FamilySearch's Full-Text Search Finds Robert Nelson in Others' Estate Files

You just never know what records will turn up when you search for an ancestor using FamilySearch's Full-Text Search.  Will there be birth, marriage, or death records?  Or deeds?  Tax records?  County account books?  Or probate estate files?  But wait!  Why would my ancestor's name have been included in more than one estate file, especially when he was still alive?

I learned why:  because the estates owed him money.  If you happen to have an ancestor who provided a service or goods to another citizen who died without paying him, your ancestor may appear in estate files too.  According to various census records, my ancestor, Robert Nelson, was a coal miner in Jefferson County, Ohio.  These estate files suggest he also sold coal.  I was delighted to learn this bit of knowledge about the life of an ancestor for whom I have found so little information.   

Below is what I found in the three files I looked at.

From the Estate File of G. D. McKenney, 1870-71.  This file is primarily a list of names and amounts.  I assume the amount is due Robert Nelson for coal, but it's possible it was a debt he owed.

Below is the top part of image 11.  Robert is the last entry in this image.

                          Brought down [amount listed]
                          1871, January [from previous page] 
                          9--         Robert Nelson                         $31.16

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

From the Estate File of Van B. Lighthizer, 1871-72.  Comprises images 167-203.

The bottom of a section of image 179 is below.  Robert is the second from last entry. At the top of this page and not included in the image:
"First and Final Account of Amelia Lighthizer as Executrix of the last will and testament of Van B Lighthizer deceased...."

1872
September 2    Bill Paid    for coal    Robert Nelson    Voucher No. 4     $24.50

Below is image 202 from the same file which is a receipt for coal from Robert Nelson.

Steubenville   June 15th 1872
Mr. Lightizer           
                      to        R.  Nelson
                          for Coal
Balance     on      settlement
thirty   nine   six[ty]   four
                                $39.64
      credit of             $19.00
       Balance              $24.64
Aug 31        Received payment 
in full          Robert Nelson

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

From the Estate File of Richard D. Morrison, 1874-75.  Comprises images 129-319.  
Mr. Morrison was a druggist whose file includes an inventory of everything in his store, including chemicals, herbs, and baking supplies, which I found very interesting.  It would be even more interesting if I had an ancestor who was also a druggist.

Below is the top part of image 140.  Robert is part of a list of names with amounts owed. 

                    1874
                    Sept 5     [By. paid]     Robert Nelson         (14)   19.33

Below is image 318 which is a statement of payment for coal.

Steubenville    August 12^th   1874
R. D. Morrison 
to Robert Nelson   
    for  six  hundred  sixty
  five  Bushes  of  Coal
                                            $56.53
                      paid               $35.00
                     Balance          $21.53
                     paid                $  5.00
      thirty five bushes coal   $  2.80

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Notes and Comments

• I was surprised that coal was sold by the bushel in the late 1800s instead of by weight.  It makes sense, since they probably wouldn't have had an easy way to weight a ton of coal.  Or to deliver it.  For such small quantities, delivery would have been by horse and cart.  (A bushel of coal weights about 80 pounds.)
• I assumed Robert Nelson worked for a mining company in Steubenville or somewhere in Jefferson County, but it's an assumption that may or may not be correct.  Finding him in these files makes me wonder if he mined coal independently then sold and delivered it.
• Robert was earning between 8 and 8½ cents per bushel.  An online inflation calculator tells me that $56.53 in 1874 would be worth $1594.07 in 2025.  Or, 8 cents would be worth $2.26 today.  How long might it have taken Robert to dig that coal?  Was this a good price for his labor?
• I can't be certain but I believe the last receipt puts Robert in Jefferson County, Ohio, in 1874, which is where he was in 1870, according to the U.S. Census.  He died in 1875 in Montgomery, Illinois.  He was 75 at the time of his death.  This does not pinpoint the date he moved from Ohio to Illinois but it narrows it.  I'm hoping to find a will and estate file.  

If you found information like this referencing one of your ancestors, would you include it in your family history program -- RootsMagic, or whatever you use?

—Nancy.

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