Jacob Henry Becraft Dilemma
Jacob Henry Becraft Dilemma Jacob Henry Becraft (1821-1856/58) vs. Jacob Henry Becraft (1823-1902) These two individuals have become blurred over time into one individual. Below is my case for them being two separate individuals. Jacob I, the first is from Morehouse, Hamilton, NY, and died right around 1856-1858 (the birth and naming of Jacob H Becraft (b 1857) may be a tribute to his father). Jacob II, the second was born in New York, but is central to the Tioga, PA area and is the one who moves to Wisconsin, marries Hannah Alford and dies in Wisconsin. The FindAGrave marker combines the data from these two Jacob’s with the birth date from Jacob I and the death that of Jacob II. Jacob I is born 10 Oct 1821, in Schoharie, NY, the son of Peter and Elizabeth (Miller) Becraft.Jacob II is born 3 Jun 1823, in NY (possibly Morehouse), but soon after is in Tioga, PA, the son of Jonathan and Catherine Elizabeth (Cornwell) Becraft. Schoharie to TIoga is 131 miles. Schoharie to Morehouse is 74 miles. Morehouse to TIoga is 212 miles. Morehouse to Green Lake, WI is 938 miles. Tioga to Green Lake, WI is 828 miles. There is a census record for Jacob and Serena in Hamilton, NY for 1850.There is a census record for Jacob, unmarried, in Tioga, PA for 1850.By 1860 and after, only one Jacob, has census records in Wisconsin.There are no Jacob census records in Tioga, PA or nearby to indicate Jacob II had remained here or where he might have gone. The sale of the property by Jacob I and Serena in 1857 to Frederick Jacob’s brother is curious and could be construed as a separation agreement and disposal of that property so that Jacob I could go elsewhere, or it could be an indicator of his pending demise. Jacob II fought in the civil war in a Wisconsin unit. In his pension papers, he is explicitly asked if he had any other marriages and children. By the time of this application, he only has one of the 3 children by Hannah Alford. Jacob II’s answer is consistent with him being independent of Jacob I. NONE of the children of Jacob I are found in Wisconsin, all remain in the same geographical area their entire lives. Right after the birth of Jacob H Becraft ( b. 1857), Serena remarries and quickly has two more children, eventually 4 plus the 8 she had with Jacob I. The response on one of the censuses is curious, as the answer to how many children and how many of those are living, the answer is 1 and 1. The genealogy that made this combination (https://www.hamilton.nygenweb.net/bios/Becraft1.html), also says that Jacob I travelled to Wisconsin before the war, working for J.P.W. Severson, enlisting, he then returned NY. We know he had to return to Tioga, PA where he married Hannah before returning to Wisconsin again to stay. There is no indication he returned to NY and the area where Jacob I’s children and other family were. This is also the critical connector event that is crucial in determining the fate of Jacob I and Jacob II. If anyone has evidence of these events, they should be made available to sort this out. Evidence of the summer work on the J.P.W. Severson farm. Evidence of the travel to Wisconsin. Evidence of the travel back to NY. Evidence of a divorce/separation from Serena that allowed her to remarry. A death record in NY for Jacob I. Or in PA a death record for Jacob II. In general, the overall evidence leans to there being two Jacob Henry’s. Accounting for the census and testimony in the pension records, would lean strongly to Jacob II being the civil war veteran and husband of one wife, with three children. The remarriage of Serena after the birth of Jacob Henry would indicate a wife with 8 kids ensuring their support with a solid provider. Small side note, it appears the death date for Hannah is not 1897, but the FindaGrave date of 1890. Wisconsin State Census for 1895 shows Jake and one son, indicating both his other sons and Hannah passed away before 1895.
Appletrewick
Appletrewickby Robert J Becraft (castlewrks@aol.com) In 1993, I was in England and took one of the days I was in London to go and do research instead of site-seeing. It was well worth my time and resulted in some of the earliest records I’ve ever personally found of Becraft’s. What was interesting was that the references originate in and around Bolton Abbey in a small village named Appletrewick. While inconsequential on their own, additional research based on another reference I ran across that attempts to identify sources for surnames, lead me to perform a similar analysis on the Becraft surname. Utilizing IGI records of Becraft/Beecroft/etc from England, I divided them up into 25 year segments and then using maps of England, highlighted the various locations listed in those references. What I discovered was a coalescing of names around the East Riding area of Yorkshire. Appletrewick is one of those locations that is in this area of consolidation. This theory is based on the assumption that Appletrewick earned its name from possibly apple trees and that as a result of having apple trees, bees were kept as part of the industry, hence the origin of “Beecroft” as a surname. © Copyright, 2001. Robert J Becraft, All Rights Reserved.
Becraft Traits
Becraft Traits, (from an email discussion) Traits that people find typical of their Becraft ancestry. I’ve taken the obvious ones and grouped them below with some interpretation of the original collection based on my own bias. Feel free to add to or debate the choices. Green Thumb most Becrafts were farmers. If they aren’t farmers today, their father or grandfather probably was. There aren’t too many Becrafts who don’t get itchy around February to get their hands in the dirt. Introverted “hermit-like”, Becrafts like to be left alone. They mind their own business and expect others to let them do just that. Stubborn “hard-headed”, most Becrafts are pretty particular about their opinions and once decided, stick to their guns. Hot tempered probably what got ol’ George in trouble, seems we’ve all got a bit of the boil to us. Red Hair or red highlights in their hair color, my moustache has these and two of my 3 kids are red-haired. Craftsmen whether it is tinkering, building or constructing. Focused to the point of distraction or forgetfulness. With a tendency to forget other things we should have kept our eyes on. Other Traits One branch claims long noses with hooked ends. © Copyright, 2001. Robert J Becraft, All Rights Reserved. 2025 Update – I’ve not found anyone who disagrees with this. Of note, in every line, in every country where I’ve captured Genealogical evidence, Becrafts, Beecrofts, etc. are all farmers. There are occasional specialists that exceed expectations, but they are few and far between. Tell me “Becraft”, how does your garden grow?
Beecroft or, What’s in a Name?
Beecroft or, What’s in a Name? Lynn H. Nelson (lhnelson@UKANAIX.CC.UKANS.EDU)Tue, 5 Sep 1995 03:38:08 -0500A “croft” is only very rarely a storage place; in those instances when it is, it is derived from the Latin “cryptum,” and denotes a cave or cellar. In the overwhelming majority of instances, a croft is an enclosed piece of land. Often enough, it is a fenced plot next to a village dwelling used as a garden. In such cases, it is roughly, but only roughly, equivalent to “messuage.” When searching for the etymology of a word, one must go with the earliest form one can find and then see whether that form could reasonably have developed into the later forms one encounters. The earliest form we are given for this name is “bigcraft.” Although pronunciation differed widely from place to place in medieval England, the word was probably pronounced “beek’-krawft,” and the merging of the “g” and “c” together with the orthographic substitution of “o” for “a” is only to be expected. Thus “bee-croft” was almost surely “big croft,” and was probably the name of a house in the village distinguished by the size of its croft. I would suggest that it is unlikely that the name “Becroft” has anything to do with bees. IMHOLynnUniversity of Kansas