The World of Grandpa Don
My Copeland Family
"Among the families of old Bridgewater that have shown energy, force of character, business acumen, and persistent industry, and one that has impressed itself on the present era by the perpetuated labors of several generations, must be particularly mentioned the Copeland family". The above is
from the History of
Plymouth County
1st Generation: Lawrence
Copeland 1589 - 1699 These were the days of Galileo, Rembrandt, Shakespeare, Isaac Newton and Pilgrims. Lawrence and Lydia were the parents of five boys and three girls. Lydia died on January 8, 1688 and Lawrence on December 30, 1699 at "an advanced age". If his birth date is correct he would have been 110 years old. Some sources place his birth in 1599, making him 100 at the time of his death.
From" Records of the Town of Braintree,
Massachusetts, 1640 to 1793" p. 695 The first six generations of the "American" Copland family in this line were farmers. The following from the records of the colony most likely refers to Lawrence's brother. This assumption however is apparently incorrect.
Early DNA testing shows that there is no link between the John Copeland who
arrived in 1635 to Isle of Wight County, Virginia (DNA haplotype R1a) and the
Lawrence Copeland family of the 1600s in Norfolk County, Massachusetts (DNA
haplotype R1b). Researchers may want to re-look and update their family
histories, especially for Joseph Copeland/Mary Woodley associated with
Taberers. (
http://genforum.genealogy.com/copeland/messages/4244.html )
February
1657-8 : "John Copeland, one of the sect comonly called Quakers, being
summoned, appeered, and being examined and found guilty of speaking falsly
concerning Mr John Alden, as that his head and knees trembled att such times
as the said Copeland and Christopher Holder were before the said Mr Alden and
Leiftenant Southworth, for which the said Copeland is centanced by the Court
to bee whipt att such time as hee shalbee found in the goument, being required
to depart the jurisdiction within eight and forty houres from this psent." The two men either did not leave or returned, and on 8 February the two men were publicly whipped. While Plymouth Colony’s treatment of Quakers was milder than Massachusetts Bay Colony, which hanged four, the Quakers were not welcomed in either place and were urged to move on. Town government and the church members used the same meeting hall and were closely tied together. Only one church was tolerated in each town. In 1658 James Cudworth of Scituate, who had lost his position as head of the Scituate military company when he was accused of aiding Quakers, wrote to England to complain about the treatment Quakers were receiving. In his letter he wrote, “Mr. Alden hath deceived the Expectations of many, and indeed lost the affections of such, as I judge were his Cordial Christian Friends; who is very active in such Ways, as I pray God may not be charged him, to be Oppressions of a High Nature.” Apparently, Cudworth and others had expected Alden to be more sympathetic to the Quaker’s plight (Plymouth County Records, vol. 3:130, 115, 162; Plymouth Colony by Stratton, 91-92). The "OneWorldTree" and other sources list Lawrence's father and mother as Lawrence and Ruth Copeland who lived in Dolphin Leigh, Dolphinholme, Yorkshire, England. They had ten children between 1599 and 1627. John didn't stay in Massachusetts but relocated to Isle Of Wight, Virginia. Another brother, Thomas Copeland (unmarried) , is recorded as dying in Barbados, British, West Indies in 1693. (Was he the pirate of the family?) Also see Religion in 1500 - 1600 and About Lawrence of Dolphin Leigh & son, John * (Generation -1) Lydia' parents Thomas Townsend (1594 - 1677) and Mary Mansfield (1608 - 1635)
2nd Generation: William
Copeland 1656 - 1716 * Source - Mayflower Families Through Five Generations During these time there were skirmishes with the Indians who did not understand the concept of ownership of land. Settlers bought land from the Indians who thought they were selling the right to share it. These were also the days of the Salem witch trials.
"The Pilgrims sought to establish at Plymouth Colony a
Christian fellowship like that which gathered around Jesus Himself.
Congregationalists include the Pilgrims of Plymouth, whose ecclesiastical
tradition is in the Unitarian church, and the Puritans of the Massachusetts
Bay Colony, which were organized in union by The Cambridge Platform in 1648
and are now the contemporary Congregational church."
A note about families;
About Ephraim Copeland, William's brother:
(During our vacation in 1983 Anne and I,
along with Marist Brother, Frank Kelly
3rd Generation: David
Copeland 1705 - 1750 During this period, the battles with the Indians continued and English and French vied for control of territories of North America. Both sides enlisted the aid of Indians who often switched sides in the conflicts. William Kidd, English-American buccaneer, was hanged. The first steam engine was built and Handel was composing music. David died on his birthday in 1750 and his wife in July of 1774 * Source - Mayflower Families Through Five Generations
4th Generation: David
Copeland 1738 - 1779 The French and Indian Wars began between England and France. Colonists were becoming disenchanted with the heavy handed rule of the British The Treaty of Paris ended the French-Indian War. France ceded Canada to England and gave up all her territories in the New World except New Orleans and a few scattered islands. British troops taunted by a crowd of colonists fired on an unruly mob in Boston and killed five citizens in what came to be known as the Boston Massacre. On Feb 9, 1775 the English Parliament declared the Mass. colony was in rebellion. On Jul 4, 1776 the Continental Congress approved adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Shoelaces were invented in England. As noted above, families tended to be large and the family farm no longer supports succeeding generations. Either male descendants find other occupations or find new land on which to establish new farms. And so, families disperse, sometimes to distant areas following new opportunities.
5th Generation: Joseph
Copeland 1765 - 1800 Though we know little of this ancestor, he lived at a momentous time in history. He saw the birth of this nation and the beginnings of a new form of government. On Nov 30, 1782 the United States and Britain signed preliminary peace articles in Paris, recognizing American independence and ending the Revolutionary War. Mozart during this period wrote six string quartets dedicated to Haydn. After 1783 German officially replaced Latin as the language of instruction in Austria. Inventor John Fitch demonstrated his steamboat, Joseph Guillotine proposed a new, more humane method of execution. A toilet that flushed itself at regular intervals was patented. Cleveland was founded by Gen. Moses Cleaveland.
6th Generation: Alden Parcus
Copeland 1801 - 1852 We know little of their lives but as a teen Alden lived through the war of 1812 and then witnessed rapid development in the nation and westward expansion. They witnessed the early development of steam power and many other innovations. Alden P died Feb 5, 1852 and Rachel on December 26, 1884.There is a fascinating story regarding Alden's brother and the oil boom of the 1865. (see Parcus T. Copeland farm of Pithole )
7th Generation: James
Harvey Copeland 1835 - 1928
James was four years old when photography
was first developed and as he grew up it attracted his interest. As an adult
he would be one of the pioneers of photography when he opened a studio in Meadville. According to a February 1864 letter* of Hannah Rohrer
to Coston Monks: “Lyde has all she can do these times and more, too. She
gets up and gets breakfast, washes the dishes, and goes to the Gallery,
prints, puts plates in the bath, picks up the pictures etc., works until
night, and then has to come home, get supper, etc. They took $71 worth of
pictures last week, so you can judge how busy they are.” These were the times of the Civil War and the war with Mexico. Expansion to the West continued. These were the days of the Pony Express, followed by the telegraph and then the transcontinental railroad. Strides were being made in the use of anesthesia and many innovations in industry.
When oil was discovered on the land near his
uncle's farm the town of Pithole sprang up almost overnight.
(see
Pithole
- Oil's Vanished Boomtown ) J. H. Copeland opened the “Sunbeam Gallery” at 21
First Street Pithole, Pa. in August, 1865 changing the name of his firm to Copeland and Fleming in
September,
The photo at the left is J.H., his daughter Nancy Rachel (Nannie) and either his first wife Lyde or his second wife Emma.
In the summer of 1867 they relocated from
Pithole to Pleasantville, PA, which sounds like an auspicious
move, where James continued in the field of photography with a studio on
Main Street. Lyde died prior to 1870 and there was a marriage to
Emma Botsford, born in 1838. Emma died about 1873 without any children. The
name Eliza Jane Copeland has been found on a deed for some property In the photo at the right James Harvey Copeland can be seen in front of the studio on Main Street in Pleasantville, PA. 1870.
On November 15, 1874 James H. married Alice
Harriet
James Harvey and Alice completed their lives in Amherst, Ohio.
He died on March 14, 1928 and Alice on February of 1929, but we will read more of them later.
8th Generation: Harvey
Louis Copeland 1875 - 1954
Harvey returned to live with his parents along with his son. He was employed as a pressman in the printing business. .We can assume that his father took the portraits shown here.
Harvey Louis served in the Spanish-American War
in 1903. We On January 21, 1904 Harvey Louis married Kathryn (Catherine) Ellen Stuart, born December 7, 1882. They were the parents of Mary Alice and Harvey Stuart Copeland. This generation saw the 'taming of the West and the birth of many modern conveniences. These were made possible by the utilization of electricity. Railroads spanned the nation and communications grew with the utilization of telegraph and telephone. The automobile was also invented. At the "Turn of the Century" the US was industrialized and had become a world power. It was also seen as the "Land of Opportunity" and the late 1800's saw a huge influx of immigrants aided by the development of ocean going steam ships. This generation saw the end of the Victorian Era. Our 8th generation lived well beyond this period, experiencing amazing development and even more amazing miracles of technology. Kathryn died on October 12, 1954 and Harvey Louis October 25, 1954.
9th Generation: Alden
James Copeland 1900 - 1967
Then came the World War Al served in the Army in Troop B 17 Cavalry from 13 July 1918 to his Honorable discharge 11 March 1919. The unit was stationed in Arizona during that time. He immediately re-enlisted and in April they embarked to their new assignment in Hawaii, quartered at Schofield Barracks. In September of 1921 the unit returned to Monterey, California and the 17th was inactivated with the troops transferred to the 11th Calvary. He was Honorably discharged on April 13, 1922 and returned home to Amherst, Ohio. On December 30, 1922 Al (Alden) married Edith Eloholz. 17TH CAVALRY REGIMENT Circa 1916 - 1920
(Marilyn Copeland had a plaque made using her father's Returning home he worked in an office (see poem) and then for the Cleveland City Railroad with a survey crew where his uncle was a civil engineer. He lived in the Amherst, Ohio area. During that period his father and Kathryn along with their children lived in Cleveland. On October 18, 1925 Edith gave birth to a baby girl (unnamed) who did not survive the day. Al and Edith divorced. Al kept company with Lucille Cecora. She was divorced from her husband Dan Cecora after having two boys, Jim and Ken. Her maiden name was Florence Lucille Lossner but she didn't usually use her first name. When she became pregnant she went to live with relatives in Chicago. The child was born there on May 6, 1931, named Harry Ronald Cecora (me) and released for adoption. Lucille returned to Cleveland. Al and Lucille were no longer seeing each other. ( see The Story of Lucie Lossner )
Al Copeland started life at the "Turn of the
Century", graduated high school in time for World War One,
returned to civilian life to live the "Roaring Twenties" only to dive into the
"Great Depression". It was a time of great change when the horse was replaced
by the automobile and cities reached for the sky as they spread into the farm
lands. The Victorian era was over and At the right Al is pictured with Cinder, the family dog in the early 1960's. He experienced much and saw more. Through him the Copeland line continues. Three generations of his descendants exist at this writing. Partial family trees can be viewed. The Pre- 1700 tree includes information from Mayflower Families Through Five Generations, starting with our 2nd generation and including the Pricilla Mullins ancestry. The pre-1900 includes the ancestors of James Harvey Copeland, my great grandfather, including the line to John and Pricilla Alden and the line to Lawrence Copeland in England and the Townsend Family. The information for the Copeland families in England are from OneWorldTree and subject to verification and correction. The 1900's Tree show the descendents of James Harvey Copeland for three generations and includes my father, Alden James Copeland, (Al Copeland) Later generations are omitted to to protect the privacy of living individuals. The trees require Acrobat Reader to be viewed and may be enlarged and printed. For additional information regarding the Lossner/Husmann families and Florence Lucille Lossner the Milns family and the Packatd Families as well as how these the families intermarried in the earlier days you are invited to view the following pages:
I reflect back to the vacation trip that Anne and I made to Massachusetts and our visit to Plymouth. I remember the visit to the replica of the Mayflower and the re-created village there. We were in awe of the people who made that voyage in that fragile vessel and survived that first terrible winter. Little did we know that I had a connection to them. I have often noted that many of the most momentous things of my life were unplanned, spontaneous and sometimes seemingly accidental. (my birth, in particular.) Such was the founding of Plymouth Colony. The Mayflower left Plymouth England bound for New York but was blown off course and ended up North of their intended destination. Thus they were ill prepared for the harsh winter that followed but a new community was born. A fortuitous accident. It is also interesting to note that these people were religious radicals who thought the Church of England didn't go far enough in distancing itself from the Church of Rome. I wonder what these Pilgrim Puritans would think of their Catholic descendants? All this goes to the point that life is what happens while you are planning something else. God gives us the grace to take what comes our way and make the most of it. We have the God given free will to chose to react positively to life's surprises. Life continuously presents opportunities for happiness and success and for this I am grateful. Thank you God for all of it. Thank you God for all the people who have been there to make my life possible. Thank you God for my ancestors and in particular Al and Lucille. I would not have been here without them ... and the happenstances of life ... the unplanned events ... the fortuitous errors ... and the choices made in response to all this. Thank you God for all the people who have been in my life, some like Joe and Sylvia, then Anne who were with me for many years and some who passed through very briefly but all who left me the better for their being here. Thank you God for all those who are now in my life, Our children, grandchildren, relatives and friends, some for a long time and others just entering. Thank you God ... for everything. My prayer is that I may be worthy, and in the footsteps of my predecessors, be a light to guide the path of those who follow.
Donald James Plefka
Credits:
Priscilla, the eldest girl on the Mayflower,
came with her brother Joseph, and parents William and Alice. Priscilla had
one little problem--she was the only girl approaching marriageable age on a
ship with well over fifty young and single men -- passengers and seamen alike.
The Mayflower's cooper (barrel-maker), named John Alden, apparently
won over Priscilla's heart -- for he decided to stay in America rather than
return home to England on the Mayflower. They were married a couple
years later -- a marriage which inspired the Henry Wadworth Longfellow poem,
The Courtship of Myles Standish.
See Girls on the Mayflower: It is interesting to note that OneWorldTree traces Pricilla Mullins ancestry back to the 4th centry AD. About Lawrence of Dolphin Leigh & son, John
'The Lancashire Branch (of the Copelands) has been trace d back to 1500. One section living in Dolphin Leigh had very y hard luck. The head of this Branch , Lawrence Copeland w as a solid Roundhead, and for his religious faith he appear s to have died. His estates were sequestered by the Crown for resistance. The eldest son Robert, tried to obtain these estates; but, the result.... 'Claim allowed with arrears from the fathers death on fuller proof of the death and on the sons taking the Oath of Adjuration'' Robert does not appear to have done this and it is believed he and his brother, Lawrence , sailed to America. The other two sons, John and Thomas, are believed to have joined their relative s in Staffordshire.' It is generally believed that Lawrence is the one who settled in Braintree, Massachusetts in 1630; and that John came to Virginia in 1635.'
Note: Lawrence is the head of a
large family of Copelands in New England , moving westward, but there is no
evidence that -(Robert?) - had any children. Thomas went to Barbados and some
of his sisters went to Virginia as spelled out in his will. According to Corrie Moen "the Copelands left England: Puritans, John Copeland was "converted" to Quakerism after his arrival in the Colonies. John came over on the Assurance De Lo in 1635." The treatment of John and other Quakers is documented as related above (Generation One) and the cutting off of the ear may be have occurred in Boston. Corrie's account does give us a valid reason for the migration to America. In an email recieved in late February, 2008, Corrie Moen says, "I think I found out why the Copeland Estates in England were Named Dolphin Leigh. Named after the Prince of Scotland, Northumbria, near where the Deanery of Copeland is found Cumberland, Cumbria, North Umberland area 600 sq miles, the Deanery. they were the Chieftan Lords before the Normans began conquering in 1066. and then afterwards that area rose up against him, and he nearly annihilated the area" Based on the following information the relationship between the Virginia Copeland's and the Massachusits Copeland's may need to be re-evaluated: .Early DNA testing shows that there is no link between the John Copeland who arrived in 1635 to Isle of Wight County, Virginia (DNA haplotype R1a) and the Lawrence Copeland family of the 1600s in Norfolk County, Massachusetts (DNA haplotype R1b). Researchers may want to re-look and update their family histories, especially for Joseph Copeland/Mary Woodley associated with Taberers. ( http://genforum.genealogy.com/copeland/messages/4244.html )
Pithole - Oil's Vanished Boomtown
Oil production was centered in the valleys of
Oil Creek and the Allegheny River when the 250 barrel-a-day Frazier Well
drilled along Pithole Creek came in. Numerous other gusher wells in this
isolated part of Venango County attracted thousands of fortune-seekers to the
area and a town called Pithole City sprang up on the Thomas Holmden Farm in
May of 1865..It was said to be one of the wildest, filthiest, chaotic towns in
the States.
Also see
http://www.explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=441 Parcus T. Copeland farm of Pithole
This is a fascinating Copeland family story
associated with the discovery of oil during the post Civil War era and oil
boom in Pennsylvania. It is the story of Alden Parcus Copeland's brother
Parkhurst Tilley Copeland and the fortune made in the sale of his farm. But he
kept a small parcel that could have brought him even more money. He is quoted
as saying, "What is the use of
$750,000 to me without a farm. I did not buy this farm to sell it again, now
that I am settled down with my family. There I have as much as I can live on.
I have a good well of water and we can raise all the vegetables we want. I
cleared the land myself and I am now going to enjoy it."
It is very well told in the story of the Oil Creek Flemings. I direct your
attention the their web page.
http://www.fleming.oilcreekgenealogy.net/content/oild.html One of the things that makes the study of these ancestors a bit confusing is the fact that although the Gregorian calendar was made official in 1582 and accepted by most Catholic countries, Protestant countries were slow to accept it. It wasn't until 1752 that Great Britain and its colonies adapted it. To further complicate matters, the old Julian calendar set March 1st as the beginning of the new year. As a result, the book on the Mayflower families uses both date systems. A date in February is often listed as 10 February 1690/1691. February was the 12th month of 1690 using the Julian calendar and the 2nd month of 1691 using the Gregorian calendar. I have tried to adhere to the Gregorian dates in order to be consistent with current calendars.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||