52 Ancestors :: Week 25: Same Name

My first idea for writing this post was to delve into the "George Foreman-style" naming pattern I have in my own family. That is, George Byers Ogilvie named his first son from his first marriage (my 3x great-grandfather), George Ogilvie, which gets a little confusing, especially when the descent continues with George William Ogilvie, and then William George Ogilvie. It is even more disorienting when you add in George McAuslan Ogilvie, who was the first son of George B. Ogilvie's second marriage, making him George's half-brother.[1] I'm sure you can appreciate why I decided to go in a different direction, instead!

So let's circle back around to George Byers Ogilvie's first wife, Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie, and their first daughter, Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie (believe me, this IS the easier choice!). Actually, his wife was Barbara Elizabeth (Mattatall) Campbell Ogilvie. Their daughter was later known as Barbara Elizabeth (Ogilvie) Lang Buchanan.[2] Thankfully, we can now distinguish between them on paper. However, you can see how, prior to the daughter's marriage, the two women could have been known by the same name for several years. I'm sure the family found ways to keep their names straight while they were living - at least one record indicates that the daughter went by "Elizabeth," instead of Barbara.[3]

This same name situation has caused some confusion for descendants, though, particularly in regards to the photo to the right.[4] The great question has been, "Which Barbara Elizabeth to ascribe this photo to - the mother, or the daughter?" There are a few clues from just looking at the photo - the hair and clothing of this pioneer woman place her

Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie (mother or daughter?)

closer to Victorian, rather than antebellum styles. We can also estimate that she was around forty years old when this photo was taken - much too young to be the elder Barbara, who was born in 1802.[5] However, you would not even need to know any of the historical context, if you only look a little further on FamilySearch, and take a peek at this photo of German Buchanan's family:[6]

Barbara Elizabeth, the DAUGHTER, with her husband, German Buchanan, and two children

Once you have viewed this image, it is easy to see that the first photo was snipped straight from it. German Buchanan was the second husband of Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie, the daughter of George Byers and Barbara Elizabeth (Mattatall) Campbell Ogilvie. The snipped image, labeled only as "Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie," was easily confused as a photo of her mother, who may never have had a photo taken prior to her death in 1867 - about ten years prior to this photograph.[7]

This situation is a good reminder to try to keep records and photographs as whole as possible when sharing, and to correctly label the subject and source - every time! By the way, can you guess the name of the little boy in the photo? That's right - meet German Buchanan, Jr![8] He also went on to name his son German Buchanan.... on and on it goes...

Best of luck to those of you who are also trying to keep your same-named family members straight. With attention to detail and perseverance, it can be done!

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1. Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 20 June 2018), memorial page for George McAuslan Ogilvie (5 Dec 1859 - 12 Sept 1882) Find A Grave Memorial no. 23520961, citing Knights of Pythias Cemetery, Elko County, Nevada; photo credit Marcena Thompson.

2. Find A Grave, database and images ((https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 20 June 2018), memorial page for Barbara Elizabeth Ogilvie Buchanan (19 May 1829 - 31 Mar 1885) Find A Grave Memorial no. 37988047, citing Johnson Cemetery, Kane County, Utah.

3. Individuals in this Company, Jacob F. Secrist/Noah T. Guymon Company (1855); online database, Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel (https://history.lds.org/overlandtravel/companies/263/jacob-f-secrist-noah-t-guymon-company-1855 : accessed 2 November 2017); citing "2nd Company of 50 reports,” 31 May 1855; report, CR 1234 5, box 1, folder 37, Emigrating companies reports 1850-1862, Reports 1853-1855, Brigham Young office files, 1832-1878, Church History Library, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City.

4. Photo of Barbara Elizabeth (Ogilvie) Lang Buchanan, circa 1877, digital image, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/100125 : accessed 20 June 2018); shared by shirleyberdeanleavitt1.

5. Spanish Fork Cemetery Records Office (Spanish Fork, Utah), Marty Warren to Ginger Ogilvie, email with digital image, 29 June 2017, providing administrative record for Barbara E. Ogilvie, unsurveyed plot; and Spanish Fork Cemetery (Spanish Fork, Utah), “Cemetery records, 1866-1898,” p. 23, Barbra E. Ogilvie entry; Family History Library (FHL) microfilm 008195204; FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 9 November 2017).
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6. ​Photo of German Buchanan Family, circa 1877 digital image, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/1375563 : accessed 20 June 2018); shared by TravisElder.

7. Spanish Fork Cemetery (Spanish Fork, Utah), “Cemetery records, 1866-1898,” p. 23, Barbra E. Ogilvie entry.

8. Find A Grave, database and images ((https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 20 June 2018), memorial page for German Buchanan (9 Dec 1870 - 22 Jun 1938) Find A Grave Memorial no. 77698, citing Pleasant Grove Cemetery, Utah County, Utah.