Greetings. I'm wondering if anyone might be planning a visit to the Rhode Island Historical Society Library in Providence. Barring a small miracle, they seem to be my last hope for discovering the parents of one set of 5th great-grandparents, and I would be glad to pay the entrance fee and if necessary for your time if you might be willing to do a lookup. Specifically, I am trying to determine for certain the parents of one Am(e)y Gard(i)ner, born quite possibly in the 1806/07 time frame, but definitely between about 1795 and 1810, and likely in one of the Kingstowns. I am also trying to determine for certain the names of her parents's parents (which may turn out to be the real conundrum here). Am(e)y Gard(i)ner married Lyman Clark(e) (b 1798-1810 to William Clarke and Amy Greene), and lived for a time in Connecticut (where remains uncertain). The couple had at least one child in Connecticut (Sarah Clark[e], born 15 Sept 1828), and their first child (Mary Clark, b 28 Apr 1827) may have been born there as well. The Clarks moved back to Rhode Island by 1835 (possibly to one of the Kingstowns), as daughter Lydia was born there in the 1835-37 time frame. By 1838-39 they seem to have been living in the Smithfield/Central Falls/North Providence area when daughter Susan Clark(e) was born. Lyman and Am(e)y seem to have had at least three other children (Elizabeth, Daniel, and Roswell) although I have no idea at this point when they might have been born. There is no 1840 census record for a Lyman Clarke family in North Providence, but there is a record for a Lyman Cook family (which may have been a census taker misunderstanding their name). There is also no census record for a Lyman Clarke family in Rhode Island in 1850, but there is one for an Amey Clark household with daughters Susan and Lydia, and these may be our Clarks. It suggests but does not confirm that Lyman Clark(e) had died by 1850. Lydia Clark(e) married Albert Frost Briggs of Attleboro Mass, and settled there. Susan Clark(e) married Ephraim Hunt Tappan (s/o Abraham Tappan [Toppan] and Sarah Stockman of Newburyport, Mass) and settled in Attleboro as well. Ephraim and Albert may well have been partners in the jewelry business, or at least done business together. There is a *possible* death record for Am(e)y (Gard[i]ner) Clark(e) from January 1880 in Attleboro Mass. This Am(e)y (Gard[i[ner) Clark(e) would have been born in the same year (1806/07) as the Am(e)y Clark in the 1850 Rhode Island census record, and the death record for her lists her parents as William Gard(i)ner and Bets(e)y (Elizabeth?) Potter of the Kingstowns. There is another Amey Gardiner (Amey Easton Gardiner) born in March, 1807 (d/o Samuel Gardiner and Mary Carpenter) in North Kingstown who could *possibly* be our Am(e)y Gard(i)ner, but given the fact that Susan and Lydia Clark(e) were both living in Attleboro in 1880 the Am(e)y Clark (d/o William and Bets[e]y Gard[i]ner) *seems* like a better candidate. Here is what I am seeking: #1) a birth record for an Am(e)y Gard(i)ner about 1806/07 in (likely) Washington County RI to William and Bets(e)y Gard(i)ner. #2) a marriage record for an Am(e)y Gard(i)ner and Lyman Clark(e) from the 1820s in either Washingon or Providence County RI (they may have been married in Connecticut but so far I have no proof of that). #3) evidence of who Am(e)y Gard(i)ner's grandparents were. If her parents do turn out to be William Gard(i)ner and Bets(e)y Potter (of apparently the Kingstowns), I'm hoping to find out who their parents were. Am(e)y's parents seem likely to have been born between 1765 and 1788. As I said, I've exhausted other avenues. There are virtually no vital records for this couple on ancestry.com, or with town clerks, but my understanding is that the RIHS Library has resources unavailable at other sites. Thank you for any help you might be able to provide. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com