The life of Elisha Sleeper (1792-1884)

Elisha Sleeper’s birth is not found in the known records of New Hampshire.  Although all published sources agree he was the son of Benjamin and Ruth (Bean) Sleeper, a fact strongly supported by land records,¹ the date and location are in question.  Cutter states he was born 25 March 1796 in Brentwood, Rockingham Co. NH.² His death certificate, disinterment, and gravestone (all informed by his grandson, Oscar E. Davis) claim a date of 01 May 1792 in Alton.³ As Benjamin was first enumerated in Alton in the 1810 Census (he and his family are enumerated in Brentwood in both 1790 and 1800),⁴ his grandson would seem to be in error as to the location; however, as Elisha was the only children born to his parents between 1790 and 1802, it is impossible to suggest which source (if any) is accurate.

The first time Elisha conclusively appears in the records is his marriage, on 03 July 1817 in Belmont, Belknap Co. NH, to Nancy (or Ann, which is synonymous) Bean.⁵ He is of “East Kingston” at the time; although his family appears, from the Census at least, to have resided in Alton at the time; it is certainly possible he was doing farm labor for a relative or had another good reason to be in the town.

As the 1820 Census is no longer extent for Strafford (then including Belknap) Co. NH, the first Census Elisha and his family appear is 1830, when the family is enumerated as including five young women, two born between 1814-1820, one born between 1821 and 1825, and two born between 1826 and 1830.⁶ No birth records have been found for any of Elisha and Nancy’s children, however analysis of marriage, and death records from New Hampshire and Massachusetts have largely allowed the reconstruction of the family.  Of these initial girls, four of them are accounted for as children of the couple; one of the older girls (aged between 10 and 16) is not; she could be a domestic (although the family does not appear to have been very wealthy), another relative, or a daughter who died young.

By the time of the 1840 Census, the family had grown in size to 12. The unidentified girl from 1830 is no longer enumerated with the family (her fate is unknown); the four other girls from the previous Census remain, joined by two boys and a girl born between 1831 and 1835, and one boy and two girls born between 1836 and 1840.⁷ All except one of the older girls is accounted for amongst the identified children of Elisha and Nancy. It is possible that this girl is Lydia Jane Sleeper, the daughter of Elisha’s brother Jonathan, who had died by 1840.⁸ Lydia Jane was said to be the sister of Eben G. (Elisha’s youngest son).⁹ While land records conclusively prove Lydia was not Eben’s sister, but his first cousin,¹⁰ this could reflect a tradition that she lived on her uncle’s neighboring farm, thus giving rise to the idea of sisterhood. Alternatively, it could reflect another relative, or an unaccounted-for daughter.

[To be Continued…]
           

1. Belknap Deeds 29:400 (Sleeper to Sleeper) [↩]
2. Cutter, William R.  Genealogical and Personal Memoirs relating to the families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, volume II.  New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co. 1908.  Pg. 750. [↩]
3. See below. [↩]
4. 1790 Census for Brentwood, Rockingham Co. NH, pg. 103 and 1800 Census for Brentwood, Rockingham Co. NH (alphabetized), pg. 552. [↩]
5. “New Hampshire, Marriage Records, 1637-1947,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FLF6-RFL : accessed 24 August 2015) [↩]
6. 1830 Census for Alton, Strafford Co. NH, pg. 103. [↩]
7. 1840 Census for Alton, Strafford Co. NH, pg. 294. [↩]
8. Jonathan’s wife Mary appears as the head of household in the 1840 Census for Alton, supra. Research of Pamela Currier, Epping NH, states Jonathan died 03 January 1838, however, the provenience of this information is unclear.
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9. Specifically in Bartlett, A.W. History of the 12th New Hampshire Volunteers in the War of the Rebellion. Concord NH: Ira C. Evans 1897, at pg. 488. [↩]
10. The family connections are explicitly set forth in Belknap Deeds 29:379 (Sleeper, et al. to Sleeper), wherein Jonathan’s children quitclaimed their interest in his estate to their brother James in consideration for James caring for their mother Mary in her dotage.
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