In a posting dated April 17, 1999, Diane asked for information on Jenna (TOMLINS) DAVIS who was residing in Shawnee County, KS in 1872 when her father, William Tomlins died and his will was probated.

I am certain that Diane is looking for a woman I know as Jemima TOMLINS DAVIS, who was my gggrandmother. She married James Davis in the late 1850s. In 1880, they show up in the US Census as living in Williamsport, Shawnee, Kansas. James was farming and Jemima, shown as having been born in England in 1832, was keeping house. At that time there were 5 children. Thomas, age 21, Chester, age 19, Alfred, age 17, Anna, age 7, and Elizabeth, age 14. Elizabeth married Levi Elmer Reece and became my ggrandmother. This information is from www.familyserach.org.

My mother remembers visiting her great uncle Chet (Chester). I have a letter from Anna to my mother dated April 4, 1937 which makes it fairly clear that Jemima and Jenna are the same person and provides further information on the family. The address from which Anna sent the letter is 903 Madison, Topeka, Kansas. This is the letter.

“My Dear Vivian [my mother] it is indeed a long time since I had heard from you and was glad to know you remembered me at all. About all the information I can give you concerning the lineage of my people is as follows: My father, James Davis, was an orphan boy 14 years of age when he came to the United States with some people from England. He was hired to a contractor of stone-masonry and that was his occupation for a long time, afterwards farming. Mother’s people were English people also but she was born in Mattewan, New York, Jemima Tomlins [I gather that Mattewan was next to Fishkill and Aunt Annie was a bit confused here]. Her father’s name was John Tomlins and I do not know or have any record of her mother’s maiden name [Could William’s middle name been John or is Aunt Annie mistaken here as well?]. There was a large family of children John, James, George and Sarah, Elizabeth, Mary, Maria, [from later in the letter, I think Mary and Maria are the same person] and Jemima whom they disinherited for marrying a working man. As they were wealthy and aristocratic, so my mother came out on this Kansas prairie and helped to make Kansas history. Sarah and James later got most of the money. Elizabeth married Charles Tice who owned a large manufactory of hats in New York. John became a priest was in St. Louis at one time and George was a sort of happy-go-lucky; did not take life very seriously (I have met him and also Aunt Maria, Mary. Aunt Maria’s name was Coombs; they lived in Rock Island, Ill. Her name was Badham.”

The rest of the letter was greetings to my mother’s parents and the like.

Diane, I would be interested in any information you have that confirms or refutes my contention that my gggrandmother Jemima and your Jenna are the same person. I would be very interested in the terms of the will you mentioned and a copy of it if that’s possible. If I can provide any additional information, please ask.

Thanks,

Keith Prater