PHINEAS
And His Cousins 1810-1896

PHINEAS AND HIS COUSINS completes the journey of the author's Quaker ancestors from Cheshire, England to Minnesota, spanning almost 300 years of history.

In this final book, Phineas Janney, restless and adventurous, pushes westward with his young family from northern Virginia across the mountains to Ohio and the prairies and river towns of Iowa and Illinois, to finally settle in Minnesota in the mid 1880s.

His Virginia cousins, wrestling with their Quaker beliefs and practices, confront the hardships and and devastation of the Civil War as the Union and Confederate armies struggle to gain the strategic ground of Loudoun County.

Family letters and stories document the history of the times, with tales of the Underground Railroad and the life and politics of the frontier. Phineas's death in 1896 closes the century and opens a prosperous future for his Minneapolis descendants

Price: $13.00 plus postage. Please contact Polly at polly@pollygrose.com.

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Excerpts

Phineas, the restless stake holder, said to his wife, "Fanny, we need new land, we are surrounded here in the valley by people hostile to our Quaker ways and who still support slavery."

"Frances, we can make a living in Ohio, the new railroad will take people faster and with less hazard, and this expansion means more business... a greater need for tools for farming and industry. Is thee willing to go with me soon?"

Several years later, Frances says "I know its because thee wants to join other Quakers helping runaway slaves from Missouri traveling north to Iowa territory. Why is thee so restless?"

"After Gettysburg," Cousin Charlie said, "our Loudoun county became a battle field as the Union forces burned the mills and barns.. torch in hand following the Catoctin Creek they left a trail of fire in their wake, The Quakers were horrified... their allegiance had been to the Federal government and now most of their possessions were destroyed by their friends... General Grant's orders were to burn all... planning to catch some the Rebel forces."

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