X00315 Solved!!

Back some time ago I posted about X00315 where I mentioned that in the marriage record for Amy Seymore Williams and William Gaskill in Globe, Gilla, Arizona in gives the witnesses as a B. Eastman and an S.C. Eastman. It also mentions that the ceremony was performed by an F.S. Eastman. The question was whether they could all be from the family of Amy's sister-in-law, Maude Alfreda Eastman. And if so, what were they all doing in Arizona?

Since then, I have done some newspaper searching and have made some discoveries that indicate that the witnesses and reverend are in fact the same Eastman family.

I found the article below from May of 1902 indicating that the Eastmans in Arizona were originally from Canada and were returning there shortly [D07138]:

From around the same time, I found Reverend F.S. Eastman's farewell letter [D07134]:

Through some other articles I found that he had been assigned to the church in Globe, Arizona by the bishop in August of 1899, which agrees with his statement that he had been there for a year and a half. I also came across an article from 1900 mentioning that he had married a woman from Quebec [D07132]:

I found the marriage in the Drouin collection, and it is indeed the same Frederick Soloman Eastman in the marriage record.

So, I've confirmed not only that the Eastmans in Arizona are the same in-laws of Amy S. Williams, but I've also been able to figure the times at which they were in Arizona (roughly August 1899 to May 1902). As well, it gives a likely explanation as to why Amy S. Williams would have also been in Arizona at the same time.

---

Sources:
[D07132] "Local News," Arizona Silver Belt, 16 August 1900, p. 6, col. 1; digital images, newspapers.com.

[D07138] "Local News," Arizona Silver Belt, 8 May 1902, p. 5, col. 1; digital images, newspapers.com.

[D07134] F.S. Eastman, "Farewell of F.S. Eastman,"Arizona Silver Belt, 1 May 1902, p. 5, col. 3; digital images, newspapers.com.

X00282: Amy S. Williams pre-1900

In last week's post (X00297) I mentioned that I wasn't able to verify much about William Gaskill's origins prior to 1900. There is a similar gap in the timeline for his wife, Amy S. Williams prior to 1900 as well.

Amy appears in the 1881 census living in Lindsay, Victoria, Ontario [D03789]. I have not been able to find her in the 1891 census, and the next record that I find after 1881 is her marriage record from 1901 where she is living in Globe, Gilla, Arizona [D05015]. I have not been able to find her in the 1900 US Census.

The 1920 Census indicates that Amy arrived in the U.S. in 1898 [D05019]. As well, a newspaper article found suggests that she lived in Ogden, Utah for a bit before moving to Arizona [D07130].

The move to Odgen makes sense, as her sister, Edith Mary Williams, would have been living there at the time. The reason for the move to Arizona is unclear, however. It may be related to the Eastman family (see X00315). It's a possibility that solving one of those mysteries may lead to solving the other.

---

Sources:
[D03789] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 129, sub-district B-2, Lindsay, Victoria, p. 99, dwelling 458, family 469; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 20 May 2018).

[D05015] Arizona Arizona History and Archives Division, Arizona County Marriage Records 1865-1972, 1: 315, 356134, Gaskill-Williams; digital images "Arizona County Marriage Records," ancestry.ca (accessed 8 Nov 2020).

[D05019] 1920 U.S. census, population schedule, Portland, enumeration district (ED) 160, sheet 5A, p. 5A, dwelling 255, family 298; digital images, ancestry.com (accessed 28 Nov 2020); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T625, roll T625_1502. Rec. Date: 13 May 2017. Cit. Date: 28 Nov 2020.

[D07130] "Local News," Arizona Silver Belt, 21 February 1901, p. 8, col. 1; digital images, newspapers.com (accessed 19 Dec 2020). Rec. Date: 14 Nov 2020. Cit. Date: 19 Dec 2020.

X00315: Amy S. Williams' Marriage Witnesses

I've found the marriage record for Amy S. Williams and William Gaskill, from 19 February 1901. It was a little surprising to find because the marriage took place in Globe, Gila, Arizona. To this point, i have not been able to find out why Amy Williams was in Arizona, or the US, for that matter.

One thing of interest in the marriage record is that the minister performing the ceremony was an F.S. Eastman, and the witnesses were a B. Eastman and an S.C. Eastman. Amy S. Williams had a sister-in-law, Maude Alfreda Eastman. Maude's parents were Benjamin Eastman and Sarah Alfreda. Could they have been the B. and S.C. Eastman? And they had a son named Fred S. Eastman. Could he have been the F.S. Eastman who performed the ceremony? And also, what were they doing in Arizona?

Perhaps, if the witnesses and minister are the in-laws, this might lead to an explanation as to why Amy Williams was in Arizona at the time.

Next steps: Research the timelines for the Eastman family to see if they could have been in Arizona at the time.