Willard Bradley Bonnell & The Two Towns of Homer

This post is based on a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

Charlie wrote, "Ann Marie Middleton provided me with multiple sources for information on Willard Bradley [CB320351], brother of Lafayette Houghton Bunnell. An article about Lafayette was in the Newsletter, Vol. VII, No. 2, 1 April 1993, paged 16 - 20. An article about Willard Bunnell was in Vol. IV, No. 2, 1 Apr 1990, pg 24, but these sources provided a bit more detail.”

Willard Bunnell was born in Homer, Cortland County, NY in 1814, the son of Dr. Bradley and Charlotte (Houghton) Bunnell. By 1815 his family had moved to Rochester, NY and at the age of 10 he ran away from home, first to Buffalo and then as a cabin boy on one of the steamers that plied the Great Lakes. His father caught up with him and brought him back home, but he left again for the lakes and was taken in and trained by a Captain Fox, a friend of his father.  By the time he was 18 he was an excellent ship pilot. 

It was while he was a steam boat captain that he met his future wife, Matilda Desnoyer whose father was a fur trader. The couple married 20 July 1837 in the house of the Justice of the Peace, Abram Whitney, in Saginaw, Michigan Territory.  Matilda’s father signed to allow her to marry though under the age of 18.  At the time both Willard and Matilda listed their residences as the Town of Saginaw.  

In 1841 he evidently was still a seaman as an interesting event occurred. As he was helping to unload some goods from the ship into the cellar of a Mr. McDonald’s trading store in Saginaw, he and two other sailors spotted a box of money containing $800 that McDonald had hidden. Later that evening they went back and stole it and brought it on-board, bringing the ship’s mate into the plot. However one of the sailors, an Englishman, felt that Bunnell and the other sailor (Dezalia) had shortchanged him and the mate.  Seems that the mate and the Englishman had $130 each out of the total $800. The following winter he told Justice Williams at Detroit.  A trial was held for the Englishman, the mate and Dezalia. But Willard had heard about the confession and disappeard. At the time, Willard’s parents, brothers and sisters and wife all lived in the Saginaw vicinity.

One winter night the town heard that Willard was in the neighborhood and a posse set out to capture him. He was hiding in a wood cutter’s shanty and had just kindled a fire to thaw out his moccasins.  With the posse appearing Willard took off barefoot, but an icy crust on the snow lacerated his feet and he had to surrender.   

He was being held in a hotel (there being no jail) waiting for his feet to heal enough so he could travel to another town that had a jail.  The night before his departure one of his brothers, a sister and his wife came to visit him. Evidently a swap was done:  the brother and sister supposedly left, leaving only the wife there with Willard. At the end of the evening however, the sheriff found instead the brother and sister were there and Willard was long gone. 

He ended up with one of the Indian tribes until summer and then went to La Crosse, Wisconsin where his wife joined him. About this time, Willard gave up the ships and sea to become a fur trader like his father-in-law. At some point he had become familiar with the local Indian tribes and had learned some of the languages. He was asked to help with the relocation of the Winnebagoes in 1848 and while doing that he heard that soon the Dakotas led by Chief Wapasha would be relocated. So he obtained a traders license and was allowed by Wapasha onto their summer camp area at the present site of Winona, MN. 

In 1849 the Chief gave him permission to build a log cabin there about 200 feet from the present Bunnell house. After the present house was built, Willard’s brother Lafayette Bunnell lived in the cabin until 1901.

 Apparently Willard was not the right type of person to develop a town site. In 1851, when trying to acquire a claim to the nearby prairie area, another claimant blocked Willard claiming that he was there first. Squatter's rights seemed to prevail and occupation of the place was nine/tenths of the law. The controversy finally led to violence. Bunnell and Johnson each destroyed the other's shanty which was their evidence of a claim on the land. There ended up a fist fight which Willard seemed to have won, but none the less, he gave up on that claim to concentrate on his other site down river. There is a fascinating 8 page (349-356) description of this incident in Lafayette Bunnell’s book,  source  #3 below.

However Willard then turned his attention to trying to build a town on the Bluffs above Homer in 1853.  Once again squatter’s rights came into play and his rival was a Daniel Dougherty. In this fight, Willard’s thumb was bit to the point of mutilation and eventual amputation. Once again Willard lost the fight. Then finally came the issue of selection of a county seat. On January 2, 1854, the elected county board composed of Bunnell, a compatriot named Pike, and John Laird of Winona. The first vote ended in each member picking their own town. On January 30, 1854, Bunnell and Pike voted for Chatfield and that settled it.

In the late 1850s Willard had a new house building the town that he had named Homer, after his home town. It is a rural gothic style and is now owned by the Winona County Historical Society. Willard died in 1861 before the house was actually finished.  But his wife Matilda and their children lived there until her death in 1867.  Willard and Matilda had 8 children: David, John, Louise, Frances, Minnewah, Minnie, Irene, and Willard.

Matilda is as interesting as Willard. Dr. James Cole, a writer said this of her: 

“Mrs. Bunnell was the first white woman that came into this part of the Territory of Minnesota to live and the first to make her home … [in] Winona county.  … Although remarkably domestic in her habits, and observant of matters connected with her household duties, which make home desirable, she was able to paddle her own canoe and was a sure shot with either the rifle or fowling piece. While in general appearance and manners lady like and modestly feminine, she had remarkable courage and self-possession … The Indians respected and feared her although only a ’woman.’ 

Mrs. Bunnell was of French descent.  Besides speaking French, she was able to converse fluently with the Chippewas, Winnegaboes and Sioux, and had some knowledge of other dialects.”

Willard’s lineage is: William1, Benjamin2, Benjamin3, Gershom4, Job5, John6, Bradley7,Willard8.

Charlie based his article on these sources, most of which are available online:

1) History of Saginaw County Michigan, by James Cooke Mills, Saginaw, MI, Seemann & Peters, 1918, pages 111 - 113.

2) History of Winona County, H.H. Hill and Company, Chicago, 188, pages 576 - 579.

3) Winona (We-no-nah) and its Environs on the Mississippi in Ancient and Modern Days, by Lafayette Houghton Bunnell, M. D., Winona, MN, Jones and Krosger, 1897, multiple pages throughout the book.

4) "Lafayette Houghton Bunnell, M.D., Discoverer of the Yosemite," by Horace A Kelly, M.D.; Annals of Medical History, Vol. III (Summer,1921), Francis R. Packard, M.D. Editor, Paul B. Hoeber, New York, 1921, pages 179 - 193.

5) Minnesota Geographic Names, Their Origin and Historic Significance, by Warren Upham, Minnesota Historical Society, Saint Paul, 1920: pg. 582

6) "The First Criminal Trial in Saginaw County," Report of the Pioneer Society of the State of Michigan, Vol. VII, Thorp & Godfrey, Lansing, 1886, pages 258 -260.

7) Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin at its Sixty-First Annual Meeting, Published by the Society, 1914

8) Timbertown Log, Saginaw Genealogical Society, Winter 1981 - 82, Volume X, Issue 2, pg. 46.

9) Laying the Foundation, an online article on a Winona Historical Society web page that is no longer available but was captured by Internet Archive's Wayback Machine.. 

10) Willard Bunnell-Matilda DesNoyes Narriage Record, Early Saginaw County Marriages, , Transcribed from: Records for the count of Saginaw, Michigan Territory, 1835 - 1864 - Saginaw County Clerk

Elizabeth Taliaferro Bunnell Endorses Herbert Tarreytown Cigaettes

This post is inspired by a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

The fine print in this old advertisement reads: “Miss Elizabeth Taliaferro Bunnell, lovely young socialite of Richmond, VA., at The Greenbrier. Discriminating in her choice of cigarettes, Miss Bunnell says: ‘I smoke Herbert Tareyton because the cork tip adds so much to fine-tasting tobacco.’”

Elizabeth is 361053, the daughter of Frederick Hartsock and Louise Brander (Taliaferro) Bunnell. Her lineage is: William¹, Nathaniel², Isaac³, Abraham⁴, Abraham⁵, John⁶, Jonathan⁷, Samuel⁸, Franklin⁹, Frederick¹⁰, Elizabeth¹¹. 

Some of us old-timers might remember the Tarreytown ad campaign featuring all kinds of folks with black eyes saying, "I'd rather fight than switch."

William P Bonnell, Mayor of Union Township, Union County, New Jersey.

 This post is based on a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

According to Wikipedia's  Union Township, Union County, New Jersey

Union Township, Union County, New Jersey, is governed under New Jersey's township form of muniipal government. The article lists the mayors of Union, and among them is:

William P. Bonnell, 1896, 17th term.

The 1900 US Census records a William P. Bonnell living in this township, living with his wife, Melissa, and daughter, Mabel. He is buried in Roselle Park, Union Count, New Jersey, but neither his obituary or that of his wife mentions a term as mayor.

Can anyone confirm that this man served a term as mayor? If so, let us know, and we'll revise this post to include more information.

Five Bunnells and Their Strings

 This post is a chapter in former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

This chapter is about The Bunnell Strings. You can watch them play Healer of My Heart on YouTube.

Charlie wrote:

Several months ago Anne McDade Barrett of Oceanside, California, sent me a lengthy newspaper clipping from Good News, etc, a San Diego county (California) Christian Newspaper. It was the story of a quintet, The Bunnell Strings. Anne had also done some research and found the names of the parents. I finally contacted them, or at least their “leader,” Keren Bunnell who was happy to provide some family information for the database and newsletter.

First, their story:

The family consists of 4 sisters (Keren, Kimberly, Corrie and Cara) and one brother (Ross). Their parents were James Phillip and Julie Ann Bunnell. James was a Lt. Commander in the Navy and served in Afghanistan and Iraq. Their mother home-schooled them and made sure that they all started violin lessons by age 5. Their father died in 2007 and three years later their mother passed away. James and Julie Bunnell are buried in Fort Rosencrans National Cemetery, San Diego, CA. Keren was the only one of legal age at the time and was able to convince the courts to grant her guardianship of her four siblings. The family live together and play at events together. 

From their website: (Editor's note, the site is no longer active.)

Keren, 25 years old; Kimberly, 23; Corrie, 22; Cara, 20; Ross, 18; bring together a rare ensemble of double bass, cello, viola, and two violins. They have played for several television stations performing as soloists with the Orchestra Nova on KPBS, Salute to Teachers on Cox Channel 4, UT-TV and KUSI News. The siblings have won awards in various competitions, including first place in the VOCE regional and state competitions and the ASTA competition in the chamber ensemble division. They are recipients of many scholarships assisting them in their studies at San Diego State University under the direction of the critically acclaimed Hausmann Quartet.

The five of them live together in the family home. Each member of the family has specific duties for their home lives, professional lives and academic lives to run smoothly. The eldest, Keren, handles the bills, plays the viola and is an accounting major.  Kimberly is the cellist of the group, the cook and “not too far away from getting two bachelor degrees at San Diego State University in Music Performance and Public Administration.”  The next eldest at 22 is Corrie who uses her music composition education to do the musical arrangements for the group, as well as playing violin and acts as the quintet’s leader. Next in line is 20 year old Cara who is one of the violinists and is a college junior. The youngest and only male is Ross who plays the bass, provides some of the humor and is carrying a double major of political science and music. 

The genealogy:

When I turned to the database to see if the family was there, I found three James Phillip/Philip Bunnell pages with conflicting information. After sharing them with Keren, we were able to determine that there are likely two James Phillip Bunnells; one born in Maine who married Joan Viemeau and had two children, and Keren’s father who was born in California and married Julie Ann Modzelewski. The third James Phillip was also her father but contained only minimal information. The pages were updated and the five children added to the database. James Phillip Bunnell, father of this musical group, is 380091 in the database.  The children are 390107 thru 390111. The quartet’s lineage is: William¹, Benjamin², Benjamin³, Benjamin⁴, Isaac⁵, Isaac⁶, Clark⁷, Isaac⁸, Charles⁹, Edward¹⁰, Ellwood¹¹, Gene¹², James¹³, Bunnell Strings¹⁴. 

Bonnell's Quickstep (aka Virginia Quickstep)

 This post is based on a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

Steve Bonnell, Montoursville, Pennsylvania, sent Charlie the following snippet from The Fiddler’s Companion website, http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/: 

BONNELL'S QUICKSTEP. AKA   "Bonnell's March," "Virginia Quickstep," "The Dancing Mustang," "Major Crichton's Delight" (Eng.), "Davy Knicknack" (Eng.), "Hoe Cake." American, Quickstep or March. USA, southwestern Pa. G Major. Standard. AABB. The tune is international in origin, according to Bayard (1981), in Britain and Europe, but in Pennsylvania it is known as a tune for fife and drum bands. The Pennsylvania versions are named for a renowned fifer from Geene County named "Doc" Bonnell. Bayard found two Flemish versions, and says Dutch authority Florimond van Duyse considered it a fife or flagolet tune dating to the latter 18th or beginning 19th century. Sources for notated versions: Bayard's 'A' version is from the Hoge MS; various other versions ('B' 'H') were collected from southwestern Pa. fifers and fiddlers. Bayard (Dance to the Fiddle), 1981; No. 210, pgs. 165 167. 

[Charlie could find nothing on who this “Doc” Bonnell might be. Neither can the editor of this blog. If anyone has pertinent information, please let us know.

The song can be heard here: Virginia Quickstep It's certainly a lively tune.

The sheet music was found in The concertina and how to play it : including 250 patriotic and sacred songs and well known melodies, by Paul De Ville, 1905, on InternetArchive.

Burrells in an Inscription in the Parish Church of Cuckfield

In a recent post we wrote about Bunnell/Bunnell/Burrell etc. archers in the Hundred Year's War. 

That post was inspired by a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

It started with a quote from Curiosities of Popular Customs and of Rites, Ceremonies, Observances, and Miscellaneous Antiquities, by William S. Walsh, J.B. Lippincott Company, London, 1898; pages 293- 296: "The boys go round asking for money in the name of St. Crispin, bonfires are lighted, and it passes off very much in the same way as the 5th of November. It appears from an inscription on a monument to one of the ancient family of Bunell, in the parish church of Cuckfield, that a Sir John Bunell attended Henry V to France in the year 1415 with one ship, twenty men-at-arms, and forty archers …" 

The Webmaster of CuckfieldCompendium.co.uk wrote Charlie:

"I have never heard of Bunell in relation to Cuckfield church but it doesn't mean to say that it isn't.   However the name Burrell is significantly associated with Cuckfield and according to this link it was Sir John Burrel that attended Henry V.  Gerald and Ninian Burrel were both vicars of Cuckfield Holy Trinity Church."

"Please see the top of the left hand column on page 634 (A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland, Enjoying Territorial Possessions Or High Official Rank: But Uninvested with Heritable Honours, Volume 4 (Google eBook)."

The recommended page in the chapter Burrell of Broomepark reads:

In Cuckfield church, in Kent, there are numerous monuments to the memory of the ancestors of Lord Willoughby, and upon the oldest of them is the following inscription:

"Gerrard Burrell, D.D. Archdeacon and Residentiary of Chichester, settled at Cuckfield 1446, died April 1509. He was the youngest son of Sir John Burrell, of Devonshire, who attended Henry V, to France 1415, with one ship, 20 men at arms and 40 archers. His grandfather, Ralph Burrell, descended from an ancient family in Northumberland, married Sismonda, daughter and co-heir of Walter Woodland, in Devonshire."

Bunnell/Bonnell/Burrell Archers in The Hundred Years War

This post is inspired by a chapter in  former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note.

From Curiosities of Popular Customs and of Rites, Ceremonies, Observances, and Miscellaneous Antiquities, by William S. Walsh, J.B. Lippincott Company, London, 1898; pages 293- 296: "The boys go round asking for money in the name of St. Crispin, bonfires are lighted, and it passes off very much in the same way as the 5th of November. It appears from an inscription on a monument to one of the ancient family of Bunell, in the parish church of Cuckfield, that a Sir John Bunell attended Henry V to France in the year 1415 with one ship, twenty men-at-arms, and forty archers …" 

Cecil Bunnell, Genoa, New York, 13071-9707, wrote that his daughter Diana found a website The Soldier in Medieval England. The site's home page says, "Our database contains the names of soldiers serving the English crown between 1369 and 1453. Most were fighting the French. In this second phase of the Hundred Years War major invasions of France were launched, including that of 1415 which culminated in Henry V’s victory at Agincourt 1415. We have also included soldiers serving in other theatres (Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Spain, Calais etc), and in all types of service (expeditions on land and sea, garrisons, escorts, standing forces)."

When Ceci searched for Bunnell, there were no hits, but the following one popped up when he searched Bonnell. 

Humphrey was the youngest son of Henry IV King of England and brother to Henry V.  The expedition to France was part of the Hundred Years War.

I searched the data base, with the following results:

John Bonnell, origin Northwich Hundred, Hampshire; rank Archer, service Expedition, France; commander Henry V, King of England; service date 1417

Matthew Bonnell,  Archer; service Field Service, against Montfort l'Amaury, Houdan etc. mustered: Sees; commander John FitzAlan (1408-1435) Earl of arundel, Lord Maltravers

Martin Bunel, Archer; service of Harfleur

Thomas Bonel, Archer, Garrison of Verneuil; origin, status, Captain blank

Martin Bonnel, Archer; service Garrison of Alencon; Captain Count of Mortain, Earl of Dorset, Duke of Somerset Edmund Beaufort.

William Burel, Archer, service Garrison of Tombelaine; captain the Duke of Suffolk (William de la Pole)

William Ie Burel, Archer, service Garrison of Tombelaine; captain the Duke of Suffolk (William de la Pole)

Martin Burel, Archer; captain Sir Thomas Kirkby; service Field Service at the siege of St. Denis, mustered Garges. 

Jehan Burel, Archer; service Garrison of Domfront (with creu); captain Lord Thomas Scales.

Thomas Burrel, Archer; service Garrison of Mantes (additonal) mustered Vernon; captain Sir Thomas Hoo.

It's interesting that John Bonnell's commander was changed from the Duke of Gloucester to King Henry V. Clearly it's the same archer since the source information is the same.

The website cites specific sources for each individual's information, which I chose not to record here. Instead I encourage you to explore the fantastic database on your own. Maybe you'll find one of your ancestors was among that Band of Brothers.

More Bonnell -Bunnell Patents

Charlie Bunnell's article on Earl Bonnell's golf tee patent inspired me to look for other Bonnell-Bunnell patent holders. Fortunately  Google Patent Search makes this easy.

"Bonnell" brought up more than 6,000 results.

I learned many interesting things.

In the mattress world there's a thing called the Bonnell Spring. The end turns on a mattress spring may be knotted or unknotted. Coil springs having knotted end turns are known as Bonnell Springs in the industry. The diameter of the end turns may be identical to the diameter of the central convolutions of the coil spring. I wonder what Bonnell invented them?  

A Clayton C. Bonnell is associated with many patents for devices that improve the U.S. Post Office's mail processing systems. These include methods and systems for creating and using a location identification grid and intelligent bar code systems.

"Bunnell" brought up almost 6,000 results.

If you think you had an inventive Bonnell or Bunnell (or any other surname) in your family, check out the patents. The Google site lets you download pdf versions of most applications. 

And let us know if you identify the inventor of the Bonnell Spring.

Earl Caterson Bunnell and A Better Golf Tee

 Another story from former editor Charles E. Bunnell (Charlie to his friends) recently compiled Bonnells & Bunnells of Note (And a few Burnells & Burrells for Good Measure). The complete work is available on Internet Archive at this link: Charlie Bunnell's Bonnells & Bunnells of Note 

From E-bay, I purchased a copy of the patent application for a “Golf Tee Packet and Golf Tee” invented by Earl C. Bunnell of Stratford, Connecticut. The application was filed 13 April 1926. It is clever and was to replace the little mound of clay or dirt that was being used as a tee at that time. Figure 1 shows the “tee” as it is before being “assembled. Figure 4 shows it in use after slot 19 was inserted into slot 16. Figure 6 shows how they would be sold: A packet of them with each layer containing a new tee.

This inventor appears to be Earl Caterson Bunnell, 350151 in Claude Bonnell's database. He was a draftsman and mechanical engineer. His lineage is William(1), Benjamin(2), Benjamin(3), Gershom(4), Joseph(5), James(6), Ephriam(7), William(8), Earl(9), Earl(10).

Earl, however, was/is not the only Bonnell/Bunnell inventor. John C. Bonnell submitted a patent in 1880 for a “Blank Book.” J. R. Bonnell in 1898 invented a water gun. James Bonnell in 1945 applied for a patent on the first Donald Duck and there were numerous other Bonnell/Bunnells whose patent applications can be found for sale on e-bay.