The Hyphen Family Lineage

[Obituary for Margaret Middleton, from The Fort Wayne Daily News, 6 Jul 1916.]

Mrs. Margaret Middleton, widow of Thomas Middleton, died this morning ar 7 0'clock at the residence of a daughter, Mrs. Ellis Mausnest, Oliver street, at the age of 68 years.

The deceased was a native of Scotland and was born there July 13, 1848, but has been a resident of this country for many years. Her husband, Thomas Middleton, who was a properous farmer of Jeffferson township, preceeded her in death eight years ago. Soon after his death she left the farm and has been making her home with her children since that time.

The following eight children survive: Mrs. Frank Fox and Mr. Verne Middleton of Van Wert; Mrs. J Stoneman, Mrs. J. Walterich, George Middleton, Mrs. Ellis Mausnest and Charles Middleton, of Fort Wayne and Mrs. Louis Cayot, of Jefferson township.

There are also twenty-one grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

[Obituary for Mrs. Margaret Middleton, from the Fort Wayne Sentinel, 12 Jul 1916, p7.]

[headline] LIVED IN JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP FOR YEARS
[2nd headline] Mrs. Margaret Middleton Dies at Home of Daughter on Oliver Street

Margaret Middleton, 68 years old, widow of the late Thomas Middleton, died at 7 o'clock Thursday morning at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Ellis Mausnest, 2028 Oliver street, from a complication of diseases. The deceased had been in declining health for some time.

Mrs. Middleton left her farm in Jefferson township eight years ago, shortly after the death of her husband, and since that time has been living with her children. She had been with her daughter, Mrs. Mausnest, for the past sixteen months. She was born in Scotland, coming to this country when a young girl.

She is survived by nine children, four boys and five daughters, as follows: Mrs. Frank Fox and Vern Middleton, of Van Wert, Ohio; Mrs. J. Waltrick, Joseph Middleton, Mrs. J. Stoneman, Mrs. Ellis Mausnest and Charles Middleton, of Fort Wayne; Mrs. Louis Cayot, of Jefferson township, and Thomas Middleton, of Pontiac, Mich. She also leaves twenty-one grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Funeral services Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock at the home of the daughter, Mrs. Mausnest. Interment in the I.O.O.F. cemetery, New Haven.

Note: Margaret Middleton's maiden name and birthplace

In the early points of researching this branch of the family, I had very little information on Thomas and Margaret Middleton and their origins. One of my earliest finds was some information published by Susan S. Armour on her genealogy.com-hosted website on the Shivers Family history. On the page about Margaret, Susan presented a copy of the relevant obituary from the Fort Wayne Daily News (6 Jul 1916) and in her notes she names the woman Margaret Sturgeon based on a Warrick Cty, Indiana marriage record for a Matilda E. Middleton. On her notes, she goes on to say that she's assumed this Matilda is the daughter of Thomas and Margaret, and further down the page she admits to some confusion sorting through the children, as there seemed to be conflicting marriage records for some of the daughters of Thomas and Margaret.

I didn't question this naming position until researching the matter more deeply myself, mostly to try and sort out the identity of their daughter from whom I'm descended (Beatrice, named in the earliest census record in 1880 as "Amelia"). I also hadn't previously mapped out the family's residence locations, either for the immigrant couple and their family or the subsequent generations, and so hadn't questioned the record from Warrick Cty. The first records that raised some questions were the marriage records for several of the first American generation (the children of Thomas and Margaret) - a few simply give Margaret's married name, while most give her maiden name as Margaret Edwards.

One of the points of confusion for Susan was the lack of distinction between the oldest daughter Mary Catherine (born in Scotland) and middle daughter Mary Matilda (born in Indiana) - the latter being called by her middle name in most records and apparently in her daily life. Susan might have thought these records referred to the same woman, instead of two separate sisters.

Additionally, the marriage record from Warrick Cty almost certainly applies to a different family entirely - the Middleton family that applies to this line lived (with few exceptions) within Allen Cty, Indiana for the span of this and two or more subsequent generations. Those few that did leave that area moved mostly to the surrounding counties in Indiana, to Van Wert Cty in Ohio, or to Pontiac, Oakland Cty, Michigan. None appear to have lived in Warrick Cty, Indiana, which is nearly the entire state away - Allen Cty is in north-eastern Indiana next to the Ohio state line, while Warrick Cty is in far south-western Indiana, near Illinois and next to the Kentucky state line. It should also be noted that the Warrick Cty marriage record gives the bride (named only by the surname Middleton) as born in Kentucky, where Thomas and Margaret had never lived.

I've noted a few online resources (notably on Ancestry.com) naming her Margaret Wallace, but I've not ever found sources for those and have assumed them to be incorrect.

Her birthplace is also in some question. Most of the records and resources I can find (including those that would have been addressed by either her husband Thomas, such as census records, or by her children in their census and marriage records) give her birthplace as Scotland. The notable exception is the 1880 US Census, where her birthplace is given as Gibraltar while her parents are noted as being born in Scotland (father) and Ireland (mother). I've not yet located an actual birth record for her, nor her parents' names or origins.