Babcock descendant continues researching her family tree

HAMBURG — Lisaann VanBlarcom Permunian is elated, as she has been accepted as a member of the United States Daughters of the War of 1812 through her fourth great-grandfather, William J. Babcock. Adding to her excitement is her belief that she may be the first county resident to be accepted into the group that was founded in 1892, with its membership devoted to descendants of the Patriots who aided the American cause during the War of 1812. Permunian wished to join the group to honor her fourth great-grandfather, saying, “I am so proud of him.”

While proud of her ancestor for enlisting in the military on behalf of his country, she remains baffled about his ancestry. Permunian cannot find his parents’ names or his birth date. She cannot find when his wife, Elizabeth Stalter, died or where she is buried.

The family, however, does have his 1812 sword. Her great-grandmother, Lela Mae Babcock, had given her father the sword with strict instructions to keep it in the family and never sell it.

Permunian concedes that she never showed any interest in her ancestors until she and her dad were cleaning out the home of her late grandmother, Catherine Sammis VanBlarcom, following her January 2010 passing. To their surprise, they uncovered so much family history they never realized she had. It included photos, seven family Bibles and the Civil War discharge papers of her third great-grandfather, Francis VanBlarcom. Based on his records found in her grandmother’s home, Permunian learned that her ancestor was a seaman aboard the U.S.S. Santee during the Civil War where he served as a carpenter. Armed with this information, Permunian joined the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War (DUVCW).

The search was on. In researching more VanBlarcom ancestry, Permunian discovered that not only did she have a Civil War ancestor on the VanBlarcom side of the family but an American Revolutionary War veteran as well, Patriot Henry VanBlarcom, from Paterson, who had served as a captain in the 2nd Regiment, Essex County. Together with this information and additional documentation, Permunian joined the local Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) in October 2010.

Opting to learn more about her ancestors on other sides of the family, she found her fifth great-grandfather, James Edsall, a Revolutionary War veteran buried in the Hamburg Baptist Church Cemetery. Her research reflects that Edsall enlisted in the military on July 1, 1776, and served until 1782.

Once the genealogy bug hit, Permunian was hooked.

As her great-grandfather Clarence VanBlarcom always insisted that the VanBlarcoms have been here forever, Permunian researched the family tree further and discovered that their VanBlarcom ancestor came from the town of Blaricum in the Netherlands in 1634.

It took two years of research when assisted by a cousin, Pam Panerese. They discovered they were descended from three Pilgrims: James Chilton; his wife, whose first name remains unknown; and their daughter, Mary, who married John Winslow. Permunian and Panerese were successful in tracing their ancestor Henry Edsall and his wife, Mary Cary, to the Chilton family. Tracing their ancestors to the Winslows’ daughter, Susanna Winslow, and her husband, Robert Latham, Permunian joined the Mayflower Descendants.

Not content to rest on her laurels, Permunian decided that if there was a Pilgrim in her family, there might possibly be a witch as well. She thought that it would be neat to have a witch in the family. It took time, as when she started her research, she didn’t realize that Salem witch trials were not the only witches. Permunian did find her witch, not in Salem but in Hartford, Conn. Her ancestor James Wakelley (Waklee) was tried twice as a witch, in 1662 and again in 1665. A court hearing was held Dec. 20, 1662, and on Jan. 25, 1663, Rebecca and Nathaniel Greensmith and Mary Banes were hanged in Hartford, Conn. Wakeley escaped the hangman’s noose by fleeing to Providence, R.I. Permunian has applied for membership into the Associated Daughters of Early American Witches (ADEAW) but that application is still pending.

She has since found another Civil War Veteran, Peter P. Babcock, who is buried in the North Church (Hardyston) Cemetery. Upon researching him, she learned that his father’s name was William J. Babcock and that he was buried in the Stockholm Methodist Church Cemetery. She and her dad had no problem finding his headstone but they were surprised to discover that he was a veteran of the War of 1812. After researching for several years, Permunian remains baffled about the information that she cannot find relative to her fourth great-grandfather. What she has learned is that he was born around 1787 in Haverstraw, N.Y. He enlisted in the military in Monroe, Orange County, N.Y., around Aug. 20, 1812, and that he volunteered in Capt. John Lytel’s company in the 25th Regiment.

On Jan. 7, 1820, Babcock married Elizabeth Stalter and the couple became the parents of six children. In his pension application dated Jan. 10, 1874, it was noted that he had received a land bounty of 160 acres but gave half of this to his attorney for filing the needed papers. Babcock ended his petition by saying, “I am a poor, old and decrepit man bereft of friends to assist me, unable to provide for my maintenance and hope my pension will be granted me for faithful services rendered by me.”

Presumably, Babcock could not write as the petition was signed with an “X.” It was signed and sworn to by Justice of Peace Jesse Trusdell, who wrote underneath Babcock’s name, “and I know the deponent to be in a helpless and decrepit condition and unable to help himself.”

His residence was listed as Snufftown, but to date, Permunian has been unable to ascertain where his home would have been. She assumes that it would have been a log cabin-type home as his son, Peter P. Babcock, resided in one, of which photos survive.

The search continues. “Just think,” Permunian says. “I can trace my VanBlarcom ancestors back 13 generations since they came to this country in 1634, but I can’t find information about my fourth great-grandfather, who served on behalf of his country in the War of 1812.”

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Jennie Sweetman is the history columnist for the New Jersey Herald. She may be contacted at jenniee@warwick.net.

Lisaann VanBlarcom Permunian may be contacted at lisaannpermunian@gmail.com.