52 Ancestors: #52 ~ Abraham (Abram) Augustine Webster

This is part of the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" Challenge begun by Amy Johnson Crow, author of the blog No Story Too Small.



I did it! Here is the last blog post for the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. Thank you Amy Johnson Crow for this challenge. And thank you to my wonderful readers for following along. And now to introduce you to this week's ancestor....

Abraham (or Abram) Augustine Webster was the thirteenth and last child born to my 4th great-grandparents, Augustine Webster and Mary Tyler. I've introduced you to four of his brothers in previous posts – Ebenezer, Daniel, Wesley and George.

For some reason there's some confusion about whether his name was Abraham or Abram. In most of the census records I've seen him listed in his name was Abraham. On his Find A Grave memorial page there's a picture of his tombstone. His tombstone lists his name as Abraham.

The inscription on his tombstone is as follows:

Webster
Our Parents
Abraham Webster 1817-1894
Phebe His Wife 1819-1883

According to the book Waterman Family, Descendants of Robert Waterman, Volume 1 by Donald Lines Jacobus, his name was Abraham.¹  The book also states that he was a farmer and had 11 children.  The book History and Genealogy of the Governor John Webster Family of Connecticut. Vol. 1 states that his name was probably Abram.²

Why was he listed in both the Waterman and the Webster genealogy books? Because he married a Waterman, or I should say the descendant of a Waterman.

Regarding his name though, with most of the records stating that his name was Abraham, I think I'll go with that instead of Abram.

Abraham was born on 2 June 1817 in Chester, Meigs, Ohio.

Abraham, who is my maternal 3rd great-granduncle, married my 1st cousin 4 times removed, Phebe Smith, who was the daughter of Jonas Smith and Jerusha Waterman. This is another instance in my family tree where someone in my Webster family married someone in my Waterman family. Another example is the marriage of my 2nd great-grandparents, Ebenezer Perry Carlisle Webster and Cynthia Maria Waterman.

Cynthia Maria Waterman and Abraham's wife Phebe Smith were first cousins. Phebe's mother, Jerusha, and Cynthia's father, Asher, were siblings.

I wrote about Abraham's mother-in-law, Jerusha Waterman, in a previous 52 Ancestors post. She was one of the children of Dr. Luther L. Waterman who was a surgeon in the Revolutionary War. You can read about Jerusha by clicking HERE.

Abraham and his wife Phebe were the parents of eleven children.

1. Martha Caroline Webster (1840-Bef 1910)
2. Antsel Delay Webster (1841-1843)
3. Charles Austin Webster (1843-1863)
4. Sarah Jane Webster (1845-?)
5. Lewis Stanley Webster (1847-1874)
6. Emma Viola Webster (1849-?)
7. Malinda Frances Webster (1853-?)
8. Spencer Ackley Webster (1855-1856)
9. Elma Alvira Webster (1857-?)
10. Eva May Webster (1859-1944)
11. Corwin Webster (1861-1861)

Abraham spent his life as a farmer in Lebanon Township, Meigs County, Ohio. That was his occupation in every census record in which I've seen him listed.

He passed away on 31 January 1894 in Racine, Meigs, Ohio. He was buried in the Bethlehem Cemetery located in Lebanon Township, Meigs County, Ohio.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2014 Copyright by Jana Last, All Rights Reserved

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1 Jacobus, Donald Lines, and Edgar Francis Waterman. The Waterman Family. Vol. 1. New Haven, CT: E.F. Waterman, 1939. 564. Print.^↩
2 Webster, William Holcomb, and Melville Reuben Webster, D.D. "XXVI."History and Genealogy of the Governor John Webster Family of Connecticut. Vol. 1. Rochester: E. R. Andrews Printing, NY. 618. Print.^↩