Olivia Ann Taft (1797 - 1883)

Born 1797 in Rutland, Vermont, United States

Wife of John Spoor — married about 1815 (to 1824) in Oneida County, New York [uncertain]

Wife of John Davis — married 16 Mar 1825 in Wolfe Island, Frontenac County, Upper Canada (today Ontario)

Descendants

Died 2 Apr 1883 at about age 86 in Kingston, Frontenac, Ontario, Canada

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Biography

Olive Taft had 3 children with John Spoor before his death in 1824, and then at least 5 more children with John Davis, who lived into his 90s.

The 3 children of John Spoor & Olive Taft, all born in Rome, Oneida County, New York:

• Daughter, Sarah Ann Spoor (1816–1881), who married James Eccles (1816-1873)^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}
• Daughter, Selina Spoor (1819–1884)
• Son, Morey Bingham Spoor (1820–1903)^[8]

Olive appears with her husband John Davis on the 1851 and 1861 Wolfe Island census.

The 1851 census indicates 5 (Davis) children ages 12 to 23, mostly illegible but probably William 23 (a sailor), Doly Ann 19, Caroline 17, G. Willard 13, Eliza Ann 12.

The only child still at home on the 1861 census is George W. age 22, a sailor.

Sources

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/124044707/olivia_ann-spoor_davis

1. ↑ James Eccles was no doubt connected with "John Eccles" (Horseshoe Island) and "James Eccles" (South of Baseline) who appeared on land surveys of Wolfe Island starting in 1822:
   • http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~theislands/genealogy/directories/WI1822Chewett/WI1822Chewett.html
2. ↑ Sarah Ann & James had 11 children during the course of their marriage, according to Ontario historian Russ Waller:
   • http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~theislands/genealogy/lighthouses/LHpigeon/PigeonIslandgen.html
3. ↑ James Eccles was a rowing champion as a young man, along with his future wife's step-cousin Richard Davis and several other Davis family members. The Kingston British Whig (8 July 1837) recounts the victory of James Eccles in a regatta held at Barriefield. In 1870, Eccles became the first keeper of the Pigeon Island lighthouse. He apparently retired in 1872, and then drowned the following year (along with his step brother-in-law James William Davis, the new lighthouse keeper) in a boat returning from Pigeon Island to Wolfe Island. For details, see the profile of James William Davis.
4. ↑ Since Pigeon Island was so tiny (it was 5 hectares or 12 acres) it only contained a lighthouse, a keeper’s residence and a small boathouse. The family continued to live on Wolfe Island. James worked on Pigeon Island and rowed back and forth to Wolfe Island.
   • http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~theislands/genealogy/lighthouses/LHpigeon/PigeonIslandgen.html
5. ↑ History of the Pigeon Island lighthouse. It is worth noting that after James Eccles retired, 7 different Davis family members were successive keepers of the lighthouse:
   • http://lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=1445
     • James Eccles (1870 – 1872, retired) (husband of Mary Ann Spoor, who was daughter of Grace Taft)
     • James William Davis (1872 – 1873, drowned) (he was step brother-in-law of James Eccles; it appears they drowned together on the same day)
     • Ambrose Davis (1873 – 1878, retired) (son of James William Davis)
     • Mary "Elizabeth" (Staley) Davis (1878 – 1884, retired) (widow of James William Davis; mother of Ambrose)
     • Richard Davis (1884 – 1896, retired)
     • John Henry Davis (1896 – 1925, retired) (son of Richard Davis)
     • Oliver H. Davis (1925 – 1926, retired?) (possible son of John Henry Davis)
     • Allen R. Davis (1926 – at least 1937) (possible son of John Henry Davis)
6. ↑ In 1870, "James Eccles was appointed first keeper of the light at an annual salary of $300."
   • http://lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=1445
7. ↑ "John Henry Davis was appointed the lightkeeper of Pigeon Island on May 16, 1896, at an annual salary of $420 per year. During periods of heavy fog, Mr. Davis warned approaching ships of the perilous shoals by manually squeezing a foghorn (he had to have pretty strong arms). The lightkeeper lived in a 1 ½ story wooden dwelling with four rooms, and there was a small boathouse for the boat that in the 1800s provided the only means of travel to and from the island.”
   • Sentinels in the Stream, Lighthouse of the St. Lawrence River
     • http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~theislands/genealogy/lighthouses/LHpigeon/PigeonIslandgen.html
8. ↑ Morey Spoor was reeve of Wolfe Island ca.1870:
   • http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~theislands/genealogy/lighthouses/LHpigeon/PigeonIslandgen.html