Everything's Relative - Researching Your Family History

Happy Birthday Grandma Keener Feb 11, 1924

2012-02-11T11:17:00.003-05:00

Edna Reba Keener 11 Feb 1924 - 17 Jan 1995
Her son Jerry Keener 14 Jul 1942 - 22 Mar1983
photo taken in late 1940s

My Grandma Edna Keener was a strong woman. Her mother died when she was only 9, the oldest of 8 children. Having her own first child at 14, raising three sons along with the many siblings in the home - it must've been a very difficult life for her. As an adult, she worked in some kind of electrical assembly job for most of her life and took care of her husband who was almost 30 years her senior.

Grandma lived nearby when I was young, I recall sunny days on her back porch, in the garden, playing in the yard that seemed so enormous to me. Her kitchen was giant and it seemed she always had something cooking (we were probably there for meals most of the time). Her dining room walls were covered with collected plates and was rarely used, except to pass through to the front of the house. As a child I didn't notice, but whenever I smell old books, or a damp basement - you know that smell? I remember her home smelled just that way.

Edna Keener and her sister Virginia Anderson
photo taken in early 1980s

Grandma moved away when I was in my early teens and I only saw her once or twice when I was an adult, Too bad that I didn't realize the things that were slipping away at the time - the things that now I would love to talk to her about, her memories, her family, her life.

I am told that I resemble her, tell stories the way she did, and often make facial expressions that were just like hers. Strange how you do those things when you really didn't "know" a person, or spend any time with them to pick up habits such as these.

The last time I saw her, she was on her deathbed. Only a few weeks before she passed away. Oh, the things I wish I had asked! Grandma died on January 17 1995. She was 70 years old. Today would be her 88th birthday.

Happy Birthday Grandma, you're always in my heart!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-04T09:49:00.000-05:00

John Jerry Keener b. 1942 d. 1983

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Dec 8, Cookies

2011-12-08T23:51:00.000-05:00

Nothing makes me happier than giving tins of Christmas cookies to friends and neighbors. Having four girls in the family, there's always a helper around when it's time to spend a day baking cookies, sprinkling the sugar, placing the little decors around or taste testing. Neither of my Grandmothers were big on making Christmas cookies. I have my paternal grandmother's cookbooks - most recipes are for dinner meals and how to cook on a budget. But, my Mom? She was all about making Christmas cookies and decorating them with little intricate decorations.

While I don't have any photos of them unfortunately, some I can clearly remember. Mostly she made cookie cutter cookies - carefully assembling holly leaves with green icing and little red balls, wreaths with silver balls and little red bows, She also made angels and I think her favorites were the stained glass cookies. Mom also made miniature pecan tarts that were absolutely wonderful. Itty-bitty crusts filled with yummy sticky goodness! One of my favorite cookies that she made was her cranberry cookies which were always a staple this time of year.

With my own children we've made many different things over the years. Our favorites are Russian Tea Cakes, and little decorated spritz butter cookies made from a cookie press (pictured above) - how did I ever live without that? While they're not an intricate cookie-cutter cookie, they're yummy, easy to decorate, easy to make and come in large batches so you can make multiple designs in one batch. We also enjoy making fudge, mint bark candy, little minty snowmen (pictured here), peanut butter buck-eyes, peanut butter cookies, and lots of different breads (banana, cranberry and pumpkin). We make lots and lots of this stuff and then pack up tins or plates to share with neighbors, friends, teachers, bus drivers and the milk man.

I'm sure that all of these holiday goodies will be remembered by my own kids, but most of all the memories of cold days spent in the kitchen together making them.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories Dec 4th Christmas Cards

2011-12-06T10:04:00.000-05:00

Christmas cards are wonderful things. I love finding a pile of them in my mailbox during the early weeks of December. Sadly, it's too often that this is the only time we hear from some distant relatives and friends. We hang ours on a pantry door in the kitchen, enjoying them through the month and adding to them everytime we get another greeting in the mail. In my parents home we did a similar thing, there was a louvered door in their kitchen and the cards easily slipped through it, overlapping each other and filling the door throughout the season.

Now that I have my own family, I do send cards every year to close friends and family. My Mom always sent cards - when I was old enough to help I seem to remember hundreds of them - possibly I just didn't want to help and the task seemed endless :) My own family now sends about 30-40 cards a year.

What do you do with them when Christmas is over? I'm sure that there are some who pack them away every year and others who simply keep any photos sent and drop the cards in the trash. Thankfully, my great-grandmother Margaret McCann Bellew kept some very special Christmas greetings sent from her husband John Bellew while they were apart - she in England with two children and her husband here in the US with another of their sons, building their new life.

While these cards are not what we see today in typical Christmas design, they are beautiful and contained hand-written notes of Christmas greetings from her husband and a son that went ahead with him to the US.

I was unable to scan these cards - they are not made of paper, but rather the fronts are some type of plastic material that is very fragile at this point, so I photographed them some time ago, and they have been put away for safe keeping. The embroidered one in the back appears to have more of a Christmas design and the greeting inside is as follows:

From Your Loving Husband and Son Willie

To Wife and Children
25th Dec 1923

When she finally joined her husband in the US, Margaret had the terrible misfortune of leaving one of her sons (John) in England. This must have torn at her heart for her entire life. When he was older, he sent Christmas greetings from England to his parents:

After seeing these cards in Margaret's things, I knew that she loved them and I will hang onto them and preserve them as best I can for future generations.

Advent Calendar - December 3, Tree Ornaments

2011-12-05T13:24:00.001-05:00

So my dates are a bit off and I'm a few days behind, but I wanted to share this post from last year.

Christmas is a magical time - excitement, anticipation and many enjoyed festivities go along with the season, making it a wonderful time to share with family. Nothing gets that excitement started like decorating the house and putting up the tree. I remember as a child growing up, after the Thanksgiving turkey was put to leftovers and the pumpkin pie was gone, it was time to decorate for Christmas!

The tree trimming was my primarily Mom's job, but we all enjoyed looking through the ornaments, straightening the branches of our tree and helping to hang them all. In our family every child got a new ornament every year. My parents carefully put our names and the year on the ornament somewhere. In those earlier years our tree didn't really have a "theme" but was more of what I would call a children's tree. After all, Christmas was all about the children. There were a few sets of glass ornaments that my parents had purchased over the years and we always hung those as well. Over time, there were less and less of them, as various ones got broken. I have two or three such ornaments from those glass bobbles that belonged to my parents when they first started their lives together. These are among my most cherished ornaments and I put them on my tree every year.

On the first Christmas after moving from my parents home Mom pulled all of my ornaments from her boxes and gave them to me - giving me a collection of ornaments to start decorating my own tree.

This Santa is plastic, covered with thin felt and is from 1974 and the Pooh below is from 1978. My children give me a hard time about these every year - "Here Mom, it's that old Santa"

When my paternal Grandmother passed away in 1995 I received very few of her Christmas decorations. But among them was this ornament which I have carefully put on my tree every year ever since. I haven't any idea where she got it and I had never seen anything like it but it too is one of my most cherished.

Every year my ornaments get a little older and every year we add new ornaments to our tree for each of our children. My Mom still gives me (and my kids) a new ornament every year. When they grow up I hope that they enjoy taking them out every year, remembering the times we had trimming our tree and adding to their collections for their own children, keeping the family tradition alive.

It's my Blog's Birthday & Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

2011-11-24T13:11:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my family, friends and readers! Thanks for following me!

This photo was taken on Thanksgiving 1957 - look at those mashed potatoes! Getting ready for the feast are: left Pauline Keener Harrington & Joe Harrington, at the back Leonard C. Anderson, on the right are an unknown female and Russell Keener

Happy 3rd Birthday to my blog! I am so thankful to all the folks who have followed me, contacted me and become my friends. The genealogy blogging community is a wonderful group to be a part of.

To the Veterans in my family - past and present

2011-11-10T11:44:00.000-05:00

In honor of those in my family who served in our military, in the past and in the present.

My Dad, Donald F. Keener

United States Marine

Grandfather Leonard C. Anderson

Army

Served during WWI

Grandfather William P. Bellew

Army Air Force

WWII

Purple Heart Recipient

Uncle Vernon Lewis Keener

Uncle Carl W. Poates (born as Carr Anderson)

For privacy reasons, I will not post photos of living relatives who were, or are currently in the military but I will say..

Thank you Uncle Jack for your long service in the Army and your time in Vietnam

Thank you to my nephew Greg for your service in the Army and time in Iraq

Thank you to my nephew Danny for your service in the Marines and time in Afghanistan

Thank you to my cousin's husband Andy for your service in the Army and time in Iraq

Thank you to my husband's uncle Johnny for your service in the Army and time in Iraq

Thank you to my nephew Christopher for your service in the Marines (just completed basic)

Thank you to all military personnel and veterans for your service, past and present!

Throwing in the towel? Nah, just needed a bit of breathing space!

2011-10-26T14:32:00.000-04:00

This poor, neglected blog!

I have actually been doing research - in my "spare" time (that is, during the wee hours of the morning). Between the 4 kids at home and one off to college this year, I have been one busy Momma! So yeah, I've been digging up info but haven't had the time or the drive to write. I've also been teaching adult education for a few months, something I've always wanted to do. The class topic? Genealogy of course! This has been a wonderful outlet for me and helped me meet some fantastic people right here in my own town who enjoy this wonderful hobby. I am hopeful that we will continue to share, meet and help each other with our research.

In the meantime, I would really like to revisit my blog and actually start writing again, that is if I can find that spark to share that seems to have left me after my father died.

So, if you used to read regularly or if you've just started following, please come back and read again. I have so missed this!

Military Monday - Comparing WWII Journals

2011-04-11T13:34:00.001-04:00

Researching my Grandfather's WWII history has been a very rewarding endeavor for me. Looking for the records, finding his discharge paperwork, obtaining his medals, reviewing hometown newspapers for information - all of these things were very worth while. Lucky for me, he kept a bit of a journal during his time in the Army Air Force and noted the dates he flew on missions, what the target was, the flying altitude, and other details about the weather and enemy fighters encountered etc. This gave me more of the story behind his time in England, but didn't offer up many details in the way of actual "stories" of his missions.

I was contacted by another researcher last fall for more information on his missions. It seems our two Granddads had fought together. He was interested in the journal, to enable him to order mission reports for specific dates. I provided the information I could and one entry intrigued me (below) and I asked that if he did get mission reports would he mind sharing information with me on this particular mission.

June 25th, 1944 - 16th mission
Target - X
300-500 feet
light flak
2 FW 190S Fighters
9 hours

About a week ago I received an email from the other researcher. Seems he's been doing his homework and reaching out to others in the same squadron. Luckily, a family member of another serviceman in the same squadron had yet another journal - with an entry for the same date...

Ate at midnite, took off at 4 am for S.W. France with 10 parachute bundles of supplies. Dropped them from 300 ft. in a valley between mountains to the French marquis. We were so low, we could see the grateful smiles on their faces as they waved to us. The group was attacked by one FW-190, but P-47's chased him away. Bombardier (Moe) had a close call by flak. Flew as crew in 138 - new ship with only two previous missions on her.

I was so relieved to read that "target X" in my Grandfather's journal was actually a location for a supply drop and not one of their usual missions. He wasn't looking down at terrified people, but other soldiers who were happy to see them. All the official documents in the world can't offer up this kind of information - the actual experience of the individual.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-26T07:52:00.003-05:00

Edna Keener b. 1924 d. 1995

Taken on the steps of a school in Frederick Maryland 1946

Tombstone Tuesday - And a Mystery - George J. Keener revisited

2011-01-18T13:27:00.000-05:00

I posted this tombstone previously in June of 2009. At the time, I couldn't figure out why the wife was listed - as she was no longer his wife (although I could find no record of her death, so I haven't a clue the circumstances).

I recently obtained an abstract of his obituary and it left me with even more questions.   So I started at the beginning of his life again and tried to map out what I know about the family.    I am still left with the same questions and cannot seem to solve the mystery of his headstone and his obituary nor find any deaths or burials for his three wives...

George J. Keener was born 26 May 1852 (date according to his death certificate is 1853), to Samuel B. and Mary Johnston Keener of Taylor County WV.   On 12 Apr 1868 he married Tryphenny S M Thomas in Taylor County WV.    In the 1870 census the couple is found living with his parents, along with their new daughter Mary.    I cannot find any further records of this wife in the county or surrounding area. It is assumed that she died prior to 1872...

On 23 Apr 1872 we find another marriage record for George J. Keener and Letis A. Poling.   This union resulted in the following children: Amos, Nella, Virginia, Isaac, Selena, James, Rachel and Ray. All of these children were born between 1873 and 1887.    In the 1880 census, Mary (the daughter from his first marriage) was listed in the household of her Grandparents Samuel and Mary.

In the 1900 census we find George J Keener at the age of 48 with yet another wife, Nora age 27, (aka Honora, Hanolla, Hanna).  Two of the children of the previous marriage are listed in the home (James and Rachel) and he and Nora have another 4 children: William, Samuel, Harry and Clarence.   Another son, Robert would be born later in the year.

In case you've lost track, thats a total of 14 children born to this man and his three wives.

So where is the confusion or the "mystery?.....   here

First problem with the headstone is the year of death. It appears that it says 1925, but his death certificate issued by the state of WV clearly states March 1, 1926.    The bigger problem with this headstone is that Lettie Keener is noted as his wife when his last wife was Nora (note the certificate states he is a widow so Nora clearly died prior to him) - this would be yet another death certificate that I cannot find. It is possible that only the children from the marriage to Lettie were involved in his "arrangements", which would also explain the obituary - which left out all of the children born to Nora, listing only his first daughter Mary and the children born to Letting who were still living.

G. J. Keener Passes Away. The Grafton Sentinel. Grafton, WV. March 2, 1926.

Abstract--Geo. J. Keener, s/o Mrs. and Mrs. Samuel B. Keener, died yesterday at the home of his daughter Mrs. H. McWilliams, 720 Pearl Street. Inflamation of the stomach was the cause of death. The deceased was 72 years, 10 months and 2 days old, and had been a resident of Taylor county practically all of his life. He has been in ill health for nine months. He is survived by five daughters, Mrs. David Mowder, Wheeling; Mrs. Irvin F. Kinter, Fairmont; Mrs. Claude Griffith, Mrs. Logan Trader, amd Mrs. H. McWilliams, all of Grafton; two sons, James B. Keener of Fairmont, and A. S. Keener of Grafton, one sister, Mrs. Margaret Utterback of Brownsville, Pa. Funeral services were held in the home of Mrs. H. McWilliams. Interment was in the Philippi cemetery.

This obituary raises yet another question about the interment - George was buried at the Current Cemetery in Taylor County, not at the Philippi Cemetery which is in Barbour County (this would be the county that Lettie's family was from).

So, please weigh in - why are there no death records for any of his wives? Can anyone find them? I have searched the WV Culture site thoroughly, all counties, all dates..   I cannot find anything that fits. Where are his wives buried?    And something I may never know - why did Lettie's children not list the others in the obituary and why did they put her name on his headstone?

Extended Family Friday - The Keeners

2011-01-14T10:34:00.001-05:00

As this post is written, I have been busy weeding through much information that I have received from another found cousin in my Keener line of the family. First, I must tell you that I met this cousin in a chat hosted by the Ancestorville Genealogy Facebook page. If you don't join the chats being held there, you could certainly be missing out!   They have state-focused chats and chances are, if your family has a large presence in a certain state, you may find someone with common research interests.   Such is the case with me and cousin Nancy who I "met" on a recent WV chat.

She has shared much with me already - especially photographs.  She's been researching this family for years and is glad to share her knowledge with me - someone who has not done much on the collateral lines.   Thanks so much Nancy!

Today I highlight her Great Grandfather, my 1st cousin 5x removed; Lewis S. Keener.

Lewis was born in 1841 to Thomas Ullery Keener (aka Ullery Keener; Ulrich Keener) and his wife Sarah Ann Kisner, in Fetterman, a town in now Taylor County WV.    Lewis enlisted as a soldier for the Confederacy on May 13, 1861 and fought for Company A, 25th Infantry Regiment of Virginia and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant on July 9, 1864.     He married Catherine B. Jackson on December 8, 1864, in Abermarle County VA and the couple was listed in the 1880 census for Whitehall, Abermarle, Virginia.   Lewis and his wife had 7 children: James, John, Thomas, Catherine, Mary, Susan and Andrew.    I had not even realized that a very large part of the Keener family had gone to this part of Virginia and a nearby town called Crozet -  assuming (incorrectly of course) that they all remained in Taylor County because I was so focused on my direct line that I've not bothered to see where all the other brothers had wandered off to.

Nancy shared the photo below with me, of Lewis and his brother James Alfred Keener and their wives.

Photo privately held

Yet again, it pays to be a part of the larger genealogy community on the web. Without reaching out to others, making connections and joining groups or chats, we cannot corroborate or share our research fully with others.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-12T12:59:00.000-05:00

Standing: Pauline Keener Harrington b. 1 Jun 1926; d. 26 Jun 1980

Joe Harrington (husband of Pauline)

Vernon Lewis Keener b. 29 Sep 1930; d. 12 Jun 1997

girl: Sally Watkins b. 14 apr 1947; d. 15 Feb 2001

Blackie the dog

John Jerry Keener b. 14 Jul 1942; d. 22 Mar 1983

Sunday's Obituary

2011-01-09T19:39:00.000-05:00

Born Nora Jemima Elizabeth Hott, on Sept. 5th 1873 in Hampshire County WV, she was the daughter of Mary M. Henderson and Samuel William Hott.

On October 31, 1891 she married Benjamin Lee Shanholtz (NO doubt a distant cousin but who's counting?) and had three children; Mandel, Charles, and a daughter named Ida.     I am unaware of what became of this marriage, but do know that she married another man, Raymond Franklin Roles prior to 1909.   From this marriage she had three children; Archer, Edward and a daughter, Virgil.

In 1910 she was living with her husband Raymond and their children in Aquia, Stafford, Virginia.   In 1920 the family was in Providence, Fairfax, Virginia.  In 1930 Nora was living in Washington DC with her sons Edward Roles & Charles Shanholtz and her widowed sister, Sally Anderson.

This is the only photograph that my family has of Nora. She is standing in the photo below. Seated is her sister Sally (my Great Grandmother) and an unidentified child in Sally's lap.    The date of this photo is unknown.

Tombstone Tuesday

2011-01-04T09:36:00.000-05:00

Another stone from the Cemetery In the Woods that I visited this past October.

Susanna J. Keener

Daughter of Abraham Smith Keener and Elizabeth Hume

Susanna would be my 1st cousin 4x removed.

One Year Later

2010-12-21T09:49:00.001-05:00

For the past two weeks or so I have been contemplating what I would write today, on the one year anniversary of my Dad's death. I have been busying myself with trying to not dwell on it, but it's always there in the back of my mind "the day is coming, the day is coming".   While I felt that I really needed to make a tribute, a heartfelt documentation of my feelings, the words just weren't coming.

There are many reasons why this day is so difficult. Christmas is just a few days away, a time of celebration and new life. Yet, today I just don't feel it.   I keep going back to that morning last year and trying to understand why the weather didn't cooperate, why I didn't try harder, why he didn't hold on.   I couldn't be there with him. Knowing my Dad, he probably wanted it just that way.

Today I re post a portion of what I wrote on the first Father's Day I spent without him. Good memories and a lifetime filled with love.

This week has seemed particularly hard for me, our "first" Father's Day without my father is upon us and Monday will be the six-month anniversary of his death. I've been very emotional during the last few days, and the slightest thing brings him to mind.. today it was strawberries, so fragrant and reminiscent of summer... as a child my parents would take us to a local orchard to pick them, I think more ended up in our tummies than in our basket, it's a vivid memory of Dad and caused me to break down right in the produce section of our store. While I started the day a bit weepy, this brought me truly to tears and I barely got through checking out.

Tonight I got to thinking about other memories of him and trying to recall things of my childhood that stood out in my mind. While I of course don't remember much before the age of five or so, I have a few very clear memories of what seem to be very early years.

When I was about four or five I can clearly remember going to a local school carnival while we were visiting family in Massachusetts. While I don't actually recall much about the actual carnival, I do remember Dad leading me through some tall bushes to get in. The school was next door to my grandparents home, the bushes were probably just on the property line, but it felt like an adventure in my youngster mind. Dad would spend $100 on a carnival game to win me a $2 stuffed animal, by the time I was in my teens I had hundreds of them filling my room. I still have a few, I wish I still had them all.

Another early memory of Dad was the building where he worked. My Dad was a Maintenance Manager for a large builder. We lived in a planned community, made up of several mini communities, all of which had their own maintenance department and swimming pool. My Dad worked in an office at the bottom of a high-rise building in our neighborhood. Whenever I was at the office with him I would sneak off and get a ride in the elevator. Problem was that I didn't know how to return to his floor - I must have been pretty young at this point. I would get off the elevator, take in the sights from that floor and then begin to cry and yell for him. I can still hear his voice coming from the upcoming elevator "I'm coming Cindy". He must have had to stop on every floor until he found me.

I could never mention memories of Dad and not mention the music. My Dad was a wonderful musician. He loved country music and could play any instrument that had strings, the harmonica and the piano or keyboard. He had a studio of sorts in our basement where he recorded and on the weekends family and friends would get together and play music, sing and dance together till they couldn't sing anymore... us kids would usually be long sleeping by then, but I can still remember falling to sleep to the sounds of electric guitars, tambourines, and that drum machine that my brother and I loved to play with. When Dad was playing I would stand by, waiting for his instruction on which song to pull out of his book next. He had a black 3-ring binder full of song lyrics... no music, just the lyrics. He could play any song but didn't read music. The sounds of his picking still course through my mind on occasion, and I find myself humming a tune that I've not heard for 20 years.

Since my Mom didn't drive when I was young, Dad was the only driver in our family - another of my earliest memories is visiting the local gas station and always getting a Moon Pie and a Yoohoo drink (when Yoohoo was still in a little glass bottle, not a juice box). Yes, I sat on the front seat of our big gold Pontiac with it's huge doors and vinyl interior... I loved that car and Dad loved Moon Pies.   When Mom had to go to the grocery store we would sit in the parking lot and wait for what seemed like hours - after some time he would begin mumbling "come on Barbara" about every 10 minutes.

Once when I was about 8 Dad was helping me fly a kite behind our house. The wind was great that day and the kite kept going up and up and up.... I had no idea that the string would come right off it's spool at the end and the kite would actually fly away... I also had no idea that my Dad could run that fast. Yes, he caught it. My Dad was my hero.

We had a few ponds in that neighborhood, they were right behind our house and in the winter Dad would always be the one to go check the ice to make sure it was safe for all of us kids.

Being very knowledgeable in building, plumbing and all things in construction, Dad was a great builder of forts. This was especially true when he and Mom purchased a new washer and dryer.. who knew that a couple of cardboard boxes could be assembled together to look like a castle and last for months in our basement? My Dad could build anything and fix anything, and he did all his life.

I remember weekends at a campground, being a free spirit in the woods, playing and having a great time... and long hours at the causeway fishing into the wee hours of the morning just because we could (and he couldn't help it :-) Later there would be a boat and long sunny days on the water, and a stop at a local country store for a souvenir, some candy and a soda. I had a wonderful childhood. We spent most all summer weekends at that spot, which is where my Dad loved to be and where he and my Mom eventually bought a home.

My Dad taught me how to shoot. Yes, guns; .22, .357, rifles, handguns.. you name it, he showed me how to shoot it. While I've not even held a weapon in years, I began shooting at about the age of 10 and absolutely loved it.

When I was about 13 years old I tried to pierce my ears - yes, all by myself. I thought Dad would pass out when I walked down the stairs with a needle in my earlobe, asking him if he could push it through the rest of the way - I just couldn't get a good grip. Dad patiently led me to the powder room, helped me hold ice on and finished piercing it, then he did the other one.   I think of him every time I fiddle with my earrings.

In my late teens Dad took me to buy my first car (a pickup truck), took me to my first football game (Redskins).   19 years ago on Father's Day I told my Dad that I was expecting his first Grandchild. Last year I didn't make it down to see him on Father's Day, although something told me that I really should. Now, a year later I'm left with a bit of guilt over that, but his memory and his love surround me everyday and the memories of my childhood will always remain with me. My Dad was a great person. He was always fair and caring, liked to have fun, and certainly a pushover when it came to his kids and his grandchildren.

During the last 15 years my memories of Dad include fishing, trips on the boat and the adventures at his home on the Bay. My gosh how he loved that place. He would take that boat out and fish all day and not catch one thing... he didn't even care and would go out and do it all again the next day if he could find a willing passenger. We would sit on the wall in front of their place until the wee hours of the morning, talking, fishing and just enjoying each others' company. One night after all had gone inside, he and I were there together at about 2am. Nothing much was biting and we were just enjoying the night when it started to rain. After a few moments and drip drops I turned to him and said "Dad, it's raining", to which he said "It's just a passing shower"... and there we sat, in the middle of the night in the rain.. just for the fish.

When I was a young adult, every year Dad and I went together to the local mall for a Cinnabon, Mocha Latte and Christmas shopping. It was a day to find gifts for my Mom.   Dad absolutely loved Christmas and loved giving gifts, but he hated shopping... the Cinnabons made it all worth while. In the car we would listen to Charlotte Church belt out a wonderful Christmas tune and we really enjoyed our day together. Silent Night is a song that I can hardly listen to now, bringing me almost to the point of sobbing. Looking back, I imagine that Christmas was a lot of work for Mom, since I'm sure that Dad didn't do any of it without the Cinnabons. I do know that on Christmas Eve the two of them would make drinks and close themselves in their bedroom, only emerging when a supply was needed or to get drink refills. They would wrap presents together until the early morning hours. Christmas at our house was magical.

My Mom wrote a Christmas tribute to him a few days ago that I will post here:
Christmas will never lose its glow and excitement for me… I know I’ll get that same warm feeling each time I see the decorations in the stores, the tug on my heart at the grand children’s excitement of visiting Santa, or unwrapping all the familiar and much cherished decorations that we collected in our forty some years together.
The many Christmas Eves wrapping presents, having a drink and listing to Christmas Carols, we loved those moments together. This year listening to Christmas carols, well it’s hard... they always did make me melancholy and weepy. All these memories I have of past Christmases shared with family and friends.
Christmas will never lose its glow and excitement for me…but this year it comes with a deep loneliness because your not here to share it with us.
Merry Christmas Don, I love you and miss you.

This won't be our first Christmas without Dad, but somehow it certainly feels like it. I love you and miss you much Daddy, you're always in my heart.

Military Monday - Home on Leave

2010-12-20T13:44:00.001-05:00

Today, in honor of my Dad who we lost one year ago tomorrow, I post this photo of him for Military Monday.

This picture was taken in May of 1957 while he was home on leave from the Marines. He is standing in the drug store where his mother worked.

Donald F. Keener b. 08/26/1938 d. 12/21/2009

Miss you every day Daddy!

Wordless Wednesday - Christmas 1958

2010-12-15T07:00:00.001-05:00

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories: Dec 9 - Grab Bag

2010-12-09T11:09:00.000-05:00

Today's post in the Calendar of Christmas Memories is the author's choice.

I've missed a few days of posting in this series so I'd like to go back a visit those (and possibly re-visit others).

On Dec 1 we were tasked with writing about the Christmas Tree. While I don't recall my grandparents trees directly, I have found several photos of my paternal grandmother's (Edna Keener) home during Christmas and the tree was different in every one, so obviously real. In my home growing up we had a fake tree from the time I was very young. Now I have to talk about the tinsel - we "hung" the tinsel - using a few strands on every branch. Yes, it was a very tedious process, but the tree was not covered with it and it was beautiful. So I ask, is tinsel meant to be tossed "at" or carefully placed so it hangs gently on the branches, appearing to be ice?

While we're on the subject of Grandma.. why did she hang paper bells around? The large one in this photo appears to be more of a wedding decoration.

Obviously Grandma was pretty popular - receiving MANY Christmas cards which she hung all around the fireplace (top photo) and even on the windows (photo above).

I have traditionally had only one tree in my home, my parents only had one tree in their home. My sister-in-law had 4 trees in her home last year - each a different theme, in different areas of the house and some even a different color (one was white for instance). This year, since my 'little' children are a bit bigger and much better about fiddling around with the Christmas tree, I decided that I wanted to put another in my home's foyer with some other decorations. Not having the budget to purchase a 10' narrow tree, I opted to buy a 5' and decorate it with simple red and gold, much like the decorations I have on my mantle. This added a bit more holiday to that area of the house whereas most is in the family room and kitchen area.

One day this week we wrote about ornaments. Today while reading blog posts of other writers I came across many stories of Christmases past and I also thought of some old friends, which brought to mind an ornament that I received from a co-worker and his wife many years ago. Ornaments are odd things in the way they make you recall - for some reason, you really never forget that person, even if you don't see them for 15 years. So to Sheri and Anthony - while you many not have realized it at the time, you were an inspiration to me back then in the way that you lived your lives, and even now when I read your blog. Thanks for sharing with me and being the people you are! Have a Blessed Holiday!

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories: Dec 8 - Christmas Cookies

2010-12-08T09:19:00.000-05:00

I'm sure that all of these holiday goodies will be remembered by my own kids, but most of all the memories of cold days spent in the kitchen together making them.

Tombstone Tuesday - The Trees Are Winning

2010-12-07T21:17:00.000-05:00

Last week I posted about a visit to Grafton, Taylor, West Virginia. While there I visited the cemetery of my ancestors, the Keener Cemetery.

I noted that it was located in the woods and while it's very serene and a beautiful place, it's also evident that the trees are taking over and many of the headstones are damaged and almost illegible at this point.

These two stones (one in the foreground and the other on the opposite side of the tree) belong to my 4th Great Grandparents, George and Margaret (Miller) Keener. Obviously buried side-by-side, the tree has grown up between them and in time has broken both of their stones off.

Margaret Miller Keener b. 1792, d. 18 Apr 1860

George Keener b. 1772, d. 22 May 1863

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories: Dec 4 - Christmas Cards

2010-12-04T09:23:00.000-05:00

Christmas cards are wonderful things. I love finding a pile of them in my mailbox usually beginning during the early weeks of December. We hang ours on a pantry door in the kitchen, enjoying them through the month and adding to them everytime another greeting comes in the mail.    In my parents home we did a similar thing, there was a louvered door in their kitchen and the cards easily slipped through it, overlapping each other and filling the door throughout the season.

Now that I have my own family, I do send cards every year to close friends and family. My Mom always sent cards - when I was old enough to help I seem to remember hundreds of them - possibly I just didn't want to help and the task seemed endless :)    My own family now sends about 50-60 cards a year.

What do you do with them when Christmas is over?   I'm sure that there are some who pack them away every year and others who simply keep any photos sent and drop the cards in the trash. Thankfully, my great-grandmother Margaret McCann Bellew did not do this and kept some very special Christmas greetings sent from her husband John Bellew while they were apart - she in England with two children and her husband here in the US building their new life.

While all of these cards are not what we see today in typical Christmas design, they are beautiful and contained hand-written notes of Christmas greetings from her husband and a son that went ahead with him to the US.

To Wife and Children
25th Dec 1923

Having finally joined he husband in the US, Margaret had the terrible misfortune of leaving one of her sons (John) in England. This must have torn at her heart for her entire life. When he was older, he sent Christmas greetings from England to his parents:

After seeing these cards in Margaret's things, I knew that she loved them and I will hang onto them and preserve them as best I can for future generations.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories: Dec 3 - Tree Ornaments

2010-12-03T09:31:00.001-05:00

Christmas is a magical time - excitement, anticipation and many enjoyed festivities go along with the season, making it a wonderful time to share with family. Nothing gets that excitement started like decorating the house and putting up the tree. I remember as a child growing up, after the Thanksgiving turkey was put to leftovers and the pumpkin pie was gone, it was time to decorate for Christmas!

The tree trimming was my primarily Mom's job, but we all enjoyed looking through the ornaments, straightening the branches of our tree and helping to hang them all. In our family every child got a new ornament every year. My parents carefully put our names and the year on the ornament somewhere. In those earlier years our tree didn't really have a "theme" but was more of what I would call a children's tree. After all, Christmas was all about the children. There were a few sets of glass ornaments that my parents had purchased over the years and we always hung those as well. Over time, there were less and less of them, as various ones got broken. I have two or three such ornaments from those glass bobbles that belonged to my parents when they first started their lives together. These are among my most cherished ornaments and I put them on my tree every year.

Tombstone Tuesday - A Cemetery in The Woods

2010-11-30T08:44:00.000-05:00

I have wanted to visit the Keener Cemetery in Grafton, WV for some time and in October I finally had the opportunity to do so. While I was only able to "visit" for about 10 minutes, it felt wonderful and yet sad to finally be there among the ancestors that I've spent so many years chasing down. My Dad and I often talked about going out there - I really wish he was still here so I could tell him all about it.

The cemetery is on a piece of property that has long since left the hands of the family, but the couple who now live there are glad to share their driveway and directed me up a path in the woods. Upon finding it, I wondered how much longer it will be able to be found...

Many stones are broken, having given way to trees that have grown up among them. But in these woods are my 3rd great-grandparents and two sets of 4th great-grandparents, in addition to many other relations that I have yet to figure out.

There are other researchers of this family who have worked hard over the years to document the burials here. I believe they have documented 75+ and many of them return to clean up and clear away the overgrowth. Its a wonderful thing to know that others visit these woods for the same reason I do, and I hope to return soon, when I've got a bit more time to spend.

Military Monday - DD214, Report of Separation

2010-11-29T23:10:00.000-05:00

When a soldier leaves the military and has had active duty (or active duty training for more than 90 days), a DD214 is generated showing his military history. During WWII, this for was referred to as WD AGO 53 or a Report of Separation. For US military researchers these documents are available from the Archives. On their main page look under the "Most Requested" box and choose military record. The Archives site states that the DD214 can be obtained for free by a soldier or next-of-kin to the soldier. I was interested in getting another copy of my Grandfathers because as you can see, his appeared to have been carried around in his wallet for 30 years.

This form can be ordered on line using the Archives vet rec system. One warning - there may be additional paperwork to fill out after your request has been received, get as much info as you can on that soldier before applying, some of which may be available right there on the archives site.

If you go to their AAD (Access Archival Databases) search area of the National Archives site and enter your ancestor's name in the search box, all databases that the name appears in will come up. If you'd rather target a specific battle or time of duty, select the military campaign your ancestor fought in first (for instance, I chose WWII) and on the next screen there is a search terms box as well. On this second screen I entered BELLEW, WILLIAM. This gave me results for where his name appeared in their available electronic databases for WWII. In this case, I chose "View Records" for the Electronic Army Serial Number database, which brought up seven results

My Grandfather being the last on this list, I chose his record and the following screen came up which gave me a bit more information necessary to complete the request for his documents.

Check all the available databases for your ancestors, you may just have a vet in there somewhere. Happy Hunting!

I Think We Need "The Locator" Troy Dunn

2010-11-17T10:17:00.001-05:00

As I trudge along with my research, exploring new connections, finding cousins and just enjoying the hunt one nagging question keeps coming up with my Mom and Grandmother.. "What ever happened to Hugh?   Can you find out where he went? Have you gotten any leads?"    the answer is always the same...   "No, I can't find a thing on this man!"

I have been posting to message boards, family forums, name specific areas on the web... n o t h i n g!   I do regular searches, hoping to somehow magically find him in the databases.... n o t h i n g!!!   great big zero, zilch... did this man exist? I've been looking for 15 years!

So, as fall is here and I've again been looking, maybe posting AGAIN to the message boards and forums, the question remains...   What happend to Hugh Bellew?   As you can see on the right of my blog, I've all but begged for someone to help.  Someone, somewhere must have come across this fellow. A search of the web produces lots of hits - most of them my message board postings from over the years. He is surely passed on by now... but who knows?    Born in 1916, he'd be 94 this year.   How does someone just drop off the radar?   The family last heard from him in the 50s. To their knowledge he wasn't married... maybe he never had any children - again, who knows?   Maybe he changed his name. Maybe he was killed in an accident and didn't have identification. Maybe he left the country and we're not looking in the right places. Maybe...   we need "The Locator", do you think Troy could find him? Aside from hiring a private eye, we're at a loss.

Extended Family Friday - For My Leeming Cousin

2010-11-12T11:24:00.000-05:00

I recently have been following some leads in the public trees on Ancestry. Just this week I made a connection with someone who is related to my Leeming family. Apparently this cousin's tree had been created by a friend and put on the site. While I've not spoken to this cousin directly yet, I know that they'll be visiting my blog and so I wanted to post this photograph, taken around 1911, of our common Leeming ancestors.

I didn't scan this photo myself, so I don't have a larger one to offer at this point, but most all of the folks in this photograph have been identified by living family members so I wanted to share it with you - my new found 3rd cousin 1x removed.

We are unaware of the occasion of this photo, but it appears to be the coming together of two families so it could possibly be a photo taken at an engagement party for my Great Grandparents, Sarah Roe and Joseph Leeming.

First of interest is the older gentleman on the right, sitting with the young lad standing in front of him - this would be our common ancestor, Mr. Walter Leeming, b. 1860 in Dewsbury, Yorkshire England, d. 1925 in Easthampton MA.   The lady in black standing in the far right of the photo next to him is his wife, Martha Ann Rayner Leeming b. 1861 in Yorkshire England, d. after 1920 in US.

This couple was married in 1882 in Yorkshire and left England for Canada sometime after the birth of their first son John b.1883. They had four more children while in Canada (Sarah Hanna b. 1884 d. 1886; Joseph b. 1886 d. 1950; Walter Frederick b. 1889, d. 1890; and George b. 1892). The couple and family then moved to the US in 1899 and had another child in abt. 1904, Hannah. Three of these children are in this photograph.

Standing directly behind Walter is one of his sons (and my new cousin's great great grandfather) John Leeming, and next to him is his wife Helena. I am told by my grandmother that Helena was from Germany and had a very heavy accent.   This couple's son (and my new cousin's great grandfather) is Walter Leeming, b 1908 - he's the young boy in the photo standing in the front with the Grandfather that he was named for. That's three generations of "new cousin's" family in this photo.  The young lady sitting on the ground on the far right is the youngest of John's siblings, Hanna or Annie.

The man in the left side, standing between two women is my great grandfather, Joseph William Leeming to the right of him is his wife, Sarah Hanna Roe, and the lady on the other side of him is her mother, Jane Fountain Roe.   The older man sitting on this side of the picture is George Roe, father of Sarah and also Rachel (the young lady kneeling on the far left).

The two people in the very back of the photo are not identified. It was thought that possibly it was George Leeming, however he was hospitalized for most of his life and would not have attended this function. It is possible that they are also relatives, but to date we have not figured out who they are.

Citizenship - The Final Step

2010-10-22T13:52:00.000-04:00

About a month ago I explored the Naturalization Indexes on Ancestry and wrote a post about my findings for my 2nd Great Grandfather, Walter Leeming. After arriving in the U.S. in 1899 by way of Canada, Walter filed his Declaration of Intention in 1901. Then on 28 May 1904 he submitted his Petition for Naturalization along with his son John Edward Leeming. They were both assigned a court date of June 11, 1904.

John Edward was the only other member of Walter's immediate family to apply for citizenship, because all other members of the family became citizens when Walter did. His wife would receive derivative citizenship from her naturalized husband, and all other children still living at the time were under the age of 18 would also become citizens.

Bringing witnesses of their choosing (to testify that they met residence and character requirements), Walter and his son John became citizens of the United States on June 11, 1904. Following are Walter's final naturalization documents, you can barely make out the date stamp in the first sentence.

The witnesses appeared to testify that Walter and John Edward had indeed been in the country for the last 5 years and that they were not any of the sort of people listed in all the fine print above - that they are men of good moral character.

From these documents I can confirm Walter's birth date, the town he is living in at the time, and his approximate date of arrival in the U.S. something that I have not been able to confirm to date. I had previously known that the family spent some time in Canada, and arrived prior to the 1900 census, but could not find a border crossing for them - now I can narrow down a date range to search. I can also research the witnesses to find how they fit in his life - were they neighbors (the street addresses were not provided for them) or co-workers? As is often the case when we request documents, they lead to more areas of research.

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-10-16T10:00:00.002-04:00

To acknowledge my blogging friends who've come by recently and left me comments - Thanks so much for reading!!

Michelle at The Turning of Generations
Carol at Reflections From the Fence (and others)
Nancy at My Ancestors and Me
Heather at Nutfield Genealogy
Jo at Images Past
Jody at Family History Research by Jody
Magpie's Mumblings
Cathy at Detour Through History (and others)
Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog (and others)

Here's a list of some of the blogs I added to my reader recently

Digging Down East
Maryland to Kentucky
Saving Stories

Treasure Chest Thursday

2010-10-14T09:18:00.000-04:00

Yet another pin today, from Grandma's Jewelry Box. I chose this becuase it seemed very odd to me, and after doing a bit of research on it and discovering its origin, I've no idea why Grandma had it or where she got it. Grandma loved the flea market and yard sales, picking up oddities and this very well could have been in a mix of costume jewelry that she purchased.

This pin measures 1/2" square, and is the insignia for the Phi Kappa Sigma International Fraternity. This all-male fraternity was started in 1850 at the University of Pennsylvania and today has over 50 active chapters in the U.S. and Canada. Similar pins I've found on line have some type of stamps or engraving on the reverse, this one however does not. Could Grandma have known a member of this fraternity? I will probably never know.

Treasure Chest Thursday

2010-10-07T12:59:00.001-04:00

Today I share a pin from Grandma's Jewelry Box - how fitting it is!

Citizenship - Petition for Naturalization

2010-10-01T14:45:00.008-04:00

In two previous posts I discussed the U.S. Naturalization Indexes, and the filing of Declaration of Intention to become a United States citizen.

Once a declaration is filed, the person must then file a petition to become a citizen after the residence requirements are complete, having lived in the U.S. for 5 years or more, unless they came to the U.S. as an under-age child.

My great-great grandfather Walter Leeming and his oldest son John whose documents I've been discussing both filed petitions for naturalization on the same day, 28 May 1904. At that time they were given a hearing date to appear in court for the final step.

The next step is their court hearing, in this case on 11 June 1904, along with witnesses chosen by the petitioners to give testimony as proof of their residency and character.

Treasure Chest Thursday - Pop's Songs and His Typewriter

2010-09-30T16:50:00.003-04:00

My paternal grandfather, Leonard C. Anderson, loved to write songs and poetry. One song was actually put to music and released (that's a story for another post).

Most of his writings are on plain white paper, written in tiny pencil writing - there are at least a hundred of them. Unfortunately many of them are not dated, but then there are some which are and these could be very telling as to what was happening in his world during the days listed.

Among the pile I also came across some that were typed and behold, we also have the typewriter! This typewriter was made by Underwood at my best guess sometime in the 1920s or early 1930s (honestly I've not done much research on it). It has it's own case which snaps on and has a little slide latch on the front, and at one time had a handle for easy carrying.

Military Monday - The Air Medal & Oak Leaf Cluster

2010-09-27T14:26:00.001-04:00

I have written often about my grandfather William Patrick Bellew's time in WWII and my fight to get replacements of his medals from the military. I have been doing a bit of research on those medals - their criteria specifically, that I wanted to share, and show the documents received when they were awarded to him

This is my grandfather's air medal, awarded on 29 March 1944.
When the Air Medal was awarded to him, he received a slip of paper which he sent home to my Grandmother. Here's the document:

A couple of questions came up when I found this (isn't that always the way for us?) I knew that he was part of the 331st bomb squadron, yet someone crossed that out and put "333" just below it. Also, at the top right corner it states "for five missions" and the "five" is crossed out and in the details it states that he is awarded this medal "For exceptionally meritorious achievement while participating in seperate bomber combat missions over enemy occupied continental Europe". While researching his military history I had found others who explained to me that yes, these were given after five missions, but others were awarded for the "exceptionally meritorious achievement" as well. Having his mission diary, we know for sure that he flew his fifth mission on 23 March 1944, so this could have been awarded either way, but I especially love the comments "The courage, coolness and skill displayed by this Enlisted Man..." My Granddad was brave and cool!

The little Oak Leaf Cluster on the ribbon is for a second award - given instead of another full medal. Here's the documents for the Oak Leaf Clusters he received :

Citizenship - Declaration of Intention

2010-09-24T10:28:00.000-04:00

In my previous post I showed three cards for family members who had filed or partially filed for naturalization in the U.S. Noting that the card of George Roe wasn't complete I found that he had only filed his declaration of intention or "first papers" and had not followed through with the process of becoming naturalized.

A declaration of intention states that the person wishes to become a citizen of the United States and renounces all allegiance to any other foreign country.

Walter Leeming filed his first papers on 6th July 1901 at the district court in Central Falls, Rhode Island. The document doesn't give very much information other than his city and county of residence at the time, in this case Lincoln, Providence, Rhode Island. Because his son John Edward Leeming came to the U.S. as a minor, he was not required to file the declaration of intention.

Here is Walter's declaration:

These declarations are typically filed two or more years prior to the actual proof of residency and the finalization of citizenship.

Exploring the U.S. Naturalization Records Indexes

2010-09-21T17:17:00.000-04:00

I recently began searching a bit in the U.S. Naturalization Records Indexes on Ancestry. I was somewhat expecting not to find my ancestors in the index, simply because it was previously believed that many of them never went through the process of becoming naturalized citizens. Yet again it's been proven - don't believe everything you hear!

I first searched for Walter Leeming, my 2nd great grandfather who I knew came to the US (via Canada) in 1899, according to the 1900 US census.

I found Walter's card easily and then began to search for the other members of his family, some of whom were born in England, others in Canada.

I quickly found another record, this one for Walter's oldest son, John Edward Leeming, who was also born in England. Note the dates on these two records are the same. Father and son became citizens together, with the same witnesses.

I next turned my attention to another 2nd great grandfather, George Roe. With many spelling variations (Row, Rowe, Wroe) on various records, I had much trouble finding George in passenger arrival lists but managed to find him in this index without a problem.

Note that George's card appears to be incomplete. After speaking with a nice employee at the NARA in Waltham, MA, I learned that George filed his declaration of intention (also called First Papers) in the Albany County Court on 8 August 1898, and his petition in Adams on 30 Mar 1901. He did not appear in court to complete the process.

The NARA offers copies of the naturalization documents for $7.50. I have ordered copies of the documents for Walter and John and will post them in a follow-up later this week.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-15T09:43:00.000-04:00

Have some more dad!

William Patrick Bellew (b.1917 d.1975) and son Jack

Sunday's Obituary - William P. Bellew

2010-09-12T18:44:00.000-04:00

Usually obituaries can hold a treasure of information, and this one is no exception. However, it also raised a question - one to which our family still has no answer - The Arlington Question. I wrote about this when I began wondering why my Grandfather, a decorated war hero, wasn't buried there. I have recently asked again about this and my Grandmother replied "They told me that he had to be killed in action to be buried there." If you refer to the Arlington National Cemetery website requirements for burial, you will clearly see that this isn't the case, at least not today. I haven't any idea what the requirements for burial at Arlington were in 1975, but have a feeling that they don't differ much.

I have tried many times to find the records from the funeral home, in hopes that they would provide some clue. The funeral home was purchased by other funeral homes over the years, changing hands more than four times, each time being purchased by a larger company and none of the locations seem to know what became of the records from 1975. I started seeking them when I found this announcement of his death in the papers that my Grandmother has saved. This announcement clearly says what should have been true... but I may never know why it didn't happen.

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-09-11T10:45:00.000-04:00

A very special "Thanks" to everyone who has come by and left comments for me this week!

Jo at Scottish Genealogist
Ginger Smith at Genealogy by Ginger's Blog
Nancy at My Ancestors and Me
Magpie's Mumblings
Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog
Doreen from Ohio the Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay
Carol at Reflections From The Fence
Robin at Saving Stories

There are MANY MANY great genealogy & family history blogs out there! Here's a few that I added to my reader this week that are worth checking out...

Finding Eliza
Chasing Rainbows
Daily Genealogy Transcriber
Food. Family. Ephemera.
I Will Remember
Restore The Ancestors Project
The Symbolic Past

Treasure Chest Thursday

2010-09-09T14:23:00.000-04:00

As promised a few weeks ago. Today's treasure is an item from Grandma's jewelry box.

There are two of this item that are very similar, and I found out why. There was a time that my grandmother's brother, Charles Anderson, was making jewelry - beaded necklaces to be exact. So today's treasure is two-fold; they belonged to my Grandma and they were made by my Uncle.

Wordless Wednesday - Babes In A Washtub

2010-09-08T11:41:00.001-04:00

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-09-04T13:13:00.000-04:00

Again several weeks in the making. This post is to acknowledge those who have come by my blog and left comments to posts recently. I had a great response for my scrapbook, submitted to the 96th Carnival of Genealogy at Creative Gene, I want to thank everyone for their kind words for my little project, and thanks to everyone for reading!

Kathy at I Will Remember
Hummer at Branching Out Through The Years
Michelle Goodrum at The Turning of Generations
Carol at Reflections From the Fence
Dorene from Ohio at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay
Joan at Roots 'n' Leaves
footnoteMaven
Lisa Wallen Logsdon at Genealojournal
Cynthia Shenette at Heritage Zen:
Greta Kohl at Greta's Genealogy Bog
Heather Rojo at Nutfield Genealogy
Ginger Smith at Genealogy by Ginger's Blog
Magpie's Mumblings
A Rootdigger
Cindy at In My Life
Mary at Mary's Musings

Check out these great blogs that I've added to my reader recently!

Daily Genealogy Transcriber
For Your Family Story
Genealogic Abounds
Johnston Genes

Photo Booth Pics

2010-08-31T21:22:00.004-04:00

Earlier this year I undertook the huge task of scanning most all the photographs that belonged to my grandmother Edna Keener and her sister Pauline Keener Harrington.

One thing that I quickly noticed was the stack of various of small photographs, many of which were school photos of children in the family, but not all of them were. I noted that some pictures had strange backgrounds, or that the people were looking "not ready" for their snapshot.   These pictures were from photo booths and what a treasure they are!

I recently saw a post from a fellow blogger entitled In Strips of Four by Nancy at My Ancestors and Me.  While I too had thought of doing a post related to the photo booth pictures I had found in my collection, she beat me to it!

So here's my collection of photo booth pictures. Taken at what appears to be various stages of my Aunt's and Uncle's late teen / early twenties. I don't have many from the same strip, only a couple of my uncle that appear to be from the same day.    In an age where we simply hold a camera in front of us and get an instant picture that we can take again and again, it makes me smile to see them change poses in what must have been a few seconds.   Some of them even appear as if they were "made up" for the picture taking.

Mildred Seek Anderson - my great aunt

The following photos are all of my Aunt Virginia Anderson. Virginia was born in 1929. I haven't any clue when any of these were taken, but obviously she loved to visit the booth and share the photos with her sisters.

This one is of my Uncle Charles Anderson. Charles was born in 1930.

These two are of my Aunt Pauline Anderson Harrington. Pauline was born in 1926 and it's obvious that these two photos were taken sometime apart.

I've got one of my Grandmother, Edna Reba Keener. Edna was born in 1924.

Finally, there are two of my Uncle Russell Garner Keener. Russell was born in 1927. These are the only two that I've got from the same strip.

Treasure Chest Thursday - A rock?

2010-08-19T09:01:00.000-04:00

What's so special about a rock?      Why do we have it?

This rock is special. It belonged to a 6 year old boy, who left his home country in 1923 with his father.   Of all the things he might have brought with him across the ocean, we have this rock.

This rock belonged to my Grandfather, William Patrick Bellew.   When he left England his mother and two brothers remained behind for a few years. When I hold it I imagine a young boy, with it in his pocket... this rather large rock from home. Boarding a huge ship for another country, and holding onto somthing to remember the place he came from.  What surprises me more is that he kept it all his life and my Grandmother has passed it to my mom.

A young boy's "treasure", and now ours.

A Late "Thank You"

2010-08-18T15:55:00.000-04:00

I've been on a bit of a summer break for the last month or so and wanted to just take a minute to say Thank You! to Jasia over at Creative Gene for choosing me as the featured author for the recent edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I have received so many kind emails, comments and remarks about my scrapbook pages and to everyone I say "Thanks so much!".

The summer is ending soon and the kids will all be back in school next week - I don't know whether to jump for joy or cry :-) In the meantime, I've been thinking a lot about different posts that I want to do in the future and getting my photos together for the usual weekly themed posts. I am so looking forward to getting back into posting on a more regular basis.

Thanks again everyone for your kind words!

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-07-24T11:42:00.001-04:00

Several weeks in the making, this shout out is to acknowledge those who have come by and left comments for me recently. Thanks so much to everyone for reading!

sister sheri at The Leaking Window
A Rootdigger
Michelle Robillard at Call Me Shell
Renate at Into the LIGHT
Magpie's Mumblings
Greta Kohl at Greta's Genealogy Bog
Astrid at Of Trolls and Lemons
Maureen at The Photo Detective
Nolichucky Roots
Lori E. at Stories Of My Ancestors
Lindalee at Flipside

Following are some blogs that I've recently added to my reading list:

Family Forest Blog
Calling All Cousins
Mary Jane's Genes
Spirits Of The Old

Thanks to everyone for reading and following!

Treasure Chest Thursday

2010-07-22T14:00:00.003-04:00

Treasures come in many forms. Most adults think of treasures as items of great monetary value.. that is, most adults who don't have some attachment to everything and anything that came from those before us - I often wonder if all genealogists or family historians aren't pack-rats in this way.

Kids are a bit different, especially in their younger years - a treasure can be anything from a rock collection, a precious flower given to Mommy, shells found on the beach, or a big box of costume jewelry to dig through on a rainy afternoon.

Today I show a box such as this, overflowing with such treasures. This box belonged to my Grandmother and the kids in our family have, over the past 15 or so years, enjoyed visiting it again and again to dig, discover, and try on all of Grandma's "treasures". After looking through it again recently, I have a new found appreciation for Grandma's style and will be presenting some of the items from it in the coming weeks.

John & Margaret McCann Bellew Family Scrapbook

2010-07-22T10:00:00.003-04:00

I previously posted a few photos of this family scrapbook which I made for my Mother back in 2008, and another for my Uncle this year. I wanted to share it again for the Carnival of Genealogy: Scrapbooking Your Family History. The first book has been added to since it was first made, because of additional tidbits or photos found on any given person, and making changes and additions are easy enough to do with traditional paper scrapbooks.

When I began documenting my Bellew line, I was intrigued by the story of my Great-Grandparents, and their voyages to the US, the heartbreak of losing a son in WWII, and what became of the others. Armed with the information and a few photos, a scrapbook was born. The very first page was an introduction to the story, including a copy of the marriage certificate of John & Margaret McCann Bellew. The rest of the story just fell into place from there.

I started with their journey - passenger lists, photos of where they departed, a postcard of the ship and correspondence between John & Margaret during their time apart

Two pages followed, showing census records, photos from the mills, city directories, and churches where the family attended Mass.

I also created a page for each of them individually, giving information on their parents, their place of birth, death etc.

I then created pages for each of their sons. Some had more than others, depending on the information available to put into the book. My Grandfather, William Bellew had the most pages of course (9 in total), and I included all information I could find on each of his three brothers.

This was a very rewarding project in two ways; it brought life to all the documents and the story they can tell, and it's something that can be passed down to later generations of the family.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-21T15:55:00.000-04:00

Keener Brothers

Donald, Vernon & Jerry

Rockville, Maryland

1946

Tombstone Tuesday - Visit to a non-connected cemetery

2010-07-21T00:22:00.000-04:00

While I've got ties to colonial period Maryland, I've not found any family in St. Mary's County (just yet anyway). I visited the area recently and we stopped by a cemetery at the Trinity Episcopal Church, which is right next to the (replica) state house in St. Mary's City. It was a hot day, I mean EXTREMELY hot and humid, but we wandered around the old cemetery for a bit.. doesn't everyone love to do that?

Of course I didn't photograph the entire cemetery, but will visit again and 'gather' more headstones, which I will add to Find A Grave.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-07T22:03:00.000-04:00

Military Monday - What the heck is this thing and where did it come from?

2010-07-05T11:22:00.002-04:00

I found something this weekend - something that doesn't make any sense but a very interesting item indeed. This item was in my Dad's things, and from what my Mom recollects, he said it was his father's. Dad was told sometime ago that it was from someone in his family, but who that was, we have no idea.

On one side it appears this way - with the year of 1813 at the bottom...

The flip side looks like this, with another year -1939 at the bottom and (gasp) a swastika (the official emblem of the Nazi Party) in the center.

I've done VERY LITTLE research on this item, but thought it was a great find and wanted to share it today. From what I've read during the weekend, it's called the Iron Cross and was a German military award during WWII. There are many different variations of it, I believe this one to be the Iron Cross - 2nd Class, an award for bravery in battle, or other military contribution on the battlefield.

Now for the mystery - my Dad's father did not fight in WWII, so how did he get this item? Who did it belong to and where on earth did they get it? These questions remain to be researched.

Treasure Chest Thursday - Postcards From The Past

2010-07-01T15:00:00.000-04:00

Something recently found in my Dad's things - a postcard from someone seemingly named "Dora" as written here, a cousin of my Great Grandmother Sallie Hott Anderson.

I had never come across a cousin named Dora Henderson in my research and this of course sent me investigating who this could be.   Sallie's mother's maiden name was Mary Henderson, so I started with her family - this may be a first cousin to Sallie.   Mary had 4 brothers that I knew of, but I had not researched their families in detail. After finding two of them and coming up with nothing I turned my attention to Robert Henderson, born abt. 1861 in West Virginia. I could not find a marriage record for Robert on the on WV vitals site so I turned to the census records in search of Dora. I found a Dora E - age 15 in 1920 with Robert and Minnie Henderson. Living in the same town that I know this family to be from. But Dora was listed as a son. So I then looked at 1910 and found the children of this couple listed as Benjamin, Lottie, Emma, May and Dorie - age 5 (again listed as a son). I know at this point I have the correct family as I also have a postcard here from his sister Lottie.    So what I thought was a postcard from a little girl, turned out to be from a little boy, and it was written around 1910. A check of the births for Hampshire county I found a son Dorey Henderson born to Robert in 1905.

Obviously this card appears to have been written for him, and it reveals another puzzle - he mentions playing with a little sister, who I have yet to identify. In 1910 there were no younger sisters in the home with Dorey, and I have not (in the past few hours) found a death or birth record to verify who this child was.

The other post card from Lottie appears to have been written in the same handwriting. Lottie would have been 13 at the time this postcard was written - possibly she penned both of them. I'll post hers another time.  In the meantime, can anyone out there make out what the card above says after "... I play with my little sister _______ baby ________ cousin"

Madness Monday: My Foster Care Frustration - Can Anyone Help?

2010-06-28T10:08:00.001-04:00

I'm mad...   yes, frustrated and going mad!

For some time I've been attempting to find out about the time that my father spent in foster care in Frederick County Maryland.   He was very young, but had vivid memories of starting school, knew what school he attended, and even somewhat remembered the last name of the family that he stayed with for 3-4 years. With these clues, we know the years to be from abt. 1942/3 - 1945/6.    My frustration comes from finding out why he was placed in foster care, and no one seems to have the records for him.    First I tried the offices of CPS where his family was living at the time (Washington D.C.), they kindly sent him a letter stating that they could find no records for him.     Then I tried to find out something from the offices in Frederick County where he was placed - very helpful folks, but because he was in care there, they had no records of why he was placed.     If children were placed in foster care, they often went off to the country to live with a family, in this case he and his brother Vernon were placed about 65 miles from home.  While he was still living, we went through the process of attempting to get his records and no one seemed to have them.   We are unsure of the circumstances around why he was removed, and at what exact age - this is the information he always wanted.

So, to anyone who might read - any ideas? Has anyone tried to get foster care records and how did they go about it?  What offices should I contact next?

Tombstone Tuesday

2010-06-22T08:44:00.001-04:00

I received an email this morning that another wonderful volunteer from Find A Grave uploaded this photo for one of my requests. This is the headstone of my cousin Vernon Lewis Keener, Jr.

Thanks to all the Find A Grave volunteers out there!

The First Father's Day

2010-06-18T23:29:00.001-04:00

If you've read my blog for a while you already know that I lost my Dad this past December.   Nothing can describe the pain I felt, and while I'm sure that it gets better, there are times that it gets worse.   People speak of the year of "firsts", meaning the first important dates without the loved one. For us, the first of our "firsts" was Christmas, just 4 days after his passing.  While that was truly very difficult, it seems that we were so wrapped up in making plans and trying to get through the holiday that we didn't have time to dwell on it, although I realized afterwards that I had not one photograph of the days' events..   I guess my mind was elsewhere after all.

This week has seemed particularly hard for me, our "first" Father's Day without my father is upon us and Monday will be the six-month anniversary of his death. I've been very emotional during the last few days, and the slightest thing brings him to mind..  today it was strawberries, so fragrant and reminiscent of summer...   as a child my parents would take us to a local orchard to pick them, I think more ended up in our tummies than in our basket, it's a vivid memory of Dad and caused me to break down right in the produce section of our store.   While I started the day a bit weepy, this brought me truly to tears and I barely got through checking out.

Tonight I got to thinking about other memories of him and trying to recall things of my childhood that stood out in my mind.  While I of course don't remember much before the age of five or so, I have a few very clear memories of what seem to be very early years.

When I was about four or five I can clearly remember going to a local school carnival while we were visiting family in Massachusetts.   While I don't actually recall much about the actual carnival, I do remember Dad leading me through some tall bushes to get in. The school was next door to my grandparents home, the bushes were probably just on the property line, but it felt like an adventure.   Dad would spend $100 on a carnival game to win me a $2 stuffed animal, by the time I was in my teens I had hundreds of them filling my room. I still have a few, I wish I still had them all.

Another early memory of Dad was the building where he worked. My Dad was a Maintenance Manager for a large builder. We lived in a planned community, made up of several mini communities, all of which had their own maintenance department and swimming pool.   My Dad worked in an office at the bottom of a high-rise building in our neighborhood.   Whenever I was at the office with him I would sneak off and get a ride in the elevator. Problem was that I didn't know how to return to his floor - I must've been pretty young at this point. I would get off the elevator, take in the sights from that floor and then begin to cry and yell for him. I can still hear his voice coming from the upcoming elevator "I'm coming Cindy".    He must've had to stop on every floor until he found me.

I could never mention memories of Dad and not mention the music. My Dad was a wonderful musician. He loved country music and could play any instrument that had strings, the harmonica and the piano or keyboard.   He had a studio of sorts in our basement where he recorded and on the weekends family and friends would get together and play music, sing and dance together till they couldn't sing anymore... us kids would usually be long sleeping by then, but I can still remember falling to sleep to the sounds of electric guitars, tambourines, and that drum machine that my brother and I loved to play with. When Dad was playing I would stand by, waiting for his instruction on which song to pull out of his book next.   He had a black 3-ring binder full of song lyrics...   no music, just the lyrics.   He could play any song but didn't read music.  The sounds of his picking still course through my mind on occasion, and I find myself humming a tune that I've not heard for 20 years.

Since my Mom didn't drive when I was young, Dad was the only driver in our family - another of my earliest memories is visiting the local gas station and always getting a Moon Pie and a Yoohoo drink (when Yoohoo was still in a little glass bottle, not a juice box). Yes, I sat on the front seat of our big gold Pontiac with it's huge doors and vinyl interior...   I loved that car and Dad loved Moon Pies.

Once when I was about 8 Dad was helping me fly a kite behind our house.   The wind was great that day and the kite kept going up and up and up.... I had no idea that the string would come right off it's spool and the kite would actually fly away...   I also had no idea that my Dad could run that fast.   Yes, he caught it.  My Dad was my hero.

We had a few ponds in that neighborhood, they were right behind our house and in the winter Dad would always be the one to go check the ice to make sure it was safe.

Being very knowledgeable in building, plumbing and all things in construction, Dad was a great builder of forts. This was especially true when he and Mom purchased a new washer and dryer..   who knew that a couple of cardboard boxes could be assembled together to look like a castle and last for months in our basement? My Dad could build anything and fix anything, and he did all his life.

I remember weekends at a campground, being a free spirit in the woods, playing and having a great time... and long hours at the causeway fishing into the wee hours of the morning just because we could (and he couldn't help it :-)    Later there would be a boat and long sunny days on the water, and a stop at a local country store for a souvenir, some candy and a soda.   I had a wonderful childhood.  We spent most all summer weekends at that spot, which is where my Dad loved to be and where he and my Mom eventually bought a home.

My Dad taught me how to shoot.   Yes, guns; .22, .357, rifles, handguns.. you name it, he showed me how to shoot it.  While I've not even held a weapon in years, I began shooting at about the age of 10 and absolutely loved it.

When I was about 13 years old I tried to pierce my ears - yes, all by myself.   I thought Dad would pass out when I walked down the stairs with a needle in my earlobe, asking him if he could push it through the rest of the way - I just couldn't get a good grip.   Dad patiently led me to the powder room, helped me hold ice on and finished piercing it, then he did the other one.

In my late teens Dad took me to buy my first car (a pickup truck), took me to my first football game (Redskins) and every year we went together to the local mall for a Cinnabon, Mocha Latte and Christmas shopping day to find gifts for my Mom.    Dad absolutely loved Christmas and loved giving gifts, but he hated shopping...   the Cinnabons made it all worth while. In the car we would listen to Charlotte Church belt out a tune and enjoyed our day together. Looking back, I imagine that Christmas was hard for Mom, since I'm sure that Dad didn't do any of it without the Cinnabons.

18 years ago on Father's Day I told my Dad that I was expecting his first Grandchild. Last year I didn't make it down to see him on Father's Day, although something told me that I really should. Now, a year later I'm left with a bit of guilt over that, but his memory and his love surround me everyday and the memories of my childhood will always remain with me. My Dad was a great person. He was always fair and caring, liked to have fun, and certainly a pushover when it came to his kids.

During the last 15 years my memories of Dad include fishing, trips on the boat and the adventures at his home on the Bay.   My gosh how he loved that place. He would take that boat out and fish all day and not catch one thing... he didn't even care and would go out and do it all again the next day if he could find a willing passenger.   We would sit on the wall in front of their place until the wee hours of the morning, talking, fishing and just enjoying each others' company.   One night after all had gone inside, he and I were there together at about 2am. Nothing much was biting and we were just enjoying the night when it started to rain. After a few moments and drip drops I turned to him and said "Dad, it's raining", to which he said "It's just a passing shower"...   and there we sat, in the middle of the night in the rain.. just for the fish.

Love you and miss you Dad, you're always in my heart.

Tombstone Tuesday

2010-06-01T13:43:00.000-04:00

Another wonderful gift from a cousin found by blogging. This showed up in my email box yesterday - just in time for Tombstone Tuesday.

This stone is located in Preston Cemetery, in the town of Preston, Lancashire, England. Following are the ancestors listed:

Catherine (McDermott) Bellew (my 3rd great grandmother); b. 1837, d. April 7, 1898

James Bellew, son of Catherine; b. 1869, d. Aug 1870

Mary Bellew, daughter of Patrick Bellew, granddaughter of Catherine; b. 1897, d. Aug 13, 1898

James Bellew, husband of Catherine (my 3rd great grandfather); b. 1834, d. Oct 15, 1905

Mary (Bellew) Sharples, daughter of Catherine and James (my 2nd great grand aunt) b. abt 1866, d. Feb 25, 1939

George Sharples, husband of Mary Bellew Sharples, b. abt 1868 (I cannot make out the death date on this stone but it appears he was 72 or 77 years old so that would be abt. 1940-1945)

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun

2010-05-22T17:55:00.001-04:00

I haven't participated in SNGF for quite some time but this looked interesting...    our assigned mission tonight from Randy at Genea-Musings is to check out the dMarie Time Capsule website, select a date from our family history and share the information.

I selected the birth date of my paternal great-grandmother May Kidwell, born Feb 24, 1903.

Following are some prices and a few statistics of the time:
Bread: $0.04/loaf
Milk: $0.29/gal US
Car: $500
House: $4,000
Stamp: $0.02/ea
Avg Income: $703/yr
DOW Avg: 49

One of the top books of 1903 was The Call of The Wild by Jack London.
One of the top toys of the year was Crayola Crayons
I also learned that on this date in 1903, the US signed the agreement acquiring a naval station at Guantanamo Bay Cuba.

Great site to get more insight to our ancestors lives!   Thanks Randy!

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-05-22T10:00:00.022-04:00

To acknowledge my blogging friends who've come by and posted comments during the last week. Thank you so much for reading!!!

If you're not familiar with their blogs, be sure to stop by. This is a great way to share other blogs that readers may not have seen yet - I myself visit many blogs by looking at what everyone else is reading. Also below is a list of the blogs that I just began following recently.

Ruth at Genealogy is Ruthless Without Me
Magpie's Mumblings
Nancy at My Ancestors and Me
Tracy at The Pieces of My Past
Les at Bits and Pieces
Renate at Into the LIGHT
Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog
Jenna at Desperately Seeking Surnames

Blogs that I added to my reader this week:

TJLGenes: Preserving Our Family History
Hanging From the Family Tree
Family and Other Stuff
Renee's Genealogy Blog
Angie's Roots Are Showing

Researchers Worked Together and Got the Job Done!

2010-05-20T12:20:00.000-04:00

While I don't typically write posts about other blogs, I just cannot pass up the opportunity to share this wonderful story.    If you've not been following the recent happenings over at Olive Tree Genealogy Blog, one post in particular - Help Find a WWII Soldier From Illinois is a must read!  Thank you Lorine!

Of great interest are the comments following the post. First many from the researchers out there who took an interest in getting the tags back to the soldier's family, one after the other they posted information they had found - every little clue led to others and soon it was determined that he did indeed have living family out there and one of the commenters was going to contact his wife. Then, the soldier's children and grandchildren begain posting comments about how wonderful it was to have been contacted, and that the word was spreading quickly through their small family.

As I watched all of this unfold over the last few days I often thought of how I always feel when I see someone else's family keepsakes at the local flea market, antique shops, eBay, and family estate sales.   It saddens me to think that these things are not in the hands of family members who surely would love to have them if given the opportunity.   If we had the time (and the funds to purchase such items as we find them) I think all of us would pour forth efforts to reunite such items with the family.   And these folks did just that.   To all of them and to Lorine for posting the tags - I say great job! What a wonderful gift and certainly something that Randall's family will never forget!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-19T18:56:00.001-04:00

John Jerry "Pinkie" Keener

May 1943 - 9 months old

One War....

2010-05-18T13:57:00.003-04:00

Two Brothers....    Two Countries....    Two Sets of WWII Medals

I must say, I am very pleased that I made a trip to the post office this morning. It's chilly here (still) and the sky is gray and wet, the air damp and rainy. I'd much rather be reading blogs and drinking a hot cup of coffee.  But I received a slip in my box at home -  there is a package at the PO and I didn't recognize the name nor did I recall ordering anything so off we go to "town".

The Postman retrieved the package from the back, but couldn't hand it to me - there were formalities?   I see the Royal Mail post mark on a small bubble-wrap type package "Is that from England?" I ask, of course it is!!!   At this point I couldn't even hear him speaking to me, what was he asking for?   Why did I need to sign something?   Why do I need to write my address?   Excuse me, do you have a letter opener? I need to open that right away!!!

I'm not going to bash our military's way of going about the business of issuing or re-issuing medals to families (although I do have a few choice words for them on making the process easier) but I will say that our friends in England have a good hold on the situation and here, in only one month's time I have received the medals for an Uncle who was killed in the war.  Receiving them gives me mixed emotions, while I am elated to have them, I am saddened that it took his family so long to realize that he was due something and no one tried to get them on his behalf.   I've not done any research on these medals or what they were awarded for, I will do that at a later time, right now I just want to share the news that they've been received.

If you didn't see it before, I had previously obtained my Grandfather's WWII medals from our military. His brother John was left in England when he was a boy, too ill to make the trip across the ocean. He remained there with other family members and entered the British Army to fight in WWII. Sadly he was killed in action in 1940 at the young age of 21. My Grandfather was then determined to fight as well, only he was here and entered the US Army Air Force. He was wounded in action and returned home in 1944. His medals were misplaced or lost some many years ago and I made it my mission to obtain replacements from the military for my grandmother (who is still living at the ripe age of 92).

John was a bit of a mystery to us. His mother never spoke much of him, but when I obtained the items that she left behind I found that she did have a strong connection to this son, and a broken heart that kept her from discussing it. It must've been very hard for her to leave him there. I wish I could tell her that his medals are now where they belong - with his family.

One of Grandma Keener's Houses

2010-05-14T20:48:00.001-04:00

I don't remember this particular house - Grandma Edna Keener moved from it before I was born. But she lived there for a few years, and apparently it was situated on a good sized piece of property on a now very busy, very built-up intersection... one of those pieces of property that you can say "gee, too bad she didn't hang on to that." In reality, they may not have owned this home at all. I cannot find any Maryland Land Records for the purchase of this location, or a record of sale of it when they purchased a home in 1964 and moved a bit further into rural northern Montgomery County. Grandma did trouble herself in the 80s to take another photo of the corner after the house had been torn down and the 'progress' was moving into the area. She obviously had an attachment to the place.

In her photos, I found a photo of the home, taken in 1945 with an unknown group of people on the front porch.

Then in 1960 she took this photo...

Granddad Anderson loved to grow vegetables and large flowering bushes, apparently he had plenty of space to do so when they lived here. Here's a view of the yard and road.

If you have ancestors in Maryland that may have owned property, you should certainly check out the Maryland Land Records site. You'll have to register and obtain a password but the site is free and it's a great tool to track property sales in Maryland counties back to the 1700s in some cases.

Wordless Wednesday (almost)

2010-05-12T18:24:00.001-04:00

My wonderful parents - Don and Barbara Keener

Today would have been their 43rd wedding anniversary

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-05-08T10:00:00.005-04:00

Well, with all the happenings around here and the lack of attention that my blog has been getting, I'm sorry to say that this Saturday Shout Out is three weeks in the making.

Thanks to all the followers who read and especially to my reading friends who've left comments recently, including:

Julie at GenBlog
Michelle at The Turning of Generations
Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog
A Rootdigger
Katie O. at You Are Where You Came From
Mary at Mary's Musings
Wendy at New England Genealogy

Blogs that I began following during the last few weeks:
My Family Research Adventures
The Genealogy Geek
You Are Where You Came From
Call Me Shell
Jirene's Genealogy Tips

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-05T12:34:00.000-04:00

Edna Keener

Taken about 1950

Time is Zipping By!

2010-04-22T11:58:00.000-04:00

The past week has flown by and today I realized that I haven't posted since last Wednesday.    Not much happening with my research right now (I've not had time to do much) and I don't have any real updates on the items I've been working on.  The two orphan photos have not been claimed by the families and I've not had time to research them any further.   The flea market "cousin" appears to be from a different line of my Husband's family, but I've made a great connection with another researcher of that family and we plan to keep in touch for future finds.

On my quest to obtain my Uncle's WWII medals from the Ministry of Defence.   After my little mishap with the post office it seems that my request finally arrived safely and they've sent me a letter stating that it may take several weeks to get his records pulled and researched prior to determining if medals are due to him.   So we wait a bit longer.

Sorry for the absense, spring is here, school activities are stacking up (I just love how they cram all the activities into the end of the year!) only about 7 weeks left till summer break. Everyone in the house has had a cold and there are chorus shows, field trips, special activities, track meets, practices, dances, picnics, fundraisers, talent shows, tryouts, and the all important prom coming up...  I'll try to squeeze in more posts when I can :)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-14T11:20:00.000-04:00

Photo taken 1936

Children of May Kidwell & Clarence Keener

Girl center back - Pauline Keener age 10

Girl right back - Edna Keener age 12

Boy far right - Russell Keener age 9

Two Children of May Kidwell & Leonard Anderson

Girl far left - Virginia Anderson age 6

Boy center - Charles Anderson age 5

This photo is the last in a series of these children, click links on names above to view others.

Military Monday - An Update

2010-04-12T14:39:00.000-04:00

I posted a few weeks ago about my attempt to obtain unclaimed war medals for my Uncle John Bellew, who fought with the British Army in WWII and was killed in France.

Today's update is that my post office personnel mistakingly attached a $.44 cent stamp to my envelope and after a little more than 2 weeks it was returned to me for postage... going to ENGLAND.. apparently she didn't notice that little detail on the envelope and because I was purchasing other postage I didn't do the math and didn't give it another thought... uggh how frustrating... live and learn.

Saturday Shout Out - Visits and New Follows

2010-04-10T09:41:00.000-04:00

Sorry I missed this post last weekend - things were a bit hectic around here with the Easter Bunny :-)

Thanks to everyone for reading and especially for your comments. I didn't get any leads on that stroller in the baby photo I posted last week so that is still a mystery - have a look, maybe you can help?

Following are the folks who came by and left comments during the last two weeks
A Rootdigger
Cheryl of Heritage Happens
Greta of Greta's Genealogy Bog
Heather of Nutfield Genealogy
Lisa of The Faces Of My Family
Renate of Into the LIGHT
Mary of me and my ancestors
Patty of Bits Of Yesterday

Here's a few new blogs that I began following recently:
John Brown Kin
Find My Ancestor
Wading In The Gene Pool
Life From The Roots
Portals To The Past

Have a great weekend!

Ancestor Approved

2010-04-08T10:02:00.001-04:00

I want to say "Thank You!" to Lisa of The Faces of My Family, Mary of Me and My Ancestors and Greta of Greta's Genealogy Bog for passing the Ancestor Approved award along to me.

According to the rules for this award, we're supposed to list 10 things about our ancestors that have surprised, humbled or enlightened us and then pass it along to 10 other genealogy bloggers who we feel are doing their ancestors proud.

This "stamp of approval" is making it's way around our blogging community at a rapid pace, and many of the following have possibly already received it, but here's my list:

Herstoryan
Before My Time
Ginisology
Mary's Musings
My Ancestors and Me
Journey to the Past
Be Not Forgot
Roots 'n' Leaves
Documenting the Details
Bits of Yesterday

As for the list of 10 things about my ancestors, I'll have to do that one in a follow-up post. Thanks everyone for reading and many thanks to my followers, of which I reached 100 just yesterday!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-07T20:56:00.000-04:00

Pauline Keener

Daughter of May Kidwell and Clarence Keener

taken 1936 - 10 years old
This photo is third in a series of children;

Edna - Wordless Wednesday subject on 03/10/10

Virginia -Wordless Wednesday subject on 03/03/10

A Research Trip Postcard

2010-03-31T21:29:00.001-04:00

First let me say that I write this post with complete LOVE and AFFECTION for my McCann line cousin in England.   That being said - I am SOOOO jealous!

You see, my cousin just took a research trip to Ireland, researching our Byrne family line in Foxford, Co. Mayo.    For me, this would be a trip of a lifetime and prayerfully I too will be able to visit the towns of my ancestors some day.  For now, I'll have to let my English cousin rub it in that she's there, eating yummy food and scouring the countryside for clues and tasty tidbits of information that's she surely has dug up.

Thanks so much for the postcard, and for thinking of me!   Love you!

Update on Emma Zoll and The Flea Market "Cousin"

2010-03-30T11:30:00.000-04:00

Many readers showed an interest in my recent story about a trip to the Flea Market. Turns out that the Ancestry user I reached out to hasn't any further information on my Emma Zoll family, nor do they have any info about a marriage for her. I guess she'll sit here on my desk until some family member happens to search for her and finds my blog, which saddens me. I know what it's like to wish for family photos, and while I have many, there are large numbers of family members that I think we should have photos of, but don't... onward and upward!

Now for the gentleman that I met that day - I haven't yet been back to see him (the weather here was quite cold over the weekend and I wasn't feeling up to a trek through the flea market in the cold to see him) so I'll be visiting with him on another weekend, charts and family info in-hand, to see if we can make a connection.

I have yet another treat from him - this one a little baby, named Clara Amealia Bercaw according to the notation on the photo's frame to which it's glued. I've not had any luck finding information on this Clara, although there are census records which contain the name Clara Bercaw, and they're in this general area (MD, VA, WV), I haven't any way to date this photo (with my own knowledge). Anybody out there that might be able to help date her, all guesstimates and ballparks would be a great help. I tried to find photos of old strollers, to attempt to determine what era the stroller might have been from, but no luck for me on that. Sometimes we just have to admit that we have no idea what we're doing and let an "expert" have a look :-)

Saturday Shout Out - Comments and New Follows

2010-03-27T08:19:00.000-04:00

To acknowledge my blogging friends who've come by and posted comments during the last week. Thank you so much for reading!!!

If you're not familiar with their blogs, be sure to stop by. This is a great way to share other blogs that readers may not have seen yet - I myself visit many blogs by looking at what everyone else is reading. Also below is a list of the blogs that I just began following recently.

Mary at Mary's Musings
Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog
Renate at Into the Light
Harriet at Genealogy Fun
Brenda at Journey To The Past
Joan at Roots 'n' Leaves
Michelle at The Turning of Generations
Ruth at Genealogy is Ruthless Without Me
Dee at Funeral Cards and Genealogy
Lindalee at Flipside
Sarah B. at Geneapprentice

Check out these blogs that I just began following:
Genealogy - It All Starts Somewhere
Family History News and More

Treasure Chest Thursday - Mom's "Good" Dishes

2010-03-25T07:42:00.001-04:00

Every Mom has a set right? I am the proud owner of my Mom's old "good" dishes. Dishes that she worked very hard to get so many years ago. Every year at Thanksgiving and Christmas, we used these dishes at our home. When Mom got new "good" dishes, these came to me. My kids often ask the question - "where did they come from?" and comment on how pretty they are. I am very proud to tell them that they were painstakingly collected, piece by piece, week after week, at the local grocery until the set was complete - making sure not to miss an item; plates, bowls, cups, saucers, dessert plates, platters, serving bowls, ... you get the idea.

These dishes mean a lot to me - they somehow signify the will of a woman who maybe couldn't get a new full "SET" of dishes but could certainly afford a few bucks a week to collect them. But can you imagine the time it took? THAT means something. These dishes remind me of family holidays, all of us kids around the table for a fantastic dinner, and years later coming back with our own families and gathering around the same table and using the same "good dishes".

Now, my kids will remember the story and recall holidays around the table using them, while watching out for the plate that has a chip on the bottom, being careful not to use the cup that has the crack, and the question that's asked every year... "What ever happened to the gravy boat?"

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-24T07:43:00.000-04:00

Dorothy and William Bellew

Military Monday - Two Brothers, Two Armies.. Two sets of medals?

2010-03-22T13:07:00.001-04:00

If you read my blog, you already know that I went through a very long, red-tape-filled process to get replacement medals for my Grandfather who fought and was wounded fighting with the US Army Air Force during WWII. If you are a regular reader then you also know that my Grandfather came to the US with his family, who had to make the most difficult decision to leave his youngest at the time brother behind in England. His brother was another reason my Grandfather joined the war, wanting to "Avenge his death". His younger brother John was killed and buried in France while in the British Army.

While speaking with my Uncle recently he asked if records were available for this younger brother related to his military time. Honestly I hadn't yet looked into getting John's military records, and I decided that I would indeed seek information on his military service and possibly any medals that may have been awarded to him. I went to the Ministry of Defence Medal Office website, where it states that many vets from WWII never claimed their medals, and applications are still being filed by them today. Additionally, next of kin of those personnel can apply for medals as well. Turns out that my Mom qualifies as a next of kin in this case, being the daughter of a full-blooded sibling to the soldier. He has no other surviving siblings. It is unlikely that anyone claimed any medals that were due to him.

After finding the necessary forms on their website, we have submitted documentation to the Ministry of Defence Medal Office in England and are awaiting word from them on John's records and medals. It would be wonderful for our family to have the medals from two brothers who fought in the same war for two different armies. Wish us luck!

You Never Know Who You Might Meet At the Flea Market

2010-03-20T23:09:00.001-04:00

I love the flea market!   This time of year we have a local, very large one, open on Saturday and Sunday till about 2:00pm.   Today it was beautiful and I decided to take a ride over there.  I don't go looking for anything in particular, just to get out for a bit and enjoy the weather looking at other people's junk... today I found a treasure.

I've ALWAYS loved old books - something about them attracts me and theres a gentlemen who sells them (along with other ephemera) every weekend.   I visited with him several times in summers past and this year he was there again with this piles of books and papers and boxes of post cards.   Turns out he buys most of this stuff at estate sales and just imagine what else he gathers... family photos!   Now, I've never seen a box of them at his stand before so I was excited to see this addition to his wares and quickly began searching through them, all the while my heart was breaking for the families that these items were removed from.   He came over and struck up a conversation, remembering me from summers past and we began to talk about the photos and how sad it was that they weren't where they belonged.

While we talked, I was very glad to know that when he obtains scrapbooks, diaries, and other sorts of family history that appears to be "gathered" he keeps it together.   Many of the sellers remove all the items, preferring to get a couple bucks for each photo.   He told me about letters that he transcribed for a local library over the winter months and other things that he's been working on.    While we dug through the photos together I noted a few had names on them, and mentioned to him that there are websites that can be used to reunite these photos with potential family members. "Oh really? Do you do that sort of thing?"    I explained to him that while I have a great interest in family history, sadly no I had never reunited any photos with their right families.   He turned to me and handed me a picture of a girl "See if you can find her family".   Who? Me?  Really?   I hesitated a moment but decided I would give it a shot.

Now, this isn't the best part of this story.   While we were talking I asked him if he had ever done any research into his own genealogy.   He tells me his last name and my chin hit the ground...   same as mine!   So, it's my married name and I have only researched my husband's family back about 5 generations and I had much work to do, but I know that they were in DC in the late 1800s..   same as this guy!   Unbelievable! Needless to say I'm going to research this family a bit further and I will meet with Dave again in coming weeks while he works his table at the flea market.

Now on to my little project girl. Yes there is a name, and a address and even a date on this photo.   I know that DeadFred is one avenue to reunite photos with families, but my concern is that the family actually has to be looking for her!     So I opted to try Ancestry first, hoping that I would find her in a tree. Turns out I did find a tree that includes her and I found her in the 1920 census, the same year this photo was taken. I could confirm her age, the address written on the photo and get info on her parents which I compared with the information in the public tree - I had found her. I have reached out to the tree owner via Ancestry and I'm hopeful that they can tell me if Emma had any descendants (none are listed in the tree) or if there are further descendants of her parents.   Hopefully I'll hear back from them.

Written inside the folded flaps that cover the photo:

Emma E. Zoll

63 Dahlgren

Brooklyn, N.Y.

Graduated Jan 28, 1920

Age 13 Years

Saturday Shout Out - Visits and New Follows

2010-03-20T08:00:00.007-04:00

A post that I began two weeks ago - to acknowledge my blogging friends who've come by and posted comments during the last couple weeks. If you're not familiar with their blogs, be sure to stop by. This is a great way to share other blogs that readers may not have seen yet - I myself visit many blogs by looking at what everyone else is reading. Also below is a list of the blogs that I just began following recently.

Thanks for coming by and reading!!!

Lisa at The Faces of My Family
Joan at Roots 'n' Leaves
Linda at Documenting The Details
Nancy at My Ancestors and Me
Lindalee at Flipside
Lori at Genealogy and Me
Ruth at Genealogy is Ruthless Without Me

Here's some blogs that I started following in the last couple weeks:
Bits of Yesterday
In My Life
Journey To The Past
Up A Tree
Journey Home
Betty's Boneyard Genealogy Blog
[Family] History Is The Lie Commonly Agreed Upon
Family History News and More
On A Flesh and Bone Foundation: An Irish History
Digging In... To My Past

Tombstone Tuesday

2010-03-16T09:51:00.002-04:00

Great Grandparents

Joseph Leeming b. 9/10/1886 Quebec, Canada; d. 9/29/1950 Adams, Massachusetts

Sarah Hannah Roe Leeming b.1891 Lancashire England; d. 6/24/1965 N. Adams, Massachusetts

Military Monday

2010-03-15T15:55:00.000-04:00

Carl Poates and unknown boy

(born Carr Anderson, son of Leonard Anderson and May Kidwell)

PFC 1st Marine Division

photo taken 1950-54

Fearless Female Series - Working Girl

2010-03-12T07:30:00.005-05:00

Thanks so much to Lisa of The Accidental Genealogist blog for posting a series of blog prompts titled Fearless Females for the month of March, Women's History Month.

March 12 - Working Girl: Did your mother or grandmother work outside the home? What did she do? Describe her occupation.

I chose my grandmother Edna for this prompt, not because she's the only one who worked (EVERY woman in my family worked), but because I have a photo of her at the job she held in the late 40s, early 1950s. Grandma worked at the Leland Pharmacy in Montgomery County Maryland, behind the counter serving customers lunch, ice cream and coffee. Later in life Grandma worked at various electronic companies in the assembly department, and in her late years she worked at a local Denny's near her home serving coffee - a job she really enjoyed for it's social aspect. Grandma loved being around other people.

Here's a photo of Leland Pharmacy from the street. This photo was dated 1949.

This photo shows Grandma working behind the counter with another employee (name unknown)

Grandma is in the background of this photo (below the pipe displays). I included it because it's such a cool photograph of the place. According to the note on this one, the lady facing the camera is Donna Collins.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-10T08:29:00.000-05:00

Edna Reba Keener

Daughter of May Kidwell and Clarence Keener

Taken 1936 - age 12 years

half sister of last week's Wordless Wednesday subject

Tombstone Tuesday - Hott & Quick Family Members

2010-03-09T08:41:00.004-05:00

My Great Grand Aunt, Frances Virginia Hott was born in 1889 in Virginia. She was the daughter of Samuel William Hott and Mary Matilda Henderson.

Known to my Dad as Aunt Fannie, she was married to John E. Quick of Fairfax County Virginia. The two are buried at the Lewinsville Presbyterian Church in Lewinsville, Fairfax Co., Virginia.

Military Monday - Honorable Discharge

2010-03-08T11:11:00.001-05:00

This is the Honorable Discharge certificate for my Grandfather, William Patrick Bellew. It shows that he was discharged on Nov 28, 1944, at Fletcher General Hospital in Cambridge Ohio after being transferred there for care of his wounds received on July 29, 1944. This certificate was obviously folded while it was kept and I believe he carried it with him for sometime.

The reverse of this document shows the Enlisted Record for the soldier, which I have previously posted here.

Saturday Shout Out - Visits and New Follows

2010-03-06T13:30:00.001-05:00

A few other bloggers that I regularly read are doing month end shout-outs to other bloggers who have left comments on their blog during the month. I believe it was Apple of Apple's Tree who started this regular post - thanks to her for a great idea! I don't always get the computer time necessary to keep a running list or put one together for a full month, so I think I'll try weekly or every-other-week post on this because I think it's a fantastic idea and also great way to share other blogs that readers may not have seen yet - I myself visit many blogs by looking at what everyone else is reading. I took it a step further and added a list of the blogs that I just started following this week.

So, to my followers (I just reached 90 this week!) and anyone who happened by (reached 5000 hits this week!) Thanks so much for reading and for letting me know you stopped by!!!

Ruth of Genealogy Is Ruthless Without Me
Jenna of Desperately Seeking Surnames
Lori of Genealogy and Me
Mary of Mary's Musings
Becky of My Genealogy Pondering
Lindalee of Flipside
Cheryl of Heritage Happens
Michelle of The Turning of Generations
Wendy of New England Genealogy
Cindy of In My Life
Harriet of Genealogy Fun

These are some of the blogs that I began following this week -
Stardust 'n' Roots
Are you My Cousin?
A Root Digger
Genealogy is Ruthless Without Me
Of Trolls and Lemons
Climbing My Family Tree
Journey to the Past
Roots and Branches

2010 Census Delivered!

2010-03-04T08:08:00.002-05:00

I'll admit it, I've been excited about getting the census form for 2010 and what questions would be asked of us. Seems silly I know, but the thought of someone 100 years from now looking at my document thrills me.

Earlier this week there was a knock on the door and a census worker dropped off a plastic bag containing the form with an envelope for its return. I had previously thought that this would come in the mail.

Following are the questions:

1. How many people were living or staying in this house, apartment or mobile home on April 1, 2010?

2. Were there any additional people staying here April 1, 2010 that you did not include in question 1?

3. Is this house, apartment, or mobile home - (multiple choice answers here)

Owned with mortgage?
Owned free and clear?
Rented?
Occupied without paying of rent?

4. What is your telephone number? We may call if we don't understand an answer.

5. Please provide information for each person living here. Start with a person living here who owns or rents this house, apartment or mobile home. If the owner or renter lives somewhere else, start with any adult living here. This will be person 1.
Last Name:
First Name:

6. Sex

7. Age on 04/01/2010 and date of birth

8. Of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin? (For this census, Hispanic origins are not races) Multiple choice answers include:

No
Yes, Mexican, Mexican Am., Chicano
Yes, Puerto Rican
Yes, Cuban
Yes, another Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin - print origin below

9. What is this person's race? Multiple choice:

White
Black, African Am., or Negro
American Indian or Alaska Native - print name of enrolled or principle tribe below
Asian Indian
Chinese
Filipino
Other Asian (print below)
Japanese
Korean
Vietnamese
Native Hawaiian
Guamanian or Chamorro
Samoan
Other Pacific Islander (Print below)
Some Other Race (print below)

10. Does Person 1 sometimes live or stay somewhere else? Yes or No, (if yes there are multiple choices such as college, nursing home, jail etc.)

All additional people in the home answer number 5-10 above and one additional question -

How is this person related to Person 1?

Husband or wife
Biological son or daughter
Adopted son or daughter
Stepson or stepdaughter
Brother or sister
Father or mother
Grandchild
Parent-in-law
Son-in-law or daughter-in-law
Other relative
Roomer or boarder
Housemate or roommate
Unmarried partner
Other nonrelative

So, there are no questions about where anyone was born, parents etc. I wonder if they'd mind if we attached notes to our forms for our future genealogists who might view these later?

Fearless Females Series - A Wedding

2010-03-04T07:30:00.003-05:00

Thanks so much to Lisa of The Accidental Genealogist blog for posting a series of blog prompts titled Fearless Females for the month of March, Women's History Month.

March 4th - Do you have marriage records for your grandparents or great-grandparents? Write a post about where they were married and when. Post a photo too if you have one.

Bertie (aka Birdie, Birdy) Horsman was born in August of 1883 in Virginia. She was the daughter of John Thomas (JT) Horsman and Emma Katherine Dawson.

Bertie married Silas Bernard Kidwell on May 21, 1902 in Falls Church, VA. The couple had 13 children.

While I am not certain that this is a wedding photo, I have no others of this couple together and it certainly appears that they are dressed for an occasion.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-03T12:23:00.001-05:00

Virginia Anderson

Daughter of May Kidwell and Leonard C. Anderson

Taken 1936 - 6 years old

Fearless Females Series - Emma Katherine Dawson

2010-03-02T22:37:00.000-05:00

Thanks so much to Lisa of The Accidental Genealogist blog for posting a series of blog prompts titled Fearless Females for the month of March, Women's History Month. One thing that I love about blog posts series - they make me go look at what I know, and often don't know.

Today's prompt reads - Post a photo of one of your female ancestors. Who is in the photo? When was it taken? Why did you select this photo?

This is a photo of my 3rd Great Grandmother, Emma Katherine Dawson Horsman Beckwith. A cousin was kind enough to share this with me about 10 years ago. Emma Dawson is someone that I've not done much research on - nor have I ever really posted anything about the Dawson family on my blog - and this is why I chose her. She was born in 1865 in Virginia and died in 1936 in Vienna, Fairfax County, Virginia. Emma was married twice; first to John Thomas Horsman (my 3rd Great Grandfather), and then to Benjamin Beckwith. She was the mother of 11 children.

Tombstone Tuesday

2010-03-02T10:10:00.000-05:00

This is the headstone of Rachel Roe, my great grand Aunt. Rachel was the daughter of George William Roe and Jane Fountain. She was born in New York in 1899 and died in 1930 in Adams Massachusetts, where she is buried in the Bellevue Cemetery. Rachel was the mother of two small children at the time of her death, which was caused by a fall down a flight of stairs.

Again a very special thank you to Eric Jacobsson, a Find-A-Grave volunteer who photographed this headstone for me.

Military Monday - WWII Crew Assignment

2010-03-01T11:39:00.005-05:00

This is a document that I received from a friend who is very interested in the history of the 94th Bomb Group of the Army Air Force during WWII. Much of this group was stationed at Bury St. Edmunds base in England. This Special Orders document dated Feb 21, 1944 shows my grandfather William Bellew, as being assigned to the crew of 1st Lt. Floyd Butler, the pilot that he flew with on every mission in the war, with the exception of his last.

This is just one more piece to the puzzle in putting together the military history of my family. Many of these Bomb Groups have message boards and forums full of very knowledgeable members who can help you find out the information about your soldier.

UKBMD Launches Third Site for Military Links

2010-02-26T11:07:00.004-05:00

While this isn't the sort of thing I usually post, being a big fan and a regular user of the UKBMD site I really wanted to pass this along to anyone with interest in UK records.

Today I received an email explaining that UKBMD has launched yet another site - the UKMFH or UK Military Family History. This is the third site they've created that's dedicated to links to online data for genealogy/family history research. For anyone who's got connections to the UK, these sites are worth a visit - there's too much to see!

UKBMD contains more than 1400 links to sites with UK birth, marriage, death and census information.

UKGDL site contains links to web sites with other online data such as trade directories and electoral rolls etc.

UKMFH contains over 1000 links to sites pertinent to UK military history.

My Project

2010-02-24T22:11:00.010-05:00

Okay, so I'm not a scrapbooker... not in the cutsie die-cut adding scrapbooking way. But, I really wanted to make a book for my Mom about her family so I sat down with everything I knew that was interesting and pulled out all the documents I had, photos, stories and such and I got to work.

I was not planning on making a book of everything I knew about her whole family, but rather her Father and his immediate family, so I started with his parents.

The first page was an introduction and their marriage certificate, that's where the story began. I then gave information about their travel to the US, how the family was seperated for a few years and how one of her uncles was left in England.

After a page for each of her grandparents, I then created as many pages as needed for each of their sons, obviously her father I had a lot of information for and he ended up with 6 pages.

I created the book for my Mom back in 2008 and have just completed one for her brother (shhh, don't tell - it's a surprise) and will send it to him soon. I just wanted to share a few of the pages here.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-24T14:44:00.005-05:00

Dorothy Leeming Bellew on her wedding day

with three family members

do you think they did it on purpose?

Tombstone Tuesday

2010-02-23T08:48:00.007-05:00

My 2nd Great Grand Uncle Ernest Augustus Kidwell and his wife Katie Hart Kidwell; buried at the Flint Hill Cemetery in Fairfax County Virginia.

Baby Steps.... gotta get back into the swing!

2010-02-21T17:10:00.011-05:00

Two months ago today, I lost my beloved Daddy. Since that time I've been spending evenings with my Mom, scrapbooking and scanning my Dad's family photos. My own, two month long Scanfest if you will. My research bug left me it seems and I couldn't even come up with anything to write about for my blogs. I was beginning to wonder if I will ever open my family file again, or find the same thrill for the hunt.

A couple days ago a friend of ours was on line and we were chatting about his family history and what areas his family was from.... baby steps in research began to overtake me and I began riddling him with questions about his family; who, where, when? military? married to who? maiden names please... any children? It felt as if my interest in his family was therapeutic in a way, suddenly I was printing out charts to complete and looking for gaps in the information to fill in for him.

Over the last few days I have also been finding that I wasn't interested in the other stuff that I'd been busying myself with since my Dad's passing. Specifically the games I've discovered on facebook, which are simply time eaters, very addicting and certainly keep me occupied, but not in a good way. These things were a simple distraction, keeping me from thinking about the sad fact that my Mom was now without her partner - and my Dad was gone - we couldn't ask him about the photos any longer and any questions that come up in the future would possibly go unanswered. Soon Mom would be going home to a house that was filled with memories of her time spent there with my Dad, and in the not to distant future, I myself will make that trip and I'm still not sure how it will impact me. Being here keeps it from being totally "real" if that makes any sense.

My Mom left my house morning, with all her things that mean so much to her in this world and her dog packed in her vehicle for the 4 hour trip home, but I'm still here at my home... removed from it in a way, yet aware that its been a difficult day for both of us and it's going to take time before we feel any relief of that.

In the meantime, in the genea-blogging world I see that there Winter Games going on, Carnivals coming up and everyone is still actively posting and I'm glad for that. I am loving keeping up with what all my blogger friends are doing, yet I still feel very removed from it all.. more baby steps to begin.

Wordless Wednesday - Posing at the water pump?

2010-02-17T22:12:00.002-05:00

Cousin - Sally Watkins

Grandmother - Edna R. Keener

Both of these photos were taken at my Grandmother's home on Shady Grove Road in Gaithersburg, Maryland; sometime in 1953 or 54

UNCLE!

2010-02-06T14:32:00.002-05:00

I know this isn't genealogy related... but "UNCLE!" with the snow!