Christmas :: Past - Present - Future

=+==+==+= Christmas Past =+==+==+=

When I was younger, before the teenage years, my family always got together at Christmas time with my mother's sisters and brother and their families – usually at my grandfather's house.

As we got older it became more difficult for all of us to get together at Christmas - there were really too many of us to fit in anyone's home. (My mom had three sisters and one brother and altogether they had 19 children.) Then the years went by all too quickly and we all went our separate ways, some got married and had families of their own, others just went away! But as many of us that could, still got together at Christmas. Sometimes it was just Mom and her siblings, but there was almost always some kind of Christmas gathering.

In 1980, after being diagnosed with cancer and having her leg amputated, my Grandmother decided that it was time for the entire family to get together again for Christmas! My mother and I were living in rural Noble County and the township had a community building that we rented and we made all of the arrangements. By this time there were about 75 family members in four generations.

The biggest family Christmas dinner was held in December of 1983 – 28 years ago! It would be the last time this many of the family was together. I think there were only two cousins who were not able to attend. The picture below was taken at that dinner and includes almost everyone who was there. I was taking the picture. (Better double-click on the picture to see all those smiling faces!)

My grandmother is in the wheelchair (she passed away the following May), her sister Jane is sitting beside her, and my nephew Jason is sitting on grandma's lap. Jason was five years old then; he is now 33 years old and has an eight year old daughter of his own. All of those little kids have grown up and many now have families. It is more than a little sad to think about those who are no longer with us – Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jane, Uncle Bob, Uncle Walt, Aunt Phyllis, cousin Mike, my sister, and my mother. But it is such a pleasure to think of them and remember the good times we all had together.

=+==+==+= Christmas Present =+==+==+=

Christmas this year was spent in northeast Louisiana with extended family members. Twelve of us gathered together on Christmas Eve to celebrate. After a very good dinner of spicy Jambalaya we moved into the living room to continue one of their traditional events – caroling by telephone! As each family member who could not be present was called we all joined in with a hearty rendition of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” I lost track of how many people were called... East Coast, West Coast, and places in-between as well as one couple who was on their honeymoon on a Caribbean Island (they had gotten married earlier this year) and another couple who was vacationing in Thailand! It was a lot of fun.

=+==+==+= Christmas Future =+==+==+=

Ah, the future. Wouldn't it be great to get all of my first cousins and their families together again? Some of us do maintain contact on Facebook so we have stayed in touch that way. But it isn't the same as being together, in person. Many of that next generation – the cousins' children and grandchildren - have never met some of their cousins. I'm sure that some have no idea how many relatively-close relatives they really have!

Of course, it would be a logistical (and financial) nightmare but I think it would be great fun to meet up, oh, say in Hawaii or perhaps on a cruise ship – someplace warm! Just spend a week together doing various activities and have time to leisurely get caught up on all the family news.

Written for the 113th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, "A Charles Dickens Christmas."

Kinexxions :: Carnival of Genealogy Contributions

2010
100 (There's one in every family!) He was a Rascal... - My Grandfather Charles Wilson Wiseman

2009
87 (New Years Resolutions) Ain't Makin' No Resolutions!
84 (What has the CoG Meant to You?) Something Better than Good
78 (Pony Pictures) Not exactly of the "Ride 'em Cowboy" genre..
77 (Disasters) The Year Without a Summer
76 (Summer Vacations) 'Twas the Summer of '59
74 (Swimsuit Edition) Sorry, no bathing beauties here!
73 (The Good Earth) Tillers of the Soil
69 (Rewriting History) The Best Gift - Ever!
68 (Women's History Month) Three Women
66 (iGene Awards) The 2008 iGene Awards for Kinexxions
65 (The Happy Dance. The Joy of Genealogy - hosted at Kinexxions) Making Connections
64 (Winter Photo Essay) Ah, the joys of winter!
63 (New Year's Resolutions) A Little Over-Optimistic? Perhaps.

2008
62 (Three Wishes) Just Three Wishes
61 (Traditions) Holiday Traditions and Memories
59 (Politics and Our Ancestors) Did they get involved?
57 (Read it in the News) Found 'em in the Newspaper!
56 (Genealogy Library) Indispensable Bookshelf
55 (Show & Tell) The Sisley Family Bible
54 (Family Language) Say What?
53 (Open Topic) The Case of the $12 Box Coat
52 (Age) Live Long And Prosper...
51 (Independent Spirit) Robert Quillen
50 (Family Pets) Buster, Rover, and Bootsie
49 (Swimsuit Edition) Two Stylish Ladies
48 (Mom: How'd You Get So Smart)Lessons Learned
47 (A Place Called Home) A Place Some Ancestors Called Home
46 (Inherited Traits) Why I am the way I am?
45 (Cars) Cars - A Necessary Evil
44 (Tribute to Women) Aunt Jane
43 (Technology) Genea-Techie Stuff
42 (iGene Awards) The 2007 iGene Awards for Kinexxions
41 (Dinner with Ancestors) Who, What, When, Where, Why?
40 (Living-Relative Connections) Connecting With Kin
39 (New Year's Resolutions) The Two Faced Monster 2007-2008

2007
38 (The New Millennium) New Year's Eve 1999
37 (Wish Lists) My Genealogy Wish List
36 (Open Topic) Are You Prepared? I'm Not.
34 (Halloween & the Supernatural) A Night Not Soon Forgot
33 (Weddings) Nothing Special - A bit of a Mystery
32 (Wartime Stories) Dad and the 511th
31 (Family Myths) Michael & Christenia Fisher and Armenian Ancestors?
30 (Genealogical Conferences/Seminars) Genealogy Conferences
29 (Moral or Legal Dilemmas in Genealogy) There are no easy answers
28 (Surnames) The Phend Surname
27 (America/Independence Day - hosted at Kinexxions) Independence Day - No, Not the Movie
26 (Dads) Grandpa Vic
25 (Creative Genes) Necessity is the mother of invention...
24 (Mothers) Mothers and Grandmothers
23 (School Days) Scott School and Crow's Corner School
22 (Open Topic) The Battle of Shiloh (Pittsburg Landing)
21 (Funny, Foolish, Family) A bit of humor for April 1st
20 (Tribute to Women) Grandma's Story
19 (Shelter from the Storm) The Homes of my Youth
18 (Tips for Specific Research Areas) Five Sites in Northeast Indiana
17 (Giving Thanks) Who was my inspiration? How did I get into this?
16 (Food & Family Recipes) Carnival of Genealogy - food!

Originally posted on November 12, 2009. Last updated December 31, 2010.

He was a Rascal...

He wasn't a Black Sheep. Not really. He didn't do anything “serious” like murder or armed robbery. He just lived a little bit outside the law sometimes. But he got caught. Frequently. And he was the grandfather that I never knew...

Charles Wilson Wiseman was born September 20, 1885 in Tippecanoe Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana. The oldest of four children born to Amanda Minerva Alexander and Samuel Bray Wiseman, Charlie (as he was most commonly known) likely lead the “normal” life of the son of a farmer. He attended the local one-room school, located a short distance from his home, with his siblings Smith, Goldie and Scott as well as his cousin Howard and other children in the township. (His little brother, Scott, who was not quite eight years old died on May 18, 1902 of diphtheria.)

It is not known when his “life of crime” began but the first hint we have is when Charlie was 19 years old - from a brief article in the May 3, 1905 edition of The Fort Wayne Sentinel (Allen County, Indiana):

Al Myers and Charles Wiseman are under arrest in Kosciusko county charged with perjury. They were witnesses in the case of a Kuhns Landing saloonkeeper charged with selling liquor on Sunday, and both testified that they did not obtain liquor of the accused liquor seller. Later the saloonkeeper pleaded guilty to the charge and launched his friendly witnesses into a bad hole.

A report in The Northern Indianian on Thursday March 1, 1906 tells us that “Charlie and Smith Wiseman, who have spent the winter in Wisconsin, returned home Friday.” That would have been Friday February 24th. Oddly enough, it was on March 1, 1906 that Charles Wiseman was married to Elsie Shuder, the daughter of the widowed neighbor lady, Nancy Jane (Lavering) Shuder. Nancy's husband (and Elsie's father), Isaac, had passed away on August 11, 1905 of “Cardiac Dropsy” at 59 years of age. Charlie and Elsie were both 20 years old. Five months after their marriage, Elsie would give birth to their first child, Perry Martin Comfort Wiseman.

For the next few years, if Charlie got into trouble with the law, it didn't make the papers (or else my cousin Caroline and I just haven't found it yet!).

On October 2, 1908 tragedy struck. Charlie was working at the Sandusky Portland Cement company in Syracuse (Kosciusko County), Indiana. An accident caused him to have to have his left arm amputated two inches below the elbow. As reported in the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette on June 13, 1909 he sued the company for the loss of his arm and other injuries.

Warsaw, Ind., June 12. - Today in the circuit court Charles Wiseman filed suit against the Sandusky Portland Cement company for $30,000 damages. His counsel is five Goshen attorneys, including the firm of Dehl & Dehl. The accident which was the occasion of the action occurred October 2, 1908.

Wiseman is twenty-four years of age. His complaint says that he was engaged to shovel coal and clean and oil machinery, and that the coal was taken from cars that had to be dragged up to the factory on a siding, the device furnishing the fulcrum being known as a “nigger-head.” Wiseman had used this tackle once with a flexible rope, but when put at the work a second time the rope was stiff. He alleges that this was due to the negligence of the company, which should have known, or did know, of the danger it occasioned.

Wiseman says that his arm was caught in a coil of rope and pulled around a reel or core on which the rope was wound, and that he used his other arm to free himself, thus having both arms drawn into the machinery.

He was taken to his home following the accident, it is alleged, and his left arm was amputated from the elbow, his right arm being horribly crushed and bruised. He says that his legs were cut and that his eyesight has been impaired. Following the amputation, says the complaint, he grew ill and was taken to a hospital where he remained for three weeks.

I doubt that there was ever a settlement made in the case... The Sandusky Portland Cement company shut down in 1910.

Charlie's next run-in with the law was reported in the November 25, 1909 edition of The Northern Indianian:

Charles Wiseman, the one-armed man who was mixed up in the brawl at Kuhn's Landing a couple of weeks ago and who disappeared when the officers searched for him with a warrant, came to Warsaw voluntarily on Saturday and before Justice W. H Eiler, pleaded guilty to a charge of public intoxication and also to a charge of assault. Wiseman was assessed a fine of $1 and costs in each case and his total fine and costs amounted to $21.50 which he paid.

Wiseman then went to the circuit court and before Judge F.E. Bowser, entered a plea of guilty to the charge of drawing a dangerous weapon, an affadavit against him having been filed for that offense several days ago. Judge Bowser fined Wiseman $1 and costs, amounting in all to $10.90 which he paid. Harry Gilliam, who, with Wiseman, caused the trouble at Kuhn's Landing, came to Warsaw several days ago and paid a fine and costs amounting to $13.45.

So far, poor Charlie's been in trouble for lying, purchasing liquor on a Sunday (at the age of 19), brawling, public intoxication, and drawing a dangerous weapon. Now we can add fishing with a net to the list... a most serious crime, indeed. (Warsaw Daily Times, February 21, 1913)

Wiseman found Guilty. The case against Charles Wiseman for having a fish net in his possession, was tried in Justice Henry Bennett's court on Thursday afternoon. Wiseman was found guilty and was fined $49 and costs, he appealed to the circuit court. Immediately after the appeal he was arrested on a charge of assault and battery. Wiseman is out on parole from circuit court. He was arrested by Deputy Fish Commissioner John Rigney for violation of game laws.

And now, assault and battery... (Warsaw Daily Times, March 1, 1913)

After being out for about five hours the jury disagreed in the case of the state against Charles Wiseman, for assault and battery. The prosecuting witness in the case was Bert Himes living in the vicinity of Barbee Lake. Laughter was in order among those present when in evidence one of the witnesses said that Wiseman picked up the ax handle with one hand and struck Himes with the other; it happens that Wiseman has only one arm. The defendant was represented by Attorney Merl Gochenour.

And fishing with a net – again... (Warsaw Daily Times, September 30, 1913)

Charles Wiseman of Kuhn's Landing, who was arraigned in the Kosciusko circuit court on Monday on a charge of fishing with a gillnet, was found guilty by the jury on Monday evening and assessed a fine of $5 and costs. The case went to the jury shortly after 6:00 o'clock and a verdict was returned before 8 p.m.

Wiseman had a net on Barbee Lake and had it set beneath the ice. A fisherman happened to fish with a hook and line through the hole in the ice where Wiseman had set his net and a fish which he had caught on the line became fastened in the net. He had to take the fish out of the net in order to get it off his line and Wiseman then accused him of taking fish out of his net.

Wiseman was found guilty of the same offense in a justice court, but took an appeal. He will now be compelled to pay the costs of both cases, which makes a total fine and costs of $78.58.

He was still at it 2 1/2 years later... (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, June 25, 1916)

Charles Wiseman and Frank Hughes of Kuhn's Landing were caught yesterday fishing with a net and were arrested and taken to Warsaw, where they were fined $72.75, which they paid. Fishing comes a little high around here. Wiseman is an old offender and his fine was placed very high.

I'm thinking that “illegal fishing” must have netted (pun intended) the state of Indiana pretty good income for a few years... at least Charlie didn't use dynamite... (The Game Warden's Report in the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette of August 8, 1916)

James N. Johnson of Churubusco was fined $260 and sentenced to the penal farm for six months for dynamiting fish in the lakes of Porter county. This is the highest fine and the heaviest sentence ever imposed on an illegal fisherman in Indiana.

Kosciusko County. Frank Hughes, attempting to catch fish with net, $26.15; Charles Wiseman, attempting to catch fish with net, $26.15; George Reiff, fish trap in possession, $21.15; Dan Moon, fish trap in possession, $21.15; Carl Nipp, no license, $18.60; Joseph Van Slusser, netting fish, $18.50; Lloyd Engle, netting fish, $26.50. Arrests by Rigney, Wartha and Walker.

True, fishing with a net isn't a serious offense. But he does it more than once, and with no apparent regard for the law.

On February 3, 1926 tragedy once again struck the Wiseman family. Elsie, Charlie's wife and the mother of his eight children (seven living) was horrendously burned when fire destroyed their home. Elsie had gotten up early, as she normally did, to start a fire in the stove. Charlie and the children, ranging from age 19 to 2 years old, were asleep upstairs when the kerosene oil can (filled with gasoline instead of kerosene) exploded. Somehow, they all miraculously got safely out of the house. All except Elsie. She died three hours later.

I've often wondered how the fire and the death of Elsie affected Charlie and the children. I can only imagine how horrible it would have been. The oldest son, Perry, was 19; the fire occurred the day before Eva Leah's 18th birthday; Dick was 15; Jessie was 11; Fern was 10; Emery was 3 1/2; and Jack (my Dad) was 2 years old. A daughter, Bessie was born on February 28, 1913 and died March 2, 1913.

In the 1930 census (Tippecanoe Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana page 6b) the five younger children were living on the farm with their grandparents Sam and Amanda Wiseman. It is my understanding that the children stayed mostly with their Wiseman grandparents as they were growing up. Dad never talked about his childhood or his father - at least, not to me.

With the onset of prohibition, Charlie had entered the bootlegging arena in the late 1920s and in 1930 he was incarcerated in the Indiana State Penal Farm near Putnamville in Putnum County. An article in the Warsaw Daily Union on February 11, 1930 provides the details:

Deliberating less than an hour, a jury in circuit court late Monday in the case of Charles Wiseman, of Kuhn's Landing, charged with selling intoxicating liquor to Loren Cutler on January 24th found him guilty and his fine was assessed at $100 and a prison sentence of six months was added.

Judge L.W. Royse immediately entered judgement. In sentencing Wiseman the court said, "I had sympathy for you once, but you went right on. These bottles show you were doing business out there. I don't see how the jury could do otherwise. Another time and it will land you in the penitentiary. People will not submit to open and flagrant violations of the law."

Reference by Judge Royce to the bottles was the display in the court of a bushel basket full which Harry Phillips testified he had taken to the Wiseman house. An interesting fact brought out, not at the trial, but later was that prosecuting attorney George Bowser had expressed his willingness to accept a plea of guilty and accept a fine of $100 and a 60 day penal farm sentence. This it is said that Wiseman refused and as a result he gets a term which was four months longer than if he had entered a plea of guilty.

Judge Royse charged the jurors to stand by their verdict and not apologize, as was done by a jury about a year ago, in a similar case. "Say to these," said the judge, "My verdict is right until the heavens fall."

Charlies biggest “crime” was probably lack of good judgment influenced by a bad temper. I haven't yet looked for the court record but the Logansport Press (Logansport, Indiana) reported on June 27, 1936 that Charlie was doing time again:

Warsaw, Ind. June 26 (AP) – Accused of beating his brother-in-law Clarence Quinn, with his artificial arm, Charles Wiseman, one-armed farmer, received a 90-day penal farm sentence in court here.

Charlie passed away on January 28, 1943 as a result of a cerebral embolism with the contributory cause being diabetes mellitus.

In some ways, Charlie could be considered the Black Sheep of the family. He certainly didn't fit the pattern of the fine upstanding citizen as other family members were. Who can say why Charlie did what he did? Perhaps if he had not lost his arm he would have been able to find steady work. Perhaps if his wife Elsie had not died in the house fire she might have been able to influence him in a good way. Then again, maybe not. We'll never know.

Sadly, most of what I do know about my grandfather is what I've read in the newspapers. Over the years, as my cousin and I shared these tidbits found in the newspapers, we'd shake our head in disbelief, sometimes chuckle at how the incidents were reported, and just wonder, why? The reports don't leave a very good impression, but I'd like to think that Charlie wasn't really a bad person. After all, my parents named their first child after him...

Written for the 100th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy... "There's one in every family!"

Ain't Makin' No Resolutions!

At this time every year a lot of people make them. Resolutions. Goals. Aspirations. Declarations. Intentions. Call them what you will, a rose by any name is still a rose. However, I always called them goals and, generally, along with what was a growing “to do” list, have tried to use them to help guide my research. It seldom works. I'm not gonna do it this year. I'm doin' sumthin' else.

However, for the record, I did set a few goals for 2009.

I thought I'd get back to posting at Whitley County Kinexxions but that didn't happen and likely won't for some time to come. The blog will remain, taking up a little room out there in cyberspace. Maybe someone will find something of interest there someday.

I thought I'd contribute to the Carnival of Genealogy and Smile for the Camera more often. But that didn't happen either. In fact there were fewer contributions this year than in the past.

Illness and surgery sidelined me for several months early in the year. But they were the impetus for a major change in my lifestyle.

Scanning family photo albums and genea-documents were on the list too. Guess what? They became a high priority item and they got done! Yeah! Feels Good. Something Accomplished.

I was going to start the cleanup of my two genealogy data files, and update sources. Didn't happen. And isn't going to happen for quite some time either. But, I did get Legacy 7 installed. That was the first step in the process. A smalll step, but a start. Sort of.

I wanted to continue with research begun in 2008 on the Fisher and Wise families. Didn't happen. With a proposed research trip to New England (which kinda, sorta didn't happen), the Joslin line became the primary focus with a review of documentation and research that has been done to prove the connections between generations.

My final goal for 2009 was to make my task list shorter for 2010. It is. Actually, there isn't one. Not formally anyway.

That doesn't mean there aren't things that I should do or need to do.
All those scanned files still need to be organized, tagged, and identified.
My Legacy databases still need to be cleaned up and the sources still need fixed.
There are still ancestors and relatives to be found.
There is still more research to be done on the ancestors that have been found.
Perhaps it is better to say that the task list is on hold. Indefinitely.

For there are places to go and people to see.
There are still stories to write and pictures to take.
The Journey continues. Indefinitely.
Perhaps I'll see you somewhere along the way...

This post was written for the 87th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy: New Year's Resolutions!

Something Better than Good

The inaugural edition of the Carnival of Genealogy was published on June 4, 2006 by Jasia at Creative Gene. The topic of the next edition (#84) is “What has the Carnival of Genealogy Meant to You?”

It was early in 2006 that I first “discovered” some genealogists that were blogging. But it wasn't until January 12, 2007 that I finally got the nerve to start my own blog. My second post two days later, with the very creative title of Carnival of Genealogy - food!, was for the 16th Edition, which was on Food & Family Recipes. I felt like I was in over my head, but Jasia was encouraging when she presented the post:

“Let's hear it for good plain food! Becky describes the good plain Midwestern food she remembers from her childhood in Indiana. This is the kind of food many of you will remember from your childhoods too. Fried chicken, homemade pies, and vanilla caramels... yum! Thanks Becky!”

And Thank You, Jasia. For thinking of creating the Carnival of Genealogy, and for your kind words of encouragement to everyone with each new edition. I've said it before, but I'll say it again – the CoG was truly the beginning point of what would become an online community of genealogy bloggers. A community that provided encouragement and praise. For better, or for worse, you can blame (or credit) the existence of kinexxions on Jasia and the Carnival of Genealogy. I wanted to belong to that community, to be a part of something that was good. And I was welcomed with open arms, as others have been since, and it has become something better than good.

In the beginning, the CoG was the means of introducing yourself to other bloggers. If you wanted someone else to read what you had written the best way to get “noticed” was by contributing to the Carnival of Genealogy. It was how we met each other. It was how we got to know each other. With each post published, we shared a little bit of ourselves with everyone else. We laughed together, and cried together. We became friends. Even though I've had the pleasure of meeting only three genea-bloggers in person, I feel like I know so many more of you because of your blogging.

With each new edition of the CoG, I looked forward to the next. What would the topic be? Would I be able to come of up with something worthy of contributing? Not always. It was a challenge and, in my mind, some submissions were more successful than others. But like many thngs, the more we participate, the better we become.

It has been my honor to host two editions of the Carnival of Genealogy. The first time was July 3, 2007 with the 27th edition, whose topic was What America / Independence Day has meant to my family – hosting that CoG gave me a greater appreciation for the time and effort that Jasia puts into each edition of the Carnival. My second hosting gig came along this year, on February 4th, with Come Dance With Me and it was a huge success, thanks to the 50 contributors who shared their Happy Dance Moments with us!

A recent contribution that I really enjoyed writing was The Best Gift – Ever! for the 69th Edition "What if: Rewriting History" which was hosted by Bill West at West in New England.

Earlier favorites, in 2007 editions 20 and 26 were tributes to Women and Dads in which I presented the stories of my mother's parents in Grandma's Story and Grandpa Vic.

According to my records, including this post, I have participated in 56 editions of the CoG (22 in 2007, 22 in 2008, and 12 thus far in 2009). See Kinexxions :: Carnival of Genealogy Contributions for a complete list of CoG posts. Although, for various reasons, I haven't participated as much as I would have liked this year, the Carnival of Genealogy still holds a place near and dear to my heart and I hope to contribute more often in the future.

Not exactly of the "Ride 'em Cowboy" genre..

There were no "pony" pictures taken of us kids while growing up. We lived in the country so the fellows that went around to the "big city" with their ponies, didn't come our way. Although, there is one of my Uncle Bill taken about 1940 (give or take a couple of years), and I found one of two of my cousins taken about 15 years later that looked like it was the same horse! But then, last week I was scanning the last box of my Dad's pictures and discovered this…

I absolutely fell in love with this picture - it is a photo postcard and because it only filled up 2/3 of the front of the card I've cropped out the borders and enlarged it a bit to show the details. There is so much going on - the colt in front, the chickens scurrying around the horses hoofs, the barefoot girl atop the horse, and the man holding the reins. It's static, yet dynamic, at the same time!

The postcard was sent to Amanda Wiseman, Warsaw Ind RR#1 and postmarked at 6 PM on Jul 23. The city is not legible and the year is missing. The one-cent stamp has "909" stamped in ink, perhaps it is the year 1909? Eileen Hover, the little girl on the horse, was born April 21, 1904.

My Dad wrote at the top of the postcard "Uncle Hank Hover & Allein" and on the next line "Bessie, Edie, & Charlie Hovers father"

The message, written by Lue Hover, says "Dear Sister will Write a few lines to let you know we are all well it is raining to day Smith is up stairs a sleep Will write more soon if you answer the letter I did write"

Hank Hover's full name was William Henry Hover. He was the fifth of six children born to George and Rachel (Van Curen) Hover. George passed away in 1855, just three years after Hank was born. In 1859, Rachel married William Alexander. Their first child was Amanda Alexander who married Samuel Wiseman - they are my great grandparents.

I'm not sure exactly where Hank Hover and his family lived but it couldn't have been too far from the farm of Amanda and Sam Wiseman, perhaps a few miles - they both lived in Tippecanoe Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana. [Update 31 May 2014: William H. Hover (Henry) was found in the 1910 census in Pleasant Valley, Cowley County, Kansas with his wife Frances L. and five-year-old daughter Allien (should be Aileen). From a review of the back of the postcard, I am pretty sure the postmark is Winfield, Kansas. Winfield is the county seat of Cowley County. Henry had a sister, Sarah Hover Summerville who lived in Sumner County, which borders Cowley County on the East. About 1919 or a little earlier, Henry and family returned to Indiana, settling in Milford, where he died on 22 February 1920. ]

Last year I posted a photo of the Hover children, Bessie, Edith and Charlie. They were Hank's children from his first marriage with Elizabeth Biltz. Eileen Hover was Hank's daughter from his second marriage to Lula Crawford, the writer of the postcard.
This post was written for and contributed to the 78th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy :: Ride Em Cowboy: Let's See Your Pony Pictures!

The Year Without a Summer

It is possible that an event - horrific and deadly to so many - that happened half a world away impacted some of my ancestors and lead to their migration from Vermont to Ohio.

The year 1816 has been called "the year without a summer" and according to various online sources has been attributed primarily to the eruption of Mount Tambora - the largest observed eruption in recorded history - in Indonesia in April of 1815. The death toll of that eruption and it's aftermath exceeded 70,000 souls as well as the destruction of all habitable areas and all vegetation on the island. Although the volcanic explosions ceased in July 1815, flames and rumbling aftershocks were still being reported in August 1819, four years after the event.

It took several months for the effects to be felt but temperatures fell worldwide because the ash caused less sunlight to pass through the atmosphere. This caused a global climate anomaly and catastrophic effects worldwide, which were especially noticeable in the Northern Hemisphere, specifically the northeastern portion of the United States, Canada and Northern Europe.

With the coming of spring in 1816 there also came erratic temperatures. The soil did not warm up enough so that crops could grow properly. Late spring and early summer saw frost that killed off many of the crops that had been planted. In June, two large snowstorms in eastern Canada and New England resulted in many human deaths and consequent loss of most of the remaining crops. Destruction of the corn crop forced farmers to slaughter their animals. Soup kitchens were opened to feed the hungry. Prices skyrocketed, and with food stuffs unavailable, the result was regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality.

In July and August, lake and river ice were observed as far south as Pennsylvania. Rapid, dramatic temperature swings were common, with temperatures sometimes reverting from normal or above-normal summer temperatures as high as 95 °F to near-freezing within hours.

Winter hit with a vengeance beginning September 27. Snows began during early October and stayed on the ground until April, 1817. During that period much of the New Englander’s livestock perished, either because there was nothing to feed them with, or because they were slaughtered for food. Tens of thousands of people also perished in what became the worst famine of the 19th Century.

Article from The Decatur County Journal, June 9, l892 as quoted in Brethren Life: Frontier Journal

On August 20, 1816, the temperature again plunged and any remaining crops were destroyed. Sept. 27 saw the start of winter with another killing frost. ... Snows started early in October, and stayed on the ground until April 1817. The snows were two feet deep with a terrible ice crust on top. Many survived only because the deer were trapped by the snows and ice and could not escape the hunters. Following that winter, deer were so scarce that they could not be depended on as a source for meat, nor was the common deerskin britches and jacket any more available ..."

Many New Englanders were wiped out during those two years, and tens of thousands struck out for the richer soil and better growing conditions of what was then the 'Northwest Territory' of Ohio and Indiana. Among those who migrated to Ohio (in 1817 or 1818) were my (presumed/probable) Joslin ancestors, Jonas, along with his wife Ruth, their son James, and their other children. I can only wonder if they would have remained in Vermont if the 'year of no summer' had not happened… As Craig Manson has stated "all history is personal" and one result, if they had remained in Vermont, would be that I (most likely) would not be here writing this!

Three Excellent Articles:

• Eighteen Hundred and Froze To Death, The Year There Was No Summer by Keith C. Heidorn, PhD
• 1816: The Year without a Summer, A New Hampshire Perspective by Eric Werme
• 1816: The Year Without a Summer by Dr. Robert Brignall

Other resources on the subject:

• Brethren Life: Frontier Journal
• The Year Without a Summer 1816 by Maureen K. Fleury
• 1816, the year without a summer
• The Year Without a Summer (Wikipedia)
• Mount Tambora (Wikipedia)

And finally, from Vermont Only, a poem. Source: Eileen Marguet, as quoted in B.B. Woods and Bernice Barnett, Green Mountain Reflections: Stories of the Green Mountains, Halifax, VT, 1995.

It didn't matter whether your farm was large or small.
It didn't matter if you had a farm at all.
'Cause everyone was affected when water didn't run.
The snow and frost continued without the warming sun.
One day in June it got real hot and leaves began to show.
But after that it snowed again and wind and cold did blow.
The cows and horses had no grass, no grain to feed the chicks.
No hay to put aside that time, just dry and shriveled sticks.
The sheep were cold and hungry and many starved to death,
Still waiting for the warming sun to save their labored breath.
The kids were disappointed, no swimming--such a shame.
It was in 1816 that summer never came.

This post was written for the 77th Carnival of Genealogy: Disasters Our Ancestors Lived Through - to be hosted by Miriam at AnceStories. Hopefully, she will include it with the others even though it is a little late...

'Twas the Summer of '59

The first and last time that I attended summer camp was in June 1959. I was eleven years old and it was also the first time that I had been away from home for any length of time. The camp was affiliated with the Girl Scouts. Two of my friends, classmates and troop mates, Susan and Joanne, were there too, so it wasn't like I didn't know anyone. It sounds like I had lots of fun. Too bad I don't really remember specific events, though I do remember attending. Hopefully, my spelling and grammar have improved somewhat over the years...



Dear Mom,

I am fine, How are you, Jack, Doug, and Terry. Do you know that you have to pay 15¢ a car, 15¢ for parents, 15¢ for children under 12 years of age.

My consulers are Micky, & Watona. I am having a good time, I'm just a little home sick, not very much.

Do you know what a hopper is it is a person or more that helps set tables and get food on the tables. a hopper doesn't have to do his own dishes but she has to do the tables dishes.

I have written a letter to grandma to.

sincerely yours
Beckie W.



Dear Mom,

I told you about a hopper. I'm a hopper Sat. Lunch.

Can you guess who my cabin mates are? They are Susan Howell and Joann, Suzanne, Pamella, and Diane.

Monday night we had a lot of trouble Susan was crying for her dog, and Dianne triped and hurt her eye, and we made a clothsline and I forgot where we put it and ran thurgh it and got a rope burn, Suzanne was home sick.

I got your letter and was a little home sick. I am going to save $1.00, 5¢ a day for the Mermaid-Festival. Don't tell anybody else.

I lost grandmas address will you send me the address.

Sunday we had hotdogs, potatoe chips, milk, water, Bread & butter.

I am having loads of fun I will write to you & the family almost every day.



There is one letter that Mom sent me. I'm sure she wrote more but this is the only one that got kept...



June 15, 1959

Dear Becky -

Well how is the weather. It's raining here and I've got the furnace turned on - this is always the kind of weather you get when you go to camp. What time did you get to Pottawatamie. I'll bet you were hungry when supper time came - What did you have that was good to eat. Who have you got for a cabin mate. Even if it is raining I'll bet you have fun - We are watching T. V. It's the first its been on in the morning for 2 weeks. I've got some more strawberries that have to be picked. I was over at Pat's yesterday and we are going to have to start picking peas.

Ruth and Gene Stutzman are on vacation this week too - I hope you can read this - I'm trying to get done before the mail man gets here - Terry was looking for you last night & wanted to know when we were going to get you - Bill & Sue were here yesterday and Doug started yelling for you to come & play - He stopped as soon as he got "Bec" out.

= = =

There was one more page in her letter that listed the addresses of people that I was supposed to write to. She signed the letter "Mommy".

Pat is Mom's sister. Pat and her family lived on a farm and always planted a large garden. Bill and Sue are Mom's brother and his wife. Jack, Doug, and Terry were my brothers and sister. It's nice to know that my siblings missed me ;-)

I'm pretty sure that Camp Pottawatamie was located on or near the Tippecanoe River, which was the same river that flowed through the fields less than a mile from our house. I also think the camp is now part of the Tippecanoe River State Park. The town of Winamac is located on State Road 14, in Pulaski County, about a two hour drive from where we lived at the time. Not that far, but I'm sure it seemed further.

This post was written for and contributed to the 76th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy :: How I spent my summer vacation…

Sorry, no bathing beauties here!

Northern Indiana is known for it's two largest lakes, Wawasee and Tippecanoe. Then there's Big Barbee and Little Barbee too. But there are numerous small lakes in Kosciusko County. So it was that, while growing up, we spent quite a bit of time at the lakes. Aunt Jane had a cottage and later, a small trailer, at Goose Lake. We lived not far from Barbee Lakes. And the town of North Webster, where I went to school and worked, was on the west side of Lake Webster.

Apparently though, during all those lakeside visits there was no camera around (thank goodness). Even as a youngster, me in a bathing suit was not a pretty site! In all of the family picture albums I found only one of a family member in bathing suit, of my grandmother and her sister, and it was contributed to last year's edition of the COG.

When I was about 10 years old we moved to a "modern" home in a subdivision we called Whitville (because it was developed by Gene Whitacre). It was on what was then called the Armstrong road, which was the "main drag" between North Webster and the south side of Lake Tippecanoe a few miles to the west. In the summertime we'd have some fun with the "lakers" looking for the Tippey Dance Hall, which was "the" place to go on a Saturday night for young adults. We'd sit out in the front yard and invariably someone would stop and ask how to get to the Dance Hall and we'd tell them "you can't get there from here." Ah, the joys of youth. It took so little for us to be happy back then.

But I digress. One of the things that my brothers and I used to do after we moved to Whitville, was walk. Everywhere. We had to look after our little sister so we'd put her in the wagon and walk to the lake, which was about two miles away. But along the way, we would pick up pop bottles from alongside the road and put them in the wagon with my sister. The Jot-Em-Down grocery store was "sort of" on the way to the public access area of the lake and we would stop there to cash in the pop bottles. Of course, we immediately spent it on candy and pop! Then it would be off to the lake for a cool swim.

The picture below is of my brother and his son in June 1983 on the occasion of my nephew's second birthday. My brothers in-laws had a lakeside house on Chapman Lake, which is near Warsaw.


Photograph Copyright © 1983 by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

This post was written for the 74th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy :: Annual Swimsuit Edition.

Tillers of the Soil

Not all of my ancestors were farmers, but many of them were. You have to go back several generations, to the great-grandparents on Dad's side of the family and the great-great-grandparents on Mom's side, to get to them - to those who tilled the soil and lived off of the bounty of their land. Wherever they lived they owned the land. It must have been a matter of great importance to them.

Thanks to the Kansas State Agricultural Schedules and their "General Statistics Relating to Farms, Productions of Agriculture, etc." we get a glimpse of the crops produced and animals raised on the farms owned by Lysander and Lydia Joslin, my 3rd great grandparents, in 1885 and 1895.

Living in Odin Township, Barton County, in central Kansas in 1885, they were the owners of 320 acres of land, 40 acres under fence and 280 acres not fenced. The value of the farm was given as $3,000 and the farming implements and machinery were worth $50. They had paid $400 in wages during the year ending March 1, 1885. There were 450 rods of wire fence. They had sown 40 acres of wheat in the fall of 1884. They either plan to or already planted plant 50 acres of corn, 1 acre or Irish Potatoes and 5 acres millet & hungrains in the spring of 1885.

They had 50 bushels of corn and 100 Bushels of wheat on hand. There had been 20 tons of cane hay cut in 1884 and 4 acres of prairie hay. They sold $100 worth of poultry and eggs during the year and had made 200 pounds of butter.

Livestock included 3 Horses, 2 Milch cows, 1 other cattle, and 1 swine. They had fattened or sold for slaughter animals valued at $60. The orchard consisted of 80 peach trees and 10 cherry trees bearing fruit. There were 40 apple trees that are not bearing. They owned 2 dogs.

General remarks by assessor [not for any particular farm]: Winter wheat is in a bad condition. At least three fourths is killed by frost. What remains is backward. Two or three weeks later than it should be. All that was sowed is given in these statistics but not more than one fourth of value. Other crops promise well.

Lysander and Lydia had moved to Melvern Township, Osage County on the east side of the state about 1890. On March 1, 1895 they were both nearing 70 years of age and the farm was a little smaller, consisting of 40 acres that were fenced, of which 38 were under cultivation. The fences were a combination of hedges and wire of 130 and 100 rods, respectively. The cash value of the farm was $1,000 and the farming implements and machinery were valued at $30.

They planned to plant 30 acres of corn in the spring of 1895 as well as 3 acres of sorghum for forage or seed. Two acres of prairie grass were under fence or used for meadow. They had sold $35 worth of poultry and eggs and had made 200 pounds of butter during the year ending March 1, 1895. They had 3 horses, 3 milch cows, 26 swine, and 2 dogs. The value of all animals fattened and slaughtered during the year was $180.

Their orchard contained 274 fruit bearing trees: 140 apple, 2 pear, 50 peach, 7 plum, and 75 cherry. They had 6 stands of Bees that produced 60 pounds of honey.

=+==+==+==+=

In my grandmother's files, there were three letters that Lysander and Lydia wrote to their daughter Malissa Brubaker who was living in Whitley County, Indiana. These letters provide us with a first-hand account of the fruits of their labors.

• January 2, 1890
• September 15, 1894
• October 1895

Written for and contributed to the 73rd Carnival of Genealogy :: The Good Earth.

The Best Gift - Ever!

Yesterday morning (March 31st) I received a phone call from one of my genea-friends ("J") that volunteers at the local historical museum. The staff and volunteers are in the midst of re-organizing and inventorying the collections they have in the attic of the annex building. Now, "J" and some of my other genea-friends are aware of some of the surnames that I'm researching in Whitley County and "J" said they had found something that she thought I would be interested in. Really, really interested in. I could hear the excitement in her voice but she wouldn't say anything else.

Well, I'll tell you, it didn't take me long to get around and head on into town. That half hour drive seemed like it was taking forever.

When I arrived at the museum, I knew something was up since one of the feature writers from the local newspaper was there along with a photographer! The excitement was palpable. Without saying anything besides "Hello" they escorted me into one of their meeting rooms. And there, sitting on one of the tables was a medium sized box. Written on the side of the box were the initials "H. F." and in parentheses "Brubaker" and I thought, those are grandma's initials - Hazlette Ferguson.

By this time my hands were shaking and my heart was beating so fast I couldn't hardly stand it. As "J" opened the top of the box, the photographer's flash went off right in my eyes, practically blinding me. Recovery was almost immediate though as "J" pulled out a piece of paper - it listed the contents of the box - it was incredible.

This wonderful, amazing box seemed to be the key to nearly all of the questions regarding grandma's research on her families! Here were pages from the family Bibles of James Joslin and Bela Goodrich and Peter Wise - listing their children and dates of birth and who they had married and when! And the original marriage certificate for James Joslin and Abigail Goodrich. And the original will of Peter Wise, which never got recorded in the county books. It shows that Jacob is indeed his son! And there were letters, too! I had a copy of one written in 1849 from Sophia (Hazlett) Dunfee to her son William but here were half a dozen more. And there were several to Lysander Joslin from his mother Abigail after she moved to Illinois in 1861.

There was so much in that box. Documents that grandma had collected from courthouses and archives, and more personal papers, and old photographs - and the photos were identified! I was absolutely flabbergasted.

Many times over the past 10 years I have silently (and sometimes openly) cursed my Grandmother for not providing the documentation for the information that was written down in her family group sheets. And here it is. To say that I was overwhelmed would be an understatement. Tears of joy were streaming down my face as I carefully picked up each piece of paper. And then, I thanked God, and my Grandmother, for this miraculous gift.

This post was written for the 69th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy: What if...

Ah yes, it is April Fools' Day!

Three Women

The topic for the upcoming 68th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is "A Tribute to Women" which is in honor of March being National Women's History Month. Our instructions were to "Write a tribute to a woman on your family tree, a friend, a neighbor, or a historical female figure who has done something to impact your life. Or instead of writing, consider sharing a photo biography of one woman's life."

Some of you may consider this post a "cop out" and it may well be, but I've already written a bit about the women who have had an influence on my life, so I'm going to link to those articles. I hope you will take the time to check them out, and that you enjoy reading about them.

Of course, the woman that has had the greatest impact on my life is my Mother. For better or for worse, she is what she is. And I am what I am, to some extent, because of what she was. My mother is still living so I haven't really written about her life, but I did post a photo tribute to her on her 80th birthday. Mom raised us kids the best she knew how, but above all, she did it with love.

And the woman that influenced my mother and who also impacted my life tremendously is her mother. We don't always (actually we very seldom) understand some of the actions taken by others, but those actions have a cause and effect that ripples through the generations. I wrote Grandma's Story two years ago as part of the International Women's Day Challenge that year.

The third woman in this chain is grandma's mother, my great-grandmother, Maude Wise Brubaker Yontz. A woman of small stature, whose life and actions influenced her children and their children. I was five years old when she passed away so I don't remember her at all, but she has come to life for me through the stories that my aunts have told me and through the photographs that have been passed down to me. It goes without saying (but I'm going to say it anyway) that I'd love to be able to spend a day with her, to get answers to all the questions I have about her and her family.

The 2008 iGene Awards for Kinexxions

The Academy of Genealogy and Family History, aka AGFH, was created last year by Jasia as a means for us to be able to spotlight and honor our "best" posts of the year. And it is that time of the year, again! It was really difficult to select just one post (okay, maybe two) in each category. So, without further ado, here are the posts that have been selected as "The Best of the Best!" here at kinexxions in 2008…

Best Picture - Best old family photo that appeared on your blog in 2008.

It is truly a blessing to possess so many wonderful family photographs, but I really couldn't pick just one of them, so you get a trio of charming images from the past with Little Billy, the Gentleman Farmer, and The Hover Children :: All Dressed Up.

Best Screen Play - Which family story that you shared in 2008 would make the best movie? Who would you cast as your family members?

A distant relative, Robert Quillen was truly An Independent Spirit. Well known during his lifetime, his name and deeds have nearly been forgotten, even in his adopted hometown. Richard Gere would be perfect playing the part of Robert. Good-looking, charming, a bit adventurous and daring, but a down-to-earth sort of fella.

Best Documentary - Best informational article you wrote in 2008 about a place, thing, or event involving your family's history?

The Case of the $12 Box Coat, in which an 1844 court case may provide clues to family relationships, was interesting to review and dissect, but I have to admit, locating the home of my 3rd great grandfather in Huntington County was far more exciting!

Best Biography - Best biographical article you wrote in 2008?

This would be the two-part post on my great grandparents, Maude Wise Brubaker Yontz and Charles Romain Brubaker. Star-crossed lovers, perhaps, who got off to a rocky start, fumbled their way through the first 20 years of marriage, to finally separate and go on to live their own separate lives.

Best Comedy - Best funny story, poem, joke, photo, or video that you shared on your blog in 2008?

It's not anything I did or wrote, but I can't help but laugh every time I see these Two Stylish Ladies in their swimsuits. My grandmother and her sister Jane having a fun time at the lake. It brought back some nice memories of times spent at Goose Lake when I was (much) younger.

Come Dance With Me...

Welcome to the February 4th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy! Our topic this time around is "The Happy Dance. The Joy of Genealogy." Perhaps stating the obvious, but, genealogy can become a passion even before you experience that first "happy dance" but once you've actually felt the excitement and joy of that first dance, be it a rousing rumba or a restrained, elegant waltz, you're addicted.

For those of us living in the Northern hemisphere, Ole Mister Groundhog has declared that there will be six more weeks of winter ahead of us, so what better activity is there than to grab a cup of hot chocolate (or some other warming beverage) and spend some time enjoying the moments of joy shared by our 50 contributors? For those in warmer climates, pour yourself a cool drink and enjoy!

To all of the new participants, on behalf of Jasia, I say welcome to the Carnival, and to everyone, thank you for sharing your happy dance moments with us!

Starting us off is Dorene Paul, who presents Charles Cross, First Catholic Mayor of Sandusky posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay. Dorene says "My heart skipped a beat when I ran across the article 'An English Colony' in the December 3, 1889 Sandusky Daily Register. The author of the article, Mr. Hudson C. Ward, tells how my great-great-great-great grandfather, Charles Cross, came to the United States from England aboard the packet ship the "Hudson" in July of 1830. Mr. Ward was named after the ship."

Terri at The Ties That Bind presents Longing to know you......... which is the first of three parts. The story continues with Longing to know you continued.... and Longing to know you - part 3. Terri says, "Please read all parts for the full story."

Cathy Palm presents Happy Dance Moment or Finding Laura Backus posted at Detour Through History saying "The Rootsweb message that broke down a brick wall. Reliving the moment..."

Donna Hague Wendt presents Hague Happy Dance posted at Another Day With Donna ..... Genealogy - Family History Blog. Donna says "When a family surname can be spelled in a variety of ways, it is a wonderful and "happy dance" moment to stumble on the one way it was spelled in a census to finally find the elusive family. This happened for the 1850 US Census with my elusive Hague ancestors in Rhode Island, under "Ache." To happily continue dancing, a cousin showed me a drawing of the original Hague homestead in Iowa as it looked in 1905."

Sharon Klein presents The Genealogy Shuffle posted at Genealogy. She says "Over the past 10 years or so since I first started my research, I'm had several occasions to kick up my feet!"

Valerie C. presents The First Happy Dance posted at Begin with 'Craft'. Valerie got started in genealogy during a college geography project. She and her mother didn't know much about the family and knew even less about genealogy!

Margaret Ann presents Carnival- Genealogy Happy Dance posted at GeneaDiva's History, Genealogy and "Stuff". Margaret Ann "remembers the many happy dances as a novice at shaking the family tree. She recalls the trips with her Dad and Grandparents seeking information which also led to the next happy dance."

GeneaDiva presents Carnival - Genealogy Happy Dance posted at GeneaDiva's History, Genealogy and Stuff saying, "Although, I've had many genealogy happy dances over the past 27 years some of my most memorable and favorite dances occurred at the beginning of my genealogy adventure."

Sheri Fenley presents The Problem With Pauline - Part 9 - Some Fun With Dr. George B. Sanford posted at The Educated Genealogist. Sheri says "The mailman and I do not quite see eye to eye."

Donna M Moughty presents More Genealogy Puzzles from Ireland posted at Donna's Genealogy Blog. "Solving the problem of which Michael Daly was mine was a genealogy puzzle I wasn't sure I would ever solve. A lecture at a conference on searching common surnames along with a study of all Daly's in a specific location led to the Happy Dance and an early morning phone call from Salt Lake City to Connecticut to tell my mother-in-law how all those cousins were related."

Evelyn Yvonne Theriault presents Tripping the light fantastic posted at A Canadian Family and is "Tripping the light fantastic” – remembering Montreal during the ‘50s swing era”

Jessica Oswalt presents Doing the Happy Dance: Finding Answers posted at Jessica's Genejournal stating it is "A brief mention of a few successes I have had in my five plus years of researching my family."

Lisa presents Growing the family tree: In both directions posted at Small-leaved Shamrock. She says "I started to tell the story of a "happy dance" I did quietly with a sleeping angel on my lap, and went on to share how genealogy fits into the life of my family. I hope you enjoy this look at doing genealogy with children along: the only way I can imagine it."

Brian Zalewski presents Carnival of Genealogy: Happy Dance posted at Zalewski Family Genealogy. Brian claims to have had "a few" happy dance moments and says "If my thought process works, you probably get more of them as you first start your genealogy research. But, they get much more exciting as your research goes on."

Janet Iles presents The Genealogy Happy Dance - New discoveries posted at Janet the researcher. She says "I might not get up and dance but you will hear restrained words of excitement."

Apple presents Dancing Fool posted at Apple's Tree. Apple admits "It doesn't take much to get me to do the Happy Dance. Give me a new little scrap of information and I'm on my feet!"

Greta Koehl presents The Happy Dance: Getting Hooked on Genealogy, Part 3 posted at Greta's Genealogy Bog. She says "Finally doing the Happy Dance was the last stage in getting me totally addicted to genealogy. What did it take to get me to do the Happy Dance? It was finding an ancestor who had touched me through the fact that no one even knew his first name any more."

Geniaus presents The Happy Dance. The Joy of Genealogy posted at Geniaus. From the land down under, Geniaus declares "Until I completed the 99+ things genealogy meme I didn't know that I had been dancing for years."

Tex presents The Happy Dance: Finding Females posted at All My Ancestors. Serendipity (chance, fate, luck, coincidence, etc.) enables Tex to find several long sought female ancestors.

Cherie presents My Genealogy Happy Dance! posted at Still Digging for Roots. Cherie gives us "Three 'Happy Dance' moments!"

Jasia presents The First Find posted at Creative Gene. Jasia says "My 'first find' resulted in my first happy dance. Like a first kiss, or the first flowers received from a lover, my first happy dance was the sweetest. Here are my memories of that very first dance..."

A. Spence presents Family Profile: William Lowry/Lowery/Laury/Lowrey posted at Spence-Lowry Family History saying "My first happy dance was when I could connect a family story about my 2nd great grandfather and a possible sibling of his."

Donna Pointkouski presents The Joy of Genealogy posted at What's Past is Prologue. Donna admits that she has "done many genealogical happy dances over the years - here are a few of my favorites (plus a photo of my favorite happy dancing Gene)."

Melody Lassalle presents My Very First Genealogy Happy Dance posted at The Research Journal. She says "This post is about my first research experience and the moment I knew I was addicted."

Hilary Gadsby presents Best Genealogy Find posted at Genemeet. Hilary says "Over the years I have been researching my family tree like most people I have made several great finds and every time you find that elusive piece of information you get that urge to shout out Yes!!"

Amanda Erickson presents The Happy Dance posted at Random Ramblings saying "My search for information about my dad's (Stiver) side of the family and how I hit the jackpot. "

Colleen Johnson presents The Happy Dance of Genealogy posted at CMJ Office. Colleen says "A little jig, a happy dance, a possible party and some heartburn. Pass the genealogy tums. "

Wendy Littrell presents Oh Yeah! Oh Yeah! posted at All My Branches Genealogy. She says "It doesn't take much for me to stand up and shout for joy when I find something that I think will lead me to more information! It could be a Census entry, a letter, or an email from a distant cousin that has me saying "Oh Yeah!"

Julie Cahill Tarr presents Get Up & Dance posted at GenBlog. Julie takes us on a tour of previously posted genealogy joys.

Craig Manson presents Happy Dance Days Are Here Again! posted at GeneaBlogie saying "In which I do the Happy Dance having found things I thought were lost to time!"

Randy Seaver presents Genealogy Happy Dances and/or Genea-gasms! posted at Genea-Musings. Saying "Randy didn't follow the rules and pick one genea-gasm, he picked four. Read about his England trip, his Norway trip, his treasures in the closet, and treasures from his Aunt Geraldine."

John Newmark presents The Happy Dance posted at TransylvanianDutch. John says, "I can think of three times in my research where my excitement reached a point which may be compared to a "happy dance"..."

Stephen J. Danko presents Doing the DNA Happy Dance! posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. Steve has discovered two previously unknown distant cousins who match his DNA sequence.

Bill West presents West in New England: DOING THE GENEALOGY HAPPY DANCE posted at West in New England. Bill says "I've had some great Happy Dance moments, but if I ever break down the John Cutter West brickwall, there's going be one HUMUNGOUS Happy Dance!"

Elyse Doerflinger presents Carnival Of Genealogy - 65th Edition: My Happy Dance posted at Elyse's Genealogy Blog saying "This story describes my latest Happy Dance, which occurred only last Thursday after finding a new Keppler cousin."

Elizabeth Powell Crowe presents Success Story posted at Crowe's Nest by Elizabeth Powell Crowe. Elizabeth links to an article about "Two guys in Indiana who giggle their way up the family tree."

Terry Snyder presents Looking for Catherine posted at Desktop Genealogist Unplugged saying "A knowledgeable friend, a court case and a $50 debt, led to Terry Snyder’s happy dance that she details in her post, “Looking for Catherine."

Rachel Murphy presents Finding that Missing Ancestor through the House and Field Books posted at Irish Family History saying "Rachel explains how she found her great-great-great grandfather through the house and field books..."

Jennifer Trahan presents Genealogy Happy Dance: Findng the parents of John Pemberton posted at Jennifer's Genealogy Blog. Jennifer says this post is about "The long but fulfilling search for my 4th-great-grandparents."

Amanda presents The Happy Dance! The Joy of Genealogy posted at A Tale of Two Ancestors. She says "An interview interruption led to a record every genealogist hopes for."

Dru Pair presents The Genealogy Happy Dance posted at Find Your Folks. Dru writes about "doing the Genealogy Happy Dance after receiving a photo of a great-grandmother and also finding a written statement in a birth certificate book from her ancestor."

Andrea Christman presents The Happy Dance! Going Back One More Generation. posted at Family Tales. She says "My happy dance was when I was able to get my husband's line back to specific towns in Germany."

Charles Hansen presents Happy Dance posted at Eastern Washington Genealogical Society Blog. Charles does the research for EWGS and has had many “Happy Dances” for others he has helped over the years, but then he got a phone call from a gentleman in Springfield, Missouri…"

foonoteMaven presents You Really Do Know Her! posted at footnoteMaven. fM says this is "Not a 'Happy Dance' in the classic sense, but I've have never been more excited about genealogy than I was at this moment."

Kathy Brady-Blake presents The Genealogy Happy Dance posted at Kathy's Genealogy Blog. Kathy says "My happy dances happen when I reconnect with long lost cousins."

Barbara Holz Sullivan presents Serendipity posted at Chapter & Wurst saying "Serendipity: unexpected discoveries and a mother and daughter's questioning minds lead to new distant cousins and the genealogists' happy dance."

M. Diane Rogers presents My 1916 Happy Dance - The Joy of Genealogy - Carnival of Genealogy Edition 65 posted at CanadaGenealogy, or, 'Jane's Your Aunt' saying "M. Diane Rogers practices her Happy Genealogist tap dancing only at home with the shades drawn, but once in a while she does find herself forgetting the 'Silence' code in a library or archives."

Thomas MacEntee presents It's Just A Jump To The Left . . . at Destination: Austin Family. Take A Step To The Right, Put Your Hands On Your Hips, Bring Your Knees In Tight… and… go see what it's all about.

Pam Taylor presents Happy Dance and the Joy of Genealogy posted at Taylorstales-Genealogy. What exactly was it that caused Pam to dance, shout, scream for joy, and act like a complete fool in front of her children?

And, rounding out this edition of the Carnival is my contribution, Happy Dance Moments :: Making Connections, which highlights just a few of the times I've made kinexxions with distant relatives and the results of those incredible experiences.

And now, it's time for a Call For Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, to be hosted by Jasia at Creative Gene, will be: iGene Awards, The Best of The Best! It's Academy awards time... time for the Academy of Genealogy and Family History, aka AGFH, to honor their best blog posts of 2008* in the following 5 categories:

• Best Picture - Best old family photo that appeared on your blog in 2008. Tell us which you liked best and why.


• Best Screen Play - Which family story that you shared in 2008 would make the best movie? Who would you cast as your family members?


• Best Documentary - Which was the best informational article you wrote about a place, thing, or event involving your family's history in 2008?


• Best Biography - Which was the best biographical article you wrote in 2008?


• Best Comedy - Which was the best funny story, poem, joke, photo, or video that you shared on your blog in 2008?

Please feel free to use this graphic on your post.

Start digging back into your archives and choose which of your blog posts deserve to be recognized for outstanding achievement. This is not a competition between bloggers but a chance for you to spotlight your own shining efforts at recording your genealogy and family history in 2008*.

There is no nomination process. You just need to announce your winning blog posts for the 5 categories mentioned above in an article on your blog and submit it to the Carnival of Genealogy. Please act as your own "award presenter" by writing an introduction and include it in the "Remarks" box on the BlogCarnival submission form.

The deadline for submissions is February 15, 2009.

*We're going to define "2008" to include any posts written in 2008 as well as those written Jan. 1-Feb. 15, 2009 as well (so that new bloggers can participate).

Happy Dance Moments :: Making Connections

When I selected the topic of "The Happy Dance. The Joy of Genealogy." for this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, I did so thinking it would be an easy topic for me to write about. But here it is, just a few hours before the deadline, and I'm still not sure what I'm going to write! The problem is that it really doesn't take much for me to do the "happy dance" and in 25+ years of research, I'm pleased to say, there have been quite a few of those joyous moments. Sure, there have been some disappointments too, but it's the moments of unadulterated joy that make it all worthwhile.

In the early years of research, after manually cranking through rolls of microfilm for hours on end, finding an ancestor in the census records was just cause for a mini-celebration. Most of the time the celebrations were quiet ones with my brain shouting out with joy, but not a peep escaping from my mouth. After all I was in a library. Occasionally though, I just couldn't help myself and the little squeal of delight would also bring smiles to the faces of other researchers who were also cranking the microfilm readers.

Okay, I see a "theme" developing in the random thoughts I just wrote down, so I've decided that the happy-dance moments I'm going to share will be some of those that involved making connections (kinexxions) with distant relatives and the results of those incredible experiences. These are just a few such moments.

In the spring of 1984, I began my quest to find the descendants of my 2nd great-grandparents Jacob and Louisa (Fisher) Phend by writing lots and lots of letters to anyone with the surname Phend. As replies came back, they led to more letter writing with those contacts leading to even more contacts and information. And photographs. And documents. Virtually every reply brought on a mini-celebration. But a major celebration in the journey to publish a book came about on August 18, 1985 when the first reunion since 1942 was held that included descendants from nearly all of the children of Jacob and Louisa.

I can't even begin to describe the feelings of joy that overwhelmed me that day. My grandfather, who was 92 years old at the time, met his first cousins Jacob Phend and Elizabeth Phend Young for the first time! Jacob was 65 years old at the time and Elizabeth was 63. It would be a few more years before I finished the book, which was published in July 1991, and there would be many more of those special moments during that time. The joy of finally getting the book published was tempered somewhat with disappointment in the final product that came from the printers (someday I might write about that!), but even with its printing problems, the book was a huge success, and it was all due to the wonderful responses received from previously unknown relatives.

One of my "most favorite" genea-happy-dance moments came in June 2000 when I was contacted by Beth who turned out to be my 5th cousin once removed. Our common ancestors are my 5th great-grandparents Lewis Sisley (1765-1826) and his wife Margaret Ellis (1773-1870). A distant relationship to be sure, but her mother, Marge, had the original pages from the Sisley Family Bible! But, to top that off, they lived on the southwest side of Indianapolis, just a three-hour drive away. Of course, my mother and I made the trip south and spent a very pleasant and exciting day with Marge and her family. You can read more about that visit, as well as view the bible pages, in this post that was published in September 2008 and submitted to the Show and Tell version of the Carnival of Genealogy.

A relatively recent happy dance moment came in May 2006 when I was contacted by Kathy Foster. She had found my website with pages on my 3rd great-grandparents, John and Susannah (Hoffman) Berlin. Kathy was a descendant of Susannah's sister Mary (Hoffman) Walker. At that time the only information I had on Susannah was that she had been born in Columbiana County, Ohio and could be the daughter of John and Catherine (Coy) Hoffman. That info had come from another researcher in 1999 but with no documentation. Other things took up my time and I never got around to doing anything with that info. Kathy had the estate settlement papers for John Hoffman that named all eleven of his children, including Susan Berlin! In addition, she had done extensive research on the family and was able to take me back another generation on both the Hoffman and Coy sides. So not only did I now have the names of Susan's parents, I had the proof to go along with it, and the names of both sets of her grandparents!

A second happy dance was done in August that year (2006) that also involved Kathy. I received an email from her that said she had just gotten an old photo album from one of her relatives which included pictures of Eli and Lovina (Berlin) Yarian, my 2nd great-grandparents! You see, Kathy's ancestor, Mary Hoffman was the second wife of Thomas Walker. Their son, James Madison Walker, was Kathy's ancestor. By his first marriage, Thomas Walker had several children, among whom was William Walker who had married Eli Yarian's sister, Susanna! Kathy and I aren't related at all through that connection, but the families obviously maintained a relationship even though her family was living in Stark County, Ohio and mine in Elkhart County, Indiana. In addition to the pictures of Eli and Lovina she sent pictures of Susanna Yarian and her husband William Walker. I had previously obtained several pictures of Lovina from the Nappanee Library but did not have any photos of Eli, so this was truly one of those amazing happy dance moments.

Eli Yarian, my 2nd great-grandfather.

(1839-1895)

Photo received from Kathy Foster in August 2006.