The forbush family

Edward W. Forbush was a vest shoe leather dealer who was born around 1834 in New Hampshire. His home would be in Boston, Massachusetts around 1870 when we was 36 years old. He had a spouse named Mary J. Forbush and three children Ada, Mary J. and Maria Forbush. His father, Jonathan Forbush, was one of the prominent enterprising merchants in Boston. He was born in 1802 and during the year 1828, his name appears on the Boston Directory for the first time. He would stay in Boston for twenty years and in that time would be extremely successful. He was also one of the original members of the Shoe and Leather Dealers' Bank.

Newspaper article on Jonathan Forbush as a prominent enterprising merchant in Boston.
Historical map with a close-up on Edward W. Forbush's property

The picture to the top right is the location on the Atlascope map where the Forbush family (more importantly Edward W. Forbush) had real estate. The Forbush name does not appear on the map until 1882, but before that time there was still a label for shoes. Before the Forbush family even took over this part of the parcel, there was already a shoe vender in the location. From 1882-1908, the Forbush name was on this small part of the parcel. This is the bottom portion of the parcel which is just their building with the 158 Hanover Street address. Curiosity about this small building came up so it was decided to explore it further.

works cited

Year: 1870; Census Place: Boston Ward 6, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: M593_643; Page: 34A https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/27006870:7163?tid=&pid=&queryId=7e850eb6a7bf7170c94c96120a8ce4cb&_phsrc=ude10&_phstart=successSource

Book Title: Forbes and Forbush Genealogy The Descendants of Daniel Forbush, Who Came From Scotland About the Ye Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016.