Bunch Genealogy Resources, Part 1: Printed Family Histories

[Mark Bunch]

It's intended for "Bunch Genealogy Resources" to be a topic in 4 parts.  The first part will be for listing printed family history compilations (of any Bunch family line); the second part will be for online Bunch family history compilations; the third part will be for general genealogy source compendiums that contain significant references to individual Bunches (e.g., a compilation of Tennessee marriages from 1800 to 1850); the fourth part is to be for listing genealogy guides of a general nature that Bunch y-DNA project members (and other forum participants) have found to be especially useful.
Part I: Printed Bunch Family Histories.  The purpose of this first part of the Bunch Genealogy Resources topic is not only to list significant Bunch family history compilations, but also to provide some notes about the contents of each item as well as some guidance on how it might be accessed.  Access guidance may include references to a library or libraries holding the item, to bookstores that offer it for sale, and/or names and e-mail addresses of individuals who possess a copy of the item and are willing to do look-ups on request.

This opening post to the topic will be used to start off an initial list, then to maintain an up-to-date compilation of any additional items recommended by Bunch y-DNA project members or other forum participants.  You may request that an item be added to the list by replying to this post.  Corrections to the list can also be requested the same way.

The initial list is derived from the opening article in the April 1997 quarterly edition of the "Bunch Family Record" by DeWitt Bunch, to whom I owe a debt of gratitude.

• Title: Bunch Family, The
  • Author: Fawnie Marie Minnis
  • Publication Date: 1985
  • Availability: I haven't been able to find this in any national collection, although I imagine it might be held in the library of a local genealogical society or perhaps a Missouri state genealogy library, if there is such a thing.
  • Notes: According to DeWitt Bunch, this book contains stories about Mrs. Minnis' Bunch relatives in Carroll County, Missouri.

• Title: Bunch Story, The
  • Author: Dennis W. Casper
  • Publication Date: 1992
  • Availability: I would be happy to supply a scanned pdf file of this item to anyone who might be interested (contact Mark Bunch, marktherustic AT hotmail.com).
  • Notes: This item is comprised of two lengthy letters that my second cousin, Dennis Casper, wrote to a couple of genealogical correspondants.  Although he takes some pains to trace the family line all the way back to Louisa County, Virginia, this is essentially a genealogy and history of the Bunches of Coos County, Oregon.  This was the piece that sparked my own interest in family history research.

• Title: Bunches of Coos Bay, Oregon, The
  • Author: William Herschel Bunch
  • Publication Date: About 1967
  • Availability: I would be happy to supply a scanned pdf file of this item to anyone who might be interested (contact Mark Bunch, marktherustic AT hotmail.com).
  • Notes: I'm including this here because DeWitt Bunch included it in his list, which tickles me no end.  William Herschel Bunch was my great uncle and he wrote this brief essay, I'm told, after retiring from his teaching career.  It's based on his recollection of stories told to him by his elders.  It's otherwise unsourced and contains some significant errors, but it's an interesting bit of family history in it's own right.  I'm thankful that Uncle Herschel took the time to compose it, and I blame him in no small part for my catching the genealogy bug. Herschel was a mathematics professor and his aptitude shows in the unusual hand-drawn family tree diagram attached to the end of his essay.

• Title: Grainger County, Tennessee, Bunches, The
  • Author: Tilghman Howard Bunch and Richard Haney Bunch
  • Composition Date: About 1938
  • Availability: An original manuscript and typescript can be found among the Tilghman Howard Bunch collection at the University of Virginia Library.  It was apparently never published, although DeWitt Bunch transcribed a significant portion of it in his 1965 volume of the "Bunch Family Record."  I have obtained copies from the University of Virginia and have put together an rtf text file facsimile that I would be happy to make available to interested researchers.
  • Notes:   This is another early Bunch compilation and connects the early Grainger County Bunches back to the Bunches of Lousia County, Virginia.

• Title: Bunches of Northeastern Arkansas, The
  • Author: Eunice Ellen Bradbury, Geneva Orlena Roosevelt King and Nettie Pitcock
  • Publication Date: About 1960
  • Availability: I haven't been able to find this in any national collection, although I imagine it might be held in the library of a local genealogical society or perhaps an Arkansas state genealogy library, if there is such a thing.
  • Notes:   I think I've heard this one referred to as "the Nettie Pitcock book."  My reference information is from DeWitt Bunch's April 1997 "Bunch Family Record."  I believe this book must follow the descendants of my 4th great uncle Nathaniel Bunch, who moved from Overton County, Tennessee to Arkansas around 1840 (he's an ancestor of Barak Obama).

• Title: Descendants of James Monroe Bunch of Miller County, Missouri
  • Author: James Vinyard Bunch (1884 - 1961)
  • Publication Date: 1960
  • Availability: I can't find this book listed in any national collection.  I imagine it might be held in the library of a local genealogical society or perhaps in a Missouri state genealogy library, if there is such a thing.
  • Notes: I'm afraid I don't have any more information about this source than what can be inferred from it's title and author.

• Title: Genealogical Survey of a Branch of the Bunch Family, A
  • Author: Edward Johnson Bunch (1903 - 1990)
  • Publication Date: 1966, with a supplement added in 1970
  • Availability: Held by the LDS Family HIstory Library as well as the library of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  I have come across a limited excerpt of the introductory material posted to Ancestry.com.
  • Notes: This is apparently a history of the descendants of William Bunch (born about 1752) of Guilford County, North Carolina.  I believe this is actually part of the "Virgina branch," descending from David Bunch, son of John Bunch (born about 1690) of Louisa County, Virginia.  It is down Edward Johnson Bunch's line that the David Bunch Bible has been passed.

• Title: History of the Bunch Family: Descendants of John Bunch
  • Author: Richard Haney Bunch (2 Feb 1865 - 21 Mar 1964)
  • Publication Date: 1938
  • Availability: Held by the LDS Family History Library.
  • Notes: As far as I know, this is the first published history of the Louisa County, Virginia Bunches.  I've never seen this work myself, but have noted numerous references to it in other works.  If I ever get to Salt Lake City, I'll be sure to look this one up!
    

• Title: Park/e/s and Bunch on the Trail West
  • Author: Alice Crandall Park and Avis Park Voss
  • Publication Date: Originally published in 1974 with a revised edition in 1982
  • Availability: Held by the LDS Family History Librarary as well as the library of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  Print-on-demand edition available for purchase through Higginson Books (www.higginsonbooks.com).  I have this in my personal collection and am willing to conduct reasonable look-ups (contact Mark Bunch via marktherustic AT hotmail.com).
  • Notes: This is an excellent example of a well-sourced, well written family history compilation.  The first half of the book covers the descendants of Nathan Parke born about 1714.  The second half covers the descendants of John Bunch, born about 1630.  It provides an almost comprehensive guide to the descendants of John Bunch's grandson (born about 1690 and also named John Bunch) to about 3 or 4 generations (or more for some lines) -- this is what I tend to call the "Virginia line."  I would recommend this as a practically indispensible reference for anyone working on one of the E1b1a Bunch lines, although it almost entirely bypasses the Carolina lines in its coverage.