More Sounds of the Revolution

In the end I did not use Philip Rice for my application. Instead I was advised to follow another branch of my family where more documentation was less complicated. It turned out to be a whole new family that I had always ignored for no good reason. And, I found a very interesting branch to research that contained two new Revolutionary patriots.

By the time I was finished with this project I had 6 new patriots in my family. I used a member of the Weaver branch to complete my application which is now at National Headquarters of the DAR waiting in line for approval.

As for researching the new ancestors, I will be looking for the actions of the Revolutionary War that affected their lives. The following list can also be applied to any of your ancestors. Keep in mind that for every action there is a reaction.

1. Loss.  This can be death of soldiers or civilians. Also, loss of farm, home, business. In my ancestor's case, it was the loss of a ship. It can have a major effect on your ancestor's life.

2. Economic hardship. Another major effect of the Revolution that is closely related to loss in many ways, was loss of income. I found this in Philip Rice's life after the war. Lives changed due to loss of economic standing in the community. Starting over from scratch wasn't easy for many of our ancestors.

3. Women's lives changed. After the men in the family left home to fight for independence, many wives were left alone to provide for their families. A woman  could choose to return to her parents' home or the home of a sibling. If this was not an option she would be on her own to take on new responsibilities and learn to provide for the family. This eventually came to be an asset in her new way of life on the new frontier. 

4. Divided families. Not everyone supported the patriots and colonists had to adjust to family members who remained loyal to the crown. Unfortunately families separated which could complicate research with two locations showing up for the same family. In addition some Loyalists moved to Canada, our neighbor to the North and a place we never think to look!

5. Religious freedom. Many people came to America looking for religious freedom. Some colonies were established by clergy and there was always the shadow of the Church of England in others. After the war the Constitution and the Bill of Rights cemented religious freedom.

6. Western Expansion affected almost everyone's life. Some crossed the mountains into Ohio, Kentucky and beyond. Others stayed behind. This journey created its own actions that resulted in new reactions and changes in our ancestors lives.

7. A New Government created a new way of life for the colonists. An experiment with elected representatives who carried out the wishes of the voters. In other words, no taxation without representation! The first amendment guaranteed the freedom of press, speech, religion and the right to assemble and petition. A new beginning for your ancestors. And a source of information for genealogists - Tax Record

I think of this as an action/reaction method of researching ancestors. It never stops; one action leads to another. Think about your own life and the decisions you made at every fork in the road. What influenced your decisions? Now think about your ancestors' lives. Any similarities there? 

                                                           * * * * *

I hope I have encouraged you to follow your ancestors back to the 1700s. It can be a fascinating journey.

The Sounds of the Revolution

Since I sold my car and quit driving I have been spending a lot of time at home. As a result I spent the last 6 months cleaning, decluttering, and organizing my villa. That included organizing and decluttering my genealogy files and stuff! Finally with my newly organized villa I had hours of free time every day to devote to my lifelong habit -- family research!

And Then . . . . I finally did it. I submitted my application to the Daughters of the American Revolution. I chose the chapter where my aunt, who was responsible for my love of genealogy, was a charter member. That experience led me on an adventure into the time period where I thought family research was rather difficult.  Would you believe it was not really that bad. Don't get me wrong, you will need some experience but the records are there. Yes I know the census is challenging but there are plenty of other records to help you work around it and with it.

Research into the 1700s requires one thing before you can starting hunting for  your 4x great grandfather. You will need to learn the basics of an important part of American history -- The Revolutionary War. It influenced almost everyone's life and it will give you the who, what, where, when, and how that affected our ancestors' reactions to the world around them.

Of course since my application was going to the DAR it naturally followed that the Revolution would play a significant part in my research. I just never realized how large that part would be when it came to researching the lives of my ancestors in the 1700s.

When I started I had one ancestor that I would use for the application. My Aunt Daisy used him for her application back in the middle 1900s and all I had to do was prove my relationship to her. Unfortunately it wasn't that easy and I needed to do more research about Philip Russell Rice, my 4x great grandfather.

One effect of the war was loss. . . soldiers, civilians, property. Men born between 1726 and 1767 volunteered to fight; some never to return. Some people lost their homes and everything they owned. Philip Rice lost his ship when he ran into the British fleet near Yorktown. As a result, this energetic young Whig lost his source of income. After he married Martha Vaughn and with no reason to stay in Virginia, he and his family set out for Kentucky and the promise of a better life. Philip was an intelligent, feisty, humorous, well-liked, dirt poor old man who was also known as the town drunk. Fortunately Martha, like many other women during the war, learned she could handle the family farm or business by herself. Martha was industrious and she kept the home fires burning. From this story you can see the reactions that resulted from the actions that Philip faced as a result of the war. 

I have to admit that I had a healthy dose of luck that led to a source of personal information about Philip. The source was a book with just a short paragraph about my ancestor, but is gave me the name of a place - Taylor's Ferry, a clue that led me to the House of Representatives. The new government reimbursed its citizens for losses during the war. I found a bill in the House  that dealt with the claim Philip submitted for the loss of his ship. There were 12 depositions attached to the bill that told the story of Philip's life. Eventually his heirs were awarded $2,500 for the loss of the ship. 

With a lot of research and a little luck I was able to put together the story of my 4x great grandfather's life. I felt like I knew him. But why did the family go to Kentucky? The new government had to pay its citizens who fought in the war and as a result designated land that would be available to veterans for their service. This action resulted in a westward movement away from the original colonies. But the westward movement of these new pioneers caused actions that affected both the new settlers and the Native Americans. Just take some time and think about how your ancestors might have reacted to everything that was happening in their new lives. Those are the things that will help you find them.

In the next post I will continue to look at the effect the American Revolution had on your ancestors. . . . .

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Missing Women

Are you missing a female ancestor in your family tree? Only one? Chances are it is many more than just one. I know, it's frustrating! Want to make it even more frustrating? Piece of cake. Can you say insane asylums?

Starting with the 1850 census you can literally see females disappear right before your eyes. No record in the census, no obituary, no death certificate. Reason? Maybe they were committed, against their will, to an institution just because they were females. Misogyny at its best. 

Conditions that we would consider normal today were once seen as abnormal or insane. Anything a man did not understand or approve of could be a reason to remove a woman from her home. Menopause, jealousy, postpartum depression, book reading, standing up to your husband could be reasons for a woman to be locked up until they conformed to natural behavior. All that was needed was "request of husband" with no evidence required. Female independence was madness! Suffragists suffered from hysteria!

Asylums for the most part were overcrowded with poor living conditions. And waiting lists! Treatments included chloroform, ether, straight jackets and unnecessary cruel surgery. All because not all women were fulfilled by being wives and mothers. Many men saw this as women overusing their limited abilities.

Unfortunately it wasn't until the late 20th century that women started to fight for their right to be more than "just a housewife" and that didn't happen overnight. It has taken years with frequent set backs. 

Due to privacy concerns the records from many asylums are not available to the public making genealogical research difficult. You can begin by searching for an obituary or death certificate. As usual be alert for clues -- family folklore, letters or journals. Clues can often be found in local newspaper gossip columns. One overlooked census column is information about deaf, dumb or insane family members. Also, check to see if there is a small cemetery located on the grounds of an institution. The graves might be marked or there could also be a record of those buried in the cemetery.

For ancestor hunters in northwest Ohio the Toledo State Hospital has a wonderful website  toledostatehospitalmemoryproject.org There are two cemeteries located on the property with graves dating back to the Civil War. It is worth checking out if you are missing any ancestors in the area. The institution was a model of excellence, with no known history of the cruelty associated with asylums. 

Things to look for when researching any clues you might find are misspelling, hospital transfers, probate records, and sadly spouses who claimed to be widows.

The last asylum closed in 1994!!

Sources of information. Time Magazine, 22 Jun 2021, Declared Insane for Speaking Up:The Dark American History of Silencing Women Through Psychiatry, Kate Moore.

Website: toledostatehospitalmemoryproject.org

 

The Rest of the Story

 When the 1950 census came out I thought it would be easy to blog about. After all I was there in the room where it happened. So I dove right in a few months ago and ran straight into a roadblock. Why? I couldn't answer that question. At the time!   But as time went by I realized there comes a time when you need to look at the census differently. I was at a fork in the road. I could keep going on the path I was traveling or I could take the new path. 

A week ago I injured my ankle and wound up in the hospital totally unable to walk or put weight on my right foot. For years I have been struggling with mobility issues and gradually reached a point where I could barely do anything. My ankle injury put an end to standing or walking for a while. I was stuck and I live alone. I couldn't ignore the problem any more. In a matter of days I was on my way to a skilled nursing facility for a few weeks of physical therapy with the goal of being able to return home on my own. My family packed up a few things I needed from home and sent me on my way. 

They left my To Do List at home so all I could do was lay in bed, stare out the window and think. And there was the answer; right there in front of me. It was my turn to spend time, be it long or be it   short, (ahem) in the dreaded nursing home. Almost everyone eventually reaches this point in their life. 

What does this have to do with the 1950 census? . . . .As I sit here typing it is 2023 and my turn, my decade, a new chapter in my life to face the fact that I might have times when it is hard to live alone. MY TURN to make new decisions that will affect this decade in my life and possibly the rest of my life. And this discovery has made me look at the censuses in a much different way.

All the censuses that we appear in are chapters in our lives. In each chapter we are faced with new decisions. For every action there is a reaction. How we react to the situations in each chapter/decade of our life create the story of our life, the dash. Would you believe that you can find clues to these decisions in the census. 

What decisions did you have to make?  Did where you lived affect that decision? What were you doing at that decade in your life that could have affected your reaction? (School, working) Was there a major event or disaster in the decade that would have affected your reaction? The census is full of clues. You might have to hunt for them. Some may require research. Some people are affected by every little thing that happens around them. Others are oblivious to their surroundings. 

A few months ago when I first laid eyes on the 1950 census all I could see was everything that happened in my life and the world. I saw that decade as changing the world. It didn't -- well maybe a little. Mainly it changed my life, guided my life on the paths of my choosing. The 1940 census was to my older cousins what the 1950 census was to me. I watched them make the decisions that I would soon be making. If I am lucky enough to see the 1960 and 1970 censuses, I will see the decisions I made and how they shaped my life.

So what do I do with these new discoveries? I will use them to go back to the first census and take a new look at my ancestors. Find the clues that will give me a new insight into their lives. See them as real people with real problems and decisions that need to be made in order to travel through life. I will look for clues about things that affected the decisions my ancestors made.

Tomorrow I will return to my villa for a couple of hours to determine if I can safely return to living alone in a few days. Or will I need another week of therapy. I'm at a crossroads in my life and I know there will be major changes in the months of this decade ahead. How I react will affect my life in the future. i can't avoid it.                     

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The Rebels

 James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo. Rebel Without a Cause, West Side Story. "57 Chevy, black leather jackets, Rock and Roll is Here to Stay. 

Poodle skirts, pedal pushers, saddle oxfords, 45 records, Annette, Sandra D.

ELVIS!!!

I feel so sorry for my parents. It must have been hell living with these teenagers. 

But what made us such rebels? Speaking for myself I was a year old when Pearl Harbor sent this country into WWII. Of course I didn't realize it but it became normal for all my older cousins to be in military uniforms. I never under stood the word war. But that didn’t make me a rebel! 

Many kids my age grew up with their fathers in the service and their mothers working in factories. (My parents were older.) These children became responsible for their younger siblings and also for helping out at home. Personally I think they grew up faster that the rest of us whose mothers didn't need to work. Did it make them rebels? Maybe. Why? Because they learned responsibility at an early age. And they knew women could survive on their own.

Whatever it was, the result was Civil Rights and Women's Rights. And the 1950s lighted the fuse that started the fuss. 

What Did We Learn From Looking Back

We know what we have now.

We know not to take it for granted.

We know life can be a constant battle 

 I really believed and still do believe we can learn a lot from the census. But what? There’s something wrong with this post on my blog. I can feel it but I  can’t describe it. There is something wrong. But what’s wrong. Its me. It has to be me. My view has changed.

Let me think about it and I’ll get back to you. See ya later alligator!! After while crocodile!!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I never realized what the 1950s were all about and then the census reminded me

With the 1950 census indexing project coming to a close on many genealogy websites it's time to take a look at myself in the census. I missed being counted in 1940 because I was born too late, but I turned 10 in 1950. And, after years of seeing my ancestors in the census, I am finally looking at myself.

I was a little disappointed at first but as I learned more about pop culture in the 50s I became more disappointed and I just wanted to bang my head against the nearest wall. I didn't realize what life was like back then. Compared to now!! As I started to relive my memories my mood improved a little but I was now becoming aware that I totally accepted the misogynistic society that I was born into. Seventy-two years ago as a 10 year old girl I guess it was just life. The 1950 census was a wake up call that made me realize why I am who I am today.

I decided that the best way to get a good view of the census would be to take a trip back in time.

1950

In post WWII the perfect family was born. Father was the breadwinner and disciplinarian of everyone in the household. Mother stayed home, cooked, cleaned, took care of the kids and tried to look like a movie star all day. Sure!! Men were back from the war and needed jobs so women left the workforce and went back to being "just housewives". Young couples graduated from high school, got married, started a family and moved to the suburbs. I remember in 1958 many of my friends were engaged and planning a summer wedding when I graduated from high school

In the early 50s we all walked to school in the morning, went home for lunch,  and finally walked back home in the afternoon. We played outside, rode our bikes and as we got older talked on the phone. Boys took shop class and girls took home economics. We survived air raid drills, bomb shelters and polio. There were no drugs, no alcohol, and no sex. We were totally innocent.     

And then it happened! Television!! 

It took a while to catch on. Many were still listening to the radio since those families couldn't afford a tv. Department stores offered a free home demonstration, you could rent a set for a dollar a day, OR you could grab a lawn chair and sit on the sidewalk outside a store display window and watch for free. Remember those days? 

My parents had a television so all my aunts, uncles and cousins came to our house. We turned out all the lights and sat  in the dark and watched 15 minute shows. Plus a lot of test patterns. Why did we sit in the dark? Because anything else would ruin our eyesight and let's face it we were used to watching movies in dark theaters.

A New Generation. 

 During the early 50s television began to be available from coast to coast, unless you lived in the country. In the fifties my dad retired and we moved to Florida. We had a tv but there were no tv stations. We lasted 6 months and moved back home. There you have it -- tv had us under control and we weren't alone. As our own lives were changing in the 50s, a new generation that had been born in the late 1940s was beginning to appear in our lives. Baby Boomers!

Marketing.

Television's evil twin had all of us in her cross hairs. Yup! Marketing was here to stay!  Soon we were learning how we should look and act. How to look, diet, dress, live. What we just couldn't live without in our lives. Sitcoms and advertising were shaping our lifestyle. 

Baby Boomers were targeted and taught to "need". Their teacher was Miss TV. But as these Boomers were growing up, the teenagers of the 50s came into their own.

*Next: The Rebels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we   

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Battery recharged! Back on the road but headed in a new direction!

 I guess it just isn't possible to retire from the world of genealogy. I tried and I was successful for about two years. During that time I purged my genealogy files and cleaned out my office. Recently I put my laptop on my dining room table in front of a large window with a great view. We all know that nothing screams genealogy like a dining room table. And so I am back! While purging and organizing  I saw all the information and facts I have accumulated over the past 70 years. I also had a chance to think about all the things I have accomplished in my many years of genealogy. I realized I know hundreds of stories about my family and ancestors. Why in the world would I just stop?

 Covid was the perfect excuse to stay home and get caught up on that To Do List.   For me it  was more like a time to dive into depression and laziness.  Hibernate! Live in my pj's. Watch tv and have ice cream for breakfast. It should have been a time for research and reading all those conference syllabuses from the last 10 years. But no! It was an excuse to just goof off. I don't know about you, but I misplaced two years of my life. I like to think that made me 2 years younger!!

Believe it or not, good things did come from that. As for me I did get rid of the piles of paper that covered every horizontal surface in my office. I was able to purge my files of duplicate slips of paper, freebies I picked up in the exhibit halls at conferences, and all those articles I saved because I thought I might need them some day. Thinking back I did need this break if just because I needed to clean house and clear my mind. It was more of a time to recharge my battery.

It feels good to be back pounding on my keyboard again and I am looking forward to making a few changes to my blog of 10 years. I will still keep the frugality while also going in a new direction. I will also be focusing on my 70 years of genealogy experience.; sort of "branching out". Don't be surprised if I kick some old habits to the curb and bring in a new outlook when it comes to finding your ancestors. Also with genealogists feeling safer attending society meetings and conferences again, be sure to check out the events page.

There will be something for everyone from beginner to medium/advanced. I will teach when necessary, provide needed help and throw in some tips I've learned over the years. And if there is one thing that makes my blood boil it is the term Brick Walls so you can be sure we will go there soon. It is an overused, inaccurate term that causes concussions and makes people shut down. I prefer the Doughnut Award! Stayed tuned

Sometimes I wonder if any of our elected representatives have ever even thought about researching their ancestors.Do they even realize that government records are valuable tools for genealogists? Do they even care? It certainly doesn't appear so.

We all know that government records such as census, immigration records, land records, probate records - to name a few - are essential for research. Many times they fill in the dash. The government is responsible for creating, preserving, and making these records available to the public. For a reasonable fee!!

For example, a few years ago I was looking for records in Fulton County, Ohio. A clerk spent about a half hour helping me find what I needed. Then another clerk in another office provided me with the copies I needed. I was charged a nominal fee for the copy. The research was part of the services of the courthouse. 

Unfortunately recently budget cuts and massive fee increases are threatening our access to the records we depend on. We can speculate on the reasons but lets set that aside for now. Instead lets concentrate on protecting our rights and records.

Rich Venezia and other genealogists have formed a group called Records Not Revenue and they need our support.https://www.recordsnotrevenue.com/

Family Tree Magazine, September/October issue has a 7 page article devoted to this issue.   

What should you do? Don't ignore, get involved and be informed. It's important for the future of genealogical research.

 

FGS Virtual 2020 Conference had a lot of perks for seniors.

The first part of the FGS Virtual Conference is over and I am back home. Oh, Wait! I never left home. Sweet. I really believe this should continue to be an option for those of us who are seniors. Granted I missed seeing old friends and making new ones, but the convenience of being able to stay home is more important for me now.

When I first registered I didn't realize the convenience and frugal perks that were in store. First thing that hit me was that I am not paying over $100 a night for a room. That is at least a $300 savings right off the bat. In addition the cost of eating out for three days saved me at least $60. Fuel saving was about $30. All together that was almost twice the price of the conference.

But more importantly, the conference was not labor intensive. I didn't have to pack everything and load it in the trunk of my car. And once I got to the conference hotel I did not have to . . . . . well I don't even want to think about that parade. When the conference was over I didn't have to do all of that in reverse. I'm not the spring chicken I used to be so this is a blessing. Walking is not my strong suit any more.

My church has been doing virtual services since March and the council recently voted to install the equipment needed to continue this into the future. Apparently attendance at church services has increased. I would not stop attending church in person because I still want to see all my friends on Saturday afternoons. However, there are days when I just can't make it to church in person due to pain or weather.

On September 15 the second phase of the conference begins. The exhibit hall will be open until October 15. The On Demand sessions will be available until March 15, 2021.

FYI: For anyone attending this conference, please make sure that you sign in to your own account. When I tried to order my On Demand sessions, I found out that there is more than one of me at this event. This is not a surprise since it has happened to me at past conferences. We get the wrong rooms, wrong packets, and when the credit card bill arrives we find that we are paying twice for everything. BUT when one of us wins a door prize we all get a prize. And yes we won a very nice door prize this year. 

FGS pulls off a flawless virtual conference! Congratulations!

What a great conference day!! I admit, I'm still unwinding. Spent the day with the window open and a slight breeze. All comfy in my rocker watching speaker after speaker talking just to me. Occasionally I would sit at the table and watch the comments rolling by on my laptop. For me it was a perfect learning experience.

The speakers were excellent. When Judy Russell sent in her papers for this conference there was no Covid 19 and yet her lecture was spot on. Looking into pandemics of the past shed so much light on what we are going thru today. It's nothing new! 

Now I know that I need to get up on Saturday morning and watch Roots Less Traveled on NBC. It's WDYTYA for real people; not celebrities. Seems someone was listening.

A question I have asked for years was answered. Is there a place where descendants of  slave-owners can share names of slaves. Yes. https://beyondkin.org

Did you know there is such a thing as "quick and dirty" family trees? Clue: has to do with DNA  

New words in my vocabulary: Knowledge card, snippet, organic. Watch out google, here I come.

The next two days are workshops and picking my On Demand lectures. From there the conference lasts from September 15, 2020-March 15,2021. During this time I will have access to all Conference material.

Would I do it again? Ya betcha.

Was it frugal? Absolutely!!

Off to the FGS Conterence 2020 in my jammies!!

A year ago the FGS Conference was held in Washington DC. This year the Federation of Genealogical Societies will hold its final conference and due to the Covid 19 restrictions on large gatherings, it will be held online. Since the virus hit this country I now attend church online, attend lectures online, and now  i will be attending a major genealogy conference online. I kinda like it. Yes, I'm definitely spoiled.

Attending a conference can be labor intensive. Pack, load the car, drive several hours rain or shine, unload the car, locate my room, unpack, get my registration packet, find a restaurant, back to my room, jammies on and crash! 

Not this year!! This year I can do all that in my jammies, without the driving and packing. I remember the 2012 NGS Conference in Cincinnati. The Duke Energy Center was so big that I walked the soles off of my shoes. This year who needs shoes?!

So far this new experience has gone quite well. The test today for the Live Sessions tomorrow was simple and quick. The syllabus loaded quickly and without a hitch. The syllabus, by the way, is amazing with lots of information on each session. That is going to make it easier to pick out the 20 sessions I am getting in the registration I chose.

This year's conference kicks off tomorrow with Live! Event speakers from 11-7. Topics range from former pandemics in the world and genetic detective strategies to African American research and Google search methods. The live feed begins at 10:30 so we all have time to get on the same virtual page.

 

Merger of NGS ans FGS

Here is some exciting news from NGS and FGS. On the opening day of the FGS Conference in Washington D.C.these two major genealogical organizations announced their plan to merge into one large non-profit group  that will  continue to be called the National Genealogical Society. Both groups will operate as individual organizations until the merger is final in late 2020.

The following is a press release concerning the merger.

Aug 21, 2019, 9:00 AM (1 day ago)

NGS AND FGS ANNOUNCE INTENT TO MERGE
(21 August 2019)--In a historic move, the boards of the National Genealogical Society (NGS) and the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) announced today their intent to merge. The two organizations, both non- profit leaders in the dynamic genealogy industry, will form one consolidated group that will continue to operate as the National Genealogical Society. Both boards approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) earlier this week, and jointly announced the news at the Opening Session of the FGS Family History Conference in Washington, D.C., this morning.
Leaders of both organizations believe this merger will serve the genealogy community by improving support of both individual members and societies in the pursuit of genealogical excellence.
The organizational structure of NGS will be modified to increase functions that support genealogical societies and family organizations. Digitization projects of genealogical importance such as the War of 1812 pensions will continue. The two organizations will continue to operate independently while all details of the merger are completed, no later than October 1, 2020.
Faye Stallings, President of FGS, said: “We are excited about this opportunity to combine with a premier organization that has been in operation since 1903. This will allow for improved and expanded services to help support societies.” Ben Spratling, President of NGS, commented, “We look forward to continuing the strong legacy of FGS as a ‘gathering point’ for family historians and societies all across the nation.”
Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society is dedicated to genealogical education, exemplary standards of research, and the preservation of genealogical records. The Falls Church, Virginia, based nonprofit is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historian, seeking excellence in publications, educational offerings, and guidance in research. It also offers many opportunities to interact with other genealogists.
###
Media Contact:
Kathryn M. Doyle
Phone: 510-388-6477
kdoyle@ngsgenealogy.org
 

225th Anniversary of the Battle of Fallen Timbers

The Battle of Fallen Timbers took place on August 20, 1794, at a location south of present day Maumee, Ohio, along the Maumee River. It lasted 2 hours and had a significant impact on Ohio history. It opened Ohio lands for settlers. Unfortunately, it was the beginning of the end for the Native Americans in this territory who eventually lost the land they had occupied for hundreds of years after the War of 1812.

This year marks the 225th anniversary of this war. A five day event (August 16-20, 2019) will be held at Side Cut Metropark in Maumee, Ohio. The actual site of the battle is a few miles south of the park but the location for the event provides more area for the large number of visitors who are expected to attend the anniversary celebration.

There will be re-enactors of the American, Native American, Canadian and British participants in the war who will be encamped at the park. It will be a good chance for visitors to view life in the area in the late 1700s. 

The Fallen Timbers Battlefield Park was opened several years ago and features a visitor center and a 1.5 mile walk thru the site of the battle. The park will be open for events during the celebration. Lantern walks are planned and golf cart tours will be available for those who can't walk the mile and a half path.

The Fallen Timbers Battlefield Preservation Commission is searching for descendants of those who were present at the battle. Descendants will be invited to participate in the anniversary and attend a reunion style event.

The anniversary celebration has been added to the schedule of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex who will be in Canada at the same time. No word yet if they will attend.

If you need information about volunteering, being a sponsor, or might possibly have an ancestor involved in this battle you can contact http://www.fallentimbersbattlefield.org/

Here's a head's up for any Sears Catalogue House Hunters in Northwest Ohio or Southern Michigan.

Sears, Roebuck sold homes in their catalogues from 1908-1940. They were modern homes delivered in a box. Some assembly required! 

These were not just tiny little bungalows. They could have maid's quarters. Front stairs and back stairs. Duplexes. Barns. Garages. A home builder could buy several homes at a discount and, who knows . . . start a neighborhood?

I cannot imagine purchasing a lot and waiting for my new home to be delivered by Amazon. Holy Cow where do I start. I can't even put a bookcase together without a few screw-ups.  

But to be honest I have to wonder how many home owners/purchasers actually assembled their kit homes. I would have to think that they hired builders, especially when we are talking about the larger homes. When you take into consideration  that many of these homes are still standing and in excellent condition today, it stands to reason that professionals were involved in the assembly.

On the other hand I do know that my two uncles built their own homes and I am pretty sure those homes didn't arrive in a box. They were and still are sturdy, well constructed homes. The reason was the walnut wood used in the construction. Even though I am sure they are not catalogue homes, I do have to admit that I have seen several floor plans from Sears homes that look like the houses where my Aunts lived and raised their families. So it would seem the plans might have been copied or used as "a suggestion".

Regardless it was an interesting period of home building in  this country.

This Saturday, June 15, 2019, Waterville Historical Society in Waterville, Ohio, will be sponsoring a homes tour, Historic Homes of Waterville. One of the five homes in the tour is a #102 1/2. It is quite a large home with both a front and a back stairway. The home has been well maintained over the years.

The tour runs from 10am - 4pm on Saturday, rain or shine. Waterville is located south of Toledo and Maumee. There are other possible Sears homes in the area: a Sears #123 across the Maumee River from Waterville and another located west of town in Neapolis (on Main Street next to the beauty salon).

So now the next question is - Do you live in a Sears Modern Home?

Celebrate St Patrick's Day!

Did you hit the pubs last night for green beer and a jigs dinner and now you just want to spend a quiet evening at home? However, you still know that today is actually St. Patrick's Day. Never fear, there is a solution.

First, of course, you could spend a few hours remembering your Irish ancestors  with some research. Possibly you think you might have some Irish somewhere in your tree. This would be a good day or evening to hunt for them. With a little luck of the Irish there just might be a leprechaun hiding behind your laptop.

Amazon Prime and Netflix have lots of movies and documentaries to offer. We can always use local history in our research to improve our genealogical skills. Or maybe you just want to curl up on the couch and watch a movie. Extra pieces of gold for a Maureen O'Hara movie.

And don't forget to check out Finding Your Roots or Who Do You Think You Are for celebrities with Irish roots.

Last, but certainly not least, ask Alexa to play some Celtic music or an Irish Jig.

 

Brrr

I don't know about you but here in Northwest Ohio, this weather has been a test for all of us. How to stay warm. How to keep pipes from freezing. Keep the cars running so we can pick up our cabin fever click list from Kroger. Decide if we need to tip the pizza delivery person a few dollars more because he is standing on our front porch in a -40 wind chill. Should we venture outside of our house to see if there is still an outside of our house. It's been difficult. Stressful. Slightly chilly. And this is the third day school has been cancelled.

It doesn't get much worse.

I was on my way home from a Click List Run today when I started thinking about my ancestors who lived in the Great Black Swamp in northern Ohio. Back in the day! Honestly, I have to admit that the first thought that went thru my mind was -"They must have loved this kind of weather. Everything was frozen. There was no mud and muck to sink into. It was like solid ice.They could go anywhere they wanted to go. In a hurry. Like I-75! At 2mph.


I pictured them in a small cabin with a fireplace blazing with warmth. Comfy and cozy, reading, knitting, mending, quilting. I am sure they made sure that their neighbors were safe and secure on this cold winter night. Their animals were sheltered and safe. Life was good in their world. Tomorrow would be a new day and they would face it with strength and determination. They never expected it to be easy.

Just a thought: During these days of freezing temperatures when you feel like your life is so inconvenient and you just want to hop on a plane and go to the Keys, take time to think of your ancestors who made your life possible and what they went thru to make it happen.

I am sure they did not have an Early American Click List!