"Florence Kilborn" (the search for ...)

We know that the community of Florence was named after Florence Vandenburg Kilborn, the granddaughter of Eliza Mitchell, who was the wife of the founder James Comly Mitchell, and that she died at age 14.  Eliza's daughter was named Hannah and married Nathaniel Kilborn, probably during the time they lived in Bellevue, Iowa (Jackson County).  At least that is what has been documented,* and we have even seen a picture of someone that is supposed to be Florence, but did she ever really exist?  The proof should be documented in the U.S. Census data, right?  Except, Florence is not listed in any census data,* at least as a daughter of Nathaniel and Hannah Kilborn.  Assuming that she was not alive when the census data was collected, here is how the history could be written.

Florence Kilborn, daughter of Hannah K. and Nathaniel Kilborn, was born in Bellevue, Iowa somewhere between 1850 and 1854, and died at age 14.  Currently, we do not know the exact date of birth.  The facts and data collected allow us to extrapolate some theories about the missing data, but nothing is concrete.  For example, the statement that Florence was born between 1850 and 1854 is based on other things that we do know, or things that are taken for granted as being true.  The 1850 (September 10) census for Florence's family do not list her, and neither does the 1870 (June 20) census.  Based on the knowledge that the town of Florence was named after her in 1854, she must have been born between 1850 and 1854.  Also, the fact that the 1870 census does not list her substantiates the possibility (and theory) that she died at age 14.  She could have died as early as 1864 if born in 1850 after the June census.

1850 Census

Starting from the beginning, the 1850 census (done in September) for Bellevue, Iowa (Jackson County) lists the James C. Mitchell household as having five inhabitants.

Since Hannah and Nathaniel were both living in the Mitchell household, this would suggest that they were married but were without any children.

Note: Census records were written out in longhand, and very often are hard to read.  They have been transcribed but by someone that does not know who the individuals are so sometimes the transcribed version will be an interpretation of what was written in longhand, and consequently can be wrong.  Having knowledge of some specifics when doing research very often will show this off.  The transcribed version must be accessed separately for each name.  When researching a name, an option is to view the entire household (provided data is available).  Also, the original page can be viewed.  The above table was derived from viewing a copy of the original photocopied census page and not the household listing; therefore, the birthplace of John D. Simmons is in question.

Hannah K. was the daughter of Rev. John and Eliza Vandenburg of England.  After being widowed, Eliza married James Comly Mitchell, and later still, moved to Bellevue, Iowa.  It is speculated that Hannah met Nathaniel Kilborn in Bellevue, Iowa but it is not clear; at least Nathaniel was born in the U.S.

In the 1850 census, Nathaniel was spelled Nath'l.  Also, Hannah (age 26) is missing the final h (written by the enumerator, not Hannah).

1860 Census

The obvious question would be, "What about the 1860 U.S. Census?"  Her parents, Nathaniel and Hannah Kilborn are listed in the 1850 census and the 1870 census but not the 1860 census.  That can happen for various reasons, for example, if no one is at home when the census data is collected, and if there is not a return visit or on a return visit, again no one is at home, then there will not be a listing.  This often happens in rural areas, or in cases where the home is in a non-U.S. territory (such as early Nebraska, while it was still considered "Indian Country.")  There is no reason to believe that is the case here as Iowa had been admtted as a state in 1846. The Kilborn family lived in Bellevue, Iowa both in 1850 and 1870. Bellevue, Iowa in 1850 was on the edge of U.S. civilization, but by 1870, it was beginning to be of substantial size.

1870 Census

Records were again collected by the census takers for the 1870 census.

For 1870, (age 46) Hannah's occupation is "Keeping House."  Even though no one by the name of Florence is listed, there are three children listed:
James, aged 18, attending school
Hannah, aged 13, attending school
and Nathaniel, aged 2.

The 1870 census (done June 20th) for Bellevue, Iowa (Jackson County) lists the Nathaniel Kilborn household as having at least six inhabitants.  The six persons are the last six on the page.  Time and cost prevented me from accessing the next page (on my To Do list).  Here is the transcribed data from the census record.  Notice that there is a new field to indicate the "Personal" estate value.

Notice that Florence's mother Hannah lists her birth place as "On the ocean" for the 1870 census and England for the 1850 census.  Presumably, she is getting more technical in 1870.  Since in 1850 Hannah is 26, she would have been born in approximately 1824.  Her mother Eliza, following the death of her husband, married James C. Mitchell in 1836 in Liverpool.  Therefore, unless Eliza traveled the seas often, Hannah was possibly born while her mother traveled to England from her birthplace home in Cape Good Hope, South Africa.

Florence could have been born as early as 1850 but after the census, or as late as 1854 to be around when our town was named.  From data collected from the 1870 census, we know that the Kilborns had a son (James, named after Florence's stepfather) who was 18 at the time, thereby being born around 1852.  This means that when our town of Florence was named (1854), little Florence had a brother that was a tiny bit older than her.  The family also had a daughter named Hannah (named after her mother) that had to be born around 1857.  If Florence died at age 14 as is commonly presumed, then she would have known of her younger sister, Hannah.  She may even have known of another brother (the youngest) named Nathaniel born around 1868, if she was born as late as 1854, since that would place her death in the same year as his birth (est. 1868).

Per the 1850 (September 10) census, Nathaniel was 28 years old and was born in Missouri.  Per the 1870 (June 20) census, Nathaniel was 49 years old and was born in Ohio.  This seems like a contradiction for the birth date, since in less than 20 years (19 years and 9 months), he aged 21 years.  In the 1880 U.S. Census, Nathaniel is listed as age 59, confirming that he was 49 in 1870.  It could be that after 20 years of sweeping Hannah off her feet, that he admitted that he was actually a year or so older than he originally said.

Also, there appears to be a contradiction in where Nathaniel was born, however, there is the possibility that both birthplace statements are correct.  My research is not complete, but my theory that would allow both birthplace statements to be correct is based on the knowledge that state lines changed, or new states were cut out of other states or larger territories.  If in 1850 the place that Nathaniel was born was considered to be Missouri, the same place could very well have been Ohio in 1870.  I need to see if Ohio was formed from a territory that was large enough to include Missouri.  It isn't likely though.

1880 Census

It is also important to note that in the 1880 U.S. Census data* that the Nathaniel Kilborn household only had Nathaniel and Hannah listed; Nathaniel as a miller, and Hannah as "Keeping house."  It is understandable that son James would be 28, and daughter Hannah would be 23, both of age to be out of the house.  The youngest son Nathaniel would be only 12 but his whereabouts is unknown.

Son James is listed in the 1880 census as a Grain Buyer, married to a lady from Prussia, and had a 2 month old son.

The 1880 census gives us additional information: Bellevue, Iowa is in Jackson County, and Jackson County had several other Kilborns living there; most notably, Nick, who was born in Germany in 1849, and who was married to Marlinda, also born in Germany.  They had three children, Michael (4), John (3), and Cathrine (10 months).  An elder Michal Kilborn was 70 years old at the time, also born in Germany.  Most likely, these were relatives of Nathaniel Kilborn.  Nick was probably a younger brother, and most likely, Michal (70) was their father.  Nick's wife Marinda was born in 1855 in Germany, one year later than Florence Kilborn.  Even though she was born in Germany, if she had moved to Bellevue at an early age, she may have grown up with Florence, or went to school with her.  Nick himself is not too much older than Florence (born 1849) and if Florence was his niece, he could have been the favorite uncle.  The only problem with this theory is that Nick was born in Germany, and if Nathaniel is his older brother, why would he be born in the U.S., and later siblings be born in Germany?  Very possibly, Nick is a younger cousin of Nathaniel, or not even related at all.

Conclusion

Needless to say that the story is not over so stay tuned.  If you want to see the latest development on Florence Kilborn, you have to wait just a bit until the new data can be displayed on the web.  There is one fascinating fact that has never been published prior, but now already on our site in a hidden page.  To access it you need to send an e-mail.