SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN ~ 20 Questions about Christmas and other genealogy musings

 

Randy Seaver from Genea-Musings posted this fun exercise and I thought I’d play along.

A)  Genea-Blogger Linda Stufflebean created a "December Genea-Meme" - so this is our challenge for Saturday Night.  Thank you, Linda!!

 B)  Copy the 20 questions below to your own blog post or to a word processor, and answer the questions.

 B)  Please share it in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook post.

 Here are the 20 questions and my answers:

1. What is one genea-accomplishment this year of which you are proud?  I was able to complete many digital heritage scrapbook pages and print books from them.

 2. Is there a particular song that when you first hear it, tells you that the holidays are here? Not really.  For me it’s more about the lights going up on houses around the neighborhood.

3. Share a holiday memory which is special for you. Spending Christmas with my grandparents as a young child up in Detroit.

4. Has your family passed down any holiday stories? None that I remember.

5. Which past genea-gift have you really appreciated? When my husband gave me the 3 volume set of New England Marriages Prior to 1700 by Clarence Almon Torrey (excellent reference to have on hand, even though much of it is online now).

6. Does your family cook any holiday recipes that have been handed down? Not really.

7. What is your favorite holiday song? Little Drummer Boy by Bing Crosby

8. Is there a holiday song that you wish was forgotten forever? Yes!  Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer

9. What is one (realistic) item on your Genea-Santa list this year?  To continue to learn and improve my skills using DNA.

10. What is one item on your not-so-realistic wish list for Genea-Santa? The ever present, long standing, brick walls coming down.  At least one of them in 2023.

11. What holiday meal will be served? We will be at family’s for Christmas and I’ve heard we’ll have tri tip and a smoked turkey.  Yum!

12. Will your family reminisce about past holidays when you get together?  I doubt it.  It’s a mix of collateral family, not direct lines.

13. Will you travel to spend the day with others? Yes, but only about 45 minutes.

14. Do you have old family holiday photos or home movies that will be viewed this year?  No.

15. Did you break through any brick walls in 2022? I wish, but no.

16. Has your family shared any holiday recipes/activities or ??? which have become new yearly traditions? Nope.

17. Do you have a 2022 genea-goal which could have been accomplished, but over which you’ve procrastinated? Yes.  I suppose I could have gotten some scanning done, but haven’t.

18. Do you participate in any holiday activities with your neighbors?  Yes.  We usually go to a neighbors home on Christmas eve.

19. Think – if you had to choose right this minute – which ancestor would you most like to meet?  My paternal 2^nd great grandfather, John C. Gould.  If he could just tell me who his parents were.  Did he have any siblings?  Is Gould even his “real” surname?

20. What is one of your 2023 genealogy goals? I would like to blog a lot more.  This has been a year of very few posts. 

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl 

Copyright ©  2010-2022   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

 

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SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN ~ Are you ready for the 1950 census?

 

Randy Seaver, blogger extraordinaire, does a Saturday Night Genealogy Fun post each week.  It’s always fun to play along. Here is this week’s post.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible music here) is to:

 

1)   The 1950 United States Census will be available to search on 1 April 2022 - less than three weeks away. How have you prepared yourself to search it? Have you found 1950 addresses of your family members and persons of interest? Have you identified the State, County, Town and Enumeration District? Have you made a table of your findings so you can systematically find everyone on your list? What will you do with the information you gather?

2) Tell us about it in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook post. Be sure to leave a link with your answers in a comment.

I am excited about the release of the 1950 census for a few reasons.  First of all, it’s the first release of a census that  should have both myself and my husband included.  Albeit, only by a few days.

Secondly, who doesn’t want another census in which to find our ancestors?

And finally, what knew information can I learn from the census?

Here’s how I’ve prepared.

I use Legacy Family Tree software.  They have a feature called “Census List.”  This is located in the Search tab.

My created list give me 1854 individuals who may appear on the 1950 census.

WOW!  That’s great. I guess I won’t lack for something to do in the coming weeks.

My primary focus will be myself and my husband, our parents, grandparents and great grandparents.  And, of course siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles.

We will have to depend on the index created by Family Search volunteers. It may take several months for the indexing to be complete.

In the meantime, as with the 1940 census release, 10 years ago, we have other options.

You can use the Steve Morse and Joel Weintraub Enumeration District (ED) Finder.  Here’s a link to their website Enumeration District Maps in One Step

When I entered my primary search focus, which is Detroit, Wayne, Michigan I got the following list of Enumeration Districts. While all those links appear to have the same ED number, when you click on each one, they go to a different map.

Since Detroit is a big city it might be a bit of a search to find the correct ED. However, if you practice by using the 1940 census it may make it easier for you.

However you prepare for this big event, I wish you lots of luck in your searches. 

I’d love to hear what your going to do, either in a comment or on your own blog.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2015   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN ~ Where were your ancestors 80 years ago?

An idea from Randy Seaver’s weekly Saturday Night Fun blog suggestions.

Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!):

1) Determine where your ancestral families were on 1 April 1940 - 80 years ago when the U.S. census was taken.

2)  List them, their family members, their birth years, and their residence location (as close as possible).  Do you have a photograph of their residence from about that time, and does the residence still exist?

3)  Tell us all about it in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook Status post.

• My father – Harry Norman Gould, age 27, working as a Statistician at the State Auditors Office, renting a home at 12892 Faust Ave., Detroit, Michigan.  His first wife, Elaine Gertrude Croft, age 21 was living there as well.

(Click on any image to enlarge it)

12892 Faust Ave. Detroit, MI - courtesy of Google Maps ©

 

My mother – Patricia A. Milne, age 15, was living with her parents and older brother at 14156 Strathmore, Detroit, Michigan. My grandfather Joseph A. Milne, age 56 was a salesman, my grandmother Florence Milne nee Bowden, age 52 and my Uncle Robert A. Milne, age 31 working at an automobile factory, were in this household.

14156 Strathmore, Detroit, MI - courtesy of Google Maps ©

• My paternal grandfather – Harry W. Gould, age 51, working as an Assignment Clerk for the Common Pleas Court, was living at 14520 Asbury Park in Detroit, Michigan as was my grandmother, Marie Gould nee Lindsay, age 50.  They owned this home and I went there as a child. 

14520 Asbury Park, Detroit, MI - photo taken by me in 2007

• My paternal great grandmother, Mae Eve Gould nee Thorp, age 77, widowed, lived at 5639 Linwood in Detroit, Michigan in a home she owned.  Her son, my great Uncle Ford, age 50 was living with her.  He worked as a Truck Driver for a lumber company.  Also in the home was my widowed great grandaunt, Catherine “Kittie” Thorpe (her maiden name was Thorp and she married a man named Thorpe), age 75.

This house no longer exists 

• My maternal great grandmother – Susan Anne Milne nee Gillespie, widowed, age 79 was living at 5029 Ridgewood, Detroit, Michigan.  She was living with her daughter Irene Roe and Irene’s husband Everett and their daughter, Betty Jane. 

Ridgewood St in Detroit, MI - courtesy of Google maps ©

• My other maternal great grandmother – Florence Bowden Bell nee Hunter, age 70 was living at 4426 Windsor in Kansas City, Missouri, with her 2nd husband, George K. Bell, age 70.

4426 Windsor, Kansas City, MO - courtesy of Google maps ©

My direct line ancestors who were living when the 1940 census was taken were:

My Father – Harry Norman Gould, Sr.

My Mother – Patricia Anne Milne

My 2 paternal grandparents – Harry Gould & Marie Lindsay Gould

My 2 maternal grandparents – Joseph Milne & Florence Bowden Milne

My paternal great grandmother – Mae Eve Thorp Gould

Two of my maternal great grandmothers – Susan Gillespie Milne & Florence Hunter Bowden Bell

That’s a total of 9 ancestors.   All but one of them were living in Detroit, Michigan at the time of the 1940 census.

This was interesting and fun and I thank Randy Seaver of Geneamusings for the post idea.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - A few fun questions

This topic and the questions were originally posted by Randy Seaver on his blog  Genea-Musings.

1. Who are you named after?  My middle name is my mother's first name, otherwise, no other Diane's in the family.

2. Last time you cried? Honestly, it's been a while.

3. Do you like your handwriting?  It's ok.  Readable, but nothing fancy.

4. What is your favorite lunch meat?  Tuna

5.  Spicy or sweet?  Spicy.

6. Longest relationship?  Sibling

7. Do you still have your tonsils? No

8. Would you bungee jump? Not at this time in my life

9. What is your favorite kind of cereal? Trader Joe's O's

10. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? Yes

11. Do you think you're strong? Physically - yes, because I work out a lot at the gym

12. Favorite ice cream? Dark chocolate gelato

13. What is the first thing you notice about a person? Their smile and their teeth

14. Football or baseball? Neither - hockey

15. What color pants are you wearing? black

16. Last thing you ate? English muffin and yogurt

17. What are you listening to? The sound of the birds outside my window

18. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Royal blue

19. What is your Favorite Smell?  Night blooming jasmine

20. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Ramona Disposal :)

21.  Are you married?  Yes

22. Hair color? Only my hairdresser knows

23. Eye color? Brown

24. Favorite foods to eat? Mac & cheese is my go to comfort food.

25. Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings.

26. Last movie you watched? Remains of the Day - seen it many times

27.What color shirt are you wearing? grey

28. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas

29. Beer or Wine? Wine

30. Night owl or morning person? Night owl, but I work best from 8 a.m. to about 2 p.m.

31. Favorite day of the week?  Any day - I'm retired

I look forward to seeing everyone's answers!

SATURDAY NIGHT FUN ~ Which of your ancestors have you met?

This evening’s Saturday Night Fun comes from Randy Seaver’s post on his Genea-Musings blog.  Randy writes a weekly Saturday Night Genealogy Fun post.  You can find his post here.

Our mission this week was as follows:

1) Write down which of your ancestors that you have met in person (yes, even if you were too young to remember them).


2) Tell us their names, where they lived, and their relationship to you in a blog post, or in comments to this post, or in comments on Facebook.

So Here Is My List:

Harry Norman Gould, my father (1912-1991), lived in Detroit, Michigan, Pompano Beach, Florida and San Diego, California.

Patricia Anne (Milne) Gould Cornelius, my mother (1924-2016), lived in Detroit, Michigan, Pompano Beach, Florida, New Orleans, Louisiana, Houston and Wharton, Texas and San Diego, California.

Harry Whipple Gould, my father’s father (1886-1960), lived in Detroit, Michigan and Pompano Beach, Florida.

Marie Wallace (Lindsay) Gould, my father’s mother (1888-1970), lived in Detroit, Michigan, Pompano Beach, Florida and San Diego, California.

Joseph Albert Milne, my mother’s father (1883-1957), lived in Detroit, Michigan his whole life.

Florence Lee Nora (Bowden) Milne, my mother’s mother (1888-1986), lived in Ashland & Covington, Kentucky, Detroit, Michigan and for a short time in Houston, Texas.

So, I’ve met six of my ancestors.  Unfortunately, I never got to meet any great grandparents.  If you have, you are very lucky and should ask them lots of questions, write everything down and cherish every minute.

I’d love to hear how many of your ancestors you’ve “met.”  Tell me about it here in a comment or on your own blog.

Thanks for this episode of Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, Randy.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2016   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Lifespans of my 2nd Great Grandparents

Randy Seaver, who writes the well known Genea-Musings blog, always comes up with something fun for us to do in his Saturday Night Genealogy Fun posts.  My problem is, I don’t always have the time to participate on a Saturday.  I really liked the theme for this past Saturday, so I’m going to write about it today.

Directly from Randy’s blog, here is our assignment:

1)  We each have 16 great-great grandparents.  How did their birth and death years vary?  How long were their lifespans? 

2)  For this week, please list your 16 great-great grandparents, their birth year, their death year, and their lifespan in years.  You can do it in plain text, in a table or spreadsheet, or in a graph of some sort.

Here is my list.

From my paternal side:

John C. Gould (1833-after 1911), at least 78 years
Sarah M. Hart (1835-1911), 75 years
Horace Henry Thorp (1836-1907), 71 years
Catherine Dorsey (about 1842-1898), about 56 years
William Lindsay (1830-1898), 68 years
Mary Wallace (abt 1832-1895), about 63 years
John Fitzcharles (abt 1833-1893), about 60 years
Elizabeth “Betty” McGovern (abt 1818-1866), about 48 years

From my maternal side.  Note:  I don’t have all eight of my maternal 2nd great grandparents identified yet.

James Gillen Hunter (1832-1884), 52 years
Susan Caroline Boggs (1842-1913), 70 years
Charles Milne (abt 1822-1877), about 55 years
Margaret Ritchie (1820-1902), 81 years
Joseph Gillespie (1837-1908), 71 years
Susan Burgess (1841-1933), 91 years

The average lifespan on my paternal side is 64.9 years.  The men averaged 69.2 years.   The women averaged 60.5 years.

The average lifespan on my maternal side is 70 years.  The men averaged 59.3 years. The women averaged 80.6 years.

It would seem that it’s better to be woman in my family, especially on my maternal side.  It is well known on my mother’s side of the family, that the women live long lives.

The 2nd great grandparent who lived the longest was Susan Burgess at 91 years.  Here’s a photo of Susan Burgess at about age 70.



The 2nd great grandparent who died the youngest was Elizabeth “Betty” McGovern who lived in Scotland.  She was only 48 when she died.  I don’t have a photo of her.

I'm curious about my husband's side of the family now, so I'll have to check the lifespan for his 2nd great grandparents too.

Thanks for the idea Randy.

Here are some other Saturday Night Genealogy Fun posts that I’ve participated in:

SATURDAY DAY FUN! Golden Wedding Anniveraries

SATURDAY NIGHT FUN! What's Your Number? Counting Ancestors 

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2016   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION