Genealogy 101+: Using the 1940 Census

Thursday, October 4, 2012

The Genealogy 101+ series starts at this link.

Long before biblical times, humans kept records of people's names.  These early "genealogies" bring to mind the 'begats' in "Matthew" in the New Testament and the treasured entries of births, marriages and deaths found in family bibles owned by my ancestors.  Whether they were for lineage purposes, for government use, or kept for other reasons, records of who lived where and when have served as valuable resources throughout history and continue to be invaluable for genealogists today. 

The United States census records are among my favorite sources of information for family history research.  The U.S. Federal Census began in 1790 and, for the first time, in the 1850 census, each free person's name was listed and his or her age as of June 1st of that year was recorded.  With the release of the most recently available census information allowed by law, the 1940 census, researchers now have a treasure trove of information available to them.

Initially, at the time the 1940 census was released, the data was only searchable if you knew the city your ancestor lived in and area or street they lived on.  The data is now available to search by a person's name at this link (free for a limited time).  This access will make it much, much easier for the novice genealogist to have success in locating the records. 

Questions in the 1940 census included those you would expect:  name, age, gender, and race, education, and place of birth.  But the 1940 census also asks many new questions.  The following details about the 1940 census are from the National Archives website. 



1940 Blank Census Page

The instructions ask the enumerator to enter an [a circled x] after the name of the person furnishing the information about the family; whether the person worked for the CCC, WPA, or NYA the week of March 24-30, 1940; and income for the 12 months ending December 31, 1939. (The 1940 also has a supplemental schedule for two names on each page. The supplemental schedule asks the place of birth of the person's father and mother; the person's usual occupation, not just what they were doing the week of March 24-30, 1940; and for all women who are or have been married, has this woman been married more than once and age at first marriage.)
 
The complete list of the questions follows:

Location:

• Street, avenue, road, etc.
• House number (in cities and towns).

Household Data:

• Number of household in order of visitation.
• Home owned (O) or rented (R).
• Value of home, if owned, or monthly rental, if rented.
• Does this household live on a farm? (Yes or No).

Name:

• Name of each person whose usual place of residence on April 1, 1940, was in this household. Be sure to include:
  • Persons temporarily absent from household. Write "Ab" after names of such persons.
  • Children under 1 year of age. Write "Infant" if child has not been given a first name.
  • Enter X after name of person furnishing information.

Relation:

• Relationship of this person to the head of the household, as wife, daughter, father, mother-in-law, grandson, lodger, lodger's wife, servant, hired hand, etc...

Personal Description:

• Sex - Male (M), Female (F).
• Color or race.
• Age at last birthday.
• Marital status - Single (S), Married (M), Widowed (Wd), Divorced (D).

Education:

• Attended school or college any time since March 1, 1940? (Yes or No)
• Highest grade of school completed.

Place of Birth:

• If born in the United States, give State, Territory, or possession. If foreign born, give country in which birthplace was situated on January 1, 1937. Distinguish Canada-French from Canada-English and Irish Free State (Eire) from Northern Ireland.

Citizenship:

• Citizenship of the foreign born.

Residence, April 1, 1935:
IN WHAT PLACE DID THIS PERSON LIVE ON April 1, 1935? For a person who, on April 1, 1935, was living in the same house as at present, enter in Col. 17 "Same house," and for one living in a different house but in the same city or town, enter "Same place," leaving Cols. 18, 19, and 20 blank, in both instances. For a person who lived in a different place, enter city or town, county, and State, as directed in the Instructions. (Enter actual place of residence, which may differ from mail address.)

• City, town, or village having 2,500 or more inhabitants. Enter "R" for all other places.
• County.
• State (or Territory or foreign country).
• On a farm? (Yes or No).

Persons 14 Years Old and Over - Employment Status:

• Was this person AT WORK for pay or profit in private or nonemergency Gov't. work during week of March 24-30? (Yes or No).
• If not, was he at work on, or assigned to, public EMERGENCY WORK (WPA, NYA, CCC, etc.) during week of March 24-30? (Yes or No).

If neither at work nor assigned to public emergency work. ("No" in Cols. 21 and 22).

• Was this person SEEKING WORK? (Yes or No).
• If not seeking work, did he HAVE A JOB, business, etc.? (Yes or No).
  
  For persons answering "No" to question 21, 22, 23 and 24.
• Indicate whether engaged in home housework (H), in school (S), unable to work (U), or other (Ot).
  
  If at private or nonemergency Govt. work. "Yes" in col. 21.
• Number of hours worked during week of March 24-30, 1940.If seeking work or assigned to public emergency work. ("Yes" in Col. 22 or 23).
• Duration of unemployment up to March 30, 1940 - in weeks.

Occupation, Industry and Class of Worker:
For a person at work, assigned to public emergency work, or with a job ("Yes" in Col. 21, 22, or 24), enter present occupation, industry, and class of worker. For a person seeking work ("Yes" in Col. 23): a) if he has previous work experience, enter last occupation, industry, and class of worker; or b) if he does not have previous work experience, enter "New worker" in Col. 28, and leave Cols. 29 and 30 blank.

• Occupation: Trade, profession, or particular kind of work, as frame spinner, salesman, laborer, rivet heater, music teacher.
• Industry: Industry or business, as cotton mill, retail grocery, farm, shipyard, public school.
• Class of Worker.
• Number of weeks worked in 1939 (Equivalent full-time weeks).

Income in 1939 (12 months ended December 31, 1939):

• Amount of money wages or salary received (including commissions).
• Did this person receive income of $50 or more from sources other than money wages or salary? (Yes or No).
• Number of Farm Schedule.

Supplementary Questions 35-50:

For persons enumerated on lines 14 and 29 [about a 5% sample of the population]

• Name.

For Persons of All Ages:
Place of Birth of Father and Mother
If born in the United States, give State, Territory, or possession. If foreign born, give country in which birthplace was situated on January 1, 1937. Distinguish: Canada-French from Canada-English and Irish Free State from Northern Ireland.

• Father.
• Mother.

Mother Tongue (or Native Language):

• Language spoken in home in earliest childhood.

Veterans:
Is this person a veteran of the United States military forces; or the wife, widow, or under-18-year-old child of a veteran?

• If so, enter "Yes."
• If child, is veteran-father dead? (Yes or No)
• War or military service.

Social Security:

• Does this person have a Federal Social Security Number? (Yes or No)
• Were deductions for Federal Old-Age Insurance or Railroad Retirement made from this person's wages or salary in 1939? (Yes or No)
• If so, were deductions made from (1) all, (2) one-half or more, (3) part, but less than half, of wages or salary?

Usual Occupation, Industry, and Class of Worker:
Enter that occupation which the person regards as his usual occupation and at which he is physically able to work. If the person is unable to determine this, enter that occupation at which he has worked longest during the past 10 years and at which he is physically able to work. Enter also usual industry and usual class of worker. For a person without previous work experience, enter "None" in column 45 and leave columns 46 and 47 blank.

• Usual occupation.
• Usual industry.
• Usual class of worker.

For all women who are or have been married:

• Has this woman been married more than once? (Yes or No)
• Age at first marriage.
• Number of children ever born (do not include stillbirths).

Having this extensive and detailed information provides more than a glimpse of your ancestor's life.  It's equivalent to many hours of personal interviews!  It will give you so many clues to help you in your search for earlier information about your family.   

For those who are searching for their family history and have followed the suggestions listed in my prior postings, the 1940 census (and then sequential earlier censuses) is clearly the place to go next for more information about who their ancestors were.  Don't forget to observe clues on the pages about who lived with or near them.

For help in understanding census entries, read more at the linked websites or consult with the Brown County Library Family History Center, the UWGB Area History Research Center, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin Library, or numerous books and websites on the topic. 

Old Echoes From a Family Reunion by Jane Carpenter

Friday, April 27, 2012

Around the festive board, old faces missed

Replace themselves with new ones: likeness-kissed—

The sweetness of a certain curve of cheek;

The tone of voice when one is heard to speak;

The grave regard of granite-colored eyes

Repeat the portraits on the wall;

Surprise the senses with a spurt of memory

That answers every questing enquiry,

As potent as the scent of a pressed rose!

How does a child reflect an aunt’s repose,

Who never knew her mentor, long at rest,

But read her yellowed diary, frightened lest

The pages crumble in her smooth young hand?

A boy who knew not his ancestral land

Still bears the stamp of mountains and fjords;

The music’s in his bones—the primal chords.

All that we have become, we owe the old

Who went before—their warmth would pierce the cold

Of this year’s end and gray December day,

Where past has more than present words to say.

Kewaunee County History

Monday, April 2, 2012

A shout out to author and historian Ginnie Johnson who recently posted a blog about the 160th anniversary of Kewaunee County and my ancestors De Wayne Stebbins, Jane Lovel, and George Wing.  Ginnie is an incredible wealth of knowledge about all things Kewaunee County.  Click on this link to check out her blog!

Genealogy 101+: Interview Your Elders

Sunday, April 1, 2012

The Genealogy 101+ series starts at this link. 

Having defined your genealogy question and brainstormed what you already know, it's time to take the next step in research.  Ask your elders. 

If you are fortunate to have elderly relatives, don't miss an opportunity to learn about your family's history from them.  There are good ways and bad ways to approach this.  I've done both.  Learn from my experiences.

To avoid what you should not do, here are 10 TO DO when you interview an elderly relative.

1)  Ask if they are interested and willing to help you with your genealogy research.  Why?  Some parents and elders don't want to talk about their family history.  Some are very eager to do so.  You'll know how they feel if you simply ask.  And, if they agree to be interviewed, respect if they choose not to answer a question during the interview.  Don't push.

2)  Schedule a convenient time when preferably more than one elder can meet with you.  It's also a good idea to have someone take notes for you so you can conduct a comfortable, uninterrupted conversation.  The second elder person may also be able to confirm or refute what you are being told.

3)  Suggest that they bring any old photographs or documents they have to the interview.  It's amazing how a photo can help people recall information.  Bring old photos you have that you need identified.

4)  Make the session of a reasonable duration.  Consider the health and well-being of the elder.  For some an hour will just get them warmed up; for others, 15 minutes might be taxing.  Don't over do it.  Schedule a second session if they are willing rather than a marathon single interview.

5)  Start by introducing your purpose for studying your family history.  Tell them your genealogy question.  Review your brainstormed list of facts and ask them to affirm them or clarify what you might have wrong.  This is a good way to get "warmed up."

6)  Recording--video and voice--are optimal and will be treasured years from now, but doing so could inhibit your elderly subjects.  Ask if they are comfortable with this BEFORE you set up a recording device.

7)  Come with a list of the questions you want to ask related to your research objective.  To get inspired, search websites for "family history interview questions."  While you want your questions answered, what you should really aim to achieve is LISTENING to what they have to tell you.  Allow them to share other things they want to say.  Sometimes that turns out to be as interesting or more interesting than what you think you want to ask about. 

8)  Be prepared to record information during the interview on two basic genealogy tools:

*First is the family group sheet.   This single page lists one family--a husband and wife and their children.  Dates of birth, marriage, and death for all family members can ultimately be included when they become known.  Having plenty of copies of this form can give you structure to keep information straight when taking notes. 
   
*The second is the family tree diagram.  It can be a simple T starting with you and branching off to include your parents, then their parents, and so on.  This will help you keep the relationships straight.  Ultimately you may use any fancy tree.  A simple one works beautifully to get started. 

9)  Ask if your relative knows if anyone in the family has compiled any family history already.  Written family histories are a fabulous place to start and many, many families have already had someone do some genealogy work. 

10)  Thank your relative.  Doing family history research is very rewarding and satisfying and they have given you a precious gift of their time and knowledge.

If you are not fortunate enough to have a parent, aunt or uncle, or grandparent still living, all is not lost.  This same interview process could apply.  Did your deceased elders have good friends or longtime neighbors who are still living or friends who attended the same church for a long period of time?  These are all great alternatives to relatives.  Don't discount them as interview possibilities!

This interview process will certainly yield you several pieces of information that will set you on the way to solving your family history puzzle.

Go to the next blog in this series here.

Genealogy 101+: What Do You Know?

Thursday, March 15, 2012

This blog series is my effort to share my genealogy research experience with novice researchers who wish to study their family's history.  The series begins at this link.

If you read the first blog entry you learned that, in my experience, you will have the most success with your genealogy if you focus your interest to a single question when you begin.  What exactly do you want to know?  If your answer is that you want to make a great big family tree that includes all of your tens of thousands of ancestors, you're getting way ahead of yourself.  And, names and dates without knowing something about them is really pretty worthless.  Refocus!  Why are you studying your family's history?

As an example, I'll use a question that I wanted to know something about when I started.  Why does our family live in Wisconsin?  By this I mean, how did it come to pass that my ancestors moved here and stayed in this state rather than Missouri, Illinois, or Texas?

When I began my family history study about 25 years ago, the oldest known (known to me) ancestors had all lived in Wisconsin for as long as I knew and we still did.  Why did they live here?  Who came here first and why did they stay?

I was ready to begin my search.  Now I could start with myself and identify what I know.  This would hopefully give me some clues to answering the question.

Here's what I knew.

1) I would be focusing on my father's side of the family because I knew that my mother came to America in the 1950s and my other relatives were already living here then.
 
2) My earliest ancestors I knew about were my great-grandfathers.  One was a veterinarian who lived with my great-grandmother in Green Bay and he had a sister who lived in Fond du Lac.  It was believed he was Irish.  I remembered my great-grandmother and "Auntie".    

3)  The other great grandfather had lived in Wausaukee.  I knew he was Irish.

4) None of them were still living.
 
5) I had some old unidentified photos I found in a box in the basement that included pictures of these great-grandparents and some idea of the time period in which they lived.

Essentially, that is all I knew then.  But, I was fortunate because it was probably more than some people know about their family.

What could I do with this knowledge toward answering my genealogy question?  Using this information and the pictures, I could ask my relatives what they know about these ancestors.  I could start by asking my parents, aunts and uncles, and any other older relatives.  The trick to good success is in how you approach this next step. 

But before you do that, your "assignment" is to brainstorm what you already know to be true relative to your question.  Just write it all down.  You don't have to use any special forms or software programs to do this.

Next post I'll give you great tips to make the most of those interviews of your relatives to guarantee that you won't put them in a dazed, glassy-eyed stupor.  Go to the next post here.

Genealogy 101+: Get Started!

Friday, March 9, 2012

I love when people ask me genealogy questions or give me suggestions for articles for my Family Times blog.  This suggestion came from my daughter.  She wrote:  "I have friends who are interested in genealogy, but don't really know where to start, etc. You know what would be really cool? If you wrote an article on your blog to help people get started. What to look for, where to go, who to talk to. (tricks like always remembering to consider alternate spellings, etc) You could keep adding to it, like talking about your experience with the library in DC, Germany, etc..."  I think it's an excellent idea.  So I will begin tonight with Genealogy 101+.

A novice researcher can get help with genealogy in so many different places including, obviously, the internet and numerous great books on the topic.  These resources will tell you to start with yourself and then ask your parents and other relatives what they know about the family's history.  That's just so obvious.  Of course, you'll want to do that--and sooner rather than later because nobody is getting any younger!  But, make your search fun and purposeful.  I suggest you ask yourself first, what do you want to know and secondly, why do you want to know it.  I'll revisit how to effectively ask questions of all those relatives in a future segment.

The reason I believe it is important to narrow your focus to a question is because researching can become very, very time consuming.  If you don't focus you will find yourself, like I often did many years ago when I began, going from tidbit of information to tidbit of information, here and there, and, pretty soon, you will become lost in a sea of dates and details and confusion.  That's no fun; it's discouraging.

When you focus your interest on a particular question or a particular person you want to know more about, you will likely have more success, greater satisfaction in the process, and ultimately more fun.

A perfect example of what I'm talking about is the genealogy research process you will observe on the TV show "Who Do You Think You Are?"  This show features famous people who want to know something in particular about their family's history.  For instance, on tonight's show, Jerome Bettis asked, "Were my mother's ancestors slaves?"  The people on this show receive plenty of professional research help and you will notice that they focus on one subject or family line when they seek out the answer to the question.  You will want to do the same thing.  Define your interest.  What is your question?

Here are a few of the genealogy questions I have worked on over the course of my many years of family history research:       

1)  Why does my family live in Wisconsin?  In my research, I learned that my earliest ancestor to come to Wisconsin was a friend and personal secretary to the first territorial governor of Wisconsin, James Doty, and that he, George W. Elliot, brought his family here in 1839 to survey land for the capital.  We've lived here ever since!  This is an example of a simple question I focused my research on and successfully answered.

2)  Who were my earliest ancestors to come to America?  My g-g-g-grandfather George W. Elliot, when interviewed, said that his Elliot ancestors were descended from Jacob Elliot who came to America in 1630.  I still need documented proof of that.  I do have proof that my Benjamin ancestors arrived in 1632 in Governor Winthrop's colony.  This question is much more complex and perhaps can never be fully solved.

Periodically, when time permits, I focus on many other questions--one at a time. They are the puzzles yet to be pieced together that make studying my family's history so much fun!  Here are two questions that I have not yet begun to research.

3)  Was my great-grandfather in Germany a musician on a cruise ship?  What was that experience like during that time period?  This will require research in Germany that I have not yet undertaken.   

4)  How and when did my g-g-grandmother Elizabeth "Louisa" O'Brien Tracy die or disappear, leaving her young sons to grow up without her?  What impact did it have on the lives of her boys?  I already know much about this family and, when time permits, I will revisit this question.     

What is your question?

Click here for the next genealogy post.

Jane Nelson McDonald Lovell Redden

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Among my female ancestors was a feisty Scotch-Irish pioneer settler, my great-great-great-grandmother, Jane Nelson McDonald Lovell Redden. 

Jane Nelson was born in Ireland on October 31, 1810 to Andrew and Catherine Lennox Nelson.  She came to America in 1829.

In New York state, she gave birth to six of her eight children:  Catherine "Katie" (b. about 1832); John (b. 1837); Andrew "Andy" (b. 1838); Mary Jane "Molly" (b.1840); Margaret "Maggie" (b. 1843); and Michael, my great-great-grandfather (b. 1845).  (Information about one child is unknown.)  The family left New York and came west where Elizabeth "Lizzie", her youngest child, was born in Wisconsin, in 1847.

In 1850, Jane lived with her children in Racine.  Her first husband, Patrick McDonald, the father of all of her children, died sometime after 1847 and before July, 1850.  Between 1850 and 1855, Jane married John Lovell.  John, Jane and the children came to Wolf River, later named Algoma, in 1856.  The next year they acquired a dwelling on First Street originally called the Ahnapee House Hotel (near the southwest corner of First and Steel Streets).  It was the second or third framed building in the town.  It was later renamed the Lovell House Hotel.

This original plat map of Ahnapee was drawn by
my great-great-great-grandfather George W. Elliot.
G.W. Elliot surveyed much of the land surrounding Ahnapee.

In 1860, Jane was 49 and John was 38 but they fibbed about their ages on the census, reporting his age as 43 and hers as 42.  John entered the Civil War and returned to Ahnapee after nine months, discharged with disease in January, 1863.   He moved out to the 160 acre farm in north Ahnapee on the Door/Kewaunee County line that he had purchased in 1858.  John divorced Jane in 1870 and married Caroline Matzke.  (Caroline had seven children with John Lovell but divorced him in 1887 on the grounds of cruel treatment, drunkenness and desertion.)

Zero in on the S of Steel. The first building is Graf/Fax/hotel.  
One property south (left) of the building is Jane's hotel, 
called Union House.  
(1883 birdseye view of Algoma courtesy of Virginia Johnson) 

By 1870, Jane had changed her name back to Jane McDonald and called her hotel the Union House.

She was a feisty lady who ran a tight ship. According to Virginia Feld Johnson's book, An-An-api-sebe "Where is the river?": Wolf River and Ahnapee 1851-1897, Grandmother Jane was a devout member of the Church of England and was known to use her "Scotch-Irish" brogue to maintain order, especially when the sailors came to town in the winter to work in the woods and sought a boarding place at her hotel.

On August 18, 1880, 70 year-old Jane and a 37 year-old stone mason, brick layer and plasterer named Patrick Redden were married by a Baptist minister at Jane's home.  Patrick was Canadian born and a boarder at her hotel.  The Ahnapee Record newspaper on August 19 stated "Although the report that they were married was not credited at first, it is nevertheless true."  Many of the stores, schools and other buildings in Algoma were the mason work of Patrick Redden.  Patrick was the son of Irish parents, Daniel and Ellen Redden.  Jane and Patrick divorced in the 1890s.  

Jane attempted to sell the Union House in 1883 "at a low price for cash" according to the Record.  There were no takers.  In June of 1884, there was a fire in the upper story of the building and it was heavily damaged but not a total loss.  She still owned the hotel at the time of her death. 

At age 90, Jane Redden died at her home in Algoma on July 12, 1901.  Among the first settlers, she had lived in the city for half of her long life.  

Jane Redden was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery in Algoma.  This morning I saw her headstone there for the first time. 

At rest in the Evergreen Cemetery in Algoma, WI
Jane Redden

De Wayne Stebbins and Ulysses S. Grant

Wednesday, January 25, 2012



De Wayne Stebbins    1835-1901

 Local author and historian Ginnie Johnson, who blogs at http://kewauneecountyhistory.blogspot.com/ , recently posted a story about Senator De Wayne Stebbins and the Hotel Stebbins in Algoma, Wisconsin.  Her post reminded me of an interesting event in the life of this colorful character in my family's past. 

Wisconsin State Senator Stebbins, the husband of my great-great-great aunt Frances Elliott Newell Stebbins and a candidate for governor of Wisconsin in 1900, was among the most well-known citizens of Algoma.  His life's experiences were numerous and his pursuits varied enough to be those of several men.  During the course of his "dash", he was a gold miner (unsuccessfully), a Civil War naval officer, a real estate dealer, a government harbor inspector, a newspaper publisher, a banker, a legislator and later state senator.  He was credited with naming the pioneer town after the Indian word for wolf or Ah-ne-pee (later Ahnapee and now Algoma). 

At the age of 16, he received an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy and graduated from that institution, serving for a time in the navy.  At the opening days of the Civil War, after waiting for naval orders that did not arrive, he enlisted as a private in Company K, 21st Wisconsin Infantry.  When De Wayne reached Louisville, Kentucky, the order came to transfer him to the navy as an officer in Porter's western flotilla.  He served on the Clara Dolson, steamer Mound City, steam ship Carondelet of the Mississippi squadron, Portsmouth and was second in command under Farragut on the double-turreted monitor Kickapoo.  Among the notable events of his Civil War experience was the time he most likely saved the life of General Ulysses S. Grant.

On a dark and foggy night in April, 1863, the Mound City ran the gauntlet past the batteries at Vicksburg.  Proceeding on the river, they participated in several attacks.  After running the batteries, Stebbins helped to transfer General Grant's army across the river.  De Wayne Stebbins shared a personal account of that night and his experience with General Grant, who later became our 18th president Ulysses S. Grant.  The story of the siege of Vicksburg was written in a 5/26/1955 article in the Algoma "Record-Herald" newspaper.  It read:

 "In the dark and mist from the river, a lookout challenged two approaching figures.  Stebbins, the deck officer, ordered his men to prepare to fire on the boat in the belief that Confederate spies might be floating downstream in a canoe or on a log.  While Stebbins delayed his command to make certain he did not kill his own men, a voice came from the darkness:  'General Grant desires to see Admiral Porter.'  A moment later the Union hero stepped aboard, saved from the fate of General Stonewall Jackson, Confederate leader who was accidentally slain by his own men.  Had circumstances been reversed there is no telling how American history would have been altered, so vital were each of these men to success of his own cause."

Emerging from the thick river mist on that foggy night, De Wayne's direct orders to his men to prepare but hold their fire upon Grant's unidentified vessel is attributed to saving the general's life.

The stories of our ancestors--like those of De Wayne Stebbins--are the true life adventures that bring America's history to life.      

Bailey

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Sometimes people aren't the only family members that make a lifelong impact on you.

Bailey had a huge effect on my life.  He was a rescued dog--a German shepherd mix who was in the most desperate need of rescuing.  Lacking any kind of socialization as a puppy, he shook from head to toe and would urinate if any stranger came near him.  He was deathly afraid of our family the first time we met him.  He wanted nothing more than to run away from everyone.

My daughter Amanda changed all that for Bailey and he changed her world too.  Bailey learned there was someone he could trust to take the best care of him, to love him and to provide him with a safe place to live and a "grandma" (me) who loved him too.

Bailey had his ups and downs on his life's journey.  At first, he tried to run away--several times.  After nearly 13 years, he still shook during thunderstorms and would hide in the bathroom when it rained hard.  But he also made remarkable, astonishing progress. 

With Amanda, Bailey's confidence grew immensely.  He went from being guarded to being "on guard."  I was never worried a single day about my daughter's safety because Bailey was her constant companion.  I would watch Bailey when he was with Amanda.  He kept an eye on everything that was going on near her.  NOBODY would have been able to harm her with him on duty.

Amanda took Bailey to obedience and agility training.  Except for one of the earliest training sessions when he jumped out of the window at Golrusk during class, he loved learning and ultimately earned his Canine Good Citizen ribbon.  Not only did Bailey learn how to behave, he taught Amanda how to train him and every other dog she will ever own--in need of rescue or not.

Being with Bailey made me happy.  He was lovable and he was always so eager to see me.  When I came home I would open the door to Bailey coming at me with a great big toothy grin and his tail wagging so hard that his entire back end was swaying.  He loved me, his grandma! 

Bailey and I had an an unwritten agreement.  I would let him be a dog on our walks.  He could sniff every tree, post, and spot he wanted on our way out on a walk but he would "Fuß" (German for "stay at my foot"--directly at my side) on the way back.  He usually kept his end of the bargain.

Our backyard was Bailey's heaven.  He loved to run, chase his bumper, watch for squirrels and rabbits, and graze. 

Bailey dealt with some tough physical challenges near the end.  In pain, he often preferred to suffer in silence and hid out in quiet places.  He spent long periods of time away from everyone in the house.  Except when he wanted to visit the treat cupboard for his favorite chicken snack or needed a neck scratch from Grandma, he pretty much disappeared in the house when he came to visit.  He had a hard time lying down and would sometimes get "stuck."  But, he would still try to overdo it when he went outside to play in the backyard and would end up limping.  To help him, he was medicated but that would cause him to walk around very unsteadily, almost in a glassy-eyed stupor.

It's hard to let go when something you love is at the end of his days.  I am very proud of Amanda for loving Bailey, for saving him, for giving him the best life a dog could have, and for not letting him suffer.

Bailey will always hold a very special place in my heart.       

             

          

De Wane Family Reunion

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Two hundred descendants of Denis De Wane and Mary Maher De Wane gathered in Maribel at the De Wane Family Reunion this weekend.  The organizers had planned wonderful programs that included plenty of food, fun and family.  It was especially fun for Dan and me to have Aunt Elaine Tracy join us!


Elaine Gilling Tracy and Shirley Tracy VerBruggen

Cousin Dianne DeWane Vadney shared her family history research including this excellent display of pictures and documents of the families of the children of our ancestors Denis and Mary:  Mary Ann, Bridget, John, James, Dennis and Timothy.

My family is descended from the son Timothy who married Bridget Cook.


Seated is Bridget Cook De Wane and Timothy De Wane
Mary Ellen De Wane is in the second row, right side.

Representives of our line of the Timothy and Bridget family at the reunion included Gordon De Wane and some of his children.

Elaine Gilling Tracy and Gordon De Wane

After lunch, there was a family history presentation explaining the journey of the De Wanes from Roscrea, (Ross-KRAY), County Tipperary, Ireland to America.  After Denis and Mary arrived in America, Denis died in New York state.  Mary died in Illinois on the travel west.  The children came north and settled in Cooperstown, Wisconsin about 1851.  

A special event of the reunion was a mass at the home parish, St. James Catholic Church, at Cooperstown, celebrated by family priests, Msgr. John De Wane assisted by Fr. Dan De Wane and Sr. Pat Touhey (Pat Touhey was an Academy classmate of Elaine Tracy).



Sr. Pat Touhey and Elaine Gilling Tracy

St. James Church is where the families of Martin and Elizabeth O'Brien Tracy and Timothy and Bridget Cook De Wane were married, baptized and buried.  (Their children were my great-grandparents Terrence Tracy and Mary Ellen De Wane Tracy.)  Although I had visited the graveyard before on my genealogy hunts, I had never been in this lovely church.



St. James Church, Cooperstown, Wisconsin



A highlight of the visit to the church was a wonderful discovery in the cemetery.  Leroy Verkuilen, a family member, local historian and caretaker, had marked family graves.  Among the plots is the final resting place of Timothy and Bridget.

  

FATHER

TIMOTHY

April 15, 1834 - October 10, 1919

MOTHER

BRIDGET

May 3, 1845 - August 9, 1924

My thanks to the organizers for inviting us to participate in this special family event.  

Remembering Bob Schmidt

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Robert (Bob) Carl Schmidt, my first cousin, once removed, passed away on May 12, 2011. 

Bob lived in Central Point, Oregon.  He was born in 1935 to Carroll Joseph Schmidt and Ethel (Tracy) Schmidt in Green Bay and was a lifelong Packers fan. He attended St. John's Grade School and Central Catholic High School in Green Bay. He was a Sgt. in the Army Armored Division Tank Corp and served as a tank commander in Gelnhausen, Germany from 1958 to 1960.  He retired from the ODOT Sign Crew in 1997. His favorite pastime was golf.

Bob is survived by his wife, Gaille; sister, Judy (Jerry) Thibaudeau, Green Bay; niece, Melissa (Greg) Thibaudeau; nephew, Keith Thibaudeau; and grandnieces, Brianna, Madison and Autumn.

The last time I saw Bob, he visited my home (about 10 years ago) when he was in town to see his sister.  I believe he also wanted to visit Lambeau Field and the Packers Hall of Fame.  He and his lovely wife Gaille came to our house for a barbeque.  We thoroughly enjoyed their company. 

Bob shared stories and pictures of our common ancestor, my great grandfather Terrence Tracy.  Terrence lived with Bob's family when Terrence was elderly, after the death of great-grandmother Mary Tracy.  Bob and Gaille also told us about their home in the mountains and Gaille's experiences working at 20th Century Fox and on TV and movie sets like Payton Place and MASH.

I lost contact with Bob since then.  I wish I hadn't. 

Rest in peace Bob. 

Sometimes My Backyard Reminds Me of Ireland

Saturday, May 21, 2011

I wrote this story years ago, one day when I was looking out my kitchen window into my back yard and reflecting on a wonderful trip my husband and I had taken to Ireland.

Today my backyard reminds me of Ireland.  The trees are fully leafed; their branches--soaked--are a stark black contrast against the emerald leaves.  The lawn is another hue and the wild, natural strip yet un-mowed, another still.  The blue spruce is distinguished from the white pine and the rest of the evergreens.  The hibiscus bushes are beginning to bloom in their pots on the deck.  They add a spark of color to a variety of 40 shades of green. 

Maybe my yard doesn't really look much like Ireland after all.  A robin lands on the deck rail.  Then a purple finch takes a dip in the birdbath on the corner post.  If I sit quietly for a minute, I'm sure to see the oriole that stops every now and again at the shepherd's hook outside my window, tantalized by the grape jelly and orange halves set out especially to attract him.  However, I have never seen a grebe or a razorbill here.

Actually, now that I've sat a moment and contemplated it, why should my backyard remind me of Ireland?  There are no remnants of castles and fortresses, no stone hedges separate my lot from my neighbors' and there are no sheer cliffs.

Although my property has a home that I like to consider my castle, there is no equivalent to Blarney here--no ancient shell with its narrow stairway leading you to the sky, where, to have a chance to gain the gift of eloquence, you may lie on your back and arch to kiss the Blarney Stone. 

Rhododendrons, which we have never been able to winter over in Wisconsin, would not be considered a nuisance plant in my yard.  They most certainly would not grow to 25 feet or higher. 

There is no Ring of Kerry (to be traveled counter clockwise) or a Dingle Peninsula (to be traversed clockwise) with their breath-taking vistas here.  Although my backyard is park-like, there is certainly no Ladies View--the most spectacular outlook in all the land.  There is no Reeks--no mountain ridge--to be seen here. 

My flower pots--even at the height of the growing season--won't measure up to the baskets on the store fronts of the little shops of Killarney.

There are no peat bogs on my property...a little black mud maybe.  But, I won't be harvesting any sod to keep the hearth and home warm this winter.

And, although my daughter's pets do like to graze in our backyard on occasion, they don't resemble the sheep mowing the pastures and hillsides of Ireland.  Bailey, her German Shep is no sheep dog. 

Except for a brief rain like the one that fell today, there is no Irish mist to keep everything lush and growing all summer long.  The lovely green grass I see today will turn into straw by late summer. 

No, except for the many greens of this late spring day, maybe my backyard really doesn't remind me of Ireland.

The Romantic Legend of the Blarney Stone

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Blarney Castle

The Romantic Legend of the Blarney Stone

A handsome young chieftain of the McCarthy Clan, Cormac O

met and fell in love with the Faerie Queen.  One day they were

walking along the river when an arrow from a rival's bow


pierced the heart of the young chieftain. He fell to the ground dying

and the Faerie Queen placed his head on a large stone nearby as a

pillow and she remained with him until his last moments.

Then she laid her golden harp aside

and knelt by the moss-clad stone.

The fair young chief, his day's pride,

was gone and she was done.

And she pressed her lips to the silent flood,

the crimson stain of his true heart's blood. 

Then sank in the deep of the Lee's fair shore,

and her golden harp ne'er played more.

Then McCarthy More, a warrior bold, 

a chief of wealth and power

placed the stone in his great strong-hold

The Blarney Castle Tower.



And there it stands to this very day,

tho' the castle itself is old and gray;

and lovers are sure of endless bliss

who press their lips o'er the faerie kiss.

Kissing the Blarney Stone

A Taste of Ireland

I'm waxing nostalgic for Ireland.  This blog post begins a short series of stories I wrote about my travels and experiences there and my reflections after returning home. 

It was li'll Tommy O'Reilly who showed us a wee bit of Ireland--just a taste of Ireland as he was prone to remind us--on our jaunt to the isle of 40 different shades of green.

On Day 1 we stepped out of the plane into the 1950's decorated arrivals hall of the Dublin airport with its ancient vinyl-covered furniture and a 1980's vintage computer long ago parked in the hallway. After grabbing our luggage, we set out in search of the CIE tours desk, where, after waiting a while and checking out the airport book store (where the newest tale of Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, sat with its England-version cover), we first met little Tommy O'Reilly and secured a ride to our downtown hotel.

After a sleepless flight overnight to Ireland, we found ourselves catching a snooze in the elegant lobby following a snack of tea and club sandwiches. Then after settling into our room at the Burlington Hotel on Upper Leeson Street, we headed out on a tour of Dublin.

Dublin City or "Duvlin" as it used to be called means "Black Pool." But don't call it that today. Accompanied by a local guide named Maura (Mary), Tommy drove our tour bus through the impossibly narrow streets to show us all of the local sites of interest. We toured the Dublin Castle where the State Apartments are located and where many historic governmental events have taken place. The mirror room of the castle reminded me vaguely of the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles; though beautiful, it was not nearly as opulent.

Looking out the back windows and past the castle garden (which serves as a heli-pad), one would swear to be in London as the flats and buildings all around look just like those across the Irish Sea. This shouldn't come as a surprise as Ireland was highly influenced and dominated by Great Britain for over 800 years until she demanded independence in the late 1920s. Much of the culture, certainly the English language which is prominently spoken, and many aspects of the architecture of Ireland derive from Great Britain.

Next we headed to the Guinness Storehouse at St. James Gate for a tour and a taste of the famous black stout. A thimble full was as much as I could handle but the nearly 360 degree panoramic view of Dublin from the 6th floor bar was the main attraction of interest to me at Guiness.

Later that evening we met for a drink in the hotel bar and then headed out for a show at a local cabaret. The headliner was Ireland's popular Tony Kelly and a comedian (who did a fantastic medley of Bing Crosby tunes).  They were complimented by dancers and a woman named Lou with a lovely voice.

Tony had definitely let his headliner status go to his head. He was the biggest over actor I have ever seen! He would fall backwards after every song as though it was all he could do to stay on his feet after giving such a dramatic, intense performance. This was followed by a wipe of his brow as if to tell us that he had really worked himself up on that one. Dan and I agreed that Tony should be a lounge act on a cruise ship. Our meal during the show featured a delicious salmon dish, the first of two great salmon meals we enjoyed in Ireland. Following the show, we were treated to Irish coffee, a mixture of coffee, booze, and cream served hot in a wine glass. Not my cup of tea, but certainly enjoyed by our dinner companions, lovely Londoner Maureen and her 80+-year-old Irish-born mother who found her Irish coffee quite enjoyable.

Back at the hotel, sleep was our top priority and that we did. Once I put my head down, I didn't move until the alarm sounded to get up and ready for breakfast. Following our breakfast of a buffet of typical English/Irish breakfast items like porridge, black and white pudding (blood pudding), and baked tomatoes and sausages, we headed out. But first, we couldn't resist snapping pictures of each other in the front yard of the hotel with its lush foliage including palm trees. Who would have expected palm trees in Ireland?

As we left the hotel, Tommy kept up his near non-stop tale of Ireland's history, jokes, singing, and other stories. But, Tommy knows his customers. He knows when to talk and when to shut his gob.

Tommy pointed out the colorful front doors of Dublin. He offered two tales (from which we were free to take our pick) as to why painting one's front door one of a myriad of bright hues is so popular in Dublin. The first story involved a drunken husband who claimed he had wandered into the home and bed of his neighbor's wife because he could not tell apart the near identical row houses. Painting of the doors would help to guarantee that the same "mistake" could not be repeated. The second tale involved a collective nose thumbing by the Irish after the death of England's Queen Victoria when all of Ireland received a directive to paint their doors black in a sign of mourning. Me thinks the later story is probably closer to the truth of the matter. But, whichever story you accept, you will not find more colorful doors anywhere on earth than those that greet you in Dublin City.

As we traveled through the beautiful countryside, Tommy explained one way that Ireland is changing drastically. The hot economy, called the "Celtic Tiger" is causing a rapid increase in housing values in cities. This is forcing many of the young and newlyweds to build outside of town and commute into the city and having a dramatic impact on Ireland in many ways. Outside of Dublin and elsewhere, we noticed many new housing projects. I suspect the small island of Ireland will not look the same ten years from now if the current trend continues.

On our way to Cashel and to Blarney, we passed through rich horse country. Tommy explained that the limestone in the soil helps put a large amount of calcium into the grasses from which the horses feed. This in turn gives the horses strong bones.

The highlight of our morning was a visit to a sheep farm where we took tea and scones and then watched Rose, the sheep dog, round up her charges in the pasture. She was a real work dog.

At lunch time we arrived at Blarney Castle.

Wisconsin Society DAR State Conference 2011

Sunday, May 15, 2011

A couple of pictures from the Wisconsin DAR Conference in Madison last weekend.  It made for a nice little get-away.  The dinner program was excellent and included the Sons of the American Revolution color guard. 

 

President General Merry Ann T. Wright, State Regent Pam Miller and me



Wisconsin Society DAR

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

For the 115th time, from May 5-7, the Wisconsin Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution will hold a state conference. 

The honored guest speaker will be the DAR President General Merry Ann Wright.  I look forward to meeting the President General and I really want to be there to support Wisconsin State Regent Sherron Pamela Miller.  "Pam" is also a member of the same DAR chapter I belong to--Jean Nicolet Chapter--and is the reason I am a member of the DAR.  She is a brilliant and sweet woman: kind, encouraging and generous and simply a good friend to everyone who knows her.  I like to call her the "Grand Poobah" but it is in the most positive, loving and respectful way that I do so.  But, I think she will appreciate my addressing her as "Madam State Regent" at the state conference.    

I am also looking forward to celebrating with Chapter Regent Pamela Khraibut, a soft spoken lady who is better at putting people at ease than anyone I have ever met.  It is simply her way to welcome people and make them feel like they belong.  This is what DAR is all about and she personifies the word welcoming.

The mission of the Daughters of the American Revolution organization is to "Preserve the Past, Enhance the Present, Invest in the Future."  I believe strongly in those objectives and so do these women.

At the conference there is a great deal of work to be done.  But there is also a lot of fun to be had.  It's a wonderful learning experience and an opportunity to honor outstanding achievement in history education, citizenship, patriotism and service to veterans.

I'm proud to belong to the Daughters of the American Revolution and honor great great great great great grandfather Jesse Benjamin for his six years of service in the Revolutionary War and his wife Rachel (Bunn) Benjamin for allowing me to do so.

Time to get out the white gloves and brush up on parliamentary procedure.         

Rev. Rutherford H. McDonald

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Rutherford Hubert McDonald

The third of three sons of Michael and Ella McDonald, Rutherford Hubert McDonald was born in Algoma, Wisconsin on October 17, 1876.  He was the brother of my great-grandmother Frances Tooley. 

Reverend McDonald, or "Uncle Uncle" as he was called in my family, was a descendent of Scotch Irish Protestantism (on the McDonald side) and New England Puritan blood (on his mother's side).  He was converted to Roman Catholicism as a young man by the esteemed Abbot Pennings, O. Praem.  He changed his name to MacDonald, presumably to better reflect his Scotch Irish heritage.   

According to In His Vineyard, a book of sketches of the bishops, priests and permanent deacons of the Green Bay diocese, Rutherford received his education in the classics at St. Norbert College and at Mt. Calvary and his theology training at St. Francis Seminary. 

Before being ordained by Bishop Fox on June 10, 1906, he spent two years (from 1898 to June, 1900) at St. Norbert preparing for the priesthood.  At the end of June, 1900, he took his vows of the Premonstratensian order and sailed for Europe--Holland and Belgium to be exact--to spend a year or so in the convent before returning to the U.S. in November, 1901 to accept a professorship at St. Norbert College. 

Rutherford McDonald (back left) with Abbot Pennings and students

During his stay in the Abbey of Berne, Heeswyk, in Holland and the Abbey of Tongerloo, in Belgium, he wrote home to this family.  A few of these letters exist and are shared in Vol. 4, Issue 3 of Family Times.  He described his time there in one letter like this:

"I am contented and well satisfied here... all I have to think of are my studies and my religious duties,... I am firmly convinced as ever that it is my vocation to become a priest." 

O Priest!  Thou art not thine own master but the servant and minister of Christ; thou art not thine own, thou art the spouse of the Church.  S. Norbert

To be a priest is the greatest and the sweetest obligation of my life.

Souvenir of the Ordination to the Priesthood of

Rev. Rutherford Hubert McDonald

conferred by the 

RT. REV. J. J. Fox, D. D.

at St. Francis Seminary, St. Francis, Wis.

Trinity Sunday, June 10, 1906

and of his

FIRST HOLY MASS

celebrated June 21, 1906 in the

Church of the Immaculate Conception

Algoma, Wis



"Uncle Uncle" spoke several languages fluently and had a passion for crossword puzzles.  He is remembered for sitting in his big chair with a stack of puzzle books and filling them all in as fast as he could read them.  When asked why he did the puzzles, his reply was "Oh, some of them are quite good!!"

His best buddy was his dog "Hans."  "Uncle Uncle" spoke German to the dog and the dog obeyed. 

Reverend MacDonald served for over 60 years.  At the time of his death at age 91 on November 3, 1967 he was a pastor at St. Patrick's Church in Lead, South Dakota.

Terrence and Mary Ellen Tracy

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Terrence and Mary Ellen (De Wane) Tracy
(Left to right:  Terrence, Roland, Mary Ellen, Alice De Wane, Cy)

For three weeks, banns and the intentions of Terrence Ambrose Tracy and Mary Ellen De Wane to wed were announced at St. James Catholic Church in Cooperstown, Wisconsin.  The year was 1895.  The union being uncontested, the son of Martin and Elizabeth (O'Brien) Tracy and the daughter of Timothy and Bridget Ellen (Cook) DeWane were married on Tuesday, September 10 of that year.  From all accounts, their marriage was the kind that lasts a lifetime.  This couple were my great-grandparents, the parents of my grandfather Roland Martin Tracy.

Terrence, who was born July 25, 1866 in Franklin, Wisconsin, had grown up on the family farm there and had moved to the Wisconsin northwoods to log.  He came back to his home town to marry the neighbor girl, one of the daughters of the prolific De Wane clan.

Mary Ellen, born January 9, 1873 in Franklin, was a well-known school teacher in Kewaunee County at the time.  Following their marriage, they moved to Wausaukee, Wisconsin.

On census day in 1900, the Tracy family household consisted of Terrence, Mary Ellen, son Cyril James "Cy", who, like Terrence, was born July 25 (in 1896) and daughter, Alice Elizabeth, born October 8, 1897.  Mary Ellen's sister Alice also lived with them at that time. 

Odessa "Dess" Mary was born July 29, 1902 followed by Roland Martin on September 25, 1904 and Ethel Bridget on January 14, 1908. 

Terrence, a lumberman, held the positions of woods foreman, barn boss and teamster.  A teamster is a person in charge of driving the horses and wagon that hauls the logs.  Later, after logging, the family established a farm.  They bought about 360 acres on the outskirts of Wausaukee.  There they hosted family gatherings and great meals.  

At the farm, Terrence had a huge team of horses named "Dan" and "Daisy" which were, in addition to being their farm animals, entered in horse pulling contests at the Marinette County fairs.  He also bought a pony that the grandchildren often rode and had a dog named "Shep" who, at milking time, brought the cows to the barn. 

Great-Grandpa Tracy was described as a very big man--tall and big-boned, and straight as an arrow in posture.  Great-Grandma Tracy was remembered for her devotion to her Catholic faith.  She was a devout Christian woman who insisted on all those around her practicing their faith, saying their prayers and attending mass.  She was described as an exceptional teacher, who, after her marriage to Terrence, became a great cook in the logging camps and the bookkeeper for the camps in Northern Wisconsin where Terrence was foreman.  She was very popular for her delicious meals, great homemade breads, rolls, pies and cakes, and ice cream.  Terrence loved good food and Mary Ellen could cook a great meal.  It was a match made in heaven!

Mary Ellen and Terrence Tracy

Mary tended her flower and vegetable gardens while Terrence tended the fields and the cattle.  She was strictly in charge of "Her Creamery."  Terrence and his helpers were allowed to milk the cows and carry the pails to her but only to hand them to her at the door.  She kept the place immaculate and no one was allowed inside with "barn boots."  She churned butter and they derived income from selling milk, vegetables, eggs and apples from a large orchard on the farm.

Cooking on a wood stove with no temperature gauge, Mary baked loaves of bread, cloverleaf rolls, apple and cherry pies, donuts and cream puffs and they always turned out perfectly.  So say her devout fans. 

On the same old stove, she would place four different irons at a time to heat them and then take them, one at time with a handle, and iron the clothes. 

Mary Ellen Tracy loved her God, her family and her life.  Everyone, I'm told, loved her and respected her.  She had no other place to go but to heaven when she died at age 70 on August 19, 1943.  When she passed away, Terrence might as well have gone also because he was never the same after her death.

After Mary died, Terrence lived with his daughter Ethel, her husband Carrol Schmidt, and their children in Green Bay.  Terrence died on November 1, 1957 in Green Bay at age 91 after a short illness of pneumonia and a compression fracture.  He lies buried next to Mary in the cemetery in Wausaukee.