Cyrus Saunders Moore (1829 - 1904)

Born 21 Nov 1829 in Clear Spring, Washington, Maryland, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Catherine Ann (McKinney) Moore — married 29 Nov 1855 in Washington County, Maryland

Descendants

Died 18 Jun 1904 at age 74 in Chambersburg, Franklin, Pennsylvania, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Robert Moore [send private message]

Biography

Age at death: 74 years, 6 months, 27 days.

Cyrus Saunders/Sanders Moore was born the sixth and last child of James Draden and Mary Francis Saunders Moore, on November 29, 1829, at or near Clear Spring, Maryland. He was named for his grandfather, Find A Grave: Memorial #52408278 Cyrus Saunders (1760 - ca. 1822).

The earliest public record of Cyrus is with the census record, from July 1850, when he was listed as living at his mother's residence, in District #2, Washington County, Maryland. Cyrus' occupation at the time was listed as "nothing".

After that, outside the home, the first public record seems to surface on April 13, 1853, when he registered the James A. Magruder (named for James Alexander Magruder, prominent in the history of Washington, D.C.) to navigate the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. The Magruder was a class C boat, that measured 91 feet, with a breadth of 14 feet, 5 inches, and had a draught of 12 inches empty, and 60 inches loaded. While the boat "hailed" from Four Locks, Cyrus' residence was listed as Washington, D.C.

Two and a half years later, on November 29, 1855, Cyrus married Catharine Ann McKinney, of Pleasant Township, Washington Co., Md. Cyrus may have actually been engaged in both work on the canal and as a private farmer (with his brother, Joseph) at the time of the marriage. On August 13, 1857, Cyrus and Catharine became parents to twin boys.

On April 29, 1858 - listed on a Way Bill (#407), for the Collector's Office at Cumberland. Boat name listed was the C.S. Moore, and master of the boat, C.S. Moore. Cyrus paid $4.08, the normal toll for an empty boat returning from Georgetown.

In 1858, Cyrus took the job of lead locktender at Four Locks. It's possible that the family resided at Lockhouse #49 during this time. It was also within this year that Cyrus and Catherine lost the twins, both dying on December 9, and buried in St. Peter's Lutheran Church cemetery at Clear Spring.

Shepherdstown Register, 5/1/1858, p. 2. "A Colored Boy Drowned. On Monday night, the 19th ult., a colored boy named David Watts, was drowned at the Four Locks on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. He was in the employ of Mr. Cyrus Moore, keeper of the Locks and while engaged in passing a boat through the Locks, the night being very dark he made a miss-step and fell into the Canal." *Watts was listed in the 1850 census as a free black, born ca. 1837, a son of Tilla Watts (born ca. 1817). There is no known grave for David Watts.

Having only served as lead lock tender for a year, the family remained in Four Locks, but likely relocated to another residence in the village. Within that same year, the couple's next child, James Draden Moore, was born.

On July 16, 1860, Cyrus bought the canal boat G.P. Lloyd (named for the President of the American Co. of coal mining fame) from Henry Thomas Weld of Mt. Savage, Alleghany County, for $1,530.00. The amount was to be paid back in installments of $45 each, for twenty trips and $35 for each subsequent trip made for the boat on the canal with freights of coal from Cumberland to Georgetown and Washington City. The trips were to be "in regular trips, with such expedition and regularity as can be reasonably done, and to receive the loads of the said boat promptly at each trip with the coal of such company as the said Weld shall direct; and to freight the same at the lowest current rates which shall be paid by the Cumberland Coal and Iron Company, the Borden Mining Company, and the Alleghany Mining Company..." Furthermore, it was stated that Weld should be prepared with the coal within twenty-four hours of the boat being reported by the captain as ready to receive her load. If Weld was not ready, Cyrus had the right "of loading wherever he chooses for that trip, provided the detention is not caused by a glub of boats in which case all must take their turn."

On November 28, 1860 Cyrus and Catharine sold their land and home in Clear Spring ("Kindness Enlarged"*) for $800 to Mr. George Feidt (1798-1882).

Likely while residing at Four Locks, the couple had two more children... John Howard (believed to have been named for Find A Grave: Memorial #42228166 Jonathan Hower of Clear Spring) was born in September 1862, and Mary Elizabeth, in March 1864.

It's believed that the family relocated to Hancock, Maryland, near the end, or just after the Civil War. While there, three children were born: Cyrus Clifford, in 1866; Ida (Ida died soon after) and Josephine, in 1869.

9/24/1869 - listed as delinquent in taxes for livestock and fur, for the year 1868, .50 cents.

12/9/1870 - listed in the Hagerstown Mail for "delinquent property". $1.09 for furniture and other property, for 1869, residing within the town of Hancock Incorporated.

It was also during this time when Cyrus took employment as a conductor, with the Cumberland Valley Railroad (I had previously thought the B&O, but I think that is incorrect). The family finally moved closer to Cyrus' work, in Martinsburg, sometime in the latter part of 1869 or 70.

In conjunction with his work on the CVRR, Cyrus became associated with the Conductors Brotherhood, and began regularly attending conventions of this order. On December 15, 1868, he attended the convention in Columbus, Ohio, where he served as doorkeeper and was elected Grand Guide (the position was later known as "Grand Senior Conductor"), and was appointed to a committee to prepare Constitution and By-Laws. He was re-elected Grand Guide at the Chicago convention, in June, 1869; elected Assistant Grand Chief Conductor at Buffalo (Oct. 1869); became Grand Chief Conductor by the death of A.G. Black (August 23, 1870); was elected to that office at Philadelphia (St. Lawrence Hotel, Oct. 6 - 7, 1870) while one of the two representatives of Martinsburg Division 6), and presided over the fourth session at Cleveland (11/1/1871 – 11/3/1871). Nothing further is know as to his continued affiliation with the organization. Incidentally, a certificate for him exists for the Conductors' Brotherhood Life Insurance Company on June 21, 1871, which listed him as a member of Berkeley Division No. 6.

Cyrus was also listed as a conductor in the Cumberland Valley Railroad Directory from, for the years 1877 - 1878, during which time he was living at 62 N. German Street (now Maple St.) in Martinsburg. This was also the time in which the Railroad Strike took place, though Cyrus' situation during this strike is unknown.

A family story/legend suggests that sometime during his service on the railroad, Cyrus may have also worked for the Shenandoah Valley Railroad and that he was the engineer or conductor on the first train into the Shenandoah Iron District to pick-up iron ore. John Howard Moore, his son, was the last to take ore out of Shenandoah.

By 1880, Cyrus changed careers once again. In the census records for that year (dated June 3, 1880), he was listed as a hotel clerk, living with his family on King Street, in Martinsburg.

Six to eight years later, it appears the family moved again... this time to Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. While there, Cyrus may have entered into a partnership with his son, Cliff, in a beer bottling business. From the picture showing a bottling wagon, a partnership had been made with the Prospect Brewing Company, out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Charles Wolters incorporated it by this name in 1886). This company was known for producing Prospect Lager Beer, Export Light, Budweis Beer, Bohemian Export, Muenchener P.M. Dark, Porter and Hercules Malt Extract. The Budweis Lager, however, should not be confused with Carl Conrad's "Budweiser" of St. Louis. How long the bottling business lasted is unknown.

According to a book from the Conductors Brotherhood, it was also during this time (1888), Cyrus took employment with the Hannis Distilling Company in Martinsburg. As with Cliff's bottling business, it's unclear how long Cyrus remained associated with Hannis.

Apparently, the family moved back to Martinsburg, as they were listed in the Martinsburg newspaper, on November 14, 1896, as having returned to their E. Martin Street address, from Harrisburg, after visiting their son, J.D. Moore, whose "child is seriously ill." This is probably a reference to Lillian Moore, who died on November 19.

The last reference in the census records for Cyrus is in 1900, when he and Kate were renting a house at (124?) W. Market Street, Chambersburg, Pa.

After having "been ill for several months", Cyrus died "while sitting in his chair", at his residence at 28 E. Queen St., Chambersburg at 3 p.m., Saturday, June 18, 1904 (age 75 y, 6 mos, 27 d). His remains, a Martinsburg newspaper noted, arrived at that town on the "8:25 train" for burial (Tuesday, 21 June) at Green Hill Cemetery.

Curiously, ten years later, his remains were noted in the records of Green Hill Cemetery, as having been "removed" by the undertaker, at the request of Kate. The reason for removal, where he was removed to, or if he was re-interred is not known or given in the book or related cemetery resources.

Note: "Kindness Enlarged" was the original tract of land settled in 1736 by the Prather family through patent from the King of England. Originally known simply as "Kindness", it lay on the southwest corner of Clear Spring. Later the Jacques family visited the Prathers and entered into another tract to which they gave the name "Kindness Enlarged." After the discovery of the abundance of iron ore on the property, the Jacques family entered into yet another tract which extended almost entirely from West Virginia to Pennsylvania. "Kindness Enlarged" was conveyed to Richard and Sarah Prather, his wife, then also Mary Moore and her six children, Elizabeth M. Moore, Joseph S. Moore, Emily Moore, Virginia C. Moore, Mary H. Moore, and Cyrus S. Moore by Denton Jacques and Sarah, his wife, George Jacques, and Sarah Jacques all of Washington County, and John Ellis and Eliza, his wife, formerly Eliza Jacques of Berkeley County, Va. Also from all children and heirs at law of Sarah Jacques, wife of Arthur Jacques, late of Washington Co, aforesaid, deceased, by deed bearing date on April 23, 1846. Jacques and Cyrus' father, James Draden Moore, through James' marriage to his first, wife Ann Lowe, are related.

Sources

See also:

• Find A Grave: Memorial #42230034

DNA

Of Cyrus' sons, only descendants of James Draden Moore (1859-1899) and John Howard Moore (1862-1942) have tested Y DNA. Additionally, while Cyrus was likely Y133362, descendants of his grandson, R.F. Moore, branched to BY132823.

• Paternal relationship is confirmed through Y-chromosome DNA testing. Direct paternal lines back to MRCA Cyrus Saunders Moore (1829-1904) are confirmed through Y-chromosome DNA testing which reveals Robert Moore II (BY132823) and James Moore VII (Y133362) match 108 of 111 markers. Both Robert Moore II and James Moore VII are direct descendants of Cyrus Saunders Moore.

• Paternal relationship is confirmed by two triangulated groups consisting of 1) Robert S. Lake FTDNA 297431, Robert H. Moore Sr FTDNA 643636, and Robert T. Shipe FTDNA 297363, on chromosome 6, from 86952664 to 90717040; and, 2) with James D. Moore FTDNA 675678 as the pivot point, matching Robert S. Lake FTDNA 297431 as the pivot point, matching Robert S. Lake FTDNA 297431, on chromosome 6, from 5565992 - 8473234, for 6.18 cM; and James D. Moore FTDNA 675678, matching Robert T. Shipe FTDNA 297363 on chromosome 6, from 53473022 - 56097022, for 1.75 cM. Robert S. Lake (great grandson), Robert H. Moore Sr, Robert T. Shipe (2nd great grandsons), and James D. Moore (3rd great grandson) are documented descendants of Cyrus Saunders Moore.