Before I Forget

Ever wonder what certain words, codes, or abbreviations mean when browsing documents? 

Here's Ancestry's "Glossary of Genealogical Terms":

https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Glossary-of-genealogical-terms?fbclid=IwAR01gTVuMuZtQwh6XHqgR09Wk1ej-JBkW8w_8sJybuEKmsWzaQPRv0wSHuA

I've long wondered why on earth they ever needed to abbreviate the name JOHN by using Jno. REALLY?

I searched for hours once looking for records of my GG-Gramps John Coffee. He was hiding behind a misspelling and that silly abbreviation. Hence, my keyword search of databases didn't bring up either. 

-- Yes, you got that right. I do not know how to code or turn that awful line of gibberish in the above URL into a proper link. Blah, blah...the electric fence

In poring over my collection of marriage records, I am reminded not to accept someone's age without question.

Elton married Esther and they both lied about their ages on their marriage license. In reality he was 30. She was 16 years old. Her 17th birthday was six+ weeks away.

Why? Was it because her parents would not have approved? Two pages below show what they told the court clerk:

And no, I know not why a second page covers the top portion. 

The witnesses to their marriage were Wesley Raymond Fox and his bride of one year, Zelma Pearl (Price) Fox. Pearl was Esther's aunt. And Pearl was half-sister to Esther's mom, Evie. Yet Pearl and Esther were both born in 1909. I remember Grandma talking about a "Pearl." If so, perhaps they were close friends then and remained so. Do you know?

Guess who also lied about their ages on their March 12, 1925 marriage license?  Wes is actually 19, but indicates he's 22 years old. Pearl is 16, but says she's 18 years old. 

Pearl's mom, "Anna Price," is named as a witness on the certificate. I don't know why it was necessary to lie about your age, Miss Zelma Pearl. I mean, really!  I've seen plenty of Oklahoma marriage licenses for teenagers who had a parent write their "consent" on the license. Zelma Pearl's mom is a witness and they still "fudged" their ages. Maybe Mom didn't know how young her son-in-law actually was? 

NOT TO BE OUTDONE:   in July of 1929 we have my G-Uncle Ernest and G-Aunt Mabel applying for a license in Creek County, Oklahoma. Young Mable was born on Halloween in 1914. This according to her grave marker (not considered "primary" source-worthy) AND the Oklahoma State Vital Records Index (a better secondary source). 

Ernest was born in 1908. This made the couple 14 and 21, respectively. So WHAT ages did they put on their marriage license? 

Source:  "Oklahoma, County Marriages, 1890-1995." Database with images via FamilySearch. 
NOTE:  Ernest signed it "Earnest" just to confuse future family researchers.

Kids, today. They'll say anything. 

Thanks to old newspapers I finally found a death date for my distant cousin. Plus his photo in a database of seaman records! I already knew of a death date. But i HAD NO PROOF until now. Proof of sorts, that is, as newspapers are considered secondary sources--not primary.

But let's not quibble. With this data I can now search for a death certificate on FamilySearch.org which has uploaded Los Angeles County death certificates (albeit WITHOUT an index). He was only 48 when he died, and I want to know why. And where is he interred? 

Source:  The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, CA, USA: The Los Angeles Times, 1881-1894, Historical Newspapers, Birth, Marriage, & Death Announcements, 1851-2003 via Ancestry.com. NOTE:  Alas, no date is given on the clipping nor page number.

When a toddler, his name appeared in a Nebraska census as "Owen G. Ackley."  But later his signatures and records reflected "Glenn Witham Ackley."  Did he dislike Owen and went with Glenn, do you know? I like to note both legal and "go by" names in my gedcom. For now I'll stick with Glenn. And his middle name of Witham? That was his mother's maiden name. Mary taught school in Guthrie, Oklahoma Territory for many years, BTW. Here's Glenn with his parents, Mary and "F.M. Ackley," near the bottom of this 1890 Territorial Census page:

Also, how neat is this: Ancestry has Merchant Marine files online. Chock full of details. From this I learned Glenn was 5'6 1/2" tall, with brown hair and eyes, dark complexion, and with a scar on his thumb--to boot. He was living at 519 Beacon Street in Los Angeles, which Google now tells me is in San Pedro. (Not to worry. YOUR data will all be online too someday, but we'll be long dead. Oh, wait. ?  )

Other cousins had "West Virginia" as Glenn's birthplace. But with no proof attached. However in this Application For Original License to become  "Third Mate of Ocean Steam Vessels of any gross tons" dated 16 Dec 1918, I learned Glenn was born in Mason County, West Virginia on 16 August 1882. 

Glenn applied a second time a few years later. That 1923 doc is attached in this same image gallery below. See eight pages here:

While in the Port of San Francisco, he received his Citizen Seaman's Identification Card of December 1918. He had served on board the S.S. Maine ("Remember The Maine". No, not that one) and hoped to serve on the S.S. China. Glenn is 36, and apparently grew a half inch from when he met with the Merchant Marines. Hey, I love a document with a photo. Yea, Glenn. Happy to see your face!

Last is Glenn's draft card of September 11, 1918. He's staying at the Ocean View Hotel in San Pedro, California, working for S.W. Ship Building Co. as a "Ship-fitter."  His sister Edna is his contact person:  Mrs. E. L. Blincoe  532 West 51st St., Los Angeles. Go ahead. Google that address. The building is no longer there, but I like seeing places that once were. 

Thanks for stopping by!

For certain friends:

          Death certificates are notoriously inaccurate. For example, his daughter, Harriet E. Van Nette, is the informant here. But he himself told the Social Security Administration in October of 1937 that his mother's birth name was Harriet N. Williams. See what Harriet told the coroner:

Published September 7, 1911 in a Texas newspaper, the Georgetown Williamson County Sun, page 6, via NewspaperArchive.com/

You know how you're knee deep in records--both offline and on? Multiple windows fill your screen. You're happily digging for some proof that your ancestor existed outside of the 1850 U.S. Census Non-Population schedule (which indicates he owned three horses, no oxen, but 100 cattle)? 

Suddenly you're jerked back into the present as your feline assistant jumps up on the keyboard, pushing his forehead against yours. His whiskers tickling your face as gives you That Earnest Look. 

He doesn't want food. He wants your attention. He knows you need a break from the screen. He suggests a good nap.

Was reading a distant cousin's World War II draft card on Fold3.com/ and about fell off my chair:

I'll update this post if and when I find a Youtube of Mr. Lee singing with this swing band. Please share if you find a video link. 

Until then, go ahead. Google "Cains Ballroom" and see the many legends who have played at this club. 

Kudos to my husband who immediately recognized the "Employer address" listed on this draft card. He frequently walks our dog in the Brady District. What? Doesn't everybody take their dog to work? 

Jeremiah and Emily had five (known) children:  James (1852-1868), William Jackson (1855-1943), George Washington (1858-1931), Mary Thomas "Mollie", wife of Rev. John Patrick Beaty), and Emily Lavina Wilhelm (1864-1953). The children were all born, raised, and made their homes in Texas.  

Please see the link below to her memorial on Findagrave to learn a little of Mrs. Wilhelm's siblings and parents.

By the way, I just noticed I have four George Washington Wilhelms in my database. That's one more than the total of Andrew Jackson Wilhelms I have researched. Dare I ask if any Franklin Delano Wilhelm or Richard Milhaus Wilhelm cousins exist? 

Sources:  

          I am grateful to Findagrave.com volunteer Jackie West who shared this photo of Emily Rogers in November of 2011. 

          The obituary was published in The Comanche Chief newspaper on 11 March 1921, p. 5, in Comanche, Texas. I obtained this copy from Newspapers.com/   ("Grandma Wilhelm," really?)

          See Mrs. Wilhelm's Findagrave memorial via   https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/67136870

          Burgess Gambill was 86 when he applied for a military pension for his service in the Confederate Army. He had fallen on hard times when he made his request in May of 1932.  Indigent veterans could seek compensation. The process wasn't quick. If successful, they received a few dollars a month. I've seen applications of widows receiving as much as $12 and as little as $4 a month. 

          Pension records make for fascinating reading for family historians. Details are recorded that might not otherwise be known for these old soldiers born in a time without birth certificates. 

          Born 6 Jan 1848 in North Carolina, Gambill  wrote that he was 16 when he enlisted in 1864 at Ashe County. But Gambill does not recall the name of the company or regiment. Captain Henry Williams is one officer's name he gives, adding that he  "...served as a Home guard one year from 1864 to 1865. After Lee surrendered, all who served with me are dead and I am not able to furnish witnesses."  

          Asked what special service he might have provided, he wrote:  "Detailed to take prisoners to [the]  execution guard."   What, he led Yankees to their death? Where are my smelling salts!

          Ahh, oh. The authorities required proof. He doesn't know what outfit he served with, and can't produce supporting affidavits from a fellow soldier. 

          Notice the dates on these papers. Months grew to years, in this waiting game. And widows seeking pension had to provide marriage certificates or affidavits from someone who had witnessed their marriage.  Burgess Gambill died on 28 Dec 1940 in Shamrock, Oklahoma at age 92.