52 Ancestors 2021: Week 10: Name's the Same

 My family tree is more than likely not unlike anyone else's -- a common theme of names are presidential, and I believe that's the theme I'm going to go with today for "Name's the Same." 

Currently in my tree, I have five George Washington Mefford's (well, I say five because I'm pretty sure my 5x Grandfather, George W. Mefford is a George Washington Mefford as well.) in my family tree. I have six Andrew Jackson Mefford's in my tree. 

Over all, there are 198 people in my tree with "George Washington" as their first and middle name (and one being the actual George Washington -- I relate to the Washington's, distantly, because of family that hail out of Virginia). 93 with Andrew Jackson. 9 with Grover Cleveland. 87 with Benjamin Franklin. 70 with Thomas Jefferson. 2 with Andrew Hamilton. 5 with John Adams. 4 with Abraham Lincoln, including the actual Abraham Lincoln (the midwife during his birth is a relative of mine!)

12 John Hancock's, 12 Jefferson Davis', 6 Ulysses Grant's, 30 James Madison's (including the actual James Madison), 27 James Monroe's, 2 Martin Van Buren's, 4 William Henry Harrison's, 2 John Tyler's, 3 James Polk's, 2 Zachary Taylor's, 6 Millard Fillmore's, 7 Franklin Pierce's, 9 James Buchanan's, 3 James Garfield's, 1 Chester Arthur, 7 Benjamin Harrison's, 7 William McKinley's, 6 Woodrow Wilson's, and I believe that's it. 

I believe it's become less of a trend as years went on to name kids after President's. My tree has 92,837 people in it and after Woodrow Wilson, there aren't anymore presidential names. No John Kennedy's, no Lyndon Johnson's, no Calvin Coolidge's, no Herbert Hoover's, Richard Nixon's, Ronald Reagan's, etc etc. 

So the ancestors today that I'm going to talk about are my 5x Grandfather, George W (pretty sure it's Washington) Mefford, my 4x Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Mefford, and my 3x Grandfather, George Washington Mefford.

First, before I talk about this, it'll be easier for you to see the Mefford endogamy in pedigree tree format. This tree begins with my 2x Grandfather, French Mefford. His parents were 1st cousins, and his Grandparents were DOUBLE first cousins. 

So as you can see, I descend from George W. Mefford and Anna Hudlow once, but I descend from Jacob Mefford and Susanna Hudlow twice. Therefore I descend from John Mefford and Mary Lemon a total of three times and Jacob Hudlow and Susanna Peters a total of three times. 

My 5x Grandfather, George W. Mefford was born on January 11th, 1789, in Virginia. He married his wife, Anna Hudlow, around the year 1811, probably while still living in Virginia. By the time his son Andy, my 4x Grandpa, was born in 1817, they were living in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, where Anna passes away in 1859. I haven't found him listed in the 1820 census, but I can for the 1830 census; 1840, 1850, and 1870. I've found  him on the slave schedule for 1860 but that's it so far.

George re-marries to Nancy (Ward) McIntire on February 6th, 1868, in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. Eventually George passed away while living in Butler County, Kentucky, on October 24th, 1877. He and his first wife, Anna, are buried in New Midway Church Cemetery in Rochester, Butler County, Kentucky. 

George and Anna were the parents of the following children: Mary (1812) who married David Fisher, John (1813) who married Faith Arendell, Jacob (1815) who married Patience McKnelly, Andrew Jackson (1817) who married Catherine "Katie" Mefford, his double first cousin; Susan (1823) who married William "Bill" Williams, Eliza Ann Francis (1825) who married Samuel S. Bell and Daniel Joseph Revo, Mary Elizabeth (1829) who married Zebulon Campfield (also spelled Camfield), Pelitha A (1831) who married her double first cousin as well, Andrew Jackson Mefford. 

My 4x Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Mefford was born February 25th, 1817, in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. He married his double cousin, Catherine "Katie" Mefford on July 10th, 1839, in Muhlenberg County. Katie died sometime between the birth of their last child, Adaline in 1851 and when Andy re-married to Nancy C. Webb on January 4th, 1858, in Muhlenberg County. 

Andy consistently stayed in the Muhlenberg area -- he's found in the 1850, 1860, and 1870 censuses.  I believe he served in the Civil War but, it could be another "A.J. Mefford" that served -- as he did have a double first cousin named Andrew Jackson Mefford. He passed away on July 28th, 1873, in Muhlenberg County. It's unknown where he's buried, but it very well could be New Midway in Butler County, since that's where his parents are buried. 

Andy and Katie were the parents of the following children: Caroline (1840) who married Joseph Webb, Jacob "Jake" (1840) who married his first cousin Annie Lorena Campfield and secondly to Prudence "Prudie" Maxie, Eliza Ann (1841) who married Zebulon Campfield (yes, the same Zebulon Campfield who was first married to Eliza Ann's aunt, Mary Elizabeth Mefford. The same Zebulon Campfield who's daughter, Annie, married Eliza's brother, Jake), secondly she married James William Turley; George Washington (1847) who married his first cousin, Amanda Hardison; Elizabeth "Lizzie" Mefford (1848) who married Jacob Hardison and second to Thomas C Traughber; Franklin Pierce (1849) who married his first cousin Louisa Campfield (another dau. of Zebulon Campfield & Mary Elizabeth Mefford), second to Mary E Cottrell, and third to Mary Arendell; and lastly, Adaline (1851) who died young in 1855. 

My 3x Grandfather, George Washington Mefford, was born July 13th, 1847, in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. He married his first cousin, Amanda E. Hardison on March 19th, 1868, in Muhlenberg County. They stayed in the Paradise/Skilesville/Ennis areas of Muhlenberg County for the rest of their lives. Amanda predeceased him in 1918 and then George went to the Lord on January 30th, 1930. 

George and Amanda are buried in Union Chapel Cemetery in Ennis, Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. The dates I use for George come from his death certificate -- but his tombstone reflects a birth date of July 6th, 1846. I don't believe that's accurate. He also didn't die on January 10th -- he died January 30th, according to his death certificate. 

George and Amanda were the parents of seven children (according to the 1900 census) but only four that lived: Cordelia (1871) who married Robert Edmond Zeck and moved to Texas, French (1874) who married Emma Lillie Turner, Buck Morton (1879) who married Cordelia Jenkins, and Annie Hazel (1888) who married John Blackburn Fleming. 

The Mefford's marry into the Fleming's several different times. My late step-Grandmother, Nancy Lou (Estes) Fleming Mefford; her first husband, Bobby Fleming, was a cousin of ours through the Mefford's. 

It is through Annie Hazel (Mefford) Fleming that I am related to Scott Porter of the Tennessee Wraith Chasers (of Ghost Asylum and Haunted Towns fame on Travel Channel). Scott and myself are DNA matches on Ancestry DNA (his Dad has also tested, and so has my Dad. We all match each other of course). Scott and I are third cousin once removed.

The Mefford Family reunion that happens every fall in Dunmor, Kentucky, is usually comprised of those who descend from French Mefford and Buck Morton Mefford. That's how I met my 3rd cousin 1x removed, Kim, who I consider one of my best friends and favorite cousins today. 

As you can tell from my earlier paragraphs -- we marry into the Campfield/Camfield family several times as well. They're a difficult family to work on, as well, because of the inter-marrying. The Mefford's have been a nightmare because of it. All of our DNA matches appear closer than what they actually are. I'll match a Mefford 2nd/3rd Mefford cousins at almost a first cousin level. Half first cousin/high 2nd cousin level anyway. My Dad matches them even higher than I do, obviously -- he really does match his 2nd and 3rd Mefford cousins at a 1st cousin level. 

Thanks for reading my Mefford ramblings this evening. I much appreciate it!