The first family line I researched was the Fennimore family; my beloved Grandmother was Florence Fennimore, and I picked her family to research because of the unique last name, thinking it would be the easiest. I couldn’t have been more wrong, quickly encountering my first brick wall, the parentage of William Fennimore, my third great grandfather. It’s been 24 years, and I have yet to arrive at an answer. DNA is my next avenue of research. The paper trail has gone cold.
The Marriage
William Fennimore of Morristown, Morris County New Jersey, married Mary Elizabeth Day of Bernards, Somerset County on 16 December 1859, in Millington, Morris County. Rev. Hopper officiated the marriage at the Parsonage of the Millington Baptist Church. Mary Elizabeth was the daughter of Israel Day and Gracia Ann Elizabeth Blazier.[1] William’s parents were not listed on the marriage record.
The couple would have thirteen children, of which nine would survive to adulthood; of the nine, it appears that seven would have children of their own.
The Project
Through traditional research, public trees, and correspondence, I have identified six* Ancestry.com kits that share DNA and have a “paper trail.” Using the “paper trails,” it can be determined that we are descended from four different children of William and Mary.
The ultimate goal of the project is to identify the
parents of William Fennimore of Somerset and Morris counties born 1834-37 in
New Jersey. By contacting descendants, we can share traditional research, but
also hopefully isolate the “Fennimore” DNA. If you match, I will be
contacting you via Ancestry messages, and be asking you to help me with our
quest.
[1] New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Marriage Returns, Somerset County, Bernards Township, AE:323 (1859), William Fennamore [Fennimore] and Mary Elizh. Day, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton
