A few months ago, Pennsylvania released the state’s death records from 1906 to 1963. I must have overlooked the death record of Rachel’s mother, Nancy Sawyer, in my initial research…#iamafailure.

This is a relatively short post, I just wanted you to see what I discovered about Nancy.

1. Her middle name–Throughout the majority of my research, I never had Nancy’s full name for within the 1910 Federal Census she listed the initials N.J.P.. I have now solved two out of the three letters, Nancy Jeanette P(?) Sawyer Flowers Sams.

2. Her birthdate and death–April 7, 1873-February 1, 1963. She was 90 years old at the time of her death.

3. A new mother’s name–Her father was listed as Joseph Sawyer which  coincides with the 1880 Federal Census; however, her mother’s name is listed as Uka. On the census document, her mother’s name is Susan. Hilda, her daughter, provided the information on her mother’s death record. Her grandmother Susan (Uza) passed away in 1903, Hilda was not born until 1910. Perhaps she never knew of her grandmother’s name, but then why provide a name?

In Nigeria, Uka is a common surname.

4. Her last address–Nancy died in Philadelphia with her last known address was listed as 7979 State Record, the Riverview Hospital.

Interesting new finds. A few gaps are closed in Nancy Sawyer’s biography including her death date, last known address, and a confirmation of her parent’s names with a lingering question concerning her mother’s.

Until the next post,

Christina