Looking For Hosts: 2011 - Update

As you may remember from a previous post, I am looking for hosts 2011 editions of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy, and wanted to update everyone on the months still available. The remaining months are:

• January
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

If you are interested in hosting one of these months, please contact me at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!

Happy Hanukkah!

I just want to wish everyone a happy Hanukkah! Enjoy!

(I apologize for the belated announcement; I've just been very busy.)

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories Day Two: Holiday Foods

When I last participated in the Advent Calendar three years ago, the topic for day three was on holiday foods, but this year it is on day two. I always love the food around Christmas, and thus, I can't resist writing another post on this topic.

So, does my family have any traditional dishes that are served at Christmas? While I really can't think of any dishes that are unique to my family, per se, the main dish for dinner in past years has varied between turkey, prime rib, ham or a combination of the two. Many of the side dishes, such as mashed potatoes, salad or stuffing, are dishes that we also eat at Thanksgiving. (The dishes are freshly made for each holiday, of course.) So, I don't think our Christmas dinner is much different from other American families' Christmas dinners, but I could be wrong.

My most favorite part of the Christmas dinner, though, is the desserts. Usually we have different types of cookies (of which I'll write about in a future post) and pies. If the Christmas dinner is held by my parents, we either buy the cookies, make them or a combination of both, although it seems that in that past few years that we have bought the cookies.

As for breakfast on Christmas morning, my family doesn't have a traditional dish. In the past few years my mom has made a couple of different breakfast meals, but I wouldn't consider those dishes to be traditional because we have had different meals for breakfast in the past few years.

In short, my family doesn't have a dish that is unique or traditional when it comes to Christmas meals.

(Note: This post was finally published on December 15, 2010.)

Advent Calender of Christmas Memories Day One: Christmas Trees

When the Advent Calender Memories began three years ago, I wrote a brief article about Christmas trees in my family. In that article I mentioned the types of Christmas trees that my family usually puts up each year.

Traditionally, my grandparents would get a real Christmas tree, but in the past few years, I don't know if they've had a tree since I haven't over at their house during Christmas in the past few years. As for my family, we have always had a fake Christmas tree, and we put the same tree up every year. About ten years ago, we replace that tree with a newer tree, and since then I don't think that tree has been replaced.

Either way, I don't know anymore because I am usually away at school when the tree is put up by my parents. I don't know if the tree has been put up yet, but if it hasn't, I'm sure I'll helping putting up and taking down the tree this year.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I just want to wish everyone a happy and wonderful Thanksgiving! Enjoy!

Call For Submissions: Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

I just want to let everyone know that I will host the next edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy. The topic for this edition will be on Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year's. Submissions can be on anything that has do with those holidays, especially if they are connected to Central or Eastern Europe (like family traditions, for example). I am not going to define the topic any further, so I am leaving the interpretation to up to you, the submitter and reader. The deadline for submissions will be on December 28, and I will post the edition on December 30. Submissions can be submitted here. Enjoy!

(As a side note, I am also accepting offers for hosting future 2011 editions as well. Currently, all month are open. If you are interested in hosting an edition, please contact me at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!)

Surname Saturday - Can I Conclude That These Oswalts Are Related? - Part Two

In my previous post, I started to write about who I believe Adam's siblings were and why, but I ended the post before finishing because I realized that the post had become too long. Therefore, I decided to split up this Surname Saturday on the Oswalt Family to make it more readable. (This Surname Saturday will probably end up as multiple posts due to the length of the analysis needed to explain everything.) But before I go any further, I think I should list how many people were living in the household of Benjamin and Mary Oswalt (Adam's parents, according to his death certificate) during the 1830 and 1840 censuses.

Although Benjamin Oswalt isn't listed in Ancestry's index for the 1830 census, I did find him listed in the census living in Hopewell Township, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. (Correction: At least that was true prior to June 5, when I happened to look through the index again.) According to the census, 6 people were living in Benjamin's household at that time: 1 white male under 5, 1 white male between 5 and 10 years old, a white male between 30 and 40 years old, a white female under 5, a white female between 5 and 10 years old, and a white female between 30 and 40 years old. (1)

So, who might the people be living in Benjamin's household? Well, the 30-something year old man is Benjamin and the 30-something year old woman is Benjamin's wife, Mary. The male between the ages of 5 and 10 is more than likely, Benjamin and Mary's son, John. (Other census records indicate that John was born in either 1820 or 1821.) The male under 5 is probably Benjamin and Mary's son, Solomon (of whom, you may remember, I wrote about in the previous post). As for the two young females in the same age group as the boys, I can only guess although I believe the two to be Benjamin and Mary's daughters. One of females might be the Eliza Oswalt, who is listed in a 1848 marriage announcement as marrying a Thomas King. (I strongly believe Eliza is a sister of Adam for two reasons: In the 1870 census, Adam is listed as living in Three Rivers, Michigan and in addition to his wife and children being listed, a 20 year old Clara King is also listed as living in his household. In 1876, this Clara King married a George P. Mosher, and when she died in 1886, her parents are listed as Thomas King and Eliza King. From the marriage announcement, I know that Eliza's maiden name was Oswalt. Of course, my suspicion could be wrong, but that is how I have interpreted the records so far.) I later found Eliza and Thomas in the 1850 census living in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania with two young children: a two-year old Mary and a 4-month old Clara. (2) As for the younger female, I'm uncertain as to who she might be.

In 1840, Benjamin Oswalt is residing in Walker Township, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. According to the census, 9 people lived in Benjamin's household: 2 white males under 5, 1 white male between 5 and 10 years old, 1 white male between 10 and 15 years old, 1 male between 20 and 30 years old, 1 male between 30 and 40 years old, 1 white female under 5, 1 female between 10 and 15 years old, and 1 female between 30 and 40 years old. (3)

So, who might have been living in Benjamin's household in 1840? Well, the 30-something year old man and woman are most likely Benjamin and Mary Oswalt, even though they were listed as the same age in the 1830 census. The two males under 5 are probably Adam and Benjamin. The male between 5 and 10 is probably William. The male between the ages of 10 and 15 is most likely Solomon. As for the male between the ages of 20 and 30, I'm not sure who it is. Benjamin and Mary's son, John, had married earlier that year in March, and his household is listed separately from Benjamin's. (4) Although it is still possible that it is John, it is probably either a relative or a farm hand. I will have to do more research to determine who he is. The female under 5 is probably Margaret, and the female between the ages of 10 and 15 is most likely Eliza. (This list of possible names for the two censuses comes from the 1850 census I mentioned in the previous post and the sources I list for Eliza. The 1850 census for Benjamin Oswalt's household listed the names and ages of him and his family: Benjamin Oswalt, age 52; Mary Oswalt, age 50; Solomon Oswalt, age 24; William Oswalt, age 18; Margaret Oswalt, age 13; Benjamin Oswalt, age 11; and Nancy Oswalt, age 8. (5) )

In my next post in this series, I will continue my analysis, and explain why I believe William is Adam's brother. I will also include proof on how I know that Margaret is Adam's sister. Until then, have I made a good enough case to say that Eliza (Oswalt) King is a sister to my ancestor, Adam Oswalt? Please let me know what you think. Thanks, and enjoy!
_____________________________________________________________________

Sources

1. 1830 U. S. Federal Census, Pennsylvania, Huntingdon County, Hopewell Township, household of Benjamin Oswalt.
2. "Married," Huntingdon Journal, 21 November 1848, 3, http://205.247.101.31/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/ajuncnews&CISOPTR=3916&REC=5; 1870 U. S. Federal Census, Michigan, Three Rivers, household of Adam Oswalt; Marriage of Clara King to George P. Mosher, Saint Joseph County, Michigan marriages, FamilySearch Record Search; Death of Clara Mosher, Barry County, Michigan Deaths, FamilySearch Record Search.
3. 1840 U. S. Federal Census, Pennsylvania, Huntingdon County, Walker Township, household of Benjamin Oswald.
4. 1840 U. S. Federal Census, Pennsylvania, Huntingdon County, Walker Township, household of John Oswald; "Married," Huntingdon Journal, 1 April 1840, 3, http://205.247.101.31/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/ajuncnews&CISOPTR=5320&REC=1.
5. 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Pennsylvania, Huntingdon County, Walker Township, household of Benjamin Oswalt.
   

A Belated Acknowledgement - The Ancestor Approved Award

Back in early April, Miriam awarded me the Ancestor Approved Award, but I wasn't able to acknowledge the award at the time because I was extremely busy with school work. Thank you, Miriam, for the award! (I am really sorry and embarrassed for the delay!)

The requirements for this award are that I list ten surprising, humbling or enlightening things that I've learned about my ancestors and that I then give this award to ten other people.

Here are ten things I have learned about my ancestors so far:

1. Surprising - Family tradition stated that my great-grandfather (the one who served in World War One) lost both of his parents at a young age; however, the tradition did not mention the names of his parents or how they died. Until I discovered the names of his parents in his birth record and the name of his father in his marriage record, I did not know anything about them other than what was passed down in the family, and with the information that I obtained, I discovered that someone had posted some information on my great-great-grandparents on the Family Search website. (Obviously, I've been confirming the information I found.) Once I had the death dates for my great-grandfather's parents, I was able to get someone to look up the records for me, and later I was able to view the documents for myself on Scotland's People. From the death record, I learned that my great-great-grandfather had died in a freak accident. Of course, that was quite shocking to me, especially since the death record gave some details as how my ancestor had died. (I haven't looked yet, but I think I should look and see if there was an inquest on his death as the death record was updated a year after the original entry. Does anyone know if inquest records from the 1890s in Scotland still exist?)
2. Surprising - Discovering that one of great-great-grandfathers had been married at least three times. When I first started my research, I learned that this ancestor had been married twice, but until I actually did research at the St. Joseph County, Michigan's Clerk office, neither my grandpa or I knew that he had been married to another woman prior to our female ancestor. Additionally, the discovery of that first wife's death after two months of marriage and the cause of death was a bit of shock as well. (Of course, I still haven't found the marriage record for the third marriage, although census records and family stories point to my ancestor's remarriage after his second wife's death.)
   
3. Surprising - Discovering that my ancestor, Christoph Friedrich Cotta (Jr.), participated in the French Revolution. The family tree that had been done on the Cotta line did not mention anything about the French Revolution, from what I can remember. Of course, the tree is in German, so I could have missed something, but I am still slowly confirming everything on that family tree.
4. Surprising - Learning from secondary sources, the names of Christoph Cotta's maternal grandparents, and that his maternal grandmother had been a famous opera singer in her time. Even more surprising, that she was thrown in jail for eight years by the Duke of Würrtemberg.
5. Surprising - Finding the World War One military records for another one of my great-grandfathers. Well, what was surprising was the information in the records, but I'll leave the findings for another post.
6. Humbling - Uncovering and learning about the hardships that some of my ancestors experienced in their lives.
7. Enlightening - Discovering that Gelnhausen, Germany's church records are online, and being able to find and confirm information that I have on my Kees ancestors.
8. Surprising and Enlightening - Ordering Benjamin Oswalt's Civil War Pension file, and reading some of the information in the testimonies.
9. Surprising - Finding a deed for a piece land in St. Joseph County, Michigan that my ancestor, Peter Stout, had bought while in California.
10. Surprising and Enlightening - Finding the naturalization records for one of my ancestor's brothers, and then finding the declaration of intention for his father, my ancestor. I wrote about those discoveries here.

Well, those are my ten surprising, humbling and enlightening things that I have learned about my ancestors over the course of my research. At this point, I am supposed to nominate ten other genealogy bloggers for this award, but since it has been several months since I was given this award, I've decided not to do that. Here is what I will do instead: If you haven't received this award before and are reading this post, I am awarding this award to you. Enjoy!

My Apologies ....

As everyone has noticed by now, I haven't posted anything on my blog for months, and I just want to apologize for the lack of activity on my blog. The reason why I haven't posted in so long is that I have so been busy (and am still busy) with school work that I haven't had the time to post or read any updates on genealogy news in months. What has been happening in the past several months?

I also want to apologize for not keeping up with the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy. I still want to keep the carnival going, but since I have been so busy, I've forgotten to contact those who were supposed to host the carnivals for the past several months. I am extremely sorry for that, and I would like to eventually resume the posting of carnival editions. Unless, someone else wants to host the edition in December, I might post that edition. I will also accept requests for hosting next year's editions, if anyone is interested. You can contact me about hosting at jess_history at yahoo dot com.

I don't know how often I will be able to post on my blog in the upcoming months due to the fact that I will be busy with school work, but I hope to be able to do so. Therefore, posting on this blog may be light until May or June of next year.

I also want to give my thanks to those who have served, and I apologize for the belated Veteran's Day thank you. Enjoy!

95th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 95th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

"Scrapbooking Your Family History! Here's a real challenge for you... Who's up to the task? Create a scrapbook page on any theme that suits one or more of your vintage photos. If you don't feel very artistic, lay a few photos down on a piece of colored paper, add a few captions, take a snapshot of it, and voila! You have yourself a digital scrapbook page! If you enjoy creating traditional scrapbook pages, take a picture of one you've done, and that works too. If you're up for creating something more artsy, buy a kit or make your own. Go for it! If you've never done scrapbooking before, this is the opportunity you've been waiting for! If you're an experienced scrapbooker, dig in and enjoy the creative process! The deadline for submissions is August 1st."

Enjoy!

Happy Fourth of July!

I just want to wish everyone a happy and safe Independence Day! Enjoy!

20th Edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture Posted!

The 20th edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on Irish Stories, and you can read more about it here. Enjoy!

30th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy Posted!

The 30th edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy has been posted! (Thank you, Al, for the wonderful edition!) You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on work or occupation, and the edition will be hosted by J. M. of Tracing My Roots. Submissions for the edition are due on July 16th, and the edition will be posted on the 19th. You can submit your articles here. Enjoy!

(Note: I just want to apologize for the delay in posting the announcement for the next edition. I've been very busy lately with school work.)

Happy Father's Day!

I just want to wish everyone a happy and wonderful Father's Day. Enjoy!

Reminder: Submissions Due In Two Weeks!

I just want to remind everyone that submissions are due in about two weeks. Al is hosting the edition, and you can read more about the topic here. Enjoy!

My 2010 Genealogy Resolutions - Six Months Later

Well, it has been six months since I posted my genealogy resolutions for 2010, and I thought I would update everyone on my progress (or lack of it) so far. Here are the results:

1. Order William Oswalt's Civil War pension file. I ordered Benjamin's pension file, but I didn't do so for William. Hopefully, I'll be able to that in the upcoming year, and I hope I will be able to determine if my ancestor is related to William. As of June 5: I have not ordered William's pension file, and I don't know if I will be ordering the records any time this year.
2. Research the tax records of Saint Joseph County, Michigan to obtain more information on my Oswalt, Detwiler, Stout and Havens-Mandigo families. As of June 5: I have not done any research into the tax records of Saint Joseph County, Michigan. Hopefully, I get a chance to do so later this summer.
3. Order a microfilm of a Manchester, England church records for a marriage record of an ancestor. As of June 5: I haven't ordered any microfilms yet. I hope to get a chance to do so later this year.
4. Locate the German birthplace or home town for my ancestor, Carl. As of June 5: I haven't done any further research on my ancestor, Carl.
5. Obtain Anton's naturalization record. As of June 5: I haven't ordered Anton's naturalization records.
6. Determine who are the parents of my great-grandfather. As of June 5: I haven't done any research into this great-grandparent. I have always had a suspicion to at least who his mother was in the past, but I haven't been able to conclusively link determine who were his biological parents.
7. Uncover Adam's religious affiliation. I do not know what church Adam attended except that it was a Protestant church, but I'll need to figure out what church he or his family attended so that I can continue researching my Oswalt ancestors. As of June 5: Sometime late last year or earlier this year (I can't remember when exactly, except that it occurred after Benjamin's pension file came), I happened to find a book (through Google books) that Benjamin Oswalt listed as donating some money to the Methodist Church of Three Rivers, Michigan. Of course, I still not sure if Benjamin is Adam's brother (I have yet to write about why I think he is related), but this could be a possible lead. I did not see Adam's name listed, but is it possible Adam belonged to the Methodist Church?
8. Obtain or order more records from Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania to continue researching my ancestors from those counties. As of June 5: I haven't ordered any records from Huntingdon County. Hopefully, I will still be able to do so this summer.

Well, that is where I stand so far in accomplishing this year's resolutions. As you can see, I really haven't been able to fulfill any of my goals yet because I've been busy with school. Will I be able to complete one of the resolutions? I don't know yet, but I hope to be able to complete one before the year ends. Enjoy!

94th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 94th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be

"The Annual Swimsuit Edition! Yes folks, it's that time again... time to look over your photo collection of bathing beauties and select one to share. Bring us your pin-up girls, guys in Speedos, or kids building sand castles. Summer is here and it's time to show us how your family members have enjoyed the water and the summertime heat! The deadline for submissions is July 1st."

Enjoy!

May 2010 Issue of the Shades Of The Departed Magazine Posted!

The May 2010 issue of the Shades of the Departed Magazine has been posted! You can read it here. Enjoy!

Google Analytics Report For May 2010

Well, another month has gone by, and that means that is is time for another Google Analytics report! Here are the results for May 2010:

The top ten countries, in number of visits, are:

1. United States - 243 visits
2. Canada - 23 visits
3. Australia - 9 visits
4. United Kingdom - 8 visits
5. Germany - 7 visits
6. India - 4 visits
7. Israel - 2 visits
8. Russia - 1 visit
9. South Korea - 1 visit
10. Philippines - 1 visit

The top ten states in the United States, in number of visits, are:

1. Ohio - 31 visits
2. California - 31 visits
3. Indiana - 29 visits
4. Illinois - 25 visits
5. New York - 13 visits
6. Florida - 12 visits
7. Wisconsin - 11 visits
8. Pennsylvania - 8 visits
9. Michigan - 7 visits
10. Georgia - 6 visits

The top ten articles, in number of views, are:

1. My Heritage's Top 100 Genealogy Sites - 33 views
2. Saturday Night Fun - The Wayback Machine: A Walk Down Jessica's Genejournal Memory Lane - 19 views
3. 29th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy Posted! - 16 views
4. 28th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy Posted! - 13 views
5. Tombstone Maker Website - 9 views
6. Looking For Hosts Update - Again! - 8 views
7. Memorial Day ... - 8 views
8. 93rd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted! - 6 views
9. 26th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy - 5 views
10. Google Analytics Report For April 2010 - 5 views

Well, that is it for this month's report. To my readers, I just want to say, "Thank you for reading!" Stay tuned for next month' s report, and until then, enjoy!

Memorial Day ...

I just want to wish everyone a wonderful Memorial Day, and I just want to say thank to this who have and are serving. Thanks!