With my Great x4 Grandfather, Samuel Nelson, I’ve reached the last of the ancestors I’ll be writing about for the 2026 52 Ancestors Challenge who is is largely behind a massive brick wall.
Based upon the thin and flimsy information I have, Samuel was born in 1785 in Donegal, Ireland. He married Martha Burns around 1810. They had at least one child, my Great x3 Grandfather Robert Nelson. Samuel died on September 16, 1847 in Muff, Donegal. That’s it.
And now I’m caught up with this year’s challenge! Enjoy it while it lasts.
I hope you’ve enjoyed meeting this again, hopefully for the last time this year.
Continuing in my adventures in brick walls, this week I look at my Great x4 Grandmother, Martha Burns.
Several decades ago, while visiting my Aunt Diana, she told me that she understood that through our Nelson line we had Scottish ancestry and that Robbie Burns was one of our ancestors. I was thrilled, because Burns was one of my favourite poets. So when I learned that I had an ancestor surnamed Burns I was excited, because it meant what my aunt had told me was plausible.
Unfortunately, like many family legends, the story does not hold up to scrutiny.
First of all, none of the Bard of Ayrshire’s children – legitimate and illegitimate – were named Martha. Furthermore, the Nelsons weren’t Scottish. They’re Irish. Martha was born in 1787 in Muff, Donegal, Ireland. As far as I know, Martha never left Ireland, where she may have died in 1865. Martha’s son Robert and his wife Elizabeth left Ireland for Scotland in their mid twenties and remained there for five or six years before emigrating to America. It’s possible that Robert brought his mother to Scotland, but I don’t know why he’d leave her there when he left for the States.
Like my other seventhgeneration Irish ancestors, I have precious little information about Martha Burns. So like the others, anything I can say about her does not have a great foundation. It is hardly definitive.
For decades, I have seen trees naming a Mary Slaak or Slaught as Martha’s mother. While this person has been persistently named and connected with Martha in many trees I’ve seen over the decades, I’ve never seen any evidence to support it. I’ve seen various fathers attached to Martha, but I don’t recall seeing one that has been consistently named or been attached for very long.
Martha married Samuel Nelson sometime around 1810. The only child that I know of was their son Robert (my Great x3 Grandfather). I have seen the names of other children come and go, but there’s never been much if any evidence to support the connection. Heck, I don’t think I’ve seen much compelling evidence to indicate that Martha was Robert’s mother. Most of the information I have is as far from the Genealogical Proof Standard as you can get.
Martha died on September 25, 1865. Again, I have little reason to believe that’s correct, but it’s the date I’ve seen most consistently set out over the years. Of course, consistency could only mean that the same mistake has been repeated ad nauseum. Is Martha my ancestor? Did she even exist?
All in all, I’d like one less brick in the wall. 🎶
Another opportunity to catch up on the 52 Ancestors Challenge with another brick wall ancestor, my Great x4 Grandfather John Joseph. Of course, I’d love to know more about John than have an opportunity to play catch-up. So here’s what I know, based on thin information. As with last week, this information is hardly definitive or reliable.
John was born in 1793 in Muff, Donegal, Ireland. He married Martha Carr sometime around 1810, although as I explained last post I suspect it was later in time. John and Martha had at least one child, my Great x3 Grandmother Elizabeth Joseph. Elizabeth was born in 1818, so I suspect John and Martha married sometime shortly before then.
John died on September 25, 1867 in Muff. Not that I can find anything solid to base that upon.
Most of the documentation I have about John Joseph.
With my Great x 4 Grandmother, Martha Carr, I am hitting some real brick walls. I have little more than second and third hand information about her. Almost everything I can say about Martha should be taken with a grain of salt, as nothing is definitive. Originally, all I had was a copy of a family group sheet prepared by my Great Aunt Fon in the early 1980s. I really haven’t got much more.
Martha was born in 1797 in Muff, Donegal, Ireland. She married John Joseph there around 1810. I don’t really accept that date, as it would mean that Martha was 13 years old when she married John. It’s likely they married closer in time to when their daughter Elizabeth (my Great x3 Grandmother) was born, 1818.
In addition to Elizabeth, Martha may have had at least two other children. However, I’m not satisfied that I can place much weight on the scant evidence supporting that conclusion.
Martha died on May 7, 1865. Someone on FamilySearch relied on a search at IrishGenealogy for “Martha Joseph” for deaths from 1864 to 1865. However, the search result provides no information for that person’s surname at death or whether she was married. A broader search for “Martha Carr” for Donegal provides no results.
The only mention I can find in an otherwise reliable record is a cemetery burial record for Martha’s daughter, Elizabeth, as it names both of Elizabeth’s parents. However, while the record can be taken as being fairly reliable for the details of Elizabeth’s death, the same cannot be said about Elizabeth’s parents. The record was prepared almost 40 years after Martha died, in a different country, by an unidentified person. It is doubtful the record was prepared by anyone who knew Martha.
Death & Burial Record for Elizabeth Nelson (née Joseph), showing the names of Elizabeth’s parents.
A Deck of Ancestors 