Journey to the Past

When my children were younger I loved Halloween.  My favorite part of Halloween was creating, with their input, costumes for them to wear.  Here are a few of my favorites, handmade with love by me!

You may have read about Hattie's Bible and what a wonderful gift I have been entrusted with.  Now, the same generous woman gave me doilies handmade by my great grandmother, Hattie Fenn Glover.  Hattie's great great niece, CBR, sent them to me with this note:

"Brenda,
When my mother(MLFB-name withheld to protect privacy) was a little girl, her family drove up to Munising to visit Fenn family.  Aunt Hattie was crocheting every day as older women often did then.  She crocheted these 3 doilies out of string (all they had at the time) and gave them to my mother for her "hope box".  Mom had a small box with just a few special items in saved for her future.  From about the time when mom was on her own (18 yrs. old) until now (93 yrs. old), she has used these doilies without ever putting them away.  They always reminded her of her aunt and grandfather Tully, who she traveled with.  From her great-aunt Hattie, my mother passes these to a great-granddaughter.  As told to me by my mother, CBR-name withheld to protect privacy)"

I am emotional just writing this.  I look at these white doilies and envision my great grandmother's hands as she crocheted.  Was she left or right handed?  I crochet left handed.  I haven't decided the best way to display these wonderful hand made heirlooms.  They have been very well taken care of and are in excellent condition.  Based on the age of Hattie's great niece, I would say they were made in the early 1930's. 

I suppose technically I shouldn't use a living person for my 'Talented Tuesday' post as it is meant to share information about talented ancestors, but I am a proud mom.  My husband and I had the pleasure of seeing Kirsten perform in Carmen with the Lyric Opera of Chicago this past weekend.  What a joy it was to see her living her dream.


My husband and I started talking to our children about what they wanted to be when they grew up in 6th grade.  I remember Kirsten saying she wanted to sing and act.  This was a career I knew absolutely nothing about.  I can't even carry a tune!  I knew it would be a tough career to undertake, but supported her fully.  I knew Kirsten was dedicated to pursuing this career path by the time she was in eighth grade.  I had found a book, "Acting Professionally" and bought it.  I told Kirsten if this is what she wanted to do she needed to go into it with her eyes wide open.  I gave her the book to read.  I think one of the reasons Kirsten has a career in this field is that she is determined and dedicated to her craft, in addition to being talented.  She never wavered from this path throughout high school.  

We supported Kirsten with voice lessons, dance, sending her to a fine arts camp and other ways when we could.  Kirsten graduated from Millikin University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Musical Theatre.  She is currently a performing artist in Chicago.  Every time I attend a performance Kirsten is in, just as the lights go down, I get a little emotional and I am thankful for the opportunity of seeing Kirsten perform.  And Saturday night was no exception. 

(Note:  I didn't misspell my daughter's last name!  She has chosen the spelling Lendyke for her professional name to make it easy for people to pronounce. )

Katherine McGee, my paternal great grandmother, was the oldest of four children born to Richard McGee and Sarah Jackson.  Katherine was born on 2 September 1862 in Collingwood, Grey, Ontario, Canada.  (Note:  In 1862 Collingwood was part of Grey, it is currently part of Simcoe county)  Other children born to Richard and Sarah were:

1. Isabella McGee:  Born 1 October 1868, Collingwood, Grey, Ontario, Canada.  She married Richard Simmons in 1896 and eventually moved to Duluth, Minnesota.
2. William John McGee:  Born 10 July 1871, Collingwood, Grey, Ontario, Canada.  He married Laura Kirby in 1900 in Thornbury, Grey, Ontario, Canada.
3. James McGee:  Born 25 February 1877 in Ontario, Canada.

The Richard McGee family can be found in the 1871 Canadian Census:

1. Margaret in 1881
2. Mabel in 1883
3. Samuel Zachariah in 1885
4. Hibernia in 1887, who married William H. Heighes
5. Laura Myrtle in 1890, who married Arthur W. Reid
6. Edna May in 1893, who married James Francis Charles Boell

Katherine McGee married David Watt on 16 May 1883 in St. Ignace, Mackinac, Michigan.  They settled in Marquette, Marquette, Michigan where they had eight children.

1. John Richard (23 August 1883-27 October 1959)
2. Sarah Lilla (23 November 1884-31 March 1965)
3. Jean Ethel (4 March 1886-1914)
4. David A (24 August 1887-28 November 1888)
5. Eva May (June 1889-January 1921)
6. Florence Isabel (17 December 1890-?)
7. Burton Lewis (10 December 1892-6 March 1994)
8. Mary Katherine (27 August 1894-?)

• Marital status:  Widow  Correction:  Katherine was married at the time of death.
• Surname before First Married:  Catherine Jackson  Correction:  Surname was McGee; Jackson was her mother's maiden name.
• Father's Name:  Richard Wallace  Correction:  Father's name was Richard McGee

My new found 'Glover' cousin shared Alexander Glover's will with me.  Alexander Glover is my paternal 4x great grandfather (Alexander, Samuel S., Samuel S., Jr, Frank, Harry, Bruce, Me)  First of all I would like to thank Jared Willson, Esquire, for his superb handwriting.  This is one of the easiest to read wills I have seen.   



Alexander's Will:
In the name of God Amen!  I Alexander Glover of Phelps county of Ontario and state of New York considering the uncertainty of this mortal life and being of sound and perfect mind and memory, blessed be Almighty God for the same, do make and publish this my last will and testament in manner and form following that is to say.  First I give and bequeath unto my beloved wife Sarah Glover all my personal property of every description whatsoever, except the farming utensil and one home  And I do further give and bequeath to my beloved wife Sarah all the rents issues profits and income of all my real estate for her own benefit and to be at her own disposal during her natural life.  And I also give and bequeath to my son Charles Williamson Glover all my real estate together with all and singular the hereditaments and appurtenances there unto belonging or in anywise appertaining and to have full possession there of at the decease of my beloved wife Sarah on this express condition that he shall and will pay or cause to be paid the following legacies vis.  to my son Philander one dollar. to my son Alexander one dollar, to my son George Whitfield one dollar. to my son Samuel Stillman one dollar.  to my grandson Cotton Crittenden five dollars. to my grandson William Salisbury Crittenden five dollars in one year after the decease of my beloved wife Sarah.  To my daughter Elizabeth Melvin one hundred dollars. to my daughter Sophronia Powell one hundred dollars. to my daughter Polly Glover one hundred dollars. to my daughter Milly Eddy one hundred dollars to be paid to my four daughters in three equal annual installments after the decease of my beloved wife all of which legacies aforementioned  I do give and bequeath unto each of the legatees severally as above mentioned to be paid out of my real estate if my son Charles Williamson Glover refuses or neglects to comply with the condition herein contained.  In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this twelfth day of March one thousand eight hundred and twenty  Alexander Glover Seal

Alexander's belief in God and love of his wife, Sarah was evident in his will.  I have found 12 children born to Alexander and Sarah (Salisbury) Glover:  Philander, Sarah, Elizabeth, Alexander, Sophronia, Rachel, George Whitfield, Charles Williamson, Samuel Stillman, Polly, Amelia, and William Salisbury.  Alexander's will lists nine children.  The three not mentioned are Sarah, Rachel, and William Salisbury.  I know that William Salisbury Glover died at the age of 1.   I have often wondered about the middle names of the children in my Glover family.  A few times I have found surnames as middle names, I wonder how many of Alexander's children's middle names have clues in them.

Randy Seaver at Gena-Musings posted his Saturday Night Genealogy Fun assignment.  This is my first time to participate, so here goes.

Randy writes:  Hey geneaphiles - it's Saturday Night, time for more Genealogy Fun for all Genea-Musing readers.  Your mission, should you decide to accept it (and we need more of you to do this, otherwise it may end...), is to:

1) Read Brenda Joyce Jerome's post Who or What Do You Blame? on the Western Kentucky Genealogy blog. She asks these questions:

* Can you identify person or event that started you on this search for family information?  My introduction to genealogy came when my dad decided to write his autobiography.  He knew very little about his family.  He knew his parents and grandparents names and that was about it.  I thought this might be fun to try and help him discover who and where he came from.  My initial goal was to fill in a five generation pedigree chart.  Who could stop at that?  From there I have researched many, many generations.

* Did you pick up researching where a relative had left off? No one else in the family had done any research.  I had to start from scratch.

* Did your interest stem from your child's school project on genealogy? No, but I do remember my daughter asking her dad's mother a few questions for a school project once.  I saved the letter her grandma wrote to her and it helped when I researched my husband's side of the family.

* If you have been researching many years, it may be hard to pinpoint one reason for this journey. The main reason I undertook this journey was to help my dad find his past.  Over the past few years of researching I have found lots of interesting information to share with him. 


2) Write your responses on your own blog, in a comment to this blog post, or in a note or comment on Facebook.   See above.

Thanks to Randy and Brenda for the Saturday Night Fun.

My alma mater, Western Michigan University, in Kalamazoo, Michigan is the repository of records for 12 southwest Michigan counties:  Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun. Cass, Kalamazoo, Kent, Muskegon, Ottawa, St. Joseph, and Van Buren.

Some of the records one can find at WMU Archives and Regional History Collection include:  public records, county histories, regional manuscripts, diaries, letters, photographs, regional governmental records, state and federal census, university archives and much more. 

One of the interesting university archive collections is WMU's yearbooks.  The WMU archive website has online access for WMU's Yearbooks, 1906-1975.  I was excited when I discovered this as my father graduated from WMU in 1950.  I searched page by page to no avail.  I guess he was photo shy!  It was interesting to see the buildings and culture of Western while he was there though.

The archives can be found at Room 111, East Hall, on the East Campus of Western Michigan University, off Oakland Drive in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  Current hours are:  Tuesday through Friday 8-5 and Saturday 9-4.  The archives are closed Sunday and Monday.  Some metered parking is available as well as a $5 visitor parking pass. 

Check their website for more information on this great resource for southwest Michigan.

Church records can be a great help in your genealogical journey.  The only church records I have used are those that are on the family search website.  Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana recently held a two day workshop:  Beyond the Basics.  It was an excellent workshop that I was glad I attended. 

Steven W. Myers M.L.S presented the session on church records.  Steve stated, "research is incomplete if you haven't checked church records."  He talked about the importance of these underutilized and valuable records. 

The types of church records kept include baptisms, marriages, burials, confirmation and communion.  Other church business related records may be found also, ie. meeting minutes, membership, financial, etc. 

Before you can identify church records you need to determine your ancestor's church affiliation.  Are your ancestors buried in a church cemetery?  Do you have a memorial card?  Check their obituary.   Does their marriage certificate list a minister?  These are all ideas of how to identify church affiliation.

Lastly, the workshop reminded us of etiquette when using church records.  If you are going to a specific church, it is a good idea to make an appointment, be courteous and make a donation.

What tips do you have for using church records?

Do you have one ancestor that intrigues you more than another?  I seem to be intrigued with my great great grandfather, Samuel Stillman Glover, Jr, lately.  Samuel is the civil war veteran who's pension file I ordered.  Once I found out about Samuel's civil war service I wanted to find out more.  I knew that he served in Company H, 1st Regiment of Engineers and Mechanics for Michigan.  So, when I discovered a book on the Michigan volunteers I headed to the library.

There is a book by Mark Hoffman, "My Brave Mechanics" that I should probably buy as every time I go to the library I read a little more of it. (It is part of the local history section and unavailable for checkout)  The book is a well written, sourced account of the brave men and their service in the Civil War.

The Engineers and Mechanics were a volunteer group organized to support the Corps of Engineers for the Union.  These volunteers gathered for training in Marshall, Michigan at the county fairgrounds.  This military camp became known as Camp Owen, named after the Michigan state treasurer, John Owen.  In Chapter 3, Hoffman describes the camp conditions.

The part of the book I was most interested in was on page 90, Hoffman describes General Buell's supply line.  He talks of the confederates attacking all along the supply line with the Michigan Engineers being in harms way.  He continues, "Samuel S. Glover was sent on July 13 as a mounted courier from Shelbyville south along the pike to Buell's headquarters at Huntsville.  While crossing over Elk Ridge near Fayetteville, Glover was shot in the right knee by bushwhackers.  In great pain he clung to his horse and barely escaped capture by outdistancing his attackers.  His wound never healed properly and was still troubling him thirty five years later"  Hoffman cited sources for this entry.  The sources included the Compiled Military Service Records, William H. Kimball Diary, Ezra Stearns Diary, Regimental Order Books, Special Orders and Regimental Descriptive Rolls.

The information on Samuel Glover supported the information found in his obituary and civil war pension file.  Each time I read about Samuel's civil war service I am in awe of his bravery and how close he came to being captured or even worse, killed.

Claude R. Glover & Lizzie Bellinghausen Oct 7, 1905

F.H. Glover, Jr & Emma Winkler Oct 2, 1911

F.H. Glover, Jr & Lilla Watts Aug 25, 1919

Adeline Glover & Victor Tyson Feb 25, 1922

Merle M. Glover & V. Genevieve Dout May 31, 1927

Claude R. Glover & Edythe Sarasin Booker 5-17-41

Adeline Glover Tyson & Leonard G. McKie 4-24-46

Another Beyond the Basics Workshop topic offered by Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana was on Military Records.  Of all the topics offered during the two day workshop, this was the one I had the most experience with.  But, that doesn't mean I didn't learn a lot. 

Steven W. Myers M.L.S presented this session of the workshop.  I came home with 15 pages of sources compiled by Steven.  He covered everything from research on the internet to general references to references specific to individual conflicts back to colonial wars in the United States.

Some of the other topics covered included the types of records available, such as, registers, unit histories, journals, diaries, official records, lineage societies and blogs!  One thing that stuck with me was when Steven said, if there is one type of record available for one war, chances are it is available for another.  I have researched my civil war ancestor, Samuel S. Glover, Jr. and now plan to research a couple of War of 1812 ancestors, Daniel Fenn and Moses Poor.   

When I first started military research I found the research outline for U.S. Military Records at family search.org helpful.  What military records do you have experience with? 

Nancy Mast is my maternal great grandmother.  She was born, 23 February 1871 in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.  She married Valentine Graf on 24 November 1888 in Miami County, Indiana.  She died 18 January 1908 in Brethren, Manistee, Michigan from septicemia.  She gave birth to 10 children, 7 survived.  The tenth child was born 12 December 1907.  Could this be a clue to her death, just a month later?

I would like to know more about her.  I would like to know about her childhood.  I would be interested to know how or why she moved to Brethren, Michigan from Indiana.  I would like to know if her death was related to childbirth.  I would also like to know how her family coped with their mother's death.  The youngest child was 3.  Her husband, Valentine, never remarried.  I would like to have a picture of her.

This is one of the reasons genealogy intrigues me.  There are always unanswered questions and the journey to find them is fascinating.  Do you have a female ancestor in your family you would like to learn more about?

Susan at Long Lost Relatives created a Genea Angel Award and I have been a recent recipient of it.  Thank you to Barbara at Life from the Roots for giving me this award.   According to the Long Lost Relatives blog, the Genea Angel Award is "a simple way of paying it forward - to recognize those people who have aided in your research, provided insight or otherwise given you inspiration and guidance in your family history journey. The recipient of the Genea-Angel award may display the image on their blog or web site if they choose."

I received the Genea Angel award a few days ago and have been giving thoughtful consideration as to how to pay it forward.  There are so many wonderful, generous genealogists and narrowing the list is hard.  I have chosen two to pass it on too.

First, is Apple of Apple's Tree-not only is she a 'Glover' cousin; but she has shared information about the 'Glover' line with me.  Plus, she introduced me to another 'Glover' cousin that I wrote about meeting last week.  So, Apple I hear by award you the Genea Angel Award.

Next, is Lisa at The Faces of My Family blog-Lisa was the first one to choose my blog as a "Follow Friday" selection.  I was so honored and surprised.  Lisa is supportive with comments to other bloggers and I feel she deserves the honor of being a Genea Angel. 

Many genealogists pay it forward so often and I hope to see many "Genea Angel's" awarded and gracing blogs soon.  Thanks, again Barbara for recognizing me as a Genea Angel.

So often in genealogy we experience joys when we find our ancestor's information.  Unfortunately, our ancestors can't talk to us or help us in our research.  So when Apple from Apple's Tree introduced me, via email, to a Glover cousin-I was excited.  As my Glover cousin says, "the biggest  bonus for me is finding a 'live one.'"  I agree.  Someone to talk to and share research with.  Someone who is into genealogy as much as I am.  I have been emailing my Glover cousin for the last six months, and we have exchanged pictures, stories and facts.  We are related through our great great grandfathers.  My ancestor, Samuel Stillman Glover, Jr. and her ancestor, Dennis H. Glover were brothers.

As we emailed and got to know one another I wanted to meet my Glover cousin, but she lives two states away.  During one of our emails, she mentioned her daughter just got accepted to college in Chicago.  My daughter lives in Chicago.  The wheels started churning!  Finally, this past weekend we met in Chicago.  Not only did Samuel's and Dennis' great great granddaughters meet-their great great great granddaughters met and will be living in the same city!

We had an enjoyable but much too short visit over lunch in Chicago.  As I have said before what started out as an activity to fill out a 5 generation pedigree chart has evolved into so much more than I have ever thought possible.  It's the 'live ones' that are a blessing.  And thanks, Apple, who happens to be a Glover descendant, too!