Zachariah Taylor’s son, Addison is listed as the “owner” of Thomas Allen on his military file. Thomas Allen listed Foster Ray as his former enslaver on all of his official papers.  Why? What was the connection between Taylor and Foster?
After looking for a marriage between their children and finding none, I looked for a relationship between their wives. Again, none.
Then I noticed that a Prudence Peters showed up on both of the trees. I went back several generations, I found that Addison Taylor’s paternal grandparents were Zachariah Taylor and Prudence Peters. After Zachariah died in 1797, Prudence married Foster Ray’s widowed grandfather Nicholas Ray. Nicholas’ first wife Susan Sheckles, was Foster Ray’s grandmother.
Nicholas Ray and Prudence had one child together, Samuel Taylor Ray. Both Foster’s and Addison’s fathers were Samuel’s brothers and he would have been both Addison’s and Foster’s uncle, making them cousins by family if not by blood.
I will never be able to read family trees. Too complicated for me.
Congratulations on completing the challenge! It was a good one. I’m very much in awe of how much one can learn from archives… if they know how to use them. And you obviously are 😉
I’ll see you around!
@JazzFeathers
The Old Shelter – 1940s Film Noir
Not nearly as complicated as your analysis of noir films! The lines between a man and a woman indicate marriage. The lines from their line to a person in the next row (generation) show that that was their child. Prudence was married to both Zacharia Taylor and Nicholas Foster SR. These couples produced 3 sons (at least) and so on and so forth. Thanks for visiting and I really enjoyed the film noir!
Wow – that is brilliant research. I long to be able to research my family trees but simply haven’t had a minute, I suspect just starting would help! Hope you enjoyed the A-Z this year – I am PRAYING they don’t keep it like this.
Starting is a good place to begin 🙂 Ask any family members in the generations before you lots of questions, try and think of those you will wish you had asked when it’s too late! Good luck.
Many congratulations on completing the Challenge! And acing it with such a formidable theme too, that calls for major applause.
Best wishes always,
Nilanjana.
I’m glad I finally stopped researching long enough to write up 26 posts! I tend to go off and get lost in it.
Congratulations on completing the A to Z Challenge — and with another incredible find about Thomas Allen’s life. This one illustrates yet again why he would want to change his surname, and how outrageous it was to put him through hoops when he applied for his Union Army pension after that affirmative name change. Thanks for visiting/commenting on my blog. Hope we can keep this up during the year.
Me too! I have you in my feedly (as I do everyone I followed this a to z) and will be checking in on you.
Your A-Z was fascinating. Nice work getting through all the letters.
Phillip | Z is for Zines Zoinks! I made it to the end!
Thanks Phillip. I will be trying doing a little Zine.
Congratulations Kristin! You completed the challenge and have given us interesting insight into how complicated genealogy can be. I am impressed with your dedication to it and with how you found links between people, like today’s. Way to go!
Emily | My Life In Ecuador | Zoo – I live in one!
I keep looking and looking, and often, a link will turn up. Sometimes when I don’t even expect a link.
What an interesting post. I have always found tracing lineage interesting, but I have not tried to do it myself (for mine or anyone else). However, at some point I would like to try. Well it is the end of A to Z, thanks for sharing.
Stopping by from A to Z: Zonked
Shari
Hard to believe it’s really over, but thank goodness it is!
Congratulations on finishing such a detailed A-Z. All these people found by such detailed genealogical research – there such be a prize for this.
The prize is all that information the connections and new ways of looking at the research I come up with.
It must be a wonderful feeling when you’re suddenly able to make a connection and have a breakthrough like that. 🙂
Cait @ Click’s Clan
It is! It wasn’t really suddenly because I spend a lot of time looking and figuring and looking again. Sort of like sudden success usually has a string of hard work before it 🙂
What a great post to finish on. I’ve been quietly dropping in and out and I am in awe of the amount of work you must have put into each letter.
Thank you for visiting. Way too much time on the computer here. I’m thinking there must be a nice short post something I can do next challenge!
Definitely not an easy relationship to figure out but your persistence paid off 🙂
Congratulations on pulling together some fascinating research and presenting it so well.
Best wishes
Anne
Thanks Anne and thanks for being so interested in my research.
Congratulations on all the hard work and research you’ve done during the A to Z, Kristin. You’ve learned so much along the way, and it was fun to watch the process! Isn’t it nice to finally reach Z and hit publish? Today is an ahhhhhh feeling! 🙂
Z is for Zadie – the conclusion to my A-Z serial story “Circle of Hope”
It is, it’s GREAT! 🙂
Once again I am awed by your in-depth research and attention to detail. There are so many incredible stories and fascinating histories to be told here, I really do hope you continue to uncover them and collect them for future generations. As much fun as digging this stuff up is for you, I’m sure your descendants and future scholars would appreciate it if you left it in an organized fashion for them!
You mean not in binders and papers and boxes? So far this blog is as organized as it’s gotten.
Wow, that’s a pretty impressive find. Great job with the research, and for finishing the challenge, too!
Thanks Sara!
I know people weren’t thinking of A to Z when they named their kids, but thank goodness for the names like Zachariah. Congratulations for making through the Challenge. You picked a tough theme for your Challenge, but you pulled it off grandly. Nice going!
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
I’m already thinking of a short theme for next year. And yes, Zachariah and Zeke are wonderful names 🙂