Exploring the Past to Improve the Future
Week 32: #52 Ancestors -- Youngest By Eilene Lyon My parents' surnames illustrate an interesting dichotomy. The name “Smith” is among the ten most common surnames in America. “Halse,” on the other hand, is so uncommon that one source indicates fewer than 4000 people in the world share this last name.1 I believe this name... Continue Reading →
Week 31: #52 Ancestors – Oldest By Eilene Lyon I consider myself a family historian. Genealogy is a tool I use to construct my family stories. For this reason, my family tree does not wander back to the hinterlands of history. Most of the people I research date from the 18th century forward. In fact,... Continue Reading →
Week 30: #52 Ancestors – Colorful By Eilene Lyon This is not really a story about an ancestor, just a bit of family history. My father was an Army officer for about 20 years, and one of his “overseas” assignments was a 3 ½ year stay in Guatemala. This was in the 1970s and I... Continue Reading →
Week 29: #52 Ancestors – Music By Eilene Lyon Of all the family photos I’ve scanned in recent years, this is a favorite. In the middle sits my great-grandfather, Walter Gusso (1890 – 1980), flanked by his two younger brothers, Henry (with violin) and Bill (cornet). They also had a sister, Katie, but I don’t... Continue Reading →
Week 27: #52 Ancestors – Independence By Eilene Lyon In my story about Emma Jenkins, I detailed some of the events leading to the downfall of my great-great-grandfather, Robert Ransom. The more I discover about the Ransom family, the more I find a humongous, convoluted soap opera. I'm not sure if these people were crazy,... Continue Reading →
Week 26: #52 Ancestors – Black Sheep By Eilene Lyon A Model Citizen If there’s a blacker sheep on my family tree than William Clark Ransom, I’ve not come across him/her. William Clark Ransom (1828 – 1917) was born into humble circumstances in Ohio, and grew up on a modest farm in eastern Indiana. He... Continue Reading →
Week 25: #52 Ancestors – Same Name By Eilene Lyon One of the most problematic lines on my tree is the Orme family. My 3rd-great-grandmother was Christiana Orme, married to Martin R. Smith. Her parents were Nicholas Davis Orme and Penelope Permellee Pell. The Orme, Smith, and Pell families all have ties to Lewis County,... Continue Reading →
Week 24: #52 Ancestors – Father’s Day By Eilene Lyon Many men are both step-fathers and fathers, but only a portion of them do it in that order. One of those was Thomas Alexander Reams, my great-great-grandfather. He was the father of Mary Lila (Reams) Smith. This is the tale of the Reams family: Sprague,... Continue Reading →
Week 23: #52 Ancestors – Going to the Chapel By Eilene Lyon There’s no question that Great-grandma Clara was a staunch supporter of the Methodist Church. Her father (God rest his soul) had been a lay preacher in the faith, after all. She was abstemious, and thought everyone else should be, too. (I do hope... Continue Reading →
A New Twist on the Old West
Author, Speaker, Family Historian
thoughts about parenting and life from below the surface
tiny histories
... stories of significant others ...
Celtic, Mythical and More ...
Creative writing inspired by life, love, laughter ... and a horse named Shakespeare
Tracing The Faces
Uncovering Family Legacies One Stitch at a Time
Adventures in Genealogy
Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana Blog
visual stories: fine art, artist books, illustrated gifts
Night Thoughts of a Literary Agent
Family and local stories and history, favorite books
A History of the Famously Interesting and Mostly Forgotten
Sharing stories from my family history
Things That Interest Me
Writing about experiences of women and girls in the North American West.
Exploring the Past to Improve the Future
Myricopia 