The Hamilton Family of Ohio and Kentucky
My grandfather, Lionel Howard Hamilton, was
born in New Richmond, Clermont Co., Ohio. He was one of six children born to Noah Frederick Hamilton and Maude Mae McElfresh whose families were originally
from Bracken and Pendleton County, Kentucky.
Lionel married my grandmother, Beatrice Mary Aufderheide, daughter of William Maximillian Aufderheide and Cecilia Mary Hermes, whose families originated from Germany.
My grandparents had a total of four children, but were divorced sometime before their children reached adulthood. This is the main reason I never knew my grandfather very well, and I can only remember meeting a great-aunt and two great-uncles once. As a result, I grew up not having a very good impression of my grandfather or his family, and if I had known them, maybe my opinion of them would have been different. I don't know. His side of the family never had much to do with us, so there was always this curiosity about grandpa's side of the family. Who were they?
Lionel's father, Noah, was the son of William E. Hamilton and Susan Frances Mains. William was born in Pendleton County, Kentucky while Susan was born in Bracken County. William was the son of Charles Hamilton and Mary Martha Elrod, and Susan was the daughter of Ishmael Mains and Elizabeth Katherine Hamilton. There may be a relationship, possibly cousins, between Charles Hamilton and Elizabeth Hamilton, but I haven't figured it out yet. However, Charles was a nephew of Ishmael's mother. The parents of Ishmael Mains were Oliver Laban Mains and Hester Ann Hamilton. Hester was a sister of Charles's father, William Hamilton, and his mother was Clemency Moulton. They were both of Bracken County, Kentucky.
Lionel's mother, Maude Mae McElfresh, was one of seven children born to Susannah Margaret Davis and Elmore McElfresh, both of Bracken County, Kentucky. They were married in Bracken County June 2, 1880, and by 1900 were living in Clermont Co., Ohio. Elmore died sometime before 1910, leaving Susannah (known as Anna) to raise all of her seven children alone.
The parents of Elmore McElfresh were John Wesley McElfresh and Jacintha Elganine Davis, and as far as I know, Jacintha was of no relation to Susannah Margaret Davis. Elmore was one of 15 children, and it appears that all of the McElfresh descendants who lived in Mason and Bracken County, Kentucky were descendants of my 3rd great-grandfather, John Wesley McElfresh.
The parents of Susannah Margaret Davis were John Wilson Davis and Sarah Ann Young. Both were of Bracken County, Kentucky, but at some point they were in Ohio as the census and Susannah's death certificate indicate that she was born in Ohio. Sarah's family was originally from Virginia where her grandfather, and my 5th great-grandfather, John Young, was born and had served during the Revolutionary War. You can read more through the links in the menu at the left.