Week #17 Documents

I was scrolling through the Ancestry hints one day when a photo of one of my 3x great aunts husband, William Seitz,  popped up. It was an odd photo that almost looked like a mug shot or official document photo so I checked it out. Turned out it was taken when he was registered on the "Kansas Registration Affidavits of Alien Enemy".

William Seitz

This was a type of document I had not seen before so I googled what that meant. This was the description found on the National Archives website: 

"Following the onset of hostilities during World War I, non-naturalized "Enemy Aliens" by definition, were required to register with United States authorities as a national security measure. Under the provisions of a Presidential Proclamation of April 6, 1917, non-naturalized female aliens were likewise registered as an additional national security measure that included those women of American birth that were married to enemy aliens. Registrants include school children, divinity students, former United States soldiers and sailors, Roman Catholic nuns, the elderly and the infirm. For the State of Kansas the registered aliens represent a broad cross-section of the German-born population of the State."

"Regulation 19 instituted a requirement for enemy alien registration. Registration involved completing a four-page form that required the registrant to provide family information, details of immigration, a physical description, a photograph, and fingerprints. 

More than 480,000 German enemy aliens were registered, 200,000 permits were issued, and 6,300 enemy aliens were arrested under Presidential Arrest Warrants. There are no surviving master lists of registrations, permits, or arrests.

Very few records of the enemy alien registration and permitting processes exist today. The records that do survive are incomplete. The series identified below are the only known registration records currently maintained by the National Archives. Researchers should be aware that enemy alien registration records have been identified at a variety of locations outside the National Archives, including state archives, historical societies, and county libraries. To date, the only states with known surviving enemy alien registration records are: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota (state registration), New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, and Wisconsin."

It's very rare to find your ancestors fingerprints anywhere so it's neat to see his. 

William was born in Germany March 17, 1849. I'm not sure when exactly he came to the US but he married Caroline Walter my 3x great aunt in Kansas in 1889. He remained in Kansas until his death in 1938. I have many other German Born Relatives in my family who would have been in the United States at that time but have not seen any other documents like this. But according to what I found online not many of these documents exist anymore. At least not for the states where my ancestors were. 

I know from speaking with an older gentleman where I work his family were Germans and living in Kansas. During WW2 his family and the predominantly German community that he lived in faced a lot of hatred even though he and his siblings were born in the US and his parents had been in the country well before the war. They spoke both German and English but when he went to college his teachers forbid him and any other students from speaking German. It makes me wonder what kind of hatred my Ancestors faced. 

Sources:

https://catalog.archives.gov/id/286181 

https://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/enemy-aliens/ww1 

2022 Week #15 How do you Spell That?

As I'm sure is the case in any family tree we have branches filled with William, John, Edward, Matthew and James. But there are some cases where the names are a little more unique. Here is a collection of some of the more unique names throughout my family tree! 

 Eliphalet L. Monroe
Born: 1768 in Vermont
Died: 26 September 1848
5x Great Grandfather

Rosbotham Monroe

Born: 09 Feb 1731

Died 18 July 1831

6x Great Grandfather 

Granderson F. Williams 

Born: 1820 in North Carolina

Died: June of 1893 in Missouri 

4x Great Grandfather

Gottlib J. Mollick 

Born: 05 March 1837 in Germany

Died: 29 Dec 1929 in Missouri

4x great Grandfather

Jabez Van Dorin

Born: 09 April 1798 Pennsylvania

Died: 1872 Iowa 

4x Great Grandfather 

Glass (or Glafs) Cochran

Born: 1715 in Northern Ireland

Died: 05 September 1795 Massachusetts

6x Great Grandfather

Submit Miner

Born: 26 September 1787 Massachusetts

Died: 11 June 1833  Ohio 

4x Great Grandmother

Walter Children

My grandmother on my mom's side had some siblings with some unique names. 2 sisters that passed away in their teens were Zola and Oraleta. Then her 3 brothers all went by nick names Bud (Loren), Short (Aubrey), Friz (Maurice). I guess my great grand parents had some unique ideas when it came to naming their children!  

Political/Historical Figures:

 I'm guessing it was popular in early days when naming children to name them after historical figures. Although not quite unique in spelling but unique none the less. I've got several scattered throughout my tree including:

2- William Sherman Mullins
Andrew Jackson Mullins
Andrew Jackson Loomis
Andrew Jackson Hutchison
Benjamin Harrison Mullins (Born 1889 when Harrison was President) 
Benjamin Franklin Slavin
George Washington Ertel
Queen Victoria Booth 
John Wesley Booth

Week #14 Check it Out

 I wasn't 100% sure what to do for this week and waited for guidance from Amy and checked out some of the other blogger's posts. Some featured books they'd found and used in their research and others used it to share something interesting they found. I decided to interpret it as a combination of the 2. 

In 2016 my mom and I went to visit a genealogy library not to far from where we lived. This was unique as most of our relatives lived about 2-3 hours away. But one branch of our tree lived in the county next to where I grew up. We went in search of some information on my 3x great grandfather James Miller. He kind of just vanished and we didn't know where exactly he died or where he was buried. His wife my 3x great grandmother Emily (Whipple) Miller Newland remarried and even she was kind of a mystery. We didn't know where she was buried either. So we thought by going to this library we could utilize the local resources to maybe break down a brick wall or 2. 

Unfortunately we came up empty handed where James and Emily were concerned. But while we were there I happened to scan the section where they had family history books that people had done and donated. I came across one that said Whipple family. Bingo that was Emily's maiden name. At that point I hadn't researched the ancestors beyond her and don't think I had many names on my family tree yet. I opened it up and low and behold this was all about my 5x great grandfather and his children. And I knew it was the correct family because it said "Emily m. James Miller". 

Joseph (my 5x great grandfather)  as is quote in the book "was a poor New England laborer and farmer whose lifetime spanned the late colonial period, the struggle for independence, the building of the new nation, and the extension of western settlement." Joseph was born in Connecticut in 1753. On August 20, 1777 Joseph became a "regular" enlisting as a private in the Continental Army for the duration of the War. He joined Captain Abner Prior's Company in the 5th Connecticut Regiment. Through the years of the war he worked his way up to Sergeant. The last date of service for Joseph was December 31, 1781. Early in the war the Continental Congress promised each private and non-commissioned officer $50, 50 acres of land, and a new suit of clothing. Connecticut held a part of northeastern Ohio called the western-reserve, from which 100 acres of bounty land was issued in 1799 to Joseph Whipple for his Service. There is no record of him moving there until 1833 when his family settled near the Western Reserve. 

Before moving to Ohio they lived in New York and Massachusetts working various labor jobs including providing coal for a local forge. Towards the end of his life he moved with his family to Ohio and he and his wife Mary lived with their son Marks. Both died at his home. Joseph died in 1843 at the age of 90 and Mary died in 1848 at the age of 89. There is no record of their burial or stone surviving today. In the statements from friends and family in the pension application, many indicated they were very poor people and liked to keep to themselves. 

Samuel (my 4x great grandfather) was born in 1807 in Massachusetts. During the 1820's he worked with his father and brothers as laborers and probably was involved with them in the manufacturing of charcoal. Samuel moved to Vernon, Trumbull County, Ohio around 1830. In 1833 he married Laura Buttrick. By 1850 Samuel and Laura moved to Holt County, Missouri. . Laura died in Child birth but record of her burial is not found. He later remarried to Ruth Hastey. 

In October 26, 1861 he enlisted as a private in the Union army. He joined the same unit as his son Samuel J. Whipple and his Nephews Harlow, Virgil, and Daniel Whipple. The Muster roll for Company E, 25th Missouri Volunteers describes Samuel as 54 years old, 5 feet 10 inches, gray eyes, dark complexion, and a wagoner. He was mustered in December of 1861 and stood guard in bad weather and caught a cold which turned to bronchitis. He was admitted to the Army Hospital in St. Joseph, MO where he died March of 1862. Again like it seems to be on this family no record of burial. 

About the only cemetery I've been able to visit was that of Samuel's son Samuel J. Whipple in Holt county Mo. It's probably the most difficultly accessed cemetery I've ever been to!!! That says a lot as I've traipsed through many a cow pasture to access cemeteries. It sits right off the highway easy to find with a nice sign but it's on the literal side of a cliff!!! You can see stones from the road and so it doesn't look to difficult but you climb up the first portion and realize there are more stones further up!! So climb away I did. The view from the top was absolutely spectacular as you can see interstate 29 and the Missouri River valley. 

View from where I parked my car. 

View of the road from the first section

All the stones on the hill 

View from the top looking west towards Missouri River. 

All though we may not have found exactly what we were looking for but still was a worth while trip. Here this book had sat for who knows how many years in a library just 30 miles from where I grew up. Not only did it give me more names to add to my family tree but it also gave details for not only Joseph Whipple's (5x great grandfather) but Samuel Whipple's (my 4x great grandfather) lives. They became more than a name on a tree, they now were people I felt like I knew. That right there is my favorite part of genealogy. 

2022 Week #13 Sisters

My 3x great grandparents were Susan (Mitchell) and Richard Slavin. Together they had 7 daughters including my 2x great grandmother Katie (Slavin) Miner. According to family stories Richard did not buy Susan a sewing machine and so she divorced him because with 7 daughters she thought she deserved a sewing machine! He remarried and had another daughter and finally a son. So my 2x great grandmother Katie had 7 sisters and 1 brother. Quite the family. Below are a little bit about each of Richard and Susan's daughters and Richard and his 2nd wife Lucy's children. I'm lucky to have photos of many of them and have personally been to all but two of their graves. Sadly many of the daughters died at a young age. 

Caroline Virginia or Virginia Caroline "Callie"-  1859-1892

From her obituary it stated that she suffered an illness of blood poisoning for 30 days before dying. She's buried in the Greenwood Cemetery in Palmyra, MO. She was married to Arch Rightmire and had 5 kids and some step kids also.  

Mary Henderson "Molly"- 1861-1920

Mary's grave sits under this cedar bush and like 6 inches from a fence! So hard to take a decent photo! She's buried in Biles Cemetery near Lancaster, MO. It's out in the middle of a cow pasture. She married John Johnson and had 9 children and was about the only of her sisters to live a long life. It's thought that her mother Susan is also buried either her with her or at least in the same cemetery. 

Dora A. - 1864-1913

Unfortunately I don't have a lot of info on Dora. I did find a marriage license from Schuyler county online saying she married Anthony Jones on December 16, 1891. Beyond that I have no idea where they are buried and if they had any kids. 

Katherine Alice "Katie"- 1866-1913

I'm lucky to have this photo in a large oval frame. It hung in my grandmas spare bedroom so I saw it all the time growing up. When my grandma passed I snagged onto the picture along with about 6 other large family photos. 

Katie is buried in Zoar Cemetery right next to her father and close to 2 of her sisters Martha and Marcena. Katie was my 2x great grandmother and 2nd wife to Jessie Franklin Miner. She carried on the tradition of girls and had 4 daughters Blanche, Edna, Marie, and Cleo and she was step mother to Walter. Unfortunately she passed away at the age of 46 from Tuberculosis. 

Maggie B.- 1868-1894

Maggie is also buried in Biles Cemetery where Mary is.  Maggie died in childbirth with her first child. She was married to Charles Terry. 

Marcena L. - 1870-1901

Marcena buried in Zoar cemetery behind her father and sister. One day while visiting the cemetery we ran into a distant cousin putting flowers on her grave. He mentioned that since Marcena died young (possibly during childbirth) that "Aunt Katie" helped take care of her children. Marcena had 2 children also die the same year she did in 1901 an infant and a 2 year old. She was married to Henry Drake. 

Martha "Mattie"- 1873-1901 

Mattie is buried also in Zoar near her sisters and father. Like Marcena she died in 1901. Since her husband, Elijah Withrow, passed before that their son Edgar was raised by an Aunt and Uncle on his fathers side. 

Their half siblings are as follows:

Edyth- 1890-1933

Edith is buried in Shaul Cemetery in Ottumwa, Iowa. 

Oddity Denton "OD"- 1893-1960 

They called him OD or Oddie but his full name is Oddity Denton Slavin. They said since he was the first boy after 8 girls he was an oddity! He's buried in Centerville, Iowa in the Oakland Cemetery. 

2022 Week #12 Joined Together

Over the years I've developed a soft spot for my ancestors who either never married, were married but never had children, or who had children but none lived. Often times those individuals get overlooked or have no direct descendants to remember them. Another group of individuals that might get forgotten are the first wives or husbands of our direct descendants. Their story is so important to our own story and we are forever joined together even though we share no blood. Because of their deaths our direct descendant wouldn't have remarried and we would not exist today. It's a very sad thing to think about and that I always try to honor them and remember them as well. There are 2 ladies in particular who fit this description for me who I visit each year on memorial weekend and place flowers at their graves. 

The first is a woman by the name of Clarinda Patterson Miner. She was the first wife of my 2x great grandfather Jessie Franklin Miner. Together they had 3 children Cora, Walter, and Clay. Unfortunately Cora passed away in 1886 at the age of 2 and then Clay passed away 2 months after birth in 1888. Clarinda passed away shortly after Clays birth. Such a tragic few years for my 2x great grandfather. Having his wife and 2 children all pass away within a 2 year span and then having to raise his 1 year old son on his own. In 1890 he married my 2x great grandmother Katie Slavin and in 1891 my great grandmother Blanche was born. Jessie and Clarinda's son who survived lived a long life and married but never had any children of his own. Recently I've tried to do more research on Clarinda and am hoping I can find a photo of her. (Fingers Crossed)

Clarinda's Grave stone. It sits in a beautiful country cemetery. 

Cora and Clay share a stone with their mother Clarinda. 

The next woman is Delia Rogers Mullins. She was the first wife of another one of my 2x great grandfathers Matthew Mullins. They were married in 1893 and had a daughter Fern in 1894. Unfortunately like Clarinda and Jessie, Baby Fern passed away at the age of 1 in 1895. Then in 1898 Delia passed away. He then went to Osteopathy school and worked as a physician for a short time in Northern Iowa but the stories I heard it was hard for him to work as a doctor when his wife and child died. His sister Elva also passed away in between there in 1894 very tragically. (I'll tell her story another time). In 1910 he married my 2x great grandmother and in 1911 had my great grandfather. 

Delia's headstone in another beautiful country cemetery in northern MO. 

Fern's headstone sits next to her mother and next to her Aunt Elva. 

Our lives are so precious and so many things had to happen or line up just right for us to be here and that includes happiness, love but sometimes even death and tragedy. I challenge you to look up those first wives or husbands and remember and tell their stories too. 

2022 Week #11 Flowers

So many women and men in my family are known for their gardening skills and green thumbs. Most of them did it not only for pleasure but as a means for survival and providing for their families. I have mixed results when it comes to growing things. I love doing it and planning out gardens and decorating my house with plants and flowers. But I also have a touch of the black thumb and things tend to die on occasion. This week when I read the topic the first thing that I thought of was my Grandma Carolyn and the flowers that she grew. All around her house you would find all types of flowers and plants. When you walked into her house in the breezeway sat a table full of plants and she had plants scattered throughout her house. I remember carrying jug after jug of water around to water each of those plants. Before we sold her house I went around and took photos of some of the outdoor flowers. It was spring time when we were preparing her house to sell and so everything was blooming and I'll always treasure those photos as remembrance of her beautiful flowers. 

Lilly of the Valley 

Bleeding Hearts

Spirea- She used these flowers in her bouquet when she got married. 

These were my favorite growing up. I have no clue what they are called! 

Poppies

Iris 

This was the table in her breezeway. I took a few of these plants to live with me. 

Not exactly a flower but this was her gooseberry bush. She was known for her gooseberry pie. My sister and I would help pick and stem the gooseberries. 

These were her grape vines. She use to make grape jelly and grape juice with them. 

This is one of the plants from her Breeze way. Almost everyone in our family has a Christmas Cactus or 10. They mostly were starts of the plant below that belonged to my Great Grandma Blanche. This photo was one of the best blooms I'd ever seen from this plant and then right after it bloomed it died!! I was heartbroken. Luckily I had some starts off of it and have 3 cactuses from that plant. 

The Original Christmas Cactus! 

2022 Week #10 Worship

One of my favorite cemeteries and the spot I've considered as a final resting spot for my earthly body is the Zoar Cemetery located in southern Iowa just a few miles from the Missouri Border. This tiny country cemetery is filled with 40+ relatives of mine. Including 9 direct descendants! Another one of my favorite things about this cemetery is that it has a little 1 room church sitting on the grounds right as you come in the cemetery. 

Each year for memorial weekend they unlock the church and let people go in and sign the visitor book. They also have some information about the history of the church and cemetery. I love just sitting in the pews and imagining what it was like attending Sunday services there and hearing the music and singing. Although this isn't' the original church I still can't help but feel connected to this place. So many of my ancestors were instrumental in the building of the original church.

In 1860 a group of people laid out plans for a church and they erected a 24x30 building made of white oak logs. The floor was of oak boards from Yarnell's saw mill. The building had 4 windows 2 on the east and 2 on the west. The clapboards were shaved by James Hutchison (My 3x great uncle). The door was of native lumber and the hinges for the door were made by JR Withrow a blacksmith (My 3x great grandfather). Due to the Civil war the church wasn't dedicated until 1865. During those first 5 years It was also used as the school. 

The first person to be buried in the cemetery surrounding the church was buried in January of 1861. Shortly after the first person was buried Sarah Walter (2x great aunt) was buried in June of 1861. 

After 22 years in the log building they felt they were in need of a bigger and better building. The Building committee selected was "Nathan Adams, James Hutchison (3x great uncle), John Walter (3x great grandfather). This building was completed and dedicated on Christmas Day in 1882. Mentioned in the history of the church it said that John Walter (My 3x great grandfather) presented the Revered Charley Clark with a walnut cane that was made with a piece of the old church. 

The morning of October 6th 1935 the 2nd church building burned. October 7th a committee was formed to build another building. They were able to save the church piano and pews. In 1936 the 3rd church was build. It is the building that still stands today. 

Each year on the Sunday before Labor day they held Homecoming where friends and relatives came from far and near with well filled baskets of food. They would eat, sing, and listen to speakers. Each year Christmas programs were held lead by the surrounding school children. Sunday School was held each Sunday. The women of the church belonged to the Ladies Aid and worked serving lunch at farm sales to help raise money for the church. 

In 1960 they held the 100 year celebration. It was a full day of eating, singing, visiting, and singing to an electric organ. 

In 1965 the attendance of the church dropped and they could no longer keep their conference obligation. They were required to either move the church off the grounds or buy the church. It was purchased for $25.00. 

A quote describing the church and cemetery from Lenore Peckham "When you go to Zoar you usually sit in your car a minute just looking and loving the storybook quality of the view. There's a little white church with the great, dark pines behind, spreading their sheltering arms over the little burial ground. It is quiet here-- no sound to mar the beauty and peace, only the soft singing of the wind in the trees overhead. You go through the little gate, step off the walk onto the softness of the grass, and make your way among the ancient grave stones, lingering here and there to read the inscription-- you are stunned as you make out lettering, sometimes with difficulty....There, then the good old days. One thinks of creaking wagons bearing their beloved burdens. People walking behind with grief. Morbid? Perhaps, but true nevertheless. Life was hard in those days, and the old markers bear mute testimonies." 

Below are some of my direct descendants buried in Zoar. 

Daniel Hutchison my 4x great grandfather

Barbara and John Walter my 4x great grandparents. 

James Ross & Rebecca Withrow my 3x great grandparents

Richard Slavin my 3x great grandfather & Katie Miner my 2x great grandmother

Edward and Louisa Walter my 2x great grandparents. 

Sources:
History of Zoar Chapel Methodist Church - By E.E. Withrow (2x great Uncle) 

Zoar Church History Part 2- Mona Eddy Howard (Lady who Bought the church for $25)

Photos taken by Erin Mullins