Ducklow From Dukelow

Those of us with the Ducklow surname could easily be spelling and pronouncing our name as Dukelow. In fact, many of our distant relatives are Dukelows. By one accounting, the Dukelow name is three times more common than Ducklow in America. Thomas’ father, John, was a Dukelow. Thomas himself was called Dukelow when he first arrived in Dodge County in 1848.

So how is it that today we call ourselves Ducklows?

Neither Thomas or Elizabeth could read or write English. Legal papers, census records and church documents dating between 1840 and 1880 show a range of spellings including: Dukelow, Duclo, Duclow, Ducklow, and Duklow. Each time a census was taken, or a legal document prepared, the spelling was completely up to the clerk at hand. Thomas and Elizabeth both signed with an “X” (* see footnote) and apparently neither could rectify incorrectly spelled names. So anyone recording the name likely spelled it the best they could based on how they heard it pronounced. Or perhaps how others in the area spelled it. Try saying “Dukelow” with a strong Irish bough and ask a stranger spell what they hear; you’ll see why there are many variations.

But most curiously, from the year 1885 forward, the spelling on legal documents and records becomes a consistent spelling of "Ducklow."

The first adult child of Thomas and Elizabeth’s to die was Thomas junior, their fourth child. And his was a sudden and tragic death. On the early morning of July 30th of 1885 a summer thunderstorm struck Dodge County. Thomas and a hired hand were asleep in a farmhouse. This was not the main Ducklow residence, but rather a house that was part of new land that the family acquired. It likely was to have been the new home for him at age 36.

Thomas and a hired labor were asleep in two beds in an upstairs bedroom. The room had an exposed chimney stack, and the beds were set near it. As the thunderstorm passed, lightening struck the top of the chimney and traveled down. On its path to find ground it jumped from the chimney stack to the metal-framed bed were Thomas slept, killing him instantly. Fate was kinder to the hired hand. He was not injured, but jolted awake. When he realized the event that had just occurred, he went to the main farmhouse and alerted the family to the awful tragedy.

The family grieved hard. One display of their grief is the large (10’ tall) and ornate grave marker to pay tribute to Thomas’ memory. The tombstone of course needed to have his full name with accurate spelling. This forced the family, or more precisely the literate adult children, to decide upon a spelling. At this point the children must have agreed to spell Thomas junior’s surname as "Ducklow."

But why Ducklow and not Dukelow?

A reasoned assumption is that the Ducklow spelling most closely matched the way the children heard their parents pronounce it. So the family paid a mason to chisel the stone that marks Thomas’ grave. The chiseled stone is more than just grave marker. It is also the marker that set forth the spelling of Ducklow for all that descend from Thomas and Elizabeth.

The primary supporting evidence for this line of discussion is that Thomas and Elizabeth’s grave markers are chiseled with the Ducklow spelling, as are all the grave markers for their seven sons and one unmarried daughter. [Their married daughter’s graves stones are marked with their spouses’ surname]. In addition to consistency in grave marker spellings, census records and other public documents recorded after 1885 mainly use the "Ducklow" spelling.

The Ducklow spelling is unique compared to the rest of Thomas’ family who came to America with him. All of Thomas’ half-brothers (John, Samuel, Richard, Peter and Frank) who settled in southern Wisconsin have grave markers with the original Dukelow spelling.

Photo Left: Grave stone for Thomas Ducklow, son of Thomas and Elizabeth Ducklow [Dukelow] Located in St. Paul's Cemetery, Ashippun Township, Dodge County, Wisconsin. It is one of the largest stones in this cemetery standing about 10' tall.

*Footnote: The evidence that Thomas was illiterate occurs in his Declaration of Intention document where he claims his allegiance to the United States, signed on 2 March 1844. Thomas made his oath in front of a clerk in City of Rochester, New York where in two places Thomas he uses an “X” to sign his name; His name is then written out (signed) in the same hand (not Thomas’) used in the rest of the document. The evidence that Elizabeth was illiterate occurs in her last will and testament, as witness by an attorney she signs her will with an "X."

Interconnected Families – A Shared Faith Community

John and Elizabeth Dukelow (Thomas’ parents) were one family of a cluster of Protestant families that were tightly interconnected. Catholic tenant farmers dominated the population in much of County Cork, Ireland. But, as a result of some artifacts of ancient land ownership rights, there was a small concentrated group of Protestants tenant farmers in far western side of Cork. Because of so few Protestants families around them, these families formed a tight and complex social network with each other. Nearly all the Protestant families there were either related by blood or by marriage. These inter-family complexities occurred for many generations, with the subculture reinforced by Penal Laws (see the History Back Drop on Penal Laws). From the outside this group appeared to be one large extended family. Family names in this cluster included the Swantons, Goods, Roycrafts, Loves, Youngs, and likely also included the Gallaghers and Nicholsons.

These strong inter-family relationships continued when families emigrated from Ireland to New York State and held fast as some families from this cluster eventually settled in Wisconsin.

One example of this interconnectedness is revealed around the Christening and eventual wedding of Thomas and Elizabeth’s first born, Mary Ann. Mary Ann’s baptismal sponsor when she was three months old was Thomas Good. Twenty-two years later, the same Thomas Good became her father-in-law! Mary Ann married Frank Good, son of Thomas Good, in the year 1865. This wedding appears to have been an "arranged" marriage. Mary Ann lived in Dodge County and Frank lived in Dane County. This distance of 60 or more miles was a major obstacle to romance in the 1860s! Imagine the effort it took to travel that distance (and back) by horse. Frank and Mary Ann had only met each other two or perhaps three times before their wedding. However, they apparently got along well as there marriage lasted over 59 years!

The strong inter-family relationships also became a part of the political picture in Rochester New York during the 1800s. The Dukelow family was part of what was labeled the “99 Cousins” which controlled much the Rochester City government in the 1840s and 1850s. More on what were called the “99 Cousins” will be discussed later.

Thomas and Elizabeth’s son John T married twice. His second marriage in 1904 may be some of the last vestiges of this closely connected extended family group. John’s marriage, at age 57 is to his first cousin, Kathryn Nicholson, age 37. Kathryn is Elizabeth’s niece, daughter of Elizabeth’s brother George Nicholson [see separate discussion about George Nicholson under post "Elizabeth Nicholson's Family.]

Thomas Dukelow's Parents, Siblings and Irish Life

Thomas Ducklow [Dukelow] was born 17 March 1812 to a prosperous farming family that lived near Durrus, Ireland. Durrus is located in the western edge of County Cork, on the far southwest edge of the Ireland. Thomas’ father was John Dukelow. His mother’s name is uncertain, but may have been Elizabeth with a maiden name of either Swanton or Swetnam. Unfortunately, only fragments of information have been located (so far) that document Thomas’ parents.

Two house-keeping notes: (1) Thomas' name changed from Dukelow to Ducklow while living in Wisconsin. A separate entry of why this happened is coming. (2) For simplicity in writing about John's wife, I will assume her name was Elizabeth; further evidence will be needed to confirm it.

Besides Thomas, John and Elizabeth Dukelow had two daughters: Katherine and Martha Elizabeth. They were born after Thomas; around the years 1819 and 1820 respectively. It seems likely there were other children born after Thomas and before Katherine, but no information has been found to identify other siblings. Sometime shortly after giving birth to baby Martha, mother Elizabeth Dukelow died. While her age is uncertain, she was likely less than 29 years old.

About 1821, almost immediately after Elizabeth’s death, Thomas’ father, John Dukelow, married again. His second wife was Nancy Ann Johnson, who then was just 16 years old. He was 27. Upon marriage, Nancy Ann became an instant mother of three children: Martha, who was a baby, Katherine who was two, and Thomas who was then the tender age of nine. Within the first year of marriage she and John had their first of seven children together.

John Dukelow did not live a long life, dying about 1839 at age 45. His death left Nancy Ann, at age 35, a widow to raise a young and large family. She no doubt needed help, as her seven children’s ages ranged from nineteen down to two. Apparently important members of her family and social circle who could assist her had immigrated to the United States to start a new life. With her husband deceased, and her stepchildren having their own adult lives, she found it necessary to immigrate too. It is quite possible that ongoing hardships caused by potato crop failures played a large role in this decision as well [see History Back Drop].

The decision to leave Ireland was the beginning of a long and difficult journey. A passenger ship’s voyage to America normally took two months, but sometimes could take three. To make the difficult journey possible, Nancy Ann enlisted the help of her stepson Thomas to immigrate with her. So in the fall of 1841 she (at age 35), step-son Thomas (age 28), son John (age 19), son Samuel (age 17), son Richard (age 11), son Peter (age 9), daughter Ann (age 7), daughter Francis (age 3) and daughter Phillis Jane (age 1) all came to America by passenger ship. Their voyage took them across the Atlantic Ocean, and then up the St. Lawrence River to Lake Ontario docking at Port Hope, Ontario, Canada. After a brief stay there, they entered America at Rochester, New York by crossing Lake Ontario. At 28 years of age, Thomas became the father-figure that helped ensure everyone safely made it to New York state. Once they arrived, Mary Ann and her children joined extended family and friends living in the Rochester area. These families likely included the Johnsons, Copithorns, Swantons, Goods, and Gallaghers.

Thomas’ sister Martha Elizabeth also came to America, although it is not clear when. She married an Irishman named William O’Connell and eventually they settled in Washington County, Wisconsin. It appears that Martha did not travel on the initial voyage made by Thomas, Nancy Ann and her children.

Thomas was likely to have been married prior to 1841 (before his marriage to Elizabeth Nicholson). One genealogical source identifies Thomas as having a wife named Ann Connell. She could possibility have been the sister of William O’Connell, Martha Elizabeth’s husband. Ann Connell did not immigrate with Thomas and Nancy Ann, and so it is likely she died prior before October 1841. There were no known children from this first marriage.

Other Dukelows who also immigrated to North America likely took the passenger ships from Ireland to Port Hope, Ontario. But instead of going on to Rochester New York, some put down roots in Ontario, Canada. Today there are numerous Dukelow and Ducklow families who live across Canada, but especially in small cities of Ontario; most within a few hundred kilometers of Port Hope. It appears very likely that these families too trace their lineage to the same Dukelows from County Cork, Ireland. The prime evidence supporting this claim is occurrence of the same set of given names in both the Canadian and America Dukelow and Ducklow families. Given names that are common to both branches include John, Thomas, Francis, William, Charles, Samuel, Mary Ann, Elizabeth, and Vernon.