A middle child among several children, her father was Ephraim Hudson II, an immigrant to New York State from England. Her mother was Hannah Burnside, born in New York State to Irish immigrants who died when she was not quite a toddler. At their wedding, the ceremony was witnessed by a "Susan Claus" and the bride's name was listed in the church records as "Hanna Claus" rather than her birthname Hannah Burnside. It seems that Susan Claus and Hannah had become family.
It is not clear where or exactly when Clara Hudson became Clarissa Merriam, nor why the couple left the United States to settle in Ontario, Canada, where their four youngest children were born, but it seems they did marry as teenagers.
It was said that they were married for 68 years, and if true they were married in 1798, when Joseph was 17 and Clara was 13. Joseph passed away two years before Clara, and if the marriage was "not" considered to have ended with his death, then the date of their marriage could have been 1800, in which case she was 15 at the time of her marriage.
While young Clara left her family behind in New York State, her husband Joseph left behind a family situation that was far from ideal: a widowed mother and several disabled (blind) siblings. Also, since he was the youngest child, the seventh son, and born after his father's death, he was not going to inherit his father's estate, so there was no reason to stick around.
The young couple settled in Chippawa, Welland county, Ontario, Canada. Their first known child, Edward Brown Merriam, died at age 11 and was buried in Otsego county, New York State, which indicates that the family may have been visiting New York State at the time of their first son's death.
In their old age, in the 1860s, after the death of Clara's parents and all her siblings, the elderly Merriam couple moved from their long-time home in Chippawa, Ontario to Conneaut, Ashtabula county, Ohio, to live with their eldest daughter Caroline Merriam Beach and her family, and to be near their son Dr. Edward Douglas Merriam and his family.
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam outlived four of her children, as well as her husband.
A local "history" book about Northeastern Ohio, published in 1893, contained some wild fabrications about Clarissa Hudson Merriam's life:
-that she was a descendant of the explorer Henry Hudson (she was not)
-that she was born in Kinderhook, New York and was a schoolmate of U.S. President Martin Van Buren (presumably in the 1790s; but, although she was born in that area of New York State, it is highly unlikely that she lived in or attended the one-room school in the tiny Dutch-speaking village of Kinderhook)
-that her husband was "descended from a family noted for longevity" (on the contrary, her husband's father died at age 43; her husband's father's father died at age 48, and his father's father's father died at age 45; furthermore, her husband outlived nearly all of his siblings by forty or more years)
The author of the "history" book also claimed that Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had been married in January 1804, and that would have been when she was age 17, still a teenager. Given the highly unreliable statements given in the same paragraph, the truth of that marriage date is also questionable. However, it is the only date we have.
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Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had several namesake grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren, through every generation down to the present day.
1. Her eldest daughter Caroline Eliza Merriam Beach named her first child Clara. She was Clara Beach Ludlum. Clara Beach Ludlum's grandchild through her son Danforth Charles Ludlum was Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek. Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek's sister Augusta "Gussie" Eugena Ludlum Mullaly had a daughter named Cleve/Clara/Claire. Claire Mullaly Buchholdt's name was given to her youngest son's child, Liane Claire Buchholdt.
2. Her daughter Sarah Maria Merriam Stephenson named her first child Clara. She was Clara Stephenson Tarbill. Clara Stephenson Tarbill's sister Maria Stephenson Frisbey named her youngest daughter Clara; she was Clara Frisbey Ketchum.
3. Her son John Hudson Merriam named his third daughter Clara.
4. Her son Edward Douglas Merriam named his first daughter Clara.
It is not clear where or exactly when Clara Hudson became Clarissa Merriam, nor why the couple left the United States to settle in Ontario, Canada, where their four youngest children were born, but it seems they did marry as teenagers.
It was said that they were married for 68 years, and if true they were married in 1798, when Joseph was 17 and Clara was 13. Joseph passed away two years before Clara, and if the marriage was "not" considered to have ended with his death, then the date of their marriage could have been 1800, in which case she was 15 at the time of her marriage.
While young Clara left her family behind in New York State, her husband Joseph left behind a family situation that was far from ideal: a widowed mother and several disabled (blind) siblings. Also, since he was the youngest child, the seventh son, and born after his father's death, he was not going to inherit his father's estate, so there was no reason to stick around.
The young couple settled in Chippawa, Welland county, Ontario, Canada. Their first known child, Edward Brown Merriam, died at age 11 and was buried in Otsego county, New York State, which indicates that the family may have been visiting New York State at the time of their first son's death.
In their old age, in the 1860s, after the death of Clara's parents and all her siblings, the elderly Merriam couple moved from their long-time home in Chippawa, Ontario to Conneaut, Ashtabula county, Ohio, to live with their eldest daughter Caroline Merriam Beach and her family, and to be near their son Dr. Edward Douglas Merriam and his family.
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam outlived four of her children, as well as her husband.
A local "history" book about Northeastern Ohio, published in 1893, contained some wild fabrications about Clarissa Hudson Merriam's life:
-that she was a descendant of the explorer Henry Hudson (she was not)
-that she was born in Kinderhook, New York and was a schoolmate of U.S. President Martin Van Buren (presumably in the 1790s; but, although she was born in that area of New York State, it is highly unlikely that she lived in or attended the one-room school in the tiny Dutch-speaking village of Kinderhook)
-that her husband was "descended from a family noted for longevity" (on the contrary, her husband's father died at age 43; her husband's father's father died at age 48, and his father's father's father died at age 45; furthermore, her husband outlived nearly all of his siblings by forty or more years)
The author of the "history" book also claimed that Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had been married in January 1804, and that would have been when she was age 17, still a teenager. Given the highly unreliable statements given in the same paragraph, the truth of that marriage date is also questionable. However, it is the only date we have.
-----
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had several namesake grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren, through every generation down to the present day.
1. Her eldest daughter Caroline Eliza Merriam Beach named her first child Clara. She was Clara Beach Ludlum. Clara Beach Ludlum's grandchild through her son Danforth Charles Ludlum was Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek. Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek's sister Augusta "Gussie" Eugena Ludlum Mullaly had a daughter named Cleve/Clara/Claire. Claire Mullaly Buchholdt's name was given to her youngest son's child, Liane Claire Buchholdt.
2. Her daughter Sarah Maria Merriam Stephenson named her first child Clara. She was Clara Stephenson Tarbill. Clara Stephenson Tarbill's sister Maria Stephenson Frisbey named her youngest daughter Clara; she was Clara Frisbey Ketchum.
3. Her son John Hudson Merriam named his third daughter Clara.
4. Her son Edward Douglas Merriam named his first daughter Clara.
A middle child among several children, her father was Ephraim Hudson II, an immigrant to New York State from England. Her mother was Hannah Burnside, born in New York State to Irish immigrants who died when she was not quite a toddler. At their wedding, the ceremony was witnessed by a "Susan Claus" and the bride's name was listed in the church records as "Hanna Claus" rather than her birthname Hannah Burnside. It seems that Susan Claus and Hannah had become family.
It is not clear where or exactly when Clara Hudson became Clarissa Merriam, nor why the couple left the United States to settle in Ontario, Canada, where their four youngest children were born, but it seems they did marry as teenagers.
It was said that they were married for 68 years, and if true they were married in 1798, when Joseph was 17 and Clara was 13. Joseph passed away two years before Clara, and if the marriage was "not" considered to have ended with his death, then the date of their marriage could have been 1800, in which case she was 15 at the time of her marriage.
While young Clara left her family behind in New York State, her husband Joseph left behind a family situation that was far from ideal: a widowed mother and several disabled (blind) siblings. Also, since he was the youngest child, the seventh son, and born after his father's death, he was not going to inherit his father's estate, so there was no reason to stick around.
The young couple settled in Chippawa, Welland county, Ontario, Canada. Their first known child, Edward Brown Merriam, died at age 11 and was buried in Otsego county, New York State, which indicates that the family may have been visiting New York State at the time of their first son's death.
In their old age, in the 1860s, after the death of Clara's parents and all her siblings, the elderly Merriam couple moved from their long-time home in Chippawa, Ontario to Conneaut, Ashtabula county, Ohio, to live with their eldest daughter Caroline Merriam Beach and her family, and to be near their son Dr. Edward Douglas Merriam and his family.
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam outlived four of her children, as well as her husband.
A local "history" book about Northeastern Ohio, published in 1893, contained some wild fabrications about Clarissa Hudson Merriam's life:
-that she was a descendant of the explorer Henry Hudson (she was not)
-that she was born in Kinderhook, New York and was a schoolmate of U.S. President Martin Van Buren (presumably in the 1790s; but, although she was born in that area of New York State, it is highly unlikely that she lived in or attended the one-room school in the tiny Dutch-speaking village of Kinderhook)
-that her husband was "descended from a family noted for longevity" (on the contrary, her husband's father died at age 43; her husband's father's father died at age 48, and his father's father's father died at age 45; furthermore, her husband outlived nearly all of his siblings by forty or more years)
The author of the "history" book also claimed that Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had been married in January 1804, and that would have been when she was age 17, still a teenager. Given the highly unreliable statements given in the same paragraph, the truth of that marriage date is also questionable. However, it is the only date we have.
-----
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had several namesake grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren, through every generation down to the present day.
1. Her eldest daughter Caroline Eliza Merriam Beach named her first child Clara. She was Clara Beach Ludlum. Clara Beach Ludlum's grandchild through her son Danforth Charles Ludlum was Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek. Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek's sister Augusta "Gussie" Eugena Ludlum Mullaly had a daughter named Cleve/Clara/Claire. Claire Mullaly Buchholdt's name was given to her youngest son's child, Liane Claire Buchholdt.
2. Her daughter Sarah Maria Merriam Stephenson named her first child Clara. She was Clara Stephenson Tarbill. Clara Stephenson Tarbill's sister Maria Stephenson Frisbey named her youngest daughter Clara; she was Clara Frisbey Ketchum.
3. Her son John Hudson Merriam named his third daughter Clara.
4. Her son Edward Douglas Merriam named his first daughter Clara.
It is not clear where or exactly when Clara Hudson became Clarissa Merriam, nor why the couple left the United States to settle in Ontario, Canada, where their four youngest children were born, but it seems they did marry as teenagers.
It was said that they were married for 68 years, and if true they were married in 1798, when Joseph was 17 and Clara was 13. Joseph passed away two years before Clara, and if the marriage was "not" considered to have ended with his death, then the date of their marriage could have been 1800, in which case she was 15 at the time of her marriage.
While young Clara left her family behind in New York State, her husband Joseph left behind a family situation that was far from ideal: a widowed mother and several disabled (blind) siblings. Also, since he was the youngest child, the seventh son, and born after his father's death, he was not going to inherit his father's estate, so there was no reason to stick around.
The young couple settled in Chippawa, Welland county, Ontario, Canada. Their first known child, Edward Brown Merriam, died at age 11 and was buried in Otsego county, New York State, which indicates that the family may have been visiting New York State at the time of their first son's death.
In their old age, in the 1860s, after the death of Clara's parents and all her siblings, the elderly Merriam couple moved from their long-time home in Chippawa, Ontario to Conneaut, Ashtabula county, Ohio, to live with their eldest daughter Caroline Merriam Beach and her family, and to be near their son Dr. Edward Douglas Merriam and his family.
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam outlived four of her children, as well as her husband.
A local "history" book about Northeastern Ohio, published in 1893, contained some wild fabrications about Clarissa Hudson Merriam's life:
-that she was a descendant of the explorer Henry Hudson (she was not)
-that she was born in Kinderhook, New York and was a schoolmate of U.S. President Martin Van Buren (presumably in the 1790s; but, although she was born in that area of New York State, it is highly unlikely that she lived in or attended the one-room school in the tiny Dutch-speaking village of Kinderhook)
-that her husband was "descended from a family noted for longevity" (on the contrary, her husband's father died at age 43; her husband's father's father died at age 48, and his father's father's father died at age 45; furthermore, her husband outlived nearly all of his siblings by forty or more years)
The author of the "history" book also claimed that Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had been married in January 1804, and that would have been when she was age 17, still a teenager. Given the highly unreliable statements given in the same paragraph, the truth of that marriage date is also questionable. However, it is the only date we have.
-----
Clara "Clarissa" Hudson Merriam had several namesake grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren, through every generation down to the present day.
1. Her eldest daughter Caroline Eliza Merriam Beach named her first child Clara. She was Clara Beach Ludlum. Clara Beach Ludlum's grandchild through her son Danforth Charles Ludlum was Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek. Clara Mable Ludlum Pavlicek's sister Augusta "Gussie" Eugena Ludlum Mullaly had a daughter named Cleve/Clara/Claire. Claire Mullaly Buchholdt's name was given to her youngest son's child, Liane Claire Buchholdt.
2. Her daughter Sarah Maria Merriam Stephenson named her first child Clara. She was Clara Stephenson Tarbill. Clara Stephenson Tarbill's sister Maria Stephenson Frisbey named her youngest daughter Clara; she was Clara Frisbey Ketchum.
3. Her son John Hudson Merriam named his third daughter Clara.
4. Her son Edward Douglas Merriam named his first daughter Clara.
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