Pierson Roll...
was born 31 July 1811 in Springfield, New Jersey. His parents were Jacob
C. Roll and Sarah D. Pierson. This biographical sketch is a combination of
information from various sources including census records, newspaper accounts, a
biographical sketch by John Carrol Powers in "History of The Early Settlers
of Sangamon County" published in 1891, genealogical references, original
documents, and other sources. Pierson's paternal lineage is: Jan Manglese
(16??-?), Mangle Janse Rol (?-?), John Roll (?-?), Isaac Roll (?-?), Jacob C.
Roll (1782-1849). In 1813, the Roll family moved from New Jersey to Cincinnati,
Ohio. Pierson's brother, Charles D., was born here on 28 August 1818. In 1825,
the family moved westward again. They arrived at Sangamo Town in Sangamon
County, Illinois on 10 October 1825. The town had just been platted in June of
the previous year. The Roll family first met Abraham Lincoln at Sangamo Town
when he came there to build the flatboat in 1831. Pierson's father owned a
store, a grist mill, and a distillery and was the postmaster for the town. When
Pierson grew up, he became a farmer. Whether his father gave him land to get
started or whether he bought his own land is not known. He married Rachel Carman
in Sangamon County on 12 October 1837. She was born 19 February 1814 in either
New York or Pennsylvania. Her parents were Jacob and Mahala Golden Carman. Her
lineage is John (1606-1654), John (1633-1684), Thomas (1668-1760), Joseph
(1695-1775), Adam (1723- 1804), Jacob (1754-1814), Jacob (1785-1870). Her
brother was Waters Carman (usually written as Walter Carman by Lincoln
biographers) who was one of the three men that Lincoln saved from drowning when
the flatboat had been finished. Rachel herself is a minor footnote in Sangamon
County history because she initiated one of the first divorce cases in the
county. She married Jacob E. Roll, a cousin of Pierson's, on July 1, 1836. He
abandoned her shortly after their marriage and she filed for divorce. It was
granted by the circuit court in October 1837. Her lawyer was Abraham Lincoln.
Here is the public notice that appeared in the Sangamo Journal:
State of Illinois, Sangamon County, Circuit Court to October Term, 1837.
Rachel Roll, Complainant, against Jacob E. Roll, Defendant. In Chancery.
Petition for Divorce. Public notice is hereby given to the said Jacob E. Roll,
that a bill in Chancery has been filed in the Clerk's office of the Sangamon
Circuit Court, by the said Rachel Roll, praying for a divorce, etc. and that a
summons has been issued thereupon, out of the said clerk's office; and it
appearing from an affidavit filed with said bill, that the said Jacob E. Roll
is not an inhabitant of this state. Now, unless you, the said Jacob E. Roll,
shall be and personally appear before the Sangamon circuit court, on or before
the first day of the next term thereof, to be holden at the court house in
Springfield, on the second Monday in the month of October next, and file your
plea, answer or demurrer to the complainant;s bill, the allegations thereof
will be taken as confessed against you, and a decree rendered accordingly.
Witness Wm. Butler, Clerk of the Circuit Court aforesaid, at Springfield, this
15th day of July, 1837. WM. BUTLER, Clerk.
Their first daughter, Amelia H. Roll, was born 29 March 1838 in Sangamon County,
Illinois. She married Henry Charles Schumacher 7 June 1855. They had seven
children -- Charles P., Sarah, Christopher, Mary, Catherine, Jacob, and Margaret
A. -- and lived in Gardner Township, Sangamon County six miles northwest of
Springfield, Illinois. Their second daughter, Mary M. Roll, was born 10 November
1839 in Sangamon County, Illinois. She married James Moyer 3 March 1859. He was
born 19 September 1838 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In 1876, they had four
children -- Sarah E., Catherine, Mary, and Druzilla -- and lived in Gardner
Township, Sangamon County, Illinois north of the river. Rachel Carman Roll died
19 October 1841 at the age of 27. The cause of death is unknown. (continued next
issue)
No, you didn't miss...
an issue. I got way behind with the December issue and skipped putting
one out in January.
Harold Wahl...
had a quadruple bypass on February 12. He's back home and doing fine.
Fishing on the Sangamon can be...
informative as well as enjoyable. A fellow by the name of Gene Eden owns
some land and a cabin on the river about a mile or two upriver from New Salem. I
first started going fishing there in the summer of 1986. On the first trip
there, I met a couple of Gene's friends named Walter and Ruth Williams. Ruth
likes the river and goes there quite often in the summertime. She visited us at
our campsite two or three times during the weekend. I managed to make four or
five more fishing trips on the Sangamon between 1986 and 1989. Each time, Ruth
would come down and visit with us around the campfire. On a fishing trip in the
summer of 1989, I managed to hurt my back quite severely. Ruth brought me some
pain pills that she had and we sat and talked. Since Ruth was familiar with the
area, I decided to ask her if she knew anyone by the name of Wahl in or around
Petersburg (I had learned that one branch of the Wahl family had moved to
Petersburg). She said no and I explained that I had become interested in
genealogy in the winter of 1988, that most of my ancestors were from Sangamon
County, and that Henry and Doris or Dorothy (I wasn't thinking too clearly
because of my back and had forgotten who Henry Schumacher's second wife was) had
owned a farm near where we were sitting. She then said: "My grandmother had
a farm near here. Her name was Dora Greemee." Two thoughts flashed through
my mind. The first was: "I would never have thought of pronouncing it like
that." The second was: "That can't possibly be who I think it is but I
better check!" I asked Ruth to spell her grandmother's last name and she
spelled it out "Grieme." Even though I knew the answer, I asked her
what her grandfather's name was. When she replied, "Henry Schumacher",
I smiled and said "Hi, cousin" and then explained that her grandfather
was my great grandfather. We were both somewhat amazed by the coincidence of how
we had met and that we had sat around and talked during a three year period
without realizing that we were cousins. Fishing on the Sangamon can be very
interesting!
Thanks to Loren Kern...
we have "found" a branch of the Wahl family that we never
thought we would be able to trace. This branch is from George Jacob Wahl's
youngest daughter, Florence Ella Wahl. She was born 15 October 1879 and married
Edwin Miller 12 March 1897. So far, two of the descendants have asked to be on
the mailing list. Welcome to the family, cousins!
I decided to drop...
the descendant chart for Henry Schumacher as an additional page to each
issue of Kinfolk Klippin's. Instead, in the next month or two, I will send out a
complete chart and ask you to review it for accuracy and completeness for the
parts you know about.
