August Scavenger Hunt: "Find a Great-Grandparents grave."

 For the August scavenger hunt prompt: "Find a Great-Grandparents grave."

I'm finally sharing this on my blog in January -- and how appropriately on January 5th, 2023 - my Great-Grandpa's 110th birthday!

I don't have to go far for this set of my Great-Grandparents. Matter of fact, I can see their tombstone from my bedroom window. They're buried in Fernwood Cemetery here in Henderson.

Henry Lloyd Sandefur and Anna Elizabeth (Thompson) Sandefur.

Henry, or Poppy, was born on January 5th, 1913, in Henderson to Eugene Henry Sandefur and Ollie Lee Moss. He was the fifth of six children.

Poppy and his siblings grew up at 1421 Clay St (the Sandefur's lived in that house from about 1906 through the 1950's) - their front door was quite literally out the front door of Audubon School, which Poppy attended until about sixth grade or so. He used to hide his books out in the shed and hop trains - he'd go to Nashville for a day or two and return home.

Anna Elizabeth, called Liz by some, Lizzie by others, and occasionally Lizbet by her youngest brother (although usually just called Anna) was born August 18th, 1916, to John Rowan Thompson and Mary Janella Nally. She was the seventh of eight children.

Nana, as I call her, grew up in the Smith Mills area and attended Smith Mills School. I am not sure if she finished out school and graduated or not. If she did, I would have imagined she'd have graduated from Smith Mills, if so, it would have likely been 1933.

Nana and Poppy wed on August 25th, 1933, in Shawneetown. Nana was 17 years old and Poppy was 20... it was a shotgun wedding. Hence the elopement to Shawneetown.

They welcomed their first child, their daughter Carolyn, into the world on April 8th, 1934. By the 1940 census, they had a daughter and two sons (Donald & William 'Buddy'), and were living at 122 Burdette St. here in Henderson.

By the 1950 census, they had three daughters and two sons, living out at 1714 KY-416 (in Niagara). Back then, it was known as "Rural Route 2." They would have one more daughter about five years later.

After my Mom was born ('63) and my late Uncle Jay ('65), my Grandparents (Jady & Glynda) built a house next door to Nana & Poppy, at 1670 KY-416.

Poppy was a diabetic and also suffered severe heart problems. He passed away young on March 11th, 1970, at just 57 years of age. At the time of his death, my Nana didn't know where to bury him (as the spots near his parents in Fernwood were full.) Poppy's cousin, funeral director Paul B. Moss provided my Nana with the two plots - one for Poppy and one for herself. She tried to pay him back for the plots, and he wouldn't accept the money.

In the mid 1970's, Nana moved to town, and then my Grandparents moved to town as well. Nana lived for twenty some-odd years in Fair Acres until her Alzheimer's progressed far enough that we had to place her into a rest home (about early 1999.)

Nana passed away on October 2nd, 2001. I was in the third grade. I'll never forget coming home from school and getting the phone call about 40 minutes after I'd gotten home. That day and the following few days were without a doubt some of the worst in my life. I'll never forget her funeral - that was the hardest rain I've ever, to this day, experienced in my life. It certainly fit the mood. I felt like my heart had shattered into a million pieces and it was never going to be whole again.

My Nana was my very best friend. She had been my babysitter early-on in my life. After she went into the nursing home, my Grandma and I went every day, and I quite literally mean EVERY DAY to the nursing home to visit with her. Sometimes we'd go two or three times in one single day.

Nana is the entire reason I started doing genealogy. None of my friends knew any of their Great-Grandparents back then, so at just seven years old, I realized it was a rarity/oddity to know your Great-Grandparents.. (even if it's just one of them.) So I pondered if Nana ever knew any of her Great-Grandparents - unfortunately due to Alzheimer's, she couldn't answer that question (not accurately, anyway). My Grandma and I took to working on our family tree to figure out the answer. I've been hooked by the genealogy bug ever since. 2022 marks 22 years I've been doing genealogy. I owe everything to this beautiful, intelligent, wonderful, compassionate woman.

Some of you might remember my Nana, actually, because she was a bus driver for many years. I believe she drove a bus in the 60s, 70s, and into the early 80s. I know she drove the route out in Niagara but she might have substituted for other routes as well. She and Grandma Glynda would bowl with other bus drivers. I unfortunately didn't inherit Nana's bowling ball, but I did inherit Grandma Glynda's. It's certainly one of my prized possessions now.

I come from a family full of bus drivers, actually, lol. Poppy drove a bus as well. Their late daughter, Carolyn, drove a bus, and my Grandma - Glynda (Sandefur) Blanford also drove a bus. I believe one of the sons might have driven a city bus back in the day, too.

Thank you all for reading about my Nana & Poppy. It means a lot. ❤️

May Scavenger Hunt: Find a name with "Z" in it.

Now -- I don't have a photograph of this grave, because she doesn't actually have a tombstone. I feel like that makes me need to highlight her burial that much more, don't y'all agree?

My Great-Great-Great-Grandmother - Jane G. "Janie" (Hazelwood) Moss Watkins. (The Z being in her maiden name, Hazelwood.)

She was born on September 30th, 1853, in Henderson County, KY to Edward T. Hazelwood and Elizabeth O. McDonald. She was one of at least thirteen children born to Edward & Elizabeth.

Often called "Janie," she wed her first husband, James Henderson Moss on November 7th, 1869, at the age of 16.

James and Jane divorced while she was pregnant with their last child... my Great-Great-Grandmother, Ollie Lee (Moss) Sandefur. This led to some speculation that Ollie was NOT biologically a Moss. Thanks to the wonderful technology that is DNA research... I have concluded she absolutely was a daughter of James Henderson Moss.

They divorced roughly May of 1880 - Jane is with her parents on June 8th, 1880 for the census, even though she's listed as 'married.' James has their children in the 1880 census with him and his parents and he's listed as 'divorced.' Their last child, Ollie, was likely conceived in April of 1880 before their divorce. She was born later in February of 1881.

Jane re-married to George Lafayette Watkins on September 13th, 1883. They had at least two children.

In the 1900 census - Jane reports she's bore 8 children with 6 of them living. So she either lost two with James, or two with George, or perhaps one with each. I'm inclined to believe she lost at least one with each husband.

After her second husbands death - Jane roomed with a bunch of coworkers on Helm St (I believe it was 1400 Helm St). They all worked at the Cotton Mill. She was a weaver.

By 1920, she lived at 1126 Washington St. as a boarder with the Seidel's. She was still working at the Cotton Mill as a weaver.

I have not yet been able to locate an obituary for my 3x Grandmother, but I do have her death certificate and a photograph of her.

She passed away on October 26th, 1928, in Henderson. She was 75 years of age. She passed from acute gastritis and a secondary cause was chronic nephritis which ran heavily in the Hazelwood family. Her death certificate states she was buried in Fernwood Cemetery.

She's buried in Lot 1196 without a tombstone. Her husband, Lafayette, doesn't have a tombstone there either and I don't have an exact date of death for him.. he died sometime between 1900-1910. There might be more of our kinfolk in that plot without tombstones.

The children of James and Jane are as follows.

1) James Ivy Moss: Born on March 10th, 1874, and passed on January 19th, 1908. I believe James is buried in the W.J. Moss Cemetery (out in Niagara) where his father was later buried in 1917... but it's possible James is in Fernwood with his mother and step-father. The W.J. Moss Cemetery still isn't photographed. The land the W.J. Moss Cemetery used to be on belonged to the Siewert family but my Mom believes it's changed hands now. I believe James was unwed. He was 33, but I've never found a marriage record for him. No obituary, either.

2) Reuben Eaton Moss (which is a common used name in the Moss family): Born on January 29th, 1876 and passed on September 6th, 1967. He had moved to the Daviess County area and lived there for 60 years, according to his obituary. His first wife was Elmina "Minnie" McCann. His second was Mary Roberta "Bertie" Toone. Reuben and both of his wives are buried in the W.J. Moss Cemetery as well.

3) Sarah Esther Moss: Born on April 1st, 1878, and died May 20th, 1974. She married Charles Milton Crafton, and they had a slew of children. They're buried in Old Farley Cemetery which is off the left side of Airline Rd as you head out of Henderson.

4) Ollie Lee Moss: Born on February 21st, 1881, and died July 15th, 1963. She wed Eugene Henry Sandefur, and they were the parents of my Great-Grandfather, Henry Lloyd Sandefur. Ollie passed while living at her Granddaughters house in Albuquerque, New Mexico. They're buried in Fernwood.

The two children of George & Jane are:

1) George Lafayette Watkins Jr: Born about 1888. He, too, died sometime between 1900-1910 I believe. I've never been able to find a death certificate or obituary for him.

2) Elizabeth Watkins: Born December 11th, 1892, and died February 4th, 1961. She wed William Elmer DeKemper. They're buried up in Bellefontaine Cemetery in Mt. Vernon, IN.

Just through the children of James & Jane, and then George & Jane.. I connect with half of Henderson. Especially them Crafton's. There's a LOT of y'all!! James Henderson Moss, Jane's 1st husband and my Great-Great-Great-Grandfather... he re-married and went on to have a plethora of children with her. I connect to all the rest of Henderson through them, haha. It certainly feels that way.

Someday, if I ever win the lottery, I'll make sure Jane gets a tombstone. A woman with this many living descendants in Henderson certainly ought to have one. She deserves some flowers at her grave and some remembrance.

May Scavenger Hunt: Find the grave of someone who made the ultimate sacrifice.

 Herman Louis Paff did just that, making the ultimate sacrifice. He was killed in action in Argonne, France, during World War 1.

My entire life, I've lived beside of Fernwood Cemetery - the end of it that houses Herman's grave. (Tombstone photo I'm using is credit to Karen Waddell. She got the photo at the right time of year with a flag and red, white, and blue flowers.) This tombstone is one I've passed a million times, at least, and I always take a moment to think about him and his family each time I do.

The first thing I found was Herman's WW1 Draft Card which was filled out and signed on June 5th, 1917. He stated that he had piles, defective hearing, and fainting spells. He was working at the Henderson Brewing Co. in the bottling department. It didn't sound too much like Herman would have been drafted, given the statement he gave.. but, the war effort was tremendous by the next year.

Herman, from historical documents, received his training at Camp Zachary Taylor on June 19th, 1918. By August 27th, 1918 - he was departing New York on the ship Mauretania. According to his military paperwork, he was part of the sanitary detachment of the 305th Infantry.

Herman was killed in action during the Meuse-Argonne offensive on October 3rd, 1918. He'd only been overseas for a month and a few days at this point.

(You can read about the Meuse-Argonne battle here: Meuse-Argonne Offensive)

Now, I'm not a war expert, nor am I a military expert - but the best I can gather... each infantry had their own Sanitation Detachment and the best I can figure out - they worked alongside the medics. I think in WW2 they were called Medical Detachment. I believe Sanitation Detachment was in charge of what was called Sanitary Trains? Getting supplies to the medical tents and whatnot.

From someone who isn't military savvy, I'm unsure how Herman's actual casualty came about and can't find really anything explaining the specifics. The sanitary detachment was absolutely at the front lines helping medics, so, I'm guessing him being killed in action means he was killed while helping the medics and helping the wounded.

(Sorry for my rambling there. Others who are more intelligent on military and wars can absolutely correct me and chime in!)

Herman was only 23 years old.

Herman was originally buried in France in the Argonne American Cemetery, but on June 20th, 1921, he was disinterred in Europe to be sent home at long last.

It appears that on July 21st, 1921, his remains were transferred from Antwerp, Belgium to Hoboken, New Jersey on the ship Cantigny for the trek home for reinternment.

Posthumously, Herman was awarded the World War 1 Victory Medal and a Purple Heart.

He was a loving son of Fred Paff and Louise Vogel. He was a first generation American on his father's side, and second generation American on his mother's. His father was from Bacharach, Germany; and his maternal grandparents were from Brunswick (or Braunschweig), Germany.

Herman had a brother, Fred Paff, and a sister, Alvina.

Your sacrifice is not forgotten, Pvt. Paff. Generations of your family continues on, and they share the memory of you.

Thank you, Sir, for your sacrifice. Thank you for helping keep America the home of the free.

Cemetery Spotlight: Fernwood Cemetery in Henderson, Kentucky

 A couple of years ago, I had a burst of creativity in writing posts called "Cemetery Spotlight" in my cemetery group -- Henderson Ky Cemetery Research Group. Before I write up any new ones -- I'd like to go back and re-visit a few of the originals.

The first cemetery I wrote about, on July 24th, 2017, was Fernwood Cemetery. This post has now been edited with new and more accurate information. 

Originally, Fernwood was just called the "City Cemetery" and was located downtown at 4th and Elm Street where the city bus garage is currently located. In 1849, they decided, "hey, we need a new place that's much bigger; we're starting to have too many dead and not enough space," and thus the moving of the cemetery begun.

I originally reported that the first burial in Fernwood was 1852 -- but I believe it was 1854, instead. I believe Mary Owen, death date February 18th, 1854, was the first grave in the new Fernwood Cemetery. Any tombstone you see with a death date prior to 1854, the person was originally buried in the old City Cemetery. Not every tombstone was moved, and definitely not every body was moved, either. But there are quite a few old tombstones in Fernwood with a date older than 1854, and those would be from the original cemetery -- for example:

Captain Wynn Dixon who died in 1829. Mary Smith Towles who died in 1831. Martha Cunningham who died in 1832. Elizabeth (Scott) McCallister who died in 1833. Rebecca (Hart) Dixon who died in 1833 as well. The list goes on and on.

There are also some other cemeteries that have been moved INTO Fernwood over the years.. Swann/Farmer Cemetery for example. There is a marker towards the front of the cemetery bearing the names of all the graves they found out in the Swann/Farmer Cemetery.

There are several notable people of prominence buried in the cemetery. From congressmen, governors, senators, to even a professional golfer; you can find many people of many different walks of life resting peacefully in the cemetery.

One of the stories you'll learn, sometimes on the Fernwood Tour and others on Spooks and Legends, is that Henderson had a bad cholera outbreak in the early 1800's, when the city cemetery was still being used. Cholera is something typically picked up by bad drinking water (and back in those days, folks used well water.)

When they were moving the bodies from the original city cemetery downtown to the new place "Fernwood," guess what happened to break out again in about 1850-1852? You guessed it...Cholera.

Most of us that live in Henderson have countless kin buried here. I have countless ancestors resting here and have the privilege of living right beside this beautiful place. I was raised in the cemetery, my parents pushing my stroller around it to help me fall asleep as a tot. I learned to ride my bicycle in the cemetery. Some of my fondest memories involve this cemetery. It's extremely close to my heart.

Every September for the last handful of years - they've had a great walking tour with actors depicting people of prominence buried in the cemetery. (2020, due to the pandemic, they did not have the Fernwood Cemetery Tour. I hope and pray it returns for 2021.)

This cemetery is located at 920 Madison Street. It bears, at the very least, 17,000 burials. The neighborhood is actually referred to as "Fernwood." Right across from the cemetery is "Fernwood Avenue." Across from the front entrance, where Raj's Mart is now - at 925 Madison Street - was Fernwood Flowers, back in the day. For as many burials as Fernwood has, I can only imagine how busy that flower shop stayed, day in and day out!

If you've ever been to Fernwood, then please, share your experiences! Who all of your family is buried there? How often do you visit? When was the first time you ever visited the cemetery? 

I'll start us off by saying I have several relatives in Fernwood. I can see my Great-Grandparents (Henry Sandefur & Anna Thompson)'s grave from my bedroom window. Henry's parents -- Eugene Sandefur & Ollie Moss, and his 3 of 4 of his Grandparents -- Philo Sandefur & Susan Jarrett, and Jane (Hazelwood) Moss Watkins are buried in the cemetery as well. We have numerous other Uncles, Aunts, and cousins there but that would take much too long to type out!