My son is named after his 2nd great grandfather, George Lake Barrett. When I began doing genealogy, the Barrett line stopped with George. That was extremely disappointing since it is the surname my son will carry on. I started looking at censuses and they showed a lot of possibilities, but no good leads. I felt like Lake had to be a maiden name and hoped that it might help me out - it didn't seem like the kind of name someone would have pulled out of the hat randomly but I knew nothing for sure. Then I located, through a complete fluke, his death certificate! I don't remember what I did to get it to come up - I have tried since then and it appears to be hidden well. Thank goodness I remembered to save it!
I finally knew his parents and immediately went to find them in other trees to see if I could get any new information. That is when the mystery began. George was not listed as one of John and Frances Lake Barrett's kids on ANY of the other family trees I found. Why? Why weren't they acknowledging him as a son? Then I started looking at their evidence and discovered quickly what had happened. George Lake Barrett was born in 1876, so he was, obviously, not listed in the 1870 census that was taken for the family.
None of them had the 1880 Census listed. The 1890 Census is no more (ho, hum), so there is no way to see him with the family in that one! By 1900, he was married, which meant he was no longer listed with the family.
And there you have it - no wonder the rest of the family knows nothing about him! Where is the 1880 Census????? I cannot locate it anywhere. I have even tried looking through some censuses page by page, but am not 100% what all I have looked through. I now understand why people keep track of every document they go through, although I have yet to figure out the best way to do it.
So - the mystery continues. Where do I look? What do I do? If you have any ideas, I would love any suggestions you might have.
Our Line of Barretts:
Lake Hawthorne Barrett
Ronald Hawthorne BARRETT (father) - Jenna Aldridge Barrett
Ronald Alan BARRETT (grandfather) - Nancy Susan Beskid
Walter John BARRETT (great grandfather) - Rodgers Elizabeth Dantzler
George Lake BARRETT (2nd great grandfather) - Jeannette Van Zandt/Van Hecke
John BARRETT (3rd great grandfather) - Frances Lake
Walter BARRETT (4th great grandfather) - Hariett Boardman
Hi Jenna,
ReplyDeleteI have not found the Barrett family on the 1880 census but I did find some additional info for you.
On the 1900 census, Frances is shown as the mother of 7 children with 4 living. Hattie & Fred are listed on the census with their parents and you know George was still living. The other child is a daughter, Florence M., born 1871. Familysearch.org has her marriage record (to Arthur Smith) and her 1924 death certificate, both documents have her parents listed.
There is also a 1908 marriage certificate for Fred. The child listed on the 1870 census is a female who is "not named". So it appears Walter, the female not named, and another child had died by 1900.
You can find the records at familysearch.org by clicking on 'search',
john barrett
under restrict records by:
United States Michigan
under search with a relationship:
spouse Lake
You can save a copy of these records and add them to your tree at ancestry.
Also, the Fred Barrett listed on the 1940 Jackson MI census with his sister, Margaret L., is not your Fred.
At familysearch.org, click on search, then scroll down and click on United States. Click on Michigan then click Death Certificates 1921-1952. You can search for Margaret & Fred's certificate, their parents were Thomas Barrett & Maria McCabe.
Donna Walker
I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me that you took the time to help me out!! I am excited about the information you found. Thank you!
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