It seemed oddly familiar (ISOF): part 2 – the Lyons connection

ISOF now also known as: In Search Of Family

I was flipping carefully through the 360 plus pages of our Corser genealogy book, following the timeline backwards to learn more about our great great grandfather Frank Jefferson Corser. I was skimming quickly following and connecting the reference numbers but also scanning birth and death dates and locations. All of a sudden there they were, “… born in Lyons Mi.”

Wait. What? Back up.
…
“children

1. (Unknown infant) b. in Ohio
2. Amelia E. (Minnie) Rudgers b. 1858 at Niagara Falls, NY
3. Lillie M. Rudger, b. 20 Nov. 1859 at Lyons, Mich.
4. Emmbie A. Rudgers b. 14 Aug 1861 at Lyons d. 30 Mar 1862
5. Cortland A. Rudgers b. 27 Apr 1868 at Lyons, Mich.
6. Carolyn Marie Rudgers b. 28 Mar 1870 at Lyons, Mich.

I flip back one more page:

“6 (generation) John William Rudgers b. 19 Aug 1831 at Chautauqua Co., N.Y. d. 19 May 1888 at Lyons, Mich. bur. Lyons Cem. m. 1855 Cynthia Azubah Hancock dau. of Alonzo Hancock b. 1835 at Richfield, Ohio d. 4 May 1917 at Hudson, Mich. bur. Lyons, Mich. He was a blacksmith in Lyons, Mich. and died intestate of paralysis. He left a personal estate of $400 and real estate valued at $200. …”.

*** (Side note: genealogytrails.com lists John W. Rudgers as the Marshal of Lyons, Mi. in 1873.) ***

After more digging I learned that even though John William Rudgers and my great great grandfather Frank Jefferson Corser are both sixth generation, the relation is only through the first two generations, John Corser and John Corser II. At the third generation their branches veer off in separate directions.

However, these two family names didn’t go that far in separate directions. I remembered seeing the Rudgers name before this wonderful Lyons discovery and something (or someone) told me to go re-read cover page of the genealogy book (printed in 1991):

THE
CORSER
FAMILY
Compiled by William F. Arlington
Assisted by Helen Corser Bentley
with special thanks to
Daniel W. Rudgers