James Summers of Delaware

In the late 1700s, James Summers, a free Black man living in Kent Co, Delaware, entered into a relationship with Judea (also “Jada), a woman enslaved by the Lowber family in Murderkill Hundred (see map at end). They are said by some to have been married; however, marriage by a slave was usually forbidden. Whether James Summers and Judea were legally married or not, Judea took the last name "Summers" and the relationship lasted throughout their lives.

Slaves were seldom shown with a last name, but Peter’s will stated “I give and Bequeath to
Catharine Duhadaway . . a Negro girl named ruth summers . . .”

In 1794 Peter Lowber died, and his will freed Judea. But the will did not free the two children of James and Judea, Ruth and Thomas, who were born into slavery because their mother was a slave. According to the will, 4-year-old Ruth was given to Peter's sister Catharine Duhadaway, to be enslaved until Ruth was 21 years old, at which time she should be freed. The will makes no mention of 2-year-old Thomas, who, needing a mother’s care, was probably given by Peter Lowber's heirs  to James and Judea Summers, but was not officially freed.

Manumission document, Delaware Public Archives

When Catharine Duhadaway died in Maryland, her possessions, including Ruth, became available for distribution. James must have purchased Ruth, by payment or labor, because on 14 October 1797, James signed with his mark a document to free both his children. John Lowber, Peter's grandson, signed the manumission document as a witness. The document states

I the said James Summers for divers Considerations me especially moving do Manumit, Liberate and set at full Liberty . . .my affectionate Children, namely Thomas Summers who is now age about five years, and Ruth Summers aged Seven years . . . that they the said Thomas Summers and Ruth Summers liberated as afores^d shall from and immediately after the date on these presents enjoy their Freedom as Other Free Citizens Can or ought to do.

Today there are over 300 descendants of James and Judea Summers (Photo from a Delaware Day 2020 film, Delaware Historic and Cultural Affairs).

In Delaware, Hundreds were essentially townships. “Murderkill” is believed
to have come from the Dutch “moeder kille,” meaning “mother creek.”

And who was James Summers? At the time he signed the manumission document, he was living in Murderkill Hundred, just north of Mispillion Hundred, where the descendants of Thomas Sr. and Rosanna Summers lived (see In The Beginning). And in 1800 James was actually living in Mispillion Hundred. Given his name, it is not unlikely that James Summers, who was probably born somewhere around 1760, was a child of one of Thomas Sr’s four sons—Thomas Jr, John, William, or Joseph. These, their spouses, and their children were the only Summerses (yes, that is the plural of Summers) living in all of Kent Co around this time. Born in 1749, Joseph would have probably been too young, but the other three sons, who are known to have been living in Mispillion Hundred in the 1750s and 1760s, could have fathered James with an enslaved woman, though admittedly the Summers were not known to own slaves. No records, however, exist showing this, and autosomal DNA evidence is very unlikely to provide proof. Thomas Summers’s known descendants living today are likely seven or more generations removed from any of Thomas’s children, and an autosomal DNA match probability would be well under 1 percent. yDNA could provide proof or disproof if DNA results become available for male-line descendants of both James and Thomas Sr. Are there volunteers out there?

The Delaware Summers Haplogroup

 

I wish to acknowledge a contribution to Summers family history made by my wife’s distant cousin Katharyne Jane (Silva) Belew. Katharyne has determined the likely yDNA haplogroup for at least a portion of the Summers line originated in 1700s Delaware by Thomas Summers Sr. And Katharyne did it without a drop of Summers yDNA in her genes, since only males can carry the y chromosome. A y haplogroup is a group of lineages defined by unique genetic markers present on the y-chromosome. Since only the males carry yDNA, this haplogroup follows the Summers name (in the absence of adoptions, name changes, etc.) back to the distant past. This haplogroup could even date from the time before surnames existed.

To determine the Delaware Summers haplogroup, Katharyne cleverly found six men with the surname "Summers" who had  autosomal DNA matches with her and who had a known y haplogroup. Five of the six had the I-S1954 haplogroup, and, thus, this is likely the haplogroup for the Delaware Summers. That the five individuals are 3rd or 4th cousins to each other, except two who are father and son, and are all descended from Thomas Summers of Franklin Co, Illinois (c1784-1864), indicates that Thomas of Illinois, grandson of Thomas of Delaware, had this haplogroup. (Thanks to Katharyne for pointing this out.) And if Thomas of Illinois had this haplogroup, his grandfather, Thomas of Delaware, could have also had it.

Haplogroup I-S1954, also known as Haplogroup I-M170 (Y Chromosome Consortium long-form label), appears be Germanic. “Germanic?” you may say. How can this be when Thomas Summers, the progenitor of the Delaware Summers, probably came from Britain? But you have to remember, the English are largely Germanic. The first people to be called “English” were the Anglo-Saxons, a group of closely related Germanic tribes.

Thus, while probably British in origin, the paternal Delaware Summers line is Germanic. Interesting, but not surprising.

Thomas’s Children

As many as twenty-nine children have been claimed for Thomas (born c1784) and Priscilla (born c1780) Summers, of Franklin Co, Illinois, in some of the numerous trees appearing on the internet (almost 1700 trees total on Ancestry alone). The problem is that not a single reliable record is provided for any of the named children, only other trees. Based on birthplace, birth year, association with other people, and residence, I have come up with thirteen reasonable candidates. All of these are commonly designated by others as Thomas’s children. And descendants of all of these show autosomal DNA matches with a known descendant of Thomas and Priscilla. Of course, since most or all of the 19^th-century Franklin Co Summerses were related, autosomal DNA provides rather poor evidence.

Reliable records (i.e., records other than trees) showing the names of children of Thomas and Priscilla are unknown except for a single item that has been ignored or overlooked—the Affidavit of Decease form in Thomas’s Franklin County probate file. That record names only William, Harper, Alexander, Thomas, and B. P. (Braxton Parrish) as his children. Perhaps James was omitted because he was the signatory. John’s name is struck out, as might be expected since he was likely deceased by the date of Thomas’s death. And there appears to have been a “Samuel,” who’s name is also struck out but about whom nothing is known. Missing are Robert, Noah, Nancy, Joseph, and Peter, all good candidates for being Thomas’s children, candidates who were still living at the time of his death. Are these five people (six if we include James) not Thomas’s children? A huge number of family historians believe otherwise. And the 1830 census indicates that Thomas had many more children (possibly twelve) than just the six (including crossed-out John) listed in the Affidavit of Death. But all may not have been his. He could have taken in children from deceased relatives. And, of course, many children may have died before being named in later records. As one Illinois historian has written, on the 19^th-century Illinois frontier

Death was a constant, if unwelcome, companion.

Affidavit of Decease with names of children for Thomas Summers. Missing are Robert, Noah, Nancy, Joseph, Peter, and James
(Patricia Terwilliger collection.)

Among the missing five, Joseph is the only one who served in the Civil War (despite erroneous claims made for others based on name only) and he has a National Archives pension file that has now been obtained in hopes that it would reveal his origins. It didn't. It did provide his date of death (28 Jan 1896 near Greenbrier, Arkansas), some highly variable dates of birth (c1818, calculated from ages in various documents), and details on his military service and married life, but it provided nothing about who his parents may have been.

We are stuck. Is the Affidavit of Death correct, and if so who were the parents of Robert, Noah, Nancy, Joseph, and Peter Summers? We even have doubts about James. And our doubts increase when we find that a pension application affidavit by James Summers states that Noah Summers, who fought in the Black Hawk War, was his brother. If Noah was not a son of Thomas, neither was James. But, on the other hand, why would someone other than a son, of which Thomas had many, be a signatory?

If any of you would like a free no-strings-attached copy of Joseph Summers's  National Archive file just click on the link below. You don’t need the Dropbox app. If you get a "Log in or Sign Up" message just ignore it. Press the download button at the top right of the web page. You will then get (another) "Log in or Sign Up" message. Just click "Or continue with dropdown only" at the bottom of that message. You need not log in or sign up. It is not necessary to be a Dropbox user. Leave a comment or send me an email if you have problems.

Pension File Download

Sleuthing Again

On 29 Dec 1869, Mary E. Summers married Ezra K. Gilchrist in Franklin Co, Illinois. Ezra, a Vermont (or possibly, New Hampshire)-born Civil War vet who kept a saloon in the village of Sneak Out, died soon afterward, on 18 Jan 1873 in Parrish, Illinois, quite likely as a result of medical problems incurred during his military service. On 9 May 1864 at the battle of Buzzard Roost in Whitfield County, Georgia, he had been wounded in the right foot, which caused serious deformity. He became increasingly lame until he was discharged. Possibly as a result of the injury, the treatment, or hospital stays, he developed chronic diarrhea, which resulted in his death. He and Mary had a single child, William Gilchrist, who appears to have died very young, possibly as an infant.

James and Mary Duckworth Family (Ancestry). Children from left to right:
Herbert, Orvil, Richard, James Lawrence, and Robert.

On 10 Aug 1873 in Franklin Co, the widowed Mary Gilchrist married James H. Duckworth, son of Moses Duckworth and Cassander A. Summers, and brother of John Wilson Duckworth, who achieve notoriety owing to his KKK connection (The Summers Clan Klan).

We know a lot about Mary’s husbands, Ezra and James, but we face a great mystery in Mary, herself. She was know to have been born around 1847, but three Mary E. Summers of Franklin Co, Illinois, all first cousins, fit that description: Mary E., daughter of Harper and Phebe (Swafford) Summers; Mary Elizabeth, daughter of William K. and Elizabeth (Whittington) Summers; and Mary E., daughter of John K. (often given the name “John Edward” with no evidence except other trees) and Elizabeth (Larken) Summers. Other possibilities can be ruled out by age or proven histories.

Family historians have made guesses over the years, mostly the daughter of Harper and Phebe, but none provide proof or even evidence other than the name. In an attempt to find proof I ordered the Civil War Pension file for Ezra Gilchrist in hopes that something could be found there. It looks like proof has been found. The massive file includes a 23 Mar 1897 deposition from a George W. Summers stating that he is the brother of Mary Summers Gilchrist Duckworth. George stated that he was 67 years old (born c1830) and that he lived in Macedonia, Illinois.

Only one of our candidates had a brother George born anywhere near 1830 and that was Mary E. Summers, daughter of John K. and Elizabeth (Larken) Summers, whose brother was George W., born c1832.

One little problem remains. Neither the 1880 census nor the 1900 census show a George Summers of the required age living in Hamilton or Franklin county even though in 1897 George gave Macedonia, which straddles both counties, as his address. But George could have moved there after 1880 and could have died by 1900. He was 67 years old at the time of the deposition and was not living in a healthy area. In an article in the Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, Professor Ronald R. Stockton has stated

It is hard to imagine how profoundly difficult it was to survive on the nineteenth-century Illinois frontier. In many cases the soil was unbroken, the swamps were not drained, diseases were rampant, and medical care was scarce or non-existent. Death was a constant, if unwelcome, companion.

Would you like to get a copy of the entire Ezra Gilchrist file? You may find something I missed. To get a copy just click on the link below. You don’t need the Dropbox app. If you get a "Log in or Sign Up" message just ignore it. Press the download button at the top of the web page. You will then get (another) "Log in or Sign Up" message. Just click "Or continue with dropdown only" at the bottom of that message. You need not log in or sign up. It is not necessary to be a Dropbox user. Leave a comment or send me an email if you have problems. 

Ezra Gilchrist Narional Archive File, Download

 

Mid, Part 3

Eventually Mid found the perfect mate, Leo Newman. Mildred’s brother Dale likely introduced the couple. Dale met Leo in 1932 under extraordinary circumstances, as we will see in a future blog. Mid and Leo were married on 24 Sep 1966 in Imperial, Missouri, with Mid’s sister Marguerite Taylor and her husband, Kelley, as attendants. Born 2 Aug 1908 in St. Louis to Jewish Hungarian emigrants, Joseph and Theresa Fox Newman, Leo had been previously married, around 1941 in St. Louis, to Lillian Mae Doyle Bryan, a divorcee with three children. Leo had no children of his own and he and Lillian were divorced in the late 1950s. 

"To Mary Frances and Barbara . . .from their 'Uncle' Leo the Lion"
Given to the daughters of Mid's brother Dale, c1955.

Like Mid, Leo was a marcher to a different beat. In 1932 Leo had navigated a homebuilt houseboat down the Mississippi River in an extraordinary adventure to gather material for a planned book. Then following a stint as a highly successful amateur wrestler, Leo became a professional. Between 1931 and 1965. during the golden age of wresting, “Leo the Lion Newman” fought in 997 matches, often bringing a lion into the ring with him. In 1953, at the height of his fame, he took another trip down the Mississippi on his boat the African Queen with a pet lion, Rex, who he wrestled at sandbars. The purpose of the trip was to search for “something tangible that will help me steer a true course in the events of my future life when I reach journey's end.”

“Best Wishes from Leo and Rex to Dale and Eloise Summers.”
Given to Leo’s brother-in-law and his wife. 

Leo’s wrestling career and life almost ended when, on 25 May 1957, an automobile in which he was riding struck a bridge and went over a steep emankment near Springfield, Missouri, when the driver fell asleep. Years later, on 26 Feb 1963, Leo was awarded $91,558 in a suit against the driver after claiming that he was unable to wrestle because of the injuries. In fact, though his number of bouts decreased, Leo’s last known wrestling match, a tag team competition, occurred in Lincoln, Nebraska, on 18 Aug 1965, well after the accident. But, of course, professional wrestling is a scripted stunt show, though injuries are not unlikely.

By the time he and Mildred were married, Leo had become a well-known wrestling manager and promoter. And he was also a prolific writer, though he never made a dime from that talent. Between 1933 and 1984 Leo authored at least sixty letters printed by Missouri newspapers. The letters, on a range of topics, with an emphasis on animal cruelty, antimilitarism, and nature, were highly intellectual and often poetic. It was probably his literary proficiency that attracted Mildred. It was a marriage of literati.

Leo and Mildred lived out their married life as owners and operators of Love N' Kare Boarding Kennels near Imperial, Missouri. Their business was located in what, at one time, had been a hunting club, something that would have been an abomination to the Newmans. Although established as a business to look after dogs, Love N' Kare was, in fact, primarily a shelter for Leo and Mid’s pets. In 1971 the couple cared for forty dogs, sixty-five cats, half a dozen goats, cows, horses, ducks, doves, and one raccoon. In addition to the extensive menagerie, a 1973 visit found a massive in-home library for the couple’s literary pursuits, a telescope for checking the neighborhood and searching for animals, a notebook listing the names of fifty-four cats (the count at the time), and widespread Christmas decorations that were displayed throughout the year.

Mildred passed away at age 64 on 22 Jan 1976 in St. Louis, and was buried in New Lorimier Cemetery, Cape Girardeau, alongside her parents and other relatives. Leo wrote a memorial that could have easily been for him:

Missie Newman loved all of God's creatures; the birds of the air and the animals of the earth looked to her as their great and unfailing provider. Homeless stray cats and dogs found in her a devoted friend that bestowed upon them life and happiness with a love that transcended all that was human and mortal.

Missie was one of those extremely rare persons that brought out the inherent good in all people. Everyone to her was special and precious. Strangers opened their hearts to her without reservation, knowing instinctively that her concern was genuine, unaffected, and sincere. Her plants and flowers because of their rapport, flourished with the touch of her hand. and now, as she quietly lies in the eternal stillness of earth, the goodness and compassion she bestowed upon others remains her everlasting memorial. No words have ever been coined that can adequately probe the profundity and depth of a grief without end, or, lessen the intensity of sorrow for a life that has returned whence it came. Missie's thoughts and reading embraced everything from the nebula to a stone and her concern and devotion to humane endeavors was never ending and tireless. For a grief stricken husband she was the epitome of all that made life worth living. She now belongs to the ages - for time without end . . and the friend and protector of homeless creatures will surely dwell in the halls of mercy at the right hand of God forevermore . .

Leo lived another sixteen years, dying at his home in Imperial on 5 Aug 1992. He was laid to rest in Shepherd Hills Cemetery, Barnhart, Missouri, with a lion on his marker.

Neither Leo nor Mid had children of their own. Animals were their children.

Mid, Part 2

Mid in her St. Louis dress shop, 1940. (St. Louis Star-Times, 29 Oct 1940.)

Cape Girardeau was too limiting for someone with Mid’s avant-garde outlook and after graduating from Southeast Missouri State Teachers College, she moved to St. Louis, where she was living in 1935 and working as a dressmaker. But she was not just any old dressmaker. By 1940, she was renowned for her flair with color and drape. She even designed the flight hostess’s uniform for Chicago and Southern Air Lines, which had set up headquarters in St. Louis.

Mid designed the C&S uniforms (postcard).

Mildred was not good at choosing men. Her first marriage had failed, and the man she lived with in St. Louis was, according to relatives, highly questionable. But, as we will see next time, she found a perfect mate. Another marcher to a different beat.

Mid, Part 1

If a man does not keep pace with his companions,

perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.

                                     Henry David Thoreau, 1854

Going from Delaware through North Carolina, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas, we finally get this branch of the Summers family to Wittenberg, Missouri. It was in Wittenberg that John William and Verne Cumi (Crabtree) Summers raised five kids: Mildred ("Mid"), Dale ("Bob"), Marguerite ("Pugs"), John Jr. ("Pete"), and Michael ("Mike").

The three oldest, Mid, Marguerite, and Dale, in Wittenberg, c1919.

Mildred (“Mid,” “Missy”) was the oldest, the most fascinating, and likely the most cerebral of those kids. Flouting tradition, she was a composite of Isadora Duncan, Gertrude Stein, and Gloria Steinem, and a mixed blessing to her parents.

Born Mildred Katherine Summers on the first day of 1912 in Arkansas, probably in Boynton, where her folks were living at the time, Mid (whose nickname may have come from Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”) spent most of her childhood in Missouri along the Mississippi, first in Illmo (now part of Scott City), then in Wittenberg, and finally in Cape Girardeau, where in 1924 she was at the Southeast Missouri State Teachers College, probably attending a university-run grade school used to train teachers. Wittenberg had limited educational facilities and no high school at all. She eventually became a college student at Southeast Missouri, where she was a member of the 1934 junior class.

University of Tulsa Yearbook, 1936.

Mildred was attending Southeast Missouri when she married Woodrow Neubeck Estel on 14 Aug 1931 in Benton, Missouri. “Woody” was a renowned student athlete at Jacksonville High School in Jacksonville, Missouri. Rather young at the time, the two decided to live apart and keep the marriage secret until they finished school. Born 6 Mar 1913 in Altenburg, Missouri, just four miles from Wittenberg, Woodrow was still in high school and would not graduate until the following spring. In March 1934, Woodrow, who had by then moved to Oklahoma, where he continued his athletic achievements at the University of Tulsa, attempted to have the marriage annulled. He claimed that the couple were minors at the time of the marriage and had not obtained the consent of their parents. The annulment was refused, but may have been granted later. On 27 Mar 1938, Woodrow married Vera Arthuryne Trout in Holdenville, Oklahoma. 

At this point, however, another marriage was not on Mid’s mind. She had other ambitions.