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I
know very little about Thomas Kerr.
Family tradition asserts that he owned a livery stable in County Antrim, Ireland before he married Zillah
in the 1850’s. He died sometime before
1893, but I don’t know if it was years before or decades before.
I
use the spelling REA for Zillah’s maiden name, but different records indicate
different spellings and I have not been able to ascertain which is
correct. Some variations are Rae, Ray,
and Wray. The only reference to
Zillah’s parents I have found so far appears on her death record, which lists
her parents as Hugh Rice and Elizabeth C~~ (illegible, maybe Campbell.)
I am confident that Zillah’s maiden name was Rea (or a variation) and
I am guessing that the name Rice is a mistake by the recorder or the
informant.
Zillah
was born March 21, 1831 in County
Antrim, Ireland. Family tradition tells that Zillah’s
parents were opposed to her relationship with Thomas Kerr. Her parents made arrangements, packed her trunk,
and put her on a ship to relatives in Australia. Zillah snuck off the ship, however, to meet
and marry Thomas. Travel time being
what it was in those days, it was a year before word reached Zillah’s parents
that her trunk had arrived in Australia
without her. Zillah and Thomas settled
in County Antrim.
After
Thomas’ death, the family began having financial difficulties. By 1893, Zillah’s two oldest daughters, who
had moved to the United
States a decade earlier, convinced their
mother to come, too. In June 1893,
Zillah and her daughters, Sarah, Margaret, Agnes, and Rebecca, sailed aboard
the “Paris” to New York.
They settled in Johnstown, Rock County, Wisconsin.
The
children of Thomas Kerr and Zillah Rea are:
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Thomas
Kerr. I
know nothing about this son, except that he settled in Rothesay,
Isle of Bute, Scotland and was still living in
1896.
Hugh
Kerr, born 1854; died 1938. He married Mary CAMERON, daughter of
Donald (or Dugald) Cameron and Isabella MacKinnon,
and they settled in Rothesay, Isle of Bute, Scotland.
Their children are:
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i.
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Isabel (Ella) Mackinnon Kerr, born October 5,
1894 in Scotland; died June 13, 1993 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI, USA.
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ii.
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Thomas Kerr, born December 10, 1895 in Rothesay, Isle of Bute,
Scotland; died March 4, 1995 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. He married Bertha LIPKE October 3, 1936
in Milton, Rock Co, WI. They had one daughter.
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iii.
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Zilla Rae Kerr, born January
23, 1897 in Rothesay, Isle of Bute,
Scotland; died March 6, 1987 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. She married William August LIPKE December
29, 1924 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI.
They had two children.
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iv.
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Donald Cameron Kerr, born December 7, 1898 in Scotland; died September 29, 1984 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. He married Mildred HUBBARD
September 29, 1945 in the USA. They had no children.
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v.
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Fredrick Sieigh Kerr,
born May 14, 1900 in Scotland;
died 1979. He married Mary Campbell
Hunter in 1924 and they remained in Scotland. They had one son.
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vi.
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Mary Cameron Kerr, born April 29, 1902 in Scotland; died 1994 in Scotland. She married John (Jack) SHARKEY in 1931
and remained in Scotland. They had three daughters.
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vii.
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Lauchlan Cameron Kerr, born
September 11, 1905 in Scotland;
died June 1993 in Scotland. He married Mary and they had no children.
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viii.
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Elizabeth Kerr, born December 21, 1913 in Scotland. She married Hugh Reginald (Reggie)
CRAWFORD in 1943 and remained in Scotland. They had two children.
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Elizabeth
(Libby) Kerr, born October 28, 1858 in County
Antrim, Ireland; died January 9, 1930 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. After corresponding with a family in Johnstown, Rock Co,
WI, Libby and her sister Matilda came to work for the family as hired girls
about 1883. She convinced her
boyfriend, Thomas McDOWELL to join her in America. Thomas was the son of Skiffington
McDowell and Agnes Blakely. Libby
and Thomas married January 29, 1887 in Emerald Grove, Rock Co, WI. They farmed for many years in Johnstown, Rock Co,
WI and moved to a small farm near Janesville, Rock Co, WI around 1910. They had no children.
Matilda
Kerr, born July 1862 in Ireland; died 1927. She came to Johnstown, Rock Co, WI about
1883 with her sister to work as hired girls on the Almerine
Marshall Carter farm. She convinced
her boyfriend William ANDERSON to join her in America. William, son of Richard Anderson and
Nancy Raney, arrived in Johnstown
about 1884. Matilda and William
married November 4, 1887 in Johnstown,
Rock Co, WI.
Later they rented the Carter farm and operated it themselves. About 1911 they purchased a farm in
Harmony, Rock Co, WI. The children of Matilda Kerr and William Anderson are:
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i.
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Thomas Rainey Anderson, born December 2, 1888 in
Johnstown, Rock Co, WI; died April 10, 1943 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. He married Lillian Edith
SUMMERFELDT June 16, 1917 in Rock Co, WI.
They had two daughters and a son.
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ii.
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Ralph James Anderson, born May 1, 1892 in
Johnstown, Rock Co, WI; died September 13, 1976 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. He married Ruth BERRYMAN October
3, 1936 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI.
They had no children.
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iii.
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Marshall R Anderson, born September 22, 1893 in
Johnstown, Rock Co, WI; died October 28, 1975 in Berkeley, Alameda Co,
CA. He married Mae RAMME November
11, 1925 in Oakland, CA.
They had one daughter.
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iv.
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Agnes Zilla Anderson,
born October 7, 1895 in Johnstown, Rock Co, WI; died April 23, 1902 in Rock
Twp, Rock Co, WI of scarlet fever.
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Sarah
Jane Kerr, born February 5, 1862 in Ireland; died July 15, 1919 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. Sarah came to the United States
with her mother and youngest sisters in 1893. She lived in Johnstown for a while. Then she worked as a domestic at 314 S Jackson St, Janesville, WI
for several years. Later she became
an inspector at Lewis Knitting Co in Janesville.
Hannah
E Kerr, born November 15, 1864 in Co Antrim, Ireland;
died March 7, 1960 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. She married Robert TOOK January 27, 1892
in Belfast, North
Ireland. He was born in
Greencock, Renfrew,
Scotland,
the son of Robert Took and Jean McGeoch. They lived in England
for several years, but sailed for America in April 1898. They came to Johnstown
May 8, 1898 to farm until about 1903, when they moved to Janesville. Robert worked as a watchman. The
children of Hannah Kerr and Robert Took are:
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i.
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(daughter) Took, died before 1900.
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ii.
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Jennie (Jean) Took, born December 24, 1893 in England; died October 5, 1940 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. She married Sydney Leroy MILLER
February 15, 1918 in Rockford,
IL. They had two sons and a daughter.
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iii.
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Robert Took, born December 15, 1894 in
Barrow-In-Furness, England; died December 2, 1977 in Janesville, Rock Co,
WI. He married Ella J ERDMAN May 29,
1926 in Rockford, IL.
They had no children.
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iv.
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Elizabeth (Bessie) Took, born February 14, 1899
in Rock Co, WI; died September 22, 1961 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. She married (1) Frank BENNETT. They had one daughter. She married (2) Charles TURNER May 29,
1931 in Crown Pt, IN.
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v.
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Howard Took, born December 4, 1900 in Johnstown, Rock
Co, WI; died May 8, 1980 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. He married (1) Cornelia F (Nell) WEISS
January 28, 1925 in Rockford,
IL. They had two sons. He married (2) Bertha NELSON April 6,
1968 in Rockton, IL.
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vi.
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David T Took, born April 7, 1906 in Afton, Rock
Co, WI; died April 3, 1978 in Salem, Marion Co, OR. He married Arsula
Lee BUSS 1926 in Rockford,
IL. They had one daughter.
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Agnes
Kerr, born May 14, 1869 in County of Antrim, North
Ireland; died October 31, 1962 in Janesville, WI. Agnes came to the US with her
mother in 1893. She married Robert McDOWELL January 5, 1895 in Johnstown, Rock Co, WI. Robert was Thomas McDowell’s
brother. Agnes and Robert farmed in
Harmony and Johnstown, then
moved to Janesville
about 1913.
Robert McDowell had
been previously married to Cecelia ULESTON.
Cecelia died in 1894. Robert
and Cecelia’s daughter is:
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i.
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Ethel McDowell, born December 15, 1889 in Petroa, Canada; died February 8, 1978 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI. She married Elwyn JOHNSON November 19, 1912 in Janesville, WI. They had three sons and one daughter.
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The
children of Agnes Kerr and Robert McDowell are:
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i.
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Zilla E McDowell, born August
26, 1896 in Johnstown, Rock Co, WI; died May 8, 1959 in Janesville, Rock
Co, WI. She married Willis Edgar MacDONALD July 6, 1923 in Rockford, IL. They adopted two sons.
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ii.
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Thomas S McDowell, born July 28, 1898 in Rock Co,
WI; died December 22, 1970 in Wood, WI.
He married Ruth W McLAUGHLIN September 11,
1926 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI.
They had two daughters.
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iii.
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John Ray McDowell, born February 3, 1901 in Rock
Co, WI.
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Margaret
Kerr, born December 6, 1873 in North Ireland; died
Abt 1967 in Iowa.
Maggie came to the US
with her mother in 1893. She married
David E ROBBINS April 13, 1904 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI, son of Andrew Robbins and Rosa Paddock. David farmed for a while, then took a job with The Parker Pen Company in Janesville. After David’s death, Maggie moved to Low
Moor, IA to live with her daughter. The child of Margaret Kerr and David Robbins is:
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i.
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Gladys May Robbins, born November 19, 1907 in
Rock Co, WI; died August 5, 1989.
She married Richard Lynn VALENTINE September 30, 1933 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. They had two
daughters.
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Rebecca
Kerr, born November 1, 1877 in County Antrim,
Ireland; died June 4, 1941 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. Rebecca came to the US with her
mother in 1893. Family tradition
tells that as she entered church with her family one Sunday, Robert HUME
spotted her and said, “That’s the girl I’m going to marry!” They did marry July 25, 1899 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. Robert was
the son of Joseph Hume and Elizabeth Anderson. They lived in Janesville and Robert worked at the
Chevrolet plant for 25 years. The children of Rebecca Kerr and Robert Hume are:
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i.
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Wallace Rea Hume, born August 29, 1902 in
Janesville, Rock Co, WI; died January 3, 1909 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI
from the effects of an attack of appendicitis.
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ii.
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Joseph Thomas Hume, born July 14, 1906; died June
11, 1982 in Milwaukee, WI.
He married Esther RASKE. They
had two children.
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iii.
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Grace Elizabeth
Hume, born September 20, 1907 in Janesville,
Rock Co, WI; died May 28, 1986 in Janesville, Rock Co, WI. She married Kenneth Francis BICK July 2,
1960 in Milwaukee, WI.
Kenneth had children by a previous marriage.
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iv.
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Rebecca Hume, born April 27, 1909; died August
18, 1910.
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To
share information about the family of Thomas and Zillah Kerr, please contact me.
Sources and Acknowledgments
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