Hello, list, The families I am researching in Des Moines County, Burlington area, are CLARK/E, MARTIN, and GRAHAM. Records show that my gggrandparents, Thomas C. Clark and Mary Laura Martin, were married in Burlington in 1857. Their oldest son, Morace Milton Clark, was born there in 1858. An 1856 census record for Burlington shows a family named Martin living there; it was composed of John Martin, age 47, Giles Martin, age 45, a Mary Martin age 16 (wrong--she would have been 18, but this could be a transcription error), and two young men named Robert and John Graham, of New York. Mary's mother was a Graham and had apparently died before 1850. I am guessing that the Graham boys were cousins. I do not know which Martin, John or Giles, was her father, but they were probably brothers. They are listed as being from Scotland, while Mary's birthplace is given as England. Family tradition has her as Scottish, so I am assuming the Martins came from one of the Border counties. Thomas Clark may be related to James Clarke, b. 1812, the third territorial governor of Iowa, who founded the Burlington Gazette. He died in about 1846 during a cholera epidemic. I do not know why Thomas was in Burlington in 1857 and the 1856 census shows no entry for him in Des Moines County. How he met Mary Martin is a mystery like many others. Any information would be appreciated, Barbara Archer