Here’s  an email message from cousin Donna Jean Glascow:

John Elliott Trial Proceedings Newsletter

Hi all you Solomon Baldwin/Sarah Elliott descendants!  I finally got my hands on the court records of John Elliott.  I was hoping it would give some details of the circumstances surrounding the murder, but it did not.  But nevertheless, it is a helpful document to have in your records.  It names friends of John Elliott who helped put up his bail money.

As far as the Maness heritage goes, I have (from the comfort of my own computer, of course) left no stone unturned in looking for a Maness/Baldwin or even Lawson/Baldwin connection, and I have found none.

I am intrigued by the names of John Wesley and Alexander that crop up in both Isham Maness (the one who drowned in the Clinch River) and Solomon Baldwin’s descendants.  Of course, lots of people were naming their children John Wesley in those days, particularly if they were Methodists.  I would guess that folks in that SE Virginia/Kentucky region did not start naming their children John Wesley until after Francis Asbury arrived in 1771, but the name may have caught on, kind of like the name “Lorenzo Dow” did, to later become commonplace whether the people were Methodists or not.  If Solomon Baldwin was Regular Baptist preacher like we think, why name a son John Wesley?  Would it make sense for Solomon to name a son (Alexander) after a half-brother by a father who obviously did not raise him?

It seems to me that somehow Isham Maness is the most likely candidate to be Solomon Baldwin’s father.  The name Isham (pronounced Isom, with a silent “h” as in graham), is originally an English surname and began in the locality of the River Ise in England (ham as in Birmingham, meaning hamlet or town).  The surname Maness in all its spellings could very well be Irish as in McManus, and I have found that to be fairly common in Ireland, but I have yet to find an Isham as a forename in Ireland.  That would suggest that if Isham Manes were Irish, that his family were at least not fresh Irish immigrants in the late 1700s.

I have certainly let my imagination run away with me, but have not found any documentation anywhere.  I have way more questions than answers, but now I am “stucker” than I was when Solomon was a Baldwin!

I just wanted to let you all know that because I have not written anything on this subject or corresponded lately, I have not let the matter rest.  I have spent literally hours poring over every scrap of information I can glean.  I just thought I’d shake the tree a little bit!

Have any of you had any luck at all?

Cheers,

Donna Jean Glasgow

Descendant of Matilda Baldwin

Several Baldwin cousins have agreed to meet in the Kitts Hill, OH area July 12 – 14, 2007. For some of us this will be the first time we have met. For others, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other.

Roy Haas suggests:

I suggest all of you reserve a room at Wheelersburg Comfort Inn at 8266 Ohio River Road in Wheelersburg.  Phone 740-574-1046.  This motel is about 15 miles from Kitts Hill but it is a good location with plenty of eating places within walking distance.  The motels closer to Ironton are not well located and not as modern.

I suggest we meet on Thursday at the motel to make plans to satisfy each of our wants and lay out a loose schedule for the 3 days.

Other suggestions:

Visit Hecla Cemetery and Kitts Hill Mamre Cemetery and Church.

Tour the Ironton area. Visit any Baldwin relatives available.  I will send email to those on my list but I do not expect a great response.  You should do the same if you have Baldwin contacts in or near Ironton.

Bring any pictures of the family you have.

Bring a lap top pc if you have one as we will probably want to share stories.

Bring a camera.

Please pass the word to any and all Baldwin cousins about this reunion.

Have you heard of the great PBS show History Detectives? They solve seemingly impossible historical mysteries – mysteries like our family surname DNA conundrum. I submitted a story idea to the show (per below). I’ll keep you all posted if anything develops.

Here is the story idea submitted to the show:

This is a story about routine genealogy research that has become anything but routine through modern DNA science revelations. It’s a story about families with hundreds of members who thought they were one surname but who indeed are another surname all together. It’s a story that is still steeped in mystery, a mystery that we would like to have solved.

As you know, the male Y chromosome passes as a sort of family brand ‘bar code stamp’ from father to son. This fact allows for genetic relationships (in the male line) to extend far back in time tens of thousands of years. Now, present day family trees are being supplemented with the indisputable hard evidence of DNA test results. So, not only is DNA being used to solve crimes, it is also being applied to genealogy research.

While looking for the ancestors of my GG Grandfather Solomon Baldwin of Floyd County, KY, I was asked and I agreed to participate in a Baldwin Family DNA Project. I received the test kit from Family Tree DNA (http://www.familytreedna.com) and sent my samples back for processing. I participated at the 37-marker level (more genetic markers reveal closer matches to modern ancestors). Processing DNA samples takes time 4-6 weeks. After I received the 37 marker test results, and using the FTDNA web site tools, I was able to look at the closest matches to my DNA. Of the 250+ samples (with more being added each week) that closely or exactly matched my DNA, none were Baldwin. Instead, the surname Manes/Maness/Maynor/Lawson matched perfectly.

Needless to say I was stunned. Since I am a Baldwin male my DNA represents the male Baldwin DNA far back in time. Since there were no Baldwin surname DNA matches but instead exact Maness/Lawson family matches one can only conclude that the true origin of Solomon and his descendents was as a Manes/Maness/Maynor/Lawson.

A cousin who also is a direct descendent of Solomon Baldwin submitted a second DNA sample. His results matched mine confirming the Maness/Lawson relationships.

This startling fact will cause us to reconsider not only who Solomon really was but also who we, as Baldwin family members, really are. Culturally of course we are Baldwin’s. But, now, we must contend with the new fact that we are genetically Maness or Lawson.

The questions we (the members of the Lawson, Maness, and Baldwin families) await answers to include: How did Solomon come to adopt the Baldwin surname? Who were his parents and where was he born? When, where, and how did the surname switch happen (for the Baldwin’s, for the Lawson’s, and the Maness’s)? What about the Maness and Lawson families? Are we all Lawson or Maness? Is there a recent common ancestor for our families?

My daughter is interested in this project. See below:

My name is Harmony Starr with the Genetic Science Learning Center at the University of Utah. I am John R. Baldwin’s daughter and have been following what he has been learning from the molecular genealogy work he has been doing. I am interested in producing a documentary film following my father’s experiences. Coincidentally, the Genetic Science Learning Center is producing a module for the website: Learn,Genetics about this very topic this year. This module will educate visitors on what molecular genealogy is, the type of data that is utilized and how to interpret it. The primary audience for the module will be high school students and teachers. However, our website is also heavily visited by members of the adult public. The Learn.Genetics website is the most widely disseminated genetics education website in the world. Peak usage in 2006 has been over 602,000 visits/month from 160 countries. This film would be a great opportunity to show visitors a real-life ‘textbook’ example of what one can learn via the molecular genealogy experience. The film would be mounted on the website but I anticipate that it could also be entered into documentary film festivals. My ultimate goal would be to send the film to Sundance. This is a compelling story that goes beyond the science of DNA and follows the journey of a family line as they learn their true origins. I can’t wait to get started. Next week I will be sending my father a web cam to record video journals as he does his work over e-mail or has thoughts to share. I will also be sending him a small digital video camera, tapes and a tripod to record any in-person visits he conducts.

Some reference links:
Maness DNA Project

http://manessdnaproject.home.comcast.net/

Baldwin DNA Blog

http://dev.thf.net/

The Genetic Science Learning Center

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/

From Roy Haas: A friend sent me excerpts from court records of Russell Co. VA regarding John’s indictment and conviction for murder of a Mc Laughlin in 1816. He served 9 years, it seems. I wonder what the poem written in prison meant when referring to Elliott?

Click Here: Reference Link

In order to confirm that my gg grandfather Solomon Baldwin was not a genetic Baldwin and that, as a consequence, none of his descendants (and possibly even some of his ancestors) are not genetic Baldwin’s, we had to find another direct line descendant of Solomon’s and submit another unique DNA sample. My cousin Tim Baldwin (descending from one of the sons of Solomon – Alexander) submitted a sample in January.

The 12, 25 and 37 marker samples have been returned to Tim and they are a perfect match with my sample markers. Tim is joining several FTDNA projects including the Baldwin and Maness projects.

This is exciting news. Now we can say with certainty that all male Baldwin’s who descended directly from Solomon are not genetic Baldwin’s. We are likely either Maness (or Manes, or Maynor) or Lawson. Thus, the hunt begins for our true genetic heritage and origins.