CHURCH RECORD SUNDAY ~ Washington Episcopal Diocese of Spokane Church Records, 1870-1970 - The Thorp family

It’s been just one day short of a month since I last posted.  It was an eventful four weeks that had me concentrating on other things, besides my family history. 

We were recently able to get away and spend 10 days in Montana & Idaho.  We flew in and out of Washington and then to our destinations. 

Of course, as any devoted (some would say obsessed) genealogist, I couldn’t help but think of the ancestors that I had researched who had either moved to, or were from Washington, Idaho and Montana.

Today, I’ll share some church records from my THORP family.  This is my direct paternal line through my great grandmother Mae Eve Thorp (1862-1946) who married William Val Gould (1859-1924).

I thought I’d take a look at Thru Lines on Ancestry and see if anything new has popped up.  I was filtering “Potential Ancestors” when I came across a DNA match that is descended from my great grandmother, Mae’s uncle, Monson Thorp, Jr.

Naturally, one thing lead to another and two hours have now passed.  Oh those rabbit holes.  LOL!

I located the Washington Episcopal Diocese of Spokane Records for 1870-1970 In this collection I found 2 baptismal records on one page and a marriage record on another.

(Click on any image to enlarge it)

Baptismal records for Munson/Monson & Perry Thorp(e) 5 Nov 1905

Monson Elvo Thorp and Perry Elvin Thorp were both baptized on 5 Nov 1905.  They are the two oldest children of Charles “Jay” Thorp & Clara C. Peterson.  You can see my post about the marriage of Charles & Clara here.

Monson was born 12 Mar 1900 in Spokane, Spokane Co., Washington.  Perry was born 29 Jun 1902 in Wallace, Shoshone, Idaho.  They are both my 2nd cousins twice removed. 

Monson married Carmen Marie Chase and he lived to be 82 years old.

Perry married Alice Eglatana Blodgett and lived until his 52nd year.

In searching this Episcopal Diocese record set for other Thorp’s I located the marriage record for Sidney E. Thorp to Virginia Dunn on 30 Jul 1949.  I did not have Sidney in my tree and learned he was the son of Perry & Alice, whom I mentioned above. 

Church record for marriage of Sidney E. Thorpe & Virginia Dunn - 30 Jul 1949

Once I'd located the church record for this marriage I was able to find the actual marriage certificate as well.  It's always good to have more than one source for every event.

State marriage certificate for Sidney E. Thorpe & Virginia M. Dunn

There is much more work to be done on these Thorp cousins.  How many children were born to each couple, if any?  What kind of work did the men and/or women do?  Did they stay in Washington state?  And so much more.

If you are descended from or connected to any of the ancestors mentioned here, I’d love to hear from you.  Let’s exchange information.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

MAYFLOWER SOCIETY ~ Episode 7–The final step–I’VE RECEIVED MY CERTIFICATE

I’m thrilled to tell you that I’ve received my “official” Mayflower Society member certificate.  It came in the mail 3 days ago.

I can now say that I am a proud member of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants.

This has been great journey.  I was going to say a long journey, but I really don’t think it took that long, taking into consideration some of these things.

• It’s 2020 and this has been anything but a normal year.
• More applications were and still are being submitted due to this being the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower landing.
• The people that volunteer to process our applications and communicate with us are all working under unusual conditions.  I appreciate every one of them.
• The process itself is said to take a while, under normal circumstances.

All in all it was fairly seamless for me.  Again, I’ll publicly thank the historians who assisted me along the way, Dianna Saario and David Grinell.

• 22 Jun 2019 I mailed my preliminary Review Form 
• September 2019 I got word that I could proceed with my application
• December 2019 I mailed my application to the California historian
• Beginning of January 2020 my application was approved by the two historians who reviewed it separately
• End of January 2020 my completed application was mailed to Plymouth. They will have the final word
• July 21, 2020 – I’M APPROVED! by the General Society in Plymouth
• August 22, 2020 I’m approved and accepted in the California State Society and receive notice of both my state member number and by general society member number
• September 9, 2020 – I received my certificate

I’ve now joined the San Diego Colony and this morning attended a zoom meeting as a bonified member.  I’d been attending for the past couple of years with my friend Debby.  Hoping one day to be a “real” member.  And now……I am.

If you’re interested in reading a step by step synopsis about my journey, and the process it took to become a Mayflower Society member, please click HERE.

A salute to my Mayflower passenger Edward Doty and all those who came over on that ship.  How brave they were.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

MILITARY MONDAY ~ A Follow Up On My Yearbook Post–These Young Men Didn’t Make It Home to Their Families–Meet Glenn Gillen & Ellis Hart

A few days ago I wrote about finding yearbook photos on Ancestry.  As I was going through the photos I had, they included 2 young men who were in high school during or just before the time of World War I (1914-1918).  They ended up serving our country and sadly, they never came home.  They were killed in action.

Let’s honor those young men, here, today.

The first is Corporal Glenn Clifford Gillen.  Son of Elijah Cecil Gillen & Bessie Etta Cowen.  Glenn was born 1 Jan 1896 in Chesapeake, Lawrence, Ohio. He was the 3rd child of 9 born to this couple.  The second oldest son.  There were 6 boys and 3 girls.  All of his siblings lived to adulthood and, in fact, well into old age, except Glenn.  Glenn is my maternal 2nd cousin 3 times removed.

Glenn attended Independence High School in Independence, Montgomery, Kansas and if he graduated, it would have been about 1913-1914.  He is honored in the 1919 yearbook for this school on a memorial page for those lost during World War I.

Glenn registered for the draft in Montgomery, Independence, Kansas in June 1917.  He gives his age as 21 years, he’s single, and he works as a Laborer.  Physically he was described as tall, medium guild, gray eyes and brown hair.
  

Here is his World War I Registration Card

(Please click on any image to enlarge it) 

Fifteen months after signing that draft registration card, Glenn Gillen was killed during the Meuse-Argonne battle in France.
Corporal Gillen is buried in the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial in France.  You may visit his memorial here #55992727.

Used with permission of the photographer

The second soldier we will honor today is Corporal Ellis Collins Hart.  Only son of Hermon Doten Hart & Florence Bell Hakins.  Ellis was born 27 Oct 1927 in Ohio.  He had one sibling, an older sister Caroline Harriet Hart (1926-2006).  Both of the children were adopted according to the 1930 census.
Ellis is my paternal 3rd cousin once removed.

Sadly, Ellis’ father Hermon D. Hart died in 1933, at the age of 44, while saving his daughter, Caroline from drowning.  Stay tuned for a post about that incident.

Ellis attended Jesup W. Scott High School in Toledo, Lucas, Ohio.  The photo I have for him from the yearbook lists his age as 16 in 1944.

Ellis did register for the World War II draft on 27 Oct 1945.  He was single and described as 5’ 8 1/2” tall, 165 pounds with brown hair, gray eyes and light complexion.  His mother, Florence is listed as his next of kin.  He was employed by the A.P. Tea Company.

Ellis enlisted in the Army as a Private on 7 Jan 1946.  This would have been after the end of World War II.  U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946.

So, Ellis enlisted in the Army in 1946.  Yet in 1950, when he was killed, he was serving with the U.S. Marine Corps, 2d Battalion, 7th Marine Division. 

• What made Ellis change from one branch of the service to another? 
• Is that a common occurrence?
• Was there a draft for the Korean War? I don’t know.  I also have never located any service records for that war.

You can find references to Ellis’ Marine service and his being killed in action on the following links. He was killed by hostile fire on 3 Oct 1950 by gunshot or small arms fire.  He was a ground casualty.

U.S., Korean War Casualties, 1950-1957
U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1925-1963
Global, Find A Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current

You may visit his FindAGrave memorial here #194881515

Here is his headstone photo

Photo placed on findagrave.com by Moses and used with permission

I am happy to have honored these young men today.  May they always rest in peace.

If you are connected to any of the family I’ve written about today, I’d love to hear from you.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

SEPIA SATURDAY ~ WAR and PEACE–Corp. Glenn C. Gillen–Killed in Action WW I

A MOTHER’S PILGRIMAGE ~ Bessie Cowen Gillen's visit to the grave of Glenn C. Gillen ~ Killed in action in World War I

Happy hunting,
Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

FRIDAY FINDS ~ What about Alice Evelyn Bullock, first wife of Robert W. Hall, Sr.?

It has been a while since I’ve tried to locate more information on the first wife of my husband’s paternal Uncle, Robert Walton Hall, Sr.  My husband, Ron, was very fond of his Uncle Bob.  When he was a young man, he worked for his Uncle at a gas station in San Diego.

I’ve written a previous blog post about the marriage of Robert W. Hall to Alice Evelyn Bullock on 15 Jul 1929.  You can read that blog post here WEDDING WEDNESDAY ~ Robert Walton Hall & Alice Evelyn Bullock – 1929

What I had not known until this week, was what became of Alice after she and Uncle Bob divorced?

Prior to the birth of her son, Alice was working for the telephone company (evidenced in the 1930 San Diego census).

In the 1934 San Diego city directory Robert and Evelyn are living at 4402 35th St. He is the manager of a Standard Gas Station.  Their son would have been 2 years old by this time.

(Please click on any image to enlarge it)

 

 

In the 1938 San Diego city directory listing I find Robt. W. Hall listed with Evelyn at 1132 Bush in San Diego.  It seems that Alice went by her middle name in most of the records I’ve located.

I don’t have online access to every year of the San Diego city directories. In addition to the ones online, I do know that some of them can be found at our downtown library here in San Diego.  It’s been some time since I’ve made the hour long trip down there.

The next hint I have about (let’s call her Evelyn from this point on) and her family is a 1940 census where her husband Robert W.,  is living with his parents and younger brother.  Bob is listed as divorced.

Where was Evelyn living in 1940?  I have found one census that seems to fit her.  An Evelyn B. Hall (she could be using her maiden name of Bullock as a middle initial), born in Rhode Island, divorced, working for the W.P.A. and the correct age to be our Evelyn.  She is living with an Orpha Doty (listing Evelyn as a sister).  However, I don't have a sister by the name of Orpha associated with Evelyn.  I need to go back to the Bullock family and see if there is a daughter I may have missed.  Or is this not Evelyn?  But, where is little Robert Jr.?  He would only have been 8 years old by now and I know he lived into adulthood (died on 16 Feb 2019 age 86).

Now that I’ve located both Bob and Evelyn, I need to go looking for young Robert Jr/ in 1940.

I looked with both sets of grandparents and didn’t find this young boy. So where was he living? I also did a image by image of the 41 pages of the 1940 census where I located that Evelyn B. Hall, mentioned above.  I found no Robert W. Hall listed.  No matter what spellings I used.

After 1940 we get into a time when records are not as easy to come by.  We don’t have the 1950 census yet and many vital records are restricted due to people still assumed to be living.

In searching city directories I have located several with Evelyn and her second husband, Harold E. Ray.  They were listed at the same residence in 1945, in San Diego.  Can we assume they were married?  Probably back then, yes. I don't have a marriage record for this couple yet either. 

Here are Evelyn and her husband Harold Ray in the 1967 San Diego city directory.

And here they are in the 1971 San Diego city directory, the year before her death.  Her obituary in Feb 1972 gives her address as 5521 Taft.

Here is the obituary for Evelyn (Mrs. Harold E. Ray).  She and Harold (he died in 1983) are buried at El Camino Memorial Park, San Diego, California.  You may visit their memorials here; Harold #213805315 and Evelyn #213805342

From the city directories to my locating her obituary and burial place, that would be all I can learn about Alice Evelyn Bullock Hall Ray.  At least at this time.

If anyone reading this has any additional information I would certainly welcome it. 

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF  INTEREST

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks–Week #9–Robert Walton Hall–1907-1987–My husband’s uncle–Part 1

ROBERT HALL HANDCUFFED IN CONSCRIPTION EFFORT DURING ALPINE FIRE – October 1929

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

YEARBOOK PHOTOS ~ How many have you located? Here are some of mine.

Ancestry has recently offered their Yearbook collection for free. I thought it might be a good time to review how many yearbook photos I have collected over the years.  I have an Ancestry subscription so I’ve been collecting yearbooks pictures for a while.

When I add a yearbook photo or information to Legacy I use an Event I created called….yes, you guessed it “Yearbook.”

I’ll use the Search feature in Legacy to determine how many people have Events with the yearbook title.  To do this I went to the tab “Search” then to “Find” and then used this method.

 (Please click on any image to enlarge it)

The list consisted of 32 people.  To be truthful, I was a little surprised that it was that small a list.  But, yearbooks haven’t always been around and I have quite a few ancestors who never went far enough in school to appear in a yearbook.  This does encourage me to go hunting for more photos though.

Once I have the list up on my screen, I then created a hash tag in Legacy and added that hash tag to all those individuals.  Going forward, each time I do locate a yearbook photo or article I can add the hash tag immediately.  I find the hash tag feature in Legacy to be very helpful.

After going through my list here are some of my photos.  About half of the list of 32 did not contain photos of the person, just their names in the yearbook.

Left-Robert Auten, 1944   Center - Raymond J. Nymberg, 1943  Right - Gordon Charles Hall, 1936

Left - Dorothy Louise Hall, 1926 Center - Virginia Carol Gould, 1963 Right - Clara Eaton, 1920

Left - Eleanor F. Poile, 1947  Center - Lawrence C. Diebel, Jr., 1947  Right - Mary Charlotte Horn, 1938

Left - Harriett M. Pickard, 1924   Right - Robert R. Corbett, 1960

Here is a list of the people shown above, their schools and their relationship to me.

• Robert Auten - Mackenzie High, Detroit, MI, husband of my 1st cousin once removed
• Raymond Nymberg - Mackenzie High, Detroit, MI, nephew of a cousin (I just noticed that the two men above went to the same school, I wonder if they knew one another?  They are from opposite sides of my family)
• Gordon Charles Hall - San Diego State College, San Diego, CA, my husband's father
• Dorothy Louise Hall - San Diego Teacher's College, San Diego, CA, my husband's aunt, sister of Gordon Hall
• Virginia Carol Gould - Redford High, Detroit, MI, my paternal half sister
• Clara Eaton - Huntington High, Huntington, WVA, wife of a 2nd cousin 3 times removed
• Eleanor Florence Poile - Eastern High, Detroit, MI, wife of my 2nd cousin once removed (married Lawrence Diebel)
• Lawrence C. Diebel - Eastern High, Detroit, MI, my 2nd cousin once removed
• Mary Charlotte Horn - San Diego High, San Diego, CA - my husband's Uncle's wife
• Harriet Mary Pickard - Northwestern High, Detroit, MI - my 1st cousin once removed
• Robert R. Corbett - Redford High, Detroit, MI - my half sister's husband (he married Virginia Gould)

How many yearbook photos have you looked for?  How many have you found?  I’d love to hear about them.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

MILITARY MONDAY ~ Honoring Pfc Robert Dean Thornton–killed in action in World War II – 1945

HERE’S WHY I THINK MY DAD WAS 20 YEARS OLD WHEN HE GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL IN 1933?

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY ~ Mary A. Bolles Hall, second wife of Rev. George Hall–1816-1893

Headstone for Mrs. Mary A. Hall - courtesy of twilson99

I submitted a request for a photograph of this headstone, via FindAGrave, in 2015.  That request was fullfilled just this month.  Never give up on your requests.  

This headstone inscription reads as follows:

Mrs. Mary A. Hall

born August 10, 1816

died October 22, 1893

Asleep in Jesus

Mary A. Bolles is my husband’s 2nd great grandfather’s second wife.  She married Rev. George Hall a little over a year after the death of his first wife, Almira Rosette.  The marriage took place on 6 Oct 1859 in Jersey City, New Jersey.

There were 6 children born to George and Almira, so in 1859 there could have been at least 3 of those children still at home.  Those may have been Thomas, age 14, Susan, age 13 and Ellen, age 9.

Here is a newspaper extraction citing the marriage of Mary Ann and George.

U.S. Newspaper Extractions from the Northeast, 1704-1930
Name:    Mary Ann Bolles
Father:    Abial Bolles
Event:    Marriage
Marriage Date:    6 Oct 1859
Marriage Place:    Jersey City
Spouse:   George Hall
Newspaper:   Christian Intelligencer of the Reformed Dutch Church
Publication Date:   13 Oct 1859
Publication Place:  New York, USA
Call Number:   486384

Although I’ve tried for years, and just tried again today, I am unable to locate an 1860 census for Rev. Hall and Mary. 
I have located his three youngest children, Thomas, Susan and Ellen, all living with other people.

So, with no children at home and newly married, where did this couple reside in 1860?

I did locate them in the 1870 census, living in Fayette, Jefferson, Mississippi. At that time, George’s youngest daughter, Emily, was living with the couple.  George is still working in the ministry.  Mary is listed as keeping house.  Two years later, Emily aka Susan Emily, married John H. Griffing in Claiborne, Mississippi.

Here is the cropped portion of the 1870 census.

(Click on any image to enlarge it)

Mary lost her husband George to yellow fever 4 Sep 1878 in Port Gibson, Claiborne, Mississippi.  Here’s a blog post I wrote about his death which includes a detailed obituary Sunday's Obituary - Rev. George Hall Victim of Yellow Fever – 1878

What happened to Mary after George’s death?  Yet, another census mystery.  I cannot locate her in the 1880 census.  However, I was able to find her in 2 city directories from her hometown of Charleston, South Carolina.  In both 1896 and 1890 she is living at 359 Meeting, in Charleston, and listed as “widow of George.”  I cannot find any record of her remarrying after his death in 1878.
Mary died on 22 Oct 1893 in her birthplace, Charleston, South Carolina.  Her cause of death was listed as Nervous prostration/old age.
 

Mary is buried at Second Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Charleston.  You may visit her memorial here #3586154.
 
NOTE – Just as I was finishing up this blog post, I decided to go over to Family Search and take a look for South Caroline records to see what I may have missed.  In doing so, I have located the actual death register for Mary.  The information on the register matches the death record I had already located.  But, nice to have that original register.

More information about Mary and some of my observations and questions:

• I believe that Mary is the daughter of Edwin Abiel BOLLES and his wife Hannah A. PATTISON
• She was 43 years old when she married Rev. Hall and I can locate no other marriage records for her.  In the 1850 census she was living with her parents and a few of her siblings.
• She was married to Rev. Hall for 19 years, from 1859 until his death in 1878. 
• I find no record of any children born to this couple. 
• What did Mary like to do?  Did she volunteer?  Did she quilt?  Did she like to garden?  What was her life like for the 15 years after Rev. Hall died?  Was she employed someplace?
• Someone provided a nice headstone for Mary.  Was it her siblings or other family?
• I’ve searched on newspapers.com and genealogy bank and not found an obituary.
• When you have no direct descendants, it’s nice to be remembered.  While Mary may not be a blood ancestor to my husband and his Hall family, I am still happy to recognize and remember her. 

If you are connected to the BOLLES family of Charleston, South Carolina, I would love to hear from you.

Happy hunting,
Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TUESDAY'S TIP ~ Republishing my Ancestry tip - Watch out for that checked box - How I finally located the 1870 census for my 3rd great grandparents

I've been instructing new and experienced researchers how to use Ancestry lately.  This question has come up "what about the match all terms box?"  
Here's a good explanation of why we should be careful it's not checked.......all the time.




I’ve been researching my Thorp family for the past 15 years.  This is a direct line for me and I want to learn as much as I can about them.  My Dad always talked about his paternal grandparents, William Val Gould and May Thorp Gould.  He called his grandmother Mema (pronounced Mee Ma).

During this research I was able to locate every census for my 3rd great grandparents, Monson Thorp, Sr. and his wife Lany Cooper Thorp…….except the 1870 census.  They married on 12 Apr 1835 in Cato, Cayuga, New York and had 6 children.  I located them in the 1840, 1850, 1860 and 1880 federal census records.   I also have several newspaper articles about Monson Thorp.  I have death certificates and wills for Monson and Lany.  From everything I found about them, they never left New York.

But, that 1870 census eluded me.

Yesterday, I was doing research for an upcoming blog post about their daughter Mary J. Thorp.  In doing so, I went yet again to those census records trying to find Monson and Lany in 1870.  While I was looking at census records for Mary J. Thorp, I decided to try once again to find Monson and Lany in 1870.

I’ve been doing this for over 15 years.  I’ve learned a LOT during that time.  I consider myself to be an experienced researcher, who is still learning every day.  I continue to attend seminars, conferences and classes each year to learn more.  We never stop learning.

I’m certain I have searched the census records using variations of Monson’s first and last name, along with variations for Lany.  Those names are often misspelled or transcribed incorrectly.  So, what was I doing wrong in my searches?

Had I done this exact search before?  Searched ONLY the 1870 census records?  Used this specific criteria?  I may never know, but it worked this time!!!!

I searched All Collections>Census and Voter Lists>US Federal Census Collection>1870 United States Federal Census and entered my criteria.

SPECIAL NOTE:  I kept screenshots after I made this find yesterday.  I just tried to reproduce the search and COULD NOT get it to come up with the result.  WHAT!  WHY?  I’ll tell you why, because up at the top of the search screen, next to the “search” icon is a box that says “Match all terms exactly.”  GUESS WHAT?  That box was checked by default.  Are you kidding me?  Every single time I went to the collections that “match all terms exactly” box is checked.  Yesterday, that box must have been unchecked for some reason. This means I need to go back to a LOT of my prior searches for other ancestors.

Back to my find.  Here’s the screen shot with the “match all terms exactly” unchecked.



And, look what came up from my search.  ONE record and ONLY one.  Notice anything wrong with the surname spelling?  Regardless of that horrible misspelling, I knew this had to be my Munson.



I selected the record and here is the index and access to the image.  The surname is wrong, (indexed as THERSSE), but all the green stars are correct for my ancestor and his wife Lany.



And finally the image.  Here they are at last.  Living right where I suspected they’d be, in Skaneateles, New York.

 

My take a way from all of this is that darn check box.  Keep an eye out.  Maybe I’m the only one who didn’t think to look for that default “match all exactly.”  Did you know about it?



If you have similar stories about having searched for a record for years and then having found it, I’d love to hear about it.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

FOLLOWING LEADS ON ANCESTRY– One thing leads to another

OCCUPATION FILES ON ANCESTRY–1600-1995–What are they? Have you seen these?

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2018   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION