Silas Carner (1771 - 1844)

Born 2 Aug 1771 in Egremont, Berkshire, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Lydia (Morgan) Carner — married 16 Sep 1794 in Poultney, Rutland, Vermont, United States

Descendants

Died 3 Apr 1844 at age 72 in Athens, Bradford, Pennsylvania, United States

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Biography

SILAS CARNER was born on Friday, 2 August 1771, in Egremont, Berkshire Co., MA. He was the son of Jacob Karner and Lucy Kellogg. At the age of 23, Silas married Lydia Morgan on Tuesday, 16 September 1794, in Poultney, Rutland Co., VT, when she was 18 years old. They had six children: Orson, Amanda, Horace, Sylvia, Jay and Silas. Silas died in Athens, Bradford Co., PA, on 3 April 1844, at the age of 72. He was buried in Old Athens Cemetery.

Silas Carner was the fourth of seven children of Jacob and Lucy (Kellogg) Karner. Jacob had moved from his childhood home in New York to Massachusetts, as Silas and the other six were all born in Egremont in Berkshire County, and Jacob and Lucy both died there. In September 1794, Silas married Lydia Morgan, daughter of Abraham and Hannah Morgan.

Silas, Lydia and first child Orson were living in 1800 in Elizabethtown, New York. In the US Census of that year, Silas was about 28 and Lydia 24, but both were counted in the 26-44 category. Orson was properly listed as under ten years of age, and the last name was indeed still Karner.^[1]

What we think is that Silas and Lydia moved to Sheshequin in Bradford County, Pennsylvania soon after 1800. Silas supposedly followed his older brother Lodowick Karner there, and both were successful millers.^[2] The potential conflict of two brothers in the same industry seemed to explain why Silas changed his surname from Karner to Carner, according to the historian of Egremont, Massachusetts. But the Bradford County history cited here shows Lodowick as a Carner too.

The Carners didn’t appear in the 1810 and 1820 Censuses but returned in 1830. Silas and Lydia were in their fifties, and three children joined them. The two eldest sons, Orson and Horace, were grown, with Orson’s family next door. First daughter Amanda would have been thirty, but it isn’t known whether she was still living. The three at home included two between 20 and 29 (likely daughter Sylvia and son Jay) and son Silas, who was eighteen but listed as 10-14.^[3]

No other records are available for Silas Carner, who passed away in April 1844. He was buried in the Old Athens Cemetery, and his gravestone stands today.

SILAS CARNER Died April 3, 1844 Aged 72 Yrs.

A retrospective on the family included the following: SHESHEQUIN PIONEER FAMILIES THE CARNERS — The family is of Holland origin and originally spelled the name Karner. Lodowick Karner, a native of Sheffield, Mass, came to Sheshequin in or before 1788. "He was a very ingenious man, and miller for General Spalding."...Silas Carner, brother of Lodowick, followed his brother to Sheshequin, where he continued to reside a number of years. He finally removed to Athens and died there. He was the father of Orson, Amanda, Horace, Sylvia, Jay and Silas.^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ 1800 US Census, Elizabethtown, Essex County, New York, page 1032, Ancestry.com.
2. ↑ Craft, David. History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, (Philadelphia: L.H. Everts & Co., 1878), page 366.
3. ↑ 1830 US Census, Litchfield, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, page 79, Ancestry.com.
4. ↑ The Bradford Star, 10 Oct 1901, page 3