War of 1812 Declaration - 202nd Anniversary

National Archives and Records Administration. Office of the Federal Register. Record Group 11: General Records of the United States Government, 1778 - 2006. Enrolled Acts and Resolutions of Congress, 1789 - 2011. National Archives Identifier: 299950. Act of June 18, 1812, 2 STAT 755, Declaration of War with Great Britain, War of 1812.  Available from http://research.archives.gov/description/299950 or http://media.nara.gov/rediscovery/08305_2007.pdf.

On 18 June 1812, the United States Congress passed an act declaring war on the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the War of 1812 began.

Some of my family members participated in the War of 1812. The ones that I have identified so far are my 6th-great-grandfather Francis Hardgrave and his son Skelton Hardgrave, my 5th-great-grandfather Andrew Russell (Francis Hardgrave's son-in-law), and my 5th-great-grandfather Chapman Gordon.

Tombstone Tuesday: John and Margaret Boe

My maternal grandparents John Boe (28 April 1908 - 24 November 1977) and Margaret Ann (Schneider) Boe (16 March 1911 - 4 August 1986) are buried in Valleau Cemetery in Ridgewood, Bergen County, New Jersey. Their tombstone inscription "THEY WERE LIFE ITSELF" fits them well. This photo was taken around Christmastime.

Maritime Monday: Robert Mapplebeck, Mate of a Home Trade Passenger Ship

Robert Mapplebeck, the uncle of my great-grandmother Kathleen Graham's stepfather/adoptive father James Mapplebeck, received his Certificate of Competency as mate of a home trade passenger ship in 1868. He passed his examination in Hull, England on 28 May 1868, and the certificate was issued at the port of Goole on 4 June 1868.

 

Ancestry.com. UK and Ireland, Masters and Mates Certificates, 1850-1927 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: Master's Certificates. Greenwich, London, UK: National Maritime Museum.

Father's Day/Mom's Birthday

Today is both Father's Day and my mother's birthday, so I am sharing a family picture that was taken when I was five years old.

I am also sharing a recent picture of my father bottle feeding my kitten Flash. He has been such a big help. Thank you, Dad!

Flag Day

The "Betsy Ross Flag" flying outside City Hall in San Francisco, California, 11 October 2008. Photo by Makaristos (Own work) [Public domain]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

On 14 June 1777, the Flag Act of 1777 was passed by the Second Continental Congress. Flag Day commemorates the adoption of the American flag.

Bernard J. Cigrand was the first to propose that June 14 be observed as Flag Day. On 30 May 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued Proclamation 1335, requesting that June 14 be observed as Flag Day. On 3 August 1949, President Harry Truman signed Congressional legislation designating June 14 as Flag Day.

Links
Flag Day (United States)
National Flag Day Foundation
This Day in History: Continental Congress Chooses New Flag
Today in History: June 14 (American Memory, Library of Congress)

52 Ancestors: #24 Andreas Troedsson/Andrew T. Anderson

My great-great-grandfather Andreas Troedsson was born on 24 February 1851 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden, and was baptized on 2 March 1851. He was the son of Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter. The EmiHamn database records his date of emigration as 11 March 1872; he left from Copenhagen, Denmark, and his destination was Chicago, Illinois. He was the first of his siblings to come to America; two brothers and two sisters followed him. After he arrived in America, he changed his name to Andrew T. Anderson. His middle initial was from his original patronymic, Troedsson, and his new surname was probably chosen because it was a modified version of his father's patronymic. His brothers also adopted the surname Anderson and used the middle initial T.

He married Marthe Elisabeth Erickson, an immigrant from Avaldsnes, Rogaland, Norway, in Chicago on 31 March 1877. They had seven children: Anna Matilda (born 13 April 1878), Emma Christina (born 2 June 1880, died 9 June 1881), my great-grandfather Edward Theodore (born 10 August 1882), Albert Bernard (born 28 March 1885), Esther Elizabeth (born 1 September 1889), Reuben Alexander (born 19 December 1892), and Ruth Elvira (born 18 June 1896).

He was a wood turner. He made a set of chairs and gave one to each of his children (except baby Emma). My father has the chair that belonged to Edward Theodore. By 1910, he was a clerk for the Cook County Board of Review.

In 1912, he returned to Sweden to visit his sister Carolina. He also saw his brother Johannes while he was there. He returned to the United States on 28 July 1912. He arrived at Ellis Island on the Caronia, which had sailed from Liverpool, England.

He died in Chicago on 24 January 1916 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery on 27 January 1916.

Birth/christening record for Andreas, 1851. Grevie CI (1837-1861), image 79. (AID: v99277.b79, NAD: SE/LLA/13113)

Cook County, Illinois Marriage license and return, Andrew Anderson and Marte E. Eriksen, 1877.

Anderson family ca. 1906: Esther, Andrew, Albert, Reuben, Ruth, Edward, Marthe, Anna.

1910 United States census, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, Ward 31, population schedule, enumeration district 1351, page 15B.

City of Chicago, Department of Health. Certificate of death no. 2930, Andrew T. Anderson, 24 January 1916.

Chicago Daily Tribune, 26 January 1916

Helsinki Day

June 12 is Helsinki Day (Helsinki-päivä), a celebration of the founding of Helsinki. The first Helsinki Day was celebrated on June 12, 1959, the 409th anniversary of the founding of the city. The celebration includes many free events such as morning coffee, music, dance, films, food, sports, and tours.

I have not discovered any Finnish ancestors, but I visited Finland, including Helsinki, in 2008 and had a wonderful time. Helsinki is a beautiful city.

Helsinki Cathedral

 Suomenlinna fortress

Links

Helsinki Day 2014

Helsinki-päivä 2014

Helsinki Day festivities