Cummings (Cummins) (Cumins) (Benjamin)  SALISBURY

Cummings Salisbury died probably in 1844–1845, likely in Lenawee County, Michigan. Exact date and place remain unknown.

ChatGPT thinks he might be the son of Ephraim Salisbury (1735-c.1800) and Martha Cole (1734–1814). Chronology and Rhode Island birthplace are consistent. Parentage not yet proven.

I think Cummings might be descended from Abigail Cummings and John Salisbury.

ChatGPT's revised rating:
My revised ranking

With this new information, I'd currently rank the possibilities something like this:

1. Cummings is a descendant of the older Salisbury-Cummings line

Very interesting hypothesis, worth actively testing.

The unusual given name is the biggest reason.

2. Cummings is a son of Ephraim Salisbury and Martha Cole

Still very plausible.

The chronology and Rhode Island birthplace are excellent.

3. Cummings is descended from another branch of the early Rhode Island Salisburys

Also quite plausible.

There are simply too many Salisbury branches to rule this out.

4. Cummings's father was the William Salisbury we've been investigating

Currently weaker.

The chronology and the complicated William problem make me less enthusiastic about this.

But there's a beautiful possibility here

What if these two hypotheses aren't actually competing?

What if:

Abigail Cummings

↓

John Salisbury

↓

Ephraim Salisbury

↓

Cummings Salisbury

?

We haven't established that connection, but this is precisely the sort of thing we should test.

And if it were true, Cummings would be descended from both the older Salisbury family and the Cummings family.

Then his name would suddenly make perfect sense.

It would essentially be a surname pulled from his ancestry and turned into a given name.

That would be a very New England thing to do.

The next thing I would research

I would not search for more random Cummings Salisbury trees right now. We have enough unsourced trees floating around.

Instead, I'd reconstruct the descendants of:

John Salisbury (1694–1746)
Abigail Cummings (1698–c.1750)

specifically focusing on the male Salisbury descendants born approximately 1720–1755.

Then we look for:

Cummings
Cummins
Commins
Benjamin Cummings
Benjamin
Cummings as a middle name
Salisbury men who moved toward New York

That is a much more targeted investigation.


Possibilities:
Ephraim Salisbury and Martha
George S Salisbury and Abigail
Benjamin Salisbury and Elizabeth Coggeshall
Benjamin's brother, Barnard is also a possiblity
John Salisbury and Rebecca Goff
Jonathan Salisbury and Mary "Molly" Child

There are now TWO fundamentally different possibilities.
Possibility A

Cummings Salisbury was a son of Ephraim Salisbury (1735) and Martha Cole.

Possibility B

Cummings Salisbury was a descendant of John Salisbury (1694) and Abigail Cummings (1698).

And the second possibility may explain the unusual given name better.

The John and Rebecca Goff family has:

Archibald Salisbury

born approx 1752
died 1842.

This is potentially a gold mine because he lived until 1842.

If he had children, grandchildren, or land transactions, he could be the bridge we're missing.

And he was in Providence, the same general Rhode Island area where the older Salisbury-Cummings families were concentrated.

I'd want to reconstruct Archibald's entire family.

Not because we think he is Cummings's father.

Rather because he is an ideal candidate for being the father or uncle of someone born around 1770–1780.

23. Benjamin's branch also deserves reconstruction

Benjamin:

1721-?

married Elizabeth Coggeshall in 1756.

Children:

John, 1763
Mary, 1763.

If John survived, he would have been about:

9 in 1772.

So he could not be Cummings's father.

But John could potentially have had a son around:

1785–1795

who might connect to later Salisburys.

So this branch is less promising for Cummings's father, but potentially important for the broader family.

24. Barnard's branch is also worth reconstructing

Barnard's son Benjamin:

1758

could not father a child in 1772, but his later descendants could.

Barnard himself had a child:

Thomas

approx. 1766

That Thomas could potentially have had children in the 1790s.

Again, this is probably too late for Cummings's parentage.

But it helps us map the larger family.

25. Jonathan's branch may be the best long-range candidate

Jonathan had at least 11 children.

That's a huge family.

And his children were born from:

1758 onward

which puts several sons into the correct age range to have children around 1780–1800.

If Cummings was born 1772, his father would probably have been born roughly:

1725–1750

So Jonathan himself is too young? No, Jonathan was born 1735, which makes him 37 in 1772, so he could absolutely have fathered Cummings himself.

But the page says his documented children begin in 1758 and continue.

We need to see the complete list.

If Cummings is absent, that doesn't eliminate him, because the page says at least 11.

But if Cummings appears in another record as Jonathan's son, we'd have something.

27. And Jonathan's family contains Roba

This is now worth emphasizing.

Jonathan's first documented daughter is:

Rhoda Roba Salisbury

b. 27 September 1758.

Your Cummings family may include:

Roba Salisbury


29. The biggest question is now: where was Cummings between Rhode Island and New York?

This is becoming the central mystery.

If he was born approx 1772 in Rhode Island, what happened between:

1772 Rhode Island

and

1799 Ballston Spa, New York?

That's roughly 27 years.

There should potentially be records during that period.

He could have:

married
served in the Revolutionary War
moved with parents
bought land
appeared in tax lists
appeared in a census
had siblings nearby

If we can find Cummings in Rhode Island as a young man, that could tell us which Salisbury family he belonged to.



David Salisbury's Civil War enlistment paper says his father's name was Benjamin. Is Benjamin and Cummings the same person? or are they brothers?

Cummings Salisbury appears to have come to Saratoga, New York around 1795.


Is this possibly him? 1830 SALISBURY CUMMINGS Hanover, CHAUTAUQUA, NY -- 2 -- males 0-5, 1 -- male 15-20, 1 -- male 50-60, 1 -- female 20-30 1 -- female 30-40

NOTE: Not found in the 1835 NY state census for Hanover, NY -- no other Salisbury names there either

Also not found in the 1825 NY state census for Hanover, NY -- there is a Salisbury, Owen in Ellicott of the same county in 1825

All Salisbury's in that county in 1830 -- SALISBURY CUMMINGS Hanover 383
SALSBURY CLARK Gerry 353
SALSBURY GARNER Gerry 353
SALSBURY HARMON Arkwright 263
SALSBURY JAMES Mina 395
SALSBURY OWEN Ellicott 330


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