Talk:James Edward Ashworth (1831-1910)

Material transferred from article
The article earlier contained much more detail, some of which may be worth preserving for the family. Most of it is reproduced hereunder. -- Robin Patterson (Talk) 03:13, September 18, 2016 (UTC)

Research on James Edward Ashworth

 * Leslie Ashworth wrote on March 30, 2007: My cousin saw your site about the Ashworth family. She was very pleased with it. This was her e-mail to me.  "I took a look at the genealogy site. It makes me so happy to see those pics on it. We really needed to have something of our history archived. And god knows no -one else will do it."  I think that this is praise to you, Richard.  My cousin is a very wonderful person.  She went to a lot of trouble to get this stuff about the mill for me.  It was in an attic and stored away.  I repeat here ... in Summittville are the actual shuttles and the bobbins from the Ashworth Mill and you may find stuff about your own family. You need to take a road trip if you can.  When the flood of 2005 hit, there were still barrels filled with the wooden bobbins.  I have one that I found buried in the grass next to where the old waterwheel used to be.  The place still has the bathrooms intact.  The facilities are still there for Men and Women.  Also ... damn I wish I had written the name down. The place where they had the vats for soaking the wool.  A guy built it and he put a stone in one of the walls.  He chiseled his name on it.  Also, there was a swing bridge over Pine Kill ... one of those rope bridges that you had to hang on to the ropes with both hands as you walked over the planks.  The looms purchased after the fire were second-hand Compton and Knowles looms.  Also, the red brick of the display house, and I have a brick, it says LOWE on it.  Also, my Father has the remains of the display table in the apartment above his garage.  The table top is held together with wooden pegs.  Did the Ashworth Mill support the hamlet of Westbrookville? Of course it did.  There was no electricity in Westbrookville until a line was strung from Otisville to power the generator at the Mill.  The Ashworths’ did not use much American wool to weave their blankets.  They imported bales of wool from England, Ireland, and France.  Pattern Number One was the Stuart Plaid ... many threads of white wool and shot back and forth with many colors. The fringe was snipped by huge shears and the fringe was twisted by women.  My Dad still has the shears that he used.  My grandfather, so did my dad say to me, put him to work in the mill when he was thirteen years of age.  And now I ask you, what is a work house? Also ... who was Blanche?  She lived next down to my grand parents house, just beyond the line of lilacs.  I remember visiting her and the place was a real dump but I was very small. I thought it was so.  There was just stuff everywhere and an old lady lived there. She died and my grandfather went through her stuff and found a whole bunch of money squirreled away.  Old people do that when they get old.  She had a bunch of money and my grandfather didn’t take it.  He declared it. I repeat ... who was Blanche?  My telephone line is out at the main.  Has been since yesterday. I have no telephone. I only have hi-speed to communicate at this time.-->

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Leslie Ashworth  to	richard.arthur.norton date	Thu, Mar 29, 2007 at 9:53 PM

Okay Richard, I am having to type this all out for you.

James E Ashworth was born May 14,1831 in Bury, Greater Manchester, Cty. England and died October 29,1910 in Westbrookville, Hy. He married unknown. He married Ellen E Ramsbottom Feb. 21, 1861 in Dover, New Hampshire. She was born July 29,1832 on Ramsbootom (?) Dr. Man, Cty., England and died June 17,1910 in Westbrookville, New York.

May 14,1831 Family Bible Kept by Luella Ashworth in Westbrookville.

December 2,1853…Stillwater, HY…son, John F born…Woodland cemetery, Cambridge ,NY records for JFA.

Feb. 21,1861, Dover, NH…married Ellen E. Ramsbottom –

Family Bible???Hartland, Vermont

November 29, 1861…New Hampshire Daughter Nellie J. born…1875 census U. S. records

April 14.1866…East Grenwich, NY…son…Richard C…born…Woodland cemetery record for R.C. Ashworth June 4, 1875…Eagleville, NY…1875 U.S. Census records

Obituary…Came to United States as a young man. Manufactured horse blankets in Vermont. Came to this place…Westbrookville New York…had a heavy loss due to fire (I remember discussions of the fire during visits as a youth). After the fire he went to Whippany, New Jersey. Later he returned to this place, engaged in the saw mill business and later rebuilt the mill and conducted a large blanket manufacturing business.

This is some of the stuff that Cousin Dick (I prefer his true name of Dixon..it’s his middle name) sent me. I tried to scan the long list but it just didn’t work. Over the weekend I will try to type out.

There are branches of the family scattered. Cousin Dixon is of the line of Richard Ashworth and Frances Page:

Children:

The Census of 1910 indicates that the R. C. Ashworth family, Including Merrit and Everitt were living in Eagleville, Washinginton Cty, Salem, Tep, New York.

At some time later Richard Charles and Frances moved back to Westbrookville.

Cousin Dixon: “Merrit married my mother, Eleanor Sherman on Oct 31, 1917.”

And I am very sorry to tell you here, Richard Norton, that my Cousin Dixon’s mother committed suicide by drowning herself. She was very ill and in Florida when it happened.

My Cousin Dixon’s words: “On March 11th she took her life by drowning. At this time I was traveling to Florida by bus and did not learn of the tragedy until arriving in St. Petersburg. I think that my arrival in Florida coincided with her funeral.”

Also...in the apocrypha of my family there was a story told that J. E. either had a couple of brothers…I think that they were brothers. One stayed in the states and the other went to Africa where he mined. There was a letter sent to the family about ownership of a mine because there were no heirs. I believe that the letter was about inheriting a diamond mine.

Ya know, you said something abut me writing stuff. I write stuff all the time, Richard. I have a novel which was copyrighted by the Library of Congress last year. I need to find a publisher for it. You should read through my Bachelor of English transcript and also my Masters. I know the Art of Writing very well. Thank you once again for your hard work.

If you want a photo of my Grandfather…well you will have to travel to Summittville. There is a photo there of my Grandfather and Chester and I think also of Kip. The original sign for the blanket mill is behind them. They are holding up the Stuart Plaid which is the first Pattern.

Oh…Dad still has the original sign or so he told me.

Also, hidden in a drawer in the garage below my father’s house is a family album. It contains some more of the Mill in photos.

There is one photo that shows the wooden bridge over Pine Kill.

It’s my Grandmother Rhea’s photo album.

Also, in the apartment over my father’s garage there is a very large photograph of Luella Griffin, first wife of Albert, on the wall next to the bathroom. Please be cautious in all of this.
 * Thank you,
 * Les