Life's Journey

This is a test of my new iPad

2011-10-16T08:48:00.008-04:00

I can't seem to upload an image from my iPad. Or, do anything with this "new interface" including swtching back to the old. Patience. I'll keep trying.
I can add more text but only if I use the HTML option. Oh boy, what a mess.

It's 0900 and time to hit the road again. Beautiful Fall weather- can't stay inside and worry about this stuff. Wish the "help" were written in English. What the heck does "send an MMS" mean? Just discovered SMS is acronym for "Short Message Service" which means that one uses an application that usually sends a few words over the Internet, such as Twtter- though I'm not a subscriber. Is SMS so difficult to write out? America, slow down and enjoy life.

New Additions to my Pedigree

2011-03-02T10:19:00.006-05:00

For a frame of reference, this was my pedigree BEFORE I spent a week collecting data at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Well, my time is up in Salt Lake City. Time to pack my computer, my notes, and my clothes into a suitcase and fly back to Charlotte, NC.

Before I left for SLC a week ago, I told my family and friends that if could not find even one more person to add to my pedigree, it would be OK- the trip would still be worth it. I just wanted to see this world famous collection of genealogical data at the Mormon's Family History Library; to see what the Library had to offer. I was very impressed and pleased, and moreover, I did climb up a few more branches on my family tree.

Also, I had the opportunity to see changes that are happening at the Library. For example, the Library catalogue is searched by going to FamilySearch(dot)org on the Internet. The "face" of that website is being changed, though I confess I still go back to the old face to perform my searches.

So, I found a lot of new information and pushed back one of my maternal ancestral lines about three generations. I say "about" because I have not had a chance to analyze the new data. I have been sitting in front of the microfilm readers from dawn until way past dusk and feeding nickles into the photocopy machine.

But briefly, follow the bottom line of my mother's branch in the pedigree above. Note that my great, great grandparents were Ludwig Gutgsell and Margarethe Kessler. I obtained their birth dates and places from the death entry of their daughter, Marie, nee. Gutgsell. Her death entry was recorded in the parish record of a catholic church in Burglen, Canton Thurgau, Switzerland, but that's another story. This week, I found the marriage entry (performed on 17 Nov 1847) of Marie's parents on a microfilm of the civil marriage registrations for the commune (village) of Kaysersburg, arrondisement (county) of Colmar, Department of Haut Rhin, in Alsace, which was in French territory at the time. The Germans occupied Alsace from about 1871, until the end of WW I, and then it was returned to France. So, Marie's parents were married by their French names: Louis and Marguerite. I just love the details of genealogical research.

The information didn't stop there, there were many genealogical details in the full-page, marriage entry in this civil record. More research in the microfilm section revealed the marriage entry for the parents of Louis Gutgsell. Louis' father, Andre Gutgsell married Madelaine Scherrer on 28 Jan 1824, in Kaysersburg. I also found some of Andre's siblings. THEN, I discovered that Andre's parents, Leo Gutgsell and Marie Ann Madar, were married in Kayserberg. Finally, the parents of Leo were Joseph Gutgsell and Elizabeth Wachen. If I recall correctly, Andre Gutgsell's marriage entry included the names of his parents and grandparents.

Incidentally, while perusing the microfilms of data from this region of Alsace, I noted another prominent surname, "G'sell". At first I thought it was an abbreviation for my ancestral surname, Gutgsell, but after looking at several family relationships in the records, I do not believe G'sell is equivalent to Gutgsell. Furthermore, Gutgsell seemed to be spelled variously as Guthgsell, Guttgsell, and GutheGsell. To further confound the issue, many times the names of individuals were not captalized.

So, how many generations did I uncover? I believe I am back to my 5X great grandparents on the Gutgsell line. Not a bad effort for a week's research at the largest depository of genealogical data in the world.

Miracle of the Sea Gulls, Salt Lake City

2011-03-01T11:38:00.007-05:00

From Life's Journey II

Image: Click to enlarge. Note the sculptures of Sea Gulls on the roof of this trolley station in down town Salt Lake City, Utah, near Temple Square. One of the birds is silhouetted against the snow-capped mountain in the distance.

For those of you who are old enough, do you remember the TV series, "Death Valley Days" which appeared in the 1960s. The episode opened with a man standing up behind a desk and announcing, "Hello folks, this is the old Ranger". Then he proceeded to introduce the audience to a true tale of the old West. The setting of each story was somewhere near Death Valley on the border between California and Nevada. The show was sponsored by "Twenty- Mule Team Borax." a laundry detergent which was made from a mineral mined near Death Valley. The musical theme was the sound of bugles playing like they do when the cavalry is coming.

One episode really stuck in my mind and still does. It was the true story about an event that occurred during the first year that the Mormon pioneers settled in an area that would eventually become Salt Lake City. As it goes, the Mormons were getting ready to make their first crop harvest. Suddenly, thousands of crickets descended on the fields of ripened grain and proceeded to devour the only food that would be available to the pioneers. Certainly they would starve over the Winter. Then just as suddenly as the crickets appeared, thousands of Sea Gulls flew in and devoured the crickets, thus saving the harvest and the Mormon families.

In honor of the Sea Gulls and their miraculous appearance in the desert, these sculptures of the bird are attached to the roof of the tram station near Temple Square. A little more research about the story revealed the location of perhaps the first and maybe only monument dedicated to Birds in America. Come to think of it, I know of no such other. Incidentally, the California Gull is the State Bird of Utah.

The image below presents the Gull monument which has been placed in front of the Assembly Hall on the grounds of Temple Square. By the way, the Assembly Hall is a meeting place for community events. It was constructed from granite blocks left over after the building of the Mormon Temple.

From Life's Journey II

Trip to Genealogist's Mecca: Family History Library in Salt Lake City

2011-02-25T13:11:00.016-05:00

Entrance to the Family History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), Salt Lake City, Utah. Inscribed on the wall to the left of doorway, "Genealogical Society of Utah, established 1894. That is the year that the LDS began to collect genealogical records to help members of the church discover their own ancestors and family history. However, the library and all of it's records are open to the public, not just to members of the LDS. Beginning about 1938, the Church sent out hundreds of missionaries and camera crews to microfilm birth, baptismal, marriage, and death records contained in archives all over the world. To the right of the doorway, the corner stone is inscribed, "Erected 1983-1985".

Off the lobby, in a small theator, I watched a 10 minute orientation and introduction to the Library. The Library contains records on over three billion deceased individuals. It also has about two and a half million microfilms containing images of original, genealogical records. Copies of all microfilms are preserved in a vault which has been carved 600 feet into a granite mountain located about 25 miles southeast of the city. The vault has enough space to accomodate the equivalent of seven times the volume of the U.S. Library of Congress. In short, the library has lots of records which are safely preserved. A good place to reseach your family history.

My first effort inside the library on the main floor was to see if my brother-in-law's genealogical book on the McCutcheon family was on the shelf. Pleased to say that it was there, all one thousand pages of it. I did a quick survey to see if my branch of family surnames were represented: no Streich (Strike), Hohnke, Kramp, Gailliot, Austel, or Gutgsell. I guess the field is still wide open.

My next effort, over the succeeding week was to search the microfilms. In my own travels to collect data on my family's genealogy, I have found the results of the LDS microfilming project in many places overseas. For example, I traveled to County Durham, England, in 1996. There, in the Durham Record Office I discovered rolls of microfilm containing images of parish records and census enumerations. Usually in the first frame of the film, I read that the records were filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU). Again, at the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, Scotland, I consulted microfilms which were produced by the GSU. I was told that the Society was allowed to film the records and then returned copies to the archives. Even in Germany, at the archives in Bruhl, I found microfilms created by the Society. Fortunately, the Society microfilmed the parish records of St. Mariae Himmelfahrt Catholic Church in Wesel, Germany, because the church was totally destroyed by Allied bombs in the waning hours of WW II. However, a copy of the church records was preserved at the State Archives in Berlin, and apparently, that is where the Society filmed the parish records in 1942. As stated in the Notes for the film, "Mikrofilme aufgenommen von Manuscript in Berlin, 1942". Indeed, the 1862 baptism of my great grandfather, Heinrich Casper Gailliot, was recorded on one of the seven microfilms in this series. So, from an image of the original parish record, I transcribed the event into my personal genealogical records. If it weren't for these films, I would have little to show for my genealogy, particularly for the early generations.

I have one question about the catalogue of microfilms to which I can't seem to get an answer. Some of the microfilms of German archival records are not available to persons in Germany or can not be ordered from German Family History Centers of the LDS Church. For example, the Notes for a microfilm of the parish records of the Catholic Church of Grietherbusch, Germany (FHL No 907581), states "No circulation to family history centers in Europe". I have a German collaborator who lives in Achen who told me that she has to travel to the Netherlands in order to obtain certain microfilms, because they are not available in Germany. WHY?

Update: A staff member of the FHL told me that the microfilming crews must of course seek permission before filming records at a specific archive. Sometimes the crew is allowed to film the records but certain restrictions apply. As noted above, some films are not allowed to be circulated in the country where the records are originally kept.

A Closer Look at Text and Photo books

2011-01-19T17:28:00.018-05:00

In my last entry, I wrote about my plan in 2011 to create more booklets, emphasizing my family history and autobiography. Was it a new year's resolution? Perhaps. But no doubt, I want to preserve my family history that I've been collecting for the past 20 years and preferably preserve it in a book. Last year I started making small photo books of about 20 to 40 pages using some of the Internet photo album web sites. I presented a picture of several books that I created using the photo book feature of Snapfish(dot)com and Shutterfly(dot)com. I also created photo books with more extensive captions or even stories using the free-download application called BookSmart by Blurb(dot)com.

A reader of my blog, let me call him George, contacted me and asked me if "Blurb books" was fulfilling my need for publishing my family history. George also asked me if had thought of using the book feature at Ancestry(dot)com. And finally, he asked me if had any further thoughts or comments on Blurb books.

I have dabbled with the Ancestry book feature but have not followed through with a complete book. However, three start-up attempts sit in "MyCanvas Projects" at Ancestrydotcom waiting for me to return to work on them. So far, they look pretty good- just need another rainy day.

I have created two books with Blurb, and until today, they sat on the "bookshelf" at their website marked as "private"- for my eyes only or for those who I invite. But now, I changed the privacy setting to "public" so that George or anyone else can see one of my first books entitled, "What about Bob?" I stole the title from a movie which starred Bill Murry, and yes, my name is Bob. Furthermore, Blurb allows me the option of sharing the book via several different links (Facebook, Twitter, and so forth). I took the option of embedding the widget in this blog as shown below (click on the miniture, and then, "preview book"). You can see the use of both text and picture frames to create a book of this type. You can also buy the book, but it's not necessary. I could never be a salesman.

What about Bob ?

A Genealogy and Pic...

By Robert Charles Kramp

Book Preview

What do you think, George?

Genealogical Research and Writing Plan for 2011- Get the books out

2011-01-01T18:10:00.014-05:00

As the year 2011 begins, I am focusing on what will be my genealogical research and and writing plans for the coming year. Of course, the research will continue- checking off my long list of "to do" items. Actually, my genealogical computer program, Ancestral Quest, can print out a report of these research items. First thing I must do is edit this report, deleting those projects that have already been accomplished.

But most of all, I want to get my genealogical data and family history published. I've already spent much time posting the results of my studies on the Internet such as a Public Family Tree (Kramp Family) at Ancestry(dot)com, at web sites for both the paternal and maternal branches of my Tree (scroll down right side panel), and on this blog. I've also posted images to several Internet photo albums and uploaded videos to Youtube(dot)com and Roxio PhotoShow. However, I'm experienced enough to know that much of this information on the Internet is always in jeopardy of being lost. Some of you may remember the shut down of Yahoo's photo album feature. Others may remember the merge of Geocities with Yahoo and then the total removal of all content from their web site. I had to rush to transfer my Mother's genealogical web site to another server.

I believe that the BOOK is still the best means of preserving and passing on one's family history and genealogy. It circumvents the necessity of modifying your data to keep up with newer technological advances in the computer age- the so-called "migration" of data. Just yesterday, I discovered that I couldn't open a document created in an old version of Microsoft Word with the newest version. I finally got around the problem, but I do not want to worry about these glitches. And hey, realize your valuable documents and data are in an electronic environment. Now I ask you, have you ever seen an electron or held it in your hand. No thank you, I would rather have a book in my hands.

In late Spring of 2010, I created my first hard copy photograph albums, called PhotoBooks, at Snapfish(dot)com. See image below. I made one for Mother's Day which included dozens of photos taken throughout her life. Original photos were scanned and uploaded to Snapfish. Then, while on-line, I used templates to arrange from one to eight digital images on a page. The PhotoBook was then mailed to me and another copy mailed to my mother. A few weeks later, I created a PhotoBook of images of my late father.

From Life's Journey II

The image above shows three books (top) created at Snapfish(dot)com; two books (on right) created at Shutterfly(dot)com, and two books (on left) created at Blurb(dot)com. If you enlarge the image, you can read the titles. I have started a series of books in which each book includes images of a chosen decade, for example, photographs taken between 1930 and 1940, between 1940 and 1950 and so on. The book entitled, 1915-1941 was a mistake. I meant 1915 to 1930. Can you imagine creating an incorrect title. Big boo boo. I can correct the mistake on future editions.

The books were easy to create once I took a few hours to practice. The creating process for Blurb books was much more flexible- I could place the image and caption frames where I wanted them on each page. Also, I performed a free download of their "Smart Book" application to my computer's hard drive so that I could create and edit a book OFF-line before making the final submission for printing.

I passed copies of these books to my married children and was surprised to hear that they loved them. They usually roll their eyes to the back of their heads when I start taking family history. Particularly, they enjoyed going through the book in just one sitting.

As seen in the image below, I also gave a copy of the 1930-1940 book to my mother for her 90th birthday last November. She spent her teen-aged years in this decade. She is standing far right in the cover photograph.

So, in 2011, I hope to continue to self-publish these booklets which contain many vintage as well as recent photographs (digital copies) pertaining to my family history.

This blog entry was posted for the 101st Carnival of Genealogy for Geneabloggers.

REFERENCES AND LINKS:

Blurb(dot)com allows me to publicize my book, "What About Bob", on their Internet bookshelf. It is half genealogy, half autobiography, and short. If you want to leaf through the book, go to my next entry and click on the gadget at the bottom of the page.

YouTube(dot)com videos of my genealogy in Part I (me thru grandparents) and Part II (beyond grandparents). Forgive me the inappropriate background music- I had to be aware of copyrights. I need to redo this whole project, but not in 2011.

My public slide shows at Roxio PhotoShow on the Internet.

A Photobook for Father's Day, 2010

2010-12-13T15:08:00.014-05:00

Several months ago, I posted a blog entry for Mother's Day which featured an album of vintage and recent photographs of my mother. I used an online photo album called "Snapfish dot com" to create a photobook which I then presented to Mom for Mother's Day. At the time, I proposed to create a similar photo album for my father. And now, several months after June, I finally present my "Father's Day" PhotoBook. Actually, my father died many years ago, in 1973, so I do not have as many pictures of him as I did of my mother. I have learned a little more about the process of creating Photobooks. I was able to place 104 pictures into 32 pages of my Father's album. (For Mom's PhotoBook, I placed 45 pictures into 20 pages).

Image 1 (above): Cover of my Father's Day PhotoBook. It is 8.5 x 10.5 inches, landscape orientation.

Image 2 (above): Father's Day Photobook, Page 2 and 3. My objective in these books is to present a bit of genealogy of my parents as well as a chronology of events in their lives. On the left page, I show an abbreviated pedigree of my father's known ancestors including their images. (click to enlarge) The chart was created with Microsoft Power Point. On the right page are my father's biological parents (Streich and Russell) and adopted parents (Kramp and Streich). Dad was adopted by his aunt (Otto Streich's sister). Note that I made a grievous mistake and captioned both pictures as "biological" parents. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford an editor. So, I corrected the caption on the far right with a Sharpie marker. Realize that these are limited printings of the book. So mistakes like these are easy to correct even though it looks like heck. There may be a second edition published some day with the corrections.

Image 3 (above): Father's Day Photobook, page 16 and 17.
More pages of the Photobook showing different templates in which up to 8 photos are placed on a page. On left page, are pictures of my father, mother, and their first child (me). On the right, are images of my father's career represented by a Linotype machine and a vintage picture of the Washington (District of Columbia) Evening Star- one of Dad's early employers.

I have dozens of pictures of my father which do not appear in this Photobook. It's difficult to choose the best representative pictures. So, as in the case of my mother, I plan to create a more comprehensive slide show on my online, Roxio PhotoShow site on the Internet.

LINKS and REFERENCES:
Photobook of my Mother and a link to her Roxio PhotoShow.

Blog Caroling: Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht

2010-12-13T09:24:00.006-05:00

It is time again for Footnote Maven's third annual Blog Caroling challenge to all bloggers of genealogy (Geneabloggers). So, come along and sing with Bob and Ben one of our most beloved Christmas carols, "Silent Night".

HISTORY:

The Christmas carol "Silent Night" was written as a poem in 1816 by an Austrian priest, Joseph Mohr. It was performed for the first time at Midnight Mass, Christmas Eve, in 1818, at St. Nicholas Church, in the small alpine village called Oberndorf. Mohr's friend, Franz Xavier Gruber, composed the melody for Silent Night. It was written to be played on the guitar since, according to legend, the church's organ was broken. According to Wikipedia, the original church was destroyed in a flood in the early twentieth century, but a memorial chapel was built as replacement. The chapel is located next to a museum built as an exhibit regarding the history and legends the popular Christmas carol.

LYRICS:

Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht
Alles Schläft, ein-sam wacht
Nur das traute hoch heilige Paar.
Holder Knabe im lok-kigen Haar,
Schlaf in himmliseher Ruh
Schlaf in himmlescher Ruh

Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht
Hirten erat kund gemacht
Durch der Engel Halleluja
Tënt es laut von fern und nah:
Christ, der Retter ist da
Christ, der Retter ist da

Stille Nacht, Helige Nacht
Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht
Lieb' aus Deinem gottlichen Mund
Da uns schlägt die rettende Stund'
Christ, in Deiner Geburt
Christ, in Deiner Geburt

C'mon, I'm sure you know the English version.

REFERENCES AND LINKS:
To read other Geneablogger's favorite Christmas Carols, go to: Footnote Maven's Traditional Blog Caroling.

Another way to "publish" one's genealogy: electronic digital readers

2010-12-10T19:56:00.010-05:00

It's difficult for me to stop collecting genealogical data and take the time to publish what I have gathered into a printed book with hard covers. There always seems to be one more fact to uncover, one more census to consult, one more relative to interview, and so on. However, along the way, I have faithfully entered most of my data into my chosen genealogical computer program- which happens to be Ancestral Quest (AQ) by Incline Software. Every two or three years, I create Modified Register Reports for several end-of-the-line ancestors. I take the option to save the reports in Adobe's pdf format and then take the files to Kinko's Copy Shop or similar place to be printed on their laser printer. Finally, I bind the reports with plastic combs. I consider these reports to be interim. Almost immediately I begin to make corrections with my red pen. One can see so many errors once a report is printed. And yes, I find new ideas for further research and further put off the final printing.

However, I am getting to the age at which I believe I must stop and publish my findings. I do not want to take any of this genealogical information with me to the grave- as many of my relatives have already done.

Publishing and printing is expensive. My brother-in-law recently contracted a professional printer to make 150 copies of his McCutcheon Line. It cost thousands of dollars- and that's just for one family line. Nevertheless, each book is invaluable. His genealogy is archived in libraries all around the country including the Congressional and LDS Libraries. His data are carved in granite and will be here for many generations to enjoy.

So, I plan to have my genealogies professionally printed. Nevermind the cost. I'll mortgage my house if I have to.

IN THE MEANTIME, I came across a new technology that might be used to simply and quickly archive genealogical data. I am talking about electronic digital readers (e readers). A large portion of the market is cornered by Barnes and Noble's "Nook", Amazon.com's "Kindle", and Sony's "eReader". These readers usually cost less than $150. After looking at the features of each of these models, I settled on Sony's eReader (Trade Mark). In particular, I was looking for a device in which:

1. A media card could be inserted into the e-reader and loaded with my OWN pdf files.

2. A reader that could be turned on its long side (landscape orientation) so that more of the text would be visible, left to right.

Let me break here and show a few images of the Sony eReader that I purchased. I loaded the Reader with a 2GB SD media card containing Modified Register Reports (MRR) in pdf format which were created in Ancestral Quest. The card was inserted into a slot on top of the Reader. Realize that these images are photos of the reader.

Image 1. (below). Sony eReader (Trade Mark), vertical orientation, small font (shows whole page). MRR for Joseph Austel, page 1 of 115. Adobe pdf format.

In Ancestral Quest, one can add a primary image to the vital statistics and biological notes for each individual. It would be extremely difficult to read the text in this set up of the Sony eReader. Now, if we go to the next image:

Image 2. Sony eReader set in Landscape orientation, medium-size font. MRR for Joseph Austel, p. 1 of 115. Adobe pdf format.

In this setting, I could easily read the text in the report. Though I can't read the whole page, top to bottom, I can drag my finger across the screen to scroll down to the rest of the page. The reader automatically re-formats the text of the original pdf file such that the width of the lines is not cropped. In other words, the text is re-flowed.

Image 3. Sony eReader (TM), showing the editing feature: add a free-hand note or type one.

The last image shows the editing feature. I can add notes either in free-hand as shown using a stylus, or call up a box and virtual keyboard and type in a note.
The notes do not affect the original pdf file. Also, I can call up all the notes at once for a specific book (pdf file).

I have loaded my SD media card with 14 individual, Modified Register Reports (books) each of which were originally created in Ancestral Quest as a pdf file. The pdf files range from 100 to 300 pages. In addition, I also loaded 15 Scrapbook reports in pdf format. The SD card can be removed from the eReader; inserted into a computer; and then read in the Adobe Reader application. I made a copy of the SD media card with all of its pdf files and gave it to my brother to be used as a back-up.

One can also load jpeg images and mp3 audio files into the eReader. Images are seen in black and white on this eReader, but Barnes and Noble is now marketing a "Color Nook".

I believe the Nook and Kindle readers to not have the capability of loading SD media cards. Therefore, electronic books have to be downloaded from the Internet either wirelessly or via a computer. The "3G" readers can connect to the Internet directly for downloads. Unless you have your genealogy posted in a book at Amazon or B&N, you can not load your own genealogy into their readers. However, I recently discovered that a fellow genealogist, Thomas MacEntee, posted a Guide entitled, "A Genealogy Blog Primer. Everything You Wanted to Know About Genealogy Blogs but Were Afraid to Ask". The Primer is free and can be downloaded as a pdf file fom LuLu bookstores.

One final note. After saying all this, I do not like to read my genealogy books on the eReader. My old eyes get tired reading the text against a light grey background. Even the e-reader manufacturers say that traditional books are still easier to read. I saw a recent advertisement which claimed that their "new" reader had 5o percent greater contrast. The Color Nooks might be easier on the eyes. This technology is still young but growing fast. And I must admit- it is more convenient to carry around an electronic reader rather than a case of traditional books.

Experiment: Linking images between this blog and my Picasa Photo Albums

2010-12-08T14:16:00.016-05:00

The image below shows my home-made tool for collecting juicy plums from high up in the tree. A cut-up, plastic milk carton is attached to a leaf rake. Click on image to enlarge. It will take you to my Picasa web site. Click on your browser's "back arrow" key to return to this blog.

This entry is an experiment. I uploaded the image above from one of my "NON Blog" albums at my Picasa account. When I first set up my blog, all of my images were automatically stored in ONE album called "Life's Journey" at Picasa. It is also the title of my blog. It is now about four years since I started my blog, and I have over 330 images in the "Life's Journey" album at Picasa. I believe the album is too large. In fact, I get the warning "stack overload" when I choose to view this particular album all at once. So, I started a second album at Picasa which I entitled, "Life's Journey, II". In other words, I wanted to stop stuffing all my blogged images into just one album. Incidentally, I have other albums at Picasa which are NOT automatically linked to my blog, such as my High School Reunion album.

Another "bug" in the image-upload process, is that I must upload the image first before adding any text. If I do not follow this order, then I can not enlarge the image by clicking on it in the blog. Also, if I add a second or third image, those images will also not enlarge- UNLESS, I upload all the images at once, and before adding any text.

If anyone has a different method of uploading images (which will enlarge when clicked upon), please post a comment to this entry.

There is One in Every Family

2010-11-30T20:40:00.021-05:00

The challenge this month from our group of Genealogical Bloggers (Geneabloggers) was to create a blog with the theme, "There's One in Every Family". The real challenge of course was to define the one WHAT??? in every family. Is the WHAT a famous person, a black sheep, a renowned artist, a super athlete, an explorer, an adventure who broke out of the family to take a different path than the others? We genealogists look at many families in our research, and I believe there are many people who could fit into the WHAT definition of this theme. However, the person who I certainly HOPE is in every family is the Collector. You might see where I am going here. I am talking about the collectors of family stories, heirlooms, and photographs- essentially, the Family Historians in the family. They not only collect names and dates, but they also collect the information which fills out the character of our ancestors and their descendants- makes them real people.

Family historians never throw anything away that might be of historical significance to the family or might even have the potential of being so.

In my genealogical research, I have often come across several persons in my family who have had the foresight to save stories, pictures, postcards, letters, newspaper clippings, and even the rare journal. My great grandfather, Thomas W. Russell kept an 1880 journal which has survived to this day. Ralph Sherwin, an uncle in my Russell Line, saved a box of vintage photos. Alice Wagner, another aunt, kept all the postcards sent to her by her brother in World War II. The list could go on. It is the job of the family historian to find these collectors in our family and preserve their stash.

Recently, I reconized another person (Theresa) who is the Collector in her own branch of the family. Hopefully, there is at least one in every family. The image below shows a chronological collection of photos of Theresa's mother, Mrs. Shirley Gailliot, nee. Trice. The collection represents several life events of Theresa's Mom.

Theresa displayed her collection on an easel in the lobby of the funeral home in which her mom rested. Thank you Theresa for your exhibit. It reminded me of the happy moments of one member of our family. And my grandchildren will know her too.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

Index for Carnival of Genealogy editions at "Creative Gene" blog.

Proposal by Creative Gene for the 100th editon of the Carnival of Genealogy.

Read posts by other Geneabloggers concerning the topic, "There's one in every family".

Angel's Rest

2010-07-23T15:10:00.002-04:00

Angel's Rest rises above Pearisburg, Giles County, VA. Many years ago when I was able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, I backpacked to the top and spent the night in my sleeping bag looking up at the stars and down on the twinkling lights of the town. I didn't notice any angels resting nearby on that night, but I think I know why they might have paused to rest here. It is also used by hikers following the Appalachian Trail.

Happy Mom's Day, 2010

2010-05-10T16:11:00.014-04:00

Image 1 (below). Front cover of the photo album which I gifted to Mom on Mother's Day this year. That's me with a cowboy holster around my waist kissing Mom; there is a similar picture of my brother and Mom on the inside. By the way, Mom is Mary Margaret, born Gailliot.

Image 2. This 8 x 10 inch, 20-page, landscape-formatted album contains photos of my mother taken throughout her life, in chronological order. Both the front and back of each page have photos.

I was so pleased with the photo album that I ordered two books, one for mom and one for myself. Actually, I received a two-for-one promotional so it was a deal. I created the book from scanned, digital images which I have been uploading to Snapfish(dot)com- an Internet photo album similar to Kodak Gallery, Picasa, Flickr, Photobucket, and other sites. I do not intend to endorse any particular site, but the book creator at Snapfish seemed to be easy to use- after a couple of trials.

I think these books are a great way to present and archive one's family history. Moreover, as Mom and I sat down to look over the album, I learned a few more items about mother's life and her neighborhood that I didn't know previously. For example, I thought my mother was the kid on the far LEFT in the picture of the "bathing beauties" lined up in grandma Gailliot's side yard on a summer day. I based this identification on other pictures of my mother as a child. Instead, Mom was the girl standing second from the kid on the far RIGHT. We then proceeded to identify all the kids in the picture. Some of the girls were linked to the same girls, but a few years older, in the picture of the graduating Sunday School Class on the facing page.

On the sample pages above (Image 2), I posted three pictures on the left page and two pictures on right. Other pages contained four and I could have inserted more. I try to limit my digital scans of vintage pictures to about 1280 x 960 pixels, but sometimes this is not possible with very small originals. However, one can see here that some pictures can be miniaturized to fit on the page. For example, the two portraits near the center on the left-hand page (Image 2) were originally similar in size to the others. This arrangement would be difficult to accomplish with traditional scrapbooks in which the pictures are not miniaturized but remain the same size and are trimmed to be smaller with scissors.

Now, to do an album of my father's pictures.

LINKS:

I was able to insert a total of 45 pictures in my album. But, I still had many more pictures. So, I created a video slide show of these pictures and several more (143 images; 22 minutes long) and uploaded it to my channel at Roxio Photoshow. Take a look at another means of presenting one's family history in pictures.

Festival of Postcards-8th Ed: Geography

2010-04-21T10:52:00.012-04:00

The 8th edition of "Festival of Postcards" is calling for vintage postcards that depict some aspect of geography- maps, landmarks, and so forth. I immediately thought of where I would go for this one.

(click image to enlarge)

As shown above, I put together some of my STATE postcards and mounted them in a 24 x 36 inch poster frame. I tacked the project to the breezeway of my home so I could look at it every time I go out or enter the house. I tried to put the states into their relative position or locations in the United States: East, Middle, West. I will probably re-do the project some day because I have a few more states to add. You can see "California" was stuck under the edge of the frame in lower right-hand corner. I will have to open the frame and put the state in its relative position. Right below "Montana" (left side), you may be able to see the reverse of a card (stamped and sent from Nebraska, Spring 2005) to my friend telling her of my postcards idea:

"Dear Annie, One of the few things I dream about when I get back to my homey little nest is making a poster of all my state postcards. I believe most of my travels and adventures will now be limited to looking at the cards from my big green arm chair"

At the time, I was working a month-long contract as an instructor in radiation safety at the Fort Collins Nuclear Plant located on the Missouri River, near Blair, Nebraska. Actually, I have collected most of these cards while working at, or enroute to, jobs at nuclear power plants all over the States. Sometimes on my day off, I would browse antique stores and flea markets for vintage cards of the states, such as those shown in the close-up below. I believe the cards of Mississippi, Texas, and Tennessee (with scalloped edges) and a few others out of view could be considered vintage.

Some of the cards (in first image) like the one of the Great Smokey Mountains and one of the New River (in NC and VA) are close-ups of those particular areas. Many of the cards have pictures of landmarks or activities that are unique to that state which bring back memories to me of when I was there.

Incidentally, I am missing the states of Wyoming, Kentucky, Missouri, and Maine. So, if you have an inkling, please mail* me a card from these states and I will send you a "thank you" postcard from North Carolina (modern). Oh yes, I have been through these states. I even worked a contract at the former Maine Yankee Nuclear Plant- in January!

*Bob Kramp at 105 N. Westover Dr, Monroe, NC 28112

REFERENCES AND LINKS:

Postcard collectors and genealogists: Learn about the Festival of Postcards at the web site of our host, Evelyn Yvonne Theriault.

Often when I comtemplate extensive travels, I recall a song made popular by the country singer, Hank Snow, called "I've Been Everywhere". It was the genre's top single in 1962. Johnny Cash also recorded it. I discovered today that the song was originally written about Australian locations according to Wikipedia. By the way, never freely give out your mobile phone number or email with out thinking about it. Now, go to the American version of ... Everywhere and its impossible-to-remember verse lyrics.

Faith of Our Fathers

2010-04-15T14:01:00.012-04:00

As I become older (and supposedly wiser), I enjoy looking back into our history and re-discovering some of the values that were held by our earlier generations. Indeed, I am becoming a member of one of those earlier generations myself. And what do I mean by values? I believe I am thinking about the good things in Life's Journey that mean something significant- those things that stick with you and those things that can get you through some tough times.

And so it happened on a recent trip that I noticed an historical marker on my way out of an overnight camp at Kerr Reservoir on the border of North Carolina and Virginia. On State Hwy 39 at Townsville, the marker stated:

"St. John's Episcopal Church. Parish established 1746. Present Building completed 1773 stands 200 yards West".

It was a beautiful, sunny, early Spring morning, and I could make the time. So, I drove over to the church. There, on this country road on the Piedmont of North Carolina, I stopped to walk around the outside of the church and take some pictures. I wondered what it would have looked like on a similar Sunday in Spring over 200 years ago.

Above image: Saint John's Episcopal Church, rear view; note the large shuttered windows. Click on image for larger view.

Above: The front of the church was quite unique- large windows, curved steps, giant cedar trees, and a bronze tablet on the right side of the church, above the boxwood bush, that read:

Saint John's Parish Church founded 1746, Williamsborough, North Carolina
This Tablet is erected by the North Carolina Society of the Colonial Dames of America under the auspices of the Vance County Committee, Henderson, NC, Friday, October 25, 1935, in honor of the reverend memory of those who in building the State founded it upon their faith in God,
"Faith of our Fathers, Holy Faith, we will be true to thee till death".
Saint John's Parish was visited in 1749 by Reverend Clement Hall who baptized 184 children.
First Rector, 1766
The Reverend Charles Cupples
Sent out by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, London.
First Vestry
(followed by a list of persons)

Can you imagine, my friends, 184 children being baptized on one Sunday. Now, that's a lot of Faith. I looked around the area from my stance in front of the church. Not much else was happening on this Thursday morning on the second day of April.

Post Note: Henderson is the county seat of Vance County, NC. I heard on cable TV, Solid Gold Oldies, that one of The Drifters (recall the tunes, "Under the Boardwalk" and "Up on the Roof") was born in Henderson, NC. They played such great music BACK then.

Got a light?

2010-03-31T20:28:00.003-04:00

Pioneer and farmer, Washington Duke of NC, was drafted into Confederate Navy. He was captured and became Prisoner of War. After war ended, he walked from New Bern, NC, to this homestead near Durham with 50 cents in his pocket. Here, he and his sons grew Gold Leaf tobacco and founded The American Tobacco Company. Washington's grandson, James Duke, endowed 30 M to Holy Trinity College in 1930 which changed its name to Duke Univ. And now WD's namesake is in the Final Four in NCAA Basketball. The guy can't lose.

Jump and Smile- It's Spring

2010-03-31T06:28:00.002-04:00

Art emailed to me from the Grandkids. That might be Emma and Christina and the guy in the middle might be Dad or Pawpaw. But since he has blue eyes and no hair, I would put my money on "Pawpaw".

Have a Great Spring everybody.

Who do you think you are? Premier episode in America

2010-03-07T18:12:00.004-05:00

Wow, double Wow, Triple Wow, Awesome and Un-Be-lievable. And thus, Sally Jessica Parker, star of HBO's "Sex in the City", gushes her way through a gauntlet of professional genealogist, historians, and even park rangers, as they thrust into her hands census reports, death certificates, arrest warrants for witchcraft, and other papers. I really like the way a park ranger and historian in California pulls out of his vest several photocopied papers indicating that one of Sally's maternal ancestors died during the 1849 gold rush. Yes, Wow!

It all seemed to start out with Sally's mother showing her some vintage photos of her grandmother and great grandmother. This is indeed a good start for any person interested in family history or genealogy. But sometimes, it takes months or years of digging through the attics of your relatives. And still, one may come up empty handed. Incidentally, I would have enjoyed spending a few more minutes with Sally's mother and having her relate some personal stories of her life or that of her relatives, or the stories of friends that might have known them. Remember, these are real people.

It seemed that Sally's mother was pretty excited about her daughter's discoveries about their family history. I think at the end of the program, Sally challenged her mother to write up the history. Excellent idea and good example. Of course, they can always see the TV recording.

But it was not like my experience. Years ago, I went home to Mom and started asking her about her past, what she liked about high school and so forth. I recall her response, "Oh Bobby, why do want to know that old stuff for anyway". Perhaps my approach was wrong. Maybe I should of brought along a camera crew.

I believe it is necessary, if at all possible, to go back to the homelands of your ancestors to do research, as Sally did, in going back to Cincinnati, the California gold fields, and the site of the Salem witch trials. It's not always possible, but it sure can round out the life of an ancestor.

I'm not naive, I do know that anything on commercial TV has to be pretty shallow. And in this premier episode, Sally Parker goes back about 400 years of no-brick-walls, family history in about 40 minutes of program time. That's about a decade a minute. Yes, Wow again.

Nevertheless, I will take the drawbacks of TV. I am looking forward to the next episode of this series. I hope they eventually have someone going back and researching Eastern Germany or Pomerania. Pomer-Who?!

NOTE: The premier episode of "Who Do You Think You Are?" appeared Friday, March 5, 2010, at 8 PM on NBC.

Postcard-Statue of Liberty: Did my immigrant ancestors see the real thing

2010-02-28T16:17:00.009-05:00

This month's theme for our group of genealogical postcard collectors was "LIGHT"- such as moonlight scenes or anything with the thought of light, even light-hearted postcards.

But, I chose a serious and important landmark of our country which represents the essence of my immigrant ancestors' lives and dreams- The Statue of Liberty- which is officially titled "Liberty enLIGHTening the World."

On the reverse, the text indicated that two women wanted to exchange postcards of subjects representing the states of New York and Maryland. There was no date indicated. I believe I purchased the vintage postcard at an antique shop.

The vintage postcard above shows that the Statue of Liberty had a bronze tint. That was because the statue was cast in thin sheets of copper about 3/32 of an inch thick. The Statue was sculpted by a crew directed by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi who was born in Colmar, Alsace. It so happens that my maternal great grandmother, Marie Gutgsell, was born in nearby Wintzenheim, in Alsace.

The appearance of the statue's "skin" in modern postcards, or as I saw it with my own eyes on a trip in 1997, appears greenish colored. And of course, just as a penny will turn green if left outside in the elements, the "Lady" also became tarnished as she looked out over New York Harbor for many years. If one knew how long it took for the Statue to become oxidized, that is, turn from a bronze tint to a light green color, it might be possible to date this particular postcard.

The internal supporting steel "skeleton" was designed by Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel- the same person who designed the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

The Statue of Liberty was a gift from the people of France to the United States. Thousands of dollars were contributed by the common people of France to build this tower. The idea was that France would donate the Statue if the Americans would finance the building of a pedestal on which to place the sculpture. The Americans balked. They considered it New York's Statue so they believed that state should pay for it. However, Joseph Pulitzer who was an immigrant from Hungary and who had become a famous journalist and publisher in America, challenged the people of our country to come up with the funds to build the pedestal. He even promised to publish the names of contributors in his "World" publication. It worked.

I believe most people believe their immigrant ancestors were elated at seeing Lady Liberty as they first arrived in America. However, the Statue of Liberty was not opened until Oct 1886. By that time, most of my German-born ancestors had already been processed through Castle Garden. Not even Ellis Island, the off-shore processing station, was opened until 1892.

Most of my Kramp, Streich, Hohnke, Russell, Hartley, Gailliot, and Frederick families immigrated to America between 1881 and 1886. However, at least one of my branches, the Austel Line, arrived at a later time in the New York port in Fall, 1903, and thus, came sailing by the Statue of Liberty on their way to Ellis Island. I wonder what they felt in their hearts. I know what I felt when I passed by on a ferry boat in 1997.

For more information on "Festival of Postcards" see Evelyn Theriault's "A Canadian Family" Blog.

Christening of my 2X great grandfather, William Hartley, and his daughter, Eleanor

2010-02-28T15:26:00.009-05:00

The following image depicts two Anglican churches of County Durham in northern England which are pertinent to this entry. The page is copied from a booklet entitled, "Churches of the Diocese of Durham", which I purchased in the Durham Cathedral shops in 1996. I did not know at the time how they would precisely fit into my family's history.

While I still have the tourist map of County Durham, England, at hand (see previous entry), I want to pinpoint a few other places which are significant to my HARTLEY Family Line. On the bottom, right-hand quarter of the map (enlarge by clicking on image), and just to the west (left) of Darlington is a small village called Gainford. It is the namesake of a larger ecclesiastical region known as GAINFORD PARISH. Slightly north-east of Gainford, I drew a small red-colored circle marking an even smaller village named Summerhouse (indicated by "Su"). If you search for Summerhouse, Durham County, England, on Google maps you can zoom-in for a wonderfully detailed view of this small village especially on the so-called Satellite view. While there, look just slightly east (to the right) of Summerhouse, across a major highway and you will see Denton. The Anglican Chapel at Denton of the Gainford Parish is located there and is the place where my 2X great grandfather, WILLIAM HARTLEY, was baptized in April 1821 by Thomas Peacock, Curate. William's parents were William Hartley, Laborer, and Ann Longstaff, residing in Summerhouse.

About 24 years later, in the same chapel of Denton, which is called St. Mary's, William and his wife, ANN ROBINSON, baptised their 3rd-born child who was my great grandmother, ELEANOR HARTLEY. Eleanor was baptised 21 Jun 1845, by John Birkbeck, Curator.

The following description is taken from "Keys to the past":
"Denton, St. Mary's church."
"This small church was built in 1891, replacing an earlier church built in 1836. The church is built of sandstone and has a small porch and side chapel to the south. A stone coffin is used as a drinking trough for animals in the churchyard, and the remains of some medieval gravestones can be seen in the porch."

William Hartley and Ann Robinson baptised two other children in the nearby church of St. John the Baptist, at Low Dinsdale: Jane Elizabeth Hartley, on 23 Mar 1851, and Thomas Hartley, 14 May 1852.

REFERENCES AND LINKS:
Christening of William Hartley: England, Diocese of Durham, Bishop's Transcripts, ca. 1700-1900 (FamilySearch.Org Pilot), Chapelry of Denton pg 110 of 287. Includes images of Parish Registers. "Pg 15, No. 126 (bottom of page). William, s/o William Hartley, Laborer, and Ann Longstaff, residing in Summerhouse. Baptized 20 Apr 1921, by Thomas Peacock, Curate."

In my Picasa album, I have pinpointed on a map the location of the village of Denton and its Chapel. You can follow the link here. Reminder: I have used Picasa's mapping feature to locate many of the images which appear on this blog.

Birthplace of my great grandmother, Eleanor Hartley, and other famous persons

2010-01-30T15:28:00.013-05:00

If I had not researched my genealogy and family history, I believe I would have missed out on many things in my Life's Journey that were worth knowing about. It has made my life ... well ... more ENLIGHTENED. Take for example the birthplace of my great grandmother on my father's branch. She was born in Cockfield, County Durham, in northern England (go to the center of map below).

Image (click to enlarge): Map from tourist brochure of County Durham, England

On my family research trip to the British Isles in 1996, I picked up several tourist brochures and guides in Durham City. In the guide, "Teesdale and Barnard Castle", it was written, "... Cockfield [in County Durham], a peaceful village based on the coal industry and the birthplace of JEREMIAH DIXON, known for the Mason-Dixon Line [the official border between Maryland and Pennsylvania]". More research indicated that Jeremiah was actually born in Barnard Castle and went to the John Kipling school there. He died in Cockfield. Jeremiah Dixon and his colleague, CHARLES MASON, were astronomers who indeed were called upon by Thomas Penn and Frederick Calvert to survey the border between the two American colonies. The survey was completed in 1766. Jeremiah died in Cockfield in 1779, about 66 years before my great grandmother, ELEANOR HARTLEY, was born in the same village in 1845.

It so happens that I re-read this brochure a couple of years after I bicycled a portion of the Heritage Trail which runs from York, Pennsylvania, for a distance of about 30 miles, across the PA/MD border, and through Gunpowder Falls State Park. As I passed the Mason-Dixon line, I took a picture of a concrete pillar which apparently was one of several marking the Mason-Dixon Line (and posted it on my blog). A nearby historical marker presented several more facts on the Mason and Dixon team and its survey.

Image: Historical marker on the Heritage Rail-Trail detailing the history of the Mason-Dixon Line. It reads, in part, “Since the Civil War it has served as the boundary between the North and the South …”

I will never again cross the Mason-Dixon Line without thinking of Eleanor Hartley. Incidentally, three members of my immediate family now live north of the Line, while I live south. I cross the Line at least 6 or 7 times a year.

Another thing comes to mind when I look at the tourist map above. Eleanor Hartley was enumerated in the 1861 census of England as a "House Servant", age 16 years, born at Cockfield. She lived in a household which was located in Hurworth upon Tees, south of Darlington (bottom, right corner of map). There were only two other persons enumerated: RICHARD NEWTON, age 83, and his wife, MARY, age 90. I knew of a younger Richard Newton, who married Isabella, or Margaret, Hartley, who was the sister of Eleanor's father, in other words, her uncle. So, I suspect that Eleanor's employer was the father of this uncle. Furthermore, Richard Newton, the elder, was a "farmer of 160 acres, employing one man" according to the census. This was a real find because it took me a while to find Eleanor. The rest of her family, that is Eleanor's father, William Hartley, and four of his other children, were enumerated in the same year in a different location- in the parish of Hunwick and Helmington, Durham.

So, I look at Hurworth upon Tees on the map and think of my great grandmother, only 16 years of age, and working hard as a servant girl on a farm of many acres taking care of a very old couple and their hired hand. By the way, The River Tees marks the boundary between County Durham and Yorkshire in the south. Matter of fact, County Durham is often referred to as "the land ‘twixt the Tyne and the Tees".

Sentimental Sunday- Hiking no more?

2010-01-10T11:28:00.007-05:00

OK, I bought into the Sentimental Sunday posts by the Geneabloggers group. I don't know how I am going to transfer this post to the list of entries by other bloggers, but I will eventually find out- one of these Sundays.

I spent a couple of hours this morning reading the Sentimental entries by other geneabloggers and they were great reads- a little bit different from some of the drier entries about genealogy and family history. They seem to focus more on intimate memories of persons and events. As I read, I kept looking in the back of my mind for some of the events in my life which are sentimental to me. The thought of hiking came to mind- actually of the time when I might have first fallen in love with hiking. I had to dig way back into both my memory and my photo albums. And I came up with the following image of some of the neighborhood kids and I hiking in the big woods near our homes in suburban Maryland. It was 1954, over fifty years ago. In the picture, we are hiking along a nearly dry creek bed. It was in the scattered puddles, that we crept up on frogs, salamanders, box turtles, and captured them for a closer look. I remember one time collecting at least 20 turtles which we took home and started a little zoo- until our parents made us release the reptiles back into the woods. That was when I first fell in love with the natural out-of-doors. However, I get sort or sad when I look at this photo, because the opportunity for this particular hike is no longer possible. A wide swath of the woods was paved over for the Beltway (I-495) of Metropolitan Washington, DC. More land was taken over for apartments and condominiums.

Hiking! I love it. I was born to hike. But the overall sentiment about this life-long love, is that it may be a thing of the past- no longer possible for me. For y'see, I have to walk with a cane now. My hiking legs have become so weak. And this is difficult to write about. I have been taking anti-androgen hormones for about 5 years now to suppress the proliferation of prostate cancer cells. Testosterone is a great hormone, but the lack of it means wasted muscle tissue and its replacement by fat cells. I sometimes wonder when the time will come when I advance from hobbling on a cane to a wheel chair. But even then I believe that some adjustments can be made so that I can still "go hiking" in my beloved woods.

This summer, I was camping in the Jefferson National Forest in Virginia at a place called White Rocks primitive campground. On the way to the campsites, I passed a short trail named Cherokee Flats. I pulled into the parking area and took a short walk- with my cane. The trail was quite flat and paved for most of its distance. The trail passed through a pristine forest among Rhododendrons, still showing the last blooms of late summer. The trail ended too quickly at Stony Brook creek, but long enough to experience THE HIKE.

Image: Walking slowly through the Cherokee Flats trail in Jefferson National Forest, VA

Vintage Baby pictures- HOLD STILL!

2010-01-05T15:53:00.012-05:00

Chris, a friend of mine, was recently browsing an antique store in Barnegut, New Jersey, and found a magazine for collectors of postcards and other paper items. He mailed me a copy, because he knew that I enjoy collecting postcards which illustrate my family history. Incidentally, Chris collects old 45 rpm records; one time he tracked down a copy for me of Lee Dorsey's "Working in a Coal Mine". The song ends with the line, "Ohhh, I'm so tired".

In the studio photographs shown above, do you see the ghostly shape of another human being behind the baby- but hidden by a drape or curtain?

The January 2010 issue of The Paper and Advertising Collectors Marketplace (PAC CM) had an interesting article on "Uncovering the Hidden Mother (and Father) in Photographs. In the nineteenth century, exposure times for photographs were often measured by several seconds rather than fractions of a second as in modern cameras. So, how does a photographer hold a squirming baby down long enough to take an un-blurred picture- and still focus mainly on the baby? One way is to have the mother sit in a chair, hold the baby, and cover the mother's face with a drape or curtain.

The PAC CM magazine article mentioned several other techniques. In some cases, holes in the back of the chair were large enough for the mother to squat down and reach through the holes to hold the baby. A photographer named Fred Pohle invented a medal holder which babies were strapped into and held motionless for the photographer. Perhaps a less traumatic method was for the mother to hold the baby and then be cropped out of the picture during the processing or matting the picture so that the mother was hidden in the frame of the mounted photograph.

The article prompted me to go through my own photo collection looking for vintage baby pictures of my family to see if any of these techniques were used- particularly "Hidden mothers".

(click to enlarge; then use browser's "back" key)

Perhaps the oldest picture in my collection (see above) is that of my great grandparents, Thomas W. Russell and Eleanor, nee. Hartley, holding their second- and third- born children, Nicholson and Jane Ann or "Jenny". The date of the photo, 1880, is easy to pinpoint. Jenny was born in Sep 1879 and looks about a year old or less. The photo was taken at Schmiechen Studios in Sunderland, County Durham, England, and by Aug 1881, the family, or at least the father Thomas, had immigrated to Pennsylvania. In the picture you can see the parents have a pretty tight hold on the children, particularly holding their arms or tiny little hands.

Unfortunately, the first two children, both daughters, of Thomas and Eleanor died before this picture was taken. One daughter died at about a year; the other daughter, at 11 years. One of the points of the PAC CM article was that often pictures of children were taken because of the high infant mortality in the mid-19th century. The photographs served as reminders.

My great grandfather, Joseph Austel, had 10 children by his first wife, but only one child by his second wife, Rosa, nee. Friedrich. Rosa had a valued picture of the son, Paul, who died in 1904 at age 4 or 5 years. Rosa kept the photograph on an alter that she put together herself and placed at the top of the stairs leading to the second floor. She kept a candle burning on the alter. My mother remembers her grandmother praying at the makeshift alter, but somehow, the picture of Paul has been lost.

The two baby pictures above show my maternal grandfather, Charles Anton Gailliot, born 1894, and his first cousin, once removed, Mildred Ann "Millie" Gailliot, born 1907. Their common ancestors were Anton Gailliot and Johanna "Helena" Schlebusch. Both babies are propped on a chair and lay on what looks like sheep skins. Perhaps these shaggy foundations gave more warmth and comfort than if not present. Would that not have been a calming influence on a baby? In Millie's picture, on the right, there seems to be a folded piece of material behind her head. Could this be her "hidden mother". In certainly does not look like part of the chair. I like the cute way Millie is grasping the back of the chair in her left hand.

By the early twentieth century, cameras and films had improved so that exposure times were reduced, and thus the pictures were less likely to be blurred by the subject's movement. Still, the youngest child in the middle of these offspring of Robert William Kramp and Martha, nee. Streich (on left) apparently needed to be steadied. Note the sister holding the baby's hand.

On the right, is my grandmother's sister, Mrs. Rose Salmon, nee. Austel, holding her first child, John. John's left hand seems to be slightly blurred compared to the rest of the picture. I'm glad the beautiful mother in this case was not hidden.

LINKS AND REFERENCES:

1. Go to the homepage of The Paper and Advertising Collectors' Marketplace. Today, I could flip through the pages of their publication and see more pictures of "Hidden Mothers" in baby photographs including the whole text of the article. Perhaps in the future, one may have to look up Vol. 32, No. 1 (Jan 2010) on their site.

2. The "Dead Fred" genealogy photo archive web site also has an unidentified couple who were photographed at Bolko Schmieken Studios in England. I do not believe they are related to my family.

Pont du Mont Blanc and an Early Earth Day Celebration

2009-12-20T17:39:00.010-05:00

This is my first blog entry associated with a group of Genealogy bloggers (so called geneabloggers) who upload vintage postcards to their sites- usually with a certain theme in mind. This month's theme is "white" which could refer simply to a black and white postcard or something white in the context of the picture card.

Following, is a black and white postcard from my collection. It depicts the Pont du (bridge of) Mont Blanc in Geneva, Switzerland. Blanc is French for "white" and refers to the distant snow-covered mountains in the upper left of the picture. Mont Blanc is the highest peak in the Alps, about 15,700+ feet, and can be see from several points around the city of Geneva on a clear day. One can obain excellent views of Mont Blanc and The Alps by climbing to the top of the darker-colored mountain in the foreground which is called Le Saleve, and then, turn around and have spectacular views of Geneva and Lac Leman (Lake Geneva). Mont Blanc is located on the border of France and Italy.

Image (click to enlarge): Vintage view of Pont du Mont Blanc (white mountains in upper left), with forested Ile de Rousseau on right. View looks south toward the old city of Geneva.

Image: Reverse of postcard

The bridge in the postcard crosses the Rhone River as it exits Lake Geneva (on left) and then continues on to France (on the right). The small island with trees in the middle of the river and to the right of the bridge is the Ile (Isle) de Rousseau. It is named for the philosopher, Jean Jacque Rousseau (1712-1778), who was born in Geneva and whose family lived there. Rousseau's "Discourse on the Origins and Basis of Inequality Among Men", published in 1755, is generally believed to have influenced the French Revolution. He dedicated the Discourse to his hometown of Geneva which he considered the most civil state in Europe.

The significance of this postcard is that it reminds me of the time my young family and I lived in Geneva for about two years between 1973 and 1975. I was on a post doctorate program researching diabetes at the University of Geneva. In our first month, my wife and our two young daughters, 4 and 6 years old, joined me in a walk to the edge of the city, and then we took a ride in a cable car to the top of Le Saleve. There was a little bit of snow on top and we threw a few snowballs.

Later in the Spring, the populace of the whole city celebrated Earth Day by abstaining from driving cars. Riding in the electric trams was OK. I rode my bicycle down to the Pont du Mont Blanc; the bridge was covered with bicyclists and pedestrians- and one very lonely taxi. Incidentally, Earth Day is celebrating its 40th anniversary next year, 2010. So the following pictures taken in 1974, were taken on about the 4th annual Earth Day.

Image: From a 35 mm Kodachrome of Pont du Mont Blanc on Earth Day, 1974. The end of the bridge runs into the old city of Geneva. La Seleve can be seen rising above the city in the distance. Only bicyclists and pedestrians are on bridge and a red-colored electric tram at far end of bridge. In warmer weather, colorful banners and flags were hung on the poles slanting over the bridge railings.

Image: All kinds of bikes were found on the bridge on Earth Day, 1974

Image: A lone taxi tries to negotiate a path through a disapproving crowd on Pont du Mont Blanc. The passengers were probably coming home from the airport. The lady inside appears to be smiling in good spirits.

If you got here from Therialt's Festival of Postcards, click here to return to the Festival.

LINKS and REFERENCES:

Look up "Rousseau" and "Mont Blanc" on Wikipedia.

For more information on "Festival of Postcards" see Evelyn Theriault's "A Canadian Family" Blog.

Russell Cave, Jackson Co, Alabama

2009-12-05T13:44:00.007-05:00

If you had Russell ancestors and passed a place called Russell Cave, wouldn't you want to know what was inside the cave? I did. So, on my way to my brother-in-law's for Thanksgiving, I took a short side-trip off Interstate 24 between Chattanooga and Nashville, Tennessee, to travel just across the border into Alabama (Jackson County). It was early morning, sunny, and relatively warm for Fall. At the entrance to Russell Cave National Monument, I hauled out my tripod and took this picture. I was initially going to title this blog entry, "I feel a headache coming on". Actually, the spear which appears ready to pierce my scalp was an ancient improvement in the art of spear throwing. The Native American is using an "atlatl" to propel the spear with much more speed and accuracy than the old way of using solely arm power.

I took a short walk on a boardwalk behind the visitor center and arrived at the entrance to the cave. A good-sized creek ran right into and disappeared inside the cave. In the past, the creek would flood and eventually gouge out a larger cavity. The ceiling of the structure from time to time would split from the upper sandstone, causing a rockfall, which in turn created a raised floor in a large portion of the cave. Thus, Native Americans could live in the cave. It had natural air-conditioning and a ready water supply.

I noticed as I entered the cave that hundreds of large screws with plates had been driven into the ceiling to prevent any further rockfalls- or so the theory goes.

At the visiting center, I learned the unique feature of this cave is that various research groups had excavated artifacts which could demonstrate almost 10,000 years of habitation by Indians of several periods: Archaic, Woodland, and Mississippian.

Image (above): The boardwalk begins behind the visitor center and enters the cave.

In relatively modern times, the cave and surrounding land were first owned by Captain John Woods who received the land grant for his service in the Revolutionary War (RW). Woods was a Cherokee Indian which was the first time I heard Indians served in the RW. He also built a stone house on the land which is the oldest house still in use in Jackson County, Alabama. Evidence of Woods' residency in the area eventually faded. The land was then owned for a while by another RW veteran who in turn sold it to his brother-in-law, Colonel THOMAS RUSSELL whose descendants kept it in the family until 1928. The last private owner was Oscar Ridley who allowed excavation of the cave by local, amateur archaeologists. Recognizing the value of these discoveries, the Smithsonian Institute and National Geographic Societies (NGS) became heavily involved. The latter purchased the cave and presented it to the American People which was sealed by the creation of this National Monument by President Kennedy in 1961.

Browsing in the gift shop after my tour of the cave, I found a copy of a substantial genealogy of a Russell family by Walter A. Russell. The park ranger told me that Walter often gives genealogy seminars at the center. Search the title at Amazondotcom and you will find the first 5 pages of the book including the statement, "... first progenitor of this lineage was Matthew Russell who was Scotch-Irish ... born around 1735." You can also view the Index with 7 pages of Russell surnames. I doubt if Matthews family lived in the cave, and the same goes for my Russell family- who didn't arrive in America until 1881.

However, there are some connections to my "Life's Journey".

1. The Russell Cave visitor center was dedicated to former NGS chairman, Gilbert H. Grosvenor, whose former home was in my "home" town of Bethesda, MD.

2. Matthew Russell, the progenitor, once resided in Mechlenburg Co, NC, and York Co, SC, near Revolutionary War sites, Kings Mountain and Cowpens, all located near my current residence.

3. Another book available in the visitor center, was "Selu, Seeking the Corn-Mother's Wisdom" by former Tennessean poet laureate, Marilou Awiakta. She once inspired me to write about where I came from at an Appalachian Writer's workshop at Radford University. Search Amazon book store.

REFERENCES AND LINKS:

National Park Service web site for Russell cave: www.nps.gov/ruca

One ... maybe ... two more chapters to the Russell Line

2009-11-27T15:09:00.009-05:00

Hold the printing presses on the Genealogy of the Russell Family. More information has come to light resulting in substantial changes to the Russell Line. I realize that I have to stop somewhere and print The Book. But first, I wanted to identify the so called "unidentified Russell" in an early family portrait taken about 1885 at Kruger Studios in Houtzdale, PA. All of the other persons in that portrait have been identified- sometimes from additional pictures taken later in life.

Enlarge any image by clicking on it.

Image above: The "Russell Siblings" portrait taken at Kruger Studios, ca. 1885, in Houtzdale, Clearfield County, PA. One of the persons has not been identified, but there are two candidates who are being proposed in this blog entry. The lone sister is Alma Emma Russell (in right portrait only) who immigrated to America about 1885. She was married to Alexander Forsyth by January 1888. Incidentally, there were at least ten children in the first generation.

Image above: Four Russell siblings in the first generation- Thomas William, Robert, Alma Emma, and James Fredrich. James Russell was a step sibling to the others. Photo taken August 1920, in which Thomas and Robert of Pennsylvania traveled to Syracuse, NY, to visit Alma and James. Two Russell brothers had already passed: John Girabaldi (1914) and probably the "unidentified Russell" (1911).

There has been mostly hearsay evidence that the "unidentified Russell" might be called David and that he was a bachelor who worked as a secretary to the officers of the Berwind and White Coal Company. However, a David Russell was not enumerated in the UK census reports of the Russell family during the 30 years or so (1848-1881) they lived in northern England before emigrating to America. The progenitors were Thomas Russell and Jane McNELLEY/ McNALLY, both born in Scotland. They were given as the parents in christening records (Holy Trinity Anglican, Wingate, County Durham, England) and birth registrations (Easington District of Co. Durham) for all the accountable children of the family EXCEPT for a David Russell. Note that Thomas Russell, the Elder, was married twice, and he and his second wife, Jane McCALLUM, had only one child, James Fredrich Russell, who appears in the family portrait with his step siblings. In November 1880, the father of the family died, and a year later, two married sons and their families emigrated to Houtzdale, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, just missing the 1880 US census reports. The younger siblings came a few years later.

A family friend informed me that another immigrant family from Scotland appeared earlier in Houtzdale, PA, according to the 1880 US Census. The family was headed by Robert Russell who we have since identified as Robert McCALLUM Russell. Since his pronounced middle name was the same as the surname of Thomas Russell's second wife, a connection is suggested. Since Robert was in Houtzdale at least 5 years before the said portrait was taken, could he then be the "unidentified Russell"? More has been uncovered about Robert McCallum Russell and his family but the specific connection to the rest of the Russell family is yet to be defined. And thus far, no one can point to the Unidentified Russell in the portrait and say, "yes, that's Robert McCallum Russell".

To confuse the issue further, a second candidate for the Unidentified Russell has recently been discovered. A family genealogist should never make unsupported presumptions. I thought for sure that the oldest child of the first generation Russell family, that is William Russell, remained behind in England after the others came to America. Furthermore, I thought William's first, reconnaissance trip to America in 1879, which resulted in the death of his traveling companion, unnerved William from ever coming to America again. I knew that William married Mary Ann Laverick in January 1870, and that they had four children, all boys, as recorded in the UK census of 1881.

However, my family informant came through again and emailed me a reference indicating William Russell and his family were enumerated in the 1900 US census, in Paint Township, Somerset County, PA, as follows:

William Russell, head, 53, born Dec 1846, in Scotland of Scottish parents; married 28 years [m. about 1872], immigrated 1887, naturalized; coal miner; rents house.
Mary A, wife, 52, born Oct 1847 in England of English parents; bore 8 children of which 6 survive.
All children born in England of Scottish father and English mother:
Thomas Russell, son, 28, born Jan 1871; coal miner.
George Russell, son, 22, born Oct 1877; coal miner.
C A (sic, probably Charles Russell), 19, born Oct 1880; coal miner.
William Russell, son, 18, born Jan 1881, coal miner.
Ph ... (illegible), son, 16, born July 1883.
Jane A. Russell, dau, 14, born Aug. 1885.

Fortunately, the immigration year stated for the family head turned out to be accurate and I found the family on a passenger list at Ancestry.com; they arrived 20 May 1887, at Castle Garden on SS City of Rome; departing from Liverpool, England, Passenger Nos. 515-522 (see cropped image below):

There was a discrepancy in that the "son" identified as "Ph ..." on the 1900 census is listed on the passenger list as a daughter named Phyllis (who wore the same given name as Mary Ann Laverick's mother).

So, all we have to do is find William Russell's family in more recent US census reports. Right? Wrong. I have searched and, so far, have come up empty handed.

Indeed, there is some evidence that William Russell might have died in 1911 according to a dated letter sent between two of William's brothers, Thomas W. and John Girabaldi. See a previous entry for full text of letter.

I Might have been Raised a Mid-Westerner

2009-11-12T10:36:00.023-05:00

If THIS would have happened a bit differently, or this, or this and that, then I might have been raised in the mid-West, instead of Bethesda, Maryland. I am reminded of the Academy Award-acclaimed movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". In the plot, Brad Pitt's character, Benjamin, is born an old man and matures backwards towards being a young boy. The movie trailer makes the premise that: "Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards". Towards the end of the movie, Benjamin recalls in a series of flashbacks that if a number of events would have happened just a little differently, then his life-long partner in romance would not have broken her leg in five places and ended her career as a ballet dancer. Life changes.

But to explain my situation, I also need to go backwards in time. And, for my "flashbacks", I will use excerpts from my great grandfather's 19th Century Journal which he kept for several years before emigrating from County Durham, England, to America. I transcribe the journal entries of Thomas William Russell just as he penned them [words in brackets are mine]:

"April 4th, 1879. Wheatly Hill colliery [County Durham], page 6"
"On this day I thinking about my brother William. He is goin to set off for Amarica on the 8 of this month."
"Thompson Teasdal, Fountain County, Snodon Mill, Indianna North Amarica"

"April 8th 1879. Wheatley Hill Colliery, page 36"
"Dear Father Mother Brothers and Sisters. We landed in Liverpool about 5 oclock last night we went to the Inman office. But it was no go, we could not be on. There seams to be a understanding with all companys so we will be bord at oclock today with stem ship City of New York. It cost us L 8, 16s, 19d to a place thay call Attice in the state of Indinna. But if any should come, book with Humprey or some of the agents. It saved us nothinges coming to Liverpool. I can say I am prity well at present. Hoping this will find you all at present. You can let Brother Robert no [know]. I hope he is keeping his canch up and I hope it will not be long before we meet again. Excuse this writin so I remain your loving son and brother W.R. Russell"
"Hears is last night note. Make what you can of it. This is the end of the forst letter. Thos. Russell"

"May 26th 1879, page 54"
"Monday morning on this date the sad nues came to our place from our William relating the death of Robert Davison his mate how [who] was killied by his side on the 8th of May in a America"

"May 29th 1879. Wheatley Hill Colliery. page 54
"On this date my brother William returned from amarica. I was in back shift that day. If Robert Davison had been sperried [spared] to come back all would been well but the Lord thought fit to call him hench and may the Lord rest his soul".

In essence, these excerpts indicate that the oldest son of the Russell family, William, traveled to a coal mining region which, I later deduced, was near Snoddy's Mill, in Fountain County, Indiana. The county is located west of Indianapolis on the Illinois border. The Wabash River flows through the county. Apparently, William and his traveling companion, Robert Davison, were making a reconnaissance of the area to see if it was a suitable place for their families to start a new life in America as immigrant coal miners. Unfortunately, Davison, was killed, and I believe the event undoubtedly had a big impact on the Russell Family's intention to leave England for America. Nevertheless, about two years later, in September 1881, Thomas Russell and his brother, Robert, sailed for America, but instead of settling in Indiana, they went to Pennsylvania, and started to work the coal mines in Houtzdale, Clearfield County. Three younger siblings joined them in the mid-1880s. Brother William also immigrated to Pennsylvania but waited until 1887.

Thomas' daughter, Emily Russell, met and eventually married a German immigrant named Otto Streich. Their sixth-born child was my father, who, with a few more twists and turns, migrated to Alexandria, Virginia, where he met my mother.

Yet, I still wonder what it would have been like to pull big catfish out of the creek at Snoddy's Mill- if this or that would have turned out a bit differently.

MORE ABOUT SNODDY'S MILL, FOUNTAIN CO., INDIANA
I posted the transcription of my great grandfather's Journal on my father's branch, genealogical web site about ten years ago. A reader, named Lesa Epperson, emailed me that he and his family grew up in Fountain County, Indiana, around Wabash Township. Furthermore, Lesa wrote that Snoddy's Mill, rather than "Snodon Mill", had been demolished except for its rock foundation. It was located on Coal Creek and once stood in the midst of a coal mining area near Stringtown, which has been reduced to a few houses, and the former towns of Bunkertown and Vicksburg. He added, "One of my ancestors (William Cadman) came from England also to work in the mines. He settled just south of Snoddy's Mill about 1870"

I Googled "Snoddy's Mill" and found a great site for family historians who want to purchase or email vintage postcards depicting landmarks of their family's history. I presume the site gains a promotion. In any case, take a look at Snoddy's Mill below (click on image to enlarge):

Image: Vintage Postcard of Snoddy's Mill described on reverse: "Located in Fountain County, Indiana. First mill built 1828. Present mill built 1867-68 and operated until 1946. Owned by Mrs. Betty Hembrey and leased to Fountain County Historical Society for a museum. There are three covered bridges in Fountain County.

UPDATE, 24 Nov 2009:
William Russell mentioned the date and name of the ship on which he and Robert Davison sailed- see Thomas' Journal entry of 8 Apr 1879. I followed up these leads and made a search of Passenger Lists (Ancestry.com):

Arriving on the SS New York City at NY port on 21 Apr 1879; departing Liverpool, England, traveling in steerage; Francis S. Land, Ship Master:

"Wm Russell", 30 [born ~1849], mechanic, English; Passenger No. 149.
"Robt Davison", 26 [born ~1853], farmer, English, Passenger No. 150.

Thus, the words written in Thomas W. Russell's journal are validated.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

Full transcript of Thomas W. Russell's 19th century Journal

String Town, Fountain Co., IN, on Wikipedia. This former town was described as rough and tumble and boasted of having 17 saloons. I wonder if Robert Davison might have been killed in bar room brawl.

More about "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

Vintage postcards at cardcow

Veterans Day 2009. A Tribute to Our Family in Uniform

2009-11-10T10:08:00.008-05:00

I'm going to try something new here. I started a subscription to an on-line photo album in which I could create slide shows from still photos and videos. The program is called PhotoShow by Roxio. I have been pleased with the program so far, and I believe it has potential to illustrate our family history. Several upgraded features of the program during the past year seemed to have improved the product. One nice feature is that I can embed the show here, or add a link from this blog to any one of my slide shows- I think. Of course I have to keep my subscription going or the link will be broken. I guess that is what Roxio is hoping for. In any case, here goes an experiment. Below is an embedded slide show which I have titled in short, "Family in Uniform". It features pictures all of my relatives who have served their country. You can expand the show full screen by clicking on the appropriate icon. Also, I have included names of the persons below the slide show so that they can be found using Internet search engines. (Captions embedded in slides can not be searched.

Those who served (in order of appearance in show): Jacob Imfang (Prussia), Friedrich Meier, Ernst Boehme, Verdan R. Thompson, Frank Austel, John Russell Dawson, Richard R. Dawson, Harry (Parkinson) Russell, Sons of George Haas & Bertha Hohnke, James Schofield Hoyt, Amil Kramp, Charles Joseph Gailliot, Joseph S. Bailey, Helen Rose Gailliot, Edward A. Gailliot, Cecil Austel, Donald Austel, Shewin Brothers: Mathew, William, Joseph, Thomas; Glenn Franck on US Trenton, Walter T. Hellyer, John T. Parke, Dorothy M. Kramp, William Lewis Kramp, John Albert Honadle, Norma J. Russell, Elwood Zimmerman, James Henderson, Henry Collins, Michael John Gailliot, David G. Gailliot, Robert Charles Kramp, Robert L. Gable, Phillip R. Franck.

Jacob Imfang, Prussian Soldier

2009-11-10T10:03:00.004-05:00

One of my mother's uncles was Jacob Imfang. He immigrated to America arriving at Castle Gardens, New York, in Oct 1905 on the S.S. Finland. He came to Braddock, as suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and there, met Anna Austel. The Austel family had immigrated to Braddock from Canton Thurgau, Switzerland, about two years before Jacob arrived on the scene. Jacob and Anna were married at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Braddock in Oct 1909. They had three daughters: Margaret Ann, Martha Ann, and Elizabeth "Betty".

Several years ago, I tracked down Jacob and Anna's daughter, Martha, who was living in northern Pittsburgh. Martha's father, Jacob, was a professional carpenter and furniture maker; his cabinets were sold in Pittsburgh's well-known Department store, Joseph Horne Company. As Martha invited me into her house to see some of the fine furniture her father had made, I noticed a handsome portrait of Jacob in Military Uniform (see the first image below). I knew he was originally from Germany and I presumed he had served in the Prussian Military. Martha showed me a smaller, black and white, cabinet card of the same image. On the reverse, someone had written what looked like Jacob's regiment including a few numbers and symbols that I couldn't decipher. However, I wrote the information down in my journal like a good family historian. More recently, a friend referred me to a web site that had information on Prussian Regiments, and fortunately, I was able to identify Jacob's regiment. (Thank you, Jon von Briesen). Jacob served in:

"Grenadier Regiment Graf Kleist von Nollendorf, Nr. 6 (1. Westpreußisches)", and probably in the 10th Division. "Graf" is a title meaning count. How Jacob got from the Frankfurt area where he was born to being recruited in a Prussian regiment in Posen is still a mystery.

IMAGE: Jacob Imfang in Prussian military uniform. He is wearing his "Dunkelblau" (dark blue) tunic. On the side table, lies his Picklehaub (spiked helmet) with black-colored, parade plume made of horse hair. The epaulets on shoulder, the color and design of piping, the design of buttons and medallion on helmet, all identify Jacob's unit in the military. Darn, if I knew all that BEFORE I took the picture, it sure would have helped. Sorry about the reflection on the convex glass which covered the framed portrait.

Martha also showed me a newsclipping featuring Jacob and titled, "Native of Germany celebrates his 90th [birthday]. I folded the clipping to fit into the image below. The article did not mention Jacob's Prussian service, but it did tell about his interests in dancing and a men's singing group called a "Mannechor" in German, and his hobby working with wood. Also, it told about an incident in Jacob's childhood when he attended his neighborhood school with former President, Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1890s. Apparently, Roosevelt's parents thought it would be healthy for their son, who was afflicted with Polio, to spend several summers in Bad Nauheim, a health resort famous for its baths (Die Bad). I was wondering how I could confirm this family tradition- but see "References" below.

(click image to enlarge)

Sometimes we forget to realize that millions of German immigrants who came to America in the late 19th century, including my own ancestors, had to turn around in a generation or two and do battle with their former countrymen during two world wars. That is truely ironic.

REFERENCES:

Names of Prussian Regiments

Franklin D. Roosevelts summer visits to Bad Nauheim (in German)

Eckley Miners Village in the Snow

2009-11-09T22:59:00.017-05:00

"Apple" made a comment on my last entry that she also enjoyed the Heritage sites scattered across Pennsylvania, in particular, one she had visited called Eckley Miners Village near Hazelton. That brought back memories for me. I was working at Susquehanna Nuclear Plant near Berwick, PA, in the Susquehanna River Valley, and on my day off, I drove a short distance to Eckley and took one of my favorite photos shown below.

From Life's Journey

Incidentally, my friend, Jon, recently re-acquainted me with the beauty of Black and White photos and Sepia-toned images- even for nature shots (and coal tipples).

What you are seeing here is a coal tipple. Coal was hauled to the top of the slanted conveyor belt and then dumped though giant sieves to "size" the crushed coal. Before the turn of the 20th century, boys were hired to cull the slate, which was a waste product, from the usable and more valuable coal. The teen aged, or even younger, boys were called "breaker boys".

Several years ago, a friend of my late father, told me that the smaller coal tipples around Ramey in Clearfield County, PA, made great "Jungle Gyms" in the old days. He told me that my Dad would take his waist belt off, loop it over one of the supporting steel cables of the tipple, and then, hanging onto the loose ends of the belt, slide and ride the cable all the way down to the ground. "He was a real dare devil" my Dad's friend recalled.

LINKS:
Muddy coal mine tipple, Muddy, Illinois. Song by Rocky Alvey. Youtube video

Traces of coal mining in Fayette County, PA, along Youghiogheny River trail

2009-11-07T23:37:00.010-05:00

Unfortunately, Blogspot will not allow me to place images where I want to in relation to the text. I hope the powers that be will someday fix this irritating glitch. But for now, we must push on and play by their rules.

(Click images to enlarge)

Earlier this Fall, I took a side trip on my way home from a family history gathering trip to Westmoreland and Fayette Counties in Pennsylvania. After a day of taking photos of tombstones at Mount Pleasant cemetery (see last entry), I camped that night at Ohiopyle State Park along the Youghiogheny River. The next morning, I took a bicycle ride on a portion of the Rail-Trail that follows the river from the state park all the way to McKeesport near Pittsburgh. The trail is part of the Great Allegheny Passage which stretches several hundred miles from Pittsburgh, PA, to Georgetown, Washington, DC. I met one bicyclist who was traveling the whole trail, end to end, and when he reached DC in few days, he was planning to box up his bike and take the Amtrack back to Pittsburgh. I thought that one day I would like to bicycle the same route and dedicate the ride to my mother's Gailliot Family Line who, in 1880, emigrated from Germany to Braddock, PA, to work in the steel mills, and then, in 1920, migrated to a farm in Alexandria, VA. No, they did not bike it.

At one point on my bike ride, I passed a cut in a steep cliff along the trail. There was an historic marker at the bottom of the cliff which gave a brief description of the coal mining era in the region. The text began by pointing to a vein of coal on the cliff high above me (directly above the dashed line, colored red, in image above). Also shown, was an enlarged copy of a vintage postcard depicting coal miners standing around a mine shaft in Connellsville, PA. Rail cars loaded with coal were being pulled by mules from the mine shaft.

I was reminded of the Russell family that I had just studied the day before in Mt. Pleasant. Some members of the family resided in a coal company town at the Royal Mine and Coke Works, according to census reports. Indeed, I found out later, that the funeral for Robert M. Russell was held at his married daughter's house in Royal. His daughter, Christine, was married to James Eaton. At a web site called The Virtual Museum of Coal Mining in Western Pennsylvania there is a detailed description of the neighborhood where the Russell family once resided:

"Approximately ninety coal company built houses ... laid out along four parallel streets ... The bulk of the houses are semi-detached dwellings with their gable ends facing the streets. Of standard wood-frame construction, they are four-bay on the ground level and two-bay above; they rest on coursed-stone foundations. the houses have shed or hipped-roof front porches and their two interior brick chimneys are either on opposite sides of the roof ridge or piercing the ridge. ..."

Royal was later called Chestnut Ridge, but you will not find either town on a road map of Pennsylvania today. Most of these "Patch" company towns have been dismantled. I am glad that at least a description of the town survives.

Tombstones for Robert McCallum Russell Family at Mt. Pleasant, PA

2009-11-07T22:10:00.011-05:00

(Click for larger view)

I had an epiphany of sorts a few weeks ago. I was trying to collect more information on the family of Robert McCallum Russell to see if I could link him to the "unidentified Russell" in a group photograph taken in Kruger Studio about 1885. The photo appears in one of my earlier blog entries. The studio was located in Houtzdale, Clearfield Co, PA, where Robert M. Russell was enumerated in the 1880 census. By 1900, Robert had moved his family further west to Mt. Pleasant, Westmoreland County, PA. which was a rich coal mining area much like Houtzdale was in the 1880s. I had a tip that Robert might be buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery. This was confirmed in a compilation of cemetery inscriptions (by Della Reagan Fischer (Mrs. Frank C.), 1979, available at the Mt. Pleasant library. There were 10 inscriptions (names and dates) that matched the Russell family I was researching. I was a little daunted by Fischer's list of 4,000 transcriptions but I vowed to visit the cemetery, find the tombstones, and take pictures.

There was no problem finding the cemetery just north of town, but to my chagrin, there was no office. I called the phone number of the caretaker the library staff had given me. (Cell phones are such a boon to modern-day genealogists). The responder said he was now retired as caretaker but he gave me the new caretaker's number. In the meantime, I was driving around the extensive cemetery wondering how in the world I was going to find the memorials I was looking for out of the four thousand stones that I could see spread over the hillsides. I talked to the caretaker's wife who said her husband was very sick in bed. "But give me the names and call back tomorrow".

But, I was already here, and I wouldn't be here tomorrow, I thought silently.

So I drove up to the highest point of the cemetery and rode around the paved circle at the top. A flagpole and military cannons graced the highpoint. I pulled over and parked my van under a group of large oaks. Then, I got out and walked around to the opposite doors leading to the rear of the van to grab a snack from the ice box. And lo and behold (ready for the epiphany?), I walked right smack dab into an upright stone marking the THE Russell family plot. Talk to any genealogist and they will tell you of similar experiences.

In the image above, between the two trees, a line of four tombstones face a larger memorial inscribed "RUSSELL". The inscriptions on the flat faces of the smaller tombstones, left to right, are:

David T., 1875-1949

Robert M., 1845-1927

Mary T., 1848-1924

John T., 1883-1924

The next day, the caretaker phoned and gave me the specific burial dates and ages for three of the four individuals- there was no burial date for Robert's wife, Mary T., but there was a note in the mortuary records indicating she died at the age of 76 years. Robert M. Russell, was buried 20 June 1927, aged 82 years. Now that I had the specific dates, I could look for obituaries in the local paper, The Mount Pleasant Journal. It was published once a week back then. But that's another Life's Journey.

I did say I obtained ten inscriptions, and I have presented only four so far. The remaining six (I did not locate the tombstones) were:

Alexander T. Russell, 1888-1934, Father

Jennie W. Russell, 1893- [blank], Mother

Robert M. Russell, 1881-1926, Father

Magdalena D. Russell, 1880-1960, Mother

Robert C. Russell, 1905-1960, son

Billy Eugene Russell, 1920-1926, son

Re-thinking the identity of unknown male Russell, PART II.

2009-10-19T12:36:00.007-04:00

Though the second wife of Thomas Russell, the elder, that is Jane McCallum, had a late child by Thomas, it is possible that she may have born children in a previous marriage. She bore James F. Russell in 1869, when she was 42 years old. If she did have other children, they could have been on their own before she re-married sometime between 1866 and 1869. Thomas Russell, Sr, died in 1880, and Jane (McCallum) Russell died in 1884; both were buried in Durham County, England.

The adult children of Thomas Russell and his FIRST wife, Jame McNelley/ McNally, who were Thomas W. and Robert Russell, immigrated through port of Boston to Houtzdale, Clearfield Co, PA, in Sep 1881. They were followed by James F. and Alma Emma in 1885, through the port of Philadephia, and John G. Russell came to Houtzdale in 1884 via Philadelphia according to his naturalization papers. Since these immigrations began in 1881, I paid little attention to any other Russell immigrants who showed up earlier in Clearfield County, but I was aware of them.

Recently, another family researcher called my attention to the 1880 census of Houtzdale in which another Russell family of Scottish immigrants was enumerated. They were Robert Russell, 33, born abt 1843, his wife Mary, 31, and their four children, Christina, Elizabeth, DAVID, and Alexander. My fellow researcher suggested that son, David, age 5, was my missing person. Incidentally, I posted a picture of a "David" Russell on my Genealogy web site for the past 9 years as a missing person. But, if son, David, was born in 1875, he would have been about 10 years old when the Kruger Studio portrait was taken in 1885 or thereabouts. Though the Kruger picture might have been taken a few years later, the unknown Russell seems to be much older than a teenager, and therefore, unlikely to be Robert's son called David. On the other hand, the father himself, that is Robert Russell, might be the unknown Russell. Moreover, my source found some unconfirmed data on Member Family Trees at Ancestry.com indicating that Robert's full name was Robert McCallum Russell. And that does ring a bell even though it is slightly hollow at this point. Additional data on this family, particularly obituaries, might make the bell ring more clearly.

Oh yes, the 1900 census, indicates that Robert M. Russell and his son, David, were "Stationary Engineers". Does that not sound like a glorified term for "Secretary". Note that my unidentified, male Russell, who was featured in the last blog entry, was a SECRETARY for the Berwind and White Coal Company. According US censuses, Robert M. Russell migrated from Houtzdale, Clearfield Co., to Mount Pleasant, Westmoreland Co. (toward Pittsburgh), between 1880 and 1900. Robert and his wife were still in Mt. Pleasant in 1920. Robert's son, David, was still a bachelor by the 1930 census, aged 54 years.

Most of the time there are crumbs of truth in family tradition. It is up to the family historian to build these crumbs into a whole loaf of bread.

Re-thinking the identity of unknown RUSSELL, called David, Part I

2009-10-19T11:52:00.006-04:00

PRIMARY IMAGE: The male Russell, traditionally identified as "David" in this circa 1885, Kruger Studio portrait, might be a case of mistaken identity. Indeed, "David" might be something other than a full blooded sibling to the others, and his name may not be David afterall. Thomas Russell, Sr, and Jane McNELLEY or McNALLY (considered to be one and the same female) are the known parents of John Girabaldi, Thomas William, Robert, and Alma Emma, according to birth registrations or parish records. James Fredrick Russell was the youngest child, born in 1869, the son of Thomas Russell, Sr, and his SECOND wife, Jane McCALLUM. Thus, James F. Russell is a half brother to the others. I have additional pictures of these persons which confirms their identity, however I have no other images of "David". This primary image is a digital scan of a photocopy in the hands of a distant cousin, Suzanne Forsythe, who I met in Spring, 1994. On the reverse of the original cabinet-card photograph someone had written in light pencil the identification of all persons, including a "David" Russell. Unfortunately, I have since lost contact with Ms. Forsythe, who then resided in Buffalo, New York- far from my home. Nevertheless, I was very excited to obtain even this poor quality likeness of my heavily bearded, great grandfather, Thomas William Russell, and his "siblings". Since I came upon the photocopy of these six related or presumably related members of the Russell family, I discovered another cabinet card which depicts all the Russell MALES taken by the same studio at the same time. However, Alma Emma Russell was apparently asked to step out of the group for the second picture shown below.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Therefore, I will refer to "David" as the "unidentified Russell", because presently, I am not certain of his true identity. None of my extended family can confirm this man's first name. Mrs. Gladys (Russell) Hilburt, a granddaughter of Robert Russell (front row, right) told me that the unidentified male- she could not recall his name- was a bachelor and that he worked as a secretary to the corporate officers of Berwind and White Coal Company. He attended them as they made their rounds of the company-owned, coal mines in western PA. Also, Gladys once had an ink well that was given to her father by this traveling "uncle" as she referred to him. Unfortunately, the ink well has disappeared.

One other piece of evidence survives regarding the unidentified Russell. John G. Russell wrote a letter (see below) to his brother, Thomas William Russell, regarding one of their brothers who had died recently, but unfortunately, he never mentioned the name of the deceased.

"December 29, 1911"
"Dear Brother:"

"You will no doubt think it strange at not receiving word from me since the death of our poor brother. My silence might indicate a want of feeling, but I can assure you that such is not the case. I have thought of him ever since his demise, and have been going to write you ever since I got the news of his death, but have had no heart."

"I am only sorry that I did not try to see him before he died, but it is too late now. I would have been at his funeral, but I got the news too late. I did not know of it until three o’clock on the Sunday afternoon following the day that he died, and then I did not have his address. It would have taken me ten hours to get there and then I did not know where to find them. I wish someone had sent and told me his condition and his address. However, he has just gone a step before us, and, "After life’s fitful fever he sleeps well". His life was not a bed of roses. And God knows best. ..."

"Remember me kindly to brother Bob and all your family, also Dawson and family."

"With Kindest regards to all, I am your brother, John. 601 Montgomery St, Syracuse, N.Y."

NOTE regarding letter: John requested that his regards be passed to brother, Bob (Robert), and also to the Dawson family. By elimination and considering the date of the letter, I speculate that the recently deceased brother was the unidentifed Russell, and he probably died in PA. John G. Russell, died in 1914 of stomach cancer, three years after penning this letter. The sister, Alma Emma Russell, died in 1951, and the half-brother, James F. Russell, died in 1957; both were buried in Syacuse, NY.

There were other children in the first generation: Mary, born 1950; Jane, 1951; Janet, 1956; and Sarah Rebecca, born 1864- all daughters. The final fate of Mary and Jane are not known. Sarah Rebecca, married Thomas Dawson; they had 5 children, but then, Sarah died aged 28 years in 1892; Janet Russell, married a Thomas Parkinson, and they had 11 children before she died in 1899, aged 43 years. Thus, at least four females in the first generation had married and probably remained behind in England when the others departed for America. The oldest in the first generation was William R. Russell. He was born in Scotland in 1845, about one year before Thomas William Russell. William married Mary Ann Laverick, and they had four children. William's family was enumerated in Tudhoe, Durham Co, in 1881, after which time they can not be found. One of William's children died within a year of birth. William Russell was not present in the 1885 Kruger Studio portrait and there is no evidence that he ever immigrated- at least to America.

Realize that all these children in the first generation and their own families can be followed in the censuses from 1851 through 1881 in County Durham, England. A few family members can be followed in England beyond 1881 as parents in the next generation.

Path of the Flood Trail- Conemaugh to Johnstown PA

2009-09-18T19:36:00.001-04:00

Image: Staple Bend Tunnel is oldest railroad tunnel in America, built in early 1830s. It is part of the Allegheny Portage Railroad that transported goods and passengers over the Allegheny Mountain Range. If your ancestors traveled from Philadelphia to Pittsburg between 1834 -1854, they probably went through this tunnel- so did some of the famous- like author Charles Dickens, soprano Jenny Lind, PT Barnum, and even the body of President William H. Harrison. I trusted the stone work of the Irish and Welsh immigrants who dug this tunnel so that I didn't hesitate to ride my bike through. But nevertheless, I was glad to see the light again at the other end. The Little Conemaugh River running beside the trail is the same that carried the flood waters which destroyed Johnstown in 1889. And it's worth noting that my father's first cousin, Martha Strike, the only known daughter of Julius Strike, is buried in South Fork Cemetery, another town in the flood's path. Fortunately, She was born in November, 1904, about 15 years after The Flood.

Early Tuberculosis patient records found at Cresson

2009-09-16T11:15:00.005-04:00

My biological paternal grandfather, Otto Strike, was the ice plant operator at Cresson Tuberculosis Sanitarium, PA, and died at the "San" from a heart attack in May 1946, according to his death certificate- and he was widowed.

I have been looking for Otto's 1930 census enumeration, but thus far, have not been able to find him. I browsed hundreds of doctors, nurses, employees, and patients who were enumerated at the San in 1930, but Otto was not among them. Maybe, he'll be in the 1940 census to be released to the public in 2012.

In the meantime, genealogists who are looking for FAMILY members who were patients at the San between 1924 and 1931, might consult an archived item at Cambria County Historical Society in Ebensburg, PA. Four boxes of index cards, ~9000 TB patient records were found in the attic of the Administration Building, State School No. 7, which is now a State Prison. The cards were turned over by the Superintendant to Cambria Co. Historical Society. In the image above, one of the boxes is held by Dave Huber of CCHS.

UPDATE: I just re-read Otto Strike's 1946 obituary, and it states that Otto worked at the Cresson Sanitarium for the previous 13 years; that is, 1933 to 1946. Thus, it seems that Otto had not started work at the Sanitarium by the 1930 census. The question remaines: where was Otto at that time?

The Ghost Town Trail at Nanty Glo

2009-09-15T19:30:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite Rail-Trails in PA is the Ghost Town R-T. Here, I can travel through the heritage and culture of my coal mining ancestors. Once, there were many well-populated coal mining towns, some set up by the patronizing coal companies themselves. The miners paid rent to the company and spent their script at the company store. All that is gone now. The former towns that once lined Black Lick Creek and the railroad which ran beside it are "ghosts" today. Here, the trail runs through Nan T Glo, or Nanty Glo, which in Welsh means "stream of coal". On far right, one can still see eroded mountains of slag or "boney" piles- waste from coal mining operations. The run-off from these acidic wastes taints the waters of BL Creek. Reclamation is underway, but the job is monumental. In 2005, Trail was extended 8 more miles to Ebensburg- county seat of Cambria.

"... It will form like a habit and seap in your soul/ Till the stream of your blood is as black as the coal". From "Dark as a Dungeon"

Flight 93 temporary memorial Shanksville PA

2009-09-14T08:38:00.002-04:00

A Park Volunteer "Ambassador" hangs a banner on the Flight 93 temporary memorial- donated today by "Endless Mountain Hog Chapter (motorcycle), Mansfield, PA. There are tens of thousands of personal remembrances at the site reflecting our history and culture- from plastic airplanes to service metals to clothing, like T-shirts, caps, & firemen's protective gear. A permanent memorial begins construction Fall 2009, for completion on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks 9-11-2011.

Genealogy camping bicycling- Trip Two 2009

2009-09-13T10:13:00.004-04:00

Started off from Monroe, NC, Fri noon; first camp Sutten Lake, WV, off 219. Next day at Ligonier Scottish Games, PA. You can read or surf the Internet about it, or hear it live from this historian re-enacting a WWI soldier of Black Watch Regiment. The Glengerry (cap) was exchanged for a steel helmet during war. Argyle socks were replaced by canvas wrap, ~1916, two years after the war started. "RH" insignia on epulets stood for Royal Highlanders. See one of our own ancestors who changed his surname from Parkinson to Russell so that he could serve with a kilt-clad, Tyneside Regiment during WW I.

Scrapbooking Family History

2009-08-23T13:44:00.006-04:00

Budding family historians (my grandchildren) put together a visual history of our existence. And they did such a great job- which I hope will be passed down to the next geneation of family historians. Click on picture to enlarge.

August Carl HOHNKE 1882-1953

2009-06-27T17:23:00.006-04:00

At Weis Library Methodist Church Cemetery, Fairview, near, Erie, PA: August Carl Hohnke, 1882-1953, and Cleo B. (Burkett), 1903-1977. Now I know when August died, and hopefully, I can obtain his obit. Actually the birth dates of the couple are from other sources; the tombstone inscription gave only the death year. August was the 5th of 6 children born to Julius Hohnke & Tillie Sunburg, both of Prussia. Family immigrated 1884 to PA when August was only two years old. Cleo was August's 2nd wife. They had one child, August, the Junior. The Old and New Churches are in background.

UPDATE: After I obtained the year of death for August C. Hohnke, I drove a short distance to the Blasco Public Library in Erie and looked up his obituary in the genealogy room. It is posted at my father's genealogy web site. Click on "August Carl Hohnke" in index.

It is time for music and dance in the old time way

2009-03-19T19:12:00.006-04:00

Oh, about a decade or two ago, I spent months traveling around to Scottish Festivals and Fiddler's conventions in southwestern Virginia and North Carolina both learning and playing old time tunes on the banjo- claw hammer style. I also camped at "The Place", a hostel on the Appalachian Trail at Damascus, VA. Here is a sample of pictures and music from those days, led off by a couple of my ancestors who also played music. I am glad that some of my ancestors took the time and effort to learn how to play a musical instrument. I believe a lot of people would like to do the same, but they just do not have the time- or don't want to take the time.

Spring is just two days away, the sun is traveling north and warming things up, and the flowers are blooming. It's time to make up the Spring and early summer schedule for music and dance. You can type in "festivals" in the search bar of this blog and go to my previous entry in which I listed a few links to specific web sites of old time and bluegrass music festivals. But first, I want to emphasize a few nearby events that I will be writing on my own calendar- a sort of wish list. So, here we go.

May 22-24, 2009, Fiddler's Grove, at Union Grove, NC.

June 5-6, 2009, Mount Airy, NC.

Jul 29 to Aug 2, 2009, Appalachian String Band Festival "Clifftop" at Camp Washington Carver, West Virginia. I took a nice video of old time clogger- see at www.youtube.com/bobkramp

Aug 3-8, 2009, 74th Old Time Fiddlers Convention, Galax, VA.

May 15-17, 2009, is Appalachian Trial Days at Damascus, VA. There is a contra dance Saturday night and FREE showers in the trailer behind the First Baptist Church yard. There are also several eating contests, dog shows, and seminars about the AT. Damascus is probably the most hiker-friendly place on the AT, and the "end to enders" who started out early Spring in Georgia might be arriving in town about the middle of May.

There is a whole lot of fiddling going on at Scottish Festivals, and the The Association of Scottish Games and Festivals has a list of Scottish festivals grouped by state on their web site.

Apr 17-19, 2009, Loch Norman Games at Rural Hill Farm, NC. Lake Norman is just north of Charlotte, NC.

Apr 25, 2009, Colonial Capital Scottish Festival, Newbern, NC. Newbern was indeed the capital of the North Carolina Colony

May 1 and 2, 2009, Triad Highland Games, Greensboro, NC.

May 8-9, 2009, Celtic Festival Highland Games at Historic Bethabara Park, Winston-Salem, NC.

July 8-12, 2009, Scottish Games at Grandfather Mountain, NC. Kinda pricey these days.

My Father and me, a physical comparison at the same age

2009-03-14T14:39:00.006-04:00

I've been obsessed over the last MONTH with efforts to create a Slide Show of my Kramp Line which I can burn to a DVD and see on Television- Ken Burns Style. I have about 600 images in the show at present. Some of the images have taken hours to create in software programs such as Adobe Photoshop Elements or Microsoft's Power Point. One such image appears below- a comparison of my father and myself at about 1 or 2 years old. We seem to share many of the same genes, for example the eyes, mouth and chin. However, my father had a deep fold in his upper lip which I did not inherit. Incidentally, the chin was great for balancing a handle and broom, a feat of which we have demonstrated for many of our descendants. My Dad could also balance a kitchen chair by one of its legs, but I think he had thicker neck muscles than I did.

There is a story regarding the picture of me in this collage. The picture is one of seven in a series of different poses photographed by a Mr. Shaneyfelt. He lived in my parent's neighborhood at Auburn Garden Apartments, Del Ray, VA. The year was 1943, and the country was in the middle of WW II. Money was very tight, and there was little work for Mr. Shaneyfelt who was a professional photographer. So, for the love of his craft and his profession, Mr. Shaneyfelt took the pictures of me and practically donated them to my mother. Wouldn't it be neat if one Mr. Shaneyfelt's kin searched his name on Google and wound up here on this site and then contacted me. I would have to tell them that the donations of Mr. Shaneyfelt's photographs to my family were priceless.

Now, I must return to my Slide Show project. Sometimes you have to put everything aside for the time being in order to reach a particular goal. I apologize to my former friends and correspondents who used to know me. But, I am almost there, just a few more days, and then I will be back to my normal activities such as eating, bathing, sleeping, and of course- blogging.

Could you carrot for me Valentine, whoever you may be?

2009-02-15T12:56:00.003-05:00

You probably don’t think that an old guy like me can recall a time way back in 4th grade, or vividly remember a romantic moment. However, I can very well remember one particular time my heart was all a flutter. The desks in our classroom were arranged into two semi-circular rows and there was this little girl- well, she was a big girl then- who sat directly across the room from me. I noticed after several days, SHE would be staring at me whenever I glanced her way. I remember her stare was so intense that I felt my face burn a little hotter, and then, my eyes would shy away to the front of the room. It seemed like she stared at me for hours. But it was OK, because she was really beautiful and I was flattered. Then one day I got the courage to stare right back at her. I wondered which one would back down first. Tick ... tick ... tick. I don’t know why I did it, but spontaneously, I wiggled my ears. This is an absolute talent that I don’t think everybody possesses, sort of similar to rolling one’s tongue. In any case, she smiled. No giggle, no laugh, just a big beautiful smile. Then she looked away. I won. I am surprised that the teacher didn’t notice- maybe she did, but I don’t remember that part. But I do remember there was a very nice Valentine card that came to me from our classroom Valentine box- the one decorated with red and white crepe paper with the red hearts glued on. Then summer vacation came and I never saw her again.

Junior High school: we had a two week dance class during Gym. It was the only Gym class we didn’t have to don white shorts, shirts, and socks. The boys lined up around the outside boundary of the basketball court. The girls came in from their locker room, walked around the line of boys, and stopped at the boy she decided to choose for a partner. I’m glad that the choosing process wasn’t reversed so that boys had to chose the girls. I think I’d still be circling. In any case, SHE stopped in front of me, blinking a pair of pretty, big brown eyes. And she chose me again and again for the next two weeks. We learned to jitterbug, waltz, Samba, and a few other forgettable dance steps. This was in the days before “dirty dancing” of course. Then summer vacation came again, but the close of summer was different this time.

I went to a new school in our district when school started in the Fall. And unbelievably, there SHE was, my old dance partner from the previous year. I thought with certainty from Heaven above that this was fate. We didn’t have any classes together but gossip traveled easily among our classmates and soon we were a couple. She had to take the school bus home, but I lived close enough to ride my bicycle. I would chase after her bus and she would obligingly sit by the rear window so we could have that last look for about 5 to 10 minutes depending how fast I could pedal that day. Together, over the next year school year, we had our first dance, first chaperoned date, and first serious kiss. And first heartbreak. The details aren’t so important to recall now, as I am sure most others have been down the same road. I can’t say whether or not ours could be classified as a “puppy love”, but apparently the puppy grew into a shaggy dog and ran away.

I could describe other loves in my life, but these earliest two were my favorites, probably because they didn’t grow to adult proportions. I loved the woman I married and had children with. And I also loved the woman of my second marriage. These were serious, hard-working relationships in which we really got to know one another and adapted to the good and the bad in our partnerships. Obviously, they did not last. So, do not tell me that love never dies. It does- in some cases at least. But I still believe that the DREAM of romance must always endure.

I went to my mail box today, Valentine’s Day. Inside it was dark and cold and empty.

Pedigree Ornament No. 10: my paternal Great Grandfather.

2008-12-22T19:13:00.009-05:00

Thomas William Russell, born 1847, in the village of Holytown, Bothwell Parish, Lanarkshire, Scotland; died 1928, West Barnesboro (now Northern Cambria), Cambria County, Pennsylvania; buried International Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery (no marker), Brisbin, Clearfield Co., PA.

Pictured above is the former National Bank of Barnesboro (red-brick), in Cambria County, PA. But, you know how banks are these days. National Bank became Laurel Bank, and the latest is the Bank of Northern Cambria. Photo was taken in 1992, by Bob Kramp.

My father’s maternal grandfather, Thomas William Russell, spent his last couple of decades, 1900-1925, as a janitor at the National Bank of Barnesboro. He lived in an apartment in the basement of the bank. My uncle Russell Stryke remembers visiting his grandfather, Thomas. He said that Thomas spoke with a Scottish Brogue, and used the pronouns “thy and thee”.

Thomas was born in Scotland, but within a year, his family migrated to the coal fields of County Durham in northern England. Here, he met his English-born (Yorkshire) wife, Eleanor Hartley, and they had their first five children in County Durham. Unfortunately they also witnessed the death of their first two children who were girls. Thomas and all of his male siblings were coal miners. They immigrated to Pennsylvania about 1881, and Thomas in particular was joined by some of his in-laws, the HARTLEY and HESELTINE families.

Thomas and his kin first settled in Clearfield County, PA, and continued to mine coal. Although the mining industry was a dangerous place to work and labor strife occurred regularly, I believe the Russell families were somewhat better off than in England. There is some evidence that they bought land in Houtzdale and the materials to build their own houses. Thomas wanted his two sons not to become coal miners. Apparently they never did. Sons in the next generation were proprietors of grocery stores and movie theaters, laborers, and at least one of Thomas’ nephews became a Primitive Methodist Minister.

Unfortunately, Thomas' wife was relatively young, about 48 years, when she died. There were five children left in the household, aged 6 to 16 years. Thus, Thomas was an elderly widow during the times he spend living in the small apartment at the bank.

Being a coal miner and a bank janitor seem to be pretty humble occupations in my opinion. But I believe he did those jobs well and without complaint. There were activities of bygone days by which men judged their fellow man. For example, Thomas was one of the oldest members of the local Lodge of the Scottish Rite Masons. When I read Thomas Russell’s obituary, I can see why Robert Burns, Scotland’s favorite son, who is also known as the Ploughman Poet, was Thomas’ hero. Burns was born about 50 years before Thomas. As I read, I had a changed and respectful vision of the person who was my great grandfather though I never heard much about him from my close relatives. Below is an excerpt from Thomas’ obituary. In those days, in a small town, some obituaries of an honored citizen took up quite a bit of newsprint, thank goodness.

From The Barnesboro Star, Thursday, 10 Jan 1929, page 7:

"Death of Thomas Russell, Sr. He was a great student and lover of Bobby Burns, memorizing many of his poems.’ 'The Cotters Saturday Night', 'The Two Dogs', 'Man was Made to Mourn’, ‘The Wee Mouse’, and Burns' ‘Letters to his young friend’ were always at his tongue's end. He often said that when a small boy, his father who was somewhat of a poet himself, used to gather him, and the other children around his knee, and recite to them Burns' poems. All through his life, Burns was his constant friend and companion. Another of his favorites was the poem often quoted by Abraham Lincoln: ‘Why should the Spirits of the Mortals be Proud’ [by Robert Burns] and only a short time before he went to his bed, he surprised his friends by reciting this entire poem. Coming from a man of his years, a typical Scotchman (sic) with hoary head and of venerable appearance it created an impression on the minds of his hearers that they will never forget."

Thomas W. Russell, “with hoary head and of venerable appearance” sits to the left of his brother, Robert Russell, and their brother-in-law, Alexander Forsyth (m. Alma Emma, nee. Russell). The man on far left has not yet been identified. Photo was taken in Syracuse, New York, 1920. Thomas was about 73 years old; Robert, about 70 years.

Pedigree Ornament No. 9, my Paternal Great grandmother.

2008-12-22T16:38:00.006-05:00

Henrietta Hohnke, born 1842, probably in West Posen, Prussia (now Wielkopolska, Poland); died 1922, West Houtzdale (also known as West Moshannon or Cross Keys), Clearfield County, Pennsylvania; buried International Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery, Brisbin, PA.

Today’s Pedigree Ornament features an image of the former Saint John’s German Lutheran Church of Houtzdale, Pennsylvania. Like other “ornaments” is this series, I am choosing an image which is unique to a particular ancestor. Though not entirely unique to Henrietta, this image does characterize the religious community for several of my German ancestors and their neighbors who settled in Houtzdale, PA, in the early days. They included the STREICH, WAGNER, HOHNKE, TUSCHLING, KRAMP, and SROCK families among others. The early days actually began in 1870s when the area was a fertile resource for timber. Then coal was discovered on the lands by Dr. BRISBIN, and soon the Berwind and White Coal Company opened up mines into the Moshannon vein of the surrounding mountains as well as in the town itself. The soft coal was the perfect grade of mineral for powering the Steamships which were bringing hoards of immigrants to the New World. A system of railroads was built linking Houtzdale to New York to haul the coal.

In the 1990s, I visited the church office and discovered the Kirchenbuch (parish record book) which listed the baptisms and vital statistics for the congregation. Also recorded were early lists of communicants. The latter were helpful for grouping individual members together as family units. The marriage of Karl (Charles) Wagner to his third wife, Witwer (widow) Henrietta Streich, was recorded as shown below (click on image to enlarge):

I included this image to show why genealogists can go nearly blind during their research. The Wohnen (residence) of Karl is stated as “auf Pommern, jetzt Houtzdale” (“from Pomerania, now Houtzdale”) indicating Karl’s former and current residences. The column heads are not shown here in order to present a closer look at the individual entry. Karl’s birth date (Geborn) was 29 Sept 1849. The location and date of Henrietta’s birth is not stated. Oh well, she’s a female; it doesn’t matter. But, the female in this case was MY Great Grandmother. The opposing page 251 (not shown), listed the witnesses: “Rudolf Srock and Wilhelmine SROCK”. I have deduced that Wilhelmine was Henrietta’s sister who was married to Fredrick SCHROCK and Rudolf Srock was Fredrick's brother. HOHNKE was the maiden surnames of the sisters. The pastor was Detlef Ph. EBERT.

In St. John’s Kirchenbuch, in the section subtitled Gestorbenen (deaths), Henrietta’s vital statistics came to light, sort of. She was born 30 Aug 1842, (her tombstone was inscribed, 1841) at “P. Posen, W. Prussia”, Germany. She died 27 Jan 1922, at the age of 80 years, 4 months, 27 days, of cancer, and buried 31 Jan 1922, at Brisbin cemetery. John T. JENNINGS, pastor. Unfortunately, the birthplace is not too specific. “P. Posen” probably means the Province of Posen which was one of the largest provinces in Prussia at the time of Henrietta’s birth. The location “W. Prussia” is probably West Prussia which further confuses the issue because West Prussia was a Province just east of Posen. Incidentally, both West and East Prussia were far east of Berlin.

Since the church was only open on Thursday afternoons, I spent many hours on those days recording data from the Kirchenbuch. Fortunately, I discovered that the LDS church microfilmed the same Kirchenbuch many years ago. What luck, even if it was discovered a little too late. At least I could obtain photocopies to study the German writing.

The congregations of the former Bethel Swedish Lutheran and the St. John’s German Lutheran were merged in the 1970s and services were held at the Bethel Church whose name was changed to Faith United Lutheran to reflect the merger. However, when there was a fifth Sunday in a month, services were held at the old Gothic style, white clapboard, St. John’s. Unfortunately, in 1997, the water pipes froze and the cost of repairs was too much for the congregation to handle. St. John’s Lutheran Church was demolished. An outdoor gazebo and garden now stands on the former church’s foundation. The old church bell is mounted inside (see below):

REFERENCES and LINKS:

1. A memorial plaque for the former St. John’s German Lutheran church, Houtzdale, PA, has been added to the gazebo and was shown in an earlier blog entry.

2. The Latter Day Saints library at Salt Lake City, has microfilmed the Kirchenbuch of St. John’s German Lutheran Church, Houtzdale, Clearfield Co., PA: Microfilm no. 1671236.

Pedigree Ornament No. 8, my Paternal Great Grandfather.

2008-12-17T12:17:00.008-05:00

Karl Streich, born unknown date, probably in Prussia; died 1885, probably in Peale, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania; buried in unknown location.

It is quite difficult to create a unique Christmas Ornament for a person who seems to have been invisible, which is the case for my great grandfather, Mr. Strike. To compound the issue, his descendants used various spellings of the surname which in some cases have been documented, for example, on marriage records and at least one tombstone- his grandson used the “Stryke” version on his inscription. But never mind, the surname has disappeared from this particular descendant line of our family tree. Of course, we know Mr. Streich existed, because four of his children survived- Amalie, Otto, Julius, and Martha- though one of those children, Julius, seems to have also become invisible many years ago. But not before he fathered a daughter who was “found” not so long ago. With some persistence, even Julius’ abandoned wife was located. I believe Mr. Strike’s first name was Karl based primarily on naming patterns and a process of elimination. One of his two sons and a grandson both have the middle name of Karl.

Karl Streich probably resided in Pennsylvania over the 3 years period between 1883 and 1885. The youngest of his children, Martha Streich, was born in June 1883 in Peale, Clearfield Co, PA, and his widow’s marriage application to her second husband states her first husband died in October, 1885. Unfortunately, the town where the Streich family first settled after immigrating to America was completely removed lock, stock and barrel, to various locations around the turn of the twentieth century. After the mines were exhausted, the stores, company houses, and churches, were loaded onto rail cars and transported elsewhere, like a tent circus. The only landmark of the town that remained was the cemetery. But care of the cemetery was abandoned and the tombstones, whether made of wood or stone, have crumbled to the earth and then covered with the succession of a new forest. Only one tombstone survived for many years, but the last time I tried to visit the cemetery, I could not ascertain the outline of the cemetery or the last known tombstone.

Nevertheless, I will still hang Karl Strike’s Pedigree Ornament on my blog just in case someone ever comes around to claim it.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

1. The Ghost Company Town of Peale, PA, an informative web site maintained by John Krygier

2. Web site of the Peale Research Foundation organized by a couple of local residents (Wagner family) of nearby Grassflats.

Three genealogical presents I would like to see under my Christmas Tree

2008-12-15T23:12:00.008-05:00

The topic for the 62nd edition Carnival of Genealogy is “Three Wishes”. We bloggers of genealogy were given the challenge to write a letter to Santa asking him to grant us three gifts from our ancestors. We all know that Santa has been around for a very long time and must therefore know a lot of history and would certainly sympathize with us and grant us our wishes. All we have to do is ask, right?

The first gift on my list would be the Brooch that was worn my paternal grandmother, Mrs. Emily Strike, born Russell, in at least three pictures which I have seen of her as a young woman. I noticed that there seems to be a miniature portrait on the face of the brooch. Emily’s mother died about 1892 in Houtzdale, Pennsylvania, and left five young children, two boys and three girls, on the hands of the father, Thomas W. Russell. Emily the third-born child who survived (the first two children died early) was about 12 years old. The oldest girl in the family, Jane Ann, was not much older. Nevertheless, the three girls in the family took the mother's place and kept the house clean and their father and brothers well fed. The only existing picture of the mother, who was the former Eleanor Hartley, might be the image on Emily’s brooch. Unfortunately, the brooch has not been seen for years. I hope that it may still be in the hands of one of Emily’s descendants. Actually, writing up this wish list has given me renewed motivation to ask around for it.

The picture below shows Emily on the left wearing the brooch and on the right, Emily’s younger sister, Janet Russell.

I have been over this picture, particularly the brooch with a magnifying glass, but the resolution does not allow me to indentify the image with certainty. I can not even make out the person's gender. Recently, I have thought the image might be Emily’s husband, Otto Strike, rather than her mother. I overlayed a close-up scan of the broach with a scan of Otto as a young man (see picture below). The picture of Otto was actually cropped from what I presume is a wedding picture of Emily and Otto. Is that Otto in the brooch? Was it customary to have a picture of a woman's husband, or perhaps her betrothed, on a brooch?

My Second Gift Wish:

I lived in Geneva, Switzerland, for two years (1973-1974) on a research fellowship. While there, I bought this carving of a man blowing the Alphorn. My maternal grandmother was born in Canton Thurgau, Switzerland in 1894.

I am thinking big here. I do not know where I would store such an instrument. So, my practical wish would be to have someone show me how to make just one long, sweet sound from the alphorn. Christmas morning, around 6 am, would be a good time.

Third Gift Wish (is that all?):

The image above shows my mother visiting her first cousin, Martina Rink, in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, in the Spring of 1974. Martina died the next year after this picture was taken. Martina was never married, and she had one brother with whom we have lost touch. My third wish is to take a second look at the photo album which lies under Martina’s hand- if it still exists. The ultimate gift would be to have the album on my shelf. Too bad personal scanners were not common in 1974.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

1. My mother was the daughter of Margaret Austel; and Martina, the daughter of Ida Austel. To undestand more of this relationship, see previous entry, "Austel Line ... Introduction to the first generation".

2. See what gifts other Genealogy Bloogers wished from their ancestors; sorry, only 3 gift requests allowed.

Pedigree Ornament No. 7, My Maternal Grandmother

2008-12-15T13:16:00.008-05:00

Margaret Austel, born 1894, Bürglen, Canton Thurgau, Switzerland; died 1963, Alexandria, VA; buried St. Mary’s Cemetery, Alexandria, VA.

The Pedigree ornament above shows the German-printed Himmelsleiter which once belonged to my maternal grandmother. Literally, it translates “Heaven guide” but essentially, it is a prayer book, with prayers about Holy Communion, Stations of the Cross, and certain other litanies of the Catholic Mass. The picture is captioned, “Der Liebe Jesusknabe” which even I can translate, “the dear child Jesus”. But that’s about as far as I can go. My grandmother was born Margaret Austel, in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, in Canton Thurgau, in the village of Burglen. The village is named after a small castle (Burg) which dominates the hill overlooking the town. Margaret immigrated to America with her family when she was about eight years old; thus, German was her native language. Undoubtedly, a mixture of German and English was spoken in their home in Braddock in the early days. In any case, Grandma could speak German when she wanted to, even though I rarely heard anything around her house other that an occasional “Gesundheit”. Apparently, she could also read the Gothic German quite well as evidenced by the Himmelsleiter which she often brought to mass.

Let me interject a biographical note here. Grandma was fortunate to be able to bring a little black book to Mass which she could read and understand. However, when I was brought up in the Catholic Church, parishioners brought little black books (missals) which were printed in Latin. And the priest prayed in Latin. I don’t think I ever understood what was really going on. I guess that all changed later on when the liturgical vernacular was changed to English.

Margaret Austel married Charles A. Gailliot in Braddock, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1917. Unfortunately, she lost her husband in 1948, when he was only 54, and she was the same age, as they shared the same birth year. I was six years old when grandpap died; so, Grandma was a widow for most of the time I knew her. Grandma Gailliot was the grandparent I spent the most time with as a youngster, especially when our family lived within walking distance of her house. We continued to visit Grandma on most holidays, even after we moved further away and had to drive the car. When I went to high school and college, my visits to grandma became far and few between. Now that I am a grandparent myself, I can see I missed a lot. As they say, wisdom is wasted on the old.

A Remembrance Card

I was leafing through the Himmelsleiter in preparation for this blog entry, when I came upon a remembrance (Andenken) card wedged between a couple of pages. It had a picture (see below) of a priest (Hochw. Herrn Pfarrer) named Josef Zündt. The text mentioned that he was a Kaplan in Bruggen, Appenzell and Gonten, between the years, 1880-1920. Appenzell was a town also located in Canton Thurgau. I wonder what the relationship of this priest was to Grandma. Was he the family’s priest, a friend, or maybe a relative? I will leave it here for the Google surfer to find, and hopefully, provide a comment.

The Pedigree ornaments for my grandparents have now been posted. Tomorrow, I will begin posting Pedigree ornaments for my eight great, great grandparents. To see all the Pedigree ornament in this series, click on the tag "Xmas-2008" in the far right-hand column of this web site.

Christmas Tour of Blogs

2008-12-14T20:31:00.011-05:00

For this season, I have been creating Xmas ornaments for each ancestor on my pedigree starting from the principal (me) and going back through my great grandparents- 15 persons in all. Each ornament displays an image, not necessarily of the ancestor's face or bust, but rather, some characteristic which is unique to that individual. The ornaments are being blogged about one per day during the month of December.

Today, I was invited by the Genealogy Bloggers Group (Geneabloggers) to participate in the Christmas Tour of Blogs. I decided to present a slide show of my Pedigree Ornaments up to date. Of course, the visitor will have to scroll back to the individual blog entries to read more on what I described for each ornament. To bring up the project quickly, go to the right-hand column of this blog and click on the tag "Xmas-2008".

Every few days I will have to update the slide show to reflect the addition of new ornaments. I have posted 6 ornaments so far, plus a couple of extras for my adopted grandparents. I plan to post about nine more ornaments. Then, after Xmas, like all Tours, this slide show will be deleted, but the Xmas ornaments will remain on the blog- hopefully for years?

The following slide show was created in Picasa Albums, and currently contains about 13 individual images.

To see what other Genealogy Bloggers have posted on the tour, go to "2008 Christmas Tour of Blogs" at the Moultrie Creek web site, hosted by Denise Olson.

Pedigree Ornament No. 6, My Maternal Grandfather.

2008-12-14T00:24:00.006-05:00

Charles Anthony Gailliot, born 1894, Braddock borough, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; died 1948, Alexandria, VA; buried St. Mary’s Cemetery, Alexandria, VA.

My maternal grandfather worked as a pattern maker, as did several others in the early Gailliot Line. He married the former Margaret Austel at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Braddock, PA, in August 1917, and within a few days, received his induction notice to be drafted into the Army in the Great War, also known as WW I. At the same time, he also received notice that he was approved by the Navy Yard in Washington, DC, to work in the Pattern Maker Department. Since the job was part of the War effort, Charles was not drafted into the Army. Thus, in short order, Charles married; moved to the City of Washington; and began his career in the Navy Yard. Charles and Margaret’s first child, Helen Rose, was born in 1918.

Since my grandfather died when I was only 6 years old, I did not have an opportunity to talk much about what he actually did as a pattern maker. From what I gather, a pattern maker is sort of like a draftsman and they design and make molds for machine parts. I imagine some of the parts which Charles drafted were used in weaponry for the War or for building the Navy’s battleships. On the other hand, I had a hunch of what Charles was able to do by looking at the bookends he made during his “spare time” at the Navy Yard. They were made out of solid brass and one design in particular was the bust of an Indian (see image above). He also made a few brass doorstops which were in the shape of dogs- German Shepherds. Grandpap’s house had two large double doors that separated the living room from the foyer. The brass Shepherds were used to prop these doors open.

One of my favorite activities as a kid was to place the Indian on a sheet of typing paper and trace the outline of the figure’s head. Then I would use different colors of crayons to draw and color in the feathers. By the way, I keep a folder in my file drawer in which I place the scribbles and art work of my grandkids. I sure wish I could see some of these colorings that I made when I was so young.

Shown below is a vintage picture of my grandfather with some of his fellow pattern makers at the Navy Yard. They are grouped together on the steps of the Nation’s Capital. I hope that someone, somewhere, someday, might comment below that, yes, that is probably my grandfather in the group. Similar things have happened in the past. Charles Anthony Gailliot is the third man from the right, standing in the back row (click to enlarge).

**

Extra Pedigree Ornament No. 5A, My Paternal Adopted Grandmother (My Grand Aunt)

2008-12-13T22:02:00.009-05:00

Martha Strike (Streich), born 1880, at Peale, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania; died 1933, Ramey, Clearfield Co., PA; buried International Order of Odd Fellows, Brisbin, PA.

This book of Bible stories (excerpts) was given to Martha Strike on her 15th birthday, 10 June 1895. It is a relatively small book, 5 x 8 inches, and 290 pages. The first five pages are missing, so I have no information on the publisher or date of publication. However, the text was printed in German. The pair of images shown on the ornament include the card stock cover of the book and the book open to page number 219. It is the beginning of Chapter 24 which is subtitled, “Jesus, der Kinderfreund -- Der Blinde -- Zacchaeus”.

Regarding the children in this chapter:

Jesus’ followers ask Him, “Wer ist doch der Größte im Himmelreich?” (Who is now the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?).

Jesus called a child to stand in their midst and then said, “Wahrlich, ich sage euch, es sei denn, daß ihr euch umkehret und werdet wie die Kinder, so werdet ihr nicht ins Himmelreich kommen.” (Truly, I say to you, unless you change yourselves to be as like as the children, so you will never come into the Kingdom of Heaven.)

The Chapter goes on to describe the healing of a blind man near Jericho, and then deals with Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector, who promises to give his belongings to the poor and undergo salvation.

The book did not contain any genealogical data.

Martha attended St. John’s German Lutheran Church in Houtzdale, Pennsylvania, as did other German immigrants in the community. Martha was the sister of Otto Strike. Martha married Robert William Kramp in December 1902, and later in 1918, became the foster parents of Martha’s nephew, Robert Karl Strike (son of Otto). Martha and her husband eventually adopted her nephew who changed his name to Robert Carl Kramp. He was my father.

There is another Bible in the hands of this Kramp family. In contrast to Martha's small book of Bible excerpts, which was given to her as a child, her husband obtained a very large Bible also printed in German which was passed down to their grandson, Robert Melvin Kramp. Several years ago, I took a picture of Robert holding the Book in his kitchen. Again, there was no genealogical data, such as vital statististics, written within the Book. Unfortunately, I did not obain any information on the Publisher of the Book on this first visit. I called Robert tonight to get more information about the book. He said the book was stored away. So, there you go. There are other dead ends besides brick walls.

Image: Robert M. Kramp holds an old Bible printed in German which once belonged to Robert W. "Pop" Kramp and Martha, nee. Strike.

Thanks to Herr Rudolf Kerbitz for translating portions of Martha's book.

Bringing Family History Through the Back Door

2008-12-10T22:13:00.016-05:00

Be honest now. When you gather the children or grandkids around the Christmas tree this year to tell them a story about their family history, will they roll back their eyes and say, “Ohhhh nooo, not again. Or worse, will they stop and ask you to pass the Wii controls.

We have a lot of competition out there vying for the attention of our young people. And they will tell you they just don’t have enough time to listen to- another story. One of these days I will make up a longer list of excuses. But I still feel it is our responsibility as family historians, not only to gather genealogical data, but also, to present our history in interesting ways to our children. Of course, this effort is in addition to having our genealogy books printed in a standard format and distributed. Nothing, even an Internet Tree, will ever replace a book. However, while that book is on hold for the addition of one more genealogical fact, we need to get something passed on before it’s too late. I have posted over 150 blogs here, primarily on genealogy and family history. But I have not seen or heard any comments by my two daughters yet. I thought about not writing that last sentence, but what the heck. Let’s see where it goes.

On the other hand, I must admit that I did not really have an interest in researching my own roots until I was over 50 years old. And yes, it was too late in some cases. And let’s just face it, Genealogy is not everybody’s cup of tea- What?! It’s not?

In any case, sometimes you have to bring family history through the back door, so to speak. That is the experiment of today's blog.

About 85 years ago, my mother joined her father’s cousin and his family for a tour of Mount Vernon in Alexandria, VA. It is the home and plantation of our first President, George Washington. The first cousin was Harry Joseph Gailliot, who was married to the former Mary Krekeler, and they had traveled from Pittsburgh, PA, down to Alexandria, VA, with their three children. Below, the group stands in front of George Washington’s mausoleum:

I estimate my mother is about 3 years old and is standing far left, next to the gate. Next to her, are her second cousins, Mercedes, Clarissa, and on the far right, Joseph. Harry J. Gailliot and Mary brought along Mary’s sister, Antonia “Tante Tia” Krekeler, who is the tall woman standing behind my mother. After my mother graduated from High School, she returned to Mount Vernon and worked in the gift shop. However, she told me she couldn’t take standing on her feet all day. So, she went to comptometry school. I believe a comptometer was an accounting machine which at one time, was used to grind out numbers and calculations. After this training, she got a job in Old Town Alexandria for a real estate broker but she hardly used her accounting skills.

The following is a vintage postcard showing Washington’s tomb. The women are wearing Victorian dresses. The site looks pretty much like it did when our group visited there in 1923.

In September, I visited George Washington’s tomb myself and had my picture taken to compare it with the same site 85 years ago:

Every time I go back “Home” (Germans call it one’s Heimat), I re-visit places my ancestors visited years ago- sort of like standing in the footsteps of one’s ancestors. The tomb looked a little different than it did when Mom was a toddler. In particular, the mass of Ivy had been cleared from the top of the Mausoleum. Incidentally, Washington never had any children of his own, but his wife had children by a previous marriage. Washington treated the children as his own. The arched gate in front of the Tomb, leads to a mausoleum which contains 25 persons related to Washington in some way but most were related to his wife’s DNA- didn’t we used to say “by blood”. For example one of the tall white columns in front of the mausoleum is inscribed with the name of General Washington’s nephew, Judge Washington, son of John Augustine Washington. Also a plaque inside the gate is inscribed with a passage from the Gospels, John IX.25.

So, now we introduce family history to the younger generation. At the gift shop, I purchased a coloring book which pictured various sites around Mount Vernon, including one of George Washington’s Mausoleum.

“OK. Get out the crayon kids, and start coloring. And by the way, did you know your great grandmother once visited the … and worked in the … “

It was so much fun; I had to do a page by myself. I will leave it to you to figure out which one.

The following pages had to be mailed to me. On the right, note the sun and its rays rising (or setting) behind the mausoleum and a "welcome" mat in front of the tomb. Ahhh, the innocense of childhood.

There are several other pages remaining to be colored. We saved them for Christmas vacation.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

1. Harry Joseph Gailliot was the son of KARL GAILLIOT and Mary Jund; and his cousin (my mother’s father), Charles Gailliot was the son of HEINRICH CASPAR GAILLIOT and Franceska Dumoulin. Read more about the parents in a previous entry, “The Gailliot Line, Introduction to First Generation”.

2. Mount Vernon is not run by the National Park Service. The Mansion and its grounds have been preserved by the Mount Vernon Ladies Association. Go to their web site for more information including a virtual tour of the mansion.

3. Janet Horvaka recently wrote on her blog, “The Chart Chick” regarding some great ideas on how to share one’s family history particularly around a family holiday.

The Father of Rudolf the Rednosed Reindeer smiles for the Camera

2008-12-10T17:52:00.012-05:00

Please click (pick) on my banjo strings:

I'm assuming you know who Burl Ives is and what he looks like. And if you are a fan of his then you know he is the father of Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, or at least the Classic TV Version of it- not to be confused by the Rudolf fathered by Gene Autry in 1949. Anybody ever sing "Big Rock Candy Mountain"? The Carolina Panther's football is a significant extra. Then they shouted out with glee, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. Actually, they shouted, "You'll go down in his-tor-y". Family history?

I wish to stuff this guy into the stockings of all old time musicians, especially that Banjo guy on the West Coast. And I pass the football "The Ball" onto all those wonderful genealogy bloggers who keep throwing out those challenges and carnivals which inspire us to keep blogging our family history and genealogy. Thanks to all.

Submitted for the eighth edition (my first) of "I Smile for the Camera". The topic was stocking stuffers. To see other submissions for the 8th edition, go here

Pedigree Ornament No. 5, My Paternal Grandmother

2008-12-09T21:22:00.009-05:00

Emily Russell, born 1880 Thornley, County Durham, England; died 1918 at Detroit, Wayne Co., Michigan, buried Barnesboro (now Northern Cambria) Cambria Co., Pennsylvania.

These are the real “granny glasses”. They belonged to my paternal grandmother, Emily Russell. She died during the world-wide Spanish Flu Epidemic and probably as a consequence of it. Her death certificate states she died of septic peritonitis following child birth with a secondary complication of pneumonia. Emily was only 37 years and 5 months old. It was estimated that one out of every ten persons in the world died of the Flu. The rapid spread of the disease was partially attributed to American Soldiers of the Great War (WW I) who were exposed while fighting in Europe and then brought it home after the war. Even children were aware of what was going on. A ditty chanted by girls while playing "jump rope" went:

"I once had a bird

whose name was "Inza"

I opened the window

And in flew Inza"

The “child birth” was my father who was born just 7 days before his mother died. The family had gone to Detroit so that the father, Otto Strike, could use his skills as a machinist at the American Car and Foundry according to his WW I draft registration. The company was the primary manufacturer of electric street cars in America at the time. Otto’s family had been in Detroit only about 3 years when the tragedy of Emily’s death occurred. There were now five children under the age of 13 years, a week old baby, and no mother. Otto brought Emily’s body back from Detroit on a train and buried her in Northend Cemetery in Barnesboro, Cambria County, Pennsylvania. The older children were taken to Otto’s mother, Mrs. Henrietta Strike-Wagner, nee. Hohnke, and the baby was given to Otto’s married sister, Mrs. Martha (Strike) Kramp to foster. Otto took about a year to recover from his wife’s death and to regain employment. The 1920 census indicates he had gone back to coal mining. After a year or so, the children returned to their father in Barnesboro, but the baby remained with Otto’s sister in the neighboring county of Clearfield, in the village of Ramey. The Kramp family eventually adopted the boy. The boy grew up, married, and became my father. Incidentally, at the Millennium, Barnesboro, the town in which the Strike children were raised, was merged with the adjacent town of Spangler, and the name was changed to Northern Cambria.

Emily’s eyeglasses were essentially the only thing that was passed down to my father. Furthermore, he had only one or two pictures of the mother he never layed eyes on. Indeed, it was thought that most of the pictures of Emily had been destroyed. As I started to research my roots in the 1990s which is about 20 years after my father passed away, I was given several pictures of Emily by the late Mrs. Alice Wagner and the late, Mrs. Eleanor Grove. The women were related to the Kramp and Wagner families, respectively. None of the pictures ever showed Emily actually wearing eyeglasses.

The eyeglasses are currently in the hands of my sister. She put them up to her eyes the other day and told me they were definitely not magnifying lenses. Indeed, she said everything either close-up or far-away looked fuzzy. So, I guess the lenses were prescribed. I will have to do a little more research on the optometry of 1918. But I do know this, Emily never saw her children go through their teen-aged years, never saw them get married (which they did), and of course, never read The Christmas Story to any of her seventeen grandchildren. Never take for granted reading a book to your grandchildren. And you grandchildren, always appreciate being able to ask one of your grandparents to read you a story.

Adventskalender 2008 with a Family History

2008-12-08T18:16:00.008-05:00

This is going to be an absolutely delicious blog entry. About a week ago, my good friend and fellow genealogist, Rudolf Kerbitz, and his family sent me an Adventskalender 2008. But this gift is very special for my family history.

The relatively large, 14 x 10 inch, Adventskalender features a winter scene of the Gross Markt in Wesel, Germany. One can see the Willibrordi Dom (Cathedral) in the center and the Rathaus on the left which is currently undergoing reconstruction. My (2x) great great grandfather, Anton Gailliot, and his first and second wives lived in Wesel. Anton and his first wife, Maria Dissel, lived right on the Gross Markt (Main Market Square) according to an 1843 Zivil Einwohner (city directory). Their apartment was located to the left and just off the edge of this picture. They most certainly would have looked upon a similar scene over 150 years ago. Anton Gailliot and his second wife, Helen Schlebusch baptized their son and my great grandfather, Heinrich Caspar Gailliot, at St. Maria Himmelfahrt Katholic Church, which is just around the corner from the Gross Markt. The year was 1862, and 20 years later, Henry emigrated to American sailing on the S.S. City of New York. Unfortunately, during the last days of WW II, over 90 percent of the town of Wesel was destroyed by Allied bombs. The Dom, the Gross Markt, the Rathaus and even the Catholic churches were completely demolished. However, it is a miracle that the surviving residents did not abandon the town after the war and have rebuilt the Dom, the churches, and the Rathaus. Indeed, the Rathaus is being restored to its original Gothic architecture.

The people of Wesel are proud of their town and their heritage and are reminding everyone by creating this beautiful Weseler Adventskalender. My Gailliot ancestors would have been very pleased. Their descendants are definitely pleased and grateful.

Oh yes, the delicious part: I have seen what lies behind the doors numbered one through eight. If you like chocolate then you will see my delight below:

In order of the door opened: a boot, French horn, Kris Kringle on a sleigh, an airplane (guess the reindeer got tired). Number 5 is a Tannenbaum, then a truck, and a sleigh with presents, and finally a house (probably a candy house don’t you think). We still have 17 more days to go in Advent season. I wonder what I will uncover. Whatever, I’ll post it here.

Actually, I am refrigerating the chocolate morsels until I see my grandchildren, then we will all share them together.

Froehlich Weihnacht, Rudolf, Ria, and family.

Late Entry, 8 Jan 2009: Well, I snacked my way to Christmas eve on chocolate morsels of our Advent calender. But I paused long enough to take a picture of the treats during the remaining days of Advent season. Well, most of them anyway:

REFERENCES and LINKS:
1. Read my previous entry regarding the laying of the foundation stone for the reconstruction of Wesel's Rathaus.2. Previous entry: Introduction to the Gailliot Line, including Anton Gailliot, and his second family.

Extra Pedigree Ornament No. 4A, My Adopted Grandfather

2008-12-07T23:41:00.010-05:00

Robert William Kramp, born 1873 in Papritzfeldt, Kreis Stolp, Hinterpommern (Pomerania Province, Prussia), now Pomorskie Wojewodztwo, Poland; died 1963, Edinburg, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania.

Image: My little brother and I pay a summer visit to our adopted grandfather, Robert William “Pop” Kramp, near Ramey, Pennslyvania, about 1948. (scanned 35 mm Ektachrome)

No, this is not a major deviation from my plan to include just my direct pedigree in this ornament project. My previous entry in this series presented my biological grandfather, Otto Streich (Ornament No. 4). However, I feel the need to also include my father’s adopted parents, Robert William Kramp, and his wife, the former Martha Strike. Actually, Martha was my father’s aunt (Otto Strike’s younger sister); so, there is in fact a biological connection. Robert W. Kramp and Martha, born Strike, had five children before they became foster parents of my father. These children were really my father’s first cousins, since Martha and Otto shared the same surviving parent, Mrs. Henrietta Streich-Wagner, born Hohnke. But Dad never knew the Kramp children by anything other than his brothers and sisters, at least while he was growing up in Ramey, Clearfield County, PA. There were two boys in the Kramp family, one of whom died of diabetes in 1925 when Dad was about six years old. The other step-brother was 15 years older than my Dad and the others were girls. So, Dad turned to the neighborhood boys for companionship. And I heard that between home chores, they had a great time playing sand-lot baseball, hitching a ride on the “Pennsy”, steam-driven train, into Houtzdale to see cowboy movies. Then when they returned home, they brought out the guitars and sang cowboy songs.

Mrs. Martha Kramp, born Strike, died in 1933, when Dad was only 15 years old. So, my brother and I never got to see our adopted grandmother (actually our biological grand aunt). But we did get to know Pop Kramp. He lived to the age of 90 years. Our family would usually make the trip from Bethesda, Maryland, up to the mountains of PA, to see Pop in the summer when school was out.

Pop Kramp sold his homestead in 1941 and then lived with his children for months at a time until the 1950s. He did not live with us however, mainly because we lived too far from his “home” area in Pennsylvania. But when he did come to our house to visit for a few days, my brother and I knew exactly what to do. We brought out our piggy banks, sat on the floor in front of his chair, and started to slowly count our hundred or so pennies. Then with a chuckle, Pop would throw out a couple of dollar bills on top of the pile pennies- to our immense delight.

Pop eventually settled down with his oldest daughter, Florence, for the remainder of his life. I recall that aunt Florence made the best home-made apple pies and bread. As I got into High school and beyond, I did not travel up to see Pop and Florence very often. Pop died the year before I graduated from college. Unfortunately, Aunt Florence died only four months before I decided to take almost a year off in 1992 to research my roots. Most of us have probably gone through the same loss of an elderly relative and with that the loss of a precious source of our family history.

Thus, in 1992, I returned by myself to the old homestead and blacksmith shop where Pop Kramp once lived and worked and where my father spent his childhood. I knocked on the door and told the present owner, an aged man, who turned out to be the late Mr. Shunkwiler, that I once knew the former inhabitants. He invited me in to look around the old house. He told me that he used to come down to Pop Kramp’s blacksmith shop behind the house to have his picks re-sharpened. Coal miners were responsible for keeping their own tools maintained. One day, Pop surprised him by offering to sell the house if he was interested. Shunkwiler responded that he didn’t have much money. He wound up buying the house for $900 (that’s nine Hundred dollars) and Pop Kramp went off to live with his children.

Image: The late Mr. Shunkwiler tells me how he came to own the house my adopted grandfather once owned. I asked Mr. Shunkwiler If he hunted with the shotgun standing by his bedside. “Not much”, he said, “I just keep it around to run off prying family historians”.

Believe that and I’ll tell you another one. The gun WAS real though.

They Overcame Their Handicaps: Keller and Roosevelt

2008-12-07T00:17:00.010-05:00

Have you ever felt that a number of events were pulling you in a certain direction? Genealogists have had these feelings probably a number of times. In September of this year, I seemed to be pulled in the direction of the well-known deaf and blind activist, Helen Keller. First, I should say that Helen and her teacher and companion, Anne Sullivan, were known to have visited the place of employment of my grandfather, Otto Strike. He was the ice plant operator at Cresson Tuberculosis Sanitarium in the 1930s and 1940s. Also in September, I was visiting my mother for a few weeks in the DC area. In a local book store, my genealogist's eyes alighted on a copy of “Milestones into Headstones. Mini Biographies of Fifty Fascinating Americans Buried in Washington, DC", by Peter Exton and Dorsey Kleitz. I bought the book and a couple more on the way out of the store. Books are my downfall because I often put myself into the book. It has gotten me into trouble several times in the past, like the time I built a cabin in the woods, but that’s a long story. In any case, this time I thought it would be a neat project if could tour as many of the Headstones referenced in this book as possible. Then take pictures for my blog. I already had a head start- I located and took a picture of the tombstone for F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of the Great Gatsby. He was buried in my hometown of Rockville, MD, a fact that was previously unbeknownst to me. I was so impressed that I took a picture and blogged it.

Thus, I used my recently purchased book as a guide. I took the official tour of Arlington National Cemetery. Indeed, I ticked off 7 of the 27 Famous persons mentioned in the book who are buried at Arlington. For the record, these were Richard Byrd, Abner Doubleday (the “inventor”of baseball), Medgar Evers, John and Robert Kennedy, Robert Taft and The Unknown Soldier.

What interested me most, however, was that Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan were interred at Washington’s National Cathedral. So, I took a pilgrimage to the Cathedral and I was not disappointed. I arrived in time to take the official tour. Below, a fellow tourist tactically observes the inscription which is written, interestingly, in Braille.

The duplicate inscription above the Braille, reads, “Helen Keller and her lifelong companion Anne Sullivan Macey are interred in the columbarium behind this Chapel".

Incidentally, since The Cathedral might be featured during the Holiday Season, such as in a Christmas service, I will tell you that the only former President who is buried in Washington, DC, is Woodrow Wilson, and his sarcophagus is in the Cathedral.

What were the other events which seemed to make me particularly aware of Helen Keller? I came home from my tour of the Cathedral and spontaneously turned on the TV. Believe it or not, “The Miracle Worker”, the story of Helen Keller’s life, was on Turner Classic Movies. It starred Patty Duke and Anne Bancroft- who received the 1962 Academy Award for her portrayal of Anne Sullivan. Actually, I had seen the movie once before, many years ago. But, when the scene came up in which Patty Duke, as Helen Keller, groaned out the words, “wah wah” while Anne pumped cold well-water over Helen’s outstretched arms and “signing” the word “water” in her hands , I got such a lump in my throat I could hardly swallow or breath.

A few days later, it hit me again. On Roots Television, Dick Eastman was interviewing Judith Lacey of the New England Historic and Genealogical Society. Judith was describing the holdings of their library. Quite fortunately, the library recently received some family papers, and it just so happens that a previously unknown photograph of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan surfaced among the papers. What was striking about this photograph was that the eight year old Helen was holding a doll in her hands. D-O-L-L was the first word that Anne signed into the palm and fingers of Helen’s hand.

Helen Keller went on to be the first deaf-blind person to graduate from College (Radcliffe). Realize, that when Helen was born in 1880, society had dictated that the blind and deaf were idiots.

Franklin D. Roosevelt realistically depicted in his memorial

While I was in Washington, DC, I rode my bicycle around many of the monuments and memorials in the city. Another historic person who was able to rise high above his handicap was former President Franklin D. Roosevelt. I toured his memorial which is spread over about 7 acres near the Capital Mall. Several statues, sculptures, and inscriptions depict the era of Roosevelt's’ presidency. He led the nation through two of the greatest crises of the twentieth century, the Great Depression and World War II. The centerpiece of the monument was a large statue of the mature President and his Scottish Terrier. However, many were disappointed that the figure did not display his disability. Roosevelt had been stricken with polio and was not able to stand by himself. It is ironic that FDR was able to get the Nation back on its feet after the Depression, but was unable to stand on his own two feet. In any case, a protest was planned for the dedication of the Memorial by activists for the handicapped. However, Congress quickly passed an act, signed by President Clinton, which approved the addition of another statue. It shows FDR, full-sized, sitting strong and determined- in a wheel chair. The protest was cancelled. Behind the wheel chair, one can barely see an inscription on the wall. Beneath the inscription is a line of Braille. See below:

Image: Two statues of Franklin D. Roosevelt at his memorial in Washington, DC.

REFERENCES AND LINKS

1. Previous entry on the experiences of my grandfather, Otto Strike, at Cresson TB Sanitarium, Cambria County, Pennsylvania.

2. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s tombstone at St. Mary’s, Rockville, MD.

3. Dick Eastman of Roots Television interviews Judith Lacey of The New England Historic Genealogical Society regarding a heretofore never seen, vintage photograph of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan. Try this link first which was labeled “get link” on their Web site, or if that does not work try this link which was copy/pasted directly from the URL. The second link leads to National media coverage of the event (NBC, Fox, etc.).

4. At Home in the Woods, by Vena and Bradford Angier. Collier Books, Div. of Macmillan, NY, copyright 1951. Do NOT read this book if you tend to live vicariously in what you read. Fortunately, the book is probably out of print. Uh oh, Vena and Brad Angier are on Google Search.

Pedigree Ornament No. 4, Paternal Grandfather

2008-12-04T21:50:00.012-05:00

Otto Karl Strike, born 1877 in Prussia; died 1946 at Cresson Sanitarium, Cambria Co., Pennsylvania.

Click ornament to enlarge. This is a vintage photograph of the kitchen at the Cresson Tuberculosis Sanitarium, which was located on the outskirts of Cresson, in Cambria Co, Pennsylvania. I have studied it closely with a magnifying class. Though most of the persons are women, there appears to be two men toward the back of the room, and the man on the far right pushing a cart may be none other than my Dad’s biological father, Otto K. Strike. I say “biological”, because my father, after the sudden death of his mother, was fostered by Otto’s sister, Martha, who was married to Robert William Kramp. Mr. Kramp, who we called “Pop”, legally adopted my father shortly after his sixteenth birthday. Thus, I consider Otto Strike as my biological grandfather; and Pop Kramp, my adopted grandfather.

Otto Strike’s Death Certificate states he was an "ice plant operator" at Cresson Sanatarium and an employee of Pennsylvania Department of Health. I never met Otto in person (I was 4 years old when he died), but my older cousin, who was raised in Akron, OH, told me she and her mother would visit Otto at Cresson. She remembers Otto treating them to ice cream cones. Perhaps one of Otto’s duties at the ice plant was making or storing the frozen dessert.

Cresson Sanitarium, or the “San” as it was called locally, was built on land originally owned by the mogul of the steel industry and a millionaire, Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie was going to build a large mansion on the site for his mother who suffered from Tuberculosis. The refreshing mountainous air around Cresson was ideally suited for the health and recovery of TB patients; however, Mrs. Carnegie died before the house was built. Carnegie agreed to sell the land to the state for one dollar if they would build a Sanitarium and hospital on the property.

After tuberculosis was essentially eradicated in America by the mid-1950s, the Sanitarium and its buildings were converted into a state prison. In 1993, I drove out to the prison hoping to take pictures of the institution which was once my grandfather’s place of employment. Unfortunately, the site was surrounded by a high fence topped with razor wire and large signs warning, “No Pictures”. One day as I was searching though vintage postcards at an antique store far removed from Cresson, I was fortunate to find a series of vintage post cards which depicted the old TB Sanitarium. I bought the whole lot (see below)

The individual postcards are captioned starting from the top row, left: Grace Chapel, Administration Building, Children’s Gymnasium and Swimming Pool. Middle row: Unit No. 3, West Wing, East Wing. Bottom row: Surgery Building, Unit No. 1, and East Wing and corridor.

According to Otto’s Death Certificate, he died on his birthday, 20 May 1946, in “Cresson Sanitarium No. 2”. I did not make the connection between that number and the San until I posted these post cards. There are images of Unit No. 1 and No. 3, but not No. 2. Was there ever a postcard perhaps showing the specific building in which my grandfather died? Please, you antique hunters, keep an eye out.

Only a few years ago, I traced down a distant cousin with the help of a fellow researcher, Lyn. Our mutual relation, Bill Albright, got out his shoe box of pictures and pulled out a realistic view of the old Cresson Sanitarium as show below:

Children and their parents would sometimes board at the San. The Historical Society of Cambria County in Ebensburg, PA, has a file on the San, and I noted the following item of interest from a booklet:

"A great interest was taken in the Sanitarium by Mrs. Mary Thaw of Pittsburgh who had a summer home near Cresson. She gave generously in a financial way, particularly in the building of the chapel, and she visited the Sanitarium frequently familiarizing herself with its needs."

"On her visits she several times brought with her HELEN KELLER, her friend and protégé and Mrs. Keller's teacher, Mrs. ANN SULIVAN MACEY. On one occasion Mrs. Keller gave a short talk to the sanitarium children who were gathered in the assembly room."

I would like to imagine that my grandfather had a chance to meet and hear Helen Keller in person.

I posted a couple of my vintage postcards on a genealogical web site I maintain for my father’s branch of our tree. I was amazed that out of the hundreds of people who went through the San, there was one former patient who stumbled upon my web site about two years ago and contacted me. He was an eye witness. Ron emailed me from London, UK:

“Thank you so much for displaying the photos ... I was a patient there in 1953 and 1954, and at seventeen years old, I was one of the youngest. I lived in Unit 1 for about five months prior to my discharge in December 1954. I made occasional appearances at the chapel but I remember it well. I have several photos of other patients taken in the sanitarium and a couple taken on the roof of one of the buildings but while there I didn't take any of the grounds and other buildings”.

“The orderlies and male nurses had rooms in the attic of the west wing or else they lived in the town of Cresson. There is one building I don't recognize- it might be the dreaded surgery building.”

“Once you were well enough but not ready for discharge, you were moved into a dormitory. One dorm for men, one for women, situated to the rear of the admissions building. Behind the men's dorm there was an abandoned mine entrance. … As part of my therapy I was given a job in the San's post office and I delivered the mail from one end to the other, quite a trek. Aside from a few doctors I was the only male allowed into the women's wards. The kitchen girls, all from local towns, such as Lilly and Holidaysburg, did not wear long dresses and black stockings. Instead, their dresses were a bit shorter and they never wore stockings. And they were terrible flirts.”

“From Cresson I went directly to Penn State on a rehabilitation scholarship. After graduating in 1960, I lived at times in New York City, in Florida and in San Francisco for the next 20 years …”

REFERENCES AND LINKS:
1. The vintage photograph of the kitchen at Cresson Sanitarium is taken from “Images of America. Around Cresson” by Sister Anne Frances Pulling, 2000. Published by Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC.

2. Two of the Vintage postcards of Cresson Sanitarium mentioned in the text were also posted to an album at my Father’s genealogical web site.

3. Chuck Felton, a former patient at Cresson Sanitarium, has collected much information on the historic Sanitarium and has posted it on his web site "Cresson Sanitarium Remembered"

Pedigree Ornament No. 3, My Mom

2008-12-03T19:42:00.009-05:00

Image: Mrs. Mary Margaret Kramp-Franck, born Mary M. Gailliot (still living)

Here is my mother sitting at her old Singer sewing machine with a smiling face in the mid-1950s. She sewed many of her own dresses and skirts. Mom said she took a class in high school which taught her how to sew. The same type of class which was taught at my middle school in the 1950s was called Home Economics. I don’t think it was offered to the guys, or if it was, I do not know of any who took it. Nowadays, however, I believe these predominantly female classes have changed their curricula so that they are more relevant to modern times. My step daughter, who is a Media Specialist in middle school, told me she has not seen a sewing machine in her school in the last dozen years or so. Moreover, the “Home Ec” classes are more likely to be called Family Living or Consumer Science. Another daughter said that one of her electives was called “Child Development”, which included several boys in her class. Glad I will never have to go back to high school; I would certainly be lost.

My mother said she also learned to sew from her mother. I particularly remember the sewing machine Grandma used. It was powered by a foot pedal or tray which one could rock back and forth which then turned a belt and pulley system which made the needle arm go up and down. I was mesmerized by its mechanics. They were called Treadle sewing machines. After sewing machines were electrified, many of the Treadles, especially the bottom part with the foot pedal, were made into small tables- perfect for holding house plants.

My mother grew up during the Great Depression when many materials were scarce. Grandma took in old clothes and coats from her mother-in-law, Mrs. Franceska Gailliot, and ripped the seams apart. Then, she cut patterns from the non-worn out parts and sewed them together to make “new” dresses.

Mom said she also took a millinery class one time and learned how to make hats. All I remember was the form she had in the “sewing room”. It was shaped just like a human head and made out of wood. Sort of like mine. I wish I could find one of those forms now; it would make a great hat rack and many other things that I can imagine.

Shown below is one of my mother’s sewing projects modeled by my sister. Mom even had material left over to sew a similar dress for Beverly’s doll. Judging by the looks of the TV and knowing when Beverly was born, I believe the picture was taken about 1955.

Another one of Mom’s dresses which she made is shown in a previous entry. And one of her most complex and difficult projects by her own admission was the cowboy suits she made one Christmas for me and my brother.

A little while ago, I received a gift of some leisure pants in which the pant legs were about a foot too long. I cut off the extra material, but now I need them hemmed so they won’t unravel. H-e-e-e-e-y Mom!

Pedigree Ornament No. 2, My Father

2008-12-02T11:26:00.007-05:00

I am numbering my Pedigree Ornaments according to the Ahnentafel System. Each ancestor has a number based on their relationship to the Principal who is number 1 (that's me). I posted Pedigree Ornament No. 1 yesterday. If you are really interested in the details of an Ahnentefel: each father has a number twice that of his child, and each mother has a number twice that of her child, plus one. For example, my father is Number 2; and my mother, Number 3. My paternal grandfather would be 2 x 2, or Number 4. My maternal grandmother would be (2 x 3) + 1, or Number 7. Now that you know the details, forget the math and enjoy the images and stories of the ornaments. Click on any ornament to enlarge it.

Image: Robert Carl Kramp, born Robert C. Strike, 1918-1974.

As I described this series of blogs yesterday, I am posting images of my ancestors which depict something unique about their life. Here, Dad is playing his guitar. He played by himself most of the time, in the quiet corners of the house. But when he was growing up in Ramey, Clearfield County, PA, he told me he had a grand old time jamming with the other boys and young men in the neighborhood. Several years ago, I talked to one of Dad’s neighborhood chums, Cecil Lloyd, about these musical get-togethers occurring in the late 1920s and 1930s. By the time I saw Cecil, all the boys had grown up, moved away from Ramey, and started their own families. Cecil was now a grandfather, and Dad had already passed away.

“What kind of songs did you used to play”, I asked.

“Oh, that was the time of the Cowboy movies, y’know. We would play cowboy songs. ‘I’m an old cow hand’ … and stuff like that. There was one that Albert [Johnson] liked. I don’t remember the name of it, but it went something like [Cecil begins to sing] … the riders of perdition are posted in every … [starts to laugh]. We’d harmonize y’know.”

“I remember one time Albert and I sang at a Major Bowes contest down in Houtzdale. Sort of like the old ‘Skip O’Day’s Amateur Hour’ on the radio. You probably don’t remember anything like that. Anyway we took second place. Albert’s father got right up there with us and played the fiddle”

“Did Pop Kramp ever join your jam sessions?”

“No, he was more to himself. Although he was never mean to us kids, or anything like that.”

“I remember he’d mumble to Bob all the time. I don’t recall that he was a good talker. Maybe because he was from Germany. He seemed to have an accent; he didn’t talk much. He’d tell Bob to do this or that. I remember how he used to talk. And I was a devil to mimic people. He’d say something to Bob, and when we’d get away, I’d say Bobdo-wob-di-bob-dobob-way. I couldn’t understand what he’d said, and we’d laugh about it.”

“I recall Bob had to do chores around the farm. He used to grind up chicken bones to feed the chickens. I always thought that was something- feeding chickens their own bones.”

Cecil Lloyd lived in Altoona , PA, when I interviewed him. I always wanted to return and reminisce with him some more. But on my last trip to Altoona, I discovered that Cecil died in August 2004. I ran across his obituary while researching at the library. It read in part, “was a member of Fifth Avenue United Methodist Church for more than 40 years, where he sang in the Chancel Choir. … Mr. Lloyd was a longtime salesman, who enjoyed SINGING, hunting, fishing and golfing.”

One day I saw Dad had modified his guitar. Some of you may know of the hands-free harmonica holder that the 1970s singer, Bob Dylan, hung around his neck. That device was a little uncomfortable and could slip when you played it. So, Dad improved on the device by mounting the harmonica with two pieces of bent wire attached to his Martin guitar with screws (cringe). He would have to sit in a chair to play both instruments together.

Though Dad was quite modest about playing guitar in front of anybody, we used to force him to sing “Edelweiss” while playing the guitar-harmonica combination. Very Sweet.

The best legacy and gift Dad left me was he taught me to play the guitar. The banjo came later.

Hanging the First Pedigree Ornament on my Blog

2008-12-01T20:06:00.019-05:00

I am initiating a new tradition this Christmas, but first, I want to mention a few of our family’s traditions that seem to have run the course. Our family members, like many others in America, reside at relatively long distances from each other. My brother lives in Florida; my Sister, in Maryland; I’m residing in North Carolina. One of my daughters and her family lives in Maryland; the other, fortunately, resides in my current home state of North Carolina. Some of my cousins have children scattered all over the country from coast to coast. Sad to say, like many families since the 1980s, there have been several break-ups and estrangements because of divorce. Depending on which branch of the family being considered, I have recently calculated that 40 to 50 percent of the cousins in my generation have gone through a divorce. Most have remarried, resulting in what we call EXTENDED families. Nevertheless, there are some who are still alone. What I’m saying is that it is often difficult to get the family, or what’s left of it, to come together in one place to carry on any kind of family tradition- to share in the camaraderie and excitement of the Thanksgiving or Xmas holidays. There are fewer and fewer of us sitting around the table for the “traditional” meal or the hand to hand exchange of gifts. Yes, we could take a plane flight or pack into our car and drive, but that’s getting truly expensive these days. Furthermore, it drains our energy resources and puts a strain on the environment. And, is it really safe to be driving on ever more crowded highways perhaps during dangerous weather conditions? Back me up you people who drove home for Thanksgiving.

The situation was not always so. Back in the 1950’s, when I was a pre-teenager, my family would drive over the Potomac River to Alexandria, Virginia, to Grandma’s house. There, I would play and run around with my ten cousins- all of them. Actually, a few cousins were born a little later, as I was the oldest. My cousins and their families all lived within a 20 mile radius of Grandma’s home.

We were so excited to find out what each other had received from Santa Claus. Indeed, it was here we discovered the real story about Santa, but we didn’t have the heart to tell our parents. We exchanged gifts and had a good old time. Grandma spent several days beforehand making up bushel baskets of Fastnachtskuchele, a traditional Swiss pastry that grandma learned to make from her stepmom, Rosa Frederick, who grew up in Canton Thurgau, Switzerland. Then after dinner, after the gifts were unwrapped, after the toys were broken and mended, and after I won the “war” card game, we would all gather around Grandma to take the “traditional” cousins picture (see below). I was able to date the pictures, taken in 1953 and 1956, from the birth dates of the infants on Grandma’s lap.

Image: Grandma Margaret (Austel) Gailliot is surrounded by seven of her grandchildren in this 1953 Christmas picture. (Two of my younger cousins have since passed away).

Image: Grandma Gailliot is surrounded by nine of her grandchildren in this 1956 traditional Christmas picture. One last grandchild, the tenth, was born in 1960. Four years later, that is about eight years after this picture was taken, Grandma passed away. By the way, you would not believe how difficult it is today to get a similar photo of the grandkids together with a grandparent. I am the mean, camera guy at Christmas for trying to force everybody to gather together for a picture.

Christmas Cards and Photo Cards

So you see, these pictures are reminders of some of our family traditions. Perhaps another way to bridge our scattered brethren is to send Christmas cards. I hardly ever sent Cards until about 15 years ago. Actually, it was a means to gather family history and share it with members of my family. I created Xmas letters and cards that featured portraits of my relatives or of places in which they grew up. Recently, one of the more interesting evolutions in Xmas cards is the creation of Photo cards. Now, you can not only send and receive Xmas greetings, but also, you can see how the faces have changed of friends, relatives, and particularly, the children. For several years now, I have archived the photo cards I received, and also, scanned and inserted them into my genealogical computer database. Below is a collage of a few examples:

But even here, forces are working against the tradition of sending cards. A first class letter or Xmas card cost three cents to mail in Grandma’s time in the 1950’s. This week, it costs 43 cents. Maybe we can get around these obstacles by using the computer for sending photos and greetings, though I believe there are some who think this is too impersonal.

A Series of Christmas Ornaments

Now it is time to introduce perhaps a new tradition- a project that can be uploaded by my computer to a public site to be enjoyed by relatives afar, or even by We Three Kings of Orient Are. They would otherwise probably never remember all those user names and passwords at private sites.

Every day, from now until Xmas week, my goal is to hang (OK, post) a Xmas ornament on this blog. However, these ornaments are not going to be like the ones you usually see. I will be creating Xmas ornaments with images that characterize each one of my ancestors in my lineal PEDIGREE back through my great grandparents. This calculates to be 15 ornaments including myself. I might throw in a few extra ornaments, such as those for my father’s adopted parents. Elsewhere on this blog, I have posted pedigree charts containing thumbnail images of my ancestors. However, for this project, instead of facial images, I am going to choose an image which depicts something unique about that individual’s life. It might be related to their occupation, avocation, place of birth or residence, or other things of which you and I will eventually learn.

Shown below is the first ornament on my Pedigree. The first person in a pedigree chart is called the principal. That would be me, Robert C. Kramp, and I am on the left in the red shirt; I stand next to my sister, Beverly, and my brother, Russell. We are standing behind my mother, the former Mary Margaret Gailliot. We are all living and the only ones in my pedigree who still survive, so I won’t go into too much detail for now. I will divulge this: the picture was taken within the last three years.

I am going to try an experiment here, if you are a Facebook.com subscriber you should be able to link here and go to the same image posted at my personal Facebook site.

Incidentally, Webster’s dictionary emphasizes that a tradition is not written down. Rather, it is an oral transmission of information, beliefs, and customs from ancestors to posterity. So, ask somebody to read this blog entry out loud to your children, preferably an older person who can embellish the written story. And after that, read what other genealogists have written about their family traditions in the Carnival of Genealogist, 61st Edition (see link at end of this entry).

Actually, this blog is becoming a type of tradition in itself. About a year ago, I wrote about the animal stable my father constructed out of wooden packing crates and placed under our Christmas tree in a Nativity scene. I will always remember it, and hopefully, it will also be impressed upon my grandchildren.

To the right of this page, I placed a tag, “Xmas-2008”, so that you can pull out the complete series of these particular blog entries, as I also plan to post entries on other topics during December.

REFERENCES AND LINKS

1. My lineal pedigree including facial images of my ancestors.

2. Read what other Geneabloggers (people who blog genealogy) had to say about their Holiday Traditions, all linked from Jasia's Creative Gene.

Small World Department- Delfosse Descendant

2008-11-14T13:04:00.012-05:00

I think it is because I do genealogy that I am so aware of people and events around me. Take a few days ago for example when a house guest and I were touring Old Salem in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Old Salem is a “living museum” created within the limits of the city. It was founded about 1753, as a settlement for a religious sect known as the Moravians from former Moravia in Bohemia, Germany. Today, Moravia is in western portion of the Republic of Czech. The descendants of the Moravians, with the help of others, preserved many of the homes of the original settlement and have recreated many of the shops and activities of the original settlers such as gardening and baking and gunsmiths.

My guest and I prepared to take a break on this warm, sunny Fall day and eat our fresh raisin and oatmeal cookies we had just purchased from the Moravian Bakery. I noticed the lady sitting across from me wore a name tag identifying her as Darlene Delfosse. I told her I was interested in her unique surname because one of my ancestors married a Delfosse.

“Oh, my husband was a Delfosse from Smoke Run, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania”, she informed me.

“And it’s nice that you pronounced the name correctly” she added. (I pronounced the ending like “boss” with a silent “e”).

Well that clinched it. Her late husband was undoubtedly related to the former Mae Louise Delfoss, who was the wife of my father’s step brother, Richard M. Kramp. Mrs. Mae Kramp, nee. Delfoss, or Mary as we called her, was a daughter of John B. “Jack” Delfosse and the granddaughter of Desire Delfosse and his wife, Marie. The progenitors had immigrated from Lievin, in northern France, in the 1880’s and settled in Pennsylvania. They had nine other children besides Jack Delfosse.

Image: Mrs. Darlene Delfosse, of Bern, North Carolina, whose husband's family line is related through marriage to our Kramp Family Line from Pennsylvania.

Of course, I did not have my computer with me; nor did I have my genealogy books and printouts nearby. And I didn’t even think of giving her one of my personal cards- which I had left at home anyway. From now on, I will carry several cards with me- at least giving information on how to access this blog. I wish I could have shown Darlene the following photograph taken at IOOF Cemetery, Brisbin, PA, which shows the tombstones of her husband’s ancestors.

Image (above): The Delfosse Plot at IOOF Cemetery, Brisbin, in southeastern Clearfield County, PA. Desire and Marie Delfosse were the grandparents of Mae Louise “Mary” Delfosse, who married Richard Melvin Kramp, son of Richard Otto Kramp and Bertha, nee. Fox. Louise M. Delfosse was the first of ten children born to Desire and Marie.

Incidentally, Mrs. Mary (Delfosse) Kramp was the last and only KRAMP listed in the Clearfield County (PA) telephone book before she died in August 2005.

One more note on the Delfosse name: On a recent car ride in Virginia, on state route 29, about halfway between Charlottsville and Danville, I noticed a road sign announcing the location of "Delfosse Winery". I better get up there again soon, as I may have a family discount waiting for me on a case of my favorite libation.

References and Links:
The Defosse Winery in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I would have never seen the details if I had not blogged this entry. It was there in Google all this time waiting for me to search and find it.

Hohnke Line- Introduction to First Generation

2008-11-07T16:15:00.009-05:00

I created the Hohnke Family Tree exhibit shown above and set it on an artist’s easel at a recent gathering of the STEMPFLY descendents. Specifically, I showed it to the descendants of William Stempfly, whose mother was Amelia STREICH, who in turn was the first-born child of Henrietta Hohnke and Karl Streich. The point here is not to read the detailed charts in this exhibit, unless you have the vision of a hawk. (Click on the image to enlarge). Rather, I wish to emphasize that there were 3 siblings making up the three major branches of the first generation, HOHNKE Line. I have documents which mention that the parents of the first generation were Frederick Hohnke and Augusta (maiden surname unknown). Little is known of Frederick, but Mrs. Augusta Hohnke apparently immigrated to America. She was enumerated as an 83 year old, widowed mother-in-law in the 1900 U.S. Census in the household of her daughter, Wilhelmina, and her son-in-law, Fredrick SCHROCK or SROCK. According to the Kirchenbuch of St. John’s German Lutheran Church in Houtzdale, PA, Mrs. Augusta Hohnke, was born 1814; died in 1907, and buried in the International Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) cemetery in Brisbin, Clearfield Co. Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, her grave was never marked and attempts to obtain her death certificate from PA Vital Statistics have been futile. The state began registering Deaths in 1895. After 1905, Death Certificates can be ordered from New Castle, for PA.

The three children of Frederick Hohnke and Augusta were:

i. Julius Hohnke, born 1840 in Prussia; died 1908 (age 68) in Clearfield Co, PA. He married Ottilie “Tillie” SUNBURG, d/o Adolf, and they had six children, five of whom were born in Germany. I found a Passenger List for Tillie and four of her children: they arrived Oct. 6, 1884, at New York Port, on S.S. General Werder. The oldest daughter, Bertha, who would have been about 15 years old, was not listed, and may have sailed separately with other relatives. The youngest child, Lewis H. Hohnke, was born in America in 1885.

The images above are presumably Julius Hohnke and his wife, Ottilie Sunburg. The photos were presented in a twin frame which was found in the attic of the former home of the Hohnke’s late son, Lewis H. Hohnke (1885-1940). The picture is definitely not of Lewis and his wife. There were no identifying markings on the photos or frames. Julius died in 1917 aged 68 years, but he appears much younger here. The original pictures are in the hands of a great granddaughter, Margaret WEBSTSER, nee. Hohnke, who allowed me to take these photographs in 1995.

ii. Henrietta Hohnke, born 1842 in "P. Posen" (probably the Province of Posen rather than the city), Prussia (now, Poland); died 1924 aged 82 years, in West Houtzdale, also known as West Moshannon, Clearfield Co, PA. She was married first to Karl? STREICH or STRIKE (?-1885), and secondly in 1888, to Charles Michael WAGNER, or WEGNER (1849-1926) from Lauenburg, eastern Pomerania. Henrietta had at least 4 children by her first husband: Amelia, Otto, Julius, and Martha. All but the last child were born somewhere in Prussia, but most likely in West Prussia. Henrietta and Charles had no issue. They died at the Wagner farmhouse in West Moshannon, PA; were buried in IOOF cemetery, Brisbin, PA; and had tombstones placed over their graves. Mrs. Henrietta Streich, born Hohnke, was my great grandmother.

The scanned images above are two separate photos made into a collage. The upper photo is Mrs. Henrietta Striech-Wagner, born Hohnke, with her second husband, Charles Wagner; they are identified as “Grandpa and Grandma Wagner”. Unfortunately, it looks like the picture was used as an ashtray at one time. The original is owned by a great grandson, Samuel Shugar. Henrietta was first to pass away, in 1924; and therefore, I believe this picture was taken several years before that time.

In the bottom photo, Henrietta stands in the middle of the group with her spouse Charles Wagner. On the right are Henrietta’s daughter, Mrs. Martha Kramp, born Streich, and her husband Robert William Kramp. If Martha is holding their first-born child, Richard, then the picture was taken about 1907. Judging from the clothes being worn by Henrietta and Charles, I believe both pictures were taken at the same time and in the same location- the Wagner Farm in West Houtzdale, PA. The couple on the left is yet to be identified.

iii. Wilhelmina “Minnie” Hohnke, was born 1847, in Germany; died 1937, aged 90, in Beulah, Clearfield Co., PA. She bore five children in Germany by her first husband August SCHESKIE or SHESKI (?-1884), and four children in Clearfield Co., PA, by her second husband, Fredrich SCHROCK or SROCK, from Neustadt, eastern Pomerania (1845-1917). The children of Minnie’s second family were born when she was 39, 41, 42, and 45 years old. Her second-born daughter died as an infant. Supposedly, Wilhelmina was buried in Beulah cemetery, Clearfield County, next to her second husband. However, Fredrich Schrock has a splendid tombstone; she has none.

Brick walls in my research came tumbling down when I found Wilhelmina’s obituary in the Clearfield (PA) Progress. Yet, it was still a challenge to fill in the genealogy as only 5 of her 8 children were mentioned in her obituary.

Shown below are two pictures of Wilhelmina Hohnke. The left-hand picture was only identified as “Grandma Schrock?”, as if the owner was not certain if she was his grandmother at a young age. Is it Wilhelmina, or if not, whose grandma is it? The pictures were found in an album belonging to the widow of Wilhelmina’s grandson, David Martin Steve. He was the youngest son of Wilhelmina’s oldest child, Clara Scheski who married Wilhelm Stuve. Eventually, Stuve was Anglicized to Steve. For now, it is reasonable to assume that these photos are of Wilhelmina as a young woman and at a mature age. The identity of “Emily” in right-hand picture is not known.

A Possible Fourth child in First Generation

As already mentioned I found a Passenger list for Julius Hohnke’s wife and their children but not for the families of Mrs. Henrietta (Hohnke) Streich or Mrs. Wilhelmina (Hohnke) Scheskie. Mrs. Henrietta Streich’s son, Otto, stated in his Naturalization papers, that he arrived in NY, on the SS Elbe, in the year 1884, on either Feb 26 (Declaration of Intention) or Mar 26 (Petition for Naturalization)- an obvious discrepancy. Realize that Otto filed his Naturalization papers in Cambria County, PA, when he was in his early thirties; however, he sailed to America when he was only seven years old in 1884. Otto’s memory of his arrival date had apparently faded. Nevertheless, I surveyed all the passenger manifests for the S.S. Elbe during April and May for 1884, plus or minus two years, with negative results.

On the other hand, I found a Passenger List with a match for Mrs. Henrietta Streich’s oldest child (see partial list below). Amalie (Amelia) Streich, age 18, arrived at New York port on the S.S. Elbe on 17 Dec 1883. Furthermore, her traveling companion was Pauline “Honke”, age 25 years. Pauline may be another child of the first generation Hohnke family. Estimated from her age on arrival, Pauline was born about 1855. Since her oldest presumed sibling, Julius Hohnke, was born in 1840, that would be a span of 15 years between them which is substantial but not uncommon in those days. There were no other passengers named Hohnke or Streich on the cruise. Thus, children and young adults sometimes did immigrate separately from their immediate families.

Passenger Manifest for SS Elbe arriving at New York on 17 Dec 1883. Pauline Hohnke, age 25 is Passenger No. 69; and Amalie Streich, No. 70. Unlike the other siblings in this first generation Hohnke family, I have been unable to find any information on the fate or whereabouts of the 25 year old Pauline Hohnke after she came to America in 1883. Incidentally, Julius Hohnke had a daughter named Pauline, but she was only 15 years old in 1883. Could the older Pauline have been a namesake for Julius’ daughter?

REFERENCES AND LINKS:

For orientation, my paternal great grandparents, Karl Streich and Henrietta Hohnke, can be seen on My Pedigree.

Obituaries for Julius Hohnke, Ottilie Sunburg (wife of Julius Hohnke), and Wilhelmina Hohnke, (wife of Fred Schrock) can be linked from the Obit index at my Father's branch web site.

Three ran for Political office; two won

2008-11-01T23:49:00.024-04:00

I’ve hardly been active in political causes. Probably because I moved around the country so much, I did not really have a chance to get involved in local politics. However, I always did my patriotic duty and voted in every National election since I was 18. Matter of fact the age of voting was reduced from the age of 21 to 18 years shortly before my first vote in an election. The age was reduced because of the Vietnam war. Some of us can recall the slogan, “if you are old enough to die (in the war), then you are old enough to vote”.

Usually, one must have lots of money and be a lawyer to run for national office. I guess it figures that if the US Congress is going to make laws, then being a lawyer would help in the creation of new laws. Thank goodness we have a different branch of the government to interpret the laws. That’s not to say that lawyers always make good laws- just that they can read them. However, some of our first politicians were not lawyers. Benjamin Franklin was a printer and a scientist, was he not? George Washington was a surveyor, soldier, and plantation owner. And, the list could go on.

However, at least three persons that I know of in our extended family ran for an elected office. Two were coal miners in Pennsylvania and one was a proprietor of an Automobile dealership in Syracuse, New York.

Robert Russell was a coal miner for most of his life, but he worked his way up to be a mining engineer. In 1900 in Clearfield County, PA, he was elected to be school director of Woodward Township. A granddaughter of Robert’s, Mrs. Gladys Hilburt, nee. Russell, told me that Robert couldn’t read and write until his wife taught him. I believe this to be true since he went into the mines when he was a young lad back in County Durham, England. Robert Russell immigrated to America in 1881.

Above: Certificate of Election (results) for Robert Russell, the son Thomas Russell, the elder, and Jane McNelley, in the Woodward township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania. Witnesses: Charles Lees, Joseph Shapless, and Frank Crago (Judge).

Above: Campaign card for Frank Ferdinand Kramp, son of Johann Kramp and Johanna Masche. Frank ran in the Republican Party for County Commissioner of Clearfield County, PA, on Tuesday, 20 September 1927. Frank lost the primary according to votes which were tabulated in the Clearfield Progress newspaper. Incidentally, Frank was cited as owning more than one percent of the stock of the Progress at one point. Frank was a coal mine operator of a company in Ramey Borough, Clearfield County. However, his company went broke at the time of the Wall Street crash of 1929, and apparently, he was not bailed out by the Government.

Finally, Clellan Scales Forsythe, son of Alexander Forsyth (no “e”) and Alma Emma, nee. Russell, won election for Councilman-at-large for Onondega County, New York. He ran on the Republican ticket. Clell, as he was known, began his career as a “trapper boy” in the coal mines of Pennsylvania, but rose successfully as businessman in the auto industry after his family moved to Syracuse about 1910. It seems that humble beginnings are always a mark of good character. Clellan's Dodge car dealership became one of the biggest company’s in New York. As Councilman, he ran a successful campaign for people to get out and vote. He helped Thomas E. Dewey win the gubernatorial race for New York. Dewey served three terms as a moderate Republican Governor of New York.

By the way, are you as tired as I am of opinion polls reported by the press and TV this election. I ignore them, as it is rediculous to think that someone else's opinion would influence my vote. Rather, I wish that the media would use more of my valuble time to discuss the issues. Indeed, back in 1948, Thomas Dewey was heavily favored to win a second bid for the Presidency against Harry Truman. In the late night edition on election day, the Chicago Daily Tribune jumped the gun and released the headline that Dewey was elected as the new President. However, the next morning, there was the front page picture of Harry Truman holding up the erronous report in the newspaper. Harry Truman had beat Dewey by a narrow margin in one of the nation's most famous political upsets . Hear, hear, you pollsters and ichy-finger mediapersons.

Clellan Forsythe was a game hunter and fisherman and fond of hosting an annual "game dinner" during which he hobnobbed it with a few big wigs around Syracuse, including the mayor. Today, such an event would not be so politically correct, especially among environmentalists and animal lovers.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE: From Syracuse Herald Journal, 6 Dec 1939, p 14:

"Forsythe Entertains Friends at Annual Game Dinner"

"The second annual game dinner was given by Clellan S. Forsythe in the ballroom of the Onondaga Hotel last night. Fish, moose and duck, all bagged by Mr. Forsythe or such other "mighty hunters" as Mayor Rolland B Marvin and Clifford H Searle, were the chief features of an elaborate dinner, in a North Woods setting of trees and rocks, with which the dining room was decorated. Amid the trees and on little knolls of the landscape were stuffed specimens of forest wild life, bears, rabbits, beavers and other animals.

"There was no formal program, but colored moving pictures taken of a fishing party at the Triton Club in the Canadian woods by Mayor Marvin proved a feature of the evening. A reel depicting a moose hunt also was shown, but this had no Syracusans in the action. In addition to the fishing movies by the Mayor, motion pictures he took at the World's Fair were shown."

Unfortunately, Clellan Forsythe had a sad ending. While hunting pheasants with his brother on an island they owned on Lake Ontario, Clellan somehow accidentally discharged his shotgun and fatally wounded himself. The brother, John Russell Forsythe, said that Clellan slumped over the gun while he was sitting in the car, apparently the victum of a heart attack. More can be found in his obituary.

This family history story was submitted to the 59th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy whose topic this week was “Politics of our Ancestors”. To see what other Genealogical Bloggers wrote on the topic go to Jasia's Creative Gene blog

Museum of Mourning Art

2008-10-17T14:23:00.019-04:00

Undoubtedly, at least once in your life, you sat in your car at an intersection and waited for a long funeral procession to pass. You may have thought, wow, this person must have really been important or was very popular. Recently, large numbers of mourners have gathered together to honor the “last ride” of a soldier who was killed in the mid-eastern wars. However, none of these reasons apply to funeral gatherings which occurred centuries ago. In those days, more mourners meant more prayers beseeching God to save the deceased from Fire and Damnation or Hell, at least according to my tour guide, Elizabeth, at The Museum for Mourning Art.

The museum is located on the grounds of Arlington Cemetery in Drexel Hill, just southwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where a branch of my Russell Sept (family) are also buried. Years ago I requested and received by mail mortuary records for Thomas William Russell, Junior, his wife, the former Mary Edna Ashton, and some of their family who are buried at Drexel Hill. In the return mail was a card from a docent at the Museum. I thought then that I had two reasons to visit Arlington Cemetery: To document the Russell tombstones and to tour this unique museum. I thought with a sort of morbid curiosity what kind of art can be found in dying, death and mourning? I found plenty.

Image: The entrance to Arlington Cemetery, Drexel Hill, PA, includes stone pillars and steel gates. Posters advertise the "Unknown tourist attraction" of the The Museum of Mourning Art, and a website, but wait, read on first.

The cemetery office, a chapel, and The Museum of Mourning Art are housed in a building which is a replica of George Washington's home at Mount Vernon in Virginia. I was told that it was the death of George Washington, our first President who was beloved by all Americans, which started the creation of Mourning Art and its collection. Inside the museum is a trinket in which a lock of former President Washington's grey hair can be seen.

By coincidence, a few days before I visited the offices of the Toppitzer Funeral Home in PA, I toured the real George Washington's home in Mount Vernon. Yes, they do look alike. I visited Mount Vernon with a mission in mind which I will blog about at a latter time.

Unfortunately, I was not allowed to take photographs inside the Museum of Mourning Art, but images do appear on the Museum's informative website (see links at bottom). I did not catch her full name, but a lady named Mrs. Schorsch began years ago to put together this collection of mourning items. I intend to research more information on these items on the Internet. But for starters, I saw and learned a little about:

Emblem books- profusely illustrated books about death and dying.
Hatchments- diamond-shaped panels, similar to coats of arms, which would be placed on the coffin or horse-drawn hearse; they would give a quick identification of the person inside.
A vintage horse-drawn hearse, circa 1890. The driver wore a top hat of felt (matted animal fur) with a black-colored silk band around the brim the width of which symbolized the importance of the deceased. The Toppitzer funeral home owns a replica of the hearse which can be rented for funerals.
Funeral Invitations- recall that more mourners meant more prayers for the deceased.
Mourning clothes- mostly plain, unadorned, and of course, black-colored. However, more and more frills were added with time and additional colors of clothing, mostly white, were allowed as the family member gradually withdrew from mourning.
A dire painting by Albrecht Durer aptly titled “Melancholy”, painted with much symbolism of mourning. For example the woman in the portrait is holding a compass. Sometimes, the one who has passed away had previously been like a compass for the suvivor, who now finds herself direction-less in her lonely world. In the upper right-hand corner is a bell the tolling of which accounced the death of an individual. Note also the hourglass which has run out of sand.
Mourning jewelry- Rings, necklaces, bracelets, pendants, broaches, “sliders” (oval medallions which slid onto ribbons), and other items of jewelry. I was particularly impressed by images of the deceased or scenes from their life which were made from the person’s own delicate hair.
A coffin, made circa 1610, with a glass window at the head just so you could be quite sure that the deceased person inside was actually who you thought it was.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

1. I usually put links at the end of my blog, because I don't want readers to run off looking at other sites until they have had a few minutes to see what's here. So now, you should go to the web site for the Museum of Mourning Art which is included as a sub-site for the Toppitzer Funeral Home. There you will find a virtual tour of the museum and stories of the famous who are buried in the surrounding cemetery. Sorry, my Russell's are not in the famous group. Also, there are life stories of beloved persons who have been memorialized on videos. This would be an excellent way of preserving family histories.

2. Gallery of art by Albrecht Durer including his work, "Melancholy"

Japanese Cherry Trees around the Washington Tidal Basin

2008-10-16T08:46:00.009-04:00

I continue to bicycle around Washington, DC, taking pictures of monuments and tourist sites and matching them to vintage photographs in my grandmother's photo album- the one with the soft leathery, black-colored covers, and black velvety pages, bound together with a string which looks like it came from an old shoe.

The city of Washington, DC, is a beautiful place, especially around Easter time when the Cherry blossoms are in full bloom around the tidal basin. However, the picture below was taken during the second week of October. The blossoms have long past faded, but the leaves are still green, and on the outskirts of the city some of the tops of maples are starting to tinge with the orange and red colors of Fall. In the photo is a monument that might be forgotten during seasons other than the Spring. It is the "Japanese Lantern" gifted to America by Japan as were the cherry trees surrounding the lantern (see below)

Nearby the Lantern is a stone and plaque (image below) dedicating the grove of cherry trees, an old gnarled one of which stands in the background.

The plaque reads:

"The first cherry trees presented to the City of Washington as a gesture of friendship and good will by the city of Tokyo were planted on this site, March 27, 1912."

Sad to say, this was about 30 years before the Japanese bombed and sunk our American battleships and drowned our sailors at Pearl Harbor. This event was followed a few years later by our dropping the Atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and annihilating most of each town and thousands of its citizens. Good will? Hardly. However, for a much longer period of time than those horrible events, the beauty of these Cherry trees have been, and are, resurrected each Spring.

It was one of these Springs that my mother's parents and family took a short ride from Alexandria out to the blossoming Cherry trees and thankfully took pictures of the picnic.

Grandpap, Charles A. Gailliot, and Grandma Margaret, born Austel, and their oldest grandchildren under the blossoming Cherry Trees. Bob Kramp (me) is the oldest boy in the center, with brother, Billy, on the left, and our first cousin, Denis Bailey, on the right. He is the son of Joe Bailey and Helen (Gailliot). Taken about 1947. Unfortunately, Grandpap died the next year in February of 1948, aged 54 years.

Under the Cherry Trees in the Spring of 1947: My mother, the former Mary Margaret Gailliot, stands to the left of her sister-in-law, Mrs. Glen Dora (nee. Tracy) Gailliot, and her sister, Mrs. Helen (nee. Gailliot) Bailey. The picture is also a fashion statement of the 1940s. My mother is wearing MY favorite accessory. It was a fur stole made up of 2 or 3 mink skins. The mouth of one animal was a spring-like clasp that grasped onto the tail of the next mink in line and so on. After Mom doffed the furs, I would play with the skins rubbing my hand over the soft, cool hairs and occassionally clipping the "mouth" onto my fingers until the lack of circulation turned them white.

The hand seemed to reach out of the coffin ...

2008-10-14T13:11:00.011-04:00

For the 58th edition Carnival of Genealogy, a group of us genealogy bloggers have committed to write a haunting story or weird tale taken from our family's history in honor of Halloweeeeeeen. Also it has been suggested that we keep from naming the subjects of our story so that readers might guess who they are. That would be difficult to do in my case unless the reader is a member of my family who rarely reads this blog. On the other hand, the reader could guess whether this story is fact or fiction, or perhaps creative non-fiction. I do not know if the following story is true or not, but as they say, there is always a grain of truth in family tradition.

Below, on the right, is the subject of my story, and for now, I'll call her simply "Grossmom". She will be identified after the deadline for submissions has passed. As a hint to her identity, she immigrated to this county in early 1900s and settled in Braddock, Pennsylvania. Also, she had converted to Roman Catholicism in order to wed her first husband, Joseph (surname temporarily withheld). Grossmom was Joseph's second wife, and she was married into a family of nine step children, seven of whom were still under the marrying age. As you might know, converts are usually quite zealous about their "new" religion, and Grossmom was indeed a zealous convert. She assumed all of her step-children would marry within the Catholic faith. It was the Eleventh Commandment.

Image: "Grossmom", about 1918, and her niece. For this story, you might take notice of the beaded necklace that Grossmom is wearing.

However, as time progressed, a daughter married a German immigrant who was a Lutheran, and moved to the north end of Pittsburgh. Grossmom showed her disapproval by withholding visits to her daughter's family, essentially disowning her. I think it is interesting that Grossmom's husband's behavior was quite different. He would often take the bus, alone, to his daughter's home for a visit.

I might add that a similar situation grew up in another branch of the family in which the mother seemed to show disdain for any family member who married a non-Catholic. And again, the father of the family showed indifference. Is this because men are just disinterested in a son or daughter's choice of faith, or is it that men believe that some romantic idea takes precedence over religious matters? I wonder what comments will come in response to this rather sexist notion.

In any case, Grossmom soon faced the fact that her step-son fell in love with not only a non Catholic but also a DIVORCED non-catholic with a son from her previous marriage. Oh, Heaven forbid. Despite Grossmom's objections, Frank Joseph Austel married the former Gladys Henshaw around 1924. Joseph was an adventuresome soul who had served two enlistments in the military before finally settling down in marriage. He certainly had a mind of his own. Seeing the beautiful lady he married, I can see why Frank disregarded his step mother's objections.

But here's the weird part of this story. It occurred during the funeral service of Frank Austel who died at the age of 46 years. Grossmom raised enough courage and forgiveness to attend the service. As she kneeled over the coffin, and as she described later in a shaking voice, a hand seemed to rise from the coffin, grab her cultured pearl necklace, and pull her closer. The force was so strong that the necklace broke and pearls darted everywhere across the floor. A granddaughter of Grossmom, Martha Imfang, who was 24 years old at time, told me that she ran after the scattered pearls to retrieve them. The pearls could have been restrung. However, Grossmom refused to have anything more to do with that pearl necklace.

NOTE after submission: Grossmom in the story above is none other than the former Rosa Friedrich, of Canton Thurgau, Switzerland. Rosa was about half the age of Joseph Austel when he took her as his second wife in 1897. Soon after Joseph died in 1924, Rosa remarried the widowed Joseph Poeschl. Joseph Austel and Rosa are buried together under the same tombstone at Braddock Catholic (All Saints) Cemetery, near Pittsburgh, PA.

LINKS and REFERENCES:
For other weird and haunting tales submitted by Genealogy Bloggers for the 58th Edition, Carnival of Genealogy go to Jasia's Creative Gene

Statuary (Einstein & Jefferson) of Washington, DC

2008-10-14T12:31:00.008-04:00

One thing about coming back home for a visit: this time one comes back as a curious tourist. I was born in Alexandria, VA, and when I was about six years old, my family moved to Bethesda, MD, just about 4 miles north of the District of Columbia city boundary. After I graduated from High School and the University of Maryland around 1964, I left the Metropolitan area, never to return again as a resident. Well, I did return to live for about a year in 1967, after serving my military obligation, but I don't count that.

But now, I come back to visit my family and relatives, with a new passion for gathering family history and learning more about the events of our country's heritage which has influenced us. You see, now I have the time to read and reflect on our national heritage and how it has become entwined with my own, personal "Life's Journey". So, during the last week, I visited several memorials and monuments in the Washington, DC, read the guidebook descriptions, and took pictures. There is not a better place to learn about our national heritage than Washington, DC.

Image above: Do you believe in osmosis? I am laying my head on the lap of the famous Albert Einstein in hopes that some of his intellect might seep into my own brain. Good Luck. This statue is on the grounds of the National Academy of Sciences. I noticed that many of the statues and memorials depict their subject in quite formal poses. However, more recent statuary shows the subject in a more relaxed, informal pose such as this one. The statue was sculpted by Robert Berks, and is 21 feet high from head to toe. It was dedicated in June 1979, the centennial of Einstein's birth on 11 Mar 1879. He died 18 Apr 1955, at age 76 years.

The papers in Einstein's left hand shows three equations of his most important scientific discoveries:

The Theory of General Relativity
The Photoelectric Effect. (Some of my former Health Physics students might be familiar with this equation- unless they weren't paying attention.
The equivalency of Energy and Matter. So simple and so elegant- why didn't I think of it first?

Incidentally, Einstein once said, "Politics is for the present, but an equation ... is for an eternity".

Einstein sits on a 3 step bench of white granite quarried from Mt. Airy, NC. On the back of the bench is inscribed a quote attributed to Einstein. Other scientists and genealogists should take note:

"The right to search for truth implies also a duty; one must not conceal any part of what one has recognized to be true"

And how does one recognize the truth: sources, sources, sources, and if one is lucky, PRIMARY sources. Of course, sometimes family historians might have to be a little discreet- at least for awhile.

Image: Einstein's statue sets on a slap, 28 feet in diameter, of emerald pearl granite from Lavrick, Norway. Embedded in the granite are 2700 stainless steel studs of various diameters which represent the stars in the heavens as positioned at noon on 22 Apr 1979 (dedication day). I'm no Einstein but the architects of this monument most surely were.

In the present campaign for President, both parties have claimed that their group represents CHANGE- as nobody seems to want to be associated with same old, same old, of George W. Bush's administration. However, after I climbed the steps of the Jefferson Memorial and then gazed around the rotunda, I was struck by an inscribed statement attributed to our second President, Thomas Jefferson. See the image below Jefferson's statue and click to enlarge.

Image: Thomas Jefferson in the rotunda of the Jefferson Memorial

What? "Barbarous Ancestors"- Thomas, what are you trying to say? It seems that Jefferson realized that institutions (and laws) must change to reflect and "keep pace" with the progress of man. I guess the question remains whether or not man is progressing.

A Trip to Great Falls, Virginia: Then and Now

2008-10-10T08:55:00.009-04:00

My maternal grandmother, Mrs. Margaret Gailliot, formerly Margaret Austel, of Burglen, Canton Thurgau, Switzerland. Hand-written caption indicates picture was taken at Great Falls on the Potomac River, on the Virginia shore. Picture taken circa Summer, 1917. Can you imagine crawling over those rocks and water rivulets in a long Victorian dress.

My maternal grandfather, Charles Antony Gailliot, of Braddock, Allegheny County, PA, sits on the rocks of Great Falls, Virginia, circa Summer of 1917 or 1918. Charles and Margaret were married at St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, in Braddock, PA, on 6 August 1917. Almost the day after they were married, Charles received his induction notice to report to the Army to serve in WW I. However, he also received at the same time an offer to work as a pattern maker for the Navy Yard in Washington, DC. Thus, Charles and Margaret moved to the District of Columbia. Since his job was a part of the war effort, Charles was not drafted and remained state side. Since Charles' wife, Margaret had their first baby, Helen, in May of 1918, I am certain that these pictures were taken in 1917. Note the trees were in summer foliage.

Image: Bob Kramp, that's me, looks over Great Falls from the Virginia shore, October, 2008, about 90 years after his grandparents visited the same site. The information sign at this overlook is titled, "River of Change", as the area has seen several floods and gone though the process of erosion. But for me, it was certainly a time change, a time warp as they say, since the times of my grandparents.

I grew up in Bethesda, on the Maryland side of the Potomac River. As young kids, the neighborhood boys and I would often come down to Great Falls and climb for hours over the rocks with fishing rods in hand- looking for that special pool where grandfather bass resided. When we got bored of fishing, we could easily switch to catching dozens of water snakes. That was a long time ago. Today, the National Park Service which administers park lands on both shores of the Potomac at Great Falls has posted signs to stay on the approved walk ways and avoid stomping over the sensitive environment off-trail. This is a good idea considering the number of people who visit the park each year and the number of drownings that occur among careless hikers. There are still areas which have been set aside for official rock climbing.

This image of the Great Falls from the Virginia shore was taken with the wide view setting of my digital camera (click to enlarge). I believe my grandparents were probably crawling over the upper rocks of the Falls back in 1917, because it is a long drop to the river where I'm standing to take this photo.

A few days later, I was bicycling the first 11 miles of the former Washington and Old Dominion Railroad which has been converted to the 45 mile-long rail-trail located within the W&OD Regional Park. I suspect my grandparents took the electric car ride out to Great Falls on a side track off the W&OD. Though I don't know for sure, the trip was probably a honeymoon for my grandparents for at the time they visited it was indeed a wonderful resort. The text of this historical marker along the rail trail gives a hint of what it must have been like in the "old days":

The Great Falls Line

The Bluemont Branch of the Washington and Old Dominion was not the railroad's only line. The Great Falls and Old Dominion Rail Road arose in 1906 from the vision of two prominent men. Senator Stephen B. Elkins of West Virginia had prospered through coal, lumber and railroads in his home state. John R. MacLean was involved in several businesses and owned the Washington Post newspaper. Elkins and MacLean bought land on the Virginia side of the Potomac River at Great Falls. They turned it into a resort, complete with a carousel, dance pavilion, and electrified Trolley line to bring the crowds from Washington. The largely undeveloped land along the line was ideal for residential communities including one named for MacLean. [One rides though MacLean and Fairfax City on the trail]

Images of Elkins, on top, and MacLean, are in the upper, right-hand corner of the historical marker.

This trip to Great Falls, Virginia, was made as part of my effort and enjoyment to re-visit sites which were also visited by my ancestors. Previously, I have posted blog entries on my ancestors' trips to the replica of the Lourdes (France) Grotto and the Bartholdi Fountain, both sites being in Washington City, District of Columbia.

How to make a Printer's Hat

2008-10-10T08:11:00.008-04:00

I am now thoroughly convinced you can search and find anything on the Internet- even instructions for making a printer's paper hat.

A couple of entries ago, I mentioned that my brother and I, when we were kids, had a quick tour of Dad's workplace at the Washington (DC) Evening Star. Dad was a Linotype operator. I noticed that all the surfaces in the room were black and greasy and there was the omnipresent odor of ink in the air. One could almost see a mist of black ink everywhere. A distinction of every man in the room was that he wore a paper hat so that the ink mist would not coat his hair- whether he had any hair or not. The hats were almost a mark of honor among the union printers.

My father had long ago made a printer's hat for me and taught be how to make one for myself. I had forgotten how to do it, and until I created the recent entry for this blog, I didn't really care. However, I now realized that Printer's Hats are part of my heritage and I had to find someone to teach me again how to make them. But, newspaper companies do not use Linotype machines or operators anymore and most of my father's co-workers have probably past away. So, after some consternation, I turned hopefully, but doubtfully, to a search engine on the Internet and typed, "printer hat". And lo and behold, up came a website called "instructables" that showed how to make any hat there ever was out of newspaper. How about a Pope's miter hat?

I downloaded a pdf file for making a printer's hat and now my heritage has been restored. If you're interested go to:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Newspaper-Hat!/

Go to my previous entries for our trip to The Evening Star and Linotype machines. At the former link you can also compare the fashion model above with the same at a much younger and innocent age. It's no wonder I had forgotten.

Who's in Arlington National Cemetery

2008-10-06T10:36:00.017-04:00

It's great to come back to Washington, DC, for a visit. I was born and raised in the so-called DC Metropolitan area. I believe most people think of Presidents and Politicians when they hear of Washington, DC. However, it is a city of mostly ordinary "Main Street" characters who were born, grew up, lived and worked here. Like my family. Actually, I was born on Cameron Street in Alexandria, VA, just south of DC. They call it George Washington's home town. One can ride a bicycle from Alexandria City to his former plantation at the end of the Mt. Vernon Trail which runs beside the Purple Heart Highway.

When I was 6 years old we moved to Bethesda, Maryland, on the north side of DC, in Montgomery County. I must mention that Hubert H. Humphrey, Junior, that's the former VP's son, was in my 7th grade class at Kensington Junior High. I wouldn't have even known that, but I recognized his family's portrait in the newspaper one day. I graduated from the University of Maryland in College Park, and afterwards migrated to other parts of the country. However, I never went back to DC except for visits to my family- and research at the National Archives. Now, instead of bedding at relatives and taking the Metro Subway to the National Archives, I can sit in front of my computer and access the U.S. census records on the Internet. But I still miss the real life adventure.

I am visiting my family again in the DC Metro area, and while here, I took a day's tour of the Arlington National Cemetery and took some of the following pictures. I saved my legs and took a tram around the cemetery and listened to some very good and entertaining interpreters. Can I use the word "entertaining" while visiting the resting places of some of the greatest heroes of our country? If you are a genealogist, you'll agree in the affirmative.

I watched the changing of the guard at the tombs of the Unknown Soldiers. Of course the tombs are guarded 24 seven. One is impressed by the precision and dedication of these guards from nearby Fort Myers. When the soldiers halt and do a right face or an about face, they swing out one straight leg and bring it back sharply making a loud clack with their heels. Their shoe heels are built up of several layers of leather on the inside step in order to take this constant pounding. Also, the guards have to be between 5 ft, 8 inches and 6 ft, 2 inches tall, AND be able to fit into a 29 inch belt- it's the only size of belt issued. I meet the first criterion but fall just a tad short of the second.

The four plaques of the Kennedy family and the Eternal Flame is a solemn place. From far corner to your left:

"Daughter", August 23, 1956
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 1917-1963
Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, 1929-1994. I had to check those dates twice, as I didn't realize that Jackie was 11 years younger than her husband.
Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, August 7, 1963- August 9, 1963

There is a lengthy list of criteria for burial at Arlington, but only minor children under the age of 21 can be interred next to their parents. That is why JFK's adult children can not be buried here. Son, "John John" Kennedy, was cremated and his ashes strewn off of Martha's vineyard. (Read here the eligibility requirements for ground burial)

Former Senator Robert Kennedy is buried just down the hill from his brother in a very unassuming grave, marked by a flat stone and a simple white cross.

On the hill above the Kennedy's Eternal Flame is the Curtis Lee Manson which is being renovated as a museum. From the mansion, you have a great panoramic view of Washington, DC, on the opposite side of the Potomac river. From the left, if you're somewhat familiar with the city, you can see the Lincoln Memorial, the tall pointed Washington Monument, The Capital, and the Jefferson Memorial.

An urn containing the ashes of my daughter's father-in-law was placed (inurnment) at Arlington Cemetery this past spring, on 8 Apr 2008 (see above image). He was Henry Francis "Bud" Collins, 187th Regional Combat unit, Korean Conflict.

Other members of our extended family buried at Arlington are:

Norma Jean HONADLE, nee. KOEHLER, daughter of Robert Koehler and Helen RUSSELL, Section 66, Grave 6920.
John Albert HONADLE, Major, USAF, husband of Norma Jean
William Lewis KRAMP, Air Police SQ, USAF, Section 41, Grave 1179
Doroth Marie PARKE, nee. KRAMP, wife of John.
John T. PARKE, TEC 5, US Army, WW II

My last stop at Arlington was the museum inside the Curtis Lee Mansion. On one wall of the mansion were family trees for the Curtis-Lee Family (on left of chart) and the family of George Washington, first president of the United States.

I'm just a little dishevelled and unorganized here on the road, borrowing a friends computer to upload this entry. So, I will finish reading the tourist brochures and add to this entry at a more comfortable time. In the meantime, I found a more complete, interactive presentation of the Family Tree on the Internet here.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

Description and pictures of Curtis Lee mansion (Arlington House) by the National Park Service.

The Official web site of Arlington National Cemetery

Cowboys from West of the Potomac

2008-09-29T13:02:00.017-04:00

This month's topic for the 57th Carnival or Genealogy was "I read it in the newspapers". My family has a large stake in the newspaper business not as readers or reporters, but as printers, Linotype operators, composing room foreman, and as newspaper carriers. You might say that printers ink is in our blood- at least until recently.

My father grew up in Ramey, Clearfield Co, Pennsylvania, and many of the men up there worked in the coal mines. But my father's step mom did not want Robert to work in the dangerous mines. So when Dad's biological brother, Russell Stryke, offered to take him from Ramey to Alexandria, Virginia, and start him as an apprentice in the Linotype operator trade, a deal was made. Russell was a composing room Foreman at the Alexandria Gazette, which is still the oldest newspaper in America still in circulation. However, the name has been changed to the Alexandria Packet.

My father worked at the Gazette until he finished his apprenticeship but then struck out on his own. He worked years for the Washington Evening Star in the District of Columbia. Later he switched his employ to the Government Printing Office, Patent Section.

One day in June, 1948, my mother dressed me and my brother and took us down town to the Washington's Star Company dentist, Dr. Shea. Now, our dentist still used the string and pulley system to turn the drill bit in our mouths and we were not exactly thrilled to sit in the dentist's chair for what seemed like hours. Perhaps mom thought she would dress us in our cowboy outfits we got for Christmas to keep our minds off the dentist's drill. I don't believe that idea worked too well. Nevertheless, after a tour of Dad's workplace at the Star, we did get our pictures in the newspaper. And we did indeed love to wear those cowboy outfits.

Caption for newspaper article on left: "Two cowboys straight from the west- west of the Potomac, that is. They're Billy, 4, (left) and Bobby, 6, of No. 7 Auburn Garden Apartments, Alexandria (See "Just Between Ourselves"). Junior Star Photo."

And here is what Philip H. Love wrote about us for his column, "Just Between Ourselves" for this edition of the Junior Star:

"Like every other boy, Billy and Bobby Kramp wanted cowboy suits. I can remember the times when I expected to find a cowboy suit under my Christmas tree every year. Usually I got what I wanted, but occasionally Santa Claus crossed me up, as the saying be, and brought me an Indian suit instead. I wasn't very happy about the substitution. A cowboy suit is one thing, as every boy, say between 4 and 10 will understand and that an Indian Suit is something else again. But whether I stepped out at Christmas as a cowboy or an Indian, the suit was of such flimsy material that it lasted about two days and then with the suddenness of a war hoop, fell apart."

"The situation is different with Bobby and Billy. Their mother, Mrs. Robert C. [Mary Margaret] Kramp, wanted them to have suits that would last until they outgrew them. And that's the kind of suits she made for them."

And here is a live action shot of me getting the point across to my brother. Billy looks like he's really wondering if I was going to pull the trigger. Boy, that was the BIGGEST Christmas tree I ever saw or even remember.

If you click on the image to enlarge it, you will see red-colored stars and other embellishments on the shoulder patches. These were all hand-embroidered. Something even Gene Autry would be proud to wear. You will also NOT see any dirt or grime on the suit- sort of unusual for boys. Well, my mother would not allow us to spoil or get the suits dirty. Consequently, we only wore them a few times. And when I donned the suit again, the ends of the sleeves were half way up to my elbows. Oh well, Billy got the hand-me-down.

REFERENCES and LINKS:

A history of the Washington Evening Star and a picture of the building, by Wikipedia.

See previous blog entry: Linotype Operators, a dead occupation

Here is what other Genealogy bloggers had to say about their families in the newspapers (57th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy)

Pictures from the Gailliot front porch, 1930s

2008-09-26T15:13:00.007-04:00

A couple of entries ago, I mentioned the house that my maternal grandfather, Charles Anthony Gailliot, built from a Sears kit in the mid-1920s. My mother believes she was about 4 or 5 years old when they moved from her grandfather's farm south of Alexandria City to the community of Del Ray in Alexandria. Charles Gailliot and his wife, Margaret, nee. Austel, had 4 children: Helen, Charles, and Mary Margaret (my mother), were born in 1918, 1919, and 1920, respectively. Nine years after my mother was born (at the farm), the youngest son, Edward Austel Gailliot was born. Uncle Eddie, as I called him, built a model of the Gailliot home which I recently posted at this blog. I mentioned that many pictures were taken on the front porch and stoop of the home. Well, here is an page from that album (click to enlarge):

In the upper left frame is my mother, Mary Margaret (MM) Gailliot, and her friend Helen Pesiznak who lived across the street. Helen was validictorian of their 1938 graduation class at George Washington High School. Upper right is mom's older sister, Helen Rose Gailliot, and the family pet fox terrior mix named, "Buddy". Lower left, is mom and a friend and also her brother, Eddie. Everybody who remembers Eddie as a child remembers that he was usually dressed in some kind of costume- usually a soldier. Here he looks like a policeman, complete with a Billy club (or is it called a night stick)- before the days of the "tazer". My dad and I appear in the middle, lower frame and a picture of my brother and I finish up the bottom row.