I'm still here.  We have moved into a smaller home in an "Over 55" gated community.  Trying to downsize from 2200 sq. ft. to 1700 isn't easy.  I'm happy we moved closer to the library.  I'm still doing help sessions there.   I'm trying to spent more time on my genealogy but life seems to get in the way.  I have not forgotten that I want to do our common ancestors.

Genealogy Interrupted

I had so many plans for this space.  My husband and I are related 19 times through our early New England ancestors and I was going to do a series on this topic - but life got in the way.  We have been living in our  nice home in Florida since 1997.  It has now been declared totaled by our insurance company for a sinkhole.  I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy.  We are still in the decision making mode about what comes next. 

Thank you to the Innovators

I am trying to keep up with all the new ways of doing genealogy.  I go to conferences when convenient, I read books on DNA and Social Networking, I try to make sense of the proper way to write my sources, I read about 10 blogs religiously and another 20 occasionally, listen to webinars, and because I am involved with helping beginners, I need to know all these new things.  Unfortunately, I have very little time to go back to some of my early research and fill in what needs to be done.  This is frustrating to me.  I guess I just cannot be a Randy Seaver,  Judy Russell , Thomas MacEntee and Pat Richley-Erickson.  When do they ever have time for themselves?  Thank you all for your innovative work.  We need your expertise to counteract  the toxic genealogy that happened on the internet over the last 20+ years.  Instead of complaining about the name gatherers, you are working very hard to show the way genealogy needs to be done. 

Genea-Musings: Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (SNGF) - The Date Your Father Was Born

Genea-Musings: Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (SNGF) - The Date Your Father Was Born

Genea-musing's Saturday Night Fun.  My father was born on Tuesday, October 31, 1905 in Jersey City, NJ.  Teddy Roosevelt was president and a 1st class stamp cost 2 cents.  On this day in 1846, the Donner Party was trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  In 1941, Mount Rushmore was declared completed.

Other people born on Oct. 31: Chaing Kai-sheck, Dan Rather and John Keats.  My father seems to be the most important thing that happened on this day in 1905.  Halloween seems to be a day when the world doesn't want to irritate the spirits or they are trying to figure out what to wear to the Halloween party.
I used infoplease.com

Researching in Massachusetts

I am looking forward to some quality Massachusetts time.  Since I have been involved helping other people with their research, I haven't had much time for my own.   I have so much work that I did in the beginning that needs updating.  My husband & I will be attending Judy Russell's visit to Worcester at Holy Cross for the Massachusetts Genealogical Council and we will try to get in 2 days at NEHGS.  I will spend most of my time in the manuscript room.  The rest of the time will be family time with our 2 beautiful great granddaughters ages 3 and 1.

Joseph Bartlett Maynard and family, 1860

I just love these old photos.  This one was probably an ambrotype taken about 1860,  which was copied and reprinted as a tintype.  I love that the tintype was put back in the casing for the ambrotype.  This is the Joseph Bartlett Maynard family of Leverett, Franklin, Massachusetts.  Joseph and his wife, Mary Glazier Maynard eventually had 10 children.  I can date the photo by the children as well as the clothes and hair styles.  The 3 boys were born in 1844, 1845 and 1848.  Then they had girls born in 1850, 1852, 1855 and 1858.  The youngest is about 2  and she was born in May, 1858.  The 8th child, a boy, was born in Oct. 1860.   The young girl in the back behind her father and baby sister is my great grandmother.  She doesn't look like she was very happy at having to stay still for the photographer.

Willis E. Learned 1852-1943

Checking for your ancestors on Genealogy Bank can turn up some very unusual items.  My paternal great grandfather, Willis Learned, was born in Watertown, MA in 1852, married to Mary Louise Decker in NYC in 1873 and they lived in Westfield, NJ.  Mary died in 1924 and Willis lived with his son and daughter-in-law - also in Westfield.  I knew that at some point they moved to Florida and were there for the 1930 census.  I had vaguely heard that Willis had been involved in some shady land deals in Florida but I don't know the details about that.  Now to my surprise, I found an article in the Tampa Tribune in April, 1927 citing NEW YORK, March 31 that stated:

 "The alleged sale of Epsom Salts, chewing gum and soap as fat reducing remedies has resulted in the indictment of Willis E. Learned of Westfield, N.J. and Earl F. Callan, on charges of using the mails to defraud.
    The "Learned Enterprises" Assistant United States Attorney Webster told the federal grand jury, made an annual profit of $500,000 through the national sale of spurious patent medicines supposed to possess almost magical reducing powers.  The chewing gum was described the the United States attorney as "only something to chew on" and the soap as "just a good soap."

I guess he was just a hustler at heart.

The Diary of Alson J. Dugan of Brattleboro, Vermont from 1913 to 1918

I found this on GoogleBooks today.
The Diary of Alson J. Dugan of Brattleboro, Vermont from 1913 to 1918
Front Cover
Alson J. Dugan, Dorothy J. Dill
0 Reviews
D.J. Dill, 1999 - Brattleboro (Vt.) - 58 pages

I now have my 15 minutes of fame - no, more like 30 seconds.  This diary of my maternal grandfather would be quite interesting to anyone who had lived in Brattleboro, VT during the years 1913 to 1918.  In his daily musings, he mentions all sorts of things,  the weather, the people he played pool with, where he performed, family events, sports scores, newspaper articles about the beginnings of WWI, his toothaches-----all done in a lined notebook, one or two lines of text per day.  I copied and published it in 1999 and gave copies to Brattleboro Library and New England Historic Genealogical Society.

He was a musician and a voicer for the Estey Organ Company.  He played violin, trumpet and piano.  He played at dance halls, churches and as the pianist at the silent movies.  He was an amateur magician, a devoted husband and a wonderful father to his 6 children.

Alson in 1895

Alson in 1930

Azubah Nye Glazier, 1756 - 1840

 My DNA result from 23&Me has probably solved an old family story.  Azubah Nye Glazier is my 4th great grandmother.  She is a descendant of John Howland of the Mayflower through her mother Hannah Botfish who married Caleb Nye.  Caleb's father was Nathan Nye, son of the immigrant Benjamin and Katherine (Tupper) Nye.  Nathan married a "Mercy" and no one has ever found a marriage or any other information for this woman.

Family lore has always said Azabuh was an "Indian lady".  Looking at my mother's genealogy, the only possible Native American is Mercy, wife of Nathan.  Mercy is the only brick wall I have in the lineage of my mother except for the Irish branch which immigrated in 1849.  A grandson of Azabah and Jonathan Glazier and cousin to my great grandmother, Sarah, Lyle Glazier, wrote a book poem about Azubah and he quoted from a memo he found written by his Uncle Forrest which stated ""Jonathan Glazier came to Brushy Mountain in 1790.  He married Azubah Nye, an indian girl."

In those days, if it was known you had even a small bit of "colored" blood, you were considered that race.   In the 1790 census Worcester Co., Caleb Nye from Hardwick (where Azuba had lived with her parents) is listed as a "person of color, African or Native American".  Her father Caleb died in 1787 so this could be her brother.  In any case, Azuba and Caleb would have only been 1/4 Native American but would have passed down the gene.  My DNA results say I am .1% Eastern European or Native American and I believe this is Azabuh's DNA.  Azubah Nye, daughter of Caleb and Hannah Nye was born in 1756, married Jonathan Glazier 23 June 1774 and died in 1840  They lived in Leverett, Massachusetts on Brushy Mountain.  Their 5th child was Ebenezer Nye Glazier who married Mary Spaulding and their daughter Mary,  my great great grandmother, married Joseph Bartlett Maynard in 1843.  They also lived on Brushy Mt. 

Privatizing Libraries

Our genealogy organization has been under the umbrella of the local library since 1989.  Things changed a bit in 2000 when our private library became part of the county system but we still had a space in the library and used our money to enhance the genealogy collection of books.  We have a room in which we have help sessions, classes and a computer users class for free to anyone who wants to learn or needs help with genealogical research.  The new wrinkle is that our County commissioners are considering privatizing the library. (They call it out-sourcing to make it sound less awful.)  If they do this, we are literally out the door.  As a non-profit we can't support a for profit company (LSSI) and we will lose the whole collection of books that we have donated to the library over the last 25 years.  We are trying very hard to convince our commissioners that the take-over company is not the answer to this temporary shortfall in revenue.  It's just one of those David vs Goliath situations at the moment.  Anyone have a good sling shot for sale?

DNA and Epigenetics

We all know that genes play a part in who we are.  However, there is still the nagging controversy about nature vs nurture.  Now there is more information about why we behave in certain ways - like why is my handwriting exactly like my mothers, or why do I  constantly jiggle my feet when I am nervous?  These traits are not the result of DNA.  I just read a great article in the May Discovery Magazine about Epigenetics 101.

It seems that our DNA has remora-like structures that do not harm or change the DNA  attach to the DNA during fetal development that passes down these traits from the parents.  Unlike DNA these structures can change over time or remain the same.  I will not go into everything in the article but I urge you to read Trait vs Fate on page 48-55 by Dan Hurley.  Lots of food for thought.

I finally received the results from 23&Me.  It takes time to get through all that information but it is fascinating.  I am also reading DNA and Social Networking by Debbie Kennett.  I need to keep abreast of all the technologies although I don't have the technical savvy of the younger generation.  I feel like I need to hire a 10 year old to help me navigate through creating blogs(although I managed to do this one), wikis, and all the newest media offerings. Genealogical research has come a long way on the computer.  I have used a PC since 1993 (remember Prodigy?) but have recently bought a Samsung Note android for toting about.  For me, this is not intuitive, I have to practice everything.  My cell phone is only a phone - and I only turn it on when I go out.  Yes, I still have a land line.  On the plus side, I am 79 and I am challenging my brain.

My Aruba

Aruba

I am from turquoise sea its waves shadowed by drifting white clouds
prickly cactus and the soft smell of frangipani
sunsets so red behind the rising smoke of an oil refinery.

I am from iguanas crawling over dull gray coral or hiding in a sea grape tree
pelicans diving for shimmering fish in a lazy lagoon
burros and goats forever searching for a blade of grass.

I live in the caress of a warm wind that makes trees bow and carries the scent of paradise
I am rooted in soft white sand, sharp coral, lumps of lava rock
old pirate caves, Crystal Mountain and Hooiberg.

I am from a land of kaleidoscope people who speak many languages
who taught me to embrace our shared humanity.

I am Aruban.

William Edwards Learned, 1905-1977

This is a photo of my father, Bill Learned, and his mother Dolly Edwards Learned taken about 1910.  Isn't she pretty? 

Dorothy (Dolly) Edwards Learned 1879-1977

My paternal grandmother, Dolly Edwards Learned, grew up in Lewes, Delaware.  Her father, William S. Edwards was a 5th generation pilot of Delaware Bay and River.  Her mother, Clara Burton, was the daughter of Cornelius T. Burton and granddaughter of John Burton, another pilot of the Bay and River.  Dolly's mother died from injuries sustained when a can of coal oil exploded, leaving three young children, Catherine, 8, William, Jr., 5 and Dolly, 1 1/2.  Her father remarried Hannah White in 1882.  While researching the 1880 census, my grandmother, 3 months old, is listed as Hannah.  I can only assume that her name change to Dorothy happened when her father married a Hannah.  There is no birth certificate for her created at the time of birth.  There is a delayed one created when she applied for a passport in 1939 with her mother's brother attesting to the information about her birth.

I am surprised at the lack of genealogical material about the early pilots on the Bay & River.  Some of them lived in Cape May, some in Lewes and others chose to live in Philadelphia.  Apparently it was quite a cutthroat profession in the early days, each pilot trying to out run his competition to be the pilot on an incoming vessel.  Eventually, they had to join together mostly because of the privateers and pirates that found that area of the Atlantic very rich pickings.  I have found a few stories, mostly about the War of 1812 and the bombardment of Lewes.  I would love to find a diary written by the wife of one of these pilots. 

I did not grow up close to my grandparents.  I only saw them every 2 or 3 years.  By the time I began to get interested in genealogy, it was too late to ask her anything and we lived 1300 miles apart.  My father, William Edwards Learned, was an only child so the hope of finding a diary or letters about her childhood is not good.   I do remember she was small, had beautiful gray hair and wore it piled on her head, wore a corset, and smelled good.

Pastfinders of South Lake County

Most of my genealogical research has been in the northeastern states - all of New England, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.  I didn't realize how lucky I was with the availability of research materials until I moved to Florida and began helping other people discover their families through our Help Session program of Pastfinders of South Lake County Genealogical Society.  I have worked with people researching most of the US as well as 1st and 2nd generation Americans who want to know about immigration and researching in Eastern Europe, South American, Latin America, Greece, Germany, France and more.  While I have not become an expert in any of these areas, every moment spent in research is an exciting exploration into new territories. 

Still looking for my Scottish links.  I found an Agnes Ewine who married Adam Templeton in Lanakshire, Scotland.  The dates look good, but I still have no proof. Are these the people who moved to Northern Ireland and are the  parents of Adam and Janet who ended up in New Hampshire about 1735?

Matrilineal line

My most important research involves following my matrilineal line.  It isn't easy, but is the most satisfying when you get that next connection.  Right now, I am stuck in Scotland in the early 1700's.  I have a "possibility"for further research but have not located the proof that I need to proceed.  I wish I had gotten this far when I was still able to go to Scotland.  For years I was looking at Northern Ireland but had no maiden name. Once that was found, the search moved to Ayeshire in Scotland. Over the years, we have enjoyed 3 fabulous trips to the British Isles, but I think our traveling days are over.  On one trip we went to Wales, England and Scotland as well as all of Ireland but, at that time,  I had no idea that my genealogical journey was going to lead  to Scotland.

Jeremiah Dugan, 1821-1894, from Bantry, co Cork, Ireland to Montague, Massachusetts

This is Jeremiah Dugan.  He came to America in 1847 from Bantry, Co. Cork, Ireland.  His wife Mary (Cronin) and 2 children came over later ( June1849). They settled in Montague, Massachusetts where my great grandfather John Michael was born in 1850.   Handsome man, I think.

genealogy blogs

I have added 3 genealogy blogs on my reader.google page. Still trying to decide if I need more. Wish I could find some dealing with Ireland & Scotland surnames.  It's amazing how much information is out there on the blogs.