I give thanks to all those who serve our country so selflessly this day and every day.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Happy Veteran's Day
Today I offer my humble gratitude for the sacrifices that many of my ancestors made as they went off to war or served at home. The following are just a few of whom I actually have photographs.
{Left to right from top left: Uncle Bob Plumlee, Air Force; Cousin Gary Tapley, Army (Vietnam War); Uncle Russell Tapley, Army (WWII); Uncle Hugh Dorsey Tapley, Army (WWII); Grandfather Charles "Pop Pop" Tapley, Navy (WWII); Cousin J.C. Tapley, Army (WWII - gave the ultimate sacrifice); and Brother Harry Tapley, Marines (Vietnam War)}
I give thanks to all those who serve our country so selflessly this day and every day.
I give thanks to all those who serve our country so selflessly this day and every day.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Who Is Your 3rd Most Recent Unknown Ancestor
From Randy over at Genea-Musings:
Dear genealogists everywhere, it's Saturday Night! Time for some Genealogy FUN.
Your mission this week, should you decide to accept it, is to:
1) Who is your TMRUA - your Third Most Recent Unknown Ancestor? This is the person with the third lowest number in your Pedigree Chart or Ahnentafel List that you have not identified a last name for, or a first name if you know a surname but not a first name.
2) Have you looked at your research files for this unknown person recently? Why don't you scan it again just to see if there's something you have missed?
3) What online or offline resources might you search that might help identify your TMRUA?
4) Tell us about him or her, and your answers to 2) and 3) above, in a blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a comment on Facebook or Google Plus.
Here's mine:
1) My Third Most Recent Unknown Ancestor (TMRUA) is #26, the father of my second great-grandfather, George W. Schwalls (January 1, 1837 - January 21, 1908).
2) While I haven't searched for this information recently, I am very familiar with what I do know. Unfortunately, what I know about George W. Schwalls, "ain't much":
George was born in Germany (One document mentioned Bavaria). Sometime in the 1850's, he came to America with at least one cousin, maybe more. His cousin, George Michael Schwall, settled in Sandersville, Washington County, Georgia. George W. Schwalls (he added the "S", by all accounts, to be differentiated from his cousin) settled in Johnson County, Georgia.
There are stories that they came to this country because they had gotten into some kind of trouble and had to flee their home. The stories state that the boys were smuggled over on a ship from France. I do not know if that is true; however, I do know that I have been unable to locate their names on any ship manifest coming from Europe during the 1850's.
Thus, with so little information, I have been unable to determine where in Germany George was born and, therefore, unable to identify his father.
3) I have done exhaustive searches of ship manifests, Civil War records (George fought in the war.), actually any and all records I could find on Ancestry.com and Family Search that might have a mention of George's birthplace recorded by him. He did not even list the town on his Civil War Pension Application! I have tried in vain to find a descendant who knows the family history by using the Ancestry.com message boards and this blog to get my query out there. I have searched at the Georgia Archives, Dublin (Georgia) Public Library (which has a fine genealogy resource room for the geographical area), and NARA in Washington D.C. for any information about George's place of birth and ancestors.
I have also done numerous searches for his cousin's ancestry, to no avail.
I have come across some message board posts on Ancestry.com with names of possible parents of George W. Schwalls. However, none of those messages were sourced, and I was unable to confirm any of the information.
4) Done! I have written numerous blog posts about my elusive George Schwalls... please visit "Posts by Topic" above and search under "Schwalls."
Dear genealogists everywhere, it's Saturday Night! Time for some Genealogy FUN.
Your mission this week, should you decide to accept it, is to:
1) Who is your TMRUA - your Third Most Recent Unknown Ancestor? This is the person with the third lowest number in your Pedigree Chart or Ahnentafel List that you have not identified a last name for, or a first name if you know a surname but not a first name.
2) Have you looked at your research files for this unknown person recently? Why don't you scan it again just to see if there's something you have missed?
3) What online or offline resources might you search that might help identify your TMRUA?
4) Tell us about him or her, and your answers to 2) and 3) above, in a blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a comment on Facebook or Google Plus.
Here's mine:
1) My Third Most Recent Unknown Ancestor (TMRUA) is #26, the father of my second great-grandfather, George W. Schwalls (January 1, 1837 - January 21, 1908).
2) While I haven't searched for this information recently, I am very familiar with what I do know. Unfortunately, what I know about George W. Schwalls, "ain't much":
George was born in Germany (One document mentioned Bavaria). Sometime in the 1850's, he came to America with at least one cousin, maybe more. His cousin, George Michael Schwall, settled in Sandersville, Washington County, Georgia. George W. Schwalls (he added the "S", by all accounts, to be differentiated from his cousin) settled in Johnson County, Georgia.
There are stories that they came to this country because they had gotten into some kind of trouble and had to flee their home. The stories state that the boys were smuggled over on a ship from France. I do not know if that is true; however, I do know that I have been unable to locate their names on any ship manifest coming from Europe during the 1850's.
Thus, with so little information, I have been unable to determine where in Germany George was born and, therefore, unable to identify his father.
3) I have done exhaustive searches of ship manifests, Civil War records (George fought in the war.), actually any and all records I could find on Ancestry.com and Family Search that might have a mention of George's birthplace recorded by him. He did not even list the town on his Civil War Pension Application! I have tried in vain to find a descendant who knows the family history by using the Ancestry.com message boards and this blog to get my query out there. I have searched at the Georgia Archives, Dublin (Georgia) Public Library (which has a fine genealogy resource room for the geographical area), and NARA in Washington D.C. for any information about George's place of birth and ancestors.
I have also done numerous searches for his cousin's ancestry, to no avail.
I have come across some message board posts on Ancestry.com with names of possible parents of George W. Schwalls. However, none of those messages were sourced, and I was unable to confirm any of the information.
4) Done! I have written numerous blog posts about my elusive George Schwalls... please visit "Posts by Topic" above and search under "Schwalls."
Friday, November 9, 2012
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Wednesday's Child(ren): Frank Keith Tapley and Me
Frank Keith Tapley
as a newborn baby
1958
Me!
Mary Elizabeth Tapley
as a newborn baby
1967
Do you see a resemblance?!!
(Keith and I are 2nd cousins, 1x removed.)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Tombstone Tuesday: Francis R. Drake
Francis Richard "Frank" Drake
b May 28, 1859
Washington County, Georgia
d Nov 28, 1933
Adrian, Emanuel County, Georgia
son of
James William and Mary Ann R. Brantley Drake
laid to rest at
Poplar Springs Methodist Church Cemetery
Adrian, Johnson County, Georgia
Frank Drake was my great grand uncle.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Ancestor Name Roulette
From Randy over at Genea-Musings:
Dear genealogists everywhere, it's Saturday Night! Time for some Genealogy FUN.
Your mission this week, should you decide to accept it, is to:
1) What year was one of your great-grandmothers born? Divide this number by 90 and round the number off to a whole number. This is your "roulette number."
2) Use your pedigree charts or your family tree genealogy software program to find the person with that number in your ancestral name list (some people call it an "ahnentafel" - your software will create this - use the "Ahnentafel List" option, or similar). Who is that person, and what are his/her vital information?
3) Tell us three facts about that person in your ancestral name list with the "roulette number."
4) Write about it in a blog post on your own blog, in a Facebook status or a Google Stream post, or as a comment on this blog post.
5) If you do not have a person's name for your "roulette number" then spin the wheel again - pick a great-grandmother, a grandfather, a parent, a favorite aunt or cousin, yourself, or even your children!
Here's mine:
1) My great-grandmother, Emma Vermell Harrell Drake was born in 1867. Dividing by 90 gives me a roulette number of 20.74, rounded up to 21.
2) The person in my FTM2012 with Person ID #21 is my uncle, William Lamar Tapley.
Here are the vital statistics I have for him:
Lamar Tapley was born October 9, 1915 near Bartow, in Johnson County, Georgia, the son of Lusion Keman and Nealie Drake Tapley. He died August 5, 1985 at the age of 69 in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida. Lamar married Anna Lois Gladdin, date and place unknown. She was born April 18, 1924, place unknown. Her parents are unknown to me. Anna Lois Gladdin Tapley died February 1, 2000 in Augusta, Richmond County, Georgia. They had two children, Mary Ann and William Lamar "Buddy" Tapley, Jr.
3) Three facts about William Lamar Tapley:
* Uncle Lamar was the 6th child of my grandfather, Lusion, and the first child of my grandmother, Nealie.
* Uncle Lamar lived his adult life between Augusta, Georgia and Jacksonville, Florida, as did my own father for awhile. Lamar owned a grocery store in Jacksonville at one time.
* Uncle Lamar was buried in Restlawn Cemetery in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida. His wife was buried next to him unpon her death.
4) Done!
Dear genealogists everywhere, it's Saturday Night! Time for some Genealogy FUN.
Your mission this week, should you decide to accept it, is to:
1) What year was one of your great-grandmothers born? Divide this number by 90 and round the number off to a whole number. This is your "roulette number."
2) Use your pedigree charts or your family tree genealogy software program to find the person with that number in your ancestral name list (some people call it an "ahnentafel" - your software will create this - use the "Ahnentafel List" option, or similar). Who is that person, and what are his/her vital information?
3) Tell us three facts about that person in your ancestral name list with the "roulette number."
4) Write about it in a blog post on your own blog, in a Facebook status or a Google Stream post, or as a comment on this blog post.
5) If you do not have a person's name for your "roulette number" then spin the wheel again - pick a great-grandmother, a grandfather, a parent, a favorite aunt or cousin, yourself, or even your children!
Here's mine:
1) My great-grandmother, Emma Vermell Harrell Drake was born in 1867. Dividing by 90 gives me a roulette number of 20.74, rounded up to 21.
2) The person in my FTM2012 with Person ID #21 is my uncle, William Lamar Tapley.
 |
| Lamar and Anna Lois Tapley, circa 1964 |
Lamar Tapley was born October 9, 1915 near Bartow, in Johnson County, Georgia, the son of Lusion Keman and Nealie Drake Tapley. He died August 5, 1985 at the age of 69 in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida. Lamar married Anna Lois Gladdin, date and place unknown. She was born April 18, 1924, place unknown. Her parents are unknown to me. Anna Lois Gladdin Tapley died February 1, 2000 in Augusta, Richmond County, Georgia. They had two children, Mary Ann and William Lamar "Buddy" Tapley, Jr.
3) Three facts about William Lamar Tapley:
* Uncle Lamar was the 6th child of my grandfather, Lusion, and the first child of my grandmother, Nealie.
* Uncle Lamar lived his adult life between Augusta, Georgia and Jacksonville, Florida, as did my own father for awhile. Lamar owned a grocery store in Jacksonville at one time.
* Uncle Lamar was buried in Restlawn Cemetery in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida. His wife was buried next to him unpon her death.
4) Done!
Friday, November 2, 2012
Grandma's 1934 Diary, August 9-31
(To read entries from my maternal grandmother's 1933 and 1934 diary, please
click on the tab "Posts by Topic" and then go
to the topic "California." All posts are listed
there.)
Key:
H = her boyfriend, Hazel Avery Plumlee
Delma = Hazel's little sister
Earl = Hazel's brother
Verda = Earl's wife
Dorothy Lee = Hazel's niece (Earl's child)
Otho is Otho Hesser, her father's cousin.
Viella is Mary Viella Crites Hesser, Otho's wife.
Ruth & Kathryn are Otho and Viella's daughters.
Uncle Jont is Jonathan Hesser, Otho's father and her father's uncle.
Aunt Kate is Sarah Katherine Hall Hesser, Jonathan's wife and Otho's mother
Herman (Williams) is Alice's husband.
Thursday, August 9: "Hazel worked at ranch. I went after him & helped him get tomatoes & peaches, saw rattle snake. Went to folks a min."
Friday, August 10: "I worked at Kings Maleum, got promoted to head grader. Hazel went to fights in the eve."
Saturday, August 11: "Hazel worked at ranch till noon. About 5 we went to town. He got a socket set. Went to show."
Sunday, August 12: "Hazel irrigated his fathers place in the morning. He went with Joe to L.A. in afternoon. I took mama to Eden springs to see Delma. Went to church. H. got home at 3 am."
Monday, August 13: "H. is irrigating upper ranch. I got a permanent at Ferguson B. School. Took mama to Alices. Took Dave some peaches."
Tuesday, August 14: "Hazel & I picked tomatoes at his fathers place for awhile. Sheppherd came in afternoon for me to go to work tomorrow. Went over to folks in eve."
Wednesday, August 15: "Hazel planted corn at upper ranch. I worked for 3 hrs, cleaned house in afternoon. Went to folks in eve. for a min."
Thursday, August 16: "Hazel worked at upper ranch. I cleaned house. Went to the folks in the eve."
Friday, August 17: "Hazel irrigated at home."
Well, dear readers, sadly, I come to the end of my grandmother's diary. She wrote no more through the end of the year. Hope you have enjoyed this small glimpse of her life.
Key:
 |
| The writer is Ethel Ranney Tapley. |
 |
| Alice is her sister. |
 |
| Kenneth is her brother. |
 | |
| Her parents. |
Delma = Hazel's little sister
Earl = Hazel's brother
Verda = Earl's wife
Dorothy Lee = Hazel's niece (Earl's child)
Otho is Otho Hesser, her father's cousin.
Viella is Mary Viella Crites Hesser, Otho's wife.
Ruth & Kathryn are Otho and Viella's daughters.
Uncle Jont is Jonathan Hesser, Otho's father and her father's uncle.
Aunt Kate is Sarah Katherine Hall Hesser, Jonathan's wife and Otho's mother
Herman (Williams) is Alice's husband.
Thursday, August 9: "Hazel worked at ranch. I went after him & helped him get tomatoes & peaches, saw rattle snake. Went to folks a min."
Friday, August 10: "I worked at Kings Maleum, got promoted to head grader. Hazel went to fights in the eve."
Saturday, August 11: "Hazel worked at ranch till noon. About 5 we went to town. He got a socket set. Went to show."
Sunday, August 12: "Hazel irrigated his fathers place in the morning. He went with Joe to L.A. in afternoon. I took mama to Eden springs to see Delma. Went to church. H. got home at 3 am."
Monday, August 13: "H. is irrigating upper ranch. I got a permanent at Ferguson B. School. Took mama to Alices. Took Dave some peaches."
Tuesday, August 14: "Hazel & I picked tomatoes at his fathers place for awhile. Sheppherd came in afternoon for me to go to work tomorrow. Went over to folks in eve."
Wednesday, August 15: "Hazel planted corn at upper ranch. I worked for 3 hrs, cleaned house in afternoon. Went to folks in eve. for a min."
Thursday, August 16: "Hazel worked at upper ranch. I cleaned house. Went to the folks in the eve."
Friday, August 17: "Hazel irrigated at home."
Well, dear readers, sadly, I come to the end of my grandmother's diary. She wrote no more through the end of the year. Hope you have enjoyed this small glimpse of her life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)