Genealogical Gems

The first section of the Gutenberg Bible was published today in 1452. That got me thinking of this most unusual family record I have from an old family bible. The Longanecker Family listed their births with some information that I have never seen elsewhere. Elizabeth Longanecker, as is seen above, was born  on 11 March 1826 "in the sign of the orphan(?) between the hours of 1 and 2 o'clock in the morning." What on earth is the sign of the orphan? At first I thought it had to do with the zodiac. If it does though, it is not the traditional zodiac. For example, Susannah Longanecker was born 15 November 1828 "in the sign of the fish". The sign of the fish in the traditional zodiac however I would think it would be Pisces, which is late February/early March. By traditional zodiac dates, Susannah would be right on the cusp of a Libra or a Scorpio, with the 15th being the last day of the Libra. Elizabeth however would be a Pisces - the fish! Another entry sh

Sharon Lee Eckman Seibold, 62, of Ephrata, died unexpectedly of natural causes at her home on Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Born in Federalsburg, Maryland she was the daughter of George Stidham of Newark, Delaware, and the late Dorothy Speorl Stidham. Sharon retired as a nursing assistant at Lancashire Hall, Lancaster; she also worked in private duty nursing in the Lancaster area. She was the owner and operator of Recon 1 and Family Recon auto detailing companies in Manheim and Ephrata areas with her former husband the late Charles D. "Chuck" Eckman Sr. who died in June 2002. Sharon is survived by her loving husband Alfred A. "Al" Seibold and they observed their sixth wedding anniversary in September of 2010. She was of the Christian faith. Her interests included: hunting, motorcycle riding, flower gardening, and caring for and loving animals of all kinds. Sharon will be lovingly missed by four daughters: Dawn D. Carter of Newark, DE, Holly Lee Layton of Fr

  Son Paul L Labiak 1917-1943   buried at Holy Ghost Ukrainian Cemetery Valley Township, Chester County, PA     Paul served in World War II so I was able to find a little more information on him than I have been able to on some of the other Labiaks buried here. Paul was born 27 February 1917 and died at the age of only 26 on 5 May 1943.    He served January 1938 until his death on 5 May 1943, according to his Pennsylvania Burial Card.     The 1940 Census shows him living on base at Dumfries, Prince William, Virginia. He was a Private in the US Marines Corps then.   The 1930 Census (which spells the last name as LABAK) shows that he is the son of Alek and Dorothy Labiak. He is one of seven children. The others are: James (20), George (16), Peter (15), Helen (11), Mike (9) and Nellie (7). Ages given are those at the time of the 1930 Census. Paul was 13 then. His parents were both born in Ukraine. Alek immigrated in 1905 and Dorothy in 1908. All t

Edgar M. Eckman, 88, of 95 E. Main Street, Leola, died Friday, December 3, 2010, at Lancaster Regional Medical Center. Born in Christiana, he was the son of the late Galen and Atilla Eckman. He was the husband of the late Mildred Graham Eckman who died in 2007. He was the owner of the former E.M. Eckman Co., Leola. His company supplied fuel oil and furnace repair. He was a member of the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge and the Fraternal Order of Police. He is survived by daughters, Dolores A. wife of Charles T. Gibson of Mount Joy, Patsy E. wife of Charles G. Luik of Lancaster; five grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and a sister Mildred Neff of Columbia. He was preceded in death by a granddaughter, Vicky Caldwell, a great-grandson Erif Luik and eleven brothers and sisters. The services will be private and held at the convenience of the family. NOTE: The obit was published in the Lancaster Newspapers.

  Son James Labiak 1910 - 1957   buried at Holy Ghost Ukrainian Cemetery Valley Township, Chester County, PA Tombstone Tuesday is a daily blogging prompt prompted by GeneaBloggers in which an image of a gravestone is featured. It may also include a brief description of the image or the ancestor.

Chester M. Eckman, 90, of Coatesville died Monday, October 18, 2010 at his home. Born in Coatesville, he was the son of the late Phares B. and Mary Higley Eckman and the husband of Patricia Woodson Eckman of Coatesville with whom he shared 33 years of marriage, and the husband of the late Jane A. Cockerill Eckman who died in 1974. Chester was a 75-year member of Olivet United Methodist Church, Coatesville where he was a member of the altar guild, a trustee, and a church school teacher. He retired from Lukens Steel in 1982 after over 35 years of service as a crane operator and a foreman in the crane office. After his retirement, he served 11 years as the tipstaff in the court of Judge William Mann. Chester was a 50-year member of the Brandywine-Goddard Masonic Lodge No. 383 Coatesville, a life member of the Washington Hose Co., Scout Master for Troop 38 at Olivet United Methodist Church, and a member of the Order of the Arrow. He served in the US Navy Sea Bee&#

Today I learned a new word: Magyar! I was researching my cousin's SOKSO line and came across the "native tounge" of Magyar. Hungarians, also known as Magyars (Hungarian: magyar), are a nation and ethnic group who speak Hungarian and are primarily associated with Hungary. My grandmother's sister was Mary Frances Kurenda. She married Andrew Sokso. Today I connected with one of my Sokso cousins. Andrew's parents were George and Mary Sokso, according to census records. Andrew was one of eight (8) children!   George and Mary immigrated in either 1902 (as per the 1920 census) or 1903 (as per the 1930 census). The later census showed their birthplace as being Austria and they both spoke Hungarian. Ten years earlier though, in 1920, the census reveals them as have been born in Hungary and their native tounge is Magyar.  

    Yesterday I took a walk through Woodward Hill Cemetery in Lancaster City and came across the grave of President James Buchanan. He was the only US president from Pennsylvania. His home is known as Wheatland and is one of Lancaster's many historic sites and museums.   His grave reads: Here lies the remains of James Buchanan fifteenth president of the United States Born Franklin County PA April 23, 1791 Died at Wheatland June 1, 1868         President Buchanan was a Mason. His home lodge was Lancaster's Lodge No. 43.   This stone lies to the left front of his grave. The GAR stone below lies to the right front of his grave.   In addition to being Pennsylvania's only US president, Buchanan was also the only bachelor president. He had been engaged to Ann Coleman but after she died suddenly he vowed never to marry. His niece, Harriet Lane, served as his First Lady.   If you go to Woodward Hill Cemetery, there are

I was so caught up in everything else going on yesterday that I did not even realize it was Grandparents' Day. Since I have already talked about my grandparents extensively (and naturally reserve the right to do so again at some point!), I have simply decided to add their photos here today!   The first photo (above) is my maternal grandparents: Lloyd Pierson Still and Mary Rose Welsh Still. The picture was taken at Uncle Tom & Aunt Neva's place in Unionville. We were celebrating their anniversary, though I do not recall which one.   Above is my paternal grandparents: Anna Kurenda Ruczhak and Joseph Ruczhak. I am not sure where exactly the photo was taken, though it looks to be a golf course which would not be surprising!   Vichnya Pamyat!

George E. Eckman, 70, of Lancaster, passed away on Friday February 26, 2010 at Hospice of Lancaster County, Mount Joy, after a brief illness. He was the husband of Norma J. Fleshman Eckman with whom he celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary on November 5, 2009. He was born in Lancaster, son of the late Franklin L. and Beatrice Leibley Eckman. He was a production control manager for Lancaster Malleable Castings for 37 years before his retirement. He also worked for York Waste Disposal for seven years after retirement. He was a member of Hempfield United Methodist Church; a veteran of the US Army; and he enjoyed his grandchildren. Surviving in addition to his wife, one son: Mike A. Eckman, Lancaster and one daughter: Melinda Y. Trent, Lancaster. Four grandchildren: Kaitlyn Trent, Jordan Trent, Dalton Eckman and Holden Eckman. Two brothers: John C. (Violet) Eckman, Craley and Ronald L. (Mildred) Eckman, Fredericksburg, VA. One sister: Dolores E. Evans, Frackville. The

  Andrew Joseph Sokso b. 5 May 1905 d. 3 August 1962   Andy is my Uncle, having married Baba's (my grandmother) sister Mary Frances Kurenda. Together they had three children, two of whom have passed.

Millersburg is home to the Millersburg Ferries, which have been called the oldest public transportation in the US. The ferries have run from Millersburg, across the Susquehanna River to the ferry campsite since 1817. When the ferry service first began, the ferries were poled across. As technologies advanced, the ferry system began using the steam powered side wheeler system in 1873. Today the ferries use gasoline engines. The ferry transports vehicles, bikes, horse and buggies, and foot traffic. The photo above is from the Association's website. The ferry business changed hands numerous times, according to the Millersburg Ferry Boat Association. In fact the Association dates the ferry back to 1807 when Danny Miller reserved the ferry and the fishery rights for himself. After several owners, the Community Banks, N.A. of Millersburg purchased the ferry from Robert Wallis in 1990. The Banks in turn gave it to the Millersburg Area Chamber of Commerce which formed the Millersbu

1st grade at St. Cecilia's in Coatesville 1975-1976 The school is now closed. The building sits vacant along Lincoln Highway in town.   (If memory serves ...) 1st row: Bernadette (I think), Bobby Olivera, Darlene Riddle, ?, ?, Kathy, Stephanie Palmer. 2nd Row: Maureen Doyle, Gema Szabo, Patrick Lannigan (I think), ?, ?, Gina Labiak, Billy Pilotti, Karen Yankavich. Row 3: ?, me, Mary Hennesy, Michael Jason, ?, Cindy, John Goodyear, Kim Karmilowicz, ?, ?. Row 4: Sister Michael, ?, Bronwyn Zappacosta, Lisa Lemire, ?, Susan Pacana, ?, Tony Previte.   wow lots of question marks there. I though my memory was better than that!  

  Labiak   Father Aleck Labiak  1874 - 1937   Mother Dorothy His Wife  1884 - 1967   Buried at Holy Ghost Ukrainian Cemetery Valley Township, Chester County, PA Tombstone Tuesday is a daily blogging prompt prompted by GeneaBloggers in which an image of a gravestone is featured. It may also include a brief description of the image or the ancestor.

Sarah Bing Still is my great-great-great grandmother (Sarah Bing - Franklin Still - Pierson G Still - Lloyd P Still - mom - me). Sadly, I do not know much of her. She was born 18 February 1811 in Pennsylvania (I believe East Caln* but still confirming) to Robert and Sarah McWilliams Bing. On 30 December 1830 she married George David Still, of East Fallowfield. They had six children together. I had found mentioned of George being a trustee at the Methodist Episcopal Church in East Fallowfield in 1841. While it is normally safe to assume at that time that spouses attended the same church, Sarah's obituary notes her as a member of the Washington ME Church in East Fallowfield.  Sarah passed 13 April 1891 in East Fallowfield of pneumonia. She and George - who preceded her in death - are buried in the Doe Run Cemetery with many other Still family members. Her obituary was published in the Local on 14 April 1891. It reads: Mrs. Sarah B. Still, widow of the late Geo. D. Still, die

James S. Eckman died on February 14, 2010 of Estero, FL, formerly of Coatesville. Husband of Ada (nee Waddell) father of James H. Eckman, Donna E. Weiss and the late John P. Eckman, also survived by 11 grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren. A memorial service will beheld at 1:00 PM, Saturday, February 27 at Pequea Baptist Church, 6060 Old Philadelphia Pike, Gap, PA 17527. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Tel Hai Assurance Fund, PO Box 190, Honeybrook, PA 19344. NOTE: The obit was published in the Lancaster Newspaper.