~ Count Your Blessings ~

     My maternal grandparents were kind and generous people.  They didn't live in the lap of luxury but they shared what they had and always helped others.
     My grandmother died six days after my 14th birthday.  Before MaMa went to Heaven I spent a lot of quality time with her.  She told me stories about the people in the old family photos which sparked my interest in genealogy.  We played cards together and she started to teach me how to crochet before she became sick.  I wish she had taught me how to cook.  MaMa was an excellent cook.  Her food was delicious.  I was truly blessed to have had such a wonderful grandmother.  MaMa loved geraniums.  I'll never forget the day that she gave a woman walking by the window her favorite potted plant.  I asked her why she gave the lady that geranium when it was her favorite.  MaMa told me that the woman admired and complimented her on that plant every time she walked by and if she liked it that much then she could have it.
     My cousin and I often ran errands for my grandmother.  Nancy and I dropped off and picked up bags of laundry from the laundromat and sometimes went to the nearby supermarket two blocks away or the corner store for milk.  When MaMa sent either of us to the store, we had to walk across the hall to Mary's apartment and ask her if she needed anything.  Mary was a very sweet old lady who had a few cats living with her.  I liked Mary but dreaded knocking on her door because the smell of Cat hit me in the face every time she opened the door.  She was nice though.  My grandmother used to look out her kitchen window while cooking or just throughout the day.  One day while looking out she saw an elderly woman struggling with two shopping bags as she walked along with her club foot.  MaMa sent me and Nancy out to help.  We asked if we could carry her bags home for her and we weren't allowed to take no for an answer.  We only walked about two or three blocks but it felt like two or three miles because those bags were heavy.  That's how MaMa was...  helping when she could even if it was help she recruited from me or my cousin.  :)
     My grandfather brought home strays.  There were two dogs that he rescued during my childhood.  Sam was a beautiful husky who had been abused and had a bad burn on his side.  I remember my grandfather applying the medicine everyday.  Sam was very friendly and eventually was stolen. The next dog to come along was Schaefer who was found roaming the grounds of F. M. Schaefer Brewing Co. where my grandfather worked as a truck driver.  I forgot to ask my mother about any animals he rescued while she was a child but she told me about Walter.
     It was Thanksgiving Day in the late 1950's in Brooklyn,NY.  My mother was around 9 or 10 years old and she still remembers her father bringing Walter home to share dinner with the family.  My mother doesn't remember much about that day.  All she could tell me was that Walter was the neighborhood drunk who had nowhere to go for the holiday so my grandfather brought him home and my grandmother set another plate on the table.


"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one."   ~Mother Teresa


Happy Thanksgiving.

~ Veterans Day ~

     My maternal grandfather was a very patriotic man who served his country during WWII and the Korean War.  If he were alive today he would be marching proudly in today's Veterans Day parade.




   

       Happy Veterans Day and God Bless America!

                 

~ Scandalous ~

     Nowadays if a teenage girl finds herself in trouble it's no longer a hush hush situation.  There's no need to drop out of school because many high schools offer daycare for teen moms as well as job training.  There are even reality shows on television such as Teen Mom and 16 & Pregnant.  Some girls are turning an unfortunate situation into a profitable one.
     Flashback fifty or more years and that same girl would be sent away to live with relatives in another town or a home for unwed mothers.  The baby would be given up for adoption and the girl would get on with her life.  or she might get married...   like Alice did.
     Alice was my best friend's paternal grandmother.  I had been working on Lillian's genealogy and focusing on her mother's side of the family because it was easier.  I had more names, dates, and records for the maternal line.  All I had for the paternal line were the names of her father and his parents.  I had Lillian's father's date of birth then found the date of marriage for his parents from a site which had been very helpful to me.  http://germangenealogygroup.com/  I told Lillian and she replied "So, my grandma was knocked up when she got married?"  Lillian's father was born May 25, 1925 and his parents were married nine months before in August of 1924.  I told Lillian not to say things like that. I told her that there are plenty of people who conceive on their honeymoon or on their wedding night.  Lillian didn't believe me.  Alice was only 16 when she married Alexander.  I know the names of Alice's parents but know nothing about Alexander so I've ordered their marriage certificate so I can get Alexander's parents names then trace his family.
     In December of 1916, my maternal great-grandmother Josephine married Samuel.  Six months later, a baby girl was born.  That baby was my grandmother.  Scandalous?  Maybe...  for the time...  it was only 1916...  but Josephine was 21 years old and not a 16 year old teenager like Alice.
     Were these 'happily ever after', 'death til we part' marriages for the two young couples?  Yes and No...
    My great-grandparents stayed married until Samuel's death in 1947 but it wasn't a happily ever after.  They had four more children after my grandmother's birth then eventually separated.  At some point, Josie moved to Brooklyn with their two daughters and the boys stayed in Poughkeepsie with Samuel and his parents.  Josie and the girls sometimes visited on weekends.  Maybe Josie would have been happier if she and Samuel divorced just like Alice.
     Alexander and Alice had one more son about five or six years after Lillian's father was born.  In 1930 they resided with Alice's parents but were divorced by 1940 according to the federal census.  What caused the rift in their marriage? Why did they divorce?
     Did the marriages crumble because they married before they were ready?  With a baby on the way maybe they felt they were doing the right thing?  I'll never know about Samuel and Josie since they stayed married and just lived apart but I could order the divorce record for Alexander and Alice to satisfy my curiosity about them.
     I wonder if I'll find any more 'scandals'?

Where was MaMa born?

     I thought my maternal grandmother Eleanor was born in Brooklyn, NY.  I was wrong.  I had ordered her birth certificate from the New York City Municipal Archives and received a reply stating that there's no record of this birth in any of the five boroughs.
     Eleanor Davis was born on June 2, 1917 to Josephine Duper and Samuel Davis.  Her parents were married the year before in Brooklyn, NY and also living in Brooklyn in 1918 according to Samuel's  WWI draft registration card.  The 1920 federal census shows 2 1/2 year old Eleanor living with her parents and younger brother in Brooklyn.
     So,  if Josephine and Samuel were married in Brooklyn in 1916 and were living in this same borough in 1918 and 1920 then I would think that their daughter who was born in 1917 was born in Brooklyn.  Where was MaMa born?
     Samuel's parents were married in Ohio, moved to Brooklyn then eventually settled in Poughkeepsie, NY where they spent the rest of their lives.  I wonder if MaMa's mother, Josie was visiting her in laws and gave birth to her daughter in Poughkeepsie.  Is that why the NYC Municipal Archives couldn't find her?
     Where was MaMa born???

All That Glitters...

     I had been searching and searching for my 3rd great-grandmother, Emily who I refer to as my Irish brick wall.  I thought I found her in the 1900 federal census living with her youngest son, William.  Was that my Emily?  I don't know, I might be chasing the wrong Emily.  The 1900 census also states 9 children born, 7 now living.  I knew of five children including my 2nd great-grandmother, Teresa and that's only because these names were given to me by my grandmother's cousin.
     I found an Emily and Patrick Devine in the 1875 New York State Census.  I'm 97% sure that these are my Devines...  Four of the children listed are names I already had.  My 2nd great-grandmother, Teresa was born later in the year, in November of 1875 and guess what?  Teresa was born in Stuyvesant Falls, NY according to her baptismal record and the Devine family listed in this census were living in Stuyvesant.  This must be them...
     Three of Emily's sons are found in the 1900 federal census living in Arizona as goldminers.  I'm pretty sure that these men are my 2nd great-grandmother's brothers because their ages match up with the ages on the 1875 NY census, they have their places of birth as New York and their parents were from Ireland.  The head of household was Martin and he owned the home with no mortgage.  That doesn't tell me much, the home could've been a tent or a shack.
     Gold!  My ancestors were goldminers.  Well that's a refreshing change from the occupation of farmer which I'd seen on most censuses other than those in Brooklyn,NY or Manhattan in New York City.  I have no further information on the goldmining Devine brothers.  I don't know who their descendants were or where they died.  Just like the town they lived in which is now a ghost town, they must've faded into the dust.

     all that glitters...

Collecting Cousins

     I had taken a short break from blogging to assist my best friend with her genealogy.  I think Lillian finally got tired of me asking her if she wanted me to trace her roots.  She told me that she didn't know much about her family.  She didn't think I'd get far.  We were both pleasantly surprised.
     Lillian provided her parents names and her maternal grandparents names and I went from there.  I found census records for her grandparents and draft records from both WWI and WWII for her grandfather.  Lillian's mother is still living and since the family had lost touch over the years I wondered which if any of her aunts and uncles were still alive so I started my search.  There are/were three aunts that I knew of and three uncles.  Her grandparents had seven children that I know of though I wouldn't be surprised if there was another one or two.  Lillian's grandparents were married around 1916 and had a daughter born in 1923.  I find it hard to believe that they were married for seven years before having their first child.  I stumbled upon an obituary for Lillian's uncle John.  I love obituaries that are filled with helpful information such as the one I found for Uncle John.  I now know the names of John's wife and sons as well as the married name for his older sister, Eileen.  I tried to find John's sons but didn't have much luck.  I think I found one but he might be dead.  I decided to search for the rest of Lillian's aunts and uncles.  Her uncle John is dead.  Who else passed on?  I put two of her aunts on hold because I don't have a last name if they got married.  I decided to focus on Aunt Eileen and happy to report that I found a few of her children.
     I contacted one of Eileen's sons by telephone then sent him an email which he forwarded to one of his older sisters.  They had both since then been in touch with Lillian.  Aunt Eileen is still alive and has six children.  Add those children to John's and that's eight cousins so far.  Lillian still has five more aunts and uncles to be found.
     How many cousins will we collect?

Battle of Gettysburg - day 2

     It was the war between the states, the north vs the south in the American Civil War.  During this bloody war, the Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1 - July 3, 1863.
     It is the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.  On this day, July 2nd in 1863, my 3rd great-grand uncle, Daniel Davis was wounded.  Daniel had enlisted with Company A of the 120th Infantry Regiment on New York.