Time Travel in Toledo, Ohio

with Kelley Amstutz, The Genealogy Investigator

The Hartshorn Family

For the month of MAY, I really wanted to HIGHLIGHT my own family heritage and I am starting off with the:

HARTSHORN BRANCH

Thomas Hartshorn (1817-1887)

4x Great Grandfather

Thomas is where our story begins on the Hartshorn line, as he was the immigrant who came to America. His story is about FAMILY, as his decision to cross the Atlantic Ocean stems from his daughters ailments, my 3rd great-grandmother, Harriet Hartshorn-Adkins.

Thomas Hartshorn’s story begins back in 1816, when a baker and his wife, by the name of Hartshorne were living in Shropshire, England. On Christmas Day in 1817 they welcomed a baby boy, whom they named THOMAS.

Thomas grew up in a background full of romance and history. He chose to be a cabinetmaker, which he would master his trade throughout his lifetime.

When he was twenty-three years old, he fell in love and married Elizabeth Rogers, the daughter of Thomas and Martha Rogers, on the 22nd of October 1840 in Clungunford, Shropshire, England. Elizabeth was a dressmaker and worked in the same small town as Thomas.

As a young couple, they went to live with Elizabeth’s Uncle, in a stone cottage on a farm, which belonged to one of the landed gentry of Stropshire.

But, as the story goes, Shropshire was becoming uncomfortable for Thomas and Elizabeth. Their daughter, Harriet, was sickly since infancy and the old village doctor was telling the couple that “a trip across the ocean would bring health” to Harriet. The Church officials were even putting pressure on the town, showing zero tolerance for anyone who was not following Methodism.

And the final straw for Thomas and Elizabeth had been the band of gypsies foraging Stropshire. Thomas and Elizabeth had even been robbed, noticing the disappearance of a prized pewter dish that was missing from the dining room shelf.

Thomas then received a letter from his old pal, Jones, who had made the travels to America and was writing to relay the freedom and the opportunities that were waiting for the young family.

This is when the course of the Hartshorn’s history would change forever.

Thomas brought Elizabeth and their 4 children to America in June of 1851 at the port of New York, immediately making their way to Maumee, Ohio, where their friend, Jones, was running a grist mill.

Unfortunately, Thomas's wife, Elizabeth, John Morris and Thomas would not live past 1851-1852 and died in Toledo, Ohio.

It has been two weeks before landing, when Harriet came down with the measles. When the family set foot in New York, Elizabeth, John and Thomas were all showing signs that they had contracted the disease. Within the first year, eight year old Harriet was without a mother, left to keep charge of her younger sister; Thomas was the only parent to two young girls. Thomas moved his small family to the center of Maumee on Main Street. He married Ms. Basin, who lived only even months after their union, dying at the birth of their child. The child did not live, either.

In 1855, Thomas again married a Mrs. Kathleen Knull. She had been a widow and they would go on to have three more children. The marriage was a happy one and they moved their combined family to Toledo, Ohio in 1857, settling for a short time.

Harriet, my 3rd great-grandmother met and married Joseph Adkins on the 15th of January 1858, when the family was living in Toledo. After her marriage, Thomas moved the rest of his family to Perrysburg, Ohio in Wood County.

In 1861 Thomas Hartshorn enlisted in the 100th Regiment of the O.V.I. He served for three years in the army, but he was disabled and could not participate in active service. He was discharged and returned to Perrysburg, taking an active part in Church and Village affairs.

On the 20th of September, 1887, Thomas Hartshorn died.

According to his death certificate, the cause was by drowning. It was listed as a suicide, although there wasn’t any evidence to prove this.

Thomas as visiting the families of his sons-in-law, Joseph Adkins and James Patton, the husbands of Harriet Hartshorn Adkins and Elizabeth Hartshorn Patton. One famiy lived at the east end of the Cherry Street Bridge and the other family lived in the west end.

As Thomas crossed over the Cherry Street bridge from one house to the other, he somehow fell over the side of the embankment and slid headfirst about twenty feet before falling into the water. Three men nearby pulled him out of the water and tried to revive him, but were unsuccessful. The coroner pronounced him death at the scene.

Thomas’ invalid son, Solomon Hartshorn, came from Perrysburg and brought his father’s body home for a funeral service and burial. Thomas was laid to rest in the Fort Meigs Cemetery in Perrysburg, Ohio in the Civil War section, Block 2, Site 75, Lot 4.

Are you curious about your #familyhistory?

Why not schedule a FREE consultation with me, Kelley Amstutz, The Genealogy Investigator, and we can talk about your project today! I have some great specials going on now!

Listen to the PODCAST:

CRIME TRAVEL IN TOLEDO, OHIO

This podcast is for the TRUE CRIME fanatic who is interested in old crime stories taking place in and around Toledo, Ohio. Caution: Some of these crimes are GRAPHIC!

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