Alpheus McClelland Rote and Ella E. Ward, and their Children

Alpheus McClelland Rote, my great grandfather, was born March 1865 in Pennsylvania. He was the son of William Rote (b. October 1814 in Pennsylvania, d. 11 Dec 1880 in Pennsylvania) and Magdalena, also called Martha, (b. July 25, 1823 in Pennsylvania, d. June 8, 1891).

Ella E. Ward, my great grandmother, was born March 28, 1861 in Mount Holly (or Mount Holly Springs), Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of John E. Ward (b. about 1840, d. ?) and Elizabeth (b. about 1840, d. ?) .

Alpheus Rote and Ella Ward married in 1883. In 1884, Alpheus was listed in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania City Directory, as was his mother, then a widow, at a separate address. Alpheus also appears in the Harrisburg city directories for 1890 through 1896. In 1884, Alpheus was listed as working as a laborer; in later directories, as a brakeman.

Most of the 1890 US Census records were destroyed in a fire, including those most likely to list Alpheus and Ella.

Alpheus and Ella are listed in the 1900 US Census for New Castle, Pennsylvania. Alpheus' occupation is given as "Heater Tin Mill." Ella is reported as having given birth to 7 children, of whom 6 had survived. There were six children living in the home: 

Mabel, daughter, b. April 1886 (14)

Galen, son, b. March 1888 (12)

John, son, b. February 1893 (7)

Emma, daughter, b. April 1895 (5)

Howard, son, b. June 1897 (2)

Minnie, daughter, b. August 1899 (9 months)

In 1908, the Rote home was struck by lightning. My blog post, linked, includes a transcript of the newspaper report.

In the 1910 census, Alpheus and Ella are shown as still living in New Castle. Alpheus is working Odd Jobs, and Ella is listed as having 5 children, with 5 surviving. The children in the home are: Mabel, Gail [sic] W., John, Emma, and Howard. Minnie, the youngest, had died sometime since the previous census.

In the 1920 census, Alpheus and Ella are still living in New Castle. Alpheus is now reported to be a Storekeeper working at a Confectionary Store*. Living with Alpheus and Ella are their children, John, who works as a  (probably Sales) in the Phonograph industry**, and two grandchildren, John H. and Ella L. Faller. It took some doing, but I eventually confirmed that these were Mabel's children***.

In the 1930 census, Alpheus and Ella are still living in New Castle. Alpheus is now listed as the Proprietor of a Confectionary Store, which he owns. Living with them are their daughter, Emma O. Cavander (I think this is a misspelling of Cavender), and three grandchildren, Anna G. Cavender, Henry J. Faller, and Ella L. Faller.

Alpheus died September 29, 1936 and Ella died November 14, 1936. Their obituaries report that Ella Faller was still living with them at the times of their deaths.

*   *   *

Mabel Rote married John Henry (or Henry John) Faller May 13, 1912. The couple had two children: Henry John Faller and Ella L. Faller. Mabel died in early January, 1919; her funeral was held January 10, and she was buried in Greenwood Cemetery on the 13th. Her husband died March 23, 1963. 

Galen Weiker Rote married Lulu P. Craun, of Toledo, Ohio, August 29, 1911. The couple had two children: Marian Virginia Rote, who died as a child, and Luella Jean Rote. (Luella was my mother.) Galen died August 10, 1941. Lulu died February 21, 1966.

John Charles Rote, Sr. married Alice Mae Wimer, 18 Nov 1924 in New Castle. The couple had three children, Janet Louise Rote, John Charles Rote, Jr., and Arthur Lyle Rote. John, Sr. died June 22, 1982. Alice died February 24, 1978.

Emma O. Rote married a Cavender, about whom nothing more is known. The couple had a daughter, Anna Grace Cavender. Emma's date of death is unknown, but sometime after 17 Jun 1944, when a visit to New Castle (she was then living in Detroit) was reported in the New Castle News.

Howard J. Rote married Ruby Mae Brooks June 5, 1919 in Youngstown, Pennsylvania. The couple had two sons, James Russel Rote and Fredrick C. Rote. Howard died January 1974; Ruby died February 1983.

Minnie Rote never married, having died as a child sometime between June 13, 1900 and June 13, 1910.

I have no further information about the seventh child noted by the 1900 census, although I speculate, given the gap between Galen's birth, and John's, that this child might have been born between them.

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* The census reports Alpheus as an employee, rather than the owner of the store, but this may be erroneous. Will probably need to research business licenses to get full information.

** This may have bearing on my speculations in Was Granddad in Show Biz?, about my grandfather, Galen.

*** See the following posts to read about how I unraveled this small mystery (most recent, first):

• A Fortunate Discovery 
• Searching RootsWeb for Henry John Faller
• New Data on Rote and Faller
• The Mystery of John H (Henry J) and Ella L Fuller or Faller

The Mystery of John H (Henry J) and Ella L Fuller or Faller

At the time of the 1920 US Census, January 8, 1920, my great-grandparents, Alpheus McClelland and Ella (née Ward) Rote were living on Patterson Avenue in "New Castle City," Lawrence, Pennsylvania. My great-grandfather’s first name was misspelled as Alphus, but other information from the census, the location, his middle initial and age, Ella's name and age, and the names and ages of the two adult children living with them, John and Emma, are strong indications that this is actually my great-grandfather.

Figure 1: Fourteenth Census of the United States: 1920—Population
State: Pennsylvania; County: Lawrence; Name of Incorporated Place: New Castle City; Sheet 9A

Living with Alpheus and Ella in 1920 were two children listed as their grandchildren, as can be seen in Figure 2. When I attach the census record to Alpheus on Ancestry.com, they are identified as Emma's children, but I have reason to doubt this.

Figure 2: 1920 US Census, Detail of Alphus [Alpheus] M Rote and Household

The grandchildren’s names are given here as John H. Fuller and Ella L. Fuller, ages 5 and 4 9/12, giving them estimated birth dates of 1915 and September 1916, respectively. The two were born in Pennsylvania, as was their father, and their mother was born in Ohio.

When this census was attached to Alpheus, Ancestry.com interpreted the children as Emma’s children. However, Emma was born in Pennsylvania. The only one of Alpheus’ children to be born outside of Pennsylvania was Mabel, who was born in Ohio, and it is she who I believe must be the children’s mother.

Ten years later, on April 6, 1930, Alpheus and his family were living on Crease Street, and the children turn up again in the census, where the household is split between two pages:

Figure 3: Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930—Population
State: Pennsylvania; County: Lawrence;  Incorporated Place: New Castle; Sheet 16A

Figure 4: Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930—Population
State: Pennsylvania; County: Lawrence;  Incorporated Place: New Castle; Sheet 16B

Here are close-ups of the names in the household:

Figure 5: 1930 US Census, Detail 1 of Alpheus M Rote and Household

Figure 6: 1930 US Census, Detail 2 of Alpheus M Rote and Household

Over the past decade the family composition has changed slightly. John Rote has moved out and his sister Emma, now using the name Cavender, is still (or once more) living in the household, now with a daughter of her own, Anna G. Cavender. Once again, there are two additional grandchildren, now identified as Henry J. and Ella L. Faller The remaining details about the children are consistent with the 1920 census and it seems most likely that the child identified as John H in 1920 goes by Henry J in 1930.

Based on this, I have the following individuals:

First Name	Last Name	DOB	Place Born	Mother	Father
John H[enry] or Henry J[ohn]	Fuller or Faller	abt 1915	Pennsylvania	Mabel M Rote	Fuller or Faller
Ella L	Fuller or Faller	abt July 1916	Pennsylvania	Mabel M Rote	Fuller or Faller

I have not yet been able to locate any information about Alpheus after 1930; I do not know when or where he died. There are a number of individuals who may correspond to other members of the household, but I have not yet been able to discover any more information about the Fuller or Faller children, and they, with their mysterious origins and presence in their grandfather's house, is a mystery that appeals to me.

So, among my many other genealogical goals, I hope to uncover the mystery these children present. To that end, I shall attempt to:

1. Discover the full names of each of the children, along with their exact birth dates and birthplaces,
2. Confirm or disprove that Mabel M Rote is the children’s mother,
3. Identify their father (full name, birth date, date of death, and parents' name, if at all possible),
4. Demonstrate a “reasonably exhaustive search” and explain the research process as I go, and
5. Record my research and findings.

As I research these individuals, I will post updates regarding the progress of my search and its results, positive or negative.

ETA: This post, with it's approach to documenting my researches on a specific individual, was inspired by the blog Pinpointing Dennis Buggy's Irish Origins.

Saturday Night Fun: Heritage Pie Chart via Genea-Musings

Over on Genea-Musings, tonight's genealogy task is to create a pie chart, based on your great-great-grandparents.

My great-great-grandparents were as follows:

16. Hiram Lloyd was born in 1825 in King, York, ON, Canada. He died on 14 Apr 1911 at the age of 86 in Sault Ste. Marie, MI, USA. Ellen Hughes and Hiram Lloyd were married on 28 Jul 1848.

17. Ellen Hughes was born on 2 Aug 1825. She died on 11 May 1896 at the age of 70 in Chippewa, MI, USA. She was also known as Ellen Lloyd.

18. Bartholemew Higgins was born on 14 Jun 1801 in Ireland.

19. Susan Swale died in 1871.

20. John A Herrington was born on 14 Jun 1801 in New Hanover, NC, USA. He died on 15 Jul 1859 at the age of 58 in Harrison, MS, USA. Sarah J Mathis and John A Herrington were married estimated 2 May 1825.

21. Sarah J Mathis was born on 29 Nov 1808 in GA, USA. She died on 27 Aug 1878 at the age of 69 in Biloxi, MS, USA. She was also known as Sarah J Herrington.

22. James Cornelius Boykin was born on 9 Mar 1843. He died on 28 Nov 1885 at the age of 42 in Sneads, FL, USA.

23. Jane Carolina McKeown was also known as Jane Carolina Boykin. She was born on 20 Jun 1845 in Chester City, SC, USA. She died on 7 Oct 1877 at the age of 32 in Sneeds, FL, USA.

24. William Rote was born estimated 1814 in PA, USA.

25. Martha Rote was born estimated 1823 in PA, USA.

26. John Ward was born (date unknown).

28. James Craun was born on 16 Oct 1820.

29. Martha McEwen was also known as Martha Craun. She was born estimated 1827.

Here's a pie chart showing where each was born:

Obviously, I'm missing a lot of information. If, by any chance, you happen to have more information about any of these individuals, I'd love to hear from you.