Potter-Stickney marriage 1886 in Washington

In the auditor's office in the Columbia County, Washington, courthouse, I found this marriage:

Minerva Potter married Nathan Stickney, filed 27 May 1886, signed by probate judge.


Using Ancestry.com to find this family on the 1900 census (taken 20 June 1900) , I found them living in Bundy, Columbia County, where Nathan was a farmer. He had been born in April 1852, said he was married in 1885 (sic) and both his parents were from Maine. He was age 48.

Minerva was age 60 and was born in April 1840 in Missouri, and both parents born there.

Clara Stickney, age 13, daughter, was born August 1886 in Washington.

**Note: I was unable to find any information on a town named Bundy in that county.

Using our wonderful Washington Digital Archives, I could further document this family:

Nathan Stickney and Clara Potter married on 10 Jun 1885 in Columbia County, Washington.

Nathan died on 19 Feb 1933, age 81, at Medical Lake, Spokane County, WA.  (There is a mental hospital at Medical Lake.)  He was the son of Benjamin Stickney and Sarah Jane Allen.

Minerva died on 2 March 1912 in Dixie, Walla Walla County, WA.  She was the daughter of Stephen Potter and ---sba Barker.  (Transcribers apparently couldn't read it.)

Their daughter, Clara, married on 14 May 1910 to Bryon F. McCauley.  Clara died in June 1971 in Kennewick, Benton County, Washington.

That's as far as I went. If this is your family you should be able to take this information and build upon it with great gusto.

"Potters" in the Bible

In my Bible Dictionary, there are five references to “a” Potter and many more with our surname as an adjective……….. potter’s clay, potter’s vessel, potter’s earthen bottle, potter’s field.

Just F.Y.I. the verses mentioning specifically “a” potter are:

Romans 9:21

Jeremiah 18:6

Isaiah 41:25 and 64:18

Zechariah 11:13

Question: How many other “surnames” are mentioned in the Bible??

Did you find this post interesting??

George, Samuel, Ada, Jabez, & Jacob Potter, 1842, St. Charles County, Missouri

While attending the 2015 NGS conference in St.Charles, I was lucky enough to walk into the old downtown and visit the St. Charles Historical Society. The folks were so welcoming and helpful! Using their in-house card catalog of 3x5 cards, they helped me access some Potter information from their vertical file. The following is one thing I copied:


"To the St. Charles County Court, May Term A.D. 1842.

Your petitioner, Stephen Yarnall, assignee of George Potter and as guardian of Jabez, Jacob and..

W. Cunningham, public administrator of the estate of Ada Keller, formerly Ada Potter, that there are belonging to the estate of Samuel Potter, dec'd, the following named negro slaves.....

Paige, a woman slave 45 years of age.  Stephen, a negro boy slave 10 years of age. Betsey and her child, the former about 23 years of age and the child 2 years of age. Calbert, a negro boy slave 14 years of age.

Your petitioners ask an order of partition of the said slaves and that distribution be made of the other personal estate according to their several rights therein, and that for the purpose of dividing the said negroes that consequences be appointed to make partition as according to the statue in such case made and provided and your petitioner will every (???). 

I made every effort to transcribe the 1842 handwriting correctly. But if this pertains to your ancestor you should contact the society and obtain a copy for yourself.

At the bottom:  Stephan Yarnall & as Guardian of Jabez Potter, Jacob Potter. Thos. W. Cunningham, P. Admin. of Ada Keller, dec'd.