Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Mary Elizabeth Collins Davis 1832-1912

My husband has a couple of ancestors from Ireland, one of them is his paternal 3rd Great Grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Collins born 4 April 1832. I do not know her parents. In some of the censuses it stated that she was born in New York. On her death certificate it said Ireland.

Mary Elisabeth was married to my husband’s 3rd Great Grandfather, Henry Davis. They had 4 children.

• 1. Mary E. Davis, my husband’s 2rd Great Grandmother, born 1857 in La Salle County, Illinois, died 1920 in Colfax, Washington. She was married to my husband’s 2nd Great Grandfather, Henry Hickman. They had 7 children.
• 2. Jewel “Julia” Davis born 1860 in Illinois, died 1936 in Palouse, Washington. She was married to Stephan A Bowers. They had 5 childrens.
• 3. George Avery Davis born 1863 in Iroquois County, Illinois, died 1932 Colfax, Washington. He was married to Sara Florence Hickman. They had 8 children.
• 4. Carrie Davis born 1864 in Illinois, died 1892 in Rockford, Washington. She was married to Rena Hyatt. They had 1 child.

In 1870 the family lived in Prairie Greens, Iroquois County, Illinois. Mary and her husband can read but not write. Mary’s birth place was New York and her parents were from a foreign country.

Washington State and Territorial Censuses, 1857-1892

Name	Mary Davis
Gender	Female
Race	White
Marital Status	Married
Residence Age	50
Birth Date	abt 1835
Birth Place	New York
Residence Date	1885
Residence Place	Whitman, Washington, USA
Line	37

Name	Age
Henry Davis	55
Mary Davis	50

In the 1900 federal census Mary was 62 years old and lived with her husband, an adopted daughter and a grandson in Turnbow, Washington. Her birth country and that of her parents was given as England, not Ireland. It also stated that she immigrated in 1880. We know that’s not true. May be the census taker heard it wrong or whoever gave the information had no clue. Census records can be very tricky, a lot of information is incorrect.

The last census Mary appeared was the 1910 Federal Census. At that time she lived with her husband still in Turnbow, Washington. She was born in New York and her parents were from Ireland.

Mary died 7 April 1912 at the age of 78 in Whitman County, Washington. Her death certificate says that she was born in Ireland and that’s what I am keeping in my records.

I only found this obituary for Mary.

Source: The Spokesman-Review

Spokane, Washington • Tue, Apr 9, 1912Page 12

On the page Find A Grave someone posted this from another newspaper:

We now have an approximate immigration date for Mary and that she got married in the state of New York. I had looked for the marriage in the Illinois State Archive website without success. Their first child was born in 1857 in Illinois, so the marriage probably took place before that date.

Simple Timeline for Mary Elisabeth Collins

Born 1832 in Ireland and immigrated circa 1843 to New York:

Married Henry Davis circa 1857 in New York, moved to Prairie Greens, Illinois and their children were born at that location from 1857-1864. In 1880 the family lived in Whitman County, Washington. Mary died there in 1912.

Mary had a long, eventful life, all the way from Ireland via New York and Illinois to her final destination and resting place in Washington State. May be in the future I will be able to locate a marriage, immigration and or birth record.

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