Siege of Fredriksten

Plan of the Siege of Frederiksten, 1718. Holm, Edvard. Danmarks Riges Historie, vol. 5, 1907. Public domain. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

On 30 November 1718, Charles XII of Sweden's troops attempted a siege on the Norwegian fortress of Fredriksten in the city of Fredrikshald (now Halden, Østfold). This was the last invasion of Norway during the Great Northern War. Charles XII was killed by a projectile while he was inspecting his troops' lines.

I am not sure if any of my ancestors participated in the Great Northern War, but I could have had ancestors on both sides, since I am both Swedish and Norwegian.

References
Siege of Fredriksten

1783 Earthquake

The most powerful earthquake to strike New Jersey was the one that occurred at 9:00 PM on 29 November 1783. It measured 5.3 on the Richter scale, and VII on the Mercalli intensity scale. It was felt from New Hampshire to Pennsylvania.

In Philadelphia, it was reported that items were thrown off shelves and sleeping people were woken up.

Maryland Gazette, 11 Dec 1783, page 2

References
Damaging Earthquakes Felt in NJ
Historic Earthquakes: New Jersey 1783 11 30 03:50 UTC (Local 11/29)
"Philadelphia, December 2." Maryland Gazette, 11 December 1783, p. 2.
1783 New Jersey earthquake
Weather trivia: The day New Jersey shook like no other

Mary Winters

Mary Winters, the daughter of my 4th-great-grandparents Hugh Winters and Mary Bennet, was born 176 years ago today, on 27 November 1840. She was baptized on 13 December 1840 at St. Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh, Scotland. The baptismal sponsors were John Finegan and Cath Boylan.

She arrived in New York, New York on 12 June 1849 on the Pursuit with her father and most of her siblings.

Passenger manifest, Pursuit, 12 June 1849. Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C. Year: 1849; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: M237, 1820-1897; Microfilm Roll: Roll 080; List Number: 706. Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. 

Mary's mother and sister Margaret apparently traveled separately, but the whole family was together in Brooklyn, New York by 1850.

1850 United States census, Brooklyn Ward 10, Kings County, New York, population schedule, p. 131A. Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.

In 1855, Mary was a servant in the home of John and Mary Blair. Her mother had apparently died by this time.

New York State Census, 1855, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K6W3-Z9M : 19 November 2014), Mary Winters in household of John Blair, E.D. 2, Ward 12, Brooklyn City, Kings, New York, United States; count clerk offices, New York; FHL microfilm 1,930,199.

Mary died on 12 September 1876 in Charity Hospital, Blackwell's Island, New York, New York. The causes of death were phthisis (pulmonary tuberculosis) and alcoholism. Asthma was a contributing cause. She was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York.

New York, New York. Board of the Health Department. Death certificate no. 248060, Mary Winters, 1876.

Wordless Wednesday: Edward and Ellen (Dahlquist) Anderson, September 1950

Brooke Johns' Missouri Girls

My maternal grandfather's sister Florence Kathleen Boe was born 107 years ago today, on 22 November 1909. Florence was a dancer. She is pictured below (bottom right) as part of a group that danced in vaudeville performer Brooke Johns' stage shows.

St. Louis Star, 2 March 1928, page 11

Surname Saturday: Schunk

According to Dictionary of American Family Names, edited by Patrick Hanks (Oxford University Press, 2003), the surname Schunk comes from a South German nickname for someone with long legs (the Middle High German word for leg bone is schinke) or from a Slavic word meaning "piglet."

Absolute distribution

©Christoph Stöpel. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 DE (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/de/deed.en). http://legacy.stoepel.net/de/MapGateway.aspx?name=Schunk&target=DE&renderer=EN_US&mode=abs

Relative distribution

©Christoph Stöpel. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 DE (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/de/deed.en). http://legacy.stoepel.net/de/MapGateway.aspx?name=Schunk&target=DE&renderer=EN_US&mode=rel

My known Schunk ancestors are:

5th-great-grandmother: Agnes Schunk
born about 1744, Kendenich, Rhein-Erft, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
married Heinrich Erp
died 9 March 1819, Kendenich, Rhein-Erft, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany

6th-great-grandfather: Peter Schunk

Uniform Time Zone Plan

Chicago Tribune, 18 November 1883, page 12

On 18 November 1883, five standard time zones were implemented across the United States and Canada. The General Time Convention had been held at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Chicago, Illinois on 11 October 1883. At the convention, railroad executives decided to adopt the time zone system developed by William F. Allen.

The Official Railway Guide: North American Freight Service Edition. National Railway Publication Co., 1883. Available from Google Books.

Before the time zones were implemented, more than fifty different times had been used by the railroads.

Chicago Tribune, 18 November 1883, page 12

Although the railroads adopted the time zones, their use was not legally required in the United States until 1918, when the Standard Time Act was passed.  Calculations of differences in time were published, and train schedules sometimes included the difference between railroad time and local time.

Chicago Tribune, 18 November 1883, page 12

Montreal Daily Witness, 19 November 1883, page 6

Jewelers saw the time zone plan as a business opportunity, and offered to regulate watches so that they would conform to the standard time.

Daily American (Nashville, TN), 18 November 1883, page 2

Other businesses also mentioned the standard time in their advertisements.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 19 November 1883, page 8

Wordless Wednesday: Washington State Building, St. Louis World's Fair, 1904

Tombstone Tuesday: Ella (Lee) Gatlin

Ella Lee was born on 5 October 1868 in Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee. She was the daughter of Thomas Lee and Annie Glacheen. She married Clarence Bateman Gatlin on 28 November 1889 in Davidson County, Tennessee. Their children were Thomas (born 17 October 1890, died 18 April 1891), Annie Lee (born 9 July 18930, Mary Nevins (born 30 May 1895, died 13 April 1900), Lillie Gertrude (born 18 July 1897, died 26 November 1898), Helen Barbara (born 4 December 1899), Clara Louise (born 2 September 1902), Clarence Joseph (born 15 May 1906, died 14 November 1910), Katherine Elizabeth (born 16 November 1909), and Ida Lucille (born 30 July 1913). She died on 14 August 1954 and was buried on 16 August 1954 in Calvary Cemetery, Nashville, section 16, lot 64, space 9.

Mappy Monday: Baden 1801-1819

Baden 1801-1819. By ziegelbrenner [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC BY 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

This map shows Baden from 1801 to 1815, and indicates when areas became part of Baden. My ancestors lived in the area that became part of Baden in 1805.

Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery Records, 1864-1989

FamilySearch has added the database Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery Records, 1864-1989 to their collection. It contains records from cemeteries that are under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Chicago. The majority of records are burial index cards, but the collection also includes some burial registers, burial logs, and lot owner registers. The cemeteries are located in Cook and Lake Counties, Illinois.

When I searched this collection, I found burial index cards for my 3nd-great-grandmother Sadie (Dyer) Gatlin and some of her children. For me, the biggest find was the burial card for Sadie's daughter Anna Elizabeth (Gatlin) Doying. Until I found her burial index card, I did not know where she was buried. Her burial date (2 September 1964) also helps me to estimate a death date for her. I know that she died in August 1964; she probably died at the end of August.

Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery Records, 1864-1989, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2HF-5Q4M : 31 October 2016), Anna E Doying, 02 Sep 1964; citing River Grove, Cook, Illinois, United States, St. Joseph's, Archidiocese of Chicago; FHL microfilm 1,493,420.

Society Saturday: Children of America Loyalty League

The Children of America Loyalty League was organized in St. Louis, Missouri on 29 June 1917. Its purpose was to teach children to love their country and to provide aid to soldiers and sailors, the Red Cross, and other children. It was founded by Mrs. Nat Brown.

Dues were 20 cents per year for children. For adults, honorary membership cost $1 per year, and active membership cost $5 per year. The organization's national song was "The Rainbow of the Free" by John L. Herman (music) and Will DeFord (lyrics).

 In 1917, the organization donated socks to soldiers in France, and donated glasses of jelly to war hospitals in France.

The Children of America Loyalty League's events included performances, parties, and fashion shows. On 14 September 1917, the league held a celebration at the St. Louis Coliseum in honor of the 103rd anniversary of the writing of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

 The league held a masque and pageant, "The Song of Truth and the Court of Youth," on October 3, 4, and 5, 1918 at the Odeon Theatre in St. Louis.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 29 September 1918, page 18B

The league gave lawn parties which featured entertainment. On 9 July 1920, a lawn party was held at the home of my great-grandmother Kathleen (Graham) Boe. The entertainers included my grandfather John Boe and his siblings Florence, James, Theodora Catherine, and Geraldine.

St. Louis Star, 1 July 1920, page 19

On 30 April 1921, the league held a children's fashion exhibition.

St. Louis Star, 29 April 1921, page 17

On 29 July 1921, another lawn party was held at Kathleen (Graham) Boe's home. The entertainment included a fortune-teller, a snake charmer, a museum, and a fish pond.

St. Louis Star, 21 July 1921, page 17

 On 10 December 1921, the league held a Christmas party.

St. Louis Star, 9 December 1921, page 19

In 1921, when the Old Glory chapter of the Children of America Loyalty League was reorganized, Kathleen (Graham) Boe became secretary-treasurer.

St. Louis Star, 20 September 1921, page 15

References
"Children of America Loyalty League." Musical Monitor, vol. 8 (1918), p. 223. Available from Google Books.
"Children's Aid to Red Cross to Be Nation-Wide in Scope." St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 8 July 1917, p. 17.
"Children's Lawn Party." St. Louis Star,  21 July 1921, p. 17.
"Children's League to Send Socks to Soldiers Abroad." St. Louis Star, 6 September 1917, p. 2.
"Children's Loyalty League Lawn Parties." St. Louis Star, 1 July 1920, p. 19.
Children of America Loyalty League Christmas party advertisement. St. Louis Star, 9 December 1921, p. 19.
Herman, John, and DeFord, Will. The Rainbow of the Free: National Song of the Children of America Loyalty League. St. Louis: Kunkel Brothers, 1921. Available from Internet Archive.
"League Chapter Reorganized." St. Louis Star, 20 September 1921, p. 5.
 Masque and pageant adverstisement. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 29 September 1918, p. 18B.
"Summer 1921 Children's Fashion Exhibition." St. Louis Star, 29 April 1921, p. 17.
"Writing of National Anthem Celebrated." St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 15 September 1917, p. 3.

Veterans Day

Available from Veterans Day Poster Gallery, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs.

On Veterans Day, I would once again like to thank the members of my family that have served in the United States military or in the military of allied nations. In addition to ancestors, this list includes uncles, cousins, and relatives by marriage.

Revolutionary War
Adam Binkley
Frederick Binkley
Abraham Louis DeMoss
Elisha Garland
Lazarus Gatlin
Jesse Greer
Francis Hardgrave
Benjamin Isbell
Henry Isbell
Thomas Isbell
Richard Lane
Job Lucas
Benjamin Mayo
James Mayo
Joseph Mayo
Stephen Mayo

War of 1812
Chapman Gordon
Francis Hardgrave
Skelton Hardgrave
Elias L. Mayo
Thomas Mayo
Andrew Russell

Mexican War
James Thomas Gilliam
Thomas E. Gilliam
James Hardgraves
Robert Francis Hardgraves
Thomas Tarkington

Civil War (Union)
Davidson Binkley
Samuel August Samuelson
Joshua Hunt Thomas
Hugh Winters

World War I
John Joseph Berberick
Walter Stanton Halvorson
John G. Leech
Ralph Jorgen Olsen
Ferdinand Constand Schneider
Cornelius Thomas de Kam (Canada)
Edward Otto Troedson (Australia)
George Arthur Troedson (Australia)

World War II
Burl Waymouth Binkley
Gilbert Joseph Blocker
Ralph Edwin Boe
Theodore Boe
David Theodore Borg
Delmar Emil Borg
Walton E. Borg
Clifford Irwin Clark
Joseph Gatlin Dillon
Irvin Jorgen Einerson
Rudolph Joseph Einerson
Louis D. Hightower
William Philip Carl Illig
Norman Kowelman
James Bratton Lampley
Harry Ashby Lee
William Patterson Leech
Leroy N. Mayrant
Julian G. Nagle
Charles Russell Pickering
Amanda Mary (Whitman) Pybas
Earl Mason Roberts
William Robert Ruty
Karl J. Schneider
Fred Logan Trickey

Korean War
Harry Ashby Lee

Other
Nile Weldon Farnsworth, United States Navy, 1946-1949
John Joseph Koestler, United States Army 1958-1964
Frank Casole, United States Army 1977-1981
Todd Thompson, United States Air Force 1991-2011
Jon Rodriguez, United States Marines
Mitchell Stansbury, United States Navy

Agathe Weiler

My 4th-great-grandmother Agathe Weiler (or Wieler) died 158 years ago today. All that I know about her comes from Familienbuch der katholischen Pfarrei Sankt-Severin, Erpel 1615-1875 by Renate Hentschel (Köln: Westdeutsche Gesellschaft für Familienkunde, 2010.)

I know that Agathe was born about 1789, but I do not know where. I know that she married my 4th-great-grandfather Gottfried Lindlohr before 1817, but I do not know where they married. Gottfried was from Erpel, Neuwied, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. Agathe may have been from somewhere else, possibly a nearby town.

Gottfried and Agathe had the following children, all baptized in Erpel:

Karl Josef, born 15 November 1817
Matthias Josef, born 29 February 1820 and died 7 March 1820
Adelheid, born 15 February 1821
Anna Sibylle, born 20 December 1823
Anna Maria, born 22 August 1826
Anna Margarete, born 10 April 1829
Johann Josef, born 23 December 1831

Agathe died on 10 November 1858. The cause of death was Schlagfluß (stroke). She was buried on 13 November 1858 in Erpel.

Wordless Wednesday: Flash Watching the Election Coverage

Election Day

I voted!

Maritime Monday: Andreas Eriksen

My 2nd-great-grandmother's brother Andreas Eriksen was born on 18 May 1835 in Avaldsnes, Rogaland, Norway. He was the son of Erik Svendsen Haavig and Marthe Maria Jakobsdatter.

Rogaland fylke, Avaldsnes sokneprestkontor, H/Ha/Haa/L0005: Parish register (official) no. A 5.1, 1825-1841, p. 121. https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/kb20051108030134

In 1865, he and his wife Marthe Johanne Hansdatter lived in Rennesøy, Rogaland, Norway with Anders Hansen and his family. Andreas was a styrmand (ship's mate).

Rogaland fylke, Rennesøy prestegjeld, Statlig folketelling [Rogaland County, Rennesøy parish, Government census] 178 (RA/S-2231/E), 1865-1865, p. 12.oppb: Riksarkivet. https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/ft20090731650431

In 1875, Andreas and his family lived in Torvastad, Rogaland, Norway.  He worked as a skipper.

In 1885, Andreas and his family lived in Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway. By this time, he was a skipperborger (skipper/ship master, social layer above the working class).

Haugesund is located on northern end of the strait of Karmsund.

Physical map of Fjords and Sunds between Bergen and Stavanger. By Ulamm (www.maps-for-free.com) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], 29 January 2008. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

Fishing and shipping were important industries in Haugesund. Herring were plentiful in the coastal waters. (The Birth of the Town of Haugesund)

Nordre havn, Haugesund, Stavangers amt. 1900-1910. Riksarkivet [National Archives], Havnedirektoratet [Harbor Directorate]. Public domain. Arkivverkets fotoarkiv.

Finnish Swedish Heritage Day

Unofficial flag of Swedish-speaking Finns. By Mysid (Self-drawn in CorelDraw, based on FOTW.) [Public domain]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

November 6 is Finnish Swedish Heritage Day. It is a celebration of Finland's Swedish-speaking population. The day was established in 1908 by the Swedish People's Party of Finland. November 6 was chosen because Gustavas Adolphus of Sweden was killed at the Battle of Lützen on 6 November 1632.

5.5 percent of the Finnish population speaks Swedish. Finland was part of Sweden for 700 years, and Swedish speakers have lived in Finland since the 1100s.

References
Finnish Swedish Heritage Day
How to be Finnish in Swedish - thisisFINLAND

Sympathy Saturday: Michael Joseph Gatlin

I have previously written about my great-grandfather John Schneider's sister Marie (Schneider) Illig, who died of bronchopneumonia due to influenza during the 1918 pandemic. Marie was not my only relative that died in the pandemic; Michael Joseph Gatlin, brother of my great-grandfather Henry Brown Gatlin, also died of bronchopneumonia.

In 1918, the Gatlin family lived in Chicago, Illinois. On 1 October 1918, 374 cases of influenza were reported to the Public Health Service by the Illinois Health Officer. The 2 October 1918 issue of the Chicago Daily Tribune reported the effects of the disease on hospital staff.

Chicago Daily Tribune, 2 October 1918, page 17

By 9 October 1918, 135 people had died as a result of the influenza pandemic.

Chicago Daily Tribune, 9 October 1918, page 8

On 10 October 1918, there was another death: Michael Joseph Gatlin. He died of bronchopneumonia at Augustana Hospital. Dr. S. J. Burrows had attended him on October 9 and 10.

Illinois State Board of Health. Bureau of Vital Statistics. Death certificate no. 27450, Michael Joseph Gatlin, 1918.

Michael was only 22 years old at the time of his death. Like many members of his family, he had worked in the printing industry. He was buried in Mount Carmel Cemetery in Hillside, Cook County, Illinois.

Chicago Daily Tribune, 12 October 1918, page 11

Stuart and Nat

Since today is the birthday of my first cousin Stuart Slagle, who died in 2007, it is a good time to share this photo of him and his nephew, my first cousin once removed Nathaniel "Nat" Shultz, who died in 2006. This photo was taken at my parents' house in 2005.

Those Places Thursday: Gower Road, Nashville, Tennessee

Gower Road is located in Nashville, Tennessee, between River Road and Old Charlotte Pike.

My 5th-great-grandfather William Gower's property was on this road. He was a Methodist preacher, and his church, Gower's Chapel, was across from his home. In 1885, a new church, Centenary United Methodist Church, was constructed on the property.

Centenary United Methodist Church

Gower Cemetery is located on the hillside below the church. William and other members of his family are buried there. Unfortunately, the cemetery is very overgrown.

Gower Cemetery area

Job Lucas

Job Lucas was born 259 years ago today, on 2 November 1757 in Virginia. He was the son of my 7th-great-grandparents Edward Lucas and Elizabeth Corn.

From May 1776 to October 1777, he served as a private in the 8th Virginia Regiment. He was a waggoner.

Compiled Service Records of Soldiers who Served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. NARA microfilm publication M881, roll 1047. Virginia, Eighth Regiment. The National Archives at Washington, D.C. Available from Fold3.

In 1778, he served as a private in the 4th Virginia Regiment. He died at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania on 15 May 1778.

Compiled Service Records of Soldiers who Served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. NARA microfilm publication M881, roll 975. Virginia, Fourth Regiment. The National Archives at Washington, D.C. Available from Fold3.

According to family Bible records, the cause of death was smallpox.

Tuesday's Tip: Swedish-American Newspapers

The Minnesota Historical Society provides access to 28 Swedish-American newspapers published between 1859 and 2007. These newspapers were published for the Swedish immigrant communities. More than 300,000 digitized pages are available for searching and browsing. There is a text correction tool that you can use to correct mistakes. There is also a user annotation tool, which can be used to add comments and tags.

I found some interesting things in this collection. My ancestors attended the Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Chicago, and news from the church was published. My great-grandfather Edward Theodore Anderson and his brother-in-law Carl Dahlquist were elected to serve as deacons. My 2nd-great-grandfather C. J. Dahlquist (Carl's father) was in the Anti-Saloon League (something that I was previously unaware of).

Svenska Amerikanaren, 18 January 1917, page 15

I found a death notice for C. J. Dahlquist's son Martin L. Dahlquist.

Svenska Tribunen-Nyheter, 6 August 1919, page 12

C. J. Dahlquist's brother Frank A. Shirlander and his wife were attacked by a former employee in 1905. The incident was reported in two Swedish-American newspapers.

Svenska Amerikanaren, 30 May 1905, page 11

Svenska Tribunen, 31 May 1905, page 11

If you have Swedish ancestors who immigrated to the United States, this collection is worth a look. The collection can be accessed at http://www.mnhs.org/newspapers/swedishamerican.