Today got information I have been waiting for. Henry Brooks Born 1843 in NJ. Did travel to NY to join the state malicia or National Guards to fight in the civil war, he was a private and moved to Mass after his two tours of 6 months each. I was stuck, now according to the census records his Dad was in fact Rueben Brooks. With many children, here is a list, all in NJ at 1850. Meaning Rueben age 52 born in NJ around 1798, Catherine Aby Fermay or Ferman born around 1805 in NY. states Rueben was a ship Carpenter, Mother- Catherine looks like a" Aby" but records have fermay with a child 19 name un readable starts with Y Mary- 17 phebe15 john13 David 9 Henry- 7 my great great granddad Ellen 5 Jane 3 Rueben 4 months If anyone has any other info it would help, so off to get the 1800 Census to find Rueben's Dad Mike

Mike Shaw wrote: :Do we have any more information on this? I've expended a lot of effort trying to persuade the few ROUSSEAU descendants I've run across to join our list. I'm glad that Darrell is with us and would be delighted to see more data from, and less rumor about, these folks. :-) Having said that, it seems only fair to caution newcomers with a brick-wall Brooks ancestor: The overwhelming odds are that your MIA ancestor is NOT a Seabrook or a Rousseau or a Broek or a Bruck or a Brooksbank, but rather just a plain vanilla Brooks. If you have positive evidence to suggest one of these name-crossover origins applies to your "brick wall," then by all means pursue it, and the forum of this list is at your disposal to do so. But if you do the math, and look at these families long enough and on a very broad scale -- I have about 31,000 people in my main dataset, representing nothing but B-NE and intermarried families -- you see that the name changes represent a tiny fraction, perhaps one or two percent at most, of the people with a "Brooks" connection to New England. In the absence of any other evidence, a 100-to-1 shot doesn't seem like a great investment of time to me. :-) Chris .

And here in Canada we have the reverse--Brooks being assimilated into French-speaking families and changing their name to Rousseau. This is still happening. Makes it difficult to keep track! Jane Patrick ----- Original Message ----- From: Darrell E Holmes <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, March 11, 2002 5:35 PM Subject: Re: [BNE] Seabrook to Brooks transition? > I am a Brooks aka Rousseau, Yes, the Surname "Brooks," also comes > from the Surname, " Rousseau," meaning in French "Flowing Brook, or > Babbling Brook." > Many Rousseaus' changed their French Surname from Rousseau to Brooks > for a more American Name, during the 1800's and through their migration > down into America from Canada and over from France. God Bless > > > ==== BROOKS-NE Mailing List ==== > No answer to your query? Did you use a meaningful > subject line? Did you provide enough information? > Please try again in a month or two ... >

Do we have any more information on this? Mike

I am a Brooks aka Rousseau, Yes, the Surname "Brooks," also comes from the Surname, " Rousseau," meaning in French "Flowing Brook, or Babbling Brook." Many Rousseaus' changed their French Surname from Rousseau to Brooks for a more American Name, during the 1800's and through their migration down into America from Canada and over from France. God Bless

I found the following BROOKS in the Windham, CT probate index. Contact me if interested. Deb Inman [email protected] John (Ashford), 3:155-158,(1744-1750) Phebe (Ashford), 4:199, (1750-1755) Thomas (Mansfield), 10:210, (1778-1782), inventory Thomas (Mansfield), 11:412, (1782-1785), distribution Thomas (Lebanon), 13:237, 355, (1790-1796), inventory, estate bill

I was told it could also be Rousseau, French. Marion [email protected] wrote: > hmm I have been stuck with the Brooks name for some time this could be a > break through. > > Michael

hmm I have been stuck with the Brooks name for some time this could be a break through. Michael

On Sat, 9 Mar 2002 21:19:22 -0500, Carol Reynolds wrote: :Hi Chris -- I also get two of each message Just a case of server hiccups, I think. I'm only getting one of each. I checked Jean McKee to be sure she isn't subscribed twice and she's not. I'm sure the same would be true if I looked you up. I think we just wait it out. Vermont-L and a couple others have been double-posting me for a week or so. Chris

Hi Chris -- I also get two of each message Carol Reynolds

On Sat, 9 Mar 2002 19:46:29 EST, [email protected] wrote: :For some reason I am getting two of everything from you. You're only subscribed once, Jean. Must be a bonus from the management at AOL. :-) Chris

On Sat, 9 Mar 2002 19:46:29 EST, [email protected] wrote: :For some reason I am getting two of everything from you. On the :send to line, the [email protected] appears twice, so I :guess that is why? Jean I'll check the server and, if you should be subscribed twice, will unsubscribe one of them. Chris

I recently found out that the BROOKS I have been looking for was originally SEABROOK/SEABROOKS. Does this ring a bell with anyone? My BROOKS family settled in the Lancaster, PA area and supposedly is "Scotch-Irish" and has been in America since the late 1600s/early 1700s. Any information is appreciated. Thanks Dorothy Michael Dresher, PA

Whoops, its the Reply to line. J

For some reason I am getting two of everything from you. On the send to line, the [email protected] appears twice, so I guess that is why? Jean

Chris, Christopher Brooks wrote: > Could your Asa/Asahel have backtracked from west to east? (Yes, I > know it's improbable, but ...) > > 1850 Census, Porter, Oxford, ME, recorded 9/05/1850: > > Asahel Brooks, 50 > Betsy C., 45 > Samuel, 24 > Betsy A., 22 > Timothy, 21 > Lucy, 10 > Asahel Jr., 8 The above Asahel is not mine. In 1850 my Asahel Brooks was in Wisconsin, Iowa County. Asahel could have backtracked west to east like you say, Chris, but it would have been done much earlier; i.e. he could have been in NY first and then went to Bennington County, VT close to the 1820's to meet the Mears. Or, Asahel may not have even been in VT at all and met the Mears when they arrived in NY. My Asahel Brooks and family are the following: Asahel Brooks b 1800 MA Betsy (Mears) Brooks b 1804 MA Harvey Brooks b 1827 NY Polly Brooks b 1828 NY (my ancestor) Florinda Brooks b 1830 NY Henry Brooks b 1833 PA, Erie Co. Asahel Brooks is in the following census records: 1830 New York, Saratoga Co. Concord Twp 1840 Illinois, Rock Island Co. 1850 Wisconsin, Iowa Co. Pulaski Twp 1860 Iowa, Mitchell Co. Richfield Twp 1870 Iowa, Mitchell Co. Lincoln Twp The census records are all consistent with Asahel's age (b 1800) and his birthplace as being MA. All but one of his children have been consistent in the census reports in indicating where their father was born. All say MA. except one son has indicated that his father was born in NY. Asahel may have left MA early and went to NY and he could be there in NY in the 1820 census. I am going through the Brooks that are in NY Saratoga County in 1820 to see if Asahel could possibly fit in some place since he is there in 1830. Christopher Brooks wrote: > Since I can't find your Asa's birth in Massachusetts vitals, I tried > MEARS, also found as Mear, Meare, Mere, and Meers. I found ONE and > only one Isaac, and then searched for related records and associated > given names, with the following results. Sources are fully itemized > following the extracted listings. I appreciate you taking the time, Chris, to follow up on my Mears. I do have data for them, but will certainly check to see if your information coincides with mine. How lucky you are to have the CD's for reference. Thank you for your continued interest and support, Chris! Martha Heinrichs

On Mon, 04 Mar 2002 16:56:34 -0700, Martha Heinrichs wrote: :I am still trying to place my Asahel/Asa Brooks in a New England :family. My Asahel Brooks is as follows: : :ASAHEL/ASA BROOKS b 1800 MA married early to mid 1820's to BETSY :MEARS dau of Isaac Mears formerly of MA but is in the 1820 VT :census, Bennington Co. :Sandgate Twp. Since I can't find your Asa's birth in Massachusetts vitals, I tried MEARS, also found as Mear, Meare, Mere, and Meers. I found ONE and only one Isaac, and then searched for related records and associated given names, with the following results. Sources are fully itemized following the extracted listings. BILLERICA, 290: MEARS, Isaac and Polly Long of Tewksbury, Nov. 24, 1796, in Tewksbury.* * Intention not recorded. TEWKSBURY, 66: MEARS, Anna, d. Thomas and Lydia, May 28, 1779. Betty, d. Thomas and Lydia, May 31, 1768. Isaac, s. Thomas and Lydia, Mar. 17, 1773. Lydia, d. Thomas and Lydia, Feb. 2, 1764. Nathan, s. Thomas and Lydia, Apr. 12, 1775. TEWSKBURY, 67: Roger, s. Thomas and Lydia, Mar. 2, 1771. Thomas, s. Thomas and Lydia, May 15, 1761. Thomas, s. Tho[ma]s, bp. May 25, 1766. C.R.1. <C.R.1. = Congregational Church records> TEWKSBURY, 158: MEARS, Isaac, of Billerica, and Polly Long, Nov. 24, 1796.* * Intention also recorded. Tho[ma]s, and Lydia Carleton, Jan. 11, 1763. C.R.1. TEWKSBURY, 230: MEARS, Roger, s. Tho[ma]s, killed with a cart, Oct. 19, 1781, in his 16th y. C.R.1. DRACUT, 214: MEARS, Lydia of Billerica, and Joshua Thestle, int. May 6, 1786. Note that these are all in northern Middlesex County. That suggests a search of neighboring Essex County, but I don't have this particular CD. To follow up on Essex County, here's a link for a site listing volunteers who'll do lookups in this particular series of CDs: http://john-slaughter.rootsweb.com/Mass_VRs.html I also searched Worcester County and the four western counties (Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire). Be advised that the following communities weren't searched, as their records are not included on my CDs: MIDDLESEX: Pepperell, Townsend WORCESTER: Paxton, Lunenberg WESTERN COUNTIES: There are as many towns NOT included on the CD as are included. Many of the smallest towns have never published their vitals. For the missing towns the researcher is referred to the Corbin collection (housed at the Athenaeum, Pittsfield, MA) or to Jay Mack Holbrook of ?Oxford?, MA, a researcher and microfiche vendor whose URL i posted a couple of weeks ago. Holbrook has privately filmed most of the "missing" towns' records. NOT SEARCHED at all: Essex, Plymouth, Norfolk, Bristol, Barnstable, and Dukes Counties. (Given the finds in Middlesex, only Essex among these is likely to be helpful, I'd guess.) SOURCES: (These CDs are page scans of the published volumes, not typed transcriptions) "Vital Records of Billerica, Massachusetts, To the Year 1850." Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1908. Digitally reproduced on CD-ROM "Early Vital Records of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, To About 1850" (Wheat Ridge, CO: Search and ReSearch Publishing, 1998). "Vital Records of Tewksbury, Massachusetts to the end of the year 1849." Salem, MA: Essex Institute, 1912. Digitally reproduced on CD-ROM "Early Vital Records of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, To About 1850" (Wheat Ridge, CO: Search and ReSearch Publishing, 1998). "Vital Records of Dracut, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, To the year 1850." Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1907. Digitally reproduced on CD-ROM "Early Vital Records of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, To About 1850" (Wheat Ridge, CO: Search and ReSearch Publishing, 1998). Hope this helps, Chris

On Mon, 04 Mar 2002 16:56:34 -0700, Martha Heinrichs wrote: :I am still trying to place my Asahel/Asa Brooks in a New England :family. My Asahel Brooks is as follows: : :ASAHEL/ASA BROOKS b 1800 MA married early to mid 1820's to BETSY :MEARS dau of Isaac Mears formerly of MA but is in the 1820 VT :census, Bennington Co. :Sandgate Twp. :Asahel Brooks is in the following census: 1830 NY, Saratoga Co. :Concord Twp 1840 IL, Rock Island Co. The Brooks arrive in Rock :Island Co. :between 1835-1838. Could your Asa/Asahel have backtracked from west to east? (Yes, I know it's improbable, but ...) 1850 Census, Porter, Oxford, ME, recorded 9/05/1850: Asahel Brooks, 50 Betsy C., 45 Samuel, 24 Betsy A., 22 Timothy, 21 Lucy, 10 Asahel Jr., 8 Chris

On Thu, 7 Mar 2002 08:59:25 -0600 (Central Standard Time), Candy C wrote: :I do not have any information on my father, just his name and he :was about 3/4 cherokee indian and probably came from Ohio. My :mother was Betty Louise Brooks. Thank you for asking. : : :==== BROOKS-NE Mailing List ==== Candy, This didn't make any sense to me, or probably to others. It came to the list, but was it intended for us or for someone else? Chris Christopher Brooks, List Administrator: ==================================== BROOKS-NE (Brooks Families of New England), HAPGOOD, and MERRIAM lists at RootsWeb. ==================================== [email protected]

I do not have any information on my father, just his name and he was about 3/4 cherokee indian and probably came from Ohio. My mother was Betty Louise Brooks. Thank you for asking.