Friday Funny

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!!!!!

LOL Thought this was appropriate for today!!!

Happy Halloween: 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Grace Hendricks

Happy Halloween (1 day early)- In memory of my grand aunt- Grace Hendricks who died on Halloween night at the young age of 13.


Grace Hendricks- my grand aunt

b. 1904 in Jeffersonville, Indiana
d. 31 Oct 1917 in Jeffersonville, Indiana

Child Death: Age 13

Parents: Issac Hendricks Jr. (1883-1942) & 
              Myrtle May Hyman (1884-1953)


Siblings:

1. Harry Oliver (1903-1971)
2. Ida Pauline (1906-1975)
3. Mary Kathaleena (1908-1976)
4. Catherine Virginia (1913-1989)
5. Charles Woodrow (1917-1973)
6. Edna Viola (1919-1919)
7. Melvin Clifford (1922-2002)
8. Dorothy Jean (1926-2010)-- Read more about her Here

1910 U.S. Census: 
Age 6 
417 Spring Street, Jeffersonville, Clark, Indiana
(I tried to find this house on Google maps, but it came up with a bunch of shops and a parking lot where 417 should be so I'm assuming this house was torn down).


Grace died on Halloween night. She had been suffering from the flu and then it turned into pneumonia. This was during the Flu Epidemic of WWI. 


Here are some interesting 1917 Halloween photos I found on Google:

One Person at a Time...Ellen Louisa

~Even though I have a lot of people in my family tree, I also have a lot of "holes" that need more research. Over the next few months, I am going to attempt to patch up those holes by doing research one person at a time- starting at the beginning of the list~


Today's Name: Ellen Louisa

Before Research: 
Ellen Louisa married William Minall (1871-1950) and they had 2 daughters- Frances Mary (b. 1907) and Ruby (b. 1908).


After Research:
Ellen Louisa Upstell was born in 1883 in Gosport, Hampshire, England and died in Mar 1955 in Norton, Somerset, England. Her parents were William Upstell (1845-1923) & Ann (ULN) (1865-1928). Ellen had 6 siblings:

1. Agnes Grace (1885-1893)
2. William George Jesse (1889-1916)
3. Lily A. (1890-bef 1901)
4. Alfred Charles (1892-1917)
5. Edward Oliver Ernest (1897-1898)
6. Albert Leonard (1905-1948)


Ellen married William Minall (1872-1950) in 1906 in Bath, England. William was my 11th cousin, 7x removed. Ellen was his second wife. They had 2 daughters: 

1. Frances Mary (1907-1989)
2. Ruby (1908-1987) 

Wednesday's Portrait: Early 60's Childhood

Today's Portrait:

My dad~ This was Christmas 1962-- the picture looks like it's been cut and tattered a bit but it's still a great picture! 

Mappy Monday: Deep River, North Carolina

Last week, I wrote about my 6th great grandfather- Joseph Mendenhall (1770-1833) and how he was born in Jamestown, NC. During the 1810 Census, he lived in Deep River, Stokes, North Carolina. 

Deep River, North Carolina

Deep River is along the Cape Fear River which is 125 miles long. It is named after the Indian name Sapponah, which means "Deep River". 

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (On Sunday)

It's time for another Saturday Night Genealogy Fun from Randy's Genea-Musings! Last night's challenge- Photographs Through the Generations:

1) How many generations do you have photographs or portraits of your ancestors and descendants?  It can be any line...it just can't be broken!

2) Tell us the line, or better yet, show us the unbroken line. Provide birth-death years, and the approximate date that the photo was made.

3) Share your generation picture line in a blog post of your own, or in a Google+ or Facebook post, or in a comment to this post.


Here's mine! (I love this challenge!!)


1) My 3rd Great Grandfather: Gerhard J. Jeckering (1829-1898)- Immigrated from Germany- photo was taken in the 1880's I think.

2) My 2nd great grandfather: Joseph Herman Jeckering (1870-1931) of Dayton, Ohio- I'm not sure when this photo was taken.

3) My Great Grandfather: Gerhard Cletus Jeckering (1900-1967) of Dayton, Ohio- This is a portrait of he and his wife Josephine at their 50th wedding anniversary (I think).

4) My Grandfather- Paul George Jeckering (1925-1954) of Dayton, Ohio. I think this is a picture from high school- abt 1944

5) My Father- Michael Lee Jeckering (1950- Living). This is high school graduation year book photo- 1969.

6) Me: Carrie Jeckering Smith- this picture was taken last year- 2013

7) My one descendant (so far): Jack- this picture was taken last month- 2014

Surname Saturday (On Sunday): Seaver

 My maternal grandmother was Helen Ruth Mendenhall (nee Seaver) (1923-1981). 

 Here is Helen's Lineage: 

 Parents: Otto Watson Seaver (1901-1972) and Ruby Mae Henderson (1901-1990)

 G-parents: Frank Buchanon Seaver (1856-1936) and Harriett Olive Watson (1856-1915)

 GGP: Greenberry M. Seaver (1823-1905) and Mary Douglas (1827-1862)

 3xGGP: Jacob Seaver (1773-1854) and Esther Croberger (1780-1854)

 4xGGP: Henry Seaver (1743-1810) and Elizabeth Myers (1747-1777)

Helen's 4x great grandfather - Henry Seaver came to America from Hannover, Germany.

Seaver

 Ancestry.com

 (All U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index): 
There are 766 results, but here are a few: 

 Name                     Birth Year          Arrival Year and Place

 Louis S. Seaver                                                         South Dakota
 Robert Seaver                                 1633-1634        Massachusetts 
 Robert Seaver                                 1633-1634        New England
 Hugh Seaver                                    1637                 Virginia 
 Joseph Seaver                                 1851                  Pennsylvania


 House of names: 

 Spelling Variations: Sever, Sevior, Sevyer, Seeviour, Sivier, Siver, Sivyer, Saviour, Seyvior, Sceviour, Scievor and many more.


 Randy from Genea-Musings did a blog post about the surname as well: 
 Seaver Surname- Origin, Meaning, Famous People, Localities

Friday Funny

Today's Friday Funny:

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 24: Joseph Mildenhall (1801-1875)

Joseph Mildenhall- my 4th cousin, 8x removed

b. 25 Nov 1801 in Berkshire, England
d. 11 Jun 1875 in Fort Beaufort, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Parents: Jonathan Mildenhall Jr (1764- ?) & Mary (1770-?)

Siblings: 

1. Daniel (b. 1793)
2. George (b. 1795)
3. Susan (b. 1797)
4. Sarah (b. 1799)
5. Ann Maria (b. 1806)
6. James (b. 1808)
7. Thomas (b. 1811)


Family~

Joseph moved to South Africa and married Rebecca Hinton on 29 Jun 1837.

Rebecca Hinton
b. 14 Jan 1810 in Wilton, Wiltshire, England
d. 31 Dec 1877 in Cape, South Africa

~Daughter of Richard Hinton (1780-1822) & Sarah Viney (1787-1841).


Joseph and Rebecca had 8 children:

1. Mary Maria (1840-1919) ~ Read more about Mary  Here 
2. Joseph Jr. (1843-1928)
3. Jessie Susannah (1845-1884)
4. Henry Josiah (1847-1901)
5. Emily Rebecca (1850-1852)
6. Letitia Emily (1852-1920)
7. Emma Rebecca (1854-1961)
8. Edwin George (1856-1882)

I found a little excerpt of Joseph's life on Ancestry.com:

~Joseph immigrated to South Africa in the Thornhill party on the ship Zoraster. He died on the Klu Klu Farm. Joseph and his wife Rebecca spent the early part of their lives in Alice, as Joseph had a contract to supply food to the soldiers. They lived on the banks of the Tyumie near the present bridge. Their eldest son, Joseph, attended Mr. Templeton's school at Lovedale, which he ran for a time. Later, Joseph went into partnership with Mr. Simpson and a Mr. Stanton and they bought three farms- one near Alice, another Alph Aytoun near Fort Beaufort and the third- Klu Klu- named after the chief from whom they bought it from. They bought it for a wagon and a span of oxen. 

Joseph built a two story house. Having no glass, the windows were covered with calico. At one of the windows  he had a gun mounted on a stand; the muzzle is now in the Fort Beaufort museum. One night, when Rebecca was alone with her children, she heard the Kaffirs among the cattle, so she fired off a few shots which dispersed them. In times of danger, the Klu Klu farm was a meeting point for soldiers and settlers. 

Joseph and his sons took part in all the fighting in the Fort Beaufort area. Once he narrowly escaped wiht his life near the Warden's farm. He was being attacked by a party of Xhosa with assegais, but escaped down the river, slipped off his horse and hid in the reeds. The Xhosa rushed up and down jabbing their assegais into the rushes. Finally, he got home.

The Mildenhall home at Klu Klu was built of stone, with beams and flooring of yellow-wood cut in the Katberg. The walls are two feet thick, the windows heavily barred and the front door, made in two sections so that the bottom portion only can be closed, is of amazing thickness and is locked with a huge heavy key. 

Behind the homestead lies Tower Hill, on the top of which was built a stone fort from which a distant view could be obtained. In those days, Fort Beaufort was just a military post, consisting of the Fort, barracks, a shop and a few houses. Below the homestead lies the grave of the Hottentot whose arm was chopped off by the Xhosas to release the man who was manacled to him- in the incident which sparked the War of the Axe in 1846. The Xhosa had stolen an axe from Holiday's Store in Fort Beaufort, and was being taken to Grahamstown for trial. The body of the Hottentot was pulled out of the river and buried by Joseph Mildenhall. Later, a stone was erected on which was written: "War of the Axe" with a carving of an axe. 





Joseph Mildenhall died at the age of 73 on 11 Jun 1875 in Fort Beaufort, South Africa. 

Wednesday's Portrait: Earl Dwight Mendenhall

Today's Portrait: 
Earl Dwight Mendenhall- my great grandfather
b. 21 Feb 1894 in North Star, Ohio
d. 26 Nov 1972 in Dayton, Ohio

I got this picture from my mom. She said this is a picture of her grandfather- Earl Mendenhall- who she said was a chiropractor, although, I couldn't find this information in any census records. I don't know what year this was either. 

One Person at a Time...Elizabeth (Continued...)

~Even though I have a lot of people in my family tree, I also have a lot of "holes" that need more research. Over the next few months, I am going to attempt to patch up those holes by doing research one person at a time- starting at the beginning of the list~

Today's name: Elizabeth (continued...)


17. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth married Godwin Walter. Their son William (1707-1781) married Rachel Newlin (1712-1802)- my 2nd cousin, 10x removed.

After Research:
Elizabeth Sanghurst was born in 1679 in Concord, Chester, Pennsylvania and died in 1732 in Chester County. Her parents were John Sanghurst (1639-1688) & Mary (1640-1660). 
I read that she was born in Concord, yet found her name on a passenger list from England at age 3...don't know if this is the same Elizabeth or not...
Elizabeth married Goodwin Walter (1675-1769) on 02 Sep 1696 in Concord. They had 8 children:

1. Elizabeth
2. James 
3. Lydia
4. John (b. 1696)
5. Sarah (b. 1701)
6. William (b. 1707)
7. Rachel (b. 1709)
8. Joseph (b. 1711)


18. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth married James Quick. Their son Warren Thomas (1834-1905) married Henrietta Hyman (1840-1918)- my 2nd great grand aunt.

After Research:
Elizabeth McClure was born on 29 Jul 1806 and died in 1881 in Brookville, Franklin, Indiana. Her parents were James McClure (1778-1840) & Phoebe Eads (1782-1839). Elizabeth had 9 siblings:

1. Samuel (1799-1809)
2. William (1802-1882)
3. Mary Ann (1804-1860)
4. Lucinda (1808-1839)
5. Jane (1810-1828)
6. James E. (1811- ?)
7. Lewis Deweese (1813-1901)
8. David (1819-1819)
9. Gibson Henry (1821-1821)

Elizabeth married James QUick (1803-1869) in 1829 in Brookville. They had 13 children:

1. Lydia Ann (1824-1893)
2. Infant son (1826-1826)
3. Mary Jane (1827-1914)
4. David Oliver (1829-1910)
5. William Allen (1831-1915)
6. Harrison (1833-1834)
7. Warren Thomas (1934-1905)
8. John (1837-1922)
9. Phoebe (1839-1842)
10. James Madison (1842-1897)
11. Sarah Elizabeth (1844-1904)
12. Carrie (1846-1876)
13. Infant Son (1852-1852)



19. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth was born about 1725. She married Willoughby Broughton (1725-1804) about 1748 in Virginia. They had 5 children: Catherine, Jesse, John, Job, and Winnifred.


After Research:
Elizabeth Christman was born in 1730 in Virginia and died in 1776 in Macon, North Carolina. Her parents were Jacob Christman (1706-1778) & Magdalena Hite (1713-1771). 
Elizabeth married Willoughby Broughton (1725-1804) in 1740 in Virginia. They had 5 children: 

1. Nancy Catherine (1746- ?)
2. Jesse (1748-1778)
3. John (1750-1820)
4. Job (1755-1837)
5. Winnifred (1761-1843)


20.Elizabeth 
Before Research:
Elizabeth married J.F. Wall (b. 1824). Their daughter was Artie Pricilla Wall (1856-1917).

After Research:



21. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth was born in 1578 in Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts and died in Apr 1671 in Boston, Massachusetts. She married Charles Turner (1574-1600) in 1599 in Taunton. They had one son- John (1600-1691).


After Research:
I wasn't able to find much on this woman...unfortunately.



22. Elizabeth Ellen
Before Research:
Elizabeth Ellen was born in 1896 and died in 1955. She married Edwin Minall (1891-1967) and they had 2 kids- Lily Ada (b. 1924) and unknown (b. 1919). 

After Research:
Elizabeth Ellen was actually Nellie LIvesey. Nellie was born in 1896 and died in 1955 in England. She married Edwin Minall (1891-1967) in 1914 in Clutton, England and they had 2 children: 

1. Edwin James (1917-1979) 
2. Lily Ada (1923-1981)

Mappy Monday- Jamestown, North Carolina

My 6th great grandfather Joseph Mendenhall was born on 18 Dec 1770 in Jamestown, Guilford, North Carolina. 

Jamestown, NC

Jamestown was actually named after my 1st cousin, 10x removed- James Joseph Mendenhall (1718-1782). The town was settled in 1752 and his son George named the town in honor of his father in 1816. 

There are several historical landmarks that you can see when you visit Jamestown: 

~The Old School- which is now the Jamestown Public Library

~The Madison-Lindsay House (built in 1817)- notable for being home to a series of medical schools.

~The Mendenhall Plantation- the home of my ancestors! 

~The Oakdale Cotton Mill- began operation after the Civil War

~Oakdale Church- built in 1915

Surname Saturday- Messier

My 6th great grandmother was Sarah Messier (1702-1782). Her grandfather- Pieter Jansen Mesier (1640-?) came to America from Holland, Netherlands. I was surprised because this name sounds French to me. 

Messier

Ancestry.com:

~All U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index:

There are 23 names with the last name Messier; here are a few:

Name                              Birth            Arrival year and place

Marie-Anne Messier                                                      Canada

Jacque Messier                                    1606-1706          Quebec

Jacques Messier               1797             1827                  New York

Aug D. Messier                                    1886                  Illinois

Richard J. Messier                                1900                  Colorado

Joseph Messier                                      1910                  Montana

Findagrave.com:

There are 1,182 results for Messier as a surname.

Houseofnames.com:

The name Messier can be traced to the Old French word Messier- which means harvester. It reached England during the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. It means someone who is employed in reaping or harvesting. 

Spelling Variations: 

Messer, Mesher, Messor, Mersser, Masar, Messier, Meisser, Measure and more.

Friday Funny

Happy Friday!

This is one of my favorites because it's SO true for me! :) 

One Person at a Time...Elizabeth (Continued...)

~Even though I have a lot of people in my family tree, I also have a lot of "holes" that need more research. Over the next few months, I am going to attempt to patch up those holes by doing research one person at a time- starting at the beginning of the list~

Today's Name: Elizabeth (Continued...)

13. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth married Joseph Brown and they had one daughter- Deborah (1793-1842).


After Research:
Elizabeth Michener was born on 16 Mar 1762 in Plumstead, Bucks, Pennsylvania and died on 07 Jul 1811 in New Garden, Pennsylvania. Her parents were Mordecai Michener (1723-1795) & Sarah Fisher (1721-1812). Elizabeth had 8 siblings:

1. William (1749-1782)
2. John (1750-1837)
3. Sarah (1752-1784)
4. Deborah (1757-1828)
5. Mordecai (1759-1854)
6. Hannah (1760-1790)
7. Robert (1763-1849)
8. Katherine (1766-1850)

Elizabeth married Joseph Browne (1762-1851) and they had 12 children:

1. Sarah (1784-1826)
2. Mary (1786- ?)
3. Benjamin (1788-1861)
4. Hannah (1788- ?)
5. Elizabeth (1790-?)
6. Rebecca (1792-1792)
7. Deborah (1793-1842)
8. Joseph (1796-1856)
9. Esther (1799-1842)
10. Rebecca (1800- ?)
11. Tabitha (1803- ?)
12. Rachel (1805-?)


14. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth was born about 1739. She married John Mendenhall (1739-1825)- my 7th great grand uncle and they had 3 children:
1. John (b. 1765)
2. Susanna (b. 1767)
3. Richard (b. 1770)

After Research:
Elizabeth Elmore was born about 1739 in North Carolina. This is the only new information that I was able to find.


15. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth married Richard Dillon and they had one son- Oliver (B. 1842). He married Minerva Ann Mendenhall (b. 1842)- my 3rd cousin, 6x removed.


After Research:
Elizabeth Unthank was born on 11 Apr 1811 in New Garden, Indiana and died on 28 Nov 1840 in Summerton, Indiana. Her parents were John Unthank (1780-1841) & Mary Mason (1782- 1849). Elizabeth had 10 siblings: 

1. Leveicy (1804-1850)
2. Ann (1806-1832)
3. Jonathan (1807-1853)
4. Sarah (1809-?)
5. Mary (1813-?)
6. Joseph (1815-?)
7. Rebecca (1817- ?)
8. John Allen (1819-1902)
9. Beulah (1821-1823)
10. William M. (1824-1891)


Elizabeth married Richard Dillon (1809-1845) in 1834 in Indiana. They had 4 children:

1. Allen (1835-1899)
2. Jane Ann (1836-?)
3. Harriet (1838-?)
4. Oliver (1840-1906)



16. Elizabeth
Before Research:
Elizabeth married Oliver Matthews and they had one son- Walter Matthews (1710-1781). Walter married Mary Mendenhall (b.1712)- my 8th great grand aunt.


After Research:
Elizabeth Thomas was born in 1663 and died in 1709 in New Castle, Delaware. Her parents were Tristram Thomas (1629-1686) and Ann King (1638-1708). Elizabeth had 4 siblings: 

1. Anne (b. 1667)
2. Stephen (1669-1740)
3. Elizabeth (1671-1709)
4. Martha (1680-1739)


Elizabeth married Oliver Matthews (1667-1708) and they had 7 children:

1. Daniel
2. Thomas (1693-1776)
3. John (1694-1761)
4. William (1697-1739)
5. Edward (1700-1726)
6. Dorcas (1704-1804)
7. Walter (1710-1781)

Another New Grave Found!

Happy Thursday Evening!

I am very excited to say that I have found yet another important grave!  It is the grave(s) of my 3rd great grandparents- 

Stanislaw "Stanley" Ellert (1849-1930) &
Pauline (ULN) (1853-1937) 

(Both were born in Russia)

They're buried in:

 Holy Cross Cemetery in San Diego, Ca

4470 Hilltop Drive

Plot: St. Paul, Lot 567

I found this grave on Findagrave.com. I didn't find this grave sooner because I didn't think of another name that Stanislaw could have gone under...Stanley- DUH! Once I figured this out, I not only found the grave, but some census records as well. 

This makes a lot of sense why he would have changed his name to a more "American" name. My 3rd great grandfather- Gerhard Jeckering (1829-1898) also did this when he moved to America from Germany- he went by George. 


How I'm related to Stanley and Pauline Ellert: 

Carrie Jeckering Smith (Me)
My parents
Paul George Jeckering & Dorothy Jean Hendricks
Gerhard Cletus Jeckering & Josephine Mary Dabuliewicz
Josef Dabuliewicz & Stephania Ellert
Stephania's parents were Stanley and Pauline Ellert.