Wednesday, February 20, 2013

1880s Autograph Album of Mary of Cambridge, Ohio; possibly Mary Patterson


1880s autograph album that belonged to a Mary who likely lived at Cambridge, Ohio, as did a majority of the signers in her album.

From a clue in the album, I believe that Mary may have been Mary Patterson, daughter of Cyrus and Laura Patterson of Cambridge, Ohio.

The album is approximately 5-1/4" x 3" and is missing its front cover and spine.  Many of the pages that are signed are not signed by name; several could be the work of one person.  An alphabetical list of the signers appears at the end of this post.

The clue was the page signed by U. J. Downey, who indicated a cousin relationship with Mary.  I believe he was Ulysses J. Downey, son of Bazil Tracy Downey and Nancy (Patterson) Downey.  



Several of the people who signed pages in Mary's album had the surname Patterson.  Some of these I believe were siblings, and they just happened to have a sister named Mary.

John Patterson signed a page.



Charlie Patterson of Cambridge, Ohio, signed two pages, one in 1885.





Ollie Patterson of Cambridge, Ohio signed a page.  She may have been Olive Patterson, sibling of John, Charles and Mary.  She may have been the Ollie who signed another page.





Mary's unnamed brother signed a page in 1885 and indicated he was age 24.  He would have been born before John Patterson or Charles Patterson.



If you can confirm that the owner of this album was Mary Patterson, or if you have a different theory of her identity, or information on any of the signers, please leave a comment or contact me directly.  Thanks!

Alphabetical list of the signers: [Note: given names within a specific surname may not be in alphabetical order.]



  • Mary; album owner.  Perhaps Mary Patterson, born about 1867 in Ohio, daughter of Cyrus and Laura Patterson
  • Dick, signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 17 December, no year written
  • "A Friend", signed on 19 December 1884
  • "Your friend"
  • Unnamed, signed at Cambridge, Ohio
  • "A Friend"
  • Ollie; possibly Olive Patterson, Mary's sister
  • "A Friend"
  • No name, signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 23 May 1885
  • Myrta
  • C.
  • Martch?
  • Unnamed, signed on 12 July 1885
  • "A Friend", signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 11 July 1885
  • "Nobody"
  • "Your Brother, age 24 in 1885".  His last name may have been Patterson
  • "Hay"
  • "Your unknown friend", signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 14 August 1885
  • Jim Barnett of Cambridge, Ohio
  • U. J. Downey of Byesville, Ohio; "your cousin"
  • Alice Feaster
  • Ella Feaster; could be same Ella of Cambridge, Ohio, who signed another page
  • Ella Feaster of Cambridge, Ohio
  • Olive Gibson, signed on 15 December 1884
  • E. M. Gill of Box 459, Cambridge, Ohio, signed on 10 March 1889
  • Anna Linn, signed in Ohio on 14 August 1885.  Also has the name "Clio"
  • Sude McDowell
  • Mary A. Olden
  • John Patterson of Ohio.  If Mary was Mary Patterson, she had a brother named John.
  • Charlie Patterson, signed on 8 March 1885; possibly the same Charles who signed a page on 30 Oct, no year written.  If Mary was Mary Patterson, she had a brother named Charles.
  • Charles Patterson of Cambridge, Ohio, signed on 30 Oct, no year written; possibly the same person as Charley Patterson.  If Mary was Mary Patterson, she had a brother named Charles.
  • Ollie Patterson of Cambridge, Ohio.  If Mary was Mary Patterson, she had a sister named Olive.
  • Ella Shaw, signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 16 December 1884
  • J. T. Sherrard, signed at Cambridge, Ohio, on 17 December 1884
  • Cash E. Williams of Reading, Michigan, signed on 21 December 1884; signed another page on 9 December 1884
  • Minnie Young


Cambridge, Ohio


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