When I was growing up, one of the family legends from my maternal grandmother was that we were direct descendants of John Knox, the Reformer – the man who founded the Presbyterian Church in Scotland. This connection to a famous individual who was a contemporary of Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth the First was supposedly through my great, great, great-grandmother, Mary Emily Knox Kelsey … Continue reading Knox, Knox, Who’s there?
Here is interesting find. My great great grandfather, Frank Gaume, was a veteran of the Civil War having served on the side of the Union. I have posted about him before, most recently around Memorial Day. What I discovered is that he was a member of the Civil War veteran’s service organization the Grand Army of the Republic or as it was known by its … Continue reading Grand Army of the Republic
After a long time of procrastinating, I have finally decided to get a DNA kit from Ancestry.com. If I want to revise and update my book, Gathering Leaves, I figure that I should at least include a chapter with a firsthand account/personal journey regarding DNA testing. For the past few months, I have been binge-watching episodes of Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. … Continue reading Finally, DNA Testing
It never seems to fail that when I am looking for one thing, I find something else. I was attempting to find out when my great great grandmother, Sophia B Spiegel, died and where she is buried. Instead, I discovered the unusual fate of my great-great-grandfather’s second wife, Katherine G Spiegel. It seems that she died as the result of a gas explosion at their … Continue reading A Frightful Fate
Submitted for your approval: an assortment of recent items found while mining the family history websites and databases that I have free access to via my local library’s digital network. These finds cover both sides of my family and, in some cases, presumably extends my pedigree back several generations. Marriage & Military Up first are military records of my third great-grandfather on my mother’s side, … Continue reading Recent Finds
Earlier I mentioned that I could trace my family tree back to Emperor Charlemagne through one of my great great grandparents, and I thought that I would make a short video showing at least one way I make that connection. There is nothing exceptional about this in any way. Many geneticists and statisticians have concluded that anyone of European ancestry should trace at least one … Continue reading Sacré Charlemagne
Another great-great-grandfather, Francis “Frank” Gaume, was 19 years old when he volunteered and joined the Union forces during the American Civil War. In the Fall of 1862, Frank signed up with the 19th Ohio Volunteer Infantry in Stark County, Ohio. In September of that year, his unit was in reserve at the Battle of Perryville in Kentucky. Then at one of the bloodiest, muddiest battles … Continue reading They Simply Fade Away
During the Civil War, my great-great-grandfather, DJ Dobbs, held, at one point, the rank of Colonel, at another point, the rank of Private, and on yet another occasion, the rank of Master Private. And no, he was neither promoted nor was he demoted. As I revealed in a previous post, I found a letter from some citizens of Marietta, who requested of the Confederate state’s Secretary of War that “Col. DJ Dobbs of Marietta” be made the county’s enrolling officer for the Confederate Army. As I mentioned, I found no indication that he had been granted that office. Continue reading What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?
At the start of the Civil War in 1861, my great-great-grandfather, Constantine Kollros, was 23 years old. Yet, up until yesterday, I was unable to determine which side of the battlefield he was on or whether he served not at all. According to the US census of 1860, Louisville, Kentucky, Constantine was employed as a musician. For years, I searched through Kentucky and Ohio muster … Continue reading A First Draft
I was looking at the nationalities of my great-great-grandparents, and I figure that I am only 6% French, 13% Belgian, almost 20% British, one-quarter German, and nearly 40% Irish. Yet, although I can trace one British branch back to Charlemagne via a daughter of Edward I, and I can trace my DeBacker family back to the early 1500s, most of my Irish branches cannot be … Continue reading The Shamrock Wall
Gathering Leaves 