My Trails into the Past

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:  It's  Saturday Night  again - time for some more  Genealogy Fun!! Randy Seaver of  Genea-Musing  has a new assignment for us: Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!): 1)  Ellen Thompson-Jennings posted 20 questions on her blog this week - see  Even More Questions About Your Ancestors and Maybe A Few About You  (posted 27 June). 2)  We will do these five at a time - Questions 1 to 5 tonight. 3)  Tell us about it in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook post. Here are my answers: 1.  Which ancestor had the most children? It can be a couple or a single person. I only checked my direct lines. The person with the most is highlighted in blue. My paternal side: Vincent Siewert & Susanna Raduntz had eleven children Johan Anton Hork & Julia Ann Siev...

Well, it's now been eight years since I started this blog to document my family stories and to discuss my research. This past year I have written 121 posts! The three main memes I participate in are 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, that accounts for a weekly post; a weekly post documenting my genealogy and other activities, called Geneapouri; and Randy Seaver's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun if the task looks doable. Occasionally I write an extra post during the week if I find an interesting genealogical find. Some of the popular posts during the past year were: I attended SLIG and wrote two posts about my class here and here . I was trying to win a contest to get priority registration for next year. I wrote about my mother meeting Louis Armstrong as a member of the Pittsburg Junior Woman's Club . I wrote three posts about my Aunt, Lorene Hork and her working for the US Navy during WWII, the US Army in Japan after the war, and her trip around the world. The most po...

Genealogists are great at documenting our ancestors’ lives but not so great documenting our own. I’ll write about what I’ve been doing the past week. This idea came from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing, who started this meme. Genealogy Education I taught the fourth class of  the 5-class session on Intermediate Skills for the California Genealogical Society, being held at the Oakland FamilySearch Library on Wednesday evenings. I covered religious records. There is only one more class left. Blog Writing : 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks  For week 25, the theme was “earliest” and my post was about the earliest family to come to California. Saturday Night Genealogy Fun We were assigned the task of showing our graduation photos. Webinars/Study Groups Attended:   I didn’t view any webinars this week, though I participated in the NGSQ study group on Tuesday morning. I also participated in the Thursday evening Cert group chat. Volunteer Wo...

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:  It's Saturday Night again - time for some more Genealogy Fun !! Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!): 1)  Most of us graduated from elementary school, junior high school, high school, and perhaps college. 2)  What schools did you graduate from (and when, if you dare!) - and do you have a photograph? 3)  Tell us about it in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook post. I attended Pittsburg (California) Primary School for Kindergarten. I don’t remember whether there was some kind of graduation or promotion ceremony. Next I attended St. Peter Martyr School in Pittsburg until the middle of third grade. We moved to Walnut Creek and I attended Parkmead Elementary School until sixth grade. I don’t think there was any ceremony. I did graduate from Parkmead Intermediate School , from the 8th grade, June 12, 1968. [1] I th...

Genealogists are great at documenting our ancestors’ lives but not so great documenting our own. I’ll write about what I’ve been doing the past week. This idea came from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing, who started this meme. Genealogy Education I taught the third class of  the 5-class session on Intermediate Skills for the California Genealogical Society, being held at the Oakland FamilySearch Library on Wednesday evenings. I covered immigration and naturalization records, and discussed migration. Blog Writing : 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks  For week 24, the theme was “dear diary” and my post was a continuation of my aunt’s trip around the world based on her letters she had written home. Saturday Night Genealogy Fun I posted a favorite photo of my father, mother, my brother, and me, taken on Easter 1957. Eight Surnames . A meme went around in Facebook asking genealogists if they could name their eight great-grandparents. I deci...

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: It's Saturday Night again - time for some more Genealogy Fun!! Randy Seaver of GeneaMusing has a new assignment for us this week: Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!): 1) It's Father's Day in the USA on Sunday, so let's talk about our fathers.  2)  Show us your favorite photograph of your father - the one that shows him in the best light possible.  Describe the occasion, the setting, and the people in the photograph. 3)  Tell us about it in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook post. I am the first born child of my parents, William “Bill” J. Hork and Lela “Lea” Nell Johnston.   My next brother was born just two years and five months later.  This photo, one of my favorites, shows my dad, my mother, my brother, Steve, and myself on Easter Sunday in 1957, just outside the house of mother’s parent’s, who lived at 30...

It is said we should know the surnames of our eight great-grandparents. As a genealogist, it is very likely that we do know the names of our great-grandparents, and the names of our spouse’s eight great-grandparents. For this post, I got the idea from this post “The Theory of Eight Surnames” written by Scottish blogger named Jim. My eight surnames are: Hork Sievert Sullivan Gleeson Johnston Hutson Lancaster Loveless I also research my husband’s family. His eight surnames are: Gorrell Shotts Davey Wollenweber Nilsen Anderson-Carlson Lundquist Eriksson There is difficulty in dealing with his mother’s line, as they are all from Sweden and their surnames changed each generation. The list above are the names used in America. I also have the sixteen surnames of the great-great grandparents for both myself and my husband. After that, it can be hit and miss, as to whether I know the surnames. My Irish lines are pretty dead after tha...

This is my second year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow . I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past . I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways. Last year, I wrote about the beginning of my aunt, Lorene Hork’s “around the world” trip in 1853 from Tokyo to California. She had been working in Tokyo for the U.S. Army before she and three of her friends, Mitzie, Donna, and Annie, decided to take a trip to see sights in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Her story continues here. She did not keep a diary or journal, but rather wrote letters back home about her journey, which her family saved. I am so glad I have them now. The journey started in September. On the ship, they were able to swim. “This is the first time in my life I have been able to try for a tan so late in the year. Today and yesterday the sun has been so hot and all day we spent swimming i...

Genealogists are great at documenting our ancestors’ lives but not so great documenting our own. I’ll write about what I’ve been doing the past week. This idea came from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing, who started this meme. Genealogy Education I taught the second class of  the 5-class session on Intermediate Skills for the California Genealogical Society, being held at the Oakland FamilySearch Library on Wednesday evenings. I covered probate records. I got an email from one of my students saying she finally found the land record for her ancestor on FamilySearch. She was so happy to learn how to use the online catalog. Blog Writing : 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks   For week 23, the theme was “namesake” and I wrote about all the ancestors who had the name “Elizabeth” or “Margaret” the names of my two daughters. Saturday Night Genealogy Fun I wrote several tweets about my husband’s ancestors. Webinars/Study Groups Attended:   I d...

It's Saturday Night  time for more  Genealogy Fun! Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing has our assignment for this week: Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible! music) is to: 1)  Gail Dever in a blog post suggested writing a life sketch tweet with no more than 280 characters for a specific ancestor.  2)  For this Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, write two or more life sketch tweets with no more than 280 characters for your ancestors. 3)  Share them with us in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or on Facebook.  Please link to your post in a comment to this post. My husband’s family tweets: Amos Gorrell (1804-1890), a farmer, born in Beaver Co, PA and died in Ross Co, OH. He and his wife, Leah Wollam, whom he married in 1827, had six children, two sons lived to adulthood, four children died of typhoid fever. He is buried in Denver Cemetery. David Shotts (1760-1825) was born...

This is my second year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow . I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past . I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways. I am not named for any ancestor. I did not name my children for any ancestors. Yet, they have many namesake ancestors. I named both of my daughters before I had done any genealogy research. I have captured those ancestors here. My daughter, Elizabeth Ann has nine ancestors with her name: On her paternal side, Elizabeth Hocking is her fourth great-grandmother, who married James Davey in 1806. They are the parents of Thomas Davey, who immigrated to the US in 1852. Also Marie Elisabetha Welsch, who married Philippe Ludwig Emerich, and were the parents of Dorothea Carolina Emerich Wollenweber. Marie is her fifth great-grandmother and lived in Kusel in the Pfalz.  On her maternal side, Eliz...

Genealogists are great at documenting our ancestors’ lives but not so great documenting our own. I’ll write about what I’ve been doing the past week. This idea came from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing, who started this meme. Genealogy Education: I attended the Southern California Genealogical Society’s 50th Anniversary Jamboree .  It was three days of genealogy classes (plus a pre-day of DNA that I didn’t attend). I went with my friend, Jacqueline and she drove us. We had a great time attending classes, meeting new people, visiting with friends from all over the country, and finding things to buy in the exhibit hall. I volunteered 5 hours in the local APG group’s research room, helping people with their questions. That was a lot of fun. I attended interesting classes that gave me ideas on some talks I could do in our local area. Can’t wait to start on them. The sessions I attended were: “Los Angeles Public Library and Other Los Angeles-Area Resources” by Julie Huffman ...

It's Saturday Night - time for more  Genealogy Fun! Randy Seaver of Genea-Musing has a new mission for us: Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible! music) is to: 1)  Have you taken a genealogy research trip and/or vacation to see relatives, research in repositories, walk the ancestral property, etc.? 2)  Tell us about it in a blog post of your own, in a comment to this blog post, or in a comment on Facebook. I have taken several trips that included doing research in local repositories: A trip to Minnesota, South Dakota, and Iowa was done in August 2017.  In 2016, I visited Beaver Co, Pennsylvania, Ross Co, Ohio, and Columbus, Ohio to research the Gorrell family.  I had a very successful trip to Faulkner Co, Arkansas and Little Rock, Arkansas to research the Loveless family. Before I had a blog, I traveled to Montana, researching in Anaconda, Butte, and Hamilton with my young daughters...