The Spelling of the Clay Family Surname

For many years I suspected that William and his brother Henry had been dropped off by an alien space ship in Cumberland, MD just before William married Elizabeth Mallon in 1864. Eventually as more records became easier to access and connecting with other researchers through the internet was possible, records of their parents and early lives were discovered. There is still more to uncover, but here is what has been found so far. 

We had two clues left by Helen Struck Coakley, the first was a paper with information about the Clay family from Helen's cousin that said the family was from Somerset County, Stoney Creek Township, Pennsylvania that listed all of the children of William and Elizabeth (Mallon) Clay.  William's death certificate listed his father as Martin Clay. Research in Somerset County did not turn up a family with the surname Clay that had a father Martin and a son William.

The second clue was that Helen left was in her Missal. She kept many prayer cards, most of them seemed to be family friends but one held critical information, Mrs. Margaret Smith. The surname Smith was among the relatives listed who were attending the 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration of William and Elizabeth. Margaret was from Washington, Franklin County, Missouri and passed away at the age of 77 years, 9 months and 18 days on 18 December 1905. Research in Franklin County turned up one possibility for Margaret - Mrs. Margaret Schmitt. Thanks to the burial record of her husband John at St. Francis Borgia catholic church, we know that Margaret's maiden name was Klee, which would have been pronounced Clay.

Armed with a new spelling of the family surname, research in the records of Somerset County was more successful. There was a Martin Klee family.

Martin Klee and Frederica Lauer were married, probably in Germany. Sources differ on where they were from. They had at least four children - Margarethe, William, Henry, and Susan. The records of St. John the Baptist Catholic church included the baptism of Martin, an adult convert from the Lutheran Church who was baptized 03 December 1843; William, son of Martin and Frederica Lauer, baptized 07 November 1841; Henry, son of Martin and Frederica baptized 10 March 1845; Susanna, daughter of Martin and Frederica, baptized, 28 August 1847 (she wasn't baptizes as an infant, she was born in 183?); and Maria Catharine born 1 March 1849. There was also a marriage record for Margaret Klee who married Martin Laurence Smith dated 4 June 1845.

The census records included an entry for Martin Kle in 1840 in Stoney Creek Township. He was between 40 and 49 years of age and there were three females in his household - one between 30 and 39 (Frederica) and two under 5 years of age. If Margaret was born in 1828 then she would have been 12 in 1840. The only other daughter that we have records for was Susanna who was born in 1833, she would have been 7. Either the Census was incorrect or there was another daughter that hasn't been identified and Margaret was living somewhere else.

The tax records for Somerset County, Pennsylvania included records for the Klee family. Martin did not own land but paid personal property taxes on one cow valued between $6 and $10 from 1841 through 1845. He was not listed on the tax rolls in 1846 and 1847 but was again listed in 1848 which was the last record found for Martin.

No record was found of the family in 1850. A newspaper article about the Golden Wedding Anniversary of William and Elizabeth says that Martin moved the family to Cumberland, Allegheny County, Maryland when William was a boy of 5 to 6 years old, this could explain the gap in the records for the family between 1848 and 1860.  Cumberland is right across the state line from Somerset County, Pennsylvania. No records of the family have been located in Cumberland until William married Elizabeth Mallon.

By 1860 Martin had probably passed away; Frederica was listed with William and Henry on the census in Allegheny Township, Somerset County, PA. Laurence and Margaret and their six children were listed nearby on the census.

There are tax records in Allegheny Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania from 1861 through 1864 for William Clay. He owned 10 acres valued at $30.00.

The family moved west shortly after William and Elizabeth Mallon were married in Cumberland, Allegany County, Maryland 11 April 1864. The 1865 Illinois State Census for William Clay in Quincy, Adams County, Illinois includes two women, one age 20-30 and one age 60-70. Elizabeth, William's wife would have been 17 and Frederica would have been about 60 years old.

Frederica was listed with Henry and his family on the 1870 Census; they were living in the 4th Ward of the City of Quincy.

By 1876 Frederica had moved to Washington, Franklin County, Missouri and was living near her daughter Margaret and her family. In 1880 Frederica was enumerated with Margaret's family on the Census in Washington.

The final record found for Frederica was at St. Gertrude's Catholic Church in Krakow, Franklin County, Missouri - a small town about 10 miles from Washington. Frederica Klee, widow of Martin age 82, died 22 March 1886 and was buried on 24 March 1886 in the church cemetery.

Here is a map showing the places where the family lived in the United States.

We still need to determine where in Germany the family came from.

• The 1860 census says that Frederica was from Hanover and her daughter Margaret is listed as coming from Hesse Darmstadt. 
• The 1870 census that Frederica was from Prussia. 
• The 1880 census says that Frederica and Margaretha were from Hessen. 
• There is a ship's passenger list for a Martin and Frederica Klee along with a daughter from Holzheim but the facts don't all match the family so we aren't sure this is the correct immigration record. 

Thanks to records becoming more available some of the mysteries about the Clay family have been solved. 

Sources

US Federal Census Records, 1840 Somerset County, PA; 1860 Somerset County, PA; 1870 Quincy, Adams County, 1870; 1880 Washington, Franklin County, MO - all on Ancestry.com.

Missouri State Census - 1876 Washington, Franklin County, MO. Ancestry.com

Illinois State Census - 1865 Quincy, Adams County, IL. FamilySearch.org

Ledoux, Rev Albert H, Catholic Vital Records of Central Pennsylvania; St John the Baptist Catholic Church, New Baltimore, PA.

Assessment Rolls, 1795-1879; Somerset County, PA; Familysearch.org. 

Catholic Church, St. Gertrude's (Krakow, Missouri); Familysearch.org

Catholic Church, St. Francis Borgia's (Washington, Missouri); Familysearch.org

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