Ancestors of Brenda and Glen Pedersen

Search for Names

The Elusive Ancestor

by Merrell Kenworthy

I went searching for an ancestor, I cannot find him still.
He moved around from place to place and did not leave a will.
He married where a courthouse burned, he mended all his fences.
He avoided any man who came to take the U.S. Census.

He always kept his luggage packed, this man who had no fame,
And every 20 years or so, this rascal changed his name.
His parents came from Europe. They should be on some list of passengers to the U.S.A., but somehow they got missed.

He died before the county clerks decided to keep records.
No family Bible has emerged, in spite of all my efforts.
To top it off, this ancestor who caused me many groans,
Just to give me one more pain, betrothed a girl named JONES!

Brenda Pedersen
P.O. Box 1673 Stn Main
Lloydminster, SK, Canada
S9V 1K6

Embrace the future by discovering the past!

Who...

This web site attempts to document the ancestors of our grandparents and their relatives.

Surnames include Wildman, Stovin, Wells, Cragg, Durkee, Otis, Crane, Wilkinson, Pye, Allen, Esse, Arnesen/Arneson, Lobe, Bich, Haltrup, Pedersen, Christiansen, Madsen, and many more.

Famous and/or interesting connections found to date are:

Mayflower passengers - Richard Warren (11G grandfather); John Alden and Priscilla Mullins (11G grandparents); William and Alice Mullins (12G grandparents)

John Adams (common ancestors John Alden and Priscilla Mullins) - Founding Father; 2nd President of the USA

John Quincy Adams (common ancestors John Alden and Priscilla Mullins) - 6th President of the USA

Ulysses S. Grant (common ancestors Richard and Elizabeth Warren) - 18th President of the USA

Franklin D. Roosevelt (common ancestors Richard and Elizabeth Warren) - 32nd President of the USA

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (common ancestors Richard and Elizabeth Warren; William Pabodie Sr. and Elizabeth Alden) - American poet

Richard Gere (common ancestors Richard and Elizabeth Warren) - actor

Marilyn Monroe, born Norma Jean Baker (common ancestors William Pabodie Sr. and Elizabeth Alden) - actress amd model

(George) Orson Welles (common ancestors William Pabodie Sr. and Elizabeth Alden) - actor and director

Justin Morgan Sr, father of Justin Morgan Jr, the husband of Sarah/Sally Durkee (common ancestors William Durgy and Martha Cross) - breeder of Figure, the progenitor of the Morgan Horse.

Christopher Reeve (common ancestor Alice Carpenter) - actor, director and producer (Superman)

Chris Isaak (common ancestor Michael Bobermin) - singer and actor

Alan B. Shepard, Jr. (common ancestors Richard and Elizabeth Warren) - First American in space, fifth man to walk on the moon (first to golf on the moon.)

Noah Webster, Jr. (common ancestor Alice Carpenter) - Of Webster's Dictionary fame

Dan Quayle (common ancestors John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, Samuel Sturtevant and Ann Lee) - Vice President under George H. W. Bush

William Cullen Bryant (common ancestors John Alden and Priscilla Mullins) - famous author and poet

What...

Collateral lines are followed wherever possible, as many inter-familial links occur in various lines.

Not all of the following information is proven by me, but rather has been derived from various compilations. A fair bit of this information I have documentation for but much is still being worked on. You will find errors - please notify me when you do.

I've tried to fully protect the privacy of those living by removing all information for them and just showing their initials rather than their full name. If you come across a person whose privacy has been accidentally overlooked, please contact me and I will rectify my error.

Logging in with a username and password will allow you to see all the information on living persons. If you wish to set up a User account, see the link under "Other Features".

I will be updating this site with photos, histories, etc., as time allows.

In an effort to foil the spammers, I have deleted email address from all sources. Should you wish to contact one of the sources shown, please email me and I will provide their information

Where...

Geographic locations include England, Norway, Denmark, Bessarabia (Russia), Poland, the United States and Canada, among others.

Why...

I can thank my Grandmother Idella (Arnesen) Wildman for my addiction to this hobby. She started this in the early seventies, and more than 25 years later, I was able to take her research and expand it exponentially - due to the internet and the ease and speed with which it lets one interact with other researchers.

This is my attempt to share my love of genealogy with relatives and fellow researchers. I owe a huge ‘Thank You’ to those people who have so generously shared their information with me. Without them, this undertaking would not be possible.

Please contact me to share additional information you have found or if you see any corrections that need to be made.

And if you believe we are related we'd love to hear from you!