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Simon Ross (born before 1755, died about September, 1808) of Newton Twp.,
Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
When I began working on the genealogy of my Ross ancestors, it didn't take
too long to discover my great-great-grandfather Samuel H. Ross, father of my
great-grandfather Albert Simon Ross. Otherwise pretty careful Bible
record-keepers, there was little for Samuel. His tombstone near Primrose, IA
reads "Samuel H. Ross, Died Jan. 3, 1878, Aged 63 years". A death
notice stated that he was "a native of Washington County,
Pennsylvania". Neither this or any other source found gave no mention of
his date of birth or his parent's names.
In 1999 I meet a cousin who was in possession of many old family heirlooms
including pictures; and old ledger containing numerous mention of Simon and
other Rosses; a four page document regarding the Indenture of Henry Muck to
Simon Ross of Hopewell Twp., Cumberland Co., PA dated 11/7/1816; and a two page
document regarding a Bond from Simon Ross of Hopewell Twp., Cumberland Co., PA
dated 5/26/1807 and paid in full on 4/21/1810 by Simon Ross, executor of the
Last Will and Testament of Simon Ross, deceased. I scanned all of these items
for further study.
I discovered a reference to the Last Will and Testament of Simon Ross and
ordered a copy from Sampubco via the Internet.
One note of interest about the will: Simon names his wife as Margaret and also
mentions a step-daughter Elenore. This would seem to imply that Margaret may not
have been his first wife and may not be the mother of the other children named
in the will.
I made a list of all the names found in the ledger and looked them up in the
1790 to 1840 censuses. To make a long story short, I feel confident that the
Simon Ross of the Indenture, Bond, Ledger and Will are all of the same family.
And the fact that all these documents save the Will have been held by my Ross
ancestors leads me to conclude that my great-great-grandfather Samuel H. Ross'
father was Simon Ross (the younger) who was the executor of his father, Simon
Ross, the elder's will.
One interesting clue is a copy of a letter dated 1932 from J. Earl Hughes to the
Carlisle, PA Recorder's Office inquiring about the marriage record for Robert
Ross to Miss Templeton about 1800 to 1805. Click here
for a full transcript of the letter.
Despite a lot of research, I was unable to find Simon Ross in the 1820 Census
but did find a Robert Ross for that year which I believe is Simon the Younger's
brother. I did not find Simon or Robert after the 1840 Census. My
great-great-grandfather Samuel H. Ross bought a piece of property in Lee County,
Iowa in 1841 and was married in 1845 to a fellow Pennsylvanian. The 1850 Census
shows Samuel H. and his wife with 2 small children and a woman named Mary, born
Pennsylvania and aged 25, that we believe to be Samuel's sister. While there are
several other Rosses found in Lee Co., IA during the early years, we've found no
others that we can tie to the same family.
The ledger and other documents are an exciting link to my ancestors but much
work is left to do. Any information concerning the Simon Ross family of
Pennsylvania would be most appreciated and, of course, I would be more than
willing to share any information and documentation in my possession!
My transcription of the Will of
Simon Ross (the Elder). Newton Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.
Proved June 18, 1808. Will Book G. 326-328. See also: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/pa/cumberland/wills/willbkg.txt
My analysis of
the Simon and Robert Ross entries found in the following Censuses:
- 1790 Cumberland Co., PA;
- 1800 Newton Twp.,Cumberland Co., PA;
- 1810 Newton Twp.,Cumberland Co., PA;
- 1820 Newton Twp.,Cumberland Co., PA;
- 1820 Hopewell Twp.,Cumberland Co., PA;
- 1830 Buffaloe Twp., Washington Co., PA;
- 1840 So. Strabane Twp., Washington Co., PA
Ross Ledger
Names by Date
Ross Ledger
Name Alphabetical
Several excerpts from the Ross Ledger:
Samuel H. Ross Genealogy
Report (great-great grandfather of Brian Tingley)
Simon Ross Provisional Genealogy
Report
Brian Tingley
14733 E Shiloh Rd
Bennet, NE 68317
402-782-2829
btingley@3-pines.net
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