This book, “The Descendants of Franklin Mary Noyes Rowe of Humboldt County, Iowa, with Some Notes on Their Ancestors,” authored by Velma Rowe Coffin in Storm Lake, Iowa, in 1955, is a meticulously researched genealogical record spanning 87 pages. It traces the lineage of Franklin Rowe, born December 30, 1836, in Onondaga County, New York, and provides insights into his ancestry and descendants. Free to read or download.
Franklin Rowe was the youngest of eight children born to Lucy Stillwell and Lucian Rowe. His family roots extend back to his grandparents, Ebenezer and Mary Rowe, with a notable family presence in Manlius, New York. Despite limited information on earlier generations, this book compiles comprehensive details about Franklin’s siblings and their families.
Lucian Rowe’s untimely and mysterious death led Franklin to become self-sufficient at a young age. Franklin’s early career included work in the railroad industry, which he eventually left to pursue farming in Wisconsin. There, he married Mary Noyes, and together they had three children, Hiram, Percy, and Edith, in Walworth County, Wisconsin.
An interesting aspect of this genealogy is the connection to the Porter family, as detailed in John S. Lawrence’s 1911 publication “The Descendants of Moses and Sarah Kilham Porter of Pawlet, Vermont.” Mary Noyes, Franklin’s wife, was a fifth-generation descendant of Moses Porter, a Revolutionary War soldier. This connection enriches the historical context of the Rowe family lineage.
The book serves as a valuable resource for descendants of Franklin and Mary Rowe, providing a thorough account of their family history. It includes biographical sketches, family anecdotes, and records of significant life events.
In compiling this genealogical record, Velma Rowe Coffin aimed to preserve the legacy of her ancestors and offer a comprehensive reference for future generations. Her dedication to accuracy and detail is evident throughout the book, making it a significant contribution to the field of family history.
About Franklin Rowe
Franklin Rowe, son of Lucy Stillwell and Lucian Rowe, was born in Onondaga County, New York, possibly at Manlius as his parents were married there March 16, 1826. Franklin was the youngest and eighth child, born December 30, 1836. He was the grandson of Ebenezer and Mary Rowe, his grandfather was born in 1772 and died February 16, 1828 and is buried in Christ Church cemetery at Manlius, New York, his name is in the 1820 census but not in that of 1810 so he must have come to Onondaga County between those dates but diligent search has not been rewarded with further information regarding the lineage of Franklin Rowe. He had the following brothers and sisters, whose names may not be given in order of birth: Elihu, Thaddeus, Charlotte, Caroline, Mary, Martha, and Lucy.
Family tradition has it that Lucian Rowe was a worker on a fruit boat on Lake Erie and was either lost overboard or died and was buried in the lake. At any rate, Franklin became self-supporting at an early age. His eldest son, in 1928, wrote that Franklin started “railroading” which he followed for five years and went out on strike and never took up railroad work again. He was advised by the superintendent to stay as he had been treated fair as he had an engine at 19 years of age. But his elder brother, Elihu, was farming in Wisconsin and he went out there where he met and married Mary Noyes. He rented land for several years during which time three children, Hiram, Percy and Edith were born in Walworth County, Wisconsin.
Surnames
Bales, Bedford, Beers, Bell, Bettinger, Bicknell, Blair, Blatchford, Brahsears, Brainard, Brandsma, Brandt, Bregance, Brown, Buck, Bullington, Burnside, Cannon, Caplan, Carlton, Childs, Christ, Christopherson, Coakley, Coffin, Combs, Coover, Crabbs, Craig, Crimans, Crissey, Crow, Daugherty, Demoville, Dodson, Dyvig, Eakin, Eames, Ebie, Ellenwood, Engstrom, Ferguson, Fevold, Fisher, Flemmig, Fowler, Freeman, Gahlbeck, Gamble, Gillison, Good, Goodell, Gothard, Green, Halquist, Hammer, Hammock, Hansen, Harms, Hart, Haruda, Haverstein, Helgand, Herbert, Higley, Hill, Hoffelt, Hoover, Hornby, Huckstead, Jackson, Jeffreys, Johnson, Jorgensen, Kammeyer, Kane, Keeney, Kelley, Ketman, Kneller, knowles, Kramer, Lane, Larsen, Leffler, Lovell, Lowe, Lowery, Maher, Masten, Maston, Mautte, McLarnan, McWhorter, Meshen, Metsfessel, Michelson, Miller, Mitchell, Morgano, Mortensen, Mortland, Muller, Myer, Nachtigall, Nicholas, Nietz, Noe, Odberg, Oliphant, Olson, Pannell, Passig, Perkins, Peters, Pfeil, Pink, Pool, Powers, Rehwodt, Ries, Riley, Rogers, Rowe, Russell, Sampson, Sarmiento, Schroeder, Schultz, Schwartz, Selley, Shafer, Sharp, Shearer, Showalter, Skalley, Smuck, Spencer, Stafford, Stein, Steober, Stone, Stover, Strickland, Thorn, Tilton, Tindall, Tjoland, Trivisonno, Trotter, Vanhove, Vaughn, Wallis, Watson, Whitlow, Widney, Wilbur, Willardson, Williams, Wilson, Winner, and Woodman.
Forward
It will not be news to many of the older descendants of Mary Noyes and Franklin Rowe that in 1911 John S. Lawrence published the book, “The Descendants of Moses and Sarah Kilham Porter of Pawlet, Vermont.”
Since Mary Noyes was a descendant, fifth generation, of this couple, her children and the grandchildren, born prior to 1911, are recorded in the “Porter Book.”
“Moses Porter was a Revolutionary soldier, he was in the battles of Bunker Hill, Long Island, and Saratoga and at the surrender of Bur-goyne. He was a Selectman at Pawlet 1786 and 1787, and a Deacon of the Congregational church” is the description given by Mr. Lawrence on page one of his book, he gives in more detail the Military Record of Moses Porter on pages 136-140.
There are several copies of the “Porter Book” in our branch of the Rowe family and the most recent catalogue (No. 465) I have from Goodspeed’s Book Shop, 18 Beacon Street, Boston 8, Mass., lists the book as No. 2631, price $7.50. It may also be found in some libraries. Although there is much in this book not directly concerned with our line, it is a worthwhile possession and I feel Mr. Lawrence did his work well. You may note in the “Authorities” given for information relative to eligibility for membership in the Society of Mayflower Descendants on “number 8” the only reference is the Porter Genealogy by Lawrence and this was accepted without question by the National Society.
Having ascertained that the copyright on the Porter genealogy was not renewed when it expired in 1939, I have felt at liberty to copy short portions of the book, giving credit to Mr. Lawrence in such cases.
Since I joined the D.A.R. in 1943, I have become interested in genealogy and lament the scarcity of family records. We are, indeed, most fortunate that Mr. Lawrence did us such excellent service in tracing our grandmother’s line the five generations to Moses Porter. It was with the idea of performing a like service for the descendants of this same grandmother and as a memorial to her and her husband that I undertook the task of compiling the records of this line of the Rowe family, from the birth dates of our grandparents to the present-fifty years following their deaths.
To facilitate the keeping of further records of your family, I have inserted blank pages after the record of each child of Mary and Franklin Rowe, except in the case of Edith Bedford who left no descendants.
It is interesting to note that agricultural pursuits and teaching were the chief occupations of the family until the fourth generation when, due to the changing times of our Nation, there has been more diversification in the choice of occupations.
My method of compiling the records for this family history: asking each adult to write his own biography, has resulted in rather a wide spread in the wordage. Some have chosen to give only the records of places and dates while others have given us word pictures of their lives that we may feel a little better acquainted. Whichever has been your choice, I thank you for your help.
An incident, sent by Mrs. Pearl Goodell Rowe Phleger, came after the manuscript was typed but I feel it too interesting to omit, she writes that Edith Rowe Redford told her that one evening on the journey of our grandparents from Walworth County, Wis., to Webster County, Iowa, “they pitched their tent at Cherokee and during the evening the one who was the youngest (Edith) at the time came near rolling down the incline into the Sioux River. They started the next mom back ‘east’ to find Lizard Creek.” Someone must have told them they were traveling in the wrong direction as Lizard Creek is not far from where they made their first settlement in Iowa.
Probably an explanation is due as to why I have given Walworth County, Wis., as the birth place of Percy and Edith Rowe. Both their obituaries gave Bloomfield but I could not find such a place on the map. Edith’s obituary read, “Bloomfield, Walworth County, Wis.” and Hiram Rowe had written in 1928 that he, Percy, and Edith were born in Walworth County, Wis., therefore it seemed logical to use only the name of the county. Perhaps Bloomfield, Wis., is like David, Iowa, one of the “ghost” towns no longer on the map.
Since Patriotic Societies usually ask place and date for each item, I have tried to supply both and thinking addresses might be of present interest and perhaps of help to some one in the future, I have included them, realizing that many of them may soon be obsolete.
The writing of this little book has given me some interesting experiences. I hope those of you who read it will find the reading as pleasant as I have found the writing.
August, 1955
Velma Mae Rowe Coffin
Storm Lake, Iowa
Source
Coffin, Velma Rowe, The descendants of Franklin Mary Noyes Rowe of Humboldt County, Iowa, with some notes on their ancestors, Storm Lake, Iowa, 1955.