Exploring the Past to Improve the Future
Week 11: #52 Ancestors – Large Family By Eilene Lyon Large families used to be the norm, particularly in our country's agrarian years. Studies on U. S. fertility rates show that the average births per woman in 1800 was over 7.0.1 Given that some women had no children and others had a low number due... Continue Reading →
Week 10: #52 Ancestors – Bachelor Uncle(s) By Eilene Lyon The grown children of Robert Ransom and Emma Jenkins, my 2nd great-grandparents, really stump me at times. My great-grandmother, Clara Ransom Davis, was the youngest of the lot. She had one surviving sister and four brothers: James, William, Arthur, and Fred. The sister married in... Continue Reading →
Week 6: #52 Ancestors – Surprise By Eilene Lyon The Surprise My grandfather, Laurence M. Smith, wrote many stories about his life. I’ve already shared some on this blog. But there’s a big gap between the death of his beloved mother, Mary Lila Reams, and the beginning of his engineering career. All he said was,... Continue Reading →
Week 5: #52 Ancestors – At the Library By Eilene Lyon Before she died, my great-grandmother, Clara Ransom Davis, made a priceless (at least to me) donation to the Henry E. Huntington Library in San Marino, California. Why she chose the Huntington -- not the Bancroft Library at UC-Berkeley, the California Historical Society, or the... Continue Reading →
Week 4: #52 Ancestors – I’d like to meet… By Eilene Lyon First off, my 4th-great-grandmother would probably not be pleased with that title – she was a deeply religious woman, after all. But I do know she had a sense of humor, which I’ll share with you later. Ann Widdifield Zane was born in... Continue Reading →
Week 1: #52 Ancestors – First By Eilene Lyon I really have to learn German. It’s a huge chunk of my DNA (like 75%), but somehow I just can’t get the hang of it. But I do love German food and Germany itself! Recently I discovered some ancestors who are probably among the first German... Continue Reading →
Week 52: #52 Ancestors – Resolution By Eilene Lyon I suspect this is a problem with no resolution to be found. But I decided to pitch it on the blog in hopes that someone, somewhere, has the key. Ten men left Trenton, Indiana, on March 10, 1851 to seek their fortunes in California. Only nine... Continue Reading →
Week 50: #52 Ancestors – Naughty By Laurence M. Smith (May 7, 1985) At times there are unusual experiences involved in being an Electrical Engineer. It was the time of World War II. I had just transferred from Portland to Spokane, Washington, to work on the design of the Spokane Army Air Field. It was... Continue Reading →
Week 49: #52 Ancestors – Winter By Eilene Lyon Well into the 20th century, my ancestors relied on horse power. The real thing. Here are a few images from the “archives.” This photo shows Chet Painter (a Halse cousin) on the Guy Halse farm in Dexter Township, Codington County, South Dakota. Though it’s cold enough... Continue Reading →
Human Created Content - Creative Writing - Australia
What I Wish I Knew Before I Retired
Life is a series of transitions, and so is the retirement journey.
Creative, non-monetary forms of payment
Random musings on style and substance
Where the locals go, because the locals know!
Internet home for Marie Zhuikov: Blogger, Author, Poet, Photographer
Reflections of an inquiring retiree ...
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I write about genealogy on this site. Come see what's going on!
Fun With Genealogy
Discover and re-discover Mexico’s cuisine, culture and history through the recipes, backyard stories and other interesting findings of an expatriate in Canada
Navigating the second half of my life
The people, places, and things that make the Willamette Valley shine
Journeys Through the Second Half of Life
Doing the best I can to keep it on the bright side
My 'Well of Found Thoughts'
Author, Speaker, Family Historian
thoughts about life from below the surface
... stories of significant others in the Allery, Cutting, McCulloch and Robertson tribes ...
Myricopia 