Chasing the Elusive: John Fielding Sr.

Occasionally I write about some of my more elusive family members, in hopes that one day I can break.  I call them "Chasing the Elusive" and John Fielding is one such member, being a maternal great-grandfather of my grandpap.  He was the grandfather to another Chasing the Elusive subject, Mark Fielding.

John Fielding was born sometime in 1801, and was likely baptized 16 August 1801 in Anglican church in the parish of St Mary, St Denys and St George in Manchester, England as the son of one Mathew Fielding.  His mother's name may have been Mary, although records don't give a name for his mother.  Later children's baptisms in the same parish (for Cooper, William and Martha) link Mathew to a Mary, surname unknown.

It is not known when John immigrated to the United States, but it had to have been sometime before 1833 when his eldest son was born in Pennsylvania.  Sometime before that point, he married Martha Gibson (some sources state her surname was Cooper), who was born in Pennsylvania, though her age fluctuates on census records, putting her birth sometimes between 1809 and 1814.

The couple had nine children.  Cooper was their eldest, born March 1833.  Son Joseph was born in 1835, and son James was born 14 September 1837 in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania.  At some point as well came a daughter who remains nameless at this point, who was born sometime between 1835 and 1840 (she likely died very young).  The 1840 census enumeration lists four children in the household of John Fielding of Allegheny City, as well as John and wife Martha.  The remaining five children were born after that enumeration. Martha was born 16 September 1841. Amos was born 9 February 1844. John was born 10 December 1846.  William was born 28 July 1850.  The youngest, Mathew, was born sometime in 1853 or 1854.

John was a shoemaker by trade, at least from 1850, when he was listed as such in the federal census enumeration.  He was listed as a shoemaker in several Pittsburgh area directories, living on Ohio Street in the Fourth Ward of Allegheny City.

In 1863, son John was injured in an accident involving a steam fire engine, eventually losing a leg from the accident.  John Fielding Sr. sued the company (Oakland Railway Company) that was tasked with maintaining the street on which the accident occurred for medical bills and his son's lost wages.  He won his suit on 22 December 1863, and recouped $1800.  The suit was brought by the company to the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, who in October of the following year ruled there was no error in the original judgement.

It is not clear however if John Fielding Sr. was able to enjoy his winnings, however.  On 23 July 1864, a petition of guardianship was filed four his four youngest sons in the Allegheny County Orphan's Court, listing them as the minor children of John Fielding, deceased.  The petition was granted and lawyer J. D. Hancock was awarded guardianship of Amos, John, William and Mathew.  Another lawyer, Thomas J. Keenan was awarded letters of administration in the probate of John's estate, as he died intestate. Both of these lawyers handled his suit against the railway company, so it is not altogether surprising that they were involved in handling his affairs after his death.

This is where I am chasing the elusive: I have not found either the date he died or how he died.  Since death records were not a thing in Allegheny City (nor where they a county or state thing either yet), I have not been able to find any mention of a death for either him or his wife in the 1860s.  I have checked available cemetery records available online, online newspapers (though I may not be searching with the correct parameters, as the searches are all OCR readers, so it's likely a death notice does exist somewhere), probate records, even land records available for that time period.  I know he was alive in December of 1863 when he won his suit, and had passed before July of 1864 when his sons became the wards of J. D. Hancock, but the date remains elusive. Given that the four boys show up living with elder brother Cooper on the 1870 census, it is likely that Martha also died in this time period.  Again, no record can be located for her as well.

I may never find the record, or I may crack the case.  Who knows.  One thing is for certain, though.  I will have fun doing the research either way.

Sources Used:
"1840 United States Federal Census," database online, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 July 2016), Entry for Jno Fealding and household, Year: 1840, Census Place: Allegheny Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: 440, Page: 290, Image: 592, and Family History Library Film: 0020536; citing Sixth Census of the United States, 1840. (NARA microfilm publication M704, 580 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"1850 United States Federal Census," database online, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 July 2016), Entry for John Feilding and household, Year: 1850, Census Place: Allegheny Ward 4 Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: M432_744, Page: 217B, and Image: 440; citing Seventh Census of the United States, 1850; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, 1009 rolls); Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29; National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"1860 United States Federal Census," database online, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 July 2016), Entry for J. Fielden and family, Year: 1860, Census Place: Allegheny Ward 4 Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: M653_1068, Page: 676, Image: 63, and Family History Library Film: 805068 (enumerated as J. Fielden and family); citing 1860 U.S. census, population schedule. NARA microfilm publication M653, 1,438 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.

"1870 United States Federal Census," database online, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 March 2020), Entry for Cooper Fielding and family, Year: 1870, Census Place: Allegheny Ward 4 Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: M593_1291, Page: 367B, and Family History Library Film: 552790; citing 1870 U.S. census, population schedules. NARA microfilm publication M593, 1,761 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.

"Coroner's Inquest," Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 13 April 1863, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

"The Death of Young Reams," The Pittsburgh Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 13 April 1863, page 4; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

Directory of Pittsburgh & vicinity for, 1857-1858 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: George H. Thurston, 1857), 62, "Fielding John, shoe maker, h Ohio n West"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (http://digital.library.pitt.edu : accessed 30 July 2016).

Directory of Pittsburgh & vicinity for, 1858/1859 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: George H. Thurston, 1858), 78, "Fielding John, shoemaker, h Ohio n Middle, A(llegheny)"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (www.historicpittsburgh.org : accessed 30 July 2016).

Directory of Pittsburgh and Allegheny cities, 1861-1862 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: G. H. Thurston, 1861), 93, "Fielding John, shoemaker, 140 Ohio, A(llegheny)"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (http://historicpittsburgh.org : accessed 30 July 2016).

Directory of Pittsburgh and Allegheny cities, 1862-1863 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: G.H. Thurston, 1862), 90, "Fielding John, shoemaker, 140 Ohio, A(llegheny)"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (www.historicpittsburgh.org : accessed 30 July 2016).

Directory of Pittsburgh and Allegheny cities, 1863-1864 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: G. H. Thurston, 1863), 100, "Fielding John, shoemaker, 40 Ohio, A(llegheny)"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (www.historicpittsburgh.org : accessed 30 July 2016), I believe the 40 should be 140, that it was a typo.

Directory of Pittsburgh and Allegheny cities, 1864-1865 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: G. H. Thurston, 1864), 95, "Fielding John, shoemaker, 140 Ohio, A(llegheny)"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digitial Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (www.historicpittsburgh.org : accessed 7 April 2020).

"Distressing Accident: A Man Killed and a Boy Maimed by Steam Fire Engine," Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 11 April 1863, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

Fahnestock's Pittsburgh directory for 1850: containing the names of the inhabitants of Pittsburgh, Allegheny, & vicinity : their occupation, places of business and dwelling houses : also, a list of the public offices, banks, &c, 1850 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Geo. Parkin & Co, 1850), 30, "Fielding John, shoemr, Ohio, Al"; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (http://digital.library.pitt.edu : accessed 30 July 2016).

"Heavy Verdict," The Pittsburgh Daily Commercial (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 8 April 1864, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

"Heavy Verdicts," The Daily Evening Express (Lancaster, Pennsylvania), 15 December 1864, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 25 March 2020).

"Important Trial in the District Court," Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 24 December 1863, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

"Lease for Sale," advertisement, Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 6 July 1866, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

"Pennsylvania Probate Records, 1683-1994," database online with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 24 March 2020), Allegheny County Orphans' Court docket 19, June term 1864, page 199, no. 109, entry for petition of Amos, John, Matthew and William Fielding for guardianship, filed 23 July 1864, image 127 of 650; FHL microfilm number 866215; citing county courthouses in Pennsylvania.

"Pennsylvania Probate Records, 1683-1994," database online with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 24 March 2020), Allegheny County Orphans' court docket, v. 21, page 226, No. 75, petition of Martha Caskey in estate of John Fielding, deceased, filed 9 June 1866; image 141 of 679; FHL microfilm number 872591; citing county courthouses in Pennsylvania.

"Pennsylvania Probate Records, 1683-1994," database online with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 24 March 2020), Allegheny County Orphans' court docket, v. 21, page 456, no. 18, Account of Thomas J. Keenan administrator of John Fielding Sr., deceased, filed 3 Dec 1866, image 262 of 679; FHL microfilm number 872591; citing county courthouses in Pennsylvania.

"Sad Accident - Man Killed and Boy Seriously Injured," The Pittsburgh Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 11 April 1863, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 24 March 2020).

Woodward & Rowlands' Pittsburgh directory for 1852: containing the names of the inhabitants of Pittsburgh and Allegheny, 1852 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: W.S. Haven, 1852), 107 (page 7 of Allegheny Directory), "Fielding John, shoemr, 7 Ohio st."; digital image, University of Pittsburgh, Digital Research Library, Historic Pittsburgh (http://digital.library.pitt.edu : accessed 30 July 2016).

Wright, Robert E. State Reporter, Pennsylvania State Report, Volume 48 (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Kay and Brother, 1865), 320-328; online images, Google Books (https://books.google.com/books : accessed 24 March 2020).