Big On Talent

Week 32: #52 Ancestors – Small By Eilene Lyon The first thing the prompt brought to mind is this photograph I received at a family reunion last year. It isn’t the only image of Elmer Jens Davis, but it is particularly striking. He’s the short man standing in front on the right. Behind him is... Continue Reading →

August 18, 2020 30

The Trailblazer

Week 31:#52 Ancestors – Large By Eilene Lyon The person in my tree who looms largest in American history is my cousin, Col. Ebenezer Zane. He could be, and has been, called many things: Frontiersman, Pathfinder, Indian-hunter. Zane was quite literally a trailblazer, helping to open the Midwest to settlement before and after the Revolution.... Continue Reading →

August 8, 2020 31

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 →

July 25, 2020 46

Justice for Mrs. Loftus

Week 29: #52 Ancestors – Newsworthy By Eilene Lyon Newspaper articles feature prominently in my family history research, as I’ve amply demonstrated on this blog. There were the outrageous tales of Dr. William C. Ransom and Adoph Dills. The peek into the railroad career of Arthur L. Ransom. The sad ends of Clifford Cutting, postman;... Continue Reading →

July 18, 2020 29

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 →

July 15, 2020 24

Game Night

Week 27: #52 Ancestors – Solo By Eilene Lyon If the saying goes… “The family that plays together, stays together”…well, that didn’t exactly work out for us. However, I do have fond memories of our family game nights. We had a number of the standard board games, including Monopoly, Scrabble, Clue, etc. There were dice... Continue Reading →

July 11, 2020 37

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 →

July 4, 2020 24

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