Ohio

Towns of :  Canton - New Berlin / North Canton - Wooster
Counties of:  Stark - Wayne - Columbiana

A Photographic Scrapbook Of Our Family History 

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(Page Last Updated:  2008-12-14 )

Meek

The genealogy of the early Meeks in America is often traced to Adam Meek of Lincolnshire, England.  For an interesting viewpoint on this genealogy see the Internet article, The Progenitor Myth, by  Christopher A. Meek, who also runs a great Meek Genealogical Site and a MEEK surname Y-DNA Project.  The Meeks who are included in the Erbland/Linton lineage are among those that for a long time were widely thought to have descended from Adam Meek of Lincolnshire.  There is no proof of that however and Christopher Meek has shed some good light on the Meek's from southwestern Pennsylvania with his DNA work. I believe (but cannot prove) that I am descended from the Samuel Meek (b. 1732) that is listed in Christopher Meek's Sub-Group 1 as paternal line ancestor of  Kit #17063.  In any event, I feel confident of our ancestry back through Samuel Meek (1804-1846) and his wife Sidnah Garret Welsh (1814-1870).  Earlier than that, our lineage becomes increasingly uncertain with each previous generation. 

Index:

1. Mathew Elder Meek
2. Mathew Elder Meek at a somewhat younger age.
3. Home of Mathew Elder Meek abt 1895.
4. The Bostick childern.
5. Samuel Meek, father of Mathew Elder Meek
6. Sidnah Meek (nee Welsh)

Mathew Elder Meek was born 04-MAR-1832 in East Palestine, Columbiana County, Ohio.  He died 08-JAN-1907 at Canton, Stark County, Ohio.  He married Nancy Jane Shaffer.  They were the parents of four children:  Sidnah C., Sarah A., Alice and Kate.  His father was Samuel Meek of Washington County Pennsylvania and his mother was Sidnah Garret Welsh of Pennsylvania.

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Mathew Elder Meek at a somewhat younger age than in the above picture.  The back of the original photograph says that it was the taken by "Courtney Photographer, McKinley Block, Canton Ohio".  And the handwritten name "Mathew E Meek" (it is written with one "E") also appears on the back.  Mathew Elder Meek was listed in the Canton City Directory  of 1888/89, as a "blacksmith", employed with the Bucher & Gibbs Plow Company and living at "277 S. Poplar".  In the City Directories for 1889/90 and 1891/92, he was still employed with Bucher & Gibbs but was living at "277 S. Cleveland avenue".

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Home of Mathew Elder Meek at 1225 Cleveland Ave. S.W. Canton, Ohio.  This image was scanned from a negative but there is also a print of it in the family collection and the back of the print is marked as follows: "Picture taken About 1895. Ida Detimore Mathew E. Meek Nora E. Linton. Meek home at 1225 Cleveland Ave. S.W. Canton, Ohio.  Donald Erbland born here Jan 16, 1906".  Nora Linton was Donald Erbland's mother and Mathew Elder Meek was Nora Linton's grandfather.  Ida is listed in the 1880 census as Mathew's "adoptred daughter". The image on the right is from a photograph taken about 1978.  On the back it is marked: "Mathew E. Meek home. 1225 Cleveland Ave. S.W. Canton Ohio Southwest corner of Meek Place and Cleveland Ave. about 400 feet south of Navarre Road. I was born here in 1906. Picture taken in 1978.  Front porch closed in and addition on to back of house in fall of 1978. Doesn't look the same. [signed] Donald Erbland".  According to the recorded deed, Matthew E. Meek purchased the property on 11-APR-1864.

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The 3 childern of Cyrus Bostick (b. NOV-1849 in Pennsylvania) and Kate Bostick (nee Meek, b. 14-OCT-1855 in Ohio) are shown in this photograph.  Kate was the daughter of Matthew Elder Meek and Nancy Jane Meek (nee Shaffer).  The girl in the middle is Helen Bostick, (b. JUL-1878) and the boy on the right is John (Johnny) Bostick, b. JUL-1873.  Johnny suffered from hydrocephalus and this photograph shows the disproportionately large head that is a symptom of hydrocephalic children. Circa 1920, Johnny could often be seen sitting in a rocking chair on the porch of his house at 1231 (later numbered 1227) Cleveland Ave. S.W.  The boy on the left is James Bostick, b. OCT-1875.  Helen's eyes are poked out in this picture because the person that saved this photograph did not like her and did this intentionally.

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Samuel Meek, b. 30-SEP-1804 at Washington County Pennsylvania, d. 05-JAN-1846 at East Palenstine, Columbiana County Ohio, was married to Sidnah Garret Welsh on 28-APR-1831.  They were the parents of Matthew Elder, Joseph, John W., Phillip C. and Mary Ann.  This Samuel Meek is buried at Boatman Cemetery, East Palestine, Columbiana County, Ohio. (Incidentally, the first photographic portrait studio in North America was opened in New York city by Alexander Wolcot in 1840.  By the late 1840s, portrait photography was wide-spread across the U.S.)

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Sidnah Garret Welsh, b. 22-JUN-1814 in Pennsylvania, d. 19-DEC-1870 and buried under the name Sidnah Keeler at Bunker Hill Cemetery, Goshen Township, Mahoning County, Ohio, married Samuel Meek (1804-1846) on 28-APR-1831. They were the parents of Matthew Elder, Joseph, John W., Phillip C. and Mary Ann. Her second marriage was to Amos Keeler.

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Although the information presented on this web site is accurate to the best of our knowledge, we have made no attempt to meet the rigorous standards of proof required to document lineage for genealogical purposes.  That is why we describe our site as "A Photographic Scrapbook".  See the article, "Computerized Trolling" by Richard A. Pence, for some interesting comments on Web sites vis-à-vis genealogical standards.

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