Tag: history

Taymouth Township, Saginaw County, Michigan: Formation, Naming, and Place

On By NancyLeave a comment

Taymouth Township, located in southeastern Saginaw County, Michigan, appears frequently in nineteenth-century records tied to families who settled along the Flint River and its tributaries. Although the township name is well established by the mid-nineteenth century, its formation, original name, and the evolution of local place names require careful reconstruction using legislative acts, census records, plat maps, and contemporary histories. When read together, these sources provide a clear timeline for the township’s creation and naming, as well as continuity of settlement before and after its organization.¹

Indigenous Presence and Early Land Use

Prior to Euro-American settlement, the Flint River valley in what later became Taymouth Township was home to Chippewa (Ojibwe) communities. Land along the river formed part of the Pe-won-o-go-wink (also rendered Pewanagowink) reservation, meaning “Place of Stones,” a name preserved in later historical accounts and visible on early plat maps.²

Treaties signed in 1819 and 1837 resulted in the loss of most Indigenous lands in the region, despite earlier assurances that certain tracts would remain reserved. By the mid-nineteenth century, only a small community remained near the Flint River, associated with an Indian church and cemetery later connected with Rev. Daniel Wheaton (Che-Me-Gas).³

The Area Before Township Organization

In the 1840 federal census, residents who would later be enumerated in Taymouth Township were listed under Saginaw Township, reflecting the fact that Taymouth had not yet been created as a civil township. Importantly, comparison of the 1840 and 1850 census schedules shows the same individuals—identified by full first and last names—appearing in both enumerations. This continuity demonstrates that the population did not relocate; rather, the civil jurisdiction governing them changed following legislative action.⁴

Creation of Faymouth Township (1842)

Taymouth Township was formally created by an act of the Michigan Legislature approved on 17 February 1842. The statute set off territory from Saginaw Township and established a new township under the name Faymouth. The act defined the township boundaries in detail and specified the location of the first township meeting. The law stated, in part:

“All that part of the county of Saginaw (now a part of the township of Saginaw) included in the following boundaries, viz.: commencing on the east side of Flint river, on the county line between Saginaw and Genesee, at the southeast corner of township ten north, range five east; thence north on said township line to the northeast corner of said township; thence west on said township line to the northwest corner of section four; thence north on section lines to the bank of Cass river; thence down said river to its junction with the Shiawassee river; thence up the Shiawassee river to the county line between Saginaw and Shiawassee; thence east on said county line to the place of beginning; be and the same is hereby set off and organized into a separate township by the name of Faymouth, and the first township meeting shall be held at the house of A. F. Hayden.”⁵

This language confirms that Faymouth was the township’s original legal name and that its boundaries were clearly defined at the time of organization.

The Name Change from Faymouth to Taymouth (1844)

Two years later, the Michigan Legislature enacted a statute changing the township’s name. An act approved in 1844 stated explicitly:

“The name of the township of Faymouth, in the county of Saginaw, is hereby changed to Taymouth; and all acts and proceedings which have been had under the name of Faymouth shall be of the same force and effect as if done under the name of Taymouth.”⁶

By the time of the 1850 federal census, the township appears consistently as Taymouth Township, confirming that the name change had been fully implemented in civil and administrative records.⁷

Villages, Post Offices, and Changing Place Names

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, several village names appeared within Taymouth Township. Blackmar, located along the Flint River and the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad, developed into a recognized center of industry and commerce and was acknowledged by the U.S. Post Office Department.⁸

Plat maps reveal additional local place names whose usage changed over time. Morseville appears on the 1916 plat map but is absent by 1920. In its place, the 1920 map labels the same location as Taymouth, suggesting a renaming or re-identification rather than abandonment. Verne, by contrast, appears on multiple maps and does not disappear, indicating greater stability in that place name. Comparison of the 1877, 1916, 1920, and 1955 plat maps highlights how local nomenclature evolved while settlement itself remained continuous.⁹

1877 Taymouth Township plat map
1877 Plat map for Taymouth Township

Land, Agriculture, and Community Development

By the late nineteenth century, Taymouth Township was described as one of the most agriculturally productive areas in Saginaw County. The Flint River and its tributaries supported mills, salt works, and transportation, while fertile soils sustained farming throughout the township.¹⁰ Despite these developments, Taymouth retained a predominantly rural character shaped by its river, its early settlers, and its layered history of Indigenous displacement and resettlement.

Conclusion

The history of Taymouth Township can be traced clearly through legislative acts, census records, and maps. Residents first enumerated in Saginaw Township in 1840 became citizens of Faymouth Township in 1842, and of Taymouth Township following the 1844 name change. The appearance and disappearance of local place names such as Morseville and the persistence of others like Verne reflect changes in labeling rather than population movement. Together, these records provide a precise framework for understanding Taymouth Township’s formation and for accurately interpreting nineteenth-century documents associated with families who lived there.

Sources

  1. Michael A. Leeson, History of Saginaw County, Michigan (Chicago: Charles C. Chapman & Co., 1881), 917–937.
  2. Margaret O’Sullivan, “Broken Promises – Stolen Land – But Still a Proud People,” Montrose Museum, Spring 2024.
  3. Ibid.
  4. 1840 U.S. Census, Saginaw Township, Saginaw County, Michigan.
  5. Michigan Legislature, An Act to Organize the Township of Faymouth, approved 17 February 1842.
  6. Michigan Legislature, An Act Changing the Name of Faymouth Township to Taymouth, 1844.
  7. 1850 U.S. Census, Taymouth Township, Saginaw County, Michigan.
  8. Leeson, History of Saginaw County, 922.
  9. Taymouth Township plat maps, 1877, 1916, 1920, and 1955.
  10. Leeson, History of Saginaw County, 917–918.

John T. Wortman: A Teamster’s Journey Through the Revolutionary War

On By NancyLeave a comment

When we talk about Revolutionary War service, we often picture soldiers on the battlefield or officers directing maneuvers. But for many men in New Jersey, the war was fought on the roads — muddy, frozen, rutted roads that carried the lifeblood of Washington’s army. Few stories illustrate this better than that of John T. Wortman, born in Morristown on September 25, 1757, and later known in the records as the teamster who helped keep the Continental Army alive during its darkest winters [1]. His life offers a window into the logistical backbone of the Revolution, a side of the war we rarely talk about but absolutely should.

John Jr. grew up in a world already shaped by the long Dutch presence in New Jersey. His father, John Wortman Sr., remained rooted in Somerset County, but John Jr. came of age farther north, in the developing communities of Morris County. That shift in geography — a short distance on a modern map — made all the difference in the kind of service he would eventually render. While his father’s life revolved around Bedminster, John Jr.’s world centered on Morristown, Roxbury, and Chester, places that would become synonymous with the Continental Army’s winter encampments and supply struggles [1][6]. This geographic divide is one of the most important clues for genealogists trying to distinguish the two men.

Enlistment During the “Hard Winter”

By the fall of 1779, the war had entered one of its most desperate phases. The army was preparing for what would become the infamous “Hard Winter” at Morristown, a season so severe that even seasoned soldiers later recalled it with dread. It was in this moment that John Jr. enlisted in the Morris County Militia [1]. His role was not that of a traditional infantryman. Instead, he joined the specialized team brigades — the mobile transport units that hauled food, clothing, equipment, and forage across New Jersey’s interior.

These brigades, led by George Allen and Samuel Hunt, operated under the broader umbrella of the Wagonmaster General’s Department, the logistical backbone of the Continental Army [1][10]. Their work was relentless. Supplies arrived by water at Lamberton, a small but strategically vital port just south of Trenton, where sea‑going vessels could unload their cargo. From there, men like John Jr. took over, guiding heavily loaded wagons northward through the state’s most important military corridor [1]. This corridor — stretching from Lamberton to Morristown and then into the Hudson Highlands — was one of the most strategically important supply routes of the entire war.

What John Jr. Carried — and Why It Mattered

The pension testimony preserved by his widow, Charity Messler, paints a vivid picture of what this work entailed. John Jr. hauled:

  • Flour, sugar, salt, rum
  • Hard soap and animal feed
  • Boxes of clothing and shoes

These weren’t abstract “supplies”; they were the difference between endurance and collapse for the men stationed at Morristown, New Windsor, Pompton, Tappan, and even West Point [1]. Each load he carried represented a small but essential piece of the army’s survival. This is the kind of detail that helps us understand the daily realities of Revolutionary logistics in a way that battlefield reports never could.

The roads he traveled were not the smooth turnpikes of later centuries. They were often little more than dirt tracks, churned into deep mud by rain or frozen into jagged ridges by winter storms. Driving a wagon through such conditions required strength, patience, and a deep familiarity with the landscape. John Jr. had all three.

The Condict Papers: Witnesses Who Remembered Him

One of the most valuable pieces of evidence for his service comes from the Lewis Condict Papers, a collection of notes taken between 1833 and 1837 from pension applicants and their neighbors. In these papers, witnesses such as William Todd confirmed John Jr.’s enlistment in October 1779 and his work as a teamster in the Allen and Hunt brigades [12]. These testimonies, combined with Charity’s pension application (W100), firmly anchor him in Morris County and distinguish him from his father, whose service belonged to Somerset County [1][6].

This kind of corroboration is gold for anyone doing serious genealogical reconstruction, especially when dealing with repeated names across multiple counties.

Life After the War

After the war, John Jr. settled permanently in Chester, where he and Charity raised a large family of ten children — Jane, Benjamin, Mary, Agnes, Charity, Ann, Sarah, Abraham, Ruth, and John [1]. Their household became part of the post‑war growth of Morris County, and later generations would carry the family westward into Ohio and beyond.

His death on May 19, 1831, closed the chapter on a life defined not by battlefield heroics but by the unglamorous, indispensable labor that kept an army functioning [1]. His story reminds us that the Revolution was not only fought with muskets and bayonets, but with wagons, wheels, and the steady determination of ordinary men who understood that their work mattered.

Sources

  1. John T. Wortman (1757–1831) | WikiTree – https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Wortman-6
  2. Workman Family History Americana – https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~n3kp/genealogy/workman_hist (freepages.rootsweb.com in Bing)
  3. Collections of the New York Historical Society – Internet Archive
  4. Centennial History of Somerset County, NJ – Genealogy Trails
  5. WorkmanFamily.org – Wortman Genealogy
  6. A Rare Opportunity – National Society Sons of the American Revolution
  7. Somerset County Historical Quarterly – Internet Archive
  8. WikiTree G2G: Revolutionary War Ancestors
  9. Essex County Rev War Project – Plainfield Public Library
  10. Geertjie (Messler) Wortman | WikiTree – https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Messler-2
  11. New Jersey Historical Society Proceedings, Vol. 9 (1924) – Internet Archive
  12. Lewis Condict Papers, 1833–1837 | New Jersey Historical Society
  13. Clarke County Historical Association Proceedings, Vol. 17

The Revolutionary War Service of Eli Stiles

On By NancyLeave a comment

Eli Stiles (1746–?) entered the Revolutionary War from Hollis, New Hampshire, though he was born in Westfield, Massachusetts, and spent his early adulthood in the Berkshires. His service appears across New Hampshire war rolls, Massachusetts legislative records, and the Naval Documents of the American Revolution.

1775: Arnold’s Expedition to Quebec

Stiles’ first enlistment began on May 14, 1775, when he joined Captain John Worthley’s Company in Colonel Edmund Phinney’s Regiment (Fold3 Military Records; Worcester, History of Hollis). That autumn, he was one of four Hollis men who volunteered for Benedict Arnold’s march to Quebec. The expedition is well documented for its failed logistics and the severe conditions along the Kennebec River. Stiles survived both the march and the failed assault on December 31, 1775 (Worcester).

1776: Sergeant Stiles in the Northern Department

By 1776, Stiles had risen to the rank of Sergeant. The Naval Documents of the American Revolution record his formal “examination” on September 16, 1776, identifying him as “Serjt Stiles” aboard the Royal Savage. He had been sent to reconnoiter British positions at St. John’s, where he counted tents, observed troop movements, and reported the presence of British-allied Native forces traveling in birch canoes (Naval Documents, Vol. 6).

1777–1778: Eight-Month Enlistment and the Hollis–Littleton Quota Dispute

In early 1777, Stiles enlisted for an eight-month Continental term (Fold3; Worcester). This enlistment triggered a jurisdictional dispute: although he lived in Hollis, NH, he had accepted a bounty from Littleton, MA. Both towns attempted to count him toward their required quotas.

The matter reached the Massachusetts House of Representatives on January 31, 1778, which ruled that Stiles was an inhabitant of Hollis and must be credited to New Hampshire. Littleton’s bounty money was ordered returned (Massachusetts House Resolve, Jan. 31, 1778).

During this same period, Hollis records show that its soldiers—including Stiles—were serving with the New Hampshire Brigade during the winter encampment of 1777–1778. The town sent clothing and supplies to its men at Valley Forge in January 1778 (Worcester, History of Hollis).

1780–1782: “For the War” Enlistment

In 1780, Stiles reenlisted “for the war,” joining the long-term Continental establishment (Fold3; Register Report). New Hampshire war rolls from 1780–1782 occasionally list him as “absent” or “deserted,” but importantly add the notation “returned to his duty,” a common pattern among soldiers who left temporarily during periods of hardship (NH War Rolls; Worcester).

His continued presence in the army is confirmed by a 1782 sworn deposition from sutler Joel Abbot, who testified that he saw “Eli Stiles… many times this last summer” serving in the Continental Army and noted that Stiles had enlisted “for the town of Hollis during the war” (Deposition of Joel Abbot, Nov. 1782).

By the close of the conflict, the Hollis Selectmen described him as “a soldier who has done Singular Exploits” (Worcester).

Post-War

After the war, Stiles remained in New Hampshire until 1806, when he moved to Northfield, Vermont (Register Report; Stiles, Stiles Family in America).

Sources

  • Fold3 Military Records: Service entries for Eli Stiles.
  • Worcester, Samuel T. History of the Town of Hollis, New Hampshire (1879).
  • Naval Documents of the American Revolution, Vol. 6: “Examination of Serjt Stiles,” Sept. 16, 1776.
  • Deposition of Joel Abbot, Hollis, NH (Nov. 1782).
  • Stiles, Henry Reed. The Stiles Family in America (1895).
  • Massachusetts House of Representatives, Resolve concerning Eli Stiles (Jan. 31, 1778).