Sepia Saturday 491: A recap of the series on the 1866 divorce of my third great-grandparents — what the court records reveal.
The surprise discovery that a my paternal third great-grandparents Zebulon and Hannah (Hance) Blakeslee were divorced in Pennsylvania in 1866 led me on a quest for the records of their divorce case.
After a Genealogy Road Trip to the Susquehanna County seat in Montrose, Penna., I worked with courthouse staff to locate and obtain copies of my ancestors’ divorce papers — research that was well worth the effort!
The court records gave surprising details about my third great-grandparents’ separation and eventual divorce, and also raised new questions about why Hannah left Zebulon in 1858 — to be explored in future posts.
For now, here’s a recap of what the court records revealed about my Blakeslee ancestors’ nineteenth century divorce.
Divorce law, petition and subpoenas
- 1800s: My Blakeslee ancestors and Pennsylvania divorce laws
- 1865: Zebulon Blakeslee petitions for divorce
- 1866: Hannah (Hance) Blakeslee’s divorce subpoenas
Depositions and new questions
- 1866: The intriguing divorce deposition of James E. Whitney
- 1865: Where in the world was Hannah (Hance) Blakeslee?
- 1866: The illuminating divorce deposition of Jehiel W. Snow
- 1866: The disappointing divorce petition of Cordelia Snow
Divorce decree
One mystery remains…
Many thanks to the readers of Molly’s Canopy for following along throughout this Blakeslee series and the previous one, and posting insightful comments.
If you are new to Molly’s Canopy, you may also want to check out the prequel to the Blakeslees’ divorce proceedings in The Odd 1860 Separation of Zebulon and Hannah (Hance) Blakeslee.
One mystery remains: Why did Hannah (Hance) Blakeslee leave her marriage in 1858, never to return? Some thoughts on this in the next post. Meanwhile, please visit the blogs of this week’s other Sepia Saturday participants here.
© 2019 Molly Charboneau. All rights reserved.
This is so beautiful. For people like that who don’t much about our ancestors. Please. Keep it up.
Thanks, Raymond. Hopefully reading how I have cataloged the lives of my ancestors will help you and others with your family history search.
Thank you all for your visits and comments. This has been as interesting a tale for me as for you, since it was a surprise discovery. I am hoping to use circumstantial evidence from Hannah’s life to delve a bit deeper into why she left her marriage, since neither she nor others have left a records — at least none I have discovered to date.
I’ve followed your posts on the Blakeslees’ divorce with interest. You’ve found so much information that it’s too bad Hannah’s voice is silent.
I have a hunch if there had been free testimony from some of Hannah’s friends and acquaintances (rather than women at that time more or less abiding by what their husband’s said) we might have more insight into why Hannah left IF she had confided in those women and they had felt free to say what THEY knew about the case.
I really like how you’ve laid everything out so neatly – divorce, on the other hand, tends to be messy. I aim to emulate your organisation and presentation in future with family history research.
It’s odd how the stories of love and marriage get repeated through life. The tale of the meet cute, the first date, the wedding, the party, the kids, etc. All get repeated by the couple, their friends and relations. But divorce? That’s a quiet story told in whispers. Parents, children, friends rarely learn the full reasons. Lawyers? What do they know?
Excellent series, and I’m also glad to have read all the details that your trip found about your ancestors. And as to why, I dare say you have some clues.