tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49910485845632869002024-02-06T22:36:16.666-06:00Channeling GrammySharing my genealogical journey through words and pictures. Finding long lost distant cousins.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-75160174762675670002014-06-22T09:27:00.001-05:002014-06-22T09:27:22.922-05:00Free 8x10<p>I found the following stamped on the back of a photograph from the mid 1920s.</p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDZAtYBJp-4swAH9FiWjScLnEvovpi1bvmj_kXJ4GzMLVx86I7-Cm1uRTBabC0bG7y1WrfBHMlt4nTVI32C8QLzgd5FWNkATwm4nmWgEVxXui48Z2Zk1qjhmBj2OcRzWlARowZL_r4aVE/s1600-h/image%25255B4%25255D.png"><img title="Free 8x10 Enlargement" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" border="0" alt="Free 8x10 Enlargement" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9lBv18NRhUBLQrDUlB92LceUNTJzG1aQhk1OJzFNHkrF9Z-1OcEsAu68aompK_860LFMK4Pv3nwFdPHMsE1daTTFvnbiyVpgp0YGW5efOM7Y6MjwYe-s-a7XrtdfXyUxtpWGplHvYq8/?imgmax=800" width="503" height="158"></a></p> <p>In 2014, in the era of digital photography, film processing “Kodak Finishing” is largely a thing of the past. This makes me wonder how much Kodak Finishing one got for a dollar 90 years ago. Also, how much would an 8x10 enlargement have cost without the special deal?</p> Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-10282689349446948992014-06-14T10:44:00.001-05:002014-06-14T10:44:39.659-05:00609 Pound Soldier<p>When I found the World War II Army Enlistment Record for Woodrow Grider, I was surprised to see his weight listed as 609. Since these were US records, I’m assuming it’s pounds instead of kilograms -- 609 kilograms would be 1343 pounds!</p> <p><a href="http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?x=a962e285-eb1e-4485-b0c8-67af8251c231&title=Possible+matches+for+Woodrow+Grider&m=8939%3a%3a5543298&ftm=1&gss=angs&pcat=ROOT_CATEGORY&h=5543298&db=WWIIenlist&indiv=1&ml_rpos=1" target="_blank"><img title="image" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC1XXLjI9tgnEi5SlVTHwFdByP2MeCLmshapQCmdb9t1_hTxiKugPDkPqk5TwnStryw5kVteH0IHBX34RA5CsPiZkkIifVWLk9kaEwWByXeeDPiVpVN9cT0iciyKt0gTkcQkB2gdqf-Y0/?imgmax=800" width="503" height="204"></a></p> <p>Even at 86 inches (7 feet 2 inches), 609 pounds would be gigantic. I seriously doubt that World War II US Army uniforms came in XXXXXXXXL.</p> Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-39340441416479306512012-08-19T21:14:00.000-05:002012-08-19T21:14:24.483-05:00It’s a Long Way from California to Columbia<br />
There has been a lot of talk about the quality of the 1940 census index at <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>. In most cases, I am willing to make updates as they suggest and not worry about the obvious mistakes. However, this one was just too outrageous not to mention.<br />
<br />
I’m talking about Cecil P Bradshaw. He was widowed and living with his brother in Bell County, Texas, in 1940. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOafkVjMCYHTCFus5eVCTD_bGJQl7ofSM9TifJ230LBVXT6rUIxgXFonsJPog3Vt9_NrZYSl8a_zqlyiVmisiFCCaI9Ua68g9KR_yAK_xxG4usnCReS_HNLoGpEUiFcNJq40ceuAU9O7c/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPhrnf9Lw92EtFclLOGHVHUBRBnVb0kmz4QYIa9EmYNKRF2-mufwdo2XEx72YyaSlVgmRxOoQ6AG4p_t9EUlq74Z8RQiLVdelLeNRXlByLk-FwibZClbpPrPjbSw1eV6zESkYqfYwJRA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="497" /></a><br />
<br />
The first inexcusable error was that his name was misspelled in the index as “Crcil”. Anyone who is comfortable with English would have come up with “Cecil” rather than “Crcil”, unless it is simply a typo. No problem. I added the correct name to ancestry.com.<br />
<br />
The second error was more egregious. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy7_jt_xWre8pF4dpHjPy7o9J_DAh-J5eqT6jmvC40O0jF5_tlkvlERU30UBlYB3-Kn1kuHCL8DGdwwoOhsdtH-33P7cLrIgzei0oKMCd2MsPYDNT3S3wu1WHNnlDbdqJ3OkI1ozlkqYY/s1600-h/image%25255B9%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxLxQmnTRElwi1BsyP3EiRxP3fJUmNy1UesoHVFbUpmtSlC6JhWBzXDFpJeXGX2ZbbMwDdiu22bkqdYqoesP1yeeCWbl4Po5suKIw7zy2dWTrBJdv8hBvWjfCXkN4buJADrn5PkysWkc/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="504" /></a><br />
<br />
The state of residence in 1935 was transcribed as “Columbia” rather than California. Anyone familiar with United States geography at all would not have made this mistake.<br />
<br />
And here’s where I have to complain. Subscribers are not allowed to make updates to the 1935 residence information which means that I have no way of helping others with a corrected index entry. <br />
<img alt="Sad smile" class="wlEmoticon wlEmoticon-sadsmile" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEzT9nTrF3Onh9iNorzHFuZMMqYP1H6NFi-cvcHc9nVjvG2HFvVGa24n0ayBUEm3F2viYst0O4aVE93LxqYUlMTGBME_eCgsqQiJxgP4mJPd11JgTeK1o4NR_1NKTlTqXIN63ndH6NFvQ/?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none;" />Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-15399973122453799112012-07-17T05:27:00.000-05:002012-07-17T05:27:29.770-05:00Recovering from a Family Tree Maker sync error [Tuesday’s Tip, Tech Tuesday]I want to go on record that I absolutely love the fact that I can synchronize my family tree between <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a> and Family Tree Maker 2012. It is easy to do, and it lets me work in Family Tree Maker most of the time, but view and share my tree online via <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>.<br />
<br />
There have been some growing pains, though, and sometimes the synchronization fails. If the problem doesn’t correct itself over time, the general advice is to disconnect the tree in Family Tree Maker from the one in <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>, and either re-download from <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>, or re-upload from Family Tree Maker. Either way is no fun.<br />
<br />
Recently, I encountered one of these errors and am happy to report that I was able to resolve it without taking drastic measures. When I looked at <a href="http://ancestry.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/ancestry.cfg/php/enduser/sab_answer.php?p_faqid=5433&p_search_text=sync&p_created=1326491029&p_sid=xDIcxj1l&p_accessibility=&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Byb2RzPSZwX2NhdHM9JnBfcHY9JnBfY3Y9JnBfcGFnZT0x&p_li=&p_topview=1" target="_blank">How do I troubleshoot my TreeSync feature for Family Tree Maker 2012?</a> I found directions for gathering information that Tech Support would need to help with the problem. I thought, “Maybe I can be my own Tech Support.”<br />
<br />
First, I poked around inside the information, saw an error about “zipping”, and found directions to a particular temp folder that Family Tree Maker uses (…AppData\Local\Temp\FTM). The folder had 13,695 files in it and was very slow to open. That seemed like a problem. Since it was a Temp folder, I deleted it. (Ok, I didn’t actually delete it, but I did rename it.) After that I tried the synchronization again and was disappointed when it still failed.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAB_0a4VVByMliuR9B79rBiHMUis9Ve5RMrW16Opa7OiUeicYQeCrvC6eWBzokRZYhfs7NDopev_bSwp4I5OV3tv7SvCq-6ycoHjruwh54E68fwRvRf6W87N-VDahBOjwvkn9oqSMDh9E/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="127" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0n0Q82kDpjiYqscv67aMIPlSuIOvD1eTQ48-RwaSK0HChCo3VyvLV65aCV91-YXKG24lAFRE5FZN7uFBZMtwA54NuHk6BcLXQvESw_U4MmQiM9uQ8LIhZcCiqkMyXewDLQmHscS-Z3c/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: right; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a>I poked around some more and found a different error. The second error seemed like it had something to do with Media. I tried the synchronization again and clicked on the View Details button. Part of it looked a little like this “Changes from Ancestry” screen portion.<br />
<br />
I found Richard McDuff in my online tree and removed the picture that I had linked to from someone else’s tree. I synchronized again, and it was successful!<br />
<br />
Apparently media files are often the cause of synchronization issues. That’s the first place I’ll look next time I have a problem. Many people may not feel comfortable poking around in technical log files like I did, but some will. I don’t recommend deleting things or changing them outside of Family Tree Maker, but reading those techie log files can’t do any harm.Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-47442162250444332232012-05-02T18:38:00.000-05:002012-05-02T18:38:53.126-05:00It hurts to index thisWhile indexing a page in the 1940 census for Dawson County, Texas, I found the following 1935 residence information for Clara Owen.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAo-OH4J16XUDulzly1GxF556_rftylDl2QPfxAezV_oMlDYMaVveuk6rz3E0V7R_y-o2gYif36cSyHPo5Zcr4DOZF15ufUHaoZECYyPdmvCk-ZnP1ZD6YxfsFN1ulXk1kki77p3ZcPTM/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="74" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD_C8hcOXoVC2dMmVTo_3Yh3JpnArhXU-6n80o0L52QrMZVhDtC_Dfwea6PunkXcLtUUd5gDvIq_QgYmNWakyJV1cF-VjwX5cl3kekeyXQ-eH_Q4iBCqYEYDSRkUmHw19G8wiOabviW8Y/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="458" /></a><br />
The handwriting is perfectly readable: Bartlesville – Choctaw – Oklahoma.<br />
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Unfortunately, it’s wrong. I know that, and I don’t even know Clara Owen. You see, I grew up in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, so I know that Bartlesville is not in Choctaw County. It’s in Washington County.<br />
<br />
The two counties are not even close to each other.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinF5Wg_9MTJIarl4yNnXRRtI78ssex6QYo_tvN5FaIcI3BjNx04D7yN7FSrzdZ7IcgBMG1LSohLCESpSP0NZt9zG4k6c-fHIHgQxa2yLCBzSvBhxpb07mwDO6R6UWDOjl9n482TmRDLAE/s1600-h/image%25255B10%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4pnGgrowJkrs0mK8bUJtc4uesFYHCaOY_jPqtdGl1Ji2uR7vvbbFunL0uoRQS6QRIP4D5tzVfAsE96q5Ob6sDH5cbMWjCqOHO6TZ8Z4oIBkaEI4DnvTMJqUF_XAqlDHWGM8OvkntBEJY/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="205" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhprFFmTGnKmatJXYA8b73_aZZeMsoA9eX3X1e4VE6zl6f9p8mpw3mY_jwmUaU_0VIAbfq1DhHWrFZHykXF10sTUTlgzMrTpi60iIT2j-L8VeJP2AABaC9ErYx7YcdjlQbr-bEIL2I5nsg/s1600-h/image%25255B11%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZbJLCrP3WFvlyr2cg28roQMV9YcZXt0lqwjyUmTwrkzbU3hoapJhPtmyRUHu0jPwUIz5mTgfjhojTrFVOfPGoSwOxdUCb9B177Qu6AkbJsKNTloBHplfGcrZxHcpDz8oLgvc7Qsb7E4/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="208" /></a><br />
<br />
A part of me REALLY wants to index the county as Washington, but I won’t for a couple of reasons:<br />
<ul>
<li>It’s possible that the city is wrong instead of the county.</li>
<li>The arbitrator would absolutely consider it an error.</li>
</ul>Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-51697561906162778032012-04-14T11:49:00.000-05:002012-04-14T11:49:37.745-05:00Adventures in Indexing #4 – Texas A&MMy most recent page to index in the 1940 US Census is from College Station Texas, home of Texas A&M University. This was a tedious page to index because there were no family groups to offer repeated information such as Surname. <br />
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The page started with Manuel Salas, <em><strong>Partner</strong></em>, Male, White, Single, 27 years old, from San Antonio.<br />
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My first thought was that this was a page of students, maybe a men’s dorm. I had to go back two pages to find the household number; when I did, I found the following notation:<br />
<blockquote>
<div align="left">
Here begins the enumeration of the Texas A&M College dormitory for Mexican employees of the Dining Hall</div>
</blockquote>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
That gave me some context, but still didn’t answer my curiosity about the term Partner in the Relationship field. There were many people on the page listed as Partner. I found my answer in the <a href="http://usa.ipums.org/usa/voliii/inst1940.shtml" target="_blank">enumerator instructions</a>:</div>
<blockquote>
<div align="left">
If two or more persons who are not related by blood or marriage share a common dwelling unit as partners, write <em>head</em> for one and <em>partner</em> for the other or others.</div>
</blockquote>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
One more interesting thing about this page. Every one of the people in this section had a Hispanic surname, as you would guess from the description of “Mexican employees of the Dining Hall”. However, every one of them was also listed as White rather than Hispanic, even the ones who were listed as born in Mexico.</div>Grammy's Daughterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15042546584178614800noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-71398611559494816632012-04-13T18:14:00.000-05:002012-04-13T18:14:30.145-05:00Adventures in Indexing #3I’ve been helping with the indexing of the 1940 US Census for 11 days now and have completed about 20 batches. I decided it was time to check my arbitration results to see how accurate I was.<br />
<br />
I was pleased to see that almost all of my batches were in the 98-100% accuracy range. Well, there are so many fields to transcribe that 100% doesn’t really mean zero errors; it just means that less than half a percent of the transcribed fields were judged to be in error.<br />
<br />
However, there was one batch that was low at 91%. I wondered why that one was so much lower than the others. What did I find? One error about 25 times. “W” instead of “White” in the Race field. <br />
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If you’ve been indexing, you know that the software is kind enough to auto-fill fields. For instance, once you’ve typed “Texas” in the Place of Birth field one time, you can just type “T” and tab out of it on later rows and it will automatically fill in the rest of the word. However, if you have entered more than one value that starts with “T” (Tennessee, for instance), it won’t auto-fill until you have typed enough letters for the system to know which one you want (Tex or Ten). <br />
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As best as I can guess, on one line I must have typed a space after the W in the Race field, so it didn’t fill in the rest. Then on subsequent lines, when I typed W it wasn’t unique. When I tabbed to the next field, it didn’t auto-fill. Unfortunately, I didn’t notice the mistake and it continued through the rest of the page. Maybe I didn’t notice it because some of the other fields (Sex, Marital Status) are entered as only the starting letter.<br />
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What’s interesting to me is that the Quality Checker didn’t catch my mistakes. I’d love to see an upgrade to the indexing software that would include the Race field in the Quality Checker!Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-61770551618546121282012-04-06T08:42:00.001-05:002012-04-06T08:42:06.392-05:00Adventures in Indexing #2<p>When I got to the end of my 11th batch of 1940 US Census indexing [Kansas, Sedgwick County, Park, Enumeration District 87-30, Page 9B, recorded May 2], I found a lonely child: Phillip Neal White.</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXvM56yQJM4Xmqv3vsHTtOEms_aYH_N6qtNUpn7-BD2l9ycbO1ip8FUxsxPiSORQ6ahXePoLzLNCFVpPxjv29DUYJR22YgXVQcd15HACmO5i9XGCq-JoQvXG9UfMQHjYpKkhYn803gphA/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6QMtMUam_ZdLzSsxoEfpOUJXnVXMRFbxnj9Q64sJ4ykNqcUliAU_4lB7vb_ppKsEzKNr9TPsastBIJsjotYLYMBa-T7BpkNRohzZYa9VEzlTZADi60cAdozX9c6JRVysRHofGVNrEwkM/?imgmax=800" width="514" height="195"></a></p> <p> </p> <p>He is listed as being part of family 70, but is listed immediately after family 185. This page was the last of the enumeration district, and he was the last person listed on the page. And, he was less than a month old!</p> <p> </p> <p>On a lark, I browsed the rest of the images for this enumeration district to find family 70. I found them with the same surname (White) on Page 4A, which was recorded 2 weeks earlier on April 16.</p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpUunYnIyKNGlewUrur1uubUgr6YrWGNmca71cgGvhKtFatV4GtTYagN70irknaRTV5Q0bDT4QjnblOCcozWJ10cML8a1sKACWOyyC_HIueJ6fZznd1p1xR-wHKX2XXtje67XrPvYSdmo/s1600-h/image%25255B7%25255D.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFfRhtqqjhbOazZPkZxf7oJn_E_dJqfMVI43VIpL2FHYeY_cyBV4oLc97xWn00BtZFhYZEE8jV-CnNeNHqUxodMOhYpRYaio06w1uualiFV5VckUW2uapg6JjFAPLGAICH21v-TlhRKxw/?imgmax=800" width="514" height="255"></a></p> <p> </p> <p>My guess is that Phillip Neal White was born between April 16 and May 2 of 1940, and that the census enumerator, Delphia Thompson, knew the White family personally. I just wonder how much confusion this will be to future researchers when they find the infant son 5 pages away from his family in the census.</p> Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-9439599997932098132012-04-03T05:33:00.000-05:002012-04-03T05:33:42.262-05:00Adventures in Indexing #1 Like many family historians and genealogists, I signed up to help index the 1940 US Census. I’m actually a little selfish – I want to be able to say “And I helped!”<br />
<br />
Here’s something a little different that I notice on my first page.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_GPULBT5OXFq7TyUOOop7u4Bw43rSorMfrWjPIEGwlLI2YDa8OTJ9VSxXP5amWeTS5pEN3LUp9ip9GsZe6YUmNlCvyyxtJ4tbHLGQhja-uoWzTl2QZCK9K9EECD4JgFCoQ3eZgmUZss/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="76" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTXzdUDBOrdTP3xHzajV7V5j9vB6_3Bsgu6tz-SrkAD_z6fTzl3avC01QmYuQXSWfMqB4lIFhpyvJv1L_Dvq1BNBnQPrkZtNiubfyGU4hyMLVInWyU-aA1evH2u8hFxPCVJUX8ahPDH5g/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="515" /></a><br />
This page came from Sussex County, Delaware (Enumeration District 3-45, Sheet 15B).<br />
<br />
As in many households, the woman of the house answered the questions for the census taker. In the 1940 census, this is indicated by the X with a circle around it. <br />
<br />
What’s interesting about this family is that Mary G Bailey not only answered the questions, but also called herself the head of household even though her husband Robert Bailey lived there too.<br />
<br />
Nothing jumps out at me as to why Mary considered herself the head of household. It makes my imagination wander. Was it just a slip-up by the enumerator? Was Mary a feminist? Was Robert, at age 79, senile or infirm such that Mary no longer considered her to be the head of the family?<br />
<br />
I have no ties to the Bailey family, or even to Delaware for that matter, so I may never know why Mary claimed to be the head of this household. But perhaps their grandchildren or other descendants will chuckle and nod knowingly because they knew Mary and her personality, or will be driven to dig deeper to find out.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-29191892475737592942012-03-17T13:00:00.002-05:002012-03-17T13:11:57.384-05:00What’s Up with the E names?While researching Rippetoes in Russell County, Kentucky, I came across Orson Elmer Rippetoe and his wife Oda Ester McFarland. Here you see them in the 1920 Census.<br><br><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjfZa9xcFrojz2w36WG857NV-xlV-r1_-1yNbjzikhwfU3RFNGWrpQMy-I3BEVpkkZy5pBKiD_eh6FqinAJdXFWV1lQonMyN2yeGS0UdN40QbmEZZU1jTodkEvw5RruEBj7qmrovzRcs/s1600-h/image%25255B4%25255D.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPkX4lDEJsKcRqoHYUb5pzJ8ki9Jciic9nhyphenhyphenAHr-6f9xHr7FeXnVZWLiTrjpxtxHhcDoyi23BK9zEOAgnl2mYlbDdXiiRMNleYwJ3Jspr461IMPebozL5gJFpH2W_b-AgdJ_YEf6I-nbo/?imgmax=800" width="493" height="284"></a><br><br>They named 7 children with E names. E is not the a very popular starting letter for names!<br><br>Their children:<br> <ul> <li>Eula Rippetoe <li>Earl Rippetoe <li>Elford Rippetoe <li>Ella Rippetoe <li>Evelyn Rippetoe <li>Edwin Rippetoe <li>and Edna Rippetoe who is in the 1930 census, but not the 1920, and might actually be Ella </li></ul><br>They didn’t even use the obvious family names: Orson’s middle name was Elmer and Oda's middle name was Ester.<br>I guess they saved on monograms: the parents were OR and the kids were all ER.<img style="border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none" class="wlEmoticon wlEmoticon-winkingsmile" alt="Winking smile" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguDAnce_mwhcT4IKTR-W7oTenHgOmZafnWxqEb_7AvRs22iDZwPZjd_0VFyJKqWbvtAGObSWDfq1J4aVYJgdkJ-YCUB6SNdR4MTAHrPUrRxyr7TSlKrY7qN_glFoMej8e_VUG-Z_QZbIM/?imgmax=800"> Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-7029624632040890892012-02-21T09:17:00.000-06:002012-02-21T09:17:38.118-06:00See More of your Census Citation [Tuesday’s Tip]One of the differences I noticed when I upgraded from Family Tree Maker 2010 to Family Tree Maker 2012 is that hovering over a source citation didn’t tell me as much as it used to – at least for census citations that I had let Family Tree Maker create after the upgrade.<br />
Before:<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJhTxf7TOqLHGyhHFjm4Wbu0tNKw8PZg21ZlZXVQ1srJyMxmeKMP1ZLJ6oJuE1jO7ruFpdW1BHzKS_kDcPHwVOUaDvsRnaqsw1neTsAQaW9YX05Clmlqg6AV8G8wmn77o0lalfByv-ous/s1600-h/image%25255B15%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3I4EPqGPgnOnSYu6wf23T-7oN6fEWe82Bjws-HBEIplDQP60UbblCp2Z69mCshYlVpvFx8YvAqeOQhohibe_KFQ_mAa4VQmMF87XvJT5MfK0dkLgHhGiwWyE1Esp6KewuIm5lYtYtCk/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="508" /></a><br />
After:<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj14TL_06dIVKh2p4jwd4G9amHiK4zTmoRb9URuo3-ZaEhKHlcAXvwTaf3Oa8gKsWiCkNTpINYUHfpSwVxBe1G9ShLb5u-3BWNifHd4KSgZmg6Fl5B8EF56EzqYs7hQPV4eqZdcaUkMN3A/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B5%25255D%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="clip_image002[5]" border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRAMmJmWR_P_HxckR9IGuI0ekmB98qrUGC0205BEAdOodSUNFEafesePRgBo4-XupgZZi4hXp2UklreXJnyIzlRUJRD0RAZjllbQ0dt2lqIsURFOLrDr_SWEuUi_2khSc_17nQH-PLJ7I/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="clip_image002[5]" width="506" /></a><br />
<br />
You’ll notice that the individual’s name was listed in the “before” example, but not in the “after” example.<br />
<br />
To make things even more confusing, census citations generated in my Ancestry Member Tree and subsequently synched to Family Tree Maker showed the additional information. What’s up with that?<br />
<br />
This week, I finally figured it out!<br />
<br />
Apparently the default for a certain little checkbox on the citation screen was changed between Family Tree Maker 2010 and 2012. It used to default to Checked; now it defaults to Unchecked.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgiYsEW_bjkut4s9jSRt1ThO5FbDNEOh9eju7LIFEQ_TfoyW5sVcpDHApNjSezGqvWZE8m2eiQcjuFQEyb9KIJC_WXal8yKl3dO0KSbxEpCZ2Zc-Oj3UwzoO3k34ehxkczKkmNCzNDJ20/s1600-h/image%25255B14%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxmL4dGPui1xFvYGZLfxWl96pfsrEtXCsCcQprGuqFsaR2L9zjP9Nge8E61TI2szQTxeTKb7IyKjKlUeHJ-ivm7jKG2A4NfJxHl0aXh_c2j-wCNDUjIkADjK_AuMY9aaySXcfCA7SeXUA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="495" /></a><br />
<br />
By checking this checkbox, I can now see the Citation Detail <strong>and</strong> the Citation Text when I hover over a citation. This is very helpful for me.<br />
<br />
I have issues with the lack of completeness in the auto-generated source citations from US Census records, but that’s for another day. This is a Tip, not a Complaint.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-90233921901937059782012-02-19T15:03:00.001-06:002012-02-19T15:03:47.393-06:00City Directories Aren’t Just for City FolkWhen I listen to podcasts about genealogy, I often hear people mentioning finding good clues in city directories. In my mind, I always imagined New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and maybe Dallas and Houston. But my ancestors were farmers. They didn’t live in big cities like that. I figured I was out of luck.<br />
<br />
But <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a> recently posted enhanced <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2469&enc=1" target="_blank">indexes of city directories</a>, so I thought I’d give them a look. Much to my delight, I found that Texas was one of the states included – and specifically there were directories for Abilene, Waco, and San Antonio, all cities where some of my direct ancestors have lived.<br />
<br />
I checked for Collins surname in the Abilene city directories. I was surprised to find my great grandfather Albert Buell Collins in several (1909, 1914, 1917, 1919, 1921, 1924, 1926) directories. The surprise came because he was a farmer. Furthermore, the 1910 US Census showed him with his family in Roby, 50 miles away. My grandfather’s memoirs mentioned moving to Abilene so that his older brother could attend high school, but the dates weren’t mentioned. These directories help flesh out that information. <br />
<br />
There were several Collins in these directories, some known relatives. It makes me wonder if there are any other relatives lurking there.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcqD4-eVYKWolAJ7k73bQos4qcc5lPlI6hdn9B76to1x5HEc_-0y7wiV8Pq9MfdRnb1S3uYYANTBIfrlDeFtAEg9cKIjoMW0hJzf7MYWP6JnQXC7dVWbADjlbLQUPcxj0dGgoSzLlS1o/s1600-h/image%25255B7%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="381" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP_zY3yCOu9kCop7-gSghTHKDui3ojEoHLi7g0_ZPyuJjM-pY9WRJ5bPliCJl738fkAkAYOAXryIw4HtNSonACjijuj2HMI_Tqhsco1t1PZi6tEyqmu2-pm2bDg2fEiw6LlbzkoLaTnnU/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="504" /></a><br />
<br />
The Abilene entries sent me on successful tangents to San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston where family members moved as they established their own careers.<br />
<br />
I also checked out Lester Loyd Edmonds in the Waco city directories. I found him in the 1923, 1926, 1928, 1930, 1932, and 1934 directories. I found one new address for him, plus plenty of evidence of his employment at Piggly Wiggly Stores. It also provided some tips for his sister Blanche and her husband James Blaine Gilmore. I’d really like to find and get in touch with her descendants.<br />
<br />
Oh, and the advertisements are a hoot, too. Check out this one from the 1919 Waco directory:<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOhq_XGiHL_a87dxzJokrXKg1x9fsHiEYzDsYiIFC-eDRnD_NiKI9vIYnnQXiG12WwznB6Va-oQWS_UKaaXYyVQWkGieJviifCiF-ASTjplAHCNk2nrbsUJTsFCsFJEgdMPrrmEPQn8Q/s1600-h/image%25255B10%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-6YIkHhP1MfNrlpBBWfxcIpdCyXriwKuKSNahngFMdvseXslchk1tf3jrIJGOnB05jgMWBC__5BPuDhQe-aLNKifvQBTzmhLihV-eu5H_Q7okW_Sbli9SsjmH99pxYfk7_DG_JgzHqOU/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a><br />
Note the 2-digit phone number!Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-72030345825656964862012-02-16T06:10:00.000-06:002012-02-16T06:10:55.424-06:00“Gone to Texas” Letters [Thankful Thursday]<a href="http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genealogy/achappell/index.htm" target="_blank">Anne Chappell’s Genealogy Pages</a> were last modified in 2000. How much value could they be? But I found some priceless letters transcribed there.<br />
<br />
Somewhere in the 1870s, several families from Fayette and Tuscaloosa counties in Alabama moved to Hill County, Texas, to seek the promise of the rich soil and open lands. My great grandfather, Augustus Newell Edmonds, and his family were in the bunch. Other surnames include Stanley, Richards, and Chappell.<br />
<br />
On Anne Chappell’s web pages, I found a <a href="http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genealogy/achappell/letters.htm" target="_blank">transcription of numerous letters</a> back and forth between Texas and Alabama, dated from 1881 through 1977. According to a heading on the <a href="http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genealogy/achappell/letters.htm" target="_blank">web page</a>, the letters were saved by Eliza Hester Johns Stanley and her daughters, Missouri McKinney Stanley Chappell and Cornelia Josephine Stanley Chappell, and have been passed down for two more generations.<br />
<br />
In addition to being Chappell family treasures, these letters provide insight into life in Central Texas in the late 1880s. To me, they provide glimpses of my great grandfather, as he and his wife are among the people mentioned:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
C. McDuffs family is all well. <u>gus Emmons</u> is on the mend. R. D. & B. E. Standley and folks is all well. uncle jess Ben is complaining Some.<br />
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
we went to <u>gus Edmonds</u> tuesday, to Tom's tuesday night, friday went to Ben's and Saturday we taken Rufe's wagon and mares and colts and Ben's Willie and went to Col's by ourselves.<br />
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
pusses Liza called <u>Bet Edmonds</u> Narce all the time.</blockquote>
<br />
Elizabeth Shown Mills talks about the importance of the FAN club (Friends, Acquaintances, and Neighbors). These letters highlight how intertwined the families were.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-47662740614879280792012-02-05T15:20:00.001-06:002012-02-06T05:33:56.352-06:00Cousin BaitI will readily admit that a nice side benefit of this blog is that it provides a point of contact for unknown cousins. A couple of distant cousins have already found me through this blog, and others have found me through <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>. It is always exciting to get a notice that a distant relative has found an entry on my tree and wants to connect.<br />
<br />
Today, I’m putting it out there for people to Google. Here is a lengthy list of direct-line ancestors in my research family tree. Hopefully someone will find a name that they care about when they search, and we’ll be able to connect and exchange information.<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 521px;"><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 391pt;" width="521">Ruth Antle
(1751-1842) [Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Joel Appling (1752-1838) [Virginia, Georgia] <br />
John Appling (1798-1840) [Georgia] <br />
Mary Frances Appling (1823-1880) [Georgia, Alabama] <br />
Thomas Appling (1726-1801) [Virginia, Georgia] <br />
Minerva Adeline Barrett (1842-1870) [South Carolina, Texas] <br />
Oliver Barrett (1810-1877) [South Carolina, Texas] <br />
Winifred Buckner (1751-1840) [Virginia, Georgia] <br />
Mary M Childers (1837-1909) [Georgia, Alabama, Texas] <br />
Albert Buell Collins (1862-1942) [Kentucky, Texas] <br />
Samuel Collins (-1834) [Virginia, Kentucky] <br />
Thomas Alexander Collins (1824-1892) [Kentucky] <br />
Amanda H Davis (1861-1902) [Alabama, Texas] <br />
Thomas Davis (1811-) [South Carolina, Alabama] <br />
William T Davis (1831-1863) [Alabama] <br />
Augustus Newell Edmonds (1846-1920) [Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma] <br />
John Edmonds (1716-) [Wales, Virginia] <br />
John Edmonds (1746-1830) [Virginia, Georgia] <br />
William A Edmonds (1814-1902) [Georgia, Alabama] <br />
Susan Martha Ellis (1838-1912) [Kentucky] <br />
Lemuel Green (1814-1852) [South Carolina] <br />
Susan Emma Green (1867-1953) [Texas, Arkansas, Colorado] <br />
William Pinkney Green (1837-1907) [South Carolina, Texas] <br />
Leo Edward Habich (1903-1976) [Kentucky] <br />
Leopold Habich (1847-1920) [Germany, Kentucky] <br />
Mary Hamner (1755-) [Georgia] <br />
Nancy Harper (1821-) [North Carolina, Tennessee] <br />
Buford Knight (1801-1850) [Kentucky] <br />
Talitha Jane Knight (1827-1885) [Kentucky] <br />
Agnes Maxwell (1795-) [Virginia] <br />
David McCoy (1742-1822) [Scotland, South Carolina] <br />
Susan Emma McCoy (1814-1883) [South Carolina, Texas] <br />
Mary Polly McElroy (-) [Georgia] <br />
John McElvain (1874-) [Kentucky] <br />
Mamie Violet McElvain (1899-1979) [Kentucky] <br />
Alexander McKinnon (1818-) [North Carolina, Tennessee] <br />
Amanda Bell McKinnon (1858-1931) [Tennessee, Texas] <br />
Elihu Melton (1798-1885) [North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama] <br />
Emily Jane Melton (1835-1910) [Alabama, Texas] <br />
Nancy Emily Murrah (1821-1893) [] <br />
Adeline Neal (1821-) [Kentucky] <br />
Kemp H Parker (1815-) [North Carolina, Tennessee] <br />
Kemp Hawkins Parker (1853-1928) [Tennessee, Texas] <br />
Lula Mae Parker (1894-1928) [Tennessee, Texas] <br />
Amanda Jane Perryman (1860-1945) [Kentucky, Texas] <br />
George Washington Perryman (1804-1878) [North Carolina, Kentucky] <br />
William Perryman (1760-1854) [Maryland, North Carolina] <br />
Elizabeth Price (1841-1913) [Kentucky] <br />
Harvey Price (1819-) [Kentucky] <br />
Edward Prince (1803-) [South Carolina, Alabama, Texas] <br />
James Nathaniel Prince (1860-1902) [Texas] <br />
John W Prince (1837-1921) [Alabama, Texas] <br />
Sarah Simmons Richards (1807-1898) [Georgia, Alabama] <br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 521px;">
<colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 19053; mso-width-source: userset; width: 391pt;" width="521"></col>
</colgroup><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 391pt;" width="521">Sarah Jane Rippetoe
(1808-1886) [Kentucky]</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">William Rippetoe (1781-1863) [North
Carolina, Kentucky]</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">William Rippetoe (1748-1839) [Virginia,
North Carolina, Kentucky]</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Nancy Sherrill (1805-) [Tennessee] <br />
David Standley (1797-) [Tennessee] <br />
Louisa Standley (1828-) [Tennessee] <br />
Elizabeth Steitz (1859-1934) [Germany, Kentucky] <br />
James C Swinney (1818-1887) [Kentucky] <br />
Thomas Gilbert Swinney (1900-1979) [Kentucky] <br />
Thomas Wilson Swinney (1865-1940) [Kentucky] <br />
Emily Vaughan (1816-1864) [South Carolina] <br />
Cora Vincent (1876-) [Kentucky] <br />
John H Vincent (1844-1917) [Kentucky] <br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 521px;"><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 391pt;" width="521">Elizabeth Vinson
(1787-1844) [North Carolina, Kentucky]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Hallie B Wellman (1875-1907) [Kentucky] <br />
John Wellman (1839-) [Kentucky] <br />
Anna Pearl Woods (1900-1997) [Kentucky]Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-59045565864914705812012-01-21T13:23:00.000-06:002012-01-21T13:23:37.554-06:00Census Mistakes: Parent’s birthplaceWe all know that there are mistakes in the census. We complain about mangled names which make it difficult to find our ancestors. We are confused by ages when the women seem to get younger with every passing 10 years. I am always skeptical when I see conflicting birthplaces listed for parents, but I figure that a wife (who might have been the one giving the information) might not really know where her husband’s parents were born. I consider them “hints” rather than “facts”.<br />
<br />
In this example from District 16, Waco, McLennan County, Texas, in the 1930 census, the birthplaces of the parents are switched.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Sqcvd1vaSP16BS0RQP4uAdDOcmfsZ3DvvYpPa9ITBaSB7nsrkMfuCPIFX2JG5DLWfcGJj_MwJMoVgJSjAS_39BcUzSzmg49_CLcQ4WFT3n8-pmjD4rbzJiif2H3qWYxv2zL74zVbJhs/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN1efsv2YQjrHEhjVx61yBe8s8pDfZRFOVm8t1MAuCOM4-E16nNNrd_ShU8d-OFgxd3h7Al6ngkTZ90kQEqEq-o9QeadOCkEyZgGV4kwiAEuz1Cndc1YsEXGpTKmQ_jA7z13mG9yaV5SM/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="512" /></a><br />
<br />
Since the people in this listing (L. Lloyd Edmonds and his 4 children) are lodgers, their relationship to each other is not indicated in the census. However, I know that Amanda M., Lloyd Jr, Lee O., and Vivian are the children of the widower. (I also know that they spelled Loyd with one L rather than two.)<br />
<br />
You will note that the father’s place of birth is listed as Texas, but the place of birth of father on each of the children’s lines is listed as Tennessee. If you took this at face value, you would think that Loyd might be an uncle rather than the father of these 4 children. However, the birthplace of the mother is listed as Texas. In reality, the two columns (birthplace of father and birthplace of mother) are swapped. Their deceased mother was born in Tennessee.<br />
<br />
This makes one wonder if the entire page is similarly transposed, or possibly every page completed by this particular enumerator.<br />
<br />
This is just one more thing that we have to be on the lookout for.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-35298930576286422262012-01-01T19:56:00.000-06:002012-01-01T19:56:36.245-06:00Who’s in that Picture?While gathered with family over the holidays, I was asked a couple of times about the people in the banner photo for this blog. One brother asked me to blog about it, so here goes.<br />
<br />
The picture was taken during the summer of 1928 in Colorado, near the home of Susan Emma Green Prince, “Emma Prince”. Having been a widow since 1902, Emma Prince was the family matriarch. Oral history indicates that she lived near Boulder, but she is listed in the 1930 US Census in Lakewood, Colorado, just west of Denver, which is south of Boulder.<br />
<br />
The children help with dating of the photograph. Carolyn (left-most child) was hit by a car and died that summer. Also, the absence of Golda Emma Prince Collins (Carolyn’s and Grammy’s mother) helps date the photo since she died of pneumonia in 1927. The children spent the summer with their grandmother, Emma Prince. <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #d19049;">Adults (left to right):</span></h3>
<strong><span style="color: #d19049;">Mallie Prince --</span></strong> Known in the family as Aunt Mallie, she was born about 1898 in Borden County, Texas. She was the youngest of the daughters and married A L Jones.<br />
<strong><span style="color: #d19049;">Arthur Prince --</span></strong> According to Grammy, this is Arthur Prince. He was the eldest son of Emma Prince, and was born in 1889. At this time, he was living in Abilene, Texas, and was married to Lela Barker. It is unclear why his wife was not in the photograph, unless she is the unidentified woman.<br />
<strong><span style="color: #d19049;">Louise Goodwell --</span></strong> Daughter of AP Goodwell from a prior marriage.<br />
<strong><span style="color: #d19049;">Susan Emma Prince –</span></strong> Grammy’s grandmother, the matriarch of the family.<br />
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong>Unidentified woman</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong>AP Goodwell --</strong></span> Married to Winnie Prince.<br />
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong>Winnie Prince --</strong></span> The middle daughter of Emma Prince. She was born about 1895 and was married to AP Goodwell.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #d19049;">Children (left to right):</span></h3>
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong><a href="http://channelinggrammy.blogspot.com/2011/07/83-years-ago-today.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #c78c24;">Carolyn Collins</span></a> --</strong></span> Grammy’s younger sister. She was almost 5 years old at the time of this picture.<br />
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong>Grammy</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #d19049;"><strong>Arthur Goodwell –</strong></span> son of AP Goodwell. I don’t know whether Winnie Prince was his mother, or if he was the son from a prior marriage.<br />
<br />
Comments welcome – especially any information about the Goodwells or the Jones.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-80752537147328975262011-12-16T11:38:00.000-06:002011-12-16T11:38:58.398-06:00Death Location vs. Burial LocationWhen you find a grave marker, it is easy to assume that the person died close to the place where they were buried. This can be a bad assumption, though. Here is an excellent example.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzjUCP50kGK10Wz1JVdgrLtdKHN-yczEGmsvaf-J92b3PZnbpiMBto_LgRyMigE2lhdDRJ0i5X_CUpBk1koVzgYZc_qKhBJP5X4vz2ATW7VpOWTmtW7MnNQ-LNWcRFOrnKVdtQMLlp8ys/s1600-h/Edmonds-Amanda-Davis_0800-crop%25255B7%25255D.jpg"><img align="left" alt="Edmonds-Amanda-Davis_0800-crop" border="0" height="484" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHifXudY5yArS1gOl6ASdiNEsSjaHYxHhS9kdq3tfJyOovDXRDSq4qS1lsaFzRUgY042vrdCFZyvaWaF_ABxNiHPbCPDhqMj3IhNDoX_tDDnO72reqVfta00HN6Y_N73-N1Bo8eX41HU/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 14px 0px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Edmonds-Amanda-Davis_0800-crop" width="231" /></a>Amanda H Edmonds (nee Davis) was born in Alabama in 1861. In 1892, she married Augustus Newell Edmonds and returned with him to Hill County, Texas. Augustus Edmonds was widowed and had 8 children by his first wife. Amanda and Augustus had two more children (Loyd and Blanche).<br />
<br />
About half of the public trees on ancestry.com show her to have died in Hill County, Texas; the other half show her to have died in Fayette County, Alabama. She is clearly <span style="color: #d19049;"><em><strong>buried</strong></em></span> in Texas (Grandview Cemetery, Johnson County, Texas) as I have seen and photographed her grave marker. Augustus (who died years later) is buried between Amanda and his first wife Elizabeth McDuff. It is easy to think that the report of death in Alabama might be a mistake. However, the fact that she is buried in Texas, does not mean that she died in Johnson County, or even in neighboring Hill County.<br />
<br />
<br />
Here is the story:<br />
For Christmas 1901, Augustus, Amanda, Loyd, and Blanche travelled back to Fayette County, Alabama, to visit family.<br />
<br />
Augustus’s sister Ella wrote:<br />
<blockquote>
On December 23rd, we looked out from our humble home and saw the hackman drive up to the gate; and oh, how our hears were made to leap with joy, when we saw that the passengers were our dear brother, wife and two little children….But alas! In a few days all the family were sick, caused by the sudden change of climate. And how said it is to say that death claimed for his victim the Wife, the Mother, our sweet sister."</blockquote>
<br />
An account in her hometown newspaper in Itasca, Texas, indicates that she lived only 30 hours after becoming “suddenly ill with congestion of the bowels”. Some suggest that it may have been appendicitis, but that doesn’t fit with her sister-in-law’s account that the entire family was ill.<br />
<br />
On a recent trip to Fayette County, Alabama, I found a photocopy of the original death register. It lists her death on January 5, 1902 of “congestion of stomach”. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUMu_KjDe1MQuPMzNlhMm6KehqLpiPg8LgGr8ScR1Rnr-5D-A0djaS_mSBmgEjWr7U_FwT8RxYu4O5vOAONQG4IqHlORRMHYlpcwmy5iKulE-AUdmsr3HCjX8KwEqddTaTCgpm06MhG4s/s1600-h/image%25255B9%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="94" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwxtEXHKDPAAhJFC9A_ehY7h9MnHp6JVTsJTprRLfjnJEG2SKtfXLt1H3wEUrBMjKakMm63G_HW-AP9PjiSOSNo90oF6YRoPOLqDV-fDppOa8EATesSQQYML3fMj0sShy04Drky-TXJsE/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="541" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOSkd3ebI_4NOtGf4lc4mfpeuD5HvLSFk-hYHl8KFLHj5ewI2pwRCYQbKR8URZcs_aSv-t-4FHkrmCdQK9Ly5M_LkjZovb4R44A35dQvr7435JZB9WFU19zNy0kGq6bDyG15v1Y2V9-7Y/s1600-h/image%25255B10%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="93" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKh4j8D55P3pNdQNSFbShAB0qOUUa777HeULeIH2Hm63IUIXmgLFKu1x9L3D_sZEhGoasHkqBywCYKpp5qEldLXPqO-PL-74951otuZU9T6ZZjX5g2Db1n6TU_HvZ6teSqp_FMi8kvAc/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="539" /></a><br />
<br />
Augustus relayed information of his trip back to Texas in a letter to the editor of the Fayette Banner newspaper, published on January 21, 1902.<br />
<blockquote>
Please allow me to inform my Fayette friends, through the columns of your paper, of my safe arrival at home from Alabama, with my wife a corpse, on Wednesday the 8th. We were met at the depot by a great number of people, who marched to the grave to pay the last tribute of respect to my bosom companion who departed this life at 8 o'clock p.m. on Sunday the 5th….I wish to specially thank Propst Bros. and J. P. Dickinson for their noble deeds of kindness to me. I, perhaps, would have had to bury my wife at Cordova, had it not been for brother Dickinson. At that point we were transferred from the Southern to the K. C. R. R., a certificate had to be signed, and I thank God that brother Dickinson volunteered to sign it and let me through with my little children and corpse of my wife. My home is a lonely home now; a vacant chair at the fireside, at the table, at church and at Sunday school, and everywhere I go I miss Amanda. But there is one consoling thought and that is, she is at rest from the cares of this troublesome world and that I was permitted to bury her where she so much desired to be. </blockquote>
<br />
There you have it. Amanda died in Fayette County, Alabama, and her body was returned with her family via railroad to Texas, where she was buried in Johnson County, which is neighbors to where she lived in Hill County.<br />
<br />
In my records, I now enter a Death fact and a separate Burial fact. I find that I often have evidence of the date of death but not the place, and of the place of burial but not the actual date. However, this technique helps me avoid adding incorrect details to my family tree.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-90191871371629460492011-12-13T07:46:00.000-06:002011-12-13T07:46:09.060-06:00Mother Lode of CemeteriesI recently took a brief trip to Fayette County, Alabama, where my great grandfather (Augustus Newell Edmonds) and his second wife (Amanda H Davis) grew up. Although he left the area for Hill County, Texas, in the 1870s, there are many family roots in the county. I planned to search for a few key grave markers and take pictures of any one I saw with a related family surname.<br />
<br />
My first stop was <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/">Find A Grave</a> to figure out which cemeteries to visit. Much to my surprise, there are 218 cemeteries in Fayette County. With a county population of just over 17,000, and an area of 628 square miles, that makes for <em><span style="color: #d19049;">one cemetery for every 79 living people</span></em>, and more than one cemetery per three square miles. I compare this with my own county in Texas: 169 cemeteries, 782,000 people, 850 square miles. That’s one cemetery for every 4600 living people, and one cemetery per 5 square miles.<br />
<br />
As I entered the county by country roads, I was taken by the presence of so many cemeteries. Most were beside small country churches. I loved the fact that residents were laid to rest where they had worshipped.<br />
<br />
I ended up visiting and taking pictures at 7 cemeteries, including taking pictures of every grave marker at 2 of the smaller cemeteries. I would love to return some day, take more pictures, and learn more about my roots.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-76479535719649024402011-11-20T15:46:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:46:08.600-06:00Watch Out: Census Pages Out of OrderI recently found the following census index listing on <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/" target="_blank">ancestry.com</a>:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsqUnuFOD-KyWy3pdGDrxQrU2KARkKwsXMVCYPkYlCE7RMIkPB521VR8u5Q7Uskf-O7gar2NemmqcaiDLl-4sZgQ6Xb5DQZTu-KDnrkMLgdT0nKjSOP1s0IjT-7bY_FZwfTwxMFQozF0/s1600-h/image%25255B12%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="507" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3CIlVtcFR1GidT-5cxZJFl6xkfXnc_3pZR6aAmFv-dK65prB1acC_DjaQoFf27sBjbrsbS5NiYHbWEneWmRhFOPIM5uoV627WcdvGDGAef_LWRkfC5jasv626JS_gONNm7_EssDSyD-s/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="453" /></a><br />
<br />
It seemed very odd to have 6 young Appling children living with Melton Keesmon. <br />
<br />
The first Appling I found here was Aretha. Since I was looking for Althea/Aletha, I first assumed that this was not the person I was looking for. Then I realized that Nancy, John, Americus, and Oscar were siblings of Aletha, as listed in the 1860 census. Hmmm. Seems like the right family. But what’s with the head of household Melton Keesmon?<br />
<br />
Since the children’s father was William Burrell Appling, I looked at his 1850 census listing. I found him with his wife and 4 children, ages 14 through 21. But who are Isabella and Eliza King?<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJPTQ0scUNZiJvBxNaEvPAfgSw1iDorUdRGi9Pr0ZzljsliHjJO515sfThrX2CrN1G8JrKSj-lx6znvF08A0DOJHDbbdMDk0uXxR4lmbcL8Sq0LIgneMD0EEwVDl928Pt4xSRDjOrizdc/s1600-h/image%25255B15%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="543" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikUq7hMsQMOOXPKQKC-O400imtyoNALQ4l2ZV7HrfMkNXATdPApXNWN0mOFhKv5c4c1xUfuDj7VCY2-l0MgOntRg0hxr4YaFN0pRP_HZLLWnk9EXP4DITV9U7YhpAkuGi1wlIAlCfqO9M/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="457" /></a><br />
<br />
The answer to both mysteries comes from realizing that the pages are out of order.<br />
<br />
Melton Keesman is listed in family # 690 at the bottom of image 100 .<br />
<br />
Burrell Appling, with his family # 717 is listed at the bottom of image 104. <br />
<br />
The Appling children (Nancy, Cordelia, John, Americus, Oscar, Aretha) are listed at the top of image 101 with no family number. However, the family immediately following them is numbered 718.<br />
<br />
Similarly, the King children (Isabella and Eliza) are listed at the top of image 105 with no family number. The family immediately following them is numbered 743, so presumably they are part of family # 742.<br />
<br />
Mystery solved: image 101 should follow image 104. This is one more reason to look past the index and review the scanned document, especially when the information provided in the index seems a little fishy.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-20687763147714398812011-11-13T16:52:00.000-06:002011-11-13T16:52:41.857-06:00You can’t always believe what you readAs family historians, we’ve all been told that you can’t believe everything you find on the Internet. It’s easy to believe that a fact must be true because we find it in several places, but it is possible that they are all derived from the same faulty source.<br />
<br />
One place that we often find errors is in the census. Usually one family member gave the information to the census taker, and he or she might not actually know the facts. For instance, a wife who is at home when the census taker arrives may not know the birthplace of her husband’s parents.<br />
<br />
It is easier, though, to believe that a “fact” in print is accurate. However, there are many reasons that an incorrect “fact” can creep into a printed work as well. <br />
<br />
Consider the following confusion that I came across. A self-published (comb-bound) family history book states the following:<br />
<blockquote>
Clarence Gordon Self was born 28 March 1893 in Grant, <strong>Oklahoma</strong>, to Berry Crenshaw Self (born 14 November 1856 in Cumberland County, Kentucky to William Jennings and Marry C. “Polly” Guinn Self) and Viola Frances Bledsoe Self (born 5 March 1873 to George Chilton and Nancy Sloan Bledsoe in Russell County, Kentucky). Clarence lived with his family in Kentucky from age two to nine, where he spent time with his uncle Jim Self, a lawman of some repute.</blockquote>
<br />
The 1900 Census states that Clarence was living with his parents in Creelsboro, <strong>Kentucky</strong>, and that he was born in Kentucky.<br />
<br />
The 1910 Census shows that he was living with his parents in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, and that he was born in <strong>Texas</strong>.<br />
<br />
In the 1920 Census he is shown living with his widowed mother in Washita County, Oklahoma. His birthplace is unreadable, but appears to have been <strong>Kentucky</strong> overwritten by <strong>Oklahoma</strong>.<br />
<br />
The 1930 Census shows him married, living in Washita County, Oklahoma, and with a birthplace of <strong>Oklahoma</strong>.<br />
<br />
His WWI draft registration card shows that he was born in Creelsboro, <strong>Kentucky</strong>.<br />
<br />
My first inclination would be to believe that Clarence Self was born in Kentucky – because the census closest to his birth indicated so, and because he listed Creelsboro, Kentucky, on his draft registration card. Since he filled out the registration card, you would think that would be correct. However, the author of the book, a relative, seems to have “insider” information.<br />
<br />
When you find conflicting evidence like this, you just have to consider all to be candidates until some conclusive evidence arises. Texas doesn’t seem like a very convincing candidate, but Grant, Oklahoma, and Creelsboro, Kentucky, both seem viable. Until someone comes up with a birth record from one of those places, this fact needs to stay in the “inconclusive” category.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-43277040464279458592011-10-10T07:28:00.000-05:002011-10-10T07:28:04.530-05:00The Case of the Comingled Service Records (Mystery Monday, Military Monday)Recently I wrote about <a href="http://channelinggrammy.blogspot.com/2011/09/whatever-happened-to-john-edmonds.html" target="_blank">my discovery</a> that John A Edmonds of Fayette County Alabama had served for both the Confederacy and the Union during the Civil War. Thanks to reader <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/03856658001746917957" target="_blank">Cedar Posts</a>, I have now done even more digging. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/03856658001746917957" target="_blank">Cedar Posts</a> and I both assumed that the John Edmonds of O’Neal’s 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry, Company A, was our relative. However, we each assumed that the John Edmonds was a different person. <br />
<br />
It turns out that there really were two John Edmonds from Fayette County Alabama in Company A. However, there is only one set of consolidated records for John Edmonds in the <strong><em>Compiled service records of Confederate soldiers from Alabama units</em></strong> at <a href="http://fold3.com/" target="_blank">fold3.com</a>. The entries for John Edmonds and John A Edmonds at <a href="http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/" target="_blank">Civil War Soldiers and Sailors</a> cross-reference each other. <br />
<br />
In my previous article, I mentioned that genealogists easily confused the 2 John Edmonds from Fayette County. It looks like the confusion goes back many years. <br />
First of all, I’d like to remind us of a few things: <br />
<ul>
<li>The absence of a middle initial doesn’t mean that one doesn’t exist. “John Public” could be “John Public, no middle initial” or “John J. Public” or “John Q. Public” or…</li>
<li>Misspellings are commonplace in old records, especially handwritten or transcribed ones.</li>
</ul>
I’ve pulled the information on the two John Edmonds to see how they compare. <br />
<table border="2" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" style="width: 494px;"> <tbody>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">John Edmonds, Son of Nathan Edmonds</td> <td valign="top" width="243">John A Edmonds, Son of William A Edmonds</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Born 1833-1835 in Georgia per census records</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Born 1841—1842 per census records</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Enlisted in Company A, O’Neal’s 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry on October 3, 1861. <br />
There is only one record of enlistment, possibly because they were combined.</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Enlisted in Company A, O’Neal’s 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry on October 3, 1861. <br />
There is only one record of enlistment, possibly because they were combined.</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">One of them was admitted to a hospital in Virginia on October 16, 1862 and returned to duty on December 17 or that year. Since no initial is listed, this was probably the older John, son of Nathan.</td> <td valign="top" width="243"></td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Captured at Gettysburg on July 4, 1863 <br />
Another record indicates he was captured on July 2nd</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Captured at Gettysburg on July 3, 1863 <br />
Another record indicates he was captured on July 2nd</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Transferred to Fort McHenry, Maryland on July 6, 1863</td> <td valign="top" width="243"></td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Transferred to Fort Delaware between July 7 & 12 1863</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Held at Fort Delaware from July 6 through October 20 1863</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247"></td> <td valign="top" width="243">Transferred to Point Lookout, Maryland, on October 20, 1863</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Entered the US Service on July 15, 1863 as a Private in Ahl’s Delaware Heavy Artillery for a term of 3 years or the end of the war.</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Joined US Service January 29, 1864 as a Private in Company D of the First Regiment US Volunteers for a period of 3 years.</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Union Records indicate birth in Pike County, Georgia.</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Union Records indicate birth in Wilkes County, Georgia.</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Mustered into service at Fort Delaware on July 27, 1863</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Mustered into service at Norfolk, Virginia, on May 1, 1864</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247"></td> <td valign="top" width="243">Promoted to Lance Corporal on May 16, 1864</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247"></td> <td valign="top" width="243">Promoted to Corporal on July 1, 1864</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247"></td> <td valign="top" width="243">Spent time at Fort Benton, Minnesota Territory, May through July of 1865.</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247"></td> <td valign="top" width="243">Deserted September 11, 1865 from Fort Rice, Dakota Territory</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Mustered out of service at Wilmington, Delaware, on July 25, 1865</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Had he not deserted, he would have mustered out at Leavenworth, Kansas on November 27, 1865</td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Drew a pension for his service for the Union</td> <td valign="top" width="243"></td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Married Manerva Kilgore Studdard in October 1866</td> <td valign="top" width="243"></td></tr>
<tr> <td valign="top" width="247">Died November 7, 1910 and is buried at Natural Bridge, Alabama</td> <td valign="top" width="243">Death and burial unknown</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Given that even the government seems to have confused/combined the two John Edmonds from Fayette County, Alabama, who served in the <strong><em>same</em></strong> company of the <strong><em>same</em></strong> regiment in the Civil War, and who were <strong><em>both</em></strong> captured at Gettysburg, and who <strong><em>both</em></strong> subsequently served in the Union Army, it is no wonder that distant relatives and genealogists have confused the two.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-70238611528310202502011-09-05T15:49:00.000-05:002011-09-05T15:49:16.866-05:00Whatever Happened to John A Edmonds? (Mystery Monday, Military Monday)“Whatever happened to John A Edmonds?” has long been a family mystery. John A Edmonds was the older brother of my great grandfather Augustus Newell Edmonds, the first-born son of William A Edmonds. John was born in 1842 in Georgia shortly before William A Edmonds and his wife Mary Frances Appling moved to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, then to Fayette County, Alabama. William and Mary Frances had 10 more children, most of whom survived to adulthood. John is listed in the 1850 and 1860 censuses in his father’s household, then poof! He disappears from common records. <span style="background-color: yellow;"><span style="background-color: white;">In <em>A Memorial and Biographical History of Johnson and Hill Counties, Texas [<span style="background-color: white;">1892] </span></em>, John’s brother Augustus Newell Edmonds listed him as “whereabouts unknown”. </span></span> <br />
<blockquote>
<i><i>Note: There was another John Edmonds living in Fayette County in 1850, the son of Nathan and Eleanor Edmonds. He was a little older, having been born in about 1835. Although apparently missing from the 1860 census, he shows up again in 1870 and later, having married Manerva Kilgore in 1866. Edmonds researchers have often easily gotten the two John Edmonds confused.</i></i><br />
<i></i></blockquote>
<i> </i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Given</span> that our John Edmonds “disappeared” in the 1860s, one must consider the possibility that he was a Civil War casualty.<br />
<br />
There was a John Edmonds who enlisted in Company A, 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry (O’Neal’s) <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxfhlMsX-WN5uiY7uhPUfhAgGEX4QIc9-p02nSsR69JfDwOK1Vj_-1IeYzaj006YsdKfTuQ1Y75MaoT19C-pc9UTHkoETLFYxzQ9xhwi-n1eX0SrcRWylpjyroDLWWCDQhGm-pcvDxXaY/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img align="right" alt="clip_image002" border="0" height="91" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ba6Of8S4jMGjnz2zZh6k0jqLLHB7zBrfpYvq2qP9OSo523VtGKiaXbDWer5nklix5FI3FkwugQD91-dlPdOB9Ib0bQ6iZ8gaL79x8G0Q1oJhnoS9YSaMrgTUyjVNJ4Hl1S4NL4Tra_s/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: right; margin: 5px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="clip_image002" width="244" /></a>October 3, 1861, in Tuscumbia, Alabama. Tuscumbia, Colbert County, is a few counties away from Fayette County where John Edmonds lived. However, histories of the 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry indicate that “men were recruited from <span style="color: #d19049;">Fayette</span>, Marion, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and Winston counties.” This seems like our John Edmonds, but we can’t be sure yet, especially since the <em>other</em> John Edmonds was also from the area. [Extensive Civil War records can be found at <a href="http://fold3.com/" target="_blank">fold3.com</a>, formerly <a href="http://footnote.com/" target="_blank">footnote.com</a>.]<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg7gCdXvn0L-10ouUZ8xr4MxRdU-myRWuffN14KikmHTVjIS-ixmaB5n5t7nQFcUDqbm6PXOngbOmDBH6L-mdOMHHXr-vYADgeiM0687rG9BiIf1nUnnSUjlHxjKd3UrTd2WtWrKPfeOk/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img align="left" alt="image" border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXW9fjID92tmMkxw0DPuXYG7KHdEc-FrBuGjRlVqcKR3uFF7RJz8LTlyNzWKKi9y26MdwsTfYQrJZFDEOH1DbG46Kj0YE5s7Jw56Iz4bP2Xs9-9DM8kbt-_dUReYZ5y5HRiRt82FCfhdY/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 5px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a>The 26<sup>th</sup> Alabama Infantry fought in the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863) and suffered losses of 7 killed, 58 wounded, and 65 missing. John Edmonds’ Confederate records show him captured at Gettysburg and a Prisoner of War at Point Lookout, Maryland. They also mention that he “joined the U.S. Service”. <br />
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Now it’s time to look in the Union Civil War records. Found: John A Edmonds who enlisted January 29, 1864 at Point Lookout, Maryland, in the Company D, 1<sup>st</sup> Regiment US Volunteer Infantry. These Union records show that John A Edmonds born in Wilkes County, Georgia, was 22 years old at the time, and was a farmer. This fits our John A Edmonds exactly. He is also listed as 5’ 10” tall, light complexion, hazel eyes, and sandy hair. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbPhFFOaq8ZEnLrhtS3T4HS9jBFBqJWSveZJzfTWZMAT7z5yjh4gDnLh1ADU6qPddrOJOq8dgq8hpJ-GFu56YY6V_IWIGmRnxalbbvUPlSh9kkF2wYbFZQoHdU10GtQPkty8X1BCyGjGo/s1600-h/clip_image006%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img alt="clip_image006" border="0" height="476" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmdfL1QpGhF7CqfZBzIauYhALUj4AIa4x6in5klFUsPDsqHfSGICUAe7FvKzVishyDubq7V9d21WL_i3WekieH-K88q0vFAWs75ivizQBXVfqrtg87FZcI8qi6OCOsphFLdWQhq9JxSTs/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="clip_image006" width="476" /></a> <br />
The 1<sup>st</sup> US Volunteer Infantry was made up almost entirely of captured Confederate soldiers who were given the opportunity to enlist for the Union in order to get out of Prisoner of War camps. These soldiers were dubbed “Galvanized Yankees”. However, they weren’t sent to fight against the South -- they couldn’t be trusted for that. Instead, they were sent to guard forts in the Dakota Territory. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFd3yE6dPzzkYk4l2JEVzIRb2r87L053SkMsei-IcjZZaoF-5pagjYn4m3jW7EVa1n8JaBmIgV07MpsKg32EeLAybqJG0z3xtHVFrwcTlfk319cTjoWzzFEOdcRlLhyphenhyphena7sd8QLsdIJBcw/s1600-h/image%25255B9%25255D.png"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="92" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgayIzENwMFg1YnvyYG1l4CYgdvCrsn6brBZbzh5p_aSzZ0sWghpQY7vHKo99ik_7Ehr3L1MP0tTiSLwj2pBTYfClSJnkaZzo4xp7dl42vYcCYlDeNW8-MxE24ZTE0RlVhXObxUoauPib4/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a>John A Edmonds’ records show that he was promoted from Private to Corporal on July 1, 1864. On September 11, 1865, he was listed as “deserted” from Fort Rice, Dakota Territory. <br />
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John A Edmonds wasn’t alone in his desertion. <br />
<blockquote>
<i>Many deserted—as men chose home or the gold fields over another winter of death at Fort Rice. Eleven percent of the command had died the previous winter, and all who survived still suffered from scurvy's lingering effects.</i> <br />
<br />
<i>Like volunteer troops elsewhere, the First U.S. Volunteers believed that they had earned the right to go home—especially since their former prison comrades had been released in the spring. The ex-prisoners of war had requested through channels to be mustered out when news of Appomattox reached the Upper Missouri, only to be turned down by the War Department.</i><br />
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[Prologue Magazine; Winter 2005, Vol. 37, No. 4; <em>Trading Gray for Blue<br />Ex-Confederates Hold the Upper Missouri for the Union</em>; <a href="http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/winter/galvanized.html">http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/winter/galvanized.html</a>]</blockquote>
Desertion might not have been such a bad choice. John A Edmonds and other Galvanized Yankees weren’t exactly welcome back in their home states in the South. Likewise, they didn’t have much in the way of ties to the North. The West may have looked like a good opportunity to start a new life. <br />
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I would love to find John A Edmonds in records in California or elsewhere in the West after 1865. These findings may not take me to John Edmonds’ eventual rest, but they do add a few more exciting years on to his history. Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-70647204490356856832011-09-04T14:13:00.000-05:002011-09-04T14:18:37.272-05:00Marriage Hints in the US CensusCensuses are commonly used to find names, birth years, occupations, and family members. How much do you use them for marriage information?<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1850 Census</span></h4>
The 1850 Census, the first to list people other than the head of household, contains an often overlooked bit of information. Column 10 asks whether the individual was married within the year.<br />
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The following example shows that David S Woollery and Caroline were married during 1850.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXw06VW2CS9QbprqvwL1PJo2xBVX9hAKzX7qOMTGU34f-PXO7cWRms0lmhztOpI32mLYRCbMSa5GjvGS7pRNjCN0SrWOsreUsfx-NUjAk5xlE4cSnJwyML4IxTN_Tkis3OLXFe0ooZjME/s1600-h/image7.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="61" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfFYgYKQMxV8iEfzvyJS9i-2ssa1mvhweW9gZAiH7YmTB6O9hh8J7SXOhaGV8pa9CvNPGQX6pI9vciPEci4GKL3vLJY9p6XtG-q1X_qKWXOtCjNn15QP8DmLRlCA4slLJUiYu68p69B-8/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="549" /></a><br />
The enumerator’s instructions do not say whether “within the year” means the calendar year or the last 12 months. Either way, it gets you close.<br />
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The marriage information can also give a hint to a second marriage. In the following example, the apparent parents (Wm B Field and Mary Field) were married within the past year, but there are several older children living in the household.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2j7vQa6sXm1iww6MYtw_7TV1taOzfxfx_NWWPAY2QI4nBLVo8ABD6O8zCUYAp6i2X3-_Y1YAdGPV96hwXlLb7mnDpBMf8EDziGxGZESajfbq2ct6j3pgBGCGjCnYIX9wThAjYkWbBXGA/s1600-h/image11.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9ZDJIPU-4wu17r7c0_lnq8h0Oj-0YWTPCDZ7o-aev7Spo8eNNQyiNuNOlgqoZJzwHkpJ4w1q5fUVr2vR6cEGaXhGnhuHfHognW8hr2bS2tp8Vvb1ueyeL0h6i6RupEuXAb0pvR-14ps/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="552" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: #d19049; font-size: small;"><br /></span></h4>
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<span style="color: #d19049; font-size: small;">1860 Census</span><span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;"></span></h4>
The information in the 1860 Census is similar to that of the 1850 Census. Column 11 indicates whether the individual was married within the year.<br />
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In the following example, the 22-year-old John H Gilbert and his 15-year-old wife Sarah J Gilbert were married in 1860, and were living in the household of Isaac Dickens. It is logical to guess that Isaac Dickens (age 39) may be Sarah’s father; her maiden name might be Dickens.<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-4mxtCdyrizk/TmOSc-xZyeI/AAAAAAAAAHM/zXi5Q0iBHJw/s1600-h/image15.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQc0dM2yJ5HoS1YmsNmo6ZY0j2vHxzYVCjFea9nOpT1-sATZk1aBoIXVjkBd-lW4sBuXdRFP994F5_u7CArC79V_bvJKPbCIcZtn-P5PDq-G6MhPvzhO7Sy7u6vSIMc5oRIXTPQ_8D9pE/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="555" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: #d19049;"><br /></span></h4>
<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1870 Census</span></h4>
The 1870 Census brought a slightly different twist on the question of whether or not the respondent was married within the year. Instead of a tick mark, the enumerator was asked to record the month (Column 14). This is an improvement!<br />
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In this example, the physician Mick Curtis and his wife Sue were married in May of 1870.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizjLC1IgugkgSTJNAfWrxsx4eoibZUpmumHhX4E4q2EZwu60BN6ZdZkwIoIWL_-IQx_69r6gnYTn4n1QLc7tGIoFMhTuBvyvzHZl6y-ASZtdW7mvuGWYdbN2xIddDNKUGeHnHYulIfEM8/s1600-h/image20.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="59" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpOrWC2BXnvdxRer986Rhu76wxrOM98ePKXz1RSkxGq6mLlm6aFB_YHzvAbDeYvGA8bx5HW_t2C-Gdlnzw9M2HtA7eAw-gv2uEtzNmFDk0YzO2wXIKDoh_I_9LaUopgzR0-zN97h20iKo/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="566" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><br /></span></span></h4>
<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;">1880 Census</span></span></h4>
After a brief step forward to include the month of marriage, the 1880 Census again only includes a tick mark to indicate whether or not a couple was married within the year (Column 12). In a stroke of inefficiency, this census uses tick marks and three columns to indicate marital status (Column 9 for Single, Column 10 for Married, and Column 11 for Widowed/Divorced). <br />
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Interestingly, people often weren’t marked as “Married” if they were “Married within the year”.<br />
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In the following example, Willis C Grider was living with his new bride, Laura E, in the house of Willis’s parents, Waitsville and Sabrina Grider.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibh61qJ9dlYmvKpZMRIUvRjCEOT74VvY_nuOUiJp7OyhMDspRPHfmVO9y4deq_vf7NXm0iNcvA3uEKYLPoNs1rcKffMnAEh1pz4jFOAc0sxYh19RKtZ6tqi1dFuPHReZqOKJpoJm68GXg/s1600-h/image40.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbA9B4bRIxTBu85AEn8O8KlRvXkAPGWXymAGPHeFxGkh9SzweXKAe9dJ3LnEuuhqG1waeCErXIjyjPoBIi6gg6cWin0iwhcDMe4APipWA0qltRt95eP_yyoRjB4xOZgaVwkHAfNAA81c/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="523" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: #d19049;"><br /></span></h4>
<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1890 Census</span></h4>
We usually skip over the 1890 Census since so little of it still exists. However, for those who are fortunate enough to find pertinent surviving records, there are some marriage tidbits.<br />
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The 1890 Census is arranged very differently that what we are used to, as you can see.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipa1vQgKCHZlo-KuMynmqFIOtt0j6znCzAey_VEGpthEcs_0hUUZGtHz1jtHvfoCebqCpfFoljbt3hRiNYZUYJkKt3qaXz_ST9c-5Qsaei7MYRD6srK4xLdNUlIigd1e8rw-1bNtynScU/s1600-h/image32.png"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAiYQpz9PEWhJzYnkDH0cm20g8wspic4T56fTIsgYUzZNTzQpLa9wBR7zHpobQNHRdj1qDigMJlCFPNMHM_rR6S_mZ7YaAD_7wcQf7c11eZxgHDn4KZiLhudBAxsoSiSR2WRQWjLAU8C0/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; float: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="315" /></a><br />
In this example Leanna T Hughes (Person 11 of the family) is listed as a daughter-in-law of the head of household (Row 3) and is listed as married (Row 7) and married between June 1, 1889 and May 31, 1890 (Row 8). Her husband, Erasmus D Hughes, isn’t listed on the same page, or even adjacent (Person 3 of the family) but you can tell that he is most likely her husband because his entry also lists him as married within the year.<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;">1900 Census</span></span></span></h4>
The 1900 Census is the first census that we typically think of as having useful marriage information. Column 9 shows Marital Status; Column 10 shows the number of years married. With a little simple math, you can figure out the year in which the couple was married.<br />
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In this example,George W Barie is shown as 42 years old and had been married for 10 years. Tina Barie was 26 years old and had also been married for 10 years.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3BalFuZMZjVCO3V6s6MSQ_pc5eA-DKJTUxIPqyZiEEVd3O4kMrbuFUBCraGIknPbAITH-xfdfZTvwpFHA9wpTglwTymR56bIkqQyzoMOhb5KEIZoB9Kv4kjUbVbFFFqim7LN2YjBif10/s1600-h/image47.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoAl28mpfmQij6ybqyjqDlL96SvgLFI48zqedeUYhpSWGj0hNvqvSF9Ui_VATsgjWZ_w8L9sulpbD4u0F0D0B1IAQdIu4ZKXNi5uWqQHErdjBONr2kwvj7G-uzEyhQRYF965bSuObfdhE/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="549" /></a><br />
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The math:<br />
1900 (year of the census) minus 10 years = 1890<br />
<br />
George and Tina were married in 1890.<br />
<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><br /></span></span></span></span></h4>
<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;"><span style="color: #d19049;">1910 Census</span></span></span></span></h4>
The information in the 1910 Census is similar to that in the 1900 Census. Column 8 shows the marital status, and Column 9 indicates the number of years of the present marriage. <br />
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In this example, K.H. Parker is 55 and married for 32 years. His wife Emanda B Parker is 52 and also married for 32 years. You’ll also note that this enumerator has listed “M1” as the marital status, indicating that this was the first marriage for both K.H. and Emanda B. Parker.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge755TZgc83BXE0F4jqqZp77AFGrnRa_imxS23fdibsvkpLruMxalRC8Rq81Da31wF8TjxULP_LAnUoSZQH5kCNM_BZTIJZNQMmyEINVUKX0HnoW89yhBaAKu5UpfkQ3v6Wel1ZNwUEgA/s1600-h/image42.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6aJD8Bfl-JJSUn6o6ylew9AYHXqMlDY7J1wc8WztJMnNQqbpEA6jstlskww8miE7wCd3vOTWWZyEoNSBX97h9XjX_toft-XKmVaxpnuRMTZwFXYGY26J82znitciJhyphenhyphensaP7aQQKN95s/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="543" /></a><br />
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The math:<br />
1910 (year of the census) minus 32 years = 1878<br />
<br />
K.H. and Emanda B. Parker were married in 1878.<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1920 Census</span></h4>
Sadly, the 1920 Census shows only marital status and relationship to the head of household. There is nothing to indicate when a couple was married.<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1930 Census</span></h4>
There are several pieces of information in the 1930 census that can be pieced together to reveal a marriage year: Marital condition (column 14), Age at first marriage (column 15), Age at last birthday (column 13), and Relationship to head of household (column 6). Unfortunately, it requires a little more math than some of the other censuses.<br />
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Consider this example:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiethPGM8WSwSDKtvyOE5Of1d8mBgJllCqYMoYQtK3ArVHOJgs5CCBGOOYDJhFVv_k1v3QWdP9dYXR7mnWwg7PUEFjgUIGEG8YCdgOmra61Rt4Yeqv1MYBiW0aVVke3U0vJZO1KpKCsavI/s1600-h/image3.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="74" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig5C328AiAxZmDBNlRIVJpXsVdj2NA2x_bQxGZQvtNReYZUTRlBxErQH9aVszfSO5Iq0FbrtddzIVx8nHXfmKkeaf8qgKSuwHj5Nh9g60w0M7Goqu7SRdFmarE1PDL1j907BaPIUr9g5E/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="543" /></a><br />
A. B. Collins was 68 when the 1930 census was taken and married. He was 23 when first married. His wife, Mandie J Collins, was 70 and had been 25 when first married.<br />
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The math:<br />
68 years old minus 23 years old = 45 years ago<br />
70 years old minus 25 years old = 45 years ago<br />
<br />
Since they match, there’s a good chance that they were married to each other. <br />
<br />
Now, to find the marriage year:<br />
1930 (year of the census) minus 45 years = 1885<br />
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A.B. and Mandie J Collins were married in 1885. I happen to know that this is correct because I also have copies of Family Bible pages that show that A.B. Collins and Amanda Jane Perryman (Mandie) were married on July 30, 1885. The math works! Try it.<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">1940 Census</span></h4>
The 1940 Census is not yet available to the public due to the 72-year privacy rule; however, blank forms are available for review. This census takes another step backward in marriage information. It lists Marital Status (Column 12) but no other information directly related to a marriage.<br />
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<h4>
<span style="color: #d19049;">You can do your own census research</span></h4>
<a href="http://www.archives.com/" target="_blank">Archives.com</a> has just announced that it now offers the complete United States Census collection (1790 through 1930). <a href="http://www.archives.com/census" target="_blank">Check it out at www.archives.com/census</a>.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-24861558141301977522011-08-29T18:05:00.000-05:002011-08-29T18:05:56.408-05:00Same Props (Mystery Monday)Here are two photographs, both Cabinet Cards, with different subjects but the same props. There’s a hint!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5USUGNmQtFLOZH2_7aSnSUxsIBStLqs2tJMM07TTG0k_CgzcEMGr5-AygzRqboLzjwEwuXD2Vwe8YCn42_BV8fGlYGls0rOlpCpennFiSfPvs8LTNkOpDKuwqQoRWe-LafYZPU-x-zg/s1600-h/Male-01-smaller%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img align="left" alt="Male-01-smaller" border="0" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDGcPtTTL7Z7mtkR3IlXieV69ERC4v2M8iJxPKZ6ei8nelH-qWnNL81JqwGO5sJLmwonZcZRgrWIAlMwXomhz2EwEnXzdlGepZBNiIvq4PWtHGDyBsYEb5ru9CAA5cDQguWIc1tEnzfyE/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 15px 0px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Male-01-smaller" width="263" /></a>Both of these photographs came from the collection of Amanda H Davis Edmonds. Amanda was in born Fayette County, Alabama but moved to Hill County, Texas when she married. The photographs in her collection would likely be friends or family of the Edmonds, Davises, or Olives (Amanda’s stepfather). <br />
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The photo of the young man is clearly marked as being from Texas, but up until this week I had thought that the photograph of the woman was from Alabama.<br />
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I was thinking about using the woman’s photograph for a Mystery Monday post, but decided to send it to a distant cousin who still lives in Fayette County, Alabama, first to see if she looked like his branch of the family. No resemblance.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xSAKRYpf_bKihBKXC7Qc2X7BXo1TKusjb3GX-x4q8xnLxOiLjB8UvtUSTosFH_WjfP7D23kz5x9miPLXSFc1vEnb8yj1JY73goVELda6XCxXqJdkws5TqJt5U750qxT7nMwMJDrLNmg/s1600-h/Female-02%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img align="left" alt="Female-02" border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9lkts2IkukKLNXGtlezoNP6ryFpl1vtfA0wZK7XBh9-4t0IJw9mTOu8HE14iKzRYQzna94NPw7WfldPX1ONzT2RtPhdrF0BmcFQCd2I8fsGx5BPJsUifh1S2Hw13fo4mu7rIJRrLlK_M/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 15px 0px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Female-02" width="265" /></a><br />
While I waited for a response from Alabama, I looked through more of my old photographs because I thought the small table in the photograph looked familiar. Amazingly, I found a match. If you look even closer at the two photographs, you’ll notice that the backdrop is also the same between the two. Bingo! Even though the photograph of the woman is not marked, it was likely taken by the same photographer.<br />
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The woman’s blousy sleeves place the timeframe in the 1890s, and the markings on the young man’s photograph puts the location in Hill County Texas.<br />
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Now, instead of looking among the Alabama relatives for the woman, I know to look in Texas. The world just got a little smaller. <br />
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Hmmm…Maybe she’s his older sister…Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4991048584563286900.post-20200094309308801062011-08-25T05:14:00.000-05:002012-03-01T18:22:56.677-06:00Thankful Thursday: VolunteersThis past week I was the beneficiary of the efforts of a <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/">Find A Grave</a> volunteer who went over and above the call of duty. I just had to give him a shout out.<br />
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<a href="http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=mr&GSvcid=226272&GRid=35283332&MRid=47090018&" title="Uriah Collins, 1955"><img align="left" alt="Uriah Collins, 1955" border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeOZ_iJEs0QdsEb3zaNuaSwcKDqOlM4ZRwFNjlw3uO5s9cusx4f2_YRJNtblpAhsRnwwZqAG7lI-V__-CUNmvqMVBrNwDxWsryVKekhmYPCqaFngZmaX2rverSeMrBos2CFLGXEUFRys/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Uriah Collins, 1955" width="167" /></a>Grammy sometimes spoke of her “Uncle U”. His name was Uriah Collins, and he was actually her great uncle, her grandfather’s brother. During part of her childhood, Grammy lived with her grandparents (Albert Buell Collins and Amanda Jane Perryman Collins). Uncle U lived down the road in Hidalgo County, Texas.<br />
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Uriah Collins and his wife Ida Barber Collins are buried in Abilene Texas. I discovered that their oldest son was also buried in Abilene Municipal Cemetery through <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/">Find A Grave</a>, but here was no photograph. I requested a photo of <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSvcid=226272&GRid=35283332&" target="_blank">Ralph Stillman Collins’</a> grave marker.<br />
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If you are unaware, <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/">Find A Grave</a> has a matching system that notifies volunteers and photo requests based on where the volunteers live and where the cemeteries are located.<br />
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I quickly forgot about my request as I worked on other parts of my family history.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFBGHg_YeAb8WiY3c5X8L2ySyPQEtUOFMZDnt1u6Jca7SraqPVLOPRMwWsQ7H98VqufiKXJtx0-i8mHb_beJhFLOcl_6zX25ZowGgl_EcdTgmnnCETWGJqhTut3odN1SyZADb7Vp7r5yQ/s1600-h/Ralph%252520Collins%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img align="right" alt="Ralph Collins" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBnw0xLAS-cz4RXrQwuj0ScXmmXqF1Sr3xXTbC26oFB4zlN-v0lqJ9_SO-FJfO1JPteQ4AgMYHG5jM8DmiblI7-GhReZusVH4DW4OXEoOSJMhADQvhCmnahaVl9jJysT_PZC2N20I18yk/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: right; margin: 0px 0px 5px 8px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Ralph Collins" width="265" /></a>Then I got the notification that a volunteer had posted a photo of the stone for Ralph Collins. I excitedly clicked on the link for the <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=mr&GSvcid=226272&GRid=35283332&MRid=47090018&" target="_blank">James Faulkenberry</a>, the volunteer who uploaded the photo, to post a “thank you”. End of story, or so I thought.<br />
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James shared with me his story of the search for <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSvcid=226272&GRid=35283332&" target="_blank">Ralph Collins’ grave</a>. He found a large Collins marker and stones for Uriah and Ida Collins and suspected he was in the right place. However, there was no stone for Ralph. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7RJRUNMd4BRQDVIS6p-q3z0MGxnBBIdzRTUaJDYI2IP4bxKqnfzhzx-tkRaLL8V-yL8HwlbxzdlKqiH3Pw2RQjoqZ0i9EcEnf3A5dozwOV0O8_tIwjCTAhoOOYF3-FQe7UeLWpeNl96w/s1600-h/Ralph%252520Stillman%252520Collins%2525202%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img align="right" alt="Ralph Stillman Collins 2" border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiYDEufcb45uVpX1ALUdxu5O0-qDgEf2xXtVQXC6d95nQmnAjnwXSftea_z7hgbtJAjb5ETFxgoXKeu1ndt5Lfm7ciIkT-T3SnlrvDp6SIrFScnJ1ItUEaQALQEZDJT4hQAWs01Sf0Ca0/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: right; margin: 10px 0px 0px 8px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Ralph Stillman Collins 2" width="267" /></a>Determined, he returned the next day with his shovel, hoe, and probe. His efforts paid off, however – he found Ralph’s marker long covered by grass and dirt, 2 to 3 inches down. He cleared the stone and took the photo.<br />
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Besides the obvious extra effort, there are a couple of other things that I’d like to point out about James. First of all, he is not related to the Collins. He did this purely out of a volunteer’s generosity. Secondly, this was Abilene in August. The temperature was in the triple digits both days he was out there at the cemetery.<br />
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When I asked James for permission to use his name in this post, he granted it and said,<br />
<blockquote>
<div align="justify">
<span style="color: #d19049;">I really try to go the extra mile when the cemetery web site says there is a marker and I can't find one! That's why I try to have a hoe or shovel in my pickup when I go. </span> </div>
<div align="justify">
<span style="color: #d19049;">I look for a grave marker in the section where someone is buried, even if the website says there is no marker. A couple of times, even after 10 or 20 years, the funeral home marker is still there and still readable!</span></div>
</blockquote>
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He also sent me pictures of his adventure, including this one that shows how the graves are arranged.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF7hL-6niF2lYbH_vLwSjDNxmNJTkXxMbRG_2SPMEqEaaM_sko6FrZQqFdzWunhSIVbUscQPNl5RV9jTtGjpXPd1UWiDnxveFdW2o4CjkHXZ26Iyl1kiGNO92xgCOgJXDTDTTmW5jGP34/s1600-h/Ralph%252520Stillman%252520Collins%2525201%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img alt="Ralph Stillman Collins 1" border="0" height="337" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFVFP5CsLHk_GcgCrEKwoxNqpXxGrDCQuvrbJd6BRNbiGyC13z66MWuhRnsg1tEp7ZQ27pS5F2VWWMug-mYS4gqQ_M85A4mqzEGRz5H3Ijb_Eebfk8m47jse4bzbla-W3gWC1gDhYwK_I/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Ralph Stillman Collins 1" width="436" /></a><br />
Here’s sending a big shout out to <a href="http://http//www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=mr&GSvcid=226272&GRid=35283332&MRid=47090018&" target="_blank">James Faulkenberry</a> for his extra efforts to help a stranger and preserve a grave marker.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08919260712418605619noreply@blogger.com0Abilene, TX, USA32.4487364 -99.73314390000001632.3081419 -99.85546290000002 32.5893309 -99.610824900000011