A Lost Family!

The Palmer family seems to enjoy reusing names, especially Truman. So you can imagine how confused I was to find another Truman. This one came from a second family of the eldest Truman.  The Truman Palmer who was born in 1798 in Vermont lost his first wife, Meribah or Merab, in 1837. But I found him in the 1855 New York census with a wife named Elisa M. His daughter, Sarah Cecilia, was also there. But she was from his wife Merab. Only after locating the graves of Truman and Merab did I find two more children both to Elisa.  Truman and Robert were born in 1839 and 1845, respectively. Sadly they died a week apart in December 1851.  Both Trumans, Merab and Sarah are buried in the same cemetery. I will have to look for Elisa. And there are more Trumans in the family. Alvah Palmer, the elder Truman's brother, named a son Truman. And there is a Walter Truman Palmer in the family!

It was sad to learn that neither of Truman's young sons lived to carry on his name. But I was glad that I pursued the 1855 census to find his second family.