Genealogical Gems

A Wilkes-Barre man was sentenced to nine years at Eastern Penitentiary for murder. It was On This Day in 1880 that the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer reported that Justus Hoffman pled guilty to murdering his wife and child last July. He shot his wife five times and killed their child, who laid in her arms.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 30 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Quarryville and Lancaster mourned On This Day in 1880. The engines on the Quarryville railroad were draped in memory of R.W. Shenk, vice president of that branch. The business office on King Street in Lancaster was also draped.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 29 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Census records are not always 100% accurate. Use them as a guide. Sometimes enumerators wrote down what they thought they heard. Sometimes recent immigrants simply did not understand the question. Birth places over the years may read differently for immigrants who lived in countries that were constantly taken over (Poland) or where they was a strong distinction as to which faction they were (Ireland). Read the whole line. Often the last few questions offer an insight into your ancestor and how he or she lived.   Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

On This Day in 1880, the prisoners at a Grenada, MS jail set fire to a building there. The building was fully consumed and the prisoners were released and escaped. There was two injuries.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 28 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

  Today is Ancestor Appreciation Day. Last year, I listed my known ancestors here , back to my 6th great grandfather. Over the past year, I have added many family members both directly as well as side branches. My oldest daughter was married Friday and so now I have a few new lines to trace (some I already knew since she actually married her 4th cousin). One project I want to work on is something one of my twins requested. It's essentially a photo book of family members. She got the idea (this is so cool) after watching Criminal Minds . It was the episode where an autistic boy sees his mother murdered. They show his daily schedule book (set routines are known to help autistic persons in their daily activities). Do YOU have questions about your family history? Ever wonder where your family came from or their personal story as to how they came to be where you are now? Share your story! © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

On This Day in 1880, the correspondent from Bart Township reported in the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer, that a stabbing had occurred in Georgetown . Georgetown is a little village in Bart Township , Lancaster County . On Sunday (probably the 19 th since the article states “last Sunday”) William Mimm stabbed Wesley Herr in the side with a knife.    Herr was treated by Dr. John Martin. His wounds were severe but not life threatening. Mimm was taken into custody by constable D.B. Quigley and placed in the county jail.    Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 27 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Jacob Lambert was a farm laborer. Born about 1856 in Maryland , he was the son of Adam and Mary Adams Lambert.   Typhoid fever is an acute infectious disease accompanied by fever, headache, and abdominal symptoms. The incubation period is generally two to three weeks.   His obituary reads: Jacob Lambert died at the residence of his father Adam Lambert, in Little Britain township, on the 17 th inst., of typhoid fever, aged about twenty-seven years. Mr. Lambert removed with his father from Chester County in April last to the estate of William Black, deceased. But notwithstanding his short residence in the community he had gained the respect of many friends, and his sudden death has cast a gloom over society not easily removed.   Sources: Dodd , Jordan , Liahona Research, comp.. Maryland Marriages, 1655-1850 [database on-line]. Provo , UT , USA : Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.   The Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 21 September 188...

My oldest daughter - Mary Eckman - got married this morning to Ashton Soanes! They were married by District Justice Issac Stoltzfus in Intercourse, Lancaster County. They were supposed to get married last Friday but the paperwork never arrived from overseas (Ash is currently serving in the Army in Italy). It was witnessed by Glenn & I, and Ash's brother Arthur.   Many Years, Mary & Ash! © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Your grandfather may not have served but he probably filled out a Draft Registration Card. Do not overlook military records! Often these records will list the person's marital status, civil occupation and a brief physical description.   Both Ancestry.com and Fold3 are great resources for military records.     Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

A horse thief was found hiding in Gap On This Day in 1880. Vincent Cox, of Chester County , was found hiding in a cave much like the old Gap gang. Gap is located in Lancaster County, just over the Chester-Lancaster line. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 21 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Politics were a big deal in 1880 and some men apparently bet upon results. In Lancaster, William Wilson, a porter, and Theodore Beck, a barber, bet who would carry Maine . Wilson bet that the Republicans would carry that state. The condition of the bet was that if they did not carry Maine , then Wilson would wheel Beck, in a wheelbarrow, from the Cooper house, where Wilson was a porter, to the Pennsylvania railroad depot and back. The Republicans evidently did not carry Maine , as the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer reported On This Day in 1880, that Wilson paid his bet “like a little man” that afternoon.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 15 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckm...

Cite your sources from the beginning. Document your sources, including interviews and other researchers. Note the physical location of sources as well, in case you ever need it again. If you found the source online, note the URL and the date you accessed it.    Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Tombstones were defaced in the Catholic cemetery in Lancaster City , including that of John Hensler’s wife. Officer Lentz arrested four men On This Day in 1880 for defacing her marble tombstone. The four men were: Henry Steffie, Jason McEvoy, Edward Curie, and Albert Reidenbach. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 14 September 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 1990 that NBC first aired Law & Order. It has become one of the longest running dramas in television history and has several equally popular spinoffs. Essentially a crime occurs, the “law” investigates and then the case is handed over to the “order” to prosecute. Sometimes they win; sometimes they loose. Many of the storylines are pulled from headlines across the nation.   Source Law & Order debuts , 13 September 1990. History.com.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

I finally found (documented) the death date and cause of my 2x great grandfather's death. He died of inflammation of the stomach on 20 April 1896 in Phoenixville, Chester County. He was 60 at the time. An Ancestry.com hint led me to a couple related trees. Most have no documentation whatsoever and some have some glaring mistakes (of course that assumes that I am right!). One tree I have noticed over time has much the same information I do but did not document everything. I emailed him and asked about the source. Last night he returned my email with the source (Chester County Archives) and the web link. I had looked through this database several times but his last name was spelled differently. The archives/indexer had dropped the O of O'Flaherty. Thank you, Ed! Ed was awesome and now I can head over to the Archives on my next free day and look up his actual death record! © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

An Eden man was appointed to teach in New York City On This Day in 1881. Charles E. Bushong has been appointed instructor in high mathematics at Rutherford Place, which is a Friends' seminary. Bushong, a graduate of West Chester State Normal School, has been teaching in Chester County the past year. He graduated West Chester in 1880. On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events. © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

It was 14 years ago On This Day, that a plane – an American Airlines Boeing 767 – crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City . That was at 8:45 a.m. as many people were starting their work day. Many onlookers and even most media thought this to be an accident. First responders jumped into action. They knew. Just 18 minute later, a second plane – another Boeing 767 – turned sharply into the south tower. A massive explosion brought debris raining down. There was no doubt: America was under attack.   Another plane crashed into the Pentagon an hour after the first crash. A fourth plane – United Flight 93 – never made it to its final destination. Passengers called loved ones, said their goodbyes, united together and overtook the plane. It crashed into a field in Shanksville , PA.     President George W. Bush wisely grounded all air traffic almost immediately. This action is believed to have foiled several other possible attacks. ...

Do not discard name variations. Often census takers or others guessed or spelled names phonetically. Record them all in your notes.     Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Furst, Kiemer & Co.’s mill burned On This Day in 1880. The planning mill was located in Lock Haven, which is in Clinton County .   A planning mill takes seasoned boards from a sawmill, and creates finished dimensional lumber. Lock Haven, which was founded in 1833, was a logging community.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 7 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Forty-three years ago today my great grandmother, Bessie Matys Hruszczak, passed away. She was 77. I was only four when she passed away so sadly I cannot honestly say that I recall her. That's her holding me in the photo below. Also pictured are my grandparents and my Dad. She was born on 5 June 1895 in what was then Fraga, Rohatya, Galicia to Joseph and Olena Vaspleship Matys. She boarded a ship in Hamburg on 16 October 1912 and arrived in Ellis Island 12 days later. She joined her brother Frank, who had come a year earlier, and settled in Coatesville, Chester County. It was there she met my great grandfather Panko Hruszczak. They married 24 July 1915 at my church. At the time though the church was Ukrainian Greek Catholic (we switched to Ukrainian Orthodox back in 1940). They had 10 children. One died at age two. The others lived full lives. One aunt is still living! Vichnaya Pamyat. Sentimental Sunday is a genealogy prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-...

A Quarryville man and his wife headed West On This Day in 1880. George W. Hensel and his wife left in the morning and headed out to Chicago, Minneapolis and other points.  Quarryville is in Southern Lancaster County. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 6 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Last Sunday I had a great time at the PA Renaissance Faire dancing with the band Tartanic (pictured below for no other reason than the drummers are hot!). After their set, I had a chance to chat with them – one in particular - about tartans. I still had a few questions about them, like which one can I wear if I have several Irish lines.    The Scottish Register of Tartans states a restriction of one of my ancestral tartans is that it may only be worn by those with that surname. Does this mean that since my maiden name is (clearly not Irish) Ruczhak, that I can not wear my ancestral tartans?       My grandfather’s mother was a KILPATRICK, born in Ireland . My grandmother was full Irish. Her grandparents – our immigrants – were WALSH, O’FLAHERTY, KEATING, and DURKIN. My DNA results from Ancestry.com show that I am 35% Eastern Europe, 29% Great Britain and 17% Ireland . I also have 14% Scandinavia, 3% Western Europe , 1% Italy/Greece and a tra...

A Bakers’ Union was formed in Lancaster in 1881, reported the Daily Intelligencer On This Day that year. The boss bakers met at Maennerchor hall and elected W. G. Rapp as President of the union. Geo. S. Brady was elected Vice President. Fred Goos was elected secretary and Geo. Shaeffer was elected Treasurer.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 5 September 1881. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Martin Bollinger complained that his son, Hiram, was incorrigible and beyond his control. The Daily Intelligencer reported On This Day in 1882 that the judges agreed with him and on Saturday sentenced 16 year old Hiram Bollinger to the House of Refuge. The Bollingers lived in West Earl Township , Lancaster County .   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 4 September 1882. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.    On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Red ants are just nasty. How to chase away those pesky creatures is a question that has been around probably as long as the ants themselves. On This Day in 1880, the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer reported that onions are effective tool in chasing them away. Cut fresh onions and lay them in your kitchen cupboards. This is reportedly an “excellent remedy!” Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 3 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.    On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

A Little Britain man was arrested On This Day in 1880 while serving as a juror this week. Samuel Taylor was arrested and brought before Alderman A. F. Donnelly to answer a charge of deserting his wife. Taylor paid his wife some money, promised her more and the case was settled.   Little Britain is located in Southern Lancaster County.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 2 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.    On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015