NOTE: If Joseph drowned Jul 10, 1851, who is the father of Joseph, born abt 1855 and Julia, born about 1858??

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1850 United States Census - Summerfield, Monroe County, Michigan
Name: Joseph Reynolds
Age: 46
Estimated Birth Year: 1803
Birth Place: New York
Gender: Male
Home in 1850 (City,County,State): Bedford Township, Monroe, Michigan
Page: 287
Roll: M432_358
Name: Age: Occupation: Birthplace:
Joseph Reynolds 46 Laborer New York
Sarah 35 England
Jackson 17 Laborer Michigan
Mary 14 Michigan
Charles 10 Michigan
Clark 8 Michigan
Alzina 6 Michigan
Harriet 4 Michigan
Malvina 2 Michigan

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I found this in Ancestry.com and thought it was worth entering for future reference. It makes sense to me, however it needs verification.

"Joseph Reynolds (Born in 1804) Must Be Alexis/Alexander Reynolds

My cousin Clara French Evans told me information about her great-grandfather Alexis Reynolds, possibly also called Alexander, who was born in 1804 in New York. Clara was given the information by her mother, Sarah Barbara Peffer Oles, grandchild of Alexis. Alexis drown in Lake Erie, having gone fishing in a boat with his son Clark, from their home in Erie Township, Monroe County, Michigan. The story goes that the father stood up and fell overbaord with both oars, and Clark drifted to shore in the boat, with his father's body not washing to shore until 9 days later, during a thunderstorm.

According to Clara's information, Alexis had married Sarah Prior, from England, and they had 7 children; Clara knew the names of 6 of them: Alzina, who was her grandmother; Ruth Melvina, called Melvina; Harriet; Chalres J.,; Jackson; and Clark. The widowed mother and her children moved from Monroe County to Branch County, Michigan, where her husband had relatives.

Information I have found about a Joseph Reynolds nearly matches, being a son of an older Joseph F. Reynolds, born in 1781. The younger Joseph was also born in 1804 (like Alexis), married Sarah Prior or Pryor of England, and had 7 children, including a daughter named Mary, who Clara did not have by name, and with Melvina's name showed various spellings. I have also seen some reference to there being 2 younger children of Joseph and Sarah, but have seen no proof those Reynolds children were actually children of that couple, appearing in a Census record after Sarah was living with her brother-in-law and his family in Branch County, Michigan. The main difference, besides the names ALexis and Joseph, is that other familes show the father (Joseph) drowning near Erie, Pennsylvania, instead of off Erie, Monroe, Michigan, but have seen no proof to the death being off the Pennsylvania shore. Alexis and Sarah's family are shown living in Monroe County, Michigan, before he disappears from the Census records.

I am pretty convinced that the death of Sarah Prior Reynolds' husband occured by drowning in Lake Erie off the Michigan coast, and am very sure he (Alexis/Alexander) is the same man that others show as Joseph, son of Joseph. Some records even show Sarah's husband as Joseph F. Reynolds, Junior, which makes the idea of him choosing to go by a middle name quite a stretch, going from the middle initial "F" to Alexis, so I have to guess that either the son was named Joseph Alexis Reynolds, rather than Joseph F. Reynolds, Junior, or he simply somehow chose the name Alexis.

I would welcome comments regarding this story, entered onto ancestry.com on 7 September 2011."