The Bluetts Came to America in 1833 (With 2 Chests and 1 Bundle.......)

The Passenger List from the Brig Myra 10 September, 1833

      Harriet Bluett Hurd was my 3X Great Grandmother.  She married William Hurd and came from Pennsylvania to California and Nevada (not once, but twice!)  in the early 1850's.  Her parents were John Bluett and Honor Rodda, both from Cornwall, England.  

    John Bluett was born in Tywardreath, Cornwall around 1803.  His father was John Bluett/Blewett who was a blacksmith, and his mother was Anne Warne; they lived around the area of St. Austell where John the blacksmith died in 1838. 

 John married Honor Rodda in 1824 in Phillack, Cornwall and they had a total of 13 children.  John and Honor made the decision to come to the United States most likely for economic reasons, as did so many other immigrants.  In the 1820's alone, nearly 20,000 immigrants from England and Ireland came through the port of Philadelphia.  Between 1830 and the great famine migration of 1847 60,000 immigrants landed in Philadelphia (Philadelphia: Immigrant City by Frederick M. Miller).  The Cornish migration (which began in 1830) was specifically caused by the economic collapse and the resulting lack of jobs in the country.  Cornish dispersion can still be found mainly in America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico and South America.  Anywhere there was work to be found in a mine.  Or as the saying went, "a mine is a hole anywhere in the world with at least one Cornishman at the bottom of it".   They took their culture and way of life with them where ever they traveled. (Wikipedia Cornish Diaspora) 

  It is interesting to note that the family came through St. John's, New Brunswick, Canada into the United States.  At that time, many immigrants from Britain, Scandinavia, northern Europe and Russia chose to come by way of Canada to avoid the trouble and delay of U.S. Immigration inspection which was not there to meet them at the Canadian border at that time.  This route was often advertised as a more desirable route into the country. (National Archives Prologue Magazine Fall 2000 By Way of Canada).  I found the  passenger list for the Brig Myra on Ancestry.com, and it was a lucky find, as many immigrants that came through Canada have no U.S. Immigration records.  This was archived by the National Archives and Records Administration when they sponsored a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project to transcribe all available information on Canadian border crossings and index it in the 1930's. 

 

    John and Honor arrived at the port of Philadelphia on September 10, 1833.  John was 31 years old and Honor (Anna) was 30.  They made the voyage with their children John, Mary Ann and Martha, ages 4, 3 and 2.  Their first born daughter (also named Mary Ann) had died in Cornwall at the age of  4 before they left the country.  Sadly, their daughter Elizabeth was born and died on the voyage.  It is not known if she was buried at sea, or at the time of landing in New Brunswick, Canada (FindaGrave Elizabeth Bluett b. 19 June 1832 d. 1833).  The passenger list included what they traveled with:  2 Chests and 1 Bundle.  Their worldly belongings.  I wonder what they brought with them? Tools? Books? A Bible? Cherished quilts? A teapot?  The trip must have been long and arduous as well as melancholy.  Or, full of hope for the prospects of a better life and employment. 

Children born to John and Honor in Cornwall: 

   Mary Ann Bluett born 1825 and died 1829 in Tywardreath, Cornwall before the family began their journey to America.

  John Bluett born 1826 Tywardreath, Cornwall and died 1876 in Merced, California. He married Susan Tonkin in Nevada City, California and they had 5 children.  He was a miner.  I will do a separate post on this family and their lives in Nevada City. The Bluett/Durbin family lived on Bourbon Hill in Nevada City in the late 1800's.  Members of this family are buried in Pine Grove Cemetery in Nevada City.  

  Mary Ann Bluett born 1828 Tywardreath, Cornwall and died possibly in 1877 in Pennsylvania.  

  Martha Bluett born 1830 Tywardreath, Cornwall and died possibly in 1868 in Pennsylvania. 

  Elizabeth Bluett born 1832 on board the brig Myra and died on the voyage to America in 1833. 

  Children born to John and Honor Bluett in Pennsylvania: 

Harriet E. Bluett was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania in 1834 (per her son John's funeral home records).  She died in Virginia City, Nevada in 1893.  She was my Great Great Great Grandmother.  Her husband, William Hurd, was a miner in Pennsylvania, California and Nevada. 

  William Bluett was born in St. Clair, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania in 1836.  He ended up moving to Sutter Creek California as an adult and died in 1897. He is buried in Pine Grove Cemetery in Amador County.  The 1880 Census listed William as working as a carpenter and living in Jackson, in Township 1, Amador County.  He may have worked as a miner before working as a carpenter.  

  Sara Jane "Jenny" Bluett was born in New Albany, Bradford County, Pennsylvania in 1838 and died in San Francisco, California in 1910.  She is buried in Pine Grove, California.  Her first husband was John Herbert, and their children were Kate Herbert Liversledge*,  William Herbert and Nelly Herbert Leake.  Her second husband was Orson Clough, a mining engineer. In a previous post (2 February, 2021 The Hurd Family; Lives in Pennsylvania, California, Nevada and Beyond Part 3) I talked about Orson Clough's son by his first marriage, Fred Clough, who married Carrie Hurd in Virginia City, Nevada.  Carrie was Harriet's daughter.  

 *Kate Herbert Liversledge's son Henry Bluett Liversledge (Harry) is Pine Grove's most famous person buried there.  In the 1920 Olympics held in Antwerp he captured a bronze medal in the shot put and competed in the Paris Olympics of 1924.  He was a veteran of WWI and WWII and was decorated for bravery during the assault of Iwo Jima in WWII.  He was named Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force, Guam in 1949 and was named as Director, Marine Corps Reserves, in 1950.  (FindaGrave Henry Bluett Liversledge 1894-1951). 

Sara Jane lived here at 2459 Buchanan Street in San Francisco in 1910.  She lived here as a boarder with her daughter Helen. 

 James Wellington Bluett was born in Beaver Meadows, Carbon County, Pennsylvania in 1838.  He died in Spokane, Washington in 1891. He was a Methodist minister who began his ministry in Ukiah, California, and then was transferred to Yakima, Washington. When he transferred to Cheney, Washington, he bought a wheat farm. His daughter Ruth Bluett Thayer's  obituary provided this information. 

 Rev. J.W. Bluett's headstone Greenwood Memorial Terrace, Spokane, Washington.

  Rachel Bluett was born in 1841 in New Albany, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Her death date is unknown.

  Hannah Melvina Bluett was born in 1842 in New Albany, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.  She married Silas Shaffer and lived in Dutch Flat, California.  I will do a separate post on this family at a later date, as I have pictures of her family.   Silas was a miner in the area, and many family members are buried in the Dutch Flat cemetery. 

Hannah Melvina Bluett around 1870 shared by Rob Congdon on Ancestry.com

Samuel Bluett was born in Tamaqua, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania on 28 September, 1844 and died on 30 September 1844.  He is most likely buried with his father, John Bluett. 

 Joseph Thomas Bluett was born in 1846 in Tamaqua, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania and died in 1915 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He was the youngest son of John and Honor Bluett.  After the death of John in 1852, Honor moved with her family to California, including Joseph. When the Civil War broke out, Joseph returned east, and served along with other Californians in the 2nd Regiment of the Massachusetts Calvary for 3 years.  In my previous post of November 11, 2020 (Joseph T. Bluett and a Valued Keepsake) I talked about the little bible that he carried with him throughout the war which was given to him by my Great Great Grandmother Elizabeth Jane Hurd (Harriet's daughter) while they were living in Nevada City, California.  Joseph stayed in Pennsylvania, married and raised his family there.  

Joseph T. Bluett from FindaGrave 

  John and Honor moved around Pennsylvania quite a bit, as evidenced from the birthplaces of their children born in the United States.   John was probably looking for work, and ended up working as a miner in Tamaqua.  He was most likely working in a coal mine.  He died in 1852 of bilious pneumonia (otherwise known as black lung disease) at the young age of 49 years.  Honor died in 1863.  It is not known where Honor was buried; her last place of residence was Nevada City, California but there are no burial records.  John may have been buried in the German Protestant Cemetery aka "The Hill" in Mahanoy, Pennsylvania, but records from this time were destroyed in a flood. That research was done by a Bluett relative, Steve McElvarr, who is a descendant of Joseph T. Bluett.  He and I share DNA, and last corresponded in 2017.  

Honor Rodda Bluett image from FindaGrave

  John Bluett was able to take advantage of Pennsylvania's growing economy based on anthracite coal mining that started in the early 1800's.   Anthracite coal is also called "stone coal", "hard coal" or "rock coal" and is known for its high carbon and energy content.  Mining began in 1813 in the Lehigh Valley in Beaver Meadows and when railroad and canal transportation improved making moving coal easier,  anthracite coal began to fuel the Industrial Revolution in America.  (Wikipedia: History of Anthracite Coal Mining).  John moved around finding jobs in several different coal fields located in Pennsylvania.  The Bluetts landed in the Tamaqua and Mahanoy areas, where  Harriet's husband William and their oldest son John were also eventually  employed in the mines.  From there, the Hurds made their way with other Bluett relatives to the gold and silver mines in the west to become a part of that colorful history. I found an informative online exhibition from the American Philosophical Society called "Old Country in the New World".  It delves into the lives of nineteenth century immigrant  coal miners of northeastern Pennsylvania and tells the story of ordinary men (and women) trying to provide a life for their families while being caught up in the industrial revolution.   It is worth your time looking at if you are interested. 

https://www.amphilsoc.org/museum/exhibitions/old-country-new-world-saint-clair-19th-century-coal-community

Relationship Reference:  Me->Margaret Hansen Boothby->Harold Hansen->Vere Burrows Hansen->Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows->Harriet Bluett Hurd->John Bluett and Honor Rodda Bluett from Cornwall. 

    

Joseph T. Bluett and a Valued Keepsake (Bluett)

   In honor of Veterans  Day this year I am sharing a letter written by my Great Great Grandmother Elizabeth Jane (Hurd) Burrows in 1927.  She wrote it to her grandson, my Grandpa,  Harold Hansen. He was 17 years old at the time.   Along with her letter she enclosed a small bible and a picture of the recipient of the bible.  These items have been passed down to me from my mother, Margaret Hansen Boothby and are now archived with the rest of the family artifacts and history.  

Here is a transcription of the letter....

Berkeley  July 1st 1927

  Dear Harald (she used the Norwegian spelling of his name) 

                     I am sending you my valued keepsake.  The Testament was given to me as a Prize, by the Nevada City M.E. Sunday School in 1860.  I gave it in 1861 to my Uncle Joseph T. Bluett then a young man 17 years old.  He enlisted in the Nevada City Light Guards for 3 years or for as long as the Civil War lasted.  He carried it through the war and returned it to me in the condition it is in now, in 1865 when the war was over.  The Company was sent to New York and divided among other Regiments.  Joseph T. Bluett served in the 2nd Mass. Calvary under Gen. Phill Sheridan.  He died in Philadelphia aged 72 (?) years.  The men were not allowed to use the names of Nevada Light Guards, so they took the letters off of their caps and sewed them on the inside of their pants so if they were killed in action people would know they came from California.  Take good care of both book and picture and pass on for another 60 years is the wish of your

Loving Grand-Mother

Mrs. E. J. Burrows.

1633 Kains Avenue

Berkeley

California

The Bible itself is very small; it is the same size as the picture which is 2 1/2" X 3 3/4".  The Bible is missing its back cover and some pages are missing.  It is now almost 160 years old. 

                                           Identification written on the  back of the picture in E.J.'s handwriting.  

Joseph was born in Tamaqua,  PA as was  his sister Harriet Bluett Hurd, my 3X Greatgrandmother.  Their father, John Bluett passed away in 1852 and various members of the family moved to Nevada City and worked as miners.   They attended the Nevada City Methodist Episcopal Church.  

Information found on Find a Grave gives some further information on Joseph's Civil War record.  It states..."When the Civil War broke out, Joseph heard his call to serve his country.  He returned East, voluntarily fought in the Civil War, and served along with other Californians in the 2nd Regiment of the Massachusetts Calvary for 3 years.  He held the rank of Corporal in Company M.  Service was from 20 May 1863 to 20 July 1865." 

          Joseph was honorably discharged the 20th of July, 1865.  His wife received a pension after his death. 

After the war, Joseph returned to Pennsylvania, married and lived out the rest of his life in Philadelphia where he sold vegetables.  He died of a massive heart attack at the age of 68, and is buried in Philadelphia. 

  So, on this day that celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans, I would like to celebrate and remember Joseph Thomas Bluett b. 7 July 1846 Tamaqua Pennsylvania  d. 6 May 1915 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.   He fought to preserve our great Union while carrying this little keepsake.