Week 37: #52 Ancestors – Back to School By Eilene Lyon Today, schools are frequently named for presidents, famous politicians or war heroes (more often than not men). Back in frontier days, naming a school was often a prosaic affair – if you built a schoolhouse on your property, it generally became known after you.... Continue Reading →
Philadelphia Firestorms
Week 33: #52 Ancestors – Troublemaker By Eilene Lyon Henry Z. Jenkins rose before dawn one morning in June 1827 in his single room in north Philadelphia’s Penn Township. His workday normally began at sunrise and ended at sundown – just like that of every other journeyman in the city. The master tradesmen dictated the... Continue Reading →
Homeland
Week 30: #52 Ancestors – The Old Country By Eilene Lyon Though I have ancestral origins in England and Wales, perhaps a touch in Ireland, an overwhelming number of forebears came from Germanic regions of Europe. I’ve traveled there several times. On one trip, we specifically visited Heidelsheim and Mainz, because I knew my Springer... Continue Reading →
A Twin For James
Week 28: #52 Ancestors – Multiple By Eilene Lyon [Note: the image above bears no relation to the story below, but it fits the theme of “Multiple”😁 Young violet-green swallows peer from their nest cavity the day before they fledged. E. Lyon 2020] This story is somewhat incomplete, because the discovery is quite fresh. It... Continue Reading →
Mid-Century Kids
Week 26: #52 Ancestors – Middle By Eilene Lyon This brief tale is about two cousins (to each other, as well as to me), who were both born in the year 1850, but whose lives turned out very differently. Both lived in the north and their early teen years were marred by the devastation of... Continue Reading →
Paintersville, Ohio
Week 25: #52 Ancestors – Unexpected By Eilene Lyon I’ve long known that there are pioneers of many stripes in my family background. But I didn’t expect one of them to have been the first settler in Cæsers Creek Township, Greene County, Ohio – a location that is less than 20 miles from where I... Continue Reading →
Erasing History
By Eilene Lyon “There are those who wrap themselves in flags and blow the tinny trumpet of patriotism as a means of fooling the people.” -- George Galloway I recently saw this meme posted on Facebook and felt it brought up issues regarding history that this blog ought to address. Taken at face value, I... Continue Reading →
They Peel Right Merrily
Week 23: #52 Ancestors – Wedding By Eilene Lyon Ogden and Mary (Kew) Casterton of England immigrated in 1852, shortly after their marriage. They settled for four years in Illinois, then permanently relocated to Winneshiek County, Iowa, in 1856. In their long marriage, they produced a robust family of ten children. The Casterton holdings grew... Continue Reading →
Hyphens Matter
By Eilene Lyon Just in case you don't think hyphens are really necessary. I thought, "Gee, that man must have an enormous appetite!" Feature image: Guadalupe Island great white shark (Wikimedia Commons)