The Coonrad/Conrad/Conardt Bradshaw/ Reathaford Families

Early Settlers of Skyler, Brown, Pike and surrounding Illinois Counties. 

The Conrad/Coonrod/Conradt Family (Enhanced) This is a photo that my grandfather Jim Reathaford had, that originally belonged to his father Wm. Jennings.  Written on the back of several of these photo’s is “my grandfather John Conrad”

This photo has NO writing on the back, but after studying the photo, it is John Conrad and family.  John is easy to disearn from the photo’s with his long beard.  This family may have been black-dutch, further research is needed to firmly establish this theory.  This picture could have been taken in Schuyler or Brown Co., Illinois and was most likely taken after the family returned to Illionois from their migration to Texas, around the Dallas Forth Worth area.  Elizabeth Stephens was from a prominent Mormon Family who were established at Navoou, Illinois,  which was situated just west of Sugar grove, Schuyler County where the John Coonrod family settled after their migration from Pennsylvania to Illinois.   Elizabeth’s  grandfather, Alexander Stephens was in the Mormon Battalion l846-l847. He was at Fort Leavenworth where he entered the U.S. Army and marched to California under Capt Allen. 

Edited Scan of Conrad family

Original Scan Conrad Family

 

I believe the two following pictures below are taken on the same day and helps distiquishes the Conrads from the Bradshaws.   

 

Above Photo:  John J Conrad and Elizabeth Stephens family, John is the bearded man seated in the rocking chair, Elizabeth to his left and the elderly lady seated to his right is unidentified (She could have been one of John’s sisters Arretta Conrad Steinbaker)  Standing behind Elizabeth is Mariah Bradshaw to her right is William Bradshaw, also Bradshaw daughters and husbands throughout the photo.  Seated second row down third from left is James Bradshaw to his left his wife Sarah Conrad.  I am sure my greatgrandfather is one of the boys on the front middle, I believe his mother Mary Conrad Reathaford was already passed when this picture was taken.

Below:Obviously taken the same day as the above photo, the relationship between the Bradshaw’s and Conrad, I believe was MORE than just an “in-law” relationship, I believe Mariah (Unknown) Bradshaw was related to the Elizabeth Stephens or John Conrad some other ways also?

John J and Elizabeth Stephens Conrad seated middle in rockers, Mariah seated to Elizabeth’s left and William Bradshaw on John J Conrad’s right.  Aunt Sarah seated middle far right with her hand on her hip, exactly as it is in the above photo and James “Uncle Jim” Bradshaw on her right.  I am almost positive the two boys seated below Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jim are Wm. Jennings and James Loren Reathaford, who were raised by Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jim Bradshaw, their mother Mary Conrad Reathaford died of Consumption of the Lungs “TB” when the boys were 7 & 9.  Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jim never had any children of their own, and were wonderful and well respected surrogate parents to their nephews, they were spoken of and well regarded by all family members.  Uncle Jim fell out of a barn, straddle a wagon and was maimed and scared for life, he also went blind and was cared for in his final years by James Reathaford and Marjorie Herren Reathaford.

Back Row Right to Left;

Fred Gerard, Mauble Bradshaw Gerard, Sam Chesney, Maude Bradshaw Chesney, Unknown, Maggie Bradshaw Unknown, Frank Lidgard, Lark Bradshaw Lidgard.

 

John Conrad and daughter Sarah Conrad Bradshaw

Handwritten on back of this photo by Wm. Jennings Reathaford

“It was taken about 1903 or 04             OLD

It is Aunt Sarah Bradshaw and her father.  That’s my grandfather John Conrad.”

 

         Arretta Conrad        

          Birth: 22 Mar 1858 - Chambersburg, Pike, Ill.

          Death: 16 Feb 1916 - Chambersburg, Pike, Ill.

         Burial: in Brown Cemetery, Chambersburg, Pike, Ill.

         Daughter of John J. Conrad (1829-1906) and Elizabeth Stephens (1833-1902)

Spouses and Children

1. *Elmer T. Stinebaker (23 Sep 1844 - 16 Feb 1918)

       Marriage: 12 Aug 1883 - Pittsfield, Pike, Ill.

 

     George William "Bill" Conrad

         Birth: Dec 1876 - Illinois died: 1968

         Burial: in West Side Cem., Versailles, Brown Co., Ill.

         Father: John J. Conrad (1829-1906)

         Mother: Elizabeth Stephens (1833-1902)

Spouses and Children

1. *Metta Jane Metz (1884 - 1969)

       Marriage: 1906

The Conrad Family G.W. Conrad related the following to his children and grandchildren

He was the last of nine children born to John J. and Elizabeth Stevens Conrad.  John was born in Indiana in 1829; his folks were Pennsylvania-Dutch people.  He died in 1906.  His parents who settled near Sugar Grove in Schyuler County brought John to Illinois.  Elizabeth Stevens was born Raleigh, North Carolina in 1833 and died in 1902.  Her folks were Dutch and English.

Before John was married, he and three, other men set out on foot for California during the gold rush in 1851.  When they reached the Mississippi River John Stevens returned home, John Conrad, Richard Hill and Stan King went on. They finally joined a wagon train and continued on to California.  Along their journey, they would see empty carriages and remains of horses who had died.  While traveling throught the desert with no water, Stan King became exhausted, but was finally revived with coffee to moisten his mouth.  During their journey they came upon a Dutch man from Missouri on horseback.  He had the misfourtune to have mixed up with Indians and had an arrow in his hip.  The wagon train had a doctor with them who removed the arrow.  This Dutchman had a wife back in Missouri and he said, "If she knew, she'd die".  My father was 22 years old when he arrived in Sacramento and stayed for four years.  He did some minning at Sutters Mill, finding only a small amount of gold, never did strick a large vein.  He came back on a sailboat down to and then crossed  Central America.  They were out of sight of land for 48 days.  Somedays the boat would travel backwards on the way to the Isthmus .  It was smooth sailing until one evening at suppertime, when the ship was tossed around; the plates went off the table in a bad storm.  They sailed the Pacific to the Isthmus and crossed land by oxcart, then took another sailboat to New Orleans.  There they boarded a paddle wheeler named "Humbolt", traveled up the Mississippi River, landing occasionally to cut grass for the animals before continuing home.  After his marriage, he and his wife and his wifes brother  went to Texas in a covered wagon drawn by two horses, namely Silver and Eagle.  The brother was drafted into the Confederate Army and was killed in battle.  After staying a few years in and around Dallas, in Grayson Co., he along with four children Arretta, Texana, Marion, and Sarah came back to Illionois, settling in Brown Co., on Spunky Ridge in a log cabin in Versailles Township where John H., Hillary, Julius, Mary L., and George William were borned.

 

 

 

The Bradshaw Family

 Handwritten on the back by Wm Jennings Reathaford

William Bradshaw Family

Left to Right

Sam, the mother Mariah, William

Girls, Lark who married Frank Lidgard, Maggie, Maude who married Sam Chesney, Mauble who married Fred Gerard

 

Unknown Bradshaw photograph

on the reverse side..just says Bradshaws