Jennie Louise Van Buren.....or was she?

Few family mysteries have captivated me as much as the story of my 2^nd great-grandmother, Jennie Louise Van Buren Ham. My grandfather, Dr. Arthur Lloyd Irion, who first kindled the genealogy fire within me, was Jennie's grandson. He had vivid memories of her.  In a family filled with people of strong personalities, considerable talent and intellect, Jennie stuck out in his memory as being "difficult" and "possibly insane".  Whereas he told wonderful and warm stories of his other ancestors, when it came to Jennie, he would falter and seem to be at a loss for words.

Jennie Louise Van Buren as a young woman, about 1870

When I was a little girl, I first learned about Jennie while looking at the set of silver spoons that bear her monogram "LJVB".  According to family lore, the spoons were given to her as a wedding gift from her adoptive father.

The "Van Buren" spoons

The monogram "LJVB"

Jennie's adoptive father's last name was Van Buren. In fact, according to the story, his name was Martin Van Buren.  THE Martin Van Buren, who was the eighth president of the United States of America.  The guy who was famous, among other things, for sporting impressive muttonchops, and whose frequent references to his hometown as "Old Kinderhook" may have been the source for the term "OK".  That guy.

The story passed down through the generations was that Jennie, an orphan, was a hostess of sorts for the Van Burens.  They took pity on her, because she had no family left, and adopted her.  It's the thing fairy tales are made of.  The story of this benevolent president made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Martin Van Buren (public domain image)

Nobody embraced this adoptive ancestry more than my daughter, Beth. In elementary school, she had to complete several "president projects".  She chose Martin Van Buren for every single one. Part of presenting her findings was showing off the spoons we treasure so much.
Researching Martin Van Buren was a strange choice for a little girl, for sure.  Most kids went for Washington or Lincoln, but not Beth.  She reveled in the celebrity status of her fourth great-grandfather by adoption.  In third grade, she even dressed up as Martin Van Buren, muttonchops and all.

Beth, as Martin Van Buren, including muttonchops

There IS a certain resemblance.  It must be the muttonchops talking.

When I set out to learn more about Jennie Louise Van Buren, I didn't intend to wreck my daughter's infatuation with the president. Really! How could I have known that almost everything Jennie ever told anyone about her past wasn't true?  How could I have guessed that her family's story would make me cry one minute and howl with laughter the next?  But I am getting ahead of myself.  Jennie tried to hide, or at the very least, obscure where she came from, but she did leave a few, tiny clues.  Clues that I, her 2nd great-granddaughter, was thrilled to start to piece together.  Who doesn't love a good puzzle?

It all starts with a scrapbook:

Jennie Louise Van Buren Ham's Scrapbook

The label on the inside front cover has helpful instructions.

Label on inside cover of Jennie Louise Van Buren Ham's Scrapbook

In this book I would find the first hints to a story that is even more fascinating than being adopted by a president with infamous muttonchops ever could be.