Your  Rice  Family E~Zine  
 
Generation by Generation  ~  Century by Century 
 
TWICE MONTHLY               VOL. 3, NO. 2              February 10, 2010
 
 
       
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What a winter it has been for record U. S. snowfalls in the Atlantic seaboard states!  Yet, our colonial ancestors had it even harder. They either walked or
used old fashioned
horse power to get to every destination, They also had to
solve the problem of no grazing land for livestock.  
Photo credit: Hatzigeorgiou, Karen J. U.S. History Images  
 
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  IN THIS ISSUE
 
 
Watch for Rices on ebay
 
 
 Southern Family Trees: James Hannah Rice of Morgan Co., KY
 
 
Root Diggers &
Branch Climbers:
When to Be Stubborn While Chasing Ancestors
 
 
Kentucky Descendants of Rowlett Rice, Rev. War Soldier from Virginia 
 
 
RICE FAMILY NETWORKING:
 
More About John  Rice/Royce 
~ Ancestry of Peter Rice's Wife (Rebecca Howe)
~ Jessamine Co., Kentucky, Rices
 ______
 
 
Quick Links for Curious
Rice Ancestor Chasers
 
 
 
 BOOK ONE INDEX 
 
 
~~~~~~~
~~~
(Check all spellings)
 
 
 ~~~
ROYCE FAMILY 
ASS0CIATION, INC.
 
(Desc. of Thomas & Marcy Rice of Virginia)
  
(Send links to your genealogy pages; they must include
 a Rice line.)
 
 ARE YOUR ANCESTORS FROZEN IN TIME?
 
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 WILL YOUR FAMILY TREE HAVE NEW BUDS AND SHOOTS THIS SPRING?
  
TWO THINGS
TO TRY:

1) If you are not a male bearing the Rice surname, find a relative who is and have a DNA test done.

2) Send in the name of your earliest known Rice ancestor, giving at least one date and location, and we will try to match it with those families being researched by other readers.  Email:
ricebooksreb@yahoo.com
 
 
RICE EZINE
 NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
Our past issues are
being
 
FORM IS HERE 
 
If your newsletter looks like it is not properly formatted, or is garbled, please let us know!
  _______________
 
 Address newsletter correspondence to:
ricebooksreb@yahoo.com
 
 
 
TUMBLING TREES
 
 Have you researched a Rice ancestral line and later found out it was the wrong one?
 
Did you take a Rice line from a book then later discover it was not correct?
 
Have you copied a Rice family tree that was online and later found out it wasn't yours?
 
 
TUMBLING TREES
 
 The theme of our next issue is "tumbling trees".  If you have a collapsed pedigree or a wrong branch grafted onto your family tree, get in touch and share your story.  The deadline is March 1.
 
 
ANYONE  RESEARCHING ANCESTORS IN
RENSSELAER CO., N Y? 
 
 Your editor needs help tracing an ancestral line in Rensselaer Co., NY.  Can anyone recommend pre-1800 sources?  Are any wills online?  Does anyone live close enough to do court house research for a small fee?
 
 
 
Watch for Rices on ebay! 
 Rice Robert ebay
 
TWO RICE ITEMS ON EBAY
 
 First  
 
The above picture is of Robert Rice of Cambridge (probably New York).  The picture is ca. 1860s and taken by the Pine & Bell Studio in Troy, NY.  There were no bidders at auction on ebay and the item was relisted. Your editor does not know the current status.  
 
The 1860 census does not list any Robert Rices in Rensselaer Co., NY, but does list two Roberts in Washington Co., NY, which is where the town of Cambridge is. 
 
Second
 
The picture below was taken ca. 1900 in the office of MassMutual, an insurance company which began operating in 1851 in Springfield, Massachusetts, in a room with three chairs, a table, and a city map on the wall. It was founded by George W. Rice and Caleb Rice, a relative, was the company's first president. He steered MassMutual's growth for its first 22 years. The man and woman in the picture are not identified.  This picture has been on auction. It is Item Number 150414671308.
 
Our thanks to reader Carolyn Dean for alerting us to this item.  If any reader is interested in more information on this Caleb Rice, let us know...there is some in the files here. 
Rice Insurance Co.
 
  
  
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SOUTHERN FAMILY  TREES
 
 
James Hannah Rice of
  Morgan Co., Kentucky 
 
 
 
Several of our readers belong to a branch of the Rice family that lived in Carter Co., Kentucky.  Here's someone you might want to add to your family tree.
 
James Hannah Rice and Sarah Elizabeth King were married in 1888 in Carter Co., KY.  He was born August 8, 1859 in Morgan Co., Kentucky to William M. Rice of Boyd Co. and the former Nancy Rogers. He had siblings Virgil,  Sarena, Sarah and Luro.
 
William Rice was born ca. 1818 in Kentucky and died before 1860 in Muhlenberg Co., Kentucky,  He had brothers Claiborn and Dabney and a sister, Mary.  William's wife was Abala Ann (_?_).
 
William M. Rice, the father, was a son of Nathan Rice and his wife, Sarah, who were  wed ca. 1793 in Kentucky.
 
James Hannah Rice and his wife, Sarah, had 12 children, including:
  • James Watt Rice, born 1891, Eastern Kentucky
  • Marion Rice, born 1893 in Illinois
  • Ida Price Rice, born in 1896
  • Mary Jane Price Rice, born 1900
  • Green Rice, born 1902, Greenup, Kentucky
  • May Price Rice, born 1906
  • Ben Price Rice, born 1907
  • Susan Gertrude Price Rice, born 1911, Greenup, Kentucky
Rice, James Hannah
 
Living next to the James Hannah Rice family in Greenup Co., KY, in 1920 were Jacob Rice, 50, his wife, Iva(?), 34, and their son Arthur, 16, and daughter, Lula, 14.
 
PHOTO: James Hannah Rice and two of his children. (See related item below)
 
 
UPDATE
 
Reader Gail Farmer  reports a publication containing Greenup Co., KY, births (1852-1859) and (1875-1878) was recently listed on ebay (Item No. 370333408015).
 
It was compiled by Frances T. Ingmire and published in an indexed, 137-page soft cover booklet in 1984.   It is a good resource that lists, when known, the birthplace of both parents, as well as the mother's maiden name.
 
Gail  is interested in obtaining information on the George Rice who appears on page 82 of the 1830 census entries for Greenup Co., KY.   Is he the George Rice of Gallia Co., OH, who married Angeline Harvey and had a daughter Julina/Gelina Rice, born 1833, and married in Carter Co., KY, 1853?
 
Also listed on page 82 of this census are Elijah, Ezekiel, George and Jeremiah Rice.  Listed on page 83 are Benjamin Rice Sr. and Benjamin Rice Jr.
 
Gail reports that Elijah and Ezekiel Rice married Garnet sisters in 1806 and 1808 in Culpepper Co., VA, which is where Benjamin Rice Sr. was married in 1790. She believes these families migrated together and ended up in the Boyd/Carter/Greenup Co. area of Kentucky. 

  
 
FOR FELLOW ROOT DIGGERS
& BRANCH CLIMBERS
 
 
When To Be Stubborn While Chasing Ancestors
 
 
Who Were Smald K. McLeod and Worteleam McLeod?  They were Donald Ross McLeod and William Norman McLeod, of course! But you didn't recognize them, right?
 
These examples are of indexing gone wrong.  Even though I may be sympathetic to the drudgery of indexing after having indexed numerous books, including three on the Rice family, if these are my ancestors and I can't find them, that's another story!
 
The above examples of "creative spelling" in census indices are ancestors of Lori McLeod Wilke.  She says be stubborn and relentless in pursuit of ancestors you know lived at a certain place when the census was taken.  If you don't find them, she advises, go name by name in the census entries for the town they lived in.  (That will work fairly well for earlier census data from rural towns, but not for big cities then and even bigger towns and cities later.)
 
Lori also had problems with probate records.  Three generations of researchers had looked for ancestor Daniel McLeod's will, knowing where he died in 1852.  Zilch!  A woman not to be discouraged by obstacles on the ancestral trail, she looked at the estate file of a Daniel McLeod who died a few years later.  There was the estate appraisal of her Daniel, filed in the other Daniel's file.  That was only glitch number 1.  Where were the will and other probate documents? 
  
As noted, Lori doesn't give up!  She returned to the index and found there was a file for a David McLeod who died the same year her Daniel died.  His widow also had the same name as her Daniel's widow.  She pulled the file for David.  It actually was the file for her Daniel.  There was no David.  Mystery solved!  (When looking at handwriting Daniel and David are easily confused with each other.)
 
 Her message? Look for everything more than once and look at "sound alike/look alike" files for people you know aren't your ancestors.  People who file and index courthouse records don't know the families as well as researcheres do.  These mistakes are easily made, but not so easily found!
 
 Here's More Help on this subject:
 
~ Why U Can't Find Your Ancestors: Misspeld Knames 
 
~ Do You Ear what I Ear

 
 
  Rev War Soldier
______________________________________
  
KENTUCKY
DESCENDANTS
OF
ROWLETT RICE
REVOLUTIONARY
WAR SOLDIER
FROM VIRGINIA
 
 ______________
 
 
The following material is from Philip R. Rice of Augusta, Georgia. He submitted it to your editor in 1987.  We start with a family history he wrote for a high school history class in 1964. Philip became a teacher. 
 
___________________ 
 
 
 

The Rice Ancestry

 
 
Rowlett Rice, better known as "Uncle Baldy," was born and raised,in Virqinia. He served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War and soon after its close miqrated to Shelby County, Kentucky, where he settled and enqaqed in farminq. By trade he was a carpenter and followed that occupation to a considerable extent. One one occasion he fell from a house he was b u i l d t n q and was severely hurt on the head.  As he was almost helpless for the last twelve years of his life, he spent the latter part of his ninety-six years at the home of his son. Anderson.  He was buried near his old home on the farm of his son, Charles, in the area of Peytonia
.
 
The Rowlett Rice Family 
 
Th
e maiden name of Rowlett's wife was Elizabeth Gaines.  She was a sister of Mrs. William Trailkill, who died in Shelby County, and a relative of the Gaines families of Lancaster and Danville.
 
Mr
. and Mrs. Rowlett Rice had six sons who lived to years of maturity. They were Charles, Ezekiel, David, William, James and Anderson.  CharIes beqan farminq near Peytonia , but later moved to Indiana after sellinq all his qoods and property.  Not likinq it in that state, he returned to Peytonia, bouqht back his slaves and took them to Missouri. where he spent his remaininq years.
 
Ez
ekiel, David and William went to California with the qold seekers.  The two younger sons remained on the Pacific coast. Ezekiel returned to the East and settled in Missouri. James settled on a farm in Anderson County, where his descendants are still living.
 
Anderson M. Rice 
 
Anderson M. Rice was born September 10, 1810, near Clay Villaqe in Shelby County, and was raised on the home farm, which produced mainly hemp and flax. After his marriaqe to Lydia A. Doolin. he bought the old Doolin estate in Spencer County and there was successfully engaged in tillinq the soil and the raisinq of breeding stock until his death in June, 1867.  A farmer of ability and skill, he was able to add to his original purchase until he became the owner of one thousand acres of fine Kentucky land, some of the richest and best in the county.
 
A
nderson married Lydia A. Doolin in Spencer County.  She was a daughter of Edward Doolin,  who came to Kentucky from Virqinia and settled near Little Mount, Spencer County, where he improved a farm. He occupied that farm until his death while Lydia was still a child. Mrs. Doolin, his widow, passed away on the Doolin homestead at the aqe of ninety. Dying at the age of eighty-f our, Mrs. Lydia A. (Doolin) Rice also lived to an old age.  Two of Anderson's sons, twins William and James, served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War.
 
Edward Rowlett Rice
 
A
son of Anderson M. Rice, Edward was born May 5th, 1838 at Little Mount, Spencer County, Kentucky, of Virqinia ancestry.  Edward Rowlett Rice belongs to an honored pioneer family. He was a cousin of Harvey Helm, M.C,  a representative in Conqress from the Eighth Congressional   District of Kentucky.   At the death of Anderson Rice, Edward was appointed administrator of the estate. He bouqht the interests of some of the other heirs, then becoming the owner of 640 acres of the home farm.  Edward owned this farm until 1900, when he sold and bouqht land near Finchville, Shelby County, Kentucky.  He was an extensive stock breeder and handled many mules.  Decidinq to sell this property (1909), Edward bought property in Shelbyville and built a beautiful home there on Bland Avenue.  He lived there until his death. Edward was a Democrat and a member of the Baptist Church.
 
M
r. Rice married, October 4th, 1859, Anna M. Newland, who was born in Shelby County, May 30th, 1842. She was a daughter of James and Susan (Ford) Newland.  Her mother died when she was three years of aqe and her father a few years later. Anna was reared by her maternal grandparents, John and Sally (Berry) Ford.
 
The Fords were farmers and lived on Otter Branch Creek, six miles southwest of Shelbyville. She lived with her grandparents until her marriaqe at the age of seventeen. Her grandfather was a slaveholder, so she had no share of the household duties as a girl; instead she was waited upon by servants.  At the time of her marriage, she was in such precarious health that her friends thought she would not live six months. She and her husband lived for 52 years of married life.  To this union thirteen children were born. Eleven of the children qrew to maturity. They were: 
 
    1. Edward Lee of Shelbyville, carpenter
    2. Charles Anderson, Kansas City, Mo,
    3. Mattie, wife of Thomas Jewell, Spencer Co.
    4. James of Shelbyville, carpenter
    5. Younqer, farmer, Taylorsville
    6. Jesse of Louisville; in the street car service
        and later a city policeman. 
    7. Ella Nora, married John Brown of Kansas
    8. Susie, wife of John Fawkes of Shelbyville
    9. John Thomas, a Shelbyville carpenter
    10. Sallie, a Spencer Co. teacher 17 years
    11. Mary, wife of John Freeman
My grandfather, Younger Carpenter, is still living at the age of 85; my grandmother is deceased. (Younger Carpenter died in 1974 at the age of 94.)
 
______________ 
 
P
hilip's material indicates Rowlett Rice was a son of Charles Rice and his wife, Frances, and grandson of Joseph Rice and his wife, Rachel.  Philip has additional information on his branch of the Rice family, plus notes on other Kentucky Rices. He would welcome data on his Virginia Rice ancestry.
 
DESCENDANT OF PHILIP RUSSELL RICE (1760-1841)
FINDS A SURPRISE IN KY ANCESTRAL HOMETOWN
 
Philip also wrote: "On September 19. 1983, James Paschel Rice and his wife, Pam, walked into my place of business. They are from Kingsport, Tenn., and were lookinq for possible kin and the grave of his great-great-great-grandfather, Philip Russell Rice. I teach school, so I wasn't in at that time, but my wife was. Imagine everyone's surprise ... particularly Jim's when he was told that was my name, too. I had been named by my father after Jim's great-great-great-grandfather. This earlier Philip Russell Rice lived around Dover, Ky., in Mason County, and his brother James lived in Bracken County, a few miles from him. I live in Bracken County, too. Jim was very helpful in giving me more information. However, now I find I'm goinq to have a difficult time connectinq my family with his. My biqqest problem is dates. Jim gave me a book entit1ed The Family History of Michael Rice - 1680. One of the unusual things I have found with Jim Rice's book--and now with court records--is the following : the Philip Russell Rice in question was married to Martha Vaughn. I am married to Martha Jennifer Hicks. He had a son named Russell. I have a son named Russell. I live within 10 miles of the former's home. It does qet eerie after awhile."  
~~~~~~~~~~~
 
In 1987, John R. Montqomery of Roanoke, VA 24018, was seeking information on his ancestor, Michael Rice of Virqinia, born ca. 1690 in Kinq William Co. The 1737 will of his son, Michael (1710-1737), names as the only heirs the father and a brother, Samuel. John's descent is from this Samuel Squires Rice who married Sarah Ragland and had children Michael, William, James, Philip* and Ann Rice. John descends from Philip Russell Rice (1760- 1841)* who married Martha M. Vaughn and had children Philip Jr.,  Malinda, Ann, Hudson, William and John Rice. The line continues through William Rice, born ca. 1801 in Bracken Co., Ky, and wed Mary E. Wood. John Montqomery and James Paschel Rice (mentioned in the above item) are each grandsons of Hugh Paschal Rice (1879-1968), born at Blountville, TN, and died at Bristol, TN. John had a computerized print-out of dozens of Rice descendants in this branch of the family, including data on many of the early Rice families of Bracken Co., KY.
 
* Philip Russell Rice of Augusta, KY, who submitted the above feature article, said he was named for this Philip Russell Rice, but cannot prove the link.
 
 
 
 
 
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Rice Family Networking 
 
 
 
 
MORE ABOUT JOHN RICE/ROYCE
 
We had a response to the item about the John W. Rice who was "lost" in New York. (We showed a picture of his children Carrie, Hattie and John F. Rice.)
 
Meg Sondey reports the following:
 
Well, I checked into some census records very quickly and wouldn't you know -- in 1870 Mr. John W. Rice is listed as John W. ROYCE!  Same wife and kids so it is the same person.  He is in Avon, Oakland, Michigan at the time.  Now that doesn't prove that he is actually a Royce, but I do know for a fact that some of my Davis relatives from the Readsboro, VT area also moved to Michigan... including Ammos Davis who lived variously in Southfield and Bloomfield Michigan.  Also, Ammos married Anna Rogers Putnam in New York state, so they were part of the Vermont to NY to Michigan journey.  There were definitely Royce family members in Readsboro at the appropriate time, and that is where many of the "Royce" family members began to be known as "Rice" family members.  
 
Nancy Hintz wants to know if this John could be related to her Richard Rice, born in 1835 in New York to  John H. Rice, who was born in 1797 in Rhode Island.  ANSWER: I don't think so.  Although John (b. 1838, NY) is the right age to be a brother of Richard, the 1880 census data on him says both of his parents were born in New York.  Also, Richard's son, John, would have been born too late. 
 
 
ANCESTRY OF PETER RICE'S WIFE (REBECCA HOWE)
 
In our last isssue we pictured the home of Peter Rice (1658-1753), home of the Marlborough (MA) Historical Society and mentioned that he was supposed to have brought his bride, Rebecca Howe, to this house.  Reader Carole Heath  would like to know if this Rebecca Howe is from the Howe family of Thomas Howe, one of her maternal ancestors.  ANSWER:  Rebecca was born in 1668, the daughter of Abraham and Hannah (Ward) How(e) of Marlborough. Her mother, Hannah, was the daughter of William and Elizabeth Ward who came from England in 1639 and settled first at Sudbury, then moved to Marlborough.  Some sources say Abraham was son of a John Howe, but others say his father was also named Abraham Howe.
 
 
 
JESSAMINE CO., KENTUCKY, RICES 
 
New reader Patty Hanson is looking for informtion on James Rice, born 1814, in Jessamine County, KY.  ANSWER: Junior Ramsey is researching the family of Thompson Elijah Rice, b. March 2, 1801, KY, and d. Aug. 4, 1868; buried Taylor Cemetery, Garrett Twp., Douglas Co., IL.  He thinks he may be a son of Jacob and Katherine (Higbee) Rice of Jessamine Co., KY.  He lists Thompson's possible siblings as Jacob Rice (b.1795), Nancy Rice (b. 1808), James Rice (b. 1814), John Rice (b. 1820) and Martha Rice (b. 1827). At first glance, the 32-year spread between the births of the first and last child suggest there may have been a second wife.  However, I do have information onthis family in the files here and will try to locate it and put it in an upcoming issue.
 
 
 
Draw the Family Circle Wide, Then Draw It Wider Still
 
Share both the fruits of your genealogical labors
and the puzzling problems you encounter
 
 
 
 
 
FIRST THREE VOLUMES AVAILABLE:
 
The Rice Book Project  
 
 
Rice Book Project
 
BOOK 1: Celebrating Our Diversity
 
Biographies of dozens of Rice family members from different backgrounds, different decades and different branches of the family; also a directory of Rice Revolutionary War soldiers; 248 pages
 
BOOK 2: The Immigrants
 
Lists of immigrants for three centuries; early generations of the Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut branches of the family; chapters on English, Irish, Scottish and German Rice families; 258 pages.
 
BOOK 3: Connecticut &  Tennessee Rice Lineages
 
This covers several branches of the Rice family and chronicles in detail descendants of Henry Rice, the pioneer gristmiller in Tennessee; 512 pages.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
BOOK 4:  Pennsylvania and Maryland Rice Lineages
 
This is the next book in the series.
  
 
Order books from the Rice Book Project Website.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Books may also be ordered from:
ROBERT RICE
11 ANDES DRIVE
MECHANICSBURG, PA 17055-5504 
Enclose a check payable to Robert Rice  
 
 
(The RICE FAMILY EZINE is sponsored
by the Rice Family Book Project)