Brief Life History of Abigail
When Abigail Nelson was born on 20 August 1811, in Milford, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States, her father, Seth Nelson, was 35 and her mother, Sophia Aspenwall, was 26. She married William A. Kinney on 9 June 1840. She died in 1887, at the age of 76.
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Family Time Line
Sources (2)
- Abigail Sophia Nelson, "Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915"
- Abigail S. Nelson, "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001"
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Parents and Siblings
World Events (8)
1812
War of 1812. U.S. declares war on Britain over British interference with American maritime shipping and westward expansion.
1812 · War of 1812
Because of the outbreak of war from Napoleonic France, Britain decided to blockade the trade between the United States and the French. The US then fought this action and said it was illegal under international law. Britain supplied Native Americans who raided settlers living on the frontier and halting expansion westward. In 1814, one of the British raids stormed into Washington D.C. burning down the capital. Neither the Americans or the British wanted to continue fighting, so negotiations of peace began. After Treaty of Ghent was signed, Unaware of the treaty, British forces invaded Louisiana but were defeated in January 1815.
1832 · The Black Hawk War
Convinced that a group of Native American tribes were hostile, The United States formed a frontier militia to stop them in their tracks. Even though Black Hawk was hoping to avoid bloodshed while trying to resettle on tribal land, U.S. officials opened fire on the Native Americans. Black Hawk then responded to this confrontation by successfully attacking the militia at the Battle of Stillman's Run and then left northward. After a few months the militia caught up with Black Hawk and his men and defeated them at the Battle of Wisconsin Heights. While being weakened by hunger, injuries and desertion, Black Hawk and the rest of the many native survivors retreated towards the Mississippi. Unfortunately, Black Hawk and other leaders were later captured when they surrendered to the US forces and were then imprisoned for a year.
Name Meaning
English: patronymic from the personal name Nell or Nele, either of which might be a pet form of Elias or less commonly of Niel (from Latin Nigellus). See also Neal .
Americanized form of Swedish Nilsson and also of the Danish, Norwegian, and North German cognates Nielsen and Nilsen (compare Nelsen ). Compare also Neilson and Nielson .
History: The Nelson name was an important one in 18th-century VA, starting with Thomas ‘Scotch Tom’ Nelson, who emigrated to VA at the close of the 17th century from Penrith, Cumbria, where the Nelsons were numerous. Scotch Tom settled c. 1700 at Yorktown, VA, where he became a successful merchant and landholder. His son was sheriff and a member of the VA Council, and his grandson, Thomas Nelson (1738–89), a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was governor of VA.
Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.
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