Davis and Dow lines

I wish I could stick to my plan, but I keep getting bored doing combining and wanting to do some original research. So, true to form, I started getting curious about my oldest known Davis ancestor. Captain John Davis (1721-ish to 1815) is the oldest one I know of. It seems he was born in England, though the records back then were sparse. He served in the Massachusets Militia as did his son, Alpheus Davis (1747-1818). Both were original settlers of Reading, Schuyler, New York. I did find the 1790, 1800, and 1810 census records today with both of them. The records don't show any other family names, so I'll hopefully find in dads records how he got all the other info. Alpheus had a son Greeley, or Greley Davis (1787-1862) who served in the war of 1812.

One other researcher gave me the following lead as to how to get more info on the family of Capt. John Davis:

You'd want to look in person for the estate file (locally called the 'packet') in the Surrogate Court office in Steuben Co, which is where Reading Town was when your man died. Since he appears to have died intestate, there could be a wealth of information about heirs here, such as receipts for estate distributions signed by each one datelined where they lived, or affidavits by one or more relatives as to the identities and residences of the heirs, or 'returns of service' giving name and residence, proving that they were summoned to a hearing regarding the estate.

There may also be helpful deeds filed in the Steuben Co. Register of Deeds office, if heirs sold his land.

If you can't do this yourself you may find it well worth while to hire a researcher to look for you and make the copies. The Town Historian may be able to point you to someone familiar with the available records who is willing to do research for you on a fee basis. You can get contact information through the USGenweb page for Schuyler Co. Remember that the Town Historian probably has a 'day job' and other commitments.

Another vital resource can be the Town Clerk's office. The Town offices sometimes still have such valuable documents as old electoral records, road-survey records, Chattel Mortgage records, in addition to vital records that begin in the 1880s and would be too late for your quest. The Town Historian can give you an idea of what Town Records may be still in existence and still held by the Town Clerk (rather than, say, sent to the NY State Library in Albany, or destroyed by flood or fire.)

Be aware that due to the financial crunch of not only this year but recent decades, some County offices have begun to charge essentially a user-fee for access to records. This is only fair, since genealogical genuine-researchers can take up appreciable staff time with questions. County staff cannot and will not do your research for you, such as looking in indexes.

Good hunting,
Jade