Wade & Webb Family History

Edward Wade Jr.1788–?

England

Edward Wade Jr. is the earliest known man of this Wade line, born in England in 1788 and the father of five children born in New York between 1816 and 1824, among them James M. Wade, the Williamsburg builder. No record of his own life has yet been found: what is known of him comes from the family tree and from the lives of his children.

On this page
  1. Family Record
  2. Life
  3. Timeline
  4. Open questions
  5. Searches made
  6. Notes

Birth

  1. 1788 England

Marriages

  1. Date unknown spouse unknown

Death and burial

  1. Date unknown Death: place not recorded

Family

Parents
Not recorded
Spouse
Spouse unknown
Children
Edward Wade III 1818–?
James M Wade 1816–1876
Parkineson Wade 1822–?
Williams Wade 1824–?
Mary Ann Wade 1820–?

Line of descent Wade line

  1. Edward Wade Jr.
  2. James M Wade, son
  3. William Henry Wade, son
  4. William Henry Wade Jr, son
  5. Frank Edward Wade, son
  6. William Albert Webb Wade, son

3rd great-grandfather of Webb Wade, from whom this history is traced. Why Webb Wade?

Life

Edward Wade Jr. was born in England in 1788, according to the FamilySearch tree, which attaches no source to the date or place and records him as deceased without a date or place of death.1 The tree names neither of his parents.1 Inference The suffix "Jr." suggests that his father was also an Edward, though it was sometimes used only to tell apart two men of one name in the same place.1 No wife is recorded for him in the tree.2

The tree gives him five children, all born in New York: James M. (1816), Edward (1818), Mary Ann (1820), Parkineson (1822) and Williams (1824).2 None of these births has a source attached.2 Inference The children's births in New York from 1816 suggest that he had left England by about 1815, but neither the date of his arrival nor his residence in New York has been found in any record.3 Mary Ann is recorded in the tree as having died in Iowa, without a date.4

His son James M. Wade, born on 12 February 1816, is the best-documented of the children.5 James married Eliza Ann, was living at Williamsburg, Kings County, by 1850, and was remembered at his widow's death in 1915 as "one of the pioneer builders and real estate brokers in the Eastern District" of Brooklyn; he died in Brooklyn on 1 April 1876.6 The building trade passed to James's son William Henry Wade, named in 1876 as "the architect and builder" of a house for his brother Dr. John E. Wade.7

Edward Wade Jr. has proved hard to find in the records.8 A search of the Chronicling America newspaper collection for "Edward Wade" between 1803 and 1869 returned 498 pages; the first ten were read, and every identifiable hit concerned Edward Wade (1802–1866), a congressman from Cleveland, Ohio.8 A New-York Daily Tribune list of unclaimed letters at the New York post office on 22 June 1847 includes a "Wade, Edward M", but his middle initial is not known and the entry cannot be identified with him.8 A Find a Grave search for an Edward Wade born about 1788 produced four candidates, buried in London, in Erie County, Pennsylvania, and in Illinois, and one of another surname; none is likely to be him, since his children were born and lived in New York.9 The New York City and Brooklyn death and burial records, the census of 1850 and the Wade family plot at Cypress Hills Cemetery, where his daughter-in-law Eliza Ann was buried in 1915, are the places still to search.10

Timeline

  1. 1788BirthEngland

Open questions

  • Death date and place unknown. Born 1788 in England; children born in New York 1816–1824. Nothing yet places his death. New York City or Brooklyn death and burial records, the 1850 census (he would be about 62) and the Cypress Hills plot are the places to look before any Find a Grave search can be judged (the four candidates found 2026-11-08 are all elsewhere and none likely).

  • The New-York Daily Tribune of 22 June 1847 (p. 4) lists "Wade, Edward M" among unclaimed letters at the New York post office. His middle initial is not known; noted only as a possible pointer to a middle name.

  • Newspaper searches for him ran without a state because the tree has no residence event; rerun restricted to New York once the plan can take the children's birthplaces as a residence proxy.

  • Family tradition, 1902. Ross's History of Long Island (1902): Dr. John E. Wade was "a grandson of John Wade and great-grandson of Edward Wade, who became the founder of the family in America, emigrating to this country from England about 1800" (1902). Does the tree's Edward Wade Jr. (born England 1788, father of James M.) belong one generation higher, or is there an Edward Sr.? Passenger and naturalization records about 1800-1820 and the 1810-1830 New York City censuses for an Edward Wade are the places to test it.

Searches made

  1. 2026-11-08Find a Grave search: Edward Wade, b. 1788 ±3, d. ? ±3: 4 resultsbest: [Edward Wade (1787 – 13 Jan 1860), City of London Cemetery and Crematorium, Newham, London Borough of Newham, Greater London, England](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/301839232/edward-wade); score 6 (medium, before review)
  2. 2026-11-08Chronicling America: "Edward Wade", 1803–1869498 pages; first: [Whip & spur (Newport, N.H.), 1856-10-25, p. 3](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn84023720/1856-10-25/ed-1/?sp=3); [The Burlington weekly hawk-eye (Burlington [Iowa]), 1861-01-12, p. 4](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn84027060/1861-01-12/ed-1/?sp=4); [Kenosha tribune & telegraph (Kenosha, Wis.), 1858-10-28, p. 2](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn85040308/1858-10-28/ed-1/?sp=2)
  3. 2026-11-08Assessment: Chronicling America: "Edward Wade", 1803–1869498 pages; the first 10 reviewed from snippets, none is this person. Every identifiable hit is Edward Wade (1802–1866), Republican congressman from Cleveland, Ohio, brother of Senator Benjamin F. Wade: election returns (Whip & Spur 1856-10-25; Kenosha Tribune 1858-10-28), the 1861 threat story (Burlington Hawk-Eye), and political pages in Illinois, Virginia, Washington, Mississippi and Louisiana papers 1840–1855. Hits 11–498 not reviewed; most will be the congressman. The search ran without a state because the tree has no residence event for him; his children were born in New York 1816–1824, so a New York (and England-free) restriction would have been the useful query. Separately, "Wade, Edward M" appears in a New-York post-office unclaimed-letter list (Tribune 1847-06-22 p. 4, found under James M. Wade); the middle initial of Edward Wade Jr. is unknown and the entry cannot be identified.
  4. 2026-11-08Assessment: Find a Grave search: Edward Wade, b. 1788 ±3, d. ? ±3 (candidate lines only; Find a Grave not contacted)None likely. Without a death year or place the score rests on a common name and a birth year within one year, which is not evidence. 301839232 Edward Wade (1787–13 Jan 1860), City of London Cemetery: the tree has his children born in New York 1816–1824 and nothing suggests a return to England; not likely. 11256361 Edward Wade (1789–1862), Hoag Cemetery, Erie Co., Pennsylvania: no New York or Brooklyn connection; not likely. 19083276 Edward Wade (1791–1884), Plymouth, Illinois: not likely. 285549531 Edward Weyman Wadeson: different surname; not. A Find a Grave search for him needs a death place first (the New York City or Brooklyn burial records, or a Wade family plot at Cypress Hills, where Eliza Ann Wade was buried in 1915).
  5. 2026-11-09Chronicling America: "Edward Wade", New York, 1803–186947 pages; first: [New-York daily tribune (New-York [N.Y.]), 1854-12-06, p. 5](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn83030213/1854-12-06/ed-1/?sp=5); [Frederick Douglass' paper (Rochester, N.Y.), 1852-10-08, p. 3](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn84026366/1852-10-08/ed-1/?sp=3); [The North star (Rochester, N.Y.), 1848-07-21, p. 1](https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn84026365/1848-07-21/ed-1/?sp=1)
  6. 2026-11-09Assessment: "Edward Wade", New York papers 1803-1869 (state taken from his children's births; 47 pages)The pages checked (New-York Daily Tribune 1854, 1858; Frederick Douglass' Paper; The North Star) are Edward Wade, congressman from Ohio (committee lists, Ohio election returns), as in the pilot. No sign of Edward Wade Jr. in Manhattan. Chronicling America's New York titles are Manhattan dailies and upstate papers; the Brooklyn and Long Island papers are elsewhere (Brooklyn Newsstand, NYS Historic Newspapers, Fulton History).
  7. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Edward Wade", New York6603 pages; first: [Journal, 1855, p. ](https://archive.org/details/journal06housgoog?q=%22Edward%20Wade%22); [Six years of drama at the Castle Square Theatre, with portraits of the members of the company and complete programs of all plays produced, May 3, 1897-May 3, 1903, 1903, p. ](https://archive.org/details/sixyearsdramaat01frengoog?q=%22Edward%20Wade%22); [Six years of drama at the Castle Square Theatre, with portraits of the members of the company and complete programs of all plays produced, May 3, 1897-May 3, 1903, 1903, p. ](https://archive.org/details/sixyearsofdramaa00frenuoft?q=%22Edward%20Wade%22)
  8. 2026-11-09Internet Archive assessment: "Edward Wade", New York (6,603 pages)First 20 reviewed: a House journal of 1855 (Edward Wade, congressman of Ohio), Castle Square Theatre programmes (an actor, 1897-1903) and other namesakes. Not him.
  9. 2026-11-09Internet Archive assessment: Ross, *History of Long Island* (1902), found under LVPD-1F4RELEVANT (family tradition): Dr. John E. Wade (his grandson in the tree) is called "a grandson of John Wade and great-grandson of Edward Wade, who became the founder of the family in America, emigrating to this country from England about 1800". The tree has Edward Wade Jr., born 1788 in England, as James M.'s father; the sketch has an emigrant Edward a generation further back, with a John between. Not a match to him as the tree has him; a lead. Record [1902](../documents/1902-ross-history-of-long-island-wade-physicians.md).
  10. 2026-11-09Internet Archive hits assessed: 1 searchNo match; a family tradition of an emigrant Edward Wade about 1800 found (1902).
  11. 2026-11-09DPLA: "Edward Wade"20 pages; first: [Stannard, John Edward Wade - England (National Archives at Chicago), n.d., p. ](http://catalog.archives.gov/id/147160156); [Alien Registration- Lizzotte, Edward (Wade, Aroostook County) (Maine State Archives), 1940-01-01, p. ](http://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/31601); [Edward Wade, born at Londonderry, Ireland, 1819. (The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection. The New York Public Library), 1900-12-22, p. ](https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/0d000030-e264-0130-f915-58d385a7b928)
  12. 2026-11-09New York Times: "Edward Wade", 1851–18694 pages; first: [New York Times: Political Miscellany., 1860-08-08, p. 2](https://www.nytimes.com/1860/08/08/archives/political-miscellany.html); [New York Times: Political Miscellany.; HON. ELI THAYER., 1860-08-17, p. 2](https://www.nytimes.com/1860/08/17/archives/political-miscellany-hon-eli-thayer.html); [New York Times: OUR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENCE.; THE REVOLUTIONARY DESIGNS UPON THE CAPITAL -PREPARATIONS TO MEET THE DANGER MR. LINCOLN'S INAGURATION THE PRESIDENT'S CABINET., 1861-01-04, p. 1](https://www.nytimes.com/1861/01/04/archives/our-washington-correspondence-the-revolutionary-designs-upon-the.html)
  13. 2026-11-09DPLA assessment: "Edward Wade" (20 hits; 10 cached)All namesakes: Edward Wade, born at Londonderry, Ireland, 1819 (NYPL portrait plate from Stuart C. Wade's *Wade Genealogy*, 1900); Hon. Edward Wade of Ohio, congressman (speeches of 1854 and 1856); Revolutionary pension files of two Edward Wades of New Hampshire; an 1838 private bill for an Edward Wade; John Edward Wade Stannard; Gerald Edward Wade; Wade, Maine. None was born in England in 1788. Not him.
  14. 2026-11-09DPLA assessment: 1 searchNo match.
  15. 2026-11-09New York Times assessment: "Edward Wade", 1851–1869 (4 hits)8 Aug 1860 and 17 Aug 1860, p. 2, "Political Miscellany" (the second on Hon. Eli Thayer), and 4 Jan 1861, p. 1, "Our Washington Correspondence": Hon. Edward Wade, the Republican congressman from Ohio (inference from the dates and subjects). Not him. 28 May 1864, p. 8, "To the People." (https://www.nytimes.com/1864/05/28/archives/to-the-people.html): a public card or appeal naming an Edward Wade. POSSIBLE (low): nothing ties it to him, and he would have been 76. not read: nytimes.com refused the fetch, so only the headline and index entry were seen. Low priority for Matt (free).
  16. 2026-11-09New York Times assessment: 1 searchNo match. One possible (1864, low).

Notes

  1. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LVPD-PDX: birth 1788, England; deceased, no date or place; no parents; no sources attached back to the text
  2. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LVPD-PDX: family with no wife recorded; children James M Wade (1816), Edward Wade III (1818), Mary Ann Wade (1820), Parkineson Wade (1822), Williams Wade (1824) FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L26L-FVT (their page): birth 1818, New York FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L26L-X15 (their page): birth 1820, New York FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L26L-F3K (their page): birth 1822, New York FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L26L-FPZ (their page): birth 1824, New York back to the text
  3. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LVPD-PDX: children born in New York 1816–1824 Research log, searches made: open question: nothing yet places his death back to the text
  4. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L26L-X15 (their page): death place Iowa, United States, no date back to the text
  5. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LVPD-4ZV (their page): birth 12 Feb 1816, New York back to the text
  6. "United States, Census, 1850", FamilySearch, James Wade, 1850. Record: James Wade, 1850 census FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LVPD-4ZV (their page): residence 1850, Williamsburg, Kings, New York; death 1 Apr 1876, Brooklyn "New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949", FamilySearch, James M. Wade, 1 Apr 1876. Record: James M. Wade, 1 Apr 1876, New York City Municipal Deaths 1915-12-16-eliza-ann-wade-obit-standard-union: widow of James M. Wade, one of the pioneer builders and real estate brokers in the Eastern District back to the text
  7. 1876-07-10-william-h-wade-built-house-for-brother-john-e-wade: Mr. William H. Wade was the architect and builder back to the text
  8. Research log, searches made: Chronicling America, Edward Wade, 1803–1869: 498 pages, first ten reviewed, all the Cleveland congressman; Tribune 1847-06-22 p. 4, Wade, Edward M, cannot be identified back to the text
  9. Research log, searches made: Find a Grave search, Edward Wade, b. 1788 ±3: four results, none likely back to the text
  10. Research log, searches made: open question: New York City or Brooklyn death and burial records, the 1850 census and the Cypress Hills plot 1915-12-19-eliza-ann-wade-buried: burial in the family plot in Cypress Hills Cemetery back to the text
Every FamilySearch record attached to Edward Wade Jr. (0)