OK, time to start a Genealogy Blog.
This first post is going to center around Lucretia, wife of Alpheus Bugbee.
Alpheus & Lucretia resided in Putney, Windham Vermont in the early 1800's. Per the Vital Records of Putney, Vermont to the year 1900, by Ken Stevens, Alpheus Bugbee & Lucretia Foster were married 30 Jul 1797 in Putney. The following Bugbee children had birth or baptisms recorded in this book, as children of Alpheus:
Sally, Alpheus (Jr), Lucretia (Jr), Erastus Lovell, Mary, Chloe Parker, Israel Grovesner, Susannah, Bela, Cyrus Fernald and an apparent adopted child - Reuben Smead.
So, the name of the wife of Alpheus Sr is being listed as Lucretia Foster, born about 1772. This would put her age at approx 25 years at the time of the birth of Reuben Jr.. Many women at this time were marrying at a younger age. I am considering that Lucretia's maiden name may not be Foster, and that Foster may be the surname of a first husband. If not Foster, then what? How about Smead?
Looking at the clue provided by the adopted child, Reuben Smead. Reuben was born 1 Sep, 1797 in Putney. Other researchers are showing Reuben's parents to be Reuben Smead Sr and Lucy Church. Reuben Sr was born 26 Sep, 1764, in Franklin County, Massachusetts, and died 13 Oct, 1798 in Putney. The 1800 census shows other Smeads in Putney. Could be siblings or other relatives of Reuben Sr. Why was Reuben Jr adopted by Alpheus & Lucretia, and not by other apparent Smead relatives? What if Lucretia was the sister of Reuben Sr? Looking further, the Vital Records of Greenfield (Franklin County) Massachusetts, and other sources, show a couple of Lucretia Smeads born around the time to be the right age for our Lucretia, and related to Reuben Smead.
This needs more investigating.
