Week 5 "Library"

I've been interested in genealogy now for a few years and for the first part of my genealogy journey most of the information I had gotten came from either the internet or from family members. It made me feel like a phony in a way. I know that, yes, the internet can be a good place to find things now since more and more information is online. But I had heard many stories of my cousins and aunts visiting libraries and historical societies and writing letters to places far away and having documents sent back to them. I often felt like I wasn't a real genealogist because I hadn't done any of those things yet. But I was just using the resources available to me at the time.

It wasn't until 2016, I think, that my mom and I visited, in one weekend, 2 different genealogy libraries and probably 20 cemeteries. After that I finally felt like a true genealogist!! Finally being able to find hard copy proof of certain ancestors was just so much fun and very addicting!! The digging through pages and books, and hoping that what your looking for is on the next page!!

The first library we visited was in Mercer County Missouri where my dad's dad's mom's family, the Overton's, had lived. While my mom and I were at the library we were in this little room lined with books looking through obituaries and all sorts of documents trying to find info on the Overton's but not finding much.

Before we left we spoke with a librarian and she asked what the family name we were looking for and we told her. It turned out the entire time we were there she was making photo copies of a book for someone else and it was "The Overtons of Anderson County Tenneessee and their Cox cousins". We couldn't believe it! That was THE book we needed to see too!! But we had to leave to meet some cousins and didn't have time to stay to make copies ourselves. I'm hoping to go back some day and get copies of that book. I was able to find some info from a book called "Pioneer's Book, Mercer Co"

The Moses Overton family originated from Anderson County Tennessee but made there way to Missouri. They knew the Civil war was about to break out and Moses strongly opposed slavery and wanted to move to a Union state and had heard good things about the Missouri farmland. He sold his land and his distillery for $300 and in October of 1851 he and his wife and 10 of their children left for Missouri. They traveled with either horses or oxen and the family walked. They purchased 30 acres of land for $1.50 an acre just east of the Tennessee Cemetery in Mercer Co. Missouri.

Moses Overton and his Brothers. John, James, and Alfred all stayed and died in Anderson County Tennessee. 

One cool thing about the Overton's is that once they got to Missouri they didn't move around a lot, at least my direct ancestors. Within Mercer County and the county to the East of there, Putnam County, I have 5 generations of direct descendants of that line buried close together!!

My great grandmother Stella Marie (Overton) Mullins (Putnam Co.)

My 2x Great Grandfather Frank Overton (Putnam Co.)

My 3 x Great Grand parents Lucy and William Overton (Putnam Co.)

My 4 x Great Grandfather Enoch Overton (Mercer Co.)

My 5x Great Grandfather Moses Overton (Mercer Co.)

During the Civil war Moses and his sons Enoch, Alexander, and Joseph all enlisted in the war and served. Moses for 6 months and Enoch for 3 years. In records I've found online it said that Enoch joined as a Corporal in Co. G. 3rd Missouri State Militia Calvary on April 4th 1862 at Chillicothe Missouri. His father Moses Joined the same company on the same day. I found where it said that Enoch was utilized as a Teamster. In one Document I found on Fold3 it said that his horse was once captured by the enemy while they were in action in Warsaw Missouri!!

Document telling about his horse getting captured from fold3.com 

Pvt Alexander Overton joined the Co. D., 44th MO infantry. 

Alexander Overton's tombstone in the Tennessee Cemetery in Mercer Co. Missouri. 

From the Find a Grave page for Joseph Overton. It said he enlisted in the Co. F. 8th Iowa Cavalry on June 24th 1863. He was severely wounded and taken prisoner on October 30th 1864 at Florence, AL. He was released but later died from his wounds. He is buried in Kentucky at Cave Hill National Cemetery. 

Joseph's widow Elizabeth pension file discussing him being wounded in battle. 

Joseph's Tombstone

It's one thing to read about and watch movies about the Civil war. But to put it into context with your own relatives is amazing and makes it all the more real! I enjoyed learning about the Overton family and their dedication of service to our country. Plus they had such a conviction against slavery that they left everything they knew to avoid fighting for something they didn't believe in. 

Since that first day at the Mercer Co Library I've been to several other libraries and LOVE combing through books and articles and looking at microfilm to find that next piece of information to add to the family tree. 





Week 4 "I'd Like to Meet"

Not going to lie but I had a whole blog post wrote up for this week but I scrapped it last minute. This was a HARD topic to write about. Not that I couldn't think of someone I'd like to meet but rather the opposite. For me learning about all these people who were crucial to my existence it's hard not to want to meet them all!! The post I scrapped I limited myself to listing 10 people who I would love to have met. But the more I thought about it 2 really stuck in mind that I've thought many a time that I'd like to have known them when they were alive and that's my great grandparents. (My Mom's Mom's Parents)

Mearl & Blanche (Miner) Walter

Mearl Everett Walter was born February 22nd, 1890 in Appanoose County Iowa, near Exline, to Edward and Louisa (Withrow) Walter. He had 8 brothers and sisters. Maude, Zella, Grace, Virgil, Emil, Clovie, Lawrence, and Edna. 

Mearl with his parents and siblings.

Blanche Miner was born September 7th, 1891 in Appanoose County Iowa, near Dean, to Frank and Katie (Slavin) Miner. She had 3 sisters Cleo, Marie, and Edna and 1 living half sibling, a brother, Walter. 

Grandma Blanche with her family. 

Grandma Blanche with her Sisters

They were married on August 30th, 1908 at the home of the Justice of the Peace. To this union came 10 children. Zola, Loren "Bud", Oraleta, Maxine, Aubrey "Short", Maurice "Friz", Elouise, Mearl Dean, Carolyn (My Grandmother), and Annabelle. Unfortunately they faced tragedy with the loss of 3 of their children Zola age 18, Oraleta age 17, and Mearl Dean age 4, all within the span of 3 years.  I can't fathom that kind of pain and tragedy all while still raising 6 other children including a brand new baby born in the midst of 2 of the losses.

Taken at their 60th Wedding Anniversary

For most of their lives Mearl and Blanche lived on a farm only moving to town in their later years. Since they rented most of their land they moved around quite a bit but mostly around Appanoose County. My great grandparents were also very skilled in growing a huge garden every year. One of their specialties was watermelons. Which is the theme for our Family Reunions every year. My Great Grandpa would enter his fruits and vegetables in the Moravia Fall Festival every year. My great grandma would enter baked and canned goods. Both earned many a blue ribbon over the years! My grandma, great aunts and uncles, and cousins have carried on the traditions of entering in the fall festival. A couple years ago I even entered some items! The fall festival was always a big deal for my great grandparents and family.

Grandpa Mearl with his Sheep

Grandpa Mearl with his Mules

The family with the prize watermelons! 

My great grandmother was also well known for her cooking! She was known for her homemade noodles, popcorn balls, cookies and more. She grew Christmas Cacti that i'm sure half a dozen or more people have a descendant of!! I've also been lucky enough to find a quilt that she quilted that my 2x great grandmother Louisa Walter pieced. My mom and I also found a quilt that she and the Walnut City Churches Ladies Aid quilted. We found the block with her name on it. 

Several years ago some of Mearl and Blanches descendants made 2 different books. 1 cataloging the family genealogy and the other a collection of stories that each child and grandchild wrote their memories about Mearl and Blanche and their childhood. I LOVE reading the stories that everyone wrote because every single person shared how wonderful these 2 people were and the great love that was given to all. My mom often tells about Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa Walter's, saying it was always a wonderful occasion. The house they lived in may not have been very big with all those kids, grand kids, and great grand kids piled in but it was so full of love and happiness and everyone always had a spot either around the table on the stairs or even under the table!!

That's what makes me a little sad that I missed out knowing these 2 wonderful people while they were alive. I know without a doubt that I would have loved visiting them and learning from them. But I'm lucky that the love that they shared has been passed down and their legacy has lived on through their children and now grandchildren and great grandchildren.

This was an excerpt from the book my Aunt and Cousin did and I absolutely love it. 

Christmas 1967

This was taken at their 60th Wedding Anniversary

Mearl Walter passed away at the age of 85 on February 11th, 1976.

Blanche Walter Passed away at the age of 99 on Feburary 26, 1991. Just 6 months shy of her 100th birthday.

I know that they would be proud of our family. Even though we are scattered across this country we still come together and stay in touch. I hope that we will be able to continue that in the coming years!







Week 3 "Unusual Name"

Augusta Victoria Matilda Ertel McElhinney

"Aunt Doat"

This weeks prompt is “unusual name” and that award goes to my 2x great grandfather's sister (my dad's mom's great aunt)! She passed away long before I was born but I've heard some about her through my cousin and I've always been fascinated with her very regal name!! She has 2 middle names, an unusual maiden name, and then married into a family with a unique name! But with all those beautiful given names the name she herself chose to go by was "Doat". Then for legal purposes and on her headstone she went by Victoria.

According to my cousin she grew beautiful African Violets, made lots of quilts, and was a good cook! She also helped my cousin get involved with genealogy which I'm thankful for since my cousin has helped inspire me!! Aunt Doat sounded like a lady who I'm sure I would have enjoyed knowing. The farm where she and her husband lived in Northeast Missouri, is a place I've been lucky enough to visit. The cemetery where she's buried sits behind the homestead in the pasture. That cemetery is a neat place with deep family history for me and definitely contains a good story for another day!!

Week 2 "Challenge"

The first thing I thought of when I thought of “challenge” was an adventure I went on a couple of years ago in search of my 4x Great Grandmother(on my moms moms side) Naomi Argo Burge's grave stone.

I had known about her but had not done any research on her. But for some reason I thought i'd look her up and I found where she was buried and it turned out to be not too far from where I lived!! So one July day I decided I'd set out and look for her grave. That morning  I happened to throw on a shirt that said "Take the road less traveled". Little did I now i'd regret that decision!!

So I got on Find a grave and used the map setting and followed the directions. I made it soo close when I found the highway I was to go down was under construction!! So I found a gravel road that looked as if it went through. HA it went from gravel to dirt to NOTHING!!! The road just ended in the middle of the woods. The cemetery was still a couple miles away. So I backtracked and went around the construction. I got a little closer the next time. But then the road went from Gravel to what looked like someones driveway going to their back yard to dirt to Nothing again!!! But then to my surprise I looked to my right and there was the cemetery!!!! Yay! I found it.

The road to the cemetery....

It was literally right behind these people's house about 300 yards. But it was probably one of the prettiest cemeteries I've been too. It was fenced in and surrounded by trees and was just the quietest most peaceful little spots around. I really wished I packed a picnic and could have stayed all afternoon.

I found Naomi's grave and her son William Argo Who would have been my 3x Great grandmother's Brother. He served in the Civil war in the 3rd Missouri Cavalry.

Naomi's Stone

Naomi's Stone with that of her Son William and his family. 

The view facing south from inside the cemetery. 

So after I found that cemetery I called my aunt who I knew would be excited to hear my tale. I realized I wasn't too far from where she lived so I went to her house. I then told her of another cemetery I'd like to visit that was near where she lived. So we set off find a grave on our phones and we we found another dead end!! This one went from gravel to dirt to a bean field. So we'll have to try again on that one when the beans are out. 

Picture of the road turning into the bean field. 

Next time I go on a cemetery adventure i'll be sure to be more careful on what clothes I pick out. This day proved to be very challenging and frustrating when I came to all those dead ends. But I was able to find another grave of a direct descendant so it was all worth it! Plus it made for a fun story to tell! 

Week 1 "First"

Part of the reason I wanted to get back into blogging was because of a Blogging challenge I heard of called 52 ancestors in 52 weeks. Blogger Amy Johnson Crow has come up with 52 writing prompts to challenge people to write about their ancestors each week following the theme for each week. I've done other blogging challenges but this one connects it with Genealogy which makes it even more special!!

The week 1 topic is "First". Amy mentions that some of the topics are pretty vague to allow your creativity to roam. But it also makes some topics hard to focus on. This was one of them. Great way to start out I thought. But then I thought about the First Ancestor who really sparked my genealogy love and inspired my first big genealogy  road trip.

Effie "Van Dorin" Brain

Effie and 3 of her sisters 

Effie lived quite a life and had a rather tragic ending. I believe this is why I was so drawn to her and her story. Effie is my Great Grandfather's Sister on my moms fathers side. Effie was born in 1889 in Kansas. Her family originated in southern Iowa but had moved to Kansas for a short while but later returned and settled back in Iowa. Effie was married to Fred Brain. After her marriage she and her husband moved from Southeastern Iowa all the way to the Southeast corner of Wyoming near Chugwater. That's 700 miles!! I've always had a strong facination with the American West and have read numerous books about people settling in the west and traveling. Hearing about one of my own ancestors really peeked my interest. From the stories I recall hearing they traveled out there by train. They built a modest farm house, which is still standing today, and started their lives out in the west. I'm lucky enough to have some post cards she sent back home which has helped me get to know who she was as a person. She definitely had a sense of humor.

About 6+ years ago a woman contacted my aunt and grandmother saying that she lived on the farm that Effie and Fred had homesteaded and had done research about Effie and the family and somehow got connected with us. I'd always wanted to go to Wyoming so I contacted her and made arrangements to meet and myself and a friend set out West! It was both of our's first big road trip on our own without our parents. We'd been out of high school only 1 year. So the trip in its self was a huge deal.

We made our way to the tiny town of Chugwater, Wyoming which is about 40 min north of Cheyenne. As you're leaving Cheyenne heading north there's a huge sign saying "No Gas" for a lot a miles ahead. They country is beautiful in that part of Wyoming. Gentle rolling hills and wide open prairie that you can look out forever. Not many crops were grown up there mostly cattle so it was all beautiful grasslands. We followed the woman's directions and found our way to the little homestead.

The original house with some additions and updates. 

The View from the front of the homestead.

While we were there the woman shared all the information that she had found out about Effie. Fred and Effie never had any living children but after doing research the woman had discovered that they had lost 5-6 babies. I don't know if they were miscarriages or if they were born and died young. No birth records were recorded. But they had forensic dogs out to the farm and in a small lot next to the house they found the bodies of the babies. I can't imagine the sadness they faced together so far from both of their families.   

This is the lot where the babies are buried. 

Diagram of where babies are buried. 

Then in August of 1923 Fred and Effie were returning home from Cheyenne in their Car when heavy rain struck. They attempted to cross a place in the road covered with water not knowing how deep it was. The car was swept away and Effie was thrown from the car and her body swept away. Fred was able to get out. They found Effie's body but it was too late she had drowned. The woman took us out to the location where they believe the accident happened. It's emotional to hear about a story but to stand where it happened is such a surreal experience. We were visiting in August of 2013 exactly 90 years to the month that the accident had happened.

A view of the area where the accident happened.

At the age of 34 Effie passed away in such a tragic manner. After her passing her parents wanted her to be buried back in Iowa. So they brought her back on a train and shes buried in the small town of Moravia, Iowa. I visit her grave every year if not more. She will always hold such a special place in my heart having the chance to experience where she lived and died. Though she had no children I will be the person who helps her story live on at least until i'm gone.