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My uncle just shared the geneology he has collected on my family with me. It appears to confirm the statements my grandmother always made, that there is Native American blood in my family. Her great-grandmother was named Nancy Agnes McLane and was born in Beaver Co., PA somewhere around 1814. Her headstone reads “Native American” and Blackfoot. My mother said that my uncle does not know who put those statements on it. Has anyone else turned up something like this? Has anyone turned up this name? I think she cannot be of the Montana Blackfoot since she is from PA, so likely belongs here. Thanks.
If you can prove that she was born in PA in 1814, then I think it would be hard for anybody to suggest that she was from Montana. I’ve heard tales of Montana Blackfoot warriors venturing as far as Illinois, and that was surprising. Western Plains people came to PA with the Carlisle Indian school, but that didn’t get started until the 1870’s or so.
Very interesting that her headstone would say all that. Very unusual. When did she die? Do you think the headstone was erected later? It may be very useful to gather names from grave around her, if they may be from the same community.
There are additional notes in his geneology. Nancy McLane’s headstone indicates a definite birth date of 1814. My uncle’s notes in the geneology show a range of 1814 to 1818. Also, his notes say that the family lived several years in PA, but then moved to Iowa, probably with other brothers and families of my great…grandfather. (When visiting with my uncle at a family reunion this summer, he does not seem to know any more than what he has noted. Maybe though if we drive to a conference in DC in January, we can swing through that PA area and check out headstones.)
Hey there another Iowa link. My family is still here. They came here about 1870-80. Just goes to show more that what I said was true. There are more Saponi’s here than just my family. Ive heard the identification by several others. What are you family surnames besides McLane? Find out what part of Iowa too if you can. My family is mostly east of Des Moines near the Meskwaki.
In response to Linda, the headstone is, according to my mother, in a rattlesnake-infested cemetary that is near Canton, Iowa called Hickory Grove Cemetary. I have not seen it.
In response to cr21, if indeed the Native American link is Saponi, there are more Iowa folks than you can imagine. My grandmother alone had 13 children, all who had several children and the Native American link is 5 generations ago, virtually all generations living near Cedar Rapids.
I am fascinated by this and spent the day doing more exploring of both my uncle’s geneology and the Internet. Interestedly enough, my grandmother is the second wife, the first one being named Susan MaWha (Does anyone know this name?). When searching this name, I stumbled on a history of Slippery Rock where my grandfather was apparently one of the earliest settlers. There is an online history with this information. It was his son to whom Nancy of the headstone was married. In this history, the author indicates that the natives of Butler County, the location of the family, were Delawares, Shawanese, Munceys, and Senecas. It then specifically states that the area was the property of the Cornplanter tribe and that they frequently visited the area pioneered by my grandfather’s family up until 1818. Given that information and the comment on my grandmother’s headstone, gives cause for speculation, does it not? I read the information on this site about the hypothesized tie to the Senecas. One presumes that my grandmother was the one who called herself Blackfoot.
I often wondered why Bradley COLLINS, first son of my Meredith found his way to Iowa.
About 1826[?], he (Bradley) moved to Clay Co., KY. While in Clay Co.,
Andrew, his son, married Betsy Ann Sizemore, Mar.. 31, 1838. He sold his land in
1839, and shortly afterwards, he and his family, Andrew and his wife and
son, Lewis, traveled by flat boat down the Kentucky and Ohio Rivers to
Missouri. They were in Carroll Co., MO, in 1840, but later settled
near Keytesville, Chariton Co., MO. It was here that Bradley received a
land grant in May of 1841. Bradley and Andrew raised and sold crops of
corn, cotton, and tobacco.
About 1844, Bradley and Andrew sold their land in Missouri, and moved to
Centerville, Appanoose Co., Iowa, on the Chariton River. They farmed in
addition to running a ferry across the Chariton River. Andrew (1811-ca.
1873) was living in 1850 in Appanoose Co., Iowa Census, with his family,
Betsy Ann (wife). Lewis, Samson, Archibald, and Polly Ann, and his
father Bradley, age 63, born in North Carolina.
Bradley as well as his father,Meredith, was listed 1810 & 1920 as Mullato and fpc. Meredith’s common law third wife and their son were listed as a slaves however, family oral history says the Millie Johnson was full blood Indian and Meredith was mixed.
——————
Life is a Rainbow made up of Many Different Colors…..
I always considered Iowa a tolerant state. BTW, I maybe ought not to have used “hypothesized” earlier. And I thinks someone asked me for other names. As far as I know, only Nancy Agnes McLane was identified as Native American in my family. She married John Ralston, Jr.in Butler County, PA around 1834.
Linda:
I found the explanation for the headstone on the net. I was lurking in Genforum and found this:THIS IS WHAT I PHOTO COPIED OUT OF THE BOOK “THE GOLDEN THREADS” BY WILLIAM WEGER. AUGUST 28, 1998 IN 6 YEARS OF SEARCHING AND RESEARCH
OF OUR FAMILY HISTORY I HAVE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO FIND POSITIVE WRITTEN OR RECORDED PROOF ABOUT WHICH MEMBER OF OUR FAMLY WAS THE
NATIVE AMERICAN. THE MORMAN CHURCH RECORDS SHOW OUR GREAT GREAT GRANDMOTHER, NANCY AGNES MCLANE, AS SHAWNEE. BORN 1809, BEVER CO.
PA. THIS I AM POSITIVE IS IN-ACCURATE INFO. FIRST, THE BIRTH DATE IS 5 YEARS YOUNGER THAN THE OBITUARY AND FUNERAL HOME RECORDS SHOW.
SECOND THEY ASSUM SHE WAS SHAWNEE BECAUSE SHE WAS BORN IN SHAWNEE TERITORY. THEY DID NOT TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THAT OUR
GOVERNMENT WAS TAKING ALL INDIAN CHILDREN AWAY FROM THEIR PARENT AND SENDING THEM HUNDREDS OF MILES AWAY TO INDIAN SCHOOLS.
CARLIER INDIAN SCHOOL IN PA. WAS ONE OF THEM. NANCY’S PAENTS, OR NANCY HERSELF COULD HAVE BEEN SENT TO THIS SCHOOL. I HAVE FOUND ALL TO
OFTEN, GENEALOGISTS DO NOT GET THE FACTS AND DATES CORRECT. OFTEN MAKING PRESUMPTIONS WITHOUT GETTING THE TRUE FACTS. WITH OUR OWN
GRANDPARENTS, I’VE FOUND WRONG DATES AND MISSPELLED NAMES. I’VE COME TO BELIEVE THE ONLY TRUE RECORD IN THIS MATTER IS THE ORAL RECORD
PASSED DOWN BY OUR GRANDFATHER, WILLIAM ALFRED RALSTON. HE TOLD HIS SON, HAROLD E, WHEN HE WAS STILL YOUNG THAT HIS (WILLIAMS)
GRANDMOTHER NANCY WAS BLACKFOOT INDIAN. YEARS LATER WILLIAM ALSO MADE THIS SAME STATEMENT TO HIS GRANDSON, IVAN E RALSTON. MY
FATHER, HDROLD AND MY BROTHER IVAN REPEATED THIS INFO TO ME, ALFRED H RALSTON. GRANDPA GREW UP NEAR WHERE HIS GRANDPARENTS, JOHN AND
NANCY FARMED. WILLIAMS GRANDFATHER DIED ONE YEAR BEFORE HE WAS BORN, BUT HIS GRANDMOTHER NANCY LIVED ANOTHER 32 YEARS. WILIAM ALSO
FARMED IN THIS SAME AREA OF JACKSON CO FOR APPROXAMATELY 16 YEARS. HE SURELY KNEW HIS GRANDMOTHER NANCY WELL. MY MOTHER, ETTA,
RECALLED A CONVERSATION SHE HAD WITH GRANDPA RALSTON THAT TOOK PLACE NOT LONG AFTER SHE AND DAD (HAROLD) HAD MARRIED. SHE AND
GRANDPA RALSTON WERE TRYING TO DETERMINE WHAT PERCENTAGE INDIAN OUR DAD (HAROLD) WAS. WITH THE HELP OF ONE OF THE CEMETARY
DIRECTORS OF HICKERY GROVE CEMETARY, WE FOUND WHERE OUR GRT, GRT,GRANDMOTHER NANCY IS BURIED. HER NAME IS NOT ON ANY STONE MARKER,
NOT EVEN ON HER HUSBAND JOHNS. HER MARKER WAS JUST A SMALL LIMESTONE ONE THAT ONLY HAD ONE WORD, MOTHER, ON THE TOP EDGE OF IT. IT WAS
LEANING, NEARLY READY TO FALL OVER. I HAVE ENCOUNTERED SEVERAL DISTANT RELATIVES THAT HAD HEARD OF AN INDIAN ANCESTOR BUT HAD NO IDEA
OF WHO SHE MIGHT BE. I HAVE FELT IT NESSARY TO GET THESE FACTS IN WRITING BEFORE THEY ARE LOST ALLTOGETHER. I ALSO HAD A HEADSTONE MARKER
MADE THAT GIVE GRT,GRT, GRANDMOTHER NANCY THE RECOGNITION THAT SHE DESERVES. IT SETS THE RECORD STRAIGHT ABOUT HER. BURIAL RECORDS
AND NEWSPAPER RECORDS SHOW GRT GRT GRANDMOTHER NANCY AS: BORN 1814 BEVER CO PA.DIED 1905, JACKSON CO IA. BURIED HICKORY GROVE
CEMETARY, JACKSON CO. IA. HER OLDEST SON MELLON WAS 1/2 BLACKFOOT INDIAN. MELLONS 6TH CHILD WAS OUR GRANDFATHER,WILLIAM ALFRED 1/4
BLACKFOOT, WM’S. CHILDREN 1/8. AND ALL THEIR CHILDREN 1/16. LIFE WAS VERY HARD IN NANCY’S DAY AND TIME. EVERYONE WAS STRUGGLING TO MAKE A
LIVING AND JUST STAYING ALIVE. AT THIS TIME IN HISTORY, MANY PEOPLE CONSIDERED BEING INDIAN OR PART INDIAN AS DEGRADING. IT PROBABLY NEVER
OCCURED TO NANCY THAT SOME DAY, IN TIME TO COME, SOME OF HER FUTURE OFFSPRING WOULD WANT TO KNOW ABOUT HER. NO RECORDS WERE KEPT TO
SPEAK OF. SHE DIED IN OR NEAR MONMOUTH, IOWA. WITH WHOM SHE WAS LIVING AFTER HER HUSBAND DIED, I HAVE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO FIND OUT. SHE
RAISED TWO STEP CHILDREN, FROM JOHNS FIRST MARRIAGE, BESIDES HER OWN 10. SHE HAD TO HAVE BEEN ONE BUSY LADY TO CONTEND WITH THE
SCOTCH/IRISH/AND INDIAN RALSTONS. MAY SHE REST IN PEACE. I MYSELF COULD NEVER GET GRANDPA RALSTON TO TALK ABOUT OUR ANCESTORS. HIS ONLY
COMMENT WAS, “THEY WERE NOTHING BUT HORSE THIEVES AND KILLERS, YOU DONT WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THEM”. SOME WERE, —–MOST WERE NOT. GRT
GRT GRANDMOTHER NANCY’S HEADSTONE READS: RALSTON NANCY AGNES MCLANE NATIVE AMERICAN — BLACKFOOT BORN 1814 BEVER CO. PA. DIED 1905
JACKSO CO. IA. WIFE OFJOHN RALSTON MAY OUR CREATOR KEEP YOUR SPIRIT IN PEACE
BY ALFRED H RALSTON GRT GRT GRANDSON OF NANCY AGNES MCLANE”
I also found Ralston descendents with family stories of her being from an Indian orphanage. Obviously, though, she is one of those whose family tradition calls her “Blackfoot”.
We have McLain’s in our family who were in Virginia. Went from Va to NC, Illinois, to Texas, to Oklahoma.
vance hawkins
Yeah Iowa is pretty tolerant towards natives. Not so well towards other races but its alright. My family mainly lives in Jasper and Marion Co.’s east of Des Moines. About 1 1/2-2 hours from Cedar Rapids. Just before my family and others got here the state government had allowed many Meskwakis to return to that exact area. I believe Ive ran into 4-5 Saponi families here besides mine. Im sure theres a few more.. Not much though.
Vance,
That’s interesting. I wonder how/if a connection can be followed up when the person is supposed to have grown up in an orphanage. I have bounced around queries in Genforums on the Ralston line in the last couple of days, but only turned up some querky family stories of this lady. But I did find that some information does spell her name as your McLain.
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