WILLIAM HENRY ROSS
(click camera for available picture)
| BIRTH | Estimating from his death record, William Henry was born on 1 August 1825 in either Albemarle or Stanley, NC (depending upon the source)[1,2,3] | ||||||||||
| DEATH | William Henry died in Amesbury, Essex co., MA on 13 May 1907; at the age of 82y:9m:12d.[1,2,4,5] His funeral was at the home of his step-daughter - Mrs. George S. Hanson at 158 Essay Avenue in West Gloucester, Essex co., MA.[5] The causes of William's death were listed as Cerebral Hemorrhage (2 hours), Dementia (6 months).[1] Here is a transcription of his obituaries. | ||||||||||
| BURIAL | He is buried in Beech Brook Cemetary, West Gloucester, Essex co., MA.[1,5] | ||||||||||
| MILITARY SERVICE |
According to Ella Ross Hall's 1942 interview with her grandson Walter,
William ran away from home to join the army and was subsequently stationed at Fort Constitution in
New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. He was supposedly 5' 6" tall.[2]
According to his obituary, however, he was a veteran of the Mexican and Spanish Wars - enlisting in the Mexican war at the age of 17.[5] He also claimed to be a veteran of the Civil War, but proof has not yet been found to substantiate it. Other family lore says that he was a Private of Captain B. H. Hill's Co. of the 1st Regiment of Artillery - enlisting on 2 November 1854 for 5 years and discharged on 9 July 1856.[2] However, William's 1850 United States Census[3] entry indicates that he was in the U.S. Army as early as 1850:
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| OCCUPATIONS | Once he left the Army and suffered through the loss of two wives and a daughter, William Henry gave up his children for adoption, left New Castle and went to sea as a Master Mariner.[2,6,7] By the time of his death on 13 May 1907, his occupation was given as Stonecutter.[1] | ||||||||||
| REMOVED TO |
William Henry's known residences are as follows: 1869 - Rockport, Essex co., MA (listed in one of his obituaries)[5] 1872 - West Gloucester, Essex co., MA (also listed in one of his obituaries)[5] 1886 - 53 Islington Street, Portsmouth, NH (listing in the Portsmouth City Directory)[6] 1888 - Boarding at 59 Middle Street, Portsmouth, NH (listing in the Portsmouth City Directory)[7] 1898 - West Gloucester, Essex co., MA (listed on his Marriage Certificate to Melvina Wheeler)[8] 1904 - Amesbury, Essex co., MA; to live with his youngest daughter. (listed in one of his obituaries)[5] [Since this "youngest daughter" is not Ella Ross Hall, it may be assumed that he had more children with his third wife, Mame.] |
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| MARRIAGE #1 | On 14 November 1850 when William Henry was 25, he first married Sarah HILLIARD, in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. Sarah was born ca. 1823 and died in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH before 30 November 1853 (when William Henry married his second wife); she was, at best, 30 when she died.[9] |
| CHILDREN | 3. | i. | Charles W. ROSS [Jackson] | Born 14 February 1852, New Castle, Rockingham co., NH |
| MARRIAGE #2 |
On 30 November 1853 when William Henry was 28, he second married Sarah "Mary" Elizabeth PIERCE or PEARSE,
in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH.[9] She was born in July 1830 in South Berwick, York co., ME or
Rollingsford, Rockingham co., NH.[2,3] Sarah "Mary" Elizabeth died in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH
on 16 October 1863; she was aged 33y:3m.[4,9]
The cause of her death was listed as Malignant Diphtheria.[2]
Mary Elizabeth Pierce and Sarah Pearse are the same person. Her given name was "Sarah Elizabeth" but she was commonly called "Mary". Her last name has the variations of "Pierce" and "Pearse" in various records. Mary (then age 18) was living with her sister Rachel [Pearse] Yeaton's family in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH in 1850.[3] According to Ella Ross Hall, Mary was a cousin of President Franklin Pierce -- while this is entirely possible, since he was the only US President to hail from New Hampshire, it is an assumption yet to be proven.[2] When Mary died and William decided to go to sea, Eva, Charlie and Ella were adopted by William & Hannah T. Jackson. Henry was adopted by a family named Campbell. Sarah J. had already died. |
| CHILDREN | 4. | i. | Sarah J. ROSS | Born circa 1855 in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. Died 1 February 1863, aged 8y:5m. - just 6 months before the death of her mother from Diptheria. |
| 5. | ii. | Eva/Evy ROSS [Jackson] | Born 14 February 1858 in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. | |
| 6. | iii. | Ella ROSS [Jackson] | Born 12 July 1860 in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. | |
| 7. | iv. | Henry ROSS [Campbell] | Born 9 December 1862 in New Castle, Rockingham co., NH. |
| MARRIAGE #3 | William Henry third married Mary "Mame" [surname not known]. According to Ella Ross Hall, Mame was still living in Bradford, Essex co., MA in 1942.[2] |
| MARRIAGE #4 | In 1898 when William Henry was 72, he fourth married Melvina WHEELER.[8] She was born in 1836 in Rockport, Essex co., MA and lived in Gloucester, Essex co., MA at the time of her marriage to William Henry.[8] |
| GENERATION | Great-great (G2) Grandfather |
| FAMILY NUMBER | 18 |
| SOURCES |
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1. William Henry Ross Death Record, 1907, Amesbury, Essex co., MA, 1907, Amesbury, 68, Commonwealth of Massachusetts Vital Records. 2. Ella Hall Recollections given to Walter Hall in 1942. Subsequently transcribed by Heather Hall and Kristin Hall. 3. 1850 Federal Census, ROCK New Castle, NH, Federal Archives, Waltham, MA. 4. Hall Family Record, Deaths Page, Kristin Hall, Written Records in Family Bibles, Paper. 5. William Henry Ross Obituaries, Unknown Newspaper clippings in family files. 6. 1886 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 14, Page 75. 7. 1888 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 15, Page 78. 8. William Henry Ross & Melvina Wheeler Marriage Record, 1898. 9. New Castle, Rockingham co., NH Vital Records. 10. Hall Family Record, Memoranda Page, Kristin Hall, Written Records in Family Bibles. 11. Hall Family Record, Births Page, Kristin Hall, Written Family Records from Family Bibles. 12. Family Notes Transcription. Notes originally in Walter K. Hall's, Barbara M. Hall's or Heather Hall's hand. 13. 1901 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Nymber 22, Page 121. 14. Hall Family Record, Marriages Page, Kristin Hall, Written Records in Family Bibles, Paper. 15. Ordway R. Hall Death Record, 21 February 1917, Boston, Suffolk co., MA, 1917, 1, 173, 2249, Commonwealth of Massachusetts Vital Records. 16. 1895 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 19, Page 158. 17. 1897 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 19, Page 158. 18. 1894 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 18, Page 142. 19. 1903 Portsmouth, NH City Directory. Number 23, Pages 125-126.
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