Our Jones Family Connection - Part 3, Bessie Whitsett Bradstock

Elsewhere in this blog is brief mention of Bessie L. Whitsett, whose mother, Rosa Jones Whitsett, was the daughter of Dr. William Jones, my generation's GG grandfather.

Rosa married Dr. Charles Crawford Whitsett. They had four children, three of whom died in infancy. The surviving child, Bessie, was born May 2, 1892. Her mother died at age 28 - June 10, 1892 – about five weeks later. The proximity of those two dates suggests that Rosa died of complications due to childbirth, although that's speculation on my part.

◄ Bessie Whitsett, circa 1893

◄ Dr. C.C. Whitsett, circa 1930

◄ This photo of Dr. Whitsett in his office (from which the portrait above was created) was provided by Suzanne Jones, who is descended from C.C. Whitsett's brother. She reports that the child in the lower left corner is his step-grandson, James Norman McLaughlin. (Click photos to enlarge 'em.)

I wondered what became of Bessie, and did some research. The information I’ve found says Bessie's father, Dr. Whitsett, remarried after Rosa's death and lived until 1936. His second wife's name was Lena McLaughlin and she had other children. However, strangely, the 1900 census says Bessie, then age 8, was not living with her father. Rather, she was living with her aunt and uncle, her mother’s brother, Fleetwood Jones and his wife. Below is the census data.

1900 United States Federal Census about Bessie Whitsitt
(The spelling is recorded in some places as Whitsitt vs. Whitsett)
Name: Bessie Whitsitt
Home in 1900: Goshen, Belmont, Ohio
Age: 8
Birth Date: May 1892
Birthplace: Ohio
Race: White
Gender: Female
Relationship to Head of House: Niece
Father's Birthplace: Pennsylvania
Mother's Birthplace: Ohio
Marital Status: Single

Household Members: Name, Age
Fleetwood C Jones, 42 (head of household)
Leona D Jones, 25 (his wife)
Carleton D Jones, 4 (son)
Elizabeth A Jones, 66 (Fleet's mother)
William H Jones, 28 (Fleet's brother)
Bessie Whitsitt, 8 (Fleet and Leona's niece)

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By the time of the 1910 census, Bessie, now 17, was living with her uncle (recorded here with middle initial "W" vs. "H" as above) William W. Jones, an attorney, and his wife Sarah. Bessie's occupation is recorded as "none".

1910 United States Federal Census about Bessie Whitsett
Name: Bessie Whitsett
Home in 1910: Goshen, Belmont, Ohio
Age in 1910: 17
Estimated birth year: abt 1893
Birthplace: Ohio
Relation to Head of House: Niece
Father's Birth Place: Pennsylvania
Mother's Birth Place: Ohio
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Gender: Female

Household Members: Name, Age
William W Jones, 37
Sarah Jones, 22
Bessie Whitsett, 17
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By 1920 Bessie was on her own and living in a boarding house. The census records her as being a laborer in a factory.

1920 United States Federal Census about Bessie Whitsett
Name: Bessie Whitsett
Age: 27
Home in 1920: Ashland Ward 4, Ashland, Ohio
Estimated birth year: abt 1893
Birthplace: Ohio
Relation to Head of House: Lodger
Father's Birth Place: Ohio
Mother's Birth Place: Ohio
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Sex: Female
Able to read: Yes
Able to Write: Yes

Household Members: Name, Age
Ora Clark, 25
Ruth Clark, 21
Raymond Clark, 2
Frank Burdick, 42
Elizebeth Burdick, 40
Mary Ellen Burdick, 19
Virgina Burdick, 15
Bessie Whitsett, 27
Grace Franz, 28
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Based upon a report that Bessie married a (Mr.) Bradstock and lived in Wellington, Ohio, at the time of her father’s death (see below) the 1930 census appears to show her living with her husband and child. The age shown is correct, but Bessie’s middle initial was reportedly “L”, not “A”. However, I’ve seen larger differences than that in other censuses, so it may not be significant.

1930 United States Federal Census about Bessie A Bradstock
Home in 1930: Wellington, Lorain, Ohio
Name: Bessie A Bradstock
Age: 37
Estimated birth year: abt 1893
Relation to Head of House: Wife
Spouse's name: Clyde A Bradstock
Race: White

Household Members: Name, Age
Clyde A Bradstock, 33
Bessie A Bradstock, 37
Frank A Bradstock, 8

Source

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The genealogy below is where I found that she married (Mr.) Bradstock, but provides no further details regarding her life.

CHARLES CRAWFORD WHITSETT...was born February 19, 1858 in Perryopolis, Fayette Co., PA, and died August 26, 1936 in Ohio. He married ROSA JONES 1884 in Ohio. She died 1894.

Notes for CHARLES CRAWFORD WHITSETT:
Had four children, three of whom died in infancy.

Dr. C.C. Whitsett attended public school and College of Bethany, WV. Graduated from Ohio Medical College of Cincinnati in 1882. Practiced in Hendrysburg, Ohio until 1908 when he moved to Freeport, Ohio

More About CHARLES CRAWFORD WHITSETT:
Fact 1: MD
Fact 2: August 28, 1936, buried Greenmont Cemetery, Freeport, OH

More About CHARLES WHITSETT and ROSA JONES:
Marriage: 1884, Ohio
Child of CHARLES WHITSETT and ROSA JONES is:
■ BESSIE WHITSETT, m[arried] BRADSTOCK.

Notes for BESSIE WHITSETT:Living in Wellington, Ohio at time of Fathers death according to obit.

Source

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Using Ancestry.com to research what became of Bessie, I found a Whitsett family tree and contacted the owner, Suzanne Jones (who is not related to our Jones line). Susie shows the following information for Bessie.

Parents:
Charles Crawford Whitsett 1858 – 1936
Rosa Jones 1860 – 1894

Spouse & Children:
Clyde A. Bradstock 1897 – 1987
Frank A. Bradstock, b. 1921

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I have found no date of death for Bessie Whitsett Bradstock, nor have I researched her son, Frank Bradstock, to see if I can find him. However, the possibility exists that we have other family members in the Bradstock line that we've never met - or even heard of.

Last updated 9/21/2010 (still in the process of being edited)