| Notes |
- I am a direct descendant of Levi Toppings/Toppins (several variations). He and his twin sister Mary were born in 1849 Cabell County,VA/W.V. Their mother was Matilda Toppings/Toppins. She had many children, herfirst two were with John Blankenship and so were her last three, but the middle four children had a different father. These children were named Solana, Levi& Mary (twins) and Harrison. On one census (1850) they were given the last name of Keys, later changed to their mother's last name of Toppings.
Present day: One of my Toppings cousins, just did a DNA test and it without a doubt shows that the father of Levi & Mary Toppings was a Stafford. We know that Stafford and Blankenships were related. Mary Toppings had her 5 Blankenship children out of wedlock with John. John married Matilda after his first wife died, but not until he himself was dying. He married her three months before he died. In his will he provided for the older two children and the three youngest children, these were his children with Matilda. The middle four children, Solana, Levi & Mary and Harrison were all given to other families to be raised. John did not acknowledge them, further showing they were not his. So now we are trying to find out which of the Staffords could of fathered these children with Matilda.
Here are the results of the DNA test:
From Emily Topping:
My husband's Y-DNA results came back today and it would appear your assessment of Matilda Topping's loose moral character is quite accurate. My husband's closest matches at the 37 marker are two Stafford men. One is set to private so I have no idea about him at all. The other man has on his gedcom John Stafford and Margaret Brunt who are the paternal grandparents of the Margaret Stafford who married Jesse Blankenship and gave birth to John D. Blankenship, eventual husband of Matilda Topping. So, it looks like the father of Levi and Mary was a possible Stafford cousin/uncle of John D. Blankenship.
The match with the gedcom came back as a genetic distance of one, so he matched 36/37 out of the markers tested which is described below by Family Tree DNA:
Here's what I have: My father is Charles Simon,his mother was Maxine Toppings, her father was Charles Toppings, his father was Levi (Lee/Levy/Leander Keys/Toppin(g) (s) ) so many variations in the census records. Levi had a twin sister Mary Jane, they were born Jan 23, 1849 in Little Lynn Creek, Wayne Co, WV/VA. Levi & Mary had an old sister Salona born Sept 18,1848 in Shoals, Wayne Co., WV/VA and a younger brother Harrison born June 1850 in Little Lynn Creek, Wayne Co, WV/VA. We believe all four of these children were fathered by a Stafford. We know the twins Levi & Mary were based on the DNA tests.
Their mother was Matilda "Tilda" Toppin(g)(s) born Oct 16,1820 in Lawrence Co., Kentucky, she died sometime after 1880 in Wayne Co., WV. We know from a marriage record that she at some point married a "Keys". In the 1850 census, she listed these four children as Keys, later their last name swere changed to Matilda's maiden name of Toppings. When Matilda married John D. Blankenship on Jan 30, 1861 in Cabell Co., WV, she was listed as a widow. We do not know who "Keys" is or if she was ever married to "Stafford". We do know her morals were loose, since she had her first two children, Benjamin (born 1843) and Arreanna (born 1845) out of wedlock with John D. Blankenship.
After the four middle children, Solana, Levi & Mary and Harrison were born, Matilda gave them to other families to raise. Matilda moved in with John Blankenship and his wife Sarah Stephenson (who was a cousin of Matilda'son her mother's side). Story goes, Matilda stayed home and took care of John andSarah's children, while Sarah worked in John's store.
John had taken his oldest child with Matilda, Benjamin, away from Matilda when he was a s mall child. John's wife Sarah raised Benjamin with her own children.When Matilda moved in with them, it gave her a chance to with her oldest child.John and Matilda started having children together again while she was living under his roof. Matilda had a son, named John "Tiger John" D.Blankenship, Jr. born in 1856. John, Sr.'s wife Sarah Stephenson died in child birth in 1858. Matilda continued to live with John out of wedlock and had Georgia born in 1860. On Jan, 1861, John Blankenship finally married Matilda in Cabell Co., WV. Matilda became pregnant with her last child Nancy. On Mar 26,1861,John Blankenship died in Miller's Fork, Wayne's Co., WV. Matilda gave birth to her only legitimate child with John, Nancy Blankenship in Nov 1861.
John Blankenship's parents were Jesse Blankenship and Margaret Stafford. We suspect it may be a cousin of John Blankenship on his grandmother's side that could be our missing Stafford. We have taken a look at many, but can't pin it down to which one. As you know the Stafford family was large and intermarried.It just seems strange that Matilda could have 4 children out of wedlock with a Stafford and no record is found.
It is interesting to note that Margaret Stafford, mother of John Blankenship,listed Matilda Toppings in her will. She left her a bed.
Census:
- 1850 United States Federal Census 1850 United States Federal Census
Name: Harrison Keys
Age: 0
Birth Year: abt 1850
Birthplace: Virginia
Home in 1850: District 66, Wayne, Virginia
Gender: Male
Family Number: 97
Household Members: Name Age
Matilda Keys 28
Lee Keys 1
Mary Keys 1
Harrison Keys 0
- 1870 United States Federal Census 1870 United States Federal Census
Name: Matilda Blankship
Age in 1870: 50
Birth Year: abt 1820
Birthplace: Virginia
Home in 1870: Union, Wayne, West Virginia
Race: White
Gender: Female
Post Office: Falls 12 Pole
Matilda Blankship 50
John Blankship 15
Georgie Blankship 11
Nery Blankinship 9
- 1880 United States Federal Census 1880 United States Federal Census
Name: Matilda Blankenship
Age: 61
Birth Year: abt 1819
Birthplace: Virginia
Home in 1880: Union, Wayne, West Virginia
Race: White
Gender: Female
Relation to Head of House: Self (Head)
Marital Status: Widowed
Father's Birthplace: England
Mother's Birthplace: Virginia
Neighbors: View others on page
Occupation: Keeping House
Cannot read/write:
Blind:
Deaf and dumb:
Otherwise disabled:
Idiotic or insane: View image
Household Members: Name Age
Matilda Blankenship 61
Georgia Witcher 20
Wm. E. Witcher 2
Nancy Hatten 18
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1820 - 1880 (59 years)
