Person:Ruth Unknown (275)

The record is not clear on Ruth’s maiden name. The Pittsfield records refer to her as “the Widow Ruth Goodrich.” I am assuming that this means her previous husband was named Goodrich, although there is a possibility her maiden name was Goodrich.

The story of Ruth Goodrich is getting more interesting as new information comes in. I was informed by a GenForum user of a Ruth Phelps living in Rensselaer County NY in 1810. The census record for this woman shows her living in Pittstown, with 1 male 16-26, and 1 female, also 16-26. She is shown in the over-45 category. There is a Lemuel Goodrich living nearby, only four names apart in the census.

This suggests that Stephen and Ruth split up when he moved to Pennsylvania, with Ruth keeping the two children that they had in the early 1790s. It also suggests that the couple had moved from Bethlehem, NY to Pittstown between 1800 and 1810. If that is the case, then there is a stronger link between the younger Stephen and Lucinda Torrance. Sandgate is only about 30 miles away from Pittstown, making it more likely that a connection between Lucinda and the young Stephen could have been made.

During my resarch trip to Pittsfield, I found a record of two births to Lemuel and Ruth Goodrich, in the town of Lenox, just to the south of Pittsfield, including a son Lemuel. Given the name Lemuel appearing near Ruth Phelps in 1810, this is a good sign that I have found the first family for Widow Ruth Goodrich.,

1.   Source (379).
2.   Source (276).
3. ↑ Based on Edward moving to PA