Exploring the Past to Improve the Future
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 →
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 →
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 →
Week 44: #52 Ancestors – Shadows By Eilene Lyon My current WIP is a book about Colorado pioneers, told in light of the cemeteries they are buried in. One I visited on our way back from Denver is called Cleora Cemetery, near Salida in Chaffee County. It is considered a “boot hill” cemetery. People buried... Continue Reading →
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 →
Week 35: #52 Ancestors – Free Space By Eilene Lyon Lately I’ve been reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1851, her tale of slavery helped pave the road to the Civil War. A cousin on my family tree didn’t have quite the elevated reputation of Mrs. Stowe, but nonetheless made a... Continue Reading →
Week 39: #52 Ancestors – Road Trip By Eilene Lyon The Putterer’s great-grandmother, Mary Frances (Stephens) Gee, was orphaned at a young age. She was the eighth of nine children of Granville Allen Stephens Sr. and Sarah Poor. (Sarah was a descendant of Revolutionary War patriot, Amos Poor.) Mary Frances had seven brothers and only... Continue Reading →
Week 36: #52 Ancestors – Exploration By Eilene Lyon On any given day, I can go on a major expedition—without leaving my desk. Family history is like that. You might be tempted to call it a “rabbit hole,” and it does involve many diverting side trips, but it is goal-oriented. Unlike building a pedigree, as... Continue Reading →
Week 34: #52 Ancestors – Timeline By Eilene Lyon The Putterer’s great-great-grandfather, Henry Bower, passed away March 24, 1916 in LaMoille, Bureau County, Illinois, at the ripe old age of 92. His wife, Hannah Mueller (Miller) predeceased him at age 78 in January 1908. They were the parents of seven children, of whom, six married.... Continue Reading →
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
A history of the people of the Willamette Valley as revealed through their structures.
Doing the best I can to keep it on the bright side
You might think you understand what I said, but what you heard is not always what I meant.
A New Twist on the Old West
Author, Speaker, Family Historian
thoughts about life from below the surface
tiny histories
... stories of significant others in the Allery, Cutting, McCulloch and Robertson tribes ...
Celtic, Mythical and More ...
Illuminating the Ancestral Journey
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
Myricopia 