Robert Arthur Belding was one of a large family, who lived at Tottenham, Norfolk, England in the middle 1800s. When he was 19, in 1851, he took passage to America on a sailing ship and made his way from New York to Syracuse, N.Y. where he obtained work on the Erie Canal, working there 6 years. An older brother, William, with his wife and family, lived about 30 miles east at Fayetteville before 1851.
The wife was formerly Susan Lallam, while their children were Elizabeth, later of Duluth, Minn., Susan Knight, address unknown, Sarah Weeks of Washington, D.C., Louise of Virginia and Mira who married and lived in Rochester, N.Y. Michael, the eldest, was employed at the Erie Canal locks in Lansing, Mich. Lewis and Charles married an lived in Fayetteville, N.Y. The latter was the father of Hazel Neider, who is still living at 75 years of age. Della Belding, another sister, lived in Duluth, Minn., and Traceyton, Washington, while yet another, Nettie Clarke lived in Fayetteville.
Mary Alice Richer (1836–1910) was my maternal grandmother. She was born and raised in the village of Wimbothsam, England, which with Tottenham are part of Greater London at this writing. She hired out as a domestic and decided to immigrate to America, as many other young people were doing then. In visiting her goodbyes to her parents and brother and sisters, she said nothing of her trip so they would not worry. The sailing vessel which carried her was blown badly off its course and took ten weeks to reach New York City.
Much of her voyage was very stormy, hence she was quite certain she would not reach port as she clung desperately to her little trunk in its wild careering from one side of the ship to the other. Upon reaching New York, she continued inland until she reached Woodsville, Ill., now Avon, where she had a distant relative in Ira Woods I. She worked in Avon long enough to save money enough to make the trip to New York, where she hoped to obtain work in a rich home as a domestic.
Asa Woods, a twin brother Ira, and she made the trip to Syracuse, where she hired to a Mr. Hotchkiss, a silversmith. He valued her services so much he presented her with folding fruit knife, which I received from my mother, her daughter. It is a nicely made thing with M.A.R. on one side and the jeweller’s mark on the blade. Grandmother met and married Robert Belding there, the ceremony was 60 years less 2 days, before mine. They moved to Woodsville, where they hired out as a married couple, then having saved enough to purchase land, they bought 40 acres with a house and small buildings on it.
It became known as the Belding farm with the Belding Bridge and Belding hill close by. Working diligently, they saved enough to buy more land and build themselves another house in which their three children were born and raised. About 1900 they sold out to David Sebree and retired to Avon, the third house east of Main Street on Courtland.
Grandfather naturalized in 1860 and cast his first voted for Abraham Lincoln. He became a Mason and was the first candidate to be admitted into membership in the Old Masonic Hall, which was torn down in 1902. He was member for 30 years. In 1865 he rode a horse to Avon to entrain to the mobilization point for the Avon district to enlist in the Union Army, but the news of Lee’s surrender of all the Southern armies came before the train, so grandfather rode his horse back and went to work on his farm again.
Of the five children who were born to grandmother and grandfather, three grew to maturity. My mother was the youngest. Arthur, Edity and Mary Alice received their grade school education at Ross and Pleasant Plains schools, then were graduated later from the Avon high school.
Mother married Frederic Horace Merrill II, June 2, 1892. Of the three children born to the, I am the oldest. Clement Robert came to Canada with his parents, as did his younger brother, Kent Frederic. Kent died of influenza in the 1918 epidemic, while he was in school in Kansas City, but Clement worked father’s farm until 1927, when Louis and I arrived with a three-year lease for it. He returned to farm it after we left and continued until 1947, when it was sold. He did not marry and lives alone at 634 5th Ave., S.W. in Calgary, Alta.
Grandfather passed away at his home in Avon, July 22, 1903 and grandmother October 16, 1910. They are buried in the Avon cemetery. The farm home was burned some years after they moved to Avon. The Avon home was given to the Congregational Church for a parsonage by the three children.
This has been a short story of the maternal side of my ancestors, dating back to my grandfather, Robert Arthur Belding (1832–1903). We know nothing more of the Beldings other than several of grandfather’s brothers and sisters came to America about the same time as he did and probably have people of their names living at different points in the States or Canada, however we have found no trace of close relationship, neither have we heard of any Beldings in our travels. Lines have to be drawn somewhere, else decades could be spent searching and huge volumes could be used to bring all of the different lives to light.
Many interesting things come to the surface which parallel those found in other branches of our forebears. Today we consider their lives as having been quite hard working and bare of much interest, yet they thoroughly enjoyed their stay here on Earth.
Little food could be bought which needed only heating before eating, as much is today. Travel was very restricted as 100 mile trips were almost out of the question, instead of a two hours trip as it is now. School was elemental to that of today in that they drilled and drilled on the Rs, Reading, ‘Riting and ‘Rithmatic. Nearly everyone gathered for social functions as a form of fun and relaxation from the drag of hard work which was being done.
We have documents to substantiate the statements which we have made, so these pages can be taken as correct. We knew we had to face the chance of making errors, when we embarked on this duty but have been very careful to minimize those as much as possible. We want you to read this for your information as we have spent many weary hours checking item against item to have a successful culmination to our work.
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