Sometimes information appears in unexpected places. FamilySearch’s full-text search has been available for over a year now and I’ve had an amazing amount of success finding hidden details about ancestors’ lives.
Today’s subject isn’t in my direct line, but he is a relatively (pun intended) close collateral ancestor, being the brother of my 2X great grandfather Charles Augustus Stewart of Charlotte and Meddybemps, Washington County, Maine.
George A. Stewart was born on 6 February 1838 in Charlotte, Washington, Maine, the son of John Stewart and Catherine Carlisle, children of two of my Loyalists, Walter Stewart and Robert Carlisle.
He was the eleventh of thirteen children born to the couple and although he always used the middle initial of A, his birth record doesn’t provide him with a middle name.
A Find-A-Grave memorial claims it to be Augustus, but I tend to doubt that since Charles, my ancestor, has the proven middle name of Augustus. That same memorial also incorrectly identifies his date of birth, which is entered in the Charlotte, Maine town clerk records:
George would have had early memories of living in the little village of Charlotte, but some time between 1841 and 1850, the family moved northward into the wilds of Aroostook County, Maine to Portland Academy Grant, created in 1844 and later named as the town of Bridgewater (1858).
By 1850, George was enumerated in Portland Academy Grant, living at home with his parents and youngest sibling, Eunice (Household #2). Notice that the census taker very helpfully enumerated the town of birth for those born in Maine!
There were only 16 families living in the village, but check out Household #8 – Mary Stewart, sister of George, was living with the Burns family.
By 1860, George was no longer at home and isn’t found in any U.S. census nor is there any George who might be him found in the 1861 census of Canada.
The 1870 census places George back in Aroostook County, living again in Bridgewater with his widowed mother, Catherine (Household #113). John had died the previous fall on 28 November 1869 in Mars Hill, Aroostook, Maine. Catherine died sometime between the 1870 and 1880 censuses, but no record of her death has been found.
George’s occupation is listed as farmer and he is unmarried.
In 1880, George was still living in Bridgewater, but boarding with the Ambrose family. It may be significant that he is enumerated in Household #2, the same as his parents in 1850:
Although there is no mention of Catherine’s death, I suspect she lived close to 1880 since that year began an extremely busy period of buying, selling and mortgaging the same handful of properties over and over again as seen in this summary. Note that Abigail Sprague is George Stewart’s sister:
1877 – Geo Stewart bought North 1/2 of Lot 1, Bridgewater from Geo Allen, conveyed to Allen by Elijah Sprague on 22 June 1875, $500
1880 – Geo Stewart sold to A.C. Manson part of Lot 1, Bridgewater, $200
1880 – Geo Stewart sold to Mrs. Lydia Allen South 1/2 of Lot 1, Bridgewater
1880 – Wm. Stewart (brother) sold to Geo Stewart, his interest in Lot 1, Bridgewater for $1.00.
1881 – Abigail Sprague sold to Geo Stewart South 1/2 of Lot 1, Bridgewater for $800
1881 – Clarence H. Pierce held mortgage of Geo Stewart on South 1/2 Lot 1, Bridgewater
1882 – Bertram Gilman sold to Geo Stewart North 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill for $75.00
1882 – Geo Stewart sold to Houlton Savings Bank part of North 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill, $450 (mortgage?)
1882 – Geo Stewart sold to Abigail Sprague North 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill, occupied by Geo and Mr. Kimball, $300
1882 – Geo Stewart executed a “bond for deed” to Susannah Wright of Mars Hill for North 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill
1884 – Sheriff sale of insolvent debtor Geo Stewart, part of North 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill to Geo H. Smith
1888 – Geo Stewart witnessed a deed from Benjamin and Nellie M. Pierce to Houlton Savings Bank for part of Lot 74, Mrs Hill
Tho most important of the land deeds found in the 1880s is one dated 16 April 1889 between Imogene A. Stewart & George Stewart her husband, formerly Imogene A. Haskell, selling part of the South 1/2 Lot 74, Mars Hill, deeded to her as Imogene Haskell in quit claims dated 31 July 1885.
No marriage record has been found for George and Imogene, but this one deed – found through FamilySearch full-text search because George was NOT included in the index, proves he married Imogene between 31 July 1885, when she is called Haskell, and 16 April 1889, when they are named as husband and wife in the deed.
UPDATE: Further searching produced a marriage record for George and Imogen on 19 May 1888 in Mars Hill!
George died on 6 July 1892 of heart failure. His gravestone describes him as husband (no wife named) and the son of John and Catherine Stewart.
George married late, had a busy life with ups and downs in real estate and was the proprietor of a business on part of Lot 74 in Mars Hill, Aroostook, Maine.
George and Imogene had no children and she appears to have left Aroostook County and gone back closer to home in Washington County soon after George died as she sold off her land on 22 August 1892.
Imogene A. (Haskell) Stewart is last found in those Aroostook County deed records. Whether she died before 1900 or remarried is unknown.
Awfully “thoughty,” as my mother would say, for that 1850 census-taker to put the town of birth for those born in Maine. I’m surprised that at the time of George’s death, the death record form did not even have a place for the spouse’s name. Good thing you found that marriage record. Four years is an awfully short marriage; about the same length of time as for my maternal grandparents. That’s sad.