Thursday, September 27, 2012

1880s Autograph Album of Ruby Brown of Unionville, Ohio


1880s autograph album that I believe belonged to Ruby Brown of Unionville Center, Ohio, judging from the clues of three signers who declared themselves to be Ruby's cousins.    

My hesitation is that many online trees don't show Ruby as a girl, but rather as Reuben Wright Brown; one tree, however, had both Reuben and a Ruby, born a couple years later, so I'm hoping that tree is correct.



At first, before researching the cousins, I found a Ruben Nathaniel Converse from Ohio who might have fit the bill, as there are people by the name of Converse who signed pages in the album.  That possible Ruby, however, was a man, and at least one of the pages in the album, signed by Hamer Maddex in 1884, implies that Ruby was a girl.




The album is approximately 5" x 3" and is missing half of its front cover and half of its back cover.  It contains about fifty pages signed by Ruby's relatives and friends.  A complete list of the signers, in alphabetical order, appears at the bottom of this post.

Ruby Brown was born about 1873 in Ohio, daughter of Andrew and Nancy E. (Valentine) Brown, both born in Ohio.   Her paternal grandparents were Andrew and Mary (Jolley) Brown.  

There's a page in the album signed by Ruby's cousin Jolley Martha of Marysville, Ohio.   She may have been in the habit of reversing her names, for effect.  

Ruby's maternal grandparents were James Fuhrman Valentine and Anna (Herron) Valentine.

In addition to Martha Jolley, two other cousins signed pages in Ruby's album.  Cousin Jennie Pixley of Columbus, Ohio, signed a page in 1884.  Her mother, Margaret (Valentine) Pixley, was the older sister of Ruby's mother, Nancy (Valentine) Brown.

Ruby's cousin-in-law Ada K. (Shively) Robinson of Wooster, Ohio, signed a page in 1884.  Ada's husband David E. Robinson was the son of Mary Jane (Valentine) Robinson, oldest sister of Ruby's mother Nancy (Valentine) Brown and Jennie Pixley's mother, Margaret (Valentine) Pixley.

Ada K. (Shively) Robinson's mother, Catherine Ann (Funk) Shively, also of Wooster, Ohio,  signed a page in 1884.

If you have information on the Ruby who owned this autograph album, especially if you feel she is someone other than Ruby Brown, please leave a comment or contact me directly, so that I can make corrections.  

I'd also appreciate hearing from you if you have information on any of the signers listed below.

Complete list of signers in alphabetical order by surname [Given names within a particular surname may not be in alpha order.]
  • Illegible, possibly Mattie
  • Lillie, 1884
  • May
  • Friend, 1885
  • Winnie or Minnie, 1885
  • A schoolmate
  • The album was owned by a Ruby, who I think was Ruby Brown of Unionville Center, Ohio.
  • James Burke of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1884; friend
  • May Burke; not sure of given name
  • Charles Catton of Unionville, Ohio, 1885; Ruby's teacher
  • B. W. and S. E. Converse of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1885
  • Alba Converse, 1885
  • Albert B. Converse of Unionville Center, Ohio; schoolmate
  • M. M. D.
  • T. Davin, 1885; friend
  • James Davis, 1884; nice sketch
  • Jeff Davis, or Jeff Davin, of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1884
  • Edwin Debott of Unionville Center, Ohio
  • Etta Dockum, 1885; schoolmate
  • Emma Dunfee
  • ? Dunfee of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1885; given name is possibly Lona or Lura
  • Kettie Dunfee, 1884; schoolmate; not sure of given name
  • A. N. Dunfee of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1885; friend
  • Hattie Ferguson, 1885; friend
  • Erma Ferguson of Unionville, Ohio, 1885
  • Myrta Ferguson, schoolmate
  • Lucy E. Guy of Plain City, Ohio, 1884; friend
  • Lida Howser
  • Jolley Martha of Marysville, Ohio; Ruby's cousin.  Her name was probably Martha Jolley.  Jolley was the maiden name of Ruby's maternal grandmother Mary (Jolley) Robinson
  • Hamer Maddex, 1884; schoolmate
  • C. McCoy
  • Ed Miller, 1886; his name could be Thom Ed Miller, or Thom could be the word "from"
  • ? Nworb, 1886; friend
  • Gerry Perry, friend
  • Jennie Pixley of Columbus, Ohio, 1884; Ruby's cousin - her mother Margaret (Valentine) Pixley was an older sister of Ruby's mother Nancy (Valentine) Brown
  • I think the name is C. A. Price of West Lebanon, Indiana; 1884
  • Clifton E. Pyers, 1884
  • Emanuel Rausch
  • Rose Robinson of Unionville Center, Ohio
  • Ada K. (Shively) Robinson of Wooster, Ohio, 1884; Ruby's cousin - David E. Robinson, Ada's husband, was the son of Mary Jane (Valentine) Robinson, older sister of Ruby's mother Nancy (Valentine) Brown
  • Mrs. C. A. Shively of Wooster, Ohio, 1884; Ada (Shively) Robinson's mother
  • Ada Steiner, schoolmate
  • J. B. Steiner of Unionville, Ohio, 1885
  • C. E. W., 1885
  • Bessie Wegel or Bessie Wezel of Unionville, Ohio, 1885;
  • Minnie E. Wilcox of Unionville Center, Ohio, 1884; friend
  • E. C. Wilcox, friend
  • Gertrude Wilcox, friend
  • Lizzie Yealey of Unionville, Ohio, 1885; friend
  • Mike Yealey, 1884; friend

Unionville Center, Ohio


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