A lot has happened since the last time I posted just a short few days ago. I now know the identity of Naomi Pearce’s father and her maiden name. She’s no longer a brick wall. KA-BOOM!
It happened like this:
I reached out to a DNA match on Ancestry whose private (i.e., hidden) family tree contained the surname “Gabel”. I had messaged her before back in February asking if she could tell me which of her ancestors came from Lawrence County, Tennessee. (You cannot see the details in private trees on Ancestry but they will still show up in your search results if they contain names or places that meet your criteria – a very cool feature.) The question I posed in February was apparently too broach because she never responded – lesson learned. So I messaged her again asking a direct question: “Are you a descendant of Barnabas Gabel of Lawrence County, Tennessee?”
She responded almost immediately. “Yes.”
She graciously offered to share with me information she had on Barnabas which I readily accepted. Much to my surprise and delight, the information she had was a copy of the family Bible Barnabas Gabel started in 1829!!!!!!!
In this family Bible appeared the death date of Aaron A. Pearce, the son of Samuel Pearce and grandson of Spencer and Naomi Pearce. It struck me almost immediately… why would Aaron have been included in their family Bible had he not been family?
The Bible also contained references to members of the Choate family. Barnabas’ wife, “Sary” (Sarah), was a Choate. “Ederd” Choate was also mentioned as being the son of “Valtin Choat”.
“Valtin Choat” I quickly learned was Valentine Hawkins Choate, who was also Sarah’s father. I had new names to explore so I started Googling them. (Search for research done by others…)
I am not sure at what point I searched for both “Valentine Hawkins Choate” and “Pierce” together because everything that happened immediately after that is a bit blurry. That’s what happens when you realize you’ve busted through a brick wall. It’s a mix of astonishment, jubilation and relief. Time stands still while you wrap your head around what you’ve just read or learned.
I found a reference to a letter written in 1905 by the wife of one of Valentine’s grandsons, Dr. Augustine Martin Choate. The good doctor was the son of John Hawkins Choate. In this letter, the wife recounted her father-in-laws siblings: he had a brother named Edward “Ned”, a sister named Sarah who married a “Goble” (Barnabas!), a sister named Jane who married a Willis, and a sister named Naomi who married a PIERCE.
Two and a half years of searching had come to an end with the revelation that Naomi Choate is my 4th great grandmother. The DNA matches who descend from Barnabas also descend from his wife, Sarah – Naomi’s sister. Ironically, a few months ago I jokingly told my research partner and 5th cousin that my DNA needed to work harder to help me solve some of these puzzles. And that’s exactly what happened.
Kenfolk: Trantham
Relationship: 4th great grandmother
Common ancestors: Naomi Choate is the a daughter of Valentine Hawkins Choate and (presumably) his wife, Ann. Behind every brick wall is another one waiting to be knocked down.