Billie Harris - Jan 20, 2009
Thanks to Diane Langston's detective work, Martha Abbey has been found and I talked with her on the telephone tonight. It was so good because we can definitely use her expertise and assistance with connecting the dots on these genealogies. I'll send her an invitation to the site and welcome her with open arms.
Martha Abbey - Jan 22, 2009
It was my pleasure to be contacted by Billie. My husband, Wally, and I are living in an assisted living residence in a Minneapolis suburb. My genealogical files are living in our daughters basement in another Minneapolis suburb. Hopefully I can put the two together eventually and will be glad to help where ever I can.
Martha Abbey
Resa Miller - Jan 22, 2009
Martha, welcome to the family site.
Which line of the Lewallen's or Llewellyns or Flewellyns or Lewellens or Luillens etc. are you from?
Martha Abbey - Jan 26, 2009
Resa, my line is that of Meshach Lewellen and his wife, Hannah. I think Hannah was a Brooks, but I have no proof. Brooks researchers say no one has found all the data on the Brooks females. Meshach spelled his surname "Lawellen" as early as the late 1700s, and his descendants use that spelling today, My maternal grandmother, Electa Ann Lawellen, was the daughter of Jeptha Lawellen and he the son of Banjamin, son of
Meshach, Meshach was a son of Shadrach Lewellen and his wife Deboraah Burson of the Fairfasx Quaker records. I have my suspisions about Shadrach's parents, but don't have any proof. I have thought the Lewellens of Preble County, Ohio, are connected some way with those (Meshach, et al) of Randolph County, Indiana. Meshach seems to be the brotther of Shadrach of Buncombe County, NC, and Isaac of Nelson County, Kentucky. Benjamin, son of Meshach migrated in the 1840s to Anderson County, Kansas, where there are female descendants today, Meshach, Isaac, and Shadrach seem to be the brothers of Abednego who was killed by Indians (they weren't Native Americans in those days!) in Kentucky and who is mentioned in the "History of Kentucky," Those three brothers quit claimed the lot Abednego bought in
Nashville before he was killed. Abednego's "widow," Nancy Snow married second John Leeper. Unless it has been corrected, DAR records credit the wrong person as John Leeper's wife. I'm sure of these names. but my dates may be off as I'm doing all this from memory. You will hear more from me when I have my records before me.
Best, Martha
Billie Harris - Jan 26, 2009
Martha, do you have any present-day male Lawellens from your family who might do a DNA for us. So far, none have tested who descend from Shadrach and Deborah (Burson) and we could sure use someone to test for that line. DNAs are painless and only require a swabbing inside the mouth two mornings in a row; that's all so if you have someone, let me know PLEASE.
Joseph R. Jones - Jan 22, 2009
Congratulations on your detective work and stubborn persistence. It would be a great shame for Mrs. Abbey's work to disappear when so many of us are interested. Joe