Referenced in the family
Ruth French
b. 1810
Life
Records & Research
Ruth French was born November 26, 1810 (matching the family report exactly), a daughter of Aaron French Jr. (1767-1850) and Ruth Coe (1770-1835). The birth date and parentage agree with the trusted family report on multiple anchors and are treated as confirmed. The 1910 genealogy "Aaron French and His Descendants" is reported to list her as child #16 and to record marriage to John Whitten (July 4, 1833), death (Jan. 6, 1894, Center Village, Ohio), and at least eight children — but these rest on that single secondary source, are uncorroborated, and the cited Internet Archive URL did not resolve to the book's full text during this audit, so they are held at "likely" pending a verifiable source.
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Ruth French was born November 26, 1810, daughter of Aaron French Jr. (1767-1850) and Ruth Coe (1770-1835); reportedly listed as child #16 of that couple in the 1910 published family genealogy. Birth date matches the family report exactly.
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Her father Aaron French Jr. was born Apr. 19, 1767 in Essex Co., NJ and died Jan. 31, 1850 in Johnstown, Ohio; her mother Ruth Coe was born Aug. 19, 1770 in Morristown, NJ and died Mar. 19, 1835 in Johnstown, Ohio. Ruth Coe was a daughter of Elder Joseph Coe and Abigail Moon.
Differs from the report
father.death: report says “Aaron Jr. French (1767-1850) [no exact date]”, records indicate “Aaron French Jr. d. Jan. 31, 1850 (the 1910 book gives Jan. 31, 1850; an FFA DNA note says 'Jan 1850'); consistent with report year, just more precise.”. Not a true conflict; the sources refine the report's '1850' to Jan. 31, 1850. Concerns the father, not the subject. book ↗
Not yet confirmed — probable matches and family lore, shown for research. Treat with caution.
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Ruth French married John Whitten (b. Mar. 10, 1811; d. Feb. 5, 1876) on July 4, 1833. likely
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Ruth (French) Whitten died January 6, 1894, at Center Village, Ohio (Licking County area). likely
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Ruth French and John Whitten had at least eight children: Joseph Hugh, Nancy Jane, Aaron, William, Charles Marion, Isaac Newton and Eliza Ruth (twins, both died young), and Noah (who married Esther Clark). likely
likely mother.death (date detail): report “Ruth Coe (1770-1835)” vs. found “Death given as Mar. 19, 1835 in the 1910 book; a French Family Association prose passage instead said 'March 18, 1835'. Minor one-day discrepancy in secondary sources; both agree on 1835 and on Johnstown, Ohio. Concerns the mother, not the subject.”. No effect on identifying the subject Ruth French; recorded for completeness.
Open questions (5)
- SOURCE INTEGRITY: The cited Internet Archive item (https://archive.org/details/GenealogyGlh17424978) did not resolve to the full text of 'Aaron French and His Descendants' during this audit — the *_djvu.txt download returns 404 and the catalog page surfaces an unrelated 'Genealogy of Aaron Geer of Pitcairn' title. Before publication, replace this with a verifiable Archive/HathiTrust/Google Books identifier for the actual 1910 French book and re-confirm that entry #16 reads as quoted (Ruth French, b. Nov. 26, 1810; m. July 4, 1833 John Whitten; d. Jan. 6, 1894, Center Village, O.).
- The marriage (July 4, 1833 to John Whitten), death (Jan. 6, 1894, Center Village, OH), and children all rest on a single secondary source, the 1910 family genealogy, with no independent FindAGrave/FamilySearch/BillionGraves memorial or vital record located online. A cemetery or death record at or near Center Village, Ohio would upgrade these from 'likely' to 'confirmed'.
- Ruth's birthplace is not stated. Given that her father was in Morris Twp., Greene Co., Pennsylvania per the 1810 census (she was the youngest child, 'one -10' at home in 1820), she was most likely born in Greene Co. (near Amity), PA, but no source states this explicitly.
- Spelling of the husband's surname (Whitten) and whether a grave exists for Ruth and/or John Whitten in the Center Village / Licking Co. (or adjacent Delaware Co.) Ohio area should be checked directly on FindAGrave; initial searches did not surface a matching memorial.
- Confirm whether 'Center Village, O.' refers to the community in Berkshire Twp., Delaware Co. (adjacent to Licking Co.), which is the likely intended place; the book abbreviates it 'Center Village, O.'
Sources consulted (5)
- Aaron French and His Descendants, Charles Newton French, Chicago, 1910 (entries #2 Aaron French Jr./Ruth Coe and #16 Ruth French). CAUTION: the cited Internet Archive identifier did not resolve to the book's full text during this audit (404 on djvu text; catalog page references an unrelated Geer genealogy) - a verifiable copy must be re-located. · book
- French Family Association, Chart #21 - Aaron French Sr. of New Providence, NJ, and sons Aaron Jr. (Licking Co., OH) and Ezekiel (census notes, children list, DNA note) · website
- Ira Newton French (1797-1878) - Find a Grave (sibling/family context) · website
- FamilySearch search results / WikiTree French & Coe genealogy pages (searched, no direct match for Ruth French b.1810 found) · website
- WikiTree Whitten genealogy / Ancestry Ruth Whitten record (searched for marriage corroboration; no confirmed match) · website
Ancestry
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