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From: "Bellis Genealogy" <>
Subject: BRAY, EMANS, RITTENHOUSE, HUNTZINGER, WOOLVERTON: Wayne Co OHIO?
Date: Tue, 08 Nov 2005 12:20:01 -0500


I have come across some information which perplexes me. Perhaps some of you
on the list might be able to decipher this.

I was flipping through a book of "Miscellaneous Abstracts of Deeds" for
Wayne Co OH, in search of a deed of sale for John BELLESFELT, circa
1780-1800. BELLESFELT, whose wife was Nellie WILLIAMSON of Amwell,
Hunterdon Co NJ, was apparently buried in Trumbull (now Mahoning) Co OH.
The only reason I was looking in Wayne Co was because of my uncertainty of
the county formation timelines. (Trumbull/Mahoning County was in the
Connecticut Western Reserve portion of the NWT.)

Quite by accident, I came across the recording of three Hunterdon Co NJ
deeds! Here are the details:

Type of Deed: Conveyance
Date: 1 June 1787
Names of Sellers: Daniel BRAY, Kingwood, Hunterdon Co West New Jersey, Mary
his wife
Names of Buyer: Job EMANS, same address
Location of Land: Hunterdon Co NJ
Name and Title of Official executing deed: Jos Reading, Judge oc Common
Please Court, Hunterdon Co.
Witnesses: Jonathan Doan, Elizabeth Reading
Owners of land previously: Dennis Woolverton, deed 15 Apr 1774; Francis
Tomlin, deed 1 May 1760; Daniel Howell, deed 6 Mar 1754; Christian
Cornelius, deed 13 Jun 1750; Peter Embrey, Burlington Co NJ, no date of
deed; Wm Biddle, 6 Nov 1732. Record of Survey, done by William Biddle,
recorded in Surveyor General's Office, Burlington Co New Jersey.

Type of Deed: not noted
Date: not readable 1790
Name of Sellers: William RITTENHOUSE, Catawissa Twp, Northumberland Co PA,
Ann, his wife
Names of Buyers: Barnette HUNTZINGER
Location of Land: Situated on NE Branch of Susquehannah River, Catawissa
Twp N'umberland County, City Mifflinburg
Name and Title of Official: not readable
Witnesses: not readable

Type of Deed: Conveyance
Date: 1 May 1799
Names of Sellers: John WOOLVERTON, Amwell Twp, Hunterdon Co NJ, Rachel, his
wife
Names of Buyers: Isaac RITTENHOUSE, Amwell of Kingwood
Location of Land: Kingwood Twp, Hunterdon Co NJ
Name and Title of official executing deed: Jos Reading, Judge, Court of
Common Please, Hunterdon Co NJ
Witnesses: John Stockton, Garret Lake
Owners of adjacent land: William Hoagland, Doughty Stockton, John Henn
Previous owners of land: Daniel Bray, deceased, Amwell, deed, 15 Apr 1774;
Francis Tomlison, deed 1 May 1760; Daniel Howell, deed, 6 Mar 1760;
Christopher Cornelius, deed 13 June 1750; Peter Emley, deed, no date, of
Burlington Co NJ; William Biddle, Burlington, deed, 6 Nov 1732, land
surveyed by William Biddle.
Job Emans -- Indenture deed, dated 6 June 1791, conveyed property to John
Woolverton.

NOTE: Deeds one and three appear to concern the same piece of property.

Here are my questions:

- Why would these deeds have been recorded in Wayne Co OH?
- Who would have had these deeds recorded? Can one safely assume it was the
current landowner? (i.e., Isaac Rittenhouse would have recorded both his own
deed as well as John Woolverton's just for safe measure.)

I am wondering if perhaps Isaac RITTENHOUSE and Barnette HUNTZINGER had
ventured to this frontier area to seek new land, and took their deeds with
them to facilitate any future sale of their NJ land. I don't know the
details of either of these two men, but based on a superficial search on
online databases I think they died back east...not in OH.

Thanks for any light you might be able to shed.

Roz BELLIS
Alexandria VA


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