And Shadrach Charles Watson's family came...

Today I found Shadrach Charles Watson's family coming to America.

Mrs. Kate Watson, her daughters Annie and Eva and sons Charles and Alfred arrived November 8, 1880 in New York City on the Ship Vaderland.


Mrs. Kate Watson, daughters Anne and Eva, on bottom of page 4 of the manifest 





Charles Watson and Alfred Watson, top of page 5 of the manifest



Now Shadrach Charles Watson - I'm still looking for when exactly he arrived. Ancestry.com doesn't seem to like this family. I only found them today because as I was searching for Alfred Alma Watson, I found a border crossing card (between the US and Canada) from 1937 - which makes sense since he lived in Mountain View, Alberta, Canada most of his life - where he listed that he came to New York on the SS Vaderland in 1880 (thanks, Alfred!).

Since family tradition said that they came in November - I started looking at the ships that landed in New York in November 1880, that had the name of Vaderland. Luckily the 8th of the month wasn't too far down the list.

I haven't been so lucky yet with Shadrach Charles. He came earlier in the year, but not too much earlier - since Kate Watson had their son, Herbert Edward Chapman Watson, less than 2 months later on January 3, 1881 in Philadelphia. Herbert died in March of 1882 while they were living in Mendon, Utah. So, I still need to find out exactly when Shadrach Charles Watson came.

Mary Ann Watson

Mary Ann Watson was the oldest child of Shadrach Watson and Mary Cooper and the older sister of Shadrach Charles Watson.

Mary Ann is recorded to have come with her younger sister Rhoda Watson to the United States in 1868 on the Ship Minnesota leaving Liverpool, England June 30, 1868 and arriving in New York City on July 12, 1868. The family records that I have listed her death date as July 14, 1868 while crossing the plains. From the previous link, there's a diary of Zebulon Jacobs (also in the group) that tells about Mary Ann's death and burial.

July 14. All ready got on the train and started up the Hudson River and gladly bid adieu to New York. As we passed up the river scenery was beautiful. Many places were perfectly enchanting. Passed by West Point where youth are taught the art of war and science in case their country needs them for the service providing they graduate properly. An hour or so before we arrived at Albany, a Sister Mary Ann Watson expired through weakness & heat. She has been ailing for sometime. On our arrival at Albany the sun was very hot. We had to go about 200 from the cars to the station house, prepared for transferring to another line. In so doing, about 12 or 15 persons were sunstroke. Amongst the number was Brother Ezra J. Clark. We got him on the train and made him as comfortable as possible. Here, old Brother [Richard] Pickering was struck with death. Administered to him and he recovered. At the time he got up his wife was stricken. It required faith and work to save her. Many others had got their stroke and were suffering. Here we left Sister [Mary Ann] Watson in charge of the officers to inter as we could not attend to it.

Another thanks to the Mormon Migration Database - in helping learn about some of my ancestors. Mary Ann wasn't quite to "crossing the plains" when she died, but she was on her way.

Rhoda Watson continued her trip to Utah as part of the Chester Loveland Company - arriving in the Salt Lake Valley on August 20, 1868.

They Came from England

The Watson family (Shadrach Charles and Kezia Chapman Watson) came to the United States in the early 1880s. Shadrach Charles Watson's family was from northeast Hampshire in England. Kezia's family was from Suffolk. They married in London and raised their family there until they headed to Utah. Their family lived in Mendon, Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah and then settled more permanently in Mountain View, Alberta, Canada where both Shadrach and Kezia (went by Kate most of her life) are buried. Shadrach Charles and his family were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and they had a goal to join the Saints in Utah. That dream for their family ended with the death of his mother, Mary Cooper Watson, in 1856 when Shadrach Charles was 12 years old. You can read more about all this in the histories... Make sure you read about Ann Kenneday Knock as well.

Much research has been done on the Watson lines and on the Chapman lines. The Watsons were descendants of relatively wealthy papermakers, maltsters, and land owners in both Hampshire and Berkshire. Thanks to wills, much of their ancestry has been traced in to the early 1600s.