Seeley Family
Ancestor Story Submitted by Elaine Mundt
First Families of Huron County Member #206
Ancestor Story Submitted by Elaine Mundt
First Families of Huron County Member #206
JOB BAKER SEELEY
In 1829, Job Baker Seeley and his wife, Elizabeth Willis, set sail from England for the United States. They came from Oxfordshire, and their children were born there. Job Baker was a shoemaker and that was the trade he pursued in his new country. After the Napoleonic Wars, France had renewed their manufacturing and soon flooded the European market, in particular, with shoes. This may have been a reason for his decision to leave England.
Upon arrival in America, the family settled in New Durham (now North Bergen) Hudson County, New Jersey. The family consisted of James (born 1813), Elizabeth (born 1816), John (born 1819), Job (born 1823), Edward (born 1825), and George (born 1827).
Job Baker remained in New Durham until his death in 1848. His will named his wife, Elizabeth, and daughter, Elizabeth Hounslow, and son, Job, as executors of his estate.
JAMES SEELEY
The eldest son of Job Baker was born April 6, 1813, in Oxford, England. He was about 16 when the family immigrated to America. He learned the shoemaking trade and may have been apprenticed or worked for someone other than his father.
The next record of him is his marriage April 3, 1839, to Laura Sweet. She was the daughter of Benjamin Sweet and was born January 6, 1822, in Catskill (Greene County) New York.
Their son, James Lewis, was born December 10, 1843, while they were living in New York State. How, why, or when they moved on to Ohio is another missing piece. However, a plat of Norwalk (Huron County) Ohio, in 1845 shows him listed as a Shoe and Boot Maker.
The 1850 Federal Census finds them living in Clarksfield Township (Huron County) Ohio, with their children: James L., Ann Elizabeth (born July 12, 1847), and Mary (born September 20, 1849). Also living with them was Maria Sweet, the 13-year-old sister of Laura. She is shown as having been born in Ohio, so perhaps Benjamin Sweet had moved his family to Ohio also.
In the succeeding years, three more daughters were added to the family: Laura Ellen (born April 11, 1855), Ida Alvina (born December 27, 1860), and Alice Maria (born August 27, 1863).
Like many other families of that era, the Seeleys were greatly affected by the Civil War. On January 26, 1864, their only son, James, enlisted as a Private in Co. D of the 55th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. In July of that year, he was wounded in the right temple during the Battle of Peachtree Creek, which was part of the Siege of Atlanta. The wound was not particularly serious, as evidenced by the letter he wrote to his parents the day after receiving it. One can only surmise that unsanitary conditions in the treatment of it and the lack of antibiotics allowed an infection to develop. Tragedy struck when on September 8, 1864, he died at a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 20.
Two years later in May of 1866 Laura Sweet Seeley passed away.
On March 10, 1869, James Seeley married a widow, Caroline Benson. She was listed on the 1860 Census as a next-door neighbor. The 1870 Census shows James living in Norwalk Village, and his occupation was given as a Boot and Glove Merchant. In that Census, his daughter Ann was shown to be living at home, as well as Laura and Alice.
Mary, in 1867, had married Marshall Lowe and had taken up residence in Norwalk also. Ida was living with or visiting her aunt Maria Sweet Derringer in Plymouth, Ohio.
James Seeley continued to live in Norwalk, and although he died in Cleveland (Cuyahoga County) Ohio, August 7, 1889, he is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Norwalk, Ohio, with other family members.
In 1829, Job Baker Seeley and his wife, Elizabeth Willis, set sail from England for the United States. They came from Oxfordshire, and their children were born there. Job Baker was a shoemaker and that was the trade he pursued in his new country. After the Napoleonic Wars, France had renewed their manufacturing and soon flooded the European market, in particular, with shoes. This may have been a reason for his decision to leave England.
Upon arrival in America, the family settled in New Durham (now North Bergen) Hudson County, New Jersey. The family consisted of James (born 1813), Elizabeth (born 1816), John (born 1819), Job (born 1823), Edward (born 1825), and George (born 1827).
Job Baker remained in New Durham until his death in 1848. His will named his wife, Elizabeth, and daughter, Elizabeth Hounslow, and son, Job, as executors of his estate.
JAMES SEELEY
The eldest son of Job Baker was born April 6, 1813, in Oxford, England. He was about 16 when the family immigrated to America. He learned the shoemaking trade and may have been apprenticed or worked for someone other than his father.
The next record of him is his marriage April 3, 1839, to Laura Sweet. She was the daughter of Benjamin Sweet and was born January 6, 1822, in Catskill (Greene County) New York.
Their son, James Lewis, was born December 10, 1843, while they were living in New York State. How, why, or when they moved on to Ohio is another missing piece. However, a plat of Norwalk (Huron County) Ohio, in 1845 shows him listed as a Shoe and Boot Maker.
The 1850 Federal Census finds them living in Clarksfield Township (Huron County) Ohio, with their children: James L., Ann Elizabeth (born July 12, 1847), and Mary (born September 20, 1849). Also living with them was Maria Sweet, the 13-year-old sister of Laura. She is shown as having been born in Ohio, so perhaps Benjamin Sweet had moved his family to Ohio also.
In the succeeding years, three more daughters were added to the family: Laura Ellen (born April 11, 1855), Ida Alvina (born December 27, 1860), and Alice Maria (born August 27, 1863).
Like many other families of that era, the Seeleys were greatly affected by the Civil War. On January 26, 1864, their only son, James, enlisted as a Private in Co. D of the 55th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. In July of that year, he was wounded in the right temple during the Battle of Peachtree Creek, which was part of the Siege of Atlanta. The wound was not particularly serious, as evidenced by the letter he wrote to his parents the day after receiving it. One can only surmise that unsanitary conditions in the treatment of it and the lack of antibiotics allowed an infection to develop. Tragedy struck when on September 8, 1864, he died at a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 20.
Two years later in May of 1866 Laura Sweet Seeley passed away.
On March 10, 1869, James Seeley married a widow, Caroline Benson. She was listed on the 1860 Census as a next-door neighbor. The 1870 Census shows James living in Norwalk Village, and his occupation was given as a Boot and Glove Merchant. In that Census, his daughter Ann was shown to be living at home, as well as Laura and Alice.
Mary, in 1867, had married Marshall Lowe and had taken up residence in Norwalk also. Ida was living with or visiting her aunt Maria Sweet Derringer in Plymouth, Ohio.
James Seeley continued to live in Norwalk, and although he died in Cleveland (Cuyahoga County) Ohio, August 7, 1889, he is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Norwalk, Ohio, with other family members.
