Genealogical Gems

Chrispin P VanHorn, my 3x great grandfather, is buried at the Doe Run Presbyterian Cemetery in East Fallowfield Township , Chester County . His stone reads: Crispin P. Van Horn Born Sept. 2, 1839 Died Feb. 9, 1902 Chrispin Pierson VanHorn was born 2 September 1839 in Philadelphia to George Washington VanHorn and Jane Dudbridge. He was one of six children. Two of his brothers – Asher and George – died in infancy. His other brother, Benjamin, and his two sisters – Joanna and Martha – lived into adulthood, married and had families of their own. In 1861, Chrispin married Maria Rice, according to the 1900 Census. However the US Civil War Draft Registration Book, dated 1863, lists Chrispin as unmarried. Since he registered with his brother Benjamin, who was still single at that time, I think the registrar mistakenly listed him as single. Chrispin and Maria had six children. My 2x great grandmother, Sarah Jennie VanHorn, was born in 1864. Her bro...

My sister asked me recently what books I would like for Christmas. Normally I really do not like when people ask what I want because then it’s always a let down when I’m expecting something and it never comes. However, I decided it may be useful to create a “genealogy wish list” for myself. So, in no particular order, my list includes: Barry, John M. The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History . Penguin Books, 2005. Caldwell-Crosby, Molly. The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, the Epidemic that Shaped Our History . Berkley , 2006. Aizic, Anna. The Circles of Life: My Ukrainian Family’s Odyssey of Secrets, Love and Survival from Pre-War Odessa to the Promised Land from America . 2014. Levi, Primo. Survival in Auschwitz . Touchstone, 1995. Rees, Laurence. Auschwitz : A New History . Public Affairs, 2005. Steiner, Jean-Francois. Treblinka . Plume, 1994. Pakula, ...

It was On This Day in 1787 that Pennsylvania ratified the Constitution. We were, by a vote of 46 to 23, the second state to do so. Pennsylvania was, and still is, an ethnically and religiously diverse state. In 1787 approximately one third of our population spoke German, enough so that the Constitution was printed in both English and German. Sources “ Pennsylvania ratifies the Constitution.” This Day in History, 1787. History.com. On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Today Lancaster may enjoy 60 degree temperatures. However that was not the case in 1880. On This Day in 1880 the Conestoga was not just iced over but it was reported to be six and seven inches thick! People who owned icehouses were busy filling them and ice skaters were out taking advantage of the ice. Sources Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 11 December 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress. On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

It was On This Day in 1869 that women were granted the right to vote in Wyoming . Not every Wyoming lawmaker however granted this right simply because they believed in justice and equality for women. One backer of the law, Edward M. Lee, argued that if black men could vote, so too should his mother. Some men wanted to grant women the right to vote so as to simply attract more eligible potential brides to the state. The right to vote made international news, as seen at right from The Times , out of London. It was not until 1920, with the ratification of the 10 th Amendment, that all women in the United States were granted the right to vote. That Amendment reads: “ The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Sources The Times ( London , Greater London England ), 21 February 1870. Newpapers.com. “ Wyoming grants women the vote.” This Day in History, ...

Sue Eckman and Clay Acheson, both of Southern Lancaster County, were married on 19 January 1915 at the Faith Reformed Church in Lancaster . Rev. D. G. Glass, the pastor of the church, performed the unattended ceremony. Susan Mabel Eckman is the daughter of Christopher Columbus Eckman, Sr. and Mary Ann Knight. Susan’s great grandmother, Elizabeth Winter Eckman Miller, is my husband’s 2x great grandmother! Sources Harrisburg Daily Independent. ( Harrisburg , PA ), 20 January 1915. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress. Wedding Wednesday is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Ancestry.com announced yesterday afternoon, through Kendall Hulet's Ancestry.com blog , that the company would no longer sell Family Tree Maker. This decision is effective 31 December 2015. Current customers will continue to support FTM users through 2016. This announcement has caused quite a stir among Ancestry.com subscribers and FTM users. One selling point - used quite recently by Ancestry.com in fact - is the ability to sync trees between the two programs. One user on Twitter has even begun a petition to save FTM. The user - @AncestryClassic - has been tweeting for awhile now about saving the classic look of Ancestry.com. The new petition, that is the one for FTM, can be found at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/520/758/907/save-family-tree-maker/ . It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. Your Comments Wanted What program do YOU use? How do you think this decision will affect YOUR research? Leave your comments/opinions here below or Tweet me @Genealogi...