So Many Ancestors!: Binggeli

Showing posts with label Binggeli. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

NGS 2017: Day 1

I am in Raleigh, North Carolina for the 2017 National Genealogical Society Family History Conference, which began today. During the opening session "Family History Lives Here," we watched a video presentation which included a reading from "The Moravian Record of Peter Binkele" - my ancestor! That was a very nice surprise! I then went to the exhibit hall and bought some books.

At 11:00 AM, I attended Diane Richard's session "Tarheels in Your Family Tree?" Some of my ancestors lived in North Carolina in the 1700s. I had never thought about the impediments to interior travel in North Carolina; I will have to follow up on the sources listed in the handout.

After lunch, I attended Craig Scott's session on Mexican War ancestors. Thomas Tarkington, who was probably my 3rd-great-grandfather Joseph Tarkington's brother, was killed in the Mexican War.

I then attended J. H. Fonkert's session "Use all the Sources: A Complex Case of Confounded Identity." The case study dealt with a Norwegian immigrant family. I know from experience that members of Scandinavian families may use different names, but this family used many more than one might expect!

It was a great day, and I look forward to the rest of the conference!

Monday, August 10, 2015

Mappy Monday: Guggisberg, Canton Bern, Switzerland

Karte Gemeinde Guggisberg 2007. [Map of Municipality Guggisberg.] By Tschubby (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5-2.0-1.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

This map shows the location of Guggisberg in Canton Bern, Switzerland. My 3rd-great-grandfather Davidson Binkley is believed to be a descendant of Peter Binkley (also Binggeli and Binckele). Peter was born in Guggisberg in 1704.

Friday, August 1, 2014

Swiss National Day

Flag of Switzerland. Photo by Wladyslaw (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

August 1 is Swiss National Day. The first celebration was in 1891, commemorating the 600th anniversary of the Swiss Confederation. In early August 1291, the cantons of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden signed the Federal Charter of 1291. The day did not officially become a national holiday until 1994, after a vote on 26 September 1993.

The day is celebrated with fireworks, bonfires, and parades. At the Rhine Falls near Schaffhausen, there is a "Fire on the Rocks" fireworks display (which takes place the night before, July 31). The falls are illuminated during the display. A festival is held on the Rhine (also on July 31) at Basel. It includes fireworks, taverns and stalls, and musical performances. The celebration at Rütli includes a reading of the Rütlischwur, the oath of alliance which was taken at Rütli. In Zürich, a procession and festival are held.

Celebrations are also held outside Switzerland, in locations including New York City, Washington, D.C., Whittier, California, and Sutton, Quebec, Canada (in the town of Sutton and at the Mont SUTTON ski resort).

My 3rd-great-grandfather Davidson Binkley is believed to be a descendant of Peter Binkley (also Binggeli and Binckele), who was born in Guggisberg, Canton Bern, Switzerland on 2 March 1704 and came to Pennsylvania in 1736.

Rhine Falls fireworks. Photo by SISHION (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

Fireworks in Basel at the Swiss national day. Photo by Vincent de Groot (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.