OK...new rule...

I don't normally research in North Carolina (NC). However, I do have two people who died there. Luckily, NC has transcribed death records on both Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org. I assumed (never a good idea) that the transcriptions on both sites were the same. I found the record I was looking for on Ancestry first. Later, on a whim, I decided to see if the same record appeared on Family Search. It did...and there were additional details in the Family Search transcription. In addition, the Ancestry.com transcription included details that the Family Search transciption did not include.

I do cross check for other states (Texas most notably); however, with this recent experience, I have a new rule: When you find a record on one site, you cross check it with at least one additional site. So there! A new lesson learned. Now, if I can just remember who else out the 1,700 people in my database died in NC, I can impliment my new rule.

Public vs. Private

When I think of my genealogy work, I think of it in terms of public and private.

The public aspect of it includes entries in this blog and posting lots and lots of info at Find A Grave. My objective is to put as much info in public spaces so that anyone searching in the future won't have to go far to find what they are looking for...and perhaps contact me. I also maintain a website that is in great need of an update, and two books that I've been picking at for quite a while.

The private part of my genealogy involves the info in my database, which encompasses so much more than I've been able to place in public spaces. In addition, there are a couple of special cases, where I have some information to place in a site like Find A Grave but not as much as I need. Case in point is Catherine Agnes McKinley (Mrs. Charles Philip Hinerman). I have her obituary, but no place of burial, except Belleville, Illinois. Belleville has several cemeteries with no indexes that I'm aware of.

Minneapolis Morning Tribune, Monday, 7 Oct 1957, Page 1

Mrs. Hinerman, Pastor's Wife, Dies at 37

Mrs. Catherine A. Hinerman, 37, wife of the Rev. C. Philip Hinerman, pastor of Park Avenue Methodist church, died Sunday.

Services will be 2 p.m. Tuesday at Park Avenue church, with the Rev. Blaine Lambert, assistant pastor, officiating. The body will be at the church after 2 p.m. today. Burial will be in Belleville, Ill.

Survivors include her husband; a son Philip Christian; a daughter, Karen Susanne, Minneapolis; her parents, Mr. and Mrs. L. R. McKinley, Belleville, and three brothers. L. Dean, W. Wayne and Leland C. N. McKinley, all of Belleville.

 Here are the vitals:

Catherine Agnes McKinley
(d/o Lemuel Ranson McKinley and Catherine Louella Stevenson)
b. 8 Jan 1920 Tilden, Randolph County, Illinois
d. 6 Oct 1957 Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota
m. 8 Jul 1941 (Don't know where)
Charles Philip Hinerman
b. 20 Jun 1918 Huntington, Cabell County, West Virginia
d. 22 Mar 2001 Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina

Charles and Caterine had two children: Karen Suzanne and Philip Christian.

As you can see, I know a whole lot that I would love to post to Find A Grave...except I have no burial location. So my next best option is to post the details here and see what happens next.

Royce Allen Burns, 1932-2007, Texas

I'm the worst about concentrating on chasing obituaries in newspapers. However, there's so much more that you can find in newspapers. While trawling for info on NewspapersArchives.com, I ran into this wedding article for Royce Allen Burns (Find A Grave memorial 75585024). I didn't have a marriage date for Royce and the Texas marriage index on Ancestry.com doesn't pick up until 1966. So finding this article was a nice way of getting to the date, location, and so much more.

The Paris News, Paris, Texas, 26 Dec 1956, Page 9 Paris News Service

ROSALIE - Royce Allen Burns, Rt. 1, Bogata, and Miss Imagene Cagle, Rt. 3, Clarksville, were married Saturday morning by the Rev. Hoyt Briniee, Bogata Baptist pastor, at the home of the bridegroom's brother-in-law and sister, Mr. and Mrs. Maxie Lewis. The attendants were Gerald Burns and Miss Betty Butler.

The bride wore a blue faille dress with full skirt and fitted bodice, with boat-shaped neckline and short sleeves, her small hat with veil being rhinestone-trimrned.

After the ceremony, a three tiered cake, trimmed in blue, was cut and served with punch by Mrs. Juarez Jordan and Mrs. Lewis. The table was spread wi th lace over blue, Christmas decorations being used elsewhere in the rooms.

Miss Reba Joyce Robinson had charge of the register, and Mrs. Jim Robinson and Mrs. Gene Burns were also in the houseparty. Guests included Mrs. R.S. Rice, Bobbie Rice and Bobby Lee Yenable, all of Denison; Carl Henry Burns, New Roads, La.; Gene Burns and Burl Robinson.

The bride, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Cagle, Rt. 3, Clarksville, is a Clarksville High School senior, while the bridegroom is employed by Griff in and Dickson Construction Company. He is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Gene Burns, Bogata.

After a trip to Arkansas, the couple will be at home in Bogata.

Now if I only had a wedding picture...

Digging for Esther’s Husband

Joseph and Julia (Pierce) Anderson had a total of nine children. I’ve written about this family in this blog many times. I had tracked down info on all of them except child number two, Esther S. Anderson. In looking at the obituaries for Esther’s mother and older sister (Mary Hannah Anderson), I noticed that the list of pallbearers had a few familiar names and a few repeating names. Many other family members have obituaries but none of them include the pallbearers.

Julia’s Pallbearers (1956)

Odell Rich
John Chasse 

Gordon Eastman

Francis Marcotte

Roy Duross

Homer Garcia

Mary’s Pallbearers (1967)

Leo Machell

John Chasse

Guy Anderson

Maurice Duross

Roy Duross
Thomas Garcia

In a shot in the dark move, I decided to trace all of the pallbearers to see if any of them lead me to Esther. I knew that Esther was alive in 1912 at the time of the death of her younger brother, William Joseph Anderson. William’s obituary mentions that he is survived by three brothers and five sisters, which means he was the first of the nine children to die. In 1912, Esther was 27 and it seemed a reasonable assumption that she was married. The Maine marriage index had no marriage for her. So I began to systematically look up each of the pallbearers.

Since Roy Duross appeared on both lists, I started with him. I found that he worked at the Saco-Lowell Machine Shops, which is also where Frank Anderson worked. I assumed that Roy and Maurice Duross were family friends.

I could identify Guy Anderson as Frank’s son and John Chasse as Sarah Jane (Anderson) Chasse’s son.

I took a stab at Odell Rich and found that he was married to an Esther. But was it my Esther? I did the general survey search that every genealogist does and I found the following items:

• A New Hampshire Marriage Record for Odell C. Rich and Esther Anderson. Esther’s parents were listed as Joseph and Julia Anderson. Odell’s Esther was indeed my Esther.
• A 1920 census entry listed three children for Odell and Esther: Frances (b. Mar 1910); Odell (b. Apr 1912), and Eleanor (b. Oct 1913).
• A marriage record for Frances A. Rich to Gordon M. Eastman.  Gordon was one of Julia’s pallbearers.
• A marriage record for Eleanor E. Rich to Francis L. Marcotte. Francis was one of Julia’s pallbearers.

All circumstances point to my having tracked down Esther’s marriage. So here are all of the vitals.

Esther S. Anderson

b. Aug 1885 Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England
d. Before 1943 (If you can help, I’d love to hear from ya’.)
m. 4 Jul 1909 Somersworth, Strafford County, NH
Odell Cleveland Rich
b. 26 Dec 1882 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
d. After 1943 (If you can help, I’d love to hear from ya’.)
Odell marries a second time in 1943 to Ida Dunham Sweatt. I’m assuming that Esther dies while still married to Odell.

Child 1: Frances A. Rich

b. Mar 1910 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
d. 4 Jul 1985 Bridgton, Cumberland County, Maine
m. 10 Jun 1939 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
Gordon M. Eastman
b. 15 Dec 1916 Lovell, Oxford County, Maine
d. 12 May 2006 Lovell, Oxford County, Maine

Child 2: Odell Cleveland Rich

b. 18 Apr 1912 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
d. 26 Apr 1973 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
m. 17 Dec 1938 Maine
Gertrude C. Mann
b. Oct 1918 Paris, Oxford County, Maine
d. If you can help, I’d love to hear from ya’.

Child 3: Eleanor E. Rich

b. 5 Oct 1913 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
d. 21 Feb 2001 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
m. 30 Jul 1942 Norway, Oxford County, Maine
Francis L. Marcotte
b. 17 Oct 1918  (If you know where, I’d love to hear from ya’.)
d. 13 Oct 2005 Norway, Oxford County, Maine

Future Research

I’m on the hunt for obituaries and burial locations. The Sun Journal seems to be the preferred newspaper for the obituaries. I’ll post an update when I learn more. In the meantime, if you're hunting for a wayward husband, you might want to examine the pallbearers in family obituaries to see if any of them look promising as a possible mate. 

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John James Anderson...Continued

Find A Grave memorials:

John James Anderson = 75132315 (based on obit)

Anne Ellen (Doran) Anderson = 75134150...She went by Annie; however, the burial record shows Anne.

The McArthur Public Library in Biddeford, Maine rocks! I had John's obit in about 12 hours. 

John James Anderson; 1873-1925; Ashton Under Lyne, England; Biddeford, Maine

John was the son of Alexander McKee Anderson and his wife Esther Ann Pollard. He was born 18 Oct 1873 in Ashton Under Lyne, County Lancashire, England. He grew up in Ashton Under Lyne. You can find him on the 1881, 1891, and 1901 English censuses.

While living in England, John marries Annie Ellen Doran in the winter of 1897.  Annie was born in September of 1871 in Birkenhead, County Cheshire, England, the daughter of Patrick Doran and Mary May.

In 1904, John came to the USA, joining his family in Maine. You can find him as a passenger on the Canada, arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada in March 1904. John's mother and brother (Joseph Anderson) had already moved to the Biddeford, York County, Maine area in the early 1890's. Many members of the Anderson family work in Maine's cotton mills.

During the course of their marriage John and Annie have ten children (according to census info). However, only two of their children seem to survive to adulthood: Edward Michael G. Anderson (b. Dec 1901) and Norman F. Anderson (b. 1906). Currently, I have information on four of the ten children only. Two additional children (James and Agnes), twins born in Jan 1912 die within a few days of each other in Feb 1912. When Annie comes to the U.S.A. following John about a year later, she brings only one child with her...Edward.

By the 1910 census, the family is together, living in Saco, York County, Maine. In 1912, a naturalization record shows the family living at 74 James Street, Saco, Maine. According to the 1920 census, John becomes a citizen in 1914. As a citizen, John registers for World War I. I haven't sent for his records to find out if he actually served.

John's naturalization records should be in the court district of Maine with an action date of 4 Mar 1912 in Volume IV Number 92. If anyone reading this blog has the ability to look this up, I would appreciate a copy of the document.

For several years the family is settled in at 15 Fall Street, Biddeford, Maine. John is working as a machinist for SLM Company. You can find the family at this address in the 1920 census and a 1923 city directory. Also noted in the 1923 city directory is son Edward's move to Worcester, Massachusetts. Edward lives and works in the Hampden County area of Massachusetts for the majority of his life.

By the time of the 1930 census, John is no longer with the family. In the 1930 census, Annie and Norman have joined Edward in Massachusetts. The family is living at 783 Liberty, Springfield, Massachusetts. Back tracking through the Biddeford and Saco City Directory, I was able to isolate a probable death date for John between 1923 and 1926.

As it so happens, Google News Archive includes copies of the Biddeford Weekly Journal, which is one of the newspapers that covers the Biddeford area. I searched for Anderson in that newspaper from 1923 to 1926 and found the following entry:

Biddeford Weekly Journal, Biddeford, Maine 18 Dec 1925, Page 7

Norman Anderson, a senior, was relieved of his school duties because of the death of his father, John J. Anderson. The senior class sent a beautiful floral piece and also extends sympathy to the family.

The newspaper had a weekly column that reported high school news on a weekly basis. My summation is that John died the week of 18 Dec 1925.

The following year (18 Jun 1926) the same column in the Biddeford Weekly Journal lists Norman as one of 52 high school graduates. He graduates with honors.

My next task is to see if I can locate an obituary for John, mostly because I'd like to find out where he is buried. I suspect he is in Woodlawn Cemetery, Biddeford, York County, Maine. However, I have to have more than a guess before I add a memorial and request a grave site photograph from a Find A Grave volunteer. Hopefully, I'll be able to get the obit from the Biddeford library. They've been kind and helpful before and I hope I haven't worn out my welcome.

John's wife Annie lives out her life in the Hampden County, Massachusetts area. Using city directories, I can track her up to 1946 when she moves in with her son Edward at his home (26 Maynard, Springfield, Massachusetts). So I know she died after 1946. Another researcher states that she died in Chicopee, Hampden County, Massachusetts. I haven't proved or disproved the location; however, I am continuing to research.

Edward marries Elsie M. Beane (13 Sep 1925 in Biddeford) and they have four children that I know of. Elsie dies 5 May 1969 in Springfield (FAG memorial 74316732) and her obituary notes that Edward preceded her. With four surviving children, I perhaps have an opportunity to write to these distant cousins and have them fill in lots of blanks for me. We'll see.

Norman marries Madeline Unknown. My informaton on him is limited. He seems to stay in the Hampden County area of Massachusetts. I am continuing to research.

Please contact me if you have an interest in this family.

Samuel Smith Continued...

With the discovery of the obit for Samuel and his two brothers, I decided to plunk down some cash for Find My Past so that I could get at the images for the 1911 English census. Here's what I found.

William Smith + Agnes Eleanor Anderson had the following children on the census:
Jane Anderson Smith b. 1893 (d. 1961 as Mrs. Issac Henshaw)
Esther Ann Smith b. 1894 (d. 1971 as Mrs. James William Bailey)
Dinah Smith b. 1895 (d. 13 Oct 1979 as Mrs. James Taylor Kay)
John William Smith b. 1897 (d. before 1957)
Ada Hannah Smith b. 1899 (d. 1899)
Samuel Smith b. 1900 (d. 23 Apr 1957...see previous post)
Clara Smith b. 1902 (d. Aug 1946)
Mary Smith b. 1903 (d. 1903)
Eleanor Smith b. 1903 (d. 1903)
Richard Smith b. 1905 (d. after 1957)
Annie Smith b. 1907 (d. 1908)
Harry Smith b. 1908 (d. after 1957)

I could confirm all of the births at the Cheshire BMD site. So, I returned to the Tameside page to search burials and hit paydirt again. Clara Smith never married and Cheshire BMD has both a birth and death record for her. In addition, I was able to find her on the Tameside site. The big surprise is that she's buried with her mother, Agnes Eleanor (Anderson) Smith.

Agnes Eleanor (Anderson) Smith
b. Apr/May/Jun 1869 Ashton-Under Lyne, Lancashire, England
d. Feb 1922 Ashton-Under Lyne, Lancashire, England
buried 9 Feb 1922 Dukinfield Cemetery and Crematorium, Dukinfield, Cheshire, England

So for about $40 U.S., I've been able to flesh out lots more of the Smith family. I've continued poking around in Find My Past. It's easy to use; however, its holdings are not as extensive as Ancestry.com.

In addition to the many Smith children, I also found more Dodd children.

Albert Dodd + Mary Jane (unknown maiden name):
Sarah Jane Dodd (b. 1891)
Albert Dodd (b. 1893)
John William Dodd (b. 1895)
Alice Dodd (b. 1898)
Nellie Dodd (b. 1900)
Alfred Dodd (b. 1901)
Unknown Dodd (b. 1905)
Harry Dodd (b. 1908)

So the same $40 bought me lots more research leads...and I still have a few more credits that are good for one year. All in all, I would say that Find My Past was a good investment.