"Heirloom" is the week 8 challenge for "52 Ancestors", and here is my entry: the Medal of Honor awarded to my Third Great-Grandfather, James William Brown of Kittery, Maine. While not technically an heirloom, as it was not in the possession of any member of my family for MANY years and was not passed down to me by kin (it ended up in the hands of a collector out west, whose heirs found me due to my website on the 27th Maine), it nevertheless made it back "home", and I am proud to display it.

What exactly did Private James W Brown do to earn this medal? He was among 300 soldiers of the 27th Maine Infantry Regiment who agreed to stay behind in Washington, DC in July 1863, while the Army of the Potomac marched to Gettysburg. He was not engaged in battle, nor proved himself by any act of heroism in the face of the enemy. He and his unit were all packed up and ready to head back to Maine, as they were just a nine-month regiment, when Secretary of War Edwin Stanton sent a messenger to their camp with his request for them to stay in DC just a bit longer. When Col. Wentworth and 1/3 of the others agreed to stay, Stanton said that they'd get medals for this. The only medals being issued at that time, though, were the medals of honor. So, that is what they got.

There is a lot more to the story of these medals being issued to the 27th Maine men, and the rescinding of all of them during the "purge" of 1917, but that is all covered in the book "A Shower of Stars" by John Pullen.

More about:
James Brown (blog post: the Browns of Locke's Cove, Kittery)
www.The27thMaine.com

The "52 Ancestors" challenge for Week 7 was "Valentine". With no one in my direct family having that name, and having no mushy love stories passed down through the family, I thought I'd share something else.

​I can still recall, back in the early '80s, reading through the valentine notices in the local paper, trying to find a message my grandmother would leave (every?) year. Little did I know, until I was recently searching for my name on something unrelated, that this tradition had started many years before. Here is the earliest one, from 1972.

In later years, the paper even used my grandmother's messages in their adverts for this service. :) 

WILLIAM AMAZEEN MELOON was born in New Castle, NH on 27 Nov 1795, the son of Abraham and Elizabeth (Marden) Meloon. He died on 27 Nov 1842, and is buried in Riverside Cemetery, New Castle, NH.

He was married on 29 Oct 1818 to MARY LEAR, She was born 25 June 1805, the daughter of Nathaniel and Keziah (Amazeen) Lear. She died on 28 Feb 1873, aged 72 yrs, 8 mos, and is buried with her husband in Riverside Cem. She had remarried in 1855 to Phillip Yeaton.

William and Mary share this plot with their son William A Jr and his family.

In 1825 [Rock Deeds, v.326 p.465], William A Meloon purchased the land and buildings thereon of his late father Abraham Meloon from the other heirs in his family. He also bought a small piece of adjoining land from Henry Amazeen [Rock Deeds v.252 p.451], who was his neighbor in 1827.

Below is an 1857 map of New Castle, the former William A Meloon Sr. property circled in red, his sons (William A and Alfred) now occupying the land. Later maps and deeds show these houses to be located a bit further to the northeast, so this map seems a bit off (unless homes were later moved). These houses still stand today.

The children of William A Meloon and Mary (Lear) Meloon, from New Castle town records [v.3 p.355]. All born in New Castle:
i. ALFRED A MELOON, b. 8 Mar 1819; d. 26 Jan 1890. Marr Dorothy C Yeaton (8/3/1821-1/8/1895) on 25 Oct 1841 in Portsmouth [NH vr; intents 10/4/41 in New Castle].
ii. WILLARD P MELOON, b. 29 Jan (another page says June) 1821; d. 21 Aug 1895 in Portsmouth, NH. Married Sarah E Amazeen.
iii. WILLIAM A MELOON Jr, b. 13 Sept 1823; d. 9 Jan 1891 in Portsmouth. Married Mary J Beal, dau of Thomas.
iv. NATHANIEL L MELOON, b. 9 Sept 1825; d. 13 Aug 1904 in Ports., NH. Marr 1886 to Clara F Watts.
v. SAMUEL R MELOON, b. 18 June 1828; d. 30 Nov 1905 in Ports., NH. Marr Elizabeth J Hall in 1851
vi. MARY ELIZABETH MELOON, b. 3 Nov 1830; d. 14 Sept 1914 in Somerville, MA.  Marr Richard D Smart of Ports., NH.
vii. JAMES M MELOON, b. 13 Nov (10 Aug on grave) 1833; d. 1912. Marr Charlotte Campbell.
viii. ABRAHAM "ABRAM" C. MELOON, b. 30 June 1836; d. 29 Dec 1896 in Chelsea, MA (Soldiers Home). Marr 1st Ann K Tarlton in 1859, 2nd to Lavina Tarlton in 1865.

See also:
Alfred A Meloon of New Castle, NH

ALFRED A MELOON, the son of William A and Mary (Lear) Meloon, was born on 8 Mar 1819 in New Castle, NH. He died there from heart disease on 26 Jan 1890, aged 70 yrs [NH vr], and is buried in Riverside Cemetery, New Castle, NH.
He was my 3rd Great-Grandfather, and lived his entire life in the seacoast town of New Castle, NH, where he worked as a seaman, shoemaker and laborer. His wife was DOROTHY C YEATON, whom he married in Oct 1841.

His father having died in 1842, the estate was later settled between the heirs, and Alfred's siblings sold him a part of the property in 1855 [Rock Deeds, v.368 p.337]. He and wife Dorothy would sell this home to son William T in 1881. Using maps and Rockingham County deeds, I found that the building still stands, its present address being 24 Wentworth Street.

Children (perhaps incomplete) of Alfred A and Dorothy C (Yeaton) Meloon, all born in New Castle, NH:
i. (adopted) JOHN M MELOON, b. abt 1840; lost at sea on 15 Apr 1860, from the schooner Nile [Congregational Journal, 12/20/1860]
??ii. WILLIAM E (or C) MELOON, age 14 (b.ca.1846), listed w/ family in 1860, perhaps a child, though they also had son Willie (William T) in household, at age 10
iii. LOUISA MEDALA MELOON, b. 24 Jan 1848; d. 12 Sept 1902 in New Castle [NH vr]
iv. WILLIAM M. T. MELOON, b. 30 Aug 1848 (calc) [Aug 1849 on 1900 census prob correct date]; d. 30 July 1913 in New Castle, from an auto accident [NH vr]
v. ALFRED MADISON MELOON, b. 6 May 1852; d. 15 Sept 1909 in New Castle, NH [NH vr]
vi. BENJAMIN JENKINS MELOON, b. abt Mar 1854; d. 13 Sept 1854 in NewCastle [Ports Jrnl, 9/16/54]
vii. BENJAMIN JENKINS MELOON, b. ca 1855 (age 5 in 1860 census; not w/ family in 1870)
viii. ELIZABETH L "Lizzie L.L." MELOON, b. ca 1858; d. 10 Mar 1863, aged 5 yrs, from throat disease [Ports Jrnl, 3/28/63] 

Additional Notes:
Marriage intents of Alfred A and Dorothy C (Yeaton) Meloon (cert issued on 10/04/1841) in New Castle town records, v.3 p.178, p.322. Reported from Portsmouth, NH w/ date of 25 Oct 1841. The Exeter Newsletter, 11/04/41, lists marr, but no date.
1850 New Castle, Rock, NH census: hh 13/22 (brother William A. at 13/21); interesting gap between 1841 marriage and birth of dau Louisa in 1847/48. John M, age 10, was adopted, unknown who Elizabeth is, age 10, b. NY
1857 Rockingham County Map: https://www.loc.gov/item/2012593011/
1860 New Castle, Rockingham, NH census (pg 228): hh 1725/1982
1870 New Castle, NH census (pg 2): Alfred a laborer, house val $500/100
1880 New Castle, NH census (pg 2): hh 14/16