2022 WikiTree Challenge 10: Elon Musk's week has ended. [closed]

+42 votes
9.6k views

Hello WikiTreers!

For WikiTree Challenge #10 we are focusing on a newsworthy person. The starting point is entrepreneur Elon Musk. He appears to have an interesting family history, and there are a lot of mysteries to solve. Nobody can break down brick walls like us, so let's show the world what we can do!

The week officially began on Thursday, May 12th at noon EDT (4pm GMT) and will end at noon on Thursday, May 19th at the same time. You don't need any particular research skills to help. Anyone can play a role. If you are registered your contributions to his branches will show up on the score sheet. If you aren't you can still join in the fun. You can contact this weeks captain, Joan Whitaker, with any questions that you have.

Be sure to check out Discord for the live chat that will be ongoing this week. I hope to see you there! Let's rock this!!!

WikiTree profile: Elon Musk
closed with the note: Thank you for participating! See you for the next challenge.
in The Tree House by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
closed by Mindy Silva

74 Answers

+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandfather Harry Musk, or have questions or research notes on this line.

WT Branches

Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorAnn (Edwards) Musk

 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva

Connection made through brother (John) of Eliza Bridgeman(Musk) I added his daughter Agnes and her husband George John Saby - Annie Alice (Saby) Gamble was already on wikitree.

Great connection Heather! Thanks!!
I'm related to Elon Musk. Im 24 degrees away from him.✔️ (through his mom Maye)
+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandmother Lucy Frances Champion, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorMary Dalton

 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva

I'm fairly certain we need to change the LNAB for [[Mack-4175|Fanny (Mack) Irish (abt.1816-)]] from Mack to a variant of Mackmaster/Macmaster/McMaster but need a few more records/transcipts to prove it. Reasoning so far: 

  • Her maiden surname is Mackmaster on daughter [[Barter-62|Lucy Barter (abt.1838-)]] birth registration as per UK GRO INDEX.

  • Her daughter Mary Ann gave one of her children the second name McMaster (Alfred McMaster Devine (1870-1961))

  • According to her FamilySearch profile - Fanny's marriage with John Irish was the 5th of July 1842 in Chelsea, Middlesex, England. On it there is a separate note that on her marriage record, Fanny Barter is listed as “widow” . Her father is listed as John Macmaster, a labourer. John Irish’s father is listed as John Irish, a labourer.

This might mean a change to the parents and the biography of the profile.

I believe I found what happened to Richard Champion.  Closing in on Mary Dalton.
Great Tabatha! Let us know what you find.
Not sure if this qualifies - Connected existing profile [[Perfect-233|Sydney Noel Perfect]] to [[Van_Coppenhagen-41|Magdalena van Coppenhagen]] (daughter of Martha Irish)
Congrats on getting the final connection bounty points, Shaun!!
+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandfather John Robinson, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorEdward Powell Solved!!

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva
I have corrected a mistake in this line where the wrong Emma was attached to [[Marsh-11791|Edward Marsh (abt.1832-)]]. This also uncovered a mystery. Their daughter Matilda (an ancestor of Elon's) was born under the surname Powell, along with her sister Mary Eliza. I've yet to figure out if Edward Marsh is Edward Powell but that is my current theory as there is very little time between Matilda's birth and the family appearing in the 1861 census as Marsh. Both daughters have Edward Marsh named as their father in the marriage records.
How very interesting, Paula! Let us know if you figure it all out!
The Brick wall broke down on Edward Powell's father.  I found his sister Mary Ann Powell got married in the same year as Edward's marriage.  Both Edward and Mary were baptised with the same father on the baptism record.  Their father was a Mechanic.
Great sleuthing Chris! Bounty has been awarded.
I made a connection on the Beech line to the existing tree profile Hannah Beech-581 and her husband, James Austin-8903
+9 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandmother Breghie Elizabeth Theron, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorStephen Pope

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva

Thank you Louis for making that Van Vuuren to Van Wyk connection!!

+9 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandfather John Elon Haldeman, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorElon Powers


 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva
I made a connection on the Haldeman line.... new profile Miller-97267 to existing tree profile Duncan-258
Connected Jacob Haldeman (Haldeman-115) to his wife Elisabeth Musselman (Musselman-668) an existing profile until now connected to another profile with the wrong spelling Jacob Halterman,  (Halterman-130). We'll need to merge Haldeman-115 with Halterman-130.
Those have been merged Guillaume. Thanks!
Thanks for the merge Mindy.

I have another case. I've found that Jacob's mother was the daughter of a Heinrich Müller who came from Germany and americanized his name in Henry Miller. I've created profiles for Heinrich Müller/Miller and his wife Barbara Herr (Herr-1727) and later was able to connect Henry to a prexisting profile for his own father. But then I discovered there was already a preexisting profile for Barbara (Herr-95) but connected to a different Henry Miller. We'll have to merge Herr-1727 and Herr-95 and decide which Henry Miller is her real husband. What do you think ?

I don't know if these connections are worth some bounty points but they add to Elon's tree more than 50 new direct Swiss and German ancestors. (Many of them seem to be Mennonites who fled to Pennsylvania to avoid religious persecutions).
I would think that Müller is right for LNAB and Miller for CLN. Ahh, but the parents are different. Have you come across anything in your research that indicates which are the right parents?
From what I've found it appears that before moving to Earl township Heinrich Müller and Barbara Herr owned land in Conestoga Township... And Maria Miller was born in Conestoga country.

https://www-personal.umich.edu/~bobwolfe/gen/pn/p11224.htm#Fp11224N5

I added the immigrant Jacob Haldeman-53 to the Palatine Migration Project, because the info on his profile indicates that he fits project parameters. If he belongs in the project, his parents also belong.

His wife's parents also are likely to fit into the Palatine Migration project scope.

Another clear duplicate profile :

Elizabeth Rife (Rife-419) and (Rife-211)
Thank you for that, Ellen!
I've merged those duplicates.
As a Mennonite, I am particularly interested in finding famous relatives who are unlikely descendants of Amish/Mennonite/Anabaptists, such as Elon Musk, whose ninth-great-grandfather was a Mennonite bishop named Hans Herr [Herr-99] (through the Haldemans). Bishop Hans Herr is my eighth-great-grandfather.

But he also has a Mennonite connection on his father's side. His grandfather Musk had a sister-in-law, Martha Hartogh Musk [Hartogh-8], whose ninth-great-grandfather, Martin Oberholtzer [Oberholtzer-21], was a Mennonite who was an Anabaptist martyr. This Martin Oberholtzer is also my ninth-great-grandfather on both my mother's and father's sides.
Another interesting connection is the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland, Ulrich Zwingli [Zwingli-5], who is Elon Musk's 15th great uncle.

It was the Zwinglians who were responsible for the martyrdom of Elon's ninth-great-grandfather Martin Oberholtzer [Oberholtzer-21].
Peter Haldeman (Haldeman-54) has a clear duplicate (Haldeman-353). I've asked for a merge.

I think the LNAB should be changed to Haldimann because he was born in Switzerland and changed his name to Haldeman only after his migration to Pennsylvania.

Peter is categorized as uncertain father of Jacob and Christian but I've noticed on the (Haldeman-54) profile a comment from Dan Schulze saying he has a DNA match that shows Peter Haldeman as the father of both Jacob & Christian Haldeman. Is it enough to remove the "uncertain" tag?

We should also merge Peter parents also clear duplicates.

Johann (Haldeman-352) to (Haldimann-13)   Edit : done

Anna (Stutzman-685) to (Stutzman-684)  Edit : done
I have been working on this John Elon Haldeman’s paternal Grandmother, Catherine Elizabeth Lichty. While I have added  numerous Lichtys to WikiTree this past week I haven’t yet found the correct one to hook this Catherine to. She is still a brick wall. Have added research notes to her profile showing areas searched.
Nice work Guillaume and Janice!
+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall, find mistakes in the tree of Elon’s great-grandmother Almeda Jane (Norman) Wilson, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorAnn (Harker) Norman

 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva
I have connected this line to the tree by connecting Gifford-4463 to existing profile Gifford-4344
Great work Donna!!

Members with good knowledge of North Yorkshire geography and records should check my work related to the parents of Thomas Norman and his wife Ann Harker Norman. Thomas's parents were named James Norman and Jane Parkin, and their marriage is documented. Before the Challenge started, I connected Thomas to a James Norman as father, but I am not confident that I got it right. As for his mother, there are too many Jane Parkins in the records for me to feel comfortable about making an identification.  Similarly, there are multiple possibilities for the baptism of Ann Harker.

I have left research notes on the various profiles regarding possible baptism records for Ann and possible candidates for Jane Parkin.

That all looks good to me Ellen.  Those North Yorkshire rural communities can be difficult to research.  Most of them were poor and did not leave wills. In addition the parish records were not always well maintained.  I have some family brick walls in that area.  The records are just not there.

Regarding Ann Harker.  I think its the 1802 baptism at Lythe, Yorkshire, but cannot be sure.  The other possibilities that I have noticed are the ones at Kirkby Wiske. Most of the others that I can see seem too far away, although not impossible.

Thanks for looking at those profiles, Joan. It is nice to have your perspective on the challenges of researching that area.

Regarding Ann Harker, I was able to view the Lythe baptism record image that was (for no apparent reason) inaccessible to me earlier. I found that the record indicates the parents' abode as Gouldsbrough (if I have read the handwriting correctly). The only place name I can find anywhere near Lythe that is close to "Gouldsbrough" is Guisborough, which is only about 10 miles from Ann Harker's reported residence of Stokesley. For me, that greatly increases the chance that the Lythe baptism is the one for "our" Ann Harker, but I'm not ready to declare victory.

The Kirkby Wiske records are of just one child, and that chilld died. The two records are (1) a baptism and (2) the burial of an infant of the same name, about 6 weeks after the baptism.

I am pretty sure that Gouldsbrough will be Guisborough. I do not think there is a Gouldsbrough.
I have just had another thought.  In some parts of Yorkshire it was traditional to take the first born child to the mothers home parish for the baptism. I am not sure if it happened in the North, but it certainly was quite common in the West Riding. Sorry that does not really help, because it makes Kirby Wiske more possible.
The reason I ruled out Kirby Wiske is not geography, but rather that an infant named Ann Harker was buried there a few weeks after the baptism there.

Regardless of that, Harker seems to have been a somewhat common name in the vicinity of Stokesley. (In contrast, Norman was an unusual name.) I've added some more Ann Harker baptisms to the Ann Harker profile.
Thanks for working on sorting those out, Ellen!
+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall, make connections to the global tree through Elon’s great-grandfather Harold Fletcher, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorJohn Stephenson

 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva
I believe that John may have been illegitimate.

In the 1841 census John is in West Keal, with his wife Mary Ann who is enumerated Ann.  Their eldest son William is born in West Keal and registered in Q1 1842.

Also in the household are Robert and Alice Thompson.

I've attached Alice and managed to find her parents too (although I couldn't find her mother's maiden name).  All sourced and ready for inspection!

Robert Thompson, a widower, married Alice Stephenson, a spinster on 12 November 1833 in West Keal, where Alice was born according to 1851 census.

It is likely therefore, that Alice Stephenson may be John's mother and his father is not recorded.
I made a connection to the tree on the Fletcher line.... new profile Skipworth-378 connected to her father's existing profile Skipworth-68
Connection on Fletcher line.

[[Stephenson-6310|Emma Stephenson]] connected to her daughter [[Lowe-12413|Lucy Lowe]]
Nice work ladies!!
+8 votes

Comment here if you break a brick wall or make a connection in the branches of Elon’s great-grandmother Edith Reeve Angel, or have questions or research notes on this line.

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Connection Bounty: Bounty claimed and verified on this line!

Brick Wall AncestorMary (Lee) Reeve

 

by Mindy Silva G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)
edited by Mindy Silva

Congratulations Kaitlyn on making that connection from Arthur George Parry to Louise Ethel Yeo!! 

+31 votes
Oh ho ho ho ho, you guys are BOLD. :D
by Steven Greenwood G2G6 Pilot (117k points)
I hope that means you are joining in on the fun, Steven!
Sure, why not. What's the worst that could happen?
What "events"?
What happened Steven?
Why not?
+22 votes
Sign me up.
by Tommy Buch G2G Astronaut (1.8m points)
Great Tommy! Thanks!!
+24 votes
Bold we are; at least I am.
by Judy Bramlage G2G6 Pilot (208k points)
Great Judy! Glad to see you onboard!
+24 votes
I’ll have a go with this one
by Marjorie Gibbon G2G6 Mach 2 (20.2k points)
Great Marjorie! Thanks!!
+22 votes
I would like to help research.
by Michelle Enke G2G6 Pilot (407k points)
Great Michelle! Thanks!!
+26 votes
I don't think I can resist this one....
by Susie Officer G2G6 Mach 3 (36.9k points)
Great Susie! Welcome to the Challenge!!
+23 votes
Sign me up please
by Kaitlyn Emmett G2G6 Mach 3 (39.1k points)
Great Kaitlyn! Welcome to the Challenge!!
+24 votes
Sign me up please Mindy.
by Malc Rowlands G2G6 Mach 4 (47.9k points)
Great Malcolm!! Thanks!
+20 votes
I see Liverpool, Lancashire. My home so I’ll pitch in:-)
by Lizzie Griffiths G2G6 Pilot (128k points)
Great Lizzie! Thanks!!
+20 votes
Sign me up, please!

Ian
by I. Speed G2G6 Mach 7 (75.8k points)
Great I! Thanks!!
+20 votes
add me please, thank you!
by Elaine Martzen G2G6 Pilot (162k points)
Great Elaine! Thanks!!
+21 votes
I'll join the fun please :)
by Wendy Sullivan G2G6 Pilot (157k points)
Great Wendy! Welcome to the Challenge!

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