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 →

June 27, 2020 28

The Doily

Week 24: #52 Ancestors - Handed Down By Eilene Lyon I have very few family heirlooms. My Army-brat upbringing taught me to let go of things. We could only take so much whenever we moved. It's been only recently that I've come to appreciate what little I have received and kept over the years. This... Continue Reading →

June 20, 2020 33

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 →

June 18, 2020 26

Mea Culpa

Week 22: #52 Ancestors – Uncertain By Eilene Lyon After I posted my story about Nancy Self, I realized I made a series of errors. It happens when we make assumptions. Nancy’s obituaries stated that of her twelve children, five had died in infancy. But my tree had eight adult children. Um, basic arithmetic says... Continue Reading →

June 13, 2020 28

Not A Centenarian

Week 21: #52 Ancestors – Tombstone By Eilene Lyon Nancy (Ary) Self’s tombstone looks rather ordinary, except that it seems to indicate that she lived to a remarkable age: 105. It isn’t true, but according to her obituary she outlived all twelve of her children, so that makes it pretty easy to claim you’ve reached... Continue Reading →

June 11, 2020 41

She Loved To Serve

Week 19: #52 Ancestors – Service By Eilene Lyon I have a soft spot for relatives who, by choice or chance, left no descendants to carry on their legacy and their stories. Sometimes nieces and nephews step in to fill the void, as with this case, about my dad’s aunt Inez. Inez Lucinda Halse was... Continue Reading →

June 4, 2020 28

The Slide Years: Seismic

By Eilene Lyon The Slide Years is a series in which I select an image my dad took from 1957-1982 with Kodachrome slide film, then I write a stream-of-consciousness essay – a sort of mini-memoir. The freight-train rumble woke me out of a sound sleep at 3:04 a.m. on February 4, 1976. Wait a minute,... Continue Reading →

May 28, 2020 31

The Slide Years: Road Trip

By Eilene Lyon The Slide Years is a series in which I select an image my dad took from 1957-1982 with Kodachrome slide film, then I write a stream-of-consciousness essay – a sort of mini-memoir. The most epic road trip in my early life saw my family moving from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, to Guatemala City, via... Continue Reading →

May 7, 2020 36

Lucky Me!

Week 11: #52 Ancestors – Luck By Eilene Lyon I would never deny that I’ve had very good fortune in life. Living in America has been a real blessing, and is a circumstance of my birth for which I can claim no credit – I’m just lucky! I grew up in a solidly middle-class family,... Continue Reading →

April 30, 2020 28