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"Tracking an Elusive Ancestor ---

Gertie M. Bosley was Osborne W. Bosley's mother. She was born in Braxton County, West Virginia. Tracking her family was a major challenge. Her name appeared on the marriage license application Osborne filled out when he wanted to wed Donna.

Searching for Gertie's history in Braxton County, while working out of my home in the Cleveland suburb of Euclid, called on quite ingenious research. In short, letters were written to Braxton County requesting birth certificates and marriage license applications. The marriage license application for Gertie and Osborne's father Charlie Stout, if it exists, was not available from the county. Census records for 1910 showed Gertie residing with her Uncle William A. Bosley. William's record shows him listed with wife Phoebe J.; Gertie M.; and grandnephew Osborne. Census for 1900 showed William, Phoebe J., and Gertie, as well as Charles V. Stout, residing together. Gertie was born in 1882 and Charlie in 1886, so their names weren't available for the 1890 census which was destroyed, which would have shown who the parents of each were. Only that William A. was their uncle. Was there a possibility in finding the parents of Gertie and Charlie through William's father, the grandfather of Gertie and Charlie? In this effort to connect William to his father in the census records, Phoebe J.'s role was critical to establishing relationships, since there was more than one William in the records, and Uncle William wasn't always listed with his middle initial.

Peter L. Bosley was established as the grandparent, offering his sons and daughters as the possible parents of Gertie and Charlie. The good fortune for genealogists is that the W.P.A. chronicles of the 1900 census included month and years of birth, interestingly the only census decade this was done.

With the month and year of birth, the birth certificates of Gertie and Charlie could be requested [from the appropriate county seat] if they were recorded. It required several efforts, and some very diplomatic language to stimulate a search by the county clerk's office for both Osborne and mother Gertie's birth certificates (a request for Osborne's was sent twice, with a different date of birth each time). But patience finally paid off, although I had to wait several months after my first inquiry for Gertie's record, to prevent wearing out my welcome with the record office. In my first attempt for Gertie's certificate, the office looked for the wrong year (1888). I elected to wait a few months to resubmit my request, to lessen the risk of non-cooperation. The family searcher is at the receiving end of the recorder's cooperation, since there have to be a myriad of requests from family researchers." [An undated entry to the author's research diary]

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2F#2 Osborne W. Bosley's birth certificate states that:

"...Osborne W. Bosley...born in Braxton County, and State of West Virginia on the 19th day of November, 1909...parents were [father's name] --not known-- [mother's name] Gertie Bosley...as shown by...certificate of birth returned by Father [entered] and recorded...Birth Record no. 4 at page 13 certificate filed -- [or apparently at or near time of birth].

In testimony...20th April 1986

David L. Jack [signature] Clerk..."

A copy of the page from the records of Births is recorded: 11/29/09 Bosley Osborne W. [place of birth] Exchange [father's name in full] not known [mother's name in full] Gertie Bosley [name of person giving birth information] Father".

On Osborne's marriage license application to Donna Davis, he enters his mother's name as Gertrude Bosley, his father's name as Charley Stout.

On his death certificate, with information supplied by his second wife Emma Phillips, both his mother and his father's names are given as "not known."

There wasn't much to go on in determining Charley to be Osborne's father, or for that matter, who Charley was.

He is found in the 1910 U.S. census (003 0005 0100) in the Miracode (Soundex film for 1910), enumerated with John W. Knight:

Braxton County, W.Va.

John W. Knight w 68 WVa WVa

Sarah A. w 49 WVa

Charlie V. Stout ss 23 WVa

Sonnie E. ss 17 WVa

(ss being step-son; w[1] being white; w[2] being wife)

Charlie is found in the 1900 U.S. census (E.D. 7, page 23, line 21) in the Soundex, enumerated with William A. Bosley:

Otter District, Braxton County, WVa

William A. Bosley (Jan 1846) 54 WVa WVa WVa

Phebe [sic] J. w (Oct 1829) 70 WVa WVa WVa

Gertie M. niece (Nov 1882) 17 WVa WVa WVa

Charles V. Stout nephew (Apr 1886) 14 WVa WVa WVa

The 1910 U.S. census for Gertie records the following:

William A. Bosley (w) 64 WVa WVa WVa

Phoebe J. w 80 WVa WVa WVa

Gertie M. niece 26 WVa

Osborne W. GN NR WVa

Except for the father's entry on Osborne Bosley and Donna Davis' marriage license application, there would seem to be no written legal record of Charlie's relationship as Osborne's father. Only circumstantial evidence and speculation.

Charlie's grandson by Donna once related that Osborne "disowned" his father because he felt his father had disowned him. So Charlie's name doesn't follow him in this family line, except on some marriage license applications in Akron, Ohio, where his daughter-in-law carried it -- and somehow passed the name on to the birth certificate of her second son, this author who, for the record, had no filial relationship whatsoever with the Stouts, except as a half brother!

Gertie apparently married again, to a Stalnaker, as given on Osborne's marriage license application to second wife, Emma Phillips. Perhaps there are some Stalnaker half-uncles or aunts to the Bosleys, living in Braxton County.

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[Author's note:] In the early spring of 1993 while checking some new information as a result of the 1992 release of the 1920 census records, I decided to update my family data. When I came to my Bosley family research I was curious as to what became of 2F#9 Sarah Ann Bosley-Knight

In researching Sarah Ann, one needs to pursue her son 2F#4 Charlie V. Stout, who was initially the object of the search. He is listed nowhere in Braxton County, home of his Bosley roots, in connection with his natural father, so far as I could determine.

Looking originally for 2F#2 Osborne Bosley, some of whose legal records had attached to his surname, the mysterious name of Stout -- as in fact, so had this author --the mystery cleared on inspection of Osborne's two marriage license applications to Donna Lenora. Osborne's mother was Gertrude Bosley. His dad was Charlie V. Stout. And they turned out to be first cousins.

The Soundex for 1900 in fact listed Charles V. Stout and Gertrude Bosley as the nephew and niece of one William A. and Phebe J. Bosley.

However, when the 1910 Miracode (Soundex) was investigated, Charlie V. Stout was listed, along with Lonnie (whom I had first listed as Sonnie) E. Stout, both recorded as stepsons under the Head-of-Household John W. Knight of Braxton County. His spouse, Sarah A., was obviously the mother of Charlie V. and Lonnie E.

While I found in the 1900 census the birth month and year for Charlie, three letters to Braxton County brought forth no record of his birth, although I had in fact gotten a birth certificate for Gertrude Bosley on the basis of the census data.

My subsequent searches had found Gertrude's parents to be 2F#10 Cornelius H., Bosley and 2F#11 Charlotte Emma Armentrout. So who was Charlie's father?

My search of the 1920 West Virginia Soundex didn't turn up a Charlie V. Stout, so I looked for his mother, Sarah A. Knight. She was listed as enumerated with son Lonnie E. Stout. This was when I realized that his name as I had originally listed him in 1910 wasn't Sonnie, but Lonnie.

Lonnie was also listed with spouse Gertrude:

1920 Holly District Braxton County WVa ED6 pg11B L79

Lon E. Stout (mw) 27 (m) farmer WVa WVa WVa

Gertrude w 26 (m) WVa WVa WVa

Myrle s 5 WVa WVa WVa

Russel s 2 WVa WVa WVa

Sarah Knight mo 67 (wid) WVa WVa WVa

Milford P. Perkins b-in-l unk unk unk unk

Edith niece 6 WVa WVa WVa

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I wrote to Braxton County to get Lonnie's marriage license application (I first had to request a marriage certificate in order to determine the record book number and page number therein listed) on the assumption that the Gertrude listed in the census as his wife had the surname of Perkins, and that they were wed in 1915, the year their first child was born. I was, of course, hoping to see Lon's father's name listed on the application. And Charlie V.'s. No such luck.

At about this same time, mid-April '93, our genealogical library had installed a new computer system called Family Search which, among other data, tapped into the Social Security Death Index system, the same one from which I had gotten information on Dallie Davis. Assuming Lon to have been born in 1893, I punched him up. I found a Lonnie Stout (the only one) born in West Virginia on 1 February 1892, died in December 1974 near Burnsville, Braxton County. Off went my death certificate fee to the West Virginia Department of Health. I should be receiving Lonnie's death certificate shortly, including the names of his mother and father. And Charlie V. Stout's father.

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5 April, 1993 -- This author received the following response from the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, dated 2 April, 1993: "Re- Lonnie Stout, DOD 12, 1974...RETURNED- What Relationship?...Death records are restricted to decedent's family or legal representatives".

This has become a familiar response from state and county agencies of 1993. I guess I don't blame them, what with the rise in misuse of such records. At least they returned my fee.

Next strategy. Since I shan't put a lie in writing, I next wrote to Braxton County, asking for Lon's death certificate. Since the 1920's the death certificate has been the document bearing considerable family information, including names of mom and dad.

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14 April 1993 -- Braxton County's replies to my inquiries have become more responsive. Almost friendly-like. The death certificate read: "(name) Lonnie Earnest Stout, white, male (DOD December 25, 1974 (place of death) Gassaway, West Virginia (cause) Bronchial Pneumonia (age) 82, widower (informant) Earl L. Fisher, M.D."

So much for the names of mom and dad. Next strategy. Although I'd had no luck in getting Charlie V.'s birth certificate from Braxton County, I decided to try for Lonnie's. After all, same dad, same mom. I didn't realize at the time but Lon would have had to furnish the Social Security Administration with proof of his birth date in order to get benefits.

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21 April 1993 -- In the mail this bright and beautiful Friday was a letter from Braxton County, West Virginia. Enclosed was a birth certificate that read:

"L. E. Stout was born in Braxton County and State of West Virginia on 1st...February, 1892 and that the parents were ...(father's name) Tom Stout (mother's name) Sarah Bosley as shown...3 affidavits sent to Charleston...(delayed) recorded (book) no. page 119, filed 2/26/57."

Lonnie had to obtain three affidavits from kin and friends to attest to his birth date, when he applied for Social Security. There! Bureaucrats are good for something! Now for the long journey to find Tom Stout and his lineage. We've to start in the 1990 census, by finding Sarah A. and Lonnie- Stout? Or Bosley?

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