January 28, 2021
Pages 1771
Whole Number 91
MINA SPARKS (OR JEMIMA),
DAUGHTER OF AMOS AND MARGARET SPARKS
In the last issue of the Quarterly (June, 1975, Whole No. 90, page 1737) we published a query from Mrs. Carol R. Austin requesting information on her husband's ancestor, Mina Sparks, who was born August 7, 1849, in Canada. The names of Mina's parents were not known to Mrs. Austin, but she knew from family records that the family had moved from Canada to the state of Kansas when Mina was quite small.
Following the publication of the query, Dr. Paul E. Sparks identified the family to which we are sure that Mina Sparks belonged in the 1860 census of Kickapoo Township, Leavenworth County, Kansas. The census taker recorded the family on August 7, 1860. The parents were 60.8.4.1.3.2 Amos and Margaret Sparks; the daughter named Jemima Sparks, who was listed as eleven years old in 1860 must surely have been the "Mina" Sparks who was born August 7, 1849 (thus eleven years old in 1860). Her nickname must have originally been "Mima" from Jemima. The record of this family on the 1860 census is as follows:
Kickapoo Township, Leavenworth County, Kansas (Post Office: Kickapoo) August 7, 1860. (page 797) (family number 1900)
| Sparks, Amos (60.8.4.1.3.2) | male | 36 | Laborer | (born) Canada |
| " Margaret | female | 37 | " | |
| " Lucetta | " | 15 | " | |
| " Mary A. | " | 13 | " | |
| " Jemima | " | 11 | Michigan | |
| " Amos | male | 8 | " | |
| " Jennie | female | 6 | " | |
| " Reuben | male | 4 | " | |
| " Harriet | female | 11/12 | Kansas |