Ashbel RHODES was born 24 May 1811 in NY. Family legend holds that the place was Rochester. This was probably the Rochester in Ulster Co., because the presently large Rochester in the western part of the state was not founded until 1812 and was not named Rochester until 1817 and western NY was also under the jurisdiction of MA. The RHODESes had links with Wethersfield, CT and with the WRIGHT family there. Family legend and documentation indicate that Ashbel's first cousins included John Goodrich, Charles, Mary Anna/Anne, and Abigail WRIGHT. Unfortunately, none married and none had children. The heirs were schools and charities. Their parents were James and Mary Goodrich WRIGHT of Wethersfield, CT. I can trace this line back to England. "History of Ancient Wethersfield, Connecticut mentions a Moses RHODES: "Moses ('the late') m. Sally ________, had (Wethersfield County Records) Beulah; Abigail; Ashbel Wright, baptized 3 September 1820." Was this Ashbel Wright RHODES? The same source indicates that Timothy SHELDON of Hartford (the SHELDONs were also first cousins to Ashbel according to family legend) married Abigail RHODES 13 January 1835. Are the Abigails the same? Apparently, after Ashbel was born in NY the family, again according to family legend, returned to Hartford/Wethersfield, CT. Later, Ashbel, at an unknown time and for unknown reasons, went to NC and GA. I'll appreciate any help in determining Ashbel RHODES's exact birth place, parents, ancestry, and exact relationship to the WRIGHT and SHELDON families. Thanks, Kenyon