New York State Grimshaws with Descendants in Canajoharie

Home Page

Charles Grimshaw apparently emigrated from England to New York in the late 1820s or 1830s, where he married Mary Wiley. Their first child, George, was born in Glenville, Schenectady County, in 1838. Many of the descendants of Charles and Mary were born in Canajoharie and the surrounding area. No information on Charles' origins in England or his point of entry in the U.S. has yet been found.

Webpage Credits

Descendant Chart for Charles and Mary Grimshaw

Family History Notes from Roger Grimshaw

Myron Grimshaw, Professional Baseball Player

Where is Canajoharie, New York?

1880 Census Records of Grimshaws in Montgomery County

George G. Grimshaw's Civil War Service

History of Canajoharie

Edward Gay Painting of Mohawk Valley at Canajoharie

Beech-Nut Packing Company

Obituaries and Final Resting Places of Members of the Grimshaw Family

Roger Grimshaw's Family History Records

Thanks go to Roger Grimshaw of Englewood, Florida for providing most of the information on Charles and Mary and their descendants as well as many photos of members of this important line of Grimshaws in America.

The descendants of Charles and Mary, based on information provided by Roger Grimshaw, are shown in Figure 1. A summary of most of these descendants is provided in the next section, and Roger's complete family history notes appear at the end of this webpage.

Figure 1. Summary descendant chart of Charles and Mary (Wiley) Grimshaw

Charles Grimshaw (betw 1810 and 1820, England – betw 1840 & 1850, NY) &

        Mary Wiley (abt. 1820, NY – betw 1870 & 1880, NY)

|---George Gregory Grimshaw (28 Jul 1838, Glenville, NY – 10 Jan 1903, Canajoharie, NY) &

        Isabella Maslin (Oct 1848, Canajoharie, NY - 14 Apr 1905, Canajoharie, NY). 

      Married 15 Apr 1867, Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---William H Grimshaw (8 Feb 1868, St. Johnsville, NY – 12 Apr 1930, Canajoharie, NY) &

        Almeda Ambridge (1 Nov 1847, Canajoharie, NY – 8 Jun 1929, Utica, NY). 

      Married 1887, Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---Charles A. Grimshaw (18 Aug 1869, St. Johnsville, NY – 5 Sep 1950, Canajoharie, NY) &

        Carrie Marie Wieneke (4 Oct 1882, Canajoharie, NY – 25 Jan 1965, Canajoharie, NY). 

       Married 20 Oct 1909 Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---|---Myron Ernest Grimshaw (26 May 1911, Canajoharie, NY – 18 Jun 1999, Englewood, FL) &

             Jane M Reamon (3 Apr 1910, Fort Plain, NY – 22 Feb 1999, Englewood, FL). 

            Married 19 Nov 1933, Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---|---|---Roger Dean Grimshaw* (1 Nov 1935, Cooperstown, NY - ) &

            Susan Maria Bardsley (22 Jun 1939, Manchester, England – 23 Mar 1983, St. Louis, MO). 

                    Married 24 May 1958, Bedford England.

|---|---|---|---|---Linda Sue Grimshaw (24 May 1959, San Antonio, TX - ) &

                       John Santoro (13 Jan 1957, AK - ). Married 12 May 1984, O’Fallon, IL

|---|---|---|---|---Steven Roger Grimshaw (4 Dec 1960, San Antonio, TX - ) & Kelly Lanigan (1 Oct 1963 - )

|---|---|---|---Roger Dean Grimshaw* (1 Nov 1935, Cooperstown, NY - ) &

            Evelyn Louise Alderson (21 Mar 1932, St. Louis, MO - ). Married 4 Apr 1980, St. Louis, MO

|---|---Mary Ann Grimshaw (30 Oct 1871, St. Johnsville, NY – aft 1936, Erie, PA) & 

          Tecumseh Sherman Clark (abt. 1865 - abt 1910). Married about 1893, Pennsylvania.

|---|---|---Catherine D Clark (13 Jan 1899, PA - 5 Oct 1981) & Wallace DeWitt (29 Nov 1889, PA – 24 Aug 1978, Erie, PA)

|---|---|---|--Wallace DeWitt, Jr. (6 Oct 1920 - ) & Jean Evelyn Connor (25 Jul 1920 - 25 Jun 2003)

|---|---|---|--John S DeWitt (abt 1923 - ) & Ann Elizabeth Gillilan (22 Sep 1924 - )

|---|---|---Edward Clark (abt 1907 - ?)

|---|---|---Richard Clark (abt 1908 - abt 1939)

|---|---Jessie Grimshaw (1873, St. Johnsville, NY – 24 Jul 1875, St. Johnsville, NY)

|---|---Myron Frederick Grimshaw (30 Nov 1875, St. Johnsville, NY – 12 Apr 1930, Canajoharie, NY) &

            Mabel May Hassett (23 Sep 1875 – 9 Feb 1952, Canajoharie, NY). Married Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---|---Unknown Grimshaw (1 Mar 1908, Canajoharie, NY – 4 Mar 1908, Canajoharie, NY)

|---|---|---Ruth Grimshaw (23 Apr 1911, Canajoharie, NY – Dec 1975, Prescott, AZ) & 

                    Bernard Cavert (24 Jun 1898 - Apr 1987)

|---|---Cecelia Grimshaw* (30 Jan 1878, Canajoharie, NY – 29 Jul 1962, Canajoharie, NY) &

        William Melvin Ambridge (27 Jun 1874, Canajoharie, NY – 22 Dec 1955, Fort Plain, NY). 

            Married 30 May 1894, Canajoharie, NY.

|---|---|---Helen B Ambridge (25 Mar 1896, Canajoharie, NY – 25 Jan 1899, Canajoharie, NY)

|---|---Cecelia Grimshaw* (30 Jan 1878, Canajoharie, NY – 29 Jul 1962, Canajoharie, NY) &

            Charles Miller (25 Feb 1872, Palatine Bridge, NY – 7 Aug 1954, Canajoharie, NY). 

          Married 7 May 1904, Canajoharie, NY

|---|---|---Jane I Miller (22 Sep 1910, Erie, PA – 20 Oct, 1998, Fonda, NY)

|---|---Lenora Grimshaw (Oct 1881, Canajoharie, NY – 6 Aug 1912, Canajoharie, NY) &

            William H Vosburgh (Jan 1873, NY – 9 Aug 1912, Canajoharie, NY)

|---|---|---May A Vosburgh (Jan 1899, PA - ?)

|---|---|---Charles W Vosburgh (May 1900, NY - Aug 1980) & Hazel Unknown (abt 1907 - )

|---|---|---Katherine Vosburgh (abt 1907, NY - ?)

|---William T Grimshaw* (abt 1840, NY - after 1880) & Katherine (Kattie) Unknown (abt 1843, NY - betw 1870/73)

|---|---Minnie Grimshaw (Nov 1864, NY – ?)

|---|---William Grimshaw (abt 1867, NY - ?)

|---William T Grimshaw* (abt 1840, NY - after 1880 ) & Harriet Livermore (Oct 1842 - ).

|---|---Fred K Grimshaw (May 1874, NY - ?) & Fannie Unknnown (Nov 1870 - )

|---|---|---Hazel B Grimshaw (Jan 1899 - ) & Orville Terwilliger (abt 1895 - )

|---|---|---Unknown Son Grimshaw (Feb 1900 - )

Roger Grimshaw has prepared excellent notes of his research on most of the descendants of Charles and Mary Grimshaw. Roger's notes are provided below for many of the Grimshaw descendants shown in Figure 1.

Charles & Mary (Wylie) Grimshaw

Little is known of Charles and Mary except that Charles apparently died young, probably before age 30, and they had at least two children - George and William. Roger's notes are shown below:

I located Charles in the 1840 census, living in Rotterdam, New York with his wife Mary and two sons under 5 years of age. Charles age was between 20 and 30 years. I found Charles and Mary's names on the death certificate of their son George G Grimshaw. George was living in Duanesburg, New York with another family in the 1850 census, but I can find no record of Charles in any census after 1840. He may have died between 1840 and 1850 in Schenectady County, New York.

I located Mary in the 1840 census living in Rotterdam, New York with her husband Charles and two sons under 5 years of age. Mary's age was between 20-30 years. I also found Mary in the 1870 census for Johnstown, New York age 49 with a marital status of widowed and a profession of tailor. I could find no listing for Mary in the 1880 or subsequent census, therefore I believe she died between 1870 and 1880. I obtained Charles and Mary's name on the death certificate of their son George G Grimshaw. Their son George was living with another family in Duanesburg, New York in the 1850 census, but I can find no listing for Charles in any census after 1840. Their other son, William, lived in Florida, New York with his family in the 1870 census.

George G & Isabella (Maslin) Grimshaw

George, the older son of Charles and Mary, fought on the Union side in the Civil War from 1862 to 1864. He and Isabella were married in 1867 and lived first in St. Johnsville, NY and then in Canajoharie, NY, based on the birthplaces of their children, of which they had seven -- William H., Charles A., Mary Ann, Jessie (died young), Myron F. Cecelia, and Lenora. The first two children were apparently named for George's uncle and father, respectively. Roger's notes o George and Isabella are as follows:

George enlisted, at Florida, New York, with the 153rd New York Volunteer Infantry Company C on 8/30/1862. He was promoted to corporal on Oct 17, 1862. George apparently inuured himself near a railroad in New Orleans, Louisiana, was medically discharged in New Orleans, Louisiana at the rank of private on 4/18/1864 and mustered out in Savannah, Ga. In the Adjutant-Generals report on the 153rd Infantry, it was stated that George Grimshaw was also born as Gramshaw. I can't find any references to Gramshaw in any census or personal items, so this may have been an English name.

I located George, age 12, in the 1850 census living with Peter Leroy, his wife Eliza and daughter Adelaide in Duanesburg, New York. It's possible that his father Charles died between 1840 and 1850. George's vocation was carriage painter in the 1880 census.

George died (probably when fishing) of accident and exposure. He fell into a rock bed next to the Erie Canal. The attending physician was F.D. Vickers. I obtained this information from an article in a Fort Plain, New York newspaper as well as a family member, Mr. Wallace Dewitt Jr., a great grandson of George.

Isabella was born in 1845 based on her birth certificate and 1848 based on her headstone. I found a birth month and year of Oct 1848 in the 1900 census for Canajoharie, New York. 

Isabella and her sister Elizabeth were living with their stepfather, James Lettice and mother Mary in the 180 Canajoharie, New York census.

William H & Almeda (Ambridge) Grimshaw

Little is known of William, older son of George and Isabella, and his wife, Almeda Ambridge Grimshaw. According to Grimshaw family information he was found deceased in a vacant lot in Canajoharie. A photo of William is provided in Figure 2.

Figure 2. William H. Grimshaw. Date of photo unknown.

Charles A. & Carrie Marie (Wieneke) Grimshaw

Charles A., oldest son of George and Isabella, was apparently named after his grandfather. He was born in St. Johnsville, NY and married Carrie Wieneke in Canajoharie. They had one child, Myron Ernest, who was probably named after his uncle Ernest, who played professional baseball (as described below). Roger's notes on Charles and Carrie are shown below; a picture is shown in Figure 3 below the notes.

My grandfather, Charles, had to quit school after the 5th grade to assist in the support of his family. Charlie was a painter and paper hanger for his entire adult life. He was employed at the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York for a number of years. When about 70 years of age, he fell 15' from a scaffold, hitting his lower back on a door knob. He was paralyzed from the waist down for the remainder of his life. His wife Carrie and my father, Myron E. Grimshaw, took care of him in Carrie's home until his death. He was a wonderful man, and I remember him dearly. I vividly remember sitting on his lap and snapping his suspenders and unbuttoning his shirt. My grandmother would tell me to stop, but grandfather would tell her to leave me alone, that I wasn't hurting anything. Charlie also took me fishing down by the banks of the Mohawk River (Erie Canal). He had a workshop in his cellar, and would help me make my toy guns out of wood so I could play war with the other neighborhood kids. It's evident that we didn't have enough money for me to have a store bought one. When I was growing up, Grandfather Grimshaw and Grandfather Reamon would both give me a nickel every Friday to go and buy ice cream. Double dip cones were only 5 cents at that time. I have very fond memories of both of my grandfathers.

Grandmother Grimshaw was a stern lady, but very soft on the inside. She was really wonderful to me, her only grandson, Roger Grimshaw, for I could do no wrong. She watched over her husband Charlie for about 10 years when he was laid up in bed paralyzed from the waist down. They lived in a large house which they rented from the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York. They had three extra rooms on the second floor and Grandmother needed extra money to care for Charlie, so she rented the three rooms to boarders. She was still doing that when I joined the Air Force in 1954. The big home finally became to large for her to care for, so she and another elderly lady, shared a rented apartment until she died. I used to stop and see her nearly everyday when I attended Canajoharie Central School in Canajoharie, New York.

Carrie was always thrilled to see my family when I would be home on military leave. She rarely got to see her two great grandchildren, but really cherished every moment with them.

Charles Grimshaw and Carrie Wieneke were united in holy matrimony at Canajoharie, New York on the 20th day of October, in the year of our lord 1909. Witnessed by Henry Wieneke and Gussie Metzner.

Figure 3. Charles and Carrie (Wieneke) Grimshaw. Date of photo unknown. 

Myron Ernest & Jane (Reamon) Grimshaw

Myron and Jane were married in Canajoharie in October, 1933 and had one child, Roger Grimshaw. Roger's notes on his parents are shown below; their photo is shown in Figure 4.

Myron, graduated from Canajoharie Central School, Canajoharie, New York in 1930. He worked a full time job in the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York but also played in Gordon Eacker's dance orchestra, "The Isle of Memories", in the late 1920's and early 1930's. He began playing banjo and guitar in High School and was a member of the "Black and Gold Entertainers". He met my mother, Jane, at a dance when she was dating another gentleman and he was playing with the orchestra. He got a break from one of the orchestras tunes and asked my mother to dance (probably not with the approval of her date). That was the start of a relationship that lasted for 67 years. After his orchestra playing days, he was employed at the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York, working in the Hard Candy, Gum, Baby Food, and electrical departments. He also worked in the Ration K (World War II soldiers food rations) during the 1940's. He was classified 4F and could not serve in World War II due to a heart problem, however, he did serve in the National Guard during that period. He retired from the Beech-Nut after a 40 year career. 

Myron will be remembered as a most congenial person. He said hello to everyone, even strangers, but especially to people that he knew. He would go out of his way to be friendly with people and I never heard an unkind word about him from anyone he came in contact with. His grandson Steven has a lot of the same traits.

Myron was an extremely good amateur pool player, and made a little money over the years. I remember that he was asked to play the world billiard champion, Erwin Rudolph, (sometime in the 1940's) during an exhibition at the local pool hall. The champion broke the first rack and Myron proceeded to run 56 balls before missing. The champion then ran 125 balls to win the game, however, I was very proud of him for this great showing. He taught me how to play, but I was never able to defeat him.

Myron had a nervous breakdown in his teenage years and missed an entire year of schooling. He told me that he lived with his Grandmother Caroline Wieneke for about a year while a teenager, so this situation could be related. He was 19 when graduating with the class of 1930 at Canajoharie Central School. We believe that this was the start of his life long problem with a condition called obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). He was obsessed with checking everything; such as door locking, turning off water, checking the lights, etc. He was also quite insecure about making any decision. Even though he was very bright and could do just about any task, he was never really sure it was done correctly. This also effected his wife Jane, because she had to check everything after him just to ease his mind. This was evident right up to the time that he died. It's amazing that he lived for 88 years with all that anxiety. He hid this condition very well and the majority of his acquaintances never knew it existed, but the family was well aware of it. I disclose this information to alert any family member who may realize similar symptoms.

Myron and Jane purchased their first home at 92 Maple Ave., Canajoharie, New York in l966. Prior to that, they had lived with Myron's parents for about a year, and then rented apartments until 1966. They relocated to O'Fallon, Il. in 1983, and then to Englewood, Fl. in 1989 where they both passed away in 1999.

My dad Myron and my mother Jane are interred at the Gulf Pines Memorial Gardens, Chapel of Peace, Englewood, Florida.

Jane Reamon was actually born Jennie Reamon, never changed it to Jane officially, but assumed it as she was growing up. She attended school in Fort Plain, New York, but had to quit in her junior year because of the financial needs of the family. I believe she worked in a local garment factory.

My mother, Jane, was a terrific mom, very loving, caring, and also tons of fun. She always had time for a little off color humor, not real bad, but just suggestive. All of my friends, when I was attending High School, loved to come to my house especially when they had a hangover, because my mom would help them get over it. She wouldn't breathe a word of it to anyone. I remember mom driving around in my 1935 Dodge convertible (all the kids would be waving at her). After I went into the USAF, she got a job at the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, N.Y. and worked their for a number of years. After leaving the Beech-Nut, she worked at a lunch counter at the local Rexall drug store. She had a very simple life, lived in apartments until 1966 when my dad bought their first house. In 1983, I moved them into a house in O'Fallon, Illinois (a house that I had owned with my first wife Susan Bardsley). Mom & Dad loved it because they got to see my wife Evelyn and I, as well as their grandchildren. Because I had been a career military man (USAF 1954-1976), they had never had the opportunity to know their grandchildren. They cherished this opportunity. I then moved them to Englewood, Fl in 1989, and built them a new house where they resided for 9 years. They spent the final year of their life in an very nice assisted living home in Englewood, Florida. I believe they loved the last 17 years of their life very much.

Figure 4. Myron Ernest and Jane (Reamon) Grimshaw. Date of photo unknown.

Roger Grimshaw Autobiography

Roger Grimshaw, born in Cooperstown, NY, has accomplished most of the family history research included on this webpage. His autobiography is shown below.

I was born in Cooperstown, New York the day after Halloween in 1935. My mother informed me that there had been a very rare earthquake for New York State during the evening prior to my birth and that she recalled her bed being moved from one side of the room to the other. You might say I came into this world with a flair.

The first recollection of my youth came when I was about 3 years old. Mom & Dad bought me four baby chicks for Easter. I remember following them all over the house. Of course we had to keep them in the cellar at night, and unfortunately, the rats got to them one by one. Naturally I was devistated, but I never did get any more chicks. I also vividly recall my first day of school. My mother must have overly protected me because I was scared to death when I entered that classroom. When she left, I remember crying but finally taking my seat. However, when the teacher called my name for attendance, I was too shy to stand up but fortunately that didn't last too long. I became a much more confident and up front person in the coming years. My school experience through graduation was rather routine. I was an average student, could have been much better, but cared more about what I did after school. My dad made a very modest living and my mom was a housewife, so we didn't have a lot of material things. My dad could not afford to buy me a bicycle, so my Grandfather Grimshaw bought me one for my 12th birthday. But then when I was about 15, my Dad bought me a real fancy Schwinn bicycle with the shocks in the front and all the bells and whistles. About once a year, Dad would take me to New York City to see the New York Yankees. The New York Central railroad had an excursion train that would arrive in Canajoharie about 6 AM and would drop us off at Yankee Stadium, and then make the same trip back home after the ball game. The only bad part was that it stopped at every station between Canajoharie and New York City. Needless to say it was a very long day but totally worth it. I was a big Yankee fan in the middle 1940's through 1950, but then switched to the New York Giants.

In the fifth grade, Dad let me take trumpet lessons, and I began playing with the school band in the sixth grade. I played throughout my school years, switching to the baritone in my senior year. The baritone player had graduated the previous year. In my senior year, four of us fellows started a brass quartet and played at local churches, homes for the elderly and disabled, and other charity functions. This was a very rewarding experience. I also played in a dance orchestra and a Drum & Bugle Corps.

During my school years, I was very small in stature, too short to play basketball, too slow for track, but pretty good at baseball. I didn't like the high school baseball program, so I played in the American Legion League primarily as a 2nd basemen. I never set the world on fire, but held my own to some extent. I also was a member of the bowling squad, and played against various other schools in our district. I also had a very good reputation as a good pool player. I continued to play after joining the Air Force, and made a tad of money on the side.

Dad wasn't able to give me much spending money while I was growing up. I remember my first allowance being 25 cents a week and that only increased to 50 cents a week until I reached the eight grade in school. While in the eighth grade, I took my first job at the Western Union Telegraph Office, washing windows and delivering telegrams on saturday. I think I earned about $2.00. In my freshman year of high school, I took a job at the Victory Food Market, stocking shelves and sacking groceries. I made 75 cents an hour back in 1950. I was also the personal caddy for one of the better handicap golfers in Canajoharie, John Palm. John owned one of the local Pool Halls of which I frequented almost every day. I believe he carried a four handicap and was a joy to caddy for. He took me with him on several out of town golf matches, but I especially remember the Sacandoga Golf Course near Saratoga Springs, New York. After the golf match, he would take me out to dinner and then to the horse races at Saratoga Raceway. I was payed $3.00 for caddying 18 holes, and with any luck, would caddy double for one of his friends and make $6.00. Starting in the summer of 1951, I was hired for a summer job at the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York. I worked primarily in the Baby Food Department, unloading baby food jars from freight cars, dumping fruits and vegetables into hopper's for them to be cleaned, and doing any type of cleaning job that they required. I was paid $1.40 an hour and thought I had the world by the tail. I did this in my Junior and Senior of High School but continued to work in the Victory Food Market during the school year. After graduating from Canajoharie Central School in 1953, I took a full time job at the Beech-Nut, working primarily in the Gum Department. By then I had finally saved enough money to buy my first car and pay for the insurance. I bought a 1935 Dodge Convertible, two seater with a rumble seat, I was in hog heaven. This car's top speed was 50 MPH at the most but I was the most popular guy around because of the convertible top. I paid $150.00 for the car and about the same for one year of insurance. After working for the Beech-Nut as a laborer, part and full time for a couple of years, I decided that I didn't want to do that for the rest of my life. That's when I decided to join the Air Force, so in October of 1954 I enlisted at Albany, New York, and was sent to Sampson Air Force Base in Geneva, New York for basic training. I had 12 weeks of training from October thru December, and had my first taste of real disipline. After the first week I was ready to go AWOL, but decided that was not a very good idea, and stuck it out for the remaining 11 weeks. I was then selected to attend radio operator school at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. I was originally scheduled to attend ground radio school for 6 months, but was selected to go for another 3 months to become an intercept radio operator. Because I graduated in the top 10 percent of the class, I was offered a selection of Japan, Germany or England for my next assignment. I selected England and was assigned to the 6951st Radio Squadron Mobile, Chicksand RAF Station, Shefford, England. This turned out to be a great selection on my part. I worked in a very rewarding job, and just loved the social life. I worked in the intelligence community, monitoring Soviet Air Defense, Civilian Air and Weather networks. Our department also monitored the very first satellite, Sputnik, launched by the Soviet Union. This was a highly classifed job at the time but has since been declassified because of the reconstruction of the Soviet Union to a democratic government. I spent 3 1/2 years in England, marrying Susan Bardsley, an English girl, in 1958. My next assignment was to the USAF Security Service Hqs. in San Antonio, Texas. Our two children, Linda and Steven, were born at Wilfred Hall Hospital at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. We stayed in San Antonio until January of 1961 but was reassigned back to Chicksand RAF Station in England once again. We only stayed for one year before accepting an assignment to the 6937th Comm Group in Peshawar, Pakistan. This turned out to be the most rewarding job that I have ever experienced. I was monitoring Soviet ICBM's and anti missle firings, and literally tracking them to their targets. They basically couldn't go to the bathroom without us knowing about it. As I said, the job was wonderful, but the environment and living conditions in north west Pakistan left something to be desired. It was almost like going back to when Christ was born, people living in mud huts, utilizing water buffalo for agricultural purposes and using camel's for transportation. Of course there were city dwellars, but they were a very small minority of the population. My wife, Susan, worked as a gray lady at the local hospital in Peshawar, making bandages etc. We took one trip to the Kyber Pass that separates Pakistan and Afghanistan and that was an enlightning experience. Needless to say, it was a very interesting two years. Upon leaving Pakistan, I was forced to retrain into the Administrative field and reassigned to Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul, Illinois. I disliked this decision very much, and immediately began my quest to retrain into the Computer field. Finally after three years of tests and applications, the Air Force approved my request to retrain into the Computer Programming field. I was sent to Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Texas and upon graduation was assigned to Scott Air Force Base in Belleville, Illinois. I spent 9 years at Scott, assigned to the Air Force Communications Service for 5 years and then Headquarters Military Airlift Command for 4 years. My career really took off during that period both in experience and promotions. My most memorable job was maintaining the passenger reservation computer system for all military personnel and their families to travel to and from the United States and overseas locations. I made about three trips a year from 1971 to 1975 to Japan, Okinawa, Phillipines and Hawaii to upgrade their computer systems with current modifications. Then in 1975, I was reassigned to the Pentagon in Washington D.C. My marriage was not going well, so the children and my wife Susan remained in Illinois and I went on to Washington D.C. While at the Pentagon, I was working on air to ground missile firing programs which was very interesting. I finally retired from the Air Force in Nov 1976 and returned to the St. Louis, Missouri area.

My first civilian job since 1954 was at Doane Agricultual Services in Brentwood, Missouri. I served as a computer programmer working on market research, payroll, and farm management systems. This job, and the wonderful people working at this company, turned out to be one of the best experiences of my adult life. There was a group of 20 to 30 people that socialized after work and on many weekends during my five years at Doane. We were such a close knit group that it's just hard to explain. We all truly enjoyed each others company and never tired of being together. Even after the company was purchased by an out of state firm, and most of us had switched to new jobs, we continued to see one another on weekends. After I had been at Doane for about a year, I joined a company sponsored bowling team that included my boss, Evelyn York nee Alderson. After a few weeks of bowling together, Evelyn and I began staying after the match, having drinks and doing a lot of talking. Evelyn knew that my marriage was about to end and she also was having difficulty in her relationship. That's when we became romantically involved and it took off from there. I ended up getting a divorce from Susan and moving to an apartment in Afton, Missouri. Shortly after that, Evelyn seperated from her husband and moved into an apartment in Crestwood, Missouri. She had filed for a divorce and was granted one shortly after moving to her apartment. We continued to become more involved and I eventually gave up my apartment and moved in with Evelyn. We lived together for about six months before marrying in April 1980.

After leaving Doane Agricultural Service, I took a position as Computer Programmer/Analyst with Mallinckrodt Chemical Co. in St. Louis, Mo. I remained with Mallinckrodt until my wife Evelyn was offered an early retirement from her job. I then quit my job and we moved to Englewood, Florida in November of 1989. I have remained active in the work force, but only working part time jobs since 1989. Evelyn and I travel quite often, going on cruises, an Italy tour, an Australia/New Zealand tour, Aruba, Cancun, and numerous vacations in the United States.

It is now August 2003, and can truly say that I have had a very wonderful and fullfilling life to this point. If the creek don't rise, I will be adding to this narrative in the future.

Roger Dean & Susan (Bardsley) Grimshaw

Roger Grimshaw and his first wife, Susan, are shown in Figure 5, which follows Roger's notes on Susan as shown below:

Just before I met Susan in Bedford, England she had been living with her father in Manchester, England. After her mother Mary remarried Donald Hopwood and became financially established, she had Susan move to Bedford to live with them. I met Susan in late 1956 when she was working as an usherette at the Granada theatre in Bedford, England. We then began dating and married in May of 1958. After leaving the theatre, she obtained a better paying job in a lingerie mill and remained their until our marriage. After moving to San Antonio, Texas in 1959 we had two children, Linda and Steven. Sue was a great mother, especially when the children were young. We then went back to England for one year before going to Peshawar, Pakistan in 1962 where we stayed for about two years. We then moved to Rantoul, Illinois in 1964 where Susan decided to go back to work to earn some extra money to help support our family. She got a waitress job in the local bowling alley, but then moved on to a better job at a very nice restaurant/lounge. She worked their until we moved to O'Fallon, Illinois in 1966. She then worked at two different restaurants in O'Fallon until her death in 1983. She had numerous operations on her pancreas during a two year period prior to her death in 1983. It was a very sad, painful death.

Figure 5. Roger and his first wife, Susan (Bardsley) Grimshaw. Date of photo unknown.

Roger Dean and Evelyn (Alderson) Grimshaw

Roger and Evelyn Grimshaw were married in 1980. They are shown in Figure 6a after the notes by Roger provided below. Figure 6b shows four generations of Grimshaws, including Roger, his son and grandson, and his grandfather, Myron Grimshaw.

Evelyn grew up in St. Louis, Mo. with her mother, father and two sisters. She received all of her schooling in St. Louis, Mo. In her teenage years, Evelyn worked at St. Lukes hospital as a nurses aide. She also worked for a Doctor as a receptionist. When about 13 years of age, she met William York at church but did not date him until he was discharged from the Navy. They married about one year later and, over the next 10 years, had three son's. After a few years into the marriage, Evelyn realized that she needed to get a job to help support the family. She obtained work at Doane Agricultural Service in their Personnel Department. After a few years in Personnel she was offered the opportunity to move into the Computer Programming Department as a programmer trainee. She did very well in this venture, and after a few years was promoted to Programming Supervisor.

After I retired from the USAF in 1976, I obtained a job in St. Louis, Missouri working at Doane Agricultural Service. Evelyn was the Computer Programming supervisor of our department. After working together for about 1 1/2 years, we ended up being team members in a work sponsored bowling league. We had not had a romantic link up to that time, but after several weeks of bowling together, and staying for drinks after our match's, we became more attracted to each other. Evelyn's and my marriage were both on troubled ground long before our romantic attraction took place. As we became more serious about one another, Evelyn decided to change jobs and obtained a position as Project Director of Information Services at Pet Inc. in St. Louis, Mo. As our relationship became more serious, both she and I obtained divorce's from our respective spouses. It is now 2003, and we have been married since 1980.

Evelyn worked at Pet Inc. for about 10 years, took an early retirement package, and we moved to Englewood, Florida in November of 1989.

Figure 6a. Roger and Evelyn (Alderson) Grimshaw. Date of photo unknown.

Figure 6b. Roger Grimshaw's family at the wedding of his son, Steven, to Kelly Lanigan. From left to right are John and Linda Sue (Grimshaw) Santoro, Evelyn (Alderson) Grimshaw, Kelly Lanigan (the bride), Steven Grimshaw, Roger Grimshaw, and Roger's parents, Jane (Reamon) and Myron Grimshaw.

Figure 6c. Four generations of Grimshaws. From left to right are Myron E. and Jane R. Grimshaw, Steven R. and his young son Grant Grimshaw, and Roger D. Grimshaw.

Mary Ann Grimshaw & Tecumseh Sherman Clark

Mary Ann was the third of George and Isabella Grimshaw's seven children. Roger Grimshaw's notes are as follows:

Located Mary's birth date and christening date on the LDS web site. Mary was living in Erie, Pa. in 1936 when her brother Myron died as reported in Myron F Grimshaw's obituary. As per Wallace Dewitt Jr., she died about 1938 after fallind down the basement steps at her home. Mary was residing in Bon Avon Borough, Allegheny County, Pa. with her husband, Tecumseh and their daughter Catherine in the 1900 census. I also found her living in Erie, Pa. in the 1910 census with her children, Catherine, Richard and Edward, and a niece, May Bosburgh. Her husband had died prior to this census being taken.

I located Mr. Clark, wife Mary and daughter Catherine in the 1900 Bon Avon Borough, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania census. His birthdate was listed as "near 1865". It also listed his father as born in England and his mother in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Clark was a prominent business man in Erie, Pennsylvania, and had built and operated the Perry Iron works. We believe that Tecumseh took his own life possibly because of the recession of 1910/1911.

Located Catherine in the 1920 census for Erie, Pa. living with her widowed mother Mary Clark, two brothers, Edward and Richard, and a niece, May Vosburg.

Myron Frederick & Mabel May (Hassett) Grimshaw

Myron F. Grimshaw, fifth child of George and Isabella (Jessie, the fourth, died young) played professional baseball, particularly for the Boston Red Sox, as described further down on this webpage. Myron and Mabel, had two children, one of whom (Ruth) survived into adulthood. Following Roger's notes, they are shown in Figure 7.

Myron F., his wife Mabel, and a 3 day old baby are buried in Section G along the fence line at the front of the Fort Plain Cemetery, Fort Plain, New York. They may not have named the infant daughter.

In the 1920 Census, Canajoharie, New York, Myron's occupation was a laborer in a factory His obituary in December 1936, states that he was working at the Beech-Nut Packing Co. in Canajoharie, New York when stricken with a heart attack.

When playing professional baseball with the Boston Red Sox (1905-1907), he obtained the nickname of "Moose", however, everyone in the Canajoharie area knew him by the nickname "Kitsie". I have tried several methods to find out how he got the nickname "Moose", including internet, contacting the Red Sox, and checking baseball reference guides. I've stuck out on all attempts.

Mabel's surname could have been "May". Found a "May" family in the 1880 census living in Cooperstown, New York. They had a daughter named Mabel, but the date of birth was a little off from the confirmed date that I have from the Grimshaw family.

Misc.: Don't know if baby was named, died after three days. Will check for name at gravesite in Sep 2003.

Figure 7. Myron F. and Mabey May (Hassett) Grimshaw. Date of photos unknown.

 

Cecelia Grimshaw

Cecelia Grimshaw was married twice, first to William Ambridge and second to Charles Miller. She has one child in each marriage -- Helen Ambridge and Jane Miller. Roger Grimshaw's brief notes on Cecelia are shown below:

Cecelia was my great aunt and only lived about 6 houses down the street from where I grew up. Apparently we didn't get along with her family very well because I don't remember visiting with them very often.

William & Lenora (Grimshaw) Vosburgh

Lenora Grimshaw, youngest (seventh) child of George and Isabella, married William Vosburgh and had three children -- May, Charles, and Katherine.

I located Lenora Vosburgh, nee Grimshaw in the  1880 and 1900 census for Canajoharie, New York. Lenora's name was listed as Nora on the census record (probably a nickname). Lenora and her husband William are buried in the Prospect Hill Cemetery in Canajoharie, New York.

William and his wife Lenora are buried in Lot 45A, Prospect Hill Cemetery, Canajoharie, New York. The headstone reads: Vosburgh Grimshaw. I located William in the 1880 census, living in Palatine Bridge, New York, and the 1900 and 1910 census living in Canajoharie, New York.

I located May in the 1900 census for Canajoharie, New York, and in the 1920 census for Erie, Pa. In the Erie census, she was living with her aunt Mary A Clark (nee Grimshaw).

I located Charles Vosburg in the 1920 census living with my great uncle Myron F Grimshaw, Myron's wife May and daughter Ruth. Charles was a nephew of Myron, and was so mentioned in the census data.

William Grimshaw, b. abt 1867

This William Grimshaw, son of William Grimshaw b. 1841 (below), is described as follows by Roger:

Located William in the 1870 census living in Florida, New York with his sister Minnie and his parents William and Kattie. I can find no further mention of William after the 1870 census, thus I believe he probably died prior to 1880. His sister Minnie and step brother Fred were living with the William Livermore family in Amsterdam, New York in the 1880 census. William Livermore was William Grimshaw's father-in-law by his 2nd wife Harriet. I located William Livermore, his wife Emaline and two children Harriet and Emma in the 180 Florida, New York census.

William T. Grimshaw, b. abt 1841

This William, younger son of Charles and Mary (Wiley) Grimshaw, married first Katherine (Unknown) and second Harriet Livermore. William and his families are described by Roger as shown below:

I located William living in the Village of Florida, New York with a Post Office of Charleston Four Corners, New York, in the 1870 census living with his wife Kattie and children Minnie and Willie. I also located him in the 1880 census living alone in Amsterdam, New York, marital status listed as married. His profession was a harness maker in both of these census. I have no other references to William after the 1880 census. My speculation is that his first wife Kattie had died between 1870 and 1872. Based on information that I located on their daughter, Minnie, in the 1880 census, I believe William remarried Harriet Livermore aroud 1873. Harriet, her mother Emaline, father William Livermore and Harriet's son Fred Grimshaw, born about 1874, were all living in Amsterdam, New York. Harriet and William may have been divorced at that time, but I have no documentation on that theory.

I know that George Grimshaw, William's brother, entered the army in 1862 when residing in the town of Florida, New York. Based on the 1840 Census, I believe William was residing in Rotterdam, New York with his brother George (my great grandfather), and their father Charles and mother Mary. The 1840 census listed two male children for Charles under the age of 5.

William and Katherine Grimshaw had two children -- Minnie and William. Roger's notes are shown below.

I believe that Katherine died between 1870 and 1880. I located her in the 1870 census in Florida, New York living with her husband William and two children, Minnie and William. William was workig as a harness maker in the 1870 census. I could not locate her in the 1880 census, but found her daughter Minnie living with the William Livermore family in Amsterdam, New York. I also located William in the 1880 Amsterdam, New York census living as a boarder and working as a harness maker. Do not know why he was not living with Harriet at that time.

William and his second wife, Harriet (Livermore) Grimshaw had one child, Fred K. Grimshaw. Roger Grimshaw's notes are shown below:

I located Harriet, age 8, her father William age 27, mother Evaline age 25, and sister Evaline age 5 in the 1850 Florida, New York Census.

I also located Harriet in the 1900 census living in Amsterdam, New York with her step daughter, Minnie, her son Fred K and his wife Fannie, and their children, Hazel and son "baby". Harriet and William may have divorced prior to 1880 because William was living as a boarder in Amsterdam, New York in the 1880 census. In the 1910 Amsterdam, New York census, Harriet was a Boarding House Keeper.

Perhaps the best-known member of Charles and Mary Grimshaw's descendants was Myron, who played professional baseball, including a 3-year stint with the Boston Red Sox in the 1906, 1906 and 1907 seasons. Myron's photo from that period is shown in Figure 8. A brief obituary and performance statistics for Myron appear in Figure 9.

Figure 8. Myron Grimshaw, shown in his Boston Red Sox uniform. Date of Photo unknown.

Figure 9. Brief obituary of Myron and his performance statistics as a baseball player. Apparently the peak of his career was when he played for Boston in 1905-1907. Image provided courtesy of Roger Grimshaw.

Two excellent photos of Myron Grimshaw as he was playing baseball for the Red Sox, in a game with Chicago in 1905, have been found on the internet by Roger Grimshaw and are shown in Figures 9b and 9c.

Figure 9b. Myron Grimshaw at bat. A description that accompanies the photo on the internet is provided below the photo.

Full-length portrait of Myron Grimshaw, first baseman, American League Boston Red Sox, batting at South Side Park which was located at West 37th Street, South Princeton Avenue, West Pershing Road (formerly West 39th Street), and South Wentworth Avenue in the Armour Square community area of Chicago, Illinois. This photonegative taken by a Chicago Daily News photographer may have been published in the newspaper. Cite as: SDN-003449, Chicago Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society.

Figure 9c. Myron Grimshaw playing first base. Note that the photo is reversed, so that he appears to be left-handed rather than right-handed, and he appears to be on third rather than first base. A description from the internet is provided below the photo.

Full-length portrait of Myron Grimshaw, first baseman, American League Boston Red Sox, throwing a ball from first base, at South Side Park which was located at West 37th Street, South Princeton Avenue, West Pershing Road (formerly West 39th Street), and South Wentworth Avenue in the Armour Square community area of Chicago, Illinois. This photonegative taken by a Chicago Daily News photographer may have been published in the newspaper. Cite as: SDN-003450, Chicago Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society. Source: 

The photos in the above figures were taken in 1905 by a photographer at the Chicago Daily News and are posted on the internet by the Library of Congress as part of their "American Memory - Historical Collections for the National Digital Library, which is described at the following website:

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ammemhome.html

These photos are from a specific collection in the digital library -- "Photographs from the Chicago Daily News, 1902 - 1933". A description of the collection is provided below.

This collection comprises over 55,000 images of urban life captured on glass plate negatives between 1902 and 1933 by photographers employed by the Chicago Daily News, then one of Chicago's leading newspapers. The photographs illustrate the enormous variety of topics and events covered in the newspaper, although only about twenty percent of the images in the collection were published in the newspaper. Most of the photographs were taken in Chicago, Illinois, or in nearby towns, parks, or athletic fields. In addition to many Chicagoans, the images include politicians, actors, and other prominent people who stopped in Chicago during their travels and individual athletes and sports teams who came to Chicago. Also included are photographs illustrating the operations of the Chicago Daily News itself and pictures taken on occasional out-of-town trips by the Daily News's photographers to important events, such as the inauguration of presidents in Washington, D.C.

As was traditional in his era in baseball, Myron Grimshaw apparently gave permission to a tobacco company to issue a baseball card with his image, thus implying support of the product. Players were often compensated by the cigarette company for this permission. An ad for the card, issued after Myron had moved from Boston to Toronto, is shown in Figure 10 from the internet.

Figure 10. Ad on the internet offering Myron Grimshaw's baseball card, issued by the Piedmont cigarette company, for sale at $25.00. The internet ad (obtained August 2003) has been stripped of some of the unneeded images.

Source: http://www.teamplayerusa.com/docs_Detail.cfm?ID=833

After he retired from professional baseball in 1911 or 1912, Myron returned to his home town of Canajoharie. He was apparently employed by the Beech-Nut Company, and he managed a team sponsored by that company, as shown in Figure 10b.

Figure 10b. Record of Myron Grimshaw managing a local baseball team for the Beech-Nut Packing Company in 1920, about 9 years after his last affiliation with a professional team. Myron is fourth from left in the back row. Photo courtesy of Roger Grimshaw.

Roger Grimshaw has tracked down an obituary for Myron, which was published in the Fort Plain (New York) Standard on December 17, 1936. It shows that Myron retired from professional baseball as a result of an injury received when he was hit by a baseball. The obituary is shown below:

Myron Grimshaw, 61, widely known baseball player, died Friday morning at his home on Reed Street, Canajoharie. In his usual good health, he was at his work at the Beech-Nut Packing Company when stricken about 10 o'clock. He died soon after being taken to his home. He was born in St. Johnsville, a son of George and Isabel Maslen Grimshaw. About 17 years of his life he spent in professional baseball, playing first with the Buffalo team, then with the Boston American team for three years, the Louisville team for three years and while with the Toronto team was seriously hurt by being hit by a baseball. This ended his baseball career.

Mr. Grimshaw played in two of the "Old Timers Games" played on the Fort Plain High School campus in recent years.

He was a member of the Taraijoras Tribe of Red Men, Woodmen of America, St. Mark's Lutheran Church, and "The Men of St. Mark's", all of Canajoharie.

Surviving are his wife, Mrs. Mabel May Grimshaw, one daughter, Mrs. Ruth Cavert, and one brother, Charles of Canajoharie; two sisters, Mrs. Mary Clark, Erie Pa., Mrs. Charles Miller, Canajoharie, and several nieces and nephews.

The funeral was held at the home on Monday at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Frank H. Shimer, pastor of St. Mark's Church officiating. Interment in the Fort Plain Cemetery.

Canajoharie is located in central New York state on the Mohawk River, between Albany and Syracuse (Figure 11). Topographic maps of Canajoharie and the surrounding area are shown in Figure 12. Canajoharie is located in Montgomery County.

Figure 11. Maps from MapQuest showing location of Canajoharie in central New York (location indicated by red star).

Figure 12. Topographic maps of area around Canajoharie, showing its location on the banks of the Mohawk River, which became the Erie Canal. Above, portion of 1902 USGS 15-minute quadrangle (Canajoharie sheet) showing the area as appeared when there were still many Grimshaws living in Canajoharie. Below, recent topographic map of Canajoharie.

The 1880 census records, presented on a companion webpage, includes two records of apparent descendants of Charles and Mary (Wiley) Grimshaw in Montgomery County. William Grimshaw, younger son of Charles and Mary, was living in a hotel in Amsterdam (Figure 13). His wife, Kattie, and children, Minnie and Fred K. Grimshaw, were living with the Livermores, also in Amsterdam (Figure 14).

Figure 13. 1880 Census record showing William Grimshaw living in a hotel in Amsterdam, NY