Chasing History

  Week 13: The theme for Week 13 is “Home Sweet Home.” What ancestor makes you think of home or when you picture them, you think of their home? Or maybe you had an ancestor who homesteaded? This is a good week to write about them. This was a no brainer.  What ancestor makes me think of home? My grandfather, Clair Edwin Gross. I got fourteen years with him and it wasn't nearly long enough. I firmly believe that everyone has a soul mate, and that it doesn't have to be a romantic partner, because my grandpa was definitely my soul mate, my person. We were best friends and partners in crime.  Clair Edwin Gross   Born: 17 July 1929 Newberry, York, Pennsylvania, USA Died: 21 March 2009 The Carolyn Croxton Slane Residence, Harrisburg, Dauphin, Pennsylvania, USA When Clair Edwin Gross was born on July 17, 1929, in Newberry, his father, Walter, was 42 and his mother, Lillian, was 33. He had nine siblings.  Pap was born, raised, and lived his entire life in Newberrytown ...

UPDATE  I received a comment on my week 11 post suggesting that I contact Arizona for a death certificate... which, duh... I'm not sure why I didn't think to try that. Apparently I needed it spelled out for me. So I checked and there were only two Martin Taylors... neither of them matched my Martin Taylor perfectly... but any genealogist knows that sometimes dates, names, spellings get weird. In Martin's second wife's obituary he is listed as a realtor. One of the death certificates are for a man named Martin Taylor, widowed, realtor. There are definitely some conflicting things- Date of birth, no parents listed, name of spouse isn't listed, place of birth is Illinois. I checked the cemetery and Martin isn't listed Findagrave.com at that cemetery, but that could just mean his grave hasn't been photographed yet. SIGH.  What say you? ●●●●●●●●● Week 11: The theme for Week 11 is "Brick Wall." What ancestor is giving you fits in your research? Martin St...

Week 12: The theme for Week 12 is "Historic Event." How was an ancestor affected by an event, either large or local? Johann Jacob Stromenger (Possible Revolutionary War Veteran)  1727– 3 Oct 1786 5th great-grandfather Johann Jacob Stromenger was born in 1727 in France, the son of Gertrude and Peter. He immigrated to America, arriving in Philadelphia in 1754. He married Magdalena Haas on January 25, 1760. They had three children during their marriage.  Johann is listed in,  Continental Congress at York, Pennsylvania and York County in the Revolution  by George R. Prowell. 1914 - York County (Pa.). Pages 264-265, with the Third Battalion of Associators. The Third Battalion of Associators was organized in 1775 by Colonel Richard McAllister, of Hanover, who commanded the Second Pennsylvania Regiment of the Flying Camp, in which a large number of his men enlisted at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, in 1776. After the organization of the state militia, in 1777, the Third Battalion...

  Week 11: The theme for Week 11 is "Brick Wall." What ancestor is giving you fits in your research? Martin Stanley Taylor  Born: 24 Jul 1874   Newberry, York, Pennsylvania, USA Died: ??? Let me tell you about my second great-grandfather, Martin Stanley Taylor. He's my brick wall.  Martin was born and raised in Newberry, York County. He married my second great-grandmother, Minnie Jane Free, in October 1893. In 1895 Minnie gave birth to their only child, a daughter, my great-grandmother, Lillian Mae Taylor Gross.  By 1917 Martin had left his wife and daughter and moved to Ohio. In the 1920s, he popped up in records stating that he resided in Casa Grande, Arizona.   In 1930, back in Ohio, at the age of fifty-five, Martin married Anna Catherine Wendel. I'd like to note that Anna was two years younger than Martin's daughter, Lillian.  Shortly after marrying, Martin and Anna, resided together in Phoenix, Arizona. They lived there together until Anna di...

Week 10: The theme for Week 10 is “Siblings.” We shouldn’t forget about the people in our family trees who we don’t descend from: the siblings of our ancestors. Who is a sibling whose story needs to be told? Stewart Irwin Gross 1934–1947 Maternal granduncle SStuart Irwin Gross as born on 2 November 1934 in Newberrytown, York County, Pennsylvania. He was one of ten children (eight surviving) born to Walter and Lillian Mae Gross neè Taylor.  Stuart's life was tragically cut short at age thirteen when he was hit by a car while sledding on the Old Trail on 24 December 1947.  He was an eighth grader at Roxbury School, the one room schoolhouse down the street from his house. He was out sledding and coasted into oncoming traffic. He didn't survive his injuries,  which were a ruptured spleen and other internal damage.  His funeral services were held at Paddletown Church and he is buried in Paddletown Cemetery. He shares a tombstone with his parents and two siblings. 

Family Bible: Gospel or Leading You Astray (Genealogy Wise) ? ••• Family Bibles are a wealth of genealogical knowledge. You must be careful to cross reference, though. Everything written in the family Bible can't be taken as gospel. Sometimes a well meaning family member will write a date wrong or misspel a name. There are times that people are left completely out of the family Bible or people that aren't blood related are added in.  It's very important for you to back up what's written in the family Bible with other documentation (if possible). Do you have a family Bible that has helped you with your family tree research? Has it been helpful? Have you discovered inconsistencies?  ••• My great- aunt gave me the family bible to look through. Inside I found the marriage certificate of Jeremiah and Eliza Spahr, my maternal third great-grandfather and third great-grandmother.  They were married on November 15th, 1866 at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Roysville Pasto...