Nancy Strader and her Million Children

I have 64 4th great grandparents.

We all do.

I know who most of them are, thanks to years of research. 

One very special ancestor is Nancy Strader.

She is straight up my maternal line.

She is the earliest one in that line whose face I know. I don't see her in my face at all, but I know she's there. She looks a bit sad in her photo, like she's had a hard life.

She probably never even realized that she was creating a strong, thriving, female line.

I have one granddaughter, three daughters, and two sisters. My mom had one sister, and her mom, my grandma, had five sisters. I honestly don't know how many women have descended from Nancy since I haven't researched all the lines of descent, but in my tree there are currently 31 in just my direct line of nuclear families (not counting cousins, etc.). That's certainly a wealth of women!

Here's how this line goes:

Leslie Diane Kienlen (me) b. 1965 in St. Louis County, MO.

Sharon Eileen Aden b. 1942 in Poplar Bluff, MO; d. 2007 in St. Louis, MO.

Norma Lucille Holland b. 1922 in probably Mill Spring, MO; d. 2007 in St. Louis County, MO.

Nelle Naomi Hartman b. 1901 in probably Texas County, MO; d. 1990 in Poplar Bluff, MO.

Mary Naomi Estep b. 1877 in Kilbourne, Mason County, IL; d. 1948 in Ozark, Texas County, MO.

Mary Elizabeth Elmore b. 1848 in Tice Station, Menard County, IL; d. 1922 in Hugoton, KS.

Nancy Strader b. 1822 in Green County, KY; d. 1908 in Tice Station, Menard County, IL.

Nancy came with her parents, John Conrad Strader and Elizabeth Miner, to Menard County, Illinois from Green County, Kentucky. I believe they came with a group of people whose surnames are Strader, Miner/Minor, and Elmore. It has been a difficult task trying to sort out these families, especially the Elmores. But they all came from Green County, Kentucky.

Nancy married James Elmore sometime around 1844. 

They had five children.

Their daughter Mary Elizabeth Elmore was my 3rd great grandma.

James died in December of 1855.

Nancy remarried a few years later, to William K. Million.

Nancy and William had three children: James, George, and Jane Million.

I bet Nancy used to tell people about her "Million children."

I sure would have!

I haven't done any research into the Million children.

I should. We share DNA.

Researching the Million children may give me more information about Nancy. Maybe they have other photos. Maybe they have one where she looks happy. I would like to see that.

Did her daughter, Jane Million, have daughters too? 

How many of us could be out there?

If we count male descendants, are we close to a million yet?

Maybe someday, Nancy will have her million children.

William died before 1870, and by 1880, Nancy was married to John T. Smith from Scotland.

Nancy and John had no children.

Our Link to Buffalo Bill

Buffalo Bill

From Buffalo Bill Center of the West (public domain)

I always thought it would be fun to have famous or royal roots. Don't we all! I haven't found any well-known direct ancestors (yet), but I have come across some other interesting  connections. For example, a few weeks ago I discovered some documents written for or about my illiterate ancestors (Elmore and Estep lines) by Abraham Lincoln. Yes. That one. That's pretty amazing! I need to pull together some more pieces, which requires some Black Hawk War research at the National Archives in Washington. Luckily, I'll be going there for work in a week or so. I'm taking a super early flight the day before the conference so I'll have some research time there. Wish me luck!

Since I'm currently at a brick wall on that line, I decided to explore another rumored connection - to William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody.

It's true!

(It's not a close connection, but I really enjoyed adding him to my tree.)

My Flint family, originally from Manchester, England, didn't have it easy. It was one of those families that seemed to have tragedy after tragedy after tragedy. My second great grandmother, Emma Flint (married John Dunsford), died at age 35.

Emma's brother, Agrippa Flint (who died before age 30), married a woman named Elizabeth Frederici. His brother-in-law was none other than Buffalo Bill, who was married to Elizabeth's sister Margaret "Louisa" Frederici.

Of course, when Agrippa knew him, he was still just William F. Cody, American Civil War veteran (Union). Researching this connection, though, may give more insight into my Flint family. I had previously wondered how Elizabeth and her four very young children survived after the premature death of her husband. I would imagine that Louisa wrote letters to Elizabeth. I don't know if they exist, but I sure hope I can find something about Elizabeth's  life after Agrippa died. Now I have another place to look. Could she have received financial support from Buffalo Bill? Maybe so!

Researching those more distant family branches, friends, and neighbors can be helpful. You often find new paths to explore, and sometimes those paths lead to famous or influential people who make you feel more American than ever.

Especially when it's Buffalo Bill!