Inspirational Message

Inspirational Message

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Royal H. Hazelton Probate

I recently visited the Missouri State Archives in Jefferson City looking for a will for Royal H. Hazelton.  I found his probate case file #4085.  I downloaded the images to a flash drive and viewed them on my computer this morning.  Fortunately, it gives his will number in the will file, #797(8). The last digit is hard to make out, so I will look for both numbers.  The microfilm of wills is not indexed but they are in numerical order so this should be fairly easy to locate.  I have found that it takes longer to download these images than I plan.  For example, his probate was 36 images and the process of capturing the images is slow.  One great find in the probate is the name of his widow and his children:

Mehitabel Hazelton, widow, Thomas Hazelton, Royal H. Hazelton, Alpheus Hazelton, Teresa Tannyhill, Sally Luce, Amanda Goroat(?) all of Greene County, MO; Nathaniel Hazelton of Texas; Acenth Willis and Sophrona Hearney/Kearny of Indiana; and Polly Rinker of Iowa.

I found a document in the file for Martha A. Hazelton, deceased. Martha's heirs are listed as: Thomas Hazelton, Marion Hazelton, Ida Hendrix (daughter of Jane Hendrix formerly Hazelton), Amanda Gilfrey, Harvey H. Hazelton, John Hazelton, James Hazelton, Christopher C. Hazelton, Abraham L. Hazelton. Reside at last account Lane Co Oregon, and George W. Hazelton (Republic, MO).
I have located this Hazelton family in Lane County, Oregon in the 1860 and 1870 Federal Censuses.  
R H Hazelton is Royal Harvey and I presume is the Harvey listed in the probate.  The name Royal was passed down many times.  Royal Harvey married twice, both wives were named Martha.  The children listed in the probate file are from the first marriage to Martha Ann Reynolds.  According to a memorial posted on Find-A-Grave, they were divorced 11 Nov 1871.  That explains why her heirs are listed in the probate.  I don't know if Harvey came back to Greene County between 1870 and 1880, as he and his second wife, Martha A, and 7 year-old son, Royal Harvey, are in enumerated in the 1880 Federal Census in Lane County, Oregon.  According to the probate he was residing in Greene County at the time the will was probated.

I found a message on the message boards at Ancestry when I was looking for the death/burial information for Royal.  I found two locations listed in different family trees online.  One stated Greene County, Missouri and the other was Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  Mehitable is buried in Polk County, Iowa but died in Dallas County, Iowa.  On the Dallas County Message Board I found someone looking for information on Royal. She is descended from Nathaniel and sent me an excerpt from a narrative that was displayed at the Greene County Library in Springfield, Missouri. The narrative states that Royal died aboard ship off the coast of Baton Rouge, LA and his son, Thomas, was on board the ship with him.  I searched on the Louisiana Secretary of State's website and found an index for New Orleans Port Arrivals from Jan - Jul in 1851.  I found one entry, but it was in March of 1851, not June.  I need to find the burial place for Royal. I don't know if he was brought up the Mississippi to Missouri or interred in Baton Rouge.

The best part of genealogy, after discovering new information, is the hunt never ends!