A family tree is never over. It is amazing to me when I hear someone say, “I’ve finished my family tree.” Really? How is that? Do you have over 2020 years of ancestors in your tree? Highly doubtful.
I love working on my genealogy because it is never over. What will I find out next? To find an ancestor who came from Poland only to meet another ancestor who came over from Germany, fell in love, and made baby descendants in a time when that would have been forbidden in their own countries. It’s just magical.
It also gets very complicated because I cannot just say, “I’m Irish or English.” I can definitely say I am mostly European. That is most definitely the case. I used to believe and tell people that the name Logan is Irish. I just knew I was mostly Irish. That was until I started my own genealogy. Now I know that my Logans came from Scotland. Sure, we have Logans in Ireland too, but you must keep going and digging. And my son was quite happy to learn we have Vikings in our genes.
My story is diverse. So it is with yours if you dig far and deep enough.
I have yet to find my connection to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Belarus, or that whole area West of Poland and Slovenia. I am excited to see what it holds, who it holds, and their stories.
In the meantime, I love helping others with their stories! I am also learning as I go. I am finding more repositories, researching websites, and making more connections. I find that I really do love helping others. I have done several pro bono jobs that have led to some paying gigs, but in both, I have truly enjoyed the hunt and the satisfaction of helping someone else find their roots.
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
I first contacted Marlee April 2019, via Gedmatch. Marlee compared our results, and said “We are a match!! Five generations”.
Largest segment = 12.2 cM Total of segments > 7 cM = 12.2 cM 1 matching segments (Rough) Estimated number of generations to MRCA = 5.1
On June 23rd, we decided we would embark on finding our MRCA (Most Recent Common Ancestor).
Note 1: The further distant the common ancestor, the more varied are the possible relationships.
Note 2: The GEDmatch prediction could be a lower number when pedigree collapse is involved, which can happen in the case of Gottschee, an enclave of German speaking residents in what is now Slovenia. Or, GEDmatch may predict a higher number when there are extra generations involved.
Rough guide:
1C share grandparents, gen 2.0
2C share great grandparents, gen 3.0 (around 50cM)
3C share great-great grandparents, aka 2nd great-grandparents, gen 4.0
4C cousins share 3GGG, aka 3rd great-grandparents, gen 5.0
The problem was, although Marlee had a well developed tree, my own family tree was sadly lacking in depth. I only knew that my grandfather had been born in Vienna, that his mother’s first name was Maria and she was unmarried so he took her maiden name…and that he was raised in Gottschee, so that is ‘likely’ where their roots were. That’s it!
Here we are a month later, July 22, 2019 – and Marlee has miraculously filled in all the missing details! I now know who Maria’s parents are, when and where they were born, and who my third great-grandparents are on Maria’s side, including their birthdates and marriages. On Maria’s maternal side, the family originated from Czech Republic (then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire). I had no clue where to find that information, and in no time at all, Marlee had hunted down the information online.
So, you are wondering, did we find our shared MRCA? Ha ha, not yet! However, since Marlee did such an excellent job researching Maria’s side of the family, including her siblings, we now know that we can exclude that side of the family from the list. The hunt is now on to determine who Maria’s partner may have been. This is when dna comes in handy to augment paper trails, as we do not currently have his name, d.o.b. nor a location. However, we have plenty of clues with shared matches on 23andMe, and Marlee will be uploading her results there soon as well.
I have no doubt with Marlee’s superior sleuthing abilities, hard work and determination, she and I will be able to follow each lead to a logical conclusion supported by a paper trail. DNA does not tell you with absolute certainty what your relationship is, merely that you share segments which have been handed down. In order to prove a relationship, you must have the records to back it up.
That is why your best bet is to hire a competent researcher like Marlee, to further your family tree when you hit a brick wall. I never in a million years would have guessed we would have come this far, in such a short amount of time. I’m so glad I reached out to Marlee, she’s genuinely such a nice person, too – I’m glad she’s my cousin!
Thank you, cousin. What an adventure it has been! ~Marlee
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
Florida is in for a heat wave. Yes, it’s only May, but it’s May in Florida. Temps in the three digits with the heat indices (the “feel like” temps) going way above that. But, thankfully, we have Mr. Carrier to thank for inventing air conditioning! Our office unit went out last weekend and was not fixed until Tuesday morning. That is miserable in itself, but battling a sinus infection to boot was not fun.
That got me thinking about how our ancestors handled the heat before air conditioning, especially in humid areas like Florida. I think a lot of how they traveled by foot to most places, in the extremes of the weather, on boats and in trains with no air conditioning, without the comfort of shorts and tees like we have today.
So, how did they handle the heat? In watching some shows on old homes and castles, the ceilings were very high, and windows were placed in such a way as to catch the breezes. One fine example is the old Logan homestead in Connecticut. Look at those windows!
Collection of the Gunn Historical Museum, Washington, CT
Before electricity, houses would have large cloth-like fans that hung from the ceiling with a long rope, and they would swing them back and forth to move the air. The “shoo-fly” fan was varied and could be used over the dining room table while eating or in a sitting room while reading.
However, those who couldn’t afford these “shoo-fly” fans had to be creative. People hung their wet laundry in front of doorways, and some kept their sheets refrigerated. And others froze their underwear! Some people even braided ice cubes in their hair… hm. Others wet their curtains so that when the wind blew, it would blow cooler air. When they started to dry out, they just threw cups of water at them.
Homeowners with flat roofs would water down their roofs when the sun went down to keep the house cooler to sleep. Some would sleep on those roofs. They had shade trees on the houses’ east and west sides. “Shotgun” houses, like those still found in Louisiana, were made one-room width of the building, allowing for windows and doors to be lined up for cross-ventilation.
In other houses, windows were opposite each other for cross ventilation. And, of course, families gathered most of the time in front porches. The front porch was a “social institution.” The comfort of electricity has killed that in more ways than one. People used to stroll outside and sit on porch swings. And some homes had “sleeping porches” made for sleeping at night, screened in for protection. There was a lot of creek swimming back then too.
People wore loose-fitting and flowing clothes made of cotton or linen and colors of white. Schedules were different, unlike how the tv shows portrayed; many people ate their meals later in the day. Beds were positioned in front of their windows. People napped during the hottest parts of the day to work in the cooler part. They got up very early to do their chores. The Ice Man was very popular! Delivering blocks of ice was as popular as the ice cream man today.
The 1891-built house the Barnacle in Florida cleverly put a cupola on its roof to act as a ventilator. As hot air rose, it could escape through the cupola. Fresh, cooler air could then enter through one of the many double-height windows and doors that opened directly onto the generous wraparound porches.
Of course, the oldest “invention” were cave dwellers; those living underground enjoyed temperatures in the 50’s year-round. This is why in those places with hills and mountains, houses were built into the sides of them so they had cooler places to congregate underground. During a third-century summer, the eccentric Roman Emperor Elagabalus sent 1,000 slaves to the mountains to fetch snow for his gardens.
Of course, now we are so acclimated to air conditioning we cannot deal with the heat when we go outside. We can blame climate change, El Niño, or whatever, but according to Berkely Earth, we are only 1.4 degrees warmer than we were in the 1950s. Let’s face it, we are spoiled! No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Yes, I do believe in climate change; I am not saying it is not happening. And, yes, the climate is warmer, but luckily, inventors like Carrier have helped us adapt.
Carrier is not my ancestor, but I am thankful to all who have gone before to pave the way for us.
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We have all heard of the Scottish Highlanders. The romance of the Scottish knights in battles and love. But have you heard of the Lowlanders? The Logans were Lowlanders.
The Logan surname is very ancient in Scotland and is of Celtic origin, according to Major George J. N. Logan Home’s History of the Logan Family. The Mac, before the name of many, means “the son of,” but others, such as Logan, come from an occupation or a place. Lagan or Laggan means “little hollow” and is where our Scottish-Gaelic derivative of Logan comes from.
We likely share origins with the Highland Logans. The Highland-Gaelic Logan origin was probably during the Scottish Kingdom of Darliada, which existed in the 6th and 7th centuries.
The Logans, like other clans, often crossed over into other lands. They spread to Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, Dumbarton, and Ross-shire. The Logan was divided into two branches: the lowland Chiefs of Grugar (later Restalrig) and the Highland Chiefs of Drumdeurfit in Northern Scotland.
The lowland Logans in Galloway on the west coast and Lothian on the east coast already existed by the time of the Norman Invasion around 1066. By the time of Alexander II of the House of Dunkeld, the lowland Logans were prominent supporters. From 1200 to 1600, the Logans held large possessions in Scotland and Ulster. They were amongst the most distinguished knights and barons of their time. They were famed for their steadfast courage and patriotic loyalty, many of whom were slain in battle against the English invaders. -From The Logans of Scotland by James C. Logan
In the book The Lowland Logan, the author combines James’ research and her own to tell the story of these Barons of Restalrig and the royalty connection to us all.
But, I am dead. I died in July of 1606. How can they convict me? They took all my lands, all my possessions. They dug up my bones and put them on trial. Yes, they put my bones on trial! And, they found my bones guilty of treason! They said I forfeited my rights because I could not testify. I AM DEAD! I died two years ago. Now they’ve confiscated my property, my lands and my title was abolished. My heirs were stripped of their titles and holdings, they cannot run for office, they were denied their privilege of their noble birth and my estate which included lands with four castles and monies valued at over £29,042. I was a multi-millionaire and they took it all.
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
preservation noun pres·er·va·tion | \ ˌpre-zər-ˈvā-shən \ Definition of preservation : the act, process, or result of preserving something: such as a : the activity or process of keeping something valued alive, intact, or free from damage or decay preservation of state parks/monuments preservation of an old tradition The special emphasis of recent years on preservation continued in 1988. More than 8,000 brittle volumes (1.5 million pages) were committed to microfilm; an additional 777 rare books, manuscripts, and historical films received special conservation treatment. — Library and Book Trade Almanac These and so many lesser red flags seem finally to be shifting public interest toward the preservation of wildlife and natural habitats. — E. Annie Proulx b : the preparation of food for future use (as by canning, pickling, or freezing) to prevent spoilage the use of salt in the preservation of meat In the years following the first Earth Day in 1970, a contingent of Americans insisted on developing pesticide-free systems of farming and anti-chemical methods of food preservation and preparation. — Tibbett L. Speer First Known Use of Preservation 15th century, in the meaning defined above
Doing genealogy has taught me a lot about preserving. Preserving the past certainly, but preserving the day-to-day. Keeping memories alive and sharing those memories and stories of the past. So many stories do not get passed down, even if you are lucky enough to get them from family members; some are just forgotten and lost. Pioneers, inventors, scoundrels, and heroes. All of these are in our past and need not be forgotten. I aim to write these stories and keep them “alive” for future generations.
Preserving in genealogy has also taught me to be kinder to nature, to all of Earth’s resources. Convenience is not always better. The world’s plastic and weed killers are wreaking havoc on our wildlife and plant life. Not only that but medicinal products too. A pill isn’t always the right answer. Eating well is the key to good health, physical and mental.
So, I have vowed to do my part and have my own veggie garden, fruit bushes, and trees, and I am planting more flowers to attract pollinators and bugs. I have canceled my backyard pest/weed control and have let nature in.
It’s only been a few months since I’ve done this, but already I am seeing more butterflies, bees of all kinds, dragonflies, and birds. I have some weeds, but weeds are only the plants you think you don’t want in your yard. Some weeds are good; they flower and attract pollinators too. Yes, I cut down the ugly weeds that I do not want, and I have even relocated others, but I have let nature do its thing.
I have been enjoying the fruits and veggies of my labors and have more to come.
However, I have gained more than I have given. Both genealogy and gardening have given me a focus. It sustains me. Both are therapeutic and give me joy. It not only gives me something, but I can also give to others as I share my genealogy finds or my veggies, flowers, and plants. It makes me smile. It keeps me positive.
Gardening gives me the physical activity my body needs, which I do not dread doing! Genealogy gives my mind the activity it needs to keep active. Playing detective keeps my mind strong. It’s doing something positive in both searching out the stories and gardening that have helped me with my anxiety. Getting out in the sunshine and doing something. Coming inside and putting my mind to work in research. It is a very healthy balance for me.
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
Edward Gove, a well-respected, hot-headed assemblyman, was born in England to John Gove and Sarah Mott. According to The Gove Book: History and Genealogy of the American family of Gove and notes of European Goves by Ira Gove 1891, John married three times, but others have since said he only married once, to Mary Shard.
His father brought him to America around 1647 when he was 17. He gradually moved north from Charlestown, Mass., to Salisbury, Mass., and finally into Hampton in what is now New Hampshire. He was opposed to the British Government.
His father, John, was a brazier, a dealer in brass, in London. Gove is one of those tradesmen’s surnames, an occupational surname. It is an ancient Cornish term for a smith, a craftsman in metal, one who forges with a hammer in metal.
John was born about 1604. John is said to be the common ancestor of all who bear the Gove surname. Unfortunately, John only lived one year after moving to Charlestown, now Boston, Massachusetts.
John’s parents were Henry and Jone Goffe, according to the article A Note on the Antecedents of John and Mary (Shard) Gove, of London and Charlestown (New Hampshire Genealogical Record Oct 1987), 11:174-179 by Wheeler, Richard S., in the Baptismal entry: John Goffe sonne of Henry Goffe deceased borne of the body of Jone Goffe widowe in the house of Samuel Goffe in Chiswellstreet (St. Giles Cripplegate Register 1561-1606, G.L. Ms 6419/1, Guildhall Library, London).
John’s first son, John, married three times and had ten children.
John’s third child was a daughter, Mary. At the time of John’s will, he gave her up for adoption with the “full consent of my wife.” She must have been very young. It is unknown why she was given up for adoption, we can only speculate that, for the 1640s, she was too young and the wife too old (about 35) to raise her on her own. Mary was adopted by Deacon Ralph and Alice Mousall, a deacon in the church that John attended. Not much more is known about Mary.
pg 152
His second son, our 9th great-grandfather, Edward, moved to Salisbury as a bachelor when he “bought a right of commonage” in 1657. Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 1, leaf 101
He began buying land and farming. In 1660, he married Hannah Partridge. Edward was still of Salisbury, March 23, 1663, when, for eighty-five pounds, he bought of Eliakim Wardell of Hampton (in that part of the town which is now Seabrook), thirty acres of land bounded by Salisbury common and land of Nathaniel Wyer and Nathaniel Ware, with the dwelling house; cowhouse, etc.; a share in the cow-commons; and eighty acres of upland at the new plantation in Hampton, March 23, 1665. [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 47.] Mr. Gove moved to Hampton (now Seabrook) in the spring of 1665 and resided in this house for as long as he lived. After he died in 1691, it remained in the possession of his widow, and upon a division of the homestead in 1712, it went to his son Ebenezer. The farm has continued to be in the Gove’s name ever since.
[Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 1, leaf 147.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 3, leaf 372.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 44.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 41.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 85.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 47.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 55.] [Norfolk Registry of Deeds, book 2, leaf 233.]
He made himself first known to the courts when he sued his mother and stepfather to obtain the 50 shillings that were owed to him. The issue was resolved on 5 December 1655 when Edward’s brother, John, agreed to pay the 50 shillings on behalf of their mother and stepfather.
Most notably, Edward was the leader in “Gove’s Rebellion”. The Rebellion was a short uprising in 1683 in the Province of New Hampshire, in which men of the towns of Exeter and Hampton took up arms against the Royal Governor, Edward Cranfield.
Background from Wikipedia: New Hampshire had recently been partitioned from Massachusetts by Charles II after almost 40 years of being governed by the neighboring colony and made into a royal province. From 1679 to 1682, New Hampshire was governed by a locally elected council until James II installed a royal governor, Edward Cranfield. The colonists resented having a governor appointed to them, and Cranfield was particularly unpopular for his enforcement of the mercantilist trade laws of the time. In 1683, when Cranfield attempted to force a revenue bill through the council (which they continually vetoed), he had the council dissolved. He assumed complete control of the colony and issued a direct tax.
Edward was riled. He wanted to rebel against Cranfield. Other leaders were against it, but Edward had been drinking and decided to do it anyway. He convinced his son and his servant to join him. He armed himself, his son, and his servant and rode his horse to Exeter in an attempt to muster the citizens to rebel against the governor. Along the way, he was stopped by a justice of the peace, Nathaniel Weare. If that names sound familiar, read http://loganalogy.com/2018/09/30/family-feud-the-case-of-the-stolen-turnips, Nathaniel was our 11th great-uncle.
The rebels were arrested while attempting to muster more rebels. Edward Gove was sentenced to death for high treason, shipped off to London for sentencing, and imprisoned in the London Tower. He was to be hanged, drawn, and quartered. He was pardoned three years later by King James II and returned to New Hampshire. The rebellion took place during a period when many American colonists were rebelling against their respective provincial governments.
The Tower of London
Below is the trial deposition of a 70-year-old neighbor, John Stephens,
That Edward Gove now of Hampton in the Province of New Hampshire was some years since in a Strange Distemper, Seemingly Lunatick, and did attempt to kill the wife of George Martin, Saying that shee bewitched him and did to that end charged his pistolls and endeavored it of which condition of his the Court at Hampton being enformed did sent for him and understanding his condition, ordered that he should be committed into safe custody to prevent his doeing hurt to himselfe or others. Ipswich prison was the place intended, but the said Steephens, out of respects to Gove, undertook to look to him, with this condition that, if he could not rule him, he should be assisted to carry him to the aforesaid Prison.
The said Steephens saith that he did abide with him about three weekes, in which time he did humor him as a child, to keep him quiet and from doeing hurt to himselfe or others; sometimes he was seemingly Rationall, and at other times seemingly distracted, that the said Steephens was forced to lock up the dores and lock him in, sometimes he would take a booke and read an houre or two, sometimes he would be more like a mad man, and would not medle with it, Mr. Dolton the minister of Hampton being there one time, advised that we should keep bookes from him, that he might not read too long to trouble his head, which wee carefully observed.
After a while he grew pritty well and went from the said Steephens house, But the said Steephens do further declare that he did look upon him as a man that was always subject to that distemper. He thinks it was naturall to him for his mother lived and died in that kind of Distemper…
And, forty-three-year-old John Stephens, a son of the above Stephens, gave a deposition,
“He doth well Remember that when Edward Gove was at his fathers house, he was in generall as his father hath above affermed… doth affirme and declare that the said Gove was distracted and unsafe in his actions and motions and that his father attended him and followed him alway day and night during the time of his aboad at his house, for none of the house besides him could prevail with him, he lay with him at night and he hath heard his father often say that he was often fourst to hold him in his arms to keep him from rising and going about in the night…
There be also many more that can testifie to the like; if need be, & some that can sweare they were in company and did many times help to bind the said Edward Gove hand & foote (when he was out in his head) for feare he should doe hurt to himselfe or others.”
When Edward was in the Tower of London, his wife, Hannah, petitioned the king and begged for the life of her husband “who by means of a distemper of Lunacy or some such like, which he have benn Subject unto (by times) from his youth, and yet is untill now (as his mother was before him) (though at some times seemingly very Rationall) which have occasioned him Irationally and evily to demeane himself (by means of some unhappy provocation) to such actions whereby he may have incured until himselfe the Sentence of Death…”
A petition from another colonial to King Charles II documented that after Governor Cranfield imposed custom on merchant ships,
“hereupon the said Edw. Gove was much troubled in mind and these and the other violent proceedings of Mr. Cranfield had such an influence upon him that it hindered by his ordinary Rest, neither had he above 2 hours Sleep in 18 days, whereby he became almost distracted… scarce knowing at that time what he either did or said”.
Like I said above, he was a hothead. I am sure the drink did not help. But, maybe because of his “lunacy,” he was pardoned. Below is his letter of pardon.
You can read more about his land holdings, his court dealings, and all his Colonial and State court papers from conviction to pardon at Lane Memorial Library: Hampton, NH History. Also, if you type in “Gove” in their search box, many articles on the family are there.
The library also mentions that there was a gun in the possession of the late J. H. Gove of Hampton Falls and a sword cane owned by the late E. S. Gove of Pittsfield as heirlooms of Edward Gove. The cane is mounted with a silver ferrule, and Edward Gove’s initials are engraved on it, though it has become so worn that the engraving is barely legible. A friend presented the case to him for his stand against Cranfield.
Ira Gove, the early genealogist of the family, says that Edward Gove brought a pear tree from London in 1686, which he set out on his estate in Hampton, where it is now.
Edward and Hannah had 13 children. Our ancestor from this marriage is Ebenezer. He and his wife, Judith Sanborn, had 11 children: 5 sons and 6 daughters. His daughter, Mary, is our ancestor. She married John Green and had 5 children. One of the daughters, Abigail Green, is our ancestor. She married Thomas Chase and had our ancestor, Stephen Chase. They had Abia, our ancestor, who married John Bean and had Lois Bean. She married Lemuel H. Logan…
You can read more about the Beans at William Bean- 6th Great Grandfather Trans-Appalachian pioneer Longhunter and Silas H. Logan and Native American Heritage? as well as the Logan’s on my other blogs.
As always, please let me know if you see any errors.
Thank you for reading!
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
It has been a while since I have written, and I have missed it dearly. I hope that it will not be so long between blogs going forward. I am shocked at how many people have read my blog in my absence. I originally started it for my family to see their ancestors in story form; little did I know I would be helping people all over the world with their own ancestors. This puts a smile on my heart.
I have been watching “Finding Your Roots,” and in the one called “Mystery Men” Season 5, Episode 2, one of the guests is #Felicity Huffman. As they traced her line, the names started becoming more familiar. I pulled up my #Ancestry app; sure enough, her 9th great-grandfather is my 10th great-grandfather.
Sometime after that, someone commented on my blog about this ancestor, William Hickox. We share this 9th great-grandfather, our immigrant ancestor! She plugged me in her tree, which makes us 10th cousins 1x removed!! 10th! Now that is pretty awesome!
So, that got me thinking, who are all my immigrant ancestors? Have I traced them all? Let’s see.
Well, as always, let me start with the Logan clan.
John Loggan, Sr. (1699-1777)- Arrival 1717 to Boston from Scotland (maybe through Ireland)
John Rowan (1760-1843) – Immigrated in 1791 to Pennsylvania from Ireland (immigrated with his wife, Laetitia Porterfield (1765-1831)
Robert Stitt (abt. 1774) and Margaret Appleby (abt. 1759) to Pennsylvania from Ireland (more research needed on this line)
James Galbraith (1666-1744) to Pennsylvania from Ireland
John Lane (Johannes Lehn) (1655-1754) to Pennsylvania from Germany
John Kunkle (Johannes Gunkel) (1722-1795) to Pennsylvania from Germany, immigrated with his wife, Anna Margarethe Lorentz (1729-1785)
Johann Adam Schäffer (Schaeffer) (1709-1767) to Pennsylvania from Germany, immigrated with his wife, Elizabeth Bauer (1711-1777)
Christoph Heydrich (1704-1781) to Pennsylvania from Germany, immigrated with his wife, Magdalena Sontag (1715-1763)
Johann Michael Köppel (Kepple) (1697-1764) to Pennsylvania from France, immigrated with his wife, Anna Elizabeth Benzin (1707-1750)
(above’s son) Johann Nickel Köppel (John Nicholas Kepple) (1724-1804) to Pennsylvania from Germany and immigrated with his wife, Anna Maria Willems (Williams) (abt. 1736-1821)
Conrad Haag (Hawk) (1741-1833) to Pennsylvania from Germany
Michael Schlonecker, Sr. (abt. 1696-1769) to Pennsylvania from Germany
Johann Henrich Heilig (1700-1775) to Pennsylvania from Germany
(the above wife’s father) Nicholas Rittenhuijsen (Rittenhouse) (1666-1734) to Pennsylvania from Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Hans De Neus (abt. 1716-1736) to Pennsylvania from Germany
(above’s wife) Jenneken Blomen (abt. 1717-1762) to Pennsylvania from Holland (married Hans in Holland)
Michael Kocher (1730-1808) to Pennsylvania from Germany
William Wescoat(Wescott) (abt. 1641-1683) to from England to Virginia
Matijas Stefanc (Mathias Stephanz) (1867-1936) to Kansas from Stari Trg ob Kolpi, Črnomelj, Austria, immigrated with his wife, Marija Švegelj (Mary Swegel) (1867-1942)
(father of the above’s wife),Johann P. Reikowski (1844-1932) to Wisconsin from Poland
Well, this certainly proves that not only am I a mutt from hardy stock, but I am not finished researching my immigrant ancestors; the hunt continues. This also shows you can find your immigrant ancestor as far back as 350 years or as close as 150 years ago. It’s amazing how all these people somehow found each other to produce me!
I have come a long way since 1993 when I started tracing my Dad’s roots. It actually started in 1985 or so, but with the help of the internet in the 1990s, I started really started to dig. So, when you hit a brick wall and get discouraged, look back at how far you’ve come.
Read more about our Logan immigrant at
As always, please email me if you see any errors or have any questions.
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Genealogy is never far from my mind. I hear a last name and think, “That sounds German,, ” Irish, Slovenian, etc. Even when I am not writing and researching, I am thinking or reading about genealogy. My new-found reads are mystery books about genealogy because they mention ways to find clues in your own research. Bumps in my life may stop or slow down my mojo, but I am always pondering.
Last night I went to my friend’s house to meet her father, the one I helped with her family tree. It was interesting to get his take on my findings and hear him say, “Well, that makes sense because…” We laughed and told stories and guessed about why one of his ancestors would walk 20 miles along a train track only to get his foot stuck and die by train. Her dad asked me if I was a history buff and if that was why I started genealogy. I told him no; I started loving delving into history because of genealogy. To see how my ancestors lived and in what conditions. Why they traveled and how they traveled.
I hadn’t been on my tree for a while, not just because of doing my friend’s tree, but other personal things going on, you know, L I F E. I hopped on this morning to find those little green leaves telling me I had hinted on some of my ancestors. Several are on the Logan side. Oh boy, did that show me some rookie mistakes!
The Logan side is the very first side I started research on. The one I made a lot of rookie mistakes with! I can see them every time I click on a Logan ancestor. When I write a blog on a person, I clean them, but I still notice things like “What was the source for that information?”
So, when you’re stuck on a branch or a person, take a break, look at some older finds, and clean up your rookie mistakes. We learn a lot by doing, so use what you’ve learned and clean up your tree.
My other love is gardening. I have been getting my yard ready, planting cold-loving plants and seeds, and preparing the ground for Spring flowers and vegetables. Your genealogical tree is just like gardening. You must constantly nourish and prune your older branches to keep your tree growing strong and wide.
So, as I am frustrated that I cannot do more in my backyard garden, I will tend to my online tree and watch it grow!
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
As you know, I have been kind of stuck on Augusta Julie Reikowski’s grandparents. Augusta and Johann Schwittkowski (Hennig) are my 2nd great-grandparents. I know that her parents are Johanna Sierotzki and Johann P. Reikowski. From my PTG Website, the Pomeranian Genealogical Association states in Gdańsk Matarnia, 1842, Anna Marianna was born to Franz Szirotzki and Elisabeth Gronkowna.
You have to understand without wonderful people to index all these records, we wouldn’t have access to them online. As you have seen from documents I have posted, some handwriting is very hard to read, especially when written in a foreign language. Sometimes, we get lucky, and you have beautiful handwriting that is easily translated by my FB group.
We now have Johanna Sierotzki’s parents, Franz Sierotzki and Elisabeth Grenkowitz. Oh, and her brother and grandparents too! Other siblings are also on the PTG site, but I haven’t researched them yet.
#31 Matern, on August 5, 1907. Before the undersigned civil registrar appeared today, personally known, the owner Franz Sierotzki, residing in Bissau, and stated that the old-resident’s widow Elisabeth Sierotzki, née Grenkowitz, his mother, aged 88 3/4 years, Catholic, residing in Bissau, born in Schwanau, Kreis (district) Karthaus, formerly married to the owner Franz Sierotzki, deceased and lately residing in Bissau, daughter of the tailor Valentin Grenkowitz and his wife Elisabeth, née Dampc[?], both deceased and lately residing in Schwanau, has died in Bissau in the declarant’s home on August 4, 1907, at 3:30am. The same Sierotzki stated that he has been informed of the deceased’s passing away by his own experience. Read out loud, approved and undersigned Franz Sierotzki The civil registrar R. Kammer[?] Certified conformant with the main register Matern, on August 5, 1907 The civil registrar R. Kammer[?]
I also found the marriage record of Franz and Elisabeth.
More on the Hennig family coming soon…
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
As I stated, the Facebook groups are fantastic for finding #ancestors. Getting help with #genealogy and #familyhistory on Facebook has been a gold mine for me! #blogginmyfamilyhistory just got even better for my #lifeofafamilyhistorian.
On October 14, I decided to post on my Prussian Genealogy FB page regarding tracking down the Hennig ancestors from the Rosenberg, Danziger Höhe area. I listed the “heirs” from Andreas’ death record and immediately received some excellent help. One of the admins from the group found Andreas’ birth record, and from that, his parents! So, now I have his father as Andreas and his mother as Barbara Wohlert.
Another member then posted several marriages of Hennigs from Langenau. I matched the children of Andreas and Barbara to their spouses and then the children from that. We have tons of Hennigs!
Our 3rd great-grandparents were Maria Elisabeth Hennig and Johann Schwittkowski. Their son, our 2nd great-grandfather, Johann Leopold Schwittkowski, and our immigrant to America, took his mother’s maiden name of Hennig. See Schwittkowski Name Change to Hennig. She was born in Langenau, as was her father, Andreas. However, although Barbara was from Langenau, Andreas was from somewhere we couldn’t read in the marriage record (see the words where it’s scratched out).
So I then posted this on my Genealogy Translations website and discovered that the script above is in Latin, not German, which makes sense for the #Catholic records at the time. We thought the place was Nieda or Sadlowa, but then someone stated the first word was Nieder, meaning “Lower”.
Here is the translation as it was given to me on Facebook:
Year 1797 Langenau
I, who (did the same) above, on the day the 28th of May, with three banns having been promulgated and no impediment detected, contracted marriage between Andreas Hennig, originating from Ninda Skadlau(?), age 23 years, and Barbara Wohlert from Langenau, age 20 years, after asking for and receiving the usual mutual consent in front of the church, in the presence of witnesses Paul Gronta(sp?) and Martin Danousk(sp?).”
I am now inclined to think that Andreas’ hometown is most likely Nieder Schredlau, which geographically would make sense. However, this is still being researched.
From their ages, this makes Andreas born in 1774 and Barbara born in 1777. We now have our 5th great-grandparents and 5th great uncles and aunts, as seen below.
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There could be more children, especially between Antonius and Martinus and Anna and Peter, but I have not found any record. Barbara lost five children at such young ages. I am unsure why unless the Cholera epidemic hit them.
Their daughter, Anna Maria, had a son, Johann Michael Hennig, on 14 Aug 1836. She married Christian Richter on 28 Aug 1836. The index states that Christian was the father, but I cannot locate the record. As I was writing this, someone discovered the record for me.
Translation:
# 10 Schönwarling on August 28, 1836 the youth Christian Richter, eldest son of Christian Richter inhabitant of Schönwarling, 25 years old with his betrothed bride Maria Hennig, eldest daughter of the deceased inhabitant Andreas Hennig from Langenau, 21 years old both catholic religion and residing in Schönwarling Witnesses: And.Mutter(?) and Joh.Hennig remark: She has consens from the court Dirschau August 22, 1836
They had 12 more children. She also lost several children at a young age, one- another Peter Paul.
Their daughter, Dorothea, married Johann Hein, and they had Anna Maria Hein and Andreas Eduard Hein.
From the marriage record shared with me on Facebook, I could deem more marriages from Andreas’ siblings, their parents being Andreas and Maria Kriese. Michael married Marianna Piertnitzki in 1863. I am still working on them.
There are several other Hennigs I have yet to fit in the tree, but I’m getting there.
Now, to see what Hennigs I can find in Nieder Schüttlau!
If you need research assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.
pg 152
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