Natural Disasters and Family Misfortunes 12: 1811-12 New Madrid Earthquakes

We just passed the 206^th anniversary of the New Madrid, Missouri, earthquakes. The first tremors were experienced on 16 December 1811. They continued into March of 1812. The apparently strongest earthquake in US history occurred on 7 February 1812 with an estimated magnitude of 8.8 on the Richter scale. That would make it ten times as large as the 1906 San Francisco earthquake (blog post 13 June 2017).

The family of my 2^nd great-grandparents lived in Washington County, VA at the time. I am sure they felt the shocks but would not have known from where they originated.

There are many technical summaries of the event and reports done by the USGS.  A few can be found at: Bicentennial of the 1811–1812 New Madrid Earthquake Sequence

This report offers a great summary of the events, geography involved, images illustrating the destruction and first-hand accounts: “The New Madrid earthquakes occurred along the western frontier of the young United States. They were felt in all settled parts of the central and eastern United States, as well as in Toronto, Canada. They caused general alarm from Detroit, Mich., to New Orleans, La. Chimneys were knocked down as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio, 560 kilometers (km) [350 miles (mi)] away. Closer to the earthquakes, Memphis, Tenn. was not yet established, but in St. Louis, Mo., many homes were damaged. The thriving frontier trading town of New Madrid, Mo., was damaged severely and temporarily evacuated. About 45 km (30 mi) south of New Madrid, Little Prairie, Mo., was destroyed. During the earthquake the ground rose, fell, and cracked; trees snapped and were uprooted; large landslides were abundant on steep ground from the future site of Memphis, Tenn., to southernmost Illinois. Large areas rose permanently, and some of them dammed rivers to create or enlarge lakes that remain (Reelfoot Lake, Tenn.). Other large areas sank and were flooded by streams and enormous volumes of water and sand that erupted from thousands of fissures over a region about 240 km (150 mi) long and 80 km (50 mi) wide. Great waves on the Mississippi River and collapsed banks and sand bars destroyed some boats and washed others ashore. A sudden uplift beneath the river caused it to overflow its banks, briefly flow upstream, and form two large rapids.”

Summary of 1811-1812 New Madrid Earthquake Sequence

The Great Midwest Earthquake of 1811

New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-12

1811-12 New Madrid Earthquakes

1812 Earthquake causes fluvial tsunami in Mississippi

The New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-1812

 

A tinted engraving shows the clearing of a passage on the Missouri River for riverboats from the Kozak Collection at the Earthquake Engineering Research Center, University of California, Berkeley; downloaded from The New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-1812

Because the region affected was still sparsely occupied, there were few deaths as a result of the event. Notwithstanding that, there was significant property damage including the total destruction of the town of Little Prairie, MO. The quake actually caused a tsunami on the Mississippi River that upturned boats and eroded banks. Certainly hundreds of families would have been affected, some perhaps losing all that they owned.

These kinds of events may be little known by most people, let alone family researchers. But they no doubt had enormous impact on communities near where they occurred.

Ancestry lists 45 people, likely just the householder, living in Little Prairie, Missouri, on their US Census Reconstructed Records in 1810. The region around New Madrid had been settled by the French during the 18^th century. Most of the men named on the census were of French origin. A search of later census record on Ancestry resulted in no one living in Little Prairie. Nine names, at least similar sounding, resided in nearby centres of Cape Girardeau, Louisiana and St. Louis, in 1820. Seven individuals were in Missouri in 1830.

One prominent family in New Madrid started in Little Prairie. Raphael Lesieur appears on the 1810 census list of Little Prairie residents, along with several apparent other related Lesieur families. He was born in Trois Riviere, Quebec in 1777. He and wife, Marie-Francoise Guilbert had one child in Little Prairie in 1810 and nine others after they moved to New Madrid. Lesieur Township, now part of New Madrid may have been named after the family. According to author Goodspeed’s History of Southeast Missouri (page 901), Raphael “came to Missouri in 1798, locating in what is now Pemiscot County. . . but during the earthquake of 1811-1812, the farm of which he resided sank and became part of a lake. He then removed to New Madrid Coutnry, and settled on a farm in the neighbourhood of Point Pleasant…” Raphael died in New Madrid, Missouri in 1855.

One wonders what the history of this family might have been if they had not been driven away from their first home in Little Prairie by the effects of a major earthquake.

Reference:

Goodspeed's History of Southeast Missouri: Embracing an Historical Account of the Counties of Ste. Genevieve, St. Francois, Perry, Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, Madison, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Dunklin, Scott, Mississippi, Stoddard, Butler, Wayne, and Iron.

Chicago: The Googspeed Publishing Co., 1888

What’s in a military service record…

…besides military service information?

Sometimes you find surprising information in the oddest places. I was going through another branch of my family this week, looking to add information about distant and not-so-distant cousins. One can get side-tracked with so many families to research or other projects to get done. So, every once in a while, it is useful to go back and look for data for those individuals and/or their progeny that have been ignored.

I found a military service record for Robert Shepheard Munday, a first cousin, twice removed. As can be surmised from his name, he was closely related to my direct line. His mother, in fact, was a sister to my great-grandfather, James Shepheard (1865-1940).

I had not looked at the family of Mary Jane (Shepheard) Munday (1858-1929) for a while. I had her birth, marriage and death records, along with information about her husband, Robert Munday (1850-1902). But I had not followed up with their children. They had five together; he had four from a previous marriage. I thought it was time I tried to find out what happened to that line, perhaps see if there are any descendants still alive that might be contacted.

I will be ordering the formal BMD records  for all the children from the General Record Office for England and Wales shortly. In the mean time I thought I would see what might be available online on Ancestry, Findmypast or other sources. I did find the family members on most censuses but none were married before 1911 so their families will not be shown on census summaries, other than perhaps the 1939 Register. All five children were still living with their parents in 1901. Other types of records then were wide open to search.

I did find a marriage for Robert Shepheard Munday to Mable Louise Laver in 1916. At the time he was shown as a Sergeant in the Army Veterinary Corps. From that information I thought I could find information about him in the UK military records.

His service file, sourced on Ancestry, contained 27 pages. Robert Munday (he was never shown with his second name) enlisted on 11 December 1915, just a couple of months after the Great War began. His next of kin was given as his mother, Mary Jane Munday. That was amended in 1916 to name his wife. He served with the Bedfordshire Regiment at veterinary hospitals in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex in England, but did not go overseas. He was demobilized on 15 July 1919.

 

Portion of military service record for Robert (Shepheard) Munday; retrieved 3 February 2018 from Ancestry.com

The service record also showed the birth of his first child, Robert Stanley James Munday, on 17 June 1917, in Herne Bay, Kent, so I had one name for a succeeding generation.

The surprising bits of information in the service file, though, were three letters written to his commanding officers from a Florence L. Stagg. They demonstrate another side to the man, perhaps not dissimilar to other young (single) men in the military of almost any time period, but a bit sad in some respects. Her letters stated:

March 20^th, 1918

Sir,

I am sorry to trouble you but would you kindly give me the address of No. 0325 Sgt R. S. Munday as I am very anxious to hear from him as I have not heard from him for a long time, & I am feeling very worried to know if he is still alright. I should be very grateful if you could help me & give me Sgt. R. S. Munday add. I have enclosed penny stamp for reply.

Yours truly

F. Stagg

 

Letter from F. Stagg in military service record for Robert (Shepheard) Munday; retrieved 3 February 2018 from Ancestry.com

Ms Stagg did not receive Sgt. Munday’s address as the army would not give out the information but her letter was forwarded to Robert. The note sounded innocent enough but subsequent correspondence from her offered more to her story, as well as Robert’s. From the dates of the letters, there appears there may have been even more correspondence from Ms Stagg that was not preserved in the file.

 

[31 November 1918]

Sir,

In answer to the letter I received this morning, would you kindly give me an address I could find Sgt. R. Munday, 63035. It was a great shock to me when I saw in the letter he was married as being the mother of his child. (age 5 yrs.) He had already promised me marriage some time ago but owing to money matters it was postponed. I should feel exceedingly grateful if you could help me in the way to find him. The Court will allow me to claim 2/11 from the Government as I was told he had others dependence on him. I am wanting to find him as I am at my wits end to know how to go on to keep this dear little girl, as the money I earn only just keeps myself as I am only a Domestic Servant. I have waited each year, hoping R. Munday, would try and help me with her up keep, and as it is going into the six year, the expense increases and the struggle in life is more than I can bare.

Apologizing for so troubling you.

Yours Respectfully

F. Stagg

Florence’s demands for support must have resulted in some success but she was to be disappointed later.

[14 July 1919]

Dear Sir,

I trust you will pardon the libity [sic] I am taking in writing to you, but I have just received a form from the pay office telling me my allowance is to be stopped after the 12^th of Aug.

Would be so kind as to give me R. Munday address where a letter will find him after he is demobilised, as I am quite unable to help keep his little girl ag 6 yrs without his assistance. And I am nearly worried to death to know what to do. Please do not let him know I have wrote to you for it would perhaps only make matters worse and I do not wish to take the affair into Court again.

Apologizing for so troubling you

Yours respectfully

F. L. Stagg

There is nothing further in the file that indicates how the situation was resolved, if it ever was. One can observe in the military record (image above) that the birth of Robert's first son happened only seven months into his marriage, so he appears to have had a history with the ladies. 

I did find some information about Florence Lilian Stagg in various other records. There was a baptism of Dorothy Lilian Emily on 9 September 1913 at St. James Ealing parish church in London. Only the mother, a cook at 69 Grosvenor Road, is named. Dorothy’s birth was registered in Brentford Registration District.

 

Baptism record for Dorothy Lilian Emily Stagg, presumed daughter of Robert Shepheard Munday; retrieved 3 February 2018 from Ancestry.com

In 1911 Florence is shown to be a housemaid at 8 Grange Park, Ealing, London. That was also the area where the Munday family lived in 1911 (55 Windermere Road, South Ealing). Windermere Road is only about a mile apart from both Grange Park and Grosvenor Road, suggesting Robert and Florence met each some place in the community.

Florence married William Henry Hillcoat in 1923. Both she and her daughter, Dorothy, are shown on the 1939 Register, living at 5 Radbourne Avenue, Ealing, London. Dorothy was listed with the Hillcoat surname, was single and worked as a “Ladies Hairdresser.” Florence died in 1988. Dorothy died in 1991, having never married.

 

1939 Register showing Florence and Dorothy Hillcoat (both nee Stagg); retrieved 5 February from Findmypast.com

Did Robert live up to his responsibilities prior to being forced to do so by a court order? Did he escape to veterinary school and then to the army to avoid contact with Florence? Did father and daughter ever have any relationship?

What was unexpected in my search for information on my family lines was to find information about the Florence and Dorothy affair in a military service record. Just shows that one should not rule out any source.

From Somewhere Else

Every ancestor I have looked for lived somewhere else than where I grew up!

This is, of course, a problem almost all genealogists face – certainly for those of us who live in North America. Most members of past families we are interested in finding more about almost all came from another part of the world. Our countries were built and populated by immigrants, primarily in just the last two hundred years. And after they arrived here, they got all mixed together.

Within just a few generations I have direct ancestors that were born in England, Scotland and parts of Europe. They arrived in the New World between the 1600s and 1900s. Some of them started in one place in the eastern parts of Canada and the US and then they and/or their descendants, moved across the continent, stopping in various localities to put down temporary roots and have a few children.

The places just in North America where members of our extended families lived are spread from Maryland to California in the US and from Newfoundland to British Columbia in Canada.

Many ancestors also moved around the British Isles as well, of course, long before one individual or family decided to brave a voyage across the ocean.

Between my wife and I we have direct ancestors who were born, married or died in Canada, the United States, England, Scotland and other countries in Europe – in what are now the provinces, states, counties or major urban centres shown in the table below:

Canada	United States	England	Scotland	Europe
Alberta	Indiana	Cornwall	Argyllshire	Germany
British Columbia	Kansas	Cumberland	Banffshire	Ireland
Ontario	Kentucky	Devon	Dunbartonshire
	Maryland	Leicestershire	Glasgow
	Missouri	London	Lanarkshire
	New York	Middlesex	Morayshire
	North Carolina	Warwickshire	Shetland
	North Dakota		Stirlingshire
	Ohio
	Oklahoma
	Oregon
	Pennsylvania
	Virginia

Among all the myriad brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts and cousins – both direct and related by marriage (now over 9,700 individuals in our family tree) – we have connections in: all of the other seven Canadian provinces plus one northern territory; 32 other states in the USA; 32 other counties in England; 15 other counties in Scotland; 11 other countries in Europe; and 11 more countries in the rest of the world. Not to mention the hundreds of localities within all these provinces, states, counties or countries! There are probably many others which we have not yet identified.

That’s a lot of places to look for information! Learning a little about the history and customs of even the most important places in our family story can be interesting but challenging. From my personal perspective, researching the natural histories of those regions is equally important and exciting – which, of course, adds to the research.

 

Universale Descrittione Di Tutta la Terra Conosciuta Fin Oui (A Universal description of the Whole Known Earth), by Paolo Forlani, 1565

If I lived in Southwest Devon, England, where my Shepheard ancestors originated, I would be able to nip over to the archives in Plymouth in a matter of minutes, or travel to Stirlingshire, Scotland, where one of my paternal grandmother’s line is from, in an morning by car, or take the train into London to look at records in The National Archives. I could take in regular monthly meetings and conferences in many parts of the country where ancestral families lived with only short drives. My wife and I could travel to northern Scotland and spend a few days exploring the villages where her parents and their parents and their parents were born and grew up. Sounds great doesn’t it?

I doubt if our family is unique in having such a long list of places where family members originated or lived. I suspect it is not that unusual among researchers from our part of the world, though, who, like us, descended from immigrants to a new land.

Is it any wonder we have gravitated to online sources of information so readily?