Sixth Annual Genealogy Poetry Challenge - Scotland

Bill West of West In New England is hosting The Sixth Annual Great Genealogy Poetry Challenge

1. Find a poem by a local poet, famous or obscure, from the region one of your ancestors lived in. It can be about an historical event, a legend, a person, or even about some place (like a river)or a local animal. It can even be a poem you or one of your ancestors have written! Or if you prefer, post the lyrics of a song or a link to a video of someone performing the song. 

2. Post the poem or song to your blog (remembering to cite the source where you found it.). If you wish to enter an older post, you may as long as long as it has not appeared here in an earlier Poetry Challenge. 

3.Tell us how the subject of the poem or song relates to your ancestor's home or life, or the area of the country where they lived.

To celebrate my wife’s Wallace roots, I thought I would share some poetry from Scotland. I traveled to the Scottish Poetry Library.

A Red, Red Rose – Robert Burns (1759-1796)

O my Luve's like a red, red rose,
That's newly sprung in June;
O my Luve's like the melodie
That's sweetly play'd in tune.

As fair are thou, my bonie lass,
So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my Dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.

Till a' the seas gang dry, my Dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun:
I will luve thee still, my dear,
While the sands o' life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only Luve!
And fare thee weel, a while!
And I will come again, my Luve,
Tho' it were ten thousand mile!

And here’s The Rowan Tree, by Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairne (1766-1845) - sung by Kenneth McKellar (1927-2010)




Entries from past years:

• First Annual: Emilius Buczi – Hungary ; Julian Ursin Niemciwicz – Poland and Lithuania ; TS Eliot – St. Louis and London
• Second Annual: Texas State Anthem
• Third Annual: Chaim Bialik – Volhynia, Russia
• Fourth Annual: Portsmouth, Hamsphire – Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle
• Fifth Annual: I was a no-show

Amanuensis Monday: Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Cousin

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

I began this project back on February 16, 2009. Since I began, many others have joined in on the meme. I am thrilled that this meme I started has inspired so many to transcribe and share their family history documents.Why do we transcribe? I provide my three reasons in the linked post. You may find others.

***

This week I transcribe a few paragraphs from a collection of essays written by well-known author, Tom Wolfe. In his first published collection of essays, The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby (1965), he mentions a cousin directly. The essay, "Las Vegas (What?) Las Vegas (Can't hear you! Too noisy) Las Vegas!!!" was originally published in Esquire Magazine.

---

The wheeps, beeps, freeps, electronic lulus, Boomerang Modern and Flash Gordon sunbursts soar on through the night over the billowing hernia-hernia sounds and the old babes at the slots—until it is 7:30 A.M. and I am watching five men at a green-topped card table playing poker. They are sliding their Beebrand cards into their hands and squinting at the pips with a set to the lips like Conrad Veidt in a tunic collar studying a code message from S.S. headquarters. Big Sid Wyman, the old Big-Time gambler from St. Louis, is there, with his eyes looking like two poached eggs engraved with a road map of West Virginia after all night at the poker table… As everyone there knows, or believes, these fabulous men are playing for table stakes of fifteen or twenty thousand dollars. One hundred dollars rides on a chip. Mandibles gape at the progress of the battle. And now Sid Wyman, who is also a vice-president of the Dunes, is at a small escritoire just inside the golden fence signing a stack of vouchers for such sums as $4500, all printed in the heavy Mondrianesque digits of a Burroughs business check-making machine. It is as if America’s guys-and-dolls gamblers have somehow been tapped upon the shoulders, knighted, initiated into a new aristocracy.

-- The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby, Tom Wolfe, 1965, pp 14-15.


Notes

1) Sid Wyman (1910-1978) was the first cousin of my paternal grandmother, Belle Feinstein. Several years ago I transcribed a newspaper article about him that I later took down for copyright concerns. However, these short quotes from Tom Wolfe's essay surely fall completely within fair use guidelines.

Comparing Ethnic Percentages for Ancestry and FamilyTreeDNA

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I transferred my raw DNA from Ancestry to FamilyTreeDNA.

I activated my account last Sunday - a process which took two business days. I didn't have access to any functions additional to what I received from the free transfer until Tuesday. This bothered me a little, since I felt I should at least be able to instantly email the 20 free matches they had provided me.

Anyway, once the account was activated, I was able to view FamilyTreeDNA's MyOrigins page, and see how their ethnic breakdown of my DNA compared to Ancestry's. Overall, they're very similar. Which is good to see. Though there are some differences.

FamilyTreeDNA's chart is on the left, Ancestry's is on the right.



FamilyTreeDNA tags a slightly smaller percentage of my European DNA as Jewish. However, when I add Jewish Diaspora + Eastern Europe + Eastern Middle East, I get exactly 75%, corresponding well to what I know of my three Jewish grandparents. On Ancestry, adding European Jewish + Europe East + Caucasus, I got 74%. [Ancestry's definition of 'Caucasus' includes Romania in addition to the Middle East as a possible source of the DNA. FamilyTreeDNA doesn't mention this, but I suspect my Transylvanian ancestry may be responsible, though ultimately, most of my Jewish ancestry should track back to the Middle East.]

The biggest difference might be FamilyTreeDNA says I have 10% Southern Europe DNA - while Ancestry suggested only 2% for Italy/Greece, and less than 1% for the Iberian Peninsula. I haven't traced any of my ancestry back yet to Southern Europe.

A "True Certification of Facts"

A "True Certification of Facts" may not always be certifying what you think.

This is a current Missouri Birth Certification form, with all identifying information removed.
(And in gray scale to prevent it from being used for illegitimate purposes.)

This is actually an amended certificate, but there is no way to tell that, is there?

[I have removed nothing except the names, dates, ages, gender, locations and state file number.]

The individual was born in the spring of 2013. The amending took place in October of 2014. The Date Filed still reflects the original filing date of the original certificate. The date at the bottom of the form is just the date the certified document was requested at the local Vital Records office.

The state registrar signed that this is a "true certification of name and birth facts as recorded...." However, the name of the child, the name and age of the mother, and the name and age of the father are all different from the original certificate.

Legally, I agree with the statement. The Mother and Father on the form are now (as of October 2nd, the date their adoption was legally finalized) the mother and father. The words 'Natural' or 'Birth' are not used to describe "Mother" and "Father" on the form.

Decades from now, if a genealogy researcher obtained this certificate, without any other knowledge, they would likely make that assumption, wouldn't they? They'd be wrong.

In this case, the individual (and his brother) are going to grow up knowing that they are adopted. But if the parents chose not to tell them, the birth certificate would in no way give it away.

Keep this in mind when looking at documents.
Know the difference between what is stated, and what you only assume is stated.

FamilyTreeDNA Autosomal Transfers

I read at The Genetic Genealogist that FamilyTreeDNA had dropped their DNA Autosomal Transfer to $39 (from $69), and that they allowed you to see the first 20 matches for free. (Though not all of the FamilyTreeDNA functionality is provided for free. What is provided I illustrate below.)

An Autosomal Transfer means that if you download your raw DNA data from 23andMe (the V3 Test) or Ancestry, you can upload the data to FamilyTreeDNA. This way you can find matches with additional cousins.

It's hard to ignore a free opportunity - which of course is what FamilyTreeDNA is betting on. Get lots of people to upload for free, and see what they can 'unlock' for $39. (You can also unlock it by getting 4 others to upload for free.)

If you follow this link, you can upload your data for free (and help me unlock my data for free.)
But you may want to see what you're getting first...

This is the screen you see first

Enter your name, email address, gender, and click that you accept their ToS. Then click Try it Free!

Click "Upload Raw Data" unless you need to click the help link for downloading data from 23andMe or Ancestry. I had already downloaded my data from Ancestry when they made that option available.

When you click a green circle will begin to swirl. About a minute later (at least for me) you will progress to this screen, where they tell you the upload is complete, and they will email you when they are finished processing it. That can take around an hour. Yesterday morning I uploaded my data at 5:43 before leaving for work, and received the email that everything was processed at 6:50.

Once processed, this is part of the screen you will see after logging in. MyOrigins (detailing FamilyTreeDNA's analysis of your world origins) is one of the options you need to unlock.

But you can click on Matches.

Here's what I see with my first two matches

As you can see:

• It tells you how many additional matches there are. (Interestingly, I've uploaded two sets of raw data, and for the other set, I am told there are only over 402 additional matches. 402 is nice, but a fraction of 3,158.)
• Indicates you won't be able to contact them without unlocking (unless you can find them with an internet search based on their names.)

When I mouseover the FamilyTree icon for the matches I see this response for all 20

Blaine Bettinger said that none of his matches had a family tree available either. The advert at the top of the match screen suggests even if the Family Tree were available, you'd have to unlock to see it. Since FamilyTreeDNA is a DNA-based website, and not a Family Tree-based website like Ancestry, I wonder if not a lot of people upload their trees. However, many do provide some surnames, which is somewhat helpful.

For example, one match below listed a lot of surnames, and their geographical locations. I know he is descended from the Van Everys who settled in Nebraska. I suspect this makes us third cousins, as our earliest shared ancestor is likely my 2nd great grandfather, Samuel Van Every.

If we click on the arrow below the profile image, you see more options. (Most of my initial matches haven't uploaded images. I suspect this is common)

The 'common matches' function needs to be unlocked. I suspect this is exactly what it implies, it will show all your matches in common. As far as I've seen, Ancestry doesn't provide this functionality, and that sounds great.

I can use the chromosome browser. If I click the + sign, I add the match to the Chromosome Browser. (You can compare up to 5 matches at a time.)

Then, if I click compare, I get to see exactly where in our chromosomes we matched.

This is also additional functionality not available at Ancestry, and looks like it could be very useful. If multiple matches match in the same area of a chromosome, it probably suggests a shared ancestor. I haven't done much research into this as it's not available at Ancestry.

One of the options on the Chromosome Browser is to "hide 3rd party matches." As the tutorial explains:

I, of course, am a "Third Party Match." They don't tell you up front that the matches are less reliable.
Of course, I won't hide 3rd party matches, since if they used Ancestry the comparison should be more reliable. Right?

So, will I pay $39?

Well....If I can convince 4 people to follow this link, and upload their data for free, I won't have to.
(Actually 3 people, since I followed it to upload a second file of DNA data I had. Of course, I'd like to unlock that as well. But I'll be happy if I only have to pay for one.)

Of Grands and Greats: Ancestral Nomenclature

There are two ways to describe your grandfather’s brother in English: Great Uncle and Grand Uncle. (There are actually six ways if one includes Great-Uncle, Grand-Uncle, Greatuncle, and Granduncle.)

[Note: I am sticking with the masculine terms throughout this post; everything applies equally to the parallel feminine terms.]

Some will tell you there is a ‘correct’ way. They are wrong. Both ‘Great Uncle” and “Grand Uncle” date back at least to the 15th century. (see citations below)

• “his grete Uncle H. Cardinal of England” (Rolls of Parliament V.438, 1438)
• “his graunt oncle Henry cardinalle of Englande” (Book of Noblesse, 1475)

Grand derives from the Anglo-Norman ‘Graunt’
Great derives from the Germanic ’Great.’

In French, the construction is very logical for uncles, fathers, and sons

• Grand-oncle
• Grand-grand-oncle
• grand-Père
• Grand-Grand-Père
• Grand-Fils
• Grand-Grand-Fils

However, in English, for fathers and sons, we start with grand, and then switch to great.

• Grandfather
• Great Grandfather
• Grandson
• Great Grandson

Some feel we should do the same with uncles and nephews

• Grand Uncle
• Great Grand Uncle
• Grand Nephew
• Great Grand Nephew

Many genealogists seem to like this construction because they feel it looks the best on a family tree. The same terms are used for everybody on the same hierarchy. Your ancestors' siblings are equally grand or great. Your great great grandfather's brother would be your great great granduncle.

Some like a construction similar to the French, but using Great.

• Great Uncle
• Great Great Uncle

However, there isn't only one correct method in English. Don't listen to those who insist there is.
Personally, I like the French system.

1919 Composite Photo

I think there may be some people who think composite photographs - photographs combining the features of multiple individuals - are a relatively new concept.

The below was created in 1919.

It probably was a more difficult process back then, than it is today.

Source: St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 15, 1919, Page 23

Assumptions: The Name of the Father Part II

Fourth in a series of posts.

A discussion of assumptions one might be tempted to make. With examples taken from my own research.

Assumption: The name of the father on the birth certificate is the father of the child

You find the birth certificate for John Robert Green II, and the father's name on the certificate is John Robert Green. You decide your previous guess has been confirmed.

But wait!

Absent DNA tests you might have no way to confirm the veracity, but be aware, only the mother needs to be present at the birth. (Arguably, this is no longer the case with surrogacy.)

A 9 month period is a significant length of time, and a woman who changes partners might decide to put the new partner on the certificate, and to name the child accordingly.

For privacy reasons I will not indicate the example from my own research.

[Sure. In your database entry for "John Robert Green" change the source citation to the birth certificate. You now have more to go by than the name of the child. Finding a marriage certificate might help increase the odds, but there are many births outside of marriage. Genealogy is not an exact science; just because something is written down on a government-issued document doesn't mean it is indisputable fact. This is why source citations are so gosh important.]

Data Backup Day: Be Prepared

The first day of every month is Data Backup Day.

This past Saturday morning, I woke up to a very unpleasant feeling. My computer wouldn't boot up.

Using my cellphone, I found a step-by-step guide on what to do.

1) I ran Disk Utility, and 'repaired' the disk.

It wouldn't reboot.

2) I restarted in 'Safe Mode.'

It wouldn't reboot.

3) I restarted in "Single User Mode," and entered: fsck -fy until I received the message "the volume...appears to be ok."

It wouldn't reboot. (But I did enjoy the geeky thrill of taking my Mac to a unix command line.)

4) I reinstalled the OS. [In years past this would have meant searching for the install disks. Now the computer downloads the software over the internet.]

It rebooted! What a relief. The next step was taking the computer to the "Genius Bar" at the local Apple Store, and I am glad that I was able to avoid that. For now, at least. The computer is only three years old, so hopefully she has a few more miles in her.

Throughout this ordeal I wasn't nervous about my data. It's backed up regularly through Apple's Time Machine. I knew the last full backup had taken place Friday evening, so there would have been no lost data if I had to erase the drive and restore from the backup. That's a good feeling to have.

Image Source: "The First Page," by Émile Bayard (1837-1891). An illustration for the novel, Ninety-three, by Victor Hugo.

Émile Bayard's best known illustration is his image of Cosette sweeping the floor of the inn, for the novel, Les Misérables.

Assumptions: The Name of the Father

Third in a series of posts.

A discussion of assumptions one might be tempted to make. With examples taken from my own research.

Assumption: The name of a child indicates the name of the parent.

Example:

Question: You run across a person named John Robert Green II. What is his father's name?
Answer: You can not assume it is John Robert Green.

Sure, there is a strong likelihood. But there is no law, in the United States at least, that sets rules on how to name a child.

Sometimes a child can be named the II where an Uncle or other relative was the first.

Or you can have parents with a strange sense of humor.

You can have a John Robert Green II who is the son of David Alexander Green, with no John Robert in sight.

I wouldn't be surprised if somewhere in our country there exists a Leonard Part VI.

For privacy reasons I will not indicate the example from my own research.

[Sure. In your database enter "John Robert Green" for the father, and in the notes indicate that you are guessing that is his name from the name of the son. But always remember it is a guess, until you find confirming documentation.]

Assumptions: Documents are a Snapshot in Time

Second in a series of posts.

A discussion of assumptions one might be tempted to make. With examples taken from my own research.

Assumption: Documentation that an individual lived somewhere in time indicates they lived there before or after that moment in time.

Every document is a snapshot in time. Except in rare occasions, they don't tell you what happened before or after that snapshot.

Below are entries from the St. Louis City Directory for my grandmother, Myrtle Van Every

•1921 - Astor Hotel
•1921 - 4528a Enright
•1922 - Westgate Hotel
•1922 - 4123 Westminster
•1923 - 4515 Washington
•1924 - 5630 Delmar
•1925 - 5540 Pershing
•1926 - 4506 Forest Park
•1927 - 4545 Washington
•1928 - 5707 McPherson apt 111
•1928 - 5656 Kingsbury apt 203
•1930 - Georgiana Court Apartments, 5660 Kingsbury, apt 203, St. Louis, MO (census - ED 169 - Sheet 1B)

She moved around a lot, but she remained in St. Louis. She doesn't appear in the 1929 directory, but not appearing in a particular directory isn't uncommon. I can imagine many genealogists, of varying experience levels, stating as fact that she lived in St. Louis continually from 1921 to 1930, citing the St. Louis City Directories and the 1930 census as evidence.

And there's nothing wrong with that, except for using the word 'fact.'

In April of 1927 my grandmother married in Oakland, California. In October of 1927 she divorced her husband, and returned to St. Louis. She didn't miss appearing in the 1927 directory. She appeared in the 1928 directory under her maiden name, and her married name. She did appear in the 1929 directory, but only under her married name. She returned to her maiden name by the census in 1930.

Remember: Every document is a snapshot in time. Be open to learning something important happened between two snapshots.

Ancestry doesn't handle European Dates well in Family Trees

I was looking at the entry for one of my wife's ancestors on somebody else's Ancestry Family Tree. As you can see, the person entered her birth date as 04.11.1817. And her death date as 17.07.1915.

From the death date, it is clear they are using the European system of Date.Month.Year.  There is no 17th month. The birth date could either be in April or November. 

If you glance down at the Timeline - Ancestry assumes the user was using the American Month/Date/Year format. Oops.

If I were able to copy the whole entry, you'd notice that the Ancestry Timeline gets the death date correct. Which means the software program is coded to recognize the existence of both methods, but only uses the European method if the American method returns an error. I used to be a computer programmer, and I don't think I'd have coded it this way.

Note: I went to my own family tree and tested the interface. There is no clear way to indicate which method you are using, and the software made the same mistake when I entered the same dates. However, the person who created the entry below did make a mistake in entering the date of birth. They cite FindAGrave as a source, which cites her death certificate. Both sources have her date of birth as November 14th. A simple typo, but a reminder to look at the sources.

Further Note: It was mentioned that this programming error may only exist if one uses periods to separate the numbers in the date. So I tested it with the more traditional /s and the same thing happened.

Assumptions: Government Documents Are Always Reliable

First in a series of posts.

A discussion of assumptions one might be tempted to make. With examples taken from my own research.

Assumption: Government Documents are Always Reliable

While one might say, "of course they aren't, no one would make that mistake," this is what makes me cringe most often when watching Who Do You Think You Are. The researcher finds the grandmother in a household in a census, and tells the celebrity the parents in the household are their great grandparents. Perhaps their great grandparents are dead, and these are actually the grandmother's uncle and aunt? I assume (hope) the researcher has conducted additional research to verify the information, but they don't mention it on television, leading some viewers perhaps not to ask that question in their own research.

I have distant relatives who have looked at the above US census record from 1870 for the Denyer family, and recorded in online databases Amanda, Sherwood, and Ida as children of Ebenezer and Sarah, despite them being a decade older than William and McAlpin. They are actually the children of Ebenezer's brother, Samuel Denyer, who died in 1861, and his wife Zarelda, who died in 1867. (As a side note, several of the names in this record are actually middle names. McAlpin, for example, is my great grandmother, Margaret Jane McAlpin (Denyer) Vanevery.

Above is a marriage record from the UK General Register Office. The marriage occurred in London in 1902. If I asked you to tell me the name of the Father of the Bride, your answer would be "Nathan Nathan." I'm pretty certain I know what happened. The clerk asked the bride for her maiden name, and then asked only for her father's given name. Unfortunately, it appears Sarah followed the Jewish custom of using her father's first name as her last. Perhaps as an affectation, since it was no longer common in the 1900's. The 1901 UK census indicates the family name was Sandler, and Sandler appears on some documents as Sarah's maiden name.

Just because there is a government stamp on a document doesn't mean the information is necessarily correct. Record the information in your database, and cite your source, but always be open to discovering new, conflicting information.

Sarah LNU (Not any longer)

Randy Seaver at GeneaMusings, for his weekly Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, asked:

How Many Sarah LNU's Are in Your Genealogy Database? If you have one that is your ancestor, have you looked recently to determine if there are more records online that might lead you to her surname? Go look for one - you might be surprised!

LNU is an acronym for "Last Name Unknown." Using the acronym, instead of leaving the surname blank, facilitates finding these mysteries in your database to research at a later time.

LNUs, by the nature of surnames in Western European culture, are almost always female.

***

I had one Sarah LNU - however, she wasn't related to me. She was the husband of my 2nd great grandfather's business partner, Max Wieselman. I had entered Max into my database as an "Associated Person." (iFamily chart to the left.) Max and my 2nd great grandfather, Selig Dudelczyk (he changed his surname to Feinstein), worked as horse shoers/blacksmiths together, and were co-inventors of a modification to a fire hydrant. When I first visited the cemetery where Selig and Anna, as well as several other paternal ancestors are buried, I parked a fair distance from where their plots were, planning to walk the rest of the way. At my feet, when I got out of the car, was the headstones for Max and Sarah.

I had only entered their names and dates from the tombstones, and hadn't conducted any additional research yet. While he was my ancestor's business partner for a decade, I had no other reason to conduct any research on him or his family. The first thing I did this weekend was look up their death certificates at the Missouri Digital Heritage website. They were both there, as well as the certificates for two sons. According to Sarah's death certificate, her maiden name was Ottman.

However, Max's death certificate was more interesting to me. It stated he was born in Zhitomir, Volhynia. The same town Selig's brother Julius had for town of origin on his manifest. Did Selig and Max know each other in the old country, or did they meet each other in St. Louis?

Census records indicate Max immigrated in 1884, a few years prior to Selig. It looks like at some point I may need to conduct some more research on the Wieselmans. However, the information I want is likely in Ukrainian records.

Happy Labor Day Weekend 2014

For the Labor Day holiday, I thought I'd reshare the below poems and music.

For those uncertain as to the origins and intent of this holiday, these should help clarify.
It's not about barbecues.

Dropkick Murphys - Worker's Song

Fellow Citizens - Carl Sandburg (1912)

I DRANK musty ale at the Illinois Athletic Club with

the millionaire manufacturer of Green River butter

one night

And his face had the shining light of an old-time Quaker,

he spoke of a beautiful daughter, and I knew he had

a peace and a happiness up his sleeve somewhere.

Then I heard Jim Kirch make a speech to the Advertising

Association on the trade resources of South America.

And the way he lighted a three-for-a-nickel stogie and

cocked it at an angle regardless of the manners of

our best people,

I knew he had a clutch on a real happiness even though

some of the reporters on his newspaper say he is

the living double of Jack London's Sea Wolf.

In the mayor's office the mayor himself told me he was

happy though it is a hard job to satisfy all the office-

seekers and eat all the dinners he is asked to eat.

Down in Gilpin Place, near Hull House, was a man with

his jaw wrapped for a bad toothache,

And he had it all over the butter millionaire, Jim Kirch

and the mayor when it came to happiness.

He is a maker of accordions and guitars and not only

makes them from start to finish, but plays them

after he makes them.

And he had a guitar of mahogany with a walnut bottom

he offered for seven dollars and a half if I wanted it,

And another just like it, only smaller, for six dollars,

though he never mentioned the price till I asked him,

And he stated the price in a sorry way, as though the

music and the make of an instrument count for a

million times more than the price in money.

I thought he had a real soul and knew a lot about God.

There was light in his eyes of one who has conquered

sorrow in so far as sorrow is conquerable or worth

conquering.

Anyway he is the only Chicago citizen I was jealous of

that day.

He played a dance they play in some parts of Italy

when the harvest of grapes is over and the wine

presses are ready for work.

Billy Bragg - There is Power in a Union



A Pict Song - Rudyard Kipling (1917)

Rome never looks where she treads,
Always her heavy hooves fall,
On our stomachs, our hearts or our heads;
And Rome never heeds when we bawl.
Her sentries pass on—that is all,
And we gather behind them in hordes,
And plot to reconquer the Wall,
With only our tongues for our swords.

We are the Little Folk—we !
Too little to love or to hate.
Leave us alone and you'll see
How we can drag down the Great!
We are the worm in the wood !
We are the rot at the root!
We are the germ in the blood !
We are the thorn in the foot !

Mistletoe killing an oak—
Rats gnawing cables in two—
Moths making holes in a cloak—
How they must love what they do!
Yes,—and we Little Folk too,
We are as busy as they—
Working our works out of view—
Watch, and you'll see it some day!

No indeed ! We are not strong,
But we know Peoples that are.
Yes, and we'll guide them along,
To smash and destroy you in War!
We shall be slaves just the same ?
Yes, we have always been slaves;
But you—you will die of the shame,
And then we shall dance on your graves.

We are the Little Folk, we ! etc.

Evan Greer - Never Walk Across a Picket Line



End of Summer Rituals
by John Newmark ©August 2001

On September Third
Millions of Americans
Will celebrate the End of Summer
By having a barbecue.
Few know where the name
Of this holiday came from.
To most, it seems ironic
Since none but a few work.
Labor Day now means
The changing color of trees,
The start of the school year,
Or just another day off.
Any connection to unions
Or the forbidden word, "Socialism,"
Is obscured by the distance
From the First of May.
If we're to return to the roots
Of this annual worker's holiday
We need to barbecue Phil Knight
Over a bonfire of shoes
Or observe how Bill Gates
Changes colors
As we remove his tongue
And he can't speak a Word.^®

Amanuensis Monday: Death Certificate of Moshe Leyb Cruvant - 1911

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

I began this project back on February 16, 2009. Since I began, many others have joined in on the meme. I am thrilled that this meme I started has inspired so many to transcribe and share their family history documents. Why do we transcribe? I provide my three reasons in the linked post. You may find others.

***
This week I transcribe the death certificate of my second great grandfather, Moshe Leyb (Morris Louis) Cruvant.

Certificate And Record of Death Register No: 31532
1. Full Name: Morris L. Cruvant
2. (a) Sex: M (b) Color: W. (c) Married
3. (a) Birthplace: Russia (b) Date of Birth: July 1, 1857
4. Age: 54 Years 3 Months
5. Died on the 26 Day of September 1911 at about 1125PM
6. Last Occupation: Merchant From 1900-1911
7. Previous Occupation: Tailor From 1881-1900
8. Place of Death: 1307 St. Louis Ave, East St. Louis County of St. Clair
9. How Long in State: 11 years
10. How Long in US (if Foreign Born): 35 years
11. (a) Name of Father: Aron Cruvant (b) Birthplace of Father: Russia
12. (a) Maiden Name of Mother: Unknown(b) Birthplace of Mother: Unknown
The foregoing stated personal particulars are true to the best of my knowledge and belief
13. Informant: David Cruvant Address: 1307b St. Louis Ave
14. Place of Burial: Hashaschelomus St. Louis Mo Date of Burial: Sept 27, 1911 1pm
15. Undertaker: H.B. Berger Address: St. Louis, Mo
Physician’s Certificate of Cause of Death
I hereby certify that I attended the Deceased from Aug 20 1911 to Sept 26 1911; that I last saw alive on the 26 day of September 1911. That death occurred on the date stated above, at about 1125pm and that to the best of my knowledge and belief the cause of his death was as Hereunder Written
(If Under One Year Old, State How Fed.)
(a) Cause of Death: Carcinoma of Liver
(b) Contributory (secondary) [blank]
Witness my hand (signature) illegible Address: (illegible) Bldg, East. St. Louis, Ill.

Notes:
1) The first thing I do when looking at a certificate is look for obvious errors.

He was born in Lithuania, though from 1795-1918 it was under control of Russia, so Russia is accurate for his birthplace.

Though there is a place on the form where indicating age to include number of days, his age was rounded up to the next month. It should say 54 years, 2 months, 26 days.

It's questionable whether he had been in the US for 35 years. That would mean an immigration year of 1876 at age 19, which isn't impossible, but his eldest son who was born about 1883 is believed to have been born in Lithuania. It is believed they were in the US by 1886/7 when my great grandmother was born. Perhaps 35 should be 25.

2) I like that there was a question for both Occupation and Previous Occupation. I don't see that on many death certificates, and it provides a year for when he changed professions. Of course, the accuracy of the years is completely dependent upon the memory of the informant, his second eldest child. In this case, the city directories confirm the dates.

3) The place of burial isn't a truly horrible spelling for what I am sure whoever wrote it down heard. They probably didn't ask the informant how to spell it, because I suspect he could have done a better job. It should say: Chesed Shel Emeth.

4) The only facts on a death certificate for which I consider the death certificate a primary source is the Date/Time of Death, Place of Death, Cause of Death, and Place of Burial. That is, I trust the recordings of the doctor and undertaker. For the rest of the information I take into consideration who the informant was, and how much they are likely to know. In this case, the informant being his son, 26 years old at the time, the reliability is pretty good.

5) Since he died on the 26th of September, 1911, after sunset, that converts to the 5th of Tishrei, 5672, which corresponds with what is inscribed on his tombstone.

Differing Reactions to Historical Figures

My wife and I were watching the Who Do You Think You Are episode with Valerie Bertinelli.

 

Ms. Bertinelli learned she had King Edward I for an ancestor.

 

As the historian was telling her all about the great things King Edward, or Longshanks, did for parliamentary democracy, my wife had a very different reaction.

 

Another nickname for King Edward, besides Longshanks, was Hammer of the Scots. My wife's maiden name is Wallace.

Some historical figures have both positive and negative associations - depending upon who you are. People will react differently to discovering they have a particular US President in their family tree. There are Romanians who count Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia, aka Vlad the Impaler, as a national folk hero.

 

I'm sure my wife hopes Valerie Bertinelli, and her family, are able to focus on the good things King Edward did, but she is happy we haven't found Edwardian ancestry for either of us.

 

(The image is of a portrait in Westminster Abbey thought to be of Edward I)

Happy 100th Birthday to my grandmother - Belle "Sissie" (Feinstein) Newmark (1914-2002)

 

Belle "Sissie" (Feinstein) Newmark - August 14, 1914 - Oct 11, 2002

 

Today my grandmother would have turned 100. Below are some photographs.

 

-

Top L-R: With her brother, Ben; With her brother, Seymour (Babe); With her parents, Herman and Annie, and her brother, Seymour.

Bottom L-R: With me (1995); with her husband, my grandfather, Melvin - two photographs; high school graduation. (And, of course, the baby photo, and newspaper engagement notice.)

Below: As a young girl, and two photographs of her and my grandfather on their honeymoon

Amanuensis Monday: Obituary of Caroline Mathilde G Schrock - July 23, 1915

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

I began this project back on February 16, 2009. Since I began, many others have joined in on the meme. I am thrilled that this meme I started has inspired so many to transcribe and share their family history documents. Why do we transcribe? I provide my three reasons in the linked post. You may find others.

***
This week I transcribe two obituaries for my wife's 3rd great grandmother, Caroline Mathilde (Ruffert) Schrock.

---

The Weekly Tribune and Cape County Herald, Friday, July 23, 1915, page 4
Mrs. C.M.G. SCHROCK IS DEAD AT 97 YEARS OF AGE

Well-Known Woman, Born in Germany, Lived in Missouri 55 Years.

Mrs. Caroline Mathilde G. Schrock died at the home of her son, Berthold Schrock, at Scopus, Mo., on July 17, at the age of 97 years.

Mrs. Schrock was the wife of Anton F.J. Schrock who died at their residence near Marble Hill on the 8th day of June, 1900. After the death of her husband she made her home with her oldest son, near Scopus.

She was born Nov. 14, 1817 at Neurode, Silesia, Germany. She was married on Feb. 7, 1843, and emigrated to America in 1852. They came to Missouri in 1860 and located on a homestead near Marble Hill, Bollinger County.

Seven children were born to their marriage, all of whom survive their parents. The children are: Berthold Schrock, of Scopus, age 71 years; Charles Schrock of Cape Girardeau, age 69 years; Cecilia Brodtman, of Cape Girardeau, age 65 years; Mary Kamp, of Burfordville, age 63 years; John Schrock, of Morley, age 61 years; Hedwig Schwartz, Lentna [?Lentner], Shelby County, age 59 years; Albert Schrock, of Marble Hill, 55 years.

She is also survived by 36 grandchildren and 67 great grandchildren.

The Scott County Kicker had a much shorter obituary on July 31, basically summarizing the information in the earlier obituary. [Morley, Missouri - where her son, John, lived - is in Scott County.]

Mrs. Caroline Schrock died at Scopus, Bollinger county last week in her 98th year. She was born in Germany and settled where Marble Hill now is in 1860. Seven children survive her, the oldest being 71 and the youngest 55. There are 36 grand children and 67 great grandchildren.

---

Notes

1) Some obituaries contain more information in them than others. It's hard to imagine an obituary, though, that was better crafted for the genealogist than the first one above. Birth date, Place of Birth, Death Date, Date and Place of Death for spouse, Marriage Date, Year of Emigration. Names and Ages of all children - from which one can figure out whether or not they were born in Germany, or the US. (Assuming all the numbers are accurate, two children were born in the same year they changed locations - Mary may have been born in Germany or the US, Albert may have been born in Missouri, or wherever they were beforehand.)

2) A simple internet search leads me to the immigration date October 3, 1853, on the ship, Marianne.
So the obituary appears to have been off by a year.

The death certificate for John Schrock, my wife's great-grandfather, says he was born in Baltimore, Maryland.  However, the manifest transcription states they were headed for Cincinnati, and Albert Schrock's death certificate states he was born in Cincinnati. So it appears they spent time in both Maryland and Ohio before moving to Missouri.

Mary isn't listed on the manifest, however, her death certificate states she was born in July of 1852 in Germany. If the date of birth is correct, it's possible children under a certain age weren't listed on the manifest. It's also possible the date of birth on her death certificate is wrong, and perhaps she was named after the ship.

Amanuensis Monday: Letter from Ted to Martin - Feb 7, 1943 - Of War and Citizenship

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

I began this project back on February 16, 2009.  (Recently the posts have been sporadic, but for a few years it was weekly.) Since I began, many others have joined in on the meme. I am thrilled that this meme I started has inspired so many to transcribe and share their family history documents. Why do we transcribe? I provide my three reasons in the linked post. You may find others.

***
This week I transcribe a letter my great uncle, Ted, sent to his brother, my maternal grandfather, Martin, while Martin was stationed in Africa during World War II. Ted had both a law practice and worked at a Chicago newspaper. I haven't edited any of the typographical errors. In the days of mechanical typewriters if you made a mistake, you kept on typing, as the only other option was to start over. You could backspace and X out, but I'm sure Ted didn't feel a need to do so when he was typing a letter to his brother.

CHICAGO, ILL.
FEB 7, 1943.

DEAR MARTIN:

It’s just 5 o’clock in the morning here and everything is quiet so having nothing to do I thought it would be a good idea to sit down and linotype a few lines. I am on what they call the “dog watch” on the sheet and only get busy when things happen. Ihave been “watching” now for a year and a half and nothing has yet happened on the shift.

Your letter came in vedy handily and I felt relieved as I thought maybe you have forgotten about me. The inclosed post card was a big bust. Now I know what they meant by the second front in Africa. I have shown it to many of my friends and they sure got a kick out of it.

Things are going along smoothly at home. Too smoothly infact for there isn’t many of us at home now. Mother lives mostly by herself as only Jean and Lee are stying with her and Jean Works while Lee goes to high school. Wally is now in the service at Fort Sheridan and Ed is also in being stationed in Fort Beale California. He is with a medical detachment. You may think California is a swell place for him to be but no so from the letters a get from him. He says its been raining there ever since Nov. 30 the day he got there and now its nothing but a mud hole. Betwixt the rain and his sore feet he is having one hell of a time. His last letter said the Major gave him a polite hint to apply for a discharge as he is over 38 years and the outfit could move along much faster without him. I sent him a written request from the employer and am now waiting for him to be discharge.

Allen was stationed in Missouri for awhile and he went to see Myrtle while he was there. He said she was angry with me for not writing her. If she’d know all the letters I am writing every week she’d probably forgive me. I have to do all the family correspondence as Frances is not so well and does not write to any one. Her school keeps her very busy and saps all her strength. I thing she would be much better off if she’d quit and stay home and raise a family. But she won’t hear of it.

Today I met Mother and went with her to the Customs house where she made proof of her citizen ship and received a derivative citizenship certificate. Boy was she happy. I saw Myrtle Howell the other day she has two girls of her own and told me that Emil her brother who is a captain became the father of twins. What a man!

The law business has kept up well for me. Three men from our office are in the Navy and left me to take care of all their business. In January after 15 years of practice I took in the fabulous sum of $1,200. I hope I don’t have to wait another 15 years to duplicate it. Well, it’s getting toward quitting time. The phone (damn it) is ringing somebody must have had a baby or something so I’ll say thirty and close.

TED

Notes:

1) I previously transcribed a letter Ted wrote a few weeks later, on March 8th, 1943. At that time he said he'd keep writing when he found the time, but these are the only two surviving letters that he wrote my grandfather during the war.

2) We don't have the postcard my grandfather sent Ted, but from the obvious puns Ted uses, it's not difficult to get a rough idea.

3) Allen and Ed are additional brothers of my grandfather, and Jean is a sister. Wally is Jean's son, and Lee a daughter. Myrtle is Martin's wife, and Frances is Ted's wife. I'm unsure who Myrtle and Emil Howell are.

4) My great grandfather, Samuel/Salomon Deutsch, filed his Petition for Naturalization in 1921.