Genealogical Gems

Samhain (pronounces sow-en) is Celtic festival which celebrates the end of harvest, beginning of winter and our ancestors. It is a festival of our Dead. Selena Fox offers some great modern ways to celebrate Samhain and honor our ancestors and deceased loved ones. Video credit: YouTube Selena's website: http://www.selenafox.com/ © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Accidents happened quite frequently on the railroads it seems. Some were minor injuries. Others resulted in loss limbs. And occasionally someone, like John Kirchner, died from his injuries. Kirchner was a workman employed by Keller & Reilley. He worked on the new branch of the Pennsylvania railroad just north of Lancaster City .   A news article notes he was struck on Saturday, 29 October 1881 by the railroad cars near the Little Conestoga bridge. His forehead was crushed in and face was badly lacerated. He was almost unconscious when he was found.   He was carried home where he lapsed into a delirious state and then finally unconsciousness took hold. On This Day (Monday, 31 October 1881) Kirchner died .   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 31 October 1881. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.    On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.   ...

The Lancaster Daily Intelligencer announced that the naturalization papers for four men are available at the paper on 21 October1880 . The four men, now able to vote in the upcoming election, are: Ulrich Keller, August Krueger, Christian Haettler, and Philip Straub. So who were these men and what became of them? Today, I decided to look more closely at Ulrich Keller.   Ulrich Keller is a more common name than I anticipated. That said, there is a 50 year old laborer named Ulrich Keller living in West Hempfield, Lancaster County on the 1880 Census. He was born in Germany , as was his wife Barbara. Their five children were all born in Pennsylvania . The children listed are: Frederick, Matilda, Annie, Louisa, and George. Other than place of birth, the 1880 census gave no indication of from where or when Ulrich and Barbara arrived.   Jumping ahead to 1910, that census provides more information. Ulrich and Barbara are now living in Columbia with their daughter Matilda,...

The American family used to gather around the family radio for news and entertainment. A young Orson Welles gave voice to “The Shadow,” which was a popular mystery program on the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) on the radio. The show aired Sundays at 8 p.m. On This Day in 1939, an announcer welcomed the audience to a reading of “War of the Worlds” by Welles. Welles began with an introduction, followed by a weather report. Then Welles jumped into it, taking his listeners to a hotel in New York before reporting that explosions had been detected on Mars.   Those who had joined in on time or even early knew this reading of “War of the Worlds” was a play. However, many Americans had been listening to a comedy show on the NBC station and were just tuning in at this point. This latter group of Americans assumed they were listening to a news announcement rather than a show.    Welles and his actors were very realistic. Soon, just like on the radio, Americans pan...

The stock market crashed On This Day in 1929 sending the United States and the world into a Great Depression. Over 16 million shares were traded on that day, now known as Black Tuesday.   “Stocks Again Take Nose Dive” screamed across the front page of The Hutchinson News, out of Kansas , On This Day in 1929. Associated Press financial editor Stanley W. Prenosil wrote “The flood of selling, which has wiped out at least 25 billons of dollars …” That was on a Tuesday.   Wednesday, the Oakland Tribune, out of Oakland , California , reported that the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) would be closed Friday and Saturday. Thursday would be a short session. The San Francisco Stocks and Curb exchanges would operate on regular hours Thursday but would be closed Friday and Saturday as well.   Sources Oakland Tribune, 30 October 1929. Oakland , California .   Stock market crashes. 29 October 1929. History.com.    The Hutchinson News, 29 October ...

President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty On This Day in 1886. The now iconic statue was a gift from France. The statue was shipped from France in 350 separate pieces and stands at 151 feet tall. The Statue of Liberty is now a National Park, located in New York. Photo National Park Service   Source Grover Cleveland dedicates Statue of Liberty . 28 October 1886. History.com.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Today is slated for catching up ... not on housework but rather on various articles, research and webinars. One such webinar I am listening to (again) while researching is the 2015 Virtual Genealogy Fair by the US National Archives.

Many came to America to escape religious persecution. William Robinson and Marmaduke Stevenson, were two of those persons. They fled England in 1656 for just that reason. Massachusetts was not as welcoming as, for example, Pennsylvania was. In fact Massachusetts actually banned Quakers, also known as the Religious Society of Friends, from the colony! The penalty for being a Quaker there was death and in fact, On This Day in 1659, Massachusetts executed two Quakers for their religious beliefs.   Source Quakersexecuted for religious beliefs . 27 October 1659. History.com.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Use Ancestry.com? It is by far one of the most popular helpful websites for family historians and genealogists. Follow the hints. Accept only ones you are sure of and ignore the rest. You can always come back to them. Always document your sources thought. Do not get lazy. Remember too that not every database is indexed in such a way that it will reveal hints. You may still have to actually look through some. Check out the Card Catalog. You can search the Card Catalog by title or keyword. Read through the message boards on Ancestry.com. Often others can help here. You may be able to help someone too.     Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Enoch S. McCarty missed his fellow servicemen. He placed an ad in the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer on 24 October 1881.   The article read: Enoch S. McCarty, of Kimble, Luzerne Co., PA, desires to know the post office and whereabouts of any or all of the following: John R. Martin, Henry W. Shultz, Samuel McIntyre, Mahlon P. Eckman, who, during or after the war, lived at or near this city. They belonged to the same company with McCarty.   Mahlon Eckman happened to be my husband’s “1 st cousin 4x removed” according to Family Tree Maker. So, of course this one caught my attention!   He was born in 1831 to Henry and Susan Longnecker Eckman. Henry's parents were John Martin Eckman and Elizabeth Sides. Henry's sister, Elizabeth, is my husband's 3rd great grandmother!       Mahlon had a brother, Hiram, who was three years younger. In 1860, he married Margaret Jane Armstrong. They would have five children together: Cyrus, Henry, Jo...

State veterinary inspector Dr. Bridge and Lancastre’s Dr. Shaub were called out to investigate a herd of dying cattle in Martic Township , Lancaster County .   The cattle belonged to Joseph O. Huss, who was leasing land near Bethesda belonging to Thomas Ambler. Dr. Bridge had to put down two cattle who had pleuro-pneumonia. On This Day in 1886, Dr. Shaub received a telegram stating other cattle, which were out in the field prior and therefore not inoculated, were now showing signs of the same disease.   Pleuropneumonia is the inflammation of the lungs and pleura. It is a contagious bacterial disease affecting the lungs of cattle. It is an airborne disease.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 25 October 1886. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.           ...

Charles Gillespie was an Irish immigrant who made his way to Lancaster in the early 1800s. He was married three times. He had six children all total. His obituary praises him as a prudent businessman and a community minded gentleman.   His obituary reads: Another of the old landmarks that linked the present generation with those long gone by has passed away in the death of Charles Gillespie, which occurred this morning a few minutes before 8 o’clock at the residence of his daughter, Mrs. Ellen Sheaff, on West Orange street . For two months past the old gentleman had been in declining health, and the end this morning was due to the gradual decay of his physical energies superinduced by old age.   Charles Gillespie was born near Belfast , in the County Derry, Ireland, February 2, 1792. He came to this country in 1815, and spent the four succeeding years in New York City and in Philadelphia . In the fall of 1819 he came to Lancaster, where he has ever since reside...

The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was founded in 1866 as a social club in Pulaski, Tennessee . At about the same time our nation was undergoing a Reconstruction period as we attempted to heal from the Civil War. What began as a social club for mostly Confederate veterans, quickly turned into a political organization and soon devolved into a vehicle of hatred, racism and prejudice.    The Banks County ( Georgia ) KKK trial began on 23 October 1883 in Atlanta , GA. The trial made news across the country and On This Day in 1883 the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer reported on the trial.   Warren Bryson testified he was called from his house and beaten by a crowd of masked men. Calvin Bush testified that a mob pulled him out from bed, striped him and gave him over a hundred lashes. Elisha Brooks told the court he was whipped by the crowd and that he recognized Jasper Yarbrough in the crowd. Ben Sanders told the court he had been shot three times and left for dead by a mob. ...

Professor Emil Aust, a musician, applied to Judges Livingston and Patterson to have his two sons sent to the House of Refuge in Philadelphia on 8 October1880 . He alleged that his sons were incorrigible.   So who was Aust? What did the boys do that was so horrible that their own father would give them to the House of Refuge? What happened to the boys?   Aust was in fact a music teacher. He lived on North Queen Street in Lancaster City . Emil shows up in the 1860 Census as a 28 year old Russian/German born music teacher. He was boarding at the Tedderson’s. The article in the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer only stated the boys were incorrigible and gave no other reason as to their commitment.    What was the House of Refuge? On 23 March 1826 Pennsylvania passed an Act establishing a House of Refuge. It was the third such home for youth in the nation. New York began one in 1824 and Boston in 1825. It was to be a place for the “confinement and reformat...

Four masked men overpowered a watchman at the Reading railroad depot in Shenandoah. They threatened to kill the unnamed watchman if he did not open the safe. He refused. The would-be robbers tried to open it. They gave up and left eventually. The incident was reported On This Day in 1882 in the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 23 October 1882. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Tom Horn was a hired killer. His nature was a brutal one. He allegedly killed the 14 year old son of a Wyoming sheep rancher in 1901. The child was Willie Nickell. The murder occurred near Iron Mountain , WY . It was On This Day in 1903 that Horn was hung in Cheyenne , WY for this crime.   There is some doubt as to whether Horn actually killed young Willie or not. Some think he is innocent of this crime, though he certainly did his share of killing. Others suggest that Willie’s father was the intended target and Horn mistook the boy for his father, Kels Nickell.   Horn, according to History.com, was born in 1860 in Memphis , Missouri . He moved West in the 1870s. His long list of careers implies he was a restless soul. He had been a cowboy, a miner, an army scout, a deputy sheriff and a packer for the Rough Riders. He worked for the Pinkerton Detective Agency but soon grew bored and took on work as a hired killer for the Wyoming Cattlemen’s Association.   ...

On This Day in 1880 The Lancaster Daily Intelligencer announced that the naturalization papers for four men are available at the paper. The four men, now able to vote in the upcoming election, are: Ulrich Keller, August Krueger, Christian Haettler, and Philip Straub. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 21 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress. On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Sharing info on common ancestors is a great way to break down that brick wall. Ask the living before sharing any info on them though. Do not assume the person providing you with information is 100% accurate though; always verify information and document.   Tuesday’s Tip is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

On This Day in 1880 The Lancaster Daily Intelligencer reported that changes would be coming to the Pennsylvania Railroad at Lancaster . Four miles of track at Lancaster would be built. This would shorten the line and would bring the Lancaster station a half mile further from the center of town. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 20 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress. On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Cyrus Ressel was charged with fornication and bastardy with Catherine Hoover of Providence Township (Lancaster County) , reported the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer On This Day in 1880. Hoover is the mother of twins, whom were fathered by Ressel.  They appeared in the Court of Quarter Sessions. Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 19 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Another boy was sent away to the House of Refuge, reported the Lancaster paper On This Day in 1880. Ross Roster’s mother claimed the boy to be “incorrigible and beyond her control.” The lad was taken before Judge Livingston and ordered off to the House of Refuge.    Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 18 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.        On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

John Kirchner was only about 30 when he died. My husband’s great grandmother was a Kirchner by birth so this death notice caught my eye. John, and his father George, however do not fit it with hubby’s family. His obituary reads: John Kirchner, son of George Kirchner, proprietor of the Eagle hotel, on East King street , died yesterday at Carlisle . The body will be brought to this city on the 6 o’clock train this evening. The funeral will take place to-morrow afternoon at 2 o’clock, from the residence of the father of the deceased young man. The internment will be made at Zion ’s cemetery. Deceased was about 30 years of age.   Sources: The Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 15 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Lib. of Congress.     Sunday’s Obituary is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Baltimore held a huge celebration of its founding in 1880. Numerous societies and organizations joined the City in celebration. There were many parades throughout the celebration. On Friday, 15 October the Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Knights of the Golden Eagle (KGE), the American Mechanics, and the Heptasophs (IOH) were among those participating in the parade.    The celebration – known as the Baltimore Sesquicentennial – ran from 11 October through 19 October, 1880. It celebrated the founding of Baltimore in 1730.   Sources “ BaltimoreSesquicentennial Celebration ” Maryland Historical Society.   Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 16 October 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.        Society Saturday is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers.   © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015