A number of years ago, I corresponded with a wonderful person who was writing a book on early Kent, Connecticut families. She had traced their families from town records listed in Connecticut files. I, of course, bought her helpful book: Francelia C Johnson,
A Register of Some of the Families that have lived in Kent, CT. 1739-1999, 2000. I learned about her work when I wrote the Town Clerk in Kent CT inquiring about the availability of birth, marriage and death certificates for my SMITH and DAKIN relatives and the helpful clerk asked if I'd like to be put in contact! Would I like to talk to her? ABSOLUTELY Amazing!
Recently, I was trying to see if there were any new records available in Kent CT about my DAKIN ancestors and so I wrote to the
Kent Historical Society. I was hoping that the Historical Society might have information on Edward DAKIN, the first postmaster in Sourth Kent and his wife Mary Alice SMITH who was a school teacher there.
Unfortunately, and fortuitously, my e-mail ended up in the SPAM of the Historical Society. A while after I wrote, the historian was looking for an expected e-mail which hadn't arrived so she looked in the Spam mailbox and discovered my letter! She contacted me and we started talking about what records weren't destroyed by fire (as some school records had).
The next day, Melanie Beal Marks, of
Connecticut House Histories, LLC, stopped by the Kent Historical Society to continue some work she was doing on some local families who owned the homes she is currently researching. One of the houses was originally owned by the CHASE family.
Edward DAKIN had sold his General Store/Post Office to Wm GEER in 1882 who sold it to Fred CHASE in 1883. Since Melanie was descended from Preserved Fish DAKIN who had lived just over the border in Oblong NY before moving to Ohio, she wondered if this Edward DAKIN was also from just over the border in New York.
I got an e-mail from the Historian, saying she couldn't believe it! Two people asking about Edward DAKIN on consecutive days, after years of no one asking anything about him. Did I want to contact this other person? Did I want her contact information? ABSOLUTELY!!
Melanie sent me some information, I sent her information. It turns out that her Preserved Fish DAKIN was the brother of my Paul DAKIN. Her Hiram DAKIN and my Edward DAKIN were 2nd cousins!
We have joined forces along with Melanie's sister on researching the DAKINs. It turns out there was one more connection. My great grandfather Edward DAKIN married Mary Alice SMITH; Fred CHASE (part of the family she is researching) married Mary Alice's sister Clara Wright SMITH.
Definitely a fortuitous e-mail and question and a wonderful Historian who recognized the connection and put us together just as the Town Clerk had done for me years ago!
