Ellen Shand: Hardy Scotswoman

1830-1905

Drumblade Parish church, photo from Joyce Shand, 5th cousin

      Ellen Shand was born April 18, 1830, in Boghead, parish of Drumblade, County of Aberdeen, Scotland, the daughter of David Shand and Jane Robertson. She was the 4th of 5 children and her siblings were William (1825?), Margaret (1825), Robert (1827) and David (1832).  Her father worked as a farmer, probably growing different kinds of oats, potatoes and turnips. In addition, he may have had some Aberdeenshire or highland cattle, and a few chickens. It appears that brother Robert died young, at least he was not living with his family in the 1841 Scotland census, when he would have been 14 years of age. The only sibling we know anything about is Margaret, who married Alexander Maitland, and had a daughter Jane (Jennie) Maitland. We also know that Margaret (and William, if truly her brother) were the result of antenuptial fornication, as the Presbyterian church would describe it!

      The earliest Shand that we know about is Alexander Shand, 6-great-grandfather, who was baptized in 1688 in the parish of Rhynie in Aberdeenshire.

      The family moved to Edinburgh in the late 1840's, where Margaret worked as a lady in waiting. About 1850, the Shands emigrated, possibly entering through Newfoundland or Quebec. The emigrating family included David and Jane, Margaret and Jennie, and Ellen. In 1852, Ellen married Josiah Williams in Dodgeville, Wisconsin. Two years later, Margaret married second husband Robert Kinnear, and David and Jane purchased about 80 acres directly from the government. Margaret had 2 children with Robert, but died giving birth to the second child. At that time, Jennie came to live with David and Jane. I have transcriptions of letters that Jane wrote to Jennie in the 1870's, commenting on family goings-on, the crops and offering sympathy when Jennie's daughter died! The letters are filled with religious references. Most of the Shand family attended a Primitive Methodist church.

      Ellen raised her family in Dodgeville, Wisconsin, including sustaining 4 young children during Josiah's Civil War service and imprisonment. Her father David died in 1866, shortly after Josiah's return. Later, the Williams family lived in Allerton, Iowa, and Kansas. In 1881, Ellen's mother Jane died, and in 1886, her husband Josiah died. In this same time period, daughter Nellie died.

       After Josiah died, Ellen applied for a pension as the widow of Josiah Williams and received $12 per month for the rest of her life. She moved with her daughter Maggie to Fremont, Nebraska for a few years, and in 1889 to Meadow Grove, Nebraska, where Jennie Maitland lived with her family. She bought 2 acres of land in Meadow Grove immediately adjacent to her daughter, Margaret (Williams) Sheets. At age 72, she purchased a 160-acre farm and began purchasing sheeting, siding, shingles, etc. for building a home! She died on January 26, 1905, age 74, in Meadow Grove, at the home of her daughter Maggie. The story in the family is that she died as a result of falling from a barn!
 

Josiah Williams: Civil War POW

1820-1886

Josiah's simple military tombstone, Find A Grave, #9435451

      Josiah Williams was born about 1820 in Indiana or Illinois. Williams is a difficult name to track and the identity of his parents and siblings are not known. It appears, though, that his father was born in Virginia and his mother in Pennsylvania. Some researchers have speculated that his parents were Daniel Williams and Mary Kimberlin, but I have seen nothing to confirm this.

      Josiah married Ellen Shand on March 4, 1852, in Dodgeville, Wisconsin. It is not clear whether his early occupation was miner or farmer, since there was a lot of mining activity in Dodgeville. In 1860, he is living immediately adjacent to his parents-in-law, David and Jane Shand. David is a farmer with real estate valued at $1000, but no occupation or real estate value is listed for Josiah. He most likely is farming with his father-in-law. In addition, I know from a third cousin that Josiah worked as a blacksmith.

      On January 23, 1864, Josiah enrolled at Dodgeville for 3 years of service in the Civil War. At the time of his enlistment, he was about 43 years old and had a wife and 4 children: Frank (10), Mary Jane (5), George (4) and David (1). Josiah served as a private in Company F of the 2nd Regiment of Wisconsin Cavalry Volunteers. He was missing in action on December 1, 1864, at Yazoo City, Mississippi, where the company was in action. He became a prisoner in Cahawba Prison, Alabama, where he contracted chronic diarrhea from severe  exposure. In March,1865, he received medical treatment at a hospital near Vicksburg, Mississippi, and was later transferred to Jefferson Barracks Hospital and Benton Barracks Hospital, both in Missouri. On June 7, 1865, he was mustered out at Madison, Wisconsin. While Josiah was missing in action, Ellen appears to have sold a piece of property to get income.

      In 1870, their fifth child, Margaret, was born. Prior to this, Josiah's mother-in-law, Jane Shand, came to live with them after the death of her husband David. In 1877, a sixth child, Nellie, was born, although I wonder if Nellie was actually a granddaughter! By 1880, the family had moved to Allerton, Iowa, where Josiah worked as a butcher and owned a boarding house for a while. For a time, the family also lived in Kansas. Josiah was moving about because he was no longer able to work at farming after his POW experience! I suspect that he had siblings in Iowa and/or Kansas, but have not been able to pin it down.

      In about 1883, Josiah applied for a military pension as an invalid. Affidavits as to his ill health were provided by numerous friends and family members. His physical description was given as 6' 2", fair complexion, auburn hair and hazel eyes. Josiah himself states, "I do not know the names of any of those hospital physicians. My physical condition was such at the time, that I took little notice of my surroundings. I was a stranger and alone not knowing anyone I saw in those hospitals... I am now not able to do any work and have not the means to procure medical treatment". A few years later, on June 2, 1886, Josiah died in Dodgeville, Wisconsin, age 65, after a protracted illness, of dropsy. In 1888, a military tombstone was erected for Josiah in East Side Cemetery in Dodgeville. Dad and I located the tombstone, but at the time, I did not know about his military service and was not sure if that was our Josiah!