Including the surnames Tapley, Drake, Page, Harrell, Odom, Claxton, Bush, Swain, and Schwalls from the U.S. Southeast; and Ranney, Hubbard, Hesser, Carter, Schoonover, and Ozmun/Ozman/Osman from the U.S. Northeast and Midwest
My father's only surviving first cousin, Jaqueline "Jackie" Tapley Snell, turned 94 years old yesterday. She was born February 14, 1928. Let's see what was happening in America at that time.
1928 was a leap year. February 14, 1928 was a Tuesday. It was Valentine's Day.
In the United States, the most popular baby name for girls is Mary. This name was given to 66,869 baby girls. For the boys, it is Robert. This name was recorded 60,696 times in the year 1928.
The generation born between 1928 and 1945 is called the Silent Generation. This generation was comparatively small because the Great Depression and World War II caused people to have fewer children. The generation was so named because it was mostly silent; it did not issue manifestoes, make speeches or carry posters. They tended to be thrifty and even miserly. They were about "working within the system." They kept their heads down and worked hard. They preferred to play it safe.
The President of the United States was Calvin Coolidge. The Vice President was Charles Gates Dawes.
The decade of the 1920s, also known as the Jazz Age and "The Roaring Twenties," featured economic prosperity and carefree living for many. The decade began with a roar and ended with a crash. It was a decade of change, when many Americans owned cars, radios, and telephones for the first time. The cars brought the need for good roads. The radio brought the world closer to home. The telephone connected families and friends. Prosperity was on the rise in cities and towns. Women shortened, or "bobbed," their hair, flappers danced and wore short fancy dresses, and men shaved off their beards.
The 1920s also represented an era of change and growth. America had become a world power and was no longer considered just another former British colony. American culture, such as books, movies, and Broadway theater, was now being exported to the rest of the world. World War I had left Europe on the decline and America on the rise. This decade helped to establish America's position in respect to the rest of the world through its industry, inventions, and creativity.
1928 Prices
Bread: $0.09/loaf
Milk: $0.57/gal
Eggs: $0.47/dozen
Car: $475
House: $7,333
Stamp: $0.02/each
Average Income: $1,515/year
Songs from 1928:
Golden Gate by Al Jolson
How About Me? by Irving Berlin
One Kiss by Oscar Hammerstein
Top Movies of 1928
Stand and Deliver
Four Sons
Bare Knees
People Born on February 14:
1882 - John Barrymore, American actor and singer
1894 - Jack Benny, American actor, singer, and producer
1921 - Hugh Downs, American journalist, game show host, and producer
Historical Events on February 14, 1928
The Interborough Rapid Transit Company clashed with city and state authorities in New York over the proposed raising of the subway fair from 5 cents to 7 cents.
The silent drama film, Four Sons, (mentioned above) premiered at the Gaiety Theatre in New York City.
The II Olympic Winter Games were in full swing in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
And... the hot new toy in 1928 was Chinese Checkers.
WRIGHTSVILLE, Ga.---Funeral services for Mrs.
Bennett C. Claxton, 65 of Rt. 1 Wrightsville,
who died Friday in an Augusta hospital after a brief illness,will
be held at 3pm today at Brown Memorial Baptist Church.
The Rev. Robert Pless will officiate, assisted
by the Revs. R. C. Smith,Lotis
McAfee and R. O. Edenfield. Burial will be in Westview Cemetery,Wrightsville.
A native of Johnson County, she was a member
of Brown Memorial Baptist Church.
Survivors include her husband, Bennett
Claxton; two daughters, Mrs. CharlesMcCullen,
Miami, Fla. and Mrs. John Williams, St. Louis, Mo.; son, MikeClaxton,
Wrightsville; two sisters, Mrs. J. Q. Bailey and Mrs. LouKillingsworth,
both of Wrightsville; and brother, Delma Snell, Wrightsville.
Friends may call at Kent Funeral Home until
2pm, then at the church."
Additional
Comments:
Georgia
was born 8 Dec 1903 to Williams B. B. Snell and Annie L. Childs Snell.
Johnson
County GaArchives Obituaries.....Claxton, Georgia "Georgie" Snell,
April 4, 1969
Georgia or "Georgie" was my 4th cousin, 1x removed. She was married to my 2nd cousin, 2x removed; however Bennett and Georgia were not related to each other before marriage.
Dear genealogists everywhere, it'sSaturday Night!Time for someGenealogy FUN.
Normally, this is where I would refer you to Randy Seaver's blog, Genea-Musings, and pass along the assignment for this week's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun. However, since I have never had a particularly memorable Valentine's Day (his mission for this week), I have chosen to put my own spin on some Valentine's "fun" for this post. I decided to go to my FTM database and find out who has been born or got married on February 14th. (There should be an easier way than what I used to find this information in FTM... if anyone has suggestions, please share!) As I was thinking about this, I wondered how long has Valentine's Day been around and did my ancestors celebrate it? Did they plan to have their wedding(s) on the day of love or did it just work out that way? I didn't find the answer to THAT question, but I did discover that Valentine's Day has been around... if not forever, then at least for a very, very long time. The first recorded association of Valentine's Day with romantic love is in 1382. By 1797, printers had bung producing a cards with verses that were the forerunners of the modern Valentine. In the 1800's handwritten notes gave way to mass-produced greeting cards. (Valentine's Day. (2013, February 9). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 03:04, February 10, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Valentine%27s_Day&oldid=537352548)
I found only nine people in my database of 5,319 people who were born on February 14:
1) Ralph Hubbard, born 1804, my 3rd cousin, 5x removed
2) Jennie May Mayo Snider, born 1869, 2nd cousin of my Grand Uncle James L. "Jim" Tapley's wife, Maggie Powell Tapley 3) Sarah Theodora Price Tapley, born 1880, my grand aunt, married to my Grand Uncle George Washington Sentell Tapley
George Washington Sentell Tapley and Sarah Theodora Price Tapley
4) Eugene Pool (or Poole), born 1899, brother of my Uncle James Tillman Tapley's wife, Reida Mae Poole Tapley 5) Jaqueline "Jackie" Tapley Snell, born 19XX, my father's first cousin and my first cousin, 1x removed
Jackie and Bill Snell, September 2010
6) Theodore "Ted" George Bakan, born 19XX, my Aunt Evelyn Tapley Bakan's husband
Ted and Aunt Evelyn, October 2009
7) Lynn Arthur Holyoak, born 19XX, my 8th cousin, 1x removed 8) Jerri Patricia Powell, born 19XX, the grand niece of my Uncle Jack Dempsey Tapley's wife, Blanche Dixon Tapley
9) Shawn Thomas, born 19XX, my 1st cousin, 1x removed
Amazingly, even though it is obvious from my research that Valentine's Day has been a day for lovers from at least the late 1700's, I found only one couple in my entire family tree that married on February 14:
Oris Irene Tapley, my 1st cousin, 1x removed, and James Leonard Price married on February 14, 1932.
James Leonard Price and Oris Irene Tapley Price, photo courtesy of their daughter, Joyce Price Moore
