I responded to Sue's request directly to her, and she gave me more details on the family. I wanted to post the findings to the list in case others were wondering how it went. With difficulties in handwriting and transcription, it sometimes takes a whole handbag of tricks to locate folks in digitized records. I searched both HeritageQuest (more difficult in this case, oddly) and Ancestry. I used variations on the last name, both with and without a space. I tend to prefer to search by first name as it is sometimes more fruitful. In this case, I used variations on the first name (Charles, Chas, and C.). Sue also mentioned that Charles' father was Hector and his mother was Sarah, and that he had a daughter Wilhelmenia who lived with these grandparents. Since Hector and Wilhelmenia (any spelling) or less common than Charles, I also searched for them. Sue was looking for any census records for Charles Van Cleft, but preferably one showing his wife. My first search found him in 1880 in Manhattan as a widower, age 37, living with his presumed sister-in-law Mary Van Cleft, a widow, her mother Jane Valentine, and Mary's children Hector (22) and Mabel (8). He is listed as C.H. Van Cleft, so would not have turned under a search for Charles. I found him while looking for Hector. The citation for this record is as follows: 1880 Census for Manhattan, taken 8-JUNE-1880, Microfilm series T9, Roll #894, page 20 (stamped 173 B), SD 1, ED 570, Dwelling 131, Family 162, Line 10. I wanted to find other evidence to bolster the idea that C.H. was likely Charles, so I checked the 1870 census for Hector Van Cleft who would then have been 12. I found him living with his parents Geo H. Van Cleft (41) and Mary E. Her mother, Jane Valentine, was living in the household, confirming this was the same family found in the 1880 census. However, Charles was not living in this household. The citation for this record is as follows: 1870 Census for Manhattan, taken 18-JULY-1870, page 3 (stamped 102), 21st Ward, ED 4, Dwelling 10, Family 12, Line 17, Microfilm Series M593, Roll 1009. I also found a Willimena Van Cleft living with a widowed Sarah Van Cleft in Middletown, Orange County, NY in the 1870 census. There is a chance, although not proven, that Charles may already have been widowed at this time. He was not listed in the household, and for the moment has still not been found in the 1870 census. To further tie George H. Van Cleft and his wife Mary E. Valentine with Charles Van Cleft and help solidify the claim he is the C.H. Van Cleft in the 1880 census, I went back to see if I could locate the two men as boys in the same household. I found them together in the 1850 census for Goshen, Orange County, NY. The head of the household is Hector Van Cleft. Others with him are abbreviated to Sarah Van C., etc. The children are: George H. (21), Theodore (14), and Chas. (8). Looking for Van Cleft might not have turned up the kids, nor would a search for Charles. I found this record searching for Chas Van Cleft with Soundex. This found him in both 1850 and 1860. The citation for this record is as follows: 1850 Census for Goshen, Orange County, NY, taken 31-OCT-1850, Page stamped 372, Dwelling 125, Family 127, Line 18, Microfilm Series M653, Roll 835. Charles also is in the same household in 1860, age 18, and it would seem his father has died. Going forward, there doesn't seem to be a Charles Van Cleft listed as a Civil War veteran, so he would not show up in what remains of the 1890 census. The last census I checked was 1900. I found Charles Van Cleeft and his wife Annie E. living in Manhattan. He was born May 1842 and she was born May 1851. She is the mother of 2 children, none of whom are living. The couple has been married only 13 years, so I suggested Sue try to locate the marriage certificate to verify whether or not this is her Charles Van Cleft. The citation for this record is as follows: 1900 Census for Manhattan, taken 5-JUNE-1900, Sheet 4A, page stamped 300, SD 1, ED 634, Dwelling 34, Family 83, Line 40, Microfilm Series T623, Roll 1109. Sue says Charles died in 1902 so this is the last census record in which he would have appeared. If anyone else wants to try looking for the wife (Bessie Josephine Lawrence), please post your results to the list. -- Laura H. Congleton > From: Sue Maxwell <suemaxwell@comcast.net> > Reply-To: <nynewyor@rootsweb.com> > Date: Wed, 1 Oct 2008 17:50:03 -0600 > To: <nynewyor@rootsweb.com> > Subject: [NYNEWYOR] lookup > > I have been trying to find Charles Van Cleft 1842-1902 ( New York) and his > wife Bessie Josephine Lawrence on any census record on ancestry and all I > can find is his birth and death; if anyone has Heritage Quest- could you > give it a try? Thanks, Sue