Thursday, January 30, 2014

52 Weeks of Sharing Memories - Second and Third Grade

Lorine McGinnis Schulze at Olive Tree Genealogy has challenged us to keep a weekly journal of our own memories in 52 Weeks of Writing our Memories for our future generations. This will be a good way for me to record what little I still remember!

Second Grade

My teacher in second grade (1961-1962) at Sallas Mahone Elementary School in Valdosta, Georgia, was Mrs. Wall. I don't remember much of anything about second grade except for bits and pieces. I don't remember if it was second or third grade that we had to learn our way home from school in case of a missile attack. I don't know if we also learned to hide under our desks like I've heard other folks my age talk about having to do at that time!


However, one thing stands out about second grade, and it has nothing to do with class. Second grade was when I found out that my dad had been married to someone else before he married my mom! What a surprise that was! After a new boy joined our class, I was excitedly telling my mom about him, and I told her what his name was. A day or two later, my younger brother Andy told me that he heard our parents talking and heard them say that our mom wasn't our mom! I didn't believe him. How could she not be our mother? I knew that wasn't right. So I went and told her what he said, hoping she would tell me it wasn't true. She told me she was most certainly our mother! That evening, when our dad came home from work, he said he wanted to talk to me. I ran! I thought I was in trouble for repeating what my brother said. It turned out that the new boy in class was the son of my dad's first wife (she had remarried after she and my dad divorced). Dad told me that he and Mom thought they should tell me before I heard it at school. They didn't know if the little boy knew anything about it but thought they should tell me just in case. I thought it was pretty funny after that.

Third Grade

As you can see from the photo below, I still had the "teeth too big for my mouth" look by the time third grade rolled around (1962-1963). I've always hated my school photos. They got worse each year. I think my parents were fed up with them, too, because in fourth third grade, they sent me to a professional photographer. **Updated to add the correct photo for third grade! I was a year off. This one was taken by a professional photographer. The one I originally posted was fourth grade.

Third grade

My third grade teacher was Patsy Smith, a locally renown artist. I loved the art projects that she had us do, but I only remember one project--making Easter eggs. She had each of us blow up a balloon and then cover it with newspaper dipped in Plaster of Paris. After this dried (which seemed to take an excruciatingly long time), we popped our balloons. We cut a hole in the top and on one end. Then we painted our eggs and arranged a scene inside the egg. I don't remember what mine was. Probably a chicken or a rabbit. I was so proud of my egg. It was so much fun to make! Mrs. Smith would read to us after lunch. The only book I remember is Charlotte's Web. What a great story! Also, third grade was when I found out that my mom was expecting again! Her fifth! I remember feeling embarrassed, because I thought she was too old. Imagine! She was only 37.

Catherine

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Ocean Pond Fishing Club

I’ve always loved going to Ocean Pond.  (I’d love it even more if there weren’t any alligators.)  It’s mainly a fisherman’s paradise, but when I was a kid, we’d sometimes go swimming there, and off and on through the years, my parents would invite family and friends to dinner at the Ocean Pond Clubhouse…fried chicken, rice and gravy, lima beans, rolls, iced tea, their locally-famous tomato casserole, and desserts—pie, cake, and ice cream.  Heaven! 
Ocean Pond is in south Lowndes County, Georgia, about 15 or so miles south of Valdosta, near Lake Park, Georgia (see the Google Earth aerial below). The pond is a lime sink. You can see in the aerial below that there are several of those lime-sink lakes in the area. Long Pond to the north is where my parents have their lake house. (Click on the images for a larger view.)
To reach Ocean Pond, you turn to the right off of Highway 41 South in Lake Park by the church on the corner of the highway and North Gordon Street.  Cross the railroad tracks and pass through a small residential area dotted with a few houses.  North Gordon Street deadends into Ricks Avenue.  Turn right, then left and wind your way down a narrow, gravel road lined with Spanish moss-draped oak trees.  The road follows along the shore.  It’s like stepping back in time.  This place feels ancient.  Once you see the boathouses on the left, you’re nearly at the clubhouse. 
Google Earth aerial showing the location of Ocean Pond (it looks like two ponds separated by a causeway) in south Lowndes County.
IMG_1138
The road to Ocean Pond lined with Spanish moss-draped oak trees, March 2011. 

Ocean Pond Clubhouse, December 2009

The Ocean Pond Fishing Club was incorporated in 1904 as the Ocean Pond Hunting & Fishing Club [1].  After some financial trouble, the property was sold at a public auction in 1917.  Subsequently, the club was reorganized as the Ocean Pond Fishing Club that same year [2].  The names of the board of directors through the next several decades reads like a who’s who of Valdosta.  Only members/share holders and their guests are allowed to fish, hunt, swim, eat, spend the night, reserve the clubhouse for parties, etc.  I haven’t found a mention of when the clubhouse was built, but there’s a photograph of it from the 1890s in Images of America Lowndes County by Dr. Joseph A. Tomberlin (2007) [3].  Some scenes for the HBO movie As Summers Die starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Scott Glenn, and Bette Davis were filmed there in the 1980s.  They turned the screened-in upstairs of the old dock (since replaced with a newer dock) into a “crab shack” eatery for the movie.
Ocean Pond was a favorite place of my dad’s, too.  There’s a photo at my mom’s of him sitting on the dock watching the sun go down.  When he wasn’t sequestered in the studio at home or at the lake house, trying to find a quiet place to write away from five kids, he’d head to Ocean Pond.  Here’s what he wrote in his unpublished memoirs, Growing Up South Georgian
Ocean Pond—April 1986.  The April sunset at old Ocean Pond is something beautiful to see—the warm red rim stays across the lake for a long while. The gradual darkness that follows becomes a friendly cloak around you.  The ride to the lake is going back into the past, the old road, under friendly ageless giant oaks, covered by layers and layers of moss—all become a lavender haze in the shadows. 
I was looking on Google for a nice photo of the pond and found this print of a beautiful watercolor of the clubhouse with the pond in the background painted by local Valdosta artist Don Pettigrew.  It looks so peaceful.  (Disclaimer:  I’m not associated with Don Pettigrew, and I will receive no compensation for linking to his website where he sells his art.)
Catherine

*Originally posted 11/29/11
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[1]  History of Lowndes County Georgia 1825-1941.  (General James Jackson Chapter, D.A.R., Valdosta, Georgia.  Reprinted in 1995).
[2] See footnote 1 above.
[3] Dr. Joseph A. Tomberlin on behalf of the Lowndes County Historical Society.  Images of America Lowndes County.  (Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC, 2007).

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #4 Lucy Ivey

Genealogist Amy Crow at No Story Too Small has challenged us to blog about one ancestor a week for 52 weeks. This will get me writing about other branches of my tree than the ones I tend to focus on the most. It will be a way to get to know more of my ancestors, even if it's just a brief write-up. I will also take a look at some of the challenges that I'm having in my research.



Lucy Ivey

My paternal 3rd great grandmother Lucy Ivey was born about 1803 in North Carolina or Virginia (census records vary) to Adam Ivey and Mary Adams. Lucy married Rowell Adams in Columbia County, Georgia, on September 21, 1820. I don't know if Rowell was a relative of Lucy's mother. (Click on the images for a larger view.)


By 1830, Lucy and Rowell were living in Warren County, Georgia, and they had four children. I have a son named George in my tree with no birth or death dates. One of these four children in this census is their daughter Sarah born in 1829. Sarah was my 2nd great grandmother and the wife of William Jackson Brown (Adams, Ivey, and Brown are on my father's maternal line). The rest of the children that I have in my tree (Mary, Celia, Henry B., and Lucy Ann) were born after 1830. As of the 1840 census, they were still living in Warren County.

By the 1850 census, Lucy and Rowell had moved to Sumter County, Georgia, with their children Mary, Celia, Henry, and Lucy. Living next door was their daughter Sarah and son-in-law William Brown. Rowell was a farmer, and according to the 1850 agriculture schedule, they had 50 acres of improved land on a farm worth $250. They had two horses, two cows, three "other cattle," and 40 "swine." They grew corn, sweet potatoes, and cotton. The value of their "animals slaughtered" was recorded at $100.

Lucy and Rowell's daughter Mary married William Hardin in 1854 in Sumter County. Then the Adams, Brown, and Hardin families moved to Covington County, Alabama, by the time the 1860 census was taken. They were all still living in Alabama as of the 1866 Alabama state census.

This is the 1866 Alabama state census page for W. J. Brown, W. D. Hardin, and Rowell Adams

Lucy and Rowell had moved back to Sumter County Georgia by 1870. Their daughter Lucy Ann is living with them. Next door is their daughter Mary and son-in-law William Hardin with their children. Lucy and Rowell's daughter Sarah Adams Brown died in Alabama in 1867. Sarah's husband William and their children stayed in Alabama.

The 1870 Sumter County Georgia census for Rowell and Lucy Adams. Their daughter Mary and son-in-law William Hardin are listed just above them.


This is an 1863 Georgia-Alabama map that I've labeled with the counties and years to show the migration of Lucy Ivey and Rowell Adams from Columbia County Georgia to Covington County Alabama and back to Sumter County Georgia (A. J. Johnson's map of Georgia and Alabama from http://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/histcountymaps/ga1863map.htm)
I haven't found death dates or burials for Lucy or Rowell, or what happened to their daughter Celia and son Henry, or whether or not they had a son named George. I've found a few clues, but I don't know if I have the correct people. The search continues!

Catherine

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Sources:

Marriage Books, Columbia County Ordinary Court, Georgia Archives. Marriage Record for Lucy Ivey and Rowell Adams, Columbia County Marriage Book 1806-1829, Georgia's Virtual Vault. (http://cdm.georgiaarchives.org:2011/cdm/landingpage/collection/countyfilm : accessed January 12, 2014).

1830 U. S. census, Warren County, Georgia, population schedule, Not Stated, p. 212, Rowell Adams, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M19.

1840 U. S. Census, Warren County, Georgia, population schedule, Rylands District, p. 14, Rowell Adams, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M704.

1850 U. S. Census, Sumter County, Georgia, population schedule, District 27, dwelling 1046, family 1046, Rowell Adams, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M432.

Georgia Marriage Records from Select Counties, 1828-1978, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 January 2014). Marriage record for Mary Adams and William D. Hardin, 14 December 1854.

1860 U. S. Census, Covington County, Alabama, population schedule, Andalusia, dwelling 710, family 710, Rowell Adams, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M653.

1866 Alabama State Census 1820-1866, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing Alabama Archives and History microfilm publication M2004.0008-M2004.0012, M2004.0036-M2004.0050, and M2008.0124.

1870 U. S. Census, Sumter County, Georgia, population schedule, Militia District 993, dwelling 687, family 685, Rowell Adams, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M593.






Saturday, January 25, 2014

52 Weeks of Sharing Memories - Getting My Driver's License

Lorine McGinnis Schulze at Olive Tree Genealogy has challenged us to keep a weekly journal of our own memories in 52 Weeks of Writing our Memories for our future generations. This will be a good way for me to record what little I still remember!

I don't remember much (see what I mean) about getting my driver's license. I do remember being very nervous. I think I had to go to the Georgia State Patrol office on the Madison Highway to take the test. I don't remember if I had to learn to parallel park for the test. If I did, I failed that part. I've never learned how to parallel park. There are lots of parking lots around, right?

I learned to drive on my dad's red Buick Skylark with a white roof. He let me practice by driving up and down the driveway by myself, which seemed pretty easy. It was a different story out in the streets. He rode with me while I tried to drive around the neighborhood. I remember being very scared to turn corners. I only wanted to go straight, since that's all I knew how to do!

I don't know when this photo was taken, maybe at age 16, but I'm sitting in my dad's red Buick Skylark. I felt so cool behind the wheel!

I'm sure I made my dad very nervous. I know I made him nervous in later years as he would cling to the arm on the door whenever I turned corners! I didn't think my driving was THAT bad (don't ask my children).

Catherine

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

52 Weeks of Sharing Memories - First Grade

Lorine McGinnis Schulze at Olive Tree Genealogy has challenged us to keep a weekly journal of our own memories in 52 Weeks of Writing our Memories for our future generations. I'd been thinking of writing down some things that I remember from my childhood before I forget more of it, so this will be a good way to do that! I started out a little behind, so I'm catching up. Week 2 was to write about our memories of First Grade.


I remember feeling nervous when my parents took me to meet my first grade teacher Miss Frances Dekle on the first day of school at Sallas Mahone Elementary School on Patterson Street in Valdosta, Georgia. (It was torn down and rebuilt in a new location in recent years.) The hallway was full of students and parents. My brother Andy went with us. He seemed to be having a grand time and ran out of the classroom with a ball as my dad called after him. I felt embarrassed when my dad asked me to go up to the chalkboard and write my name so he could take a photo. I'm sure that brought on a pout from me.



I was five years old when I started school in 1960. At the time, you could start school as long as you turned six by December 31, and my birthday is in October. I liked my teacher Miss Dekle. I remember reading circles and Dick, Jane, and Spot; eating the paste during art; running around the playground and swinging on the swings at recess; and trying to erase a mistake on my paper with those big, fat pencils that had no eraser at the end. We sat in small wood chairs at long tables that held several students. At least they seemed long to my five-year-old self. Each student had a cubby to hold our paper, pencils, and books underneath the table where we sat. There was a bathroom connected to the classroom. I made one of my friends cry when I wrote on her paper while she was in her reading circle. I barely remember the lunchroom. I've always hated school lunches. The smell! I was a picky eater, so I probably didn't eat much during lunch. Plus, I was used to home cooked meals at lunch time. My mother picked me up from school every day. I don't remember if she had her first station wagon then, but I know she had it by the time I was in second grade. Our family was growing quickly. There were three of us kids, and my sister Melissa was born a few months after I started school.

I have mostly good memories of first grade--the few that I do have about it!

Catherine

Monday, January 20, 2014

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #3 Susan C. Dasher's Farm

Genealogist Amy Crow at No Story Too Small has challenged us to blog about one ancestor a week for 52 weeks. This is a great idea! I realized a few weeks ago that I tend to write about certain branches of my family more than others. I'd like to get to know more of my ancestors, even if it's just a brief write-up. I will also take a look at some of the challenges that I'm having in my research.



Susan C. Dasher's Farm

Susan Catherine Dasher is my paternal 2nd great grandmother. She was born on December 21, 1824, probably in Effingham County Georgia, to Christian Herman Dasher and Elizabeth Waldhauer. These two families are descendants of Salzburgers from modern day Austria who came to the Georgia coast in the 1730s to escape religious persecution.

By the 1840s, the Dashers were living in Lowndes County Georgia.[1] Susan first married Richard Howell in 1853. They had one son, also named Richard. After her husband died, Susan married my 2nd great grandfather Noah Parramore in 1856. Their daughter Susan Parramore is my great grandmother and the wife of Alexander Shaw Pendleton.

While researching Susan Dasher, I came across a Susan C. Dasher listed in the 1850 Lowndes County agricultural schedule.[2]

A portion of the 1850 Lowndes County Georgia agriculture schedule. Susan C. Dasher is highlighted in red.

According to the schedule (some of which is illegible), she had:

Area of land improved: 100
Area of land unimproved: 880
Cash value of farm: 800
Value of farming implements & machinery: 50
Horses: 7
Milch cows: 10
Other cattle: 40
Sheep: 40
Swine: 40
Value of livestock: 800
Indian corn: 300 bushels
Oats: 70 bushels
Rice: 800 lbs
Peas & beans: 20 bushels
Sweet potatoes: 200 bushels
Butter: 50 lbs
Cane sugar [? illegible] of 1,000 lbs: 6/10

I wondered if this was "my" Susan. If so, I thought how great it was that she owned a farm at the age of 26 and before she was even married. Then I wondered how she came into possession of a farm in the first place. Did she inherit it from someone? However, according to the 1850 Lowndes County Georgia census, she's living with her parents Christian and Elizabeth Dasher and sister Georgia Ann.[3] I decided I'd better look into this.

The 1850 U.S. census for Lowndes County Georgia. The Christian H. Dasher household is outlined in red.

The Susan C. Dasher in the 1850 agriculture schedule could be Susan C. Wisenbaker, wife of Edwin A. Dasher. Susan and Edwin bought a farm when they moved to Lowndes County around 1841. After Edwin died in 1844, his brother James A. Dasher managed the estate for the next three years. Then Mrs. Dasher's brothers John and James A. Wisenbaker took over management.[4]

In both the 1850 agricultural schedule and the 1850 Lowndes County Georgia U.S. census, there is a James A. Dasher next door to Susan C. Dasher. This Susan was living on the farm. In the 1850 census, her age is given as 37.[5]  This leads me to believe that the Susan C. Dasher in the 1850 agricultural schedule is Susan C. Wisenbaker Dasher and not my Susan C. Dasher.

I'm just a little disappointed that the farm didn't belong to "my" Susan, but I'm glad I looked into this a little further instead of just assuming. This is yet another example of thinking you have information about your ancestor only to find out that it's about someone else with the same name!

Catherine

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[1] History of Lowndes County Georgia 1825-1941. General James Jackson Chapter NSDAR, Valdosta, Georgia, 1995, 107.

[2] 1850 U. S. census, Lowndes County, Georgia, nonpopulation schedule, p. 243, line 15, Susan C. Dasher, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication T1137.

[3] 1850 U. S. census, Lowndes County, Georgia, population schedule, p. 491 stamped, dwelling 550, family 550, Christian H. Dasher, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 2 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M432.

[4] Folks Huxford, Pioneers of Wiregrass Georgia, Volume 6. Jesup Sentinel, Jesup, Georgia, 1971, 69-70.

[5] 1850 U. S. census, Lowndes County, Georgia, population schedule, p. 399 stamped, dwelling 531, family 531, Susan C. Dasher, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 2 January 2014), citing NARA microfilm publication M432.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

52 Weeks of Sharing Memories - Kindergarten Days

Lorine McGinnis Schulze at Olive Tree Genealogy has challenged us to keep a weekly journal of our own memories in 52 Weeks of Writing our Memories for our future generations. I'd been thinking of writing down some things that I remember from my childhood before I forget more of it, so this will be a good way to do that! I'm three weeks behind, so I'll try to catch up. I had already written a post describing my kindergarten in "Miss Emma's Kindergarten" about a year ago, but I thought I'd see what else I remember and if I can find any more photos.

I couldn't find any other kindergarten photographs, but here's one from the year I started kindergarten in 1959.


This is my brother Andy and me in our Saturday "play clothes." It looks like we've been playing softball. Today, you can't even see the houses in the back. What a difference several decades make!

I remember swinging on the swings, taking naps on a towel that had my name on it, being picked up from class by my mother. I remember the house where class was held and playing in the backyard where the swings were. It seems that there were kids everywhere. Sometimes I stayed over for lunch, but usually I went home when class was over. Kindergarten was when I had my first known encounter with Jim Crow, separate but [supposedly] equal. Coming back from a field trip, our bus stopped at the local Dairy Queen. One of my classmates and I were thirsty, so we sought out the water fountain. There were two: one was marked "Colored" and the other was marked "White." We thought it meant the water in the "Colored" fountain was rainbow colored. We were surprised to find that the water in the "Colored" fountain looked the same as the water in the "White" fountain, and we puzzled over why that was. When my mother picked me up from kindergarten that day, I told her about it. I don't remember if she explained what it meant, but she must have because whenever I looked back on it growing up, I knew why there were separate fountains.

Catherine




Monday, January 13, 2014

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #2 Hannah Butler

Genealogist Amy Crow at No Story Too Small has challenged us to blog about one ancestor a week for 52 weeks. This is a great idea! I realized a few weeks ago that I tend to write about certain branches of my family more than others. I'd like to get to know more of my ancestors, even if it's just a brief write-up. I will also take a look at some of the challenges that I'm having in my research.



Hannah Butler

My paternal 4th great grandmother Hannah Butler was born around 1757 in Virginia to Edmund Butler and Mary Polly Street.  She married Benjamin Gilbert in Bedford County, Virginia, in 1779.[1] Benjamin was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and after the war, he and Hannah moved to a part of Greene County, Georgia, that later became part of Hancock County in 1793.[2]

Hancock County Georgia as of 1793. Map from http://randymajors.com/p/maps.html Historical U.S. County Boundary Maps 
Hannah and Benjamin's daughter Martha (Patsy) is my 3rd great grandmother and was the wife of Coleman Pendleton. Hannah died in her early 30s, sometime before September 20, 1791, as that's the date given by Benjamin's second wife Nancy McKinsey as their marriage date.[3]

A portion of the declaration made by Nancy McKinsey Gilbert in her application for her husband Benjamin Gilbert's Revolutionary War pension. In the above, she gives the date and place of her marriage to Benjamin. 
Benjamin and Nancy were married at the home of Edmund Butler, so it appears Benjamin still had a close relationship with Hannah's family after her death. I don't know if this Edmund Butler was Hannah's father or possibly a brother. I don't have any siblings listed for her in my tree.

So far, this is all I know about Hannah. One of these days, I hope to learn more!

Catherine

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[1] Ancestry.com. Virginia Marriage Records, 1700-1850.  Marriage record for Hannah Butler and Benjamin Gilbert. 
[2] Roster of Revolutionary Soldiers in Georgia and Other States, Volume II. Compiled by Mrs. Howard H. McCall. Genealogical Publishing Co, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, 1968. Reprinted 1996, 2004; Mauriel P. Joslyn, Hancock County. Georgia Encyclopedia. Counties, Cities, and Neighborhoods. www.georgiaencyclopedia.org : accessed 12 January 2014.

[3] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files. Record Group M804. National Archives. Washington, D.C. Images Fold3 www.fold3.com : accessed 5 January 2014.

Monday, January 6, 2014

52 Ancestors in 52 weeks: #1 William Liming

Genealogist Amy Crow at No Story Too Small has set up a challenge to blog about one ancestor a week for 52 weeks. I think this is a great idea! I realized a few weeks ago that I tend to write about certain branches the most. I'd like to take a look at more of my ancestors, even if it's just a brief write-up. Participating in this challenge will be a way for me to get to know some of them. It will also help me to get back to writing about some of the challenges that I'm having in my research. In this post, I revisit one of those challenges.


William Liming 

Born about 1795 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, my maternal 2nd great grandfather William Liming was a sea captain. (I find this fascinating!) I wrote about him in my post U.S. Seamen's Protection Certificates  when I found one for a William Liming. I'm not sure if I have the correct person, but the city of birth and age fit "my" William.

William was married to Anna (Annie) Morris. (Anna is a research challenge, too. See The Search for Annie's Parents) I have yet to figure out who William's parents and siblings were. I've recently been looking again at the names of his children for clues. I found some naming pattern lists on Rootsweb to use as a guideline. I'm sure families didn't strictly follow the patterns, as you'll see in my spreadsheet below (click on the image for a larger view). These are my tentative assumptions:

The names of William and Anna's children in a naming pattern chart.

At least looking at naming patterns gives me something more to go on!

William died in Mt. Holly, Burlington County, New Jersey, so I've started researching online New Jersey records. There are several William Limings in Monmouth County, New Jersey, which is to the northeast of Burlington. As with other branches in my family, people with the same name sure makes things confusing!

Catherine