So, we have found Harriet Helm or Helms and her father Francis or Frank. They do not seem to be connected with any of the Helms families commonly found on the web. And Frank says his father was German. SO.
I speculate that the father of Francis Helm came from Germany in about 1800-1810.
Francis says his mother was born in Maryland, so I speculate that the Unknown Helms either landed in Baltimore, or made his way to Baltimore shortly after arriving on these shores.
Francis says he was born in Ohio in about 1824. Ohio became a state in 1803, but significant migration into the state didn’t begin until after the War of 1812. So. I speculate that the Unknown Helms migrated to Ohio in about 1815.
The first settlements in Ohio were Marietta 1788 and Cincinnati 1789. So the Unknown Helms should be searched for in Cincinnati (Hamilton County) as well as in the counties close to Virginia - in case he did go to Ohio earlier.
Francis is first found on the census in Marshall County, Virginia in 1850. Marshall County is right on the Ohio River (and would eventually become WEST Virginia). The other Helmses in Marshall County in 1850 are: Adam, Nancy, George, and James. The birthplaces these Helmses give for themselves are Ohio, Maryland and Virginia - but in other places, they are said to have been born in Ohio. Therefore I speculate that they were all born in Ohio, and that they were all related, possibly siblings (or in the case of Nancy, a sibling in law).
If George is a brother, then Susan E, born 1816 Ohio, is a sister. There is also a Mariah, who married in Marshall County in the same general time frame as the rest of them (and Francis has a daughter Mariah).
The birthdates of the speculative siblings are:
Adam 1814
Susan E 1815
George ~1820
Mariah ?
Francis 1824
Meanwhile, back in Ohio, there is a Jacob Helm/s born 1815, who has many children. Some of the names he uses for them are Adam, Francis, George and Nancy. I speculate that he is another sibling.
And that’s as far as I’ve gotten with this.
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Page last updated 27 March 2006