The Descendants of Reuben Newton (1774 - 1833) and Eunice Manley Newton (1782 - 1836)

BETSEY NEWTON (1805 - 1872)

By Myron L. Newton, Jr.

Betsey Newton was the second child born to Reuben and Eunice Manley Newton. According to the Small Newton Bible and Ermina Leonard’s, Newton Genealogy, she was born on December 13, 1805. The History of the St. Croix Valley noted that she was born in 1804 in Onondaga County, New York. The cemetery where she is buried gives the year of here birth as 1806. This was a time of transition for the Newton family so the exact location of her birth may be of some question, as is the correct year of her birth. It is believed that her older brother, Nathaniel, was born in Vermont in November 1804, and that her brother, Lyman, was born in Truxton, New York in 1807. The family may not have moved to Onondaga County until after 1807 so Betsey may have been born in Cortland County, in or near the town of Truxton. One record, found online with the LDS FamilySearch™ noted that Betsey was born in Vermont on December 13, 1805, however census information consistently documents her birth state as New York.

Using ages and birthdates, Betsey can be accounted for as a member of the Reuben Newton household in the 1810 and 1820 U.S. New York Censuses for the Town of Marcellus, Onondaga County, New York.

The History of Cattaraugus County reported that around 1824 Reuben and Eunice Newton moved from the Town of Marcellus in Onondaga County to the Town of Cecilus (later renamed Mansfield), Cattaraugus County with seven children, not eight. It could have been either Nathaniel or Betsey who did not participate in the move, although unconfirmed family history suggested that the oldest child, Nathaniel, stayed behind.

Betsey married Manley Healy in 1825, probably in either Onondaga County or Cattaraugus County, and by 1830 the couple had two of their eight children. The 1830 U.S. New York Census recorded Manley and Betsey, along with two children under the age of five, in the Town of Little Valley, Cattaraugus County, New York. This is the town immediately south of the Town of Mansfield where her parent’s resided.

Most of what is known about Manley Healy was reported in the History of the St. Croix Valley document mentioned earlier. Official records have been found that spelled his name as Manly Healy, Manley Healey, or Manley Healy. Most documentation indicates that Manley Healy is the correct spelling. One report indicated that he was the son of Ezra Healy and born on January 2, 1801. He was probably the “Manley Healey”, born in Vermont on January 2, 1802, to Ezra and Lydia (surname unknown) Healey that was found in an online search of the LDS FamilySearch records. Another online record pertaining to the Healy family indicated that his mother’s name was Betsey Holbrook and that his father died at a young age. It was noted that Manley was employed as a contract worker during the construction of the New York and Erie Railroad and he later became a farmer. He has not yet been found in the 1820 U.S. Census.

Manley and Betsey appeared in the 1840 U.S. New York Census for the Town of Coldspring in Cattaraugus County and that document suggested that more than one family resided in the Healy household, thus making it difficult to determine the makeup of the couple’s immediate family.

In 1850 the Healy family resided in Illinois and was enumerated in the U.S. Census for Roscoe in Winnebago County. Besides Betsey and Manley, who was a farmer, the family included seven children: Roxana, age 23; Lyman, age 21; Mary, age 19; Manley (Jr.), age 17; Amelia, age 15; Ezra, age 13; and Emily, age 10. Betsey and all the children were noted as being born in New York State. Also living in the household was Hannibal Felt, the future (or possibly present) husband of their daughter, Roxana.

The History of the St. Croix Valley recounted that Manly and Betsey’s son, Ezra, moved to Beloit, Rock County, Wisconsin in 1844 and to Pierce County, Wisconsin in 1851. It should be noted that these two counties abut each other and that Beloit, Wisconsin and Roscoe, Illinois are only about five miles apart. It is possible that Beloit was the largest town to where Ezra (about age seven in 1844) remembers living, even though the family resided in Illinois. It’s probable that the actual migration of the Healy family was from New York to Illinois (near Beloit, Wisconsin) in 1844 and then to Pierce County, Wisconsin sometime after the birth of Helen in August 1851, or after the death of Mary in early 1854.

The children of Manley and Betsey Newton Healy:

Mary Healy is the only child not covered in a separate biography. Although the History of the St. Croix Valley stated that she was born in 1831 and died in 1852, her actual date of death appeared to have been February 7, 1854, at age 23. This information was obtained from a listing of burials in the Forest Hills Cemetery (a.k.a. Manchester Free Church Cemetery) in Manchester Township, Boone County, Illinois. In graves adjacent to hers are the remains of Orden Manley and Martin C. Manley. They were both first cousins of Mary's mother, Betsey Newton Healy.

The 1860 U.S. Census found the Healy family in River Falls Township, Pierce County, Wisconsin. Lyman Healey (sic), the eldest son, was listed as the head of household. Manley and Betsey were enumerated next, although Betsey’s name was interchanged with her daughter, Amelia. Also listed were Ezra, Emily, and eight year old Helen who was born in Illinois. Mary Healy had died in 1854, probably in Illinois. By 1860, Manley Jr. had married Sophia Adams and Roxana had wed Hannibal Felt. Both those families continued to live in River Falls Township.

The 1870 U.S. Census for River Falls Township is somewhat confusing. Manley, age 69, and Betsey, age 64, are listed along with a number of others with the Healy surname. Roxana was enumerated, at age 42, but her last name was not recorded as Felt (the 1880 census noted that she was divorced). The last person listed in the household was 11 year-old Alena Healy who was probably the Alma Felt enumerated with her mother, Roxana, in the 1880 census. Also listed in the household were the siblings Lyman, Manley Jr., Amelia, Ezra, and Emma (Emily). Manley Jr. was enumerated elsewhere in the River Falls census with his wife and five children.

Betsey Newton Healy reportedly died on March 16, 1872, and Manley Healy died on February 19, 1875. Both were reported to have passed away on their homestead in River Falls Township, Pierce County, Wisconsin. They are both buried in the Greenwood Cemetery, River Falls, Wisconsin.

References:

Small  Newton Family Bible [Holy Bible], np, nd, p.Births, Death. Myron L. Newton, Jr. collection

Franklin Ellis, History of Cattaraugus County, New York, Philadelphia, L.H. Everts, 1879, Press of J. B. Lippincott & Co.,

     p.457 and facing page.

Ermina Newton Leonard, Newton Genealogy – A Record of the Descendants of Richard Newton,

     De Pere, Wisconsin, Bernard Ammidown Leonard, 1915. p.682.

1810 U.S. New York Census, Onondaga County, Town of Marcellus. Roll M252-34, p.48

1820 U.S. New York Census, Onondaga County, Town of Marcellus. Roll M33-67, p.122

1830 U.S. New York Census, Cattaraugus County, Town of Little Valley; p. 194

1840 U.S. New York Census, Cattaraugus County, Town of Coldspring

1850 U.S. Illinois Census, Winnebago County, Town of Roscoe

1860 U.S. Wisconsin Census, Pierce County, Township of River Falls; p. 75

1870 U.S. Wisconsin Census, Pierce County, Town of River Falls, p. 21

History of the St. Croix Valley by Augustus B. Easton, pp 642 – 644

Descendants of Manley Healy by Diane Healy Thomas

IGI Individual FamilySearch™ Records. Manley Healey, b. 2 Jan 1802 in Underhill Twp,

     Chittenden, Vermont to Ezra and Lydia (?) Healey.

IGI Individual FamilySearch™ Records. Betsey Newton, b. 13 Dec 1805 in Clarendon,

     Rutland, Vermont to Reuben and Eunice Manley Newton.

Healy Family History at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~walkersj/Healy.htm

Greenwood Cemetery: St. Croix County, River Falls, Wisconsin. www.rootsweb.com/~wistcroi

Healy, Betsey; b. 1806, d. 1872. Block 4, Lot 75. Notes: w.o Manley

Healy, Manley; b. 1801, d. 1875. Block 4, Lot 75. Notes: h.o. Betsey

Forest Hills Cemetery (a.k.a. Manchester Free Church Cemetery), Manchester Twp, Boone County, Illinois. www.comportone.com

     Healy, Mary; b. 1831, d. 7 February 1854, age 23. Row 1, Grave 6.

Myron L. Newton, Jr.

January 2008