Message Board - Tampico Area Historical Society, Tampico, Illinois

Message Board > Purcells and Brenners in the 1850's and 1860's

Purcells and Brenners in the 1850's and 1860's
The Tampico Area Historical Society encompasses parts of Whiteside County and Bureau County in Illinois. Focus is on Tampico, Hume Twp., Hahnaman/Deer Grove, & Prophetstown in Whiteside County & Yorktown & Thomas in Bureau County.

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talljohn52 1 post May 27, 2012 5:54 PM	I'm looking for two families with possible connections to Yorktown, Prophetstown, Annawan, Geneseo, and Princeton. Lack of records in the 1850-1870 timeframe have made it difficult for me to be sure just where they lived. All I know for sure is that my great grandfather Jacob Brenner enlisted at Annawan, and that he and his wife Annie (Purcell) Brenner lived in Yorktown Twp, Henry County in 1870. By one account they were married in Prophetstown, but the Illinois Statewide Marriage Index says they were married in Bureau County (in 1868). By another account Annie was born near Princeton, but Annie 's parents (Nicholas Purcell and Johanna (Gleason) Purcell) reportedly came to Geneseo around 1850. I've found nothing to support the Purcells' presence in either location. If you have information on any Purcells or Brenners in this area, please let me know. I have a great deal of information on their relatives and subsequent lives, but nothing on their stay in the Henry/Whiteside/Bureau area. Thanks... John
Denise 866 posts May 27, 2012 9:28 PM	Hi John, I did some checking on your family to try to get a clear picture. I'm going to post it here so I can have it in one place while I continue to search. 1870 United States Federal Census about Jacob Brenner Name: Jacob Brenner Age in 1870: 24 Birth Year: abt 1846 Birthplace: Illinois Home in 1870: Yorktown, Henry, Illinois Race: White Gender: Male Household Members: Name Age Jacob Brenner 24 Anna Brenner 20, b. IL (1850) E F Brenner 1 female, b. IL 1880 United States Federal Census about Jacob Brenner Name: Jacob Brenner Age: 34 Birth Year: abt 1846 Birthplace: Pennsylvania Home in 1880: Summit, Adair, Iowa Race: White Gender: Male Relation to Head of House: Self (Head) Marital Status: Married Spouse's Name: Anna Brenner Father's Birthplace: Pennsylvania Mother's Birthplace: Pennsylvania Occupation: Farmer Household Members: Name Age Jacob Brenner 34 Anna Brenner 29 Ella Brenner 10 Stella Brenner 8 James Brenner 3m Joanna Percell 45, mother-in-law, b. abt 1835, Ireland, widowed HERE IS 1900 THAT APPEARS TO BE SAME FAMILY 1900 United States Federal Census about Annie E Brenner Name: Annie E Brenner Age: 48 Birth Date: Mar 1852 Birthplace: Illinois Home in 1900: Des Moines, Polk, Iowa Race: White Gender: Female Relation to Head of House: Wife Marital Status: Married Spouse's Name: Jacob Brenner Marriage Year: 1868 Years Married: 32 Father's Birthplace: Ireland Mother's Birthplace: Ireland Mother: number of living children: 5 Mother: How many children: 5 Household Members: Name Age Jacob Brenner 52 Annie E Brenner 48 Ella F Brenner 26 Stella A Brenner 23 James E Brenner 20 Roy J Brenner 17 Marie Brenner 7 Hattie Arnold 25 JOANNA Massachusetts Marriages, 1633-1850 about Nicholas Purcell Name: Nicholas Purcell Gender: Male Spouse: Johanna Gleason Marriage Date: 10 Jan 1849 City: Lowell County: Middlesex Source: Family History Library, Salt Lake City, UT, Film # 0927928. 1870 United States Federal Census about Joana Purcell Name: Joana Purcell Age in 1870: 35 Birth Year: abt 1835 Birthplace: Ireland Home in 1870: Yorktown, Henry, Illinois Race: White Gender: Female Household Members: Name Age Joana Purcell 35 M E Purcell 13, B. IL Mary A Purcell 12, B. IL C F Purcell 9, B. IL John N Purcell 8, B. IL Allen Purcell 7, B. IL Iowa, State Census 1885 about Joanna Purcell Name: Joanna Purcell Age: 51 Gender: F (Female) Birth Country: Ireland Location: Block 7 Marital Status: W Father's Nativity: F Mother's Nativity: F Line Number: 10 Dwelling Number: 15 Family Number: 14 Page Number: 566 State: IA County: Adair Township Name: Summit Town: Adair Family History Film: 1021316 Volume: 141 1938 - Mary Agnes Purcell Booth Thackaberry Submitted by Melva Taylor The Sterling Daily Gazette, Sterling, Illinois February 17, 1938 - Thursday MARY AGNES (Purcell) THACKABERRY FORMER THOMAS WOMAN LAID AT REST WEDNESDAY Committal Services For Mrs. Mary Thackaberry At Pleasant Ridge[aka: Shadytown/Sandytown Cemetery] The body of Mrs. Mary Agnes Thackaberry arrived at the Dudley funeral chapel in Prophetstown, Wednesday morning, from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Funeral services were conducted Tuesday at Sioux Falls. Committal services were held Wednesday afternoon at 2 o'clock at Pleasant Ridge cemetery, west of Prophetstown. Rev. Father A. M. Weitekamp of St. Catherine's Catholic church officiated. The pallbearers were Mark Langdon and Frank Graham of Sterling; Frank Thackaberry of Thomas; and Louis Zschiesche, F. P. Dudley and Glenn Graham of Prophetstown. Mary Agnes Purcell Booth Thackaberry was born April 5, 1857, at Annawan, Illinois. Her parents were Nicholas and Johanna Gleason Purcell. She was married to Edwin Booth March 3, 1878, who died August 6, 1888. She was then married to Alec Thackaberry, who died October 13, 1935. She is survived by one son, Wayne Thackaberry of New York city; one daughter, Mrs. Katherine Donahue of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; one step-son, E. A. Thackaberry of Los Angeles, California; a sister, Mrs. Alice Berger of Lincoln, Nebraska, and eleven grandchildren. One step-son preceded her in death. The deceased was a resident of Thomas for a number of years. She was a sister-in-law of Mrs. Addie Dillon of Prophetstown. Relatives from a distance who attended burial services here, were Mrs. Katherine Donahue and daughters, Misses Mildred and Helen Donahue of Sioux Falls, Mrs. Alice Berger of Lincoln, Nebraska, and Wayne Thackaberry of New York. A site search on our website yields a 1876 Yorktown General Store ledger noting a John Purcell. See Yorktown General Store Ledger Last Edited by on May 28, 2012 1:41 PM
Denise 867 posts May 28, 2012 3:33 PM	BRENNER 1870 United States Federal Census about Jacob Brenner Name: Jacob Brenner Age in 1870: 24 Birth Year: abt 1846 Birthplace: Illinois Home in 1870: Yorktown, Henry, Illinois Race: White Gender: Male Household Members: Name Age Jacob Brenner 24 Anna Brenner 20 E F Brenner Iowa, State Census Collection, 1836-1925 about Jacob Brenner Name: Jacob Brenner Birth Year: abt 1846 Birth Place: Pennsylvania Gender: Male Marital Status: Married Census Date: 1885 Residence State: Iowa Residence County: Adair Locality: Summit Roll: IA1885_141 Line: 8 Family Number: 7 Household Members: Name Age Jacob Brenner 39 Annie E Brenner 35 Ella F Brenner 15 Steller A Brenner 13 James E Brenner 4 Geo J Brenner 2 Iowa, State Census Collection, 1836-1925 about Jacob Baner Name: Jacob Baner [Jacob Brenner] Birth Year: abt 1847 Birth Place: Pennsylvania Gender: Male Race: White Census Date: 1895 Residence County: Adair Locality: Adair Roll: IA1885_284 Line: 27 Family Number: 73 Household Members: Name Age Jacob Baner 48 Annie E Baner 44 Ella F Braner 24 Stella A Braner 22 James E Braner 15 George J Braner 12 Marie Braner 2 Includes Whiteside, Bureau, and Henry Counties Extracted from ISA Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls Database Name Rank Co Unit Residence BRENNER, ANDREW PVT C 14 IL US CAV ANNAWAN, HENRY CO, IL BRENNER, GEORGE PVT K 134 IL US INF ANNAWAN, HENRY CO, IL
Denise 868 posts May 28, 2012 4:10 PM	I'm not sure what years of plat books we have for Bureau County, but I will check on my next trip to the Historical Society. ISA - BRENNER, JACOB PURCELL, ANNIE 1868-10-05 D 79 BUREAU I don't know if you are from this area. The tri-counties of Whiteside, Bureau & Henry County abut each other and can be confusing sometimes. Prophetstown twp is very close to the borders. As for Yorktown - There is Yorktown in Fairfield Twp. in Bureau County. This abuts Yorktown Twp. in Henry County. So, I am not too surprised that you have two locations listed from those areas. You may want to contact the Bureau County Genealogical Society. They have indexed all of their newspapers and have a cardex file on all of the surnames up to 1920. BCGS I've engaged the help of a lady that is doing extensive research in Henry County and will post her findings. Last Edited by on May 28, 2012 4:31 PM
Denise 869 posts May 29, 2012 6:55 AM	Henry County Birth index book made by the Henry County Genealogical Society: Name of Child: Mae Mathews, Female Father: John Purcell Mother/Maiden: Martha Harrison DOB: Nov. 13, 1890, Henry Co., IL Marjorie Elizabeth, Female Father; John Purcell Mother: Martha Mary Harrison DOB: Feb.1, 1899 Mary Anita, Female Heryer E Mother: Mary Francis Anthony DOB: Mar 10, 1905 Maurice Evans, male Father: John Mother: Martha Mary Harrison DOB: July 7, 1894 NELLIE HARRISON PURSELL Father:John Mother: Martha M. Harrison DOB: July 2, 1889 ROWLAND HERYER PURSELL Father: Heryer Mother: Frances A. Anthony DOB: June 21, 1909 PURSELL Father: John mother: Martha M Harrison DOB: Feb 19, 1886 (submitted by Robin Pardus)
talljohn52 2 posts Aug 17, 2012 12:02 PM	Denise, Thanks very much for your efforts. I forgot that this site does not auto-respond, and didn't see your replies until yesterday. Much of the background info that you dug up is indeed for my Brenners and Purcells. I had almost all of it, but was interested to see the ledger entry for John Purcell. I knew that the Brenners left the Yorktown area sometime between 1872 and 1880, and suspected the latter half of the decade. The ledger entry suggests that it was no sooner than 1876. In fact, another entry on the same page for A. Booth ties in nicely with the fact that he bought land in Adair, Iowa in 1876. He was a known associate of the Brenners. The birth records for John Purcell and Martha Harrison were unknown to me. I am not sure this was "my" John Purcell, and will be looking into that. Thanks again. John
talljohn52 3 posts Aug 17, 2012 12:27 PM	Checked on John Pursell (husband of Martha Harrison) and Rowland Pursell, son of Heryer E Pursell. These are not "my" Purcells. I still don't know the whereabouts of Nicholas Purcell after about 1850 or his son John N. Purcell between 1885 and 1910. The search continues...
Denise 877 posts Aug 18, 2012 8:07 PM	John, I forgot to check our 1893 Whiteside County plat book directory. We also have Bureau Co. Plats with Directories, but not sure what years. I'll check on my next trip to Tampico. Have you contacted the Bureau County Genealogical Society? They have indexed all of they county newspapers and keep a card file on all the names. They may have information for you. Do you have their #? If not, click on our Table of Contents link at top of page. Scroll down to County Information and click on Bureau Co. That will provide a link to their webiste with contact information. If you can't find it, let me know and Iwill provide a link in this msg. thread.
talljohn52 4 posts Aug 20, 2012 6:15 PM	Denise, Yes, I've contacted BCGS. They weren't able to find anything. I forgot to mention that I also have a mention of the small community of Thomas, a few miles south of Yorktown. Other than that, I don't have any more leads than I've already relayed to you. It's very puzzling that these families were in the area for at least 25 years (about 1850 - 1876) but left so few traces. Thanks...John
Denise 879 posts Aug 22, 2012 6:06 AM	@ John - Oh yes, I am familiar with the little town of Thomas. Aka: Sodtown ONe of our members grew up there. Anyway, I am on my way to Historical Society today, so I will check out the plat books and report back. Thanks for your patience! Denise
Denise 880 posts Aug 22, 2012 12:03 PM	I'm at the Historical Society now. I've checked the 1872 Plat book for Whiteside county. No BRENNER, No PURCELL. There is an A. Booth, Prophetstown, land-owner in Section 29. Will check Bureau & Henry books next. Stay tuned.
Denise 881 posts Aug 22, 2012 2:19 PM	1877 Voters & Tax-Payers of Bureau County, IL = No listings for any township for Brenner or Purcell.
talljohn52 5 posts Aug 26, 2012 3:31 PM	Thanks again. I do have one additional clue, for which I've never been able to find any supporting documents. According to one story, Johanna (Gleason) Purcell, wife of John Purcell and mother of Anna, supposedly was married in Geneseo. Whether or not she moved to Geneseo first with her parents, I don't know. I don't have a date, but it would been about 1850, when she was about 17 years old. I actually have a marriage record from Massachusetts that I think is theirs, which is why I've always discounted this story - also because I've never found any record of the Gleasons in the Henry County area at that time. Maybe one of these days I'll stumble across another clue.
Denise 882 posts Aug 29, 2012 10:36 PM	John, I contacted a friend, Robin Pardus, in Henry County to check on marriages there. This is what she found: Yes I have the marriage books printed by the HC Genealogy Society. I do not find a john Purcell and Joahann Gleason but I do show a John Pursell and Martha M. Harrison marrying on 10-7-1885 lic#2202 I found a Joanna Purcell marrying a Henry Tonkinson 12-15-1867 Lic#294 Last Edited by on Aug 30, 2012 5:23 AM
talljohn52 6 posts Sep 04, 2012 11:17 AM	Thanks, Denise The record for John Pursell and Martha Harrison is the one we've discussed before, not related to my Purcells. I had the 1867 marriage of Joanna Purcell to Henry Tonkinson, and despite many past efforts, I haven't confirmed that this was "my" Johanna. I do know that my Johanna (Gleason) Purcell was enumerated in 1870 and thereafter many times as a Purcell.
Denise 883 posts Sep 04, 2012 12:01 PM	@John, Well, if she was enumerated in 1870 as Purcell, and the Tonkinson marriage was in 1867, that pretty much rules it out as the same Johanna. Unless, it was a brief marriage - she may have married briefly, then gone back to her married name that was same as children. I've seen that done before. It would be nice to see an obit for "Mrs. Henry Tonkinson." The search continues... Last Edited by on Sep 04, 2012 12:02 PM
talljohn52 7 posts Sep 11, 2013 10:37 AM	Update: I still haven't found more on Nicholas Purcell, but did confirm with near certainty that his wife Johanna (Gleeson) Purcell had a brother James who lived in Henry County with his family in the same time period. He moved at some point from Sharon to Geneseo. I believe the Gleeson family immigrated to the Boston area in 1847 from Montreal, and found likely family members in the Montreal city directories of the early 1840's. They originated in Nenagh, Tipperary, Ireland. John

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