Conger, Joseph

Joseph Conger

PARENTS: The parents of Joseph Conger were, John Belconger and Sarah Cawood.

COMMENT-BIRTH: 17 May 1692 may have been the date of baptism, rather than the birth date. See Ancestral File.

MARRIAGE: According to CFA I, p. 334, "... apparently was md to MARY MARSH. Probable issue:"

MILITARY: In 1715, Job Conger and his brother, Joseph, were Privates in Col. Thomas Farmer's New Jersey Militia Regiment, apparently at the time in the service of the Colony of New York.
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, 275 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)

BIOGRAPHY:
Joseph Conger lived at Woodbridge, NJ for many years, and it is likely that he died there.

He is mentioned in his father's will, dated 11 jan 1710, in which he was given his father's freehold rights, in the town of Woodbridge, and was also allowed to occupy the eastern portion of the farm for ten years after the decease of his father, and to have the use of all tools, carts, plows, etc., he being to equal in their repair as long as he lived on the place.

That portion of the land that he was allowed to live upon, had been devised to his younger brother, Benjamin, who at the time of the dating of the will, was about ten years of age, being born about 1700.

The permission given to Joseph to live on the land might indicate that he was married, in which event his wife must have been born as early as he was -- 1792 [sic, 1692]. However, Joseph Conger was mentioned in the will of John Marsh of Rahway, as being the husband of the testator's grand-daughter, Mary, which might indicate that she was rather old to have been named as grand-daughter of a man living as late as 1739, the date of the will, unless she was the second wife of Joseph Conger.

Charles L. Conger said there were four unattached Congers of the period, namely, Joseph of Sherman, Conn., John of Hanover, Morris county, NJ, Elizabeth, who married John Baldwin, and James, who he listed as being children of Joseph Conger (1692). They were all born between 1714 and 1720, except that James was born about 1734, and may be the issue of the second marriage of Joseph Conger.

His reasons for assuming that they were the children of Joseph Conger is by elimination. To begin with, there is no New Jersey record of any sort showing the birth of a son or daughter to Joseph Conger, but as a result of the elimination of all known parental contenders of that time, it is assumed the four above-mentioned Congers were the children of Joseph Conger.

On 2 Nov 1712, Joseph Conger, together with a number of other freeholders of the town of Woodbridge, gave power of attorney to three of their number, viz. John Bishop, Thomas Pike and Adam Hude, to sell as much of their land as will bring forty pounds, which was to be applied to the cost of a lawsuit being carried on in the name of John Pike, in defense against paying Quit-rents (new Jersey Deeds, C-2-86).

The Middlesex county court records show that in 1714 there was a case on trial, John Brock vs. Joseph Conger. No particulars were given.

On 23 Aug 1716 there was laid out to James Clarkson, Jr., 5 acres of land in Rahway, "it being half a third division lot in Woodbridge, which the said James Clarkson purchased of Joseph Conger." (W.T.R.A.-25)

On 13 Mar 1735, Joseph Conger witnessed the will of John Moore of Woodbridge.

On 14 Mar 1737, it was voted "that the committee appointed to manage the school land shall pay to Joseph Conger the sum of four pounds and ten shillings out of the rent of the said school land, it being the sum agreed upon by Henry Freeman and Joseph Bloomfield, appointed for the purpose." (W.T.R.-B-8) (Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, p. 335 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

Conger, Edwin Hurd

Edwin Hurd Conger

PARENTS: Lorentus Everett Conger and Mary W. Hurd

PUBLIC_SERVICE: United States Minister to China during the Boxer Rebellion. (CFA I, p. 40a)

DEATH: Edwin H. Conger, published 22 May 1907, former U.S. Minister to China, died Los Angeles.
(Source: Putnam Co., MO, Newsprint Death Index - furnished by Joyce Posey) .

BIOGRAPHY: CONGER, Edwin Hurd, 1843-1907
CONGER, Edwin Hurd, a Representative from Iowa; born in Knox County, Ill., March 7, 1843; was graduated from Lombard University, Galesburg, Ill., in 1862; during the Civil War enlisted as a private in Company I, One Hundred and Second Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war; attained the rank of captain and received the brevet of major; studied law and was graduated from the Albany Law School in 1866; was admitted to the bar and practiced in Galesburg, Ill., until 1868; moved to Dexter, Dallas County, Iowa, in 1868 and engaged in stock growing, banking, and agricultural pursuits; elected treasurer of Dallas County in 1877 and reelected in 1879; elected State treasurer in 1880 and reelected in 1882; elected as a Republican to the Forty-ninth, Fiftieth, and Fifty-first Congresses and served from March 4, 1885, to October 3, 1890, when he resigned to accept a diplomatic mission; chairman, Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures (Fifty-first Congress); Minister to Brazil from September 27, 1890, to September 13, 1893; appointed Minister to China January 19, 1898, and served until his resignation on March 8, 1905, on which day he was appointed as Ambassador to Mexico and served until his resignation on October 18, 1905; died in Pasadena, Calif., May 18, 1907; interment in Mountain View Cemetery.

Bibliography DAB.
(Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present) .

BIOGRAPHY: From a newspaper clipping in 1901
"Edwin H. Conger, United States Minister to China, was in Kansas City today on his way back to his post in Peking. He visited W.J. Buchan, former state senator in Kansas City, Kansas, and this revived rumors of a romance between Lt. Frederick E. Buchan, United States Army, and Mr. Conger's daughter, Miss Laura Conger, who met at the seige of Peking."
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, p. 136 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

BIOGRAPHY:
Edwin Hurd Conger was graduated from Lombard University, Galesburg, Ill., in 1862. During the Civil War he enlisted as a Private in Co., I, 102nd Regt. Illinois Volunteer Inf., and served until the close of the war. He attained the rank of Captain, and received the Brevet of Major for gallant and meritorious conduct in the field.

He studied law and was graduated from Albany, New York Law School in 1866; was admitted to the bar and practiced in Galesburg, Illinois until 1868. He moved to Dexter, Iowa in 1868 and engaged in stock raising, banking, agricultural pursuits. He was elected treasurer of Dallas county in 1877 and re-elected in 1879; elected state treasurer in 1880 and re-elected in 1882.

He was elected as a Republican to the 49th, 60th and 61st Congresses; served from 4 Mar 1885 to 3 Oct 1890 when he resigned to accept a diplomatic mission. He was made Minister to Brazil on 27 Sep 1890 and served to 13 Sep 1893.

Edwin Conger was appointed Minister to China on 19 Jan 1898, where he served during the Boxer Rebellion, and until his resignation on 8 Mar 1905, on which day he was appointed Ambassador to Mexico and served until his resignation 18 Oct 1905.

His biography is in the Congressional Biographical Dictionary, p. 467 and in Who's Who in America, 1902.
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, p. 136 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)

Conger, Clement Ellis

Clement Ellis Conger

RESIDENCES: Alexandria, VA

PUBLIC_SERVICE: Deputy Chief of Protocol for 8 years; Chairman, Special Fine Arts Committee, Department of State; Curator of the White House .

BIOGRAPHY:
Clement Ellis Conger was written up in "The Sunday Courier and Press," of Evansville, IN on 1 Mar 1970 by Dorothy McCardle, as follows: .
Together President and Mrs. Nixon twisted the arm of Clement E. Conger to pursuade him to take on a White House Americana Project comparable to the one he heads at the State Department.

Conger had three other job offers. A top U.S. Museum was trying to draft him. The Bicentennial Commission wanted him as a commissioner. The Secretary of State dangled an ambassadorship.

Conger, who now relinquishes his job as Deputy Chief of Protocol, finally decided to accede to the President and Mrs. Nixon's wishes for two reasons: .
"The challenge at the White House is terrifc," says Conger, "I shall do my best."

His second reason is that the White House job leaves him time to continue with the State Department Americana Project ... his first love.

Clem Conger has won a world-wide reputation as a antiques sleuth. He has tracked down more china, silver, paintings and furnishings from America's beginnings than most men ever see in a lifetime. And he is determined to get the best of America's cultural heritage for the two spots in Washington where it will be displayed in an international showcase -- the White House and the State Department.

He won't discuss just what he will do at the White House. It has been learned from other sources that a top reason he was asked to move his talents there is because of wear and tear on the public rooms by the hundreds of tourists who go though them daily and scores of guests entertained there nightly.

Conger is expected to stockpile a substitute collection of Americana at the White House which will be as historic as anything that has to be replaced or repaired.

The idea got started last November when President Nixon attended the Governor's Conference at the State Department. For the first time, the president took in the full significance of what Conger and his special fine arts committee have done to give an authentic historic setting to the rooms in which the Secretary of State entertains the heads of foreign governments. The President was astounded as he inspected various items of the five million dollar collection of American antiques on view in the State Department's hospitality suite.

"This is one of the most important projects of its kind in the American government," the President told Conger. Then he added, "Clem, could you help us over at the White House?" Conger did not take this at face value until he was summoned for a talk with the First Lady.

When he spoke of other job offers, he was assured that he was much too valuable at the State Department and could be, too, at the White House, for him to leave. He did not want to leave anyway.

An antique desk, designed and used by Thomas Jefferson, illustrates the fast action and sleuthing ability of Conger. He heard about the desk at a party in the Thomas Jefferson Room at the State Department. He didn't let one day go by before he headed for Philadelphia, where the desk was in private hands. He interviewed George Holcombe Parsons, a wealthy Philadelphian, who told him he planned to give the desk to a museum in Philadelphia. Conger talked him out of it. He gave Parsons statistics of the number of presidents, prime ministers, kings and queens who would see that desk if it was at the State Department.

That's where the desk is right now, on loan, it may be given later as a permanent fixture. The top of the desk lifts up into an architect's drafting board. Jefferson designed it this way because he liked to stand up when he wrote. The "great penman" of his day drafted the Declaration of Independence on this desk.

Conger's ability has been listed as "having a practiced eye, a discriminating taste, and an appreciation for excellence -- things found in a rug merchant, a horse trader and a Florentie aristocrat -- rolled into one.
(Source: The Conger Family of America - Maxine Crowell Leonard)


BIOGRAPHY: Clement Ellis Conger 1912-
Clement Conger was born and raised in Rockingham County, VA and joined the White House state in the 1930's and by 1941 was an Electrician in the White House. He served in the US Army in WWII and after the war served as a Foreign Service Officer in the State Department. By the 1960's he had advanced to the position of Curator of the Diplomatic Reception Room of the State Department. His work caught the eye of Mrs. Richard (Pat) Nixon, wife of President Nixon, in 1970 and she asked Clement to be the White House Curator. He diplomatically accepted, but only on a half-time basis, retaining his position in the State Dept.

Clement's speciality was locating pieces of furniture that once were in the White House or State Dept. and getting people to donate them to the federal government for display in the White House or elsewhere. Clement continued in his role as White House Curator until 1986 when Mrs. Ronald (Nancy) Reagan, wife of President Reagan, had him fired for not showing "proper deference" to her. Clement was only one of perhaps 10 persons around the White House that Mrs. Reagan had fired for the same "offense" in the 1983-1991 period.

One story told was when Michail and Riasa Gorbachov visited Washington, DC in 1987, Riasa requested a tour of the White House. Nancy Reagan and the new Assistant White House Curator hosted the tour. Riasa Gorbahov asked a lot of questions about the White House and it's furnishings. Mrs. Reagan couldn't answer half of the questions and the new Asst. Curator didn't do much better. The snide comment made by some State Department officials was that if Clement Conger were on the tour he could have answered all of the questions off the top of his head.

Clement Conger retired from the State Department in the early 1990's and went to work as a Consultant for Sothby's Auction House in New York City.

Clement was an active subscriber to the "Conger Confab" newsletter and resided in Arlington, VA.
(Source: Written by Robert Guilinger, 7 May 1998)


RESEARCHER: Clement Ellis Conger corresponded with Charles Leslie Conger about his study of the Conger family. Clement Conger lived in the Washington, DC area. It was Clement who arranged the donation of the Charles Leslie Conger's papers to the Rare Book Room of the Library of Congress. Many articles about the career of Clement Ellis Conger appear in both volumes of "Conger Family of America" and in issues of the "Conger Confab." .

OBITUARY: Curator Clement E. Conger Dies at 91; Beautified Nation's Diplomatic Spaces, By Adam Bernstein, Washington Post Staff Writer, Monday, January 12, 2004; Page B04

Clement E. Conger, 91, the State Department curator who transformed the "motel modern" look of its diplomatic reception rooms into a showcase for early American craftsmanship, died Jan. 11 [2004] at a hospital in Delray Beach, Fla. He had pneumonia.

Mr. Conger's career, which married the worlds of diplomacy, politics and fine arts, was chronicled extensively in print. Seemingly every Chippendale table, every Gilbert Stuart portrait, every Duncan Phyfe cabinet he obtained became cause for a story.

He raised millions of dollars to refurnish State Department rooms for visiting dignitaries and then did the same at the White House and Blair House, the presidential guesthouse.

Although Mr. Conger was long enamored of antiques and fine art, he was a bit of an anomaly in his high-profile job.

A tall, chatty, energetic Shenandoah Valley native with roots in Colonial Virginia, he held no college degree in decorative arts, never worked in a museum and had no scholarly record.

His entry into curating, in the early 1960s, was largely accidental. He was at the State Department helping coordinate visits by foreign officials when the wife of Secretary of State Christian A. Herter approached him worriedly about additions that had been made to the State Department building. She was distressed to see the new hospitality suite looking so sterile. According to Mr. Conger, she "burst into tears," knowing that she soon had to entertain the Queen of Greece there.

He fixed the problem with three borrowed French paintings and then got to work forming a committee of wealthy citizens with a healthy interest in history and antiques.

He sent letters nationwide explaining the benefits of lending beautiful objects to the State Department: "national pride, family pride and tax deductibility."

On weekends, he visited auction houses and private estates for vintage Americana while working full time during the week as an assistant to top arms-control officials.

Over the years, he overhauled more than 15 main reception rooms as well as the Treaty Room suite and the offices of the secretary and deputy secretary of state.

The furnishings are now valued at more than $100 million, said Pat Heflin, his former assistant.

The Nixons admired his work and invited him to be the White House curator. Curating became his main job, and he divided his time between the executive mansion and the State Department.

He raised millions to renovate much of the White House, including the Red, Green and Blue rooms.

In 1986, first lady Nancy Reagan reportedly dismissed Mr. Conger because of artistic differences and replaced him with a Reagan friend, White House chief usher Rex Scouten.

Mr. Conger retired from the State Department in 1992 and then spent two years doing consulting work at Christie's auction house.

Clement Ellis Conger was born in Harrisonburg, Va., where his father was a doctor. He was a graduate of Strayer College and attended George Washington University.

Early on, he worked in Washington as an office manager and correspondent for the Chicago Tribune and office manager for U.S. Rubber Co.

During World War II, he served in the Army and became assistant secretary for the United States and British combined chiefs of staff.

He joined the State Department after the war and became deputy chief of protocol in the late 1950s. He helped oversee visits by foreign officials, among them the Shah of Iran, Soviet Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev, French President Charles de Gaulle and Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Although he began curatorial work as a volunteer, he attacked the job with vigor. He earned the nickname "the Grand Acquisitor" for his singular pursuit of certain objects.

At a State Department party, he heard about a man in Philadelphia selling a desk once used by Thomas Jefferson. He rushed that day to meet the owner and dissuaded him from selling the desk to a museum. Giving it to the State Department, he explained, would mean that it would be seen by presidents, prime ministers, kings and queens.

The job also had its foibles.

"Marshall Field V's wife didn't like antiques," he said in 1972, referring to the Chicago newspaper publisher. "But he couldn't stop collecting them, so he lent them to us. But a funny thing happened. He changed wives, and his new wife just loves antiques. So the other week, all the antiques he had lent us went to their home."

Mr. Conger, a member of the Senior Executive Service, was a recipient of the State Department's Distinguished Service Award and the Distinguished Service Medal.

In 1992, Winterthur, the Delaware-based museum of American decorative arts, gave him the Henry Francis DuPont Award for distinguished contribution to the American arts.

He was a former chairman of the Virginia Trust for Historic Preservation and a former vestryman and senior warden at Episcopal Christ Church in Alexandria.

A longtime Alexandria resident, he lived briefly in Arlington before moving to Delray Beach in 2002.

Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Lianne Hopkins Conger of Delray Beach; three children, William Conger of Maurertown, Va., Jay Conger of Manhattan Beach, Calif., and Shelley Conger of Sherman Oaks, Calif.; and two grandchildren.
(Source: c 2004 The Washington Post Company)

Belconger, John

John Belconger

COMMENT: Ancestral File shows, John Belconger (Conger); b. 8 Sep 1633, Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, Great Britain; d. 27 Aug 1712, Woodbridge, Mddlsx, [sic], NJ; Christening, 8 Sep 1633, Great Yarmouth, England .

AKA: John Conger; John Conger "primus" by Charles G.B. Conger. What does "primus" in italics mean?

BIRTH: Abt. 1633 in England, perhaps in Norfolk County. Other dates of birth of 1640 and 1641 have also been listed. In CFAII, Maxine Leonard disputes the date of Abt. 1633.
QUESTION: Can anyone cite a source for the birth date?

MARRIAGE: "A Mary Kelly, m. April 12, 1666, John Belconger. She may have been a dau. of John."
(Source: Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury, found in, The Conger Family of America, Vol. II, p. 18 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

BIOGRAPHY:
John Belconger came to Newbury, Massachusetts from England in 1665. He and his first wife, Mary Kelly, had first two children in Newbury and then moved to Woodbridge, New Jersey in 1667 or 1668. Shortly after moving to Woodbridge he shortened his name to Conger. He was illiterate and always signed his name with an "X".

It has been reported by some researchers that John (Belconger) Conger is the ancestor of all Congers in America. They also report that the name, Conger, does not exist in present-day England and that the name, Belconger, is very rare, existing only in County Norfolk.
(Source: According to Karen Halter Werry in Feb 1990 this information was written by Darrell Conger of Parkersburg, WV.)


BIOGRAPHY:
In 1665, John Conger came from England to Newbury, Mass. On Jan. 12, 1666 he married Mary Kelley, b. in Newbury, Feb. 12, 1641, the only daughter of John Kelley.

John Kelley came from Newbury, England to Old Newbury, Mass. with the original founders of the town in 1635. His only other child was a son, John Jr., who married Sarah Knight, the daughter of Deacon Richard Knight. John Jr. and Sarah had five children who had numerous descendants.

The Kelley Ferry operated for many years by father and son was a popular mode of travel in the early days of Newbury.

Daniel Pierce, a prominent citizen, well known throughout Mass. colony was organizing a group of citizens to move to a newly acquired Province of New Jersey which King Charles had wrested from the Dutch in 1664. In 1667, Pierce with nine associate owners and forty-six other men, many with families, arrived in New Jersey and founded the township of Woodbridge, located on an estuary that flows between Staten Island and the mainland and between Rariton and Rahway Rivers. Woodbridge, traditions says, was named for the Presbyterian minister they left back in the Newbury home.

John Conger and his wife, Mary, and their infant son were among this company. Tradition is, and can be proved by some facts, that the Conger family came from Alsace, then a French province, to Holland (the name being Koeniger about the date of the massacre of St. Bartholomew 1572), and then from Holland to England, the name being anglicized into the English, Conger.
(Source: "Conger History 1664-1941," p. 2, by Ethel Conger Heagler - furnished by Robert Guilinger)


LAND:
In 1702 John Conger deeded to his three motherless grandchildren, eighty acres of land as a token of "love and affection." He named the children as: John (b. 15 Feb 1685), Allen (b. 12 Jun 1687) and Edward, sons of Edward Wilkison of Woodbridge. [Note: No source citation given. REH] (Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. II, p. 16 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)

DEATH: According to Robert Guilinger a death date of Sep 1712 is recorded in New Jersey.


WILL: 11 Jan 1711 with Codicil of 14 June.
He left a will, dated 11 Jan 1711, proven before Thomas Gordon on 27 Aug 1711, approved and sealed by Col. Hunter on 17 Oct 1712.
(Source: J. Bass. Liber I, Folio 382, New Jersey Wills, Sec. of State Archives) .

PROBATE: Will of John Conger, 11 Jan 1711
In the name of God, Amen, the 11th day of January 1711. I JOHN CONGER of Woodbridge, in the county of Middlesex, and Province of East New Jersey, Planter, being in bodily health and in perfect mind and memory, thanks be given to God, therefore: Calling in mind the mortality of this body, and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die, do make and ordain this my last will and Testament, that is to say, principally and first of all, I give and recommend my soul into the hands of God that gave it, and for my body I recommend it to the earth, to be buried in a Christian-like and decent manner, at the discretion of my Executors, nothing doubting but at the general Resurrection I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God, to bless me in touching such worldly estate, wherewith it has pleased God to bless me in this life. I give, devise, and dispose of the same in the follow manner and form:

ITEM: My will is that my farm or plantation on which I now dwell to be equally divided into two parts, beginning at the River and running with a direct line through the whole length of my said farm or plantation, the Eastern division whereof I will and bequeath to my son BENJAMIN CONGER, to be by him quietly and peacable possessed, and enjoyed as soon as he shall arrive at the age of 21 years, and if my son JOSEPH please, he shall have the liberty to live upon it 10 years after my decease, paying the charge arising thereon.

ITEM: The use and improvement of the western division of my said farm or plantation, and my dwelling house standing thereon I give to my wife during her state of widowhood and when her condition shall change either by marriage or death I will and bequeath the said western division of my farm together with my now dwelling house and all other buildings thereon to my son JOB CONGER.

ITEM: I will and bequeath to my son JOSEPH all my freehold right in the towne of Woodbridge (Will also specifies as conveyed to Joseph his rights to Woodbridge common lands yet to be divided.) I give to my son my Carts and Ploughs with all the tackling belonging to them to my son JOSEPH to have liberty to use them when they can be spared so long as he lives upon the place, he being at equal charge at repairing them.

ITEM: My will is that if either of my three sons above mentioned, JOSEPH, JOB or BENJAMIN, shall die without issue, then what land I have willed to them do descend to the survivor or survivors, and be equally divided between them.

ITEM: I give to my son JOHN ten schillings; to my son JONATHAN five schillings; to my son GERSHOM five schillings; and to each of my daughters five schillings, all to be paid by my son JOB, if demanded.

Lastly, I give all my cattle, horses, sheep and household stuff, to my faithful and beloved wife, SARAH CONGER, whom I do nominate and appoint my sole Executrix, to see that this, my last will, be punctually fulfilled, and I do declare this to be my last Will and Testament, hereby revoking and making void all other wills by me formerly made. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, the day and year above written.
JOHN CONGER X (His Mark) Signed, sealed, published and declared by the said John Conger, as his last Will and Testament, in the presence of us, the subscirber viz: --James Connet, James Connet Jr., Richard Pangbourner, John Bishop .
CODICIL: June 14, I the above name John Conger, being very sick in body and not expecting many hours of this life, and my son GERSHOM being born since the making of this my Will, above written, do declare that my will & desire is that my three sons, JOSEPH, JOB and BENJAMIN, as they come to age, give unto my son GERSHOM, ten schillings, each of them and that seven pounds out of my movable estate be put out for his use when he comes to age, this I declare to be my desire before thise witnesses.
--John Stille, John Moore and John Bishop

Proved before Thomas Gordon, the 27th of August, and approved and sealed by his Excellency, Col. Hunter, the 17th day of Oct 1712. (Some say he died on 27 Aug 1712. Maxine Leonard states he died in September 1712.) (J. Bass. Liber I, folio 382, New Jersey Wills, Secretary of States Office.) (Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. II, p. 19-20 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)


CONFLICT: Codicil Confusion
The naming of a youngest son, Gershom Conger, in the Codicil has caused confusion and conjecture among Conger researchers, owing to the fact that an elder son of John Conger, named Gershom who had been born in 1685, was listed in the last "ITEM" of the 11 Jan 1711 will. At the time the will was written, the elder Gershom was married and was father of David, born in 1707 and Phoebe, born in 1708.

Researcher, Charles L. Conger, believed that the Gershom Conger, born in 1711, was the son of Gershom Conger, born in 1685. Gershom Conger, b. 1685, supposedly died before his father, a date of death of, Abt. 1710/1711 in Union Co., NJ, has been listed by some researchers.

It seems highly unlikely that John Conger would have had a son in 1711. At that time, his health was probably already failing, since he had drawn up a will. And, his second wife, Sarah Cawood, who had been born in 1660, would have been 51 years old.

It seems more reasonable that either the person drawing up the Codicil made a mistake when he wrote, "... my son Gershom being born since the making of this my Will..." or that John Conger was confused in his last days, and that the family pampered him in his belief that his grandson was indeed his son. If the Gershom, mentioned in the Codicil, was indeed the grandson of John Conger this would raise the question of why this grandchild was the only one that John Conger chose to mention, by name, in his will.
[Note: This discussion from CFA II, p. 20, has been editted by Richard E. Henthorn in order to clarify and expand on some of the points made.] (Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. II, p. 20 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

Conger, Job

Job Conger

PARENTS: The parents of Job Conger were, John Belconger and Sarah Cawood.

RELATIONSHIP: A descendant of Job Conger, Lt. Col. Everton J. Conger, was Aide to Lafayette C. Baker. Lafayette C. Baker was the Chief of the National Detective Police (NDP, i.e., secret service) at the time of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, May 1865.

SPOUSE: Mary (Pierce) Percy is also listed as a spouse in Ancestral File. Can this spouse be proven? What is the source citation? .

SPOUSE-QUESTION: Various records have stated that Job Conger was married first to Mary Percy or Pierce, as his wife, Keziah, was mentioned in his will. According to the evidence just found among an assortment of notes, your compiler [Maxine Leonard] is of the opinion, Job had but one wife.

From the "Hartford Times Queries," Hartford Times, Jan 23, 1854, Query B-5907, in part: "Job's wife was Mary Keziah, dau of Joseph (2) Thorp (Thomas 1) of Woodbridge. Deed of Zebulon (3) Thorp (Joseph-Thomas) Feb. 6, 1736 to Benjamin Thorp by Huder: (a schoolmaster of Woodbridge, N.J.). "Land belonging to the plantation that my father Joseph Thorp and my brother, Paul, sold to Job Conger Feb. 24, 1732, witnesses John Alston and Jonathan -----." (Sent by E.E.T.) (Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, 275 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

MILITARY: In 1715, Job Conger and his brother, Joseph, were Privates in Col. Thomas Farmer's New Jersey Militia Regiment, apparently at the time in the service of the Colony of New York.
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, 275 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)

EMIGRATION:
Job Conger Jr. removed to Albany County, New York; Enoch removed to Dutchess County, New York and on to Darby, VT; Moses remained in Woodbridge until 1771 when he offered his land for sale.
(Furnished by Harold Murton Hyde)


PROBATE: Job Conger's will, dated 30 Jan 1749 at Woodbridge, Rahway Neck, East Jersey, refers to himself as "Yoeman." (A freeholder; a gentleman farmer) .
To wife, Kezia, he left one half of his moveable estate. To his oldest son, Job, he left but ten pounds, as money to buy a plantation which had already been given him. The balance of his moveable estate he divided among his daughters, the married ones to have half as much as the single ones, they having had their marriage portions.

To his sons, Enoch and Moses, he left "my farm land in Woodbridge, Rahway Neck, where I now dwell," when they are 18, but they could not sell same until they were 30.

The Executors named were wife, Keziah, son Enoch, and friend William Moore; witnesses Job Pack, Benjamin Thorp and Thomas Chapman.

Will proved 17 Feb 1758.
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, p. 275 - Maxine Crowell Leonard) .

Conger, David

David Conger

PARENTS: Jonathan Conger and Ann Enyard


REFERENCE: "Conger History 1664-1941," compiled by Ethel C. Heagler, 1941, Broadlawn Farm, Cooksville, Illinois. Book located at the State Library of Ohio; 65 Front Street; Columbus, Ohio 43266-0334; Phone: 614-644-6966 (Reference furnished by Joyce Posey and Robert Guilinger)

REFERENCE: "The Conger Family of America," Vol. 1, 1972 & 2, indexed, by Maxine Crowell Leonard of Janesville, Iowa. [Note: Both volumes were used at the Library of Congress by REH in Sep 1995, Call Number: CS71.C7515 1972. Supposedly there are copies at the DAR Library in Washington, DC. The compiler's full name was Helen Maxine (Crowell) Leonard, which is only revealed by review of her familie's family group sheet information in Volume 1. REH] (Reference furnished by Joyce Posey)


CHRISTENING: 12 Aug 1744 at the 1st Presbyterian Church, Morristown, Morris Co., NJ, according to Ancestral File.

SPOUSE: David Conger, Sr. was the 2nd spouse of Mary (Darby) Green.


BIOGRAPHY:
It is thought that David Conger Sr. was married twice. There is a tradition to that effect and that he had a son, Ishmael, by the first marriage -- that he was only married about a year when his wife died. An Ishmael Conger does appear in the 1790 census of Washington county, PA, where Elias D. Conger and David Conger Jr. (his brother) settled in 1790. Elias D. and David Conger were half-brothers of Ishmael. CFA I, p. 98


MILITARY:
David died during the Revolutionary War, circumstances unknown. From the office of the Adjutant General in Trenton, NJ we find the following:
It is certified that the records of this office show that David Conger served as a Private in Middlesex County, New Jersey Militia, received certificate 1571 amounting to 28:8:2 for the depreciation of his continental pay in Middlesex County, New Jersey Militia during the Revolutionary War.

Any of his descendants are eligible for membership in the Sons or Daughters of the American Revolution.
(Source: The Conger Family of America, Vol. I, p. 99 - Maxine Crowell Leonard)

MILITARY: David and John Conger were privates in the Revolutionary War from Middlesex county, New Jersey. [No source citation. REH] (CFA I, p. 328)

CENSUS: 1800, in Washington Co., PA, Morris Twp., page 815
David Conger, males 2, 1, 0, 1, 0; females 1, 0, 0, 1, 0 CENSUS: 1810, page 703
(Furnished by Joyce Posey)


DEATH-BURIAL-CONFLICT: According to David M. Dodd, he was buried at Dunn's Station, PA; Ancestral File lists, d. 1778 at Green [sic] Co., PA. Others have listed the date and place of death as, 1778, Middlesex Co., NJ.

CHILD: Ancestral File lists a child, Ishmael Conger, born Abt. 1761 at Woodbridge, Middlesex, NJ. According to CFA II, p. 119, "An ISHMAEL CONGER was listed in the 1790 census of Washington county, PA. Speculation was that he may have been a s/o David 1741 and a wife before Mary Darby Green. The will for this man is under the name CONYERS. He died 8 July 1835. He mentioned his wife Mary, sons-in-law Jonathan Thomas and Henry Devore; also a grandson Ishmael Devore."

Conger, James Lockwood

James Lockwood Conger

John Conger, who settled in Woodbridge, N. J., in 1667, was the ancestor of nearly all the native-born Congers in the country. He had two wives and a large family of children. From that day there has been a steady stream of Davids, Johns, and Josephs in succeeding generations of the family, most bewildering to one member of it, Mr. Charles L. Conger of McIntosh, Minn., who is patiently compiling a Conger Genealogy.

Very little has been preserved of the Cleveland life of James Lockwood Conger, a lawyer residing in the city between 1826 and 1840, save through a package of old letters written by Mrs. Conger to her only sister, Mrs. Erwina Miner of Centerville, Fairfield Co., Ohio. James L. Conger, b. in Trenton, N. J., was the son of David and Hannah Lockwood Conger, who later lived in Phelps, N. Y. He received his general education in that locality and studied law with Judge Ewing of Ohio.

In December, 1824, he married in Lancaster, O., Miss Paulina Belvedere Clark, daughter of Dr. Ezra and Sarah Clark, pioneers of that county and formerly of Middletown, Vt. James Conger was only nineteen years old and the bride but eighteen. The youth of the couple and the fact that they remained in Lancaster two years, suggests that he may have pursued his law studies after the marriage. A little boy named Seneca was born to them in Lancaster, who died young.

In April, 1826, they started for New York State to visit Mr. Conger's parents and perhaps with a view of settling near them. An acknowledgment of money received by the couple at that time is here given because of its phraseology

"Received, Lancaster, O., April 25, 1826, of our revered father, Dr. Ezra Clark, three hundred and fifty dollars towards our portion. J. L. CONGER. PAULINA B. CONGER."

They drove a span of horses all the way to eastern New York and return, as far as Cleveland, which they reached September 6th of the same year. And in this month begins the series of letters previously mentioned, a half-dozen only, but covering several years of the Conger's residence in Cleveland. These letters are unusual for that day and generation. The penmanship is beautiful, the composition correct in every particular. The writer must have been a woman of charming personality; a brave woman possessing great fortitude, but shy and sensitive, sweetly grateful for every kindness shown to her.

The depth of her affection is revealed in the messages to her aged father whom she seems to have idolized and whom, so far as the letters reveal, she never met again in this life. On her trip to New York she met Mr. Conger's family for the first time. Of these new relatives she writes

"I frequently think of the remark you made when we were last together, `Do not be too sanguine in your expectations of James' parents,' and I was cautious not to be so. But my own could not do more for me. James' sisters were all equally kind, each striving to be most so. I was almost afraid to mention anything I wanted for fear one of them would get it for me, and they seemed to think they could not give me enough. I really think the whole family would have liked to come on to Cleveland with me, they were so truly attached.

"Father Conger and James went to New York City, returning before July 5th. They purchased about three hundred and fifty dollars worth of books and other things. Father brought me a beautiful figured silk dress and other smaller presents."

The young couple drove back to Cleveland, but various and sundry household furnishings donated by the elder Congers were shipped by canal and Lake Erie. One barrel when opened was found to contain everything necessary for the laundry, while mop and dish-cloths had been tucked into another one. Nothing necessary or convenient in that line had been omitted or forgotten. And, just as the team was about to start on the long western journey, father Conger had placed a bill in his young daughter-in-law's hand, to be used by her for any personal need on the way.

When they reached Cleveland they found Mrs. Reuben Wood, wife of the future governor of the state, preparing for a visit to her former eastern home. Her sister was to accompany her, and they intended to remain until spring. Evidently the Conger and Wood families were previously acquainted. The latter at once turned over the house they occupied, with all the heavier furniture to Mr. Conger, at a rental of $80 for the eight months' use of it. This sum also included the kitchen garden well stocked with a variety of vegetables and five bushels of peaches yet ungathered.

The departure of Mrs. Wood and her sister is told in one of the letters. "They started on Sunday, September 10th. We went out on a lighter about a mile from shore to the steamboat with them. The waves were very high and became seasick on the way. Notwithstanding, on the whole I had a pleasant ride."

The young wife seems to have been very lonely in the new strange town, her only acquaintance in it having been Mrs. Wood whose return she pathetically anticipates. Meanwhile, Mr. Conger had purchased a lot on the south-east side of the Public Square. The east corner of the May Co.'s big department store now covers the site, and upon this he began the erection of a small frame-house, which, four years later, was considerably enlarged.

Mrs. Conger dwells upon the delights of its possession; speaks with pride of the sodding of her "door yard," and of her planting in it a rose, a lilac, and a snowball bush; of the high board fence surrounding three sides of the lot, and a little later of the arbor covered with five kinds of grapes, and of the square of English strawberries each side of the arbor, from which she picked sixteen quarts of fruit.

Stand, if you will, in front of the towering Cushing Building and imagine the little home, the lilac, and the snowball bush!

The furnishing of their house progressed slowly.

"I believe all the furniture we have, so far, are fees. James has sent to Pittsburgh, by a man who owes him, for a carpet for the front chamber and hall, and I have just finished a pretty rag-carpet for the back room."

The second summer after the house on the Square was occupied Mr. Conger's sisters, Hannah and Phebe, both mentioned as "beautiful young girls," make the family a long visit. We can imagine how pleasant those months must have been when we are told that "there are numerous young men in town, but very few young women." And in connection with this who can not read romance in the opportunities afforded in the statement, "There are many beautiful walks and rambles on this delightful lake. Every Sunday, after meeting, James and I take a walk by the lake, and often through the week we stroll through the Square and Ontario street to it and spend the twilight hours there." This was written August, 1827.

James Conger must have given evidence of unusual ability in his profession for one so young, or he never would have found himself associated with Thomas Bolton, one of Cleveland's most able jurists. "Bolton & Conger, Attornies and Counsellors, Hancock Block, No. 93 and 95 Superior Street," they announce professionally.

Some time after the panic of 1837, that was the cause of scattering many of the numerous Cleveland lawyers and doctors to all points of the compass, James L. Conger removed to Belvedere, Mich., where in 1847, after four years of battling with tuberculosis, Mrs. Conger died, aged forty-one. Mr. Conger married again, but there is no record furnished of this union. He became a prominent man of that community and at one time represented it in the lower house of Congress in Washington. He died in St. Clair, Mich., in 1876, aged seventy-one, and was buried in Columbus, O.

Children of James L. and Paulina Clark Conger:

Seneca Conger, b. 1825; died in infancy.

Helen Edwina Conger, b. Jan., 1827; m. Thomas Lough.

William James Conger, b. 1829; m. Abby Louise Meckler. He died in Columbus, O., 1882.

Three younger children died in infancy.

Helen Edwina Conger was born four months after her parents arrived in Cleveland, and often returned in after years to her native town, ever since it became "Greater Cleveland." She was welcomed each time in the homes of our oldest families as a loved and honored guest, for she was an unusually bright, attractive woman. She died but recently, leaving two daughters.

Mrs. W. B. Waggoner, one of them, resides in the city.

When James L. Conger removed to Michigan, he sold his Cleveland residence property to Dr. Erastus Cushing. He may have received less than $1000 for it. Today the lot is worth $8000 a foot front; a traffic tally recently taken showed that in the business hours of the day an average of 5134 persons pass this spot hourly.
(Source: The Pioneer Families of Cleveland, 1796-1840 by Gertrude Van Rensselaer Wickham, Vol. I & II; Found on the Internet, April 2006)