INQUIRIES

I have more than 250 papers that belonged to my great-great-grandfather, Daniel Shidler (1787–1864), who lived in Berlin Township, Holmes County, OH, from 1831 to1839. During the latter part of that period he exchanged wheat and other farm produce for merchandise and cash at Navarre, OH, which is in Stark County, and which had the advantage of being a port on the Ohio & Erie Canal. Attached are copies of five receipts (editor note: please contact Mr. Shidler for copies) from such transactions. I try to obtain as much information as possible about all the other people whose names appear on my ancestor’s documents in order to better understand the world in which he lived. I am publishing the results of these investigations as a series of articles in Mennonite Family History magazine.

Is any information available on the Chapman & Raffensperger business? On the web I found a Johannes Raffensperger (b 1782 York Co, PA; d 1848 Stark Co, OH) and his son Enos Raffensperger (b 1809 PA; d 1877 Stark Co, OH). Enos was married to Rosanna Chapman (1810–1893). From information I found on your website, I believe the partnership was Enos Raffensperger and a William Chapman.

I am interested in any information you can supply on the Chapman & Raffensperger business and people. Please advise me of any applicable fees. Thanks very much in advance for any help you can provide.

I am a Chapman descendent, and have been trying to find information on my line. I stumbled on the Chapman Family Association website tonight, and while going through it I did not see anything on my line. However, I wanted to contact you anyway and maybe add my brief information if you would like it. My Chapman’s come out of Detroit, Michigan, and I am at a standstill in going back further. Do you know of Chapman’s with Michigan ancestors?

Hi my Nan May Thompson (nee Chapman) died early this year at 105 in Leek Staffordshire. As a point of interest I came across your site and wondered if you had any information about the Chapmans of Lingfield and before? Our Nans grandfather came to Leek around the 1850s from Lingfield

I recently came across some information through Ancestry DNA and was hoping that you could help me connect a few dots. My DNA match came across a direct descendent of Charles Chapman and Elizabeth DeWitt, and matched me as a 2nd cousin to that individual.

Unfortunately my connections through the Chapman side that I know have all passed and my knowledge only goes up to my grandfather Wallace J Chapman born in Chesterfield, SC in 1920 (my father's name is Wallace Edward Chapman and I know I am related to many of the Chapman's in Society Hill, SC).
On record, my great grandparents names are Dorrell Chapman and Alace (or Alice) McMillan (which is coincidentally the maiden name of the son of Charles Chapman's son, Calvin Edward Chapman's wife). I also researched slaves in the household and it seems that there was a census that showed Calvin's son (James A. Chapman), had five slaves in his household as well as his father Calvin, wife, and children.

I was wondering if you had come across any information on the slaves that James A. Chapman had acquired?