Is It Nichl or Michl Bender? Using Other Records to Solve a Census Dilemma
I used the 1820 United States Census for Osnaburg Township, Stark County, Ohio as a source for pinpointing Michael Bender’s likely location that year in my follow-up post on Michael Bender (1766-?). However, that census entry is indexed on FamilySearch and Ancestry as “Nichl Bender.”
So which is it? Is it Nicholas Bender or Michael Bender?
Is it Nichl or Michl?
Although I think it’s quite clear that it’s Michael, it must not have been to the indexer—or others who’ve attached the record to Nicholas Bender. Looking at it solely from this record, you can’t make a firm determination. However, if you look at it in conjunction with other records from this location, you most definitely can.
In my follow-up post, I also referred to an 1818 deed in which Michael Bender purchased land in section 12, township 18, range 7.1 If we look at the deed, you can see it clearly says Michael Bender and gives the location.
Stark County Deed Book C:541, Daniel Clark to Michael Bender
A Google search for “map stark county ohio range 7 township 18” turns up a map for the “Ranges and Townships based on the Pennsylvania Line and Ohio River.” Since I know I’m looking for Stark County, I can tell from the map that township 18 is just south and east of Canton—Osnaburg Township.
So, Michael Bender purchased land in Osnaburg Township in 1818. Was he living there in 1820? How can we find out? Any property owner knows the answer. Taxes.
If we look for Benders in the tax record for Stark County2, we find only two: Michael Bender and Job Bender.3 Based on the column headings the 1820 tax record, it clearly shows that Michael was living in Stark County—township 18, section 12. Subsequent records show that Michael was in Osnaburg Township and “Job Burdon” in Lexington Township.4 No other Bender appears in the township until 1829 when Susanna Bender and Jonas Bender are listed after Michael.5
1829 Osnaburg taxes: Michael, Susanna and Jonas Bender
Additionally, if we look at the names of those enumerated before and after the Bender entry in Osnaburg Township in 1820, we can see some of the very names mentioned in the 1818 deed between Daniel Clark and Michael Bender: Adam Sholl and John Groul. In between Bender and Groul are two McInterfers. Michael’s son Daniel apparently married Susanna Mackendorfer, likely a relation of one of these two “McInterfer” families.
1820 US Census: Osnaburg, Stark, Ohio (page 184)
Looking at the 1830 census for Osnaburg, we can see Susan Bender is enumerated.6 John Groul and the Mackenterfers are also listed around her entry. Peter Anthony’s name can also be seen lower in the list. He’s the man who purchased four shares (4/8’s interest) of Michael Bender’s property from Jonas Bender,7 Susanna Weaver, and Benjamin and Rachel (Bender) Smith8 in 1836 and 1837. Even Henry Sholl, Henry A. Shull’s father, can be seen enumerated at the bottom of the page.
1830 United States Census: Osnaburg, Stark, Ohio (page 225)
Based on the totality of these records, who do you think the 1820 census entry refers to: Michael Bender or Nicholas Bender?
Footnotes
- Stark County, Ohio, Deed Book C:541, Daniel Clark to Michael Bender, 31 Mar 1818; online, Stark County Recorder, “Recorder Search” (https://recordersearch.starkcountyohio.gov : accessed 30 Nov 2018). ↩
- The tax record for this year does not break the list into separate townships. ↩
- Stark County, Ohio, Tax Records Volume 1254 (1820): unnumbered, Michael Bender and Job Bender entries; online, FamilySearch, “Tax Records, 1816-1838” (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Nov 2018). ↩
- Stark County, Ohio, Tax Records Volume 1260 (1826): unnumbered, Michael Bender and Job Burdon entries; online, FamilySearch, “Tax Records, 1816-1838” (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Nov 2018). ↩
- Stark County, Ohio, Tax Records (1829), Volume 1265:194, Michael, Susanna and Jonas Bender entries; online, FamilySearch, “Tax Records, 1816-1838” (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Nov 2018), film no. 004849161, image 429 of 686 ↩
- 830 United States Federal Census, Stark County, Ohio, Osnaburg Township, page 225, line 17, Susan Bender entry; online, FamilySearch, “United States Census, 1830” (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Nov 2018); citing NARA micropublication M19, roll 140. ↩
- Stark County, Ohio, Deed Book 27:327, Jonas Bender to Peter Anthony, 10 Jul 1837; online, Stark County Recorder, “Recorder Search” (https://recordersearch.starkcountyohio.gov/ : accessed 30 Nov 2018). ↩
- Stark County, Ohio, Deed Book P:515, Susanna Weaver et al to Peter Anthony, 12 Nov 1836; online, Stark County Recorder, “Recorder Search” (https://recordersearch.starkcountyohio.gov/ : accessed 30 Nov 2018). ↩
Cite This Page:
Kris Hocker, "Is It Nichl or Michl Bender? Using Other Records to Solve a Census Dilemma," A Pennsylvania Dutch Genealogy, the genealogy & family research site of Kris Hocker, modified 15 Dec 2018 (https://www.krishocker.com/is-it-nichl-or-michl/ : accessed 22 Dec 2024).
Content copyright © 2018 Kris Hocker. Please do not copy without prior permission, attribution, and link back to this page.
One Reply to “Is It Nichl or Michl Bender? Using Other Records to Solve a Census Dilemma”
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For me, even though the first initial looks like an N and doesn’t compare to the M’s in the surnames following, the fact that it is “?ich^l” and not “?ich^s” weighs more for Michael than for Nicholas. Unless there are versions of Nichol or similar and records to back up that shorter name, it is likely Michael because an abbreviation of that sort didn’t do a middle initial very often.