Vesta V. W. Francis
Vesta Francis was part of the idealistic Transcendental Generation. Her husband was part of the adaptive Compromise Generation. Her children were part of the nomadic, reactive Gilded Generation.
An alternative spelling for her maiden surname is Frances. An alternative spelling for her given name is apparently Vista.
Interestingly, Vesta married a man whose surname was the same as her birthplace. During the first decade of their marriage, they had--in addition to their two sons--an adolescent boy (probably Ephraim's son from his first marriage) and two elderly ladies (aunts? inlaws?) living with them.(1)
a great-great-great-granddaughter of Vesta, who has done extensive genealogical research into our common ancestors, writes that "an Ephraim is listed in the 1830 census, which only lists heads of households and approximate ages of other members. In his house are one female the age of his wife and two elderly females, who could be anyone from aunts to mothers-in-laws. The elderly females were born between 1750 and 1760, and 1740 and 1750, respectively, making them 70 to 80 years and 80 to 90 years of age. In addition, three young males were in the household, two were the correct ages for Ephraim's two sons, the other was aged 10 to 15 (born 1815 to 1820), who was too old to be a son from the marriage of Ephraim and Vesta (he was probably the son of Ephraim and his first wife, Mary White Mansfield).
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Vesta became a widow at the age of 41 or 42; in her later years she was apparently living somewhere other than with either of her two sons(2)
Patricia Brown Mathews notes that the 1860 census does not list Vesta living with either son Lorenzo or son Ephraim Sylvester.
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--perhaps there was another child of Vesta and Ephraim?
Year by year in the life of Vesta V. W. Francis
The childhood and young adult years of Vesta V. W. Francis in their historical context
The prime adult years of Vesta V. W. Francis in their historical context
The early elderhood years of Vesta V. W. Francis in their historical context
The very last years of Vesta V. W. Francis in their historical context
| Birth of Vesta V. W. Francis | |
| Born: | 1799 |
| Birthplace: | Mansfield, Bristol County, Massachusetts |
| Parents | |
No information available(3) Patricia Brown Mathews speculates that Vesta might have been the daughter of a Lorenzo Francis (Frances?), because she gave one of her sons the name Lorenzo, which was an unusual name. This should be investigated. To close this footnote, click the number again or click (Close) | |
| Siblings | |
| No information available | |
| Spouse and children | |
| Husband: | Ephraim Mansfield, 1790-1841 (our ancestor) (son of Benjamin Mansfield and Elizabeth UNKNOWN (Stocker) Mansfield [our ancestors] from Saugus, Essex County, Massachusetts) Married 16 November 1823 |
| Son: | Ephraim Sylvester Mansfield, 1825-1910 (our ancestor) |
| Son: | Lorenzo Mansfield(4)
Patricia Brown Mathews supplied most of the information we have on Lorenzo Mansfield, including his birth and death dates. For his first marriage, she cites the Saugus Town Hall records (p. 11); for his second marriage, she cites the census for 1870 and for 1880; for his son William, she cites the census for 1860 and for 1870. She notes that in the 1880 census there were no children in Lorenzo's household. To close this footnote, click the number again or click (Close) Born 18 June 1828 Stonecutter (stonemason) Married (first) 26 November 1855 ---- to Ellen Armor ---- b. 1839 ---- Windham, NH
William Mansfield, b. 1858 (No information on possible other children) ---- Private, 40th Reg. Mass. Volunteers ---- 1862-1865 Married (second) <1870 ---- to Abby (Abba) UNKNOWN ---- b. 1840 or 1841 Died 2 April 1915 ---- in Saugus, Essex Co., MA |
| No information on any other children | |
| Other information | |
| Occupation: | No information available |
| Religion: | No information available |
| Death of Vesta V. W. Francis | |
| Died: | 31 December 1878 (age 79 years) (of pneumonia) |
| Deathplace: | Probably Saugus, Essex County, Massachusetts |
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Sources on Vesta V. W. Francis: