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Following an account of the lives of The Riddlebergers in the first five chapters, Four Families takes up the story of the Day Family, whose daughter, Mary Catherine (Kate) Day married Abraham Absolam (Ab) Riddleberger. It begins with Daniel Day (1808-1881), who lived in the Lynchburg, Virginia, area, with speculation that his father was Samuel Day. Daniel Day's son John Richard Day (1836-1920), who was employed in the tobacco industry in Lynchburg and served for four years in the Confederate Army, was the father of Kate Day (1870-1960) A Table of Kate's Ancestors and a Family Tree may be accessed from the menu above. In addition, charts showing the immediate family of each ancestor may be accessed by clicking on the name of that individual in the narrative that follows.
Chapter Six introduces the forbears of Mary Catherine
(Kate) Day. This chapter is devoted to her father's family, the Days and
Manns, who lived in the Lynchburg, Virginia, area and were probably Quakers.
The life and lineage of Kate's paternal grandfather,
Daniel Day, is first
discussed, followed by reference to Daniel's wife, Nancy Mann, her
father, Richard Mann and the
Mann genealogy. Because the Days were engaged in Lynchburg's chief industry,
the processing and shipment of tobacco, that subject and the history of the
city are also covered.
Chapter Seven. Kate Day's mother was Sarah
Henderson. This chapter is devoted to Sarah's forbears, the Hendersons and
the Lovings. The genealogy of both families is reviewed and the children of
Sarah's parents,
Williamson F. Henderson and Elizabeth Loving, are briefly discussed.
Chapter Eight tells the story of Daniel Day's son
John Richard Day, and his
wife, Sarah Henderson, who became the parents Kate Day. A few years after their
marriage the Civil War commenced and called John into the Confederate Service,
where he served until he was captured in the last days of the war. That service
is narrated in detail. Chapter Eight then takes up John's enigmatic post war
history, which included his marriage to another woman, presumably after Sarah's
death about 1883, by whom he had two children. However, in the last years of his
life he returned to the children of his first wife. These children are
identified and their lives are summarized, reserving the story of John and
Sarah's daughter Kate for the following chapter.
Chapter Nine brings together the Riddleberger and Day
families in the persons of
Abraham (Ab) Riddleberger and Kate Day,
parents of Marion Heltzel's Seder's mother, Frances Riddleberger. Ab's career as
a conductor on the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad and the importance of railroads in
American life in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are
described. The narration includes an account of Ab Riddleberger's public service
and of Ab and Kate's married life and personalities. It also summarizes the
lives of Ab and Kate's two sons, Harry and Alton. The life of their daughter,
Frances Riddleberger, who married Virgil B. Heltzel, is detailed in Chapter
Sixteen, following an account of the Heltzel and Barney families in Part II of
Four Families.
