Research Reports

Part of the Society’s mission is to conduct research to gather Seeley information for the education and benefit of the members.  The Board of Directors determines research objectives and priorities, and commissions professional researchers to pursue lines of inquiry of particular interest to the Society and it’s membership.  Results of that research is provided on this page.

Most of the reports on this page provide the researcher’s methodology and resource citations.  They often include suggestions for further research as well, so whether a lot or little was discovered, knowing this information can help you focus your time with resources that haven’t been explored instead of duplicating effort.

Seelye Research Center Documents

All Seeley research is housed and available to the public at the Seelye Research Center (SRC) in Abilene, Kansas. Learn more about the SRC and SGS family history resources available there.

This is what it would look like if we didn’t use the Accordion style above.

Part of the Society’s mission is to conduct research to gather Seeley information for the education and benefit of the members.  The Board of Directors determines research objectives and priorities, and commissions professional researchers to pursue lines of inquiry of particular interest to the Society and it’s membership.  Results of that research is provided on this page.

Research on Immigrant Robert Seeley (SGS #1)

Robert Seeley:  b. 1602 d. October 11, 1667 (New York, NY)
Sailing with the Winthrop Fleet from England, Robert immigrated and settled in the Massachusetts Colony in 1630, making him one of the first known Seeleys in North America.  He is the beginning of one of two primary descendant lines of Seeleys on the continent.  The following research into Robert’s ancestry, therefore, is of special interest to the Society.

March 1987           Access Resource
The English Ancestry of Robert Seeley (1602-1666)
Author:  Alan J. Phipps, Accredited Genealogist
Summary:  Genealogical research instigated by the Utah branch of the descendants of Robert Seeley into his ancestry has added many new details and changed still others to the account of his origin by Ralph M. Seeley, published in July 1962 in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register. The research has been conducted intermittently 1976-86 by myself, an Accredited Genealogist, using the microfilmed and printed records of the Genealogical Society of Utah and by personal visit to record repositories in London and Huntingdon, England.

September 2007    Access Resource
What We Know About Robert Seeley
Author:  Kathie Olsen (former SGS President)
Summary: Robert was off on new adventures all his life!  He left his native Huntingdonshire to take up an apprenticeship in London.  He left that life to join the Winthrop Fleet and come to the new world.  He settled in Watertown, Mass. in 1630… and from there lead adventure-filled life.

October 2012          Access Resource
Excerpts from the book:  The Eel-Catcher’s Travels: Robert Seeley 1602-1667
Author:  Carol Seeley Scott
Summary: Robert Seeley, one of the founders of Wethersfield, left no written records of his own from which today we can judge his character and personality, but from his life we can infer a number of attributes.

Latest Research – Accessible to Members Only
Become a Member:  Join Us
Already a Member?  Sign In (if you haven’t already)

May 1, 2019           
Robert Seeley’s Ancestry Examined, May 2019
Author:  Apryl Cox, Accredited Genealogist
Summary:  The objectives of this project were to continue to check the accuracy of the ancestry of Robert Seeley (b. 1602) as seen on FamilySearch Family Tree, obtaining documentation for each generation. Beginning with verifying Robert’s great-grandparents, William Seeley and Elizabeth Burr.

Research on Immigrant Obadiah Seeley (SGS #4)

Obadiah Seely:  b. 1614 (England)  d. Aug. 25, 1657 (Stamford, CT)
Obadiah has been established living in Stamford, CT in the 1640’s.  He is the beginning of one of two primary ancestral lines of Seeley’s in North America (the other being Robert Seeley (SGS# 1)).  As such, Obadiah’s ancestry and lineage is of significant interest to the Society.

Note:  For many years, the Society thought immigrant Obadiah Seeley was related to immigrant Robert Seeley who apparently arrived in New England with the Winthrop Fleet in 1630. However, DNA analysis of descendants of both Obadiah Seeley and Robert Seeley’s son, Nathaniel Seeley, indicate Obadiah and Robert were not closely related.

1998-1999
Hart Research Outline on Obadiah (Five Parts)
Author:  Fredrick C. Hart Jr., Certified Genealogist

Part 1 – Dec. 29, 1998: Advance the understanding of the career of the first Obadiah Seeley in Stamford, particularly concerning any clues to his origin. Specifically, compile a comprehensive listing of all primary records in which he is named.

Part 2 – Feb. 29 1999: Determine: (1) Records relating to a relationship between Obadiah Seeley and John Lawre(n)son, and (2) Records relating to a relationship between Obadiah Seeley and the family of John Miller.

Part 3 – Mar. 13 1999: Determine: (3) If the parish register of St. Martin, Birmingham, Warwickshire contains names that are associated with other Stamford settlers, and (4) If any clues to the origin of Obadiah Seeley result from examining the known origins of other Stamford settlers.

Part 4 – Jun. 25 1999: Investigate the identity of Obadiah’s wife Mary, formerly the wife of John Miller of Wethersfield and Stamford.

Part 5 – Dec. 31 1999: Continue research on Obadiah’s English origin.

April 27, 2006             Access Resource
Stott Research Outline on Obadiah Seeley
Author:  Clifford L. Stott, Certified Genealogist, A.G.
Summary:  Observations and recommendations for research into Obadiah after a review of the materials sent by the Seeley Genealogical Society.

July 22, 2006              Access Resource
Stott Research Report on Obadiah Seeley
Author:  Clifford L. Stott, Certified Genealogist, A.G., FASG
Summary: This report discusses the results of the research objectives described in Stott’s research outline dated April 27, 2006. The results were largely unproductive. No additional evidence of any real value was found. This report discusses what was done and provides suggestions for other research.

November 2007          Access Resource
Inventory of the Estate of Obadiah Seeley (SGS #4)
Author:  Clifford L. Stott, Certified Genealogist, A.G., FASG
Summary:  Searching for more proof that the Obadiah in records in England are for the same Obadiah who appears in New England records starting in the 1640’s.

February 2008            Access Resource
Inventory of the Estate of Obadiah Seeley (SGS#17)
Author:  Karl Weiler, Former SGS Chief Genealogist (Interpreted by Clifford L. Stott, Certified Genealogist, A.G., FASG)
Summary:  Obadiah (SGS #17) is the oldest son of Obadiah (SGS #4).

Latest Research – Accessible to Members Only
Become a Member:  Join Us
Already a Member?  Sign In  (if you haven’t already)

February 15, 2016       
Obadiah Seeley, December 2015
Author:  Apryl Cox, Accredited Genealogist
Summary:  The objectives of this project were to (1) determine if Sarah Seelie was christened at St. Martin’s Birmingham parish or at Sheldon parish in Warwickshire, (2) determine when and where Obadiah Bruen (husband of Sarah Seelie) died, and (3) pursue the Augustus Seeley line in New York.

August 11, 2017           
Obadiah Seeley Lineage, August 2017
Author:  Apryl Cox, Accredited Genealogist
Summary:  The objective of this project was to continue research on Obadiah Seeley’s ancestry in England by (1) continuing with probate research in an attempt to prove or disprove Thomas and Elizabeth Bissell as the parents of William Bissell (b. abt. 1547), (2) seeking the parents of Alice Chamber who was probably born in the late 1540s or early 1550s, and (3) locating the marriage of William Seeley and Anne or Alice Bloxish, and continuing to extend their lines.

April 17, 2018             
A Genealogy Report for Obadiah Seeley
Author:  Compiled from a GEDCOM File Created by Apryl Cox, Accredited Genealogist
Summary:  Ancestors of Obadiah Seeley including the Birch, Bissell, Bloxish, Chamber, Collins, and Greve families.

Research on Augustus Seeley

Latest Research – Accessible to Members Only
Become a Member:  Join Us
Already a Member?  Sign In (if you haven’t already)

April 19, 2016             
Augustus Seeley
Author:  Apryl Cox, Accredited Genealogist
Summary: The objectives of this project were to (1) locate the military record that stated Augustus Seeley was born in Boston, (2) seek records in Massachusetts that might prove Seeleys lived in Boston about the time Augustus Seeley was purportedly born there, (3) trace the men identified in the previous report who are candidates to be Augustus Seeley’s father, (4) search for records in Elizabethtown, Leeds, Canada, that may provide information about Augustus Seeley’s living relations or his ancestry, and (5) consider the possibility that Seeley families may have lived in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, in the mid-1700s as Berkshire borders Rensselaer County, New York (where the Brisbins lived). The first four objectives were addressed during this project, but only the first objective was fully met. The other objectives require additional research time.

August 1, 2018           
In Search of Augustus Seeley
Author:  Bruce Murduck
Summary: Bruce Murduck, a family-historian who specializes in Ontario research, has researched land records, Loyalist records, etc., for SGS. This first report deals mostly with Augustus Seeley. “Augustus Seeley, United Empire Loyalist, seems a very elusive character…”

May 25, 2020             
Land Title Transfer Records Pertaining to Augustus Seeley’s Land Ownership in Lancaster Township, Glengarry County, Ontario, Canada
Author:  Bruce Murduck
Summary:  In this report, Murduck attempts to find references to Augustus Seeley in Canadian land records.

Early Lists of Loyalists

Latest Research – Accessible to Members 
Become a Member:  Join Us
Already a Member?  Sign In (if you haven’t already)

August 1, 2020           
Early Lists of Loyalists in Upper Canada
Author:  Bruce Murduck
Summary: Beginning in 1796, all Loyalists residing in what had become, after 1792, the Province of Upper Canada, were required to appear before a magistrate, proclaim that they had adhered to the royal standard during the American Rebellion, and swear an oath of allegiance. Seeleys who did so from 1796 to 1803 were recorded and are listed in this report.

Editor’s Note: Bruce Murduck, a family-historian who specializes in Ontario research, has researched land records, Loyalist records, etc., for SGS. His first report, carried in the August 2018 SGS Newsletter dealt mostly with Augustus Seeley. In this report Murduck lists early Seeley Loyalists in Upper Canada.

Seelye Research Center Documents

All Seeley research is housed and available to the public at the Seelye Research Center (SRC) in Abilene, Kansas. Learn more about the SRC and SGS family history resources available there.