The Carman Family

Joseph Carman
1695 - 1775
The Grandfather of Mystery

....last of the Long Island Grandfathers...
family line: John (1) John (2) Thos. (3) Jos. (4)

Census (1)
Whaling
Quaker
Family
Census (2)
Samual Carman's Book

The story of Joseph Carman, oldest son of Thomas Carman is one shrouded with mystery, as so little is known about him.

Louis Duermyer, an outstanding family genealogist of the present generation his this to say about him:
"Joseph German was the oldest son (of Thomas) and can be identified from estate records of his brothers and sisters. He was born at Hempstead, (L.I.) about 1695. Unfortunately, the records do not identify his wife." (Some researchers say she was Susan Tredwell. Meigs, another searcher, says Mott. This writer is inclined to the latter choice.)
Joseph was married in 1715 and fathered at least eight children.

Census

From the Hempstead census of 1698 (Queens Co. N.Y.) p. 6, column 4, we find these three names together: Thomas Carman, Mary Carman and Joseph Carman. This is the father and mother and their first-born child. In 1698, Joseph would have been three years of age.

Since Joseph's father Thomas (and other family members) were associated with the whaling business, it is only logical to associate Joseph with whaling. It was this business that led some members of the Carman family to leave Long Island. Under a discussion of Adam Mott of Staten Island (N.Y.) in a 1914 issue of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Review, is found the following item:
'In the state library at Albany there was, until recently, on file the deposition of one Adam Mott, yeoman of Richland county, Henry Yard and Joseph Carman, concerning a wounded whale cast up on Staten Island. date - April 10, 1?30.

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Whaling

From the foregoing it appears that Joseph Carman, in the family tradition, was active in the boating and whaling industry around Long Island. (Actually, they did all sorts of things; milling, farming, etc.) At the time of the deposition he would have been about thirty-five years of age.

The Carman and Mott families were closely associated as there are a number of Carman-Mott marriages in early Long Island history. Adam was a popular name for their sons and may have been the source of the name for Joseph's son, our ancestor. The name Joseph was common in the Carman family and is found in nearly all of the earlier generations. As a result, this caused family researchers to question whether the Joseph under discussion was a brother or a son of Thomas Carman. It is now generally accepted that he was a son.

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Quaker

Joseph is known to have owned land at Hempstead (1715), possibly part of the original family holdings. A number of his descendants state positively that Joseph and his wife became Quakers, thus breaking the family religious tradition of supporting the established English churches. This move required sacrifice of social status as well as political rights but made their children 'birthright' Quakers.

Hinshaw, the Quaker historian, in his volume on New York Members of the sect, by listing family members, shows how Quakerism gained a foothold in the Long Island families. In addition to the Carmans we find Quakers in many families inter-married with them, including Van Wick, Titus, Tredwell, Weeks, Brinckerhof, Seaman, Moore and Hicks.

There are 140 entries for the Titus family, of which we shall learn more about in the next chapter that deals with Joseph's son, Adam. Incidentally, the Mott family had its quota of Quakers.

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Family

Joseph Carman is characterized by the writer as 'the last of the Long Island Grandfathers.' This is because members of his family, the fifth generation in America, were leaving Long Island and moving up-state in New York. Since the author is descended from Adam (Adam Carman, that is, as well as the biblical Adam!), son of Joseph who moved to Dutchess county, New York, the family line is no longer exclusively associated with Long Island.

Joseph's family is dividing: Samuel to stay on Long Island; Adam to Dutchess county; Gabriel to Westchester county and his descendants to New York City; a son Joseph to Dutchess county along with his brother, Caleb; and Lott and Benjamin possibly to Dutchess county. In other words they are leaving the original home base in New York state.

By the time of Joseph Carman the family is now in its fourth American generation and is becoming widely scattered as to places of residence: they are diversifying in religion and occupations, marrying outside the English group and are being caught in the events leading to the American Revolution.

During this period some 'cousin' marriages occurred. However, the influx of new immigrants to the colonies prevented this from being too common. Often they did not know their relationship and in some instances they were 'convenient' second marriages with no children being born.

Family of Joseph Carman
all generations (5)
Samuel Carman (Mary ___) (Sarah Carman [a mute]) 1719 - 1784
Gabriel Carman (Strange) (Sarah ___) 1721 - 1791
Adam-Carman (Titus) 1723 - 1804
Joseph Carman (Southron) 1725 -
Benjamin Carman 1726 -
Lott Carman 1728 -
William Carman 1732 -
Caleb Carman (Burroughs) (Burroughs) 1734

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Census of 1698
'A list of all ye inhabitants of hempstead, old and young, freemen and servants, black and white, by strict Inquiry, yt (and) ye names of all ye Inhabitants old and young, white and black taken by order of ye Justices of ye Peace, and this being a true list by strict Inquiry we have given it under our hands august ye 31-1698.’ Signed Joseph Petit and Jeremiah Wood
page 2 column 1 p. 4 col. 1 p. 6 Col. 2
Capt. John Carman martha carman samall Carman
Meriam Carman hannah Carman
Elizabet Carman p.4 col. 6 beniman Carman
Merian Carman abigail Carman
Ruth Carman p. 6. col. 3
An Carman Joshuah Carman
John Carman, Jr.
p. 6 col. 4
Caleb Carman. Sr. Thomas Carman
Joshua Carman mary Carman
Caleb Carman, Jr. Joseph Carman
hannah Carman
ffebe Carman

Slaves and Indians were listed and many other families many of whom were related to the Carmans by marriage.

Groups of Carmans as revealed by the 1698 census. The census takers were poor spellers and, in addition, the mixture of Dutch and English names didn't make searching easier.

A study of such a record as the census of 1698 also reveals why the genealogical aspects of a family history are difficult.

The author sorted them out by family groups. The reader is challenged to see if he or she can figure out the relationships as reported in the text.

Anyway, it is a colorful accounting of a community in colonial times!

The following was found in the hew England Historical end Genealogical Record; Vol. 14, 1920, pp, 79 - 81:
CARMAN. The following records are written in the fly leaves of a book entitled "Cognitionies Christianis; or, Religious Instructions. Expression in some Strictures of Christianity, conducing to Holiness & Happiness, from the Holy Church Her Writings - MDCCXLII.

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Samuel Carman’s Book

Samuel Carman was born in January ye 15 in the Year of Our Lord 1751.
Lott Carman was born in April 14 In the Year of Our Lord 1753.
Benjamin Carman was born in February 28 In the Year of Our Lord 1755.
John Carman was born in February 26 In the Year of Our Lord 1757.

January the 18 in the year of our Lord one thousand Seven hundred and eighty fore Departed this Life Samuel Carman SeiN aged 65 yeares
( Samuel (6) gives the death information of his father Samuel (5), son of Joseph (4) Carman.)

Samuel Carman and Sarah Wright was married the 7th day of July in the year of our lord 1773.

Prudence Carman was born march the 1 in the year of our lord 1775.
Palsy Carman was Born August the 14 in the year of our lord 1776.
Caleb Carman was born in February the 8 in the year of our lord 1780.
Elisabeth Carman was born octr the 9th 1790.
(These are Samuel’s (6) These would be great grand-children of Joseph (4) and they are generation (7)).

Sarah Wright was born Octr the 16th 1755 (mother of the family).

Samuel Carman Departed this life the first of June 1799 Aged 48 years 4 months and 16 Days.
(Some one enters his death information)

Prudence Carman Departed this Life the 28th May 1793 Aged 18 years 2 month and 28 days.

Elisabeth Carman Departed this Life the 6th of June 1793 Aged 2 years 8 months and 6 Days (sic).

Notes: the author has spaced out the original entries, but not changed thieir sequence.

The origina1 entries written with pencil appear to be the work of Samuel Carman (6) grandson of Joseph Carman (4).

This branch of Joseph Carman's (4) family are thought to have remained on Long Island.





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