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Children of William and Ellen (Bigelow) Frisbee:
16911.241 William Frisbee, jr., d infancy Peoria, IL.
16911.242 Louise Frisbee, b 31 July 1839 Peoria; d 29 June 1911; m April 1861 Thaddeua Selby Ely, b 06 July 1835 Trumbell co., OH and d Peoria 23 Jan 1894; 3 children. She was an ancestor of Thadeus Ely Baer, who married Dorothy Bristol 9 Bigelow.
Sources:
Bigelow Family Genealogy Volume. II page.263;
Bigelow Family Genealogy, Vol I page 344;
Howe, Bigelow Family of America;
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol. 6, p.11;
letter of Ellen Bigelow as quoted in Forge: The Bigelow
Society Quarterly,
vols 6 and 7.
correspondence with descendants.
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol. 6, No. 3;
p.11; (July
1977)
reprinted:
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol. 32, No. 2;
p.33; (April
2003)
Letter from Peoria
Ellen Bigelow. [116911.24], the daughter of Harriet (Edwards) and Lewis Bigelow, was born in Petersham. MA on 01 August 1810. She married Moses Patten on 15 February 1836. After his death, she married William Frisbee on 20 September 1838. William was born in 1809 at Chestertown, Kent, MD and died in Peoria at the age of 32 in 1841. He is buried in Peoria with a son. William Frisbee II. Ellen married for a third time. to a Mr. Ramkin, in 1846. She died m 1879 m San Francisco, CA and is buried there.
In 1835, Ellen journeyed from Petersham with her father, then a widower, and her three sisters to Peoria, IL. The trip was made by stage coach and canal boat. Following is a long letter, which will be published over three issues, to her aunt Hannah 6 (Bigelow) Parkhurst. describing their journey to the frontier:
My dear Aunt, 27 June 1835
I trust you will not think that forgetfulness or
willful intention
to neglect has been the cause of my delaying to inform you of our
safe arrival
here. Believe me. I know you will not. when I tell you I should
have written
before had I not been prevented by circumstances beyond my
control. Hearing
that Mr. W. leaves next week, with the intention of going directly
to Petersham.
I have laid aside everything and devoted this day to you.
I think you will be interested to know something of
the events
of our joumey, and I will then go back to the time of our bidding
you farewell.
After leaving Petersham, our course being westward. we soon
reached New Salem,
and at Mr. Harding's found tea prepared for us. Our whole party
sat down
and hastily partook of a very fine meal. after which we proceeded
directly
to Greenfield, where we arrived about half-past eleven. Arranging
ourselves
around the sitting-room wc hoped to obtain a little rest, but
hourly expectation
of the stage prevented We sat there, between waking and sleeping,
until nearly
four o'clock when the coach arrived, and we took our seats for
Albany. We
rode all the next day upon the most horrid roads ever seen. Over
the mountain,
I sat in constant fear for my life. The mud was up to the nave of
the wheel,
and the snow in some places three feet deep. At ten o'clock in the
evening,
we were still twenty miles from Albany, and all entirely
exhausted. C. [her
sister Caroline] was so ill that I dared not proceed with her, and
we at
length concluded to stay at the lnn until morning. At seven. after
a very
comfortable night's rest, we set out for Albany. where we arrived
at one
The day was dark and rainy, the streets of the city more
disgustingly filthy
than they had been represented to mc.
We went to Bosey's Hotel and stayed till fivc
o'clock, when
wc took thc railroad car to Schcncctady. Traveling at the rate of
a mile
in three minutes, we soon reached the city, and the confusion of
tongues
at thc Tower of Babel I am sure could have been nothing in
comparison with
the shouting and screaming we heard at thc landing A throng of
teamsters stood
watchdog for the baggage, and "Any luggage for Davis." "Any
luggage for the
Packetboats." "Show me your luggage for the Line Boats," issued in
stunning
shouts from all about us. After much crowding and squeezing and
diverse fcars
lest some of our trunks should find their way out of our hands, we
were at
last thrust into the cabin of one of the canal line boats:
"Genesee". Clinton
Lines Capt. D.W. Botts.
What they callcd the ladies' cabin we found to bc a
mean. dirty
little place, in size about six feet by ten. and into that ten and
sometimes
txxclx, c persons ~xc~c regularly wedged The berths were straw
mattresses
thrown upon rails, of which our poor bones complained most
bitterIx. The
noise of passing through the locks xxith thc.iar occasioned by
meeting other
boats, would haxe prevented [is from sleeping, had thc straw and
rails penrotted
it. We arose in the morning, unrefreshed and heartily sick of
canal boats.
On looking about us- xxe found occaston to conclude there was
grcat need
of a "Neat-Handed Phillis". and as the custom of the boat alloxxed
us to
preYldo om ox.xn fbod, xxc determined to do it rather than eat our
peck of
dirt in too short a time. Accordingly we ~xent to work. Groceries
were to
bc found at eyed bridge and lock. and Leander proxed himself a
very good
caterer. Elizabeth we set at the head of the table, and had a
chance to tease
her about commencing housekeeping on board a canal boat We
numbered ten.
as we took all at our table who came from Petersham.
The first place of any magnitude at which we stopped after leaving
Alban3
was Utica. Thc canal
passes through the principal part of the town, so that wc had a
very fine
view of it. We had one cause of complaint in their low bridges,
which caused
tis to prostrate ourselves entirely, or submit to the alternative
of being
decapitated in a velT sramnary marelet. One poor fellow had a very
narrow
escape from instant death A bridge took him unawares, and if it
had not beelq
for the exceeding frailty of a trunk on which he fell. that
crushed beneath
his weight and gave him room, he must inevitably been ground to
powder.
Connnencing at Utica, is the sixty-nine mile level, the Canal
passing through
a low 1narshy countD', dreary and dismal in the extreme. The bogs
and fens
were proper lurking places for the fever and ague, and it actually
made me
shiver to look at them. A rain storm came on which added nmch to
the horror
of our situation, as it drove all the gentlemen rote the cabin,
and covered
the floor with mud and water, and gave us no room to turn around.
After that, the weather was very, pleasant, and permitted us to
spend most
of our time on deck, a liberty we gladly nnproved, as there were
half a dozen
squalling young ones in the cabin, whose constant noise precluded
the possibility
of hearing ourselves speak.
We reached Rochester. and as the Captain had many passengers to
lmld. and
some lading to receive we left the boat to visit Genesee Falls. We
followed
the railroad track about half a mile. arrived at thc Falls. and
stationed
ourselves on the spot of earth which was the theater of Sam
Patch's Exploits·
The water descends perpendicularly ninety six feet. The sun shone
veo, brillianth'
while we were gazing, so that we had a fine view of the rainbow
formed on
the constmltly rising spray. The banks on either side are veD
steep and covered
with cedar, and altogether to my eve it was the most romantic and
beautiful
scene I ever looked upon. The aqueduct and flour mills are among
the main
curiosities of Rochester, and the Arcade is a building of which
they are
very proud. In that we found the post office established upon a
very conxenient
and systematic plan.
At twelve o'clock we left Rochester. with the addition of several
ne~x passengers,
one of whom proved to be a Miss %,'. from Millbury. who
contributed much
to my happiness, the remainder of the passage. A young lady and
gentleman from Ohio we found veD' pleaszmt companions, mid to a
Mr. L. from Buffalo, we were much indebted for politeness.
Brockport is a very- pleasant, busy, little place.
We had a violin on board and several singers, and as we were
entering the
town. our Captain desired tls to unite our efforts for some music.
We gathered
oursthcs together but to our utter astontMuncnt ucn Captain was
such a strait-laced
Methodist that he would allow none but psahn-mnes. Even our
familiar old
friend "Auld Lang Syne", which to my kmowledge was never before
excluded
from any society could fSnd no admittance. Vexed at such ignorant
superstition,
we all closed our mouths and vowed not to sing "Old Hundred" or
"Dundee"
again during the passage.
Lockport- to our great.jo5. xxe entered in thc dax time. There we
saw the
finest exhibition of stone-work to be found in the United States A
risc of
sixtx ruer is effected by a double set of locks, five on each
side. one to
rise. m~d the other to descend. They are composed of solid blocks
ofhexxa~
granite, with broad flights of steps between, and on each side of
the same
material. At the head of each flight is smooth plat}bnn, all of
granite.
hewn and fitted in tine same beautifi~l manner Passengers usually
go up the
stmrs in preference to passing through the locks as they are yeD,
deep and
the cabin is apt to be flooded with water during the ascent.
Leaving the
locks we passed for three miles between immense walls of stone
formed bv
the ledge through which the canal was cut. It is all of fifteen
feet above
the water and must have required a vast deal of labor
·.. to be continued
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol. 7, No. 1;
(Jan 1978)
reprinted:
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol. 32, No. 4;
p.70; (Oct
2003)
Part 3:
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