Taking a Horse to School

     When Jayme's grandmother passed away, her belongings stayed with her husband, Bill Larned. When he passed away several years later her belonging passed to Bill's daughter.  Last fall his daughter found us because of our genealogical postings and two suitcases of photographs made their way to our house.  Buried in the middle of a collection was a photo that will make my granddaughters jealous.  
     Among the great-great-granddaughters of Betty are a few that like horses a lot.  A couple even have their own horses.  I am certain that Hailey, Abbey, Mickey, and Laney would think it was fun to ride a horse to school. (At least the first day)  

     Based on information and a picture in a history of Stevens County, Kansas this is likely a picture taken outside Good Luck School southwest of Hugoton, Kansas.  We believe that the girl in front on the middle horse is Fayetta (Betty) Kilbourne. A couple of the others are siblings of Betty. This picture was likely taken around 1920.  

     The second picture was likely taken around the same time since all the kids seem to be wearing the same clothes.  Kids of that time may only have had one set of clothes so interpret the word around quite generously.  Betty is the tallest girl in the back.  Teachers of the Good Luck School around 1920 were 1917-18 - Roxie Schaeffer; 1918-20 Bertha Fields; and 1920-21 Grace Wagner.  In 1921-22 the teacher was  male and I doubt that Betty was in school after that time.  Betty was born in 1909 and married in 1924.

Gates Family

Notes and questions about the family of Elisha Gates

     Blog posts for the last week have dealt with the ancestors of Elisha Gates.  I have traced the family back to Robert Gates, who was transported to Maryland in 1655.  We followed the records through Robert's son, Robert, his grandson, Peter, and great-grandson, James Truman Gates.  James Truman Gates was the father of Elisha Gates. 
   Elisha left Maryland and settled in Nelson County, Kentucky.  One of his sons, William Raymond Gates married Elizabeth Mattingly and their daughter, Eliza Jane Gates was my great-grandmother.

     My research answered some questions however, new questions have surfaced. 

1. Our earliest Robert married Dorothy Hunt, daughter of John and Dorothy.  What additional information can we learn about them?
2. Who was the wife of our second Robert (and mother of Peter)?
3. Peter married Jane. Was her maiden name, Capshaw?
4. Can we determine more information about Mary Ann, the wife of James Truman Gates?
5. What is the origin of the name Truman?   Was it a maiden name of one of the wives?  We know three people who use Truman as a middle name, James Truman Gates (two of them) and Henry Truman Compton.
6. A book on John Joseph Montgomery mentions that Thomas Montgomery was a cousin of Elisha Gates.  What exactly was the connection?
7.Three people with the surname Gates paid taxes in Nelson County in 1818, Elisha, Leonard, and Peter?  Can we pinpoint the relationships?  
8. Can we accurately determine the location of the tract of land called Anchovy Hills?

The trail uncovering the ancestors of Elisha took about twelve years.  I hope that it doesn't take another twelve years to answer these questions.  

Gates Family in Early Maryland: James Truman Gates ( -1794)

James Truman Gates, son of Peter Gates and Jane

     In 1787, James Truman Gates, along with his mother, Jane, was named as executor of his father's will.  James Truman Gates gains control of a portion of a tract of land known as Anchovy Hills.  In 1791 he repurchases a part of Anchovy Hills that his father had sold.¹   

In this 1791 deed it appears that James Truman Gates is buying back a portion of Anchovy Hills along Aquasco Creek, that his father, Peter Gates, had sold.

    However, on June 24, 1794, Ann Mary Gates states that she is the widow of James T. Gates and sells part of Anchovy Hills to Henry Truman Compton.²  Two years later, in 1796, Ann Mary Gates leases part of that same tract to William Mayhew.  These transactions would indicate that James T. Gates died between 1791 and 1794.  He died intestate.In 1798, Mary Ann Gates is listed in a newspaper as owing taxes on Anchovy Hills.³  

A portion of the 1794 deed

   By August 8, 1801, (date of earliest known record) Mary Ann has passed away and Elisha and Elizabeth are shown in Guardianship Records.⁴

Children of James Truman Gates and Mary Ann Gates
1) Elisha  (1789-1863)
2) Elizabeth  


1. Maryland State Archives  http://mdlandrec.net   Prince George's County Court (Land Records) JRM 1, p. 84-5, MSA_CE65_30. Date viewed 03/04/2014. 
2.  Maryland State Archives  http://mdlandrec.net   Prince George's County Court (Land Records) JRM 3, p. 100-01, MSA_CE65_32. Date viewed 03/04/2014.
3. Federal Gazette, Dec 8, 1798, Baltimore, Maryland, Yundt and Brown Publisher 
4. "Maryland, Probate Estate and Guardianship Files, 1796-1940." Index and images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2014.

Gates Family in Early Maryland: Peter Gates ( -1787)

Peter Gates, son of Robert Gates; grandson of Robert Gates and Dorothy Hunt

     Joseph Gates is listed as the guardian of his nephew, Peter Gates, in the 1733/34 will of Robert Gates.  Peter Gates inherited a portion of a tract of land from his father in 1733 in that will.  He purchased land in 1756 from Francis and Elizabeth Capshaw.   
     It appears that between 1757 and 1759, Peter sold his interest in his land holdings in Charles County.  In 1757 he sold his share of the tract of land in Charles County called Loving Brothers.  In 1759 he sold the land he had purchased from the Capshaws.
     In 1760, while still a resident of Charles County, he purchased a tract of land, called Anchovy Hills¹, in Prince George's County. (His grandson, Elisha, sold Anchovy Hills about sixty years later.)

Peter Gates' will² was written on April 23, 1783. He names twelve children.  The will was recorded in Prince George's County on Nov. 5, 1787 so he probably died shortly before that date.  Peter names his wife, Jane, and son, James Truman Gates, as executors of the estate.

The twelve children of Peter Gates and Jane _______ are:

1)  Mary Ann (Harrison)

2)  Dorothy (Brion)

3)  Sarah (Gibbons)

4)  Elizabeth (Gibbons)

5)  Henrietta (Queen)

6)  Catherine (Spaulding)

7)  James Truman

8)  Vinson

9)  Walter

10) Ellenor

11) Lucy

12) Jane

1. Maryland State Archives  http://mdlandrec.net Prince George's County Court (Land Records) 1759-1763 RR, p. 0037 MSA CE 65-18 

2. "Maryland, Register of Wills Books, 1629-1999." Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2014. Citing Prerogative Court. Hall of Records, Annapolis. Prince George's County, Liber T page 255-256

Gates Family in Early Maryland: Robert (1686-1733/34)

Robert Gates, son of Robert Gates and Dorothy Hunt

     The second generation of the Gates family in Maryland consisted of six siblings, including Robert Gates.  This Robert Gates was born on Feb. 13, 1686 in Charles County, Maryland.  He was about twelve years of age when his father passed away.  
     Robert Gates wrote a will¹ on Jan 16, 1733/34 and mentioned sons, Robert, Joseph and Peter.  The will was recorded Feb 4, 1733/34 in Charles County.  Robert was the oldest son and it appears that he was the executor. Robert's brother, Joseph, was made the guardian of Peter and Joseph.  Robert did not mention any other children, although, according to Mary Louise Donnelly, he had several.  He also does not mention his wife, so she probably preceded him in death.  In his father's will, Robert and his brothers were left a tract of land called Loving Brothers to share.  

Robert's will was written on 16 Jan 1733/34 and recorded on 4 Feb 1733/34
This document is typical of many old documents.  Parts have faded and the ink from previous and subsequent pages has bled through making it difficult to transcribe.

Children of Robert²  (At this time his wife is unknown) 
1) Robert
2) James died prior to 10 Aug 1758 when Robert sold his share of the land
3) Margaret
4) Peter
5) Joseph died without issue in 1772
6) John


1. "Maryland, Register of Wills Books, 1629-1999." Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2014. Citing Prerogative Court. Hall of Records, Annapolis. Wills 1704-1733 Vol. 3 page 266 Image 160 of 166
2.  Donnelly, Mary Louise, Charles County, Maryland My Colonial Ancestors Plus Others, Published by Mary Louise Donnelly, 2000, page 112

Gates Family in Early Maryland: Robert (1543-1598)

    Robert Gates was born in England about 1643¹.  He was transported to Maryland in 1655 as an indentured servant and was obligated to Robert Cole for a period of nine years. From records it appears that Capt. Benjamin Cooper transported Robert Gates at about twelve years of age to Maryland and then sold his rights to Robert Cole.  Both Benjamin Cooper²  and Robert Cole³  stated that they had transported our Robert Gates.  He served at St. Clement’s Manor, a plantation in St. Mary’s County.  Robert Cole had several parcels of land so Robert Gates also spent time at another plantation, Benedict Hundred, in Charles County Maryland.    

     In 1664, his period of servitude was up and he began his private life as a planter and carpenter.  As is common today with ranches and farms, early settlers named their plantations  and tracts of land.  Robert Gates patented 100 acres called Gates His Hope in 1668; 60 acres called Gates Purchase in 1672; and 193 acres called Gates His Swamp in 1688.  In addition to the the land he patented, he purchased additional acreage and by the time of his death in 1698 he owned 1567 acres.  He served in a minor office as the overseer of highways in Charles County.  
     Sometime before 1676 he married Dorothy Hunt, the daughter of John and Dorothy Hunt.  He and Dorothy had six children together, three boys and three girls.  Robert Gates’ will⁴ was written on Feb 5, 1694 and probated June 6, 1698, so he probably died in early 1698. His children are named in his will.  

The years of their births are listed in a book written by Mary Louise Donnelly⁵

Katherine  b. 1676

Susannah b. 1678

John      b. 1681  

Robert  b. 1686

Anne    b. 1690

Joseph   b. 1693

1. Carr, Menard, and Walsh, Robert Cole’s World Agriculture and Society in Early Maryland, University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 1991
2. Maryland State Archives  St. Mary's County Circuit Court Land Survey, Subdivision, and Condominium Plats  MSA S1598: Volume 17 Page 475 
3. Family History Film 13064, "Patents series of the Maryland Land Office,1640-1658, St. Mary’s County  Volumes 5, Liber Q,  Page 18”
4. "Maryland, Register of Wills Books, 1629-1999." Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2014. Citing Prerogative Court. Hall of Records, Annapolis. St. Mary’s County, Volume PC1 page 89-90
5. Donnelly, Mary Louise, Charles County, Maryland My Colonial Ancestors Plus Others, Published by Mary Louise Donnelly, 2000, page 112