HENCKELL BOOK REVIEW - 17 DEC 2009

(Click on the image to enlarge)

This article on "Nicolaus Henckell the Hessian" and the author was published in "The Guardian", Charlottetown, PEI on 17 December 2009.

HENCKELL/JENKINS GENEALOGY PUBLISHED

The books have now been received from the printer.

The initial request for interest in the book was in order to try to get a fix on how many to order from the printer. Based on interest received by the time the final edit of the book went to print, I accepted their advice on the number to run. As I am personally totally funding this endeavor, you can understand that I wouldn’t want to have a large stock of unsold books for a long time. Also, with the rather large size of the book (3 volumes) and subsequent retail price of $140, there was a great deal of concern as to potential demand. As a result, I am also temporarily subsidizing the cost of the books until the end of the book launch so that the set of three volumes may be had for $95 rather than the retail price of $140.

To my pleasant surprise, there has been a large request for the book, and in order to guarantee a copy for pickup at the launch, people have been paying for their books in advance. Consequently, I cannot guarantee availability at the launch unless payment is received in advance. It will be first come, first served, and a list has been kept from the beginning of orders paid as they are received. As of November 7, requests have been received for 60% of the print run, and one-quarter of the total run has already been paid in advance. This is with 3 weeks still remaining until the launch.

For your information, at such time as 85% of the books in print are sold an order will be placed for a reprint. I have been told that reprinting would take about 3 weeks, so would still be available for pickup before Christmas. Meanwhile, the discounted price of $95.00 will only be guaranteed for orders paid on or before the November 28 book launch.

If interested in guaranteeing a copy for pickup at the launch, please email me at: demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca for details on where to send a cheque. For copies to be mailed outside the province, packing and postage charges will be applied. For the amount, please send your complete address, including postal or zip code, via email. Every effort will be made to mail out as soon after receiving payment as possible.

Just to confirm launch details, the PEI Genealogical Society is hosting it at 2:00pm on Saturday November 28 at the Carriage House, Beaconsfield, 2 Kent Street, Charlottetown.

Please pass this information on to others who might have an interest in the book. If you have any questions, please email me.

THE JENKINS BOOK IS AT THE PRINTER

Nicolaus Henckell the Hessian
A Genealogy of Jenkins Families
of Prince Edward Island
by Douglas B. MacDonald, GRS(C)

Finally at the printer, Nicolaus Henckell the Hessian includes more than 19,600 of his descendants and spouses. This three volume set is 8½" x 11" in size and contains 1,390 pages.

There are separate chapters on each of Nicholas’ children, their descendants and spouses; William’s family alone requires 534 pages. Volume I, about 472 pages, also covers family traditions such as place of birth of Nicolaus and two oldest children, the surname change to Jenkins, his two (?) marriages, and the descendants as heirs to a three billion dollar estate. It has the life story of Nicolaus from birth through the American Revolution, his return to Germany, his arrival in PEI, and what it was like then to begin a life on the Island. Volume II, about 433 pages, ends with an appendix of maps and family photos. Volume III, about 485 pages, ends with a separate index to each volume. For those who wish to verify some of the facts for themselves, there are more than 6,600 footnotes of sources. There are also photos of his birth and baptism record, as well as that of his first two children.

This long-anticipated book is now at the printer and will be available soon. The book launch is planned for November 28 in Charlottetown, PEI, in time for Christmas giving. The 3-volume set will retail for $140, but will initially be available at a subsidized cost of only $95 for the set, plus shipping where required. Shipping costs will be determined once the first set is received from the printer.

To reserve your copy, or for more information, please contact Doug MacDonald at (902) 892-1181 or email demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca. For those books prepaid for delivery outside PEI, every effort will be made to ship them for arrival by November 28. For those on the Island who prepay, book sets will be available for pickup at the launch or from the author.

Please pass this information on to others you think might be interested.

Henckell Genealogy Progress

This is a quick update on progress on the Henckell/Jenkins genealogy. Just because I haven't been updating this site doesn't mean I haven't been working on the book. It grew so large (about 40 MB in size) that it crashed in both WordPerfect and in MS Word formats. I have now broken it down by chapters, one for each of Nicholas' descendants, but William's is still about 600 pages long (about 18 MB in size) and it still crashes. I've tripled the RAM on my computer to better handle the big files, but am still having difficulty. I've been at it for long hours daily, beginning after breakfast and working until 10:00 or 11:00 at night.

I have been trying everything I can find to cut down on the cost of books. At the moment, it looks like 8-1/2x11 page size, Ariel 10pt font, with footnotes and name index at 9pt. and still totals about 1350 pages without maps, photos, etc. At this rate, it will be about 4 volumes, and might sell for $95 plus postage for the set. If you are interested in purchasing a set, with no committment at this time until finalized details are known, please send an email to me at demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca so I can add your name to a list of those interested.

Meanwhile, I've got to get back to editing the book.

George A. Wood to be Inducted into PEI Sports Hall of Fame

The first Prince Edward Island born player to have a career in Major League Baseball is to be inducted into the PEI Sports Hall of Fame later this summer.

As noted in an earlier entry to this site, George Albert (Dandy) Wood was the son of Joseph A. Wood and Mary Ann Jenkins. He was born in PEI on November 9, 1858 and moved to Boston with his parents in 1867. He went on to play 1,280 games in the majors, and was the 1882 National League Home Run Champion.

In order to let as many of his family as possible know of this honor to be bestowed on him, your help is requested in trying to locate descendants of his brothers and sisters. Although George and his wife Cora did not have children, he had two brothers and two sisters as follows:

AMOS WOOD, born in PEI September 1860, died September 1918, probably in MA.

ROSCILLA WOOD, born in PEI March 1863, married about 1886 in MA EDWARD H. WINSOR, born March 1853. They lived in Dorchester, MA and had a son EDWARD BAKER WINSOR, born April 1887 in Boston, MA.

LERONA J. WOOD, born about 1869 in East Boston, MA, married SAMUEL SHEIDOW.

JOSEPH LEMUEL WOOD, born March 1877 in East Boston, MA.

It would be greatly appreciated if someone with Massachusetts research connections could help locate one or more living descendants of Joseph and Mary Ann (Jenkins) Wood, and pass this information along to me at: demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca .

LAST CALL - JENKINS GENEALOGY INPUT

We are nearing the end of the road in gathering information for inclusion in the book of Nicholas (Henckel) Jenkins and his almost 19,000 descendants. It looks now like it will require two volumes to cover everyone that we know of to date. Once the information is generated in the proper format for publishing, it will be too difficult to go back and add or modify names and information.

The small committee working on this Jenkins genealogy has been Paulette (Johnston) McNally and Doug MacDonald of Charlottetown, and Hazel (Jenkins) Sanford of Vancouver. Although we have collaborated for a few years now, we could not have done this without the gracious input of others. We are indebted to the many of you who have already submitted information on your branch of the family. Without your input this project would not have been nearly as comprehensive as it already is.

If you are wondering if your name is included, or if your branch of the family is included, or if what you have on the family is to be included, or if you have an old photo you would like to see included, etc., please send it via email to demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca by May 15, 2009 at the latest. Nothing received after that date will be included, but will be saved for a future update some years down the road. If in doubt, please ask.

Please pass this information on to anyone you think might be interested so they won't be left out. As of May 15th we will have reached the point of no return for additions and/or corrections.

Jenkins Picture Puzzle

Robert & Margaret Jenkins's Family - 1898


Robert & Margaret Jenkins's Family - 1901




Robert & Margaret Jenkins's Family - 1911

Shown above are three photos of the family of Robert Jenkins of Mount Albion, Lot 48, PEI. Who knows the names of those in the 1898 and 1901 photos in the order in which they appear? I am almost certain, but not positive, as to which is which. But I would like your help in finding out for certain. Who can help me solve the puzzle? Please email your answers to me at demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca .

Now, in order to help you, I will give you the dates of birth of the family. Robert was born January 1849, and his 2nd wife Margaret November 1859. From his 1st marriage to Jessie Currie were born Robert Harold (June 1873), Ludlow (November 1875), James Daniel (December 1877), Jessie Winnifred (December 1879), Henry Marshall (August 1881), Parkman (August 1883), Frederick (May 1885), Susan Margaret Jane (August 1887), and Earle Goodspeed (October 1889). From the 2nd marriage were born John Spurgeon (January 1891), Arthur Emerson (August 1892), Hannah Belle (November 1894), Mary Victoria (December 1895), Minnie Laura (February 1898), Chrystie Doctor (May 1899), Gilbert Minto (April 1901), Edna May (May 1904), and William Robert (March 1907).

If you find these photos interesting, let me know, and I can post others of this family in casual scenes for you to identify also.

Relatives in Pro Sports

George A. Wood Baseball Card, from the United States Library of Congress Collection.


Some of you may know of Jenkins relatives who are active in professional sports. Lorie Kane, born in Charlottetown, PEI, has been an LPGA touring professional since 1995. Did you know that her great-great grandmother was Isabella Jenkins of Johnston’s River and Covehead, PEI? Dion Phaneuf is an All Star defenceman with the NHL Calgary Flames. Many of you are aware that his grandmother is Roma (Jenkins) Phaneuf of Summerside, PEI.

But I’ll bet many of you have not heard of baseball’s National League Home Run Champion from the family? He was almost certainly the first Prince Edward Island born player in the Majors. His name was George A. (Dandy) Wood.

Mary Ann Jenkins was born 12 March 1836 in Pownal, Lot 49, PEI, oldest daughter of James MacBriar (Scilly) Jenkins and Sarah Wood. She was married on 25 October 1855 at "Springfield", a pleasant farm in China point, Lot 50, to Joseph A. Wood, born in 1824 in Alexandra, Lot 49. Joseph was a first cousin of his mother-in-law Sarah. Mary and Joseph’s first child, George A. Wood, was born on 9 November 1858 in PEI, as were his siblings Amos (born about 1861) and Roscilla (born about 1863). Some time between 1863 and 1869, the family emigrated to the United States, settling in Boston, MA. There, about 1869, was born their fourth and last child Loronia. George was a great-great grandson of Nicholas (Henckel) Jenkins, our immigrant ancestor.

George began his professional baseball career on 1 May 1880 at age 21 with the Worcester Ruby Legs of the National League. This League had been founded in 1876 with eight teams, but there was a great turnover during those early turbulent years. Worcester, MA, joined the League in 1880, but was gone by the end of the 1882 season. With so many teams coming and going, players changed teams frequently, and George was no exception. After beginning his career with Worcester in 1880, he played with the Detroit Wolverines (1881-1885), Philadelphia Quakers (1886-1889), Philadelphia Athletics (1890-1891), Baltimore Orioles (1889, 1892), and Cincinnati Reds (1892). In 1891 he was both player and manager of the Athletics in the American Association. In 1881 he was among the National League leaders with a .421 slugging percentage. In 1882, his .269 batting average was well above the team average; the year in which he led the League in home runs and was runner up in triples.

Wood also participated in an early integrated baseball game. The Chicago Tribune reported on the game as follows: "A very singular contest took place at New Orleans, La., on April 4, 1880, when five Northern professionals succeeded in defeating the colored professional nine of that city by a score of 17 to 3." According to the account reported 14 months later in the Chicago Tribune of July 1881, Tim Keefe pitched, Charlie Bennett caught, John Sullivan played first base, while Wood and George Creamer "were entrusted with the onerous task of filling the other six positions."

George died on 4 April 1924 at age 65 in Harrisburg, PA. He was buried in Union Street Cemetery, Franklin, MA.

Article references included "The Baseball Page.com"; "baseball-reference.com"; "baseball-almanac.com"; and "wikipedia.org"

As usual, if you have any comments, please email me at demacdonald@pei.sympatico.ca