The Story of Me, as Told by My Ancestors

Growing up in an older neighborhood with older parents meant I always had an appreciation for the past. I'm no stranger to using decades-old furniture or holding 100-year-old pictures. I'll be the first to want to visit a museum, whenever I go somewhere new. I also love stories of those who came before me.

So, while I grew up in a household heavily influenced by Portuguese culture, I had very little explored my father's English heritage. The summer before I entered high school in 2011, he introduced me to several pieces of his family history: whaling letters from the middle of the 19th century, along with several scrimshaw artifacts, or carvings and etchings made out of whalebone. I knew his mother's English ancestors had arrived in my hometown in the late 1600s (more likely in a row boat behind the Mayflower than on it), but I had no idea that her lineage included whalers as well.

For those unaccustomed, Dartmouth's neighbor, New Bedford, was once the number one whaling port in the world. Since whale oil was prized for its light-giving properties, New Bedford was once nicknamed, "The City That Lit The World."

Although the letters looked like they were written on today's notebook paper, the fancy script said otherwise. One letter even included a drawing of a sperm whale that said, "There Blows," in a reference to Moby Dick.

I made an  Ancestry.com  account. That summer, I spent hours researching the lives of the authors and linking them to other Ancestry.com members' family trees. I was finally able to piece together who they are to me.

If you have an Ancestry.com account, you can view my family tree by clicking on the button above.

They were brothers. Ephraim, Cyrenus (Cyreanius), and Milton. My third great-grandfather and 4th great-uncles, respectively. They all voyaged on whaling ships during the mid-1800s. Ephraim sailed on the barks Barclay and Globe in the 1850s, Cyrenus the bark Matilda Sears in the early 1860s, and Milton the bark Charles and Edward in the late 1850s. Milton also sailed with Cyrenus on the Matilda Sears.

They were away from their families for years at a time and experienced rough conditions for life at sea. Fresh food was only available at port, so they often ate heavily salted meats and canned goods. Bed bugs and cockroaches were typical, too, and whalers had to put up with the intense smells, greasy surroundings, and thick smoke that resulted from boiling whale blubber in large pots around cramped corners (thus, ships fires were common). While they needed to create a sellable product (i.e., whale oil) for when they were in port, they'd sometimes go weeks without seeing a whale at all. It makes sense, then, that out of boredom, whalers passed the time by singing, sewing, or carving scrimshaw. The artifacts that found their way to my father may have even been carved by Ephraim, Cyrenus, or Milton.

When a whale was actually spotted, several members of the crew would row out to it in a small boat with harpoons, guns, and other projectiles to try and subdue the beast (see  here  for examples). It's understandable many men lost their lives during this process. If they were successful, they had to quickly saddle the whale up to the ship and begin cutting it up into its usable parts; they could then boiled the blubber to render it down into whale oil. There were, however,  numerous products  produced from whaling.

My ancestors were either around 17 or in their early 20s when they embarked on their respective journeys. They all bore the title of " greenhand ," the lowest rank of all crew and the most inexperienced, with the exception of Milton rising to "seaman" on the Matilda Sears. Greenhands had the worst living quarters, after the captain, masters, tradesmen, and seamen.

Although, since they were farmers by trade, I like to think hard labor enabled them to endure these rough whaling voyages. None of them walked away far wealthier than before, since the average wage for an entire voyage (2 to 4 years) was $25--some men, like my ancestors, made even less. Cyrenus' voyage on the Matilda Sears,  a ship built in South Dartmouth , made its way to the Pacific Ocean and brought over 5,000 barrels of whale oil to port. That's... a lot of whales.

Ephraim returned to farm work, as did Cyrenus. Interestingly, Cyrenus and Milton set sail on the Matilda Sears close to the start of the Civil War and came home right before the end of the conflict. Milton attempted another voyage aboard the bark Catalpa but drowned at sea in 1868.

Below is my father's collection of whaling letters and scrimshaw. Some of the scrimshaw is real, such as the snake and heart ring, and others are fake, like the measuring tape. Because they are vintage pieces, they still hold intrinsic value. See Image 9 for the drawing of a whale. Images 12-15 are of a letter written by Ephraim's shipmate (William H. Cleveland) at the time, and it includes an original poem!

While school put my research on hold, I never forgot about my roots. It wasn't until November 2019 that I resurrected my passion for genealogy and history, by  volunteering as a document transcriber  with the Dartmouth Historical & Arts Society (DHAS). At the time of this writing, they have published several volumes of Quaker history on their website.

Some background: the Quakers (or "Friends") are a Christian-split religion known for their pacifism, equality, and overall benevolence towards others. The faith originated in the 1600s with a single man, George Fox, who found little satisfaction in the teachings of the Church of England. After his many travels and extensive preaching, the Quaker movement quickly gained traction--and persecution--in England. The faith moved to North America in the mid-1600s and was met with discrimination as well; however, there existed pockets of tolerant communities, with many in New England. After a number of decrees were passed, the religion was eventually tolerated in England by the late-1600s and subsequently in the American colonies.

These communities were referred to as "meetings," which echoed the meeting houses that were their places of gathering--for togetherness, business, and worship. In the latter sense,  then and now , these meetings are often meant for quiet reflection, since Quakers believe God or the "Divine Spirit" can be experienced on one's own, without clergy. Dartmouth's meetings took place at the location pictured below, where they would diligently keep "meeting minutes" that chronicled monthly happenings. Down to the Sea in Ships has a great  two-minute scene  shot at this location that shows the interior of the building.

Quakers had a hand in American history, too; for instance, William Penn was an early member of the Quaker movement and went on to found Pennsylvania (Quaker Oats, anyone?). Interestingly, the first Quakers were early abolitionists and did not advocate for violence or fighting; thus, many Quakers did not participate in the Revolutionary War. They also had progressive views (for the time) of a woman's role in their society, since women were charged with keeping members adhered to the faith. Those who went against their societal tenants, however--which could include seemingly benign offenses, such as having too much "spirituous liquor" (drinking); boisterous dancing or singing; marrying outside of the faith; or giving birth to a child out of wedlock--risked being "disowned" from their community.

See some examples below, courtesy of DHAS. The first image mentions my 7th great-grandfather, Deliverance Smith (I), an active Quaker member that was called on numerous times as a representative during monthly meetings; while the second image is an example of a disownment. Note the visual differences in the two entries, the left is from 1720 and the right is from 1772. These are neat for what I'm used to transcribing!

My grandmother, Eunice, was a non-practicing Quaker, but she had generations of then-active Quaker ancestors like Ephraim, Cyrenus, and Milton. Her aunt, Myrtle, lived up to the Quaker tradition of meticulous record-keeping: thanks mostly to her knowledge, I was able to organize a coherent family tree of direct ancestors.

Since volunteering with the  DHAS , I've been able to understand what the lives of my Quaker ancestors were like. I've read about their struggles, reflections, and pastimes. I've learned how many great-great-great... well, you get it. I'll put it this way: I've been able to trace back many relatives from before the Revolutionary War.

My research is ongoing, and there's multiple ways to "connect the dots." Eunice was actually Ephraim's great-granddaughter, and Cyrenus and Milton's great-niece. Aunt Myrtle may have remembered them in childhood, since she was born only a few years before their deaths in 1909. Although, Aunt Myrtle undoubtedly had contact with their children. Eunice's grandmother, Caroline, was one of Ephraim's daughters and Myrtle's mother.

But I can see how that's a lot to process. I mean, even I still get confused sometimes!

Here's a slice of family history that's a little more concrete. My most recent ancestors, or Eunice's family, lived and worked on her father's dairy farm, the Smith Farm. It's now owned by Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust (DNRT) and a very scenic,  walkable trail . Eunice went on to marry John Sylvia, with whom she had four sons: my uncles, Tom, John, and Richard, and my father Tim. They eventually settled near their family auto salvage business called Sylvia's Auto Parts. My father just retired the business this year, in 2020.

My hundreds-of-years-old Quaker ancestors, however, which include those mentioned in DHAS records, were still close by--just much longer ago. For example, one of whom is the previously mentioned Deliverance Smith (I): he and his kin are buried less than a mile away from the Smith Farm. It's always fascinating to think we have walked on the same land.

Here are some photos of my more recent kin, to help put faces to names.

It's no surprise I desire to know what these people were like, but that knowledge was sadly lost when Eunice developed Alzheimer's and passed away. I was only three when her Aunt Myrtle died in 2000, too. Any other people who would have known them were alive much before my time and before my father's time.

Luckily, Dartmouth has active historical and conservation societies--and the internet has everything else. So, I decided to do the next best thing: locate and map out where my ancestors were buried in town. It's definitely not a complete list, since I'm finding out more and more everyday. I've also included a few places pertinent to this project as well.

I used MassGIS data to visualize the elevation and soil composition of each site. I also consulted Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) data to see how these sites stacked up in terms of age. I used a Garmin GPSMAP 78S to take coordinates at each of the five burial sites. I took coordinates at each site's boundaries and at some points of interest (namely graves). The maps below are displayed using a GCS, or WGS 1984. Elevation data is averaged from all points surveyed and given in US feet.

Below is an overview of the sites I used for my analysis:

☞ 1. The Mosher Family Cemetery is easy to miss, despite it being right by the road. The graves here have sunken in and are small and hard to read. Thankfully, my ancestors graves are still legible enough to record. It's walled in with stone fencing and directly abuts an agricultural field. There is a noticeable slope to the land as well. It's about 42.5 feet above sea level and approximately 2,967.06 square feet. My 5th great-grandmother, Lurana Mosher, and 5th great-grandfather, Joseph Mosher, are buried here.

☞ 2. The Smith Farm is about 140 acres of diverse ecological activity. It's only about 15.5 feet above sea level with varying elevations, which makes it a perfect hiking trail. It peters out into marshy, sweeping wetlands. Note the perfectly horseshoe-shaped pond and active agricultural fields. Both Eunice and my great-uncle, Richard, have their ashes scattered and buried here, the latter in little heart-shaped tins.

The small dark green dot in the middle of the lighter green area is a pine tree that was around when Eunice was a kid. It's now huge and overlooks a grassy field. This site is also particularly stony, a common feature in an area that experienced a lot of glacial activity. In fact, farmers over the ages would come across large rocks in the soil, so they made stone walls with them that are seen all over today. The Smith Farm has a fair share of these stone walls, and boulders, too. No boundary coordinates were taken because not all areas are accessible.

☞ 3. The Smith Neck Friends Burial Ground is about 8,554.84 square feet of wooden log fencing and neatly packed rows of headstones. One of my mariner ancestors, Cyrenus, is buried here with his wife, Patience Jane. Their son, Milton II, is buried nearby with his wife, Julia. His other son, Clifford, never married but is buried close-by as well. There are fairly recent dates (ca. 2000s) here as well. The site has a slight slope to it, with a sudden incline away from the graves. On this land sits an active meeting house, a swing set, a vacant field, and a tennis court. It's a little over 12 feet above sea level.

☞ 4. The Smith Family Cemetery is set far back from the road, off to the side of one property's backyard. When I visited it, it seemed recently maintained. At the entrance, there's a rusted chain-link barrier that connects to stone pillars on either side; one pillar has an inscription on it that serves as a marker for Lt. John Smith's grave. It's on a slightly higher elevation (a little over 9 feet above see level) than the surrounding wetland areas. Some graves are sunken in, with most of them unmarked toward the eastern half of the cemetery. The site is about 5,284.2 square feet of deciduous trees, stumps, and spread-out graves. It's walled in with a stone fence.

☞ 5. South Dartmouth Cemetery is about 14 acres of peaceful silence. Older parts of the cemetery generally follow the southwestern road, with one of the oldest graves (ca. 1600s) being in the southwestern-most corner under a large tree. (This grave is a modern-style cenotaph, however, which denotes remains buried elsewhere but commemorated on said headstone.) There are fantastic examples of different grave styles over the decades here. Newer graves tend to be on the northern side and southeastern corner. The ground is noticeably lumpy in some areas; there are also numerous old, large trees and shrubbery.

Eunice and her parents lie close to one another, while Myrtle and Ephraim's family lie together farther south. The cemetery is about 20.5 feet above sea level. It's somewhat awkward shape is attributed to the presence of nearby wetlands and a municipal building. It remains open today, since land has been clear cut over the years to make room on the northeastern side. My mother's sister, Nancy, is buried in this newer section.