by Millicent V. Craig

No other Census of the U. S. was so well organized as the 1880 Federal Census. It allows easy analysis and comparisons with the 1881 Census of the U. K. that was similarly structured.

In 1880, there were 10,603 Daltons enumerated in the U. S., more Daltons than in any other country of the world. For a comparison, the 1881 Census of the UK (including Scotland and Wales) listed 7, 653 persons with the surname Dalton.

Of the 10, 603 Daltons in the U. S. the largest ethnic group was from Ireland, some 1421 persons or 13.2% of the total population. Please be aware that this is a snapshot in time, may reflect the great famine migration, yet may be a fairly accurate representation of the population as a whole today.

The next largest number of emigrants as represented in the Census enumeration was from England. Some 200 persons were born in England and represented 2% of the U. S. Dalton census count. Canadian born residents amounted to 101 and represented 1 % of the U. S. population of Daltons.

The Canadians have been extracted from the Census and may be viewed in the DALTON DATA BANK. http://daltondata.0pi.com The remainder of foreign born residents was quite small. One characteristic of the Irish and Canadians in particular was their mobility. Their movements can be tracked through the birthplaces of their children.

A fourth ethnic group that has been largely overlooked is the Black and Mulatto Dalton sector. This important segment has been extracted and a brief analysis of their concentration is discussed below.

1880 Residency of Irish born Daltons
Of the 1421 Irish born Daltons in the 1880 Census, over 35 % or 505 stayed in New York with the majority remaining in the Greater New York City area. Massachusetts with a count of 155 and Pennsylvania with a count of 120, accounted for a little over 10% and 8 % respectively. They were followed by New Jersy, Missouri and Illinois each with about 5 % of the Irish born. The heartlands and California attracted a smaller share and the remainder were scattered. Employment opportunities for laborers were plentiful in the large cities of New York, Chicago, and St. Louis. Small businesses also sprang up in these cities, and farm and mining jobs were available in the mid western and western states.

1880 Residency of English born Daltons
Though the group of 200 English born Daltons was much smaller in the 1880 Census than that of the Irish, the residency patterns were quite similar. New York was the favored place of residency with 40 or 20% of the English born taking up abode there. Massachusetts followed with 24 or 12 %; Wisconsin with 15 or 7.5 %; Pennsylvania with 18 or 9%; Illinois and New Jersey each with 13 or 6.5% and California with 11 or 5.5%. NY, MA, PA and IL offered factory jobs similar to those at home in England whereas Wisconsin gave the newcomers a chance to farm and own land.

Distribution of Black and Mulatto Daltons in 1880
A distinguishing pattern, as seen in the Census data is that black and mulatto Daltons tended to remain in the state in which they were born and up to and including the 1880 Census count. The population of Black and Mulatto Daltons in the 1880 Census was quite significant.
There was a total of 706 Blacks and 152 Mulattos for a combined total of 858 persons or 8.1 % of the total Dalton population. The largest concentrations were in North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Virgina, Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina, in that order.

In North Carolina, a total of 561 Daltons were enumerated. Of that number, 271 were Black and 34 were Mulatto. This total of 305, represented 54 % of all Daltons in North Carolina. The population segment remained fairly stable with few in-migrations. In Tennessee Blacks numbered 94 and Mulattos numbered 12 accounting for 15 % of the 701 total of Daltons in the state. The only state with a significant shift in population was VA and out of 62 blacks enumerated, 12 were born in North Carolina.

Since there was little or no migration, the chances of finding your ancestor's BMD records are greatly enhanced How many of these Daltons assumed their surname from a location, township or farm? Are any Daltons researching this branch? Millicenty@aol.com

compiled by Mike Dalton

According to Variety, a New York based trade magazine for the performing arts, Daltons were part of the theater and radio scene in the U. S., England and Ireland. Mike has added some genealogical information to Variety's list of Dalton obituaries. They appeared in volumes that were printed between 1905 and 1997.

Annie D'Alton, age 78, actress died March 10 1983 in Dublin, Ireland. She was born Ann Mulhall in County Carlow and married playright/actor Louis D'Alton who had his own acting company.. After the death of D'Alton, she married John Cowley who survived her. She also had a daughter from her first marriage. She last performed in Radio Television Eireann.

Cleo Dalton, burlesque and chorus girl died in New York City on October 20, 1918. She was the wife of Lt. John Dalton and they last lived in Houston, Texas. When her husband went overseas to France in WWI, Cleo Dalton returned to the stage after a three year absence.

Charles Dalton, stage actor was 77 years of age when he died on June 11 1942 in Stamford, CT. He was born in England where he began his acting career in 1883 and made his debut in the U.S. in 1893. He continued in his career until 1940. Dalton starred with Helen Hayes and Ethel Barrymore. He was survived by three sons and three grandchildren.

Dennis N. Dalton, a writer, died on September 29, 1984 at age 71. He was at his son's home in San Jose, Costa Rica. Dalton was a staff writer for NBC News from 1945 to 1977. He was survived by his son, two daughter, sisters and brothers.

Doris Dalton, actress was 82 years of age when she died on September 16, 1984 at Prout's Neck, Maine. She was born in Sharon, MA. Doris played the lead in many Broadway plays in New York City during the 1930's and the 1940's. She was survived by a sister.

Dorothy Dalton was a leading lady of the silent screen. She died at age 78 on April 13 1972 in Scarsdale, New York. Dorothy was born in Chicago and began her acting career in 1910. She went to Hollywood in 1914 where she starred with Rudolph Valentino in three silent films. Dorothy married actor, Lew Cody and then producer Arthur Hammerstein in 1924. Cody died at Beverly Hills, CA on May 31, 1934 and Hammerstein died at age 82 on October 1855 in Palm Beach FL. Dorothy's father, a Dalton, died at Chicago, IL on June 11, 1946 at the age of 82 years. Dorothy left a daughter and a grandaughter from her marriage to Hammerstein.

Elmer K. Dalton was manager of the Tower Pictures branch office in Dallas Texas. On March 22 1958, at age 42, he died in Dallas. He was survived by a wife, son, parents, four brothers and four sisters.

Emmett Dalton, film producer, died in Dublin, Ireland on March 4, 1978 at age 80. He was born in the U. S. and moved to Ireland at a young age with his family. He first served in the British Army during WWI and then joined the Army of the Irish Free State. He was a key figure in the Civil War and Uprising of 1922.

Dalton became Samuel Goldwyn's (MGM) personal representative in London. He established Ardmore Studios at Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland. And it is now known as the Irish National Film Studios. He produced a series of films that featured the Abbey players. Dalton was survived by a son who was a film producer in London and a daughter, an actress.

Fred Dalton was an actor, writer and adventurer. Fred fought with Pancho Villa in Mexico. His parents were 'Texas' Jack Dalton and Louise Lorraine, the stage name of his mother, an actress. Fred's father operated a large gambling game in Arizona during its gold rush days. Fred was survived by his wife, Josephine 'West' Dalton and his father.

George Dalton was a stage hand in Chicago, IL. He was adjusting scenery curtains at the Blackstone Theatre and fell 30 feet from the stage wings, fracturing his skull. George died in Chicago on May 19, 1916. He was 37 years of age.

Hamilton (Ham) Dalton was a former radio personality and comedian. He first started with the Atlantic Constitution newspaper in Atlanta, GA and then began his radio career in Philadelphia, PA in 1932 over WCAU. Hamilton's second wife died in Hollywood, CA on January 18, 1935. Dalton died at age 72 in Philadelphia, PA on October 22, 1965. The couple had no children.

Helen Primrose Dalton was a vaudeville singer and was known as Helen Primrose. She died in New York City on January 5, 1933 at age 35. She was survived by several brothers and sister.

James W. Dalton was a German comedian who died in San Francisco, CA on March 15, 1908. His comedy team was known as Dalton and Lewis.

Roy Alvin Dalton was born in Texas on July 5 1881. His mother's surname was Broaddus. At age 17, Roy operated a nickleodeon in Dallas, TX with his brothers T. V. Dalton and Frank Dalton. They moved to Los Angeles, CA in 1920 and leased the Follies, a burlesque theatre. Roy was considered a pioneer in Southern California show business and he died at age 61 on August 1 1942 in Los Angeles, CA.

Test Dalton, a novelist and playright was best remembered for his historical novel. "The Robe of the Unconquered", his greatest achievement. Test's father was Nathan F. Dalton who passed away in Wauwatoosa, WI on December 3 1924. At that time, Test was living in Indianapolis. He died in New York City on December 10, 1945 at the age of 70. He was survived by a daughter.

Thomas Dalton was a theatre electrician and last worked at the Cinestage in Chicago, IL. He died in Chicago on August 24 1960 at the age of 76 and was survived by a cousin and a niece.

Victor Dalton was born in Illinois on July 29 1891. He started in radio in 1923 and was one of the pioneers in Coast Radio and cofounded Radio Newsreel. He was the owner of KMTR in Hollywood, CA and died in Los Angeles on December 18 1941 at age 50. He was survived by a widow and a daughter from his first marriage.

Will Dalton (real name -Albert Joseph Leggett) was a vaudeville agent who was born in London, England. He had opened a vaude agency in Manchester, England. His death was reported on March 6 1957 at Cheadle, Cheshire, England. Dalton was 79 years of age and was survived by his wife Amelia Vokes, five sons and one daughter.

William Dalton, also known as Julian Eltinge was a female impersonator in Vaudeville. His friends called him "Will" and he started out as a bank clerk in Boston and then turned to acting. His mother, Julia E Dalton, was born in Massachusetts on February 10 1861 and lived at Will's ranch in San Diego, CA. His father, Michael J. Dalton, died in Los Angeles, CA on July 7 1927. Will died in New York City on March 7, 1941 at the age of 57. His mother died in Los Angeles, CA on May 9 1947.

William Ramon Dalton was an organist for Radio City Hall and for NBC TV in New York City. He was born on September 1899 and he began his career as an organist in 1923 in Columbus, Ohio. Dalton died in Hartford, CT on August 11, 1977 at the age of 78. He had lived in Hartford for five years prior to his death. At an earlier date he was living in Virginia where he had applied for a Social Security card.

Editor's note. All of the above Daltons passed on in the 21st century and there is sufficient information in the extracts to search for birth certificates, local newspaper obituaries and death certificates for additional genealogical information if anyone appears to be among your ancestors.

Many thanks to Mike for the extracts.

compiled by Millicent V.Craig

The following court appearances have been extracted from the Index of the East Riding of Yorkshire Archives and Records Service. These are Public Records and the full content of each record may be obtained upon request. Visit: http://www.a2a.pro.gov.uk

The earliest record in this series is 1710 and the purpose for extracting them was to learn whether any offenses were serious enough to warrant transportation to the US prior to the War of Independence (1776), or to Australia. Most offenses were not serious but a continual offender, e.g. Alice Dalton of Patrington, may have been a candidate.

Where there are several Dalton entries in the same village or town they are clustered in chronological order. It allows the reader to glean some historical perspective into the values and lives of our Daltons in 18th Century England. Not much different than today!

Entries

Indictment
1772 - William Dalton of Preston, husbandman, and Richard Thomas of Sculcoates, yeoman. W. D. in bastardy case (Mary Johnson, South Cave, singlewoman).
Insolvent Debtor
1778 -William Dalton of Preston in Holderness farmer late of Rotterdam, Holland labourer (papers).
1784 - William Dalton of Preston -non repair of Magdalene Lane (Preston)
A. V.
1782 - William Dalton of Preston - his award for apprehending a vagrant
Bastardy, Recognizances and Orders
No Date, Marmaduke Dalton followed by
1807 Emma Dalton
A. V.
1783 John Dalton, constable of Preston - for conveying prisoners to York Castle
Alehouse Recognizance
1793-1826 - Certificate of ministers and inhabitants supporting applications for licenses of several including John Dalton of Preston
Petition
1710 - Petition of John Dalton, son of William Dalton of Pattrington, formerly in the navy and wounded - for relief
A.V.
1756 - John Dalton, Beverley, Pattrington
1757 - John Dalton of Patrington to give evidence
A. V.
Indictment
1764 - Alice Dalton of Patrington, spinster, theft of a linen shift and apron at Hollym.
1764 - account off John Sanderson, clothing for Alice Dalton
1764/65 - attendance in prosecution of Alice Dalton of Patrington
1772 - Uklom Russell and William Garbent both of Holmpton, Farmers - bastardy (Ellis Dalton of Pattrington, singlewoman) (Could Ellis be Alice?)
Bastardy Case
1763 - John Dalton, yeoman, Kilnwick, North Dalton - testimony
F. of R.
1769 - Robert Dalton, bricklayer and William Dalton, yeoman, both of Kilnwick. Robert Dalton in bastardy case (Mary Rattel of Kilnwick, singlewoman).
1795 - John Dalton, Jr. et al of Kilnwick to give evidence in prosecution
Indictments
1798 - Theft of property belonging to Mary Dalton and Mary Holmes of Sculcoates
Recognizances.
1748 - Stephen Dalton et al of York, baker, for their appearance
1735 -William Dalton, et al York, baker, to give evidence
Indictment
1751 assault on John Dalton of Bilton
Indictment
1717 - conviction of William Dalton of Paul, labourer, for swearing one profane oath
1754 - assault on Isabel Dalton, widow at Paul
Recognizance
1756 - Leonard Dalton of Market Weighton, yeoman
1765 - Leonard Dalton, Jr. of Market Weighton, yeoman, assault
Recognizance
1736 - Sam. Dalton, Derby - letter to Sir Francis Boynton - repair of highway called Marfleete Row, Sutton in Holderness
Indictment
1738 - Samuel Dalton of Sutton - non-repair of highway through lane adjacent to Sutton East Row
1744 - Samuel Dalton of Danby, esq. et al- non-repair of Marfleet Row (Danby may be Derby or vice versa).
Recognizances
1717- William Dalton of Scefling et al to appear and keep the peace toward Mark Johnson of Ryall
1738 - William Dalton of Scefling - innocent of charge
1738 - William Dalton for theft of beans at Scefling
1738 - William Dalton of Scefling, husbandman, theft of beans at Scefling, property of James Bee
1738 - James Bee of Scefling, gent. to prosecute William Dalton
Recognizance
1737 - Jane Dalton singlewoman for theft of clothing at Garton
1739 - Jane Dalton, servant to Thomas Foster, theft of clothing, information by Ann Foster
Recognizances
1744 - John Dalton of Burton Pidsey, weaver - to give evidence
1744 - John Dalton of Burton Pidsey, weaver et al gave information on a stolen shirt
1744 - John Dalton of Burton Pidsey, weaver et al - examinations relating to stolen shirt
1768 - Thomas Camige and John Firth both of York, barbers, in bastard case (Ann Dalton of York singlewoman).
1780 - Robert Dalton, et al of North Cave, assault
Recognizance
1706 - Jonathan Dalton of Welnick et al -witness - for indidual rescued from the constable of Easington for military service.
Insolvent Debtors at York Castle
1804 - Stephen Dalton, yeoman of Bridlington

compiled by Millicent Craig

Source For "Transported" Records.
A query to the GOONS (Guild of One Name Studies) as to where to find court proceedings of those Daltons who were transported to Australia or America brought the following response. Old Bailey Proceedings, 1714-1834 are available at many large libraries.
"A complete set of the whole proceedings on the King's Commission of the Peace, and Oyer and Terminer, and Gaol-Delivery for Newgate held for the city of London and the county of Middlesex at Justice Hall in the Old Bailey, for the years 1714-1834"
Part 1: 1714-1793, reels 1-19
Part 2: 1793-1834, reels 20-38
38 microfilm reels, 35 mm., Harvester Microfilm, 1984
"The main source for this film edition is the unique set possessed by Harvard University Library. An occasional gap has been filled by issues from the Guildhall Library collection in London.

Editor's note. Our appreciation is extended to Roger Goacher of the GOONS for this valuable information.

Fremantle Prison
James Dalton, b. 1814, possibly Wales, was convicted of a felony in Great Britain and sentenced to 10 years transportation on 6 Jan 1848. He arrived on the Ship Pyrenees on 28 June 1851. Dalton was unmarried and a laborer. He escaped from King George Sound. His sentence was at Fremantle Prison.

Thomas Dalton, b. 1826 was unmarried, and his occupation was tin man. He had a prior conviction and was sentenced in 1859 for ten years He arrived in Australia on the ship Palmerston on 11 Feb 1861 and received his cetificate of freedom from York on 25 July 1873. He worked as a tin man and as a general servant.

"The Irish in Australia" by Patrick O'Farrell
NSW University Press, 1986
Dalton Excerpts
.
p.81 Melbourne. Sergeant Dalton "that kindly, good-natured man from Kilkenny".
p. 120 Sydney. Thomas Dalton, merchant, left 347,000 pounds on his death in 1900.
p. 227 NSW. "The Dalton brothers were two of the wealthiest men in NSW." Thomas owned a large import business in Sydney; James was a well-to-do farmer at Orange. Two Redmond brothers married into this Dalton family. John Redmond married Johanna, half sister to the Dalton brothers in September 1883 at North Sydney. William married Eleanor, the daughter of James. a description of the animosity towards the Redmonds is discussed in this paragraph.
pgs. 260, 275, 276. Maurice Dalton had taken part in the Fenian rebellion in Ireland in 1867 and at age 83, he is pictured with "The Irish Seven" in Darlinghurst Gaol, 1918.

Police Correspondence Records
Submitted by K. T. Mapstone

WALSH, Mrs. P. of Syracuse New York, USA wrote in 1897 regarding tracing Columb DALTON, who was born in Tullamore King County Ireland, son of Francis & Ann DALTON nee McDERMOTT. Columb was living in Melborne in 1855 with John DALEY and his son Anthony, and was leaving for the Mount Blackwood gold diggings. His mother never heard from him again, and now her grandchildren have taken up the search. Police establish a William DALTON was at Blackwood many years before, but could not locate Columb. 5 pages of correspondence
Source: http://members.ozemail.com.au/~hdharris/missingpeople.html

Canada

Daltons from Ireland and England migrated to the Eastern Provinces of Canada. St. John's. Newfoundland was a common destination. Diane Jackman of St. Johns has spent hours copying BMD records in dusty archives and her files of Daltons in St. Johns and in the Exploits area are the most extensive to be found anywhere. Extractions from other Canadian Provinces will be appreciated and duly recognized. The last file on the site contains details of 101 Canadians who emigrated to the states and were enumerated in the 1880 Census. By including sponsors, witnesses, etc. there are over 1100 names in this file to browse. We have already had reports from Daltons who have found relatives in this file.

England

Yorkshire County
Dalton records from over 25 Yorkshire Parishes are contained in this file and include birth, marriage and burial records. They may not be complete and do not represent all of the Yorkshire Parishes.

Concentration on Yorkshire as the initial English County offering is an attempt to help our American Daltons who believe that their ancestry lies in Yorkshire. As you browse the data it will become clear how many Johns and Williams there are in the family of Daltons. We hope that you can make a connection with your family.

In addition to the Yorkshire Parish files, York Cemetery Burial data, (publicly unavailable) is listed. Details contained within this Burial data along with the social statements made in the East Riding Court Cases allow insights into the life and times of our Dalton ancestors in 18th and 19th Century England. The file contains over 1400 names.

United States

Idaho
Gold was first discovered in the Idaho region in 1860 and the migration began. The U. S. Congress made it a territory in 1863 and gave it statehood in 1890. Daltons were miners and farmers. From the data it is apparent that their presence began to increase at the turn of the 20th Century. Dalton investments in land commenced in 1897 and many were owners of quarter sections (160 acres) that were most likely devoted to crop farming. The larger acreages were more likely to be livestock ranches.

There are 225 names listed in this data but most birth and marriage records can only be obtained at the record office. Birth dates however are present in several of the files. You will recognize the names of members of the Mormon community as you browse the files.

The Dakotas
North and South Dakota data was combined into one file because the data was sparse. There are 100 entries for the two states.

North Dakota, part of the Dakota Territory, gained statehood in 1889. Prior to that time settlers had flocked into the Red River Valley area that borders Minnesota. They were known as the "bonanza farms" and wheat was a primary crop on farms that averaged 750 acres. Cattle was also a major industry. Daltons listed in the 1885 Census were located in the counties and towns that are part of the Valley.

South Dakota also gained statehood in 1889. In the 1885 Census the Dalton presence as miners is noticeable. However large farming operations, crop and livestock, were major industries in South Dakota.

Editor's note. We welcome any and all data for countries or states and the submitter will be given due recognition. To read the above files go to: http://daltondata.0pi.com