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Anyone having more information on this family or who has corrections to make, please contact the Administrator. Photos of Mary Ann or her children would be a greatly appreciated add-on to this memorial.
Mary Ann (Carrick) Stanchfield was truly a pioneer woman who showed strength and courage from her earliest days in Maine and throughout her entire life as a mainstay for her family, taking charge of all of her children in 1851 after the death of her husband, enduring the loss of a young son (Amos) who died shortly after her husband in a fall from a wagon in...
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Anyone having more information on this family or who has corrections to make, please contact the Administrator. Photos of Mary Ann or her children would be a greatly appreciated add-on to this memorial.
Mary Ann (Carrick) Stanchfield was truly a pioneer woman who showed strength and courage from her earliest days in Maine and throughout her entire life as a mainstay for her family, taking charge of all of her children in 1851 after the death of her husband, enduring the loss of a young son (Amos) who died shortly after her husband in a fall from a wagon in IL, getting the entire family west to Minnesota and later to Montana in dangerous times.
Her grandson, Montana pioneer Alva Josiah Noyes (1855-1917), mentioned his grandmother in several places in his autobiography, "The story of Ajax : Life in the Big Hole Basin" (1914).
"Mother had contracted a severe cold at a dance in Bannack Christmas night, 1866. For some reason it became deep-seated, her health becoming very poor, later it turned into consumption [TB]. She had any amount of work to do, and her health not improving, she sent to Minneapolis for my grandmother, Mary A. Stanchfield. She and her son Charles came up the Missouri river on the steamer Leni Leoti. I heard her tell of having seen X. Beidler, who hailed the boat one day as a refugee from Indians that had been chasing him and came near enough to shoot holes in his hat. Grandma also thought that X did the shooting himself [and wanted a free boat ride]. Grandmother was a remarkable woman. She knew how to do things, and went ahead and took full charge of the hotel. All were busy in the little town in those days. All living in hopes of future good luck..." Mary's daughter, Amy, mother of Alva Noyes, died in 1869, and Alva and his sister Maude were then sent back to St. Anthony MN to live with Mary and go to school. Mary paid the fare for Alva to eventually return to Montana, and he was the one who took care of her in her last days when she was stricken with "inflammatory rheumatism" (probably rheumatoid arthritis). She cried as he went out the door in 1877 to respond to the wounded and dying on the Big Hole Battlefield, afraid he, too, would be killed. After Alva eloped with his new bride, his grandmother Mary helped conceal the place of their hiding from the new bride's angry father [all was well later].
"...recall one little incident concerning a Chinaman, who helped in the hotel. Grandmother requested him to do something one day to which he replied: "Me no savey." Grandmother went to the wood box, selected a good sized piece of wood and said: "John, a Chinaman who can't savey is no good, so I am going to kill you." John took it for granted that she meant what she said and quickly remarked: "Me heap savey." He never again claimed ignorance of the English tongue...."
Mary was also apparently a good stitcher, as noted in this newspaper article: "1st Prize for Table Scarf Embroidery, Mrs. M. A. Stanchfield." The Helena independent., August 20, 1892, Morning, Page 5, Image 5
A CHRONOLOGICAL RECORD OF THE LIVES OF BENJAMIN STANCHFIELD AND MARY [CARRICK] STANCHFIELD
AND THEIR CHILDREN...
Mary A. (Carrick/Kerrick) Stanchfield was born in an unknown town in New Brunswick, Canada in 1810. Parentage unknown. Her family seems to have moved from NB to ME prior to 1830. She married Benjamin Stanchfield about 1826-1827 in Maine, likely in/near Beddington, Washington County, ME. She would have been about 16 or 17 years of age. [There is online information that purports her maiden name to be Carrot; however, I believe that was likely an error in transcription/handwriting. Herrick is also found on occasion; again, my research leads me to believe that name was Carrick/ Kerrick.]
By 1830, Benjamin Stanchfield, Mary’s husband, was living with Mary and their 1st child, Sarah, in BEDDINGTON, WASHINGTON COUNTY, MAINE. A total of (3) persons in the household: The male (Benjamin) age category ’30 and under 40’; the female (Mary Ann) age category ’20 and under 30’; and female child (Sarah, born in September of 1827) ‘under 5’. Their next child, Mary Jane, was not born until 1831 in Beddington. All of the ages in 1830 fit this family’s known information.
Important additional information on the 1830 Census for Beddington ME: Neighbors in 1830 were JOSIAH NOYES, either the father or grandfather of George R. Noyes, who later became the husband of Mary and Benjamin Stanchfield’s daughter Amy; two additional neighbors, living exactly next door, are men I believe to be closely related to Mary. One is a man named JOHN KERRICK (aka Carrick) and a slightly younger man named LEMUEL KERRICK (aka Carrick). In 1830 John Kerrick is shown to be between 40 and 50 years of age (b. est. 1780 to 1790); Lemuel Kerrick is shown to be between 30 and 40 years of age (b. est. 1790 to 1800). Either one could be Mary’s father, or perhaps even older brothers. Since they live directly next door to Mary and her husband, I feel strongly that there is some close association. Lemuel has an online history which shows him, like Mary, born in New Brunswick. He used the spelling Carrick in his lifetime. Lemuel ended his life in Wright County MN, near St. Anthony MN, where Mary Carrick Stanchfield lived for some period of time after leaving Maine and Illinois and before arriving in Montana.
Two additional pieces of information solidifying Mary's maiden name of Carrick:
1. The fact that her grandson, Alva J. Noyes, said in his book, "...I let JAMES CARRICK, a cousin, ride my pony...". This may be James W. Carrick, son of LEMUEL CARRICK on the 1830 census, whose family is said to have spent several years in Montana Territory. Carricks had both Maine and New Brunswick heritage. Read a bio of James W. Carrick, noting his Montana years, in the online book, "History of the Upper Mississippi Valley" by Bryant, Page 560 (1881).
2. The MTGenweb lists deaths in Beaverhead County MT. One death listed was for Mary's daughter, wife of Thomas Hamilton: "Mary Jane Hamilton, died 23 June 1907 Hamilton Ranch, Beaverhead Co. Age 75 years, 9 months, born Maine. Parents: Benjamin
Stanchfield (born ME) and Mary A CARRICK (born Canada). Informant Wm B Stanchfield, buried Dillon (#6, book 2)"
Because the gravesite for Mary’s husband, Benjamin Stanchfield, is unknown beyond ‘Chicago’, shown in his probate records in Illinois, I have chosen to add my family research information here.
Benjamin Stanchfield’s family were pioneers in Maine Territory and the founders of the town of Leeds ME [first known as Littleborough Plantation]. The “History of the Town of Leeds, Androscoggin County, Maine, From Its Settlement, June 10, 1780”, by J. C. Stinchfield (1901), can be Googled and read online. Well worth a read for those who are directly related to this family. This book relates the rugged pioneer way of life and gives a detailed family genealogy.
Benjamin Stanchfield’s father, Rogers M. W. STINCHFIELD [earliest/original Maine spelling found on his original birth record] and his brother Thomas were the founders of Littleborough ME, which was then plantation land, upon their arrival from their birthplace in New Gloucester, Maine Territory, in 1780. Not until 1801 was Littleborough renamed Leeds. The town became part of Androscoggin County in 1854.
The parents of Rogers and Thomas Stinchfield, Benjamin’s grandparents, were John Stinchfield (est 1715-1783) and his wife, Elizabeth Burns (est 1713-1795), who are storied (orally only) to have met on a ship while emigrating to America and married two years later in Gloucester, Essex County, Massachusetts. About 1754, they and their (6) children moved to a tract of land in New Gloucester, District of Maine [now Cumberland County], from which town two of their sons, Rogers and Thomas Stinchfield, later left to establish their own homes in Littleborough in 1780. Upon incorporation in 1801, their tiny town was renamed Leeds in honor of the birthplace of their father, John Stinchfield, born in Leeds, Yorkshire, England 12 Oct 1715.
[NOTE: Yorkshire Was Named As The Place Of Birth Of John Stinchfield In The “History Of Leeds…”; However, I Found An Original Birth Record, Using The Same 15 Oct 1715 Birthdate, For John Stinchfield Born In Lincoln, Penobscot ME. I Think John Stinchfield (Father Of Rogers] Was Not Born In England Himself. He Appears To Be A Very Early Maine Native. The Family’s Ancestral Roots May Have Been In Leeds, Yorkshire.]
His wife, Elizabeth (b. est 21 Dec 1713), is said to have been born in northern Ireland of Scottish parents--the peoples history now call Scotch-Irish. John and Elizabeth are said to be “buried in the old cemetery near where they had lived” in New Gloucester, ME. I am unable to find any evidence of the location of their final resting place. Their children, all born in Gloucester, Essex, MA are, per the history book: John (b. 1738); William (b. 1741); Elizabeth (1743); James (b. 1745); Thomas (b. 1747) and ROGERS M. W. (b. October 13, 1752).
BENJAMIN STANCHFIELD/STINCHFIELD, is said to have been the 11th (and last) child born to Rogers M. W. Stinchfield (1752-1827) and his wife, Sarah Babson (1754-1822), who married in 1773, according to an online record at Ancestry.com and considering the birth year of their oldest daughter, Betsy (b. 1774). Sarah (Babson) Stinchfield’s grave can be seen at Findagrave Memorial # 21259323. Rogers’ grave site is apparently lost in time, but it is likely nearby in the same Fish Cemetery in Leeds.
Mary [Carrick] Stanchfield was the wife of Benjamin Stanchfield, b. Littleborough ME 29 Jun 1798 [Note: His original birth record can be found at Ancestry.com: Maine, Birth Records, 1621-1922 - Androscoggin 1799]. The book, “History of Leeds [Maine]…” says that sometime after their marriage, est. 1826, based on the documented year of birth of their oldest child, Sarah Ann, born in 1827, Benjamin and Mary left Leeds for New Brunswick “…and further of him is not known”. The family lives in Beddington on the 1840 US Census. In 1843, Benjamin was a defendant in debt proceedings in Beddington. I believe he did not go to New Brunswick at all--likely headed west to Illinois, where he is documented as having purchased land in 1848 and 1850. They may have left Maine between 1843 and 1847. The next solid record of Benjamin and Mary appears on the 1850 US Census for Franklin Township, DeKalb County, IL. [However, they were likely there by 1848, per BLM General Land Office records.] Benjamin died in 1851 in Illinois and appears to have been buried in the Chicago area [probate records] in a gravesite now lost to history.
1850 US Census - Benjamin & Mary [Carrick] Stanchfield - Franklin Twp., Dekalb, IL
Benjamin Stanchfield, Age 54, b. Maine [Benjamin’s death occurred in 1851; see probate source, below].
Mary, Age 40, b. New Brunswick
Amma (Amy) Stanchfield, Age 15, b. ME
John (Middle Initial R or L) Stanchfield, Age 13, b. ME
Almira Stanchfield, Age 11, b. ME
William, Age 8, b. ME
Amos, Age 6, b. ME
[Amos died shortly after his father, in IL, as a young boy, after a fall from a wagon. Buried in Boone Co. IL]
Mary J [Jane], Age 19, b. ME
[Note: Charles, the youngest, is not here. Perhaps not born yet. Some censuses show IL and others show ME for his birth.]
Living next door in 1850 is the LAWRENCE family in Franklin Twp., Dekalb County IL. This is a child of Benjamin and Mary, Sarah A. Stanchfield Lawrence.
-James Lawrence, Age 26 (est. 1824), b. Maine. Occupation: Laborer
-Sarah A. Lawrence, Age 21 (est. 1829), b. Maine
-Josephine Lawrence, Age 3 (est. 1847), b. Wisconsin, which may show the emigration pattern from Maine
[The James S. and Sarah (Stanchfield) Lawrence family is found in Crystal Lake, Hennepin County MN by 1860 with a larger number of children (Josephine, m. Macomber; Laura; Atwood and Atwater (twins); Julietta, m. Tong; and Mabel. m. Quick). By 1880, Sarah and her children are found in MT/Deer Lodge/Butte City]
Benjamin Stanchfield purchased (4) parcels of public/government land in Illinois between 1848 and 1850: (1) in Ogle County and (3) in Lake County. All can be viewed online by Googling BLM GLO Records and filling in ‘Illinois’ and ‘Stanchfield’. The (3) parcels in Lake County were assigned/sold to someone else around 1848. The remaining (1) parcel of 160 acres in Ogle County was still in his possession at Benjamin’s death in 1851; that parcel become part of his estate. [Substantiated by Probate Records] The lands were all purchased under the “Scrip Warrant Act”--meaning that the land was not good for much of anything. The National Archives (nara.gov) would have a land file that could be ordered. Under “Land Description” at the bottom of the GLO record, click on ‘map’ and you can view the exact location of Benjamin and Mary’s 160 acres. Mary received $50 from the sale of these 160 acres after her husband’s death.
DEATH OF BENJAMIN:
Illinois, Wills and Probate Records, 1772-1999 for Benj Stanchfield
Dekalb Probate Case Files, Box No. 36 [Ancestry.com]
[Mary Ann’s own handwriting and signatures appear in several places in the probate documents]
“…that the said Benjamin Stanchfield departed this life in the 9th of October AD 1851…”
Expenses paid:
“Sexton in Chicago for coffin and digging grave”
“Expenses going to Chicago with corpse and returning” ($13.50)
Children listed in probate papers:
Sarah Lawrence
James S. Lawrence [Sarah’s husband]
Mary Jane Stanchfield
Amy Stanchfield
John Stanchfield
Almira Stanchfield
William Stanchfield
Amos Stanchfield
Charles E. Stanchfield
Some Property inventoried in probate:
Three Beds (for nine people!), and bedsteads and bedding
Three old chairs, one table.
One loom, and its appendages
One spinning Wheel
One Woman’s Saddle and Bridle
One pair of cards
Wearing apparel (worth $2.00)
One Stove and Pipe (stovepipe, I’d think, not a smoking pipe)
Pans and Plates, One tub, two pails
One Cow, One horse, One two horse wagon
One two horse harness
1857 St. Anthony Minnesota State Census
Here are found many family members whose names are found in A. J. Noyes’s autobiography. Alva Josiah Noyes was Mary and Benjamin Stanchfield’s grandson, son of their daughter Amy. He lived in both MN and Montana and is said to have written the first autobiography in Montana. It can be Googled and read online: The Story of Ajax: Life in the Big Hole Basin - By Alva Josiah Noyes (1914)
HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD - 1857 - St Anthony MN
#1. Mary A. [CARRICK] STANCHFIELD (1810-1898), Age 47, b. New Brunswick, CAN, already a widow of six years by 1857. Grandmother of Alva Josiah (“A. J.”) Noyes, who published Montana’s first autobiography.
#2. Uncle John Stanchfield, Age 24 (est. 1833), b. Maine, a lumberman. John is said to have died in Oregon about 1865 or 1866, per notation in his nephew’s autobiography.
#3. Aunt Almira [Elmira], Age 18 (est. 1839), b. Maine. Married Octavius Broughton in Minnesota Territory on 28 Jan 1858 in Hennepin County, MN. The marriage was witnessed by her mother, Mary A. Stanchfield and her brother-in-law, Mr. William M. C. Lee, 1st husband of her sister, Mary Jane. Husband Octavius Broughton (1832-1901) was a millwright, born in New Hampshire.
#4. Uncle William [B.] [aka Will] Stanchfield, Age 15 (est. 1842), Maine. Died in Beaverhead Co. MT. He later married Elizabeth "Lizzie" Ellen Avery.
#5. Uncle Charles Stanchfield, Age 9 (est. 1848), b. Maine. Died in California. Married a dance hall girl named Delores Jarra in Montana.
#6. George R. Noyes, A. J.’s father, Age 27 (est. 1830), b. Maine, Blacksmith. Husband of Amy, below.
#7. Amma [Amy] L. Noyes (Daughter of Head of House)
Age 22 (est. 1835), b. Maine. The mother of Alva Josiah Noyes.
#8. Alva [Josiah] Noyes [aka A. J. or Ajax], Age 1, b. Minnesota
[His autobiography became the first published in Montana]
#9. Uncle [by marriage] William M. C. Lee, Age 32 (est. 1825), b. NJ, Carpenter. Later died at New Orleans, before 1866 trip to Montana.
#10. Aunt Mary “Jane” [Stanchfield] Lee, Age 25 (est. 1832), [Daughter of Head of Household]
She married William M. C. Lee on 6 Sep 1852 in DeKalb County IL. Mary Jane was said to be a widow when the family left Minnesota for Montana in 1866. She later remarried Thomas H. Hamilton in Montana, where she died.
And…
#11. Elizabeth Richardson, Age 7, b. Maine. [Unknown who this is]
This administrator is preparing a memorial bio for Mary's grandson, Alva J. Noyes, who died in Montana. There will be much more family history in that document. In the meantime, readers should Google and read Alva's autobiography, mentioned at the top of this memorial bio. If you are a history fan, especially Montana history, there is MUCH to enjoy in his story.
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