My Trails into the Past

Mom made many of our clothes: dresses, jumpers, shorts, and pajamas. The only clothes she did not make were jeans, coats, uniforms, and items for the boys, though she once made matching outfits for the four oldest children.  She barely used patterns to make our clothes. Yes, she cut out the pattern pieces. She placed them carefully on the fabric and pinned them down before cutting. But I doubt she really read the instructions. She said she had her way of putting the pieces together.  One thing she did as a short cut was to forgo facings and linings. She rolled the seams at the armhole and collars. She made simple hems she could sew on the sewing machine. She had four daughters and made lots of clothes for them. One special time for sewing was those hours between when Dad left for work at 5 a.m. and we got up at 7. She hid the clothes away if they were to be gifts for birthdays or Christmas. She also made doll clothes for Barbies, baby dolls, and trolls, though the clot...

We lived in the best house and neighborhood growing up. In 1963, my parents purchased a home in Walnut Creek, California. They had been living in a rental on East 9th Street in Pittsburg, that had two bedrooms for six people. My parents made the dining room into their bedroom and the girls had one of the upstairs bedrooms and the boys had the other. It was definitely too small for the growing family. There were probably other factors in the decision as well. They were paying for tuition to St. Peter Martyr School for two kids. The schools in Walnut Creek were top-notch, so they would not need to pay tuition in the new town. My father got a new job at Loray Market in Walnut Creek and the commute added to his time away from home. The new home was only three blocks away and he would walk if my mother needed the car. How my parents pulled it off financially was with the help of my grandparents and their friends. I believe money was loaned to them for the down payment and other money ...

I do not remember when I started doing genealogy research. It was sometime in the early ‘90s. I remember the place where I first found my great-grandfather on the 1920 Soundex and then the 1920 census record. I was taken to Sutro Library in San Francisco by my friend, Susan. I was hooked. I spent any free moment to keep at it, though it was hard at that time because not much was online except RootsWeb and county pages on USGENWeb . I visited libraries and wrote letters to libraries and repositories, sending along my self-addressed stamped envelopes. It was fun coming home to the mail with one of my envelopes in it, wondering what treasures might there be. I also read books, beginning with Doane’s book, Searching for Your Ancestors , and later reading Ancestry’s The Source. Somewhere along the way, I knew I should keep track of what I was finding and I kept spiral-bound notebooks of my searches, whether positive or negative. I just wished I had been more organized, separating out ...

When we start out with our genealogy research, we are just name collectors. We find our ancestors listed in census records, vital records, and in cemetery databases. These people have names, dates of birth, marriage, and death, and name of their children. But in this early state, we really know nothing about them as people. As we become more experienced and begin to research in more advanced records such as deeds, probates, wills, court, and military records, we learn a bit more about our person. We learn how they interacted with the local government, with their neighbors, and with their family. Newspapers also reveal something about their activities, some good and some bad. Some Examples I remember being proud of my great-grandmother, Anna Marie Gleeson, who applied for homestead land in Dakota Territory. She ended up purchasing the 160 acres. However, sometime after her marriage to John H. Sullivan, the land was sold by the sheriff for failure of paying the taxes. A newspaper a...

The Genealogical Proof Standard, also known as the GPS, is the ultimate test to ensure that our genealogical conclusions are sound. [1] There are five elements that genealogists follow to ensure they have met standards. It begins with conducting reasonably exhaustive research. We research in a wide range resources, some easy to obtain, and others that are more difficult. We use the records that will most likely answer our research questions pertaining to identity, relationships, or events. Research should always begin with a research question. A sample research question might be: When was Maria Sievert, daughter of Vincent Sievert and Susanna Radunz, who lived in Joliet, Will County, Illinois, born? See how I identified Maria Sievert? She was the daughter of Vincent Sievert and Susanna Radunz. She lived in Will County, Illinois. There may be more than one Maria Sievert in Joliet, but not likely more than one who was also the daughter of Vincent and Susanna. As we gather evidence f...

Not having any documentation on why my ancestors came to the United States, it becomes guesswork. My maternal ancestors likely came either before or soon after the Revolution. I have not yet discovered who the first ancestors were. My mother’s ancestors were all in the south and as I research back, I start in Texas and work back east through all of the southern states until we hit Virginia. Records are sparse for most of the families. Now my father’s side of the family are more recent immigrants, arriving in the United States during the 1800s. The Sullivans were the first, coming in 1860s. I have searched for the ship list but have not found it. Jeremiah and Mary Sullivan had eight children born in Ireland and one in Michigan. There is a nine-year gap, so they likely came before 1869, when Michael was born in Michigan. This was after the Great Famine. Jeremiah was a miner, so perhaps the mines were closing and the draw to the Upper Peninsula Michigan was a strong draw. Johan Anton ...

My great-grandfather, Johan Anton Hork, appeared in just two U.S. census records: 1880 and 1900. He arrived in the United States in November of 1870, so missed that one. He likely appeared in the 1890 census, but that one does not survive. He died in 1906. 1880 Census The 1880 enumeration was conducted in Aurora, Kane County, Illinois. [1] The surname is indexed on Ancestry as Hark, but the vowel could easily be an o. His wife, Julia, and their first four children are listed in the correct order. Mary, who was born in 1873, is 7 years old. Ida, who was born in 1875, is 5 years old. Susan, who was born in 1877, is 3 years old and listed as Susie, a close enough name to Susan. And Albert, who was born in 1879, is listed as 10 months old. His wife, Julia, who was born in 1854, is 25. So far, these facts match with what is known about the family whose last name is Hork. Anton’s age of 36, suggests a birth year of 1844. That matches the age he put down on his marriage record when stating...