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Poppy Makes a Comeback

This week’s theme is “love”. I wanted to put a different spin on it than I imagine others might. I’m going to talk about loving family history and how I think you can make that happen for our younger generations- with a story thrown in about Ervin Alonzo “Poppy” Drake.
I love genealogy. I have always loved it. I think that came from a lifetime of watching my parents care for the family members around them- whether closely related or not. It came from watching them ask their own parents questions about their history and their family. It came from yearly reunions where we spent time with extended family and also from my mom sharing her old pictures and talking about them with me when I was young. I can’t remember a time when my mom didn’t take my grandma around to the cemeteries to place flowers in May. I didn’t always go with them but when I did those visits were accompanied by family stories and talk of generations past. I’m so very grateful for those experiences. They helped shape my life and shape who I am. I’m certain they contributed to my love of family history. Even today when I face difficulties one of the things I do (after praying) is look at my ancestors to see how they handled similar situations.
I feel it’s the positive repeated exposure that will help our younger generations learn to love family history and see it as a resource for the rest of their lives. I’m not talking about the names-and-dates kind of genealogy but the personal stories of victory, courage, tenacity, love, hope, and faith- THAT kind of family history. That’s what kids need. They need to understand that in their life there will be good times and bad times and that they CAN get through it all with grace, faith, and hope and that there were generations of family before them who did it.
For about 10 years when my children were very young, we lived far away from extended family. I considered that a loss for them and tried to make up for it by telling family stories and talking about family whenever I thought it would hold their interest. One of the stories my kids always loved to hear (and often asked me to tell) was the story of Poppy’s trip to town for groceries. Now, I can’t tell this story in the same funny way it was told by my uncle, Richard Drake, but I can give you the gist of the story and you can ask Uncle Richard yourself if you want the really funny version. The basic story goes something like this:
One day Poppy rode his horse into town to buy some food. The store had canned
beans for sale. Poppy had never had canned beans before so he decided to try
some. He carried the beans home, opened the can, and heated the beans.
After taking his first bite he spit them out, put them back in the can, and
returned to the store on his horse. He put the now-opened can of beans on the
counter and demanded his ten cents back that he paid for the beans. When the
clerk wanted to know what was wrong with them he told the clerk they tasted
terrible and weren’t even fit for feeding to his dogs. He got his dime back and
rode back home.
Now, my kids thought this simple story was hilarious. They would start laughing during the first sentence when they imagined their 3rd great grandfather hopping on a horse and riding to the grocery store. It seemed that at every turn they laughed harder- when he tasted the beans and spit them out, when he got so mad he rode his horse back to town, when he demanded (and received) his dime back, and when he told the clerk the beans weren’t fit for his dogs to eat. My kids may not have been very interested in the names and dates- but they held on to the stories and enjoyed them. And isn’t that, after all, what we want the younger generations to do? I know this is a story that my grandkids will hear each year at cousin camp in the summer. The more they hear the stories, the more the people in the stories will become a part of them and a part of the fabric of their lives. The more they love the stories, the more they will want to know about their ancestors and that may later turn into a love for pursuing the names, dates, and other facts about their ancestors.
So, in tribute to Poppy, who hated canned beans and fast cars (if you’re asking Richard about the canned beans you may as well ask for the story about the first time Poppy rode in a motorized vehicle) but loved his wife Annie and his family, I give you this picture of Poppy with Annie and one of his dogs. This picture is circa 1948 so the dog is, sadly, probably not one of the too-good-for-canned-beans dogs in the story but one can always imagine…

Ervin "Poppy" Alonzo and Mary "Annie" (Baker) Drake. — Ervin “Poppy” Alonzo and Mary “Annie” (Baker) Drake.

Poppy and Annie’s graves:

Ervin "Poppy" Alonzo and Mary "Annie" (Baker) Drake's gravestone. — Ervin “Poppy” Alonzo and Mary “Annie” (Baker) Drake’s gravestone.

By the way, it is believed that Annie (Mary Anne Baker) was Native American. If you know of any way we can prove her Native American heritage, there are many of us who would like to know for sure. If you aren’t certain but you know of family stories or documents, please let me know. Any little bit of information is helpful.
Don’t forget to drop by Down in the Root Cellar for Becky’s take on the theme of love. I’m sure her post will be fabulous, as always. Theology for Mom is taking a brief break from blogging to take care of real-life issues. We hope to see her back online and blogging soon. 🙂

Until next week,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives blog

So Far Away From Me

Nicholas Wilhelm Reiter
This week’s theme for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is “so far away”. I decided to use last week’s blog about Nicholas REITER (which got set aside in favor of the Civil War tale of John C. BATES) and tell his story. Nicholas is my 2nd great-grandfather on my mother’s side. I chose him for this week’s theme because out of all my lines, I have made the least amount of progress on this one. Meaning- I’m “so far away” from answers about this family!!
In addition to the information posted below, I did an earlier blog post analysis of Nicholas’ and Sarah’s marriage record and the preacher who married them (Alpheus Brown). You can find that blog post here http://happy-girl-24.livejournal.com/14194.html.
Nicholas Wilhelm REITER was born in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany on 9 June 1825. He immigrated to America at a young age. My granny always said he was a stowaway but another story is that he came over on a ship with his parents when he was 5 years old. Granny always said there were 3 brothers and when they were young, they split up and each moved to a different place and they never saw each other again. I don’t know if that’s true.
What I know for sure is that I can pick him up in records on 16 August 1852 the day he married Sarah C. DAVIS in Pike County, Illinois. Nicholas and Sarah lived (as far as I know) in Perry, Illinois, until sometime between 1880 and 1900. Nicholas and Sarah always lived close to Sarah’s family and in Nicholas’ last decades he continued to live close to her family- even moving to the panhandle of Oklahoma to where Sarah’s sister lived. I have always assumed that he stayed close to her family because it is the only family he had and he needed help raising the young children he had because he was single. Nicholas and Sarah’s known children are John Wesley, Rachael Davis, Jennie Hurst, the twins (both of whom died at a very young age), and William Sherman (my ancestor). Granny always told me that the twins were one boy and one girl and they were named George and Georgie. She said they died as infants.
Nicholas’ name has been spelled several ways on official documents including Reiter (the original spelling as far as I know), Riter (the name as it was when Granny was born), Rider, and Ryder. On a record about his son William, I saw the name spelled Ritter.
Nicholas registered for the Civil War draft as Nicholas RYDER. As far as I know, he never served.
The family was still living in Perry, Pike County, Illinois, in 1870. The family name was shown as RITER. Living in the home were Nicholas and his children: John, Rachael, Jennie, and Willie. Nicholas’ birthplace is Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany. Nicholas could read but he could not write and he was working as a laborer. The family was living next door to Sarah’s sister Chloe (DAVIS) REEDER.
Sadly, Sarah was not with the family in the 1870 census because she passed away in February of 1870 due to consumption. Consumption was the name for Tuberculosis in 1870. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that most commonly attacks the lungs but can also attack other parts of the body. Classic symptoms include chronic cough with blood-tinged sputum, fever, night sweats, fatigue, and loss of appetite/weight loss. The final stage of the disease occurs about 12-24 months after the initial infection. It was not until the 1820’s that Tuberculosis was identified as a disease and it was not called Tuberculosis until 1839. In 1882, twelve years after Sarah’s death, Robert Koch was finally able to identify the particular bacterium causing Tuberculosis and he received the 1905 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery. The first successful immunization against Tuberculosis came in 1906- 36 years too late to help Sarah.
In the late 1860’s to 1870, she likely did not receive good treatment. Toward the end of her life she was probably separated from her family. The disease would have caused clubbing in her fingers and toes. She would have been feverish, extremely tired, and in pain from all the coughing. She would have had to have a rag with her to catch the blood she was coughing up. Her body would have been thin and frail. I have not found her burial place.
Up until this week when I was writing and doing final research for this blog post, I believed that Nicholas never remarried after Sarah died. However, in reviewing each document to make sure I had everything straight, I noticed that in 1880, Nicholas was married to a woman named Sarah who, if she gave her age correctly, would have been about 6 years older than Sarah DAVIS. I have not been able to find a record of a second marriage for Nicholas so I have no other information about this second Sarah or the marriage between she and Nicholas. In 1880 the family was still living in Perry, Pike County, Illinois. Nicholas listed his birthplace as Baden (Germany) and stated both his parents were also born in Baden. The second Sarah was born in Illinois and stated her parents were also born in Illinois. If she had children of her own, they were not living with she and Nicholas in 1880. Jennie was not in the home at the time of this census. She was living in Perry, Illinois, with the William and Almena Taylor family and working as their servant.
On 7 October 1884 in Dubuque County, Iowa, Nicholas finally officially became a U. S. citizen.
The next census that is available is 1900. In 1900 Nicholas and his son William were living in Webster Township, Woodward County, Oklahoma, with Nicholas’ daughter Jennie REITER FULLER. Nicholas was no longer farming and stated he was a widower. He was now a cabinet maker. He could read, write, and speak in English. Nicholas died on 27 October 1904 with all of his children living near him except Rachael (who stayed in Illinois) and the twins who were buried in Illinois.

Nicholas Reiter’s grave

Plowing Through the Lean Times

John C. Bates (1817- 21 July 1863)
When I started drafting this blog post I was not planning on writing about my 2nd great-grandfather, John C. BATES. Nope. I was going to tell you about my great-grandfather Nicholas Wilhelm REITER. Both of these men are my ancestors on my mother’s side. I’m very proud of both men for very different reasons. The theme this week was “plowing through” and I wanted to tell you how Nicholas persevered through some difficult situations in his life and how late in life he became a cabinet maker and I wanted to show you pictures of a circa-1900 plow plane similar to what he likely used in his work. One day- I’ll finish that post and publish it. But today, I want to tell you about “plowing through” all the dead ends until you finally hit pay dirt.
It was getting late tonight when I was trying to write the original post and I don’t write well when I’m tired but I couldn’t go to bed yet either. So I switched tactics and began browsing through Ancestry.com. I decided to click on one of my “brick walls”- John C. BATES. I didn’t expect to find anything that I hadn’t already found a hundred times. There was no “little leaf” telling me Ancestry had found new hints for me. It was just a routine “I’ll try one more time because I’m bored and tired and have nothing better to do” try. As has happened so many times- and always when I least expect it- one of those routine “tries” netted me some much-needed and long-sought-for bits of information.
Before we get there though, let me back up and fill you in on who John is to me. John C. BATES is my second great-grandfather. I’m almost certain his middle name is Columbus as that is a name that has been handed down through the generations. John’s son was George Columbus BATES. George’s grandson was Troy Columbus BATES. So it stands to reason that John’s middle name was most likely Columbus as well. I always surmised that John died while fighting in the Civil War. I lost track of him in the records around that time and he never re-appeared. It was a hunch that I could never prove.
John was born about 1818 in Georgia. In 1840 he was living in Murray County, Georgia which is just south of the Georgia-Tennessee state line. That was also the year he married Mary Jane MOBLEY. In the 10 years between census enumerations, they had three children together- Martha, Greenberry, and Washington. In 1850 they were in East Chickamauga, Walker County, Georgia but by 1856 they had moved to Dalton, Whitfield County, Georgia where they had my great-grandfather, George. As far as I know, they lived in Murray County, Georgia when John died. I previously believed John died between 1860 and 1862.

Portrait of Mary (Mobley) Bates Brinegar.

Mary Jane MOBLEY BATES BRINEGAR
In 1868, Mary married Paul BRINEGAR and they remained in Murray County, Georgia until sometime between 1870 and 1880. In 1880, the family was living in Benton County, Arkansas where Mary remained until her death. Mary is buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Hiwasse, Benton County, Arkansas. One story my granny always told me that I have neither proved nor disproved is that George walked behind a wagon all the way from Georgia to Arkansas when the family moved to Arkansas.
Now to the exciting find on Ancestry.com tonight! I found the following story tonight that finally explained John’s death and why it has been so difficult to find information about his death and burial.

John BATES
When a man and wife both have very common names it is difficult to
determine exactly who they were and which families they came from.
This John BATES was born about 1817 in Georgia. His wife, Mary
BATES, was born about 1822.
The Census of 1860 listed the household as: John BATES, age 43;
Mary BATES, age 38; Green B. BATES, age 18; and Columbus BATES,
age 4. They used the post office at Fancy Hill.
Records in the Murray County Courthouse listed John BATES
(or BAITS), with service that began November 1861. While a member
of Company F, 3rd Confederate (Whorton Brigade), Army of Tennessee,
was captured at Tullahoma, Tennessee. He was taken to Rock Island
Prison, in Illinois and died there while a prisoner-of-war. Confederate
Army records listed him as John BAITS.
A transcription (also found on the Ancestry website) of Civil War records states,
JOHN BATES (Private). Service began November 1861. First known
as Company C, 3rd Confederate, then reorganized into Company F, 3rd
Confederate, Whorton Brigade, Army of Tennessee. Captured at Tullahoma,
Tennessee, during fighting in that area from January 2 to September 10,
1863. Died while a prisoner-of war at Rock Island Prison, Illinois.
Preceding was copied from records in Murray County Courthouse, with
spelling of battles and place names corrected as needed and dates of
engagements added. Military service records contain this information:
John Baits, Company F, 3rd Confederate Cavalry. Murray County
Census of 1860, visitation #720, shows John Bates, age 43, wife Mary,
used post office at Fancy Hill.
I just made this discovery late tonight so I have not had time to further research it. There is a lot left to learn. There is a conflict in the dates given in the above transcriptions and the official opening date for Rock Island Prison. (Just so you know- Rock Island was the Yankee version of the Confederates’ Andersonville Prison. It was the worst possible place for a Confederate soldier to go.) I’m hoping to clear up some of the confusion in the near future. In the meantime, I will leave you with some photographs and links to information about Rock Island Prison.
Click here to read a personal account from a former Rock Island Prisoner.

Rock Island Confederate Cemetery, Rock Island, Illinois.

Click here to look at the official National Park Service website about Rock Island Confederate Cemetery.
I am looking forward to learning where Rock Island prisoners were buried and other information about Rock Island prison and John BATES’ service during the Civil War. I am looking forward to finding my own way to say ‘thank you’ to POW Private John C. Bates of Company F, 3rd Confederate Cavalry, Whorton Brigade, Army of Tennessee- a man who fought for something he believed in and fought to keep his family safe.
So tonight I encourage you to plow through all your dead ends and all those endless genealogies and records that don’t seem to be the right ones. Plow through those websites, lists of researchers and potential relatives to contact “one day”, and all those notes and copies you’ve made. The only people who are guaranteed to never break through their brick wall ancestral lines are those who stop looking. Don’t be that person!
Be sure to click on over to these blogs for more great stories! Down in the Root Cellar and Theology for Mom.

Until next week,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives blog

My Almost-Birthday-Twin

This (past) week’s theme was to write about an ancestor that was born on or nearest to your birthday. I chose to write about Mary M. McATEE WEDDING (1788-1858)- my 5th great-grandmother.
Mary M. McATEE was born 10 February 1788. She was born in Charles County, Maryland. I am not as certain about the family line prior to Mary M. McATEE WEDDING. There is a Mary McATEE who is the daughter of James and Mary McATEE and a Mary McATEE who is the daughter of Samuel and Mary McATEE. More research needs to be done to determine who her parents are.
Mary McATEE married John WEDDING in 1810 in Charles County, Maryland. John and Mary had a fairly large family and I descend through their daughter, Mary Angeline WEDDING. Their known children include: John Wesley, Thomas Lawson, Rebecca Ann, Matilda Ann, Mary Angeline, James William, Elizabeth J., George Washington, and Nackey (or Nalley) Ellen. The WEDDING family lived in the Port Tobacco, Maryland, area. John was born in Waldorf, Charles County, Maryland. Waldorf was originally named Beantown. Waldorf is about 23 miles south/southeast of Washington, DC, and Port Tobacco is another 11 miles south of Waldorf. The assumption for this blog post is that since the couple met and married, their families must also have lived somewhat close to each other in the Port Tobacco and Waldorf, Maryland, areas. John and Mary lived in this area until sometime between the 1810 and 1820 census dates. During the time they lived in Charles County, Maryland, two of then-former-President George WASHINGTON’s attending physicians also lived there- Gustavus BROWN and James CRAIK. John and Mary named one of their children after the former President George WASHINGTON. I doubt they knew him, but what if…
Sometime between the 1810 and 1820 census dates, John and Mary (McATEE) WEDDING moved to Frederick County, Maryland. Frederick County is also within the Washington, DC, metro area. It is possible that John and Mary’s family was in Frederick County in 1814 when Francis Scott KEY lived there and penned the now-famous The Star-Spangled Banner.
The period between the 1820 census and the 1825 birth of their son James brought yet another move for the family. They moved from Frederick County, Maryland, to Mill Creek Township, Hamilton County, Ohio. Living near the family in 1830 was Elihu FOLGER. I haven’t researched Elihu thoroughly, but I’m wondering if he was related to Benjamin FRANKLIN’s mother, who was also a FOLGER. It would be interesting to know.
The period between the 1830 and 1840 censuses brought another move for the WEDDING family. They moved to Franklin Township, Clermont County, Ohio. Franklin Township is near the Ohio-Kentucky state line just south and east of Cincinnati, Ohio. At least one of their sons, Thomas Lawson WEDDING, stayed behind in Hamilton County and died there in 1849. Whether John and Mary ever saw him again after they left Hamilton County is unknown. Following is a brief story about Thomas Lawson WEDDING and his wife that I located on Ancestry.com. The contributor who posted this story stated it came from a history of Hamilton County, Ohio. Spelling and grammar were not corrected and it is posted here just as it appeared there:

Westwood (Cheviot) Methodist Episcopal Church.-The Methodist class meetings at Cheviot were first held at the homes of Lawson Wedding and Dr. Kendall. William Woolley was one of the first leaders, and among the members in 1840 were fir. and Mrs. Lawson Wedding. Al r. and Mrs. Dr. Kendall, and Mesdames Alter, Ashley, and Moore. Public worship was first conducted at private houses, and when the Presbyterian church was built in 1840 it was secured for preaching on Saturday nights.
The present Methodist church, a frame structure at the southeast corner of Pleasant street and Cheviot avenue, was built in 1842. Dr. Richard Kendall, Samuel Lewis, I. C. Garrison, William Woolley, and Lawson Wedding constituted the building committee. Rev. George W. Maley was the first to preach here. The parsonage was erected in 1887. The church is a station, and the present pastor is Rev. A. U. Beall.

At this website you will find an 1845 map of Ohio. Clermont County is at the bottom, the second county from the left- just east of Cincinnati/Hamilton County: http://www.mapofus.org/_maps/atlas/1845-OH.html.
The census records prior to 1850 really don’t give much information about families so it’s difficult to verify details without spending a significant amount of time researching or going to the locations to look through courthouse records, etc. It is sometimes helpful to look at the history of the locations the family lived in. I also like to look at migration routes that were common during certain periods in history. If you are interested in the common migration routes from Maryland to Ohio at the time the WEDDING family first left Maryland, you can look at this website (my current favorite) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gentutor/trails.html. You can also look at this person’s research into the routes their family took from Maryland to Ohio in the late 1700’s and very early 1800’s- http://bransoncook.systemaxonline.com/narratives/migration/migration1.htm. It’s quite possible the WEDDING family took the same route and if I were to look for records along that route, I may find more information. FamilySearch also has a list of resources for researching migration routes into Ohio at https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Ohio_Emigration_and_Immigration.
According to the 1850 census, neither John nor Mary could read or write but they owned real estate worth $3700. John was 70 years old at this time and Mary was 65. Living in the home with them in 1850 were some of their children- Eliza J., George W., and Nackey (said to be listed as Nalley in the family Bible), and a 4 year old child named Albert SNYDER (listed as Albert SMIZER in a later census record). It appears that Albert belonged to John and Mary’s daughter, Elizabeth Jane. A couple of households away from John and Mary lived the widow Ann RICHARDS. Eight years after the 1850 census, Mary died and John married the neighbor-widow, Ann RICHARDS. Both Mary and John are buried at Calvary Cemetery in Felicity, Clermont County, Ohio. Ann RICHARDS and her first husband (also named John) are buried in this cemetery as well.

– Mary McATEE WEDDING.

John Weding/Wedding's gravestone. — John Weding/Wedding’s gravestone.

– John WEDDING.

Port Tobacco, Maryland, has a very interesting history which you can read about at http://www.academia.edu/176111/Once_Was_Not_Enough_Founding_and_Finding_Port_Tobacco_Charles_County_Maryland. Knowing about our ancestor’s locations and the history of the location is many times very helpful in understanding more about our ancestors who lived there. I would encourage you to head over to Wikipedia and read a brief summary of the history of all of the locations in which this family lived.
I wish I had known details about my family history when I was young. Perhaps I might have been infinitely more interested in American history had I known how our ancestors were involved in the events I was learning about and what it meant to my families personally. I’m hoping that by telling the stories I know, I can not only capture my grandchildren’s interest in the future but also help you interest your children and grandchildren in a way that is meaningful.
Don’t forget to follow my fellow bloggers at Down in the Root Cellar and Theology for Mom.

Until Sunday,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives blog

Charles Junior “C.J.” Drake- a Follow-up

As requested, here is a follow-up post to give you a little more information about C.J. Drake.
C.J.’s death certificate will fill you in on his date of birth and death as well as give you an official cause of death, name of the funeral home and the cemetery of burial:

Death Certificate for Charles Junior "C. J." Drake. — Death Certificate for Charles Junior “C. J.” Drake.

C. J. only appears on one census record. Below is a copy of Mark and Edith’s family on that census record:

1940 Federal census record showing C. J. Drake living with his family in Delaware County, Oklahoma.

A record of his burial is here but there is no photograph of the stone and I have never photographed the stone:
Find a Grave

Maybe we can all make an effort this year to honor him with flowers when we honor our other family members buried at this cemetery. I think that would make grandma happy.
Some old school census records showing C.J. and some of Mark and Edith’s other children:

1936 (shows Papa Drake but not C.J.):

1936 Delaware County, Oklahoma school census records.

1945:

1950:

Is anyone familiar enough with Mark and/or Edith’s signatures to know whether or not the signatures on the above 3 school census records were really their signatures?
These documents don’t give a lot of insight into C.J.’s life but they are all I have about him at this time. He didn’t have lot of time to live his life and make records. He was still in high school when he died. He did not serve in the military nor have I found any record that he registered for the draft although I’m sure he did since it was the law. He never married or had children. I find it comforting that he was on his way to a revival and was driving a truck full of family and friends there when he died. I have to believe this was also a solace to Edith. One of the things that got me through a lot of difficult days and nights was the fact that I knew my son was serving God when he died. I knew that my separation from him was not for an eternity but only for a little while.
If you know of stories about C. J. or Mark and Edith or have a picture to post, please post them.
Edith and 2 of her siblings- Bedford and Rosa- in 1982.

Edith (Hubbard) Drake with two of her siblings, Bedford and Rosa Hubbard.

~ Lisa
~ Days of Our Lives blog

One of the Tenderest Tough Women I Ever Knew

***Kleenex alert. Sorry- this is another Kleenex alert week.

This week’s theme is “Tough woman”. I struggled to choose an ancestor. Not because I had no choices but because I had many. I am so fortunate to come from a long line of very strong women. I decided to write about my paternal great-grandmother, Edith Cleo HUBBARD DRAKE, since my initial post this year was on my mom’s side.
When I knew Edith, she was old (at least to me as a child- she seemed very old). She was very quiet and very sweet. I never knew her to hurt anyone although I’m certain she administered her fair share of spankings to children and grandchildren. I know that I had many conversations with her although I can’t now recall those conversations. The only specific thing I remember her ever saying to me was when I walked to her house one day to give her a message from my grandmother and when she answered the door she called me “Mechelle” (my cousin). She was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s at that time. I didn’t know that then. I only knew that she knew me and loved me and if she mistakenly called me Mechelle I was not about to embarrass her by correcting her. I loved to go to her house when I was very young and both she and Mark were alive. Mark loved his cigars and was always smoking one. They were affectionate with us and where Edith was quiet, Mark was very jovial and quite a jokester. I can remember sitting on the couch with both of them sitting alongside me and feeling so safe, so happy, and so loved. If my own grandchildren and great-grandchildren never remember anything else about me, I hope they remember being with me and feeling very safe, very happy, and very loved. My biggest regret in regard to Edith is that when she was put into the nursing home I never went to visit her. Never introduced my children to her. I hope she forgives me. I hope many other things in regard to her- but I’ll state those hopes at the end of the post when they will make more sense.
In death, Edith has become even more of a treasure to me than in life and this is what I want to focus on for this blog post. In 2012, God chose to call my son home to Heaven. I sometimes privately refer to that day as “the day of my greatest sorrow”. In the aftermath of trying to figure out a way to deal with all the sorrow, I began to look at my female ancestors with a focus on the ones who lost children. I tried to look at what I knew of their lives and see how they worked their way through the pain and how they lived their life after losing a child. One of those female ancestors was Edith.
The day of Edith’s greatest sorrow was 13 December 1955. Her son passed away at 8:15 that evening. Edith was about 49 years old. I did not know much about her son, C. J., but after my son’s death I began to learn about C. J.’s death and my heart broke for Edith. It helped me to put my son’s death in perspective and I knew that if she could cope, I could surely cope. C.J. was 18 years old and attending high school in Jay, Delaware County, Oklahoma, at the time of his death. He and some friends and relatives were going to a revival. C. J. was driving near Seneca, Newton County, Missouri, when he missed a curve. The truck rolled, pinning him inside. A witness attempted to rescue him but as the rescuer’s hand was on C. J., the gasoline tank blew up and the rescuer was blown away from the truck. C. J. burned to death. It was said that witnesses could hear his screams for help as he was being burned alive. My sweet, loving Edith lived with that knowledge all her life. I cannot even imagine. When Edith was young, she lost one of her younger sisters to death and now her own son was gone. She had a lifetime of loss to cope with.
I understand now why Edith was so quiet. I understand now why she was diligent about reading her Bible and praying daily. I have instinctively coped in so many of the same ways that she did and in some way I think she helped me find my way through the very difficult days by the way in which she lived her life. I know in my heart she prayed for me and for each of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I know because I pray for mine- present and future. And I know that had she been alive when the day of my greatest sorrow came, she would have wrapped her arms around me, prayed with me, and loved me through it. I love her more because I know that she stored up prayers for me in Heaven and when I needed them, God answered them. A praying Grandmother is God’s gift to families. I hope I’m worthy to take up that mantle and carry on the tradition of my grandmothers. I hope I make them proud. I hope I make Edith proud.
My final hopes in regard to Edith are this. I hope that when she was devastated by Alzheimer’s that one of the things she forgot was the grief and pain of losing C. J.. I hope that at the moment of her death, one of the people on her heavenly welcoming committee was C. J. I hope she is at this moment resting in eternal joy and peace surrounded by the presence of her perfect God and surrounded by the people she loved most and missed most in her lifetime. I hope she is surrounded by eternal, perfect love.
If you are interested, below is a 14 December 1955 Joplin Globe article about the wreck and C. J.’s death. But if you are interested in knowing how she coped with the many losses in her life, pick up a copy of The Holy Bible and read that. Edith’s life was affected by this loss, but her life was defined by her faith in God.

Don’t forget to click on over and read the posts of my blogger chick friends who are doing the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge along with me. You can find them at Down in the Root Cellar and Theology for Mom.

Honoring Edith’s memory. With love, Lisa
~ Days of Our Lives blog

The King and Queen

***Kleenex alert. You’ve been warned. I can’t be responsible for anything past this point.
I struggled this week with the decision of whom to write about. The people I want to write about – the people whom I feel best fit the theme of “king”- are living ancestors and ones who like their privacy. Normally, I would respect that but this week I’m not going to. You see, in 2011 and 2012 my son and I had a series of conversations in which he told me how much his father and I meant to him. He told my husband and I specific things he felt we had done right and he told us several times how much he appreciated and loved us. I had no idea that God himself orchestrated those conversations. In August of 2012 my son passed away. I treasure each of those conversations I had with him and it has been no end of comfort to me to know how he felt about us.
So let me say- sorry Dad and Mom! I decided to write about you!
I love learning what names mean. My dad’s name is Roy and my mom’s name is Sharon. In French, Roy means ‘king’ or ‘regal’. The name Sharon comes from the Bible and means ‘His song’ (as in God’s- the King of Kings’). So I’m taking that and running with it this week!
I thank God often for my parents.
* I’m grateful they were tough on me because I was a rebellious, hateful brat when I was a teenager. Stubborn, bullheaded…the list goes on.
* I’m grateful that I don’t remember the first time I went to church. I don’t remember it because I always went to church- from the time I was born. I’ve desperately needed that lifetime of faith on many occasions throughout my life. And I wonder, would I have been an example of faith to my children had I not been exposed to it my whole life? I shudder to think what might have been. Statistics say the older you are, the less likely you are to give your life to Christ. Grateful doesn’t begin to cover how I feel about this particular point.
* I’m grateful they had high expectations for me because I was lazy and wouldn’t have had them for myself when I was a child.
* I’m grateful for every sacrifice they made so that I could have something. Parents sacrifice food, “me” time, money, anything that costs money, and just about anything else for themselves in order for their children to have what they need and I know that mine sacrificed all of this for me- even when I didn’t show any gratitude at the time.
* I’m thankful that my parents made a good name for themselves. I didn’t have any stigma or “skeletons” to overcome due to their behavior or their life choices.
* I’m grateful they taught me manners and appropriate public behavior (even when I choose not to use it).
I could go on and on. I have so much to be thankful for when it comes to my parents. Every parent has moments when they think they did a horrible job parenting and they wonder why God ever allowed them to raise children. Moments when they think they didn’t do a single thing right and every decision they made was wrong. I want my parents to know- you did a great job. I hope I was as good of a parent as each of you were. I love you. I thank God for you. I’m blessed because of you. I’m so proud of you both!
Love, Lisa
(Days of Our Lives blog)
(To each of my readers: say I love you often to those you love- you never know when it will be the last time. Live your life so as to have as few regrets as possible.)
P.S.- please click on through to visit two other awesome genealogy blogs. Down in the Root Cellar and Theology for Mom.

Fresh Start(s)

Lucinda DOW ALBIN GIBSON JONES GATEWOOD, 1852-1919 My great-great grandmother

If anyone had opportunities for a fresh start, it was Lucinda. Have you ever researched that ancestor- (you know you have one!)- that made you say to yourself, “This person is certifiably NUTS!” Well, Lucinda is my “certifiable”.
BIRTH: THE FRESHEST START OF ALL
Lucinda Jane* DOW was born to Henry Burton and Rebecca WHITE DOW on 7 December 1852 in Wisconsin. In the 1850 federal census and 1855 state census, the family lived in Prairie Du Chien, Crawford County, Wisconsin, so most likely she was born in that area. Prairie Du Chien is a rural area in the southwestern corner of the state near the Wisconsin-Iowa state line. According to the 1900 census, Lucinda had 9 siblings. Of those 9, I only know the names of 5 of them. From a medical standpoint, it would be interesting to know if the other 4 children were miscarried or stillborn. Was Lucinda’s mother prone to miscarriages or stillbirths and, if so, was Lucinda also? And further, is that something that can be passed down genetically?
MARRIAGE #1: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A FRESH START
At 15 years old, Lucinda married George ALBIN on 12 August 1868 in Adams County, Iowa. I previously believed that together they had one child- Mary Rebecca ALBIN. Last week, I found a family tree on Ancestry stating that Lucinda and George also had a son that was given up for adoption. I have not heard back from the Ancestry tree owner and am still trying to learn about this son. The son was named William Edgar and was adopted by a GIESE family. It seems that at some point in his life he learned that he was adopted and that his biological parents had the name Albin because he named one of his sons Albin GIESE. I have been unable to figure out the relationships in this family. Lucinda and George were not living together in the 1870 census. Lucinda was living in Nodaway, Adams, Iowa, with her family and the couple’s daughter, Mary Rebecca. It appears George was living some 4 hours away in Scott, Johnson, Iowa, with his family. There was a 4 year old in George’s family’s home named Edgar but Lucinda and George’s son, William Edgar, should only have been 2- 3 years old at the oldest. This is the extent of my knowledge about this relationship right now.
MARRIAGE #2: HITTING THE REFRESH BUTTON
At age 23, Lucinda got a fresh start with James Thomas GIBSON. They married in Adams County, Iowa, on 16 September 1875. Lucinda brought into the marriage her daughter, Mary Rebecca ALBIN. James Thomas (“J.T.”), supposedly a widower, brought to the marriage his 10 children. Together, they had 2 daughters- Barbara Myrtle GIBSON (born 1881) and my great-grandmother Dettie Louisa GIBSON (born 1883).
By the time the 1880 census was taken, Lucinda was again living with her parents in Dexter, Cowley, Kansas. Her daughter, Mary Rebecca, was with her but J.T. and his children were not with her. (Barbara and Dettie hadn’t been born yet.) It is possible that J.T. was in jail or running from the law as there was a court case involving him beginning in 1879. It is unknown where his minor children were at this time. They were not living with J.T.’s adult children, William or Eliza Jane. Nor were they living with J.T.’s or Lucinda’s parents. I have been unable to locate his other adult children- Jane Lucinda, Mary Elizabeth, Martha, or Samuel Luke- in 1880. I believe possibly J.T.’s daughter, Mandy (Ella Amanda), was working as a servant in the BOURDETT household in Dexter, Cowley, Kansas, in 1880. Mandy was 12 at this time. Lucinda was listed as still being married at the time of the census and she was working in Winfield, Cowley, Kansas, as a servant in the household of James and Lissa SHORT.
This family unit is found one more time in the 1875 Kansas state census living in Cedar, Cowley, Kansas. None of J.T.’s children were living with them nor was Mary Rebecca living with them. The household consisted only of J.T., Lucinda, and the two daughters born to them (Barbara and Dettie). One thing I noted of interest in this census was that Lucinda was listed as Mulatto. This is something I had not noticed before and will need to follow up on. As with her first marriage, I cannot say what happened with Lucinda’s second marriage. By 1890, Lucinda had moved on to yet another relationship.
MARRIAGE #3: GETTING CLOSER TO A REAL FRESH START
On 25 November 1890 in Benton County, Arkansas, Lucinda married David A. JONES. Lucinda is listed as Lou on the marriage certificate and I wonder if she was trying to indicate a change (or trying to make a change) in her life by changing her name a little. David JONES was 49 and a widower at the time of the marriage. He had at least 5 children prior to marrying Lucinda. Together, they had a son- Leander B. “Lee” JONES.
At the time of the 1900 federal census, Lucinda and David were living in Dickson, Benton, Arkansas, with her children Barbara and Dettie, and their son, Lee. In this census, Lucinda declared she had 6 children total and 5 were still living. As noted above, I can account for only 5 of those children. Between 1900-1905, Lucinda and David divorced.
MARRIAGE #4**: ONE LAST TRY AT A FRESH START
On 1 August 1905 Lucinda married Robert S. GATEWOOD in Columbus, Cherokee, Kansas. Lucinda can be found in the 1910 federal census living in Joplin, Jasper, Missouri- just across the state line from Columbus- with her son, Lee. She is listed as being a widow.
DEATH: NO MORE NEED FOR FRESH STARTS
Lucinda DOW ALBIN GIBSON JONES GATEWOOD’s obituary appeared in the 27 June 1919 edition of The Joplin Globe (Missouri) newspaper. It states, “Mrs Lucinda Jones, 67 years old, died at the home of her son, Lee Jones, B street and Maple avenue, at 8:10 o’clock last night.” She was laid to rest at Peace Church Cemetery in Joplin, Jasper, Missouri. This cemetery was in disrepair for a lot of years and many of the headstones no longer exist nor, I hear, is all of the cemetery brush-free and available to look at. I have been to Peace Church Cemetery and was unable to locate a gravestone for Lucinda. I hope she is resting in peace.
I have so many questions about Lucinda and every time I do more research on her, I learn new things. They are always things that bring more questions than they answer. I sometimes walk away thinking she must have been quite a promiscuous woman, and maybe a very unhappy woman. Was she difficult and that’s why she couldn’t keep a husband? Did she make poor choices in spouses? Was she just incredibly unlucky in her choices? One thing I know, with this many stepchildren there shouldn’t be any reason why we can’t learn more about her in the years to come. She never disappoints me when I try to find her- other than at the cemetery, of course. But perhaps it’s just that she doesn’t want to be remembered dead, but alive. Maybe she loved her crazy life, was very opinionated and non-traditional, and lived her life just the way she wanted and with no regrets. I’m looking forward to finding out some day. In the meantime, I know I can always count on finding her in the records somewhere.
Please take time to comment if this was helpful to you or you have additional information about these families. Also, please take time to click on over to my sister-in-law’s blog, Down in the Root Cellar to learn about her sharp-shootin’ ancestor, Martha “Mattie” Teal. Thanks for stopping by- I hope you enjoyed learning about my ancestors.
~ Lisa at Days of Our Lives
End notes:
*Just this week I found a family tree on Ancestry that lists Lucinda’s middle name is Catherine. I had never heard this before and have not received a reply from this person so I’ve been unable to get more information. I have always been told and always read that her middle name was Jane. However, Lucinda does appear in a Joplin City Directory with the middle initial C.
**There has been talk of a possible additional marriage to a man with the last name of LOVE but I have neither found nor received any information that lists her by the LOVE name.

Where did this blog go?!

I posted a grand total of ONE time last year and that was my New Year’s resolution post. *Wow* Last year was crazy but I probably could have done better than one post. Although to give myself some credit- I’ve had 3 different jobs in the last 2 years in addition to some other much-less-than-desirable life events- just the way life happened. I’m in a more steady job and one I love now so maybe in 2015 I can get it together in regard to my blog. I had quite the scare this morning because when I tried to log on to my blog it said this account had been deleted and purged. *YIKES!* I was just on it a couple days ago. I was panicked. I finally went into my email to see if they had sent me an email about it and I missed it. Nope. No email like that but I found one that said I had logged on from a new device in 2013 so I ran with it and clicked “change my password”. Well, Livejournal let me change my password and here I am- into my account and with all my previous posts in place. Whew! That’s great news since one of my goals this year is to join my sister-in-law in blogging our respective genealogies. You can find my sister-in-law’s blog at Down in the Root Cellar.
In review, last year’s resolutions were:
Um…yeah. Apparently they didn’t make it all the way to the blog. 2013 goals also didn’t make it to the blog. Things may be worse than I thought here. As I recall, my 2014 target ancestor was Minerva Underwood (under “research goal”). I *think* my writing goal remained the same which was to blog consistently (obviously a major fail on my part). I have no idea if I retained the goal of organizing my genealogy. If I did, rest assured that was also a fail. In regard to the sharing goal, I did share information but still have not gotten around to publishing which is what I would ultimately like to do.
I fashioned my goal-setting from Amy Coffin’s We Tree blog goals for 2012 with a nod to her thoughts on goals. I did add two goal categories to hers- a sharing goal (added previously and continuing) and a self-improvement goal (new for this year).
So…drum roll please…my new 2015 goals include:
1. To learn more about my great-great-great-grandmother’s family (Mary Elizabeth LANE). (Research goal)
2. To blog consistently using No Story Too Small’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge as an inspiration. I will be doing this alongside my sister-in-law who will be using the same challenge and blogging at Down in the Root Cellar. (Writing goal)
3. To start over in reviewing and organizing my family history utilizing ideas from Thomas MacEntee’s Genealogy Do-Over Challenge. (Organizing goal)
4. To share some of the family history and research with relatives by publishing. To help me with this I’ll be attending Thomas MacEntee’s and Lisa Alzo’s Genealogy Self-Publishing Bootcamp online. (Sharing goal)
5. To attend a conference/workshop/educational event. This year’s choice is Family History Conference of Northwest Arkansas 2015. I’ll be attending with my mom and hopefully my sister-in-law. (Self-Improvement Goal)
This is an incredibly ambitious goal for someone who only made one blog post last year and hasn’t been able to get resolutions on the blog for 2 years but like Amy Coffin said- goals should be a little bit scary (and also planned out). I’m optimistic that things have settled down enough in my life that this year I can get back into it. Plus, I have a more structured plan to carry it out. I’m so looking forward to 2015. I’m grateful to God for getting me through the last couple of years and I know things are going to look up in the coming year. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL! Please post your goals if you’ve made them!

Resolutions

It’s been a very long time since I posted anything. 2011-2013 were very difficult years. We’ve been blessed with additions of 3 grandsons but we’ve lost many loved ones during 2011-2013. Nonetheless, God chooses our paths and we trust his goodness and mercy.
I wanted to get back to posting new year’s resolutions pertaining to my genealogy. It seems like there is always some serendipitous find after I post my goals to the universe. I love that! I fashioned my goal-setting from Amy Coffin’s The We Tree Genealogy Blog at http://wetree.blogspot.com/. I did add one type of goal to her suggestions- a sharing goal.
In 2012, my genealogy goals are:
1. To learn more about my great-great-grandfather’s family (Nicholas Wilhelm Reiter)(Research goal)
2. To blog consistently. (Writing goal)
3. To scan in at least some of my proof documents (B/M/D, census, etc)(Organizing goal)
4. To share some of the family history and research with relatives (Sharing goal)
Previous research goals have been met by the above-mentioned serendipitous finds. My previous writing and organizing goals have been hit-and-miss as far as completion. My sharing goals could be increased. So there you have it. Good luck with your own goals and I invite you to post them here.
~Lisa

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