Father: John Hastings, Sr.
Mother: Jane *****
Spouse: Susannah ***** - b: 1805 - Ireland
d: 1855 - bur: Lebanon Ch. Cem.,
Bristol Twp., Morgan Co., OH
Child-1: Mary A. - b: 1827 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 1855 - bur: Lebanon Ch. Cem., Bristol Twp., Morgan Co., OH
2: Walter
- b: 1829 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 22/Jan/1894 - Manchester Twp., Morgan Co., OH - bur: Crossroads
Cem., Center Twp.
m: Eleanor Conn - 30/Aug/1855 - Morgan Co., OH
3: Jane
- b: 22/Mar/1832 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 7/Jan/1912 - bur: Lebanon Ch. Cem., Bristol
Twp., Morgan Co., OH
4: William
- b: 2/Feb/1833 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 4/Sep/1904 - bur: Lebanon Ch. Cem., Bristol
Twp., Morgan Co., OH
m: Nancy W. Wortman - 8/Nov/1855 - Morgan Co., OH
5 James,
Jr.
6: Catharine
- b: Aug/1839 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 23/Aug/1922 - Morgan Co., OH - bur: Lebanon
Ch. Cem., Bristol Twp.
m: Robert H. Conn - 1858 - Morgan Co., OH
7: Adam
Beatty - b: Oct/1845 - Harrison Co., OH
d: 4/Feb/1928 - Morgan Co., OH - bur: Crossroads Cem., Center
Twp.
m: Mary E. Jackson - ~1863 - m: Rachel J. Fowler - 1895/1896
8: Susan
or
Sussanah - b: ~1846 - Harrison Co., OH
m: John Patterson
Biographical Details:
It can be inferred from circumstantial evidence that James Hastings, Sr., was born in Ireland in 1800, probably in County Fermanagh. Moreover, it is also believed that he was the son of John, Sr., and Jane Hastings, although this presumption cannot be asserted with absolute certainty. However, if one accepts these suppositions as factual, then it may further concluded that James, Sr., would have been about twenty years old when he immigrated to the United States with his immediate family and settled with them in Harrison County, Ohio. Subsequent census records identify the wife of James Hastings, Sr., as Susan Hastings, however, her maiden name is not known. Moreover, the population schedule of the 1850 US Census for Morgan County, Ohio, specifically states her birthplace as Ireland, also. Even so, it is not known when or where they were married; however, it is a plausible assumption that they married in Harrison County about 1824 or 1825, although it is possible that they had married even earlier in Ireland. Within this context, census records, as well as published sources, disclose that there was considerable immigration of Protestant Scotch-Irish from the northern counties of Ireland to eastern Ohio in the early nineteenth century. Indeed, it is possible, even likely, that many of these people would have been well acquainted in the old country. Therefore, it seems probable that Susan Hastings was among this group and, as such, would have been a natural choice as a bride for James Hastings; however, without further documentation this is merely a speculation.Source Notes and Citations:The household of James Hastings was listed in the population schedule of the 1830 US Census for Harrison County, Ohio, as resident in Moorefield Township and consisted of an adult couple of between twenty and thirty years of age and four children, a male and a female of between five and ten years and a male and female both less than five. Clearly, the ages of the adults are consistent with their identification as James, Sr., and Susan Hastings. However, if the four children are assumed to have been their offspring, then only two can be tentatively identified, viz., Mary and Walter. Of course, the most likely explanation of this apparent discrepancy is that the two unidentified children died young and are, thus, unknown to history, but other explanations are also possible. In any case, the location of Moorefield Township accords well with the identification of the household as that of James Hastings, Sr., since it is known that his father, John Hastings, Sr., owned land in this locality, i.e., in Section Twenty-five of Township Eleven of Range Six according to his will, and that his brother, John, Jr., also lived there. Apparently, James, Sr., and Susan Hastings remained resident in Moorefield Township throughout the 1830's since this household was, again, listed in the corresponding 1840 population schedule. Although, the ages of the adult couple were given as thirty to forty years and, hence, are consistent with James, Sr., and his wife, as in 1830 census records, there are more children, in this case six, indicated for the family than can be positively identified. Even more troublesome, is that their oldest daughter should have been about fifteen years old; however, there is no individual, either male or female, of this age indicated in the population schedule. A plausible explanation is that she was living with and assisting her aged grandparents since there was an adolescent female of this age resident in the household of John Hastings, Sr.; however, this conclusion is unproven and purely conjectural. It is also possible that the census enumerator simply erred in recording ages. Indeed, it is reasonable that this type of error would not have been considered particularly serious because at this time the purpose of the Federal Census was merely determination of legislative apportionment and not collection of detailed demographic data. Of course, the high mortality rate suffered by children during the nineteenth century, again, probably accounts for some discrepancies. Sometime after the birth of his youngest daughter about 1846, it would seem that James Hastings, Jr., and his family left Harrison County and relocated to Morgan County, Ohio, settling in Manchester Township, which lies about fifty miles southwest of their former home. In any case, it is certain that they were resident in Manchester Township of Morgan County at the time the census was taken in 1850. The household of James Hastings appears, again, in the population schedule of the 1860 US Census for Morgan County, Ohio; however, his wife, Susan, was not listed, which is consistent with her death having occurred reportedly about 1855. In addition, James' two sons, Walter and William, had married and were living close by in Manchester Township along with their wives and several small children. There is strong circumstantial evidence that James Hastings, Sr., and his son James, Jr., moved to La Salle County, Illinois, for some period in the mid-1860's. In particular, it is known that James Hastings, Jr., married Jennie A. Nelson in La Salle County in 1866 and that James Hastings, Sr., attested that they were above the age of consent and signed the license affadavit. It is further known that the elder James' brother, John Hastings, Jr., had moved from Harrison County, Ohio, to La Salle County in the spring or summer of 1854. In addition, a second brother, William, with his son James, also moved to La Salle County at or about the same time. John, Jr., died before 1860, but William was still alive in La Salle County in 1870. Therefore, it is likely that the presence of close relatives provided the motivation for the move of James, Sr., and James, Jr., to Illinois. Even so, it seems that the rest of their immediate family remained in Morgan County.1 Accordingly, James, Sr., and James, Jr., returned to southeastern Ohio in 1866 or 1867, since in addition to other civil records, the population schedule of the 1870 US Census for Washington County, Ohio, clearly shows the household of James Hastings, Jr., including his father, James Hastings, Sr., as then resident in Waterford Township. This location is immediately to the south of the Morgan-Washington County boundary and was not far from their previous residence in Manchester Township and in which James' sons, Walter and William Hastings, were still living with their wives and children. Furthermore, James' other surviving son, Adam Hastings, along with his wife and family were also living nearby in Waterford Township with in-laws. It is believed that James Hastings, Sr., died in Morgan County in 1884 and is buried in Lebanon Methodist Church Cemetery in Bristol Township with his wife who had died previously.
1a. Charles Robertson, History of Morgan County, Ohio, L. H. Watkins & Co. Chicago, IL, 1886: pgs. 188-9.
"COMPANY I, 62D REGIMENT O. V. I. ... PRIVATES" "Hastings, Adam B., enlisted. Feb. 3, 1863."b. ibid: pg. 530.
"R. H. Conn, a prominent citizen, is an old resident of, the county, and the son of an early settler. He was born in Manchester Township in 1828. In 1858 he married Miss Catherine Hastings. They have no children. Mr. Conn formerly resided in Meigsville Township, where he served as township trustee for two years. He is a democrat in politics."c. ibid: pg. 537.
"James Conn was born in County Tyrone, Ireland. At the age of nineteen he emigrated to this country, settling in Baltimore: Md., where he resided for six years. He married Miss Eleanor Varner in 1811 and reared a family of ten children, six of whom are living Joseph V., one of the substantial citizens of Penn Township ; Mary, Margaret (White); R. H., a prosperous farmer of Centre Township; James and Eleanor (Hastings). R. H. was born in Manchester Township in 1828 and married Miss Catharine Hastings."
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Additional Citations:
2. 1830 US Census Population Schedule for Harrison County, Ohio, National Archives, Washington DC: pg. 193, (microfilm: roll M19_133; img. 390).3. 1840 US Census Population Schedule for Harrison County, Ohio, National Archives, Washington DC: pg. 202, (microfilm: roll M704_402; img. 190).
4. 1850 US Census Population Schedule for Morgan County, Ohio, National Archives, Washington DC: pgs. 35B-36A, (microfilm: roll M432_715; imgs. 72-3).
5. 1860 US Census Population Schedule for Morgan County, Ohio, National Archives, Washington DC: pg. 349B, (microfilm: roll M653_1016; img. 199).
6. 1870 US Census Population Schedule for Washington County, Ohio, National Archives, Washington DC: pgs. 466B-467A, (microfilm: roll M593_1279; imgs. 426-7).
7. Marriage Records, Morgan County, McConnellsville, OH, (LDS Family History Library microfilm: roll #0910657, Salt Lake City, UT, 2009).
8. Ohio Death Certificate Index, 1913-1944, The Ohio Historical Society, 1982 Velma Avenue, Columbus, OH, (Morgan County, Volume 3945, Death Certificate No. 44818 - Ohio Department of Health, Division of Vital Statistics, State of Ohio, Columbus, OH, Morgan County, Volume 5579, Death Certificate No. 11410 - Ohio Department of Health, Division of Vital Statistics, State of Ohio, Columbus, OH). ("Ohio Death Certificate Index", www.ohiohistory.org/dindex/, 2008.)
9. Lebanon Church Cemetery, Morgan County, Ohio (www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=1988371&CScn=Lebanon&CScntry=4&CSst=37&CScnty=2097&, continuously updated).
10. Crossroads Cemetery, Morgan County, Ohio (www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=40456&CScn=Crossroads&CScntry=4&CSst=37&CScnty=2097&, continuously updated).
11. Jean Ann Lavelle, private correspondence.