My Granduncle Charles has always been a bit of a character - a very smart man, actually a university professor at one time or another. A devout Catholic, a family man, but definitely a character. He inherited the jokester nature of a true Blanford/LaRue.
My late Grandaunt Motts and her spitfire attitude. She had no filter and she liked her coffee black as it could be. She was like the mascot for us black sheep and we certainly miss her to tears.
Even my late Grandpa Jady was quite a character. He was one of the funniest men I ever knew but also one of the most serious. Grandpa Jady loved to tell jokes, construct riddles, and pull a prank or two every now and again.
Apparently most of the Blanford's and LaRue's, and of course the Buckman's and Ganno's have gained their personality from Great-Great-Grandpa Charles Clarence LaRue who was quite a card. He loved to laugh, to joke, to pull a few pranks. He also seemed to love word games and mind puzzles.
Another part of this topic asked if there were any actors or writers in the family. Despite listing a few of the 'characters' I'm related to, I'll go ahead and talk about the actors and writers.
Actor Tom Hanks is my 7th cousin 2x removed.
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks was born on July 9th, 1956, in Concord, California to parents Amos Mefford "Bud" Hanks and Janet Marylyn Frager. It is through his father's side of the family that we are related - hence his Dad's middle name of Mefford.
His Grandfather was Ernest Hanks; his Great-Grandmother was Mary Catherine "Mollie" (Mefford) Hanks. She hailed from Shelby County, MO, but died in Tehama Co, CA.
His Grandfather was Ernest Hanks; his Great-Grandmother was Mary Catherine "Mollie" (Mefford) Hanks. She hailed from Shelby County, MO, but died in Tehama Co, CA.
Mollie was the daughter of Jacob Mefford and Sarah (Critchlow) Mefford. Jacob was apparently born in Campbell County, KY, and died in Shelby Co, MO. His parents were John Mefford and Mary (Parker) Mefford. John, from what I can tell, lived his entire life in Campbell County, KY.
John's parents were Jacob and Ellenor (possibly Hatten) Mefford. Jacob was undoubtedly born in Frederick Co, MD, and died in Campbell Co, KY. Around the 1800's, a lot of Mefford's migrated to Kentucky from many places - Maryland, Ohio, Virginia, and surrounding areas - even Pennsylvania.
Jacob was the son of Johannes "John" Meffert/Mefford; one of three sons of Andreas Meffert (my 8x Great-Grandfather) who is hailed as the patriarch or the forefather of the Mefford's in America. Johannes was born January 24th, 1732, in the Hesse area of Germany. He and his father and two other brothers arrived in America on September 15th, 1749. In about 1755, Johannes married Susanna Kuntz.
Johannes' naturalization to 'John Mefford' happened on September 19th, 1762, in Chester County, PA. Johannes' first wife eventually passed and he remarried, then he, too, ended up in KY; supposedly dying in Scott County, KY, in 1796.
It is through Johannes Meffert (son of Andreas) that Tom Hanks is related to another famous person, and of course, that means I, too, am related to him.
Even long before knowing Tom was a Mefford - I've always been drawn to him and his movies. I absolutely adore him as an actor. Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, The Polar Express, and even A League of their Own - which was filmed right here in Henderson County! Here my Dad was, a Mefford, living here in Henderson and his cousin was here filming a movie and he didn't even realize it! Hah!
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Actor Mr. Rogers is my 7th cousin 2x removed.
Fred McFeely Rogers was born on March 20th, 1928 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. His parents were James Hillis Rogers and Nancy McFeely. It is through his mother that he is related to the Mefford's.
His Grandfather was Frederick McFeely, his great-grandmother was Anna (Lindsay) McFeely. His 2x Grandmother was Susannah (Fish) Lindsay.
His 3x Grandparents were Joseph Fish and Susanna (Mefford) Fish. Susanna was born in Pennsylvania and died there as well. She died in the Fayette County, PA area and is buried there. Susanna's second husband was an Evans.
Her parents were William Mefford and Sarah (Holton) Mefford. William was born in Frederick County, Maryland, and died in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Johannes Meffert - thus making him a brother of Jacob Mefford, the ancestor of Tom Hanks.
Mr. Rogers and Tom Hanks are closer related to each other than they are to me. To one another, they are 6th cousins because they share 5x Great-Grandparents, Johannes Meffert and Susanna Kuntz. For me, though, they are both my 7th cousins 2x removed.
I grew up watching Mr. Rogers and way back then, I'd have never imagined he could possibly be a Mefford.
Author Debbie Dadey is my 6th cousin.
Debra Sue Gibson, or "Debbie" as she's known to her legions of fans - was born in Union County, KY to Voline and Rebecca (Bailey) Gibson. It is from her mother's maiden name, Bailey, that she named her series of books -- the Bailey School Kids.
Her father, Voline Everett Gibson was born in Union County, KY to Everett Wesley Gibson and May (Wicks) Gibson. Her Grandfather, Everett, was born in Union County, KY, as well. He was the son of Harbert Earl Gibson and Minnie (Utley) Gibson.
Harbert Earl Gibson was born right here in good ol' Henderson County, KY. His parents were William Gibson and Sarah Elizabeth (Walker). They would be Debbie's 2x Grandparents. William's death certificate states he was buried in the Smith Mills Cemetery.
Her 3x Grandparents were John William Gibson and Susannah (Covey) Gibson. They are buried in Gibson Cemetery #2 in Corydon - which you'll recall I wrote about in a longer blog back in September. They have old but still existing tombstones but they're in need of some tender love and care.
Her 4x Grandparents were James William Gibson and Mary Watson -- they, too, are buried in Gibson Cemetery #2. The running theme with Gibson #2 is it seems to be for the descendants of James William Gibson. I'm not sure if he bought the land off of one of his brothers, cousins, uncles, or whatever and decided he wanted to start another cemetery on his own land separate from the 'main' Gibson family cemetery. It's only a stones throw away, honestly.
This makes her 5x Grandparents Berryman Gibson and Susan (Duncan) Gibson who are buried in the main Gibson Cemetery up on the hill. Berryman and Susan, too, are my 5x Grandparents.
This makes Debbie a 6x Granddaughter, like me, of Joel Gibson - Revolutionary War veteran who is also buried in the main family cemetery on top of the hill. All of the area surrounding the two cemeteries once belonged to the Gibson family -- they owned quite a fair bit of land at one time or another.
I fell in love with Debbie's books as a kid attending South Heights school where I met her for the first time. I've also been privileged to meet her again at our local library a few years later. Then, most recently, I messaged her to let her know that my Mom's copy of Whistler's Hollow had disappeared many years ago and it had really made her sad. It was autographed and she felt horrid that, inevitably, the person she 'loaned' it to, never gave it back.
So Debbie sent us a new copy, autographed, and also let me know some amazing Gibson family history as well. I'm excited to hopefully meet with her in the future if she ever comes back to town for a visit.
Emmy-winning journalist and executive (in many forms of the word!) Betsy Fischer-Martin is my 5th cousin 1x removed.
Betsy is the wife of journalist Jonathan Martin who currently is a political correspondent for the New York Times. Betsy is the daughter of George Fischer Jr and Sally (Ford) Fischer. It is through her late mother, Sally, that we are related.
Sally was the daughter of Alexander Ford Jr and Ella Mae (Gibson) Ford. Ella was born right here in Henderson, KY, but ended up living life in several places before calling Louisiana home, where she passed away.
Ella's parents were Barak Gibson and Gertrude (Thornton) -- they are buried in Fernwood Cemetery, right next door to me. Back in 2019, when the photo of me and Betsy was taken, I gave her a tour of the town and one of our stops was Fernwood. I told her a many interesting facts about the cemetery while we searched for her Gibson ancestors.
Her 2x Grandparents were Stephen Gibson and Ella Brashear. Stephen/Steven died in a drowning accident in 1913 and is buried in Smith Mills Cemetery. His wife, Ella, died several years later and is buried in Louisville.
Stephen was the son of Joel E. Gibson and Margaret J. Martin. Joel supposedly died young in 1853 - it's very possible he's buried in the main Gibson Cemetery or perhaps Gibson #2. His wife, Margaret, died a little over 50 years later and she is buried in the Smith Mills Cemetery. I'm not sure that in 1853 that Joel would have been buried there -- more likely buried in the main Gibson Cemetery, just without a findable tombstone.
Joel E. Gibson was the son of Berryman Gibson and Susan Duncan, my 5x Grandparents. For Betsy, they are her 4x Grandparents - that's what makes us 5th cousins 1x removed. While she was in Henderson, she did breakfast with my Mom who would be her 5th cousin, as Berryman and Susan are Mom's 4x Grandparents as well.
Funny enough, we went downtown to an antique shop and saw a framed photograph of firemen from back in the day. I told her in the photograph was my Great-Granduncle, Russell Sandefur.
Right after we left the antique shop - we headed to a porch tea party that I was allowed to tag along. The most crazy Godwink ever occurred. It was being hosted by a dear friend of Betsy's late mother and the woman turned out to be my Grandma Glynda's first cousin - Rita (Sandefur) Clement, the daughter of Russell Sandefur, in the photograph!
We Gibson girls got together in a photograph (the other Gibson's in the photo are closer related to Betsy, than to myself) and then they grabbed a photo of me and Rita together - the Sandefur girls. Rita is not a Gibson descendant as that comes through my Great-Grandmother Anna (Thompson) Sandefur, and not her husband.
Our last stop of the day, before we lost the daylight that September evening, was to the Gibson Cemetery so she could see the graves of her 4x Grandparents and her 5x Grandfather.
You can actually see Betsy in the background of this photograph that I took of Joel Gibson's tombstone that day. Photographed with her 5x Grandfather, what a spectacle, huh? I'm not sure she felt it but every time I go out there... I'm overcome with the connection to my ancestors. Gibson Cemetery will always be one of my absolute favorite places on Earth.
As always - thank you for reading about the interesting people in my family tree! I appreciate every read my blog gets whether you're a loyal follower or a newcomer. Thank you so much!
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