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Hello all,
My name is Jeremy and I am new to this forum. I am trying to research the Colbart/Colbert branch of my family. I have an ancestor Nathan Colbart who is exceedingly difficult to find in the census records. I think he was born around 1860 and has ties to VA. I believe his father is Nathaniel Colbert from VA.
Oral tradition tells me that this Grandfather was Blackfoot and that he was shot in a horse trade, leaving my g-g-grandfather (John Raymond Colbart) an orphan.
I would like to know more about this side of my family history, but i seem to come upon many dead ends.
I believe the Colbart/Colberts might be of Melungeon descent, as i have Behcet syndrome, a rare genetic disorder occuring mostly among Turkish people.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Jeremy
Hi Jeremy, welcome to the forum.
Have you found your G-G-Grandfather John Raymond Colbart on any census records? If so, when and where?
Bill
Hi Bill,
I was able to find John Raymond Colbart as well as his father, Nathan Colbart, and siblings on the 1900 census in Smith township, Whitley County, Indiana. He is listed as Raymond, and went by this name his entire life. He was born in 1891 and his father in 1863.
From the census, I know that Nathan Colbart could nto read or write. This is the reason i believe the spelling of his name might have changed from Colbert to Colbart. This census record indicates that he was born in Ohio.
From this point back it gets a little choppy. I was able to find on the 1870 census a Nathan Colbert living in Superior Township, Williams County Ohio. It says he was 14 at the time, which would mean he was born around 1856. Whether this could be the same man, I don’t know. Why there could possibly be such a discrepency in age? Anyway this Nathan’s father is listed as Nathaniel Colbert from Virginia, born around 1808.
My G-Grandmother told me once that her Grandfather, Nathan, was shot in a horse trade and left to bleed to death propped up against a tree in Churubusco, Indiana. His wife Rose found him and was later commited to some mental institution, leaving my G-G Grandfather an orphan. At this point, Raymond went on to live with an uncle to my G-G-grandmother, Ollie Shipe Colbart. How he was sent to live with the Shipes, I don’t know. This man would not speak much of his heritage, other than to say he was Blackfoot Indian, was poor growing up, and that they lived in a tent.
I think in a way this Grandfather might have given me one more clue as to my ancestry. I was diagnosed with Behcet syndrome in 2000, a rare genetic disease. I have a great Uncle descended from this man, who shared the same diagnosis. I have learned that it is a common genetic marker for Melungeon ancestry. This side of my family has many Melungeon features in addition to the disease. I am often mistaken as Hispanic or Mulatto.
I’m starting to realize how difficult this can get.
Thank you for any input.
~Jeremy
Jeremy,
Others of us on this forum have ancestors from Whitley County, IN. My Rhodes are from near there. Another forum member sent me an email telling me of a Catawba cemetery with someone buried in it by the name Willis which is another of my names. I am unsure of the Rhodes, but the Willis in my family, if indeed this Whitley County Willis is connected with my Willis’, are believed to be Indian. I am unsure of the Willis being Blackfoot, nor the ethnicity of the Rhodes, but they both settled in Iowa near the ggggrandmother whose headstone reads Blackfoot and are buried in that cemetery. So this Whitley county location is familiar on this forum.
Techteach
Interesting. I just returned from my 4th or 5th research trip to Whitley Co. It was an very racist county back around the civil war times, with a VERY small non-white population, mainly in Smith Township. Family names associated with the Smith township settlement were Jeffries, Pompey, Keen, Jones, Winburn, Roberson, Long, Burden, and Crone with the first four surnames being the oldest. I seem to remember a Rhodes intermarriage, but I’ll have to check my notes. Few descendants remain in the area today, and the ones I have met are regarded as white, for the most part. The old church, Pleasant Hill, is gone, and the graveyard is in a state of disrepair.
Forest,
The Willis is buried in the Jeffries cemetary. I do not know if this person is connected or not, but like I said, it is not far from where my Rhodes were. I saw the name on a sign as I drove through an Indiana town last spring. My great aunt spells it Rhoads, but the Rhodes headstones in the Iowa cemetary with my ggggrandmother spell it as Rhodes.
My ggrandmother (Rhoads) would not stay in the same room with my gggrandmother who looked very Indian (a Willis connection) and whose brother openly said he was native.
Techteach
Forest,
Have you been to this website: http://historical.whitleynet.org/
I haven’t looked it over very well, but it seems to offer contact to various geneologists in Whitley County that may be able to assist you in your own search.
I think my family only lived there briefly, as they seemed to like to wander around…pretty restless I guess. My G-G Grandfather, Raymond Colbart and his wife moved 52 times in their 50 years together.
As it is not very far from where I now live (Fort Wayne, Indiana), I think I’m going to plan a trip there. A relative told me once that Whitley has formed a park around the burial mounds.
~Jeremy
I was thinking the above link might help you as well techteach.
I was only able to find my relatives living in Whitley County during the 1900 census. I think Nathan Colbart was killed shortly afterward in Churubusco, also in Whitley, but couldn’t find him in any of the cemetary listings on that website. Then again, he seems to defy all of the records. It would be nice to know more, but I have no idea where to start.
~Jeremy
The 1900 Whitley Co Ind Nathan Colbart, b.Nov (?) 1863, Ohio,
is the same person as recorded in 1870 Williams Co., Superior Twp., Ohio, based on the corresponding given names in that family – ages are close enough, due to the same family members’ names being there – remember, the parents did not read or write.
The 14 yr old Nathan is unlikely to be the son of Nathaniel, 62, Va., and Barbary (Barbara in 1850 Seneca Co., Oh), 64, Va. for the reason to which you alluded (as only ‘associated’ with Virginia) – maybe a grandson? Pure speculation of course, but possible a son of Nathaniel’s son John?
Yes, it DO raise some questions which we’ll never answer with census records alone. You’ll probable have to look at marriage/birth records in Ohio to sort this out.
Something you may have already considered is that due to the paucity of COLBERT/COLBART surnames in the 1830 to 1880 time-frames, this surname is probably a regional misspelling of a more common surname…… say, CALVERT? This was an earlier French Hugenote version in early 1700s Virginia.
I think this could be the same Nathaniel Colbert, age 36 to 54, recorded as a “Free Person of Color” in 1840 Frederick Co., Dist. 4, Md census, but due to the dau Sarah and son John being recorded as “born Ohio” prior to 1840 (recorded in Ohio), my supposition is unconvincing but deserves to be investigated. He being within the age-range of the 1850 Nathaniel, and within one county of Virginia, does beg the question and a further look.
An argurement based on “weighted inference of circumstancial evidence” could also be made from the neighbors’ surnames of 1900 Whitley Co., Ind. (including RHODES (HELLO Cindy), but I’m not real hot on that associated-surname-thesis when it comes to this time-frame in Ohio and Indiana unless one can connect them in an earlier time & place. Some lines of SHIP /SHIPP /SHIPE /SHIPPE (and the earlier SCHIFF) are related to the WINBURN / WILBURN (a.k.a. GIBSON & vice versa) in early Virginia, the ancestor of the line I’m referring to, “Thomas GIBSON, a.k.a. WILBURN”, having many descendants in Indiana.
Bill
Hi yourself, Bill.
I can add to this. My speculation that the Rhodes were not white is simply that, speculation based on a lot of intriguing evidence, the fact that Joseph Rhoads was born in this area at a time when few whites were there, the fact that some of his descendents end up married to my known native ancestors, the fact that his family lived in places where others on this forum find their mixed ancestors (southwest Indiana and southeast Illinois) and the fact that Joseph is buried in Newcomerstown, OH. I do not know for a fact that he was not white. The only picture I have is of his daughter, my gggrandmother, who looks like she has dark hair, but the copy is very bad. Someday, I hope to get east with some time on my hands to Newcomerstown and see which cemetary he is buried in if I can find it. I know that there are Rhoads buried in a known native American cemetery there.
Cindy
Thanks Bill!
You’ve added alot to what i was thinking. I’m glad you mentioned that the 1870 Nathan might be the son of John, as i was kind of doubting my own supposition.
Also thankyou for mentioning the French Calvert. I remeber my G-Grandmother’s cousin saying something about a Frenchman in our family long ago marrying a Blackfoot woman, and living with the Blackfoot. So who knows. That may be one of those romantic family legends, or it might be rooted in fact.
I appreciate all of your help!
~Jeremy
Cindy,
http://genealogy.whitleynet.org/cem.htm
This lists the cemetaries of Whitley county and many of the people buried in them. I noticed in my search for Nathan Colbert, that there is a Sarah Rhoades listed in a Smith County cemetary. It mentions she’d been married to a Jeffries. Given what Forest said about the Smith township Jeffries, it sounds like there could be a connection to the settlement there.
Other Rhoads, Rhodes, Rhodess, Rhoades from Whitley Co:
Thorncreek Township Cemetaries:
Rhoads Ida M — born 1871 died 1963 2 names Willis lot 83 — Blue River-A-9-2-1
Rhoads James H — died November 17 1877 aged 13 years 11 months 17 days son of J J & P — Stough-B-13-3-1
Rhoads John J — born June 13 1835 died December 30 1899 aged 64 years 6 months 17 days 2 names Thimela Rhoads — Stough-B-13-4-1
Rhoads Mary Ann — born 1894 died 1961 lot 83 — Blue River-A-9-1-1
Rhoads Thimela — born December 20 1829 2 names John J no death date inscribed — Stough-B-13-4-2
Rhoads Willis — born 1865 died 1954 2 names Ida M lot 83 — Blue River-A-9-2-2
Rhodes Jacob Jr — died January 10 1862 aged 33 years 1 month 21 days 2 names Dearest brother thous hast left us And thy loss we deeply feel But tis God that hast bereft us He can all our sorrows heal — Stough-B-13-2-2
Rhodess Jacob — died September 25 1869 aged 79 years 7 months 12 days 2 names He took thee from a world of care to share — Stough-B-13-2-1
Cleveland Township Cemetaries:
Rhoades Doris Aleta — born 1927 Russell married Jun 3 1944 parents of Gwen Stacey Deanna Carolyn — South Whitley-R-32-1-2
Rhoades Genevieve M — born April 22 1923 William married Nov 7 1964 — South Whitley-S-11-8-2
Rhoades Russell Jr — born 1923 Doris married Jun 3 1944 parents of Gwen Stacey Deanna Carolyn — South Whitley-R-32-1
Rhoades Russell W — born 1897 died 1969 Ruth — South Whitley-R-33-2
Rhoades Ruth E — born 1904 died 1997 Russell — South Whitley-R-33-2-2
Rhoades William D — born October 5 1931 died October 14 1996 Genevieve married Nov 7 1964 Cpl US Army Korea — South Whitley-S-11-8
Hope this helps!
~Jeremy
There is a Sarah A. Rhodes buried in Pleasant Hill Graveyard, often referred to as the Jeffries Graveyard, or, simply, the “Black” graveyard. No evidence as to her maiden name. Henry Rhodes married Ruth Jeffries 9/1/1864 in Whitley Co; his relationship, if any, to Sarah Ann Rhodes (1823-1876) not yet determined. I have not been able to locate (on the internet, anyway) where Henry and Ruth went after their marriage.
Techteach,
Where were you able to find the info on a Willis buried in the Jeffries Graveyard in Whitley? There doesn’t appear to be a stone for that surname. Was it from a death record?
Thanks,
Forest
http://www.angelfire.com/ok3/greybird7/genealogy.html
Thought I’d mention this here too. It is a website created by a Choctaw trying to understand the Chickasaw Colbert’s.
It mentions the Calvert surname, and 3 islands on the Dan — Saponi, Tutero and Occoneechee where it is suspected by some that James Logan, grandfather of the progenetor of the Chickasaw Colbert’s, James Logan Colbert, was born.
It brings together the Calvert surname Bill mentioned, the Colbert surname, the Saponi (aka Blackfoot), and the Chickasaw.
It is interesting reading.
vance
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