Wednesday, November 30, 2011

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday - Our Cosby Men

My two great uncles, my grandfather2 and
my great-grandfather1 in Richmond, Virginia

(Left to Right) Frank, John, Grayson2, and Andrew1 Cosby
©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Monday, November 28, 2011

Amanuensis Monday – Bob Seeks Employment in America

“An Amanuensis is a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.”

This could include the following: transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some we never met - others we see a time in their life before we knew them.

Here is a letter from Bob (Ward), living in England, to his Uncle William Ward in America. Bob is seeking employment and relocation advice from his uncle.


  [Letter Transcription]
c/o 3 Cumberland Villas
Milton Road
Gravesend,
Feb. 16 - 1913
Dear Uncle William.
   I am writing you to this address with the hope that should you have moved from it the letter will find its way to you.
   I have it in my mind that you are coming over to England this year, am I correct? because if you do, I want to return with you for the States;  please let me know either way.
   Now I’ve made two changes since you were last over  the first was I got a job in London with a firm of Floating Dock Specialists and from them I came to this place which is opposite Tilbury Docks on the Thames I am now an assistant Mechanical Engineer with a Large Cement Combine £7.000.000 Capital   where I’ve been 18 months and I am fed up with the English system of Engineering.  we are too conservative and ____.  I should be glad if you would give me some advice upon the following.
   What district is most suitable _ to make for,?  I mean where is your Mechanical Engineering quarter?
   What salary ought I to expect as say an Engineer’s Designer, I am getting here 55/- per week?
   Would 50£ carry me over and keep me say 3 months in America  supposing I was that time looking for a berth?
   What time of the year is considered best for arriving in the States?
   I shall be extreemly glad if you can give me any guide of help with regard to the numerous questions and I should also be glad if you would indecate on a paper map the district referred to.
   I have no startling news but I believe you are aware of my Fathers condition and position he does not alter much and keeps on in the same poor style from monthe to month.
   Mother seems to me getting older but manages to keep herself occupied but at times naturally gets a little low spirited    the remainder of the family are all in good health and I hope to hear you and all are in best health   our company by the way has several monopolies in the Cement Industry.  recently have erected on Vancouver Island a cement factory which is to commence output this August and they are now contemplating putting a plant in South Africa and they have plenty of Directors sons and nephews ready to do the tripping.
      Wishing you good health and awaiting news.
      Yours Sincerely
      Bob

[Envelope]
Addressed to:
Return to:
Mr. Wm. Ward
   Azusa
      Los Angeles Co
        Cal
U.S.A
Stamped REGISTERED Gravesend  No. 69


©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Surname Saturday - BREWSTER

BREWSTER is an occupational surname for a brewer of beer or ale - something my husband can appreciate as he crafts his home brew.  Of Anglo-Saxon origin, the name was derived from the Olde English pre 7th Century verb 'breowan', meaning to brew, and was in Middle English 'brewere', meaning a brewer.  Until the 13th Century, the name 'Brewster' was the feminine equivalent of 'Brewer', but after that date the term was used equally for male and female brewers.

Our personal name bearer was William BREWSTER of the Mayflower who founded New Plymouth, (New England).

It’s a famous yet humbling family story.  They were outcast pilgrims who made a treacherous journey toward religious freedom, a freedom worthy of sacrifice, then landed on an icy Plymouth beach in December, with no shelter, no provisions, nor promises to greet them. My paternal American family is descended from William BREWSTER, the leader of that band of outcasts.

Elder William BREWSTER, my 11th great-grandfather, came from Scrooby, in north Nottinghamshire on the Mayflower in 1620 and reached what became the Plymouth Colony. He was accompanied by his wife, Mary Brewster, and his sons, Love and Wrestling.  My family line follows his daughter, Patience, who came to America later on the ship Anne in July 1623.  She married Thomas PRENCE on 5 August 1624 in Plymouth.

Memorial Photo from Findagrave

IN MEMORIAM
ELDER WILLIAM BREWSTER
PATRIACH OF THE PILGRIMS
AND THEIR RULING ELDER 1609 – 1644
OUTSTANDING LEADER OF PILGRIM MOVEMENT.
THE FOUNDING OF PLIMOTH PLANTATION
AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF CIVIL AND
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN THE WORLD.
 
B. AT SCROOBY, ENGLAND, CA 1566 7
D. AT PLYMOUTH, N.E. CA APRIL 10, 1644.
A RESIDENT OF PLYMOUTH AND DUXBURY
M. CA 1589 MARY WENTWORTH OF SCROOBY:
B. CA. 1568 9; D. AT PLYMOUTH CA. APRIL 17, 1627
BOTH (MAYFLOWER PASSENGERS) REST
IN UNKNOWN GRAVES IN PLYMOUTH.
POSSIBLY IN OR NEAR BURIAL HILL.
 
ERECTED 1967
THE ELDER WILLIAM BREWSTER SOCIETY

According to the THE ELDERWILLIAM BREWSTER SOCIETY, it is estimated that today there may be as many as 25 million descendants of this little band of Pilgrims that came aboard the Mayflower to the North American shores.


©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Monday, November 21, 2011

Military Monday - Toys for Tots - Chicago 1956

In 1956, my father was stationed in Chicago with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves and was part of the Toys for Tots campaign.  Here in the photo, my father and mother and the mayor and his wife are among the individuals looking on as the young “Tot” joyously receives her gift from Santa.

Toys for Tots - Chicago, IL
(Left) Capt. Frank and Betty Andersen, (Center) "Tot" and Santa, (Right) Mayor Richard J. Daley, and his wife Eleanor
Christmas 1956
Toys for Tots began in 1947 when Diane Hendricks asked her husband, Bill, a major with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves in Los Angeles, to deliver a doll she had made to an agency that gave toys to needy children at Christmas.  But, when he discovered that no such agency existed, Diane encouraged him to start one.  That Christmas, Bill and a group of other Marine Reservists delivered 5,000 toys to needy children.

Their project was so successful that, in 1948, the Marine Corps adopted the Toys for Tots program and expanded it nationwide. 

Bill Hendricks, a Marine Reservist on weekends, was in civilian life, the Director of Public Relations for Warner Brothers Studio.  This enabled him to convince a vast array of celebrities to support Toys for Tots.  In 1948, Walt Disney designed the Toys for Tots logo, which we use today.  

In 1956, Nat "King" Cole, Peggy Lee, and Vic Damone recorded a Toys for Tots theme song written by Sammy Fain and Paul Webster.

In 1995, the Secretary of Defense approved Toys for Tots as an official activity of the U. S. Marine Corps and an official mission of the Marine Corps Reserve. 

Since 1947, Marines have distributed more than 400 million toys to more than 188 million needy children in approximately 500 communities across the United States and Puerto Rico.  The initial objective that remains the hallmark of the Toys for Tots program today is to “bring the joy of Christmas to America’s needy children.”  Without a doubt, the U.S. Marines have held true to that objective.

For more information on this great program, click on Toys for Tots Foundation.

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Church Record Sunday - Peletiah WATSON & Betsy FLETCHER

Here is the record of marriage for Peletiah WATSON and Betsy FLETCHER, my husband’s 3rd great grandparents.  Their union took place on 4 February 1806 in Waterford, Vermont.

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Wordless Wednesday - Playtime in the Kitchen

Betty Lee's Kitchen in the Kitchen
Hanes Avenue, Richmond, Va, abt. 1933

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Tombstone Tuesday - Nathan and Nancy DAVIS, Welton, Iowa

DAVIS Tombstone
Seventh Day Baptist Cemetary, Welton, Iowa

Nathan DAVIS was born 19 December 1822 in Warren County, Ohio.  He married Nancy DOTY, who was born 29 June 1823 in Clark, Indiana.   Nathan died in Welton, Iowa, 9 April 1904 and his wife, Nancy died the following year, 15 December 1905.

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Monday, November 14, 2011

Amanuensis - A Letter from Hannah, March 21, 1904

“An Amanuensis is a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.”

This could include the following:   transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some we never met - others we see a time in their life before we knew them.

A Letter from Hannah in Lee Summit, Mo.
March 21, 1904

Lee Summit
Mo
Monday, March 21/04

Dear Daughter
            I received your letter Saterday I would have written sooner here only once a day when the mailman brings the mail today he will take this letter along as we put the the letters in the box by the roadside as we do not always see him.  Well now I must tell you that we are expecting Earnest here today or tomorrow as they sent him a dispatch to come right away as soon as he could they sent the dispatch Saterday evening this work will be through by the middle of next month they have 2 shovels in running night and day  Effie Dad wants you to ask your Papa if he will Pack that Lubricator Pump in that box with the straw in that is in the trunk room and send it by express as soon as he can and send it by the express co that uses the Rock Island Rd send it to Little Blue in Dads name care of Stubs Flick and Johnson const co.
            Well we called in a Dr and he would not undertake the case as he could not do anythink for me  he said he might as well tell me at first as last he said he could run up a doctors bill but that would be all he could do for me  so Dad is going up to see him and he is going up to see the Dr and he is going to tell him what Dr to take me to in KC and then if I have to go to a specialist he will tell him where to take me to so I do not know what they will do with me that Dr that came here wanted to know if they had used the X ray on me he said he thought it would be a good Idea  I asked him about painting that lump in my neck and he said not to do it well I am tired love to all kisses for Irene from your loving Mother
                                    H Ward
            I hope your Mamma is better
                        Kind regards to the neighbours


I was not sure about the statement, “painting that lump in my neck” until I did a little research.  I believe what Hannah meant was to apply iodine to the lump on her neck. 

Studies had shown that the area around the Great Lakes region had high incident of goiter (swelling of the thyroid in lower neck area).  In the early 1900’s the United States and Canada recognized this problem and had iodine added to the salt supply called “iodized salt.”  Consumption of iodized salt successfully reduced goiter but was not enough to prevent other thyroid problems.

I do not know precisely what happened to Hannah; she may have had a goiter, or it may have been cancer, or something else.  In 1900, Hannah, was in Bohemia Township, Ontonagon, Michigan where her husband and son were employed as stationary engineers.  At the date of this letter, 1904, they were in Lee Summit, Missouri, and the men were operating steam shovels and excavating rock and grading for Stubbs, Flick & Johnson Construction Company of Kansas City.  By the 1910 census, her husband, William was a widow in California.

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Surname Saturday – DAVIS

According to accessgenealogy.com, Davis is a Welsh surname, and the family is among the most numerous in England and Wales.  This is due to the fact that there are so many varia­tions of the name.  The original name was David which signifies well-beloved - popular in Biblical days and a favorite among the Scottish kings.

Though of ancient standing in Wales, David scarcely appears in England before the Norman Conquest.  Modified in various forms, it has produced many family names such as Davis, Davidson, Davies, Daves, Dawson, Dawes, Day, Dakin, etc.  The Irish form is M´Daid; the French, Devis.

Our confirmed family history begins February 1851 in Jackson, Indiana when Nathan and Nancy’s second son Samuel Davidson DAVIS (my husband’s great-grandfather) was born.  Nathan was born in Ohio in 1823 and his wife Nancy was born in Indiana in 1824.  In the course of 18 years, Nancy would give birth to at least eight children, six in Indiana and two more when the family removes to Iowa.

The following obituary of Nathan Davis was posted on Rootsweb as follows:
Obituary of Nathan Davis from "The Sabbath Recorder", Vol 60, No 18, p 285, May 2, 1904.
Nathan Davis was born in Warren county, O., Dec 20, 1823, and died at Welton, Iowa, April 9, 1904.
In 1837, his parents moved from Ohio to Indiana, where he continued to reside until 1865. June 29th, 1844, he was married to Nancy Doty, who survives him. Eight of the twelve children born to them still live in eastern Iowa. In 1865, he settled in Clinton county, Iowa, since which time he has made his home in the vicinity of Welton. In early life he joined the Disciple’s church, but after settling in Iowa he became an observer of the Sabbath, and identified himself with the Adventists, the branch known as The Church of God Adventists. The funeral services were held at his late residence, conducted by the writer of this notice. G. W. B.

Sam continued in the occupation of his father becoming a laborer and farmer.  He met and married Sarah Jane MOREHEAD of Iowa in 1874.  Her parents had moved westward from Virginia.
The DAVIS Family
 Sarah, Samuel, and Effie
Photo taken in 1896, Davenport, Iowa
In Welton, Iowa on the 16th of April 1879, Sarah gave birth to the couple’s only child, a baby girl. Sarah’s mother, Sara O’FLYNN MOREHEAD, acted as midwife when Effie Adele DAVIS was born.


©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Friday, November 11, 2011

Veteran's Day and the Iwo Jima Memorial

The United States Marine Corps War Memorial, better known as the Iwo Jima Memorial stands at the north end of Arlington National Cemetery, and across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.  This iconic sculpture depicts one of the most historic battles of World War II, the battle of Iwo Jima. The memorial is dedicated to all personnel of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) who have died in the defense of their country since 1775.

The Battle of Iwo Jima was part of the World War II Pacific Ocean campaign from February 19 to March 26, 1945, where the United States sent Marines and soldiers to capture the island of Iwo Jima, Japan.  My father was one of those Marines.

Iwo Jima Memorial, Arlington, Virginia
The design of the massive sculpture by Felix de Weldon was based on the Pulitzer prize-winning photo by news photographer Joe Rosenthal of the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima. Paid for by donations, the sculpture was later cast in bronze and in September 1954 it was brought to Washington, D.C as part of a memorial designed by Horace Peaslee.

At the 179th anniversay of the US Marine Corps on November 10, 1954, the memorial was dedicated by president Dwight D. Eisenhower.

The 32-ft. tall figures raising a 60-ft. high flagpole are placed on a 10-ft. high base.  All the major Marine Corps engagements since its founding in 1775 are inscribed on the base.


©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Wedding Wednesday - The 1869 Marriage of CALL and SNOW

The following marriage was registered in the City of Salem, (Massachusetts) for the Year 1869:

On the 28th day of January, Samuel L. CALL of Salem, 23 years old and employed as a courier in Salem, son of Thomas and Mary CALL, marries Merriam G. SNOW, also of Salem, 17 years old, daughter of Nathaniel and Hannah SNOW.

Marriage Record of Samuel L. CALL and Merriam G. SNOW,
my Great Great Grandparents

©2011 – Frank’s Daughter All Rights Reserved