My Trails into the Past

This is week 4 of the “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge” by Amy Crow from No Story Too Small . Jack Sullivan was my great-uncle, the only brother of my father’s mother, Anna Marie Sullivan. Jack’s parents were John H. Sullivan and Anna Maria Gleeson. He was born 9 Feb 1887 in Mitchell, Davison County, in what was then Dakota Territory and was baptized on 29 Mar 1887. [1] His father had attempted to homestead but by now they were living in town. Jack had two sisters born before him: Helena M. “Nellie” and Loretto M., and three sisters born after him: Rosemary, Ethel E. and Anna Marie. Rosemary, however, died as an infant. He moved with the family to Anaconda, Deer Lodge County, Montana sometime before 1900.  I don’t know what brought them to Anaconda besides the mining industry that Jack’s grandfather, Jeremiah Sullivan, had been a part of back in County Cork. A lot of Irish worked in the mining industry and there were many “Sullivans” listed in census and city dir...

I have been working on preparing for a trip to Salt Lake City to research at the Family History Library. Six days of researching in the microfilm- and book-filled library is a wonderful and fulfilling experience. So I began to prepare by looking at the dead-end lines in my family tree, especially those on my mother’s side who lived in the South. My third great-grandparents fit that bill: Samuel Johnston and Elizabeth McCormack. Samuel Johnston was born about 1816 in South Carolina, based on age 34 in the 1850 census and age 44 in the 1860 census. [1] These are the only two census records I have found for Samuel. He did not appear on the 1870 census with his widowed wife and children. [2] It was difficult to find Samuel in the 1850 Yalobusha County, Mississippi census until I searched for some of his neighbors from the 1860 Yalobusha Co, MS census and found him near those same neighbors. I could see why he was difficult to find. His written surname looked like “Dehuson...

My husband’s third great granduncle, David Bishop, married Mary Magdalene Long on this date 15 Jan 1809 in Ross County, Ohio. [1] Ross, Ohio, Marriages vol A, p 96; FHL microfilm 281637. The marriage record does not say much:  "I hereby certify that David Bishop and Mary Long was joined in the Holy State of matrimony on the 15th day of January by me."                                                                     John Matthews, January 30th, 1809. Because it stated Holy State of Matrimony,  does that mean John Matthews was a minister? I checked other entries on the same page. One was from John Ratcliff, J.P. so now I know who was a Justice of the Peace. Another signature was John Collins, Minister of the Methodist E. Church.  Checking further pages answered the question. John ...

John Edward Lundquist was born 120 years ago today on 31 Dec 1892 to Pehr Alfred Lundquist and Mathilda Lovisa Eriksson-Holm. [1] He was their first of three children.  The family was living in Stanton, Montgomery County, Iowa and his father was a farmer. His parents were both from Sweden but met in Iowa. I have a copy of John’s birth record, written out in 1983.    Birth record for John Edward Lundquist Here his father was listed as Peter Lundquist and mother as Holm.  I also have a photocopy of the family bible where it was written in Swedish of John’s birth: “ Sonern John Edward föd den 31 December 1892” (son John Edward born the 31 December 1892). John would later move to Hilmar, Merced Co., California with his parents and marry Signe Maria Hilena Johnson. They had one son. He spent his life as a farmer and died 23 Oct 1970 in Turlock. ------------------------------------------- [1] Montgomery County Register of Births, Bk 2, Birth...

I love land records—though it is truly a love-hate relationship. Land records can give you a lot of information but they are not as forthcoming with easy information like those of vital or census records. You have to dig a bit.  You have to analyze a lot. There are complicated words and abbreviations you must understand. One record does not tell you much. You need to collect all of the land transactions for your ancestor. There are some questions to ask, too, such as: When did he get the first piece of land? How did he get it? Did he buy it, get it as a land grant, homestead it, or was it bounty land? What happened to it later when he moved or died? This journey into land records began with the 22 October 1927 obituary for William C. Gleeson, the brother of my great-grandmother, Anna M (Gleeson) Sullivan. The obituary stated that he was “prominent in Eastern Oregon some years ago, where he was one of the first to engage in dry land farming.” [1] William li...

Here's my version of a surname Christmas tree. These are all the surnames I am researching on my side and my husband's side of the family.  The idea came from Randy Seaver and Leslie Ann . Thanks!  It was fun. Copyright © 2013 by Lisa Suzanne Gorrell, My Trails into the Past

Michael J Sullivan & Sarah Ryan, 30 Apr 1900 My great grandfather’s brother, Michael J. Sullivan had three children: Margaret Mary Sullivan, Daniel J. Sullivan, and John M. “Jack” Sullivan.  Michael’s wife was Sarah V. “Sadie” Ryan and they were married in Anaconda, Deer Lodge County, Montana on 30 April 1900. [1] This family lived in Butte, Montana most of their lives and I searched the Silver Bow county records for Michael’s and Sadie’s marriage but couldn't find it. Well, today, I had luck. I found marriage indexes and images at FamilySearch.org. There they were, right in Deer Lodge Co in Anaconda. Why were they married there?  Well, the marriage record gave Sadie’s residence, and she was a resident of Anaconda! Still don’t know how they met. The marriage included the license so I learned that Michael Sullivan lived in Butte, was 31, and born in Michigan to Jerry Sullivan and Mary Sheehan. Sarah Ryan was 25, lived in Anaconda, born in Iowa to Dave Rya...