Surname Saturday

Well, I have been getting ready to travel to Clinton, Iowa next week for a short family research trip.  Unlike the previous trips, we have no one specific to visit.  This is to try and locate information and records related to my grandmother's family and visit several cemeteries while we are there.  This requires some degree of preparation on my part.  I have gone through my paper files and tried to separate out the ones that pertain to this branch of the family.  Next, I have to get an agenda of what we want to look for - my brother has made this my responsibility.  That way if anything goes wrong, it isn't his fault.  He is the original Teflon man.

The individuals and surnames that we are researching on this trip:

Owen William McDonnell - spelled a multitude of ways.  Family information says he is from Grenagh, County Cork, Ireland.  Born in either 1833 or 1837.  Immigrated in 1852.  Met his wife in Cleveland, Ohio and married in Illinois, just across the river from Clinton, Iowa in 1864.  He had three brothers who also immigrated to the Clinton County, Iowa area - Michael McDonnell, John McDonnell, & Bartholomew McDonnell. We don't know if they came together or separately.
Owen's wife, Bridget O'Callahan, is reputed to have come over as a bond servant from her home in Cobh, County Cork, Ireland around 1854.


Hans C. Moldt married Anna Magdelena Petersson in Denmark before immigrating to the US and settling in Clinton, Iowa.  His son, Edward Thomas Moldt married Anna Mae Allen in Clinton in 1898.  We hope to find a record of this marriage.  The church has closed.

Anna Mae was the daughter of James B. Allen, from Ontario, Canada and Elanor Gilshannon, claimed to be the first white child born in Elk River township, Clinton County, Iowa.  Elanor's mother, Ellen Guilfoil, died in 1851 while giving birth to Elanor's sister, Nancy.  Her father, Thomas Gilshannon, married Bridget Reynolds less than a year later.


Well, this should keep us busy.  We don't expect to answer all of our questions, but ,hopefully, some of them.  I plan to look through the newspapers on film at the library, look for sunken stones at cemeteries and possibly find out what happened to cause Hans' house to be sold at a sherrif's auction at the courthouse.  Any other suggestions?  Oh, we are also driving through Clinton and trying to locate their former farms,houses and businesses. 

Too much???