Life History

Notes

• Some family genealogies help complete names and other details in this family line.  Raymond W Strange helps identify Mary Strange as Mary Ann Henderson.  Raymond also provides more information on one of Mary and Amos' sons, William Berry.
  
  Mary Ann Henderson
  Birth 1809 in Germany
  Death 1883 in Marshall [County], Alabama
  Father Unknown Henderson, born Germany (no date) d 1812 (place unstated), Mother unknown
  Marriage 22 Jul 1828 Spartanburg, South Carolina to Amos Bradford Strange
  Birth 1809-11-01 in Spartanburg [County], South Carolina
  Death 1875 in Sand Mountain, Marshall, Alabama
  [one son reported] William Berry Strange
  Birth 1833-03-24 in Laurens, South Carolina
  Death 1906-08-06 in Marshall  [County], Alabama
  --  Raymond W. Strange, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/2427343/person/-1842134893
  
  Raymond reports, as does several other genealogies, that Mary Ann was born in Germany.  I'd like to know more about this, with a family name Henderson, which I know as an English name.  Several Stranges in this line married Hendersons over several generations in Tennessee and the Carolinas.  I would assume that a claim like this is based on family information, but I note that the censuses from 1850 to 1870 report she was born in South Carolina.  Looks like there would be a note somewhere in one of these three censuses if she was born in Germany.
  
  1850 Federal Census, Chattooga County, Georgia, 9 September, Summerville District, page 738 (scan p 267), Hse/Fam #1
  A B Strange 41 M Farmer SC [born abt 1809]
  Mary Strange 40 F SC [born abt 1810]
  
  1860 Federal Census, Marshall County, Alabama, 13 July, Eastern Division, PO Guntersville, page 89, Hse/Fam #598
  Amos B Strange 50 M Farm Laborer $202 Personal Estate b South Carolina
  Mary A Strange 51 F b South Carolina
  
  The child Amos B of the 1860 census matches Bradford of 1850, confirming that the full name is Amos Bradford Jr.  We are now told that Edwin J is Edwin J B.
  
  1870 Federal Census, Marshall County, Georgia, 29 June, Subdivision 45, Guntersville, page 34, Hse/Fam #245
  Strange, Amos B 60 M W Farmer $150 Personal  b SC
  Strange, Mary 60 F W Keeping House born SC Cannot read or write
  
  I found that in the 1910 census, the record for what appears to be her son Robert reports his mother born in Germany.  It is probably from this report that the genealogies report her birth in Germany.  Most genealogies do not report their sources.  It is intriguing that Robert reported this.  Elisa Strange-von Rice also reports to me that she heard from family sources that Amos' wife was German, but she could not figure how, sicne Henderson is not a German name.  But the Henderson family did speak German.  Note that the censuses all report her born in South Carolina.
  
  "Amos Bradford is the one who was married to the German..  altho.. I haven't figured out how she was German.  Her name was Mary Ann Henderson and that certainly is not a German name. (neither is Bailey).   Mary Ann was susposedly born in Berlin.  I wondered if her father was perhaps a WWI soldier or in Germany for
  some reason.  I was always told growing up that we were German's.. I found that is not true altho the family did speak German...  (did they pick this up from the Texas Germans???)"
  --  Elisa Strange-von Rice, email to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 23 March 2010

Sources

• 1. 1870 Federal Census, Marshall County, Alabama
  • 29 June, Subdivision 45, Guntersville, page 34, Hse/Fam #245
• 2. 1850 Federal Census, Chattooga County, Georgia
  • 9 September, Summerville District, page 738 (scan p 267), Hse/Fam #1
• 3. Ancestry Trees
• 4. 1860 Federal Census, Marshall County, Alabama
  • 13 July, Eastern Division, PO Guntersville, page 89, Hse/Fam #598
• 5. Ancestry Trees
  • Raymond W Strange, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/2427343/person/-1842134893
• 6. Ancestry Trees
  • Howard, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/8594352/person/-846221266
• 7. Find a Grave Memorial Registry
  • Memorial #68156216
• 8. Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970
  • SAR Membership 81830
• 9. 1880 Federal Census, Marshall County, Alabama
  • 22 June, Township 8, District 256, page 20 (scan 236D), Hse #167, Fam #189
• 10. Ancestry Trees
  • Beamancestry, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/10122122/person/-441309445?ssrc=&ftm=1
• 11. 1920 Federal Census, Johnson County, Texas
  • 2 January, Justice Precinct 6, District 52, page 1A, Hse/Fam #6
• 12. 1910 Federal Census, Hunt County, Texas
  • 20 April, Justice Precinct 3, District 124, page 5B, Hse/Fam #90
• 13. Ancestry Trees
  • Raymond W. Strange, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/2427343/person/-1842134890
• 14. Ancestry Discussion Boards