Sentimental Sundays - Hopelessly Romantic

Upon re-typing my 3rd Great-Grandmother's diary, I came across this entry this morning. 

The day before, there had been a Vernon family reunion and Georgia Alden was continuing the description from that day. I found the following poem to be so heartbreakingly romantic and not to mention the continued conversation regarding the height of some of the men quite amusing. 

Sunday, September 7, 1890

Too tired to go to Church. Uncle Frank and Lizzie stopped at Aunt Harriet’s last night. Harry Hargis and Hendson Vernon of Georgia spent the night. The number of tall men at Nazareth yesterday has been subject of comment. A great many were six feet or over, all the way to six feet, six inches. The youngest descendant there was Master Alex. Vernon Holmes 5 weeks of age. The following poem was received from his descendant in Texas who wrote they would be with us in spirit on the 6. Anna L. Walden, Frances Lay, Dallas, Texas. The subject of the poem was a Great-Granddaughter of Alexander Vernon and the writer General Mirabeau B. Lamar, Third President of the Republic of Texas. It was written while Texas was a Republic on a sheet of music with a lead pencil, during Nancy’s absence from home.

To Miss Vernon

The richest rose, the rarest flower in Texas Valleys shining,

Can never match the absent one for whom my heart is pining.

My thoughts are with her day and night, nor can I from her turn ‘em.

Go where I will I still behold the smiles of Nancy Vernon.

Ye belles of wealth, ye devotees of fortunes heartless pleasures,

If to your stores ye wish to add fair virtues shining treasures,

Go seek the subject of my song; in her you’ll quickly find ‘em

For every gem of soul and mind is found in Nancy Vernon.

I know ‘tis said there never shone on earth a faultless creature.

That some slight shade must ever dim the brightest form or feature

But if such shadows dwell with her I’m sure I can’t discern ‘em.
I own that others have their faults, but none has Nancy Vernon.

But why should I her praises sing? Poor worth my softest numbers;

Songs of mine can never make the love that in her bosom slumbers.

Then take any harp and break its chords, take my songs and burn ‘em

I prize them not since they can win no smiles from Nancy Vernon. 

Surname Saturday - Richardson to Richerson

My last name is Richerson; not Richardson, Richarson, or Richerdson. To me, my last name is the correct spelling but I am a little biased. 

The story in our house is that my 3rd Great Grandfather and his brothers went off to fight in the Civil War. At some point during their enlistment, the spelling of their last name was changed from Richardson to Richerson. The theory is that the boys did this to ensure receipt of payment. Apparently, there were other Richardsons fighting in the war and my relatives wanted to make absolutely sure that they got what was theirs. 

4 Generations of Richersons

Thanks to the man on the left, Wright Montillion

Thankful Thursday - Circumstance of Events

There are many things that I am thankful for but when I sit down and really dive deep into what matters most to me and what would make me an incredibly different person, I’d have to say I’m grateful for my Great-Aunt, Goti (technically, she’s my 1st cousin 2x removed but she was like a sister to my grandmother.)

Take this as you will but I would not be here if her father had not been killed in a German bomb shelter – that’s another story for another day. Honestly though, had he survived the war, there is absolutely no way that I would be here. The following events would not have happened:

1. Goti’s mother would not have married an American soldier, who adopted her and moved the family back to the US after the war was over.

2. Goti would not have met her future husband while they were both stationed in Alaska – ALASKA! and after a short long-distance relationship, he asked her to marry him!

3. Shortly after the wedding, Goti’s new husband, my Uncle John, would never have sponsored my Grandmother’s immigration over to the US and provided helpful information on her journey, “For the record, I am a woman.”

4. Lastly, had my grandmother never emigrated from Germany, she would have never met my Grandfather, who most of  his friends and family thought would never marry, she would have never fallen madly in love, married and later had my mother who, thankfully and  subsequently fell in love with my father, married and a few years later had me. :)

I’ve just now begun to see the effects of God’s wheels turning slowly but I would have to say that the earlier events definitely happened for a reason and there was a reason for them all.

Today I am most thankful for my fun, loving, and witty Great Aunt, Irmgard Fischer! 

Goti and my Grandmother

Grown-Up Field Trip: Part 2

So this took a little longer to write than I had anticipated. 

I apologize. 

We woke up from our glorious night of rest and headed to a kitschy restaurant for breakfast. The food was ok but the restaurant did not receive a good review from mom. If you have award winning Corned Beef Hash, it better taste award winning! 

Apparently, my face blows up after taking Benadryl

After we filled up for the day, we then headed over to Duxbury, Mass for our own private torn of our 8th and 9th Great-Grandparent's home!! 

John Alden was a Cooper, Barrel Maker

Our tour started outside the house. Our tour guide, Matt from The Alden House, gave us a quick timeline of the Alden's time in Plymouth and their journey to Duxbury.  The Alden's first settled a few hundred yards east of the present location. Just a short walk through the woods from the present day home.  

The site of the Alden's first home, built in 1627

An interesting fact that I walked away with was that out of all the Pilgrims descendants, the Alden's children were the most easy going. All of the other Pilgrim's children made news for things most people wouldn't want to be known for, i.e., ending the pact with the Indians. The Alden's were simply living day by day. I wonder what they would think of their notoriety today? 

Myself, sister, and Mom at the Alden House

 After our tour was complete and we drove around the city of Duxbury and visited the Myles Standish Cemetery, America's oldest maintained cemetery. The burial place of John and Priscilla are unknown, as well as the date of Priscilla's death, but there are two plaques for them beside the grave of their oldest son, Jonathan. 

Gorgeous View of Duxbury

Plaques for John and Priscilla Alden

Once we had seen all of Duxbury, we drove back to Plymouth and visited a few more spots. They included The Mayflower Society Home, Burial Hill, and The Pilgrim Hall Museum. We capped the night off with the best meal of the day, White Pizza and Red Wine at The Upper Crust and sundaes at Friendly's. 

Our last day in Plymouth started at the Plimouth Plantation. The Plimouth Plantation is a recreation of a Wampanoag Indian Homesite and a 17th Century English Village. It is an interactive and realistic recreation of what life would have been like for both the Indians and Pilgrims a few years after the Pilgrims had arrived. 

Cooking Pumpkin

A Wampanoag Winterized Hut, as known as a Wetus

On our way to visit our 'ancestors' at the English Village

Pilgrims cutting wood 

17th Century Style Home

Gorgeous views of the village from the Fort

After we had finished at the Plantation, it was time for us to head out of town and back home. On the drive to Boston, we stopped at Presidents John and John Quincy Adams' birth place home and final home in, wait for it, Quincy, Mass. We didn't have enough time to take the tour so we just walked around and took some pictures. 

Peacefields, The Old House, of the Adams, also descendants of the Aldens!

The grounds held a gorgeous English styled garden

The weekend was a success and we were actually surprised that we were not able to view everything that we wanted to! Who knew that Plymouth, Mass was so interesting?!

Grown-Up Field Trip: Part 1

 A few months ago, I had several close friends come to me with questions about my birthday:

What do you have planned? 

Well, nothing yet.

What do you want to do? 

Maybe just a dinner or something. 

and then the questions followed with 

Because I have a wedding/wedding shower on your birthday.....

Oh....

With the first friend, I didn't think much of it but then when #2 and #3 came around I started to get a little upset/disappointed. Don't my closest and most loyal friends know that they are to leave October 22nd open forever and always? 

Instead of sulking about the situation, I decided to plan a trip to Plymouth, Massachusetts. Yes, of all the places to plan a birthday celebration, I chose Plymouth. With my love of genealogy and my connection to the area, I was determined to go, with. or without. anyone! At first, it was just going to be me on this lovely voyage but then my mom worked her magic, and was able to get off work, so she and my youngest sister were able to join me! 

The weekend started out great with a major victory for my brother. They were the big upset win over the undefeated East Paulding Raiders. The final score was 29-23! 


I can honestly say, the entire visitor section was beaming! We were all so proud of our Greyhounds! 

My Brother and his team mates singing the fight song after their victory!

Our flight the next morning was at 815 and we made it into Boston around noonish. We walked through Quincy Market to see all the yummy foods before sitting down for lunch at Wagamamas. I first fell in love with Wagamamas when I studied in London during Jan Term. The food is fresh, delicious and quick!  And just my luck, they have one in Boston! My meal was just like I remembered and what made it even better was that mom liked it too! 

Pretty view of South Quincy Market

After lunch, we drove to our hotel in Plymouth, checked in and immediately hit the road again to see the sites. Our first destination: Plymouth Rock. 

I was warned before I left about the size of the rock. "It's not very big, you know!" or "Don't be disappointed when you actually see the rock." I was realistic however; I knew that pieces of it had been chipped away by souvenir seekers and that it had been moved several times, especially during the Revolutionary War. There is still something to be said about seeing the rock, though. Maybe it means more to me because my 9th Great-Grandfather was the 'first' to step on it but I still thought it was flippin cool, in the words of my father! 

THE Plymouth Rock

After we saw the rock, we moved on to the Mayflower II. The Mayflower II is a replica of the originial that sailed almost 400 years ago. The ship, in comparison to the amount of passengers onboard (102), was tiny and with the rough seas that they endured, the Captain probably kept them all underneath for their protection. We learned the next day, that there was supposed to be a second ship, The Speedwell, going over but the Captain did not agree with what the Pilgrims were seeking (religious freedom), so he rigged the masts incorrectly and played dumb, leaving the ship unsailable and making everyone merge onto one ship, the Mayflower. 

The Mayflower II

Our first day was a little rushed because we had an early dinner reservation at the Plimouth Plantation for their Harvest Dinner. Yes, we're strange, we know. I was actually a little disappointed that dinner was inside! We have done an Irish dinner inside a castle before and so I was totally ready for that setting. I was prepared for dinner in a Pilgrim house or even just outside with a table and bench. The food was actually good and their was a lot of it! It was all family style and you were only given a pewter plate (salad size), a steel knife (with rust) and a soup spoon. I'll be honest with you, at lunch before we left Boston, we kept saying "Eat as much as you can because you don't know if dinner is going to be any good." Well, we were stuffed at the end of the night, which happened to be just after seven. 

Our menu for the Harvest Dinner

Because of our early morning wake up call and with much of Plymouth already closed, we decided to call it a night for the day. Eleven hours later though, I did not regret our decision one bit! For now we were rested for our official and exciting full day ahead!

Calling all my creative, resourceful friends!

I have a hobby; a serious one!

I am fascinated with history and genealogy! I have been researching my family history for a few months now. First trying to go back to the Mayflower and now trying to find my grandmother's father and any of his relatives. But I keep going back to one small detail. 

A few months back, NBC aired a series following 8 celebrities as they traced back their family history. Each of the episodes were all very interesting! But Ashley Judd's episode really peaked my interest. 

Like my heritage, Ashley is able to trace her family all the way back to the Mayflower to William Brewster, one of the main founders of the Mayflower expedition. In the episodes, Ashley makes a stop at the New England Historic Genealogical Society and in this particular segment, they present her with a keepsake. As Ashley unravels the scroll, she sees that it is a family lineage chart from her all the way back to William Brewster. 

Immediately, I think to myself, 

I HAVE TO HAVE ONE OF THOSE!

I have been in search of a family lineage chart for a while that looks as simple and elegant as this one above. All of the family trees, charts, graphs, etc. that I have googled have all been included some sort of literal tree or it doesn't go back as far as I need it to go back or it's in a different format that I do not find apealling. 

So here's my question/request, if any one out there knows where I can obtain a family lineage chart like the one above or know how I can go about having one made, I would be forever indebted to you! 

Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions that are given! 

Devotedly...

Post-Marked April 1911

My dearest sweetheart,

You simply do not know how very, very much I enjoyed my visit Sunday. I had, I think, the best time I’ve had in my life. You and your folks are so kind to me, and you – you love me so!

Mary and I worked hard on my (guest) list last night, and we expect to finish it tonight. Last night I added most of my Chester and Spartanburg names. This is very interesting business; isn’t it? It awakens old memories and associations and carries us back into the past. As you said, Sunday, I love, sometimes, to visit the past.

Got your delightful letter last night and thank you so much for your love.

When I came back Sunday night, I slept all night – from twelve o’clock – in the day coach with all my clothes on. The Pullman was badly crowded, and the day car looked better to me.

The weather continues very warm, dry, and unpleasant, and everyone wishes for real fall weather.

Breakfast is about ready and I will close. Will write you again very soon.

Devotedly,

Wellborn

Thursday A.M.

This was a letter that my Great-Grandmother, Alice Cleveland of Spartanburg, SC, received from her beloved, Wellborn Reynolds of Marietta, GA. (Alice, by the way, is the Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-Granddaughter of John & Priscilla Alden of the Mayflower but that's another matter.) I've found several of these letters around the house and everytime I discover one I am more and more intrigued. In the pile of letters that I found this one in, were also condolence letters from when my Grandfather passed away. In a personally emotional letter, I read as a friend of my Grandfather's told his wife, my Oma, how "no one could have described John any better than Pastor Richardson. He truly was a 'Christian Gentleman'." I had always known how great of an individual my grandfather was but for some reason, I found this letter extremely moving.

Today, in a time where tweets, status updates and mass emails are taking the place of letters and long personal conversations, it makes me want to take a stand and revert to the simpler days.

My father has a theory....with all of the technology that we have available to us, he feels that there will come a time when society just can't take it anymore. They will shut down and basically become like the Romans....need I say anymore?! After he shared his theory, I suddenly had my own apostrophe! Lighting had just struck my brain! It is true, we do have a lot of technology available to us; leading us to know things of far away lands much much quicker. There are people out there who believe the end of the world has begun due to frequent natural disasters and inclement weather. But is it possible that these events have been happening since the beginning of man...well not since the beginning of man but for a while at least.

Deep for a Thursday night isn't it?! I don't mean to rant all night or press my thoughts on you but my point of all of this is simple. When has it become acceptable for people to forgo personal, one-on-one communication? Is it that we have too much going on and find this method easier or do we really want to air our personal business to everyone and their brother!? While, yes all of the tweets, posts, and tags are fun, what will we leave our great-great-great-whatever to read or learn about us?! A printed email?! I just think there is something very irreplaceable about a hand written, post marked letter, postcard, what have you from someone from the past.

This is a subject that I feel very, very strongly about. My Mother's Father passed away when she was 11 months old. Growing up, this was something that always managed to capture my imagination. What was he like? What would he have looked like? What would he have smelled like? How would his voice have sounded? All of these questions plagued my mind. Luckily, he lived during a time, where letter writing was the norm and luckily, my Grandmother, the German, WWII survivor and pack rat, saved a fair amount of his correspondence. I've found letters from when he was at the Naval Academy in NY, letters to his parents and letters from his travels with my Grandmother. All of these allowing me a chance to know the Grandfather I was never able to know.

My Great-Great-Grandmother, Georgia Alden Cleveland, also kept a daily diary from 1890-1914. Come to think of it, there might just be a simple solution to this. This could just possibly be some kind of personal turmoil that I am struggling with. I mean, I've got rather big shoes to fill! My Great-Great-Grandmother kept a diary for over 20 years! I think the longest I ever went was a few months. Think of the history that she provided! She talks of going to the Chicago State Fair in 1898, of the Wright brother's inaugural flight and other events in history. That's huge! I know that I've had relatives who have witnessed other historical events but how many of them have documented it personally. Anyone can tell you the facts, but what about the emotions or even what about the weather of that day (Georgia Alden was known for journaling about the weather)?! I don't think you can find a smiley face to accurate depict any of those!

In my journal from high school, I've got a blank page for September 11th. I think it's time I fill that in now...