Horace Havens (1808 - aft 4 May 1877)

Research to determine date and place of death of Horace Havens, born 8 Jun 1808 in Benton, Yates, New York, son of Joseph Havens and Mary Weed.

Many of the other trees on Ancestry show either no death date for Horace, or they give a death date of 23 Aug 1858 in Lansing, Ingham, Michigan.  I do not believe this date is correct for the reasons explained below.

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Horace appears in the following census records:

1840 US Census - Le Roy, Ingham, Michigan

1850 US Census - Meridian, Ingham, Michigan (his wife died in 1850, after the census)

1855 NY Census - Benton, Yates, New York (with his parents and some of his siblings)

1870 US Census - Benton, Yates, New York (with his mother, and his brother JWH Havens and family)

There is no question in my mind that the Horace Havens in the 1870 US Census in Benton is the correct Horace.  He is with his mother and sibling and his age is correct.

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In 1877, Horace’s brother Ephraim Smith Havens died.  A probate notice was published in the paper to alert Ephraim’s heirs to the settlement of his estate.  His heirs included all of his living siblings, plus the children of those siblings who had preceded him in death.  The location of the heirs was also given.

Siblings:

Minerva Havens - Perry, Wyoming, New York

Harrison Havens - Benton Centre, Yates, New York

Harriet Richards - Perry, Wyoming, New York

Fanny Blake - Ingham Centre, Ingham, Michigan

Horace Havens - Ingham Centre, Ingham, Michigan

Caroline Webb - Coldwater, Michigan

Eveline Penfield - Wickenburg, Arizona

Children of deceased brother John H Havens:

Mary Cowing - Cincinnati, Ohio

Hiram Havens - Quincy, Illinois

Nehemiah Havens - Hudson, Michigan

Children of deceased sister Nancy F Havens Gardner:

Hiram S Gardner - Truckee, California

John R Gardner - Potter, Yates, New York

Kate Potter - Ovid, Michigan

Mary Hunt - Baltimore, Maryland

Children of deceased sister Mary Havens Winslow:

Joseph Winslow - Salt Lake City, Utah

Lorenza Winslow - Omaha, Nebraska

William Winslow - Chicago, Illinois

The only sibling not mentioned in the notice is his brother Hiram, who died in 1850.  Hiram left a son, Joseph S Havens, who was living with his uncle Harrison Havens in Benton in 1875.  I can not find a record of him after that.  It may be that he died before Ephraim did, but I can not find anything definitive.  

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Based upon both the census records and his brother’s probate notice, it appears Horace Havens is alive and living in Ingham Centre, Michigan in 1877.  I have been unable to find any further records.

The Marriages of Ann Jane DOBKINS/DOPKINS (1815-1902)

The following has not been proved, but explains my reason for believing that Ann Jane DOBKINS/DOPKINS married (1) Rufus Billings Cowing (1815-1840) and, (2) Ephraim Smith HAVENS (1805-1877).

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Rufus Billings COWING was born 24 Sep 1815 in Chesterfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts to Calvin COWING and Ruth BISSELL.

He married Ann Jane HOPKINS (probably around 1837). (Information per J. Cowing)

Rufus died on 14 Mar 1840 (probably in Buffalo, Erie, New York).

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Ephraim Smith HAVENS was born 30 January 1805 in Ballston, Saratoga, New York to Joseph HAVENS and Mary E WEED.

He married Mariette MOOERS (1815-Jul 1836) of Alexander, Genesee, New York probably about 1835.  (See History & Directory of Yates Co., Vol 1, Pub 1873, by Stafford C. Cleveland, pages 288-291).  In the History, Mariette’s last name is given as MOORE, but the Alexander Village Cemetery has a record on Find-a-Grave for Marietta Mooers HAVENS.  Further research shows many other MOOERS, including her likely parents, Timothy and Vashti.

Ephraim married Mrs. Ann Jane COWING on 7 Aug 1843 in Buffalo, Erie, New York.  The “Mrs.” leads me to believe that this was a married name.  This record can be found in 10,000 Vital Records of Western New York, 1809-1850.  In North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000, it says he married Ann Jane DORKINS.

The obituary for Ann Jane HAVENS (The Buffalo Commercial - 21 Oct 1902 - Page 10) gives her birth date as 30 Sep 1815 in Hoosick, Rensselaer, New York.  Looking through census, tax and military records for Hoosick between 1800 and 1820 for similar names yields a Nathan DOBKINS/DOPKINS as the most likely father of Ann Jane.

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Given the challenges with transcriptions of very old records, I believe that Ann Jane DOBKINS/DOPKINS, rather than HOPKINS, first married Rufus Billings COWING and, after his death, married Ephraim Smith HAVENS.

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In Ephraim’s obituary (Buffalo Evening Post - 18 Apr 1877 - Page 3) it mentions that he has an adopted daughter.  It seems likely that this daughter, Lucy Jane, was Ann Jane’s daughter from her marriage to Rufus Billings COWING.  Lucy Jane was born 29 Dec 1838 (as given by North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000, and her burial card at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo) and Rufus died in March 1840.

Lucy Jane HAVENS married William Wisner PARSONS on 18 Sep 1860.  Their daughter, Jennie Havens PARSONS was born in Jun 1866.  Jennie never married. She died 16 Nov 1916.