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Matrilineal Monday: Tracking down Elizabeth Winter

Elizabeth Winter has been a hard one to find. She married Socrates (or Coradis - I've seen it both ways) Miller down Smithville, Southern Lancaster County. Their daughter, Emma Miller, married Aldus J. Eckman and I have lots of paperwork on her. Her parents - not so much.

Emma was born on 25 August 1859, as confirmed by census records and her death certificate. Her parents were identified by my late sister-in-law, Wilma Lee, who provided me with many "start" places but no documentation. I have since documented everything and gained additional info! Her death certificate documents her parents as Coradis Miller and Elizabeth Winter. Coradis is identified as Socrates everywhere else.

According to the 1900 Census, Emma married Aldus Eckman in 1875. Now IF those dates are correct, then Emma would have only been 16 when she got married. The only two census records she would have been at home with her parents for would be the 1860 and 1870 census records.

I found a Socrates and Eliza Miller on the 1870 census for Smithville, in Providence Township, Lancaster County. Both parents are 50, making them born about 1820. Two daughters are at home: Esther, age 6; Emma F., age 1. Emma should be - if this is my Emma - 11 not 1. (My thought is that the census taker dropped a digit).

The 1860 census lists 40 year old parents Socrates and Elizabeth Miller. Four children - all daughters - are also listed. They are: Anna, age 14; Mary, age 7; Martha, age 5; my two-year old Emma!

Going back 10 more years, 30 year old Eliza Miller is listed on the Providence Township census with her 30 year old husband Socrates as well as three children. The children are: seven year old Joseph Miller, five year old Anna Miller, and 11 year old Albert Eckman. Unfortunately the 1850 census does not list how everyone is related to the head of the house.

So who is Albert Eckman? Albert would have been born in 1839. Joseph was the first child of Socrates and Elizabeth. He was born in 1844. Hence, Elizabeth Winters was married to an Eckman prior to Socrates Miller. Since she was so young then and had a young child, she remarried. Now to prove that and learn more about her!

When stuck like this, I will often look at other matching trees on Ancestry.com for hints and direction. There I found a Chadwick Family Tree which lists Socrates and Elizabeth. According to that tree, Elizabeth Winter had first married Samuel Eckman (1816 - 1841). They had one child - Albert (1839 - 1910). Elizabeth then married Socrates Miller in 1842. The tree also states that Elizabeth was born on 15 February 1818 to Joseph and Ann Winters. All the other information is the same as what I have already documented so while I am apt to believe this to be correct, I still want to document this new information.

From those clues, I gathered her death date as well (21 November 1907). I went to the PA Department of Health Death Indices and got Elizabeth's certificate number. Then I went back to Ancestry.com and searched the Pennsylvania Death Certificates for 1907 by certificate number and ...

 
Now I have confirmed, via another document, that Eliza Miller was born on 15 February 1820 to Joseph Winters and Annie Eberly. She is buried in Clearfield UM Cemetery and the informant is Aldus Eckman (Emma's husband).

 
 
While now I have finally found most of her statistics (that's what I call all the dates and documented info), I still want to know who she was. What did Elizabeth enjoy? What did she look like? Who was she really? These questions I may never find but ... the search continues!
 

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