Census, “The Genealogy of the Tripp
Family: The Family and Descendants of James Tripp” written in 1897 by Lucinda
Ruth Tripp Avery and published in the “Cohocton Index” newspaper, and the
Descendants of Alexander Tripp website by Herman Tripp :
http://home.frognet.net/~bobt/Herman/d8302.html#P8302
and the Tripp Family Web Site by Bob Tripp:
http://home.frognet.net/~bobt/Tripp.htm
2. MARY BENTLEY TRIPP, b Mar 6, 1824, (30) Millport, NY; died 1902. she married
Simeon Simon (Sim) Tripp (b Dec 1, 1809 per tombstone math), Galen, Wayne Co,
NY; d Mar 25, 1877 in South Dansville).
His parents were Charles Tripp (b abt 1785) and Permelia Bonnell ( born abt 1785).
Simeon born Mar 25, 1877 minus 67 yrs 3 mos 24 da=
Dec 1, 1809
DAR records of Viola state Simeon 1809-1877, Mary 1824-1902
http://home.frognet.net/~bobt/Sources%20of%20Additonal%20Info/Trippdar/Tripda
r11.htm
The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution Volume 103
page 170
[p.170] Mrs. Viola Tripp Weber.
DAR ID Number: 102555
Born in Dansville, N. Y.
Wife of Valentine Weber.
Descendant of Green M. Bentley, as follows:
1. Simeon Tripp (1809-77) m. 1846 Mary Bentley (1824-1902).
2. George C. Bentley (1801-61) m. 1821 Lucinda Cleveland (1802-56).
3. Green M. Bentley, Jr. (1778-1820), m. 1798 Olive Hopper (1781-1862).
4. Green M. Bentley m. Diana Strait.
Green M. Bentley (1741-1823) served in Hawthorn's regiment; also Captain Bailey's
company, Colonel Wisner's regiment, New York militia. He was born in East
Greenwich, R. I.; died in Havana, N. Y.
Also No. 62370.
Mary and Simeon were buried at the Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY. On
a tall Tripp marker there are inscriptions on three sides: one for Simeon Tripp and
Mary Bentley Tripp, one for Mary S. Tripp (their daughter-in-law), and M. D’Etta
Tripp (daughter of Mary S. Tripp and Simeon Lewis Tripp). On one side of the
marker are two simple, small stones as headstones for each marked “S.T.” (Simeon
Tripp), and “M.T.” (Mary Tripp); and on the other stones marked “M.S.T” (Mary S.
Tripp) and “M.D.T.” (M. D’Etta Tripp).
Their marker as photographed July, 7, 2007 by H. Ross Glover reads (as best the
weathered stone can be read):
SIMEON TRIPP
Died
March 25, 1877
Age 67 yrs
3 months & 24 d’s
MARY
Wife of
Simeon Tripp
Died
1902
Mary and Sim settled on part of the Charles Tripp homestead, according to Avery. In
the 1850 Census, Mary and Simeon lived in South Dansville with Simeon listed as
age 40 and Mary as age 25. Son (Simeon) Lewis was age 4. They lived next to
Simeon’s parents’ property and near that of Mary’s sister Loretta Bentley Bullock and
Eliza Bentley Root. In 1860 they lived in South Dansville where he was a
carpenter/farmer with 13 yr old Lewis, 7 yr old Austin and 2 ??? yr old Mary Tripp.
In 1870 they lived in South Dansville, NY, where he was a farmer, with their children
17 yr old Austin, 8 ?????(12)yr old (Mary) Viola, and 5 yr old Alma.
According to Avery, Sim and Mary lived on the Tripp homestead until Sim died Mar
25, 1877, aged 67 years. In 1880, the widow Mary lived in South Dansville with
children 17 yr old Viola, 15 yr old Alma plus 27 yr old son Austin Jay Tripp ---who
ran the family farm after the death of his father---and his 27 yr old wife Elizabeth
Moon Tripp and 1 yr old daugher Elena.
The children of Mary and Simeon, according to Tripp Avery, and Herman Tripp
combined:
1. DeEtta Tripp was b. abt 1841; d. before 1847. She was buried at Forest Lawn
Cemetery, South Dansville.?????? Mary b 1824 thus 1841 was 17. Simeon not
born until 1846 Avery: When Simeon died 1877 “death had taken little DeEtta”--not mean she was the oldest child at all.
2. Simeon Lewis Tripp (b Dec 13, 1846, South Dansville, NY) first married Mary
S. Thomas (b 1847; d. Mar 8, 1880) on Oct 19, 1875 in Decatur, MI. Avery noted:
“She was a lovely woman, and lived only a few short years, leaving one daughter,
Anna May.” Anna was b July 21, 1878 per Tripp website and married Truman J.
Paine. But in conflict with DeEtta tombstone. Lewis, as he was called, is listed in the
1880 Census as a 33 yr old widower, a carpenter and a boarder with the Roger
Carroll family in Avon.
Mary Thomas Tripp’s tombstone (on the other side of the Simeon Tripp marker)
photographed July 7, 2007 by H. Ross Glover reads (as best the weathered stone
can read):
MARY S.
Wife of
Lewis Tripp
Died
March 8, 1880
Age 33 ‘ys
3 m’s & 13 d’s
On one side of the Tripp marker it is inscribed:
M. DeETT.
Daugh. Of
Simeon & Mary
Died July 11, 1881
Age 3yrs 1 m. 12 ds.
This DeEtta Tripp must be the daughter of Simeon Lewis Tripp and Mary S. Tripp,
not the first DeEtta Tripp, the daughter of Simeon and Mary Bently Tripp. The
daughter of Simeon and Mary Tripp #1 also died young, in the 1840s. Mary Bentley
Tripp would have been 54 years old when this DeEtta was born, whereas Mary S.
Tripp would have been 31 yrs old. Further, the M.S.T. marker is next to the M.D.T.
marker as most likely that of mother and daughter. To add to the confusion, Viola
Mary Tripp Weber, daughter of Simeon Tripp and Mary Bentley Tripp, had a daughter
D’Etta born in 1889.
We assume that this M. DeEtta Tripp is Mary DeEtta Tripp who was born abt May 29,
1878. Thus Anna May could not have been born July 21, 1878
WHY Anna May nd/or D’etta not in 1880 Census when Lewis a widow? D’Etta died 16
months after her mother?
Avery wrote in 1897: “Lewis is an architect in Avon, NY.” Herman Tripp noted he
was also a banker.
Lewis’ second wife was Italia Emily Abbey (b Apr 10, 1847, South Lima, NY), whom
he married abt 1864 in Seneca Co, NY. In 1900, Lewis lived in Avon with Italia, 17
yr old son Walter L. (b Mar 16, 1883), 14 yr old Bella (or Belle) Abbey (b Nov 10,
1884; d June 7, 1912), and 13 yr old Lois L. Tripp (b Feb 23, 1887). According to
the 1910 Census, he lived in Avon with Italia, 27 yr old son Walter L. and 23 yr old
daughter Lois L. Tripp. Lewis lived in Avon as a farmer with Italia and 33 yr old
daughter Lois in 1920. In 1930 at age 83 he is listed with 43 yr old daughter Lois
but without Italia who must have died by then.
3. Austin Jay Tripp (b Sep 8, 1852 in South Dansville, NY; died Feb 24, 1917 in
Avon, NY). He married Elizabeth “Libby” Moon (b 1848, Wayland, NY, daughter of
Reynolds Moon) on July 3, 1875. In 1880, Austin, Elizabeth and 1 yr old Elena Tripp
lived with his widow mother Italia and ran the family farm in South Dansville.
Lucinda Tripp Avery wrote in 1897 of Austin and Libbie: “They have had five children,
Edith being the only one living. Their home is in Avon, NY. He has been in the
detective business a number of years.” Avery notes Edith was b Jan 22, 1883 and all
the others died before 1896.
In 1910, 57 yr old Austin lived in Avon with Libby and worked with heavy machinery.
4. Viola Mary Tripp, according to the South Dansville historian and 1900 Census,
was born in July 1862 in South Dansville; d. 1939 in South Dansville. She married
Valentine Weber (b May, 1862, d. 1949) of South Dansville on Nov 28, 1883.
Their tombstone at the Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville photographed July 7,
2007 by H. Ross Glover reads:
WEBER
Valentine
1862-1949
Viola M.
His Wife
1862-1939
She is listed various places as Mary or Viola. The 1860 Census notes a 2 yr old Mary
Tripp.
According to Census Records, Valentine’s parents were John H. (b Jan 1840, Ontario,
Canada) and Mary Kurtz (b May 1841 in NY). John’s father was born in France or
Germany; his mother in PA. Mary’s parents, John J. and Mary Kurtz, were born in
Prussia in abt 1798 and 1801.
In 1870, 8 yr old Valentine lived in Dansville, Livingston Co. with his 40 yr old father
John Weber (who worked in a saw mill), 28 yr old mother Mary, and 3 younger
siblings. John and Mary lived in South Dansville, Steuben Co. in 1880, in 1900 in
Hornellsville, Steuben Co. The 1900 Census indicated that John H. Weber immigrated
from Canada to the USA in 1859 and was married to Mary abt 1861.
In 1880, Valentine was a carpenter’s apprentice in South Dansville, living with his
father (a farmer), mother and her parents, and his 5 siblings near the property of
George E. Bentley and his wife Susan and 9 yr old son Wilbur (father of Adelia
Bentley Burger).
In 1900, 37 yr old Viola, 38 yr old husband Valentine, and their 13 yr old Milton, 11
yr old De Etta, 7 yr old Archie J., and 3 ½ month old Bertha V. Weber lived in South
Dansville where he was a farmer. In 1910 the Webers were farmers in South
Dansville. In 1920, 56 yr old Viola M. Weber and 57 yr old Valentine Weber lived in
South Dansville with their 19 yr old daughter Bertha V. Weber. In 1930, 68 yr old
Valentine and Viola lived in South Dansville where he was a carpenter in his own
shop.
Viola and Valentine had 4 children according to the 1900 Census:
(1. MILTON ELI WEBER was b. Sept 29, 1886 according to his June 5, 1917 WWI
draft registration card, and was a farmer in South Dansville with 3 children. In 1910,
1920, 1930 he lived in South Dansville with his wife Clara Mae Conrad Weber (b abt
1887). They married Jan 20, 1910 in Niagra Falls, Ontario, Canada according to the
Ontario marriage records. She was from Wayland, NY.
Milton and Clara had 3 children: De Myrl C. Weber (b ab 1911), Helen I. Weber (b.
abt 1913), and Thelma M. Weber (b. abt 1915).
(2. DeETTA WEBER was born Jan 1889
(3. ARCHIE J. WEBER was born Feb 1893; d. at age 8 in 1901; bur. Forest Lawn
Cemetery, South Dansville.
(4. BERTHA V. WEBER was b. in Feb 1900; d. 1952. We assume her middle
name was Viola after her mother. She married Carl E. Rieke (b 1897) after 1920.
It is believed he is the same noted in the Social Security Death Index as b. Apr 28,
1897; d. July 1976; with last residence of Rochester, NY. His death year is not noted
on Bertha’s tombstone so he may or may not be buried with her.
Their tombstone at Forest Lawn Cemetery in South Dansville photographed by H.
Ross Glover on July 7, 2007 reads:
RIEKE
BERTHA WEBER
His Wife
1900-1952
CARL E.
1897-19
Bertha V. Weber was the maid of honor for the wedding of her cousin Adelia Bentley
(granddaughter of George E.) to Carl Burger in 1922.
We have a photo of Mary Bentley Tripp with her brothers George E. and Ephraim and
sisters Eliza and Adelia; and a photo of Bertha Weber as part of the Adelia Bentley
Burger wedding party. That is, the granddaughter of Mary Bentley Tripp stood up for
the granddaughter of Mary’s brother George E. Bentley.
5. Alma Annetta Tripp (b Apr 1866) was a teacher who married William H. Ingalls
(b May 1867). In 1900, they lived in Livonia, NY with 8 month old Harold Ingalls (b
1899). He was a farmer. In 1930, 64 yr old Alma and 63 yr old William lived in
Leicester, NY, where he was a farm laborer.
ANCESTORS OF SIM TRIPP
According to Lucinda Tripp Avery, the great grandparents of Simeon were William
and Philadelphia. Simeon’s grandfather, James Tripp, was born to them in Rhode
Island. He married Margaret Green, b abt 1767 in Rhode Island. Note: William
Bentley, Jr (G4) married Bathsheba in Rhode Island and she is thought to be a Green
and perhaps that is where the name Green Bentley came from.
James and Margaret located in Washington Co,, NY where they built a home of logs.
Their children were Charles, Benjamin, Zina, Perigo, Samuel, Job, and Charity. Zina
was the father of Lucinda Tripp Avery, who wrote the Tripp Family History. The
James Tripp family moved to Junius (now Waterloo), Seneca Co. For the move,
James drove the horse team that carried the family and Charles, the oldest son,
drove the ox team and the cattle. The younger boys had charge of the sheep and
hogs on the move—not an easy job. . After their house burned, they moved to a
farm in Galen, Wayne Co. and late in life to the town of Tyre, Seneca Co. where
James died Apr 27, 1835 at age 72. He was buried in the Quaker burying ground in
the town of Galen,Wayne Co. After his death, Margaret and the kids moved to South
Dansville, Steuben Co. Margaret died while on a visit to her son Job’s home in
Cohocton on Sept 1, 1844 at age 77. James was a Quaker, Margaret remained an
active Methodist. They used to engage in long disputes over religion.
Charles Tripp, the father of Simeon, and his brother Zina married daughters of
Nathaniel Bonnell of Waterloo. Charles (b abt 1785) married Permelia (also
Pamelia) Bonnell (b abt 1785) in abt 1807 and they lived for many years in Galen,
Wayne Co. They then bought a farm in South Dansville, where they lived the rest of
their lives. Permelia died Dec 17, 1858, aged 73 years. Charles turned the South
Dansville farm over to his oldest son Daniel, who was a doctor, and lived there with
him until he died. Charles died June 13, 1867, aged 82 yrs, in the Town of Fremont.
Charles and Permelia had 6 children: Daniel, Simeon, Uriah, Elizabeth, Charles, and
George.
Uriah Tripp, brother of Simeon, and his wife Harriet were buried at Loon Lake
Cemetery, Wayland, Steuben Co., NY. Likely other Tripp's are buried there. This the
cemetery where Mary Bentley Tripp’s parents George C. Bentley (G7)and Lucinda
Cleveland Bentley, her sister Lucia, and her brother Green Bentley are buried.
-------According to the Herman Tripp website, the Tripps can be traced to Alexander
(Nathaniel?) Tripp b abt 1552-1560 in Horkstow, Lincolnshire, Co., Eng. His son was
John Tripp b in Horkstow in 1587, d. 1629. His son was John Tripp, “The Founder,”
the first to immigrate to America in abt 1635/1638 to the Newport, RI area. He
trained as a carpenter, and was chr. Sep 11, 1611, and d. Feb 12, 1678 in
Portsmouth, Newport Co., RI. John the Founder had 11 children. According to
“Ancestral Records and Portraits, Volume I” published in 1910 by the Colonial
Dames of America and posted at ancestry.com:
“John Tripp (1610-1678), was of Portsmouth, RI. He was Deputy for thirteen
terms…He was repeatedly a member of the Town Council. His wife, Mary, the
daughter of Anthony Paine, died Feb 12, 1687. “
John is also listed in the “Seventeenth Century Colonial Ancestors of Members of the
Colonial Dames: “Tripp, John (1610-78) R.I.; m. Mary Paine. Founder; Councillor.”
For more on John Tripp go to the Herman Tripp web site.
Next in our line was Abiel, Abiel (a ferry master), and Thomas of Portsmouth, RI.
Thomas the father of William, b 1739 in RI. Thomas and family the first to move to
New York State—to Queensbury, Washington Co. William and Philadelphia Wilcox
were the parents of James William Tripp, the subject of the Lucinda Tripp Avery
work.
James Tripp, was b. Jan 15, 1765 (perhaps in Queensbury, NY rather than RI as
stated by Avery) and d. Ap 22 rather than Apr 27, 1835. Herman Tripp lists the wife
of James as Margaret Greene, daughter of Benjamin Greene and has her death date
as May 1, 1844 in Cohocton.
------------
XX3. LORETTA BENTLEY BULLOCK (b Feb 8, 1827) (30), Dix, Chemung Co, NY; died
Sep 13, 1908, Dix or Iowa???. Married Calvin Rouland Bullock (b Nov 24, 1823,
Saint Lawrence, NY; died after Jan 1, 1885, and before 1895 Wayne Co., Iowa) on
Mar 24, 1844 in South Dansville.
Calvin was a Civil War veteran, enlisting as a private on Sep 20, 1861 in Milo,
Illinois. He was discharged July 11, 1862. He is buried at the Cambria Cemetery,
Washington Township, Wayne Co., Iowa.
In 1830, 7 yr old Calvin lived in Saint Lawrence, NY with his father Calvin. In 1840 ,
the Bullocks lived in South Dansville, NY. In 1850, 23 yr old Loretta and Calvin lived
in South Dansville with 16 yr old farmer Isaac, 14 yr old John, 12 yr old Eliza, 7 yr
old George., 5 yr old Ervin, and 2 yr old Mary. They lived near her sister Mary
Bentley Tripp.
In 1860, Loretta and Calvin lived in Milo, Illinois where he was a farmer. Living with
them were 14 yr old Emma, 12 yr old Mary, and 1 yr old George.
In 1870, they lived in Wayne Co., Iowa where he farmed. Living with them were 8
yr old Emma, 5 yr old Florence, 2 yr old Elizabeth, and 11 month old Alice. In 1885,
Loretta and Calvin still farmed in Wayne Co and lived with 16 yr old Elizabeth and 15
yr old Alice.
Loretta, a widow, lived in Washington, Wayne Co, Iowa in 1895 with 27 yr old Leiza
(Elizabeth?) and 25 yr old Alice Bullock.
Note: The ages of the kids in the various Census reports don’t always match up.
4. ALMIRA BENTLEY, b Aug 25, 1828, Dix, NY. Married Ira Warren Chase (30 +
OneWorldTree) b May 22, 1826 son of Ira Chase and Hannah Taylor
5. CHARRIE (Cherry/Charry) BENTLEY, b July 4, 1830 (30), Catlin, Chemung Co, NY
XX6. EPHRAIM CLEVELAND BENTLEY, b May 12, 1832 (30), Dix, NY; died 1860 in
prob. South Dansville. Married Celestia Loomis (b May 27,1833; d Nov 1868) in
1858. In June 1860, they lived in South Dansville, NY with 11 month old daughter
Orpha A.
Ephraim died later that year---just 2 yrs after marrying and a few months after the
birth of his daughter. He was a farmer and was named for Ephraim Cleveland, his
mother’s father. We have a photo of him with George E. Bentley and 3 sisters.--wrong age in photo for 1860 death?
LIKELY buried South Dansville with borther George, sisters Eliza and Mary??? A
XX7. ISAAC SWARTWOOD BENTLEY, b May 19, 1834 (30), Dix, NY; died Aug 25,
1925, Sargent, Nebraska. Buried Mount Hope Cemetery, Sargent, Neb
(per Kim Conrad). Twin of Hannah Swartwood Bentley. Married Lucinda M. Pinchin
(b Nov 8 (One World has Oct 8), 1843, South Dansville, NY; died Nov 28, 1912,
Sargent, Neb) on Aug 31, 1862 in Mount Morris, NY.
Isaac and Lucinda had 3 sons and a daughter: Albert Bentley (May 12, 1870, Los
Angeles, CA-June 17, 1934)), Byron Elroy Bentley (March 1874, Jackson, MI--Oct 30,
1959), Harry Marble Bentley (Oct 24, 1877, Jackson, MI-Feb 7, 1959)), Clara Belle
Bentley (Feb 26, 1885, Jackson, MI)-Apr 23, 1969, Los Angeles, CA).
Per Kim Conrad: Albert was adopted. Byron married Edna Torrestoorey, and
Blanche. Harry married Jessie J. Grint in Sargent, Neb on Jan 11, 1905. Clara Belle
married Richard Perry Brockus in Sargent, Neb on Aug 23, 1905.
Isaac lived in South Dansville in 1850. 25 yr old Isaac lived with his father George
C. and step mother Phebe in South Dansville in 1860. In 1870, they lived next to
Lucinda’s parents and farmed in Dayton, Chickasaw, Iowa. In 1880, he lived in Des
Moines, Minnesota.
In 1900, Isaac and Lucinda farmed in Sargent,Neb with 26 yr old son Byron and
Byron’s 5 yr old daughter Clara, and Lucinda’s parents: 84 yr old John and 85 yr old
Marcena Pinchin. Isaac and Lucinda lived in Sargent in 1910 with
son 36 yr old son Byron, his 28 yr old wife Edna and their 9 month old child Clarence
H. Bentley. 85 yr old widow Isaac lived in Sargent in 1920 with his son Harry M.
Bentley and his family.
Lucinda is the daughter of John S. Pinchin (who is believed to be the brother of
Abner Pinchin per Karl Hillig research---the source for most of the Isaac and Lucinda
info) and Marcena L. Robinson. Abner the father of Martha Pinchin, who married
Nelson Cobin. Nelson and Martha are the great-grandparents of H. Ross Glover.
*********Thus, Bob Glover is related to the Bentleys on both his father’s and
mother’s sides. H. Ross Glover's great grandma Martha Pinchin Cobin's father
Abner's brother John's daughter Lucinda married Corinne Burger Glover’s great
grandpa George E. Bentley's brother Isaac. That is, Bob Glover’s great great
grandma Martha Pinchin Cobin’s cousin Lucinda Pinchin married Bob Glover’s great
great grandfather George E. Bentley’s brother Isaac Bentley.
XX8. HANNAH SWARTWOOD BENTLEY, b May 19, 1834, Dix , NY; died at age 6
weeks or so on July 10, 1834, Dix, NY. She was the twin of Isaac.
XX9. JOHN WIXOM BENTLEY, b Sep 12, 1836 (30), Dix, NY. In 1860, he lived with
his father George c. and step mother Phebe in South Dansville, NY.
XX 10. ELIZA CLEVELAND BENTLEY ROOT, b Jan 5, 1838(30)—One World has 1837)
, Dix, NY; d. 1917.
Doris Burger Smalt recalls Adelia Bentley Burger talking of an Eliza Root. Photo of
Eliza Bentley Root with brothers George E. Bentley and Ephraim Bentley, and sisters
Mary Bentley Tripp and Adelia Bentley Mehlenbacher found in box belonging to Adelia
Bentley Burger.
Eliza married farmer Jared Root (b Oct 1, 1832; d. June 1, 1878) in Dec 1869.
Eliza and Jared were buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville. Their
tombstone photographed July 7, 2007 by H. Ross Glover reads:
JARED ROOT
Born October 1, 1832
Died June 1, 1878
ELIZA C. BENTLEY
His Wife
1838-1917
GAR member 1861-1865
There is a GAR (Grand Army of the Republic, which later became the American
Legion, and was an association of veterans who served with the Union in the Civil
War) star next to his tombstone similar to that of Eliza’s brother George E. Bentley
nearby.
CIVIL WAR INFO?
In 1860, Eliza lived with her father George C. Bentley and step-mother Phebe in
South Dansville. Living nearby was Jared Root. In 1850 and 1860, Jared Root lived
with his father, farmer Thomas Root (b abt 1796 in NY), and 6 siblings in South
Dansville. The 1850 Census lists the children ages 6-21, with Jared age 18. Thomas
was a widow as his wife was not listed in either Census. Thus his wife died prior to
1850.
In 1870, Eliza and Jared had married and lived in South Dansville with his 32 yr old
brother Seth Root (listed as insane) and next to her 45 yr old sister Mary Bentley
and her 60 yr old husband Simeon Tripp, a farmer. Thomas Root does not appear
on the Census and the neighbors are the same as those for Thomas in 1860 so it is
assumed that Thomas died between 1860 and 1870 and his farm taken over by
Jared Root and wife Eliza Bentley Root, and Simon Tripp and his wife Mary Bentley
Tripp.
On the June 3, 1880 Census, Eliza was listed as a 42 yr old widow and housekeeper
living with her children 9 yr old J. Delbert, 7 yr old Lola, 4 yr old Adelia and 2 yr old
Ada Root. Also living with them was her 42 yr old brother in law Seth N. Root. In
1910, the 72 yr old widow lived alone in South Dansville next to the farm of Charles
and Etta Burger and their children, including Carl L. Burger who later married Adelia
Bentley, the granddaughter of Eliza’s brother George E. Bentley.
****************
In 2007, Shelly Glover located the following announcement on ebay and
purchased the deed. In 1880, Harriet Bridge (b abt 1843 in NY) lived with husband
James Bridge (b abt 1828 in NY) in Will Co, Illinois. In 1850, James Bridge lived in
South Dansville with his parents. Although the deed states it was recorded Oct 12,
1880, on the inside it states that Harriet A. Bridge appeared before the Justice of the
Peace on Sept 29, 1870. The transaction was the sale of land previously owned by
Jared’s father Thomas Root (deceased). But if Jared purchased the land in Oct 1880
why does she appear on the Jan 1, 1880 Census as a widow? Perhaps the actual
sale was in 1870 and the papers recorded in 1880 after Jared died in 1878?
1850 Census shows 8 yr old Harriet as wife of Thomas, sister of Jared
Take a good look again at the actual tombstone of Jared Root. Photo looks to me
like 1878 for death date. Below 1880 Census lists Eliza as a widow so that would fit
with Jared death in 1878. Quit -claim deed has written in pencil in margin J. Delbert
Root. That is the son. Who probably was also Jared Root and thus that is why Jared
Root on the actual 1880 deed as it was his legal name. But he was just a kid then-age 9. Maybe ELiza needed the money and the kids too young to farm?
Harriet Bridge wife of James Bridge and was a daughter of Thomas Root who was
also father of Jared Root, Sr. That is, it seems that in 1880 Jared Root, Jr sold the
land his father inherited from his father to his aunt
The ebay promo:
1880 DANSVILLE NY Bridge -Root Family DEED Steuben County
Offered here is an original handwritten quit-claim deed between Harriet A. Bridge,
wife of James Bridge of Elwood, Will County, Illinois (one of the heirs at law of
Thomas Root, deceased) and Jared Root of the Town of Dansville, for multiple
parcels of land in the Town of Dansville, dated Sept. 29, 1880. One of the tracts of
land was referred to as the Ganong Farm, two of the tracts said to be in the tract of
Robert L. Bowne. Another tract was bounded by land owned by John D. Wadhams,
Sim. Tripp, Nathaniel Brayton (deceased) and J. D. Wadhams. These people were
well off as each piece of land is sizeable. Signed by Harriet Bridge as well as Justice
of the Peace Peter Kridler(?). The front panel gives particulars about where recorded
at the courthouse. This is likely the man listed as "Jerrold Root" in the 1870 Dansville
census, an affluent farmer who resided next to Simon Tripp. In the 1860 census,
"Jared Root" resided in the South Dansville household of Thomas Root, as did a little
boy named Frank Bridge. On front panel it says that it was paid by mail by Jared
Root, Rogersville, which is a hamlet in the northern part of the town.
CONDITION & DESCRIPTION: This 12 1/2" x 8" 3-page document is made of cream
lined paper and is nice and clean with no moisture exposure. It has no rips or tears,
damp marks, dogears, or soiling. This was a lucky find far from Steuben County and
no interesting story as to how I came by it.
XX11. ADELIA BENTLEY SMITH is a bit of a mystery.
She is probably where Adelia Bentley Burger (G10) got her name---from her
grandfather George E. Bentley’s sister. Bates (9) lists her as Adeline as does One
World Tree (18).
OneWorld Tree lists as Adeline Adelia
Adelia was probably born June 4, 1839, Catlin, Chemung Co, NY; married Levi Smith
in abt 1859; and died Apr 21, 1911 (per LDS Family Group Record at
familysearch.com for Adelia Bentley, which do not include documentation). One
World Tree has died 1909 And she probably died in Fresno, CA where she lived
with her daughter Myra Smith Scott in 1910. Another LDS file has her born June 4,
1841 in Dix, Chemung Co., NY. Bates lists her as born in Bradford Co., PA.
But here is a mystery: The wooden box given by Wilbur Bentley (G9) to his
daughter Adelia Bentley Burger contained an old photo of two men and three women
with handwritten identification on the back. It included George Eugene Bentley (G8),
Ephraim Bentley, Mary Tripp Bentley, and Eliza Root Bentley. They have all been
identified as children of George Cargill Bentley and Lucinda Cleveland. But the other
woman in the photo—who sure looks like a sister to Mary and Eliza—was identified as
“Catherine Adelia Bentley Mehlenbacher.” We have not been able to find a
“Catherine” or a “Mehlenbacher” that fits. There was a Catharine Mehlenbacher
living in South Dansville in 1870, and in Wayland, NY in 1880, who was buried at
North Loon Lake Cemetery in Wayland, NY---but she was born in Prussia in abt 1833
rather than in Chemung Co., NY where George E. and Lucinda were at that time.
The other children of George and Lucinda for the most part match up with the LDS
Family Group Records. So is Adelia Bentley Smith the daughter of George and
Lucinda or is Catherine Mehlenbacher? Are they the same person? Or did whomever
wrote the names on the back of that old photo make a mistake? Or Adelia Bentley
Smith may not be our Adelia but rather there really was a Catherine Adelia Bentley
Mehlenbacher. Stay tuned.
For now, the path of Adelia Bentley Smith appears most logical. Adelia Bentley
Smith was born in Chemung Co., lived there in the Town of Veteran (named for her
great grandfather Greene Bentley, Sr.) with husband Levi Smith in 1860. She lived
in Livingston Co., NY in 1870 and 1880---thus could have easily traveled to the
bordering Steuben Co. for that family photo with the others who lived there in South
Dansville.
But then comes the next mystery: What was she doing with husband Levi in Kansas
in 1885 and Oklahoma in 1900? Why was she in California in 1910? Most of all,
what was she doing in 1900 living in the Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory?
Adelia and Levi Smith.
Adelia Bentley married Levi Smith (b. Feb 7, 1838, NY; died 1903 per LDS) in about
1859 when she was about 20 years old. **OneWorldTree has born Avon, NY The
1900 Census notes they had been married for 40 years. The 1900 Census asked for
the number of children born to Adelia and the response was five (LDS Records
showed three). But they apparently had 6 children with one who died an infant:
1. According to LDS, Kittie Smith was born July 8, 1860, Schenectady, NY; died
Nov 1860. As Adelia was from Chemung Co. and was in the Aug 11, 1860 Census
for Chemung Co. this makes no sense. We will go with prob. born in Veteran,
Chemung Co. The 1860 Census lists 2 month old twins---a boy and girl—but do not
list names. Thus it is probable that Kittie died an infant.
2. The 1870 Census lists a 10 yr old son, Frank Smith. He thus must be the twin
born in 1860 with Kittie.
3. The 1870 Census lists 1 yr old Lizzie, who thus would have been born abt
1869. She was listed in the 1880 Census as Eliza—likely named for Adelia’s sister
Eliza Bentley Root.
4. LDS shows Myra Smith as born Jan 1, 1873 in Avon, NY; married Isaac Scott
abt 1893; died abt 1947. The birth and marriage work with the Census reports. The
1930 Census states Myra was age 23 when married, which would be abt 1895/6.
Daughter Macie E. Scott was born abt 1903 according to Census reports. Macie
Elizabeth Scott Godegast, according to the California Death Index, ws born July 28,
1902 in Oklahoma and died Nov 21, 1993 in Stanislaus, CA. Her mother’s maiden
name was Smith and her fathe’s surname was Scott.
5. LDS shows Levi Smith, Jr. born Nov 25, 1875, Avon, NY; died Feb 21, 1897.
Again this works with the Census reports. SSDI lists a Levi Smith born Feb 23, 1897
in NY; died March 1965 in NY. This is likely Levi Smith III.
6. The 1880 Census lists 4 yr old Irving Smith, b. abt 1876/77.
Census Reports for Adelia Bentley Smith and Levi Smith
1850---Prob. the same Levi Smith age 11 living in Elkland, Tioga Co., PA with 53 yr
old Innkeeper Levi Miller (a carpenter) and his 54 yr old wife Lydia plus 15 yr old
Charlotte Smith. Tioga Co borders Chemung Co. where Adelia was born. Levi
Smith, like Levi Miller, became a carpenter. Perhaps Lydia was the sister to the
father of Levi Smith, who named his son after Levi Miller.
1860---22 yr old Levi Smith and 21 yr old wife Adelia and their 2 month twins lived
in Millport, Veteran, Chemung Co., NY. Levi was a boatman, likely on the Chemung
Canal.
1870—Levi and Adeila Smith lived in Conesus, Livingston Co., NY with 10 yr old
Frank and 1 yr old Lizzie. He was a carpenter.
1880---Adelia B. Smith, born abt 1839 in NY, lived with husband Levi, 11 yr old
Eliza, 8 yr old Myra, 6 yr old Levi, and 4 yr old Irving in Avon, Livingston Co., NY.
He was a carpenter. It notes his parents were born in Vermont.
1885---Kansas state Census lists Levi and Adelia, Lizzie, Mina, Levi Jr, and Irving as
having moved to Kansas from New York state and living in Coffeyville, Montgomery
Co.
1900---62 yr old carpenter Levi Smith (b Feb 1838 in NY) with 60 yr old wife Adelia
B. Smith (b June 1839 in NY) in Township 27, Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory.
Township 27 is int Ottawa Co./Craig Co., Oklahoma—bordering Kansas and Missouri.
Thus they moved across the border from Kansas. This area was part of the Cherokee
Nation and was only sparsely settled until after the Civil War when a few scattered
Cherokees made their homes in the region.
Why did they move to Indian territory? Perhaps just to find work, or perhaps Myra
Smith’s husband Isaac Scott was a Cherokee? They lived on the next property.
According to the Census, Isaac was born Sept 1856 in Tennessee, where his parents
were also born. He was a farmer. Isaac was also listed as the husband of Myra in
the LDS Family Group Record. It is likely that Adelia and Levi first moved to
Kansas with Isaac and Myra prior to moving to Oklahoma.
1910---70 yr old widow Adelia Smith lived with farmer Isaac Scott and Myra in
Fresno, CA with their 7 yr old daughter Macie E. Scott. Adelia had now made it all
the way to the west coast----as did in later years George Henry Bentley, the brother
of Adelia Bentley Burger.
1920---Isaac, Myra and Macie lived in Dinuba, CA
1930---Isaac and Myra lived in Modesto, CA with 27 yr old Macie, a grammar school
teacher who was born in Oklahoma.
XX12. LUCIA OCTAVIA BENTLEY, b May 27, 1841, Dix, NY; died Apr 10, 1843 inDix,
NY. Buried with her parents at Lakeside Cemetery, Wayland, NY.
Her tombstone (which was buried flat down in the mud) as photographed by H.
Ross Glover reads:
Lucia O.
Daughter of
George C. and
Lucinda Bentley
Died April 10, 1843
At age 1 yr. 10 Mo and 14 Da.
13. GEORGE EUGENE BENTLEY, b Sep 12, 1843, Dix, NY; died May 5, 1907 in
South Dansville. Civil War vet, buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville.
Husband of SUSAN A. BENTLEY (b. abt 1845); father of Clarance Bentley and Wilbur
D. Bentley; husband of CHRISTINE BENTLEY (b. 1841- ). He is the grandfather of
Adelia Bentley Burger, great grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover, gg grandfather of
Bob Glover. See Chapter XXX for more info.
-----------
The child of George C. Bentley and Phebe Ann Thomas Bentley:
1.ERNEST CARGILL BENTLEY was born on Mar 4, 1860 in South Dansville, Steuben
Co. (the file had Chemung Co, in error), NY to George Cargill Bentley and Phebe Ann
Thomas (born 1830 in NY). George and Phebe were married in South Dansville in
1859. This according to Ellen Bates’ LDS Ancestral File (9). The 1900 Census notes
he was born in March 1860. Census Reports note Phebe was born abt 1817 in NY.
Died Dec 21, 1931 in Chicago—per stone
Bob Glover searched genforum.genealogy.com in July 2007 in an attempt to find
Bentley family information. After going through several hundred postings starting
from 2007 and working back to 2000, he found a May 29, 2000 posting by Kathy
Popovich for “George C. Bentley, Phoebe Thomas:”
“I am looking for proof that Phoebe M. Thomas and George C. Bentley were
married. They had one child Ernest C. I need to prove this line for admission to the
D.A.R. Does anyone out there have any info? Phoebe Thomas's maiden name may
have been Welcher. This was George's second marriage and I am assuming Phoebe's
also.
I am descended from William and Sarah, William and Bathsheba, Green M. and
Diana, Green M. Jr. and Olive, George C. and Phoebe, Ernest and Elizabeth, Edward
and Martha. I am joining the D.A.R. and I need to prove my line. Does anyone have
the documentation for the marriage of Phoebe M. Thomas and George C. Bentley?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.”
What are the odds of finding information on this relative with just one posting out of
many hundreds, seven years ago, and getting a response? And this is the first
Bentley cousin we have found that shares our branch from William G1 all the way to
George C. G7!
Kathy, the great granddaughter of Ernest Cargill Bentley, responded to her newly
found Bentley cousin:
“I received your message today and was excited to know that someone would
answer after so many years. I would love to exchange information with you. I did
join the D.A.R. and was able to prove my line to George. Someone else in the family
was DAR also and I was able to connect to that line. I hope to hear from you again!”
Thus Bob Glover was able to verify that the posting on a LDS site, the first he had
known of an Ernest Cargill Bentley, indeed matched the 1880-1930 Census Reports.
The below information comes from those reports and information from Kathy
Popovich.
“Ernest Bentley married Elizebeth Johanna Gutershenk in Chicago, May 30,1898. She
was born in Chicago Oct 5,1871 and died July 1, 1931. They had five children one of
which was my grandfather Edward Eugene August Bentley b. Aug 9,1903 d. Sept 17,
1978. Edward had three children Lillian, Edward, and Ruth. My mother is Lillian. Ruth
died at a young age but Edward and my mother are still living. I am married and
have two girls, Tanya and Christina. They are married and each have one daughter.”
-----George C. Bentley married Phebe in 1859, Ernest was born Mar 4, 1860, and and
Phebe was left a widow when George died Dec 26, 1861---the day after Christmas.
Ernest was fatherless before he was two years old. The Census of 1860 showed that
four of George’s children with Lucinda-----Isaac, John, Eliza and George E.---lived
with him and Phebe along with her two children from her previous marriage and 3 ½
month old Sydney (likely a grandson of George C.). Thus when Phebe was suddenly
widowed when her 60 yr old husband of just two years died, she likely had the
support of George’s children: Isaac (abt age 27), John (abt age 25), Eliza abt age
23, and George E (abt age 18) to keep the family farm going. Her own Thomas
children were abt age 14 and 17.
But what happened next? By 1880 Phebe and Ernest were in the Midwest.
In 1880, 20 yr old Ernest lived in Decatur, Van Buren, MI where he was a farmer and
living with his 63 yr old mother Phebie A. Bentley. Living nearby was 29 yr old
farmer Joseph Welcher and his wife and daughter. Welcher the name Kathy
Popovich noted as the possible maiden name of Phebe. Could this be why they
moved to the Midwest? To be with members of her family? Also, in 1860, Loretta
Bentley Bullock, daughter of George C. and Lucinda, and husband Calvin Bullock
lived in Milo, Illinois where he was a farmer. Living with them were 14 yr old Emma,
12 yr old Mary, and 1 yr old George (named obviously for George C.) In 1861,
Calvin entered the Civil War. Could Phebe and Ernest have moved out to the
Midwest to stay with Loretta while her husband was off to war?
In 1900, Ernest was in Chicago, Il working as a switchman for the railroad. His
wife Lizzie was born in Illinois, thus this likely the reason he moved there. No sign of
Phebe in the Census anywhere so likely she died by then. Here is a possibility. The
Cemetery Records of Saratoga Co., NY list a Phebe Pelcher Bentley as born Sep 11,
1821 and died Mar 14, 1900. The birth and death dates fit, the name “Pelcher” is
close to the “Welcher” that Kathy Popovich noted as the possible maiden name for
Phebe. Perhaps Phebe moved back home to where her family was from and died
there, or perhaps she died in Chicago and was taken back to be buried with her first
husband as George C. was buried with his first wife in Wayland, NY?
In 1910 in Chicago, Ernest and Elizabeth lived with 9 yr old Sidney, 6 yr old Eugene
(who would be the Edward Eugene August Bentley b. Aug 9, 1903, d. Sep 17, 1978
who was the grandfather of Kathy Popovich), 5 yr old Loretta, 3 yr old Ethel, and 1
yr old Lillian. In 1920, 59 yr old Ernest C. Bentley and 48 yr old Elizabeth J. were in
Chicago with 16 yr old Eugene E. Bentley, 15 yr old Laura (Loretta?) B. Bentley, 13
yr old Ethel H. Bentley, and 11 yr old Lillian Bentley. Ernest was a chauffer for the
Edison Co. In 1930, 70 yr old Ernest was not working and lived with his 57 yr old
wife Elizabeth and two youngest daughters, 23 yr old Ethel and 21 yr old Lillian, who
worked as meat packers. –IN CHICAGO?? The Census notes that Ernest was 38 and
Elizabeth 27 when they married, and that her parents were born in Germany.
Doris Burger Smalt recalls her mother Adelia Bentley Burger traveling to Chicago to
visit a Bentley relative in the 1930s when Doris was a young child. At that time
Adelia’s (half) Uncle Ernest would have been in his 70s and she in her 30s.
Phebe Thomas’ children prior to marrying George (thus his step-children) were:
1. Charles J. Thomas, b abt 1844 (16 yrs for 1860 Census)
2. Mary H. Thomas, b abt 1847 (13 yrs for 1860 Census)
Chapter XX: GEORGE EUGENE BENTLEY (1843-1907); son of George C. Bentley
and Lucinda Cleveland Bentley; husband of SUSAN A. CLARK BENTLEY (b abt 1845);
father of Clarance Bentley (1870-1870) and Wilbur D. Bentley (1871-1949); husband
of CHRISTINE BENTLEY (1841- ); grandfather of Adelia Bentley Burger; g
grandfather of Corinne Burger Glover; gg grandfather of Robert Harold Glover
George Eugene Bentley was born Sep 12, 1843 in the Town of Dix (formerly Catlin),
Chemung Co, NY (DOB per 1900 Census and Bates—and listed by Bates as Dixon but
Dix is likely correct); died in South Dansville at age 63 on May 5, 1907 (per
tombstone).
*****1844 would give 63 yrs at death?
He is buried at the Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY. He married his first
wife Susan A. Clark**POPOVICH***(b abt 1845 in Ohio) in about 1869. Her parents
were born in NY. She is assumed to have died between 1880 (Census lists as living
with George E.) and 1888 (when George remarried).
1860 United States Federal Census about Susan A Clark
the write Susan?
Name:
Susan A Clark
Age in 1860:
14
Birth Year:
abt 1846
Birthplace:
New York?????????or Ohio? Per 1880?
Home in 1860:
Dansville, Steuben, New York
Gender:
Female
Post Office:
South Dansville
Value of real estate:
View image
Household Members:
Name
Age
W E Clark---machinist
36----b 1824 NY
Christiana Clark---dress maker
33---b 1827 NY
Susan A Clark
14
Samuel Clark
2
His second wife was Christine (listed Christine in 1900 Census but Christina on Civil
War Pension papers). She was b July, 1841 in NY per 1900 Census, which notes
that they had been married for 12 years so they were married abt 1888. Christine
died sometime after 1910, the last time she was found in the Census, and 1920
when she is no longer listed as living with her son.
George E.’s faded tombstone reads:
GEO. E. BENTLEY
CO D 104 N.Y. VOL
DIED MAY 5, 1907
AGED 63 YRS
****************
MILITARY RECORDS FOR GEORGE E. BENTLEY
Note: We have requested his official Civil War military and pension papers
George enlisted in the U.S. Army during the Civil War on Jan 30, 1862 at age 18. He
served with Co. D, 104th Infantry Regiment, N.Y. He received a disability
discharge on Dec 31, 1862. His Civil War pension papers note that he filed for status
as invalid Aug 23, 1886 (which would have related to his disability discharge 11
months after enlistment).
His widow Christina Bentley filed for pension benefits June 4, 1907 (a month after his
death).
In addition to listing his Civil War Army unit on his tombstone at the South Dansville
Cemetery, there is a marker next to George’s tombstone for the Grand Army of the
Republic: “Post 216, GAR”
***The Grand Army Of The Republic (GAR) was an Association of Veterans who
served with the Union during the Civil War (http://suvcw.org/gar.htm). It was
founded in 1866; by 1890 it had over 400,000 members. The GAR founded soldiers'
homes, was active in relief work and in pension legislation. Five members were
elected President of the United States and, for a time, it was impossible to be
nominated on the Republican ticket without the endorsement of the GAR voting
block.
In 1868, Commander-in-Chief John A. Logan issued General Order No. 11 calling for
all Departments and Posts to set aside the 30th of May as a day for remembering the
sacrifices of fallen comrades, thereby beginning the celebration of Memorial Day.
The GAR was disbanded in 1949 as its membership had died off.
According to H. Ross Glover:
“The American Legion took over for the GAR. In Dansville, the GAR Post 216 was
first named the Barton Post after Clara Barton who founded the American Red Cross
in Dansville. It was then changed to Seth N. Hedges Post, GAR #216 by her decision.
Our Legion in 1918 took over the GAR rooms in Dansville on Main Street at the time
and we still have old records of the GAR in the Post files. In Dalton the American
Legion Building is still known as The GAR Building.”
****************
CENSUS REPORTS FOR GEORGE E. BENTLEY
In 1850, 6 yr old George E. lived in South Dansville with his father George C. and
mother Lucinda. In 1860, 16 yr old George E. lived in South Dansville, NY with his
father George C. and step mother Phebe.
1870—South Dansville---George E (26) --farm employee b NY
Susan A (24) b NY
Clarence 3 mos
In 1880, 36 yr old George lived in South Dansville and was a farmer. Living with
George and his 35 yr old wife Susan were their 9 year old son Wilbur D. Bentley, and
15 yr old servant Samantha Parsons.
In 1891 Steuben Co. Directory, George Bentley was listed as a farm laborer in South
Dansville.
In 1900, 56 yr old George lived in South Dansville with his second wife, 58 yr old
Christine. He was a day laborer.
1900-In 1910, 68 yr old Christine Bentley is listed as a widow in Fremont, NY living with
the Sherwood family headed by 40 yr old farmer Edward Sherwood, who likely was
Christine’s son by previous marriage as she is listed as the mother of the head of
household. His father is listed as born in New York.
In 1920, Christine is not listed as living in Fremont with Edward and thus likely died
between 1910 and 1920.
George and Susan had at least two children:
1). CLARANCE D. BENTLEY is buried next to his father at Rogersville Forest Lawn
Cemetery, South Dansville, NY. Finding this stone in 2006 was the first we knew
that Wilbur Bentley had a brother. The barely readable stone states:
CLARANCE D.
Son of
G. E. & S. A.
BENTLEY
Died
June 5, 1870
Aged two months.
2) WILBUR D. BENTLEY (b May 10, 1871-1949). See Chapter XX.
*******************************************************************
*************************
PART V: THE WILBUR BENTLEY FAMILY----GENERATION 9
Chapter 9: WILBUR DUVILLO BENTLEY (G9) (1871-1949); son of George E. Bentley
and Susan A. Bentley; husband of HARRIET THORNTON BENTLEY (1873-1905);
father of Ethel Bentley, Adelia Bentley Burger and George H. Bentley; grandfather of
Corinne Burger Glover; g grandfather of Robert H. Glover; husband of EDNA SMITH
RICE BENTLEY (1875-1947); step-father of Edna Rice Bentley Wilfreth; father of
Dorothy Bentley Kleehammer and Vera Bentley Baldwin
Wilbur Duvillo Bentley was born May 10, 1871 in South Dansville??????, and died at
age 78 in 1949. Likely in Rochester. Doris brought Linda to Rochester to see him
when she was a baby—born Mar 17., 1949—and he was delighted to see a great
granddaughter. Thus he died in 1949 after that date.
. He lived in Auburn, Cayuga Co., NY at least from 1899-1902 (where Adelia was
b.). By 1905 (when first wife Harriet was bur. there) he lived in Rochester, NY
Wilbur is buried with his second wife Edna, near the grave of his first wife Harriet,
and daughters Ethel and Dorothy. All are located at Mt. Hope Cemetery, Rochester ,
NY,
The tombstone for Wilbur and Edna reads:
BENTLEY
EDNA S.
HIS WIFE
1875-1947
WILBUR D.
1871-1949
CENSUS WILBUR
1891 Steuben Co, New York Directory
Lived City of Hornellsville, NY (which included South Dansville?)
62 E. Washington
Employee at a planning-mill
woodwork
1900
-----HARRIET “HATTIE” M. THORNTON BENTLEY
Mom to Shelly: Bob's Great-Grandmother was from Rochester born in Englad . Died
real young
from diptheria.
According to family records, Harriet was born May 29, 1873 in England (1) --probably in Darlington, Durham Co. (4) The 1900 Census lists her as born in 1874
but her tombstone reads 1873.
She died at about age 32 in 1905, probably in Rochester, Monroe Co., N,Y. as she is
buried near her husband Wilbur at the Mt. Hope Cemetery in Rochester (Range 3,
Lot #468).
Harriet’s tombstone as photographed by H. Ross Glover in September 2007 while his
wife, and Harriet’s granddaughter, Corinne Burger Glover was close to death at the
nearby Highland Hospital reads:
On top: MOTHER
On front:
1873
HARRIET M. BENTLEY
1905
AT REST
Doris Burger Smalt, granddaughter of Harriet and daughter of Adelia, states that she
was always told that Harriet died from cancer in her nose.
Carolyne Bentley Gibson states: “I think she was born in Darlington, England. I have
several of her books that were awards for attending Sunday school as a child...all of
them printed in England. From the photos I have of her, she really was lovely. And I
have her doll that Aunt Adelia sent me”
Darlington is in Northeast England and is considered to be the birthplace of
railways: the world’s first passenger rail journey passed through Darlington on the
Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darlington
The 1900 Census states that Hattie was born in England as were her mother and
father, and that she immigrated to the United States in 1888 at about age 15. Notes
written to her (below) indicate that she migrated prior ot Aug 8, 1888. We do not
know if she immigrated directly to New York State. Some notes found in her
autographs book indicate that her sister Clara was in Montreal in 1883 and other
friends sent notes from Canada. Thus she may have immigrated first to Canada. As
she was but 15 years old we assume that she immigrated with her father, mother, or
both.
HARRIET’S SISTER, BROTHER (S) AND FRIENDS
HARRIET’s AUTOGRAPH BOOK
Found in the wooden box passed down from Willbur Bentley to Adelia Bentley Burger
to Corinne Burger Glover to Bob Glover was found an autograph book. It appears to
have been a gift in May 1883 from Harriet’s sister Clara which she signed in the
front, middle and back and then sent to her little sister from Montreal to England.
On the inside cover it states:
“To my dear Sister Harriet
from Clara Thornton
Montreal, May 29, 1883”
On the first page of the autograph section, Clara wrote on May 29,1883 the below
which seems to indicate that they were an ocean apart (Clara in Canada and Harriet
in England):
“Dear Sister,
Think of me when the sunlight shimmers.
Across the sea when the moonbeams glimmer.
Think of me oh Think of me
Your loving Sister Clara”
And at the very end of the book---yes Clara had the first and last words within her
gift to her little sister—she wrote:
“Dear Sis
Last- in your album.
First-in your thoughts
Last –to- be remembered
Last-to-be forgot.
Sister Clara”
All three notes were written with the same pen and thus must have been placed
within the pages on May 29, 1883 in Montreal, Canada and sent to Harriet in
England.
---------
Notes within the autograph book indicated that she was or had left her friends
behind when she migrated to the USA in 1888.
Sarah Stackhouse Peveril, who had written a previous note of friendship Jan 19,
1884, wrote later:
“To Harriet,
These few lines to you are tendered,
By a friend sincere and true;
Hoping but to be remembered
When I’m far away from you.”
A note from W. H. Underwood (handwriting difficult to read) of Burton-on -Trent,
England dated 20/8/88 seems to indicate that Harriet left England prior to that date
in 1988:
“To Harriet,
Though distance does divide us.
We yet may meet again.”
----------The autograph book contained two notes from her brother, but we do not know if
they were the same or two brothers, nor if they also moved to the USA. Accoding to
Carolyne Gibson Bentley, she has a photo of a brother of Harriet who migrated to
New Zealand in the 1880s.
The first note reads:
“To Harriet
The time may pass and years may fly
And every hope decay and die
And every joyful dream may set
Yet thee I never can forget!”
--Your loving brother
Harry”
The second was dated in the year Harriet migrated to the USA:
“My dear Sister:
May your life be bright and clear
And your friends true and sincere
May your path be always sunny
And your health and strength las long.
July 24th, 1888 G. H. Thornton”
------------
By all accounts, Harriet had quite a personality (as did her daughter Adelia!). Notes
from friends were written to “Hattie,” “Harry,” and “Harrie.” And then there was one
written Dec 6, 1884 from Lancaster, Eng from Ida Woods addressed to “Little
Dreamer.”
One of the last notes was likely from the USA (or perhaps Canada) and was written
Dec 28th, 1892. It seemed to indicate that Harriet was close to graduating from
highs school and thus likely graduated in the spring of 1893. She would have been
about age 20 at the time so perhaps the note refers to some sort of post-high school
program.
“Yo Hattie,
Those happy days will soon be o’er
When we can go to school no more
We all in distant lands may dwell
And hear no more the old school bell.
Your sincere friend
Annie B.”
The autograph book contains several notes from friends ranging in dates from 1883
to 1892. Some were sent to her from Canada with the book, some were penned in
England before she migrated, and some were penned in the USA. Those in 1883
from Montreal surely were sent along from her sister Clara. Those who noted a
location do not provide a solid clue as to where Harriet lived at the time as they are
from various parts of England and none from Darlington, where we believe she may
have been born. The following towns were noted (we do not know for sure for some
if they are from Canada or England): Hudson (1884, 1887); St. Lawrence Pt,
Lancaster, Ont (1884); Leicester (1888); Lancaster; South Lancaster (1885);
Burton-on-Trent, Eng (1888). Perhaps the last note with a location would serve as a
lead to where Harriet lived at the time she migrated? Burton-on-Trent is in
Staffordshire Co. in the West Midlands of England. Leicester is in Leistershire Co. in
the East Midlands of England. So perhaps this is a clue that Harriet lived in the
midlands of England before moving? Darlington, where she may have been born, is
to the north and east in Durham Co.
Thus far, a search of the 1871 Census for England has not found a family with a
Harriet Thornton listed along with either a Clara, Harry or G.H. And no Harriet
Thorntons have been found as born in Darlington. Closest matches so far:
*Harriet Thornton born abt 1874 in Longton, Staffordshire and living in Stoke Upon
Trent with 40 yr old father John and 40 yr old mother Elizabeth with 22 yr old
brother Joseph and 17 yr old sister Mary.
*Harriet Ann Thornton born abt 1874 in Salford, Lancashire and living there in 1881
with parents 32 yr old Alfred and 32 yr old Mary Alice, and 11 yrold brother Josiah,
and 70 yr old Josiah.
*Harriet Thornton born abt 1873 in Warrington, Lancashire and living there in 1881
with 46 yr old father John, 43 yr old mother Eliza, 14 yr old Luke, 12 yr old John
and 5 yr old Mark.
*Harriet Thornton born abt 1874 in Liverpool, Lancashire and living there in 1881
with 50 yr old father Fred, 49 yr old mother Jane, and 13 yr old Fred.
SO WHERE WAS HARRIET BORN, WHO WERE HER PARENTS, WHERE DID SHE
MIGRATE TO IN 1888?
HARRIET THORNTON BENTLEY AND WILBUR BENTLEY
LOVE POEM FROM WILBUR TO HARRIET
The first known location for Harriet is June 26, 1899 when her newlywed husband
Wilbur wrote her a love poem as the last note in her autograph book:
“Auburn, June 26th, 1899
Dear Wife,
Some may wish you happiness
Some may wish you wealth
Some may wish you beauty
Some may wish you health
But I will wish a better wish
Than all the rest have given
That when our lives are ended here
We both shall meet in Heaven.
Your Husband”
But six years after Wilbur penned this note he buried his wife in Rochester, NY and
was left without a mother for their three young children ages one, three, and five.
As he was buried with his second wife, Edna, on the same plot as that of Harriet, we
assume that he did get his wish and met Harriet in Heaven.
Then 1900 Census
When move Rochestr===3 kids….
The 1900 Census shows 29 yr old Wilbur Bentley (misread as Albert Bently) as
head of household in a rented house at 70 S. Division Dr. with his 26 yr old wife
Hattie Bently. He was a wood turner. This is the only USA Census Hattie appeared
in as she migrated in 1888, the 1890 Census is incomplete, and she died before the
1910 Census. The 1900 Census notes that they were married one year and had no
children.
According to family records and Census reports, Wilbur and Harriet had three
children (see the following chapters for more):
1. Ethel Bentley born in 1900 after the June 8th Census in prob. Auburn; died in
1910 in prob. Rochester; buried on the same plot as her father and mother in Mt
Hope Cemetery.
2. Adelia Bentley Burger born in Auburn, NY
3. George Henry Bentley born
He lived in Auburn at least 1899-1902----note to Harriet to birth of Adelia
Likely moved to Rochester by 1905 as Harriet buried there.
***************************
THORNTONS
Carolyne has photo of a brother immigrated 1880s to New Zealand
Sister Clara of Montreal, bro Harry, bro G.H. Thornton in album. Notes from England
and Canada and Hudson……
Possible leads from internet:
**1881 Eng Census---Harriet Thornton b abt 1873, Warrington, Lancashire, Eng to
John (46) and Eliza (43), Siblings James (12), Luke (14), Mark (5). No Clara, Harry
or G. H.
**1911 Canada Census—Clara Thornton b Sep 1874 Eng. mother Rosa age 68.
Brother William 29, sis Margaret 22. 1875 to Toronto
1930 USA Census—George H. Thornton b 1877 Eng.
home Elmira
Mr and Mrs John Thornton of South Dansville were callers in Rochester in Dec 1950.
Doris recalls a Wayne Thornton and his wife and child Lyle (abt her age) visiting
when she was a girl of 8-10 yrs old. He was a cigarette salesman from Elmira.
Brought Philip Morris folding cardboard dolls. Colored ones gave to kids as promo.
-----------EDNA SMITH RICE BENTLEY
Wilbur later married Edna Smith Rice Bentley in about 1906, when he was age 34
and she was age 31. She was born in 1875 and died at age 72 in 1947.*****where
died, where buried, name of parents?********
Wilbur was the father of five children and a step child. Born with Harriet Thornton
Bentley: Ethel H. Bentley (1900-1910), Adelia Martha Bentley (1902-1980), George
Henry Bentley (1904-1977). Born with Edna Rice: Dorothy B. Bentley (19071933), Vera Bentley (xxxx-xxxx). Edna Mae Rice’s child from her first marriage and
thus step-son of Wilbur was Edna Mae Rice (1899-1984).
Doris said that Elmer Kleehammer remarried a Rosalie from Ireland and likely is
buried with her.
And that Edna Wilfreth was a step-sister of Gramma Burger, not a half-sister like
Dorothy and Vera. That she was the daughter of Edna Rice and her first husband.
Seems by Mom's notes that she was adopted by Wilbur and changed her name from
Rice to Bentley before becoming Wilferth.
1910 Census—Rochester with
Wilbur—38, b abt 1872, Rochester Ward 18---a carpenter
wife Edna B., 34, b abt 1876 in NY.,parents born NY
Edna Mae (Due?) age 10, b abt 1900 in MI—listed as Bentley not Rice and Wilbur as
father—adopted?
Adelia M. –age 7 b abt 1903
George H. age 6, b abt 1904
Dorothy, age 2, b abt 1908
1920 CENSUS shows living in Rochester---self and all parents born in New York state
for all below
Wilbur Bentley
age 47----sawyer in a mill, owned his home at 932 Bay Street,
which was mortgaged
Edna, wife age 44
Edna, daughter, age 20, single----winder, telephone co.
Adeline (misspelled rather than Adelia), daughter, age 17, single----assembler,
Kodak
George, son, age 15
Dorothy, daughter, age 12
Vera, daughter, age 9 (born about 1911)
1930 Census shows a Vera Bentley, age 19, born about 1911, single, living with
parents Wilbur and Edna in Rochester
living in house of Wilbur at 932 Bay Street
Wilbur—age 57—value of home which he owned $7000, owned a radio, did not live
on a farm, married at age 34, work---woodwork, interior finish
Edna, wife, age 53, married at age 31
George, son, age 26, married at age 23, worked in glass manufacturing
Claire, wife of George, age 24, married at age 21, cashier at a drug store
Dorothy, daughter, age 22, assembler of electrical appliances
Vera, daughter, age 19, assembler of electrical appliances
--Wilbur later worked at Kodak per Doris.
--Doris remembers as a long, metal radio very proud of it
--Doris: he loved baseball—Rochester Red Wings, smoked a Sherlock Holmes
type pipe
--Dad---prod people with a cane “for fun”
Doris----+ Corinne used to spend 2 wks summers with Bentleys while boys off to
camp. Charlotte Beach to swim with Marion
1 week with Wilbur & Edna ---go to playground Elm Street
1 week with Edna #2 and Ryland. McKinley ST Rochester
Edna #2 looked like #1
*******
Children of Wilbur Bentley and Edna Rice Bentley:
Chapter XX: ETHEL H. BENTLEY (1900-1910); daughter of Wilbur Bentley and
Harriet Thornton Bentley
ETHEL H. BENTLEY was born in 1900, and died at age 10 in 1910. She is buried at
Mt. Hope Cemetery, Rochester, NY, on her father’s lot. Her tombstone reads:
ETHEL H.
BENTLEY
1900-1910
Chapter XX: ADELIA MARTHA BENTLEY BURGER (1902-1980); daughter of Wilbur
Bentley and Harriet Thornton Bentley; husband of CARL LEO BURGER(1897-1989);
parents of Hollis Burger, Corinne Burger Glover, Doris Burger Smalt, Wilbur Burger
and Lyle Burger
ADELIA MARTHA BENTLEY BURGER was born May 22, 1902 in Auburn, Cayuga Co.,
NY, and died at age 78 Nov 20, 1980, in Hornell, NY.
Her tombstone at Rogersville Forest Lawn Cemetery, South Dansville, NY reads:
BURGER
CARL L.
ADELIA M.
1897-1989
1902-1980
Chapter XX: GEORGE HENRY BENTLEY (1904-1977); son of Wilbur Bentley and
Harriet Thornton Bentley; husband of CLAIRE BENTLEY; husband of ILO ERB WIKLE
BENTLEY (1912-1992); father of Carolyne Sue Bentley Gibson
George H. Bentley (who was apparently named after his grandfather, George E., and
great grandfather George C.),
GEORGE HENRY BENTLEY was born Mar 28, 1904 in XXXXXX NY, and died in San
Luis Obispo County, CA at age 72 on Feb 16, 1977. He is buried at the Arroyo
Grande District Cemetery in CA with his 2d wife Ilo.
Married at age 23 in abt 1927 to Claire. Lived with her in household of parents
Wilbur and step mom Edna in 1930 in Rochester. Claire cashier in drug store, George
worked in glass manaufacturing
Divorced in middle 1930s.
Carolyne: “George moved into one of the beach communities in Los Angeles.
Redondo Beach or Manhattan Beach. Became involved with the “party set.” Of that
area. Played polo, had a speedboat, drove his convertible to Tijuana to gamble at
the casinos, dated starlets.
Built a house in LA abt 1939 or 1940. Next door to apt of Mary Katherine (Kay) Erb.
Dated her but then married her sister. Ilo May Erb Wikle Bentley---after she
divorced lst husband and moved from Iowa to live with sister Kay. . Ilo was born
May 28, 1912 in Milo, Iowa. Died Nov 19, 1992 in Palmdale, CA. She was daughter
of John Overton Erb and Mary (May) Catherine Scott. John’s father was Nicholas
Erb, who immigrated in 1710 to PA from the area around Bern, Switzerland
She married Howard Wikle in Iowa in abt 1931 and divorced in abt 1941.
George married Ilo Nov 1942
Aftr George died, Ilo married Allen Rydall, a Danish-born naturalized US citizen.
They divorced after abt 3 yrs.
1930 worked in glass manufacturing.
Because engineer at North American Aviation and worked on bomber designs critical
to the war, never served in military. He was an inventor as well. Had several
patents totally unrelated to his work.
Doris---can opener
Adelia used it once and it broke!
Carolyne---“Speedi-Whip” device that whipped cream so well it wouldn’t separate for
hours, and a chicken caponizer---a wicked-looking syringe for castrating young
roosters (it was one of my favorite props whenever I dressed up to play nurse)
He married Ilo Erb She was born May 28, 1912, and died at age 80 on Nov 19,
1992. They had one child: Carolyn (or Carolyne?). She married Terry Gibson. They
live in California and work in the wine business.
Doris----invent can opener, liked do woodwork, liked play on floor with kids.
Children George and Ilo:
1. CAROLYNE SUE BENTLEY GIBSON. Born Sep 13, 1944 in Los Angeles, CA.
California Birth Index, 1905-1995
about Carolyn Sue Bentley
Name:
Carolyn Sue Bentley
Birth Date:
13 Sep 1944
Gender:
Female
Mother's Maiden Name:
Erb
Birth County:
Los Angeles
Yep, that's me all right. Turning 63 next week! And please note that I "improved" the
spelling of my name and now hold fast to the notion that it's spelled Carolyne. Please
perpetuate my aura of glamour and elegance by using the correct spelling in your
records.
Terry is Robert Terry Gibson, born 27 February 1944 in Santa Monica. His parents
are Errol Burton Gibson (1 July 1916, Los Angeles, California) and Anne Terry
Mumaw Gibson (20 October 1920, Huntington, West Virginia). T was named for his
grandfather Robert so he became Terry
1920 Census--Robert H. Gibson father of Errol H. and born abt 1885 in Utah Errol’s
mother’s maiden name Claudia Shour and born MO. her mother Bertie Shour ab
1868 in MO
1930 Census
Terry's great-grandma Bertie (Roberta) Shour. She was around when he was born
(for about a year...died in 1945, I think).
Subject: Bertie Shour or Birtie Shoyr?
1920 United States Federal Census
about Bertie Shour
Los Angeles
age 52 b abt 1868 Missouri widow
mother b Mayrland, father Missouri
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robert Terry Gibson graduated UCLA in 1966 with a BSE (bachelor of science in
engineering). He then worked for the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory in Livermore,
California (now called the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory); he worked on
top-secret nuclear devices, frequently traveling to Nevada Test Site in Mercury
as part of his assignment developing electronic instrumentation to measure the
results of nuclear tests. After he left the lab, he worked for the little-known
electronics unit of Dymo Industries. In 1978, he moved to Sonoma County with
Carolyne and went to work for NCI (National Controls-since merged with another
company that has been itself subsumed so many times we've lost track). In 1979,
he and a partner founded White Oak Vineyards, for which Terry served as
winemaker for the first two vintages (1980 and 1981). In 1984 we sold out to our
partner, Bill Myers, who continues to operate the winery. In 1981, he joined the
electronic instrumentation group of Hewlett-Packard, which morphed into Agilent
Technologies in 1999, eventually joining the high-tech lab operation and
becoming the company's power-supply guru. He retired last March 2005 after 25
years
with HP/Agilent. Now he's a farmer, growing pinot noir in the Russian River
Valley viticultural region.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Carolyne Bentley Gibson graduated UCLA in 1966 with a BA (in psychology) and
from California State University Sonoma in 1984 with an MA (in business
management...the program was certified as an MBA the following year). She too
worked for Lawrence Radiation Laboratory for a year as a librarian (creating a
catalog of all film and trace records of nuclear tests dating from the Manhattan
project), then from 1967-1977 was a child welfare worker in Oakland and
Berkeley, working with endangered children in children's protective services.
After moving to Sonoma County with Terry in 1978 she held various sales and
management positions in local wineries until White Oak commenced operation, then
worked there full time until leaving in 1982 to attend graduate school. After
graduation she ran Gibson Graphics, a full-service advertising and design agency
for which Hewlett-Packard was an account. In 1995, she closed Gibson Graphics to
take a position as a technical writer with HP (now Agilent), moving into
management in 1998; while at Agilent she wrote their first (and so far only)
corporate writing style guide. She moved from Agilent to Eclipsys Corp
(developers of a major medical informatics software product) in 2002 as their
director of documentation. She retired in 2004. Now she's a farmer's wife who
takes on the occasional editing project.
Wow! I called Terry over, with the just the photo on my monitor...didn't explain
anything about it...and asked "is there anyone here you recognize?" He said, "Of
course. That's YOU." and pointed to your mother. There's a VERY strong
resemblance. I'll have to rummage around for the photo I have of me that looks
just like she does in this snapshot. (The reason I wanted your address...thanks
for sending it...is that I want to ship you a small photo I have of what I've
been told is of Wilbur Bentley's parents).
That's a wonderful story about how Aunt Adelia/Gramma supported and encouraged
your education. What a blessing she was for you. I think I might have been the
first of the Bentleys to complete college (not to mention graduate school), but
I wasn't particularly encouraged to do so. In fact, neither of my parents even
attended my graduation from UCLA in 1966.
???Marion or Marian
Chapter XX: EDNA MAE RICE BENTLEY WILFERTH (1899-1984); daughter of Edna
Rice Bentley; step-daughter of Wilbur Bentley; wife of RYLAND WILFERTH (19001984 ); parents of Marion and Arthur Wilferth
CArolyne:
Thanks Bob (I really LOVE you for doing all this!).
My father's story was that yes, Grandpa Bentley adopted Edna Jr. after he
married her mother. At the very least, she used his name (and I think that's the
name she used on her marriage license to Ryland).
1910 Census lists as Edna Mae Bentley
Edna Rice Bentley’s first child (step child of Wilbur Bentley): ?????also went by
Bentley so adopted by Wilbur???
1. EDNA RICE BENTLEY WILFERTH was born May 1, 1899 in Michigan (1910
Census), and died at age 85 on Jan 27, 1984 in Roswell, GA. She married Ryland E.
Wilferth. He was born Dec 29, 1900, and died at age 83 on July 24, 1984 in Fulton
Co., Roswell, GA per Social Security Death Index. Edna and Ryland were cremated.
In May 1950, Ryland and wife of Rochester visited Carl and Adelia Burger according
to the Hornell Evening Tribune.
Ryland—see 1910, 1920 Census
They had two children: Marion and Arthur (died at age 4).
??Marion Ruth Wilfreth?
Doris---Called her “Eddie” vs Edna #1
Arthur bib caught fire
Ryland jolly sing songs/whistle
Kodak
H. Ross----Ryland bought Burger kids lots of things. Good hearted. Worked Kodak.
Lived Roch and to Ga moved to Georgia because Marion lived there.
MARION WILFERTH HAWN + NEAL A. HAWN
Marion: both born abt 1924 (age 82). 6 kids.
When married, Neal worked French’s Mustard—lived at One Mustard Ave, Roch,
moved to GA—Roswell for job and later Ryland and Edna moved there too
Now Franklin TN, south of Nashville. Neal a hospital administrator.
ARTHUR WILFERTH---died 4 yrs old
*************
Rochester Journal with photo holding teddy bear
LOSES FIGHT FOR LIFE
ARTHUR WILFERTH
Four year old Arthur died in Highland Hospital at noon from burns received when he
was playing near a gas stove in his home, No. 36 Copeland Street, this morning. His
mother was burned in an attempt to smother the flames.
****************************
****************************
**Dorothy Kleehammer questions***
Where Elmer buried? Is Rosalie alive? Where buried?
When was Joan born? Married? Kids? Alive?
When was son of Elmer born? Child with Rosalie? Name Robert? Kids? Where is he
now? Famiily?
Elmer was an accountant?
Chapter XX: DOROTHY RUTH BENTLEY KLEEHAMMER (1907-1933); daughter of
Wilbur Bentley and Edna Smith Rice Bentley; wife of ELMER KLEEHAMMER (19081971); parents of Joan Kleehammer
1. DOROTHY RUTH BENTLEY KLEEHAMMER was born May 23, 1907 in Rochester,
and died at age 26 in an auto accident Nov 26, 1933. She is buried in the Mt. Hope
Cemetery in Rochester on her father’s lot. . She married Elmer Bernard Kleehammer
on Sep 18, 1930 in Rochester. He was born Mar 1, 1908 in Rochester, and died Dec
21, 1971. His last residence was Rochester. He is buried XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Her tombstone reads:
DOROTHY BENTLEY
WIFE OF
ELMER
KLEEHAMER
1907 -
1933
NOTE: tombstone “Kleehamer” but family records and death index “Kleehammer.”
Elmer and Joan had one child: Joan Kleehammer. born after 1930 and before her
mother’s death in 1933.????????????????????married? children? Living????
Elmer’s parents were Henry M. Kleehammer (b May 1868, d after 1930) and
Elizabeth Scheidnale Kleehammer (b Nov 1875, died before 1920). Henry was born
in New York, his parents in Germany.
In 1920, 11 yr old Elmer lived in Rochester with his 51 yr old father Henry,21 yr old
brother Henry F. Kleehammer, 18 yr old brother Arthur F. Kleehammer, 16 yr old
sister Marguerite Kleehammer, 14 yr old brother Raymond Kleehammer, and 8 yr old
brother Eugene Kleehammer. Henry was a presser in a tailor shop.
In 1930, 22 yr old Elmer lived with his 61 yr old father Henry, and 18 yr old brother
Eugene in Rochester. Elmer was an accountant at a University. Henry was a
presser for a clothes manufacturer. He was born in New York and his parents were
born in Germany. Henry was a widower; Elmer and Eugene are listed as single.
Elmer married Dorothy later that year. Previously in 1930 Dorothy lived in Rochester
with her parents Wilbur and Edna Bentley and worked as an assembler in an
electrical appliances factory.
Elmer married Rosalie Kleehammer between 1933-1950. She was Irish. They had a
son (Robert?)XXXXX. According to the Hornell Evening Tribune, in April 1950, Mr.
and Mrs. Elmer Kleehammer and son of Rochester visited Mrs. Carl Burger of South
Dansville.
H. Ross Glover remembers: Elmer liked to play cards---and he liked Carl Burger’s
wine. He was a friendly guy. He visited Carl and Adelia well after Adelia’s sister
Dorothy Bentley Kleehammer died---including with his second wife Rosalie.
*****************
Chapter XX: VERA L. BENTLEY BALDWIN (1910-1991); daughter of Wilbur Bentley
and Edna Rice Bentley; wife of FLOYD BALDWIN (1892-1960); parents of Ruth
Baldwin
2. VERA BENTLEY BALDWIN was born about 1911. She married Floyd (Pete)
Baldwin abt 1930. He was born June 1, 1892 in NJ.
They had one child: Ruth (deceased). Corinne—Ruth died long ago. And
Grandaughter named Ruth in WA
Vera lived in Rochester and later moved to California without her daughter.
H. Ross—nice woman, old fashioned in ways
****WHERE DID VERA GO?
Remarry? Ruth married?******
Rochester, move Cal with Pete, he died and back to Rochester-Fairport, then to WA
with Ruth the granddaughter where died.
1980s Fairport home ------assisted apartments for elderly
Marion said Vera ship Petes body back Rochester. Thinks in Fairport area.
like WA.
Vera not
WWI vet
H. Ross---Pete like play jokes on people.
Always kidding with Vera.liked play cards.
PART IX: BENTLEY REFERENCE SOURCES AND KEY RESEARCHERS
8/29/07 changes
SOURCES
Key sources are noted throughout the text and detailed here at the end of the book.
Sources are noted conservatively to allow the text to be more readable as this is a
family story and not a pure research project.
Since information on the living isn’t readily available on genealogy sites other than if
they appeared in a Census report of 1930 or earlier, the living Bentley history is
primarily from information submitted to us by family members. Since no present
member of our family branch remembers any Bentley prior to Wilbur (G9, father of
Adelia Bentley Burger), the older Bentley information comes from tombstones,
genealogy and family history books, Census and vital records, website research,
etc. The farther we go back in history the less information available and the less
accurate the information. Earlier Bentley information is primarily from the
comprehensive research books by professional genealogists Cameron Stewart and
Emilie Sarter, the detailed websites of Bentley descendents and researchers Elaine
Cowan and Marlin Criddle, and research by Robert H. Glover, grandson of Adelia
Bentley Burger.
DISCLAIMER:
1. Some of these sources include information within their books and websites we
know to be inaccurate, however that does not mean that all of their information is
inaccurate.
2. Some sources include information that is not documented and thus may not be
accurate but quite probably or at least possibly are accurate.
3. Often these are secondary sources which are not as reliable as primary sources,
but it is what we have for now.
4. We have made every effort to provide what we believe to be accurate information
from our sources and have strived to note where we think it is probable, or possible,
or just a theory.
5. All of the information on the Bob Glover and Scott Rode websites will be
coordinated and carefully reviewed for accuracy but this takes time. This is a work
of progress.
6. Amy family history is only as good as its sources. Please contact us if you have
evidence of misinformation.
SOURCE LIST
Below sources are in addition to the research by Robert H. Glover detailed (this is a
work in progress and started Aug 20, 2007) at:
http://trees.ancestry.com/fhs/home.aspx?tid=3454472
(1) Family records stored in a wooden box made by Wilbur Bentley (G9) for his
daughter Adelia Bentley Burger (G10), passed on to her daughter Corinne Burger
Glover (G11), passed on to her son Robert H. Glover (G12) of Sleepy Hollow, NY.
(2)
NY)
(3)
The H. ROSS GLOVER Family History Museum (office basement in Dansville,
DORIS BURGER SMALT (daughter of Adelia Bentley Burger) of Dansville, NY
(4) CAROLYNE BENTLEY GIBSON (daughter of George Henry Bentley) of
Sebastopol, CA.
(5) RODE, Scott: Scott maintains four Bentley websites: at ancestry.com,
rootsweb.com, tribalpages.com, freepages.com. Includes the bulk of the research
for “The Stories and History of the Bentley Families.” Websites start with the
parents of William G1 and go to the present for the Scott Rode (Minnesota) and
Robert H. Glover (South Dansville, NY) branches. Scott shares with our branch
William (G1), John (G2), and William (G3). He then splits to the brother of William
(G4), Thomas, and on to the Scott Rode family of Crystal, Minnesota.
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=2032824&dnyref=1&pid=1868325814
http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=bentleyglover&id=I04081
http://scottrode.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=scottrode&view=9&rand=860
149560
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~williambentley1573/
(6) COWAN, Elaine: at RootsWeb family trees. Elaine shares with our branch
William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William (G4), Green (G5), and Green (G6).
Here she splits, going to the sister of George Cargill Bentley (G7), Margaret Bentley
Thiers and on to her family in Carson City, Nevada.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=eofcc&id=I0356
(7) CRIDDLE: Marlin Criddle—at ancestry.com, family trees. Marlin shares with our
branch William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William (G4), and Greene, Sr. (G5).
He then splits from our branch, going with the sister of Green, Jr (G6), Rhoda
Bentley Teeples and on to his family in Salt Lake City, Utah. Marlin’s website is one
of the most carefully documented on the Internet and follows our branch from
William (G1) to George C. Bentley (G7).
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=1032149&pid=-2011198225
(8) CRIDDLE: “Life Histories of Green Bentley and Diana Straight” by Marlin
Criddle, Salt Lake City, Utah, pdf 20 pages, Feb 2007
(9) LDS: Church of the Latter Day Saints ancestral file for Bentley.
Info submitted by Ellen Bates, Price, Utah and others.
William (G3) to George E. (G8). George C. (G9)
William G1-William G4---several errors:
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/AF/family_group_record.asp?familyid=553
3802&frompage=99
William (G4)-Greene (G5), Green (G6), George C. (G7), George E. (G8)
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/AF/family_group_record.asp?familyid=457
4941&frompage=99
www.familysearch.org
go to George Cargill Bentley , USA, New York, ancestral file
(10) LOBDELL, Julia Harrison: ”Bentley Gleanings” (1905). A collection of stories,
articles, Rhode Island records, NY state church records, family notes, etc. Includes
William G3, William G4, Green G5, Green G6, George C. G7. Includes info from
Brinkerhoof and A.S. Bennett. An early source for Sarter. 128 pages. Available
from www.Higginsonbooks.com and online at:
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=genealogyglh38301077&so=2&rank=1&gsfn=Green&gsln=Bentley&gskw=&searchType=&prox
=1&ti=0&ti.si=0&gss=angs-c
(11) STEWART, CAMERON RALPH: "Genealogical Classification by Family Group
Coding for Descent from Common Ancestors" (Vol II copyright 1986 published by the
author). The massive volumes (Vol II covers the Bentleys) include over 3,000 pages,
covering over 150 Bentley names who are descendants of William (G1). Cameron
shares with our branch William (G1), John (G2), and William of Rhode Island (G3).
It is here where his branch splits from our branch, following the brother of William
(G4), Thomas Bentley and on to his family in New Ulm, MN and Long Beach, CA.
Cameron follows our branch from William (G1) through Green, Jr. (G6).
(12) SARTER, Emilie: “One Branch of the Bentley Family of Rhode Island (Rhode
Island Historical Society, 1949) with William Perry Bentley (1953). 121 pages.
The first three generations of this branch, starting with the Rhode Island Progenitor
William G3 and then on to Benjamin (brother of William G4) and William, was
furnished by Miss Sarter. It then continues on to William Perry Bentley of Dallas, TX.
Available from www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(13) DAVIDSON, Dolores: “The Family of Eldred Bentley”-
Compiled and
Submitted by Dolores Davidson, 2003. 90 pages.
Information follows William
(G3), William (G4), Greene (G5), Green (G6), George C. (G7). Eldred Bentley
shares with our branch up to William G4 and then splits to the half-brother of
Greene, Sr (G5), George.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nychauta/Families/Bentley1.htm
(14) ARNOLD: James Newell Arnold: “Vital Record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850,
Arnold Collection, 1894” Includes William (G4) and Greene, Sr (G5)
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nanc/arnoldvr/index2.htm
(15)
BRINKERHOFF, General Roeliff: “The Bentley Family, with Genealogical
Records of Ohio Bentleys, and known as The Tribe of Benjamin ,” Mansfield, OH;
1897. 21 pages. Includes William (G3), William (G4) then splits to the half-brother
of Greene, Sr. (G5), George, and to Benjamin, who migrated to Ohio from PA.
Available from www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(16) BENNETT, Stephen Beers: “Bennett, Bently and Beers famiies of NY” 1899. 50
pages. The book shares with our branch William (G3), William (G4), Greene, Sr.
(G5), Green, Jr. (G6), and George C. (G7). Also includes the Bennett brothers who
married the Bentley daughters of Greene, Sr. Available from
www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(17) TICE, Joyce: Tri-Counties Genealogy & History website, Chemung Co, NY;
Tioga Co, NY; Bradford Co, PA. Includes Green Bentley (G5)/Town of Veteran
history and Green, Jr. (G6)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/jmtindex.htm
(18) ONE WORLD TREE (Ancestry.com) /Family Trees for George C.(G7) and George
E. (G8) goes back in theory to 1200-1300 in theory for De Bentley. Community tree.
Not documented
http://trees.ancestry.com/owt/person.aspx?pid=66224778
http://trees.ancestry.com/owt/person.aspx?pid=30213433
(19) BENNETT, A.S.: “Bennett-Bentley,” Pittstown, Penn copied in “Bentley
Gleanings.” Includes Greene, Sr (G5), Green, Jr (G6), and George C. (G7)
(20) PEIRCE, Henry B. and D. Hamilton Hurd: ”History of Tioga, Chemung,
Tompkins, and Schuyler Counties, New York (1879)---922 pages. Includes Greene,
Sr. (G5) and Green, Jr (G6)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/books/1879toc.htm
(21) BENTLEY, Richard: Macungie, PA. Shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), William (G3), then branches to the brother of William (G4), Thomas.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=PED&db=rmbentl&id=I994&style=TEXT
http://www.family2remember.com/famtree/index.htm
(22) DREYER ROOTS AND MANY BRANCHES ---from William (G1)-Green, Jr (G6);
including John Bunyan family
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=cathys_clan&id=I03839
(23) BENTLEY, Allan Lewis of Doraville, GA—includes from prior to William (G1)George E. (G8). Allan Lewis Bentley the author of “Bentley Family History”—2001,
576 pages. Allan Bentley is connected to the Virginia, not Rhode Island, Bentleys.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=danielbsr&id=I02110
http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/b/e/n/Allan-L-Bentley/index.html
(24) TITUS, Dr. Frank J: “Descendants of William Bentley of Rhode Island” (abt
1906), See p. 1580 Stewart (11). Includes William G3-Green G5.
(25) BENTLEY, Elisha Tucker: “A Line of Descent from William Bentley, Jr.”
Satsuma Heights, FLA, 1895. See p. 1644 Stewart (11). Elisha the grandson of
Greene, Sr. (G5), son of Benjamin (the brother of Green, Jr.)
(26) AUSTIN, John Osborne: “The Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island (18491918), pub. 1887. See p. 1564 Stewart (11). Includes William (G3), William (G4),
Greene, Sr. (G5). Provided first chart of Rhode Island Benteys for research of Sarter
and Stewart.
(27) BENTLEY, Sean—Bellevue, WA. Shares with our branch William G1-William G3
before splitting to the brother of William (G4), Thomas. Sean visited the ancestral
home of the Bentleys in Bedfordshire, England in 2005 and was able to take a photo
of the 1632 will of Mary Goodwin Bentley and post it on his site.
http://s_s_bentley.home.comcast.net/ssb/bentleygen.html
(28) BROWN, John: “John Bunyan: His Life, Times, and Work (1887, 3d ed.
2007). John Bunyan the author of “Pilgrim’s Progress,” son of Margaret Bentley,
grandson of William Bentley (G1). Includes history of Elstow, William (G1) and his
mother Mary and wife Mary Goodwin and daughter Margaret, 1632 will of Mary
Goodwin Bentley.
John Brown was a Congregational minister who served at Park Chapel, Manchester,
England, from 1855 to 1864 and at Bunyan Church, Bedford, from 1864 to 1903
(during the time he wrote the Bunyan biography). He was the Lyman Beecher
lecturer at Yale in 1899. Brown wrote broadly in history and biblical studies but is
best known for his Bunyan work. He edited Bunyan’s “The Pilgrim Progress,” “Holy
War,” and Grace Abounding,” and Bunyan’s complete works for the Cambridge
University Press.
The Bunyan bio is available at amazon.com and online at:
http://books.google.com/books?id=88jSBdnTwF0C&pg=PA1&dq=john+Bunyan:++hi
s+life+times+and+work+by+John+Brown#PPP1,M1
(29) BENTLEY, Lawrence H. ----Provided research for William (G1)-Greene, Sr.
(G5). His branch splits after William (G4) to brother of Greene Sr (G5), John
Self published two volumes, Descendants of George and Descendants of John which
he distributed to others that are working on the Bentley Family and to the local
libraries.
(30) POPOVICH, Kathleen---Mascoutah, Illinois. Bob Glover’s “closest” Bentley
genealogy “cousin.” Great granddaughter of Ernest Cargill Bentley, the son of
George Cargill Bentley. She shares our branch from William (G1) through George
Cargill Bentley (G7). She then splits to the half-brother of George Eugene Bentley
(G8), Ernest Cargill Bentley. Provided extensive research for Daughter’s of the
American Revolution membership from Greene, Sr. (G5), Green, Jr. (G6), George
Cargill Bentley (G7) and then splits to the half-brother of George Eugene Bentley
(G8), Ernest Cargill Bentley.
----------U.S. Census 1790-1930
www.ancestry.com
www.rootsweb.com
www.familysearch.org
**Phone calls, emails and letters from family members
TEAM BENTLEY: KEY BENTLEY RESEARCHERS AND ADVISORS
Following is a profile of key contributors to “The Stories and History of the Bentley
Families.”
CAMERON RALPH STEWART: “The King of Bentley Genealogy”
Much of the key information on the early Bentleys from William (G1) to Greene, Jr.
(G5) used by researchers Elaine Cowan and Marlin Criddle, and for our work, came
from Cameron Stewart’s highly respected "Genealogical Classification by Family
Group Coding for Descent from Common Ancestors" (Vol I & II, copyright 1986
published by the author). (11) The massive volumes include over 3,000 pages,
covering over 150 Bentley names who are descendants of William (G1). Cameron
reviewed the work of previous researchers and did original research. He built upon
the work of Emilie Sarter (12), Julia Harrison Lobdell (10), and John Osborne Austin
(26). Stewart gifted copies of his books to many libraries and historical societies and
it is available on microfilm through the Church of the Latter Day Saints Family
History Library. We were able to purchase the two-volume book on ebay.
Cameron is a 12th Generation Bentley. He shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), and William of Rhode Island (G3). It is here where his branch splits from our
branch, following Thomas Bentley (1685-1778) rather than his brother, our William
Bentley, Jr (G4). From there, his line goes through Benjamin Bentley (b. 1714),
Samuel Bentley (b 1746), Reuben Bentley (b abt 1773), Miron Bentley (1798-1844),
Almira Bentley (1833-1922) and John Sarles (1830-1860), Sarah Sarles (18591949) and John Stewart (b 1857) , and his parents Ralph Stewart (1896-1983 )
and Vinnie Gjere (1899-1980).
Cameron is from New Ulm, MN, and now lives there as well as in Long Beach, CA. He
started his search for his family history in 1960 in Norway, where his mother’s
ancestors were from. Over the years, he went on to travel to Canada, Scotland,
England, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and
New York to research both of his parent’s ancestors (which included the Bentleys on
his father’s side). Stewart uncovered a few famous relatives in his research.
Included from his Norwegian relatives from Voss, Norway is the former U. of Notre
Dame star football player and championship coach Knute Rockne (played by Ronald
Reagan in the movie of his life). John Bunyan, author of the famous “Pilgrim’s
Progress,” was the son of Margaret Bentley, who was the daughter of William Bentley
(G1).
Cameron Stewart, a professional genealogist, has been a member of several
genealogical societies in the United States, Scotland, and Canada. He received his
B.S. Degree in chemistry and biology at the U. of North Dakota in 1951. He earned
the Master of Education Degree at UCLA in 1953. He was a high school science, math
and business teacher.
Cameron, as with Bob Glover, was a high school track and field athlete and captain
of an undefeated team. Cameron’s events were the shot put and discus. He was also
an Eagle Scout.
Cameron is a U.S. Navy, WWII veteran, and a Past Commander of CA Post 279 of
the American Legion in Temple City, CA. H. Ross Glover is also a Past Commander
of his post. Like Carl Burger, grandfather of Bob Glover and husband of Adelia
Bentley, Cameron was a member of the Masonic Lodge.
*********************************
EMILIE SARTER: “The Queen of Bentley Genealogy.”
Not much is known of Emilie. We assume she is the same Emilie Sarter who
according to the Social Security Death Index was born Nov 13, 1893 in New York,
and died in March 1976 in Boston, MA. We do know that she lived in Boston in 1947
when she was hired by William Perry Bentley, a descendant of William G3, to add to
the research done in 1905-1906 by William Perry Bentley’s brother Fred, and to
combine that with the research Sarter did for Harry Bentley of Boston (which he
started prior to 1929). The result was a 1949 typewritten compilation which was
later published by William Perry Bentley in 1953 as a printed book: “One Branch of
the Bentley Family of Rhode Island: The Ancestors and Descendants of William Perry
Bentley” by Emilie Sarter (Boston, 1953). (12) The first three generations of this
branch, starting with the Rhode Island Progenitor William G3 and then on to
Benjamin (brother of William G4) and William, was furnished by Miss Sarter.
Emilie wrote in the introduction: “It was established that this eighth generation
(being 8 generations from our William G3 to William Perry Bentley) were direct
descendants of the William Bentley who settled…..in Rhode Island---in 1678. As
there is no known printed genealogy of all his descendants, such accessible
manuscript and published works on Bentleys were carefully checked and collated and
yielded a surprising amount of accurate information.”
Much of Cameron Stewart’s work on the Rhode Island Bentleys was based on
Sarter’s original typewritten compilation, and thus serves as valuable information for
our Bentley reseach. Stewart wrote:
“In this searcher’s opinion, Emilie Sarter of Boston conducted thorough and
exhaustive research on the Rhode Island Bentleys from primary sources. The
precise wording of her interpretations of the primary-source data is set forth in her
typewritten compilation.”
We purchased a reprint of Sarter’s book through www.higginsonbooks.com. It is also
available on microfilm at the Genealogical Society Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.
*************************************
ELAINE COWAN
Much of the information in this work came directly or indirectly from the very
detailed research of Elaine Cowan as posted on her website. She is an 11th
generation Bentley who has been researching family history seriously for over two
decades. She shares with our branch William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William
(G4), Green (G5), and Green (G6). Thus her research from the starting point of
Stewart and Sarter provided us with a wealth of information on our branch through
the 6th generation. Here she splits, going to the sister of George Cargill Bentley
(G7), Margaret Bentley Thiers (1818- 1912), and then on to George Thiers (18541919), Lawrence Thiers (1889-1931), Vivienne Thiers (1916-2000) and Edward
Cowan (1914-1995), and Elaine Cowan (born in Chicago, lives now in Carson City,
Nevada).
Elaine responded to Bob Glover’s query: “When did you start on the Bentley history
and what got you started?”
“My aunt got me started. She had been interested in family history since she was
a teen. She asked me to check at the Somerset House in London in 1969, for an
ancestor. But that place is NOT for research. You have to have the info and then they
will get you a copy of a birth, marriage, death certificate - or a Will etc.
I really got involved after I got my first computer ca 1985--a Commodore 64 (don't
laugh) for which there was a fairly decent Genealogy program. I wanted to stick just
to the immediate relatives but I later realized that my aunt had been right about
getting all info possible on the ancillary family members. Sometimes knowing names,
dates etc, of brothers, sisters, cousins, can be very helpful.
We went to the Family History Library in West Los Angeles and to the main Los
Angeles library and to the Federal record Center in Laguna Nigel. Also some other,
smaller libraries. Aunt Holly corresponded with our Kansas cousin - a Thiers. My
mom and aunt's father was a Thiers and it is from him that we have most of our
connections -- Bentley, Hopper, Rockwell, Cooper, back to all the Dutchies etc. My
aunt also wrote to and even visited some Bentleys when she vacationed in NY and
PA.
My aunt bought Stewart’s book in ca 1986, from the author, when it was first
published. Anyway, I have spent a small fortune on books, but mainly renting (and
a few times buying) microfilms. And 1000000000 hours staring at the things. I had
Stewart's book from my aunt. I sent it, and about 15 boxes of material, to my
cousin, when I quit genealogy I did -- I really did quit -- almost...........”
Ha! Bob Glover discovered her website (first posted over a decade ago, one of the
first Bentley sites), by far the most comprehensive and documented of any Bentley
sites, and soon conned her out of semi-retirement. Her frequent email
correspondence has been invaluable to this massive project as it sure isn’t as
efficient, and as much fun, working alone. Her constant critiques of our research has
been challenging. How comprehensive is her research? Her site includes over 130
Bentley names alone and she sent Bob Glover a research file that was 655 pages!
(6)
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=eofcc&id=I0356
********************
**********************************
SCOTT CHARLES RODE
In his search for Bentley genealogy, Bob Glover came across not one, but four
websites by Scott Rode (5) which included a wealth of Bentley family information.
After Bob Glover posted a note on the guest book for one of the sites, offering to
share information, Scott joined forces with Bob in an effort to clean up much of the
misinformation out there on the Internet about our family history. Thus, we have
coordinated our research and documentation of Bentley history and Scott has posted
the information on his family trees as well as attached this “Stories and History of
the Bentley Families.” It is our hope by so doing that others doing Bentley research
will benefit from our findings and offer information to further our work.
Scott is a 13th Generation Bentley. He shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), and William (G3). He then splits to the brother of William (G4), Thomas
(1685-1778), and then on to William Bentley (1710-1800), Tillinghast Bentley
(1735-1820), Thomas Bentley (abt. 1755-1796), Thomas Bentley (1787-1860),
Hiram Bentley (abt. 1831-1891), Frank Albert Bentley (1855-1919), Lewis Leslie
Bentley (1878-1942), Merle Viola Bentley (1903-2001) and Albert Francis Olson
(1898-1953), Dorothy Doreen Olson (b 1927) and Charles William Rode(1926-2007),
and to Scott Charles Rode born March 7, 1957 in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Scott has
two stepchildren (Christopher and Nicole Johnson), two children (Brandon and
Alexander), and is married to Bridgett Kelly Reasby Johnson. They live in Crystal,
Minnesota.
Scott Rode writes about how he got involved with genealogy:
“Back when I was a child I remember asking my parents and grandparents about our
families; the Rode’s and Bentley’s, and where they came from but all they could tell
me was that they were from Germany and that around the middle of the 1850’s they
sailed to Canada. My Grandmother Merle Viola (Bentley) Olson Bullock told me her
family came from England. My family has always lived in Minnesota in or around
Annandale, Wright County, Minnesota.
My involvement with genealogy started back in 2001 when my brothers, one sister
and my Mom were talking about past relatives and my Mom told me that she had the
lineage of her Bentley line, done by George and Violet Bentley. They lived in
Clearwater, MN and they did all of this with the help of Betty Sonnek of Waldorf, MN
in May of 1999. I have no other information concerning their resources or their
methods. At this time I got heavily into computers and started searching for family
on the Internet. Having a copy of the Bentley line from my mother, I decided to
chart the entire Bentley and Olson lineage.
First I put all of the data into the genealogy software program, FrontPage 2000. I
then found a site that I liked, Ancestry.com, and it’s sister site, Rootsweb with
Freepages. I then used FrontPage to create and upload my Bentley Tree. I then
charted all my family lineage on Family Tree Maker. That is when I truly began my
trek walking down the path of Genhood.”
Scott’s hobbies, when not chasing down Bentley ancestors, includes polishing—
something his deceased WWII veteran father Charles William Rode got his kids
involved with at an early age. He also enjoys agate hunting, writing and singing
music, playing guitar, and various challenging games including puzzles. Surely the
puzzle training is helpful with the genealogy.
He graduated from high school in Annandale, MN in 1976, enlisted in the Navy in
1976 and went to boot camp in San Diego, California. He was stationed in Norfolk,
Virginia aboard the USS America CV-66 aircraft carrier, which has been
decommissioned and now lays to rest off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia. Scott was
honorably discharged in 1980 as an IM E5 (Instrument Repairman Second Class
Petty Officer). After his discharge, he worked for several years as an Office Machine
Repair Technician in St Cloud, MN, then Denver, Colorado and back to the Twin
Cities, MN area. Scott then worked for Target in their downtown Minneapolis
headquarters, loading the Windows based operating system onto 10 to 20 computers
per day and setting them up at the Target employee’s desks. He now is a Furniture
Sales Consultant working for HOM Furniture in Coon Rapids, MN.
Scott’s family websites include nearly 20,000 indexed names, including many
Bentley ancestors. Bentley pages start with the parents of William G1 and go to the
present for the Scott Rode (Minnesota) and Robert H. Glover (South Dansville, NY)
branches
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=2032824&dnyref=1&pid=1868325814
http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=bentleyglover&id=I04081
http://scottrode.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=scottrode&view=9&rand=860
149560
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~williambentley1573/
*******************************
HAROLD ROSS GLOVER
H. Ross Glover wrote in his introduction to our family history books in 2007 at the
age of 82:
“This has been an ongoing project of mine since starting in 1999. I did the best I
could in obtaining the following information and have tried to write this family history
with the utmost accuracy.
Included is what information I received from many individuals and from reviewing
various historical records. I am aware that there are omissions and likely incorrect
or misspelled names, and perhaps some historical errors. Additions and corrections
are requested and would be appreciated as this is a “work in progress” to benefit our
families: past, present, and future. The accuracy of some of the information
compiled is only as good as the notes and memories of my best resource: family
members of those recorded.
I may have extended too far for some families, however what I attempted to do was
to incorporate all the families that have been associated with our families over time.
I am not a professional genealogist, but rather a proud family member doing my
best on behalf my beloved relatives.
If we had a little more foresight instead of so much hindsight, family members would
gather the information necessary for a genealogy while many of our ancestors are
alive and not wait until they are gone.
I have had help from so many people and families that I can’t begin to list the names
of all those who contributed. I want to pass on my thanks to all of those who made
this project possible. And God bless those who invented the e-mail
I hope that some of our family members will update and perpetuate this genealogy
and family history so that those who come after all of us present family members are
gone will have an account of their forefathers.”
In addition to writing many pages of family history and putting together extensive
family trees, Ross collected photos, clippings, and more for many years and has
stored them in several boxes and albums in “The H. Ross Glover Family History
Museum”-----that being his basement office. Further, he has taken over 1,000
digital photos of family gravestones so we can set up a virtual family cemetery as
well as document the inscriptions on the stones. Ross continues to clean up and
restore family gravesites at local cemeteries, and help with the continuing research
of our family histories.
H. Ross Glover was born Dec 2, 1924 in Canaseraga, Allegany Co., NY to Albert Ross
Glover (1892-1968), born in Grove, NY, and Daphne Gelser Glover (1895-1965),
born in Grove, NY. He married Corinne Harriet Burger (G11), of South Dansville,
Steuben Co., NY, on New Year’s Eve, 1945 in Dansville, N.Y. Corinne was born April
4, 1925 in Hornell, N.Y; and died Sept 11, 2006 in Rochester, NY. Her parents were
Carl Leo Burger (1897-1995), born in South Dansville, NY, and Adelia Martha Bentley
Burger (G10) (1902-1980), born in Auburn, NY. Ross and Corinne lived in Dansville,
Livingston Co., all of their married life—over 60 years. In December, 2006, Ross and
Corinne’s sons organized a 60th Wedding Anniversary party which Corinne---just 9
months before her death---described as the highlight of her life. Ross now lives in
Dansville and in North Port, Sarasota Co., Florida.
Ross left Canaseraga High School prior to graduating and was drafted into the U.S.
Army. At the age of 18, in March 1943, he was off to serve in WWII, not to return
until October,1945. Every day he was gone, Corinne Burger wrote to him. They
became engaged by proxy while he was oversees. His “education” then included
“tours” of the battlefront. In 2007, as part of New York State’s “Operation
Recognition” to honor the contributions of war veterans, he received his high school
diploma from Canaseraga Central School.
Ross served with the 36th Infantry Division as a machine gunner, advancing to a
section sergeant. He saw service in North Africa, Italy, France, Austria, and
Germany. He was wounded three times and nearly lost both feet to frostbite, but he
continued on in the foxholes of the front lines until the end of the war. He
participated in four invasions, including the disastrous Salerno and Anzio beachheads
in Italy, the invasion of Southern France, and the crossing of the Rhine River (which
took three attempts). Among several awards he received for his services: three
Purple Hearts for being wounded in battle; the Combat Infantryman’s Badge; Bronze
Star Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster; and the European African Middle Eastern
Campaign Medal, w/1Silver Star and 2 Bronze Stars indicating 7 Major Campaigns
and a Bronze Arrowhead indicating Amphibious Landings. Of the Salerno Beach
invasion he notes: “Our landing craft got hit. I couldn’t swim. But I learned to in a
hurry with 97 pounds of equipment on my back.” During one of his hospital stays
while recovering from his wounds he worked with and befriended former
heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis. Ross returned from the war on the Queen
Mary (which is now docked in Long Beach, CA where Bentley genealogist Cameron
Ralph Stewart lives).
After the war, Ross worked until retirement as an automobile/truck mechanic,
specializing in wheel alignment. He has been a member of Dansville’s Daniel Goho
Post 87 since 1945, and in 1970 was the first World War II member of the post to
receive the prestigious Life Membership Award. Over the years he has held
numerous offices and chairmanships at the post, county, and district level, including
Commander for both Post 87 and Livingston County, Vice Commander for the 7th
District, and Sergeant-at-Arms for the Department of New York. For many years he
served as the historian for Post 87. He was also active with the Post’s Boys State
program, American Legion youth baseball, and the White Sabers Drum and Bugle
Corps (with which he marched in many local parades as the Sergeant-of Arms of the
color guard, and drill sergeant for the drum corps). In both 1990 and 1995, Ross was
7th District (12 counties) Legionnaire of the Year, and runner-up for the New York
State Legionnaire of the Year award. Ross also was a longtime member of the Post’s
veteran cemetery council at Greenmount Cemetery in Dansville.
He was a coach with Little League Baseball, a founder and coach for Babe Ruth
League baseball, and was a key organizer for the Dansville American Legion baseball
program. He annually makes a presentation in honor of Veteran’s Day to local
school children.
*******************
ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER
Bob Glover is the primary researcher and the author of “The Stories and History of
the Bentley Families” as well as the stories and history of the Glover, Burger, Gelser,
and Cobin families. Thus far he has written over 500 pages of family history. He
first got involved with genealogy in the fall of 2005 when he volunteered to help his
father, H. Ross Glover, with the Glover-Gelser-Cobin family histories from his side of
the family. Ross had been working almost single-handedly since 1999 on these
projects. In 2006, Bob started to inquire of his mother’s, Corinne Burger Glover
(G11), family history, especially that of Bob’s beloved grandmother Adelia Bentley
Burger (G10). She was instrumental in Bob’s competitive spirit in sports, as she was
a fine and spirited athlete, and encouraged him to become the first in the family to
attend college. In fact, she saved up her social security payments to buy her
grandson a 24 volume set of the Encylopedia Britanicca. Being her first and favorite
grandchild, Bob became especially interested in the Bentley family history and thus
decided to complete this book first. Little did he know then, with knowledge only as
far back as his great grandfather Wilbur Bentley, how big a task he was beginning!
Bob is a 12th Generation Bentley. He is the son of Harold Ross Glover and Corinne
Burger Glover; father of Christopher Ross Glover; husband of Shelly-lynn Florence
Glover, grandson of Adelia Bentley Burger, g grandson of Wilbur Bentley; gg
grandson of George E. Bentley; ggg grandson of George C. Bentley; ggg g grandson
of Green Bentley, Jr.; ggg gg grandson of Green Bentley, Sr.; ggg ggg grandson of
William Bentley, Jr.; ggg ggg g grandson of William Bentley, Sr.; ggg ggg gg
grandson of John Bentley; ggg ggg ggg grandson of William Bentley (G1).
Bob was born November 17, 1946 in the Village of Dansville, Livingston Co., NY. He
graduated in 1964 from Dansville Central High School, where he was a member of
the National Honor Society. He won the Livingston County Two Mile Championship in
track his senior year. Bob graduated in 1968 from Oswego State College, Oswego,
N.Y. He was a Dean’s List student, with majors in history and creative writing (which
came in handy with this family history). After graduation, Bob was drafted into the
U.S. Army, where he served 2 yrs. and 9 months. He served for one year in the
Vietnam War, stationed in Phu Bai, near the border between North and South
Vietnam. Bob was a top secret special assistant to the Commanding General of the
XXIV Corps Artillery. There he helped with strategic military planning. His special
side project, besides volunteering with an orphanage in Hue, was organizing the
Vietnamese-American Sports Festival in Hue, RVN, in which he won gold medals in
the 400 meters on the track, and basketball. He was discharged as a Specialist 5
after serving as an education counselor at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Bob then served as the Sports Director of the Enterprise, Alabama, and Rome, NY
YMCAs, before taking the position of Fitness Director of the West Side YMCA in New
York City, the largest YMCA in the country at the time, in 1975. He formed his own
sports-fitness business in 1978, Robert H. Glover and Associates, Inc, which he still
directs. He founded in 1978 and still directs (with his wife Shelly) the adult running
classes and training programs for the 40,000+ member New York Road Runners Club
and the New York City Marathon. Over 4,000 students per year participate in their
programs from beginner runner to super competitive level. He also founded in 1990
and still directs (with Shelly) the youth track program, City Sports for Kids, for the
New York Road Runners Foundation. This program at the New Balance Armory in
New York City serves over 1,000 kids per year.
The competitive running teams he has coached have won many local, national and
international titles in the open and masters categories, ranging from 5K to the
marathon. Several of his individual athletes have been state and nationally ranked,
ranging from high school athletes to age 90+ ancient warriors. His present team
(which he coaches with Shelly), the Greater New York Racing Team, has 150
members ranging from age 12 to 93 and is ranked in the top 5 for both men and
women in the open, age 40+, 50+, and 60+ team categories for the New York Road
Runners. The men’s age 60+ team, on which Bob is a key scorer, is ranked #1 in
the New York Metropolitan area.
Bob, in association with Shelly, has written or is in the process of writing 15 books
on running and fitness with Viking-Penguin Books. They have over one million of
their books in print, more than any other running book author in the world. Their
books have been translated into German, Spanish, Italian, Polish, and Portuguese.
Bob’s first book, “The Runner’s Handbook,” was the #1 trade paperback bestseller of
all categories when released in 1978.. The third edition of that book and the third
edition of “The Competitive Runner’s Handbook” are both ranked in the top 10 best
selling running books. Each of these comprehensive reference books are over 600
pages. His “Runner’s Training Diary” is ranked in the top 3 best sellers in that
category. Bob and Shelly are currently working on the 4th editions of “The Runner’s
Handbook” and “The Competitive Runner’s Handbook,” as well as two new
additions: “The Marathon Runner’s Handbook,” and “The Masters Runner’s
Handbook.”
Bob continues to run road races and has won numerous age group awards over the
years. He has completed 36 marathons, has raced up Mount Washington and the
Empire State Building , and completed a 50 mile track race. He performs at a
regional class in the age 60 and over division for distances from one mile to the
marathon.
Bob’s son from a previous marriage, Christopher Ross Glover, was born in 1981 in
New York City. Chris is a 13th Generation Bentley and lives across the Harlem River
from Yankee Stadium in the Washington Heights section of New York City in a
historic landmark district of wooden rowhouses built in 1882. The houses line a
cobblestone street near a historic mansion overlooking Central Manhattan that
George Washington used as his Revolutionary War headquarters during the 1776
Battle of Harlem Heights. Chris graduated from Bard College, where he studied
music, drama, film, and creative writing in preparation for a career in the performing
arts. He writes and produces his own songs and plays guitar, bass, keyboard, piano,
saxophone and drums. Chris signed a contract as a singer-songwriter of pop-rockrap music with Interscope Records/Universal Music, one of the most prestigious
record labels in the world. Chris was entertained by the chairmen of all the major
labels before choosing Interscope. His first album, “Hell Isn’t Even That Funny,” was
never released---Chris was yet another victim of the music industry’s decline. He is
presently playing with a band in New York City while producing an album with an
independent label, and writing songs for commercial use. Some of his songs, music
video, and bio are available at www.myspace.com/chrisglover
Bob married Shelly Florence of Canisteo, Steuben Co., NY in 1995 in Sleepy Hollow,
NY. Shelly was instrumental in the research of this work. She graduated from
Buffalo State College, where she was a member of their first women’s cross country
team, with a degree in journalism. Shelly is a lifetime member of the Kanisteo
Historical Society, and a member of the Tarrytowns and NYC Historical Societies.
She has a masters degree in applied physiology from Columbia University, where her
research was selected for publication and presentation by the American College of
Sports Medicine. Shelly competes as a masters athlete in races from 5K to the
marathon, often placing for awards. She is a volunteer with the Tarrytown Historical
Society, and is presently working on the genealogy of her Benedict and Florence
ancestors.
Bob and Shelly live in Sleepy Hollow (formerly North Tarrytown), just up from the
Old Dutch Church Cemetery where “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” author
Washington Irving is buried and his “Headless Horseman” was last seen chasing
Ichabod Crane along the Pocantico River.
Bob and Shelly live in Sleepy Hollow (North Tarrytown), Westchester Co., NY just up
from the Old Dutch Church Cemetery where “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” author
Washington Irving is buried and his “Headless Horseman” was last seen chasing
Ichabod Crane along the Pocantico River.
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=3454472&pid=-1725182675
See 1930 Census-Floyd
Vera---liked dance,very good bowler, play cards
Marion thought Pete buried Fairport area.
It appears that Floyd was born Jun 1, 1892 in NY, mother's maiden name was
Weller. He lived in Rochester in 1930. Apparently married Vera about then and
they had Ruth about then. Sometime after that they apparently moved to California
where he died in Ventura Aug 18, 1960. I believe Carolyne said she and her father
went to the funeral there and said that is where he died so this is the same Floyd.
It appears that in 1960 Vera Baldwin applied in California for social security
survivor's benefits or otherwise for social security. It appears that some time after
Floyd died Vera moved to the state of Washington, perhaps with her daughter Ruth.
Have not been able to track a Ruth Baldwin. If I knew if she married and what her
married name was might be able to do so. She is apparently deceased.
The middle initial and date of birth of the Vera L. Baldwin are consistent with that of
1920 and 1930 Census of Vera L. Bentley. So it appears that Vera last lived in
Olympia, Washington, was born Aug 4, 1910 in Rochester, and died at age 80 on Feb
10, 1991 in Lacey, Washington, which is a suburb of Olympia in Thurston Co.
PART VI:
THE ADELIA BENTLEY BURGER FAMILY---GENERATION 10
PART VII: THE CORINNE BURGER GLOVER FAMILY----GENERATION 11
Chapter xxx: ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER (G12) (b. 1946 ); son of Harold Ross Glover
and Corinne Burger Glover; father of Christopher Ross Glover; husband of SHELLYLYNN FLORENCE GLOVER (b. 1961), grandson of Adelia Bentley Burger, g grandson
of Wilbur Bentley; gg grandson of George E. Bentley; ggg grandson of George C.
Bentley; ggg g grandson of Green Bentley, Jr.; ggg gg grandson of Green Bentley,
Sr.; ggg ggg grandson of William Bentley, Jr.; ggg ggg g grandson of William
Bentley, Sr.; ggg ggg gg grandson of John Bentley; ggg ggg ggg grandson of William
Bentley
PART IX: BENTLEY REFERENCE SOURCES AND KEY RESEARCHERS
8/29/07 changes
SOURCES
Key sources are noted throughout the text and detailed here at the end of the book.
Sources are noted conservatively to allow the text to be more readable as this is a
family story and not a pure research project.
Since information on the living isn’t readily available on genealogy sites other than if
they appeared in a Census report of 1930 or earlier, the living Bentley history is
primarily from information submitted to us by family members. Since no present
member of our family branch remembers any Bentley prior to Wilbur (G9, father of
Adelia Bentley Burger), the older Bentley information comes from tombstones,
genealogy and family history books, Census and vital records, website research,
etc. The farther we go back in history the less information available and the less
accurate the information. Earlier Bentley information is primarily from the
comprehensive research books by professional genealogists Cameron Stewart and
Emilie Sarter, the detailed websites of Bentley descendents and researchers Elaine
Cowan and Marlin Criddle, and research by Robert H. Glover, grandson of Adelia
Bentley Burger.
DISCLAIMER:
1. Some of these sources include information within their books and websites we
know to be inaccurate, however that does not mean that all of their information is
inaccurate.
2. Some sources include information that is not documented and thus may not be
accurate but quite probably or at least possibly are accurate.
3. Often these are secondary sources which are not as reliable as primary sources,
but it is what we have for now.
4. We have made every effort to provide what we believe to be accurate information
from our sources and have strived to note where we think it is probable, or possible,
or just a theory.
5. All of the information on the Bob Glover and Scott Rode websites will be
coordinated and carefully reviewed for accuracy but this takes time. This is a work
of progress.
6. Amy family history is only as good as its sources. Please contact us if you have
evidence of misinformation.
SOURCE LIST
Below sources are in addition to the research by Robert H. Glover detailed (this is a
work in progress and started Aug 20, 2007) at:
http://trees.ancestry.com/fhs/home.aspx?tid=3454472
(1) Family records stored in a wooden box made by Wilbur Bentley (G9) for his
daughter Adelia Bentley Burger (G10), passed on to her daughter Corinne Burger
Glover (G11), passed on to her son Robert H. Glover (G12) of Sleepy Hollow, NY.
(2)
NY)
(3)
The H. ROSS GLOVER Family History Museum (office basement in Dansville,
DORIS BURGER SMALT (daughter of Adelia Bentley Burger) of Dansville, NY
(4) CAROLYNE BENTLEY GIBSON (daughter of George Henry Bentley) of
Sebastopol, CA.
(5) RODE, Scott: Scott maintains four Bentley websites: at ancestry.com,
rootsweb.com, tribalpages.com, freepages.com. Includes the bulk of the research
for “The Stories and History of the Bentley Families.” Websites start with the
parents of William G1 and go to the present for the Scott Rode (Minnesota) and
Robert H. Glover (South Dansville, NY) branches. Scott shares with our branch
William (G1), John (G2), and William (G3). He then splits to the brother of William
(G4), Thomas, and on to the Scott Rode family of Crystal, Minnesota.
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=2032824&dnyref=1&pid=1868325814
http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=bentleyglover&id=I04081
http://scottrode.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=scottrode&view=9&rand=860
149560
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~williambentley1573/
(6) COWAN, Elaine: at RootsWeb family trees. Elaine shares with our branch
William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William (G4), Green (G5), and Green (G6).
Here she splits, going to the sister of George Cargill Bentley (G7), Margaret Bentley
Thiers and on to her family in Carson City, Nevada.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=eofcc&id=I0356
(7) CRIDDLE: Marlin Criddle—at ancestry.com, family trees. Marlin shares with our
branch William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William (G4), and Greene, Sr. (G5).
He then splits from our branch, going with the sister of Green, Jr (G6), Rhoda
Bentley Teeples and on to his family in Salt Lake City, Utah. Marlin’s website is one
of the most carefully documented on the Internet and follows our branch from
William (G1) to George C. Bentley (G7).
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=1032149&pid=-2011198225
(8) CRIDDLE: “Life Histories of Green Bentley and Diana Straight” by Marlin
Criddle, Salt Lake City, Utah, pdf 20 pages, Feb 2007
(9) LDS: Church of the Latter Day Saints ancestral file for Bentley.
Info submitted by Ellen Bates, Price, Utah and others.
William (G3) to George E. (G8). George C. (G9)
William G1-William G4---several errors:
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/AF/family_group_record.asp?familyid=553
3802&frompage=99
William (G4)-Greene (G5), Green (G6), George C. (G7), George E. (G8)
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/AF/family_group_record.asp?familyid=457
4941&frompage=99
www.familysearch.org
go to George Cargill Bentley , USA, New York, ancestral file
(10)
LOBDELL, Julia Harrison: ”Bentley Gleanings” (1905). A collection of stories,
articles, Rhode Island records, NY state church records, family notes, etc. Includes
William G3, William G4, Green G5, Green G6, George C. G7. Includes info from
Brinkerhoof and A.S. Bennett. An early source for Sarter. 128 pages. Available
from www.Higginsonbooks.com and online at:
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=genealogyglh38301077&so=2&rank=1&gsfn=Green&gsln=Bentley&gskw=&searchType=&prox
=1&ti=0&ti.si=0&gss=angs-c
(11) STEWART, CAMERON RALPH: "Genealogical Classification by Family Group
Coding for Descent from Common Ancestors" (Vol II copyright 1986 published by the
author). The massive volumes (Vol II covers the Bentleys) include over 3,000 pages,
covering over 150 Bentley names who are descendants of William (G1). Cameron
shares with our branch William (G1), John (G2), and William of Rhode Island (G3).
It is here where his branch splits from our branch, following the brother of William
(G4), Thomas Bentley and on to his family in New Ulm, MN and Long Beach, CA.
Cameron follows our branch from William (G1) through Green, Jr. (G6).
(12) SARTER, Emilie: “One Branch of the Bentley Family of Rhode Island (Rhode
Island Historical Society, 1949) with William Perry Bentley (1953). 121 pages.
The first three generations of this branch, starting with the Rhode Island Progenitor
William G3 and then on to Benjamin (brother of William G4) and William, was
furnished by Miss Sarter. It then continues on to William Perry Bentley of Dallas, TX.
Available from www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(13) DAVIDSON, Dolores: “The Family of Eldred Bentley”-
Compiled and
Submitted by Dolores Davidson, 2003. 90 pages.
Information follows William
(G3), William (G4), Greene (G5), Green (G6), George C. (G7). Eldred Bentley
shares with our branch up to William G4 and then splits to the half-brother of
Greene, Sr (G5), George.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nychauta/Families/Bentley1.htm
(14) ARNOLD: James Newell Arnold: “Vital Record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850,
Arnold Collection, 1894” Includes William (G4) and Greene, Sr (G5)
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nanc/arnoldvr/index2.htm
(15) BRINKERHOFF, General Roeliff: “The Bentley Family, with Genealogical
Records of Ohio Bentleys, and known as The Tribe of Benjamin ,” Mansfield, OH;
1897. 21 pages. Includes William (G3), William (G4) then splits to the half-brother
of Greene, Sr. (G5), George, and to Benjamin, who migrated to Ohio from PA.
Available from www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(16) BENNETT, Stephen Beers: “Bennett, Bently and Beers famiies of NY” 1899. 50
pages. The book shares with our branch William (G3), William (G4), Greene, Sr.
(G5), Green, Jr. (G6), and George C. (G7). Also includes the Bennett brothers who
married the Bentley daughters of Greene, Sr. Available from
www.Higginsonbooks.com.
(17) TICE, Joyce: Tri-Counties Genealogy & History website, Chemung Co, NY;
Tioga Co, NY; Bradford Co, PA. Includes Green Bentley (G5)/Town of Veteran
history and Green, Jr. (G6)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/jmtindex.htm
(18) ONE WORLD TREE (Ancestry.com) /Family Trees for George C.(G7) and George
E. (G8) goes back in theory to 1200-1300 in theory for De Bentley. Community tree.
Not documented
http://trees.ancestry.com/owt/person.aspx?pid=66224778
http://trees.ancestry.com/owt/person.aspx?pid=30213433
(19) BENNETT, A.S.: “Bennett-Bentley,” Pittstown, Penn copied in “Bentley
Gleanings.” Includes Greene, Sr (G5), Green, Jr (G6), and George C. (G7)
(20) PEIRCE, Henry B. and D. Hamilton Hurd: ”History of Tioga, Chemung,
Tompkins, and Schuyler Counties, New York (1879)---922 pages. Includes Greene,
Sr. (G5) and Green, Jr (G6)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/books/1879toc.htm
(21) BENTLEY, Richard: Macungie, PA. Shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), William (G3), then branches to the brother of William (G4), Thomas.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=PED&db=rmbentl&id=I994&style=TEXT
http://www.family2remember.com/famtree/index.htm
(22) DREYER ROOTS AND MANY BRANCHES ---from William (G1)-Green, Jr (G6);
including John Bunyan family
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=cathys_clan&id=I03839
(23) BENTLEY, Allan Lewis of Doraville, GA—includes from prior to William (G1)George E. (G8). Allan Lewis Bentley the author of “Bentley Family History”—2001,
576 pages. Allan Bentley is connected to the Virginia, not Rhode Island, Bentleys.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=danielbsr&id=I02110
http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/b/e/n/Allan-L-Bentley/index.html
(24) TITUS, Dr. Frank J: “Descendants of William Bentley of Rhode Island” (abt
1906), See p. 1580 Stewart (11). Includes William G3-Green G5.
(25) BENTLEY, Elisha Tucker: “A Line of Descent from William Bentley, Jr.”
Satsuma Heights, FLA, 1895. See p. 1644 Stewart (11). Elisha the grandson of
Greene, Sr. (G5), son of Benjamin (the brother of Green, Jr.)
(26) AUSTIN, John Osborne: “The Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island (18491918), pub. 1887. See p. 1564 Stewart (11). Includes William (G3), William (G4),
Greene, Sr. (G5). Provided first chart of Rhode Island Benteys for research of Sarter
and Stewart.
(27) BENTLEY, Sean—Bellevue, WA. Shares with our branch William G1-William G3
before splitting to the brother of William (G4), Thomas. Sean visited the ancestral
home of the Bentleys in Bedfordshire, England in 2005 and was able to take a photo
of the 1632 will of Mary Goodwin Bentley and post it on his site.
http://s_s_bentley.home.comcast.net/ssb/bentleygen.html
(28) BROWN, John: “John Bunyan: His Life, Times, and Work (1887, 3d ed.
2007). John Bunyan the author of “Pilgrim’s Progress,” son of Margaret Bentley,
grandson of William Bentley (G1). Includes history of Elstow, William (G1) and his
mother Mary and wife Mary Goodwin and daughter Margaret, 1632 will of Mary
Goodwin Bentley.
John Brown was a Congregational minister who served at Park Chapel, Manchester,
England, from 1855 to 1864 and at Bunyan Church, Bedford, from 1864 to 1903
(during the time he wrote the Bunyan biography). He was the Lyman Beecher
lecturer at Yale in 1899. Brown wrote broadly in history and biblical studies but is
best known for his Bunyan work. He edited Bunyan’s “The Pilgrim Progress,” “Holy
War,” and Grace Abounding,” and Bunyan’s complete works for the Cambridge
University Press.
The Bunyan bio is available at amazon.com and online at:
http://books.google.com/books?id=88jSBdnTwF0C&pg=PA1&dq=john+Bunyan:++hi
s+life+times+and+work+by+John+Brown#PPP1,M1
(29) BENTLEY, Lawrence H. ----Provided research for William (G1)-Greene, Sr.
(G5). His branch splits after William (G4) to brother of Greene Sr (G5), John
Self published two volumes, Descendants of George and Descendants of John which
he distributed to others that are working on the Bentley Family and to the local
libraries.
(30) POPOVICH, Kathleen---Mascoutah, Illinois. Bob Glover’s “closest” Bentley
genealogy “cousin.” Great granddaughter of Ernest Cargill Bentley, the son of
George Cargill Bentley. She shares our branch from William (G1) through George
Cargill Bentley (G7). She then splits to the half-brother of George Eugene Bentley
(G8), Ernest Cargill Bentley. Provided extensive research for Daughter’s of the
American Revolution membership from Greene, Sr. (G5), Green, Jr. (G6), George
Cargill Bentley (G7) and then splits to the half-brother of George Eugene Bentley
(G8), Ernest Cargill Bentley.
----------U.S. Census 1790-1930
www.ancestry.com
www.rootsweb.com
www.familysearch.org
**Phone calls, emails and letters from family members
TEAM BENTLEY: KEY BENTLEY RESEARCHERS AND ADVISORS
Following is a profile of key contributors to “The Stories and History of the Bentley
Families.”
CAMERON RALPH STEWART: “The King of Bentley Genealogy”
Much of the key information on the early Bentleys from William (G1) to Greene, Jr.
(G5) used by researchers Elaine Cowan and Marlin Criddle, and for our work, came
from Cameron Stewart’s highly respected "Genealogical Classification by Family
Group Coding for Descent from Common Ancestors" (Vol I & II, copyright 1986
published by the author). (11) The massive volumes include over 3,000 pages,
covering over 150 Bentley names who are descendants of William (G1). Cameron
reviewed the work of previous researchers and did original research. He built upon
the work of Emilie Sarter (12), Julia Harrison Lobdell (10), and John Osborne Austin
(26). Stewart gifted copies of his books to many libraries and historical societies and
it is available on microfilm through the Church of the Latter Day Saints Family
History Library. We were able to purchase the two-volume book on ebay.
Cameron is a 12th Generation Bentley. He shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), and William of Rhode Island (G3). It is here where his branch splits from our
branch, following Thomas Bentley (1685-1778) rather than his brother, our William
Bentley, Jr (G4). From there, his line goes through Benjamin Bentley (b. 1714),
Samuel Bentley (b 1746), Reuben Bentley (b abt 1773), Miron Bentley (1798-1844),
Almira Bentley (1833-1922) and John Sarles (1830-1860), Sarah Sarles (18591949) and John Stewart (b 1857) , and his parents Ralph Stewart (1896-1983 )
and Vinnie Gjere (1899-1980).
Cameron is from New Ulm, MN, and now lives there as well as in Long Beach, CA. He
started his search for his family history in 1960 in Norway, where his mother’s
ancestors were from. Over the years, he went on to travel to Canada, Scotland,
England, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and
New York to research both of his parent’s ancestors (which included the Bentleys on
his father’s side). Stewart uncovered a few famous relatives in his research.
Included from his Norwegian relatives from Voss, Norway is the former U. of Notre
Dame star football player and championship coach Knute Rockne (played by Ronald
Reagan in the movie of his life). John Bunyan, author of the famous “Pilgrim’s
Progress,” was the son of Margaret Bentley, who was the daughter of William Bentley
(G1).
Cameron Stewart, a professional genealogist, has been a member of several
genealogical societies in the United States, Scotland, and Canada. He received his
B.S. Degree in chemistry and biology at the U. of North Dakota in 1951. He earned
the Master of Education Degree at UCLA in 1953. He was a high school science, math
and business teacher.
Cameron, as with Bob Glover, was a high school track and field athlete and captain
of an undefeated team. Cameron’s events were the shot put and discus. He was also
an Eagle Scout.
Cameron is a U.S. Navy, WWII veteran, and a Past Commander of CA Post 279 of
the American Legion in Temple City, CA. H. Ross Glover is also a Past Commander
of his post. Like Carl Burger, grandfather of Bob Glover and husband of Adelia
Bentley, Cameron was a member of the Masonic Lodge.
*********************************
EMILIE SARTER: “The Queen of Bentley Genealogy.”
Not much is known of Emilie. We assume she is the same Emilie Sarter who
according to the Social Security Death Index was born Nov 13, 1893 in New York,
and died in March 1976 in Boston, MA. We do know that she lived in Boston in 1947
when she was hired by William Perry Bentley, a descendant of William G3, to add to
the research done in 1905-1906 by William Perry Bentley’s brother Fred, and to
combine that with the research Sarter did for Harry Bentley of Boston (which he
started prior to 1929). The result was a 1949 typewritten compilation which was
later published by William Perry Bentley in 1953 as a printed book: “One Branch of
the Bentley Family of Rhode Island: The Ancestors and Descendants of William Perry
Bentley” by Emilie Sarter (Boston, 1953). (12) The first three generations of this
branch, starting with the Rhode Island Progenitor William G3 and then on to
Benjamin (brother of William G4) and William, was furnished by Miss Sarter.
Emilie wrote in the introduction: “It was established that this eighth generation
(being 8 generations from our William G3 to William Perry Bentley) were direct
descendants of the William Bentley who settled…..in Rhode Island---in 1678. As
there is no known printed genealogy of all his descendants, such accessible
manuscript and published works on Bentleys were carefully checked and collated and
yielded a surprising amount of accurate information.”
Much of Cameron Stewart’s work on the Rhode Island Bentleys was based on
Sarter’s original typewritten compilation, and thus serves as valuable information for
our Bentley reseach. Stewart wrote:
“In this searcher’s opinion, Emilie Sarter of Boston conducted thorough and
exhaustive research on the Rhode Island Bentleys from primary sources. The
precise wording of her interpretations of the primary-source data is set forth in her
typewritten compilation.”
We purchased a reprint of Sarter’s book through www.higginsonbooks.com. It is also
available on microfilm at the Genealogical Society Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.
*************************************
ELAINE COWAN
Much of the information in this work came directly or indirectly from the very
detailed research of Elaine Cowan as posted on her website. She is an 11th
generation Bentley who has been researching family history seriously for over two
decades. She shares with our branch William (G1), John (G2), William (G3), William
(G4), Green (G5), and Green (G6). Thus her research from the starting point of
Stewart and Sarter provided us with a wealth of information on our branch through
the 6th generation. Here she splits, going to the sister of George Cargill Bentley
(G7), Margaret Bentley Thiers (1818- 1912), and then on to George Thiers (18541919), Lawrence Thiers (1889-1931), Vivienne Thiers (1916-2000) and Edward
Cowan (1914-1995), and Elaine Cowan (born in Chicago, lives now in Carson City,
Nevada).
Elaine responded to Bob Glover’s query: “When did you start on the Bentley history
and what got you started?”
“My aunt got me started. She had been interested in family history since she was
a teen. She asked me to check at the Somerset House in London in 1969, for an
ancestor. But that place is NOT for research. You have to have the info and then they
will get you a copy of a birth, marriage, death certificate - or a Will etc.
I really got involved after I got my first computer ca 1985--a Commodore 64 (don't
laugh) for which there was a fairly decent Genealogy program. I wanted to stick just
to the immediate relatives but I later realized that my aunt had been right about
getting all info possible on the ancillary family members. Sometimes knowing names,
dates etc, of brothers, sisters, cousins, can be very helpful.
We went to the Family History Library in West Los Angeles and to the main Los
Angeles library and to the Federal record Center in Laguna Nigel. Also some other,
smaller libraries. Aunt Holly corresponded with our Kansas cousin - a Thiers. My
mom and aunt's father was a Thiers and it is from him that we have most of our
connections -- Bentley, Hopper, Rockwell, Cooper, back to all the Dutchies etc. My
aunt also wrote to and even visited some Bentleys when she vacationed in NY and
PA.
My aunt bought Stewart’s book in ca 1986, from the author, when it was first
published. Anyway, I have spent a small fortune on books, but mainly renting (and
a few times buying) microfilms. And 1000000000 hours staring at the things. I had
Stewart's book from my aunt. I sent it, and about 15 boxes of material, to my
cousin, when I quit genealogy I did -- I really did quit -- almost...........”
Ha! Bob Glover discovered her website (first posted over a decade ago, one of the
first Bentley sites), by far the most comprehensive and documented of any Bentley
sites, and soon conned her out of semi-retirement. Her frequent email
correspondence has been invaluable to this massive project as it sure isn’t as
efficient, and as much fun, working alone. Her constant critiques of our research has
been challenging. How comprehensive is her research? Her site includes over 130
Bentley names alone and she sent Bob Glover a research file that was 655 pages!
(6)
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=eofcc&id=I0356
********************
**********************************
SCOTT CHARLES RODE
In his search for Bentley genealogy, Bob Glover came across not one, but four
websites by Scott Rode (5) which included a wealth of Bentley family information.
After Bob Glover posted a note on the guest book for one of the sites, offering to
share information, Scott joined forces with Bob in an effort to clean up much of the
misinformation out there on the Internet about our family history. Thus, we have
coordinated our research and documentation of Bentley history and Scott has posted
the information on his family trees as well as attached this “Stories and History of
the Bentley Families.” It is our hope by so doing that others doing Bentley research
will benefit from our findings and offer information to further our work.
Scott is a 13th Generation Bentley. He shares with our branch William (G1), John
(G2), and William (G3). He then splits to the brother of William (G4), Thomas
(1685-1778), and then on to William Bentley (1710-1800), Tillinghast Bentley
(1735-1820), Thomas Bentley (abt. 1755-1796), Thomas Bentley (1787-1860),
Hiram Bentley (abt. 1831-1891), Frank Albert Bentley (1855-1919), Lewis Leslie
Bentley (1878-1942), Merle Viola Bentley (1903-2001) and Albert Francis Olson
(1898-1953), Dorothy Doreen Olson (b 1927) and Charles William Rode(1926-2007),
and to Scott Charles Rode born March 7, 1957 in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Scott has
two stepchildren (Christopher and Nicole Johnson), two children (Brandon and
Alexander), and is married to Bridgett Kelly Reasby Johnson. They live in Crystal,
Minnesota.
Scott Rode writes about how he got involved with genealogy:
“Back when I was a child I remember asking my parents and grandparents about our
families; the Rode’s and Bentley’s, and where they came from but all they could tell
me was that they were from Germany and that around the middle of the 1850’s they
sailed to Canada. My Grandmother Merle Viola (Bentley) Olson Bullock told me her
family came from England. My family has always lived in Minnesota in or around
Annandale, Wright County, Minnesota.
My involvement with genealogy started back in 2001 when my brothers, one sister
and my Mom were talking about past relatives and my Mom told me that she had the
lineage of her Bentley line, done by George and Violet Bentley. They lived in
Clearwater, MN and they did all of this with the help of Betty Sonnek of Waldorf, MN
in May of 1999. I have no other information concerning their resources or their
methods. At this time I got heavily into computers and started searching for family
on the Internet. Having a copy of the Bentley line from my mother, I decided to
chart the entire Bentley and Olson lineage.
First I put all of the data into the genealogy software program, FrontPage 2000. I
then found a site that I liked, Ancestry.com, and it’s sister site, Rootsweb with
Freepages. I then used FrontPage to create and upload my Bentley Tree. I then
charted all my family lineage on Family Tree Maker. That is when I truly began my
trek walking down the path of Genhood.”
Scott’s hobbies, when not chasing down Bentley ancestors, includes polishing—
something his deceased WWII veteran father Charles William Rode got his kids
involved with at an early age. He also enjoys agate hunting, writing and singing
music, playing guitar, and various challenging games including puzzles. Surely the
puzzle training is helpful with the genealogy.
He graduated from high school in Annandale, MN in 1976, enlisted in the Navy in
1976 and went to boot camp in San Diego, California. He was stationed in Norfolk,
Virginia aboard the USS America CV-66 aircraft carrier, which has been
decommissioned and now lays to rest off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia. Scott was
honorably discharged in 1980 as an IM E5 (Instrument Repairman Second Class
Petty Officer). After his discharge, he worked for several years as an Office Machine
Repair Technician in St Cloud, MN, then Denver, Colorado and back to the Twin
Cities, MN area. Scott then worked for Target in their downtown Minneapolis
headquarters, loading the Windows based operating system onto 10 to 20 computers
per day and setting them up at the Target employee’s desks. He now is a Furniture
Sales Consultant working for HOM Furniture in Coon Rapids, MN.
Scott’s family websites include nearly 20,000 indexed names, including many
Bentley ancestors. Bentley pages start with the parents of William G1 and go to the
present for the Scott Rode (Minnesota) and Robert H. Glover (South Dansville, NY)
branches
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=2032824&dnyref=1&pid=1868325814
http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=bentleyglover&id=I04081
http://scottrode.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=scottrode&view=9&rand=860
149560
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~williambentley1573/
*******************************
HAROLD ROSS GLOVER
H. Ross Glover wrote in his introduction to our family history books in 2007 at the
age of 82:
“This has been an ongoing project of mine since starting in 1999. I did the best I
could in obtaining the following information and have tried to write this family history
with the utmost accuracy.
Included is what information I received from many individuals and from reviewing
various historical records. I am aware that there are omissions and likely incorrect
or misspelled names, and perhaps some historical errors. Additions and corrections
are requested and would be appreciated as this is a “work in progress” to benefit our
families: past, present, and future. The accuracy of some of the information
compiled is only as good as the notes and memories of my best resource: family
members of those recorded.
I may have extended too far for some families, however what I attempted to do was
to incorporate all the families that have been associated with our families over time.
I am not a professional genealogist, but rather a proud family member doing my
best on behalf my beloved relatives.
If we had a little more foresight instead of so much hindsight, family members would
gather the information necessary for a genealogy while many of our ancestors are
alive and not wait until they are gone.
I have had help from so many people and families that I can’t begin to list the names
of all those who contributed. I want to pass on my thanks to all of those who made
this project possible. And God bless those who invented the e-mail
I hope that some of our family members will update and perpetuate this genealogy
and family history so that those who come after all of us present family members are
gone will have an account of their forefathers.”
In addition to writing many pages of family history and putting together extensive
family trees, Ross collected photos, clippings, and more for many years and has
stored them in several boxes and albums in “The H. Ross Glover Family History
Museum”-----that being his basement office. Further, he has taken over 1,000
digital photos of family gravestones so we can set up a virtual family cemetery as
well as document the inscriptions on the stones. Ross continues to clean up and
restore family gravesites at local cemeteries, and help with the continuing research
of our family histories.
H. Ross Glover was born Dec 2, 1924 in Canaseraga, Allegany Co., NY to Albert Ross
Glover (1892-1968), born in Grove, NY, and Daphne Gelser Glover (1895-1965),
born in Grove, NY. He married Corinne Harriet Burger (G11), of South Dansville,
Steuben Co., NY, on New Year’s Eve, 1945 in Dansville, N.Y. Corinne was born April
4, 1925 in Hornell, N.Y; and died Sept 11, 2006 in Rochester, NY. Her parents were
Carl Leo Burger (1897-1995), born in South Dansville, NY, and Adelia Martha Bentley
Burger (G10) (1902-1980), born in Auburn, NY. Ross and Corinne lived in Dansville,
Livingston Co., all of their married life—over 60 years. In December, 2006, Ross and
Corinne’s sons organized a 60th Wedding Anniversary party which Corinne---just 9
months before her death---described as the highlight of her life. Ross now lives in
Dansville and in North Port, Sarasota Co., Florida.
Ross left Canaseraga High School prior to graduating and was drafted into the U.S.
Army. At the age of 18, in March 1943, he was off to serve in WWII, not to return
until October,1945. Every day he was gone, Corinne Burger wrote to him. They
became engaged by proxy while he was oversees. His “education” then included
“tours” of the battlefront. In 2007, as part of New York State’s “Operation
Recognition” to honor the contributions of war veterans, he received his high school
diploma from Canaseraga Central School.
Ross served with the 36th Infantry Division as a machine gunner, advancing to a
section sergeant. He saw service in North Africa, Italy, France, Austria, and
Germany. He was wounded three times and nearly lost both feet to frostbite, but he
continued on in the foxholes of the front lines until the end of the war. He
participated in four invasions, including the disastrous Salerno and Anzio beachheads
in Italy, the invasion of Southern France, and the crossing of the Rhine River (which
took three attempts). Among several awards he received for his services: three
Purple Hearts for being wounded in battle; the Combat Infantryman’s Badge; Bronze
Star Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster; and the European African Middle Eastern
Campaign Medal, w/1Silver Star and 2 Bronze Stars indicating 7 Major Campaigns
and a Bronze Arrowhead indicating Amphibious Landings. Of the Salerno Beach
invasion he notes: “Our landing craft got hit. I couldn’t swim. But I learned to in a
hurry with 97 pounds of equipment on my back.” During one of his hospital stays
while recovering from his wounds he worked with and befriended former
heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis. Ross returned from the war on the Queen
Mary (which is now docked in Long Beach, CA where Bentley genealogist Cameron
Ralph Stewart lives).
After the war, Ross worked until retirement as an automobile/truck mechanic,
specializing in wheel alignment. He has been a member of Dansville’s Daniel Goho
Post 87 since 1945, and in 1970 was the first World War II member of the post to
receive the prestigious Life Membership Award. Over the years he has held
numerous offices and chairmanships at the post, county, and district level, including
Commander for both Post 87 and Livingston County, Vice Commander for the 7th
District, and Sergeant-at-Arms for the Department of New York. For many years he
served as the historian for Post 87. He was also active with the Post’s Boys State
program, American Legion youth baseball, and the White Sabers Drum and Bugle
Corps (with which he marched in many local parades as the Sergeant-of Arms of the
color guard, and drill sergeant for the drum corps). In both 1990 and 1995, Ross was
7th District (12 counties) Legionnaire of the Year, and runner-up for the New York
State Legionnaire of the Year award. Ross also was a longtime member of the Post’s
veteran cemetery council at Greenmount Cemetery in Dansville.
He was a coach with Little League Baseball, a founder and coach for Babe Ruth
League baseball, and was a key organizer for the Dansville American Legion baseball
program. He annually makes a presentation in honor of Veteran’s Day to local
school children.
*******************
ROBERT HAROLD GLOVER
Bob Glover is the primary researcher and the author of “The Stories and History of
the Bentley Families” as well as the stories and history of the Glover, Burger, Gelser,
and Cobin families. Thus far he has written over 500 pages of family history. He
first got involved with genealogy in the fall of 2005 when he volunteered to help his
father, H. Ross Glover, with the Glover-Gelser-Cobin family histories from his side of
the family. Ross had been working almost single-handedly since 1999 on these
projects. In 2006, Bob started to inquire of his mother’s, Corinne Burger Glover
(G11), family history, especially that of Bob’s beloved grandmother Adelia Bentley
Burger (G10). She was instrumental in Bob’s competitive spirit in sports, as she was
a fine and spirited athlete, and encouraged him to become the first in the family to
attend college. In fact, she saved up her social security payments to buy her
grandson a 24 volume set of the Encylopedia Britanicca. Being her first and favorite
grandchild, Bob became especially interested in the Bentley family history and thus
decided to complete this book first. Little did he know then, with knowledge only as
far back as his great grandfather Wilbur Bentley, how big a task he was beginning!
Bob is a 12th Generation Bentley. He is the son of Harold Ross Glover and Corinne
Burger Glover; father of Christopher Ross Glover; husband of Shelly-lynn Florence
Glover, grandson of Adelia Bentley Burger, g grandson of Wilbur Bentley; gg
grandson of George E. Bentley; ggg grandson of George C. Bentley; ggg g grandson
of Green Bentley, Jr.; ggg gg grandson of Green Bentley, Sr.; ggg ggg grandson of
William Bentley, Jr.; ggg ggg g grandson of William Bentley, Sr.; ggg ggg gg
grandson of John Bentley; ggg ggg ggg grandson of William Bentley (G1).
Bob was born November 17, 1946 in the Village of Dansville, Livingston Co., NY. He
graduated in 1964 from Dansville Central High School, where he was a member of
the National Honor Society. He won the Livingston County Two Mile Championship in
track his senior year. Bob graduated in 1968 from Oswego State College, Oswego,
N.Y. He was a Dean’s List student, with majors in history and creative writing (which
came in handy with this family history). After graduation, Bob was drafted into the
U.S. Army, where he served 2 yrs. and 9 months. He served for one year in the
Vietnam War, stationed in Phu Bai, near the border between North and South
Vietnam. Bob was a top secret special assistant to the Commanding General of the
XXIV Corps Artillery. There he helped with strategic military planning. His special
side project, besides volunteering with an orphanage in Hue, was organizing the
Vietnamese-American Sports Festival in Hue, RVN, in which he won gold medals in
the 400 meters on the track, and basketball. He was discharged as a Specialist 5
after serving as an education counselor at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Bob then served as the Sports Director of the Enterprise, Alabama, and Rome, NY
YMCAs, before taking the position of Fitness Director of the West Side YMCA in New
York City, the largest YMCA in the country at the time, in 1975. He formed his own
sports-fitness business in 1978, Robert H. Glover and Associates, Inc, which he still
directs. He founded in 1978 and still directs (with his wife Shelly) the adult running
classes and training programs for the 40,000+ member New York Road Runners Club
and the New York City Marathon. Over 4,000 students per year participate in their
programs from beginner runner to super competitive level. He also founded in 1990
and still directs (with Shelly) the youth track program, City Sports for Kids, for the
New York Road Runners Foundation. This program at the New Balance Armory in
New York City serves over 1,000 kids per year.
The competitive running teams he has coached have won many local, national and
international titles in the open and masters categories, ranging from 5K to the
marathon. Several of his individual athletes have been state and nationally ranked,
ranging from high school athletes to age 90+ ancient warriors. His present team
(which he coaches with Shelly), the Greater New York Racing Team, has 150
members ranging from age 12 to 93 and is ranked in the top 5 for both men and
women in the open, age 40+, 50+, and 60+ team categories for the New York Road
Runners. The men’s age 60+ team, on which Bob is a key scorer, is ranked #1 in
the New York Metropolitan area.
Bob, in association with Shelly, has written or is in the process of writing 15 books
on running and fitness with Viking-Penguin Books. They have over one million of
their books in print, more than any other running book author in the world. Their
books have been translated into German, Spanish, Italian, Polish, and Portuguese.
Bob’s first book, “The Runner’s Handbook,” was the #1 trade paperback bestseller of
all categories when released in 1978.. The third edition of that book and the third
edition of “The Competitive Runner’s Handbook” are both ranked in the top 10 best
selling running books. Each of these comprehensive reference books are over 600
pages. His “Runner’s Training Diary” is ranked in the top 3 best sellers in that
category. Bob and Shelly are currently working on the 4th editions of “The Runner’s
Handbook” and “The Competitive Runner’s Handbook,” as well as two new
additions: “The Marathon Runner’s Handbook,” and “The Masters Runner’s
Handbook.”
Bob continues to run road races and has won numerous age group awards over the
years. He has completed 36 marathons, has raced up Mount Washington and the
Empire State Building , and completed a 50 mile track race. He performs at a
regional class in the age 60 and over division for distances from one mile to the
marathon.
Bob’s son from a previous marriage, Christopher Ross Glover, was born in 1981 in
New York City. Chris is a 13th Generation Bentley and lives across the Harlem River
from Yankee Stadium in the Washington Heights section of New York City in a
historic landmark district of wooden rowhouses built in 1882. The houses line a
cobblestone street near a historic mansion overlooking Central Manhattan that
George Washington used as his Revolutionary War headquarters during the 1776
Battle of Harlem Heights. Chris graduated from Bard College, where he studied
music, drama, film, and creative writing in preparation for a career in the performing
arts. He writes and produces his own songs and plays guitar, bass, keyboard, piano,
saxophone and drums. Chris signed a contract as a singer-songwriter of pop-rockrap music with Interscope Records/Universal Music, one of the most prestigious
record labels in the world. Chris was entertained by the chairmen of all the major
labels before choosing Interscope. His first album, “Hell Isn’t Even That Funny,” was
never released---Chris was yet another victim of the music industry’s decline. He is
presently playing with a band in New York City while producing an album with an
independent label, and writing songs for commercial use. Some of his songs, music
video, and bio are available at www.myspace.com/chrisglover
Bob married Shelly Florence of Canisteo, Steuben Co., NY in 1995 in Sleepy Hollow,
NY. Shelly was instrumental in the research of this work. She graduated from
Buffalo State College, where she was a member of their first women’s cross country
team, with a degree in journalism. Shelly is a lifetime member of the Kanisteo
Historical Society, and a member of the Tarrytowns and NYC Historical Societies.
She has a masters degree in applied physiology from Columbia University, where her
research was selected for publication and presentation by the American College of
Sports Medicine. Shelly competes as a masters athlete in races from 5K to the
marathon, often placing for awards. She is a volunteer with the Tarrytown Historical
Society, and is presently working on the genealogy of her Benedict and Florence
ancestors.
Bob and Shelly live in Sleepy Hollow (formerly North Tarrytown), just up from the
Old Dutch Church Cemetery where “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” author
Washington Irving is buried and his “Headless Horseman” was last seen chasing
Ichabod Crane along the Pocantico River.
Bob and Shelly live in Sleepy Hollow (North Tarrytown), Westchester Co., NY just up
from the Old Dutch Church Cemetery where “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” author
Washington Irving is buried and his “Headless Horseman” was last seen chasing
Ichabod Crane along the Pocantico River.
http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/person.aspx?tid=3454472&pid=-1725182675