Exploring the Past to Improve the Future
Week 51: #52 Ancestors – Winter By Eilene Lyon My grandfather, Laurence M. “Smitty” Smith left us with a small stack of typed memoirs written in brief spurts. The following passage opens a piece he titled “The Early Years.” “During the winter of 1921-22 the religious fanatics in California were predicting the end of the... Continue Reading →
Part 1 By Eilene Lyon The canal packet Indiana – designed specifically to fit in the locks at Louisville – arrived from New Orleans on Tuesday the 11th, pulling into the public landing, a sloping embankment on the Ohio River, alongside a dozen other steamboats. Though scheduled to depart the next day, obtaining a suitable... Continue Reading →
Week 50: #52 Ancestors – Witness to History By Eilene Lyon Introduction: This two-part feature is an excerpt from my book about the California gold rush. The Blackford Mining Co. left a farming community in eastern Indiana to seek their fortunes in 1851. The ten men ranged in age from Peter Liestenfeltz, the youngest at... Continue Reading →
By Eilene Lyon We decided to take one last RV trip before settling in for a long, Covid-avoidance-at-home winter nap. For years I’ve wanted to visit Big Bend National Park, one of the most remote and least visited parks in the lower-48 states. I had to plan and book in advance (not normally my style),... Continue Reading →
Week 49: #52 Ancestors – Oops By Eilene Lyon Yes, even experienced researchers sometimes make mistakes! Here is one of my recent bloopers. The principal protagonists in my gold rush book are my 3rd great-grandparents, Henry Zane Jenkins and his wife Abigail Gummersall Bedford. I know quite a bit about Henry’s mother, Ann Widdifield Zane,... Continue Reading →
Week 48: #52 Ancestors – Gratitude By Eilene Lyon Even in this very trying year, there are many things to be grateful for. First, I appreciate those of you who read this blog – I know my subjects don’t have broad appeal. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. I’m extremely grateful... Continue Reading →
By Eilene Lyon Little Brother, who lives in the Cleveland area, sent me this image many years ago. It seems that some friends of his decided to take a vacation trip to Vancouver and Seattle back in the early 1990s. Little Brother jokingly asked them to look up his relatives who live in the Northwest.... Continue Reading →
Week 47: #52 Ancestors – Good Deeds By Eilene Lyon I’ve done a couple of posts highlighting people on my tree who have demonstrated extraordinary generosity: William Painter and Inger Boe Johnson. Undoubtedly many others have done similar acts of kindness, but those deeds have vanished in the mists of time. So I will take... Continue Reading →
By Eilene Lyon A lesson from my personal history that I was slow to learn: there is a certain type of person in this world who steals from his or her employer. They don’t just destroy the trust of their bosses, though. The impulses that drive embezzlers taint all their relationships. I have a degree... 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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A Blog of Retirement and Related Thoughts
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
Quips, Quotes; How To and How Knot To
Author, Speaker, Family Historian
thoughts about life from below the surface
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