Month: December 2025

My research revealed numerous news articles about the James Whiting, inmate 39926, enumerated at the Virginia State Penitentiary in Richmond on April 23, 1940, such as:

Suffolk News-Herald, Monday, June 27, 1938, p. 1.

In summary, James was arrested on April 18, 1938, following a “thrilling” – using the term of one newspaper account – robbery, police chase, and gun fight, in Suffolk, Virginia. The gun used by Whiting (also referred to with an aka as Whitten in an initial report) was obtained in an earlier attack on a Marine sentry at the Norfolk Navy Yard in which Whiting was accompanied by Raymond Segim, an ex-Marine. Segim claimed to have parted ways with Whiting prior to the robbery, police chase, and gun fight.

After his plea and sentencing, James was transferred to the State Penitentiary in Richmond on Tuesday, July 12, 1938, to begin serving his term.

The census record of 1940, and the above newspaper account, both describe Whiting as a West Virginia native/resident, a “…25-year-old Fairmont, W. Va., printer…” This translates to an approximate year of birth of 1913.

We stepped back just a bit to find what we might locate in the 1930 U.S. census for Fairmont, West Virginia. Lo, and behold!

The Williams Connection Confirmed

At 109 Eleventh Street in Fairmont, we find 16-year-old James R Whiting, described as grandson and residing with head-of-household Sarah I Williams, a 57-year-old widow, and her daughter, Amy D Williams, age 18. It is reported that both of James’ parents were born in West Virginia, he has attended some school since September 1, 1929, is literate, and working as a printer at a printing office.

The evidence points to this being the same James Whiting arrested and imprisoned in Virginia, and, the evidence points to this being the same Sarah Ida Williams née Cain, formerly of Gilmer County, West Virginia, and mother of Demma, Retta, Maida, Rebecca, Irene, Daisy, and Amy Drusilla. What has gone on in the 20 years since that 1910 census with baby Roy Williams?¹

Continuing to work backward in time, we find a 1927 Fairmont City Directory in which the adults of the household are listed² (Amy Drusilla is not, legally, an adult in 1927, but out of school and working):

• Williams Daisy B lndrs r109 11th
• Williams Druzville [sic] lndrs Am Lndry Co r109 11th
• Williams Sarah (wid Harvey H) h109 11th

There is no Fairmont listing for either Roy Williams or Roy Edwards (estimated age 17 in 1927), nor a James Whiting/Williams (estimated age 13).

Sadly, Daisy Belle Williams, 18-year-old laundry worker, died on 28 April 1927 of pneumonia with diptheria.³ It is noted that her illness was contracted at Cook Hospital, but unconfirmed if that is where she was working in the laundry.

The 1925 Fairmont City Directory indicates Sarah was living at the 11th Street address. There is no listing found in the 1923 directory.

On 31 January 1920, the U.S. Federal Census indicates Sarah (Ida) Williams, age 50; Irene Williams, 13; Daisy B Williams, 11; and, Druzilla Williams, 8, were residing near Watson in rural Grant District of Marion County⁴ (Watson is reported as Sarah I Williams’ address in the 1920 City Directory), and in April of that year, the Fairmont Times-West Virginian carries a news item that Drusilla was struck by lightning while being seated near a window at the home “of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. H.H. Williams.” Drusilla is reported to have received burns about her arms and legs resulting in hospitalization at Cook Hospital, but with a full recovery expected.

It is surmised that Sarah and her minor children removed to Fairmont from the Watson area of Grant District sometime between 1920-25 , and prior to that resided in the Lost Creek area of Harrison County, where Harvey Williams had been killed in a mine slate collapse on 31 Oct 1918.⁵ No records are located in Gilmer or Harrison counties to demonstrate when Sarah Ida and Harvey left Gilmer County or arrived in Harrison County, but that Harvey’s estate administration was filed in Harrison (along with the guardianships of the minor surviving children), indicates they had residence in Harrison, rather than Marion, County at the time of his death. ⁶

Daughter Demma had married George Edwards in Gilmer County on 15 Sept 1915⁷, and their son Willard⁸⁹, 1916, and daughter Eula¹⁰, 1918, reported on their delayed certificates of birth as having been born in Gilmer County. But, by 1920, Demma and George and their family were also in Grant District, Harrison County, West Virginia, with George also working in a coal mine.

A look at Demma & George’s 1920 census enumeration, indicates “stepson” Roy, 11 years old, is residing with them, and still carrying the Williams surname. (We don’t have evidence of when Sarah reported his birth in Gilmer County, but recall he is reported as being named Roy Edwards.)

There is no James, nor any five-to-seven year old male with Demma, or her mother Sarah, in the 1920 census.

It is of note that the Edwards’ household enumerator has Demma’s name misspelled, Willard’s name is practically illegible; and, daughter Eula is recorded as a son, Earl. Numerous scratches, marks, and over-writings indicate this was not an easy neighborhood for the enumerator, whose own signature is difficult to decipher, but appears to be A. Carl Workman. This does affect the quality of the census, overall, and should be factored in our consideration as to its completeness and accuracy.

A check of the other Williams sisters not residing with Sarah Ida for the presence of 1914-born James in the 1920 census reveals:

A. Retta, 27, is residing Fairmont, Ward 1, on Front Street (east side of the Monongahela) with second husband Lester Harris, son Von, 2, and newborn daughter, Jean. Lester is a driver for the American Laundry Company (per the 1923 City Directory) – Daisy and Amy Drusilla’s employer – further solidifying the family connections.

Retta and her first husband, Burton Parker, lost their son Davis in March 1913 at four months of age to “complications;” Burton then died from tuberculosis near Boothsville, Taylor county (at the Marion-Harrison-Taylor county lines intersection), where his father and stepmother were living, on 27 Dec 1913. Finally, Retta and Burton’s daughter, Clementine, died as an three-month-old infant. No birth record has been found on Clementine, but the death record of Marion county indicates she died on 17 Dec 1913¹¹. Her burial monument, however, was inscribed with a birth date of 24 Aug 1914 and death of 5 Dec 1914.¹² Either birth date eliminates the possibility of Retta/Rita being James’ mother, considering his birthdate of 21 Feb 1914. We are left with only Demma of child-bearing age in 1914 among Sarah and Harvey’s children.

B. Maida, 19, is married to John Reger, 29, and they are residing with John’s parents on Merchant Street in Fairmont, just a couple of blocks away from Retta. No James or other child of the age to be James is listed in their household.

C. Rebecca Genevieve (Jenerva Rebecca) is 16 and married to Frank Halle, age 21. Frank works as a driver and they are renting at 1101 Center Street, Fairmont (on the west side). No James or other children are listed in their residence.

So, where is James in 1920? And, conversely, Roy in 1930? Is he/they the James who was residing with Sarah Ida in the 1930 census, and described as her grandson? An exhaustive search of Gilmer, Marion, and Harrison county census reports for “James,” “James Whiting,” “Whiting,” of the appropriate age returned no results in 1920 that could be correlated to this James, nor for a Roy Williams or Roy Edwards in 1930.

“Ray Williams,” a 20-year-old boarder in St Mary’s, Pleasant County, West Virginia, in the 1930 census, is reported to be working as a bit-boy in the glass plant, but the similarity of name and age is the only indication this could be Roy Williams-Edwards.

The 1940 census and WWII registration records, however, reveal Roy Edwards residing in Fairmont, with Sarah Williams, where he is a gas station attendant. He is described as 5’11” tall and weighing 270 pounds. In the 1950 census records, Roy Edwards continues to reside with Sarah Ida Williams, remains single, described as Sarah’s grandson, and is now listed as a painter.

Sarah Ida Williams died in Marion County, West Virginia, in 1957, with the 10th Street address listed as her usual residence. She was buried in what was then called the Brick Church Cemetery in Lost Creek, Harrison County, West Virginia¹³. Her will leaves her property distributed with particularity and residual among her surviving daughters: Demma, Arretta, Madia, Rebecca, Irene, and Druzilla; and, some particular items to “my grandson Roy Bernard Edwards.¹⁴” There is no mention of James R Whiting in her will.

The Social Security Death Index reports a Roy Edwards, with a birthdate of April 8, 1910, and last reported residence in Fairmont, West Virginia, died in September 1975. So our Roy-James/James-Roy question is settled; they are, indeed, two separate people.

---

Navigation

---

Footnotes

1. We also find James with Sarah at the 11th Street address in the 1931 Fairmont Directory: Title: Fairmont, West Virginia, City Directory, 1931, pps. 406 and 409; Ancestry.com. U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011; and, with her at 206-10th Street (typesetter), in the 1933 Fairmont Directory: Fairmont, West Virginia, City Directory, 1933, pps. 352, 354. Ancestry.com. U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. ↩︎
2. Fairmont, West Virginia, City Directory, 1927, p. 470-1. Source Information:
   Ancestry.com. U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Accessed 22 Dec 2025. ↩︎
3. Marion County, West Virginia, Death Certificates, Daisy Williamson [sic], 28 April 1927; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Project (https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=1953330&frame=01950 : accessed 22 Dec 2025). ↩︎
4. Year: 1920; Census Place: Grant, Marion, West Virginia; Roll: T625_1962; Page: 25A; Enumeration District: 28 ↩︎
5. Harrison County, West Virginia, Death Certificates, Harvey H Williams 31 Oct 1918; digital images, West Virginia Vital Research Records Project (https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=1952759&frame=01061 : accessed 22 Dec 2025). ↩︎
6. Inventories, sale bills & settlements (Harrison County, West Virginia) : Vols. 52-54 1917-1919 (54 to 461) : Harvey H Williams, Sarah I Williams, administrator, final settlement, 4 Dec 1918. (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89V1-S449?lang=en&i=715 : Accessed 22 Dec 2025). ↩︎
7. Gilmer County, West Virginia, Register of Marriages, George Edwards and Demma Williams 10 Sep 1915; digital images, West Virginia Vital Research Records Project (https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808589&frame=00194 : accessed 9 Jan 2026). ↩︎
8. “West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C3SY-S43X?view=explore : Jan 9, 2026), image 2225 of 3472; West Virginia. Division of Health. Vital Registration Office. Image Group Number: 008512907 ↩︎
9. “Harrison, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89Z5-2XC8?view=explore : Jan 17, 2026), image 39 of 576; West Virginia. County Court (Harrison County).
   Image Group Number: 004012255 ↩︎
10. “West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C3ST-6SRQ-Z?view=explore : Jan 9, 2026), image 2460 of 3475; West Virginia. Division of Health. Vital Registration Office. Image Group Number: 008512929 ↩︎
11. Marion County, West Virginia, Register of Deaths, Clematine Parker, 17 Dec 1913; digital images, West Virginia Vital Research Records Project (https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=834817&frame=00113 : accessed 16 Jan 2026). ↩︎
12. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/89772405/clematine_alice-parker: accessed January 16, 2026), memorial page for Clematine Alice Parker (23 Aug 1914–5 Dec 1914), Find a Grave Memorial ID 89772405, citing Woodlawn Cemetery, Fairmont, Marion County, West Virginia, USA; Maintained by S (contributor 47342597). ↩︎
13. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/182271023/sarah_ida-williams: accessed March 23, 2026), memorial page for Sarah Ida Cain Williams (12 Nov 1870–16 May 1957), Find a Grave Memorial ID 182271023, citing Seventh Day Baptist Church Cemetery, Lost Creek, Harrison County, West Virginia, USA; Maintained by Ms. Shanny (contributor 48550075). ↩︎
14. “Marion, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-HGSB-41?view=explore : Mar 23, 2026), image 383 of 684; West Virginia. County Court (Marion County).
    Image Group Number: 004715629 ↩︎

What we know, so far:

1. K.I. and the S.F. Whiting descendant siblings share DNA centiMorgans (cM) indicative of 2C-3C relationship¹, and the shared matches limit our shared relationship to the Whiting family, and may include S.F. Whiting’s first wife’s family, the Wades, in some manner.
2. GEDmatch analysis indicates K.I. has a 2C-3C relationship with descendants of the Williams-Cain family, both in shared cM reported and tree data presented.
3. K.I. reports a maternal grandfather’s name as “James Whiting,” ca. 1919-1986.
4. K.I.’s maternal-maternal line was traced by K.I.; GEDmatch tree analysis indicates what has been reported is substantially correct, and, there are no maternal-line matches which can be traced forward to the S.F. Whiting descendant siblings.
5. The location of the K.I. grandparent-couple relationship is presumed to be Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio (persistently the residence area of tested K.I. closely related, per documentation and social media research, matches).

FAN is a long-used investigatory process (though my recollection is first hearing it as “FNA – Friends, Neighbors, Associates,” from my father) that considers the currently-required physical requirements for completion of a process, and who else might have information about that process.  If the suspected burglar has absconded via automobile, who might know what type of auto is involved? The relative who recently sold it to the suspect? The mechanic who worked on it and might know what condition the auto is in? The neighbor who may notice the vehicle’s presence or absence? And, who is in their network to whom the burglar might look for refuge? etc.

Prior to in-vitro fertilization, both parties needed to be in the same location to achieve a fertilized egg. Except, perhaps, in the case of assault (which should never not be considered or discounted), the parties may have had some in-common friends or associates. How would they know one another? Was it likely, or even possible, to travel between their locations in the pertinent timeframe? Some neighborhoods may even reveal a Gladys Kravitz-type who acted as an instigator, witness, storyteller, or community news agent!

The Whiting Family

Samuel E Whiting (1776-1856) and his wife, Sarah Lancaster (1781-1826), were born and married in Sussex County, England. They’d had six children when they immigrated to America, arriving in New York on 12 May 1823:

It has been reported for many years (with no documentation located) that they remained in the New York area for a couple of years, then made their way to Gilmer County, West Virginia (no documentation of this initial foray has been located, either), before moving to the Bath County, Virginia, area. That Sarah Lancaster “died in her chair” at Elk Mountain in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, is only documented in family biographies². Samuel then married Jane Hannah in Pocahontas County, in 1831.

Samuel and Sarah’s daughter Ann Whiting (b. 1809) is presumed to have died sometime between their arrival in New York and prior to the 1840 census when one male age 20-29, and one female 15-19, are living with Samuel and Jane. Son Ebenezer is known to have remained in Pocahontas County with Samuel, and would match the age range for the male 20-29; daughter Mary may have been over 20, by some accounts, and because she did not marry Thomas Sleeth until, reportedly, 1851, we presume she is the younger female reported in the household.

By the mid-1850s, four of the five surviving children (and spouses, if married) were present in the central West Virginia area: Mercy, who married Elias Varner; Samuel, who married Mary Susanna Varner; Robert, who married Sarah Jane McCray; and, Mary, who married Thomas J Sleeth.

Based on the cM matches with K.I., upon review of the shared cM estimates in the literature, particularly the Shared cM Tool (and subsequent revisions), it seems our shared MRCA – Most Recent Common Ancestor – would be among the children of Robert Whiting/Sarah Jane McCray, and, even more likely, one of their grandchildren considering our average shared cM of 125, which fits quite nicely next to the average of 123 cM for 2C1R:

	K.I.	Sib 1	Sib 2	Sib 3	Sib 4
K.I.		178.6	126.4	104.0	93.5
Sib 1	178.6		2524.0	2677.2	2670.0
Sib 2	126.4	2524.0		2696.1	2488.5
Sib 3	104.0	2677.2	2696.1		2680.6
Sib 4	93.5	2670.0	2488.5	2680.6

So, our focus narrowed to the children of Robert Whiting and Sarah McCray. Given the Whiting surname in the query from K.I., and a potential birth date in the early 20th century, we focused on the Whiting-McCray sons – Samuel (1851-1910), Robert (1853-1944), and Mathew (1860-?) – and their sons, first.

Whiting-McCray Sons

No record was located of a relationship or marriage for the youngest son, Mathew. In fact, the biographies written of the family indicate that in his 20s, Mathew, “…went west and was never heard from again.” He had served on a jury in Gilmer County in 1884,³ and in 1890, his siblings quit-claim to him the deed on 140 acres on Cedar Creek, Gilmer County, West Virginia, as heirs to the estate of their father, Robert Whiting.⁴ By 1895, however, M.H. Whiting is surrendering this property to trustee John Withers in debtor’s proceedings.⁵

Mathew is not found in the Gilmer County 1900 census record. The available evidence directs us to a Mathew Whiting who was found in a 1900 census record from Webster County, West Virginia (not west of the Gilmer area; did someone mis-speak or was mis-heard as west for Webster?). This record indicates Mathew — who matches our Mathew’s description as having been born January 1860, single, with a father born in England and mother in West Virginia — was working as a log camp manager.⁶

In August 1900, “M.H. Whiting” is appointed as an estimator in a timber dispute⁷ in Webster County; Mathew, brother Samuel F., and father Robert were all heavily involved in the timber business in Gilmer County and along the Little Kanawha River so this would have been an area of extensive experience for Mathew H. Whiting.

Then, “M.H. Whiting” sold his horses, gear, camp set-up, and other household goods to Henry Spies in Webster County, on 9 April 1902,⁸ and no further records are located, either in West Virginia or a general nationwide search, that can be confidently associated with the West Virginia Mathew H Whiting.

Robert and Sarah’s middle son, Robert Stuart Whiting (1853-1944), married Mary Jane Davis and had a family of ten children, with only one reported childhood death; six sons and three daughters survived to adulthood. Their eldest, John Edward, was born in 1873, and their youngest child, Clark Mathew Whiting, was born in 1892.

After Mary Jane died in 1895, Robert Stuart had a short, unsuccessful marriage which produced no children. The census records indicate he resumed his status as a widower (though the second wife survived) by 1910. He was likely physically capable of procreation in 1910-1920, being 57-67 years of age, and listed as working on his own farm in the 1920 census, but no reference to or record of fathering any children after Clark is located.

All of Robert’s sons except Clark would have been adults by 1910, so let’s scroll back to that 1910 census record…and check where Robert’s sons were at the time.

Eldest son John Edward married Gay Danley, of another DeKalb family, in 1905 and they had made their home in Camden-on-Gauley, Webster Counter, through the 1920 census.

David Ivan Whiting was in Brooklyn in 1900, working as a bookkeeper and living on Lafayette Avenue (one block from DeKalb Street!). He married in New York in 1904 and his two sons were born there, in 1906 and 1907. A 1910 census record has not yet been located, but by the date of his World War I registration card (12 Sep 1918), David, his wife Sadie, and their sons Stuart and Morison had relocated to Clarksburg, Harrison County, West Virginia, where David was a foreman in the glass plant. He remained in the Clarksburg area.

Charles Franklin Whiting, in 1910, is a 33-year-old father of one, married and living in Clarksburg, Harrison County, as a tanner. He and wife Bertha Beall (another DeKalb family) had lost their eldest child, Ruby, sometime between her Jan 1905 birth and the census date.

Meanwhile, back in Gilmer county, in DeKalb household 323 (family 325) is Robert’s son, Everett French Whiting, who, in 1910, was a twenty-six year old head of family who has been married for two years to Nora Curry. French and Nora on 13 May 1910 are residing with Nora’s mother, Sarah Curry (66). Also included in the household is their daughter, Virginia, who is reported to be 1-3/12 years old.

Five households away from Everett French Whiting’s place, in household 318, is the Harvey Williams family, including daughter Demma, age 19, and newborn grandson, Roy Williams.

Roy Williams : James Whiting

K.I. inquired about, and reported in an Ancestry tree, James R Whiting with a birth year of 1919. His death was reported in the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1986, but he apparently died in Weston, Lewis County, West Virginia. (Death certificates from 1986 are not yet available to researchers; a cemetery card on K.I.’s tree indicates James was cremated in Washington, Pennsylvania, which may have been the nearest crematorium to Lewis County in 1986.) Still, we ask: Is Roy, James? Is James, Roy?

We returned to our research, moved on to 1920, and re-checked the family listings.

Everett French Whiting is now a 36-year-old farmer, with wife Nora (33), as well as mother-in-law Sarah Curry living in the household. (Amazingly, Sarah has aged 20 years in the ten-year-timespan between the 1910 and 1920 census – now reported as 87 years old and reminding us how fluid ages can be on census records!) Little Virginia named on the 1910 census had not survived, but by 1920, French and Nora had added Floy Kathleen (1911), James Almond (1914), Robert Curry (1916), and Raymond Marie (1918) to their family.

Oh, wait! What’s that? James Almond Whiting born in 1914? Let’s check that out!

French reported James Almond’s birth as having occurred on 7 Feb 1914, and Eda Nora (Curry) Whiting as the mother. It is noted there are no other Whiting births reported in Gilmer County during 1914, a time when birth reports were dependent upon doctors or midwives (if used), but usually family members, making the report to the County Clerk’s office.

Regardless, at this point, James Almond Whiting, born 1914, seems the most similar possibility within the known Whiting descendants to the James Whiting, born ca. 1919, being sought by K.I. So, a forward record search commenced.

On his 16 Oct 1940 registration with the Department of Selective Service, James Almond Whiting is residing in Laurel, Howard County, Maryland, working at Highland Farms, and lists as his contact his brother Raymond M Whiting who is also in Laurel: James A Whiting is employed by Highland Farmes [sic], reported as 5′ 11″ in height, 175 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair.

James had married Pauline P Ash, a native of Doddridge County, West Virginia, in Richmond with a Frederick County, Virginia, license, on 27 April 1940. At that time, he reported his occupation at the time as “laborer.” Raymond is listed with their father, French, in Doddridge County, on the 1940 U.S. census report of April, but, James and Pauline have not been located in Doddridge County or Howard County, Maryland, or surrounding areas in the 1940 census.

Continuing our forward search, we learn that James Almond Whiting and Pauline Ash had several children, and remained in Maryland for the duration of their married life. James, his father, and his brother Raymond all report being employed in racing; James and his father are residing next door to each other in 1950. The occupation, familial, and residential history do not support James Almond being able to be involved with another family located a 10-12 hour drive away in the mid-late 1950s to early 1970s time period, but stranger things have happened (and do!).

In another interesting twist of events, James Almond Whiting also expired in 1986 (cited by K.I. as the year-of-death for the James Whiting in their search), but in November of that year, and in Olney, Maryland. This does not match the April 5, 1986, death in Lewis County, West Virginia, reported by K.I..

Despite the obvious similarities, these are significant discrepancies, and no evidence to indicate that James Almond Whiting was the James R Whiting who allegedly fathered a child in Cleveland, Ohio, in the 1950s.

But wait, there’s more!

During the study of James Almond Whiting, a 1940 census report for another West Virginia-native James Whiting was uncovered.

Line 29, page 3 of 28 of the census made at the Virginia State Penitentiary in Richmond, Virginia, on April 23, 1940, reads:

  NAME         RELA.  S  R  AGE MS SCH GRD  POB   RESIDENCE, APRIL 1, 1935
Whiting, James 39926  M  W  25  S   No  3   W.Va. Moundsville  West Virginia

This is the first “other” James Whiting to have such similar demographics, so the research into there being a real, second James — not James A, nor Roy B — started up.

I admit that my imagination concocted all sorts of connections and stories.

Perhaps French and Nora, particularly in light of the loss of Virginia – and a mother-in-law living with them <spoken as a mother-in-law!> – had some troubles. Did French seek comfort elsewhere and find both his wife and his paramour expecting sons in the same month?

Is this James found in the Virginia penitentiary even related to K.I.’s James? Can we find a Whiting family in Moundsville or the general area in the 1930 census or 1935 directory who had a 15-year-old son named James? Moundsville, being in the Ohio-Pennsylvania panhandle of West Virginia, is certainly nearer the Cleveland area that might lead to contacts and connections. It is also home to the West Virginia State Penitentiary.

Have we eliminated the possibility of Roy Williams later using the name James? Where are Roy and the James-es between 1910 and 1940? Are there enough testers in the extended family to include or exclude French as the potential ancestor to K.I. within the match list limitations at Ancestry or My Heritage?

At this point, it’s been over four years since the initial K.I. correspondence was received and responded to, with lots of changes at the testing and research sites, as well as the launch, and occasional demise, of DNA-tool sites — and new, related, but as-of-yet-unidentified, testers. But, attempts to reconnect with K.I. to share research strategies have been left unanswered.

---

Navigation

---

Footnotes

1. Blaine T. Bettinger, JD, PhD, “The Shared cM Project 4.0 tool v4,” DNA Painter (https://dnapainter.com/tools/sharedcmv4).
   Bettinger provided the Shared cM data, self-reported by (and likely to contain some errors) from actual test taker data. Blaine T. Bettinger, “The Shared cM Project, Version 4.0 (March 2020),” The Genetic Genealogist, PDF online (https://thegeneticgenealogist.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Shared-cM-Project-Version-4.pdf). Also see “AncestryDNA Matching White Paper,” AncestryDNA, 31 March 2016 (https://www.ancestry.com/dna/resource/whitePaper/AncestryDNA-Matching-White-Paper). ↩︎
2. Bicentennial Biographies, Gilmer County, West Virginia. Edited by The Gilmer County Historical Society, Copyright 1976: Gilmer County Historical Society,
   Glenville, W.Va. Samuel Whiting submission by Clay Whiting, descendant: Samuel, Sr. and his wife, Sarah, moved to Jackson River in Bath County, Virginia, and then to Elk near Big Springs where Mrs. Whiting died unexpectedly. ↩︎
3. “Gilmer, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C34Z-Q341-Q?view=explore : Dec 18, 2025), image 612 of 778; .
   Image Group Number: 008614418 ↩︎
4. “Gilmer, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSR7-8QZJ-6?view=explore : Dec 18, 2025), image 381 of 555; .
   Image Group Number: 008293329 ↩︎
5. “Gilmer, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C37T-LTV?view=explore : Dec 19, 2025), image 86 of 559; .
   Image Group Number: 008589434 ↩︎
6. Year: 1900; Census Place: Hacker Valley, Webster, West Virginia; Page: 4; Enumeration District: 0136; FHL microfilm: 1241776 ↩︎
7. “Webster, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89VT-CKNH?view=explore : Dec 19, 2025), image 369 of 824; .
   Image Group Number: 007616858 ↩︎
8. “Webster, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C37T-9K6M?view=explore : Dec 19, 2025), image 124 of 289; .
   Image Group Number: 008589058 ↩︎

K.I. tested at Ancestry, and uploaded or tested at MyHeritage, and also uploaded results to GEDmatch. Close family members to K.I. also tested at Ancestry and tested and/or uploaded to FamilyTreeDNA. Comparison and available triangulation tools indicated a relationship between K.I. and their family with my family through our Whiting ancestors, almost assuredly a child or grandchild of Robert Whiting (1813-1872). The Whiting lineage has been extensively documented by myself, other near and distant cousins, and particularly cousins and fellow immigrant-Whiting descendant sisters Mary and Doris Radabaugh¹ . However, a meticulous review of these works and documents found no historically documented relationship which would lead to K.I.

GEDmatch comparisons also indicated a K.I. relationship with a child of Harvey H Williams and Sarah Ida Cain, also of the DeKalb area of Gilmer County, West Virginia, so research into these connections commenced.

Ida and Harvey were married in Gilmer County, West Virginia, in September 1899, had daughter Demma May in December 1890, and a second daughter, Areeta (also known/seen as Arreta, Aretta, and, eventually Rita) Gay, in October 1892.

However, married life seems to have soured over the next couple of years as suits were then filed for divorce. Sarah Ida was granted leave to file an amended bill in “Ida Williams vs. H H Williams” on 5 Oct 1894, but, Ida’s suit was eventually dismissed without prejudice or charges on 12 Feb 1895 as the Court found itself unable to grant the relief requested.

Harvey continued to pursue the matter and was granted a divorce, along with custody of the girls, on 3 Oct 1895:

In an interesting turn of events, Harvey and Ida were soon back together, and on 30 Aug 1899, were remarried in Gilmer County:

By the time of the 1900 census, Harvey and Ida were residing on Crooked Run, Gilmer County, with their two daughters – Demma M, age 9; and, Arreta G, age 7. Harvey’s reported occupation was that of groceries merchant:

The Williams’ family neighbors on the 1900 census were the Carders, Hersman, and Hinzman families on one side; with James Furr, Samuel Kelly, and John Wright their neighbors on the other, all enumerated on the 23rd day of June, 1900, in the Eastern District of Crooked Run Precinct, Gilmer County, West Virginia, specifically Enumeration District 29, by Luther E Roberts.

ED 29 is described as, “Center dist (pt), all of dist in the Cedarville voting pct and that part in Crooked Run pct east of and above the Glenville, Ripley and Ohio Turnpike.” That road is now U.S. Route 33/119, and Crooked Run is a tributary to Cedar Creek about 3.5 miles (as the crow flies) upstream from the Cedar Creek mouth at DeKalb into the Little Kanawha River.

Harvey and Ida continued to add daughters to their family, including Maida Pearl (1900), Rebecca Jenerva (1904), Irene (1906), Daisy Bell (1909), and Amy Druzilla (1911).

The 1910 census indicates the Williams family were then on a rented farm and were the neighbors of the William Westfall and Floyd Furr families on one side, and the William Cain, Enoch Furr, John McDonald, Charles Wiant, and French Whiting families on the other. R.F. Westfall enumerated the area on the 12th day of May, 1910, described as Part of the Center Magisterial District of Gilmer County, West Virginia, specifically Enumeration District 37; page 17. ED 37 comprised the, “Center Magisterial dist (pt), Cedarville Pct, Letter Gap Pct.”

The 1910 Williams detailed household listing reports²:

(page 33/35 – Sheet 17A)
31/320 – Williams, Harvy [sic?] H – Head – M W 57 M1 21 Farmer on Gen. farm, Renter
—, Ida – Wife – F W 38 M1 21 6 ch born 6 ch living
—, Demma – Daughter – F W 19 S [nothing noted in maternity boxes]
—, Madie – Daughter – F W 9 S
—, Rebecca – Daughter – F W 6 S
(page 34/35 – Sheet 17B)
—, Irene – Daughter F W 3 S
—, Belle – Daughter F W 1 S
—, Roy – Grandson – M W 0/12 S

Assuming Mr. Westfall was well-versed with, and following, the Enumerator Instructions for the 1910 form, an age of 0/12 would mean that Roy – described as a grandson – had been born within the month prior to Census Day, April 15, 1910.

Only Demma or Arreta are of age to bear a grandchild to Harvey and Sarah Ida. Demma is accounted for in the census, but is listed as single, and no response is provided in the blanks asking about childbirth (although the information was inquired of and reported on Sarah Ida). So, where is Aretta?

A comprehensive search of the West Virginia census reports found “Aretia Williams,” a single female of 17, working as a servant for the Wilber S Mayers family in Fairmont, Marion County, West Virginia. In fact she was enumerated in their household on the third day of May, 1910, by Rufus E Morgan. Aretia was reported has having been born in West Virginia, as were her parents, and that she is literate. She is listed as single, but, again, without any response to the maternity questions of the 1910 census. Aretta Williams, daughter of Sarah and Harvey, was reported as seven years of age in the 1900 census; the 17 years of age reported on Aretia in the 1910 census form correlates with that.

While it seems unlikely a seventeen-year-old would be at residential work many miles away from her home just a few weeks after giving birth, it’s not unimaginable, so further documentation on this grandson Roy Williams was sought.

A record³ of Roy’s birth was found in Gilmer County. It is out of order, and only found within the transcribed, typewritten record books without original images or evidence of a delayed certificate issued (which might cite supporting evidence). At some point in time, Sarah I. Williams, “grandmother,” reported the single, live birth of a white male named Roy Bernard Edwards as having occurred on 8 Apr 1910 in Glenville, and reported his parents as “George Wesley Edwards, father,” and “Demma May Williams Edwards” as his mother.

In the meantime, a tree uploaded by K.I. indicated their grandfather was “James Whiting,” who passed away in Weston, Lewis County, West Virginia, in 1986, and I was soon contacted by K.I. inquiring as to any information I could share about a James Whiting, ca. 1919-1986, who died in West Virginia.

Was Roy actually James? Or, James actually Roy? Was his/their father an Edwards or a Whiting? Where would the connection be? K.I.’s match was pretty strongly hinting at a 2C-3C group relationship.

---

Navigation

---

Footnotes

1. The families of Ephraim and Maria Conger Davis and Robert and Sarah Jane McCray Whiting, compiled by Doris A Radabaugh and Mary E Radabaugh. Rev. May 2005. https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/viewer/113849/?offset=3&return=1#page=1&viewer=picture&o=info&n=0&q= ↩︎
2. Year: 1910; Census Place: Center, Gilmer, West Virginia; Roll: T624_1680; Page: 17A; Enumeration District: 0037; FHL microfilm: 1375693 ↩︎
3. Gilmer County, West Virginia, Register of Births, Roy Bernard Edwards 8 Apr 1910; digital images, West Virginia Vital Research Records Project (https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808256&frame=00393 : accessed 16 Jan 2026). ↩︎

As we began branching out <ha! pun intended!> with incorporating DNA alongside traditional genealogy methods, several members of our families were interested in testing, or, at minimum, agreed to test under our management. So, by early 2017, we had nearly a dozen tests with which to work, and had confirmed, genetically, branches to whom we’d previously assigned genealogical relationships by historical methods.

We began noting, too, those who could not be placed in the family tree, at least as understood, historically. One in particular, K.I. (and their immediate relatives), had tested at Ancestry and also uploaded results or re-tested at additional sites: MyHeritage, FamilyTreeDNA, 23andMe, and GEDMatch. By mid-2017, K.I. constituted the largest match to my siblings and me yet unplaced, and except for brief periods by since-solved matches, K.I. and their immediate relatives have held that position.

Ancestry’s Pro Tools Enhanced shared match features, along with analyses through WATO, BanyanDNA, and DNA-Sci, have certainly – within the limits of the science and statistics currently available – solved my K.I. riddle, as well as additional, related mystery matches uncovered, and this series is my informal, cited, narrative proof summary.

DeKalb, West Virginia

The little village of DeKalb, West Virginia, was home to the Stalnaker Plantation and it was assumed, in 1845, DeKalb was going to be the county seat for the newly-created Gilmer County (carved out from parts of Lewis and Kanawha counties). The village of Glenville, however, was selected. In addition to the old Native American migration trail (now, State Rt. 5), the U.S. 33/119 route, aka the “Glenville-Ripley-Ohio Turnpike,” also went through Glenville, providing access to the seat of government from more areas of the county to Glenville than DeKalb.

However, Glenville had no court facilities or jail, so DeKalb remained the de facto seat, if not the official seat, and reportedly lobbied to have the decision reconsidered. At some point, the official records were “spirited out of DeKalb under the cover of darkness,” and taken to Glenville, and the county seat issue was concluded.

The village of DeKalb then began to decline. The population and resources in the area dwindled, and DeKalb eventually lost even its U.S. post office in 1941.

The Families of the Neighborhood

Among those at the confluence of Enumeration Districts 37, 38, and 39 of the DeKalb and Center Districts in the 1910 U.S. Federal census¹ were the Samuel Fletcher Whiting family (see an intro to SFW, here), the Ernest L. Radabaugh family, the Beall/Bell and Davis families, several Cain families, and Harvey H Williams, who had married Sarah E Cain – twice – and their family.

Samuel Fletcher Whiting (1851-1910) was first married on 5 Nov 1874² to Sarah Elizabeth Wade (1858-1895), one of at least ten children of Dennis O Wade and Lucinda Jane Townsend. SFW and Sarah E. had seven children: Estella (“Esta”) in 1875, Lee Roy in 1877, Devery in 1878 (who died prior to the 1880 census), Daisy in 1879, Jessie in 1884, Hallie in 1888, and Clyde in 1889.  There may have been other children, given the gaps between, for instance, Daisy and Jessie, but no records confirming any other births have been located. Sarah Elizabeth Wade Whiting died on the ninth day of April, 1895, at 36 years of age.³

The 1900 census⁴ indicates SFW, widower, was head of the Whiting household which included his eldest daughter, Esta, and her husband of five years, Bert, and their son – SFW’s three-year-old grandson – Herbert; SFW’s eldest son, Lee, with his wife, Hattie, and their six-month-old daughter, Lillian; as well as the three youngest children of SFW and Sarah: Jessie, Hallie, and Clyde. Daughter Daisy had married Mack Danley, a teamster, and their household was near the John S Bell household in the DeKalb district.

The next property upstream, along the same side of Cedar Creek, from SFW was that of his eldest sister, Rebecca, her husband, Charles Wiant, and their adopted son, Carl. Carl’s biological mother was SFW’s sister-in-law, Martha Wade, who died during childbirth at age 18. Her widower, Granville Miller, allowed the Wiants to adopt baby Carl.

Across Cedar Creek from SFW’s land was the residence of Malinda Ellyson (1866-1951) and her second husband, Ernest L. Radabaugh (1868-1911).

Malinda was the daughter of Sarah Woodford and John Ellyson of Sinking Creek. 18-year-old Malinda had married 34-year-old William Henry Brannon (1850-1886) on 12 Mar 1885⁵. W.H. Brannon reported the death of their unnamed female infant on 21 Aug 1885⁶, and Malinda reported the birth of their daughter Matella on 19 June 1886 at Cedar Creek, into the Gilmer County records.

William Henry, commonly called Henry, was a descendant of the Brannon and Beall families of the area, his father being Henry Bascom Brannon and his mother Jemima Permelia Beall; both the Brannon and Beall families lived in the immediate DeKalb area. Henry Bascom Beall and Jemima Permelia Bell are household 8 in the 1870 U.S. Census of DeKalb District, while Robert Whiting and Sarah J McCray, the parents of Samuel Fletcher Whiting, et al., are household 9.⁷

William Henry Brannon’s property had been settled by the Joseph Hardman family in 1817. They established the first mill in the DeKalb district near the mouth of, what else, Mill Hollow Run.

According to Minnie Kendall Lowther’s History of Ritchie County, the Hardmans arrived in Lewis (Gilmer) County with three children and⁸ the last two – Benjamin and George Washington Hardman – were born on Cedar Creek. The Hardman children migrated to Calhoun, Roane and Ritchie Counties. … James H. and Christena Beall Cain later lived in the Hardman house with their five children.

William Henry Brannon bought the Cain property, and this is where he brought his bride, Malinda Ellyson upon their marriage, where they lost their first infant, and where their daughter Matella was born in June 1886⁹.

In September 1886, William Henry Brannon died suddenly at 36 years of age. The Gilmer County Banner of September 24, 1886, is reported as having published on page three of its issue number 16 of Volume III¹⁰:

William Henry Brannon died Monday evening of paralysis. He had just passed through a severe spell of fever. One day last week he went from his home on Cedar Creek to his father-in-law's, John Ellyson, on Sinking Creek, and was there stricken down with paralysis from which he died Monday evening about six o'clock.

John Ellyson signed as Malinda’s surety on her administratrix and guardian bonds ($400 each) at the Glenville courthouse in November 1887¹¹.

Ernest L. Radabaugh (1868-1911) was a native of Barbour County, West Virginia, who arrived, with his parents and his siblings, in Gilmer County sometime between the 1870 and 1880 U.S. federal censuses. They lived in the Trace Fork area northeast of the village of DeKalb.

On 17 March 1889, Ernest married the young widow Malinda Ellyson Brannon (1866-1951)¹² and they proceeded to keep house at the Cedar Creek property. By all evidence, Malinda’s daughter, Matella (“May”) Brannon, continued to reside with Malinda’s parents after her re-marriage, rather than her mother and Ernest.¹³

Malinda’s mother, Sarah, reported the births of Ethel Radabaugh on 25 Dec 1889, and, of Maud Radabaugh on 27 Aug 1892. The 9 May 1896 birth of Oren Radabaugh to Malinda Ellyson and Ernest Lee Radabaugh was registered in the books of Gilmer County by an unknown source.¹⁴ Sarah, again, registered the birth of Thelma Paulina of 16 Sept 1904. Hoy B’s 11 Sept 1907 birth was registered by his father, E.L. Radabaugh.

Malinda and Ernest’s son Oren Radabaugh married another DeKalb native, Evelyn Elizabeth Davis, who was a Beall/Bell descendant through her maternal grandfather Alfred Beall. Evelyn was also a Whiting relative through her paternal grandmother, Louvernia Whiting (1848-1942), another sister of SFW. This made Evelyn a 2C1R to her husband Oren’s half-sister, Matella, but no historic genealogical relation to Oren.

The Mysteries

The tools available at the DNA sites at the time left us with three mysterious matches:

• Where does K.I. and their kin fit into this scenario?
• Why does A.B. [name disguised], who, according to their DNA kit manager, is a descendant of Oren and Evelyn, match the descendants of Samuel and Sarah at such significant amounts – 276cM on average, rather than an expected amount of 73cM – based on the tree associated with the kit?
• Adoptees C.B. and M.F. also have shared matches within this group, but how?

---

Navigation

---

Footnotes

1. “United States, Census, 1910,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MPJC-WQW : Sun Oct 19 13:47:12 UTC 2025), Entry for S Fletcher Whiting and Gertrude Whiting, 1910. ↩︎
2. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Marriage Record No. 1 and 2 – Copy,” p. 20, S.F. Whiting-Sarah E. Wade, 5 Nov 1874; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808589&frame=00116 ↩︎
3. “Find a Grave Index”, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVL1-K2KZ : Wed Apr 02 16:14:40 UTC 2025), Entry for Sarah Elizabeth Wade Whiting. Also, Whiting Family Traditions, Jo Craddock, compiler (MSS notes, ca. 1969-2005); private held by Craddock, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Hallie Whiting Craddock’s mother died when she was six years of age, reported by Hallie Whiting Craddock, ca. 1969. ↩︎
4. “United States, Census, 1900”, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M9CN-C81 : Thu May 29 17:47:07 UTC 2025), Entry for Samuel F Whiting and Estella Withers, 1900. ↩︎
5. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Marriage Records,” Brannon – Ellyson, 12 Mar 1885; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808589&frame=00131 ↩︎
6. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Death Records,” Brannon, ——-, 12 Aug 1885; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808255&frame=00013. ↩︎
7. Year: 1870; Census Place: De Kalb, Gilmer, West Virginia; Roll: M593_1686; Page: 198B; Family History Library Film: 553185 ↩︎
8. Radabaugh, Doris M & Mary E. Radabaugh, compilers, The Families of Ephraim and Maria Conger Davis and Robert and Sarah Jane McCray Whiting. Parkersburg, West Virginia, D.M. Radabaugh, 2005. ↩︎
9. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Birth Records,” p. 19E, Brannon, Matella, female live birth, 19 Jun 1886; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808256&frame=00038 ↩︎
10. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/131317096/william-henry-brannon ↩︎
11. “Gilmer, West Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99K9-BDQY?view=explore : Mar 23, 2026), image 62 of 376; .
    Image Group Number: 007618719 ↩︎
12. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Marriage Record No. 1 and 2 – Copy,” p. 41, Ernest Radabaugh-Malinda Brannon, 17 Mar 1889; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808589&frame=00137 ↩︎
13. “United States, Census, 1900,” Census Place: De Kalb, Gilmer, West Virginia; Page: 4; Enumeration District: 0030; FHL microfilm: 1241758. Page 38A, entry for May Brannon, 1900. ↩︎
14. “Gilmer County, West Virginia, Birth Records,” p. 141F, Oren Radabaugh, 9 May 1896; digital images, West Virginia Vital Records Research, https://dach-image-proxy.digital-relativity.workers.dev/?film=808256&frame=00231 ↩︎