While assembling all the dates possible Aunt Bessie (STOCKSTILL) KEY copied the following from a book Key and Allied Families written by Mrs. Julian C. LANE AND PUBLISHED BY J. W. Burke Co., Macon, Georgia. As I understand this Mrs. Lane had been a KEY and she was assisted by Otis KEY, son of Orlando B. and Bessie KEY. This book traces the ancestors of William F. KEY back to Wm. KEY who was born in Virginia Oct. 7, 1751. His wife was Rachael HANSBAUGH born in 1760. They were married June 15, 1775.
Another paragraph from
same book but of much earlier date was found in England on the Fabric Roll of
York Minster of Wills and Inventions. The name John KEY appears on the old One
Hundred Rolls. Jordan KEY is also inscribed. Later records show a Nicholas KEY
–1420- lived near London and was probably the father of John KEY the Poet
Laureate of Edward IV. This John KEY is noted as having committed to posterity
an English prose translation of a Latin history
of the siege of Rome. Dedicating his work to Edward IV 1482. He called himself
“hys humble Poet Laureate”.
Still another reads this: Thomas KEY, son of Gilbert KEY of Kent
Resided at Forest Place where he
died about 1525. He left issue among whom was Richard KEY, Sergeant-at-arms to
Henry VIII, and Capt. Sangate Castle 1540. Richard KEY married Mildred Diggs
daughter of Sir John Scott and the widow of John Diggs. . Richard and Mildred
KEY had the following children: Thomas, William, Edward, Reginald, Sibbell.
Thomas, son of Richard was Queen Elizabeth’s Sergeant Porter. He secretly
married Mary Gray a maid of honor at the Queen’s Court. She was the
granddaughter of the Duke of Suffolk and his wife Mary, daughter of Henry VII
and sister to Lady Jane Gray.
Richard KEY married Mildred
DIGGS daughter of Sir John Scott and the widow of Joshua Diggs. Richard and
Mildred KEY had the following children. Thomas, William, Edward, Reginald and S
. Thomas son of Richard and Mildred KEY was Queen Elizabeth’s Sergeant.
He secretly married Mary Gray a maid of honor at the Queen’s Court. She
was the grand-daughter of the Duke of Suffolk and his wife was Mary daughter of
Henry VII and sister to Lady Jane Gray.
The following was submitted by Grace
(KEY) RAUCH daughter of David KEY. They are copied from an old Bible in the hands
now of Sherman KEY at Sidney.
The records below are the great-great-grandfather of William
F. KEY my husband.
William KEY was born in Virginia Oct. 7, 1751. His wife was Rachel HANSBAUGH. She was born in 1760. They were married Oct. 15, 1775. To them was born the following children.
Mary KEY born Oct. 19, 1808
Rachael KEY born June 3, 1810
Patty KEY born Oct. 15, 1813
Hansboro KEY born Feb. 12, 1815
John KEY born Apr. 21, 1816
John
KEY (b. Apr. 21, 1816) was born six months and sixteen days after his
father died.
Note: Mary
Estelle SMITH, descendant of Rachael KEY
corresponded with Marlene Jan McDerment granddaughter
of Dora (the author of this journal). Mary
Estelle SMITH’s records indicate the above children as being those of William
and Rachael KEY’s son John KEY and his wife Phoebe
(AKERS) KEY. The reader will note the
unlikelihood that William and Rachael’s children would have been born
twenty-five years after their marriage.
Mary
KEY
b. May 21,1776
Thomas
KEY
b.
1778
John
KEY
b. Mar 01, 1781
William Hensley KEY
b. May 24, 1783
Jessie
KEY
b. Aug 17, 1785
James
KEY
b. Jul 02, 1787
Caleb
Hansbrough KEY
b. Aug 24, 1789 or Jul
24, 1789
Lucy
KEY
b. Aug 27, 1791
Hanley
KEY
b. Jul 27, 1793
George
KEY
b. Jul 13, 1795
Polly
KEY
b. Aug 27, 1797
Susanna
KEY
b. Jul 21, 1800
Samuel
KEY
b. May 02, 1806
William
KEY and his wife Rachael after being married in Virginia
traveled westward in the most primitive style. His wife rode horseback
and he walked. Carried their household belongings. They reached Dayton,
Ohio which at that time consisted of a log cabin used as a general store.
They settled in Montgomery Co. Here on Apr. 21,
1816 John KEY was born.
John KEY was grandfather to William F. KEY my husband.
At the age of twenty-five he had saved sufficient money to purchase two eighty acre tracts of land in Indiana. He was probably married before he left Ohio. His first wife was Nulily LUCAS. She left two sons at her death.
Norman KEY born Feb. 14, 1842
John H.
KEY
born 1844
During the year 1844 he traded the Indiana land and one hundred dollars beside for the quarter section now the old homestead. By industry and saving he accumulated enough land to leave each of his children one hundred acres. His second wife was Anna Rhinehart - she was born in Fairfield Co. 1814. Came to Shelby Co. when she was three years old. She had one sister Elizabeth – wife of Levi EWING, and the Rev. David RHINEHART was a
brother. She took great pride in
the fact that the men of her family had fought in the Revolutionary
War. To this union was born the following children.
Amanda KEY born 1848
Rachael KEY born 1850
Elizabeth KEY born 1853
Jennie KEY born 1856
David R. KEY born 1858
Son deceased 1860
Sherman KEY born 1864
Orlando
B. KEY
born 1870
Mr. KEY’s life was entirely
devoted to farming. He was a success and one of the prominent farmers of Perry
Township (Shelby Co., OH). Mrs. KEY
died Dec. 19, 1898, aged eighty-four. Mr. KEY
lived a year or more after Mrs. Key was deeply religious. Belonged to the old
Tawawa Church.
Norman KEY-oldest son of John and Nulily (LUCAS) KEY was married to Sarah Parmelia RIKE daughter of Enoch and Esther (JOHN) RIKE of Port Jefferson. Farming was his vocation. They lived on a farm east of Sidney on Pemberton Pike. There their children were born. William Franklin and Ollie May. Ollie was a twin her mate died at birth. He was a prosperous farmer and had improved his home. Had a big house in what was suppose to be in comfortable circumstances. It developed he had secured men who were not reliable and he lost all he had. Hurt in the boiler explosion that killed his son, my husband, he lived several years with a bad arm. Finally he was taken to Hospital at Soldier’s Home, Dayton, where he died.
Mother KEY(Sarah Parmelia (RIKE) KEY) remained in a little home they had in Pemberton.
A stroke in 1924 made it necessary to place her in a hospital. There was no ward
at Dayton and Sidney had none either. She was put in County Home. She must have
been there a year when she died during the summer of 1925. They are both in the
cemetery at Pasco, Ohio.
William
F. Key was born Jan. 31, 1867. Like his father he followed farming as a
vocation. Dec. 29, 1894 he was married to Dora WILEY
and to them was born three children, Lily Ada KEY, Mary
Caroline KEY, and Esther Ruth KEY. He died Mar. 16, 1901.
Ollie May KEY only daughter of
Norman and Sarah Parmelia (RIKE) KEY was born in
1871. She married Logan Eber HODGE of Maplewood,
Ohio. To them were born, Blanche Norma, Damion,
and Mary. Blanche married Samuel
DORSEY. She is deceased. Norma married
-----ZIMMERMAN. Mary’s husband was Charles
GRATE. Both the husband and son died of T.B. She married again. Damion,
the son, enlisted in aeronautics during the World War, was trained at Chicago
and was transferred to Long Island just before the Armistice. After discharge he
came home. Two or three years later he was married to Gladys
LONG. He developed a cancer from a wound and died at hospital in Dayton.
He left two sons, Billy and Bobby. His mother
died in 1924.
John H. (Harrison) KEY second
son of John and Nulily (LUCAS) KEY was married
to Hannah Catherine LANE. They had no children.
They lived all their life on a farm adjoining the one Norman
was on.
Amanda
KEY oldest daughter of John and Anna (RHINEHART)
KEY married William DeWEESE. They had one
son, Carl, who married Stella
COLLINS. Their lives were devoted to farming. They are both deceased.
Rachael
KEY daughter of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY became the wife of Dr.
David WHITMER. He practiced in Millerstown, Ohio
and died there. She lived in Sidney for several
years. Both are deceased.
Elizabeth
KEY daughter of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY
was married to John J. MAXWELL and for many
years lived on a farm near Pemberton. They had
two daughters, Maude and Ada. Maude
who was the wife of Walter ZIMPHER had
four children, Harry whose wife was Gurney, Bonnie
the wife of William BURCH, Helen married in Los
Angeles and Elizabeth (Betty) at home. Walter
ZIMPHER died during the flu epidemic. Mr. And
Mrs. MAXWELL retired to Sidney some time
before her health failed. She passed away and he a few years later. Ada
was the wife of Chester MOHR. She has two sons,
Duane and DeWitt.
Jennie KEY daughter of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY married Frank MARRS and has always resided on a farm. Their children were Myrtle not married an at home and Emory married. Also Anna and Tina.
I do not know their names. Both Mr.
And Mrs. MARRS are living. Myrtle is
deceased.
David
R. KEY son of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY
married Margaret HEFNER. Aunt Kate raised her
from a tiny child. They had four children, Grace
the wife of Lewis RAUCH. She had two children, Rachael
and David. Mary and Muriel were twins. Mary
is the wife of Herbert STOCKSTILL. Maurice
is married and lives in Washington state. Muriel
a Red Cross nurse during the World War saw real duty – was stationed next to
first aid. She married and has two children, two boys and two girls. Mr. and Mrs.
(David) KEY are still on the farm. It adjoins the old homestead.
Sherman
KEY son of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY married
Ida HOOVER. For some time they lived in Kansas.
Returned to Ohio and occupied a farm given him by his father. They stayed on the
farm until the one son, Dean, was able to care
for it. They retired to East Sidney.
Orlando
B. KEY son of John and Anna (RHINEHART) KEY
married Bessie STOCKSTILL from New
Carlisle, Ohio. They were married shortly after
Will KEY (my husband) was (killed). They lived
with and cared for the two aged parents in the old homestead. Uncle
Bert (Orlando Berton KEY) devoted his entire time to nursing his parents
who were both invalids for several years. Here on this farm the three sons were
born, Fred, Otis and Allen. Fred
was enlisted in World War but before he was able go to a training camp he
became a victim of flu and passed away. Otis was
in the Marine Service, made several trips across, he is married and lives at Pataskala,
Tenn. Allen married, his home is at Midland,
Mich. For several years Mr. KEY was in the oil refining and lived at Enid,
Oklahoma. Aunt Bessie (STOCKSTILL) KEY
succumbed to an operation and a dust storm that followed the week before Easter
in 1935. She was laid to rest by Fred in Pasco.
1937 – Looking over some old
letters I came across some dates father gave me while waiting on a train. They
may be the same as I have already recorded
Norman KEY born Feb. 14, 1842
Sarah Parmelia RIKE born June 12, 1845.