Source
Source for: James Rittenhouse, 10 Aug 1808 - 3 Aug 1874
Index
Death source: S155Page: US/CAN 977.168/G1 V39g
Note: Volume 5 of the Cemetery Inscription Series. Greenwood Cemetery was inventoried twice, once by the society and once by a Gay H. Bossetti. p. 104 gives James Rittenhouse dying on 3 Aug 1871 aged 65y 11m __d. From the family Bible we know that James was born 10 Aug 1808 to which we then add 65y 11m and some days and we can easily get 3 Aug 1874. Both sources question their death year of 1871 so perhaps only the straight line of the 4 remained showing. The book also notes that Greenwood Cemetery is the largest cemetery in Green Township and is located in the SE Quarter of Sectin 14, Township 10, Range 4. It is 5 miles northeast of Cadiz on Old Hopedale Road (County Road 5). It was established in 1812, 12.17 acres.
Text: p. 103-104: Greenwood Cemetery, Section 2A, Corner of Upper Drive at Second Gate and back drive. Beginning at back road past building to main gate. Goes up to grassed drive and blue spruce tree on hill.
Row 7 number 9, RITTENHOUSE, James aged 65y 11m __d d. 3 Aug 187; RITTENHOUSE, Rebecca, b. 12/1 Jan 1811 (?) d. 19 Mar 1881 (?), wife of James Rittenhouse
p. 207 Greenwood Cemetery by Gay H. Bossetti: Rittenhouse, James d. 3 Aug 1871 (?y); Rittenhouse, Rebecca w/o James b. 2 Jan 1811 - d. 19 Mar 1881.
General Source: S5Text: On this AFN, James is listed as born <1824> in Bloomfield, Fayette, Pennsylvania.
General Source: S156Page: Page 106.
Note: Very poor original copy. James was 32 years old but must be the male 40-50 years of age. Rebecca was 29 years so would be the female from 20-30. Mary Ann would have been about 8-10 years old so could be the female age 10-15. Louisa D. could have been the female age 5-10 years.
Text: Household of James Rittenhouse: One male 40-50 years old. Females: one 5-10, one 10-15, one 20-30.
General Source: S157Page: Page 144
Note: Read by Judith Rittenhouse on 28 Dec 2000 in Salt Lake City Family History Library. Notice that Mary Ann is 20 years old and the age of the next sibling is 6 years. Has Louisa D. already passed away? The age gap of 14 years is certainly enough time for three more children to have been born and died. Austin James Rittenhouse's biography says there were nine children born to his parents.
Text: Dwelling 2069, Family 2171. The Name of every Person whose usual place of abode on the first day of June, 1850, was in the family: James Rittenhouse, age 41, male, farmer, Value of Real Estate $4200, born in Pennsylvania. Rebecca [Bell] Rittenhouse, age 38, female, born Pennsylvania. Mary Ann, age 20, female, born Ohio. Albert, age 6, male, born Ohio. Wells, age 4, male, born Ohio. Austin, age 8/12, male, born Ohio.
Date: 24 Sep 1850
General Source: S158Page: Page 578
Text: Will of James Rittenhouse was made Oct 1851, Probated 2 Mar 1852; mentions land sold to John Hervey, also Dunnbar farm and J. Rittenhouse line.
General Source: S159Page: Film 803984, page 303
Note: Read 30 Dec 2000 by Judith Rittenhouse in Salt Lake City Family History Library.
Text: Household 2174, Family 2164 Jas. Rittenhouse, 51, male, Farmer, real estate $9000, Personal Estate $1100, born Pennsylvania. Rebecca, 49, female, Hs. Keeper, born Pennsylvania. Albert, 16, male, farm laborer, born Ohio, attended school in past year. Wells, 13, male, born Ohio, attended school in past year. Austin, age 10, born Ohio, attended school in past year. George, age 7, male, born Ohio, attended school in past year.
Date: 28 Jul 1860
General Source: S160Page: Film 552719, page 6
Note: Read by Judith Rittenhouse on 30 Dec 2000 at Salt Lake City Family History Library.
Text: Dwelling 91, Family 89: Jas. Rittenhouse, 61, male, white, farmer, Real Estate $14,000, Personal Estate $200, born Pennsylvania, U.S. male citizen. Rebecca, 59, female, white, keep house, born Pennsylvania. Wells, 24, male, white, farmer, Personal Estate $1600, born Ohio, male citizen over age of 21. Bisby Adam, 19, male, white, farm laborer, born Ohio. Warford Sullie, 26, female, white, domestic servant, born Ohio.
Date: 27 Jun 1870
General Source: S161Page: Film 1255031, E.D. 83, Supr.7.
Note: In an index Rebecca Rittenhouse is indexed as Rel Rittenhouse. She died a year later so her disability must have been more than indigestion.
Text: Page 293A, Dwelling 1, Family 1. Reb Rittenhouse, white, female, age 69, widowed, keeping house, sick from indigestion, born Penn., father born Penn., mother born Penn. Wells C., white, male, age 34, son, single, Farmer, born Ohio, both parents born Penn. Mary J. Jones, white, female, 43, servant, single, Home servant, born Ohio, father born Ohio, mother born New Jersey.
Date: 5 Jun 1880
General Source: S162Page: ERL B22 : Doc 19b
Note: Dwelling #2069, Family #2171, on 24 Sep 1850 consisted of James Rittenhouse, born Pennsylvania, age 41; Rebecca [Bell], born Pennsylvania, age 38; and four children all born in Ohio: Mary Ann, age 20; Albert, age 6; Wells, age 4; and Austin, age 8/12 months. James was a farmer with real estate valued at $4200. ERL copied two Bell families that were nearby along with James' brother William Rittenhouse.
ERL also states in a letter to Capt. John W. Haines on 20 Feb 1971: "Remember that my James Rittenhouse and his wife Rebecca Bell were 1st cousins. Because of the age difference between their daughter Mary Ann Rittenhouse who married Parkinson Betz, and Albert Paul Rittenhouse of 14 years difference, you wrote in one of your first letters that you rather suspected that Rebecca Bell could have been a 2nd wife to my James. Now, 1st you forgot that there was a daughter named Louisa who was born between Mary Ann and Albert and who died at the age of 9 yrs. Who knows how many miscarriages there were between the births of these three children [Of all times I cannot find my Xerox copy of the 'Genetics Article' to quote, so until it turns up I'll have to try to remember--It was written by Jacobus in The American Genealogist and it said that inbreeding among families was not too bad except for the fact that if the dominant genes were not good, then children of first cousins or close cousins ran the risk of having an over abundance of bad genes which could be the cause of "damaged" [my word, E.R.L.] children being born; and in like fashion an over abundance of exceptional genes could produce extremely intelligent offspring...the main problem of 1st cousins marrying was the large and frequent instances of spontaneous abortions -- and as modern Ob-Gyn Men state [this is from some of my husbands medical journals], spontaneous abortions are nature's way of getting rid of a deformed fetus. I feel that this must account for the unusual spacing of James & Rebecca's children. There wre 8 years between the birth of my brother and me. There were 11 years between my father and his youngest brother, Robert."