A One-Name Study for the BARNUM/BARNHAM Surname
The Barnum Family does not list him, showing only his three brothers. An article published in the Republican Watchman, December 6, 1907, Sullivan County New York "Monticello Man in the West" speaks about Abel Barnum, eldest son of Platt Barnum, visiting from Albion, Indiana, suggesting that Grandison Miller Barnum was not a son of Platt Barnum. Platt Barnum's family is shown in the 1820 US Census for Reading, Fairfield, Connecticut as: 1 male and 1 female between the ages of 26 and 45, and 3 females under the age of 10. Platt's occupation is listed as Manufacturing: Sadler. His family is shown in the 1830 US Census for Fallsburg, Sullivan, New York as: Males: 1 under age 5, 2 age 5-10, 1 age 30-40; Females: 1 under age 5, 2 age 10-15, 1 age 15-20, and 1 age 30-40. The first three daughters were Lucia, b. 18 May 1813, Maria, b. 27 Jun 1815, and Annis Minum, b. 3 Nov 1818. The Genealogical Record of the Barnum Family (which contains many other errors) shows Grandison Miller Barnum, b. 1810, d. 1852 as a son of Platt Barnum, and a marriage date of Platt and Alethea as 1812.
In a June 2002 e-mail message to me, descendant Diane Rousseau stated that she tried for a long time to find evidence that Grandison was a son of Platt but was not successful. Then, in response to a query posted in Dec 2001, she received an answer stating that she was correct in believing that Grandison was not the son of Platt. She asked for documentation and was sent a copy of the manuscript of a page from the Genealogical Record of the Barnum Family that contains Platt’s line. On that page there is a large asterisk just above "Miller" in Grandison Miller’s name. At the bottom of the page is a hand written notation "Extract from a letter of Abel Barnum, Albion, N.Y., Dec. 23, 1902. Althea married a man named Miller, who proved to be a rascal, and had deserted his wife. Their child Grandison was brought up by Abel and went by the name of Barnum."
This seems to clarify the reason that Grandison is not listed as the son of Platt and Alethea in the family Bible.
Additionally, an unattributed letter found on the internet, dated August 31, 1980 and addressed "Dear Mrs. Cole", states in part, "It seems an enormous amount of trouble had been gone to in order to obscure Grandison Miller. I have nothing that mentions the name and when someone else mentioned that name, I looked at the chart and couldn't find it, so I shrugged it off."
A Research Guide to the Genealogy of the Barnum/Barnam/Barnham Family Worldwide
AncientFaces - Family History Photos
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