My Trails into the Past

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 Blog Writing : I wrote the following blog post this week: 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks  For week 12, I wrote about no. 12 in my husband’s ahnetafel chart: his great-grandfather, Nils Malkom Nilsen. For Saturday Night Genealogy Fun , we were asked to writing about the birth order of one of our lines. So I did one of my grandmother’s side. Webinars/Study Groups Attended:   I attended: “The Five-Story Fall: Correlating Indirect and Direct Evidence to Extend the Pedigree,” by Debbie Mieszala, CG, for BCG Legacy Family Tree Webinars. “One African American Family’s Story of Migration,” J. Mark Lowe, CG, for Legacy Family Tree Webinars. “Scarlet Letters: Copyright, Ethics and Family Correspon...

I am participating in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge (April 2016) , where we write 26 blog posts featuring each letter of the alphabet. K is for Ann Kethley                                    I have quite a few “K” surnames in my database, but the only direct ancestors are of the Kethley/Keathley/Keithly line. Nancy Ann Kethley married John Coor around 1816, probably in Mississippi. John Coor died in 1838 but Ann lived past 1870. Seven known children were born to them: John W. Coor (1816-1896) Daniel K. Coor (1819-1895) Elizabeth N. Coor Heard (1823-??) Rufus K. Coor (1825-1877) Ann Jemima Coor Welch (1828-1902) Sarah K. Coor (1832-??) James Madison “Matt” Coor (1833-1890) My research for the Kethley line consists mostly of derivative sources. When I first began this journey of genealogical research, online sources were mostly surname and locality messa...

Today is November 11, a day we honor veterans who served in the Armed Forces. I do not have many direct ancestors who were veterans, but I still want to honor those who were. This list includes those ancestors of my husband (in blue) and mine (in red). World War II Tom J. Johnston Jr. Tom J. Johnston Jr ., U.S. Navy. He served just a short time and was discharged due to a medical disability. He had been stationed in Idaho. George J Gorrell George Joseph Gorrell , U.S. Army. He was a staff sergeant with the 913th Air Engineering Squadron. He served in England and Germany. World War I William Cyril Hork William Cyril Hork , U.S. Navy. He served in submarine service and was last stationed in Long Beach aboard the submarine tender, USS Alert . Civil War Amos Gorrell Jr. Amos Gorrell , Jr., Union Army. Co A, 18th Ohio. George Wilson Lancaster , Confederate. He ...

I checked my genealogy database calendar and found the following birthday and marriage anniversaries. I wondered how they celebrated their birthdays and marriages on Christmas. Or was Christmas the more important day? I always found it interesting that couples married on Christmas. Perhaps it was because family was altogether to help them celebrate. Or perhaps it was a day when they didn’t have to work and had time to have a wedding. My Dad’s side: Maria Catharine Trösster was born 25 December 1813 in Oberhundem, Westfalen.   Maria is my 2nd great grandmother. She was the daughter of John Joseph Trösster and Maria Elisabeth Döbener , and married Joseph Henrich Horoch 2 Aug 1825. My Mom’s side: J ohn Stubbs Stackhouse was born 25 December 1854 in Copiah County, Mississippi.   John Stubbs Stackhouse married Laura Ellen Coor 29 Apr 1886, who was the daughter of Daniel K. Coor & Susan Allen .  Laura is my first cousin 4 times removed. John Samuel ...

Thomas MacEntee asked bloggers to list their surnames and ancestor they most wanted to find. So I decided to write about my mother's side of the family. I have several roadblocks that I'd love to get past and maybe someone will find my blog post and help me. How The Meme Works To participate, do the following at your own blog and post a link back here in the comments: 1. List your surnames in alphabetical order as follows: [SURNAME]: State/Province (county/subdivision), date range 2. At the end, list your Most Wanted Ancestor with details! 1. My Entries COOR; Texas (Erath Co) 1880-present, Mississippi (Lawrence Co, Copiah Co) 1820-1880, North Carolina (Wayne Co, Sampson Co) pre-1800  HALEY; Mississippi (Rankin Co), 1820-1870, North Carolina 1770’s-1820.  HUTSON; Texas (Comanche Co, Hood Co) 1880 to present, Georgia (Cherokee Co, Chattooga Co) 1800-1880, Virginia prior to 1800.  JOHNSTON; Texas (Titus Co, Comanche Co), 1870-present; Mississippi (Yalob...