Rebecca Hastings Riddle (1789 - abt. 1835)

Born Jul 1789 in Shippensburg, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, United States

Wife of Alexander McCracken — married 31 Dec 1811 in Mercer, Pennsylvania, United States

Died about 1835 at about age 45 in Slippery Rock Township, Butler, Pennsylvania, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Nancy Jackson [send private message]

Biography

Rebecca Riddle? (1), eldest daughter of Edward? (1), was born at Shippensburgh, Penn., in 1789; was married to Alexander Maccraken, of Mercer County, and had issue. Her first husband dying, she was married, secondly, to Mellen Woolly, and had other issue.

From: "The Descendants of Edward Riddle and Margaret McMillan," by Joan Riddle Giles

Rebecca was the first child of Edward Riddle and Margaret McMillan. As shown in the 15 Jan 1812 Western Press, on 31 Dec 1811 in Mercer Co., Pa., she married Alexander McCracken, who was born in 1788, a son of Adam McCracken and Jean/Jane Hanna. On 27 Feb 1805, Alexander’s father Adam sold his land and belongings to son James, with the stipulation that James take care of his parents and his three younger brothers—Alexander (Rebecca’s future husband), Thomas and Adam—to provide for their education and when they reached the age of 18 to deed them each 100 specified acres of land (Mercer Co. Deed A-1-204, 205).

Soon after their marriage, Rebecca’s husband, Alexander McCracken, began his War of 1812 service in Lieut. Col. Thomas Hosack’s 134th Pa. Regiment, the same Company in which Rebecca’s brother, James, served. According to Alexander’s military record, he was located at Erie beginning on 24 Jul 1813. Seventeen days later, on 10 Aug 1813, he returned to Mercer Co.; and according to his death notice in the Western Press, he died on 11 Aug 1813, leaving “a young wife and one child.” The child was James Alexander McCracken. On 16 Aug 1813 in Mercer County Orphan’s Court, Rebecca Hastings McCracken filed an Administration that appointed John Green guardian of her son—James Alexander. The relationship between John Green and the McCrackens is unknown, other than the fact that, at the time of the 1810 Slippery Rock Twp., Mercer Co., Pa., Census, John Green was “over 45” and living next to Alexander McCracken, who at that time would have been 22 and not yet married to Rebecca.

On 14 Mar 1816, a tract of land in Slippery Rock Twp. was transferred (in compliance with the above mentioned deed) from James McCracken, son of Adam and Jean and brother of Alexander, to John Green, guardian of James Alexander McCracken, only heir of Alexander McCracken, deceased son of Adam and Jean (Mercer Deed D-1-464). To follow the McCracken land through boundary changes: it was first in Slippery Rock Twp., Mercer Co.; by 1850, it was N. Slippery Rock Twp., Lawrence Co.; and by 1860, it was Plain Grove Twp., Lawrence Co., Pa.

Some time between 1814 and 1823, the widow Rebecca married Melling Wooley, a son of John Wooley (b. 1849, England) and Anne Downs (b. 1850, England). According to Melling’s naturalization record of 15 Dec 1813 in Philadelphia Co., Pa., he was born on 10 Aug 1781 in Lancashire County, England, and immigrated from Dublin, Ireland. The LDS Library shows Melling Wooley baptized on 30 Sep 1781 in Mossley, Lancashire, England. In 1823, Rebecca H. Wooley petitioned Mercer Co. Orphan’s Court to change the guardianship of her McCracken son from John Green to Alexander Riddle, her brother. Rebecca and Melling “had other children.” The 1830 Census shows the Wooley family living in Slippery Rock Twp., Mercer Co. (now Lawrence Co.), Pa., with a male 5-10 and a female under 5. The whereabouts of Rebecca’s son, James Alexander McCracken, 17, is not known.

At the time of the 1840 Census of Slippery Rock Twp., Mercer Co., Pa., there were seven children shown in the Melling Wooley dwelling; however, because Rebecca would probably have been too old to be the mother of the youngest of these children, and because the age of the wife shown is younger than Rebecca would have been, it is thought that in 1840 Melling’s wife, and the mother of his younger children, was not Rebecca. In the same Census, Rebecca’s son, James Alexander McCracken, and his family were living near this Wooley family.

On 25 Aug 1848, Melling Wooley of Slippery Rock Twp., purchased land in New Castle (now Lawrence Co., Pa.) from Samuel Riddle, Rebecca’s brother. On 29 Dec 1858, he sold a portion of this land to William Moore.

At the time of the 1860 Census, Melling Wooley (age 80) was a boarder, living in Plain Grove Twp., Lawrence Co., Pa., with the family of Andy (b. 1810) and Abigail (b. 1809) Christy (relationships unknown). None of the Wooley children have yet been identified.^[1]

Marriage

Husband: Alexander McCracken

Wife: Rebecca Hastings Riddle

Marriage:

Date: 31 Dec 1811

Place: Mercer, Pennsylvania^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ "The Descendants of Edward Riddle and Margaret McMillan," by Joan Riddle Giles
2. ↑ Source: Page: downloaded 30 Apr 2010 Quality or Certainty of Data: 3 Date: 30 Apr 2010

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/193707893/rebecca-hastings-mccracken: accessed 05 June 2023), memorial page for Rebecca Hastings Riddle McCracken (Jul 1789–unknown), Find a Grave Memorial ID 193707893; Burial Details Unknown, Buried in Mercer Co., Pa. (perhaps in Slippery Rock Twp., which is now in Lawrence Co., Pa.); Maintained by Joan Riddle Giles (contributor 48214207).
• History of the ancient Ryedales : and their descendants in Normandy, Great Britain, Ireland, and America by Ridlon, G.T.,1884, Publisher Manchester, N.H. : The author.
• WikiTree profile Riddle-284 created through the import of Kuehn Family File.ged on Oct 26, 2011 by Timothy Kuehn. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Timothy and others.
• Source: Media: Index Abbreviation: International Genealogical Index(R) Title: International Genealogical Index(R) Author: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Publication: Copyright (c) 1980, 2002 Date: 2 Dec 2005 Italicized: Y Paranthetical: Y