A One-Name Study for the BARNUM/BARNHAM Surname
For many years Gertrude Edith Barnum was shown in the family genealogy as a daughter of Milo Seeley Barnum and Abigail (Flint) Barnum. Gertrude appears in the 1861 Canadian Census for Shipton as 3 years old and in the 1870 US Census as 12 years old, in both cases living in the family of Milo Seeley Barnum and shown as a daughter of Milo and Abigail. However, Milo's wife Abigail was 53 years old by the time of Gertrude's birth and that birth occurred some 9 years after the birth of Milo and Abigail's youngest son, Simeon F. Barnum.
In Nov 2006 Barnum descendant Mary Ann Meeker wrote that she had some new information about Gertrude. She had obtained a copy of Gertrude's marriage license, which states that her mother's maiden name was Altha E. Barnum. The family had always suspected that Althea was her mother, but the marriage record adds some confusion by also stating that her father's name was Milo S. Barnum. The family now believes that Milo was named as her father (although not her biological father) because she was raised in his family, along with her biological mother Althea and Althea's siblings.
Some information from the marriage license: December 10, 1878, Douglas County, Nebraska. Mr. Warren Hurlbert of Dunlap, Iowa, aged 21, born Wisconsin, son of Benjamin F Hurlbert and Elvira J. (Pool) Hurlbert and Miss Edith G. Barnum of Omaha, aged 21, born Canada, daughter of Milo S. Barnum and Altha E. Barnum, were married December 11th, 1878 at Omaha in the presence of Mr. Barnum & wife and Miss Walker and others, all of whom reside in Omaha. NOTE: The Mr. Barnum and wife listed were apparently Althea's brother Horace W. Barnum and his wife Sarah (Shaw) Barnum. They could not have been Milo and Abigail since Abigail, mother of Althea and Horace, had died in 1867.
Gertrude Edith Barnum married under her maiden name and it now appears that she was actually a daughter born out of wedlock to Althea E. Barnum and raised in the family of her grandparents.
A Research Guide to the Genealogy of the Barnum/Barnam/Barnham Family Worldwide
AncientFaces - Family History Photos
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