My German Ancestors and Their Summertime Experiences ...

For this edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern Europe, I'm supposed to write my ancestors' experiences with summers in America and Europe, and to be honest, I really do not know very much about what life was like for my ancestors in Europe or America. (Although when it comes to life in America, I can guess a little about what their summers might have been like.)

Most of my German ancestors settled in the Great Lakes area, primarily in Michigan and Ohio, and since I've grown up in the same region as they settled, I do know what summers are like for the area. Summers in Michigan tend to be hot (Temperatures can range from the 70s to 90s, and sometimes even higher.) and humid. This year the summer has been cooler than it usually is, but even so, I've still had to use the air conditioning because there have several days that were either humid, hot or both. Of course, my ancestors would not have had air conditioning, so they would have had to find other ways to stay cool. Although I'm not completely sure as what my ancestors might have done, I do know that a couple of my ancestors would leave Detroit, either to go to the cottage they owned or to a farm owned by other relatives. Of course, those probably were not the only things my ancestors did, but at the moment, I don't know what they might have done.

As for the weather in Europe, I do not believe I would be too far off to say that they might have had to make a little adjustment, but I cannot say for sure. I have been to Germany in the summer, and from what I remember, the weather was slightly warmer than what I was familiar. Although it was slightly warmer, I think the weather was quite comparable to the weather or the Great Lakes region, so I do not believe my ancestors would have been shocked by the weather in the summertime. As for the weather during wintertime, I think that is a completely different story.

Reminder: Submissions Are Due Today!

I just want to remind everyone that the submissions for this upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy are due today. You can read more about the topic here, and you can submit your articles here.

Also, I am still looking for hosts for these two months:

• October
• December

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

The Inter-Library Loan Book Has Come In!

Yesterday, the book I ordered through inter-library loan came into the local library, and I picked up the book later that day. I had ordered the book about a week-and-a-half ago, and so, obviously, I'm thrilled that it has arrived. The book I ordered was Revolution und Constitution -Die Brueder Cotta: Eine biographische Studie zum Zeitalter der Franzoesischen Revolution und des Vormaerz by Monika Neugebauer-Woelk (Berlin: Colloquium Verlag, 1989), and as you might be able to tell from the title, the book is a biography of Christoph Friedrich Cotta and his brother, Johann Friedrich Cotta, and their role in the French Revolution.

Obviously, I ordered the book because it was on my ancestor, Christoph Friedrich Cotta and because I believe the book will help me with my research into my Cotta ancestors. As you might have guessed the book is in German, so it'll probably take me awhile to read this book. Of course, I do not if I will have enough time to finish reading the book before I go back to school, but I can just order the book again through interlibrary loan again. Either way, reading this book should be a good way for me to practice my German. Stay tuned ...

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 9

I have finished reading another book, and unlike the previous eight books, this history book was not on the reading list for my history classes. This book was one that I read for fun, and was a gift I received from my parents.

The book I read was Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring by Alexander Rose (New York: Bantnam Book, 2006). As you probably tell from the title of this book, the focus is on George Washington's attempts to create a spy ring to defeat the British during the American Revolution, and on how successful the ring was to gathering and sharing military intelligence with the Continental Army.

(October 15: I did enjoy reading the book, but I will not be adding any other thoughts to this book review as too much time has past since I finished reading the book. I just wanted to get this review posted as soon as possible. I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.)

Family History Center Visit 13

Yesterday, I paid a visit to the local Family History Center, and I took a look at the microfilm that had arrived. That microfilm happened to be of civil marriage records from Gelnhausen, Germany, but unfortunately, I was unable to find the marriage record for my ancestors, Adolph Kees and Amelie Cotta. The problem was partially due to the fact that I had difficulty reading the handwriting and partly due to the fact that I was unfamiliar with this record type. (Up until this point in researching my German ancestors, I was only familiar with the civil records in Trippstadt, Germany which was a part of Bavaria in the time frame of my research. Gelnhausen was part of the country of Hessen-Nassau at that time, about early to mid-1800s. Thus, I was looking at the records for another country than I was used to, and so, I was unfamiliar with the records that I was researching.)

Of course, I thought that by ordering the civil records first, I might be able to find a record of my ancestors' marriage without having to look at the church records. (There was more than one microfilm of Protestant churches in the LDS catalogue, so I wasn't sure of which church to look at first.) Obviously, I was unsuccessful, so I'll have to order microfilms from the churches in Gelnhausen the next time. Of course, I'll have to wait until I'm on break from school because I will be going back to school soon. Hopefully, the other three microfilms will come in soon, especially the other German microfilm because I don't have much time left.

Family History Center Update

I called the local Family History Center, and I learned that one of the microfilms, the Gelnhausen, Germany marriage records, I ordered had arrived. Hopefully, I'll be able to visit the center soon, and look-up the marriage record for my Kees and Cotta ancestors.

As for the other microfilms, they haven't come in yet. Apparently, the microfilms have been backlogged, but I hope they come in soon because I won't have very much time left to do research before I go back to school.

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 8

I have finished reading another book, and like the previous seven books posted, this book was on the reading list for my history class.

The book I read this time was Washington County: Politics and Community in Antebellum America by Paul Bourke and Donald De Bats (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1995). As you probably could guess from the book's title, the book focuses on the politics and society in Washington County, Oregon before the Civil War.

(October 15, 2009: I had originally planned to post my opinion on this book, but due to the amount of time that has past, I have chosen to post this review without my thoughts.)

Submission Deadline Update

I just want to let everyone know that the deadline for this upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy has been extended until the 24th of July. Thanks!

Is Anyone Planning To Submit Articles?

I'm just wondering: Is anyone still planning to submit an article for the upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy? The submission deadline is supposed to be today, but you need more time, please let me or Thomas know. Thanks!

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 7

Well, I have finished reading another book, and like the previous six books, the book I had to read was also on the reading list for my history class. This time, I read Reforming Men & Women: Gender in the Antebellum City by Bruce Dorsey (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 2002).

This book deals with the history of gender ideology in the reform movements in the Antebellum North. The primary focus is on how white men defined their view of manliness against women, African Americans and European immigrants.

(Note from October 10: Since I waited too long to post this book review, I have decided to omit my opinion of the book so that I can post this review.)

76th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 76th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on "As human beings, our very existence is proof of the survival skills, faith, or just plain luck our ancestors possessed in order to persevere through millenia of disasters: epidemics, wars, pestilences, famines, accidents, and acts of nature.For the next Carnival of Genealogy, tell about a disaster that one or more of your ancestors lived through: Did they survive a hurricane, flood, tornado, train wreck, sinking ship, plague, genocide, explosion, mine collapse, or some other terrible event? How did they survive? Research the details of the disaster and explain how it affected your ancestor (guilt, fear, faith, gratitude, etc.), your family's history, and even yourself! Tip: Check out GenDisasters and historical newspapers to get more details about the event. The deadline for submissions for the next edition is August 1 and it will be hosted by Miriam at AnceStories." Enjoy!

Frustrated Friday - Who Are Their Parents?

It has been awhile since I last wrote about my Stout ancestors, and at the moment, I'm a bit uncertain as to where I should look for a marriage for my ancestors, Joseph Stout and Susan Kelley. What I do know is that they were married in Northampton County, Pennsylvania in 1829. The image above is their marriage notice that was published in the Easton Centennial on 6 March 1829. ( A woman named Marie, did the look-up in the newspaper, and e-mailed me the image of the notice.)

I do not know which church Joseph Stout or Susan Kelley attended, nor do I know who were their parents. (I have suspicions as to who their parents are, but at the moment, I do not have any proof to link them to the suspected parents.) All I know is that they were married by Charles E. Weygandt, Esq., and that Susan was from Bushkill while Joseph was from Schoeneck. Is anyone familiar with the records of Northampton County, Pennsylvania? Does anyone know where I should look for a marriage record, or which church Charles Weygandt might have been a member? Any suggestions or advise is welcome. If you can help me, please contact me by e-mail at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!

15th Edition of the Smile For The Camera Carnival Posted!

The 15th edition of the Smile For The Camera Carnival has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on "'Bling, ancestor Bling.' I am always drawn to the beautiful jewelry worn by our ancestors in old photographs. The locket that was your Great Grandmother's treasure, the pocket watch proudly displayed by a male ancestor, the beautiful crosses of old, and the children with their tiny bracelets. While not many of our ancestors were wealthy enough to own multiple pieces of jewelry, there was the one good piece that held sentimental value. Some of us have been fortunate enough to inherit those treasures. Show us a photograph of your ancestor wearing their "Bling," or photographs of the pieces you have inherited." Enjoy!

Reminder: Submissions Are Due!

I just want to remind everyone that submissions for the upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy are due on the 20th. You can read more about the topic here.

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 6

I have finished reading another book, and like the previous five books, this book was also on the reading list for my class. The book I read this time was What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848 by Daniel Walker Howe (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).

The book is part of the Oxford History of the United States series, and as you can tell from the title, the book is focused on the history and growth of the United States from the time period of 1815 to 1848. Since the book covers over thirty years of history, it is quite large and detailed. The author focuses on in detail about the debate over slavery, the reform movements, the Mexican- American War, the Jacksonian Era, the technological growth and expansion of the United States. He also interweaves the contributions and experiences of Native Americans, women and African-Americans in the general history of this time period.

For me, the book not only reminded me of what I did learn in previous history, but it also included some new information and details that I did not learn in previous history classes. As a result, I felt the book enriched my knowledge of the history of the time period, and thus, I enjoyed reading the book. If you would like to learn more about the history of the United States during this time period, I highly recommend that you put this book on your reading list.

History Being Destroyed ...

Earlier today, I received an e-mail from Terry Thornton about a blog article on the destruction of a Native American burial site.

The site that is facing destruction is a mound burial site that was probably built by a Native American civilization known as the Mound Builders. From what I can remember from reading about this Native American group, the tribe was located in the Southeast and was, at one point, a major civilization. Of course, historians don't know why the civilization disappeared, and from what I can remember, I don't believe historians know much about the Mound Builders either. So, a burial site that could help historians and archaeologists better understand these people is being destroyed. Additionally, people were buried in that mound, and by destroying the mound, those developers are essentially desecrating a grave site. Can you see why this is wrong? Do I need to say anymore?

Still Looking For Hosts ...

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am still looking for hosts for two future editions of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy. The months still available are:

• October
• December

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

75th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 75th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on "How I spent my summer vacation... a favorite summer memory from your youth. Tell us what summers were like when you were a wee tad pole. Did you vacation with family? Go to a youth camp? Hang out at the local park? Watch fireworks? Catch fireflies? Share those lazy, hazy, crazy, days of summers past with us! Deadline for submissions is July 14, 2009." Enjoy!

Happy Independence Day!

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

More Records Have Come!

A week or two weeks ago, I ordered some more marriage records from the Cuyahoga County, Ohio archives, and the records came today. I've only looked at the records briefly, but they confirm some of my suspicions from other records. Now, I just have to make some time to enter the information into my genealogy database.

Justice and Independence: Ancestral Experiences ...

When I think about justice and independence, I usually think about July 4th and the United States even though U. S.'s history has a few stains. Of course, I do not know if I am descended from a Revolutionary War veteran because I haven't researched my American ancestors back that far. As for whether or not any of my American ancestors stood for justice, the closest I can come to is my Civil War ancestor, Adam Oswalt, when he served, but I'm not sure if that counts.

When it comes to my European ancestors, on the other hand, I can think of several examples. I've written briefly before about Adolph Kees and Amelia Cotta, but I haven't written very much about them or their children, other than to write about their daughter Emilia. Adolph and Amelia had several children, and among them was a son named Adolph Friedrich. Until I was contacted by my distant cousin, I did not know that Adolph Friedrich Kees was involved in the 1848 Revolution, nor did I know that his political beliefs were liberal. Since he mostly likely lived in Trippstadt, which is in the Palatinate, at that time, he probably took part in the revolt that occurred there and later put down by the Prussians. Many of the rebels were later put on trial and put to death, so I'm wondering how Adolph Friedrich Kees escaped execution. I guess I'll have to do more research to find that answer. Of course, I can't help but wonder if he was influenced by his maternal grandfather, Christoph Friedrich Cotta.

As you may or may not remember, I wrote about Christoph Friedrich Cotta last year. At that time, I wasn't completely sure if he was my ancestor, but further research has proven that he is an ancestor. Christoph, as I mentioned previously, played a minor role in the French Revolution primarily by being involved in the Mainz Republic, and by working as a government official in Strasbourg, France. While he was in Strasbourg, he became friends with Eulogius Schneider, an ex-priest. (He was another radical, and is quite interesting.) During the Reign of Terror, Eulogius married Maria Sara Stamm, but he was arrested shortly after the wedding. Christoph was also arrested in early 1794, but unlike Eulogius, Christoph survived the Reign of Terror. Two years later, Christoph would marry Eulogius' widow, and they would later have two children: Emil and Amelia Cotta.

As you can see from the previous paragraph, both Eulogius Schneider and Christoph Cotta suffered injustices during the Reign of Terror. They were both liberal in their political beliefs, and wanted to be free, and free others, from the injustices of the absolute monarchies. Earlier this year, I read a biography on the Marquis of Sade (a very disturbing person, by the way), and I learned that the monarch could have someone thrown into jail or imprisoned, and that the monarch had his own court system that was separate from the civil court justice, where nobles could be tried even more leniently than the average peasant would face. As you can imagine, this duel court system obviously angered the average person, and I can only guess that Eulogius and Christoph were angered by the double standard. Of course, I also wonder if Christoph's beliefs were influenced by the experiences of his maternal grandmother.

Christoph Friedrich Cotta's parents were Christoph Friedrich Cotta and Rosalia Pyrker. Rosalia's parents were Franz Josef Carl Pyrker (also spelled as Pirker, Pircker and Pürker) and Anna Maria or Marianne (I've seen her name listed both ways in secondary sources) von Geyerseck. Franz Pyrker was a violinist while Anna Maria was a famous opera singer in the eighteenth century. Anna Maria performed in several European capitals, until she was offered a position at the Duke of Würtemberg's court. While the Pyrkers lived at the court in Stuttgart, Anna Maria became friends with the Duchess of Würtemberg. When the Duke and Duchess began fighting, Anna Maria sided with the Duchess, and the Duke threw her into jail because of her stance. For the next eight years, Anna Maria spent her time in jail, and was only released after Maria Theresa and Catherine the Great petitioned the Duke to free her. Even though Anna Maria should not have gotten herself involved in the fight between the Duke and Duchess, I do not believe she deserved to be thrown into jail. Obviously, Anna Maria suffered an injustice.

So, as you can see, a couple of my ancestors experience injustices or worked at trying to make life better. Of course, the stories I presented are only what I know at the moment, and I still have more research to do. Hopefully, I'll be able to post more information on my Kees, Cotta and Pyrker ancestors in the future. Enjoy!
___________________________________________________________________
Sources

1. E-mails from Silvana Geuna to Jessica Oswalt, between 8 June 2009 and 30 June 2009.
2. "Revolutions of 1848 in the German States." Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolutions_of_1848_in_the_German_states. 30 June 2009.
3. "Palatinate." Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatinate_(region). 30 June 2009.
4. "Death of Amelia Cotta." Tote 1840-1859. Zivilstandregister, 1803-1957 (Trippstadt, Germany). FHL Film INTL 489219.
5. Cotta Family Tree, printed ca. 1930s-1940s (according to family tradition. Family tradition also claims that only five copies were made.)
6. "Cotta, Christoph Friedrich." Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie. Band 3. (Leipzig, Germany: Berlang von Duncker & Humblot, 1876), 518-519.
7. "Eulogius Schneider." Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eulogius_Schneider. 30 June 2009.
8. Maurice Lever, Sade: A Biography, trans. Arthur Goldhammer (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1993), 156-160.
9. "Death of Christoph Friedrich Cotta." Tote 1806-1839. Zivilstandregister, 1803-1957 (Trippstadt, Germany). FHL Film INTL 489218.
10. "Pyrker, Anna Maria." Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie. Band 26. (Leipzig, Germany: Berlang von Duncker & Humblot, 1888), 787-790.
11. "Elisabeth Fredericka Sophie of Brandenburg-Bayreuth." Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_Fredericka_Sophie_of_Brandenburg-Bayreuth. 30 June 2009.
12. Württembergischer Geschichts- und Altertumsverein. Herzog Karl Eugen von Württemberg und seine Zeit. (Eklingen: Paul Neff Verlag, 1907), 509.

Google Analytics Report For June 2009

Another month has gone by, and that means it is time for another Google Analytics report. Here are the results for June 2009:

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

1. United States - 335 visits
2. Canada - 36 visits
3. Netherlands - 14 visits
4. Argentina - 10 visits
5. United Kingdom - 8 visits
6. India - 3 visits
7. Australia - 3 visits
8. Germany - 3 visits
9. New Zealand - 3 visits
10. Norway - 2 visits

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

1. Michigan - 80 visits
2. Illinois - 34 visits
3. California - 32 visits
4. Texas - 23 visits
5. Virginia - 18 visits
6. New York - 15 visits
7. Ohio - 15 visits
8. Indiana - 12 visits
9. Pennsylvania - 9 visits
10. Utah - 8 visits

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

1. Wedding Belles: A Beautiful Wedding Picture - 51 views
2. Tombstone Maker Website - 16 views
3. A Summer Reading Challenge! - 15 views
4. 19th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy - 13 views
5. Google Analytics Report For May 2009 - 13 views
6. Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 1 - 11 views
7. 20th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy - 10 views
8. Family History Center Update - 10 views
9. Family History Center Visit 11 - 10 views
10. Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 3 - 10 views

Well, that is it for this report. To my readers, "Thank you for reading!" Stay tuned for next month's report! Enjoy!

Family History Center Visit 12

Earlier today, I visited the local Family History Center. I wanted to print out some copies of the baptisms in the Trippstadt church records because I was having difficulty transcribing the records, and so I printed out about 8 to 10 pages. After making copies, I printed out the World War One records of two of my great-grandfathers so that other family members could be able to have a copy and so that I had a master copy as well.

Hopefully, I won't need to print out any more copies of the baptismal records, and until the other microfilms come in, I should be busy transcribing and translating the German records I have at the moment. Stay tuned ...

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 5

I have finished reading another book, and like the previous four books I read, this book was also on my reading list for my fall history class. This time, I read A Shopkeeper's Millennium: Society and Revivals in Rochester, New York, 1815-1837 by Paul E. Johnson (New York: Hill and Wang, 2004).

As you tell from the title, the book is about the social history of the early years of Rochester, New York and the Evangelical revivals that occurred in Rochester in the early 1830s. The author explores the formation of political parties in Rochester, and examines which classes made up the parties. He also explores the Temperance and Anti-Masonic movements, and how those movements and the political parties created a climate that made the Evangelical revivals successful in Rochester.

The book is fairly short - under 200 pages - so it is a quick read. I enjoyed reading the book, and I found the information to be quite interesting. Obviously, if a genealogist has an ancestor who lived in Rochester in this time, he or she would probably find this book useful in trying to understand the society of Rochester at this time. I would recommend this book to others. I hope someone enjoys this book as I did.

20th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

Welcome to the 20th edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy! The topic for this edition was a carousel, and that means that submitted articles could be on anything as long as they related to Central or Eastern Europe and genealogy. Although this edition is a small one, there are interesting articles in this edition. Here are the articles for this edition:

First off, we have two articles from Al of Polish-American Genealogy Research. In Index of Indexes, he writes about a website that lists indexing projects that are occurring Poland, and in Indexing Project - Geneteka Part One, he writes about how one can use the Polish website mentioned to research your ancestors.

Next, we have an article from Jen Bawden of Hills Hollows Valleys Plains, a first-time submitter. In Germany is Germane to the Situation?, she writes about how she had difficulty researching her German ancestors until she discovered a notebook that was compiled by her mother.

Last, but not least, we have an article from Jessica Oswalt of Jessica's Genejournal. In Looking For My German Ancestors, Part 7, she continues to write about her research into Anna's family.

Well, that is it for this edition. The next edition will be hosted by Thomas of Destination: Austin Family. The topic for that edition, as suggested by Thomas, will be on "How did your ancestors celebrate the glorious season of summer both back home in Europe and here in America? Did they need to make adjustments once here in America since the weather was different? Or summer customs were different? Include memories, photos, recipes – anything that helps tell summertime stories." The deadline for that edition will be July 20th, and the edition will be published on July 25th. You can submit your articles here.

As a side note, I am still looking for hosts these future months:

• August
• October
• November
• December

If you are interested in hosting the August edition, please contact me at jess_history at yahoo dot com by July 18. Thanks!

Family History Center Visit 11

Earlier today, I visited the local Family History Center, and I took a look again at the microfilm of the church records for Trippstadt, Germany. On my previous visit, I couldn't find a burial record for one of my Kees' ancestor's children, so I decided to look again this time. And I found the record, and I printed out a copy of the record.

After I went through the Trippstadt microfilm, I ordered four microfilms, and I printed out of my great-grandfather's service records. One microfilm was of civil records, and the other three were microfilms of church records. Two of those church records were from Manchester, Lancashire, and the other was of church records from Bobenheim am Berg, Germany. The civil records microfilm was from Gelnhausen, Germany, and it contained marriage records for the city. Hopefully, the microfilms will come in soon, and I will be able to go back farther in my ancestry. Stay tuned ...

Looking For My German Ancestors, Part 7

In my previous post, I mentioned that Anna's siblings had moved back to Cleveland, and that Anna and her siblings had other relatives living in Cleveland, Ohio as well. I think I will write about those relatives, and how I found the marriage record of her parents.

As I mentioned before, Anna and her parents entered the United States through New York's Castle Garden in February of 1864. About a year or so later, Anna's uncle, William Kees, came to the U. S. as well. Of course, at the time that I did the search, I was uncertain to whether or not he was the brother of Emilia Kees, Anna's mother. I knew the maiden name of Emilia at this time only because I had jumped ahead, and obtained Friedrich Klippel and Emilia Kees' marriage record the summer before when I was in Salt Lake City. My grandparent's family tree listed Anna's parents as Friedrich Klippel and Emilia Kees and gave a marriage year of 1858, which turned out later to be incorrect. (Of course, I already knew who Anna's parents were from U. S. census records, family tradition and the ship manifest, but I still jumped ahead when I should not have done so. I should have tried to obtain Anna's birth record first, but I did not.)

Before I went to Salt Lake City, I looked for Friedrich and Emilia's marriage on the FamilySearch site, and I found it. The place of the marriage, which I knew to be Trippstadt, Germany, was the same as on the tree, but the year was different. FamilySearch's entry listed the year as 1857, and since I was already suspicious of the accuracy of the tree, I figured the entry was closer to being accurate. (Some other information on the tree was inaccurate.) So, while I was at the Family History Library, I took at look at the Trippstadt marriages for 1857, and Friedrich and Emilia's marriage record was the first marriage I saw on the film.

Once I got the marriage record transcribed, I began to research Emlia's family, and I came across records for a William H. Kees. Since I did not know if William was related to Emilia, I left a query on a rootsweb message board, and was contacted by a woman in Germany. She sent me some information on Emilia's parents that indicated that William was Emilia's younger brother. The information, though, was from secondary sources, but I was able to confirm the relationship when ancestry posted the passport applications. William Kees had applied for a passport several times for travel to Europe, and on one of his applications, he listed the name of his father, which confirmed the secondary information I had.

In my next post, I will write some more about Emilia's family and possible about some of my latest research on the Klippel and Kees family. Stay tuned ...

Working Hard: A Scene From the Early Days of the Automotive Industry

The photograph above includes my great-grandfather and some other men in a factory building. My great-grandfather is the man standing behind the body of an early car by himself. I believe the factory is Vauxhall Motors in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. I am unsure of when this picture was taken, but my guess is either in the early-1900s or after World War One. I do know, though that my great-grandfather worked for Vauxhall Motors, although I do not know when he began working for the company. The only thing written on the back of the picture was my great-grandfather's surname.

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 4

I have finished reading another book, and like the previous three books I read, this book was also on my reading list for my fall history class. This time, I read Bleeding Kansas: Contested Liberty In The Civil War Era by Nicole Etcheson (Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas, 2004).

As you can tell from the book's title, this book is about Kansas' struggle to become a state before and during the American Civil War, and the civil war-like fighting that led to Kansas being called "Bleeding Kansas." The author argues that the fighting in Kansas was originally concerned with the rights of white people but that the fighting eventually resulted in concerns for the rights of African-Americans as well. She also argues that Kansas would led the way in the nation in granting rights to African-Americans during the Civil War. The author also ties in the fighting in Kansas with other events that occurred elsewhere in the United States during this time period.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, I would. The book was fairly easy to read, and I think the average person would be able to read and enjoy the book. Before I read this book, I only had a basic understanding of Bleeding Kansas from reading textbooks, but after reading this book, I have a better understanding of what occurred in Kansas in the mid-to-late-1850s. (I should note that although I will be working with the author in the fall, she did not ask me to read her book. I am reading this book ahead of time for my fall history class. I will be writing reviews of the other history books that I still have to read for the class.)

(As a side note, this post happens to be the 1,000th post since I started this blog!)

Reminder: Submissions Are Due Today!

I just want to remind everyone that submissions for this upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy are due today by midnight. The theme for this edition is a carousel.

Does anyone need more time? I am willing to extend the deadline if that is the case. Please let me know by either leaving a comment or sending me an e-mail at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks.

Question About German Military Records

Has anyone done extensive research into German records? While looking through the transcription of my ancestor's marriage record, I came across a reference to military discharge papers. Apparently, when my ancestor got married, he had present his military discharge to the civil authorities when he got married. My ancestor married in 1857, and at the time, the city, Trippstadt, where he married was a part of the Kingdom of Bavaria. Does anyone know why he would have had to present his discharge papers at the time of his marriage?

Of course, I am also interested in the particulars of his military service. Does anyone know where I can obtain the records of his military service?

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

Days Library of Michigan Will Be Closed ...

I just happened to notice a post on Brenda's blog about a few days where the Library of Michigan will be closed. You can read more about it here.

Happy Father's Day!

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

Don't Forget!

I just want to remind everyone that submissions for the next edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy are due on the 26th. The topic for the edition is a carousel, so submissions can be on anything related to genealogy or Central and Eastern Europe. You can submit your articles here.

Also, I am still looking for hosts for these months:

• October
• November
• December

I have not decided yet if I will host August, so that month is open too. If you are interested in hosting any of these months, please e-mail me at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!

Family History Center Visit 10

Earlier today, I visited the local Family History Center with my brother and grandma. My grandma helped me with my research by looking through the will index for Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, and she wrote down names from a list on surnames that I gave her. I looked at the grantee index for the same county, but most of the Oswalts listed in the index were for deeds recorded in the mid-Twentieth Century, so I did not have as much luck with that film.

After going through that film, I looked at the church records for Trippstadt, Germany, and I had more success with that film. I was able to find baptismal records for Adolph Kees and Amelia Cotta's children who were born before 1839, and I was able to find a couple of burial records for the Kees and Cotta family. I'll have to order the other microfilm to find the other baptismal, marriage and burial records for the Kees and Cotta family. Of course, I made copies of the images.

I did not order any microfilms this time because I spent the whole time doing research and making copies for what I found.

Why I Haven't Posted In Awhile ...

As you have probably noticed, I have not posted very much this week, and that is due to the fact that I have been busy with school work. I've had to work on a few projects for my classes this week, so I haven't had much time. Things are starting to slow down, so I'll be able to post more after my classes end next week.

On a happier note, I've just connected with a person who is also descended from the same Kees and Cotta ancestors, and I'm excited! I was finally able to e-mail her some of the information I have earlier this week. Of course, I haven't had very much time lately, so I hope to send more e-mail as soon as I'm done with school. Plus, I hope to go the local Family History Center soon as the microfilm for the protestant church records of Trippstadt, Germany came in last week. Hopefully, I'll be able to visit soon.

74th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 74th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

“Justice and Independence. Since our beginnings as a nation, the United States
of America has seen changes with every year, every decade, and every century.
Each generation adds growth to our lives, our communities, and our nation. One
thing that has never changed, however, is our desire for Justice for those who
wrong us and Independence from those who try to oppress us. This month’s COG
asks you to relate to these concepts of Justice and Independence in one or all
of three ways: 1). Tell a story of an ancestor(s) who fought for freedom. 2).
Tell a story about how Independence Day was celebrated by your ancestors. Did
any of their celebratory traditions get passed down for your own family to
continue? Or 3). Post the lyrics of a song that exemplifies how Justice and
Independence have worked in the lives of your ancestors and/or family. Include
photos! This edition of the COG will be hosted by Colleen at OMcHodoy (thanks Colleen!). Deadline for submissions is July 1."

Enjoy!

14th Edition of the Smile For The Camera Carnival Posted!

The 14th edition of the Smile For the Camera has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on "they WORKED hard for the family. The professions of our ancestors are almost as interesting as the people themselves. Some of our ancestors worked very hard; they took in laundry, worked the land, raised many children, or went to school and became professionals. Photographs of them working are called occupational photographs and are rather hard to find." Enjoy!

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 3

I have finished my third book for this reading challenge! The book I read this time was Soul By Soul: Life Inside The Antebellum Slave Market by Walter Johnson (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1999). Like the two previous books I read and reviewed, this book was on the reading list for my fall history class.

As you can tell from the book's title, the book focuses on the slave market in the South between 1810 and 1865. Most of the focus is on the New Orleans slave market, but the author does focus on the internal slave trade between the Upper and Lower South. The author also focuses on the slave masters and slaves thoughts and experiences with the slave trade and slavery. Additionally, he also explores how slave traders were able to convert human beings into items, and the beliefs of those who bought the slaves.

Although I have read about slavery in the United States before, I did not have a complete comprehension of the evils of slavery. I knew slavery was evil, but I did not realize or comprehend how bad it was until I read this book. For me, this book brought the experience of slavery to life more than anything else I had read before, and I was able to picture what life was like to live in a society with slavery, either as a slave or someone who was free. This book brought an aspect of history to life that I had read before and thought I understood. If you want to learn more about slavery in the United States, I highly recommend that you read this book.

Family History Center Update

I received a phone call from the local Family History Center earlier today, and I learned that the three microfilms I ordered a couple weeks ago have arrived. I hope to be able to pay a visit to the center soon. Stay tuned ...

Wedding Belles: A Beautiful Wedding Picture

As you may or may not remember, I wrote about the Henry's in my family that had married women from Canada last year, and a few weeks ago, I found this photograph of one of the Henry's weddings at my grandma's house. This photograph happens to be of the marriage of Henry Klippel to his second wife, Mary Oman, and was taken in Cleveland, Ohio in 1908. Isn't this a beautiful photograph? I am amazed at the quality of this old photograph, and as soon as I saw the picture, I fell in love with it. To me, this picture is very special, and I cannot get over how beautiful it is. I hope you enjoy this photograph as well. Enjoy!

Carnival Editions Updates!

As you may or may not remember, I did not post the topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy. I was waiting to hear back from the person who had promised to host the carnival, and since I have not heard back, I have decided to host the 20th edition here on my blog. The topic for the next edition will be a carousel. The deadline for the submissions will be June 26th, and the edition will be posted on June 28th.

In addition, the 21st edition will be hosted by Thomas of Destination: Austin Family. The topic for that edition, as suggested by Thomas, will be on "How did your ancestors celebrate the glorious season of summer both back home in Europe and here in America? Did they need to make adjustments once here in America since the weather was different? Or summer customs were different? Include memories, photos, recipes – anything that helps tell summertime stories." The deadline for that edition will be July 20th, and the edition will be published on July 25th. (I will post a reminder at the end of the 20th edition.)

You can submit your articles here. Thanks!

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 2

I have finished reading another book for this summer's reading challenge, and like the previous review, the book I read was also on the reading list for my fall history classes. And like the previous book, this book is a social history of Early American history, but it focuses on the south only.

Southern Cross: The Beginnings of the Bible Belt by Christine Leigh Heyrman (Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina Press, 1997), focuses on the early Evangelical churches in the Southern United States and how the South became to be the center of Evangelical Christianity in the U.S. The time period of the book stretches from 1740 to 1840, but the primary focus of the book is on the years between 1790 and 1830. The Evangelical churches explored in this book are the Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian churches, but most of the book focuses only on the Methodists and Baptists. For me, the most interesting thing to learn about was that prior to the American Revolution, the Evangelical churches were rejected by Southerners, and thus, the author's exploration into why that was so, was the most interesting part of the book for me. As for the later and greater acceptance of the Evangelical churches. Although, I disagreed with some of the author's conclusions in the epilogue, I would still recommend this book for others to read as I found it to be quite interesting, so much so, that I would like to read about the Evangelical movement occurring in the Northern part of America in the same time period. I hope that other people will find this book as interesting as I did. Enjoy!

Another Award!

Within the past few days and earlier today, Cheryl of Heritage Happens and Gini of Ginisology both awarded me with the Janich Brown Pukerbrush Blog Award. Thank you Cheryl and Gini for giving me the award! I feel grateful and honored for receiving the award.

So, what I do I have to do with this award? Well, I have to give this award to 10 other bloggers. Those ten bloggers are:

• Midwestern Microhistory
• Al's Polish-American Genealogy Research
• TransylvanianDutch
• Anglo-Celtic Connections
• Tracing the Tribe: The Jewish Genealogy Blog
• The Graveyard Rabbit
• My Family Puzzle
• The Virtual Dime Museum
• A Twig In My Tree
• Claudia's Genealogy Blog

I hope everyone enjoys this award. Again, thank you, Cheryl and Gini for the award! Enjoy!

73rd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 73rd edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on:

Swimsuit Edition! Why should Sports Illustrated have all the fun? This is your
chance to show off the bathing beauties in your family. Pull out the old photos
of Grandma Moses in her seaside bloomers, Auntie Mae in her pin-up girl suit
from the 1940s or 50s, cousin Paula in her psychedelic bikini from the 1970s, or
even yourself in your Speedo! Let's have some fun here! Memorial Weekend is
behind us and that means the start of the summer sun, sand, and lakeside season
so let's get in the mood with summer fun photos. What? You don't have any
swimsuit photos you dare to share? No problem! Tell us your best family beach
stories instead! The deadline for submissions is June 15th. This edition of the
COG will be hosted by Jasia at Creative Gene.

Enjoy!

Carnival Hosts Needed- Update

I just want to let everyone know that I have found a host for September's edition, and possibly July's edition. I still need hosts for these months:

• October
• November
• December

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

Google Analytics Report For May 2009

May is now over, and that means that it is time for another Google Analytics report! Here is the report for May 2009:

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

1. United States - 380 visits
2. Canada - 49 visits
3. United Kingdom - 15 visits
4. Netherlands - 15 visits
5. Australia - 4 visits
6. United Arab Emirates - 4 visits
7. Israel - 3 visits
8. Mexico - 2 visits
9. India - 2 visits
10. Czech Republic - 2 visits

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

1. Michigan - 80 visits
2. Illinois - 45 visits
3. California - 43 visits
4. Virginia - 31 visits
5. New York - 25 visits
6. Ohio - 22 visits
7. Pennsylvania - 14 visits
8. Texas - 10 visits
9. Indiana - 10 visits
10. Georgia - 8 visits

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

1. Celebrate Your Name Week - Day One - 28 views
2. 72nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted! - 26 views
3. Happy Mother's Day! - 26 views
4. Genealogy and History Thoughts Column 17 - My Thoughts on the IGI and LDS Rite, Baptism of the Dead, Controversy - 23 views
5. 19th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy - 18 views
6. A New Award! -16 views
7. Library of Michigan and State Archives News: Possible Closure? - 14 views
8. Why I Haven't Posted Too Much Lately ... - 14 views
9. 13th Edition of the Smile For the Camera Carnival Posted! - 12 views
10. And Now For Another Episode of the "Adventures of Ben and Casey" ... - 12 views

Well, that is it for this month's report. To my readers, "Thank you for reading!" Stay tuned for next month's results. Enjoy!

Summer Reading Challenge Book Review 1

As I mentioned yesterday, I have decided to join a reading challenge, and I have already finished reading my first book for this challenge!

The book I chose to read was Inheriting The Revolution: The First Generation of Americans by Joyce Appleby (Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2000). As the book's title implies, the book is on how the culture of the United States was formed and created by the generation of Americans after the Revolutionary War generation. The author explores how that generation changed American colonial society and recreated that society. She also describes how those Americans interpreted the legacy of the Revolutionary War, and carried on the ideals of the revolution. In short, the book is a social history of American life between 1787 and 1824.

How did I learn about this book? Well, I requested the reading lists for my fall classes from my professors, and this book was one of the books on the reading list. Although I would have had to read this book for my future history class in the fall, I still enjoyed reading it. Why? Well, for one, I enjoyed the author's writing style, and secondly, I have an interest in social history. As someone who has an interest in social history as a result of my genealogy research, I enjoyed this book for those reasons. Would I recommend this book? Yes, because this book illuminated several movements and life in America at this time period and because of this fact, I believe this book would be beneficial in giving historical social context for genealogists researching in this time period. I hope that other people might enjoy this book and find it interesting as I did.

A Summer Reading Challenge!

As you may or not remember, I participated last year in reading challenge where I had to read five non-fiction books, and I wanted to do so again this year. Until today, I had no idea as to whether or not the challenge was still occurring, but I happened to find the link here. So, stay tuned for this summer's reviews. Enjoy!

Family History Center Visit 9

Earlier today, I stopped by the local Family History Center, and ordered three more microfilms. Two of the mircofilms are indexes: one for the probate records of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania and the other for the grantees for Huntingdon County's land records. The other microfilm is of church records from the Protestant church in Trippstadt, Germany. I am hoping that these mircofilms of the indexes will help me with my research into my Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania ancestors. Stay tuned for further updates ...

19th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

Welcome to the May 2009 edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy. For this edition, submitters had to submit articles that dealt with food. Although this is a small edition, this edition is still an excellent read. Here are this edition's submissions:

First off, we have an article from Evelyn Yvonne Theriault of A Canadian Family. In Carnival of Central and Eastern Genealogy - Traditional Dishes, she writes about a cook book she found in a bookstore, and shares a version of a Russian dish.

Next, we have an article from Greta Koehl of Greta's Genealogy Blog. In A Tribute to Sauerkraut, she writes about one of her favorite foods, and shares a recipe for a sauerkraut dish.

Last, but not least, we have an article from Jessica Oswalt of Jessica's Genejournal. In An Interesting Cook Book, she writes about a cook book that contains recipes of traditional dishes from Central and Eastern Europe.

Well, that is it for this month's edition of the carnival. At the moment, I am waiting for a reply from the host for June's edition, so I do not have any information on the topic for the next edition. I will post an update when I learn more. On another note, I need hosts for at least four editions of the carnival because I will be busy with school work. The months that definitely need hosts are:

• September
• October
• November
• December

At the moment, I do not know if I need a host for August. I should be able to do July, but I do not know about August. If you are interested in hosting, please contact me at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!

An Interesting Cook Book

I'm a bit late in writing this post due to the fact that I am busy with school work, but I wanted to submit an entry for this upcoming edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy.

Since this edition's topic is on food, I thought I would mention a little about a cookbook that I own, Russian, German & Polish food & cooking edited by Lesley Chamberlain (London: Hermes House, 2006). This cook book contains recipes of traditional dishes from Central and Eastern European. (Recipes from other countries besides Germany, Poland and Russia are represented as well. The Balkan Peninsula has its own section in the book.) Various types of dishes are represented in this book, from soups to deserts, and the book as gives a little background information on the culture and ingredients typically used in the dishes for the different regions. I have enjoyed looking at the pictures and reading through the book. (Although, I would have liked to share one of the book's recipes, I do not believe I can do so, due to copyright laws.) I hope someone else might enjoy this book as well. Enjoy!

13th Edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture Posted!

The 13th 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 vacations, and you can read more about it here. The topic for the 15th edition will be on the 2nd summer reading challenge, and you can read more about it here. Enjoy!

More on the 19th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

Although I promised that I would post this upcoming edition on Monday, but I have not had much time lately. I will try to post the edition as soon as possible. Thanks.

Happy Memorial Day!

I just want to wish everyone a happy Memorial Day! Enjoy!

Why I Haven't Posted Too Much Lately ...

As you have probably noticed, I have not posted very many articles lately. This has mostly been due to the fact that I have been fairly busy for the past two weeks. Last week, I started classes again, and as a result, I do not have as much time to do research and writing posts. Thankfully, I will only be taking classes for the next month, and then, I should be able to resume my writing for another month.

Since I haven't had very much time lately, I have decided to extend the deadline for the submissions for the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy till Monday morning, and I will post the edition on Monday evening. If you have not submitted an article and would like to, please e-mail me with a link to your article at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks.

72nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 72nd edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on:

The Good Earth. Were your ancestors sharecroppers or land barons? Perhaps an
ancestor was a logger or a miner. Do you have stories of homesteading? Is there
a master gardener in your tree? If your ancestors lived in the city did they
keep a square foot garden or escape the city to a favorite park? Tell us about
your family's ties to the land! The deadline for submissions will be June 1st.
Apple will host the next edition of the COG on Apple's Tree.

Enjoy!

Carnival Reminder!

I almost forgot again that the deadline for submissions to the next edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern Europe are due on the 20th. The topic this carnival is on food. Does anyone need more time? Please let me know if you do. Thanks!

Madness Monday - Irene Havens, Part 6

As you may remember from my previous post, I ended the article before I revealed the information I learned about Clarissa's marriages from Jim just before Christmas.


So, what did Jim uncover for me? Well, he uncovered the dates of Clarissa's marriages to Archibald Mandigo and Darwin Havens and who the official was at the weddings. For Clarissa's first marriage, which was to Darwin Havens, a Rochester city alderman was the official at the wedding, and thus, if I want to uncover any further information on the wedding, I'll have to look and see if there were any civil records created by the city for that marriage. (Does anyone know where I can find marriage records from the late-1840s for Rochester or Monroe County?) As for Clarissa's second marriage, Jim uncovered the name of the pastor and the church where the marriage occurred. So, now that I have a possible religious belief for Clarissa, I'll have to order the records from the church and see if I can find more information on my Havens ancestors.

Now that I have a more solid connection between the Havens and Mandigos through Clarissa, I need to do more research in Saint Joseph County, Michigan to see if I can uncover more information on my ancestor and Clarissa. I'll have to find out when Clarissa died and if Archibald Mandigo left anything to Clarissa's step-children in a will or probate record.

Of course, I still have several questions that I need to answer about the Havens and Mandigo families, not only in Michigan but also in Rochester? Is this Darwin Havens my ancestor's father? At the moment, I do not know, but in my next post, I'll write about some other records that I took a second look at recently. Stay tuned ...

Saturday Night Fun - What Inspired Me?

For this Saturday Night Fun challenge, Randy is asking, "What event or person inspired you to start your genealogy research?" So, what inspired me?

Well, I did touch upon this subject before in a previous article, but I don't mind mentioning it again. As I mentioned before, I believe my interest in history and the fact that my grandfather was doing research into the family were the two factors in inspiring me to do genealogy. Of course, when I think I about when I began to do genealogy, I usually say that I began my research in my late teens, but after thinking about for a while, I wonder if I actually started it earlier.

When I was in the sixth grade, I had to do a family tree project for a project, so I began asking my grandparents for the names of my ancestors for the projects. I created a poster (which I still have) of the information that was known at the time, and when it was time to present my family tree, I had my grandpa bring in the family tree that had been done on my grandmother's side in addition to my posted. Then, when I entered the seventh grade, I had to do another family tree project as well, and I had to ask questions again. Of course, I also had to collect information on my family's medical history as that was a part of the project at that time.

Add those factors to the influence of my grandfather and my love of history, I guess it isn't a surprise as to why I do genealogy. Of course, when I think about those two early factors, I wonder if I actually started to research my family history earlier than I thought before because if I hadn't had to ask questions at those times, I don't know if I would have been able to uncover information on my great-grandfather without some of the information I learned at that time. So, what do you think?

13th Edition of the Smile For The Camera Carnival Posted!

The 13th edition of the Smile For the Camera Carnival has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

"Wedding Belles. Historically, couples married in the month of June to
honor Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage. Others did it to time conception so
births wouldn't interfere with harvest work. And brides in the 15th century
chose to marry in June because it coincided with their "annual bath" - that's
right - ensuring a relatively sweet-smelling honeymoon. Show us a photograph of
a wedding, a wedding party, a bride, a groom, the reception, or even the
honeymoon."

Enjoy!

Family History Center Visit 8

Earlier today, I visited the local Family History Center, and I took a look at the new microfilm that had come in earlier in the week. As I suspected, it was a microfilm of church records (Bishop's transcripts, to be specific) from Wigan, Lancashire, but unfortunately, after looking through the film, I realized that I had ordered the wrong microfilm. So, the next time I visit the local Family History Center, I'll have to order a different film for the area.

After not having any luck with the Wigan film, I went through the Huntingdon, Pennsylvania microfilm again, but as with the first film, I was unable to uncover any more information on my ancestors. So, I did not have any luck with that film either.

After not having any success with those two films, I did take another look at the Luton microfilm I had looked at before, and this time, I did find the marriage of my great-grandmother's older brother. (I didn't find her younger brother's marriage, but I couldn't remember the year he married.) When I looked at the witnesses to the marriage, I was surprised to see my great-grandparents listed as the witnesses! Since I did not know how they met or for how long they knew each other before they married, I was thrilled to find their signatures on the record at least three years before they married!

So, for this visit, I really did not have any success, other than when I looked at the Luton microfilm. I did not order any additional microfilms at this visit, but I am hoping to visit the center next week. I might order a few more microfilms at that visit. Stay tuned ...

Family History Center Update

I received an e-mail from the local family history center earlier today informing me that my other microfilm had arrived. This microfilm is of Church of England church records from Lancashire county, although I do not remember if the records are for Wigan or another city in the county. Well, I hope to go to the center soon, so I'll refresh my memory about which location is on the microfilm. Stay tuned ...

New Records Added to FamilySearch's Record Search

Several new databases have been added to FamilySearch's Record Search. Among the records added are vital records for Brazil and North Carolina, death records for Florida and South Carolina, and more images for Czech Republic church records. I hope these new databases help you in your research. Enjoy!

And Now For Another Episode of the "Adventures of Ben and Casey" ...

Well, not exactly, but the photograph above is a picture of my dogs, Ben and Casey that I took earlier today. (I wanted to post a recent picture of them, but I wasn't able to get Casey to face towards the camera, so you cannot see Casey's face. Trust me, it wasn't very easy for me to get them close enough to take a picture today. And that is in addition to the fact that I do not have a very good digital camera.

As you may remember, I wrote about them before in a previous post. In case you are wondering how Ben and Casey were named, my brother and I named the dogs when we first chose them. We did not know about the old TV show, so we did not name them after the show. I named Ben after a my favorite character from my favorite book series (at that time), and as for Casey's name, I'm not exactly sure why my brother gave him that name. (Casey is my brother's dog.) Of course, I could go on and on about the two of them, but I think I'll spare everyone the stories I could tell about Ben and Casey, for now.

Happy Mother's Day!

I just want to wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day! Enjoy!

Michigan Genealogist Newsletter 1st Edition of 2009 Posted!

The first edition of the 2009 Michigan Genealogist Newsletter has been posted! You can read it here! Enjoy!

Genealogy and History Thoughts Column 17 - My Thoughts on the IGI and LDS Rite, Baptism of the Dead, Controversy

Last year, when the controversy between the Catholic church and LDS occurred over Catholic parish records, I thought about writing a column on, but I eventually chose to not do so because I waited too long to write my column. So, when I happened to notice Schelly's post on the news about the baptism of the President's mother, I thought I would write about my thoughts on this issue. (But, before I continue with my column, I just want to mention that I understand that the LDS rite, baptism of the dead, does not mean the deceased person becomes a Mormon after the rite or being listed on the IGI.)

So, what I think about this controversy? Well, to be honest, I am torn between two different views on the rite and IGI listings. On the one hand, I am bothered by the rite but my issue with the rite is due to the fact that I am an Evangelical Christian. On the other hand, I do not have a problem with deceased people's names being listed in the IGI as the IGI has been useful in my research. For instance, I would not have uncovered the birth date for my great-grandfather as quickly as I did if someone had not entered the put the information on the FamilySearch website. I have also found other information on many other ancestors, such as marriage and birth dates, on the site and was able to confirm that information by using it as a guide in my search for sources and further research. The IGI has been a wonderful tool in researching my family's history.

With that said, I also understand that other people might object to their ancestors being listed in the IGI. Do I believe that it is insensitive for a person to have non-related people baptized in this rite? Yes. Those who object to having their deceased relatives listed probably do so out of privacy, religious or other concerns, and I think it is rude for someone who is not connected to a person to have the rite done. (Of course, I have not had a problem with finding any of my ancestors in the IGI only because the ancestors listed are at least separated by a generation from my living relatives, and thus, I haven't had to worry about any privacy concerns.) I realize that the person doing so may be doing it out of the goodness of their heart, but if that person is not connected to the person baptized, I think it would be best for that person to not submit the person's name unless the family has given him or her permission to do so. (I do not have as much of a problem if that person is descended from an ancestor, although I think he or she should consider the feelings of other family members before submitting a name.)

So, what does one do if one wants to memorialize the deceased? Well, in the case of uncovering the names of Holocaust victims, I think the proper procedure would be to donate the research uncovered on victims to a Holocaust survivor group or museum, and allow the members of those groups to decide if and how they would like to memorialize the victims. In other cases, I would avoid baptizing anyone who isn't connected to the person doing the research, and for those are having dead relatives baptized, I would check with relatives before having the names posted on the internet. I think depends on the situation of each case.

Should one donate the names of their ancestors to the IGI, if the IGI has been useful to their research? I think it depends upon the feelings of the researcher and his or her family. As to whether or not I will ever submit ancestors whose names are not listed in the IGI, I am not completely sure what I'll do. Right now, I believe my answer is no due to the fact that I do not want to offend any family members and that I want to respect the privacy of my relatives. Of course, I might change my feelings in the future, but I don't know for sure. Of course, I do not believe there are easy answers or guidelines for all of the issues connected to this controversy.

So, what do you think? Am I right or Wrong? As always, you can leave your thoughts in the comments section.

A New Award!

I just learned that Diane of Random Relatives has awarded me the "One Lovely Blog Award." Thank you Diane!

So, what does one have to do after receiving this award? Well, the recipient has to nominate seven other blogs for the award. So, here are the seven blogs I am nominating:

1. Wendy of All My Branches Genealogy
2. Diane of CanadaGenealogy or 'Jane's Your Aunt'
3. Claudia of Claudia's Genealogy Blog
4. Greta of Greta's Genealogy Blog
5. Cheryl of In Deeds
6. Lori of Smokey Mountain Family Historian
7. Alana of A Twig In My Tree

Enjoy!

71st Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 71st edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

Mothers! Mother’s Day is right around the corner and this is the perfect
time to honor your mother, grandmother, godmother, step mother, den mother,
aunt, neighbor, or friend who happens to be a mother. If you’ve written about
your own mother for the COG before, consider writing about another mom on your
family tree. Let’s make all our moms famous! The deadline for submissions is May
15th and next edition will be hosted at Creative Gene.

Enjoy!

Family History Center Visit 7

Yesterday, I visited the local Family History Center, and started to take a look at the two microfilms that had come in. I had only about an hour to do research, so I wasn't able to get too far into my research.

The first microfilm that came in happened to be of marriages from St. Matthew's Church in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. I had hoped to find my great-great-grandparents marriage record in this microfilm, since it was the church where my great-grandparents got married. Although the records went back to the time of my great-great-grandparents' marriage, their marriage was not recorded in this church. I'll have to take a look at other church records in the area, and order another microfilm. (Of course, before I return the microfilm, I will double check to make sure that I haven't overlooked any of the marriages of my great-grandmother's siblings as well.)

So, after quickly determining that my great-grandparents were not in that film, I decided to look at the other microfilm. This microfilm contained the records of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania's cemetery, church and bible records, and I quickly discovered that the microfilm contained a typed transcript of those records done by the local DAR branch in Huntingdon county. Despite being disappointed at not viewing the originals, I still decided to go through the film and see if I could find my ancestors mentioned. Unfortunately, I only got through about a third of the microfilm, so I'll have to make another trip to the center to finish going through the microfilm. Hopefully, I will get lucky and uncover more information on my ancestors on my next visit. Stay tuned for future updates ...

Google Analytics Report for April 2009

I cannot believe that April is already over, but since it is, that means it is time for another Google Analytics report! Here are the results for April:

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

1. United States - 470 visits
2. Canada - 43 visits
3. United Kingdom - 24 visits
4. Netherlands - 20 visits
5. Germany - 6 visits
6. Australia - 4 visits
7. South Korea - 3 visits
8. Israel - 2 visits
9. New Zealand - 2 visits
10. France - 2 visits

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

1. Michigan - 84 visits
2. Illinois - 51 visits
3. New York - 41 visits
4. California - 34 visits
5. Virginia - 28 visits
6. Texas - 25 visits
7. Ohio - 22 visits
8. Tennessee - 21 visits
9. Colorado - 18 visits
10. Pennsylvania - 15 visits

The top ten locations in Michigan, in number of visits, are:

1. Whitmore Lake - 57 visits
2. Hamburg - 9 visits
3. Washtenaw County - 3 visits
4. Algonac - 2 visits
5. Flint - 2 visits
6. Lansing - 2 visits
7. Muskegon - 2 visits
8. Kent County - 1 visit
9. East Lansing - 1 visit
10. Roseville - 1 visit

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

1. 18th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy - 24 views
2. 34th Shades Of The Departed Guest Column Posted! - 17 views
3. More Death Records Added to the Seeking Michigan Site! - 16 views
4. Tombstone Maker Website - 15 views
5. Forgot To Mention: It Has Been Two Years! - 15 views
6. Researching My Central and Eastern European Female Ancestors ... - 13 views
7. 12th Edition of the Smile For the Camera Carnival Posted! - 13 views
8. 69th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted! - 13 views
9. Madness Monday - More on Irene Havens, Part 5 ... - 13 views
10. Question About Pre-1906 Naturalization Records ... - 13 views

Well, that is it for this month's Google Analytics report. To all my readers, "Thank you for reading!" Stay tuned for next month's report! Enjoy!

New Records Added to FamilySearch's Record Search

I forgot to mention this earlier, but over the past week, FamilySearch's Record Search has added a couple databases to their site. The records added were the 1892 New York State census, church records for a parish in Jamaica, and some more records for a diocese in Spain. I hope these new databases will help you with your research. Enjoy!

Saturday Night Fun - Date Calculations

For this Saturday Night Fun, Randy has challenged other genea-bloggers to post on the use of their genealogy software's date calculator to find a birth date, and I thought I would participate in this challenge.

I have two genealogy programs on my computer: Family Trees Quick and Easy, version 5 that I use to keep track of my ancestry and Family Tree Maker 2005 trial version, so that I can open any gedcoms e-mailed to me. (I cannot successfully open gedcoms with the other program for some reason.) So, for this challenge I will use the date calculator in the Family Tree Maker version.

For this challenge, I have decided to calculate the birth date of my ancestor, Irene Havens. My only record of death happens to be her tombstone which states that she died on March 16, 1876 and was 35 years, 5 months and 25 days old at the time of her death. (I have not been able to find a record of her death, but it is quite possible that it never got recorded. I have a couple of other female ancestors whose deaths do not show up in the Saint Joseph county, Michigan death records either.)

To calculate the date of her birth, I opened Family Tree Maker software and selected the date calculator under the tools menu. I then entered the date of death and age of death as recorded on the tombstone, and the calculator came back with the date of 20 September 1840, although it mentioned that the calculation result was ambiguous. I'm guessing that the calculator does not know if the year was a leap year or not, so I'll have to do a little bit more research to find whether or not that is the case for 1876. So, I might have the right day of birth, but I won't know for sure until I uncover a baptismal record. Hopefully, I will find one for her.

18th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

Welcome to the eighteenth edition of the Carnival of Central and European Genealogy! The topic for this edition was on Easter and Passover traditions. Although this is a small edition, here are a few Easter and Passover traditions:

First off, we have an article from Greta Koehl of Greta's Genealogy Blog, who is also a submitting an article to this carnival for the very first time. In Easter Traditions in the Eastern Churches: The Easter Basket, she writes about what types of food go into the basket, and she includes a recipe a dish that is included in the baskets.

Next, we have two articles from Schelly Talalay Dardashti of Tracing the Tribe: The Jewish Genealogy Blog. In Passover Memories: NYC, Teheran, LA and Part 2, she writes about her experiences celebrating Passover in New York City, Iran and Los Angeles.

Last but not least, we have an article from Donna Pointkouski of What's Past is Prologue. In Happy Dyngus Day!, she writes about the Polish tradition practiced on the Monday after Easter.

Well, that is it for this edition. I hope you have enjoyed this edition as much as I enjoyed reading the articles. The topic for the next edition will be on food! Does your family have any traditional dishes that came from Central or Eastern Europe? Do you have a favorite dish from Central or Eastern Europe? You do not have to have Central or Eastern European ancestors to participate in this carnival. The deadline for the submission of articles will be May 20th and the edition will be published on the 22nd. You can submit your articles here. Enjoy!

Family History Center Update

I just received an e-mail from the local Family History Center and learned that two of the microfilms I ordered have arrived. I know that one of the microfilms is of the church and bible records of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, but I am unsure of what the other microfilm is because I only ordered one microfilm from Pennsylvania this time around. I did order two microfilms of church records from England, so it is possible that one of the microfilms is from England. Either way, I'll find out which microfilm that one is the next time I go to the center.

Reasons Why I Haven't Posted Too Much Lately ...

As you have probably noticed, I haven't posted very much over the past few weeks. Part of the reason for the lack of posts is that I haven't felt like posting very much, and secondly, I've been doing research into one of my German branches. Most of the research has been with secondary sources, but I believe I have made some more connections on my Cotta ancestors. Of course, I'll have to back up the research with primary sources, but so far, the secondary sources (consisting primarily of biographies and history books) have been consistent. Either way, I'm thrilled to uncover new information.

So, I've been a bit busy, but I do plan to post other articles soon. I am still back-logged, but I hope to finish those posts soon. It just might take a while. Stay tuned ...

Question: Does Anyone Still Want to Submit Articles?

I forgot that yesterday was the submission deadline for the 18th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy, and since I forgot, I'm willing to push back the deadline for the submissions and the publishing of the edition. Is there anyone who still wants to submit an article? Please let me know.

Also, I am still looking for people interested in hosting future editions of the carnival. Here are the months still available:

• May
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

If anyone is interested in hosting, please contact me at jess_history at yahoo dot com. Thanks!

70th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The 70th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

Local History! As genealogists, we are used to tracing our ancestors and
the history of the places they lived. But not all of us live where our ancestors
did - do we take the time to see the history all around us? Use some of your
investigative skills to research the house, street, or town/city where YOU live.
Write about an interesting person, place, or event of local history. The
deadline for submissions is May 1st. This edition of the COG will be hosted by
Donna at What's Past is Prologue.

Enjoy!

12th Edition of the Smile For the Camera Carnival Posted!

The 12th edition of the Smile For the Camera Carnival has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next edition will be on

All Creatures Great And Small. Show us a photograph of the family pet. The pet
that made it into every family snapshot. That pampered pet your ancestors took
to the photographic studio to immortalize in an expensive photograph. The best
friend who was there for your ups and downs.

Enjoy!

Question About Pre-1906 Naturalization Records ...

A few years ago, I found my ancestor's naturalization paper in the State of Michigan archives, and since this naturalization occurred before 1906, I figured that this was the only record. Lately, though, I have been wondering: Should I be looking for an additional record even though this is before 1906? I still am not having any luck in determining where my ancestor was born, and I wonder if there is more than this half-page to his naturalization record. Does anyone know?

Although I have posted the image so that other genealogists could look at the record, I have covered up the last name to protect the identities of living relatives.

Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated. Thanks!

Forgot To Mention: It Has Been Two Years!

I just realized that I forgot to mention on March 18th, that I began this blog two years ago. I didn't think about that fact until I noticed that other genea-bloggers were posting posts on their anniversaries.

Madness Monday - More on Irene Havens, Part Five ...

I've noticed that several genea-bloggers are taking part in a meme started by Amy Crooks, and I thought I would participate in this meme.

For this edition of the Madness Monday, I've decided to focus on my mysterious ancestor, Irene Havens, and post another article in my series on her. In my previous post, I mentioned the discovery that I made about Rhoda's parents. What I did not add at the time of that post was that I had also some additional information the mysterious Clarissa Mandigo that I recently mentioned in another post.

After looking up Rhoda's death record, I only came to the conclusion that the 1850 Rochester, New York census that included a Clarissa, Rhoda and Hirena Havens was the correct census when another genealogists suggested that the Hirena might be my ancestor in response to my request for help in finding Irene Havens in the 1850 census. (Up to that point, I wasn't sure if that census was the correct one as I have found an 1860 census that included a Rhoda Havens family living in Clinton county, New York. That family, that I mentioned in a previous post, happened to be the wrong family, and it was only Rhoda (Havens) Lang's death registration that revealed how incorrect my assumption was.)

Once I came to the conclusion that my Havens ancestor lived in Rochester, New York before coming to Michigan, I decided to figure out why I could not find the right Rhoda Havens in the 1860 Census. (I could find Irene, but Irene was living with a different family.) This time, I decided to look in Saint Joseph county, Michigan for the Mandigo family, and I came across the household of Archibald Mandigo. Archibald's household included a Clarissa and Rhoda Mandigo, and I began to suspect that Rhoda was listed under the Mandigo name instead of her own name. I also suspected that Clarissa Havens had remarried after the 1850 census to Archibald Mandigo. At the same time, the same genealogist who helped me, pointed out a biography of a Robert Mandigo as a source I should look at, and after viewing the biography, I decided to look for Archibald Mandigo's family in the 1850 census to prove or disprove my speculations. I found Archibald Mandigo and his sons living in Webster, Monroe county, New York in the census, and noticed that a female was not present in the household. This suggested to me that Archibald was probably a widower at the time of the census, and that Archibald might have married Clarissa. To further solidify my suspicions, I decided to go through the Rochester City Directories for 1849 and 1851. In the 1849 city directory, I found a Clarissa Havens mentioned, and in the 1851 city directory, I found a Clarissa Mandigo listed. Again, I suspected that these Clarissas were the one and same person, but until the Rochester, New York newspaper indexes were put online, I did not have a way to confirm my suspicions.

After going through the newspaper indexes, I discovered that Archibald Mandigo did marry a Mrs. Clarissa Novens (I suspect that her surname was misspelled), and that a Darwin Havens had married a Miss Clarissa Howe a few years earlier. I also discovered that Archibald had married a woman previous in the 1830s, and I suspect this woman had died before the 1850 census. To confirm my hypothesis, I needed to find out what the newspaper announcements said, and I put a look-up request on the Monroe County, New York Rootsweb message board, and a few days later, I received an e-mail from an man named Jim, who offered to do the look-up for me.

Due to the fact that this post is getting quite long, I will, for next week's Monday Madness, continue with the research into Irene Havens, and I'll mention the information that Jim uncovered. Eventually, I do plan on posting the sources I have used in my research so far, and I'll try to include my sources at the end of the next part. Stay tuned ...

Happy Easter!

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