One of the best parts of doing genealogy is meeting “new” cousins! I recently had the opportunity to spend a day with my newfound cousin, Terry, who is my 3rd cousin once removed. My 3rd great grandparents, Joachim and Henriette (Bünger) Peters, who I recently traced back to Germany, are our common ancestors. My cousin, Terry, and me at Clayton Library (Houston – March 2017) We met at Clayton Library in Houston and she brought a pile of photos and documents to share. We had a wonderful time discussing our family and getting to know each other. And, now I...
I hadn’t been able to locate my husband’s grandfather, Fred Hunter, and his family in the 1940 census. Searching for his parents and siblings individually didn’t help me locate the family. So, I turned to a census “trick” to find this missing family. PROCESS I chose one of the more unusual names in the family: Mabel. I chose the 1940 U.S. federal census and searched for the following: First name “Mabel” set to “exact” Born in “1912” set to “+/- 2 years” Born in “Oklahoma” set to “exact” Lived in “Garvin County” set to “exact” RESULTS With this search I...
While doing some research today, I came across an intriguing name in a 1940 census: Lawless Mary. She was an 82-year-old widow living in Texas, and I had to learn more about her. What fascinating life did she live to earn her nickname? After finding her in a 1900 census, it turns out “Lawless Mary” was not a nickname; her name was Mary Lawless. 1940 U.S. Census, Falls County, Texas, Lott Ward, population schedule, page 7B [written], household #165, North 6 St, John Priest Household, image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 15 January 2016), citing National Archives microfilm T627, roll 4030....
Bethuel Vincent was only 29 years old when he was found lifeless in a brook. His obituary reads: Died – In Turbut township, on the 11th inst., Bethuel Vincent, junior, aged about 30 years. The deceased had gone to the fields to collect raspberries and while crossing a small brook was taken with convulsive fits, to which he was daily subject, fell into the water, where he was, shortly after, found lifeless. [The States Advocate, Thursday, 17 July 1828. Posted on Bethuel Vincent’s Find a Grave memorial page in Warrior Run Church Cemetery, Delaware Run, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania] Find a...
In November of 2013 I found my first record of an ancestor in Europe. It was my first “jump across the pond.” It was a huge day for me and I was thrilled! In fact, that’s the day a volunteer told me she loved my ‘enthusiasm’ for genealogy and I came up with my blog name. So, how did this ‘pond jump’ happen? 1860 Census – Lock Haven, Clinton Co, PA from Ancestry.com At the time, I knew the following… my great, great grandmother, Sarah, was born in 1848 in England (she was 12 in the above census) according to...
The only Hedwig my American ears have ever heard of was Harry Potter’s owl. I thought the owl was a male. Imagine my surprise when I discovered my 4th great grandmother’s name was Hedwig! Snowy Owl photo by Michael Gäbler, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22773653 I did research the name online and discovered it is a feminine name. And, Harry Potter’s owl was a female, though she was played by a male in the show. Evidently, snowy owl males are smaller and whiter and they decided they liked the look better. My American ears have trouble with Hedwig’s surname, too: Borgward....
As the publicity chairman for Houston Genealogical Forum (HGF) I get the privilege of interviewing our speakers. In about two weeks, Pamela Boyer Sayre and Rick Sayre are giving an “all day” presentation in Houston. Their two topics are “Capital Treasure” and “Ohio and Pennsylvania Research.” If you are in the Houston area, we invite you to come and join us! More information can be found on our website. THE INTERVIEW What got you interested in genealogy? Pam: Mrs. Kirkpatrick, my eighth-grade language arts teacher, gave us an assignment to research where our surname came from. I learned that Boyer was...
Last week we remembered George Washington’s birthday on February 22nd (which also happens to be my birthday). But was George Washington born on February 22nd? Extreme Genes, one of my favorite genealogy podcasts, discussed the uncertainty of Washington’s birthday in this week’s show. Portrait of George Washington – Painted by Gilbert Stuart After listening to the conversation, I decided to dig a little deeper and found his family Bible where he is listed as being born on the “11th Day of February 1731/2.” [See “Washington Family Bible Page” at the Digital Collections site from The Washington Library.] If he was born...
It’s my birthday, and I thought I’d share this photo from my 3rd birthday party. It was taken in front of my childhood home in Kansas. The older woman in the photo is my grandmother, Hazel, who died when I was 5. I only have a few photo with her. I’m in the red dress on the far right, and my older sister is standing next to me. The other three children are a cousin and two friends.
In the 1781 indenture of “Dorothea Kline & Al to Nicholas Kline,” Nicholas Kline, a son of Michael Kline (my 6th great grandfather), bought land from the other heirs of his father for 400 pounds. This document was typed into a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania deed book. Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Deed Book X, page 414 (close up), “Dorothea Kline & Al to Nicholas Kline. [Note the underlined word “perches” on the 4th line.] In this typed version, there are two words which are underlined: “perches” on page 414 (see image above) and “share” on page 415. Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Deed Book...
