By Eilene Lyon Clara Bell Smith Blaylock (1890–1954) Clara Bell was born in Lafayette County, Missouri. She married Floyd N. Blaylock, a farmer, in Colville, Washington, when she was just 17. Clara Bell and Floyd had only one child, Ruby. Sadly, Ruby had a heart defect and died before her 18th birthday. Her death nearly... Continue Reading →
College Boy
Week 3: #52Ancestors – Out of Place By Eilene Lyon My grandfather, Laurence M. Smith aka Smitty, was the only one in his family to attend college. He earned his degree in Electrical Engineering at the University of Idaho in 1931, which eventually led to a very successful career with the Army Corps of Engineers.... Continue Reading →
The Pioneer Association
Week 2: #52Ancestors - Favorite Photo By Eilene Lyon Before I began researching my family, I knew nothing about my great-grandmother, Clara P. (Ransom) Davis. She died in 1953, well before I came along. I had never been to Moscow, Idaho, prior to 2013, even though three generations of my ancestors are buried there and... Continue Reading →
Missing Person
Week 1: #52Ancestors – I’d Like to Meet By Eilene Lyon It seems to happen to women, mostly. They reach adulthood and suddenly vanish. Marriage and death are the typical culprits. One of these missing women on my tree is the sister of my 3rd great-grandmother, Abigail (Bedford) Jenkins. Because Abby is one of the... Continue Reading →
Bed to Bench
Week 40: #52 Ancestors – Preservation By Eilene Lyon Back in the early 20th century, my great-grandparents, Clara Pearl (Ransom) and Sterling Price Davis, pooled their resources and bought a farm near Moscow, Idaho. I’ve written about this beautiful property several times before. The current owner, Kathy, who bought the property from Clara and Sterling’s... Continue Reading →
Ella’s Kids
Week 41: #52 Ancestors – Passed Down By Eilene Lyon There’s no question that my favorite family to write about is the Ransom family. What a great name! The Ransoms loved to stand out: ambitious, adventurous, tragic, a bit crazy at times. Never dull. This is probably one of the more sedate stories, but a... Continue Reading →
A Warm Congregation
Week 31: #52 Ancestors – Help By Eilene Lyon It has been a while since we had a story from my Grandpa Smith’s memoirs. He doesn’t mention the year this took place, but based on his Life Summary, I believe it was 1941. Below, I’ll share a bit about my research into the church and... Continue Reading →
Agness & Mabel
Week 26: #52 Ancestors – Identity, Part 2 By Eilene Lyon William C. Anderson’s First Wife Recently, I established that Eliza Frey was NOT a wife of William C. Anderson Jr., my 4th great-grandfather. I knew about a marriage record for William Anderson and Agness Grier in 1806 in Belmont County, Ohio.1 As William tended... Continue Reading →
Killing Eliza Frey
Week 26: #52 Ancestors – Identity, Part 1 By Eilene Lyon Ancestry has 463 family trees (or more) that include my 4th great-grandfather, William Clark Anderson Jr. Over 70 of those trees include a spouse named some variation of Eliza/beth Frey or Frew. A few have just the last name(s). William married and had 8–10... Continue Reading →