John BERRY

Notes:

As indicated on this family tree, our ancestor John Berry was most likely a son of John Berry Hickman, a Revolution War pensioner, c1763 - 25 June 1843. In his will of 1843, three children of his son John Berry are mentioned (see notes below). According to his pension file, John Berry Hickman (alias John Berry Sr.) resided in Accomack Co., VA.

See notes for John Hickman Berry, father of John Berry, Jr. This family needs further research.

The following notes are from the Miles Files: "John was born circa 1790 at Accomack Co, VA. He was the son of John Berry (Hickman). John died before 14 June 1843. John was named in his father's will on 14 June 1843 at Accomack Co, VA. It was on this date that the will of John Berry Sr. called for the the 3 children of my son John Berry to have $100 each. (NOTE: This probably indicates that his son John was deceased). Source citation: [S688] III Barry W. Miles & Moody K. Miles, Wills and Administrations of Accomack County, Virginia, 1800-1860, p. 60 (will of John Berry Sr.)."

Website:
http://www.espl.org/research.htm
http://espl-genealogy.org/Miles7/p1189.htm#i49249

John & Maria had three children who presumably were still living as of June 1843, according to the will of John's father. (source: M.K. & Barry Miles in Miles Files Version 7, Eastern Shore Public Library website)

John married Maria HOLLAND 9 Oct 1822, Worchester County, MD. Maria was born Abt 1800, VA or MD. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In Sarah's birth record at New Bedford, MA, John's birthplace is given as North Carolina.

However, Eliza Virginia's birth record says he was born in Horntown, VA.

In the 1855 MA State Census, John H. Berry 27 VA seaman and Eliza Berry 22 MA are living in New Bedford.

In the Federal Census of 1860, John H. Berry is 29, his wife Eliza is 25, daughter Sarah M. M. is 2, and son John is 6 months. John H. Berry is a seaman, and his birthplace is given as South Carolina. The family is living in Ward 6, Fall River, Bristol Co., MA.

In 1863, John H. Berry 40 VA mariner is on a Civil War Draft Registration List from Fall River. I think it's he, but the age should be closer to 30, not 40.

In the 1865 RI State Census, the family is in Ward 5, District 73, Providence: John H. Berry 33 SC mariner, Eliza A. 30 MA, Sarah M. 8 MA, John H. Jr 5 MA, and Eliza V. 3 mos.

In the Federal Census on 5 Apr or Aug 1870, John H. Berry 38 and Eliza A. Berry 33 are living in Ward 5, Providence with their children Sarah 13, John H. 10, and Eliza V. 5. A young man, Charles Iakeray (?), is boarding with them. John's occupation is given as "whaler." Again, his birthplace is given as South Carolina, but his marriage certificate and ship's crew list both say he was born in Sandy Hill, MD. Perhaps his parents lived in both places at various times. The family is living near John W. & Mehitable Butts, ages 64 & 60. Could they be related to Eliza? (According to a genealogy at Rootsweb, this is John Wood Butts & Mehitable Wentworth.)

At one time, Providence was a port for 9 whaling ships (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/55152/55152-h/55152-h.htm).

My mom, Edna, at one time thought her grandfather John was born in North Carolina. I haven't been able to positively determine where he was born. However, the birth record of my grandfather, John Holland Berry, says that his father John H. Berry was a seaman, born in South Carolina. This agrees with the census information.

Notice in Fall River Daily News 29 July 1871 shows that John died before daughter Jennie died: "In Providence, 28th, Jennie, daughter of Eliza A. and the late John H. Berry, aged 6 years, 4 months and 20 days"

John probably died at sea. This needs more research to confirm. It is clear that he died sometime between the 1870 Federal Census and the time of his daughter's death as reported on 29 July 1871, noted above.

By 1875 Eliza Berry is a widow, still living in Providence, along with daughter Sarah 18, son John H. 15 (a jeweler), and granddaughter Ada (illegitimate). Eliza later remarries, to Leon Allison.

"I found a reference in an old book called 'Old Somerset on the Eastern Shore of Maryland,' by Torrence, which said Sandy Hill was 10 miles south of Snow Hill, MD . . . Snow Hill is at the head of navigation on the Pocomoke River, so a few hundred years ago when ship travel was the norm, folks could get from the Virginia Counties on the Eastern Shore up to Snow Hill fairly easy." (from M. K. Miles, compiler of Miles Files Version 7 on the Eastern Shore Public Library Web Site)

"Abstract of Protections granted to American Seamen at the Port of New York, during the 1st Qtr of 1844: 25 Jan 1844, John Berry age 16, height 5'5", light complexion, nativity: Chincoteague Virginia

Horntown, VA, is on the VA Eastern Shore near Chincoteague Bay. Horntown Road leads there from Rt. 13.

Sandy Hill, MD, being about 10 miles south of Snow Hill, must be over the border from Horntown into MD, about adjacent to Purnell Bay or Parker Bay.

Sandy Hill is now known as Girdletree, according to some records. Girdletree is on Rt. 12 in MD, just north of Horntown, VA.

The property owned by John's grandfather James Berry was in Accomack County, VA, east of US Rt. 13 between Mappsville and Temperanceville.

John H. Berry is on numerous whaling crew lists for New Bedford; at least two of these give his residence/birthplace as Sandy Hill, MD. He was 5'7" tall with brown hair and florid (reddish or flushed) complexion.

John married Eliza Ann ELSBREE 19 Sep 1853, New Bedford, Bristol Co., MA. Eliza (daughter of Benjamin ELSBREE and Hannah BUTTS) was born 5 Nov 1832, Fall River, Bristol Co., MA; died 4 Jan 1913, Providence, RI; was buried , Oakland Cemetery, Cranston, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Sarah is age 18 in the 1875 Federal Census. She is living with her widowed mother in Providence, along with her brother John, and (probably) her daughter Ada, age 1. Beside Ada's name is written "granddaughter, illegitimate."

In 1880 she is married to George L. Nottage, and has three daughters.

I have wondered if Sarah's middle name was Maria, after her paternal grandmother. One family tree has her middle name as Malvina. One of her daughters has the middle name Melvina, so possibly that was it.

Our grandfather named a daughter Sarah Melvina Berry.

Sarah married George Longley Nottage 11 Apr 1876, RI. George (son of John Sterry Nottage and Rebeckah Maria Beazley) was born Jun 1854, Providence, RI; died 12 Jul 1935, CA. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

John's birth record at Fall River identifies his parents as John H. and Eliza A.; father's occupation seaman; father's birthplace South Carolina; mother's birthplace Fall River. (Fall River Vol.123: Pg.108)

John's marriage record to Lillie E. Shippee names his parents as John Berry & Eliza A. Elsbree. (Attleborough Vol.352: Pg.83)

John was 52 when married in September of 1912, and 70 when he died. However, the marriage certificate gives his age as 59, and the gravestone appears to give his birth year as 1854. However, the official record for his second marriage in July 1884 gives his age as 24, more in agreement with the 1859 date as recorded at Fall River, MA.

In the 1870 Federal Census, census, he is age 10, and in 1875 he is 15. At the age of 15 he is listed as a jeweler on the census.

In 1880 he and Mabel are living in Providence; he is 20 and she is 16. John "works in jewelry.".

In 1900, John H. Berry and his third wife, Laura, are living at 222 Swan St. in Providence. With them is "Eliza Alison," John's widowed mother. John's occupation is given as "silversmith." According to census data, John & Laura have been married 3 years; and, at age 19, Laura has had three children, none of whom is still living.

In the 1910 Federal Census, John & Nellie are living at 10 Bowditch Place, Providence, with their two young daughters, Helen & Loretta. The census data states that they have been married four years, and that this is a second marriage for both. Grandma Allison, age 77, is in the home. John is a silversmith in a jewelry shop, and Nellie is a bench hand in a jewelry shop.

In actuality, they were officially married in 1912, and it was a fourth marriage for John, and a second marriage for Ellen. Apparently they had been together since 1906.

From my mom, Edna:
"Both my parents worked in making jewelry, and of course you know that until recently RI was the jewelry capital of the world. That bracelet I gave you once was made of yellow gold by my father as a gift for my mother. For graduation gifts for Helen and Loretta, he gave them watches with bands made by either himself or where he worked. He gave me a bracelet which I still have, though not for graduation, since he had died by then. He had made that also. Elsie had a pendant with a semi-precious stone."

At one time I thought maybe our grandparents had twins that died. John & Ellen Berry had boy/girl twins who were born 27 Oct 1923 in Providence. They both died two hours later. However, the death records for these infants show that the parents lived in Pawtucket and were born in Scotland. There is a another couple named John & Ellen Berry in the 1930 census, living childless in Pawtucket; according to the census data they were married c 1924.

John married Mabel Frances Collins 30 Dec 1879, RI. Mabel (daughter of Asel Collins and Helen M. Unknown) was born Between 1863 and 1864, RI; died 31 Dec 1883, Providence, RI. [Group Sheet]

John married Lillie Eveline Shippee 26 Jul 1884, Attleborough, Bristol Co., MA. Lillie (daughter of George Shippee and Mary C. Wilcox) was born 28 Mar 1867, Cranston, Providence Co., RI; died Aft 1 Jan 1920. [Group Sheet]

John married Laura A. Blanchard 13 Oct 1897, Providence, RI. Laura was born Jul 1880, Coventry, Kent Co., RI; died 14 May 1918, Providence, RI. [Group Sheet]

John married Ellen COLEMAN 10 Sep 1912, Providence, RI. Ellen (daughter of Joseph COLEMAN and Elizabeth SLACK) was born 4 Apr 1877, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England; died 26 Oct 1953, Warwick, RI; was buried , North Burial Ground, Providence, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

The death record at Fall River says Eliza died at Cranston from infant cholera, age 3 mos 21 days.

Notes:

The birth record at Providence City Hall says she is the fourth child born to this couple. For place of birth it says: "Cov Hosp & Allen." John H. Berry's birthplace is given as Horntown, VA; Eliza A. Berry's birthplace is given as Fall River, MA.

Eliza is with the family in the 1870 Federal Census, but not with her widowed mother in the RI State Census of 1875.

The death record says she died at age 6.

Ada married George Augustus Sprague 11 Feb 1890, RI. George was born Nov 1867; died 24 Apr 1929. [Group Sheet]

Cora married William Francis Cook 23 Oct 1895, RI. William (son of John Cook and Sarah E. Unknown) was born Nov 1865, RI; died 5 Nov 1937; was buried , Pocasset Cemetery, Dyer Ave., Cranston, RI. [Group Sheet]

Jennie married Frank C. May 10 Jul 1895, RI. [Group Sheet]

Mabel married John Earl Griffin 26 Feb 1902. John was born 5 Apr 1876, Providence, RI; died 17 May 1951, Warwick, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

A transcribed birth record I have has his dob as 27 Mar 1883.

Notes:

Danielle Davis-El Khoury has Lenora's year of birth as 1886.

A transcribed birth record I have has Lenore's birth date as 31 Dec 1885.

Leonora married Walter P. Stinchfield 21 Feb 1907, RI. Walter was born Abt 1880, ME. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In 1910 Sadie M. Nottage is age 22 and living in Ward 4, Providence, RI. She is a lodger on Lyman St., and is a nurse.

Sarah married William G. Rowney 22 Jun 1916. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In the 1910 census Arthur D. Nottage is on the USS CHARLESTON, Kobe, Japan (military).

In 1920 he is living in Riverside, RI, and is married to Emma C.

In 1930 they are on Sherman Street, East Providence, RI. However, his name is given as Alfred D. Nottage.

Arthur married Emma Christiana Peterson 26 Nov 1914, Warren, Bristol Co., RI. Emma was born 20 Aug 1895, Barrington, RI; died 1957; was buried , Prince's Hill Cemetery, Barrington, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In the 1910 census, Clifton S. Nottage is listed as "USS KANSAS, US NAVY, MIL."

In 1930 the family is in Los Angeles, CA.

Clifton married Lula E. Talbot 5 Dec 1914, Los Angeles, CA. Lula was born 29 Sep 1890, TX; died 12 Aug 1977, CA. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In 1900, Sarah M. Berry is 18, a cementer at rubber works, living in Providence with either her maternal grandmother Helen M. Collins or her aunt of the same name -- the birth date and age do not agree; also with Caroline E. Collins 62 MA.

In 1905 Sarah is age 23 and boarding in Providence.

Sarah married Willis Gleason 11 Jul 1906, Providence, Providence Co., RI. Willis (son of Joseph W. Gleason and Arabella C. Hobbs) was born 11 Apr 1872, Brookfield, MA; died 27 May 1944; was buried , North Cemetery, Sturbridge, MA. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

In the Federal Census of 1900, Florence is living with her mother and stepfather, Lillie & Edward Twiss, and their two children, Lillie & Everett. They appear in the census twice, in both Providence (Ohio Ave.) & East Providence (street illegible).

Notes:

I am not absolutely certain that Evelyn belongs to our grandfather, John Holland Berry. However, I have placed her here, based on two factors: 1) John H. is living with Laura A. (identified as his wife) in the 1900 census, and 2) Providence birth records show the birth of Evelyn to John H. & Laura A. Berry in 1900. There could be another couple with the exact same names, but it is a reasonable assumption that Evelyn was born to our grandfather.

Notes:

The name on Helen's birth record is Ellen.

Helen married Albert W. Kettell 20 Apr 1935, Providence, RI. Albert (son of Edward Peter Kettell and Florence M. Diana) was born 2 Oct 1908, PA; died 17 Apr 1990, PA. [Group Sheet]

Loretta married Pasco Mitola Abt 12 Jun 1943. Pasco (son of Vincenzo Mitola and Antonetta Andreano) was born 6 Feb 1912, Providence, RI; died 22 Jun 1995, Warwick, RI. [Group Sheet]

Elsie married Wallace David Powers 5 Oct 1951, Providence, RI. Wallace (son of Philo Powers and Aurilla "Rilla" May Hanson) was born 31 Mar 1915, Brownington, VT; died 15 May 2003, Colorado Springs, CO; was buried , Highland Memorial Park, Johnston, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

My Mom says:
Until I was about ten years old, the only heat we had as I remember was the kitchen stove. On Saturday nights we took our baths in a big tin tub such as we have in our back yard here. We had our hair washed and fine combed to see if we had acquired any critters during the week at school. My parents slept in a room off the kitchen, but the rest of us were upstairs in two bedrooms where there was no heat. I think we closed off the parlor most of the time. It was a very small house.

Mom noted in her birthday book that she was born on a Monday.

Edna married Norman Chester REMINGTON 6 Sep 1941, Providence, RI. Norman (son of Chester Philip REMINGTON, Sr. and Laura Russel CHAFEE) was born 6 Aug 1918, Coventry, RI; died 21 May 2007, Providence, RI; was buried 24 May 2007, Woodland Cemetery, Washington & Knotty Oak Sts., Coventry, RI. [Group Sheet]