Seeking Parents of Benjamin Conaway

My third great-grandfather Benjamin Conaway was born in 1817. He was probably raised in Coshocton Co., Ohio and is believed to be related to John and/or Charles Conaway who both lived in Coshocton County from about the 1820s to about the mid-1830s, when they all moved to Knox County, Ohio.

Benjamin married Nancy Horn (daughter of Hartman and Hannah Horn) on Oct 1, 1837 in Knox Co., Ohio. He is found on the census for Miller Township, Knox Co., in 1840.

1840 Census Miller Township, Knox Co. OH, page 271

Benjamin Conaway

1 male age 20-30

1 female under 5

1 female age 20-30

In 1841, on August 13, Benjamin took on an apprentice. Joshua Conaway (son of John) “placed and bound his ward named Joseph M. Riggs as an apprentice to the said B. D. Conaway to learn the art trade mystery or occupation of carpenter and hande joiner which he the said B.D. Conaway now follows . . . the said Joseph M. Riggs shall well and faithfully dwell with a serve the said B. D. Conaway as an apprentice . . . until he shall arrive at the age of twenty one years.” This was recorded at Knox County court on Nov. 6 1841.

Curiously, Charles Conaway owed a debt of $200 to Benjamin Conaway. The dates June 1, 1843; July 3, 1844; June 1, 1846 were on the note. What is the cause of this debt? There is no evidence that Benjamin owned any land that he could have sold to Charles, and his inventory of possessions at his death was fairly meager, so I can't imagine that he loaned Charles $200. The debt was unpaid at the time of Benjamin's death in 1846.

In 1844, Benjamin Conaway paid $280 for 114 acres in Wells Co., Indiana. He didn't move to Wells County, although perhaps he intended to do so eventually. I wonder where Benjamin got the money for this purchase. 

On Feb 16, 1846 in Knox Co., Benjamin died (possibly of typhoid fever) leaving his wife Nancy and their four children - Malana, Adolphus, Phytama and Alexander. Another curiousity - Benjamin's father-in-law Hartman Horn was the administrator of Benjamin's estate.

For many years, I thought that John Conaway was Benjamin's father, but John's will lists his children and makes no mention of Benjamin or Benjamin's children. Also, there is no mention of John in any of the probate documents for Benjamin's estate. The only Conaway mentioned in those documents is Charles. He purchased a few items from the estate, owed (and paid) the debt of $200 plus $21 interest to the estate, and was owed by the estate  $2.51 1/2 cents for sugar and corn Nancy "bought" from him shortly after Benjamin died.  

John Weaver and Anna Maria Weaver at Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church

What a fascinating time to be involved in genealogy research. The tools and databases available online are amazing in their breadth and depth, and many are completely free.

Today, on Google Maps, I located the cemetery where my fourth great grandparents, John and Anna Maria Weber aka Weaver, are buried in Manheim, Pennsylvania. I can even see the approximate location of John's gravestone. I believe it is the third one from the church directly above the top of the fountain.

John died January 3, 1877. Anna Maria preceded him in death, dying between 1840 and 1850. When John died, he stipulated the following in his will:

I direct that my body be buried in the Lutheran graveyard at Manheim in a Christian manner and that a common tombstone shall be erected to my memory. Also a tombstone shall be erected to the memory of my wife . . .

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery, Manheim, Lancaster, PA

John and Anna Maria were the parents of 9 known children:

Henry Weaver (born about 1814) who married Christina Susannah Tshudi or Judda

Rosanna Weaver (1818 - 1910), who married John Weaver

Sarah Weaver (1820 - 1915) who married David E. Frey

George Weaver (1823 - ?)

Elizabeth Weaver (1826 -1917) who married Jacob Flaud

John G. Weaver (1828-1898) who married Sarah (last name unknown) and Maria S. Hoffert

Magdalena G. Weaver (1830-1890) who married Abraham E. Kover

Frederick G. Weaver (1833 - ?) who married Catherine (last name unknown)

Susanna Weaver (1834 - ?) married (first name unknown) Landis

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church was founded in 1772. The present building, built in 1891, is the congregation's third house of worship.

To see the current neighborhood around this church, check out the link below and select the street view.

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church

Conaway Taxes in Coshocton, Ohio 1821 to 1826

I've been analyzing the tax records for John Conaway and Charles Conaway in Coshocton, Ohio. To make sense of the information and understand what it meant, I also needed to learn about the tax laws and tax rates of the time.

The Family History Library has Coshocton tax records on microfilm from 1816 to 1838. I looked at the records from 1816 to 1826.

I was surprised to find that John didn't appear in the tax records until 1821. John made his first payment on the land in 1815. In researching this, I learned that land did not become taxable until after it had been entered for five years. The timing of John's first tax bill in 1821 makes sense in this case.

Here are the taxes John owed in 1821:

John Conaway, Non Resident proprietor

Range 9, Township 5, Section 7, Qtr Sect. NE

Acres 160, Rate 2

State Tax $1.20

Road Tax .60

Total Tax $1.80

Wondering what the tax rate means? Land taxes were based on whether fertility was “first rate,” “second rate,” or “third rate.”

In 1822, John is still listed as a "Non Resident proprietor."

Acres 160, Rate 2

State Tax $1.80

Road Tax .60

Total Tax $2.40

In 1823, John's status and the land tax rate are the same. Here's what he owed:

State Tax $4.15 8 mils (mil = 1/1000 of a dollar)

Road Tax 1.38 6 mils

Total Tax $5.54 4 mils

Years due 1822 (It appears John hadn't yet paid his 1822 taxes.)

The top picture shows the column heads for the 1823 tax records, Coshocton, Ohio.

The bottom picture shows the tax assessment for John Conaway.

In 1824 a couple things changed. John is finally listed as a "resident proprietor." And now, his land is categorized as third rate. At first, I thought that after working the land for a few years, John found it wasn't very fertile. But I did more research and found that this was a common occurrence - the fertility "rate" of the land was often reduced over the years. According to Ohio historians, this widespread practice was adopted by people to procure a lower tax rate!

1824

State Tax $.89 6 mils

Road Tax .40

Total Tax $1.29 6 mils

1825

State Tax $1.20

Road Tax $.40

Total Tax $1.60

In 1825, an act was passed abolishing the land classification system and replacing it with a value-based tax on land and personal property. Lands, town lots, and buildings, dwelling houses and carriages were to be valued  at their true value in money, while horses, mules, and asses were assessed at $40 each and cattle at $8.

In 1826, John is taxed on his personal property for the first time. And, Charles Conaway (believed to be his brother) shows up in the records for the first time, to be taxed on his personal property. Charles was not a Coshocton land owner, so he owed no real estate tax.

1826 John Conaway Property Tax

Acres 160

Rate of taxation 312

.62 4 mils

.78

.15 6 mils

Total tax $1.56

1826 John Conaway Personal Property Tax

2 horses valued at $40 each - $80

2 cattle valued at $8 each - $16

.19 2 mils - tax on horses

.24 - tax on cattle

.04 8 mils - tax on ?

Total Tax 48 cents

1826 John Conaway Total Property and Personal Property Tax Due $2.04

1826 Charles Conaway Personal Property Tax

Personal Property Tax

1 horse valued at $40

1 cow valued at $8

.09 6 mils - tax on horse

.12 cents - tax on cow

.02 cents 4 mils - tax on ?

Total Personal Property Tax 24 cents

Total Tax Due $.24

This is as far as I have gone in the tax records. There's one more mystery - why was John listed as a non-resident proprietor from 1821 to 1823? Was he living on other land during this time period? I'll need to do more research to try to answer this question.