Parish records from St. Leonrad's church, Shipham, Somerset, England, reveal that George Hares was christened on 31 Aug 1834. He was one of several children of Israel Hares and Mary Ann Collins, his father also being a native of Shipham, while his mother was a native of Bedminster, also in Somerset. He appears in his first census in the returns of Shipham for the year 1841, where he is listed as 7 years old. Strangely, in the next census ten years later he is listed as only being fourteen, and from that point forward it appears that George adopted an incorrect birth date of 1838 for the remainder of his life.

Shipham is a parish in the county of England, and is briefly described below by the book, "The Heart of Mendip," by Francis A. Knight. In the fifty pages devoted to Shipham, we learn about the social and cultural history of the parish and its people, with much of the text devoted to a discussion of the mining industry.

Below: view of the Parish church of St. Leonard's, Shipham, Somerset, May 2006.

George Hares makes his first census appearance in 1841, as follows:

1841 Census, Shipham, Somerset, England

Name	Age	Occupation	Born in County>
Israel Hares	40	Miner, Lead Ore	Yes
Mary Hares	45		Yes
Hannah Hares	15		Yes
Mary Hares	9		Yes
George Hares	7		Yes
Elizabeth Hares	3		Yes
Susannah Hares	1		Yes

This is the first indication we have that the Hares family followed the mining trade, as Israel is listed as a miner of lead ore. Absent from the family is oldest son Samuel, who may have already been working elsewhere.

Sometime in the later half of the 1840s, the Hares family moved from Shipham to Brynmawr in Breconshire, Wales. Beginning in the early 19th century, men and their families began pouring into Brynmawr to find work in the region's booming coal and iron industries. The first wave of immigrants into Brynmawr were from Breconshire, which was followed by an inflow of Welshmen from counties to the west and south of Breconshire, which was closely followed by the arrival of families from England, many from Somerset. In her book, "Brynmawr: A Study of a Distressed Area," Allenson & Co., London, 1934, Hilda Jennings provides a description of the town's development:

Our first glimpse of George Hares and family in Wales comes from the 1851 census, where we find the family living on Orchard street in Brynmawr, as follows:

1851 Census, Brynmawr, Llanelly, Breconshire, Wales

Street - Place	Name & Surname	Relation	Condition	Age	Sex	Occupation	Where Born
Orchard Street	Israel Hares	Head	M	52	M	Cinder Tipper	Shipham, Somerset
	Mary Ann Hares	Wife	M	50	F	Cinder Tipper's Wife	Bedminster, Somerset
	George Hares	Son	U	14	M	Iron Miner	Shipham, Somerset
	Elizabeth Hares	Daur	U	12	F	Coke Filler	Shipham, Somerset
	Susana Hares	Daur	U	9	F	Cinder Tipper's daughter	Shipham, Somerset
	Jane Hares	Dau	U	6	F	Cinder Tipper's daughter	Shipham, Somerset
	James Haines	Son-in-law	M	20	M	Limestone Breaker	Frome, Somerset
	Mary Ann Haines	Dau	M	20	F		Shipham, Somerset

The return give us quite a bit of information about the family. First, it confirms that George was an iron miner and that his father and sister Elizabeth also worked in the iron industry. Present with the family is George's sister Mary Ann, who had recently married James Haines (Haynes). In addition, with youngest daughter Jane born in Shipham in 1845, that means that the family moved from Somerset to Brynmawr sometime between Jane's birth and the 1851 census. We will pick up the story of the Hares family in a later essay, but for now we will continue with the story of George Hares.

The 1851 census would be the last time we see George in Wales, as by the middle of 1854 he had emigrated to America. His naturalization petition, which is found at the courthouse in Wilkes Barre, Luzerne Co., Pa., states that that George (George Hears) arrived at the port of Philadelphia on June 18, 1854. The petition does not name the ship George arrived on, and, to date, I have been unable to identify him on any ship's passenger lists. At this point in time I have not determined whether or not George was accompanied by any family members on his journey to America.

The document that George Hares signed on September 29, 1860, using only his mark (X), indicates that he was a native of Wales, had lived within the borders of Pennsylvania for a period of five years, and had otherwise completed all the necessary requirements to become a citizen. It was on September 29th, 1860, then, that George Hares became a U.S. citizen. A man named Thomas Thomas stood as witness at his citizenship ceremony. Today, the actual citizenship certificate for George Hares is found at the Lackawanna County Historical Society in Scranton, having been donated by descendant Betty Ahearn Barret several years ago.

Although George first set foot in America in Philadelphia, he eventually settled in Hyde Park/Scranton in Lackawanna County Pennsylvania, where he became a coal miner. Being only sixteen when he arrived in America, we can be sure that George had not been a miner in his native Wales, although he certainly could have worked in other mining-related jobs that were reserved for boys.

By the mid-19th century the mining of anthracite coal was becoming big business in eastern Pennsylvania. The rich veins of coal that stretched from Minersville and Pottsville in the southern coal region, to Scranton in the north, created tremendous opportunities for Welsh miners, whose expertise in deep-coal mining was very much in demand by the burgeoning industry. Although the bulk of Welsh immigration to this part of Pennsylvania occurred in the later part of the 19th century, our Thomas ancestors were among an earlier group of immigrants who were mining Pennsylvania anthracite coal before the Civil War. A publication titled, Area History: History of Hyde Park 1852 - 1952: Lackawanna County, PA, provides a brief history of Hyde Park and Scranton at the time of the Thomas family arrival:

The next record for George Hares should be a listing in the 1860 census, however as of this date (August 2003), I have been unable to find our ancestor in the returns for that year, most likely due to the problem with the name "Hares" mentioned above. Instead we have to wait until the outbreak of the Civil War for our next glimpse of George.

The Civil War service record of George Hares is found at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. The file indicates that less than a year after becoming a citizen, George enlisted in Company I of the 52nd PA Volunteer Infantry, one of two Civil War regiments raised at the start of the war with men primarily from Luzerne County. George enlisted in Scranton on August 22, 1861, and was mustered into service in Pottsville on September 23 of that year for a full three year term. Over the course of the next three years, the 52nd PA took part in many memorable battles, and would earn the nickname "the Fightin' Luzerne," for its fierce brand of combat. George's war record indicates that he served his entire enlistment, was present at all company roll calls, and was honorably discharged on November 5th, 1864, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, by reason of the expiration of his term of service. At one time his Civil War discharge certificate was held by the Lackawanna County Historical Society in Scranton, however a recent trip to that archive (July 2003) revealed that the original certificate has been replaced by a photocopy.

Follow this link for a history of the 52nd Pennsylvania Regiment

Following the war George returned to Scranton and resumed his life as a miner, and on May 11, 1865 married Elizabeth Williams, daughter of William C. and Mary Williams. Elizabeth was born in 1844, in Monmouthshire, Wales. Her only sibling was her brother David C. Williams, born in 1846. The Williams family eventually emigrated to America, settling initially in Danville, Montour County, Pennsylvania, before finally settling in Hyde Park/Scranton sometime before 1860. George and Elizabeth's wedding ceremony took place in the Williams home in Hyde Park, and was officiated by the Rev. John P. Harris, pastor of the Welsh Baptist Church. Other details concerning the marriage of George Hares are found in his Civil War pension file, which will be discussed in greater detail below.

The following year on April 11, 1866, George and Elizabeth's only child Mary Jane was born. Unfortunately, less than a year later, on March 8, 1867, George Hares died and was buried in the Washburn Street cemetery in Hyde Park. At this point his cause of death at age 27 or 29* has not been determined, but was likely the result of an accident or illness. A check of the available mining fatality records for that year fail to list George as a casualty, and the local newspapers carried no notice of his death. The simple inscription on his stone (which today is practically illegible) reads as follows:

George Hares
Died March 8 1867
Aged 29 years

His cemetery marker in Washburn Street today is almost illegible; the stone is a typical white Civil War veteran's marker, and for years was accompanied by a GAR emblem and U.S. flag. Unfortunately the flag and GAR emblem had been removed the last time I visited the cemetery in 2001.

For many years there existed family tradition explaining George's death, that today must be largely discounted. The story goes that during the war George was wounded in the leg at the battle of Gettysburg, a wound that later required amputation, and that complications from the amputation ultimately caused his untimely death. There are several problems with this theory. First, George's regiment was not present at the Battle of Gettysburg, and, (as mentioned above), our ancestor made it through his three year enlistment without serious injury, and was simply discharged at the expiration of his term of service. No Gettysburg, and no wounded leg. Moreover, any such wound or disability incurred during the war would have been noted in his widow's Civil War pension application, yet the file makes no such claim. If George Hares did die from a leg wound or amputation, such an accident would have occurred after the war and after his marriage to Elizabeth Williams. Although it is conceivable that such an accident could happen in the always-dangerous mines, however at this point in time we must reject the above family tradition.

Although George's widow eventually remarried, in the 1870 census we find that Elizabeth and her daughter Mary Jane were living with Elizabeth's parents in Hyde Park, as follows:

5th Ward, City of Scranton, Luzerne Co., Pa.

Name	Age	Occupation	Place of Birth
Williams, William	58	Procurer? Retired	Wales
Mary	68	Keeping House	Wales
David	24	Carpenter	Wales
Hares, Elizabeth	27	at home	Wales
Mary	5	at home	PA
Sanders, William	16	Teamster	Wales

Elizabeth's father William is shown as owning real estate valued at $4,500.00, and personal property valued at $1,000.00, an impressive sum for those days. His listing in the Scranton city directory and the 1880 census indicate that William was a grocer, and obviously a successful one.

On November 9, 1870, Elizabeth Hares remarried William B. Morley, a coal miner living in Hyde Park. William was born in Wales in 1846, and over the next sixteen years Elizabeth gave birth to at seven additional children, who became daughter Mary Jane's half brothers and sisters. The Morley family lived in a duplex at 538-540 North Hyde Park avenue, which is where we find them in census returns from 1880 to 1910. Elizabeth and her children lived at 540, and eventually her son-in-law and daughter, William and Mary Jane Thomas and their family moved next door to 540. William Morley died on August 5, 1901, and was buried in the family plot in the Washburn Street cemetery. His obituary appeared in the local paper the following day:

Following the death of her second husband, Elizabeth applied for a widow's pension based on the Civil War service of her first husband, George Hares. Elizabeth wrote to the Commissioner of Pensions on February 25, 1905:

An affidavit was taken from a Martha Davis of Minersville, who was present at and a witness to Elizabeth's marriage to George Hares. This document supplies the date of the marriage, the name of the pastor, and the fact that the ceremony took place at the home of Elizabeth's parents. These documents are the only two in the file dated 1905. The rest of the documents are from 1910 and 1911. This seems odd, and my assumption is that in 1905 Elizabeth was not eligible for her husband's pension. As such, the 1910/11 documents were likely the product of Elizabeth applying or perhaps reapplying for her first husband's pension based on a new Pension act passed April 19, 1908.

On March 18, 1910, Elizabeth appeared before her local alderman in Scranton to give testimony regarding the relevant facts in her new pension application. Elizabeth signs the affidavit using only her mark (X), indicating that she was unable to write.

The statement that this was Elizabeth's initial application seems to be at odds with the two above-mentioned documents from 1905, but again, it appears likely that until the act of 1908 widows were ineligible for their husband's Civil War. pensions.

On April 20, 1910, Elizabeth was sent a reply from the Bureau of Pensions.

Elizabeth's pension application had been rejected for the reason that many Civil War widows were declared ineligible. She remarried, and filed her claim only after the death of her second husband. Her official application contains the notation "rejection on the ground(s) that (there is) no title under Act of April 19, 1908, claimant having remarried prior to the date of filing pending application. Other points not considered."

More than a year later, on July 15, 1911, Elizabeth's congressional representative, John R, Farr, wrote a letter to the Bureau of Pensions inquiring about the status of the claim. It seems unlikely that Elizabeth would have reapplied for her husband's pension so soon, and it's more likely that for some reason she never received the initial rejection letter of April 20, 1910. Representative Farr received a reply to his inquiry two days later on July 17th. The letter repeated the reason for the rejection. Elizabeth had remarried prior to filing her initial claim. The pension file ends here.

One additional item in the file is a description of George Hares, a valuable record. According to the paper George was 24 years old at the time of enlistment, 5' 4" tall, with blue eyes, brown hair and a dark complexion. His place of birth is given as south Wales, occupation, miner.

Elizabeth Morley composed her last will and testament on May 13, 1910. The details of her will seem to be at odds with how Elizabeth is depicted in her pension application, poor widow very much in need of assistance:

In 1910 did Elizabeth really have the financial means to give five of her children $100 each upon her death? If so, this is a far cry from Elizabeth's desperate circumstances as reported a decade earlier by documents in the pension file of George Hares. We know that she owned her house at 538/540 North Hyde Park avenue, and perhaps she was counting on the funds coming from the sale of her home. There are no final administration documents in Elizabeth's estate file, so we don't know how her estate was finally settled, no how much Elizabeth was worth at the time of her death.

Elizabeth Williams Hares-Morley died on January 15, 1915 at age 70. She was buried in the large Williams-Morley plot in the Washburn Street cemetery, joining her parents William and Mary Williams, and her two husbands, George Hares and William Morley. Notices regarding her death and funeral appeared in Scranton newspapers in the days that followed.

George Hares had come to America as a young man. He became a citizen, and soon thereafter answered his country's call to arms in the early days of the Civil War. His record shows that he served honorably during the war, returned home to Hyde Park, resumed his career as a miner, married and started a family. Unfortunately, for reasons not yet known, he died in his early 30s, and we are left to wonder what George, Elizabeth and their family might have accomplished had he survived.

Elizabeth Williams had arrived in America as a young girl, settled in Scranton and married two Welsh coal miners, and two Civil War veterans, George Hares, who died prematurely at age 29, and William Morley, who became one of Scranton's many industrial causalities, dying from "miner's asthma" at age 55. She raised a family through the turbulent times of Scranton's labor unrest, and today the success of her descendants are a tribute to her and her two husbands.

Jeffrey L. Thomas
Revised October 2004
jltbalt1@verizon.net

Below: The William-Morley-Hares plot at the Washburn Street Cemetery, Scranton, Pa.

Documents & Sources mentioned in this essay:

History of Shipham Parish, from The Heart of Mendip, by Francis A. Knight
Christening Record - 21 Aug 1834, St. Leonard's, Shipham
Photos & history of St. Leonard's Church, Shipham
1841 Census, Shipham, Somerset, England
1851 Census, Brynmawr, Breconshire, Wales
Naturalization Documents: Paper of Intent
Naturalization Documents: U.S. Citizenship Papers
Civil War Discharge Papers
History of the 52nd Pennsylvania Regiment
Marriage details from Civil War Pension File
Original Cemetery Marker, Washburn Street Cemetery, Scranton, Pennsylvania
New Cemetery Marker, Washburn Street Cemetery, December 2011
Death certificate of Elizabeth Williams Hares-Morley, January 15, 1915
George Hares' father-in-law, William C. Williams of Scranton

Return to the main page at the Hares Family Web Site
Return to the main page at the Thomas Family Web Site