Genealogical Gems

April is a rough month. Most people relate April to spring and rebirth. April around here is a time to remember special people. It is a rough month where we all tend to get a little sentimental. Some are obvious and some not so much. I lost one of my best friends April 26, 2005. She is my sister in law Wilma Lee Eckman LeMon. I had my own business for a few years and worked out of a small office at her house. There were many afternoons that found me up in the house chatting away with her (if I didn't have appointments that day). She was wise beyond her years and yet stubborn as a toddler when it came to certain things. She coud be sitting at her computer in pain and let the right song come on and she would be up dancing in a heartbeat! She was a great folk art artist. One review compared her to a Grandma Moses of her day. I still have one of her paintings - it is of an Amish girl milking a cow! (I have a thing for cows). Her birthday was also this month -- April 6. Her brother...

My husband's maternal grandmother was a COURSAULT - Julia Coursault to be exact. Of all the children of Charles and Appelina Coursault, Julia is the most elusive. The couple had several daughters, three were  married at Christ Church in Philadelphia. I beg your indulgence while I degress for a moment. Christ Church is located on Second Street just above Market. It has been called The Nation's Church . Organized in 1695, this church saw the likes of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. While the people there were very helpful in our genealogical search when we went, it is still an active church. It does still hold two Sunday services in the Episcopalian faith and a Communion Service each week. The burial grounds, located at 5th and Arch, are the resting place of five of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Julia (b 13 June 1885) married Morgan G DEYOE. She died in December 1945 and is buried at the Mt. Peace Cemetary in Philadelphia. Anne (b. 13 March 1...