A to Z Challenge: Nancy

Hello and Welcome to N Day!

Name:

Nancy Jane Russell

Vital Information:

Nancy Jane Russell was born on 10 June 1851 in Missouri and died on 12 February 1923, also in Missouri.

Relation to Me:

Nancy Jane is my Maternal 2x great grandma.

Tidbits/Characteristics/Commonalities:

Up until a couple of years ago all I knew about Nancy Jane was that she allowed her daughter, Una June, to marry when she was quite young. Knowing that the marriage didn’t last long, I wondered about the circumstances of it all. However, I couldn’t find any evidence to prove who this Nancy might actually be… who her parents were… when she was born or where she lived or who she married.

There were no photos nor notes in my Grandma Eve’s writing.

Some family nuts are just tougher to crack than others 🙂

Then, in my uncle’s files, I found an Obituary for Nancy with 1923 written on it in my Grandma’s handwriting. This Obituary helped me begin to fill in a few more of her children and cross reference a few Newspapers.com articles I’d found involving Una June and other children.

I also found a cryptic note written by Una June to her son, Phil that listed her parents’ names.

As I mentioned in my post about Delia, though, sometimes the ancestors reach out to me at unexpected times with a clear message that now is the time to look again, to look closer, for further information. That time was upon me and my searches were quite fruitful.

Through Family Search I was able to find a marriage record for Nancy Jane and Charles Taylor which I believed was correct, but did not have any other documentation to cross-reference with.

Next, using my DNA matches on Ancestry, I identified a match who had Nancy on his tree but didn’t have documentation uploaded, so I messaged him and asked if I could see any documentation he might have as well as any photos of Nancy Jane he would be willing to share with me.

Within a few days I not only had proof I was on the right path, but I also had two photos of Nancy Jane (alongside a whole slew of her/our kin) and proof for both of her parents!

Essentially, two generations unlocked by a single message and the generosity of a distant cousin!

I’ve said before and I’ll say it again and again and again:

Never underestimate the power of a cousin in your genealogy work.

More information about Nancy Jane’s mother, Permelia, on P Day as well as her daughter, Una June on U Day 🙂 Stay tuned!

NOTES:

• In the featured photo, Nancy Jane is, again, in the back row, third from the right, in the dark dress. She looks much more relaxed and happy in this photo and I adore it so.
• Read more about my search here: Finding Nancy Jane

In Your Research…

Have you had fruitful communication with distant relatives/cousins who have shared documentation and/or photos to help fill out your archives?

Housekeeping

My theme for the 2025 A to Z Challenge is Kin! The first names of direct lineage kin, to be more specific.

I’m spending the majority of the month focusing on the first names of many of my direct lineage kin. I’ll include their full names, any vital information I’ve found in my research, their relation to me, any fun tidbits/characteristics/experiences, and any commonalities I may have gleaned between myself and them.

In a couple of cases, where I have not identified an ancestor whose first name starts with a particular letter, I will choose a unique middle name, a direct line surname, and/or ancestral lands/places of significance.

Pop over here to read my full theme reveal: A to Z 2025 Challenge Theme Reveal: Kin

Pop over here to visit our host and see what they’re up to throughout this year’s challenge: A to Z Challenge

If you’re visiting from the A to Z Challenge please leave a comment so I can visit you, too! If your comment bio doesn’t link back to your site, please feel free to add the link to your most recent post to the comment field so I can be sure to find you.

Thanks for being here! See you again soon!

Onward,

Melissa