A search of the Frankfort, Clinton County, IN library Norris family file revealed the following note: "Mary Gold Hobbs was an orphan, reared by Silas Davis."
Using the census notations that Mary was born in Maryland, Bonnie Schermer traveled to that state and consulted HOBBS family researchers. Bonnie has cobbled together a genealogy for Mary, used in the book. SOME of the people said to be related to Mary in the book actually existed, but they probably did NOT have the relationships used in the story. Therefore, we have chosen not to show this spurious genealogy on these web pages.
However, Mary DID have parents somewhere, and, once again, hysterical fiction has rescued the situation and given her an interesting family.
Mary's marriage to Abraham Norris is more easily documented, and her children all appear in the Indiana census. Mary and Abraham have been made Indiana Pioneers, which means that their information was reviewed by reputable genealogists.