Death by "summer complaint" - Lilly Florence Baca, 1933

My paternal grandparents lost three of their children. One child was Lilly Florence Baca, who was born on April 30, 1933 and died four months and one day later on August 30, 1933.

Her death certificate indicates that she died of bronchial pneumonia, brought on by "Summer complaint" and infectious diarrhea. I had not heard of "Summer complaint", so I decided to look it up.

According to Dictionary.com, "Summer complaint" is

noun

1. an acute condition of diarrhea, occurring during the hot summer months chiefly in infants and children, caused by bacterial contamination of food and associated with poor hygiene.

 

It looks like she died of food poisoning. She was the daughter of Robert Bourguignon Baca and Maria Teresa Torres.

 

sources: 

 

"Socorro County Death Certificates, 1932 - 1935," database, Family Search (www.familysearch.org: accessed 29 March 2016), death certificate: Lilly Florence Baca, DOD August 30, 1930.

 

Definition: summer complaint, Dictionary.com, , accessed 29 March 2016. 

New Years Resolution 2016

It's the New Year! I may be a couple of days late, but I've decided to make a few of resolutions.

1. Take a look at the image below. This is my current genealogy database properties. Notice that there are currently 6,437 people in my database. I wish to have 10,000 by the end of the year. That means that I need to add 3,563 names to my database. If I add at least 10 names per day from now until the end of the year, I can make that goal. You, gentle reader, can help me by sending me obituaries, family group sheets, hints, etc. for people related to Socorro, New Mexico and my family. I will also collect information for my wife's family. You can send me an email at info AT socorrogrant.org.

My goal isn't to just fill up my database, but rather connect to as many relatives as possible. I will also share information as requested.

2. Publish a book on the Socorro Land Grant families. I've collected a lot of information, but there's a lot I need to "clean up" before publishing. Again, your help is appreciated.

3. Publish a few articles in certain journals/ magazines. I've yet to publish in HGRC's Herencia, the Historical Society of New Mexico's journal, and the El Defensor Chieftain. I hope this will be the year.

Do you have any genealogy resolutions? Post them here!

Have a Happy New Year!

Research Sites for Illinois

Many of my wife's roots go back to Illinois. Here are some links that I may use soon when researching her genealogy.

* Genealogy and Local History Page, Charleston Carnegie Public Library

* Coles County Illinois Genealogy Society

* Illinois State Archives - Databases

* Illinois State Archives - Genealogical Research

* Illinois Digital Archives

* MTM Kin Site - includes photos and documents relating to my wife's relatives.

Bacas, Garcia Jurados and a few Torreses and Montoyas for good measure

I've  become a fan of genetic genealogy. I don't believe it can replace conventional genealogy, but it sure can help clarify questions and find distant relatives.

Regarding the latter - I bought the Family Finder test last year, and I've found a few hundred relatives. A few of these relatives have posted their genealogies on the FamilyTreeDNA website. I've noticed a few trends in their genealogies.

First, I have a number of relatives who are related to me through my 4th great-grandparents Dionosio Antonio Baca and Ana Maria Sanchez. My closest relative on the site is Mr. F.M. who shares my 2nd great-grandparents Ramon Baca and Anastasia Padilla (making us 3rd cousins.) Ramon Baca is the the grandson of the aforementioned Dionosio Antonio and Ana Maria. Mr. R.M. is the fourth great-grandson of Dionosio Antonio and Ana Maria - making him my 5th cousin. Mrs. L.V.J.E. and Mrs. D.W are also my 5th cousins through this relationship. Mrs. L.T.A. has them as her 3rd great-grandparents, which makes her my mother's 4th cousin and my 4th cousin, once removed.

Dionosio Antonio Baca is the great-grandson of Ramon Garcia Jurado and his first wife Juana Antonia de Espindola y de las Heras. A number of my relatives are descendants of Ramon Garcia Jurado and his second wife Bernadino Hurtado. This latter couple are my 7th great-grandparents. Mr. F.T., Jr.; Mr. L.C.; Mr. G.G.R.; Mr. N.C.G.; Mr. B.M.; Mr. K.G.S and Mrs. N.C.P. are all descendants of this couple.

Other relatives are related to me through Diego de Torres, one of the founders of Belen, and various Montoya families. Two of my relatives, Mrs. H.M.C. and Mr. M.M., are descendants of Luis Maria Cabeza de Baca, my 4th great-grandfather. H.M.C. is descended from Luis Maria's first wife; both M.M. and I are descended from Luis Maria's 2nd wife.

I have personally contacted only a few of these people. A few of them are friends and genealogical colleagues of mine. One, who is a 5th cousin of mine, is the president of one of the leading genealogy societies in town. Many have roots either in Socorro, Belen or Pena Blanca.

I am still waiting to find a Zimmerly or Bourguignon family member to take a Family Finder test. I would also like to find a closer Torres family (one from Socorro, rather than Belen) on the site.

Descendants of Toribio Garcia Jurado

Andres Armijo, the author of "Por Constancia /So that it may be validated: Family History in the Rio Abajo", informed me recently that he is related to me. I already knew that we were related by marriage - his great uncle married my great aunt, and therefore we have mutual cousins. I also figured that we were related to each other in other ways. After all, we are both of New Mexico stock and we both come from the Rio Abajo. But even though I read his book, I didn't realize that he had information that showed that we are 7th cousins.

In his book, Andres indicated that he is the descended of Joseph Enrique Chaves, a soldier from Belen who enlisted in Isleta Pueblo in 1808. Joseph Enrique Chaves was the son of Santiago Chaves and Maria de la luz Garcia. Maria de la luz Garcia was the daughter of Toribio Garcia Jurado and Antonia Teresa Gutierrez. Based on my extrapolation of the information that he presented, Andres is the 6th great-grandson of Toribio and Antonia (see pages 102-104 of his book.) I, too, am the 6th great-grandson of Toribio and Antonia - three times - and their 7th great-grandson once.  That makes Andres and me 7th cousins and 7th cousins, once removed.

Andres' ancestors probably stayed in Belen for a few generations at least. My ancestors were the original (re) settlers of Socorro in 1815.

In my two articles in the September 2011 and March 2012 New Mexico Genealogist - "The Early Settlers of the Socorro Land Grant: An 1818 List (Parts I and II)", I mention two specific ancestors of mine who are the children of Toribio Garcia Jurado and Antonia Teresa Gutierrez. Francisco Xavier Garcia Jurado, married three times, was one of the instrumental founders of Socorro. In 1817 and 1818, he petitioned the governor to get title of the Socorro Land Grant for the settlers. He was listed in an 1818 list of Socorro residents who contributed goods to a military campaign against the Navajos. (Part I - page 117.) I am descended from Francisco Xavier's second wife Maria Josefa Sanchez, who was dead by 1816.  (New Mexico Roots, Volume 4, page 616.)

Francisco Xavier's sister Maria Trinidad Garcia Jurado arrived Socorro by 1818 with her husband Feliciano Montoya. Feliciano Montoya was listed on the 1818 list, which confirms that he was living in Socorro at the time. (Part II - page 12.)

Descendants of Francisco Xavier Garcia Jurado include my second great-grandmother Maria Guadalupe Padilla, who married my 2nd great-grandfather Jose Epitacio Torres. They were the parents of Delfina Torres, who married Estevan Zimmerly - my great-grandparents - my maternal grandmother's parents. Another descendant is Jose Crespin Torres, my 2nd great grandfather on my father's side, who married Maria Andrea Trujillo.

Descendants of Maria Trinidad Garcia Jurado include Maria Pabla Torres who married Samuel Zimmerly, who were the parents of the aforementioned Estevan Zimmerly (which means that Maria Pabla Torres and Maria Guadalupe Padilla were 3rd cousins, and their children - the married couple Estevan and Delfina were fourth cousins.) Also, my 3rd great-grandfather, Jose Valentine Torres, the father of the aforementioned Jose Epitacio Torres, was a great-grandson of Maria Trinidad. This means that Jose Epitacio Torres and his wife were 2nd cousins, once removed. Also Josefa Abeyta, Jose Epitacio Torres' first wife, was also a great-granddaughter of Maria Trinidad Garcia Jurado, which made this couple also second cousins. Luckily, I'm not descended from her, too.

If you wish to get proof of these relationships, please contact me.

The Garcia Jurado family is one of my favorite families, partially because I'm descended from them many times and also because they are just interesting people. I mean, just look at Ramon Garcia Jurado (Toribio's famther), Ramon's daughter Petronila Garcia Jurado (not mentioned here, but I wrote about her in the June 2014 New Mexico Genealogist) and his grandson Francisco Xavier Garcia Jurado. All of these people had colorful lives. You can read about them in articles that I've written and through books such as Origins of New Mexico Families (by Fray Angelico Chavez), The Spanish Recolonization of New Mexico (Esquibel and Colligan), and "Spanish Colonial Lives" (Tigges and Salazar.)

Juana Maria de la Luz Baca, Daughter of Juan Francisco Baca

The following is an addendum to the article that Patricia Sanchez and I wrote - Robert J. C. Baca and Patricia Sanchez Rau, "Petronila Garcia Jurado: Matriarch of the Rio Abajo", New Mexico Genealogist, 53 (June 2014), pp. 51-60.

Recently, while I was researching another person when I came across a prenuptial investigation of Jose Torres and Maria Serafina Chavez. While reading it, I realized that I was able to prove two things: 1.) That Juana Maria de la Luz Baca's parents were Juan Francisco Baca actually married Manuela Antonia Sanchez; and 2.) Juana Maria de la luz Baca was their daughter. After connecting the dots, I put my findings in my database. Below are the notes I put for Juana Maria de la luz Baca's birth:

The proof of Juana Maria de la luz Baca's parentage can be determined by using three separate sources. The first source is from "New Mexico Marriages: Churches of Immaculate Concpetion of Tome and Our Lady of Belen", page. 24. On 19 May 1800, Jose Maria Torres, (Spanish, 22 years old) the son of Juachin Torres and Xaviera Chaves, married Juana Maria de la Luz Baca, (Spanish, 17 years old) daughter of Don Juan Baca (deceased) and Dona Manuela Antonia Sanchez of the sixth plaza of Belen.

Second, in Fray Angelico Chavez's "New Mexico Roots, Ltd.", pp. 1913 and 1914, there is a prenuptial investigation for Jose Torres and Maria Serafina Chavez. In that investigation, the following relationship is established between the couple:

Petra Garcia            (sister and bro.)          Toribio Garcia
Juan Baca               (1st cousins)               Maria Garcia
Juana Maria Baca   (2nd cousins)              Antonia Montoya
Jose Torres             (3rd cousins)               Serafina Chaves

This indicates that Juana Maria Baca was the daughter of Juan Baca, who himself is the son of Petra Garcia. Petra is also mentioned as being Toribio Garcia's sister. Because of this information, we know that this obviously Petronila Garcia Jurado. Petronila Garcia Jurado had two sons Juan Francisco Baca and Juan Felipe Baca, either one who could have been the Juan Baca mentioned in these two documents.

The third source confirms which Juan Baca is the father of Juana Maria Baca. According to "New Mexico Roots, Ltd.", (volume 1, page 166) on 6 December 1781, a prenuptial investigation was completed for Juan Francisco Baca and his intended Manuela Antonia Sanchez. If the marriage record of Jose Maria Torres and Juana Maria de la luz Baca indicates that her mother was Manuela Antonio Sanchez, and Juana Maria is the granddaughter of Petronila Garcia Jurado, then her father is most assuredly Juan Francisco Baca.




Sources:

Fray Angelico Chavez, New Mexico Roots, Ltd.: A Demographic Perspective from genealogical, historical and geographic data found in the Diligencias Matrimoniales or Pre-Nuptial Investigations (1678-1869) of the Archives of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. (Santa Fe, New Mexico: typescript, 1982), Vol. 10, pp. 1913 and 1914.

Raymond P. Salas extractor and Margaret Leonard Windham compiler, New Mexico Marriages Churces of Immaculate Conception of Tome and Our Lady of Belen (Albuquerque: New Mexico Genealogical Society, 1994), p. 24.

Chavez, New Mexico Roots, Ltd., Vol. 1, p. 166.

Descendants of Juan Francisco Baca (1st generation only)

1.  Juan Francisco BACA was born before 1727.^{1 1} He died by 1795 at the age of 68.²

Juan Francisco BACA and Francisca de Jesus SANDOVAL were married on 2 Jan 1749 in Isleta, New Mexico.³ They appeared in the census in 1750 in Belen, New Mexico.⁴ Francisca de Jesus SANDOVAL died after Apr 1772.⁵ She was also known as Francisca de Jesus Martin.⁶

Juan Francisco BACA and Francisca de Jesus SANDOVAL had the following children:

                      i.   Lugardo BACA was born circa 4 Apr 1751 in Belen, New Mexico.^5,7 He was baptized on 4 Apr 1751 in Isleta, New Mexico.⁷

                     ii.   Juan Antonio BACA was born circa 9 Apr 1752 in Belen, New Mexico.^8–9 He was baptized on 9 Apr 1752 in Isleta, New Mexico.⁹

                    iii.   Antonia Josefa BACA was born circa 13 Mar 1756 in Belen, New Mexico.^10–11 She was baptized on 13 Mar 1756 in Isleta, New Mexico.¹¹

          2        iv.   Paulino BACA, born ca 29 Jun 1758, Belen, New Mexico; married Maria Lugarda TAFOYA, 26 May 1779, Belen, New Mexico.

          3         v.   Lucas BACA, born ca 1759, Belen, New Mexico; married Maria Paula CHAVES, 3 Jan 1782, Isleta, New Mexico.

          4        vi.   Dionisio Antonio BACA, born ca 1761; married Ana Maria SANCHEZ, 1787, Belen, New Mexico; died 7 Dec 1833, Socorro, New Mexico.

          5       vii.   Juana Maria BACA, born ca 1765; married Jose Francisco PINO, 18 Sep 1780, Isleta, New Mexico.

Juan Francisco BACA and Maria Josefa PINO were married on 7 Aug 1778 in Isleta, New Mexico.⁵ Maria Josefa PINO died by 1781.¹⁰

Juan Francisco BACA and Maria Josefa PINO had the following child:

          6          i.   Juana Lorenza BACA, born ca 1779, New Mexico; married Miguel Antonio CHAVES, 26 Mar 1795, Tome, New Mexico.

Juan Francisco BACA and Manuela Antonia SANCHEZ had a prenuptial investigation performed on them on 6 Dec 1781.^10,12 They were married after 6 Dec 1781. Manuela Antonia SANCHEZ, daughter of Diego Antonio SANCHEZ and Ana Maria ALVAREZ DEL CASTILLO, was born circa 1765.¹²

Juan Francisco BACA and Manuela Antonia SANCHEZ had the following child:

          7          i.   Juana Maria de la luz BACA, born abt 1783, Belen, New Mexico; married Jose Maria TORRES, 9 May 1800, Belen, New Mexico.

Sources: 

        1. "Petronila Garcia Jurado petition," Twitchell # 344, Spanish Archives of New Mexico 1681 - 1821, Series II, Microfilm # 6, Frames 510-523, Albuquerque Genealogy Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

        2. Raymond P. Salas extractor and Margaret Leonard Windham compiler, New Mexico Marriages Churces of Immaculate Conception of Tome and Our Lady of Belen (Albuquerque: New Mexico Genealogical Society, 1994), p. 12.

        3. Jose Antonio Esquibel and John B. Colligan, The Spanish Recolonization of New Mexico: An Account of the Families Recruited at Mexico City in 1693 (Albuquerque: Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico, 1999), 202.

        4. Virginia Langham Olmsted compiler, Spanish and Mexican Censuses of New Mexico 1750 to 1830 (Albuquerque: New Mexico Genealogical Society, 1981), p. 96.

        5. Fray Angelico Chavez, Origins of New Mexico Families: A Genealogy of the Spanish Colonial Period: Revised Edition (Santa Fe: Museum of New Meixco Press, 1992), pg. 320.

        6. Fray Angelico Chavez, New Mexico Roots, Ltd.: A Demographic Perspective from genealogical, historical and geographic data found in the Diligencias Matrimoniales  or Pre-Nuptial Investigations (1678-1869) of the Archives of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. (Santa Fe, New Mexico: typescript, 1982), Vol. 8, p. 1498.

        7. Lila Armijo Pfeufer, Margaret L. Buxton transcribers, Margaret Leonard Windham, and Evelyn Lujan Baca compilers, New Mexico Marriages and Baptisms San Agustin de la Isleta Church: Marriages 1726 to 1846, Baptisms 1730 to 1776, 1829 to 1842 (Albuquerque: New Mexico Genealogical Society, 1996), p. 130.

        8. Esquibel and Colligan, The Spanish Recolonization of New Mexico, pg. 320.

        9. Pfeufer, Buxton, Windham, and Baca, New Mexico Marriages and Baptisms San Agustin de la Isleta Church, p. 132.

        10. Chavez, Origins of New Mexico Families: A Genealogy of the Spanish Colonial Period, p. 320.

        11. Pfeufer, Buxton, Windham, and Baca, New Mexico Marriages and Baptisms San Agustin de la Isleta Church, p. 141.

        12. Chavez, New Mexico Roots, Ltd., Volume 1, p. 166.

Looking for my ancestry through DNA

Recently, I paid for the Family Finder DNA analysis. On August 30th, I received my results.

According to FamilyTreeDNA.com, I am 43.15% European (+/- 13.31%); 19.04% Native American (+/- 0.96%); and 37.81% Middle Eastern (+/- 12.37%.) The European is identified as defined as Finnish/Russian, the Native American (Central American) as Mayan and the Middle Eastern as Jewish.

Now, knowing about my ancestry, the thing that was most confusing was the Russian/Finnish connection. I know that I'm 1/16th Swiss and 1/16th German/French. But Russian/Finnish doesn't fit. Also the fact that I have such a high Middle Eastern percentage seemed a bit much. As far as the latter, a high Middle Eastern percentage might mean that I have "recent" Middle Eastern ancestors (within hundred of years), but might also mean that I have Irish - or more accurately, Celtic ancestors. (Click on this link for more information.) Having Celtic ancestors makes sense. There were many Celts in Spain.

So, in order to find out more information about my DNA, I had an expert Dr. J. Douglas McDonald analyze my raw data. This is what he found:

" the automatic fit is saying you are Finnish, which is very rare in Latin Americans of any sort. So I did a more reliable custom fit (including it) and get 

       Irish 0.3337        Spain 0.2426     Moroccan 0.0925     Georgian 0.1367         Maya 0.1945 or

     English 0.5068        Spain 0.0475     Moroccan 0.1118     Georgian 0.1389         Maya 0.1950 or

     English 0.5447    Sephardic 0.0052     Moroccan 0.1166     Georgian 0.1393         Maya 0.1942 or

     English 0.5461     Moroccan 0.1174     Georgian 0.1378     Armenian 0.0045         Maya 0.1942 or

     English 0.5439      Italian 0.0035     Moroccan 0.1176     Georgian 0.1408         Maya 0.1942 or

     English 0.5465       Jewish 0.0002     Moroccan 0.1179     Georgian 0.1412         Maya 0.1942 or

       Irish 0.3845      Italian 0.1964     Moroccan 0.1053     Georgian 0.1205         Maya 0.1932 or

       Spain 0.4676      Finland 0.1570     Moroccan 0.0616     Georgian 0.1205         Maya 0.1933 or

       Irish 0.2570       French 0.3053     Moroccan 0.1109     Georgian 0.1338         Maya 0.1931

which is much more reasonable. The Caucusus is a bit odd: it could be real or just representing something Italian/Mediterranean/Balkan/Ukrainian. "

 

Having ancestry from the Caucuses seems a little odd to me, too. Could it be the fact that I have a 2nd great grandfather who was Swiss and another who was either German or French? Maybe. Maybe I have a few ancestors coming in through (Russian) Georgia and Armenia who made their home in the German states.

The English and Irish I assume has to do with my Celtic ancestry. The Moroccan could be from Moors who came into Spain. And, of course, I have some Sephardic Jewish blood.

The Mayan just means that I have Native American ancestry from North of Panama. This, of course makes a lot of sense. When Spaniards came to the New World, they didn't bring many women. Therefore, they mated with Native women.

I still have a lot of questions about my ancestry, but much of this makes sense.

Who are Juan Antonio Baca's parents?

Who are the parents of Juan Antonio Baca? In a previous post I indicated that the parents of Juan Antonio Baca, husband of Maria Romero and father of Luis Maria Cabeza de Baca, may not be the son of Antonio Baca and Monica de Chavez. Fray Angelico Chavez, in his book "Origins of New Mexico Families", asserted this connection based on a document in the Bancroft Library in Berkeley, CA in which Juan Antonio Baca is shown related to Barbara Baca, the daughter of Antonio Baca and Monica Chavez. However, not everyone one agrees with Chavez's assessment.

In her article "Juan Antonio Baca m. Maria Romero: A Genealogical Proof Standard of", Henrietta Martinez Christmas demonstrates that it is more likely that Juan Antonio Baca was the son of a family from the Rio Arriba (northern New Mexico) rather than the Rio Abajo (southern New Mexico.) She believes that Juan Antonio Baca lived all of his life in La Cienega/ Santa Fe. She shows that all the records for him are in Santa Fe in the Rio Arriba, and that he seems to have a connection to Cristobal Baca and Apolonia Vega y Coca, who Henrietta Christmas theorizes are his parents. The only weakness to her argument is that she does not have access to the Bankcroft document, and therefore cannot definitively discount the document as inaccurate or that Fray Chavez misinterpreted the document.

The importance of figuring out who are Juan Antonio's parents is to figure out once and for all if Juan Antonio's lineage goes directly through the paternal line to the original Cristobal Baca (the other Cristobal Baca's 2nd great grandfather), the progenitor of the Baca family in New Mexico. If Cristobal Baca and Apolonia Vega y Coca are Juan Antonio's parents, than Juan Antonio's line does go directly up the paternal line. If his parents are Antonio Baca and Monica Chavez, it does not. This is because Antonio Baca is the son of Josefa Baca and an unknown father. Antonio took his mother's surname, not his father's.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I hope that one day we can answer this question by using DNA. I am hoping that descendants of Antonio Baca and the younger Cristobal Baca take a Y-DNA test to help us clear up this problem.

Sources:

Fray Angelico Chavez, Origins of New Mexico Families: A Genealogy of the Spanish Colonial Period, Revised Ed. (Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1992) pp. 144 and 152.

Henrietta M. Christmas, "Juan Antonio Baca m. Maria Romero: A Genealogical Proof Standard of", Herencia, Vol. 13 (January 2005), pp. 26-31.

Notes on Baca family Y-DNA

Last week, FamilyTreeDNA President Bennett Greenspan gave the New Mexico Genealogical Society a two part presentation on genetic genealogy.

In the audience was a woman who is a distant relative of mine. I won't write her name on this post, but I will say that her maiden name is Baca. During a break, we began speaking about our families. We had spoken before, and may have even talked about our Y-DNA certificates. Since only men have the Y chromosome, this Baca cousin had to have her brother take the test.

Her brother's certificate shows that we are separated by only on step in the 37 marker test (although he has taken the 67 marker test, I have only taken the 37.) DYS # 448 shows "17" for me and "18" for him. According to her research, on her direct paternal line she is the 5th great-granddaughter of Luis Maria Baca through his 1st wife. On my direct paternal line, I am the 4th great-grandson of this man through his 2nd wife. Therefore, she is seven generations separated from Luis Maria Baca while I am six generations separated. According to our Y-DNA TiP report, there is an 77.81% chance that we are related within six generations and 84.11% chance that we are related within seven generations.

Comparing our Y-DNA results are important for me because it may prove that I am descended from Luis Maria Baca (aka Luis Maria Cabeza de Baca.) According to my uncles, my great-grandfather Juan C. de Baca y Luna was adopted, which might mean that he himself is not the great-grandson of Luis Maria Baca. I have found in my research, though, a baptismal record that shows that he is the legitimate son of Martin Baca and Maria Rita Luna, which makes him Luis Maria Baca's descendant. I believe the misunderstanding that he was "adopted" is the fact that his mother remarried after his father died.

I am still trying to find more information through DNA. For instance, I would like to find out if it is true that Luis Maria Baca was the descendant of Josefa Baca, through her son Antonio Baca (see Fray Angelico Chavez's "Origin of New Mexico Families", pages 144 and 152) or through a more direct Baca paternal line that extends to the 1st Baca male in New Mexico, Cristobal Baca.

Right now, there are 21 men who have submitted their results to the Baca Y-DNA project for comparison. Within that project, there is a group of 6 men who match significantly enough to be considered to be in the same lineage. There is only one other pair of two who match, and everyone else are distant enough not to be considered part of the same lineages. I am one of that group of 6. I have not been able to compare my lineage against any of the other five men except for the one I mentioned before. I have sent out emails to the others to see if they will respond.

If you have the Baca surname, I suggest that you take a FamilyTreeDNA Y-DNA test so that we could have more data. I suggest taking at least the 37 marker test in order to make a good comparison. Share your family tree information with other people in project so that we can compare our trees. For more information on the cost of the test, visit www.familytreedna.com.

Remember, only men can take the Y-DNA test (a man's Y-DNA is what makes him male, as opposed to female.) If you are female, you will have to have your brother, father, grandfather, cousin or uncle on the same paternal line take the test. Also, the Y-DNA test only looks at the direct paternal line - usually the surname line - father's, father's, father's, father's, father, etc. There are other tests that will show a maternal line (MtDNA) and other lines of your DNA (Family Finder.) Visit the FamilyTreeDNA website for more information.

Jose Leon Benavidez

Sometimes I get comments about my blog posts within a day or two of posting them. That's the case of my article "Descendants of Ramon Baca".

 

Ramon Baca was my 2nd great grandfather on my mother's side (my mom being a Baca, too.) I recently discovered an 1885 census record of Ramon's family, and I posted that on my blog. (Click here to read.)

 

I decided to revise the information that I had on Ramon's family, and I linked a descendant chart to my "Descendants of Ramon Baca" post.

 

One of the people that was mentioned in the chart was Jose Leon Benavidez. Jose Leon Benavidez was the father in-law of one of Ramon Baca's grandsons, Hilario Gonzales, Jr.

 

Larry , a distant cousin of mine, responded to my post:

 

“Jose Leon Benavidez is my dad's maternal grandfather. I used to visit him in Lemitar, NM. I remember going over to see him and he had a wagon in the back that I used to play on. He only spoke Spanish so I never spoke to him since I don't speak Spanish. He would just rock on his rocking chair on the porch while my dad would visit with him. He was very old as I remember.

“He had a daughter named Prescilla Benavidez who married Hilario Gonzales who I am named after ... Hilario Gonzales died when my dad was only 1 1/2 years old. My grandmother Prescilla never remarried. Jose Leon Benavidez told his sons that whoever took in Prescilla and took care of her would get his property. My great-uncle Julian Benavidez had just lost his wife so he took in Prescilla and her children. So my dad was raised by his Uncle Julian....

“However, Benavidez is not the family name. I believe Gomocindo Benavidez who is Jose Leon Benavidez's father was taken in by the Benavidez family because they were abandoned by their father whose last name was Rael. I don't know his first name.... So if you try to look up the Benavidez family tree you will have to look for a Rael also.”

 

Based on this information, Larry is my 3rd cousin. BUT WAIT, let me go back to an article I posted on 15 March 2010: "My Maternal Baca Family: Part II".  In that article, I wrote this:

 

"Coincidentally, the younger Hilario Gonzales was my paternal grandfather's 1st cousin through their mutual grandparents Philip Bourguignon and Tomasa Gonzales. That would make Hilario and Prescila's grandchildren my double third cousins."  

 

Therefore, Larry is my DOUBLE 3rd cousin.

 

BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE! In an email giving me permission to post his comments on this blog, Larry reminded me that he had a photo of my great-grandparents Estevan Zimmerly and Delfina Torres' wedding. He is also descended from Delfina's parents, Jose Epitacio Torres and Maria Guadalupe Padilla! So he's a fairly close cousin to me three times - once on my paternal grandfather's side (Philip Bourguignon), once on my matenal grandfather's side (Ramon Baca), and once on my maternal grandmother's side (Jose Epitacio Torres!) I'm not sure if he is a triple 3rd cousin, or a double 3rd cousin and also a 2nd cousin or 3rd cousin, once removed, but it's an interesting coincidence that he is related to me so many times within five generations of my family.

 

When I finally meet Larry, I wonder if we'll look a lot alike.

 

 

Crespin Torres Family 1885 Census of Socorro, NM

Here is another transcription I did from the 1885 Census. This is of Jose Crespin Torres and his family. The record shows him simply as C. Torres, but I know that it is him based on the family information.

 

Source: 1885 U.S. Census, Socorrro County, Territory of New Mexico, population schedule, Precinct 1 and 24 City of Socorro, enumeration district (ED) 32, pp. 45-46, dwelling 540, C. Torres; digital images, Ancestry Library Edition (ancestrylibrary.com : accessed 29 September 2012).

Below is a descendant chart that I did for Jose Crespin Torres. The sources are within the document.



Both documents are copyright (c) 2012 by Robert J. C. Baca. 

Ramon Baca Family in the 1885 Luis Lopez, NM Census

Below is my transcription of my 2nd great grandparent's family in the 1885 Luis Lopez, New Mexico census. Ramon Baca was married to Anastasia (Padilla) Baca. The census shows that this couple had eight children. However, there are a few mistakes in the census record.

First, the record shows that Juliana is "male". Juliana Baca, the future wife of Jose Leon Benavidez, is most obviously female. Second, Gabriel, Serito, and Maximiano, although listed as male, are also listed as daughters of Ramon Baca. The last example, although not technically a mistake, is hard to read. Line # 10 on my transcription has what looks like Rouol, a duaghter who was what may be 3 years old in 1885. Is this actually Raquel? Later census records will show Raquel born in 1884. Maybe what looks like a 3 is not actually a 3, but another number. However, the enumerator did not write down the name clearly enough and there does not appear to be a "q" in the name.

The record shows that Ramon and his teenage sons Gabriel and Serito were farmers. This is not a surprise: I've found this information in many other documents. Gabriel and Serito probably worked on their father's farm.



Source:

1885 United States Census, Socorro County, (Territory of) New Mexico, population schedule, Precinct 21 Luis Lopez, enumeration district (ED) 32, p. 138, dwelling 28, families 29, Ramon Baca; digital image, Ancestry Library Edition (ancestrylibrary.com : accessed 29 September 2012).

1885 Census of Bourguignon Family of Lemitar

Recently, I created a blank form that could be used for the 1885 Census. This special census was taken by only a handful of states and territories including the Territory of New Mexico. Since the 1890 census was mostly destroyed, this census is helpful in finding information about our ancestors between the periods of 1880 and 1900.

Click on this link to print up a free copy of the blank form for the 1885 Census.

I decided to test out this form by transcribing the record for my 2nd Great-Grandfather Philip Bourguignon. Philip was a Union Civil War soldier from Germany. As you can tell, he had a very large family: there are 9 children listed in the census. I had to create an 11th line to include all of the family!

The town is listed as "Limitar". This was a common spelling at the time. Presently, the town is spelled "Lemitar". Lemitar is located about 7 miles north of Socorro on I-25.

Although it was not mentioned in the census, Philip's wife's maiden name was Tomasa Gonzales.


Bourguignon 1885 Census Transcription

One thing that I discovered in this census was that Philip was a teacher! That's one more educator in my family. I wonder what he taught?

Source:
1885, Socorro County, Territory of New Mexico, population schedule, Precinct No. 2: Limitar, p. 88, dwelling # 56, family #65, Philip Bourguignon; digital images, Ancestry Library Edition  (www.ancestrylibrary.com : Accessed 29 September 2012).

Individual Summaries for members of a Socorro family

Below are individual reports for Pedro Antonio Baca, Francisco Antonio Garcia and Maria Guadalupe Torres of Socorro, New Mexico.

I've written about this extended family many times. Maria Guadalupe Torres first married Francisco Antonio Garcia. He died in 1833. She then married Pedro Antonio Baca. Pedro Antonio Baca and his children and step-children were powerful business and political leaders of Socorro, New Mexico. Read the text to find out more about this family.

Click on the arrow on the top, right hand side of the box to read the article.

A Few 1881 and 1882 Socorro Baptisms

Yesterday, I went to the Albuquerque Genealogy Library to research a baptisms for a Perfil(o) Baca. Nancy Anderson, the New Mexico Genealogical Society's treasurer and Primeras Familias researcher, requested that I look up this name for a member who requested our help. The member said that Perfil(o) Baca was born in 1881, but did not give us any further information.

I spent about and hour and a half looking at this name through the Archives of the Archdioces of Santa Fe microfilm #0016994 which includes "Socorro, San Miguel Church Records Baptisms 1865-1931". I looked not only in the year 1881, but 1880 and 1882, also. If I had time, I would have done a full 10 year wrap around of the 1881 date, but I didn't have the time. Unfortunately, I was unable to find Perfil(o) Baca in any variation of spellings that the name could come in. The closest I could get was a male baby by the name of Pilar Baca, but I didn't believe this was the same person.

While I was researching the name, I came across five baptisms that piqued my interested. They were all related to me in some way. I decided to transcribe and partially translate the baptisms. Unfortunately, I made a few mistakes. For instance, I'm not sure if the baptism for Maria Dolores Zimmerly says that she was baptized on "tres" (3) or "trece" (13) of March 1881. Twice I've recorded her baptism as saying "tres"; however, a family history says that she was born on 10 March 1881. If she was baptized on the 13th of March, and was born three days prior, (as her baptisms states) then she could have been born on 10 March. I also wrote down that Jose Torres was baptized "el mismo dia" (the same day) in October 1881. This means that he was baptized on the same day as a child in the previous baptismal entry. Unfortunately, I did not write down the day from the previous entry. Lastly, I was trying to write down the padrinos, or godparents, of each child. I forgot to write them down for Valentin Torres. Oops.

I've decided to start a new series on my blog. Jose Sanchez III and  the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center have published marriage books for Socorro dating from 1821 through 1900. In addition, The New MeFxico Genealogical Society and HGRC have published baptismal books from 1821 to 1865. However, no one to my knowledge has published Socorro baptisms from 1865 on. Due to an agreement between NMGS and HGRC, it would be up to HGRC to publish baptisms for those dates. HGRC has published many fine books over the years and I'm not criticizing their publication priorities. However, it would be nice if a book did come out sometimes.

There are probably thousands of entries for the time period of 1865 to 1900. I would be impossible for me to  transcribe all of them myself. However, I have transcribed a few over the years. Therefore, I will begin posting them here.

If you have any baptismal records from Socorro that you would like to post on my blog, please let me know at abqbobcat@nmia.com.

My tranlsation skills are not perfect. Oftentimes it is difficult to read what is written. Therefore, realize that there may be mistakes. I suggest that you use the information below as a guide and take a look at the microfilm yourself. One last thing, Many times names are abbreviated. In order to allow for search engines to find these names on the Internet, I have written them out completely. However, the spelling of other names are as I found them on the record.

Maria Dolores Zimmerly del Socorro. 3rd (or 13th) day of March (1881), baptized Maria Dolores born 3 days prior, the legitimate daughter of Sam. Zimmerly and Paula Torres of Socorro. Padrinos: Valentin Torres, Josefa Ortiz.

Jose Torres del Socorro. "El mismo dia" (October 1881) baptized Jose born 5 days prior, the legitimate son of Crespin Torres and Andrea Trujillo of Socorro. Padrinos: Jose de la Cruz Olguin and Enavista Padilla.

Maria Eleonor Baca. April 24 (1882) baptized Maria Eleanor born 7 days prior, the legitimate daughter of Alejandro Baca and Ursula Montoya. Padrinos: Elucamio (?) Montoya and Leonor Gonzales.

Luis Baca del Limitar. May 21 (1882) baptized Luis born 15 days before, the legitimate sons of Jose Miguel Baca and Abrama (?) Lopez. Padrionos: Dionisio Baca and Tomasa Baca.

Valentin Torres. November 9 (1882) baptized Valentin Torres born 2 days before, the legitimate son of Jose Epitasio Torres and Josefa Aveita.

Source: Archives of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Socorro San Miguel Church Records Baptisms 1865 - 1931, AASF 0016994.