Building my family tree from the ground up!

 Good evening,

I started a new tree a couple of nights ago-- to really hone in on my skills as well as making things as accurate as I possibly can. 

I have two mains trees I was using before this-

Jeckering- paternal side 

Mendenhall- maternal side.

This new tree, I've combined the two and over the course of 3 days, I've added 110 people (so far), all with sources- making my ancestry.com tree rating a Star (or a 10)- perfect- which was my goal! 

So far, I've added:

~My husband and children

~My parents and step-dad

~My 2 siblings, their spouse(s) and biological children and grandchildren.

~My 10 aunts and uncles and their families

~4 grandparents

          = 110 people so far

Next, I will just start building backwards- I have most of the work already done in my other trees- just have to make sure all my sources are there! 

Copyright (c) 2025, Carrie Smith

Genealogy Bucket-List Locations, Part 4

Mendenhall Cemetery in Yorkshire, Ohio

 One of the things I would love to do in my lifetime is to visit all of my known direct ancestors gravesites. A lot of the more recent ancestors are buried in Dayton, Ohio in the Calvary Cemetery. My 5th Great-Grandfather, however, is not buried there. 

Richard Mendenhall was born on 14 Nov 1794 in Guilford County, North Carolina. He moved to Ohio where most of my recent and myself are from. He passed away on 25 April 1871 in Darke County, Ohio at the age of 76. Richard is buried in the Mendenhall Cemetery in Yorkshire, Darke County, Ohio. I'm not sure if this cemetery is named after him or one of his relatives.

There are a total of 28 matching records for the surname of Mendenhall on Findagrave.com for this cemetery...let's see how many are in my tree:

1. Aaron Mendenhall (1828-1894)- 4th Great-Grandfather
2. Allen Mendenhall (1846-1871)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 
3. Antony Mendenhall (1847-1870)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 
4. Benjamin Mendenhall (1848-1895)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
5. Catharine Brown Mendenhall (1858-1910)- wife of 1st cousin, 5x removed 
6. Charles E. Mendenhall (1838-1882)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
7. Christena Speelman Mendenhall (1835-1920)- 4th great-grandmother
8. Elizabeth Mendenhall (1850-1855)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 
9. James P. Mendenhall (1841-1853)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
10. John W. Mendenhall (1877-1894)- 3rd great-granduncle
11. Levi Mendenhall (1834-1861)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
12. Mary Elizabeth Goslee Mendenhall (1859-1917)- wife of 1st cousin, 5x removed 
13. Olive Pearson Mendenhall (1799-1870)- 5th great-grandaunt
14. Rebecca Davidson Mendenhall (1823-1891)- 4th great-grandaunt
15. Richard Mendenhall (1828-1852)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
16. Richard Mendenhall (1794-1871)- 5th Great-Grandfather
17. Robert Mendenhall (1822-1875)- 4th great-granduncle
18. Robert E. Mendenhall (1857-1917)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 
19. Sarah Mendenhall (1830-1856)- 4th great-grandaunt
20. Sarah Pearson Mendenhall (1795-1866)- 5th great-grandmother
21. Sarah A. Mendenhall (1829-1849)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
22. Sarah J. Mendenhall (1849-1869)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
23. Serepta York Mendenhall (1844-1872)- wife of 1st cousin, 6x removed 
24. Thomas Mendenhall (1796-1865)- 5th great-granduncle
25. Thomas Mendenhall (1853-1910)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 
26. Thomas E. Mendenhall (1837-1851)- 1st cousin, 6x removed 
27. Wayne Mendenhall (1886-1888)- 2nd cousin, 4x removed 
28. William Rosecrans Mendenhall (1863-1899)- 1st cousin, 5x removed 

So, I suppose I have 28 reasons to visit this cemetery! 

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Copyright (c) 2024, Carrie Smith

52 Ancestors: Week 3- Harold Earl Mendenhall (1916-1989)

 Harold Earl Mendenhall

Relation to me: Maternal Grandfather

born: 10 Jul 1916, Dayton, Ohio

died: 29 Jan 1989, Alabama, age 72 

Parents: Earl Dwight Mendenhall (1894-1972) & Edna Grace Niles (1894-1933)

Siblings: Robert Eugene (1916-1993), Ruth Eileen (1926-2002)

On 06 Oct 1940, Harold married Helen Ruth Seaver, daughter of Otto Watson Seaver (1901-1972) and Ruby Mae Henderson (1901-1990). She was born on 31 Dec 1923 in Cicero, Indiana and died on 28 Aug 1981 in Dayton, Ohio. Together, Harold and Helen had 4 children:

1. Nancy 

2. Harold Earl Mendenhall Jr. (1945-2022) 

3. Neil Emerson Mendenhall (1947-2019)

4. Bonnie 

I did find a WWII army enlistment record for a Harold E. Mendenhall, born 1916 in Ohio and from Montgomery County, Ohio but the date is 24 Aug 1942 and it states he's separated without dependents-- which wouldn't have been the case...unless something was logged incorrectly. It also lists his occupation as a salesperson. 

I also found a WWII draft card for him that I KNOW is correct- born 10 Jul 1917 in Ohio, registration date is 16 Oct 1940 in Harrison, Ohio. It lists him as 5 Ft. 8 In, 118 lbs, Light complexion, Blonde Hair and Blue Eyes. Next of kin is his father, Earl Dwight Mendenhall. 

Census Records:

1920: 502 Columbia Street, Randolph, Indiana, home is rented.

household members: 

• Earl D. Mendenhall, Head, age 25, Machinist for a garage
• Edna G. Mendenhall, Wife, age 25
• Harold E. Mendenhall, Son, age 3
• Robert E. Mendenhall, Son, age 1

1930: 2260 Catalpa Dr., Dayton, Ohio, home is rented.

household members:

• Earl D. Mendenhall, Head, age 37, Garage Manager 
• Edna Mendenhall, Wife, age 35
• Harold Mendenhall, Son, age 13
• Robert Mendenhall, Son, age 11
• Ruth Mendenhall, Daughter, age 4

1940: 11 Orchard Springs, Harrison, Ohio

household members: 

• Ralph Sutton, Head, age 37, Garage mechanic
• Hazel Sutton, Wife, age 27
• Wayne Sutton, Son, age 6
• Lois Sutton, Daughter, age 5
• Thelma Daubenmeyer, Sister-in-law, age 30, Cosmetologist (?)
• Harold Mendenhall, Lodger, age 24, Garage mechanic
• Ruby Mendenhall, Lodger, age 22, Spot Welder or a refridgerator manufacturer 

1950: 284 E. Orchard Springs, Harrison, Ohio

household members: 

• Harold Mendenhall, Head, age 33, Sales Clerk for a retail auto parts store
• Helen Mendenhall, Wife, age 26
• Nancy Mendenhall, Daughter, age 6
• Harold Mendenhall Jr., Son, age 5
• Neil E. Mendenhall, Son, age 2

Please comment and share this post via Twitter, Facebook or any other social media. If you have a question or a personal comment, please feel free to reach out via Carriesmith11411@yahoo.com.

Copyright (c) 2024, Carrie Smith

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun Response- Ancestor who experienced or did something unique

Welcome to another Saturday Night Genealogy challenge (on Sunday) from one of my favorite genealogy bloggers- Genea-Musings. You can see the original post Here.

Last night's challenge was: 

1. Choose an ancestor who experienced or did something unique or memorable (such as an event, family life, trip, etc.).

2. Share about your ancestor and his/her unique experience and how it may have affected their life in your own blog post or on your Facebook page. Be sure to leave a link to your report in a comment on this post.

Here's mine: 

There are a few ancestors that come to mind with this challenge and two that I definitely want to write about....but I think I'm going to go with-- 

My 7th Great-Grandfather- Richard Mendenhall

Richard Mendenhall was born on 01 Nov 1737 in Fredrick County, Virginia to Mordecai Mendenhall (1713-1803) and Charity Grubb Beeson (1715-1809). He was the eldest of 10 children.

At the age of 20, Richard married Jane Thornbrugh (1737-1796) on 24 Jun 1758 in New Garden, North Carolina. Together, they had 8 children- John, Richard Jr., Jane, Benjamin, Charity, Margaret, Joseph, and Aaron. 

The thing that makes Richard unique is that he would often go scouting for land with Daniel Boone and Daniel Boone's eldest son, James. On October 10, 1773, was the first recorded Indian massacre on the Powell River in Lee County, Virginia. This massacre took the lives of Captain William Russell, James Boone (only 16 years old), a servant boy and then a negro slave and Richard Mendenhall and his brother John. The men were buried where they lay slain.

Richard was only 35 years old.

The spot around where the men were killed, there is a memorial (10 miles east of Cumberland Gap)- this is what it looks like: 

Transcription for easy reading: 

Death of Boone's Son:

In this valley, on 10 Oct. 1773. Delaware, Shawnee, and Cherokee Indians killed Daniel Boone's eldest son, James, and five others in their group of eight settlers en route to Kentucky. Separated from Daniel Boone's main party, the men had set up camp near Wallen's Creek. At dawn the Indians attacked and killed James Boone, Henry Russell, John and Richard Mendenhall (brothers), a youth whose last name was Drake, and Charles (one of two slaves in the party). Isaac Crabtree and Adam, a slave, escaped. This event prompted Boone adn his party to abandon their first attempt to settle Kentucky. 

Transcription for easy reading: 

Pioneer Graves

This marks the burial place of a party of white settlers who were surprised in camp and slain by Indians at daybreak, October 10, 1773.  Those killed were James Boone, son of Daniel Boone, Henry Russell, son of Capt William Russell, Robert and Richard Mendenhall, brothers, and another unnamed white man. Two escaped, Isaac Crabtree, a white man and Adam, a negro slave of Russell Boone, and Russell buried their sons and the others at the scene of the tragedy and gave up temporarily the first effort of white men to settle Kentucky. 

Erected July 10, 1951, by M. Wheeler Kesterson, a native of Lee County, Virginia, age 59 years and a descendant of Mary Russell. 

Please comment and share this post via Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media. Any personal comments or questions, please feel free to reach out via Carriesmith11411@yahoo.com. 

Copyright (c) 2024, Carrie Smith

Genealogy Bucket-List Locations, Part 2

Any one person has the potential to have 2,048 11th Great-Grandparents. Who can actually say that they know where their 11th great-grandparents are buried? I can...and this location, is definitely on my list of places to see! 

Thomas Mildenhall (1630-1682) & Joane Strode (1634-1682) are my 11th Great-Grandparents. I don't know the circumstances of their death(s) but I do know that they died the same year in 1682. I also know that they are buried in the Holy Cross Churchyard in Ramsbury, England. 

Holy Cross Churchyard

The Holy Cross Churchyard is located in Ramsbury, Wiltshire, England. The coordinates are: 51.44250, -1.60722. 

According to Findagrave.com, there are 2,185 memorials, including one famous memorial of a Francis Burdett V (1770-1844). It's only 9% photographed with 51 open photo requests, makes me wonder if photography of any sort is allowed?

My ancestors are buried here--- someday I'll get to see what their gravestones look like.

Enjoy the photos that I found on Google.com

Genealogy Bucket-List Locations, Part 1

Aldbourne-St. Michael Parish Church

On 12 Aug 1649, my 11th Great-Grandparents Thomas Mildenhall (1630-1682) & Joane Strode (1634-1682) were married at this gorgeous medieval church in Aldbourne, Marlborough, England. The church was built over-time but started in the 12th century.

GPS Corrdinates: Latitude: 51.48051, Longitude: -1.62134

Celebrity Cousin(s)- The Lively Group

 I was excited when I found actress Blake Lively in my family tree....I was shocked to discover who her siblings are! Let's dive! 

It all starts with their mother- Elaine McAlpin, a talent agent. Elaine married Ronald Otis "Ronnie" Lively and they had 3 children-

Lori Lynn Lively- born 09 Nov 1966.

Lori is known for a number of small tv roles, but is best known for Dead Space in 1991. 

Ronald Jason "Jason" Lively- born 12 Mar 1968 

Jason is best known for his role on National Lampoons European Vacation as Rusty Griswold in 1985. This is one of my favorite movies! 

Robyn Elaine Lively- born 07 Feb 1972

Robyn is best known for her role in the 1989 teen classic Teen Witch. In 1999, she married Barton Robert "Bart" Johnson and they have 3 children: Baylen, Kate and Wyatt.

Elaine ended her relationship with Ronnie and married Ernest Wilson "Erie" Brown jr. (1947-2021). Ernie took Elaine last name and became Ernie Lively. Together, the couple had 2 children: 

Eric Lawrence Lively- born 31 Aug 1981 (born with surname Brown). 

Eric mainly did smaller roles and modeling for Abercrombie and Fitch, Levi's, and Tommy Hilfiger. He was also in the 1999 movie American Pie.

Blake Lively- born 25 Aug 1987 (born Blake Ellender Brown)

Blake is by far the most famous of the Lively siblings. In her 34 years, she's done 23 successful movies. In 2012, she married famous actor Ryan Reynolds and they have 3 daughters (with one more child due 2024)- James, Inez, Betty.

Lively siblings: my 9th cousins, 1x removed:

Uarda Mendenhall Webster Merrill (1909-1998)

Looking through my photos in the media gallery on Ancestry.com, I came upon this photo I had saved some time ago: 

This is an 8th grade graduation photo for Uarda Mendenhall Webster. I found it interesting that they would take a photo for 8th grade graduation around 1922/23-- I know some children, especially girls, didn't complete schooling past the 8th grade because it really wasn't necessary. Looking at census records, it looks like Uarda completed at least 2 years of college.

Uarda was born on 05 Jun 1909 in Glendale, Idaho to Samuel John Webster and Aa Louise Mendenhalll. She had 8 full siblings and 5 half-siblings from her father's previous marriage to Uarda's aunt Mary Ann Mendenhall, who died during childbirth. 

Look at this adorable photo of Uarda and her younger sister Donna:

Here's a wonderful photo of the Uarda and her siblings: 

Front Row: Asa, Samuel, Ada, Mae
Back Row: Uarda, Lavon, Blaine, Guy (nephew), Theron, Harold and Donna

Here is a very fun picture of Uarda and a friend (unknown) in 1929

I absolutely love this photo of Uarda-- looks like she might be carrying some books (1929):

Uarda married Kenneth Merrill on 24 Sep 1930 in Cache County, Utah at the age of 21. 

Kenneth was born on 25 Apr 1907 in Groveland, Idaho to Joseph Merrill and Grace Emma Hale. Together, Uarda and Kenneth had 5 children-

1. Clendon Webster Merrill (1926-2011)

2. Maurine Merrill

3. Kenneth Leon Merrill

4. Devota Merrill

5. Elaine W. Merrill

Kenneth built a home, barn and silo for his family in Rockford, Idaho:

Two more photo but later in life: 

Kenneth died on 27 Jul 1952 at the age of 45 due to a pulmonary embolism he received after getting kicked by a bull in the ribs. He survived two weeks. Uarda never remarried. She died on 05 May 1998 at the age of 88. She is buried beside her husband in the Riverside-Thomas Cemetery in Blackfoot, Idaho. 

Celebrity Cousin Profile- Aaron Carter (1987-2022)

The world was shocked by the death of rapper Aaron Carter on November 5. It really is a tragedy when someone dies so young. I have many celebrities in my family tree, but was surprised when I didn't have the Carter family there...so I decided to look into it-- see if we are distant cousins after all. And, of course I found the connection. 

This post will be about my relation to the recently deceased rapper and also how I came upon the relationship. 

Robert Gene Carter (1952-2017) and his wife Jane Elizabeth Spaulding had 5 children together- 

1. Nickolas Gene "Nick" (b. 1980)

2. Bobbie Jean Carter (b. 1982)

3. Leslie Barbara Carter (1986-2012) (died of a drug overdose)

4. Angel Carter (Twin) (b. 1987)

5. Aaron Charles Carter (twin) (1987-2022)

The Carter children are my 8th cousins, 2x removed on my mothers side.

Relationship to me: 

So, how did I find this relationship...and so quickly??

It was easy mainly because I already have an extensive tree built online. First, I googled "Nick Carter Family Tree". The first result comes up with a website called "Geneastar- Famous Genealogies". This site has a pretty good start of his family tree. If you click on "Full Tree", you can see several generations back. I looked at 2x great grandparent surnames and see if any of them matched in my tree- one that clicked was "Crippen". I had 3 names in my tree with that surname and one was a match (very distant). It was seriously that easy. Obviously, I now I have to go back and source-match my names and dates to see if everything is accurate and matches 100% but as of right now, I think it's a great start. 

How about you? Do you have the Carter family in your family tree? 

Family of Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892)

Today, I came across this photo on Facebook:

This photo was taken around 1888 and it's fascinating because this is a photo of a man and his 13 children. In 1888, to have 13 children survive to adulthood- seems rare! The man in the front/middle is the father- Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892). On November 8, 1838, he married Hannah Worrilow Newlin (1819-1873) in Middletown, Pennsylvania. They were actually 4th cousins, once removed. Jacob's 2nd great grandfather was immigrant Benjamin Mendenhall and Hannah's 3rd great grandmother was Mary, Benjamin's sister. They came to America in 1685 aboard the ship named Unicorn. So, together, Jacob and Hannah had 13 children, all lived to be adults. Here's a "who's who's" description of the photo with married names:(sorry, the photo is slightly blurry)

1. Anna Moore Haper (1854-1931), 10th child 2. Jane Trimble (1847-1929), 6th child 3. Henry Lewis Mendenhall (1864-1944), 13th child 4. Elizabeth Anne Abel (1842-1910), 3rd child 5. Charlotte Newlin Closs (1861-1890), 11th child 6. Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892), the father 7. William M. Mendenhall (1843-1932), 4th child 8. Sarah Newlin Underwood (1839-1933), 1st child 9. Jacob Hewes Mendenhall Jr. (1852-1927), 9th child 10. Esther Hewes Garrett (1845-1915), 5th child 11. Mary Mendenhall (1848-1936), 7th child 12. Edward Mendenhall (1840-1918), 2nd child 13. Newlin Mendenhall (1862-1949), 12th child 14. Hannah Moore (1850-1910), 8th child With this many children, I'm always curious how many grandchildren there were-- so here is a "cousin chart"- it includes the year the grandchild was born, month, name of the child and the parent's name:

(sorry for the weird alignment--- blogger was being a pain!!)

Fabulous Photos!

 I haven't blogged in awhile, but today, while doing some genealogy on my mom's side (Mendenhall), I came across some distant cousins. This family had some FANTASTIC photos that I just couldn't help sharing!

Jacob Dorval Cox (1870-1963) was the son of Lucretia Mott Baily (1846-1928) & John Henry Cox (1843-1929). He is my 7th cousin, 5x removed. Jacob was one of 8 boys!

Jacob married Nelle Jewel Fort (1876-1945) and they had 3 daughters.:

1. Thelma Lucretia Cox (1899-1969)

2. Thyra Rebecca Cox (1902-1928)

3. Rhea LeFort Cox (1904-1993)

Between 1904 when Rhea was born and 1910, the family moved from the small town of Shirley, Indiana to Los Angeles, California. In 1910, Jacob was working as a book-keeper for a cement contractor and by 1930, he was working as an accountant. 

Don't you just LOVE the mustache?! 

Here is a picture of Nelle, probably around the time she was married., I don't know the exact date of the photo, but she was married in 1894.

The three Cox sisters- Thelma in the back, Thyra on the left and then Rhea sitting.

Jacob and Nelle's first daughter was Thelma Lucretia Cox, born 29 Aug 1899 in Shirley, Indiana. 

Thelma married Otto Harry Lewis (1900-1973) in Los Angeles and together, they had one son:

Donovan Keith Lewis (1922-2007)

Jacob and Nelle's second daughter was Thyra Rebecca Cox, born 15 Jan 1902 in Shirley, Indiana. 

Thyra was passionate about dance and was featured in a number of silent films and was a dancer with the Marian Morgan dance troupe. 

Unfortunately, Thyra died at the young age of 26 from tuberculosis. 

Rhea LeFort Cox was the last child of Jacob and Nelle. She was born on 20 Mar 1904 in Shirley, Indiana. In 1922, she won the title of the L.A. Times "Southwest Most Beautiful Girl"-- the equivalent of Miss Cali., Ariz, Oregon and Washington State. She received $1500 cash and a modeling contract. The picture above (bottom left) is from Goldwyn Studios in Hollywood. 

Rhea married Robert William Heck (1904-1990) in 1930 and they had 3 children: Elaine, Robert and Pamela.