2A-F: Ephraim Guthrie

Illustrated family name plates for the children of John Guthrie and Abigail Coe.

Guthrie Family Group 2A · Branch F · Child Page

Ephraim Guthrie & Thankful Stone

Ephraim: 1737–1809, reported
Thankful: 1745–1819

Durham, New Milford & Kent, Connecticut
The Cayuga region & Groton, New York

Ephraim, a son of John Guthrie and Abigail Coe, inherited livestock and a share of the family’s Judea property before enlisting in Connecticut’s forces in 1758. He and Thankful Stone raised ten children whose families spread from Connecticut into New York and farther west.

This is a Y-DNA represented line of GFG2A. Two Y-67 participants descend through son Ebenezer. Their results connect this family to the broader Guthrie paternal group, while records and family research trace the individual generations.

Explore the Research Tree →

Branch F Family Hub · GFG2A Hub · DNA Participation

Family at a Glance

Ephraim Guthrie

Parents
John Guthrie and Abigail Coe. Durham’s Barbour entry names John and Abigail; John’s 1756 will names son Ephraim.
Birth
1 March 1737, Durham, Connecticut, as transcribed in Barbour.
Baptism
The photographed Barbour page gives 5 March 1737/8, citing record pages 274 and 359. The family history gives 5 March 1737. The original register is needed to resolve the year.
Marriage
4 March 1762 to Thankful Stone, reported in the Research Tree. The marriage record has not yet been established.
Military service
Enlisted 2 April 1758 at Kent while a resident of New Milford, for service under Col. David Wooster during the French and Indian War.
Death & burial
1809, Aurora, Cayuga County, New York, reported in family research. Burial location remains unknown.

Thankful Stone

Parents
Josiah Stone Jr. and Hannah, named in the birth index. Hannah’s identification as Hannah Burroughs is retained as a family-research attribution.
Birth
21 September 1745, Litchfield, Connecticut, in the Barbour birth index.
Family
Five sons and five daughters are retained in the family reconstruction below.
Death
8 March 1819, reported at Groton, Tompkins County, New York.
Burial
Cobb Street Cemetery, Groton. The recorded inscription identifies her as Ephraim’s widow.
Age at death
The inscription is transcribed as aged 74 years. The reported birth and death dates give 73 completed years, in her seventy-fourth year; the marker and cemetery copies should be compared.

The Ten Children

The Research Tree and family study retain the following ten children. The detailed family notes preserve descendant leads and identify disputed dates or relationships. A name in a compiled tree does not by itself establish every parent-child link.

Dates are those recorded in the family research unless a specific record is identified. Unresolved details remain qualified.
Child Dates Family
Hannah Guthrie 17 February 1763–17 September 1833, reported Married Eliakim Sharp, 25 March 1786. Twelve descendant names assembled from family history and church records.
Daniel Guthrie 7 June 1764–death unresolved Proposed husband of Lydia, maiden name unknown. The Bergen family and twelve proposed children require continued linkage research.
Sibbel Guthrie 27 March 1766–unknown Adult history, marriage, and descendants remain unknown.
Ebenezer “Eben” Guthrie 9 April 1770–20 October 1855 Married Abigail “Nabby” Herick/Herrick; later Martha “Patty” (Cowles) Ashley. Y-DNA represented.
Josiah Guthrie 19 April 1772–after 1820 Married Abigail Coltrain/Caltrain, widow of John Matthews. Five Guthrie children and a Matthews stepson.
John Guthrie 5 April 1774–16 March 1846 Married Olive Wilson, 7 September 1800. Ten children; associated with Groton, New York.
Olive Guthrie 2 August 1776–26 December 1848 Married Abraham Conklin. Two daughters recorded.
Rachel Guthrie 27 October 1779–21 April 1865 Married Mr. Kemp, identified in research as John; later Moses Remington. Five Kemp children in the working reconstruction.
Laura Guthrie 8 July 1784–26 August 1860 Married James Newbury, 14 January 1810. Eight children; settled in Ellery, New York.
Roswell Guthrie 2 September 1787–after 1830 Married Elfrida Osborn. Three children recorded; associated with Sempronius, Mentz, and Montezuma, New York.
Hannah Guthrie & Eliakim Sharp

Hannah was born 17 February 1763 at Kent and reportedly married Eliakim Sharp on 25 March 1786 at Litchfield. Her death is reported as 17 September 1833 at Summerhill, Cayuga County, without a supporting death record located in the family study. Eliakim’s reported death on 5 September 1829 conflicts with the household attributed to him in 1830; an alternate cemetery listing gives 1839.

American Guthrie and Allied Families names Salmon, Sheldon, Ephraim, Jerusha, and Nichols. Church records and subsequent research add other children. Several Sharp children were baptized together on 3 April 1805 at the First Presbyterian Church of Genoa; that date must not be substituted for their births.

  1. Amaluna Sharp, 15 August 1790 Connecticut–22 January 1870 Wisconsin; married Asaph Webster; children.
  2. Salmon P. Sharp, 1793 Connecticut–23 October 1879 Iowa; married Eunice White; children.
  3. Harlow Sharp, 4 November 1794 Connecticut–unknown. Possible later records in Ohio in 1820 and Cayuga County in the 1860s require identity checks.
  4. Ephraim Sharp, 8 September 1796–26 March 1864 New York; married Jerusha Pettit; children.
  5. Aurelia Sharp, 22 June 1801–1886 Michigan; proposed marriages to John Fuller, a Mr. Terry, and John Stone remain to be verified; children reported.
  6. Juliana Sharp, 28 December 1803 New York–March 1866 Michigan; married William Stone; children.
  7. Clarissa Sharp, born by 3 April 1805, her baptism date; later history unknown.
  8. Mary Sharp, born by 3 April 1805, her baptism date; later history unknown.
  9. Philene Sharp, born by 3 April 1805, her baptism date; later history unknown.
  10. Sheldon Whittlesey Sharp, 1809 New York–7 February 1886 California; married Eliza Ann Fulkerson; children.
  11. Nichols Sharp, named in the Guthrie family history but not identified among the reviewed group of baptism entries.
  12. Jerusha Sharp, named in the Guthrie family history but not identified among the reviewed group of baptism entries.

Census comparison: the previous research transcribes 1790 as one male 16 or older, one male under 16, and two females; 1800 as a couple aged 24–44, two females 16–25, two females 10–15, and three males under 10; 1810 as one male 45 or older, two males and two females 16–25, one male and one female 10–15, and one male and three females under 10; 1820 as a couple 45 or older, three females 16–25, and one male 10–15; and 1830 as a couple 60–69 and one male 10–14. Hannah’s expected age group is absent in the 1810 transcription. These are household clues, not named-child identifications.

Genoa church records: FamilySearch film 007901075, item 6, beginning at image 686. Links are collected under Explore the Records.

Daniel Guthrie, the proposed Lydia marriage & the Bergen family

Daniel was born 7 June 1764 at Kent. County history associates him with brothers John, Eben, and Josiah at Springport about 1790 and Genoa about 1793. Daniel is placed south of Lake Ridge on the McCormick farm. The family study also identifies a Milton household in 1800 and a Cayuga County house-and-farm tax assessment in 1803.

The identification of this Daniel with the husband of Lydia and father of the following children remains a working reconstruction. Their marriage is estimated about 1783. Joel’s gravestone names parents Daniel and Lydia, and Jonah’s 1862 probate is reported to identify many siblings. Neither source alone establishes that their father was Ephraim’s son.

The published Bergen church catalogue gives Daniel a death year of 1841. Ann’s prior comparison with the underlying pages found a dismissal on 11 May 1828, without a death date. The Guthrie family history places his death in Orleans County. A War of 1812 pension entry for a Daniel Guthrie of the 23rd U.S. Infantry instead reports death on 16 September 1820; the soldier could be another man, possibly the proposed son Daniel. These records must not be merged without further evidence.

  1. Huldah Guthrie, February 1783 New York–5 August 1865 New York; married John C. Temple; children.
  2. Sarah Guthrie, about 1785 New York–about 1845; married Solomon Carpenter; children. The Research Tree marks an autosomal participant line through Sarah.
  3. Mary Guthrie, 27 July 1792 New York–17 October 1854 Wisconsin; married Hugh Barker; children.
  4. Jonah Guthrie, about 1794/1795 New York–24 May 1862; married Lydia S., then Mary B., surnames unresolved; children.
  5. William Guthrie, about 1798, possibly Pennsylvania–before 1862; married Minerva Cross; children.
  6. Truman Guthrie, about 1797/1799 New York–unknown; possible later locations include Illinois, Ohio, or Michigan.
  7. Joel Guthrie, 1803 New York–13 July 1827; reportedly unmarried; buried at Red Schoolhouse Cemetery, Bergen.
  8. Lydia Guthrie, reported born 3 August 1806; died 25 March 1876 in the family study, versus 1875 in the current tree; married Henry Tripp in 1826; children.
  9. Malinda Guthrie, reported born 9 December 1806–July 1860 Michigan; married Hiram Babcock; children.
  10. Cynthia Guthrie, 1812 New York–1877 New York; married Roderick Mather Bosworth in 1835; children.
  11. Franklin Guthrie, about 1814 New York–after 1862 in the family study; reportedly unmarried. The tree’s 1862 endpoint should not be treated as an exact death date.
  12. Daniel Guthrie, birth unknown–before 1862; wife unidentified; children reported. Possible identification with the soldier who died in 1820 remains unproved.

Date conflict: Lydia’s and Malinda’s reported births are only four months apart in the same year. Both entries need original evidence before they can be accepted as births to the same mother.

Sibbel Guthrie

Sibbel’s birth is reported as 27 March 1766 at Kent, Connecticut. Her adult history has not been established. No marriage, death, or descendant line is currently documented here; absence of later information does not establish that she died young.

Ebenezer “Eben” Guthrie & his two marriages

Eben was born 9 April 1770 at Kent and married Abigail “Nabby” Herick/Herrick on 20 November 1791. He and Josiah appear in the family study’s 1799 Aurelius tax references; subsequent households are placed in Milton in 1800 and Genoa in 1810. County history reports that he moved to Peru, Ohio, about 1815. Later records associate him with Norwalk and Bronson, Huron County.

Abigail died 20 August 1826. Eben married Martha “Patty” (Cowles) Ashley on 4 May 1828. Patty, 1777–1859, was Stephen Ashley’s widow and brought seven Ashley children born between 1803 and 1817; they are stepchildren, not additional biological children of Eben.

Eben died 20 October 1855 at Bronson, aged 85, with burial reported at Bronson Cemetery. The tree’s 13 November 1855 probate entry is separate from his death. The nine children retained for Eben and Abigail are:

  1. Ebenezer Guthrie, 1792 Connecticut–before 1800, reported to have died in infancy or childhood.
  2. Von Rensselaer Guthrie, 1794 Connecticut–1800 in the current tree; the family study gives before 1811. Kept distinct from the later child Van Rensselaer.
  3. Cemantha Augusta / Samantha Guthrie, 1796 in the current tree, versus 1794 in the family study–1857; married Seymour Gale; children. Name forms and birth year require comparison.
  4. Roxanna Guthrie, 1797 New York–1879 Ohio; married Henry Terry; children.
  5. Abigail H. Guthrie, about 1800 New York–1837 Ohio; married Jonas Leonard; children.
  6. Ebenezer “Eben” Guthrie, about 1800 New York–1844 Ohio; married Polly Sifert / Cyphers; children.
  7. Phineas K. Guthrie, 1806 New York–1865 Indiana; married Elizabeth “Betsey” Davis in 1825, then Rachel Lovell in 1834; children. The represented Y-DNA line continues through his first marriage.
  8. Beulah Ann Guthrie, 1808 New York–1898 Illinois; married William H. Sly in 1827; children. Retained from the family study although absent from the supplied tree view.
  9. Van Rensselaer Guthrie, 1811 New York–1850 Ohio; married Polly Curtis in 1832, then Permelia Hicks in 1839; children.

Identity distinction: this Ebenezer, born in 1770, is Ephraim’s son. Ephraim’s brother Ebenezer Guthrie, born in 1740, husband of Hannah Richards, belongs to a different household. The latter’s account on page 154 of American Guthrie and Allied Families must not be used as this son’s family.

Josiah Guthrie & Abigail Coltrain/Caltrain Matthews

Josiah’s birth is reported as 19 April 1772 at Kent. About 1798 he married Abigail Coltrain/Caltrain, widow of John Matthews. Her son William C. Matthews, born about 1797, reportedly used the Guthrie surname during part of his youth. He is retained as Josiah’s stepson.

The family is associated with Springport about 1790, Milton in 1800, and Groton in 1820. Son Josiah’s 1826 marriage in Geauga County, Ohio, is a lead for the parents’ later residence, but does not prove that they moved there. Josiah’s death remains unknown after 1820. Abigail’s death is given as 1850 in the tree and after 1850 in the family study.

  1. Edmond Guthrie, 1799 New York–1815 in the tree, versus 1820 in the family study. The reported age of about sixteen fits 1815, but a record is needed.
  2. Sallie Guthrie, 1801 New York–unknown.
  3. Nancy Guthrie, 1803 New York–1884 Ohio; married Henry E. Mosher in 1824, then John Lapham in 1837; children.
  4. Josiah Guthrie Jr., 1804 New York–1870 Ohio; married Thankful Miller on 11 December 1826 in Geauga County, Mary Wheeler in 1846, Anna Omen in 1851, and Nancy M. in 1864; children.
  5. Hannah Guthrie, 1808 New York–1852 Michigan; married Daniel Vantuyl in 1825; children.
John Guthrie & Olive Wilson

John was born 5 April 1774 at Kent and married Olive Wilson on 7 September 1800. County history places him with his brothers at Springport and Genoa, working for an employer and wintering cattle on the Owasco Flats before marriage. The family study reports a move to Groton about 1795.

John died 16 March 1846 at Groton City. Olive’s death is given as 1856 in the current tree and 1850 in the family study. John’s will and estate papers are important sources for the children. A tree event labeled probate on 20 March 1844 predates his reported death and requires examination of the document and event type.

This John belongs in the Ephraim–Thankful family reconstruction. He should not also be used to fill a proposed son’s place in the John Guthrie III–Patience Knapp family.

  1. Polly Guthrie, 1801–1803 New York; died in childhood.
  2. Thankful Guthrie, 1802–1894 New York; married Jonathan Conger; children.
  3. Maria Guthrie, 1805–1894 New York; married Elisha Cobb Jr.; children.
  4. William Guthrie, 1807–1846 New York; married Diana Brown in 1833; children.
  5. Nancy Guthrie, 1809–1861; married D. Hall A. Beebe, as named in the family study; children.
  6. Sophronia Guthrie, 1813–1897 New York; married Daniel Sweazey; children.
  7. John W. Guthrie, 1814–1906 New York; married Harriet, maiden name unknown, then Samantha E. Leversee in 1854; children.
  8. Alson Guthrie, 1817–1877 New York; married Maria Chase; children.
  9. Olive Guthrie, 1824–1871 in the current tree; married Richard B. Witt, then Jonathan Beyea; children.
  10. Lyman H. Guthrie, about 1829 New York–1858.
Olive Guthrie & Abraham Conklin

Olive’s birth is reported as 2 August 1776. Connecticut is given in the family narrative, although a New York label also appears; an original birth record is needed. She married Abraham Conklin, reported 1770–1823, about 1800. Olive died 26 December 1848 in Erie County, New York, aged seventy-two, and is reported buried at Griffins Mills Cemetery.

  1. Nancy Conklin, 1801–1882 New York; married John Gibbs Patterson in 1818, then Milo Warner in 1845; children.
  2. Alfreda Anna Conklin, 1812–1887 New York; married Clement King, then John Palmer Vaux; children.
Rachel Guthrie, Mr. Kemp & Moses Remington

Rachel was born 27 October 1779 in Litchfield County. She married a Mr. Kemp before about 1798. Research identifies him as John Kemp, possibly the man born 8 January 1771 at Medford, Massachusetts, to Amasa Kemp and Tamerson Henley; that identity and parentage remain to be proved. Letters of administration were reportedly granted to Rachel Kemp in Cayuga County on 26 June 1809.

After 1820 Rachel married Moses Remington, a widower with a large family. Moses died 24 February 1836 at Genoa. Rachel died there 21 April 1865 and is reported buried at Scipio Rural Cemetery, Scipio Center. Moses’s children from his earlier marriage are not counted as Rachel’s biological children.

  1. John Adam Kemp, 1797/1798 New York–1875 Pennsylvania; married Phoebe Cook; children.
  2. Thankful Kemp, 1801 in the current tree, versus 1802 in the family study–1888 New York; married Salmon / Solomon Remington, son of Moses; children.
  3. Samuel R. Kemp, 1805 New York–1870 Pennsylvania; married Elizabeth Drew; children.
  4. Silas Kemp, born by 1809; named in the Guthrie family history, with later history unresolved.
  5. Tamerson Remington Kemp, 1809–1890 New York; married John Voorhees Smith; children.

The family-history passage names sons Silas and “Jamerson” Kemp. Whether that wording concerns Tamerson or a different person remains unresolved; it is not used to create an additional child without corroboration.

Laura Guthrie & James Newbury

Laura was born 8 July 1784 at Kent and married James Newbury on 14 January 1810 at Scipio, Cayuga County. They raised five sons and three daughters. The family study places them at Ellery, Chautauqua County, by 1830; later tree entries continue there in 1850, 1855, and 1860. Laura died 26 August 1860 at Ellery. James, born in 1788, died 18 April 1863. Their burial locations remain to be established.

  1. Sylvester B. Newbury, 1810–1891 New York; married Anna Clark Barney in 1838, then Electa Warner; children.
  2. Mariah Newbury, 1812 New York–1856; further details unknown.
  3. Horace Newbury, 1814–1893 New York; married Theda, maiden name unknown; no children currently known.
  4. Hannah Newbury, 1818–1868 New York; further details unknown.
  5. William Newbury, 1820 New York–1851 Michigan; married Sally Ann, maiden name unknown; children.
  6. Roswell Newbury, 1823–1902 New York; married Mary Ann Wetsel in 1850; children.
  7. Phoebe Newbury, 1825 New York–1897 Nebraska; married John Kennedy, then Edmond George Watkins; children.
  8. James Luther Newbury, 1828–1900 New York; married Effie Constance Maybee; children.
Roswell Guthrie & Elfrida Osborn

Roswell was born 2 September 1787, reportedly in the Aurora area of what became Cayuga County, New York. He married Elfrida Osborn, 1793–1844, about 1814 in the current reconstruction. The tree associates him with Sempronius in 1810 and Mentz in 1820 and 1830. His death is reported at Montezuma after 1830, without an exact date.

  1. Porter Osborn Guthrie, about 1818 New York–1870 in the current tree, associated with Michigan; married Isabelle Thompson; children. The previous “after 1820” entry was only an open-ended endpoint, not a verified death date.
  2. Alfreda D. Guthrie, 1824 New York–1906 Michigan; married Aaron Warren; children.
  3. Franklin Guthrie, dates and later history unknown.

↑ Return to Menu

Historical Highlights

Interpretive watercolor of a colonial workshop, shared artwork for Branch F.

Ephraim’s early life is anchored by Durham’s vital-record transcription, his father’s will, and a dated military enlistment. In the Branch F reconstruction that includes the infant James, Ephraim is the seventh of eleven children. He was about nineteen when his father made his will in 1756.

John’s will provided Ephraim with a one-fifth share of the Judea property, a yoke of three-year-old steers, a colt, two swine, a year-old heifer, and four sheep. The bequest offers a tangible picture of the resources available to a young man beginning an independent household.

Two years later, Ephraim volunteered for Connecticut’s 1758 expedition. The published enlistment identifies him as a New Milford resident and records his appearance before Justice Increase Moseley at Kent. This is evidence of French and Indian War service. It does not by itself establish his presence at a particular battle or later service in the American Revolution.

Community & Migration

A Connecticut Assembly entry names William and Ephraim Guthrie among six East Greenwich society residents in Kent who sought annexation to the New Preston society because attending worship there was more convenient. The Assembly granted an annexation involving the named petitioners and specified lands. This records a change in religious-society jurisdiction, not the founding of a new church or proof of a household move.

The family study reports a 20 March 1788 application for a lot in Clinton Township, later associated with Chenango County. The original allocation and subsequent deeds are needed to establish the parcel and connect it securely to this Ephraim. Residence in a region containing military-tract lands does not establish that he received a Revolutionary War bounty.

The children’s histories place the family across the Cayuga region. A county history associates Daniel, John, Eben, and Josiah with Springport about 1790 and Genoa about 1793. Their later households extended into western New York, Ohio, Michigan, and beyond. Ephraim’s death is reported at Aurora in 1809; Thankful’s burial at Groton provides a later family anchor in 1819.

Family Timeline

Documented events and reported family dates are distinguished below. Historical place names and modern county labels are not always interchangeable.
1737 Ephraim’s birth at Durham. Barbour gives 1 March 1737. Its photographed baptism entry reads 5 March 1737/8; the family history instead gives 1737.
1745 Thankful’s birth. The Litchfield index records 21 September, daughter of Josiah Jr. and Hannah.
1756 A father’s provision. John Guthrie’s will, dated 29 June, names Ephraim and provides land and livestock.
1758 Military enlistment, 2 April. A New Milford resident, Ephraim enlists at Kent in the force commanded by Col. David Wooster. The service index places him in Capt. Joseph Canfield’s company.
1762 Reported marriage, 4 March. The Research Tree gives this date for Ephraim and Thankful; the underlying marriage record remains wanted.
1760s New Preston annexation petition. William and Ephraim appear in volume XII, page 172, of the published colonial records. The volume spans 1762–1767; the exact session year must be checked before retaining the previously reported 1767 date.
1763–1787 Ten children. The family reconstruction runs from Hannah, born in 1763, to Roswell, born in 1787.
1788 Clinton Township land lead. The family study reports a lot application on 20 March. Original land records are needed.
1790–1793 The sons in the Cayuga region. County history places Daniel, John, Eben, and Josiah at Springport and then Genoa.
1809 Ephraim’s reported death. Aurora, Cayuga County, New York; a death, burial, or estate record remains to be located.
1819 Thankful’s death, 8 March. Her recorded grave inscription at Cobb Street Cemetery, Groton, identifies her as Ephraim’s widow.

↑ Return to Menu

Explore the Records

Town records, probate papers, church registers, military records, and DNA results answer different questions. The sources below preserve the family’s research trail while keeping uncertain identities and dates visible.

Vital records, the 1756 will & the family history
  • Durham, Barbour Collection, page 45: Ephraim, son of John and Abigail, born 1 March 1737 and baptized 5 March 1737/8, citing record pages 274 and 359. The photographed page preserves the double year; the online transcription gives the baptism as 1737. Compare the original register before resolving the difference.
  • Litchfield, Barbour birth index: Thankful Stone, 21 September 1745, daughter of Josiah Jr. and Hannah. The index supports the parents’ given names but does not establish Hannah’s maiden surname.
  • John Guthrie’s will, 29 June 1756: Woodbury Probate District; accepted 18 August 1756. The will names Ephraim and describes his land and livestock bequests. See the Branch F Family Hub for the parental family and probate discussion.
  • Laurence R. Guthrie, American Guthrie and Allied Families, pages 152–154: compiled family history and descendant leads. Page 154’s Ebenezer, born 1740, is Ephraim’s brother, not his son Eben, born 1770.
  • Family Data Collection: a derivative compilation, not an independent vital record. Its malformed Aurora/Cayuga place wording should not create a separate locality.
  • Thankful’s cemetery memorial: Cobb Street Cemetery, Groton. Compare the marker photograph with the reported inscription, death date, and age.
Military service, New Preston & New York land
  • Samuel Orcutt, History of the Towns of New Milford and Bridgewater, page 227: printed transcription of Ephraim’s enlistment dated 2 April 1758, with Increase Moseley’s certificate. It identifies New Milford residence and Col. David Wooster’s command. This printed transcription is not an original autograph document.
  • Connecticut soldiers in the French and Indian War, 1758, page 88: the reviewed index identifies Capt. Joseph Canfield’s Eleventh Company, Fourth Regiment. A payroll transcription cited in the research gives enlistment on 2 April and discharge on 11 November; compare the original payroll before using the latter as a fully verified endpoint.
  • Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut, volume XII, page 172: petition of Nathan Tibbals, Stephen Starkweather, William Wedge, Jedediah Durkee, William Guthrie, and Ephraim Guthrie for annexation from East Greenwich to New Preston. Read the volume via the Connecticut State Library’s colonial-records guide. The session heading, not the volume’s ending year, must supply the event date.
  • Chenango land references: county-history transcription and the retained Clinton Township history reference. These lead to the reported 20 March 1788 lot application; the original grant, survey, and deed chain remain wanted.
  • History of Cayuga County: early settlement account: identifies the brothers Daniel, John, Eben, and Josiah and their settlement locations. The account is retrospective and should be compared with deeds, tax lists, and census households.
The engraved powder horn: an attributed heirloom
Engraved powder horn attributed to Ephraim Guthrie, with decorative figures and lettering.
Powder-horn image retained from the Guthrie Genealogy family study; attribution and catalogue history require comparison.

The illustrated horn has been catalogued with Ephraim Guthrie’s name, decorative plants and figures, a 1776 date, and initials on its wooden plug. The 2010 Skinner catalogue, lot 826, describes a horn about twelve inches long. The family study also links a Cowan’s catalogue attribution.

A 2025 Poulin catalogue, lot 4530, describes an apparently corresponding twelve-inch horn and characterizes the 1776 date as added in a later hand. Matching descriptions suggest a connection between the listings, but photographs and provenance should establish whether they concern the same object. The catalogue’s proposed history is an attribution, not a service record.

Stephen V. Grancsay’s American Engraved Powder Horns (1945), page 54, separately lists an Ephraim Guthrie horn with a fort plan and the name F. Fenn of Camillus, New York. That entry must not automatically be treated as the same decorated horn shown here.

The horn does not establish Revolutionary War service. Ephraim’s documented 1758 enlistment stands on its own. The horn’s ownership, engraving dates, and chain of custody remain an important artifact-research question.

Descendant records & unresolved identities
  • First Presbyterian Church, Genoa: FamilySearch film 007901075, item 6. Beginning of the item; retained Guthrie reference and Sharp reference. Several Sharp baptisms occurred on 3 April 1805.
  • Bergen First Congregational Church catalogue: the online table gives Daniel’s admission in 1809, dismissal in 1828, and death in 1841. The underlying register comparison described in Ann’s family study found only the dismissal date, 11 May 1828. Resolve that difference before accepting 1841 as his death year.
  • Joel Guthrie’s grave marker: Red Schoolhouse Cemetery, Bergen. The marker’s parent names and dates should take precedence over an erroneous derivative inscription, subject to legibility and identity checks.
  • Jonah Guthrie’s 1862 estate: reported to identify siblings and deceased siblings’ families. Obtain the complete petition, notices, and distribution to test the proposed Daniel–Lydia household.
  • John Guthrie’s will and estate: compare the 20 March 1844 tree entry with the reported 16 March 1846 death and subsequent proceedings; establish Olive’s death as 1850 or 1856 from independent evidence.
  • Rachel Kemp’s administration: Cayuga County, 26 June 1809, as reported in the family research. The complete file may help establish her first husband’s identity and the children.
Most Wanted Documents
  1. Ephraim and Thankful’s marriage: the original record supporting 4 March 1762, including place and officiant.
  2. Original Durham entries: Ephraim’s birth and baptism, especially the 1737 versus 1737/8 year.
  3. Ephraim’s New York land and estate: the 1788 lot allocation, deeds connecting Connecticut to New York, and evidence for his reported 1809 Aurora death and burial.
  4. New Preston petition: the full session heading and any original memorial behind volume XII, page 172.
  5. Daniel’s identity: records connecting Ephraim’s son to Lydia, the Bergen household, Jonah’s siblings, and the conflicting 1820/1841 death reports.
  6. Sibbel’s later life: marriage, church, estate, or land records naming her after childhood.
  7. Descendant date conflicts: the Sharp deaths; Lydia and Malinda’s births; Cemantha/Samantha’s birth; Edmond’s death; and Olive Wilson’s death.
  8. Powder-horn provenance: dated photographs, collection inventories, acquisition records, and an expert comparison of the engraving hands.

DNA Participation

Ephraim and Thankful’s family is represented in the Guthrie DNA Project by two Y-67 kits: N87623 and 912395. Both are assigned to GFG2A and descend through Ebenezer Guthrie and Abigail Herick. No Big-Y result is recorded for these kits in the reviewed 15 October 2026 roster.

Public kit numbers identify participants; living participant names are omitted. These two kits share a downstream ancestral line and do not represent two different sons of Ephraim.
Kit Y-DNA Big-Y Recorded historical line
N87623 Y-67 Not recorded Ephraim & Thankful Stone → Ebenezer & Abigail Herick → Phineas K. & Elizabeth Davis → Simeon & Emily Farrington.
912395 Y-67 Not recorded Ephraim & Thankful Stone → Ebenezer & Abigail Herick → Phineas K. & Elizabeth Davis → Simeon & Emily Farrington.

Coverage by Child

“Not recorded” means no representative is identified in the reviewed project material. For daughters, Guthrie paternal-line Y-DNA is not transmitted through their children; autosomal participation remains relevant.
Child’s line Y-DNA Big-Y Autosomal DNA
Hannah Guthrie Not applicable through this daughter Not applicable through this daughter Not currently recorded
Daniel Guthrie Not recorded; representative sought Not recorded Participant line shown through Sarah Guthrie Carpenter in the Research Tree; platform and public kit not specified.
Sibbel Guthrie Not applicable through this daughter Not applicable through this daughter Not currently recorded
Ebenezer “Eben” Guthrie N87623 & 912395; both Y-67 Not recorded Participation recorded in the family study; platform and public kit not specified.
Josiah Guthrie Not recorded; representative sought Not recorded Not currently recorded
John Guthrie Not recorded; representative sought Not recorded Not currently recorded
Olive Guthrie Not applicable through this daughter Not applicable through this daughter Not currently recorded
Rachel Guthrie Not applicable through this daughter Not applicable through this daughter Not currently recorded
Laura Guthrie Not applicable through this daughter Not applicable through this daughter Not currently recorded
Roswell Guthrie Not recorded; representative sought Not recorded Not currently recorded

Autosomal participation is retained for Daniel’s and Ebenezer’s lines. The participant marker through Daniel’s proposed daughter Sarah is recorded as participation, while the historical linkage questions described above remain open. A marker in an Ancestry-hosted tree does not by itself identify the testing company, so no platform or kit number is inferred.

Y-DNA supports the shared paternal connection to GFG2A. It does not independently prove each named generation or resolve the earlier immigrant-origin story. A documented paternal-line representative from another son of Ephraim would broaden the comparison; Big-Y testing could add more detailed paternal-branch information.

Help Build the Family Story

Interpretive watercolor of colonial ironworks beside autumn water, recalling Branch F’s family tradition.

Ephraim and Thankful’s story stretches from a Connecticut household and a soldier’s enlistment to the farms and communities of their New York descendants. The surviving names, records, and heirlooms offer many ways to strengthen the family’s history.

Do you have a family Bible, a deed, an estate paper, an identified grave, or a documented descendant line? Contributions are especially welcome for Daniel’s family, Sibbel’s later life, Ephraim’s New York years, and the powder horn’s provenance. Please include the source and its context so it can be compared with the existing research.

Researched & Curated by Ann Guthrie