A THORNBER FAMILY WITH ORIGINS IN SLAIDBURN AND GISBURN FOREST, FORMERLY YORKSHIRE, NOW LANCASHIRE, ENGLAND

Mrs. Woodcock of Huddersfield has provided me with details of the descendants of Adam Proctor Thornber from correspondence with members of the Ainsworth family.  Adam's descent is shown on a separate page.   The Ainsworth family researchers were Olive, Ralph, Carrie and Elise Ainsworth all of Illinois.  They had identified Adam Proctor Thornber's mother as Nancy Amistead but my transcription of the records of Houghton Chapel shows quite clearly that Adam Proctor Thornber was the son of William Thornber and Ann Proctor.  Adam Proctor Thornber MARRIED Mary Ann Ainsworth.  The Ainsworth family tree shows many dates but not the sources of information and few places of residence.  I reproduce the key features in relation to the Thornber family and have added dates and sources from my own collection of data.

There is a brief account with the tree from which I have abstracted the following paragraph:
 

" James Thornber, born in 1842, third son of Adam Proctor Thornber and Mary Ann Ainsworth went at the age of 8 to work in a spinning mill in Liverpool and when 15 went back to Yorkshire to work with his elder brothers, Thomas and William.  He was an apprentice until 1866 and then moved to Rantoul in Illinois to join the brothers of his mother, who had emigrated earlier.  He worked for the uncles and in due course, his girl friend from England, Ann Strickland, emigrated to join him and they were married in 1868. Initially the couple rented a farm from an uncle but in about 1880/1 James and Ann moved to Iroquois in South Dakota.  In 1894 they moved to Brookings in the same state, living a mile east of the college on a farm.  James died there in 1927.  Ann Strickland took yellow rose bushes with her when she emigrated and these were eventually moved to South Dakota."

An administration for the will of Adam Proctor Thornber of Blackburn, dated Oct. 1851, is in the index of wills at the Borthwick Institute of Historical Research at York and I have transcribed the main details in a footnote.   The Blackburn electoral register for 1841 through to 1848 shows Adam with house and shop at King Street in Blackburn)

In June 2002 I was contacted by Clayton Thornber who kindly sent me further details of the families of Hubert Elwyn Thornber and Eldon William Thornber (generation 4 below) in the 20th century. Daniel was able to continue the story of the yellow roses mentioned above:

"The yellow roses you refer to that were taken as bare root cuttings to Rantoul, Illinois, and made their way to South Dakota in the 1870's. They grew about the doorstep at the farmhouse near Colman, South Dakota, throughout my childhood, and when I moved to Wisconsin I brought cuttings back and have two very nice outcrops."

Birth dates in the 20th century have been given without the day or month for reasons of privacy.

• 1.     Adam Proctor Thornber, born 28 April, bapt. 14 Jun 1812, Houghton Chapel.  He was a shoemaker, lived in Blackburn, and Liverpool, died 27 October 1849. The GRO index of deaths shows an Adam Proctor Thornber died in 4th quarter 1849 in Blackburn district, ref.  21 12. See also Footnote 1.
• +      Mary Ann Ainsworth, died 1863.
  • 2.   William Thornber, the son of Adam Proctor Thornber & Mary, baptised at Chapel St. Independent,  Blackburn, Lancashire, 12 October 1834
  • +     wife's name unknown
    • 3.    Mary Elizabeth
    • 3.    Martha
    • 3.    Frances
    • 3.    Son?
  • 2.     James Thornber, born 17 Jun 1842, died 23 Apr 1927.  Emigrated to Illinois, farmer.
  • +      Ann Strickland, married in Illinois,  born 25 Oct 1842, England, died 25 Nov 1904
    • 3.     William Thomas Thornber, born 27 Jan 1870, Rantoul, Illinois, died 16 Sep 1934, was a farmer.
    • +      Martha Cuckow, born 19 May 1877
      • 4.     Hubert Elwyn Thornber, born 1900, died 1981 (?)  married 1923. He had a distinguished career in the US Army, serving in WWI, WWII (Eisenhower's staff), and the Korean War. He retired a Colonel after 29 years of Service, interupted by his college and graduate school attendance. Hubert and his wife were buried at the Gettysburg National Cemetery.
      • +      Winifred Griffiths, born 21 Mar 1902, died 15 Dec 1971
        • 5.    Hubert Elwyn Thornber Jr., known as Bud, born 1925. Enlisted in 1944 to fly waist gun on Liberator bombers out of England. He went on to be an Air Force pilot and made Ace in the Korean War. His last military flying was Piper Cubs over Vietnam as an artillary and bomber spotter. He retired a Bird Colonel (full colonel, flight status) and he died several years ago.
        • 5.    Richard William Thornber, born 1929, went into to the U. S. Air Force and achieved the rank of Major before retirement. He passed away a few years ago.
        • 5.    Winifred Ann Thornber, born 1933.
      • 4.     Eldon William Thornber, farmer, born May 1909
      • +     Frances Mae Cramer, born 1911, married 1929
        • 5.    Eldon Charles Thornber, born 1930
        • 5.    Sue Ann Thornber, born June 1938
        • 5.    Donna Marie Thornber, born 1940
        • 5.   Clayton Daniel Thornber, born 1945
        • +     1st wife, Linda Kay Hendry in Madison, South Dakota, in 1967. Divorced 1977.
          • 6.   Heath Alan Thornber, born 1968
          • +   Bonnie Martin Thornber of Pompano Beach, Florida in 1999.
            • 7. Brian Jo-Lin Thornber, born 1999
          • 6.  Heather Ann Thornber, born 1971.
          • +    Keith Ehlers at Green Bay, Wisconsin, 1994.
            • 7. Alexandra Nicole, born 2000
          • +     2nd wife, Marlene Leitner Hemauer at Chilton, Wisconsin in 1981.
            
        • 5.   Sandra Kay Thornber, born 1950
          
      • 4.     Wesley Thomas Thornber, born 5 Oct 1916, died 5 Oct 1916
    • 3.     John James Thornber, born 8 Feb 1872, died 22 Nov 1962
    • +      1st wife, Harriet Ann Brown, born 20 Mar 1874 (divorced)
    • +      2nd wife of John James Thornber was Miriam Rainier.
      • 4.     John Strickland Thornber, born 28 Nov 1904, died July 1967
    • 3.     Walter Strickland Thornber, born 21 Mar 1874
    • +      1st wife, Phebe Allen Huff, born 13 Aug 1873, died 27 Apr 1902
      • 4.     Viola Alberta Thornber, born 23 Apr 1902, died 25 Apr 1902
      • +      2nd wife of Walter Strikland Thornber was Ethelyn Florence Henry, born 11 Jun 1879, died 12 Sep 1968
      • 4.     Gordon Henry Thornber, born 1907
      • 4.     Merrill Strickland Thornber, born 1909
      • +      Helena Klavano, born 1910.
        • 5.    Joanne Elizabeth Thornber, born 1938
      • 4.     Evelyn Beatrice Thornber, born 1912, married Harold Wexler Miller
      • 4.     George (sic) Anne Thornber, born 1919, married Robert Gordon Murray
    • 3.     Albert Edward Thornber, born 9 Apr 1876, died Oct 1963
    • +      Minnie Wikoff, born 16 Sep 1874
      • 4.    Edna Muriel Thornber, born 1902, married Preston Le Roy Atkins
      • 4.    Albert Neville Thornber, born 31 Oct 1907, died 10 Nov 1929
      • 4.    Fordyce Strickland Thornber, born 1915
    • 3.     Adam Proctor Thornber, born 21 Jul 1878, died 22 Jan 1963
    • +      Ethel Lucinda Whitman, born 20 Jun 1881
      • 4.    Gertrude Edith Thornber, born 1911, married Wilburn W. Godwin Jr.
    • 3.     Mary Edith Thornber, born 9 Dec 1880, married Frederick W. Cuckow
    • 3.     Jesse Beatrice Thornber, born 6 June 1884, died Feb 1968
    • 3.     Harvey Thornber, born 13 May 1887, died 7 Sep 1967
    • +      Dott R McTier, born 4 Aug 1889, married 28 Dec 1913, died 25 Dec 1942.
      • 4.     Chalmers Harvey Thornber, born 1915.
      • +      Lois Elizabeth Kuhn, born 1916.
        • 5.     Karvel Kuhn Thornber
        • +      Nora Sigrun
          • 6.    Karen Laura Thornber
          • 6.    Carol Sigrun Thornber
  • 2.   John Thornber died aged 7 months old, of whooping cough, on 2 April 1839, at King Street, Blackburn. He was the son of Adam Thornber, shoemaker.(I have a copy of the Death Cert.)
  • 2.    Thomas Thornber, born 28 July 1840, died 27 Feb 1910. (There was also Thomas, son of Adam Thornber and Mary baptised at Blackburn Chapel St. on 25 September 1836 and the Thomas in the 1841 census (shown in Footnote 1) was aged 5 so the 1840 date may be in error. The GRO index shows no Thomas registered in Blackburn in 1840
  • +     Margaret Plumb
  • 2.   Richard Ainsworth Thornber, registered in the June Quarter of 1844 at Blackburn. He was described as aged 22, a bachelor and a packer of Addison (?) Street, son of Adam Proctor Thornber a shoemaker, when he married Martha Hadwick Yates, 28, spinster, weaver, of Frances Ann (?) Street, the dau. of Peter Yates a printer on 16 December 1866 at St. Paul's, Blackburn. The 1881 census (PRO Ref RG11, Piece 4192, Folio 55, page 1) shows Richard Thornber aged 36, a grocer, born in Blackburn. His wife, Martha, born in Bury was 42. Children were Albert, aged 8; Mary, aged 3 and Arthur aged 1; all born in Blackburn.
    • 3.   Albert Thornber, born about 1873. Albert Thornber aged 28, a bachelor and cabinet maker, of 3 Arthur Street Blackburn, son of Richard Thornber, grocer, married Catherine Alston, spinster and weaver, of 10 Cowell Street, Blackburn, daughter of John Alston, deceased, bailiff, by banns, by W. Hull, in the presence of William Eddleston and Mary Thornber on 17 December 1901 at Blackburn St. Paul's. This couple are the ancestors of my correspondent, Margaret Spencer of Blackburn.
    • 3.  Mary Thornber, born about 1878
    • 3.   Arthur Thornber, born about 1880
  • 2.  Sarah Alice Thornber, born 29 January 1850 at 9 Byron Street, Blackburn to Adam Proctor Thornber, shoemaker, and Mary Thornber formerly Ainsworth.  She is found in the 1881 census of Blackburn with her mother Mary and brothers James, Richard, John and Joseph.  Sarah emigrated to Illinois, presumably with her brother James, where she married George Philes at Mason County, Illinois on 7 November 1869 and later moved to New York state.  This couple had five children.  I am grateful to Cindy LaVallee for all the information about Sarah Alice Thornber.

Footnote 1.

I am grateful to Merle Thornber in Australia for sending me the following details from the 1841 census of Blackburn at King Street.  It fits Adam Proctor Thornber, known to be a shoemaker in King Street from the electoral register of 1841. It has a few inconsistencies with previous information in that he was born in Yorkshire not Lancashire. He was baptised at Houghton Chapel, Tosside, Yorkshire, in 1812, so should have been 28/29 in 1841. However, in that census ages for adults were rounded down to the nearest multiple of five. William and Thomas are given as aged 7 and 5 respectively.

There is a death record for John Thornber, 7 months old, of whooping cough, on 2 April 1839, at King Street, Blackburn. He was the son of Adam Thornber, shoe maker. This puts his birth in late 1838.

There is a reference to William Thornber, the son of Adam Proctor Thornber & Mary, baptised at Chapel St. Independent,  Blackburn, Lancashire, 12 October 1834 which is consistent with age 7 in 1841.   

There was also a Thomas, son of Adam Thornber and Mary baptised at Blackburn Chapel St. on 25 September 1836 and a Richard son of Adam Proctor Thornber married at St. Paul's Blackburn on 16 December 1866.

Administration of the Estate of Adam Proctor Thornber, Admon 30 September 1851

Mary Thornber of Blackburn, widow, Ralph Thornber of Blackburn, labourer and Anthony Armitstead of Blackburn, tailor, were bound in the sum of £400 by the court to administer the estate of Adam Proctor Thornber of Blackburn, cordwainer, deceased. Mary was described as sole administratrix for Adam Proctor Thornber, late of Blackburn, cordwainer. Mary made her mark but Ralph Thornber and Anthony Armistead both signed their names. Adam Proctor Thornber died 27 October 1849 and probate was obtained on 15 October 1851 when the estate was said to be under £200

From this brief account it may be that Mary, being illiterate, had not been able to sort out Adam's affairs on his death. After a lapse of almost two years, on 30 September 1851, she went with Ralph Thornber and Anthony Armistead to the court's representative, John Howson, to swear the estate was under £200. She was required to prepare a full inventory of her husband's estate for the prerogative court in York by April of 1852. The fact that she was bound in the sum of £400 shows that the bishop's representative regarded it a serious business to have delayed so long.

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