52 Ancestors 2021: Week 20: Cousin Bait

As per Amy Johnson Crow, "cousin bait" is a term used to describe the ways we try to attract the attention of others researching our family. Quite literally, "bait to lure in cousins." So the topic for week twenty being "cousin bait," we're supposed to talk about the methods we've used to lure in our cousins. 

I think the biggest way I've "cousin baited," is by having such an extensive and exhaustive tree on Ancestry. As of right now, I'm up to 96,887 people.. and there's two big reasons that number is so large. For one -- before I started up my at-home genealogy business, I was on a personal mission to figure out how I was related to every single person buried in Henderson County. Realistically, I documented every (or that I could find) burial in the smaller cemeteries first. (Think small family cemeteries or small community cemeteries. Smaller church graveyards, etc.)

The only cemeteries I had left to do were the ones with about 1,000+ burials which would be Smith Mills Cemetery (in Smith Mills), Saint Augustine (Catholic cemetery - Reed), Mt. Zion Baptist (Reed), St. Louis Cemetery (Catholic cemetery here in the city proper), Fairmont (city cemetery), Roselawn (city cemetery), and lastly our largest cemetery in town -- Fernwood. But considering Fernwood has almost 17,000 memorials on Find-a-Grave... that would probably take me a decade to document. I don't have time to do that anymore. 

For the second reason -- 95% of my genealogy clients have been a cousin of mine in one way or another. My Mom's family having been here in Henderson since within about 15 years of the city's inception.. I'm related to everyone here in SOME way or another. Every time I get a new client, I work their tree until I find a tie into my own... then I just incorporate their information into my own tree. I've actually been able to help out cousins of my clients who stumble across my tree and message asking how I've amassed so much information on their tree if I'm not closely related. I inform them that I'm a genealogist from here in Henderson, that a client of mine was a descendant of (random couple name here) and that they would be your cousin, so I've thoroughly researched this particular line of yours. They're nine times out of ten ecstatic to hear that. 

Another big "cousin bait" for me is family reunions. The last one we had was in 2017 and by that point, I had started my genealogy business and I'd made the front page of the newspaper with the cemetery group (Henderson Ky Cemetery Research Group.) I've always been known as the "family genealogist," and now it was more than just a cute nickname from the family. I'm fortunate that most of the Blanford/LaRue clan are fascinated with genealogy. I did a blog a couple months ago where I rounded up all the DNA descendants (that have tested) of my 2x Grandparents -- Dad LaRue (Charles Clarence LaRue) and Carrie Annie Byrd. 

Blogging has definitely attracted some cousins to come out of the 'woodwork' so to speak. I've connected with a few LaRue cousins via blogging and Mefford cousins, too. The cemetery group, too, has helped some cousins contact me via Facebook. At first they won't know we're related until they start talking about "my __ x Grandparents out in Gibson Cemetery," and I'll respond, "those are my ___ x Grandparents, too. We're cousins." It's amazing just how many of us Hendersonians descend from Gibson patriarch Joel Gibson (1750-1830), originally hailing from Caswell Co, NC, and serving in the Revolutionary War before he made the move to Kentucky and settled in Corydon, KY, around 1813. 

So for me, a heavy online presence/social media presence, the cemetery group, my genealogy page + blog... it's all been successful forms of cousin bait for me. Even Find-a-Grave, which I've had for 11 years, 1 month, and 8 days (as of today, August 12, 2021) has connected me with wonderful cousins. I'll remind y'all about a woman I mentioned several blogs ago named Rosemary Rivette-Lentz. Rosemary and I would be 2nd cousins 2x removed. She reached out to me in 2010  after I'd made my Find-a-Grave and started researching my Mefford/Turner ancestors on there.

Rosemary informed me that my 3x Grandfather, Phylander Turner, had actually fathered a little girl with a neighbor of his, Louiza Tinsley. The little girl, named Rosetta, was only a year and three months older than my 2x Grandmother, Emma Lillie Turner. I don't believe that Phylander ever married Louiza, which is a shame... but without him meeting Lucy Knight and having children with her -- I wouldn't exist, so I can't be too upset. Just five months after Rosetta's birth with Louiza, Phylander married Lucy Knight. 

Louiza Tinsley ended up dying a few years later in 1881 and her parents finished rearing little Rosetta. Obviously it was common knowledge in the Tinsley family who Rosetta's father was but as for our family knowing anything about it -- I still have some relatives who deny it vehemently. DNA doesn't lie, though. 

Sadly, I fell out of contact with Rosemary and since she lived across the U.S., I just figured she got busy with life and whatnot. Her Find-a-Grave status in about 2019 finally changed to "this graver has passed away." Her death date was in 2011! No wonder we fell out of contact! She sent me so many amazing family photos of the Turner side, too. I wouldn't know half of what I know about Phylander Turner if it wasn't for her. I was heartbroken that she'd been gone for so long and I didn't know. 

All in all, if you haven't tried "cousin bait," yourself as an amateur family sleuth or actual genealogist... give it a try sometime. You'll be amazed at the potential cousins that might contact you.

Some examples of why I love Remini's app so much!

I thought I would highlight here on my blog some of my favorite examples as to why I love Remini's smartphone photo app so much! You can enhance, colorize, and so much more. So far, my favorite feature is enhancing. It's helped clear up so many old photographs of mine. Here are some examples.

Above is my 2x Grandfather, French Mefford. Look at those ears! It's a wonder my Dad and I don't have car doors for ears! I ponder if it's a result of the heavy endogamy in the Mefford family tree. French's parents were 1st cousins... and his Grandparents were double first cousins. He was the son of George Washington Mefford and Amanda Hardison. (1874-1955)

Above is my 2x Grandmother, Emma Lillie (Turner) Mefford. She was the daughter of Phylander Turner and Lucy Knight. (1879-1964)

The full photograph cleared up. I've tried colorizing it.. but the colors just don't come out 100% right. Maybe one day someone will colorize it for me instead of me trying to use an auto-colorizer. 

Above is my 2x Grandfather, Charles Clarence LaRue. This photo is from when he was around 17 or 18 years old.. so roughly 1900, give or take a year. I've tried coloring this one too and it just doesn't turn out well. Charles was the son of Benjamin Hardin LaRue and Mary Philapine Lawrey. He was the husband of Carrie Annie Byrd and Sarah (Beck) Staser. (1883-1980). 

Above is my 2x Grandmother, Mary Janella (Nally) Thompson. This is a zoom in of her face from a photograph of her and her twin sister. But just look at how much clearer she is.. I'm in awe, I'm stunned.. She was so magnificently beautiful. I wish her beauty would have passed down to me. (1882-1972)

Above is Mary Janella's twin sister, Camilla (Nally) Thompson. Janella & Camilla married brothers -- John Rowan Thompson & Samuel "Sam" Thompson. Thanks to this zoom in and enhancement, we can see that Camilla had a large scar on her face. Assuming this isn't mirrored photography, and she's looking at the camera, it would be on her left side I believe. I ponder what happened? I've never heard stories of her having had a scar before. My Nana nor my Grandma ever said anything about it. I wonder if it had faded by the time my Grandmother was born? (1882-1962)

Janella & Camilla were the daughters of Henry Oliver Nally and Vandalia Gibson. They were second cousins with their Thompson husbands. The Thompson's were sons of Martin Henry Thompson and Elizabeth Levina "Lou" Nally. 

If you've never tried the Remini photo app, please do! It works absolute wonders on your old photographs. 

The Young Death of Mary Elizabeth (Puryear) Denton

It's always sad to come across young death when doing genealogy. 

Mary Elizabeth Puryear was the daughter of John William Puryear and Mary Elizabeth Eubank. On her tombstone, she's incorrectly listed as being born on November 30th, 1857 - birth records indicate she was born March 21st, 1857, instead. 

She married Lawrence Theodore Denton on January 15th, 1879, and it wasn't long before she was pregnant with their first child. Unfortunately, I've found no record of said child so it ultimately had to be a miscarriage or stillbirth. 

On November 25th, 1879, she died of Puerperal Fever which is a fever caused by a uterine infection after childbirth. She was only 22 years of age. (21 if you go by her tombstone but.. again.. it has the wrong date.) She is buried in McClure Cemetery in Boxville (Union County) Kentucky. The tombstone photograph credit goes to fellow Find-a-Graver David Melton. 

Lawrence went on to re-marry Nollie Taylor and have a passel of children.

Gone, but not forgotten.

The Tragic Fate of Mr. Isom Cottingham

Every time I come across Isham "Isom" Cottingham.. a part of me weeps. It's so sad that he would attempt to take his own life, over his wife, and survive it... only to end up succumbing to it a few days later. He begged doctors to save his life. That part really cuts me. 

Even at 28, I've already lost friends to suicide. I attempted it a few times in my teenage years. I actually never thought I would make it to 28 years old. A part of me in stumbling through life, unsure of what to do or how to function properly because I never thought I'd still be here. 

Suicidal feelings are a funny thing.. and not funny ha-ha. They're very strange. 
In some aspects, especially for me and my suicidal feelings in the past.. it wasn't so much that I wanted to die or hurt those I loved by leaving them... it's just the fact you want your pain to end, your own suffering to end.. and you think you're at the bottom of a pit that you cannot climb back out of. 

If it wasn't for the cemetery group bringing out of one of the darkest times of my life, I'm not sure I'd still be here. If it wasn't for my genealogy business and giving me a sense of, "I can't die while I've got clients binders to finish," I possibly might not still be here. 

If it weren't for the friendships I've come into over the past few years, especially the relationship I have with my "adoptive" Granny Dixie.. I might not still be here. If anyone ever has these thoughts/feelings/ideations in their head... please reach out to me. I'm always here to listen. 

Isham "Isom" Cottingham was the son of Albert Gardner Cottingham and Ellen C. Liles. He was the husband of Lauretta Virginia Russell. They married on December 22nd, 1897, and had a passel of children. 

They are buried in "Boxville Odd Fellows David Rest Cemetery" in Boxville, Union County, Kentucky. 

I hope and pray Isom Cottingham went on to a better life in the heavens where he was no longer sad, or unhappy, or in any pain.

Chester Wyatt Alexander: Baskett Man Killed by Train

The other day while searching on Genealogy Bank, I came across an article about the sad death of Chester Wyatt Alexander. He was hit by a train at Hoffman's Crossing (near Spottsville) here in Henderson County, Kentucky. I'm not entirely sure which railroad crossing is Hoffman's Crossing, as the railroad crosses over a many roads between the city of Henderson and the Green River in Spottsville.

Chester Wyatt Alexander was the son of Thomas Iradell Alexander and Mary Lou Townsend. His sister, Loretta (Alexander) DePriest Hatfield is the 2x Grandmother on this Puryear/Tivitt tree I've been working on for the last few months. 

His siblings, including Loretta, were Malcolm Yeaman Alexander, Charles Augusta Alexander, Martha Mae "Mattie" (Alexander) Morrow, Gilbert Lee Alexander, Robert Allen Alexander, Mary Ellen (Alexander) Clark, and Richard Lyona Alexander. 

A good friend of mine actually descends from the brother, Robert Allen Alexander - so Thomas & Mary Lou would be her 2x Grandparents. 

Only 50 years old... how very sad. As far as I can tell, Chester never married nor did he have any children. He was buried in Fernwood Cemetery here in Henderson, which I coincidentally live right beside. It appears he doesn't have a tombstone, either. 

I did manage to find a photograph of the train that hit him.. makes things even more "real," if you will. 

L&N #832

Gone, but not forgotten.

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 27: Free (An introduction to my followers)

 

Update: On November 7th, 2021, I decided to use this blog post as my "free for all" for the topic "Free" - 52 Ancestors challenge, week 27. 

I'm Brecca. I'm 28 years old, born and raised in Western Kentucky. My family has deep roots here in Henderson County and I couldn't think of a better place to have grown up and to live currently. 

I've been doing genealogy since I was seven years old (2000). It started out as a simple question poised to my Great-Grandmother, "Nana, did you know any of your Great-Grandparents?" Unfortunately, she had Alzheimer's and couldn't answer it. 

My Grandma and I took to doing the family tree the old way. I learned how to do genealogy in the genealogy department at the Henderson County Public Library. Grandma and I spent hours looking at census books, and learning how to work the software on the computer to find birth, marriage, and death records. 

Undeniably, I was bitten by the "genealogy bug." I wouldn't have it any other way. I've always been the "weird" kid. I always preferred to sit with the grown ups and listen to stories from yesteryears, the days gone by. I loved hearing stories of my Grandparents youth. I loved hearing about my Great-Grandparents, and my Great-Great-Grandparents. My Mom was lucky enough to know 3 of her Great-Grandparents...they were born in the 1880's!! (So jealous.) 

Being a genealogist has always been a dream job of mine. I had lost hope of becoming one because of how costly and how many hurdles you had to jump through to become a "certified" genealogist.. and there's only one university that provides a proper degree in family history and you have to be of their religion to attend. It looked like my dreams were crushed. 

At the end of 2016, a couple of my good online friends said they'd pay me $20 to do their tree regardless of a degree or certification... and the rest is history. I started this little "at home" "side hustle" and it became my full-time self-employed job. With twenty-one years experience, I realized I didn't need a fancy degree or certificate to show I know what I know. I just needed the skills and confidence... trust me, I have that by the bucket loads when it comes to genealogy. 

In 2018, I dipped into genetic genealogy by doing my DNA. I worked on my own, my parents, and then some of my best friends'. I accidentally stumbled upon some skeletons in my friends' DNA and solved some paternity cases.. Here it is 2021 and I've found the biological family for at least nine people now. DNA is by far my favorite thing about genealogy these days. It's fascinating. 

My big ticket item as a business are my family tree binders. I do small, medium, and large binders now. They take a lot of time to prepare.. a lot of my blood, sweat, and tears (quite literally) go into them and I've been told they're worth every penny. 

I love nothing more than working on a Henderson roots family tree. More than likely, if you were born here in Henderson to parents that are from here, too... we're related. 

Some of my ancestral names here in Henderson/Union/Webster are: Blanford, Sandefur, Nally, Thompson, McBride, Raley, Moss, Hazelwood, Mattingly, Gibson, Busby, Duncan, Denton, LaRue, Lawrey, and more. 

My paternal names (not from Henderson) include: Mefford, Jones, Bastin, White, Turner, Knight, Hardison, Bowers, Wilder, Singleton, Brown, Goff, Jeffords, and more. 

In late 2015/early 2016, I helped found the group "Henderson Ky Cemetery Research." As of 2021, I'm the lone ranger and don't get out to cemeteries even a quarter as much as I'd like to. In early 2019, I started the group "WKM Cemetery Research," to encompass the entire Western Kentucky Metro area -- Western KY, Southern Indiana, Southern Illinois, Southeastern Missouri, and maybe even western Tennessee! I've been in the newspaper a couple different times for the cemetery group and attending historical events here in Henderson & Evansville. 

I live in both Henderson, KY, and Sebree, KY, now so when it comes to cemeteries -- Henderson, Union, and Webster are my main focus. But I have dabbled some in visiting cemeteries in Daviess, McLean, Ohio, Crittenden, Livingston counties. When it comes to my Dad's side of the family, a lot of them are buried in Muhlenberg County, Butler County, and Logan County. 

I consider myself a bit of a "local historian," when it comes to Henderson. I've even played tour guide to a famous Gibson cousin -- an Emmy-winning journalist! Realistically in the future, I'd like "tour guide," to be part of my job title. 

I'd love to get to know each and every one of you, so please don't hesitate to comment this and tell me a bit about yourself and your genealogical journey!! Thank you for following and supporting my dreams!!

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 18: Crime & Punishment

I, like everyone else, probably have more than one ancestor I could write about for "crime and punishment." My paternal Grandmother went to jail a time or two, but, I don't like to muddy her name more than its already been muddy. Even my parents have been to jail for a weekend in their younger years for this and that. 

One interesting story I stumbled upon back when I first was playing with newspapers.com back in 2018...

This appeared in the Mt. Sterling Advocate newspaper on September 29th, 1891. Frank Bastin, or rather, Franklin Payton Bastin, was my Great-Great-Grandfather. 

Frank was born on August 5th, 1878, in Lincoln County, Kentucky, to Martin Stimmons Bastin and Sarah Jane Brown. The post says Frank Bastin was twelve years old -- but he had actually already had his thirteenth birthday by September 29th. 

I believe Frank left Lincoln County and never looked back. By October 17th, 1895, he married in Campbell County, TN, to Miss Ilena "Lena" Singleton. In the 1900 census, they're living in Laurel County, KY. Then they make the move in about 1905 or 1906 to Muhlenberg County, KY, where my Great-Grandmother, Edith, was born in 1908. 

I'm not sure if Frank Bastin left Lincoln County before he could ever go to court -- or perhaps because Joe Henry lived, they told him to just "get the hell out of dodge," if you will. Joe Henry, according to death certificates, lived to be 69 years old -- dying in 1941. Cause of death appears to be diabetes. 

Regardless, had Frank not left Lincoln County, KY... I may not be here today had this incident not occurred. Surely this incident and his leaving Lincoln County is how he met Ilena Singleton -- as she hailed from Rockcastle County, KY. Perhaps Rockcastle County is where Frank ended up after leaving Lincoln.. Then they married in TN and set up their first house in Laurel County.. but then continued heading west to Muhlenberg. 

Frank and Lena had eleven children together -- four that died as young infants. Frank was the first to pass away on January 15th, 1954, in Central City, KY. He was 75 years old and succumbed to diabetes. Lena followed him in death on May 18th, 1958, in Central City. She was 78 years old and succumbed to pancreatic cancer (or rather, on the death cert. "probable carcinoma of the head of pancreas.")

One thing is for sure.. Frank Bastin lived an exciting life; one that I wish I could hear more stories about, but unfortunately it seems, he took most of his stories to his grave with him. My Granddad (his grandson) didn't even know about him stabbing someone at thirteen years old, so it's obviously something Frank didn't like to talk about. Aren't those always the best stories for us genealogists? The juicy gossip kind. 

If you ever get down to Central City, KY; stop by Rose Hill Cemetery and pay him and Ilena a visit, will you? Maybe he'll be willing to share a story or two from his childhood or early teen years with you. 

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 17: Favorite Place

 

I've already written about my Grandparents house being one of my favorite places growing up, and I've written quite a few times about the Gibson Cemetery being the cemetery that really made me fall in love with old family cemeteries. I could probably write about how much I love our library and it's genealogy department, or maybe a restaurant I love to eat at. 

But I think the best thing I could write about for "favorite place," that also goes along with a "favorite ancestral home," is my hometown and where I still currently reside...

Henderson, Kentucky. 

Henderson was originally known as "Red Banks" to the Native American tribes that lived on this land. In 1775, a man named Richard Henderson tried to purchase over 17,000,000 acres of land between the Ohio, Kentucky, and Cumberland rivers in what is currently Kentucky and Tennessee. Known back then as the Transylvania Purchase (because their little outfit was known as the Transylvania Company.) 

Unfortunate for Henderson, the sale ended up resulting in only 200,000 acres to develop. Richard Henderson hired famed Daniel Boone to survey the country and select favorable areas.. Unfortunately, Henderson passed away before he could ever come west and see the land he'd bought. 

General Samuel Hopkins and Thomas Allin, a surveyor, came to Red Banks in the year of 1797. They began to lay out the plans of what would later be known as Henderson -- named for Richard Henderson and his dream of a town west of the Alleghany mountains. 

While surveying, Hopkins and Allin agreed upon wide streets, so fires could not easily jump across the street. Today, this allows Henderson to have slanted parking spaces everywhere downtown -- instead of parallel parking like in most downtown areas in other cities. 

While Richard Henderson is the namesake -- Samuel Hopkins is certainly the Father of Henderson. In 1792, before "Henderson" came to be.. not counting the local Cherokee population, "Red Banks" only had 62 free male inhabitants. By October 29th, 1799, after "Henderson" was created -- a census for the city reported a population of 183. The county as a whole had 423 residents, 207 slaves, and 412 horses. 

A post office was officially put in place in Henderson in 1801. Our zip code today is 42420 -- but a lot of downtown businesses and P.O. boxes use zip code 42419. Henderson continued to expand and by the mid-1850's, Henderson had grown to be the largest producer of tobacco in the world, most of it being exported to Great Britain at the time. 

At the beginning of the 1900's, Henderson was said to have had more millionaires per capita than any other city in the world. Tobacco was still booming... until the First World War. Great Britain implemented such a high tax on tobacco that it drove the business out in this area for good. Local farmers, even today, still grow a little tobacco but.. it'll never be the craze that it was from the mid 1850's to pre-First World War. 

In the 1920's, 1930's, and 1940's, Henderson garnered attention and was referred to as "Little Chicago" because of how much illegal gambling in nightclubs happened here. In the 1950's and 1960's, they began to clean up the town considerably and nightclubs became a thing of the past. 

Samuel Hopkins resided out towards the "Graham Hill" area of Henderson County, just outside of Henderson city limits, and is buried in his family cemetery there. His residence was known as "Spring Garden." The young daughter of naturalist, John James Audubon, is said to be buried there as well. 

Yes, Henderson garners most of its fame for being home to John James Audubon for the early part of the 1800's. Audubon owned a grist mill right on the Ohio River in downtown Henderson and today that area is known as "Audubon Mill Park." We are home to the John James Audubon State Park and Museum on the north end of town. 

Henderson was also home to famous blues musician W.C. Handy for much of his life -- so we celebrate him and his legacy with the W.C. Handy Blues Festival every June in Audubon Mill Park. Another famous musician, "Grandpa" Jones, a banjo player who made it big on such shows as Hee-Haw was born in Henderson County, in "Niagara" to be exact; a little community just south-east of the city proper. 

During the Civil War, Adam "Stovepipe" Johnson, a Henderson native, rose to fame for taking Newburgh, Indiana for the Confederacy with a "stovepipe" he fashioned to look like a cannon. He took Newburgh on a literal bluff. 

During WW2, most notably the Pearl Harbor disaster -- the man who got a lot of the blame unjustly placed on him, Admiral Husband E. Kimmel, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, was born and raised here. The Kimmel Homestead was roughly between 5th and 6th Streets off of Green Street (our main thoroughfare through town.) 

We've been home to a few congressmen, senators, and the like. John Young Brown, A.B. "Happy" Chandler, James Franklin Clay, John Lloyd Dorsey Jr, Lazarus Whitehead Powell, Augustus Owsley Stanley, to name a few. 

We've had a few authors come out of our area like Debbie Dadey, Lucy Furman, Joey Goebel, Maralea Arnett, and more. 

Henderson is home to Metzger's Tavern, which proudly holds the title of the oldest continuously operating tavern in the entire state of Kentucky -- opening in 1887.

Henderson is situated on the Green River as well -- or at least, part of the county is. Green River meets up with the Ohio in what is known as the "Scuffletown Bottoms" very near communities such as Spottsville and Beals. It runs down through our county coming into contact with communities like Hebbardsville, Bluff City, and Niagara. The Green River, in part of the county, is the "divide" between Henderson County and McLean County. The Ohio River is the divide between Kentucky and Indiana. 

Henderson is also famous for being where Mother's Day was first celebrated in 1887. Mary Towles Sasseen isn't officially credited as the originator of Mother's Day -- no, the honor was stolen out from under her by a woman named Ann Jarvis. Sasseen was a schoolteacher here in Henderson County and it is recorded that she put together a Mother's Day program for her students as early as 1887. Her cousin, Susan Towles, was one of Henderson's most prestigious librarians. The Towles family was quite affluent in the area. 

Spottsville is home to one of only two revolving train bridges left operating in the world. 

Our "town square" which is called "Central Park" and is home to our county courthouse -- Central Park is the oldest park west of the Alleghany mountains. The park used to be home to the county jail and was even once the public lynching area. 

Henderson has many cemeteries with many notable and prominent people buried in them. I could write a different blog sometime about all of them. I could probably go on for hours about random facts about Henderson - like it being home to Ellis Park which was built in 1922, of course it's gone through a few name changes since then. 

I could also write a whole blog about all the schools in our area and the changes they've gone through since 1797. Same with the churches in the community, and all the little towns throughout the county. They all have their own interesting histories. 

I think I've given you quite a good glimpse at Henderson's history and how it came to be and what all makes Henderson special. Now I need to get down to the genealogical aspect of why Henderson is my favorite place ancestrally. 

My paternal side isn't from the Henderson area -- but my maternal side is. By the 1810 census, my 5x Grandparents -- Bennett Sandefur and Judith Bilbo had come to Henderson County, Kentucky. By 1813, my 5x Grandparents married here -- Thomas Watson and Rebecca Copeland. By 1812, another set of my 5x Grandparents married here -- Joshua Moss and Sarah Adkins "Sallie" Griffin. 

Some more of my early ancestors was my 4x Grandmother Joshua Jarrett who died here in 1849. My 5x Grandparents, Joel Gregory & Nancy Lester were here by the mid 1830's. Nancy died here in 1835 and Joel remarried in 1836. 

My 5x Grandparents, Daniel Hazelwood Jr and Susannah Smith were here by the mid 1830's.. Daniel dying here in 1836. My 5x Grandfather Hiram McDonald came here by 1825 from New York and married a local woman, Susan Hust; my 5x Grandmother. 

My 3x Grandfather, Ben LaRue, came here by the 1860's and married Mary Philapine Lawrey in 1867 - my 3x Grandmother. Her parents, Robert Lawrey & Elizabeth Hill were here by the 1860 census.

Of course, I've written about him several times before -- my 6x Grandfather Joel Gibson and his sons were in the Henderson County area between 1810 and 1820. I believe they arrived in 1813 to be exact. My 5x Grandparents married here in 1813 -- William L. Busby and Elizabeth Denton. 

The rest of my lines -- Blanford, Nally, Thompson, etc.. They're Catholic. They came to the Union County area, first, as part of a Catholic migration from Eastern Kentucky (the Nelson, Washington, Hardin county areas.) They're newer to Henderson County than the previously mentioned lines. 

My direct ancestors do have same family graveyards throughout the county. Joshua Moss and his wife are buried in one Moss Cemetery in the Niagara area and then my 4x Grandparents are buried in what's called the "W.J. Moss Family Cemetery" in Niagara. His name was William Jackson Moss. 

Daniel Hazelwood and his progeny are buried in the Hazelwood Family Cemetery out towards Hebbardsville. Of course, the Gibson Family Cemetery's (two of them) in Corydon where the Gibson Plantation was located right off of J. Gibson (named for Joel, I believe) Road.

Elizabeth (Denton) Busby is buried here in Talbott Cemetery in Robards. The rest of my lines are buried in either city cemeteries, church graveyards, or their graves are lost to time, sadly. A lot of my ancestors, even if I know where they're buried.. they no longer have tombstones or at least, not legible ones. 

My roots being here in Henderson County since 1810 -- it's no wonder that I love my hometown and really have no desire to leave here. A lot of my friends think I'm crazy for not wanting to escape this "hell hole" as some call it. The people here can sometimes be... urgh. I can say that, I'm related to everyone here, haha. But this place is so beautiful and has such a vast, rich history that.. I can't imagine ever leaving it. 

I wish there was a Pioneer Society of Henderson County. I'd love to join something such as that. I know we have a local Daughters of the American Revolution chapter, which I could absolutely join through Joel Gibson, but.. my family helped build this town into what it is today. I wish they could be recognized for their efforts. 

In some of the history books talking about Robards, it does mention my 5x Grandfather, Bennett Sandefur, as helping found the town along with Reuben Moss, my 4x Grandfather's brother. Jordan Moss, my 1st cousin 6x removed is also listed. Others like George Robards, George Eakins, Enoch Spencer, Thomas Rideout, Ben Wall, Nathan Smith, T.W. Royster, James McMullin, and Samuel McMullin Sr are also credited and I'm related to them as well.

George Robards was the husband of my 1st cousin 6x removed, Martha Moss. George Eakins was the husband of my 3rd cousin 8x removed, Sarah Elizabeth Melton. Enoch Spencer was the husband of my 1st cousin 6x removed, Abigail Denton. Thomas Rideout was the father-in-law of my 2nd cousin 5x removed, Martha Jane McAndrew. 

Benjamin "Ben" Wall was the husband of my 1st cousin 6x removed, Mary Sandefur Bugg. Nathan Smith was the grandfather of the husband of my 3rd cousin 4x removed, Mary Frances Wall. T.W. Royster (Thomas Wilkins Royster) was the father-in-law of my 2nd cousin 5x removed, Tabitha Jane Spencer. 

James McMullin was the father-in-law of my 3rd cousin 4x removed, Mary Emily Robards. Samuel McMullin Sr was the grandfather of the wife of my 3rd cousin 4x removed, Socrates Brackett. 

So when I tell you I'm related to everyone from Henderson County, Kentucky... I'm really not joking. My Ancestry tree is up to 94,719 people and it grows by at least a hundred people every couple of days. Before I started up my genealogy business in November of 2016, starting in 2011, I was on a personal mission to figure out how I was related to every single person buried in Henderson County. I started with the smaller family cemeteries and I just about had them all finished. I'd say, realistically, I got about 45% of the way done when I started up my genealogy business and no longer had time to compile my extensive research on each and every cemetery in the county (about four binders full so far.) 

I got a bit windier with this blog post than I intended, but I'm glad to have introduced you to Henderson, Kentucky, the place I'm extremely happy to call home. I'm very happy that my roots go as far back into the history of this great place as they do. I'll have to go much more in depth about some of the stuff I touched on in this blog at some point in the future. Maybe there will be a good topic sometime soon that some of this stuff will fit. :) 

Thank you for reading. If you enjoy my writing, please follow my blog, it would mean a lot to me!

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 16: DNA

 

Charles Clarence LaRue was born on June 8th, 1883, in Henderson County, Kentucky, to Benjamin Hardin LaRue and Mary Philapine Lawrey. 

Carrie Annie Byrd was born on October 28th, 1884, in Henderson County, Kentucky, to John Byrd and Maria Moore. 

They were married on April 27th, 1904, in Henderson County, Kentucky. 

Together, they reared eleven children -- with three of them dying as young children. Through those eight children that lived to adulthood and had children of their own, they became the Grandparents of at least 63 grandchildren. I'm not even going to sit here tonight and try to count how many great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and now even great-great-great-Grandchildren that this wonderful couple has. 

Carrie was the first to pass on June 29th, 1955, at the age of 70; leaving Charles, or "Charlie" as he was known throughout the community, a widower. A few years later, he would re-marry to the double (or perhaps triple) widow and once divorced: Sarah Jane (Beck) Hallmark Roberts Wise Staser. 

"Miss Sarah" or "Miss Staser" as her step-children and step-Grandchildren called her - was born Sarah Jane Beck on October 9th, 1887, in Henderson County, Kentucky. She was the daughter of John P. Beck and Alice Logsdon. Her first cousin, Thomas Jesse Beck, married Charles LaRue's sister -- Laura Pearl LaRue. 

"Miss Sarah" married first to John Luta Hallmark on November 14th, 1903, in Posey County, Indiana. After having a passel of children, they divorced sometime around 1917-1918 and then she married a Roberts. I'm unsure what the first name of the Roberts man was...but he must have died shortly after their marriage. Sarah "Roberts" married again on August 17tth, 1921, in Posey County, Indiana, to Martin Van Buren Wise. He, too, died very shortly afterward. By late 1922 or early 1923, she married George Charles Staser, who he remained married to until his death in 1950. 

Miss Sarah, too, passed away before Charles on February 26th, 1976; leaving him a now double widower. Charles "Dad" LaRue eventually passed away himself on November 20th, 1980, at the age of 97.

Growing up, I've heard stories not just from my Grandpa Jady but from my Mom as well. Dad LaRue was quite a character from what I gather. He loved a good joke, a hard-to-solve puzzle or riddle, and could pull off a decent prank every now and again. Charlie loved to use his mind and apparently was interested in his family tree. An interest that he apparently passed down to several of his descendants, including myself. 

That finally brings me to why I'm writing about my Great-Great-Grandparents, Charles and Carrie (Byrd) LaRue for the topic of "DNA." 

I've tested through Ancestry and 23andme, uploaded for free to My Heritage, Family Tree DNA, GEDMatch, and Living DNA. There are LaRue/Byrd descendants on Ancestry, 23andme, My Heritage, and ftDNA. Counting up (so far) all of the descendants, including myself and my Mom, who have DNA tested... the number has come out to 39. 

39 descendants of Dad LaRue and Carrie Byrd have done their DNA on one (or more) website(s). I wonder what this couple would think of that today. I wonder what Dad LaRue would think about having all the descendants that he does. He apparently didn't realize he had half as big of a family as what he did. 

Charlie's father, Benjamin Hardin "Ben" LaRue was born in December of 1844, likely in Hardin County, Kentucky, to Josiah "Si" LaRue and Mary Castleman. He was one of at least eleven children. His parents, though, I believe died by the time Ben turned 10 or so years old.. How and why Ben LaRue ended up in Henderson County is a mystery to me... perhaps he came with relatives. Perhaps he came on his own. Perhaps he followed a Church congregation... I'm really unsure. But we know by September 3rd, 1867, Ben is living in Henderson County, as he married his wife, Mary Philapine Lawrey, here on that date. 

Growing up -- Ben told his children nothing of his parents or siblings -- or at least, not much. In the 1970's, Charlie's daughter, Lorene (my great-grandmother) wrote into a local newspaper for help finding family of Ben LaRue at the behest of her father. I believe she had some answers because my Mom remembers a road trip that she took, during the mid 1980's (after Charlie's death, unfortunately), with her parents and Grandparents, to go out west. Somewhere in Kansas, my Great-Grandma Lorene met some of her LaRue cousins. Most likely, they came through one of Ben LaRue's brothers. 

Today, I have a very good idea of what happened to almost all of Ben LaRue's siblings. His parents definitely disappear between the 1850-1860 census years.. so I believe they both died. Perhaps of an epidemic? Cholera perhaps?

Ben's brother's Samuel & Jim married the Burdine sisters and headed west for Arkansas.

Their brother, William, jumped around between Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas after marrying a Burnett.

Their brother, Jacob, married three different times (two times to a couple Petty's) out in Kansas.

 It appears their brother, Squire, stayed in the Hardin County, KY, area and married a Stopher (Stofer) woman.

Their brother, David, also married a Petty girl and moved to Kansas. 

Their sister, Sarah, I believe died in 1864 -- likely buried in Hardin County, Kentucky. 

Thomas married a Talbot and moved to Kansas and apparently had nothing but a slew of daughters -- so I don't believe any of them passed on the LaRue name. 

Elizabeth, only appearing in the 1850 census and being 2 years old.. probably died around the same time her parents, Josiah and Mary, did. 

Lastly, Lydia, married a Burdine (brother to the Burdine sisters) and stayed in the Hardin County area. 

If there were any more children of Josiah and Mary between 1850 census taking and their deaths... I've never found them. Only the married children have I been able to find in an 1860 census. Even my 3x Grandfather, Ben LaRue, I cannot find in an 1860 census. I ponder if the youngest LaRue children (those under 18 and unwed at the time of their parents deaths) were placed in an orphanage or something similar. Perhaps this could be why Ben was apprehensive and reluctant to tell his children about any of his siblings or his parents. 

Ben LaRue is a widower by the time of the 1900 census -- his wife, Mary, likely dying in the 1890's. Ben, too, died by January 1st, 1901. I've heard that he and Mary are buried, unmarked, in the Smith Mills Cemetery. Dad LaRue, Carrie, and some of their children reside in Smith Mills Cemetery, too. 

For the last portion of this "DNA" topic -- I'm going to show you just how differently you and a parent can match the same person. DNA is such a random inheritance. You can match siblings of one another at completely different levels! For sake of privacy, I will be using initials only because all of these DNA matches are still living. Some of these cousins have only tested at 23andme, and so far, my Mom hasn't used her 23andme kit yet, so I don't know her cM numbers for those matches so I'll only be reporting my cM values for those. I will be separating these matches as to which child of Dad LaRue and Carrie Byrd that they descend from, starting off with the one I descend from. 

Verna Lorene LaRue, my Great-Grandmother
October 9th, 1914 / May 8th, 1991
Married Richard Jerome Blanford on July 11th, 1931
Mother of 13 children, only 8 of which had children of their own. Grandmother of 29. I couldn't begin to count up how many great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren Lorene and Dick have.

First and foremost, me and my Mom share 3,443 cM with each other. A number that high will always be a parent/child relationship unless you are an identical twin or you've accidentally done your DNA two times and then of course, you'll match yourself as "Self/Twin". 

D. B. -- Great-grandson of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 1st cousin -- 1,228cM
My 1st cousin 1x removed -- 565 cM

W. B. -- Great-grandson
Mom's 1st cousin --
My 1st cousin 1x removed -- 537 cM

L. C. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 651 cM
My 2nd cousin -- 331 cM

L. I. -- 2x Grandson
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 638 cM
My 2nd cousin -- 326 cM

S. H. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 660 cM
My 2nd cousin -- 291 cM

S. B. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 654 cM
My 2nd cousin -- 283 cM

L. H. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 455 cM
My 2nd cousin -- 248 cM

T. B. -- 3x Granddaughter 
Mom's 1st cousin 2x removed -- 108 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 37 cM

Opal Lois LaRue 
March 22nd, 1922 / August 27th, 2006
Married Thomas Allen "Tom" Blanford on June 22nd, 1940
Mother of 14 children, Grandmother of at least 29 (There's a few of Opal & Tom's kids that I don't believe have ever been married or had children). 

These cousins would be DOUBLE cousins for those of us who are descended from Lorene & Richard. Why? Because Lorene & Opal are sisters -- Richard & Thomas were brothers. 

D. C. -- Granddaughter of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's double 1st cousin 1x removed -- 1,067 cM
My double 1st cousin 2x removed -- 470 cM

J. C. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's double 2nd cousin -- 483 cM
My double 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 265 cM

A. J. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's double 2nd cousin 1x removed --
My double 3rd cousin -- 191 cM

M. B. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's double 2nd cousin 1x removed --
My double 3rd cousin -- 103 cM

Bonnie Wyonia LaRue
March 25th, 1916 / March 19th, 2002
Married Martin Albert Ganno on April 21st, 1934.
Mother of 11 children, Grandmother of at least 30.

D. G. -- Grandson of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 622 cM
My 1st cousin 2x removed -- 404 cM

B. B. -- Granddaughter
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 686 cM
My 1st cousin 2x removed -- 390 cM

J. B. -- Great-grandson
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 418 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 253 cM

K. G. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 295 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 172 cM

J. B. -- 2x Grandson
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 254 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 108 cM

A. B. -- 2x Grandson 
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 190 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 71 cM

S. P. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 141 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 33 cM

D. T. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 211 cM

T. M. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed --
My 3rd cousin -- 82 cM

Woodrow Wilson "Woody" LaRue
November 2nd, 1912 / November 11th, 1974
Married Mary Myrtle Culver on June 29th, 1930
Father of 9 children, grandfather of at least 26. 

R. L. -- Grandson of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 582 cM
My 1st cousin 2x removed -- 318 cM

T. B. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 395 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 213 cM 

T. J. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 293 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 171 cM

M. B. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 207 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 112 cM

K. F. -- 2x Grandson
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 136 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 60 cM

G. Z -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 768 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 426 cM

Ann Bessie Louise LaRue
August 20th, 1918 / January 10th, 2008
Married Joseph Willard Buckman on October 3rd, 1940
Mother of 6, Grandmother of 21

J. B. -- Grandson of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 1st cousin 1x removed -- 588 cM
My 1st cousin 2x removed -- 419 cM

H. C. -- 2x Grandson 
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 168 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 116 cM

K. C. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 116 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 98 cM

H. C. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 212 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 76 cM

A. C. -- Great-granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin --
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 215 cM

Shelby Clark LaRue
June 19th, 1905 / August 11th, 1979
Married Amie Lelia Blades on December 6th, 1940
Legal father of 3 children, and 1 child I discovered he had before he married through DNA testing; Grandfather of 6, +2 more if you count the grandchildren through the child he didn't know about. 

A. Y. -- Great-grandson of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 303 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 159 cM

A. E. -- 2x Grandson
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 240 cM
My 3rd cousin -- 58 cM

S. W. -- 2x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 1x removed --
My 3rd cousin -- 86 cM

Rosa Lee LaRue
December 31st, 1909 / January 19th, 1988
Married first to Benona Houston Alstadt Sr, second to Ray Alvin Miles.
Mother of 2 children (one by each husband), Grandmother of 3. 

C. A. -- Great-granddaughter of Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd
Mom's 2nd cousin -- 248 cM
My 2nd cousin 1x removed -- 148 cM

D. D. -- 3x Granddaughter
Mom's 2nd cousin 2x removed -- 29 cM
My 3rd cousin 1x removed -- 17 cM

And then surprisingly... no descendants of Uncle Jimmy have tested, yet. 

James Alma "Jimmy" LaRue
March 22nd, 1924 / December 25th, 1988
Married Sue Catherine Mills.
Father of 4 children, Grandfather of at least 8.

I'm incredibly surprised no one from his line have tested yet.. or if they have, I haven't run across them yet (ruh-roh!) 

By the number of grandchildren I counted up... Dad LaRue & Carrie Byrd should roughly have 154 great-grandchildren. I would go out on a limb to say that it isn't impossible to say that Dad & Carrie might have anywhere from 250-300 2x Grandchildren (myself being one of them.) That number is absolutely astonishing to me. Mind boggling. Perplexing. Astounding. I would love to see the look on Charles & Carrie's faces, today, in 2021 if I were to tell them they possibly had 154 great-grandkids and as many as 300 great-great-grandchildren. I bet they'd be bewildered.

I'll wrap this blog up with a thank you for reading through all of this, and thank you to all of my LaRue/Byrd cousins for DNA testing at the various websites available. It makes this genealogist cousin of yours extremely happy! Please urge our other cousins to test if they possibly can, and if any of you need any help with your tests or test results... send me a message on my Facebook! 

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 15: Brickwall

 

The topic for week fifteen is "brickwall," and for me there's nothing better to write about than Brickwall Cemetery. This cemetery is a "hidden gem," if you will, located out in the Beals, Henderson County, Kentucky area. As far as what we've been told, it's on "Beasley property." We knocked on the door of the house and nobody answered -- so we left a note on the door with our numbers, letting them know we were going to go back and check out the cemetery, that if they had any problems or questions, to just call our cell phones. No one ever contacted us. 

It's located about 3/4 mile off of Highway 811 - off the right side of the road if you're heading down 811. If you're heading back towards US 60, it would be on the left side of the road. It seems like there's a "farm road" that leads you back there, kind of.. where they probably take the combines in and out of the field. It's definitely something I wouldn't drive back to, unless you're on a four-wheeler. I would honestly walk it, if I were you. 

This is a GPS pinpoint that I put onto Find-a-Grave when we went out to the cemetery in August of 2014. I'd like to get out there again because honestly, middle of August wasn't the best time to go. The leaves were thick and hid a lot of tombstones, I have no doubt. Plus, I didn't know about the method of prodding for tombstones beneath the ground (that might be buried by dirt and hidden from view) that I know about now. 

Here is another map showing you the roads that are nearby. Highway 811 is what it's technically "off" of but Highland Rd is very near. Across 811 is "Ohio River Rd #2" and Cheatham Rd runs between 811 and Highland "behind" the cemetery if you will.  

As far as I can tell, Brickwall was started in the 1830's to early 1840's. It served the community of Beals and whatever other small "river communities" that are close by such as Scuffletown, Vanada, etc. Supposedly, the cemetery got its name because of the brick walls that surrounded the cemetery. When we went out there in 2014, you could still see remnants of the original entrance to the cemetery and all the bricks laying around. 

I was told in an e-mail years ago, I forget who from now, that back in the possibly 1920's or 1930's (I forget which decade.. don't shoot me, I'm just the messenger) that hogs, I'm guessing wild hogs, got into the cemetery and rooted up a lot of the bones, scattering them about. They said that the hogs destroyed quite a many tombstones, too. 

From what I can tell, the earliest tombstone that can be made out is for Robert McCormick. Robert was born in abt 1801 and died March 20th, 1842. His tombstone says he was 41 years of age. 

From my genealogical records, Robert McCormick was the son of George Elliot McCormick (1771-1849) and Jane Steele (1774-1843). Robert was the husband of Nancy Griffin. I believe they were married about 1829 in probably Henderson County, Kentucky. I've found them in the 1830 census and they haven't bore a child yet. Their first born was Carneal Boone McCormick (1831-1904.) By 1840, it appears they have another son and a daughter.. I believe the son is a Fenwick McCormick, born 1834. Not sure who the daughter was. It is possible that Nancy (Griffin) McCormick and the other McCormick children are in Brickwall Cemetery, too, just with lost tombstones. 

The newest death I was able to find in the cemetery was that of Cordelia J. Meredith, young daughter of Lonnie Meredith and Cordie Price. She was born September 30th, 1936, and died October 6th, 1936. No tombstone was found for Cordelia but her death certificate states a burial in Brickwall. 

The newest tombstone seems to be a new tombstone erected for the Beasley family. Emma Smith was the daughter of Wiliam Smith and Polly Wells. She was born June 26th, 1854, and passed on May 16th, 1918. She married David Morris Beasley sometime between 1880-1883. He died sometime between 1893-1900 and is probably buried in Brickwall Cemetery, too. 

Emma shares a new tombstone with her grandchildren: Walter, September 8th 1908 -- September 12th, 1908; Johnie O, August 8th, 1909 -- October 29th, 1910; and Edgar M, February 24th, 1914 -- April 9th, 1914. They were children of William Ambrose Beasley and his wife, Susie Ann Morris. 

Other last names buried in this cemetery include: Allen, Babin Barger, Billings, Bolen, Bugg, Burd, Chaney, Dixon, Everett, Folden, Gildersleeve, Goldsberry, Gray, Greathouse, Hardin, Hill, Holmes, Horn, Hust, Lacer, LeGrand, Ligon, Masterson, McCallister, McDonald, McLean, Oldham, Parker, Purcell, Robinson, Scales, Shelby, Skaggs, Smith, Strange, Thompson, Wait, Weddle, White, Williams, and Yates.

There appears to be one Civil War tombstone in the cemetery -- Stephen "Steve" Gildersleeve. He was born October 15th, 1847, in Butler County, Kentucky. It appears he married Milly Phelps in Butler County, KY, in 1865. He enlisted on August 12th, 1862, and by November 17th, 1862, he was assigned to the 12th Kentucky Cavalry. He was on the Union Side. He mustered out on August 23rd, 1865. According to his application for a tombstone -- he died November 30th, 1901, in Spottsville, Kentucky. It appears that Steve was the son of Joel Gildersleeve from New York and Elizabeth McDonald from Ohio. By 1870, the family lived in Union County, KY, but then moved on over to Henderson County by 1880. Their daughter, Annie, married a Billings and some of their infant children are buried in Brickwall. 

Without a doubt as of 2014 -- the cemetery was in major disrepair. It desperately needed cleaning.. old tombstones needed cleaning and fixing. Trees needed to be downed and brush needed to be removed.. I can only hope a lot of descendants can gather together in the coming time and fix up the cemetery. There's a lot of history in it, a lot of ancestors that probably half of Henderson are descended from but they don't even know it.. It's always so sad to see a cemetery fall into this shape. They farm all of the land around it, so I guess it's a blessing that the cemetery hasn't been removed completely (yet). 

If you're a descendant or a relative of any of these families and you're ever in the Beals, KY, area... try and stop by. I'm sure it'll be worth your visit. If it's summer time though, be sure you wear your hiking clothing and spray down REAL GOOD with spray to combat the ticks and mosquitos! 

Ancestry auto-transcription fails.. and why it's imperative to sometimes misspell words when looking for people...*gasp*... ON PURPOSE!

Over the years, Ancestry's auto-transcription service nuts me up time and time again. I thought I'd share some of the best ones. 

Just looking at my 2x Grandfather, Charles Clarence LaRue... 

In the 1900 census -- he's Charlie Laver. In the 1910 census -- he's C.C. Larne. In the 1920 census -- he's C.C. Lam. In the 1930 census -- he's Charles Farne. In the 1940 census -- Charles C. Sarne. 

Sam and Camilla (Nally) Thompson in the 1930 census are Sam and Camilia Thompas. 
Some of my "Moss" ancestors have been transcribed under "Mass." A lot of my "Thompson" ancestors are "Tompas" or "Thompas" or even just "Thomas." 

"Mefford" has been "Medford," "Mafford," "Mefferd," and even more. I would be here all day listing those misspellings. 

Most recently, in the 1920 census in the Corydon area of Henderson County -- I found James Willingham, nothing unusual about that. Until you look at what road he lives on. "Allisonwood Saleesh Road." There isn't ANYTHING remotely close to being named that in Corydon, KY. Not in 1920 or 2020. So I go to the actual document.... sure enough, "Diamond Island Road." 

A year ago, I was looking for Thomas Wilkerson in the 1870 census -- the last name had been transcribed as WICKERSON. That took me two days of digging for him in that 1870 census to finally find it!

Earlier this year, I was trying my hardest to find a death certificate for Granville T. Sinkhorn. I finally FINALLY finally found it... Henderson T. Linkhorn is what I found it under. Granville T Sinkhorn had turned into Henderson T. Linkhorn according to Ancestry. *facepalm*

Last year, I was looking for Jacob Councilman in the 1850 census. I finally found him under Jacob Cowisilam. Somebody had even went in and edited it to where it's "Supposed to say "Cocklereece". Well that's wrong TOO! 

I had been looking for Samuel Melton -- a name you'd think couldn't get misspelled-- for days in the 1880 census for either Union or Webster County, Kentucky.. Finally after days of searching, I used the wild card method, searching for Samuel M*l*o*. Sure enough... found him under Samuel MELLON!

The moral of me posting this was to let y'all know that sometimes you've absolutely got to get creative in spelling your ancestors first name and surname REALLY WRONG to come across the correct results. Sometimes it just isn't as easy as typing in "John Smith" and finding your John Smith. Maybe your John Smith is under "Jno Smyth" or something crazier. 

52 Ancestors 2021: Week 14: Great

I've been a week or so behind in the topics for 52 Ancestors, so I clicked on the prompt for Week 14 and it was the word, "Great." I'm sitting there thinking... GREAT. What in the world do I write for that? I scrolled to the bottom of the page and noticed that Barb LaFara decided to write about her Great Aunts and Great Uncles! That's a great idea!!

And then I sat here and counted.... I have 33. I have 33 Great-Aunts and Great-Uncles, not including the spouses. *inserts face-palm emoji here, if I were able to...* This might take a little while. 

My Granddad, Glen Mefford, was one of eleven children. My Grandma, Mina (Jones) Hendrix Mefford was one of seven children. My Grandpa, Jady Blanford, was one of thirteen children. Lastly, my Grandma Glynda, was one of six children. 

Let's start with... 

The Mefford's

1) Billie Mefford; November 28th, 1927 -- March 27th, 1931

2) Mary Ellen Mefford; December 11th, 1929 -- July 21st, 2009. Married at least four times and had a son with three of them.. her first son being a Fleming, second son being a Mason, and third son being a Confrey. My Great-Aunt Mary is who helped me get started with my Mefford genealogy. She wasn't able to help me, honestly, with the Bastin's, but she was who told me about her parents -- Clint & Edith, her Grandparents -- French & Lillie, and her Great-Grandparents, Phylander & Lucy. 

3) Barbara Ray Mefford; June 2nd, 1933 (still living). I think I've met her one time at Aunt Mary's funeral, but she lives in Chicago and is married to a Palmer. She wasn't able to come to my Granddad's funeral.. distance, COVID, and bad health. 

4) Ima Jean Mefford; January 14th, 1936 -- August 21st, 2013. Married at least three times -- to a Summers, Durbin, and Atzinger. Her children are with the Summers marriage. 

5) This would be my Granddad Glen's place in the birth order. 

6) Clinton "Clint" Mefford Jr; June 29th, 1940 -- February 1st, 1941. 

7) Wanda Lee Mefford; December 4th, 1942 -- January 1st, 1943.

8) Owen Lee Mefford; April 22nd, 1944 (still living). Uncle Owen is married to Carol Fulkerson and I'm glad to say they're both interested in their family tree and family history. I'm really glad to know them!

9) Vernon Lee Mefford; September 18th, 1946 (still living). Uncle Vernon lives up towards Indianapolis, so I've only met him a number of times. He's quite a character. I think he's been married a couple different times, unsure if he's currently wed or not. He runs the business "Swings by Mefford." I believe he's made a porch swing for former President Bush (I think the younger President Bush, not Sr.) and for John Mellencamp. 

10) Michael Wayne Mefford; December 28th, 1949 (still living). Uncle Mike is our money man.. he's worked for Hilliard Lyons in the past and knows his stuff about the stock market and whatnot. He's married and unfortunately lost a son back in 2019. I never had the chance to meet his son. 

11) Sharon Ann Mefford; May 5th, 1953 (still living). Aunt Sharon is married to a Topmiller and they reside in Central City. She's also very interested in the family tree and our family history. I've been able to get some great photographs of the family from her over the years. 

The Joneses

1) My Grandma, Mina's place in the birth order. She was the oldest. She also died first. :( 

2) Joseph Edward "Pete" Jones; I'm actually uncertain of Uncle Pete's exact birth date, but it was in 1937.. and I'm not sure when he died exactly, either. It was sometime in the mid 1980's, I believe. He had been married to a woman with the last name of Cox.. sadly all of his children were adopted by their step-father with the last name of Little. I don't think any of his children had anything much to do with him. Heck, his youngest kids may never even have met him for all I know. 

3) Hubert Lee "Tony" Jones; January 5th, 1940 -- July 14th, 2016. Don't you dare ever call Uncle Tony by the name "Hubert," he apparently hated it. He married two times -- his kids being by his first wife, a Wilson. His widow was maidenly a Garland. We're pretty close to a couple of his kids - especially cousin Tommy. He's right in between my Mom and Dad's age and they get on with him great. He's also very interested in his family history. 

4) Dorothy Jean Jones; July 11th, 1943 -- December 3rd, 2007. She married first to a Barber and then to a Wilson. Sadly, her son, Ronnie, passed away in February of last year and it was very hard on my Dad. They grew up together and were close in age. Aunt Dorothy was the closest thing to a "Mom" that Dad had after Grandma Mina passed, or at least, he thought of her like a Mother. 

5) Marilyn Jones; August 1st, 1945 -- March 12th, 2016. I had only met my Aunt Marilyn once when I was a little kid, but we reconnected on Facebook. I really really loved her. I wish I could have gotten to know her better and visit with her before she passed away. She had been married to a Boin and had a couple daughters. I'm good friends with one of the daughters -- we connected over our love of spooky stuff! She, too, is very interested in her family history. 

6) Brenda Jones; October 19th, 1950 (still living). She married a Wilson and had a couple kids. They moved down to Georgia a handful of years back. She's always been very interested in our family history as well. Sadly, I've made some revelations with our DNA that not everyone in the family likes. 

7) Wilma Sue "Susie" Jones; January 17th, 1954 -- July 30th, 2010. The youngest and might I say the wildest child of my Great-Grandparents Doc & Lorene. Aunt Susie married a Morgan and had a couple kids with him. In fact, her niece (my half-Aunt, Debbie) married the Morgan's brother and had kids with him. Susie & Debbie were very close in age. 

The Blanford's

1) Stillborn baby girl Blanford; December 14th, 1931. I had grown up hearing about the first little baby being a girl.. and my Grandpa said she'd been buried in a shoebox, beneath a tree, in the Smith Mills Cemetery. I finally ordered off for a birth/death certificate for the baby in 2014. The stillbirth certificate says the mother, Lorene, was about six months with the child. The doctor was unsure what caused the miscarriage. It's possible it was because it was her very first pregnancy. 

2) Charles Richard Blanford; May 20th, 1933 (still living). Uncle Charles is a retired college professor.. he's taught a little bit of everything. The last teaching job he had, he taught the GED program at our community college. It's safe to say that absolutely everyone knows him. EVERYONE. He's absolutely the smartest man I've ever met walking this Earth. He's never married, and never had any children... but he's been to Woodstock. How about that. He's very interested in our family history and helped me with most of my beginning information about the Blanford's and LaRue's. 

3) Kenneth Eugene Blanford; November 21st, 1934 -- September 20th, 1993. Married JoAnn Williams and had a couple children, one of which, the eldest, Marcy, was very interested in her family history. Sadly, she passed away in 2018. Kenneth and JoAnn were very close to Grandpa Jady and my Grandma Glynda. Grandma thought of JoAnn as one of her blood sisters, honestly. It's through JoAnn that I'm related to my best friend who's also a genealogist, Jessica Williams. 

4) This would be my Grandpa Jady's place in the birth order. 

5) Jerry Lee Blanford; March 29th, 1938 -- January 12th, 2008. He married a wonderful woman named Lottie Stone and had a few kids with her; one of which died tragically in a car accident in 1969. His next wife, after their divorce, was a Coffman. I didn't meet Uncle Jerry but a couple times... I was closer to Aunt Lottie. She would come over and clean my Grandparents house on occasion so therefore I called her, when I was a kid, "Miss Lottie Clean." We're closest to their daughter, Melanie, who reminds me a lot of my Mom.

6) Delores Faye Blanford; April 28th, 1940 (still living). She married Charlie Pippin and they still live out in Geneva. She's also always been interested in the family tree. 

7) Mary Virginia "Ginny" Blanford; August 6th, 1941 (still living). She's married to Larry Sigler. They haven't any children of their own -- but Aunt Ginny has been a mother or Grandmother to many. She's always been super interested in our family tree as well. 

8) Martha Ann "Motts" Blanford; April 21st, 1943 -- September 9th, 2020. Aunt Motts' passing came as a complete and total shock to us. We had just buried my Granddad Glen a few weeks back.. and then suddenly Aunt Motts passed. We still really don't know from what (not COVID.) She was married to Pat Hall and had several kids with him and quite a few of them, and their children, seem interested in our family tree. 

9) John William "Johnny" Blanford; October 23rd, 1944 -- May 18th, 2009. He was married a couple times and had one son. I only met Johnny maybe twice in my entire life and honestly, I don't remember either time. My Mom has told me about them, though. His first wife was a Dickerson, and his widow is a Woodward. 

10) Linda Ruth Blanford; March 9th, 1947 (still living). Her kids were by her first husband, a Tinnell, and now she's married to a McCallister. She lives out of town but still came to visit my Grandparents fairly often. We're closest to her son, Bub, who is Uncle Jay's age. He and Jay were very close friends/cousins. 

11) Infant Blanford; June 16th, 1950. We've never been able to find a birth or death certificate about this baby. Grandpa Jady said he believed the baby was born with the cord around its neck and unfortunately died from that. It was buried, initially, in the back of Saint Louis Cemetery but after Lorene and Dick passed away, it was stated in Dick's will, I think, that he wanted the child exhumed and moved to the front beside of their grave. 

12) Joseph Earl "Jody" Blanford; August 4th, 1951 -- July 15th, 1982. Jody was mentally handicapped -- I'm not sure, but Grandpa might have told me that his handicap was due to the cord being around his neck, too, at birth. Jody wasn't supposed to live much past childhood or early adolescence, but he lived to be 30 years old. If he'd have made it another few weeks, he'd have seen 31. He died just 5 days after my Grandma Mina, the day after her funeral, actually.

13) George Edward Blanford; February 19th, 1953 (still living). He's been married twice -- his first wife, a Morris, and his second, a Pierce. His kids are by his first wife and we're closest with his daughter Marie. She's a lot like my Mama. You can't look at them and mistake them for anything but a Blanford. Uncle George is probably the most like my Grandpa Jady. He loves to joke around and push your buttons. 

The Sandefur's 

1) Carolyn Ann Sandefur; April 8th, 1934 -- July 30th, 1982. She was the same age as my Grandma Mina when she died..and died just a few weeks later. July 1982 saw the death of my Grandma Mina, my Uncle Jody, and my Aunt Carolyn, back to back. Her first husband was a Boatman whom died of a heart attack just two weeks after they were wed. Her next husband was a Jackson and they had three daughters. At least two of which are very interested in their family tree. 

2) Donald Lloyd Sandefur; May 17th, 1936 -- August 3rd, 1994. According to my Mom, he "dropped dead of a heart attack on the tarmac at the airport," pretty much. He was married to a Burns and had two daughters, one of which has done her DNA on 23andme, so she's somewhat interested in genealogy at least. I never met Donald that I'm aware of, as I was born just a year before that. 

3) William J "Buddy" Sandefur; November 5th, 1937 -- September 17th, 1994. Died six weeks after Uncle Donald.. lung cancer I believe. His widow is a Littrell and they had one son together.. and a set of twins, but sadly, the set of twins died at birth. I don't believe I properly met him either.. I was only 18 or so months when he died.

4) My Grandma's place in the birth order. 

5) Phyllis Jean Sandefur; October 25th, 1946 (still living). She's been married at least three times -- her children by her first husband, a Pippin. We're closest to her son, Jimmy... but don't have anything to do with her. When I eventually write the "Grandma was kidnapped and all her money stolen" saga.. you'll understand. 

6) Debra June Sandefur; June 30th, 1955 (still living). Married a Parker and had four boys. Again, because of the Grandma saga... we don't speak to her and none of her kids have anything to do with us now either. Shame how a family falls apart because they believe the abuser over the abused. 

33 Great-Aunts and Great-Uncles... my fingers are killing me after typing all of this, so I think I'll wrap it up. Now you know the Mefford's, Joneses, Blanford's, and Sandefur's. I wish I had family photos of each bunch of kids, but sadly, I don't. If you check in my other blogs, you might find some goodies I've posted in the past, though.