Heinrich Surber, 6th Great-grandfather

During the 18^thcentury, several of my ancestors came from the Palatinate, a dangerous region. 

https://haruppsattningar2015.blogspot.com/2018/03/palatinate-germany-map-1700.html

One of these ancestors was my 6th great-grandfather—Heinrich (Hendryk) Surber, age 50—who arrived in Philadephia on the ship Mercury on May 29, 1735, with his 15-year-old son Heinrich/Henry and 5-year-old daughter Verena. His wife Anna had apparently died on the voyage. Here is an account from a Surber message board on Ancestry that was credited to being on Immigrantship.com:

On 29 May 1735 the ship Mercury, William Wilson, master, last from Rotterdam, Holland arrived at Philadelphia, Penn., with 186 passengers. Most of these passengers were from Zürich and nearby Swiss towns. These people were members of the Reformed Church in Switzerland.... This colony is one of the few whose history can be traced from origin to destination with some detail. On 7 Oct. 1735, The Nachrichten von Zürich(a newspaper), published the account.... The journey of the colonists from Zürich to Basel is told by Ludwig Weber, one of the emigrants who later returned from Holland. His notes were published in Zürich. The following is taken from his notes.

"...The main body consisting of 194 persons, embarked in two ships [on the river to the ocean, in winter weather]. They suffered intensely thru rain and cold and were poorly protected with scanty clothes and provisions.... the nights were wet and cold. Moreover the ships were crowded so badly that there was hardly enough room to sit, much less lie down. There was no opportunity to cook on the ships; and as they were compelled to remain on the ships day and night, the cries of the children were pitiful and heartrending. ...Quarrels between men and women were frequent."

... [They transferred from the two river ships to the single, larger ship Mercuryin late February, so] after leaving Mainz their journey was a little more comfortable as they could at least cook on board the ships.

... When they reached Neuwied, Weaterwald Canton, in Bavaria, four couples were married by a reformed minister. They were as follows:

1. Hans Conrad Wirtz and Anna Goetschy
2. Conrad Naff, of Walliselen and Anna N.---
3. Jacob Rathgeb and Barbara Haller both of Walliselen
4. Conrad Geweiller, a gardener and ---

...186 passengers in all on the ship Mercurythat reached Philadelphia 29 May l735....

In a letter from John Henry, the son of Rev Goetschy, to Zurich dated 21 July 1735 wrote in part the following: "After we had left Holland and surrendered ourselves to the wild and tempestuous ocean, its waves and its changeable winds, we reached through Gods great goodness toward us, England. After a lapse of two days we came to the Island of Wight, and there to a little town named Cowes, where our captain supplied himself with provisions for the great ocean trip. We secured medicines for the trip and then with a good East wind we sailed away from there. After a day and a night with the good wind we were buffeted with a terrible storm and the awful raging waves as we came into the Spanish and Portuguese oceans.

For 12 weeks we were subjected to these miseries and had to suffer all kinds of bad and dangerous storms and terrors of death. With these we were subjected to all kinds of bad diseases. The food was bad for we had to eat what they called "galley bread". We had to drink stinking muddy water, full of worms.

We had an evil tyrant and rascal for a captain and first mate, who regarded the sick as nothing more than dogs. If one said "I have to cook something for a sick man", He replied "get away from here or I'll throw you overboard". "What do I care about your sick devil?". In short, misfortune is everywhere upon the sea, we alone fared better. This has been the experience of all who have come to this land and even if a king were to travel the ocean it would behave no better.

After being in this misery sufficiently long God, The Lord, brought us out and showed us the land, which caused great joy among us. But three days passed, the wind being contrary, before we could enter into the right river. Finally a good south wind came and brought us in one day through the glorious and beautiful Delaware river which is a little larger than the Rhine, but not by far as wild as the Rhine." [They landed at Philadelphia, PA]

~~

This account is probably typical of miseries our Palatinate ancestors endured during their escape. I have blogged about another of my Palatinate ancestors, Matthias Nehs, on my Naces of Lithia blog. He arrived in Philadelphia on September 21, 1731, on the Brittania. Among my other ancestors who escaped from the Palatinate were Nafzgers (Noffsingers) who arrived aboard the Phoenix on September 15, 1749. Several Naces married Noffsingers. Other Palatines among my ancestors were Fringers and Zirkles, but I'm not sure when they arrived. 

I’m glad these ancestors made their arduous and dangerous trip to get to America, and that their descendants migrated from Philadelphia westward to the Great Wagon Road and came south to Botetourt County. 

If they hadn’t, I wouldn’t be here.

~

A Missing Nace Brother

Warning: Lengthy historical post with many quotations and links.

William Nace, Jr.
(older brother of John Christian Nace)

While doing a Google search the other day, I happened upon some information about my great-great uncle, William Nace, Jr. I couldn’t download the pdf. file that contained this information, but I could access a garbled html version. I had to make a few guesses at some words. What I couldn’t verify, I put in brackets. Here’s what I found:

From Vol. 7, NO.3 LECOMPTON, KANSAS FALL 1981:

Constitution Hall

The Kansas Territorial government, unable to find suitable quarters in which to meet, contracted with Col. William Nace in 1855 to erect a Building that would meet their needs in the new town of Lecompton, Kansas Territory.

The contract stipulated that upon the completion of the building, Col. Nace was to be paid $1,000 if it was occupied 40 days. The legislature voted to make Lecompton the official capital of the territory, and also the seat of Douglas County. The building was occupied by the legislature and the territorial officers by 1856. After the freestate people became dominant in the territory, the legislature would convene annually at Lecompton, but immediately voted to re-convene in Lawrence. The county seat was also moved to Lawrence.

Constitution Hall was the site of the Lecompton Constitutional Convention. The convention was called for September, but as the delegates approached the meeting
place, they were confronted by several hundred freestate people, led by James Lane.

The delegates felt it was unsafe to enter the building, and as the U. S. Cavalry was no longer stationed near by, adjourned to meet in October when the U. S. Army would be available to protect them.

Our subject [William Nace] who is mentioned as the builder of the Constitutional Hall in another article in this issue of the "Bald Eagle" was born September 19, 1826, in Buchanan, Botetourt County, Virginia, the son of William and Hester C. (Fringer) Nace and the grandson of John C. Nace. His grandfather John C. Nace was a captain in the War of Independence, and his father, William, was a soldier in the War of 1812. Both of them were prominent Virginia farmers. His mother was a well-educated, intelligent Christian woman and a member of the Presbyterian church, in which her husband was a ruling elder for [?] years.

William Nace, our subject, was educated in the schools of Buchanan. In 1848 he entered wholesale grocery and commission house at Richmond, Virginia, where he remained seven years. In 1856, at the solicitation of Honorable Daniel Woodson, secretary of the territory, he removed to Kansas.

On his arrival here, he was at once appointed private secretary to Daniel Woodson, acting governor. As member of the Governor's staff, he was given the rank of colonel, and continued to hold the same rank under the Hugh S. Walsh administration. In the fall of 1856, he purchased from Colonel H. T. Titus the well known claim on which was located at what was known as Fort Titus, celebrated in the history of Kansas as the point at which Titus and other pro-slavery men were captured, and where Captain Shore was killed.

While he served as secretary to Woodson and Walsh until l860, he improved his claim, making a first-class farm, to which he had added until he had six hundred and forty acres—with a large orchard of apples, peaches, cherries, and all other kinds of fruits found in this climate, and a first-class dwelling, houses for tenants, barns and other improvements, making it among the best houses and farms in Douglas County.

During Price's raid in 1864, he participated in the battles of Westport, Big Blue, and other engagements. He was originally a Whig, but since his advent into Kansas he was never a partisan, voting generally for those whom he considered the best man.

Mr. Nace always took an active part in the affairs of his times, and at different times held various positions of trust, among them being on the school board for almost a score of years and serving five terms as county commissioner and held the office of township trustee of Lecompton township for four years.

He was reared in the Presbyterian faith. Although never a member of any religious organization, he has always contributed liberally to churches, Sunday schools and religious enterprises generally.

He was married at Lecompton, September 29, 1859 to Miss Mary Amelia Hickox, daughter of Daniel and Polly A. (Yates) Hickox; Mr. Hickox, formerly a prominent member of the New York legislature. Mrs. Mary A. Nace was born December 3, 18[??] in Olean, Cattaraugus County, New York, and came to Kansas when but a child.

She died September l[?], 1907. Both are buried in the cemetery west of Lecompton, known as the Maple Grove Cemetery. Their children were William M. Jr., John Palmer, Susie, Mary H., Frederick Henry and Ruth.

Colonel Nace passed away, October 2, 1908 at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Leamer. He was remembered for his fifty years of neighborly kindness, his gentlemanly manners, his hospitality, his good cheer, his usefulness as a citizen those [?] years. He was an old time settler who had served our community and helped make Lecompton a surviving city today.

The above information taken from the United States Biography Dictionary and news articles from the Lecompton Sun. There are still Nace descendants living in Kansas at this writing. Submitted by-Iona Spencer

However, upon doing a bit more checking, I found that, according to info on the Historic Lecompton website, Constitution Hall was built by Sheriff Samuel Jones and his crew. Uh-oh, was all the info I quoted above inaccurate? Was William in Kansas? Turns out he was. On this page about the Battle of Fort Titus (August 16, 1856), William Nace is mentioned:

Ft. Titus was a proslavery stronghold in Douglas County about two miles south of Lecompton on the east bank of Coon Creek. Colonel Henry Titus built a fortified log house as a rendezvous point and place of defense for proslavery men fighting their Free State neighbors. After the battle, the site was purchased in 1856 from Titus by William Nace as a farm. In 1860, the Battlefield Distillery was opened on the old site of Ft. Titus by Nace and a Mr. McKinney.

Aha! This page says that William Nace built the Council Building:

Council Building. Built the same year as Constitution Hall. Constructed by William Nace, private secretary to Acting Governor Daniel Woodson. Territorial council or senate convened here in 1857. Became United States land office in 1860. Used later as a general store, drug store, and Lecompton city and council offices. It was destroyed by fire in 1932.

In 1890, the 1856 building was a store:


This page from the LHS Newsletter Archive, Vol. 16, No. 4, gives more information about Constitution Hall:

The legislature voted Lecompton as the first permanent capital of the territory and also the county seat of Douglas County. William Nace had come to the area with Secretary of the Territory Woodson and as he had had considerable experience as a builder, he was selected to go to Lecompton to erect a building for the territorial offices. It is possible that he also built the Council Hall, just to the east across Elmore street from Constitution Hall, but records show others were involved, such as Sheriff Sam Jones who owned the lots on which Constitution Hall was built. The Legislature agreed to pay $1,000 for the use of the building for forty days.

The building was built of lumber, most of which was walnut, and is thought to have been sawed by a local mill which had the ability to saw five to seven thousand board feet a day. The windows, locks, hinges, etc. were purchased elsewhere—perhaps Missouri. It was a two story building with steps on the east, and entrances on both the east and south. Later in the year, additional rooms were built on the west end and an outside stairway on the south up to the second story, made it possible to enter the building without going through the Land Office on the first floor, as it was continually crowded. The upper floor consisted of a large meeting room, an entry and an office room on the northwest. The first floor had a large room for the Land Office on the east and four smaller offices on the west, two of which were rented to two lawyers and two were used by the register and receiver. The building had been completed in 1856 but by 1860 the Land Office had been removed and that area rented to N.W. Perry a dry goods merchant. The building was heated by wood stoves and had an outside well and plumbing (pit privy).

Council building, Constitution Hall, same year—yeah, it’d be easy to get them confused. Anyhow, my ancestor did build something of importance in Lecompton, Kansas.

When researching stuff on the ‘Net, don’t rely on just one source.

From Douglas County, Part 31:

The first settlements made in the vicinity of Lecompton were in 1854, by A. W. & A. G. Glenn, father and son; G. W. Zinn, David Martin, M. S. Winter and William Shirley. In 1855, Moses McCall, Maj. Lyman Evans and others came to this part of the county, and, in 1856, William Leamer, William M. Nace, William Smith, William Christian and Hugh S. Walsh.

. . . and

While this building [a capitol building] was in course of erection, the Territorial Government, desiring to remove from the Shawnee Mission to Lecompton, which had become the capital of the Territory, engaged William M. Nace to erect a suitable building in which to hold their sessions, agreeing to pay therefore, as rent, $1,000 in case the building could be occupied by them for forty days.

William Nace was mentioned on page 146 of John Speer’s 1896 book, Life of General James H. Lane, the “Liberator of Kansas” (which can be read online): "Our illustration represents the cavalcade passing the pioneer home of Col. William Nace, on the heights approaching Lecompton, all the multitude, from the east, the south and west having concentrated just south of the point. (See page 165)" Here's the picture from page 165:


Information about Constitution Hall and its importance to history is on this page of the Kansas historical society’s website and also on the Eight Wonders of Kansas site.

From a story in the LHS Newsletter Archive, Vol. 12, issue 1 (1986), there’s this recollection from William Christian Hoad:

A good many of the first settlers were still in Lecompton when I was a boy, and it was my greatest delight to get them to tell me stories of the stirring early times. There was Colonel William Nace, the much loved “Uncle Billie” of a whole tribe of boys and girls, who ate his apples and rode his ponies to their hearts' content. “Uncle Billie” was a fire-eater from Mississippi who always rode a powerful bay horse, even about his own farm, and who for many a year never left his home and barnyard without a pistol in his pocket or a carbine slung from his saddle.

But he wasn’t from Mississippi. “Uncle Billie” was from Buchanan, Virginia.

I wonder if William Nace’s move to Kansas saved the life of his younger brother, John Christian Nace. When their father died in the summer of 1863, John made the arrangements and settled the estate, a job that would normally have been delegated to the older brother.

In order to fulfill his duties to his father, John took leave from the 22nd Virginia infantry—so he missed the Battle of Gettysburg.

~

I am indebted to the Lecompton Historical Society for making its records available online. Had they not done so, I would never have known what happened to my great-great uncle.

Grandma Nace's Quilt

Sulmena (also spelled Sulmana and Sulmenia) Frances Spence Nace

This picture of my Great-Grandma Nace hangs in my living room.

In my living room, I also keep a quilt that she made when she was younger. I don't know how old it is, but it's well over a hundred. Grandma Nace died in 1945, several months before was born.


All the stitches were done by hand, and all the fabric is cotton. It's lined with a light layer of cotton, so it must have been made as a summer quilt. A quilter once told me the pattern is "Drunkard's Path."

Anyhow, when I touch this quilt, I touch my past.

~

The Nace Girls of Lithia, Virginia

To save (and share) a bit of family history and genealogy, I include here the ancestors of my grandmother and her sisters:

Peter Nafzger (Nofsker/Noffsinger), born between 1700 and 1710 in the Palatinate and died 1783, married Sophronia Wise, born ? and died 1808. Peter came to America aboard the Phoenix and settled in Berwick Township, PA.

Peter and Sophronia’s son Samuel Noffsinger (1770-1839) married Mary Hyner (Hiner) (1770-1850). They lived in Botetourt County, Virginia

Samuel and Mary’s son Abraham Noffsinger (1797-1859) married Elizabeth Ferrill (1802-1877).

Abraham and Elizabeth’s daughter Mary Anne Noffsinger (1828-1898) married John Christian Nace (1828-1928). He was the son of William Nace, overseer of Mount Joy Plantation in Buchanan (Botetourt County), and his first wife Hester Fringer.

John and Mary Anne’s son William Robert Nace (one source says 1860; another 1854-1935) married Sulmana (also spelled Sulmenia and Sulmena in various documents) (1864-1944). Here is how she looked in 1927:



Their daughters (who survived past infancy):

• Mary Lucy Nace (1885-1979) who married Charles Franklin Mays
• Mattie Blanche Nace (1886-1983) who married Howard Rufus Ruble
• Cora Virginia Nace (1888-1945) who married Thomas Owen Hunt (1877-1965)
• Annie Pearl Nace (1890-1911)
• Ossie Bell Nace (1894-1987) who married George Lewis Goode (1888-1985)
• Zora William Nace (1903-1988) who married James C. Gross, Jr. (1898-1978)

Here are pictures of the three eldest Nace girls:

Lucy

Blanche


Pearl

Four of the sisters scattered across Virginia: Lucy to Richmond, Blanche to Roanoke, Cora to Bonnes Mill, Zora to Newport News. Ossie stayed in Lithia; Pearl is buried in Lithia.

Eventually, I'll move these family posts to a separate blog. For the time being, they'll reside here.

Aunt Lucy

A bit of Nace family history—the oldest Nace daughter:

Mary Lucy Nace Mays

My grandmother’s oldest sister, Mary Lucy Nace (b.1885) was no doubt named for her grandmother, Lucy Goff (who married Andrew F. Spence of Bedford on December 19, 1849. The Mary part might have come from her great-grandmother, Polly (Mary?) Harrison.

I knew her as Aunt Lucy (pronounced “Aint Lucy”), but I never saw her very often. When I was little, she’d sometimes come to visit my grandmother—her sister Blanche. I remember that, unlike my shy grandmother, Lucy was outgoing. She and her husband Charles Franklin Mays lived in Richmond where they raised their family. The last time I saw Aunt Lucy was at my college graduation in June 1967. She wasn’t able to stay and socialize afterwards; she had a grandson’s graduation to attend that evening.

Like her grandmother and namesake, Lucy Nace married in December. Here’s the clipping that Lisa, my second cousin (once removed) and Lucy's great-granddaughter, sent:

Thanks to Lisa Kuper for jpeg.

This is what it says:

MAYS-NACE

On the night of Christmas Eve, the home of Mr. Wm. Nace, at Lithia, presented a gala appearance indeed, lights burned brightly, ivy and evergreens cheered from every nook. A huge bunch of mistletoe, hanging from the center of the ceiling in the parlor, together with the large crowd of friends and relatives present, indicated that something unusual was about to take place. Promptly at 8 o’clock, Miss Lucy, the eldest daughter, was led to the [hymeneal] altar by Mr. Chas. F. Mays, of Rockbridge County, where they were met by Parson Dogan, who performed the impressive ceremony which forged the chain that made them no more twain, but one flesh.

The attendants on this occasion were Mr. Tucker Campbell with Miss Julia Reid, Mr. A.M. Waskey with Miss Nora Campbell, Mr. Wm. Good with Miss Rosa Goff, Mr. O.G. Lipes with Miss Mamie Spence, Mr. Houston Spence with Miss Ollie Mays, Mr. W.A. Mays with Miss Blanch Nace.

The bride was tastefully gowned in steel gray with trimmings to match. After the ceremony the bridal party was led by the preacher into the dining room where a great table was groaning under the weight of good things, to which all did ample justice, Dr. B----- and the depot agent being conspicuous actors in the latter performance.

The bride is one of Lithia’s most charming young ladies and a member of the Lithia Baptist church in which she will be greatly missed.

May heaven’s richest blessings attend the happy young couple.

Apparently it did. They had several children and lived a long life.
Here, to preserve a bit of the Nace family history, are some pictures of Lucy Nace Mays, her husband, and her children.

I'm not sure how old Charlie and Lucy were in this picture, but they look fairly young:


I think this must an earlier pictures. Lucy is three months pregnant with Hazel. I'm guessing the picture was taken in the spring at her parents' house in Lithia:

Thanks to Lisa Kuper for the photo.
(Hazel was Lisa's grandmother)

Three of their children, Rex, Thelma, and Hazel are pictured below (Elwood and Sulmana Frances weren't yet born). Thelma married Charlie Davis; Hazel married Linwood Park:


I have several pictures identified only as "Lucy's baby." This one, however, is identified as baby Elwood:


This picture of one of the daughters (Hazel? Thema?) is charming; she looks ready to garden:


In this picture, Thelma looks so sad, but she is lovely. The baby is identified on the back of the picture as "Jean."


This picture of Charlie and Lucy was taken when they were older. From the car in the background, maybe the 1930s or early 1940s?

This is how I remember Uncle Charlie and Aunt Lucy. I think this picture was taken in the late 1950s or early 1960s, but she still looked exactly like this in 1967:

All the daughters of William and Frances Nace of Lithia are now gone. Only memory remains.

To keep the memories alive and to add a bit to Botetourt County history, I'll post other family pictures on this blog from time to time.

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

Yesterday I looked into the past.

My cousin Judy and her daughter Kara came from Roanoke to look at the family things I had—many old photos, old letters, some linens (mostly things crocheted by my great aunts or embroidered by my mother), a few pieces of furniture (such as the dining room set that my mother bought in the early 1930s; she paid a dollar a week for it from her seven dollars a week she earned working at Heironimus). These things aren’t investment quality antiques—alas, no Duncan Fyfe or Sheraton—but they’re remnants of a farm family from days gone by. Their value is sentimental and maybe historical.

My mother was her mother’s only daughter, so family things passed to her. My grandmother’s two sons wouldn’t have been interested in them. Household goods don’t interest boys.

Since I am my mother’s only daughter—and only surviving child (my older brother died the day he was born), the family things passed to me. Since I am childless, I need to pass them on. Of my three female first cousins, only one has a daughter. And that daughter has now a daughter. The female line continues. Someday I will decide how the family things will pass on—either to family or historical society.

And here’s what’s weird: two-and-a-half-year-old Maddie looks just like I did when I was her age. And her birthday is the same day as my mother’s, which was the same day as her paternal grandmother’s.


We looked at things that Judy and I remembered from our visits to Grandma's house over fifty years ago. We remembered these dishes, but we couldn't remember them ever being used, though. They were always in the china cabinet. We remembered that the pitcher and glasses always sat on the server in the dining room; again, we never remember them being used:


A picture of three nymphs hung in the parlor. There was a matching picture opposite it, but another cousin has that. The other picture had swans.



We spent time looking at old photographs. Many were identified, but some were mysteries. Were the people in the pictures family, or were they acquaintances? We’ll never know.


We looked at pictures of ourselves when we were kids and gathered around the dining room table at Grandma’s house—the same dining room table that we gathered around yesterday. We looked at our pictures of our ancestors—the people who made us who we are.

Our granddaddy, Howard R. Ruble, when he was a young man.


Grandaddy is at the lower right. Most of his fellow railroad engineers are unidentified.
The picture is dated 1914.

We are who we are because our ancestor Peter Nafzger and his brothers Rudolph and Matthais—Mennonites from the Swiss-German border—stowed away on the Phoenix and landed in Philadelphia on September 15, 1749. Their story is on the Nafzger website. In America, the Nafzgers became Noffsingers/Nofsingers/Noftsingers (or one of the many variant spellings).

We are who we are because of our ancestor William Nace, overseer of Mount Joy Plantation in Botetourt County. We looked at a copy of his will and the inventory of his estate. When William died in the summer of 1863, his son (and our ancestor, John Christian Nace) had leave from the 22nd Virginia Infantry to settle his estate—and thus missed the Battle of Gettysburg. John Christian Nace married Mary Ann Nofsinger.

William Robert Nace, the son of John Nace, married Sulmena Frances Spence, who came from the Big Island section of Bedford County—just across the mountains from where the Naces lived. Her parents moved to Buchanan when she was in her teens. We talked about the few things were knew about her, but much of her life is mystery. (Two decades ago, I rode my mare through the Big Island area. Did I ride past family land? I'll never know.)

Sulmana Frances Spence, daughter of Andrew Frederick Spence and Mary Lucy Goff.

Our Nofsinger ancestors (as well as some of our Nace Ancestors) lie in the Nofsinger-Styne Cemetery in Pico (near Buchanan in Botetourt County, Virginia). I’ve visited twice on family reunions. Other Naces lie in Lithia Baptist Church Cemetery. I've been there many years ago. One of the Nace graves at Lithia Baptist is that of our great-aunt Annie Pearl, who died mysteriously when she was in her early twenties:

Annie Pearl Nace, with her boyfriend Otha Young.

We looked at pictures of other ancestors, too. They made us who we are—and who we will become.

See my Naces of Lithia blog for information about the Nace line.

~

Another Family Recipe: Light Bread

One of the delights of my childhood was going to Grandma’s house on Sunday and smelling her light bread baking. Eating it hot from the oven was even more delightful. She had both a wood stove and a gas stove in her kitchen. She used the wood stove for baking the bread and for most of her cooking. I rarely saw her use the gas stove.

Mattie Blanche Nace Ruble—who lived to be nearly 97—grew up in Lithia, Virginia, but moved to Roanoke when she married a railroad man. Here is a picture of her as a young mother with her three children (Lawrence, the oldest; Raymond, the baby; and Alene, my mother).


Grandma probably got the recipe from her mother, Sulmena Frances Spence Nace, pictured here with her husband, William Robert Nace.

Grandma Ruble’s Light Bread

1 cake or package of yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon shortening (She used lard but Crisco works)
6 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon of salt
1 pint lukewarm water

Dissolve 1 cake yeast and 1 Tbs. sugar in one pint lukewarm water. Add 1 Tbs. shortening (Crisco) and 3 cups plain flour. Beat until smooth. Then add 1 tsp. salt and 3 more cups of flour—or enough to make a dough that is easily handled.

Knead the dough until smooth and elastic–about 10 minutes. Place dough in greased bowl, cover, and set in a moderately warm place, free from drafts, until light (about 50 minutes).

Punch down dough and form into rolls. Place rolls in greased bread pans, cover, and let rise one hour. Bake 30 minutes in preheated 350 degree oven. [Note: I added the time and temperature that worked for me.]

~~~

I liked the rolls from the corner of the pan—crust on two sides so it held up well for buttering.

~

John C. Nace 1828-1928

Several years ago, I received from Pat Nace, who lives in Canada and whom I’ve never met except via the Internet, a Xeroxed page from an unknown book. What I’ve transcribed below (keeping the punctuation and syntax intact) comes from pages 540–541 of this unknown book. I assume it is a collection of news articles, but I don’t know for sure. Odds are good that the articles were written in Botetourt County, Virginia; the unknown author branches off into local genealogy.


Anyhow, this article is mostly about my great-great grandfather, John Christian Nace, whose 178th birthday is November 27:

OLD IN YEARS, YOUNG IN BODY AND SPIRIT

Mr. John C. Nace, a resident of Lithia, of this county, came to Buchanan on horseback this week. He will be 88 years old in November, but he rides his horse with the appearance of a man many years younger and he says it does not tire him at all to ride here and back home. Lithia is about six miles south of Buchanan by the county road and he rides to town frequently.

I asked him if he could recall the first president for whom he voted. He replies that he could not do so, but that he had shaken hands with President Andrew Jackson and in reply to my further inquiry recited this bit of history.

It was during the first administration of Mr. Jackson (1829–33) as Mr. Nace recalled, that as a child he attended to the fording of the old Mount Joy Mill on Looney’s Creek and met president Jackson who was proceeding in his carriage to Washington.

The father of Mr. Nace, who had been the overseer of the Mount Joy estate for its owner, Col. Mathew Harvey and his widow, and lived near the mill where Mr. Jackson was to pass. Mrs. Magdalene Harvey, the widow of Col. Harvey, attended by her daughter, Virginia Harvey, came down from the Mount Joy residence on the eminence not far distant and at the house of Mrs. Nace, the mother, and her little boy joined them and the four proceeded to the fording at the mill when they met the president who was in a carriage drawn by two gray horses.

The mind of Mr. Nace is as clear as that of many at forty and he recites these things in a way that gives them interest, but he does not positively say that the time was in Mr. Jackson’s first term or second.

Mrs. Magdalene Harvey, who took Mrs. Nace and her little boy to meet the President, was the half sister and also the aunt of Colonel Lewis Harvey, of Roanoke, recently mentioned in the World-News. Robert Harvey, of Catawba, Martha Furnace, married for his first wife Martha Hawkins, who was the daughter of Ben Burden, Lewis Harvey was his first child.

Mathew Harvey, younger brother of Robert Harvey, married Magdalene Hawkins, the daughter of Martha Hawkins.

The daughter, Virginia Harvey, who went with her mother to greet Mr. Jackson became Mrs. Mitchell, the mother of Mrs. Charlotte Harvey, of Salem, and aunt of Charles Denby, minister to China; Henry Clay McDowell of Kentucky, father of Judge McDowell, and a number of other noted people.

The inquiry as to how Mrs. Harvey knew Mr. Jackson was to pass that particular time leads one to the truth of the relations existing between Mathew Harvey and his family, and Mr. Jackson here, in Washington and at the Hermitage where William, “Big Billy,” Harvey was the president’s neighbor, and at death closed his eyes. Then there was the letter to Colonel Harvey introducing William Denby, who is passing the same way to the capital had been attracted by the charms of an auburn haired girl riding one of the farm horses to water at the ford of the creek. He ascertained she was Jane, the daughter of Colonel Harvey, and on reaching Washington, obtained a letter of introduction from Mr. Jackson.

Charles Denby, appointed by Cleveland, to China, was her son. He was born in Paris while his father was minister to France and grew up so accomplished in manners and deportment that the Chinese wished him to remain as minister to China after the Republican administration succeeded that of Mr. Cleveland.

I did not mean to extend to such length when I began to write of this remarkable man who is today going in the full enjoyment of his physical and mental powers, although he was born at the time when there was still living many of the men who had fought for the formation of this great government.

Mr. John C. Nace died February 17, 1928, aged 99 years, 2 months, 21 days.

I did a bit of digging around the Internet. From Rootsweb, I found the announcement of his death:

John C Nace, Lithia Patriach, dies at 99

Lithia, Feb. 17 (Special) John C Nace, 99, last Confederate Veteran in this part of the county, died this morning at 8 o'clock at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Will DeLong, here. Death was attributed to heart failure. He had been confined to his bed only a few days.
Mr Nace who served throughout the four years of the Civil War, is survived by a son William R Nace of Lithia, in addition to his daughter, Mrs DeLong.
He is also survived by thirteen grandchildren and three great grandchildren. He was a member of the Lithia Baptist Church.
Funeral services will be held at his daughters residence Sunday morning at 11 o'clock. The service will be conducted by the Rev. G. H. Broyles.

The Roanoke Times
2-18-1928

John Christian Nace, who served as private in Co. 1, 22nd Virginia infantry, CSA, was born November 27, 1828, and died February 17, 1928. His parents were William Nace and Hester Fringer Nace. He is buried beside his wife Mary Ann Nofsinger Nace in the NOFTSINGER/STYNE/PICO CEMETERY off State Route 625 in Buchanan, VA (Botetourt County). Her parents, Elizabeth Ferrell (Ferrill?) Nofsinger (September, 27,1802-July 6, 1877) and Abraham Nofsinger (May 6, 1797-February 19, 1887) are buried nearby. (Nofsinger is also spelled Noftsinger and Noffsinger.) Also nearby are the empty graves of his Nofsinger cousins whose bodies lie buried in a mass grave at Gettysburg, PA. John C. Nace missed the Battle of Gettysburg. He was home settling his father’s estate at that time.

I have visited the cemetery where John C. Nace and his wife are buried. I have also visited the grave of his son and my great-grandfather—William Robert Nace—at Lithia Baptist Church.

Happy 178th birthday, John Christian Nace.