:: C R E A T I V E G E N E ::

I've Become One Of Them...

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:22:00 +0000

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Or laugh if that suits you better. ;-)

After indexing thousands of records for FamilySearch, I took the plunge. Yes, I've become a FamilySearch arbitrator. As of today I've arbitrated just over a thousand names. That's not a lot compared to those who have been arbitrating for years or even months. But I feel like I'm out of the "newbie" category now. I thought I'd share a few of my thoughts and observations on the 1940 Census project since that's entirely what my indexing and arbitrating efforts are focused on at this point.

Indexing

I suspect there will be more "errors" in the finished product (the index for the 1940 Census that will appear on FamilySearch.org, FindMyPast.com and Archives.com) than for previous Census years. The reason for this is the poor image quality we indexers are working with. In addition to having to decipher a zillion different enumerators' handwriting, as is always the case with census records, we also have to try to read unfocused camera images. As someone who never leaves the house without a camera, I'm very attuned to focus issues. When handwriting is out of focus it creates ghosting. It's almost like having double vision. It complicates deciphering even the most precise printing and can make sloppy handwriting beyond difficult to decipher. I find deciphering ghosted handwriting much more difficult than deciphering sloppy handwriting or handwriting using "old" letter forms. There are samples galore of "old" handwriting styles to reference but I've not seen any for deciphering ghosted images. Fortunately, not all the pages are out of focus. But I would go so far as to say that most pages have some soft or blurred sections and some pages have focus issues throughout. If you've tried to look for family members among the 1940 Census images posted online you know what I mean.

Fortunately, the folks at FamilySearch have a procedure for dealing with indexing errors. When you find one (after the indexes are published) you will be able to send them a correct/alternative spelling. I suspect there will be a lot of that going on. Hey, we're all doing the best that we can but you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

Arbitrating

I erroneously assumed that the most common errors I would be correcting as an arbitrator would be differences of opinion on letters within a name/location. But my experience has been that the most common errors I'm correcting are typos. Sure, sure I'm doing my share of correcting spelling but I'm doing way more correction that has to do with keyboard entry errors.

It's nice and productive to get a rhythm going when you're entering data but sometimes that "efficiency" comes at the cost of accuracy. I'm finding that folks are often missing column changes due to the auto-fill feature. Auto-fill is really handy. It will fill a given cell with the content from the previous time you typed a word starting with a given letter in that same column saving time and typing. That's a good thing. Sometimes. But often people don't catch that the last time they typed the letter "S" to start the relationship column it was for "sister" but this time they meant "son". They type the letter "S" and hit the tab to the next column assuming the auto-fill filled in "Son" like they've typed several times on that page already. But! The last time they typed it, it was for "sister" and that's what the auto-fill remembers. It's an easy mistake to make when you've got a rhythm going.

Probably the next most common error has to do with the city location for where people were living in 1935. Specifically, the letter "R" is the issue. "R" is an abbreviation for "Rural". The instructions to the indexers for this column of information reads as follows... (emphasis is mine)

The entry in column 17 may be a place-name, or the census taker may have written 'Same house,' 'Same place,' or 'Rural' or some abbreviation of those terms, such as 'R,' 'SH,' or 'Same H,' in this column or across multiple columns.
If a place-name was entered in this column, then index the place-name in this field. If the place-name was misspelled, spell it correctly. If it was abbreviated and you can determine what the abbreviation stands for, type the complete name instead of the abbreviation. Use the lookup list for assistance. If you are not sure what the abbreviation stands for, index what was written, excluding punctuation.
If 'Same house' or 'Same place' or some abbreviation of those terms, such as 'SH' or 'Same H,' was entered in any of the three residence columns for April 1, 1935, then index the term, as it was written, in this field.
If 'Rural' or 'R' was entered in this column, then index the term, as it was written, in this field.

It's so easy to overlook that last instruction! When it comes to an actual place-name (name of a city, village, town, etc.) you are supposed to correct spelling and type the complete name instead of the abbreviation. However, when it comes to the R/Rural designation you are to "index the term, as it was written". Which means, if you see an "R" you type an "R". You do not write out the complete word "Rural" instead of the abbreviation. I've had arbitrators miss this too and erroneously change "R" to "Rural" on several pages that I have indexed. It's frustrating and it brings your accuracy score down. And you know that's not what the instructions say to do. And you so want to send a little note along to the arbitrator to point out their misunderstanding, but you can't.

What can you do? Chin up. Carry on. Keep the big picture in mind and don't sweat the small stuff. Don't let the letter "R" issue keep you up at night, lol!

My Part
I'm a part of the Michigan Genealogical Council group, the third most productive group of indexers according to the latest statistics. At this point, I am indexing and arbitrating the 1940 Census for the state of Michigan only. I've indexed census sheets from 21 counties so far, Alcona, Allegan, Arenac, Baraga, Barry, Bay, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Charlevoix, Chippewa, Clinton, Delta, Dickinson, Eaton, Emmet, Genesee, Gladwin, Gogebic, and Grand Traverse. More counties have been done but I skipped indexing for several days last week when I was out of town. There are a total of 83 counties in Michigan.

I've come across a good number of Polish surnames with all their many consonants. It must be a nightmare for those indexers and arbitrators who aren't familiar with them. And for the enumerators too for that matter. For me, when I see them, it brings familiarity. Not that I haven't come across some unique Polish surnames, I have. But most of the names I've some across have common letter combinations.

The indexing for Michigan has been moving along at a good pace. However, we haven't gotten to the really densely populated counties yet (Wayne/Detroit, Oakland and Macomb/Detroit suburbs, Ingham/Lansing, and Kent/Grand Rapids). I'm sure the rate at which we move through the counties will slow down when we do.

It feels good to be contributing to the cause and knowing that I will be helping others find their family members in the 1940 Census. Have you thought about helping out with 1940 Census indexing? It's not too late! We can always use more help. You can download the software to get started here.

Carnival of Genealogy, 117th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Fri, 04 May 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Welcome to the May 4, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for this edition is: 1940! What a year 1940 was. The United States was coming out of the Great Depression and on the verge of WWII. It was a presidential election year, one in which Franklin D. Roosevelt (incumbent) ran for an unprecedented 3rd term as president. He won by a comfortable margin over Wendell Willkie, his Republican opponent, and became the only president in U.S. history to serve a third term. Of course there were many other significant events that happened in the year 1940, including the 1940 U.S. Census which occurred in April of that year. Participants in this edition of the COG were challenged to write something about their families in 1940.

To set the mood for this edition of the COG you may want to turn on the radio to your favorite oldies radio station from 1940 (or listen over the internet), enjoy a Sloe Gin Fizz or a Tom Collins which were popular cocktails in 1940, and reflect on what impact the year/decade 1940 had on your family. Come along with us back in time to 1940... the Carnival is back in town!

Charles Hansen presents 1940 Census for the Carnival of Genealogy #117 posted at Mikkel's Hus, saying, "Since I live close to where my dad lived in 1940 finding him in the 1940 census was pretty easy. Not too many surprises, but well worth the time to find him."

Amanda presents Tombstone Tuesday: Levi Marion Shelton on the 1940 Census posted at ABT UNK, saying, "Levi Marion Shelton (1863-1941) is one of my maternal great-great-grandfathers and the only g-g-g still alive in 1940. He was the third search I did in the 1940 Census (after finding my parents and grandparents) and I was lucky that he was asked the supplemental questions."

Bill West presents THE 1940 U.S. CENSUS: THE WHITES posted at West in New England, saying, "I know very little about the family of my Mom's father. I was hoping that the release of the 1940 Census would help me find out more."

Jasia presents My Family in the 1940 U.S. Census, Part 1, My Family in the 1940 U.S. Census, Part 2, and My Family in the 1940s, posted at Creative Gene. Seldom have I been as inspired to write a blog post for the COG as I was for this 1940s edition. I was so inspired I had to write 2 about my family and one that features scrapbook pages I created over the years about the decade of the 1940s. What fun it was to look back at that time and my family in that context! I learned more about my family than I expected to in the 1940 Census and answered a nagging question I had, once and for all.

Jasia presents Assumption Sisters in the 1940 U.S. Census posted at The Catholic Gene. In looking for my own family in the 1940 Census, I came across a listing of the nuns for Assumption BVM parish, the neighborhood church and school my mom and her family attended. I was a little surprised to see the sisters enumerated by their birth names as I'd always seen them listed by their chosen religious names in past censuses. I decided right then and there that I wanted to extract their names and publish them on the blog so that others searching for them might find them through search engines. Here's to the good sisters of Assumption BVM!

Dorene Paul presents I Found My Parents and Grandparents in the 1940 Census! posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio found her parents and grandparents all in the same Ohio county in the 1940 Census."

Donna presents Time Travel to 1940 posted at What's Past is Prologue, saying, "(Jasia, use my full name in the post...) What if we had a time machine to go back to 1940? With a little imagination, we do! I travelled back to 1940 to find my young parents and grandparents in "Time Travel to 1940"."

Deb Ruth presents Doing the 1940 U.S. Census Victory Dance! posted at Adventures in Genealogy, saying, "Family mystery solved with 1940 Census record. Still doing the happy dance!"

Julie Hogston presents Oh Where Oh Where can my Nana be in 1940? posted at Wandering Roots, saying, "After doing some indexing I thought I would try and find my Grandparents in the 1940 Census. What did I find? Everything but Nana!"

Shelley Bishop presents Finding Reeb's Restaurant in the 1940 Census posted at A Sense of Family, saying, "On my census journey into my grandparents' 1940 Columbus neighborhood, I found the restaurant and friends who were a big part of their lives--and mine."

Nancy Messier presents It Was Ironing Day, the Day the Census Taker Came posted at My Ancestors and Me, saying, "What day of the week did the census taker go to your ancestor's home in 1940, and what might your ancestor have been doing? Read about census day in the home of the Doyle family."

Julie Goucher presents Anglers Rest: Carnival Of Genealogy 117 - 1940! posted at Anglers Rest, saying, "Better luck next time!"

Kristin Cleage Williams presents 1940 Census – The Grahams | Finding Eliza posted at Finding Eliza, saying, "My mother's family and her east side Detroit neighborhood as described in the 1940 Census. What I learned, what I already knew and what questions it raised. With timely family photos."

Kristin Cleage Williams presents 1940 Census – The Albert B. and Pearl (Reed) Cleages | Finding Eliza posted at Finding Eliza, saying, "My father's family on the old west side of Detroit in the 1940 census. The last census before the children were grown and with families and lives of their own. It surprised me how close all the extended Cleage family lived to each other."

Kristin Cleage Williams presents 1940 Census – Chester and Theola (Davenport) Williams posted at Finding Eliza, saying, "Found my in-laws in rural Bowie Arkansas in the 1940 Census. They were just starting their family. Costs were low and so were wages."

Nancy Fermazin presents What I Learned from the 1940 Census about My Mom and Dad posted at CASH SEEKER 2.

Joan Hill presents Carnival of Genealogy, #117: 1940! posted at Roots'n'Leaves, saying, "Fanciful Jasmine Jasia, secret head of Cog, lays on an assignment that goes Pouf!"

Janet Iles presents Janet the researcher: Carnival of Genealogy - Finds on the 1940 US census posted at Janet the researcher, saying, "Not wanting to be left out of the excitement about the release of the 1940 United States census, Janet decided to find two great uncles on the census. This led her to learning more about each of them."

Susan A. Kitchens presents Articles | 1940 Census and an interview with Mama posted at Family Oral History Using Digital Tools, saying, "Who knew that those two little boxes could elicit SO many stories? I used the 1940 Census as an oral history conversation sparker with my mother. This post describes the entire process — from working with the census, interview set-up, recording on an iPad, to some of the topics that came up. And, of course, the amazing wealth of info that emerged from those two little boxes on the census."

Carol presents 117th Carnival of Genealogy, 1940! Fibbin' Fun posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "I have barely had time to search the 1940, but, I have managed to find a few of our direct ancestors. So, my submission ends up being a study of my finds so far from the 1940 census. Rather, it is a study of the fibs I have found in the 1940 census, so far."

Sherry Stocking Kline presents Carnival of Genealogy – Carrie Breneman Jones posted at Family Tree Writer, saying, "This photo of my grandmother, Carrie Esther Breneman Jones is one of my favorites, as it looks like my grandma as I remember her looking. And, she looks like she was having a good time with whoever was taking the photograph as well. My Grandma Carrie was a very 'crafty' lady who loved to crochet, paint, and make things with her hands!"

Cynthia Shenette presents A Window in Time, April 11, 1940 posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "Have you ever wished you could travel back in time? Dust off your saddlebacks, and return with me to the day in 1940 when the census enumerator came to call..."

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. Wasn't it wonderful? I really enjoyed it and was quite entertained by the fictional entries we had this time around too. If you haven't looked for your family in the 1940 Census yet, maybe you'll be inspired to now. Great writing everyone!

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: Reading! Do you come from a family of readers? What kinds of reading material was typically found around your house when you were growing up... fiction books, comic books, poetry, the Bible, magazines, cookbooks, prayer books??? What do you like to read now? Do you give books as gifts? Are you a fan of eBooks? The lazy, hazy days of summer are right around the corner and many of us will be reaching for a good book to read on the hammock or on the beach. What do you recommend? Write up your thoughts and your family's history of reading and submit your article to the Carnival of Genealogy... that will give us all some good reading for the summer days ahead! Deadline for submissions is June 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Share |

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

Feast Day of St Wojciech

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 18:31:00 +0000

I have an article posted on The Catholic Gene today in honor of St Wojciech, the first patron saint of Poland. I have several family ties to the saint, a church founded under his patronage, and his feast day. An article, written by Rev. Mark A. Borkowski, tells of the history of the saint and the church founded in his honor here in Detroit. You can read about it here.

Shades: Birthday Edition--Captured Moments of FootnoteMaven

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0000

It's a Holiday! Today is the birthday of footnoteMaven, editor/publisher of the award-winning Shades of the Departed Online Magazine. The Shadettes and Shades-dudes Staff Writers are pleased to present this Special Birthday Edition of the magazine as a tribute to their dear friend. Long may your tiara sparkle, fM!

Captured Moments of footnoteMaven

When creating a scrapbook page for a dear friend, such as my dear friend fM, one must make every attempt to capture their personality as well as significant events in their lives. Of course you can't expect to capture all their significant life events or truly convey a rich personality on just one page but here are a few tricks I used in putting together my birthday tribute page to fM.

Research. I spent hours re-reading the early blog posts on footnotemaven.com to pull photos and key words from her childhood years. She manages to write great stories without revealing much about herself so she didn't make it easy. But I persisted.
Decide on a theme. Here again, fM didn't make this easy. She's quite a dichotomy, you see. She was born a country girl and grew up on a farm but she evolved into quite the glamour gal... one who favors Victorian fashions. Now how ya gonna combine those images??? I did it by choosing a background paper and added a border effect (with scrolls like she favors on her blog) from the digital scrapbook kit, "Vintage Farm". Then I selected frames for the photos I chose to use, antique wooden frames for her childhood pics and gold filigree frames for the Victorian years. I know, it sounds weird but it all works if you use color to unify everything.
Create Wordles. A picture is worth a thousand words, that's true, and every picture tells a story. But sometimes you don't have the right pictures to convey the words to write the story that you want to tell. That's where Wordles come in handy. I made 2 lists of words, one for her Missouri life and one for her glamorous blogging life. I created a Wordle for each set of words and picked colors and a font that worked with the background image and both the farm and glamour lifestyle... silver, gold, pewter, bronze.
Assemble the page. The next step is just a matter of putting the photos in the frames and placing them on the page with the Wordles. I also dropped in fM's logo from her blog and put in drop shadows on the elements and voila! One birthday tribute scrapbook page for a very dear friend.

Happy Birthday, fM! I hope you like the page. Hugs and kisses to your on your birthday and prayers for healing are on the way too!

Visit the blogs linked below to read more and feel free to join the party by posting a tribute on your blog and adding the link in the comments.

The Educated Genealogist, by Sheri Fenley
The Family Curator by Denise Levenick

For Your Family Story, by Caroline Pointer

Geneablogie, by Craig Manson

Healing Brush, by Janine Smith

A Sense of Face, by Rebecca Fenning

Shades: Birthday Edition -- A Teacup Throne at Moultrie Creek, by Denise Olson

What's Past is Prologue, by Donna Pointkouski

A great big thanks goes out to all my fellow conspirators in this. I'm so glad you included me in your little plot!

Sources:
Swirly Frames from Happyscrappy
Page background, border, and wooden frames from "Vintage Farm", Studio Manu Scrapbook Graphics
Word graphics from Wordle.net
Photos: FootnoteMaven blog (www.footnotemaven.com), used without her permission (I hope she doesn't kill me for this ;-)
Birthday graphic: footonoteMaven. "Earth Day - Birthday Graphic." footnoteMaven, 22 April 2009.www.footnotemaven.com/2009/04/earth-day-birthday.html

My Family in the 1940s

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:00:00 +0000

The decade of the 1940s was significant for many reasons, not the least of which was WWII. But there were other significant events that occurred in my family during that decade too. I've created scrapbook pages for some of these events over the years. In fact, I think I've created more scrapbook pages for 1940s events than for any other decade. Here is a video showcase of my pages (no audio)...

The 1940 Census provides us with much information about our families and the neighborhoods they lived in. I look forward to learning more about my extended family members as I come across them in the weeks and months to come.

My Family in the 1940 U.S. Census, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Right after I downloaded the images for the 1940 Census ED for my father's family, I did the same for my mother's family. I wasn't looking for any particular information for this family but what I learned from the census record I found amazed me.

At first I was a bit disappointed that my Aunt Helen was the person designated as the one providing the information. I was really hoping it would be my grandmother. But upon further refection, it was probably better that it was Helen. My grandmother spoke very broken English and I'm not sure how well she understood the spoken word.

As the census record indicates, my mom and her sister Helen and brother Sigmund all completed the 12th grade. I knew this so it came as no surprise. The surprise for me was seeing the educational level of my grandparents. Grandma Sophie completed 8 years of school. I don't know what I expected to see here because I have no idea what school options were available to her in the village she came from in Poland. It is a bit sobering to think that someone with only an 8th grade education would leave her family and friends and immigrate to a foreign land (at age 19) where they didn't know the customs or speak the language. My hat was off to her long ago for her bravery, now I'm saluting her, bowing out of respect, and shaking my head in amazement at how well she survived and prospered in this foreign land given her meager education.

Even more astonishing to me was the educational level of my Grandpa Wicek. FIVE years of schooling! This explains some things, raises new questions, and makes me all the more admiring of him. He was the president of one of the city's largest baking companies of the time. How did he do it with so little education? He didn't speak English and he could barely read. I recently listened to an audio recording I made of my mom several years ago. On that recording she talked about reading the newspaper to her father. I assumed she did that because he couldn't read English. It never occurred to me that he might not have been able to read much at all. Now I think that might have been the case. Wow. How he became such a successful entrepreneur is beyond me. Long hours, hard work... sure, sure. That goes without saying. But you can't build a baking company by just spending long hours kneading bread.

Grandpa, you rocked.

Here is a scrapbook page I created of my mom's family with photos taken as close to the year 1940 as I could find.

I've created scrapbook pages for other family events from the 1940s. Those will be coming up next...

My Family in the 1940 U.S. Census, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:41:00 +0000

Like all my genealogy friends, I was excited for the launch of the 1940 U.S. Census. I didn't really expect to discover any new family members but I did have one question that I was hoping to have answered for me. That question was, "How much education did my dad have?" All in all, it doesn't really matter. It's just that education is a subject near and dear to my heart and I've long wondered about his.

My dad died when I was just 17 years old and as a kid I never thought to ask him how many years of schooling he had. I just assumed he graduated from high school. Didn't everybody? (It was expected of me and the rest of the kids in my neighborhood.) Years later, my mom told me that my dad told her he only went to school through the 6th grade and then he had to drop out of school to sell newspapers on a street corner to help support the family. I found this a little hard to believe. My dad wasn't exactly a scholar but he read the newspaper daily, checked repair manuals out of the library whenever necessary (and used them!), and for all the years I can remember he subscribed to and enjoyed reading Popular Science magazine. That is not exactly scholarly stuff but it's more than most 6th graders I know could handle.

Before she died, I interviewed my Aunt Mary Jane, my dad's youngest sister and the only one of the siblings to graduate from high school. She insisted that my dad finished the 8th grade before he dropped out of school. And she confirmed the story about him selling newspapers on the street corner to support the family.

Then I remembered my mom telling me that after she graduated from the 8th grade at Assumption BVM Catholic School she went on to 9th grade at Condon Junior High, a Detroit Public School. She'd said she was bored most of that year because the curriculum in the Catholic school was so much harder and that she already knew everything they were teaching at the 9th grade level in the public school. I'm fairly certain that my dad attended a Catholic school as well so if he did finish the 8th grade he might have had more like an average 9th grader's education. Now that would make more more sense to me.

So April 2nd arrives and the first ED I downloaded was my dad's family. I was hoping that someone reliable was giving information to the census taker and I was in luck. My Grandma Carrie was designated as the person providing the information. Moms know how much education their kids have. Even a mom of 11 would know that information for each of her children. Of that I'm certain.

So what did I find? My Aunt Mary Jane was right. My dad is listed as having completed 8 years of school. That makes sense to me and I was pleased to finally have an answer to my question. As usual, when genealogists find one bit of new information it generates even more questions and such is the case for me. I know how much education my dad had but what about his siblings? There was a wide range of education levels among them. Why was that?

Uncle Eddie and Aunt Genevieve completed the 10th grade. Wow, I would never have guessed that they were the most educated members of the family. (Three other siblings had already moved out of the house. One of them completed 8 years of school, one 9 years, and one sibling I still haven't found.) Auntie Florence, who went on to have a rough life, only completed 5 years of school and was working as a waitress in a beer garden. Sadly, that pretty much sums up her life. Auntie Ceily's education was equal to my dad's. She completed the 8th grade as well. One also would have guessed she had more education than that based on how she lived her life. I was only a little surprised that my Grandma Carrie completed 7 years of school. She attended a Catholic school which begs the question, why didn't she complete the 8th grade? And then there's my paternal grandfather. He had no formal schooling at all growing up in Poland. I also found his sister in the 1940 Census and she didn't have any formal schooling either. Perhaps they didn't have a school in their little village.

All this information was quite enlightening. I didn't think I'd learn all that much from the records in this census but I'm pleasantly surprised by what I've found. Below is a scrapbook page I created about my dad. One photo of him was taken the year before he dropped out of school. The other photo of him is the closest I have to the year 1940 when the census was taken.

So much for my dad and his family. Next up I'll take a look at my mom and her family...

Carnival of Genealogy, 116th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Welcome to the April 4, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for this edition is: Women's History Month! This has become an annual tradition here at the COG, to honor and remember women from our family trees. This month you will meet some more amazing women who are fondly remembered and greatly admired. This is such a great way to pay tribute to the women who came before us. Come along now and meet the women we've chosen to share with you. I think you'll like them! Pour yourself a... let's see, Spring is here so let's launch the season with an Arnold Palmer. Come on then. Bring your drink. The carnival is back in town!

Dorene presents Augusta Florentine Jaensch Piehl, 1858-1906 posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio tells us about her great great grandmother, Augusta Piehl, who came to the U.S. from Germany in 1880."

Carol presents Lorena Estelle Eley Norsworthy Dews Harlow Lenahan Collins::116th COG posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "Come on over to Reflections and meet my great grandmother, married 5, yes FIVE times. She outlived 3, divorced one and no one knows what happened to hubby # 5. And, even after researching her since 1991, I just this week discovered a little surprise while writing this COG entry. Who says your research is done?? HAHA. Lorena is waiting, come meet her."

Pauleen Cass presents Carnival of Genealogy – 116th edition – Catherine McCorkindale posted at Family history across the seas.

Frances Owen presents What did Mary do on Monday? Women’s work (Picture/Story for Women's History Month.) posted at A Rebel Hand, saying, "My great-grandmother smiles at the camera as she hangs out the washing. But washday was 'the most hated task' most women had to carry out in the 19th century. I can machine wash a load of dirty clothes in less than an hour. What was it women had to do that took up the whole day? And what equipment did they use?"

Susan Clark presents Lives Entwined - A Friend of the Family posted at Nolichucky Roots, saying, "While reflecting about women's lives this month I realized how key friendships had been in my own life and those of many of my female relatives. While I hold my family most dear, I could not have managed the challenging times of my life without the support and love of friends. I suspect my grandmother felt that way about her friend."

Linda McCauley presents Documenting the Details: Aunt Harriet posted at Documenting the Details, saying, "Harriet married later in life and had no children. I wanted to tell her story because she has no descendants to do it."

Lisa Wallen Logsdon presents COG 116 - Women's History Month: Levina Newby posted at Old Stones Undeciphered, saying, "If I have an ancestor who wants very much to be remembered by her descendants, Levina is certainly that ancestor! This is the second time I've had to ask myself, concerning my 3rd great grandmother Levina, "Just what are the chances of THAT?"."

Jasia presents Ceily, My Role Model posted at :: C R E A T I V E G E N E ::, saying, "Come meet this woman who played a special role in my life. I looked up to her and admired her and wanted to be just like her when I grew up. She brought sunshine and every kind of happiness to my childhood."

Janet Iles presents Janet the researcher: Carnival of Genealogy: Women's History Month 2012 posted at Janet the researcher, saying, "While sharing what she knows about her great-grandmother Sarah Dudley, nee Mucklow, Janet realizes that there are some records that she needs to obtain. Will she ever be able to prove that Sarah had 22 children?"

Nancy presents A Biography from the Heart: Emma Bickerstaff Meinzen posted at My Ancestors and Me, saying, "Sometimes we write bare bones biographies with names, dates, and locations. Sometimes - the best times - we write biographies from the heart."

Cynthia Shenette presents The Opal Ring posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "My Aunt Helen was a successful business woman, but I wonder what her life would have been like if she had chosen a different path and been allowed to follow her heart..."

Joan Hill presents Carnival of Genealogy, #116: Picture and Memories of Elizabeth foss McPherson posted at Roots'n'Leaves, saying, "The ever changing mist of childhood memories merge with family stories to bring life and form to my grandmother Elizabeth Alfreda McPherson, nee Foss."

Julie Goucher presents Anglers Rest: Carnival Of Genealogy 116 - Picture/Story for Women's History Month. posted at Anglers Rest, saying, "The story of Emma Jane West."

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I sure hope you enjoyed meeting these wonderful women as much as I did! This is one of my favorite editions of the COG each year because the participants always do such a fantastic job of making the women they honor come to life. They are born again on the pages of our blogs and somewhere in the heavens they are no doubt blushing over the fuss being made of them. Here's to you, ladies, we honor you and we won't let you be forgotten!

Once again I find myself having to apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced in submitting your articles via the blogcarnival.com web site. It appears they are still having technical difficulties over there. If you are ever in doubt about whether your submission has been received, please don't hesitate to send me an email to give me a head's up (imjasia at yahoo dot com). So far, the articles all seem to be coming through even though there are no emails going out to confirm that. I appreciate your patience through this difficult (and hopefully SOON to be over) time.

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: 1940! Have you found a family member in the newly released 1940 U.S. Census? If so, what have you learned about them? No family member in the 1940 Census? No problem. Write what you know of your family back in 1940 anyway. Let's take the COG back to 1940 and create a history lesson that brings our families to life! The deadline for submissions will be May 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Ceily, My Role Model

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 21:32:00 +0000

My Auntie Ceily was my favorite aunt. I've mentioned her before in posts on this blog and others but I decided it was time to honor her with an article all her own for Women's History Month. November 2012 will mark 100 years since her birth. I'd say that's a good reason to make this her year to be recognized and remembered.

Cecilia was born on November 18, 1912 to Jozef and Karolina Laska in Detroit, Michigan. She was baptized a few days later, on November 23, at St Francis D'Assisi Catholic Church, in Detroit's west side Polish neighborhood. Her Godparents were Jan Lipa (1st cousin once removed), and Sophia Lipa Soldatek (her mother's sister). She was the 4th of Jozef and Karolina's 11 children, having 2 older brothers and 1 older sister. My father would be born 21 months after her.

Cecilia, affectionately known as Ceily, attended St Francis grade school, presumably through the 8th grade. Like all of her siblings except one (Mary Jane, the baby), she did not graduate from high school. I don't know if she even went beyond the 8th grade in terms of formal schooling. With so many siblings in the house, she was no doubt expected to help out with domestic chores. At the time of the 1930 U.S. Census, she was 17 years old and still living at home. There was no occupation listed for her at that time.

Ceily met the love of her life right in her own neighborhood and she married him in 1935. John Sagovac was born August 11, 1911 in Chippawa, Welland, Ontario, Canada to his parents Eli and Cadie (nee Segecie) Sagovac. He was the second born of their 12 children. The parents immigrated from Nova Gradiska, Yugoslavia, which means they weren't Polish. And they weren't Catholic either. This must have made for a difficult situation for Ceily. She and John applied for a marriage license on September 20, 1935 and were married in a civil ceremony a short time later. I was told by other family members that she and John eloped but I haven't been able to verify that. John was employed as a pattern maker apprentice according to the 1930 U.S. Census. I believe he was in the pattern making business all of his life.

In 1939, Ceily and John had a son (living) and in 1942 they had a daughter, Carolyn (1942-2002). In between the births of their two children, Ceily's mother, Karolina died (September 1940) unexpectedly from a heart attack. A few years later, in January 1949, her father died of heart attack as well. So the 1940s were a decade of births and deaths for Ceily as well as time spent at home raising her family. In March of 1955, Ceily and John had their marriage blessed at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Dearborn, Michigan. Shortly after that, I was born and Ceily became my Godmother.

The 1960s were a decade of marriages and grandchildren for Ceily. Her son married in 1962 and I believe her daughter married in 1963. From 1963 through 1966 she became the proud grandmother of 4 grandchildren. I believe it was about that same time that she sold some of their property for a high school to be built and she became a city council member. Some of the streets in her residential neighborhood were named for her grandchildren. How cool is that!

In addition to her civic and family activities, Ceily was also a member of the Polish Falcons. She liked to dance and was a good dancer.

Ceily's husband John died in 1977. A few years later, in 1982, she was blessed with her 5th grandchild, a second grandson. Sadly, her first grandson died in 1987. A couple years after that, in April 1989, Ceily herself died of lung cancer.

I have nothing but fond memories of Auntie Ceily. She was my Godmother and to me she was almost like a fairy Godmother, granting my special wishes. She would always phone my mother before Christmas or my birthday to see what special gift I might like. She gave me some of the best gifts; fancy dresses from Macy's or Nordstrom's in Chicago, the biggest and best Easter basket filled to over flowing with lots of candy... especially chocolate, and one year for Christmas she even gave me a Barbie Dream House! I absolutely adored her.

I remember Ceily as an elegant woman. She had more refined taste than anyone else in the family. My mom said that Ceily once told her that if she saw 2 similar items for sale she would always buy the more expensive one because there was something better about that one. She was a lady who valued quality. She dressed very well and even wore a signature fragrance, Chanel No.5. To this day whenever I smell that scent I think of her. But for all her refinement, she was very down to earth and kind to all. I have nothing but happy memories of her.

Dear Auntie Ceily, I honor you this Women's History Month for being thoughtful, generous, inspiring, and a real class act. You had a positive influence on those around you, especially me, and left us with wonderful memories. You were the woman I most admired when I was growing up. What a wonderful role model you were. God bless you.

I'm In!

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:45:00 +0000

Yesterday I mailed in my state income tax return and with that I am officially done with my taxes for another year. Yeah!

D'ya know what that means? It means I am now free to work on the 1940 Census indexing project when it starts in just 12 days. Knowing myself, as I do, I knew that the indexing would become my distraction to procrastinate from working on my tax return. I knew I would inevitably end up doing my taxes April 16 & 17 (deadline is April 17 this year) and sweating it out. Never a good way to do things. This is much better. Now I can index to my heart's content and not worry about running up to the tax filing deadline. :-) So, I'm in!

I am looking forward to finding some of my family members in the 1940 Census. I don't anticipate learning anything all that earth shattering but there are few questions I'd like answers to and I think the census just might help me out.

I have another genealogy project in process. It's the one I identified as my New Year's Resolution... to transcribe some of the audio recordings I have of my mom. I struggled with this one from the beginning. The transcription work was T E D I O U S to say the least. It was very time consuming and I felt like I would never get it done. Then, after a great suggestion from some of my Google+ friends, I borrowed a foot pedal from my dear friend and that has made all the difference. I wouldn't exactly say I'm zooming through it now but the project is moving along at a reasonable pace and I hope to finish with the recordings in the next month or so.

I haven't been doing a lot of genealogy research lately but I do occasionally do an online look-up here and there hoping to find and fill in some holes in the family tree. I haven't had a lot of success but then I haven't put in a great deal of effort either. The weather here in Michigan has been soooo nice for the last week or so that I've found it hard to sit at my desk to work on my taxes, write a blog post, or do transcription. In fact, the sun is shining and it's in the 70s right now. I think I'll head outside and take Kaj for a walk and enjoy this lovely day.

Cześć!

My Love/Hate Relationship With Legacy Software

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 22:46:00 +0000

This is probably going to sound like a rant but I don't really mean it to. I wouldn't have even thought to write this article but Susan Clark asked me to. ;-) Her question was, "Why do you use a genealogy database program?" It seems to be a popular topic these days as just yesterday someone else introduced the topic on their Google+ page. There must be something in the air. For what it's worth, here's my two cents.

I have both Legacy Family Tree and Roots Magic on my desktop computer. I'm currently using Legacy and I occasionally play around with Roots Magic. When I first got interested in genealogy (many, many moons ago) I used Family Tree Maker and I was quite happy with it. But then as my database grew I continually got frustrated with its limited search capabilities. That's when I switched over to Legacy. I think I was using FTM 5.0 at the time. I'm sure their search capabilities have improved since then but at the time they weren't adequate. I don't remember which version Legacy was on at the time but I know I've upgraded at least a couple of versions since then. I'm currently using Legacy 7.5, Deluxe Edition.

I have a love/hate relationship with Legacy. I love that it is such a rich program and offers many reports styles, copy and paste of events (a big favorite of mine), source templates, and vast search capabilities. At the same time I hate Legacy because it is such a rich program (in this instance that's a nice way of saying complicated) that in spite of my many years of genealogy research, being pretty darn techo savvy, and having a basic understanding of how databases work, I still find myself far too frequently unsuccessful at getting what I want out of the program.

I have never mastered tagging and yes, I bought the DVD and watched it. It seems like a cool and helpful tool but I can't seem to remember how to use it. By that I mean that it isn't intuitive even after having watched the video. Whenever I want to try tagging again I have to pull out and sit through the video again because the sequence of steps involved doesn't make sense to me. I also have never mastered searches and this is probably the most frustrating thing for me. Sometimes I get names that have nothing to do with my search parameters and sometimes I'll get results that don't contain a person who I know has info that should land them in the results but doesn't. And yes, I bought that DVD and watched it too.

Sadly, these aren't my biggest complaints with Legacy. My biggest complaint has to do with needing to under utilize the program because I lose stuff when I upgrade to a new version. For quite some time now, I have been only entering data and sources into Legacy. I'd love to link photos and documents to individuals in the database but I've done that a couple times before only to lose all that work somewhere along the way... probably during an upgrade. One day they're there the next day they are gone. True I can re-link them but I get tired of trying to remember which of my hard drives a given file folder is on. And no, Legacy can't seem to find it among my several drives either. I finally gave up and I just use the most basic functionality. I could buy yet another DVD that would probably tell me what I'm doing wrong but I'm tired of spending money on learning this program. I'm just not willing to do it anymore.

Just a few days ago I updated to the latest version of Legacy 7.5, the one that has the 1940 Census tools in it. Once the new version was installed my color settings had reverted to the default and Baptism had reverted to Christening. Big deal? No. But it makes me think that if I'd had links to photos and documents those settings might have reverted to default too. And then I'd be frustrated trying to find them again.

Am I content with Legacy? It may sound like I'm not but actually I am. Once I accepted that mastering it is more trouble than it's worth it and I lowered my expectations of what I can expect out of it I find that I am content. You won't hear me singing its praises but I don't steer people away from it when they ask me what software I'm using and if I'd recommend it. The way you enter data in it makes sense to me. I find it pretty easy to do. The choice of reports is nice. The company's webinars are well done and quite informative. I liked the charting better in Family Tree Maker but that's personal preference. There are some very nice charts available in Legacy.

If I could change one thing about Legacy, do you know what that would be? Not any of the things I've mentioned so far. What I'd really like to see in Legacy is the ability to use the Polish keyboard so I can enter my long and lovely, consonant-laden Polish surnames WITH the diacritical marks that are a part of the Polish language. Maybe some day. And on that day... you'll hear me singing its praises!!!

I know what you're thinking... what about Roots Magic? I play with it from time to time but it just doesn't feel intuitive to me. I have to look and look to find things. They never seem to be where I think they should be. And the GUI is visually confusing to me. Too many lines, not enough boxes.

So now back to Susan's question... "Why do you use a genealogy database program?" I use it for organization. First and foremost it's a way to organize and reference the names, events, and dates of the people on my family tree and the sources where I found that information. Legacy does that for me and the basic data entry required is easy for me to do.

Thanks for asking, Susan!

Carnival of Genealogy, 115th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Welcome to the March 4, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for this edition is: Flash Family History! We're writing our family histories in 300 words or less (per family line). This was an exercise to challenge our way of thinking about our family history (paring it down to it's bare essentials) and a writing exercise as well. It's harder to do than you might think. However, our participants have done an outstanding job of writing a "flash" version of their family histories. Bravo to them!

I think what you'll be most impressed by as you read these wonderful articles is how much style difference you can put into 300 words. The contributing authors each had a unique approach to the topic and came up with very interesting "flash" family histories. They are all terrific! So pour yourself a shot glass ("flash" version of a drink ;-) of your favorite libation and check out these well written family histories. The Carnival is back in town!

Bill West presents GENEALOGY IN A FLASH posted at West in New England, saying,"I chose to do all four lines. It took me longer than I thought it would to write about my Yankee and Irish ancestors, but here they are!"

Julie Goucher presents Carnival Of Genealogy 115 - Flash Family History posted at Anglers Rest, saying, "Introductions to the lives of my eight material Great Grandparents."

Cynthia Shenette presents Flash Back! The Life and Times of Francois Chenet (Greatly Abridged) posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "My great-grandfather Francois Chenet (1813-1886) led a long and busy life. He was a Civil War soldier, a husband, and the father of many. No, I really mean many..."

Anne Hodges presents Carnival of Genealogy - 115 Flash family history posted at Pasts Unfolding, saying, "Writing a history of my Crosby line in 300 words was indeed a challenge. I wasn't sure it could be done, but I found a way."

Leah presents Bergers in a Flash posted at The Internet Genealogist, saying, "A history of my Berger ancestors in America - in under 300 words!"

Janet Iles presents Flash Family History -- Iles and Dudley posted at Janet the researcher, saying, "Janet took up the challenge of writing a flash history of her paternal grandparents."

Joan Hill presents 115th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy: Flash Family History: Wanderers, Jabez and Elizabeth McPherson posted at Roots'n'Leaves, saying, "I got a very late start on this wonderful challenge -- so only one Flash History, which highlights my wandering McPherson family and leaves me with questions yet unanswered."

Nancy Fermazin presents Love Letters, Lies, Truth, Half Truths ~ Who Knows? posted at ADOLPHUS AMES GENEALOGY and Wanderlust posted at Nancy Fermazin Family.

Jasia presents Flash Family History: Mizera and Lisowski and Flash Family History: Lipa and Laska posted at Creative Gene. After I wrote (and re-wrote and edited and re-wrote ;-) I realized that the same basic framework would work for all 4 of my family lines. The toughest part was deciding which details were significant and needed to be included and which could be left out. Once I worked through that, the rest was pretty easy.

Carol Stevens presents 115th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy :: Lashbrook Flash Family History posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "The verbose one, that would be moi, did it! I really did it! A family history in 300 words, EXACTLY! I know, you don't believe it either, you all know me, chatter, chatter, chatter. Come see, I DID IT!

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I hope you were impressed and inspired to write a "flash" version of your own family history. They can be used as an introduction to a more comprehensive publication, as Carol suggested, or you could use it as an "About My Family" page for your genealogy blog as I am now doing. I'm sure there are other opportunities to use it as well... perhaps as a page to link to from a QR code on your business card. I'll probably do that too. It would be a quick and easy way to share your family history with people you meet at conferences, seminars, or just out researching. The 300 word limit makes it short and sweet for all to read!

I want to take a moment to comment on recent problems with the blogcarnival.com website. For a few months now people have had problems when submitting articles. The main problem has been with the automated email system. For some reason, it is no longer sending out confirmation emails to those submitting articles or to me as the host. However, the system does seem to be collecting all of the submissions and when I go to the website to check on submitted articles they all appear to be there. Very recently, there were additional problems with the "captcha" system. However, just like the problems with the email system it appears that all the articles submitted were in fact collected as they should be, it just doesn't seem like they are because the "captcha" doesn't appear to work. If anyone has submitted an article that doesn't appear in the COG, please let me know.

I have contacted the folks at the blogcarnival.com website but have not heard back from them. This too is very odd because when I've contacted them in the past they have always been responsive. I don't know what is going on over there. I have considered hosting the COG separate from the blogcarnival.com website but I worry about copyright issues if I continue using the "carnival" name but not their website. So for the time being, I'm sticking with the blogcarnival website for collecting submissions. However, please feel free to send me an email with the link to your article and your introduction if you are concerned that I may not have received it (imjasia at yahoo dot com).

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is: Picture/Story for Women's History Month. March is Women's History Month and we will once again honor a woman from our family tree by featuring her in the COG. This time we will do so by starting with a photograph and telling either the story of the photo and/or a biography of the woman pictured. So dig through those vintage photographs in your collection and pick out one of the fair ladies (or a colorful one! ;-) on your tree to write about. The deadline for submissions is April 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Share |

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

Flash Family History: Lipa and Laska

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 01:48:00 +0000

My grandmother, Karolina Lipa (1889-1940), was the only one of my grandparents that was born in America. Her parents, Szymon Lipa (1843-1916) and Ludwika Knot (1857-1912) married in 1876 and had 2 children before they left Bobrowa, Poland for the U.S. (Detroit, MI) in 1881. They had 10 more children after they arrived in Detroit including Karolina, child #7.

Karolina married (1907) Jozef Laska (1884-1949) and they had 11 children, Stanley, Walter, Anna, Ceily, Joseph, Genevieve, Edward, Eleanor, Florence, Eugene, Mary Jane. My father, Joseph (1914-1974), married (1944) Lucille Lisowski (1918-2007) and they had 3 children, including me, Jasia.

The Lipa and Knot familes lived in and around Bobrowa, Poland. Earliest records of the Lipa family date back to 1778 and the Knot family lines date back to 1796. These families were peasant farmers, practiced the Catholic faith, and served in the military as required. Both families appear in the earliest records for peasants in that area.

Being of the Polish peasant class, the Lipa and Knot family members were not formally educated and were mostly illiterate. Their village was in the section of Poland that was Austrian-ruled after the country was partitioned (1772, 1793, 1795). Only one other of Szymon’s 9 siblings also immigrated to the U.S. (Detroit, MI), Stanislaw (b.1862). He married (1888) Anna Nowak and they had at least 2 children. The others died young or stayed in Poland, though some of their offspring came to the U.S. Ludwika was one of 8 children but none of her siblings immigrated to the U.S.

I’m not aware of any Lipa or Knot family members still living in area of Bobrowa, Poland, though there may be.

Lipa-Knot Surnames: Kitrys, Kliviewicz, Lach, Szara, Seras, Łanucha, Grzyb, Wegrzyn, Galas, Osak

My grandfather, Jozef Laska (1884-1949), was the first of his family line to immigrate (1905) to the U.S. (Detroit, MI). He was the oldest of Krzysztof Laska (1862-1918) and Karolina Furman’s (1864-1940) 6 children. Jozef married (1907) Karolina Lipa (1889-1940) and they had 11 children, Stanley, Walter, Anna, Ceily, Joseph, Genevieve, Edward, Eleanor, Florence, Eugene, Mary Jane. My father, Joseph (1914-1974), married (1944) Lucille Lisowski (1918-2007) and they had 3 children, including me, Jasia.

The Laska and Furman familes lived in and around Podborze, Poland. Earliest records of the Laska and Furman family lines date back to 1800. These families were peasant farmers, practiced the Catholic faith, and served in the military as required. Both families appear in the earliest records for peasants in that area.

Being of the Polish peasant class, the Laska and Furman family members were not formally educated and were mostly illiterate. Their villages were in the section of Poland that was Austrian-ruled after the country was partitioned (1772, 1793, 1795). Jozef’s sister Genowefa (1887-1976) immigrated to the U.S. (Detroit, MI) in 1907 and married (1909) John Tabaka (1884-1971). They had 11 children. Jozef and Genowefa were the only two siblings who came to the U.S. Three others, Apollonia (b.1892), Anna (1901-2001), and Michał (1906-1994) remained in Poland. The sixth sibling died shortly after birth. Apollonia married (1910) Joseph Piątek (b. 1877). Anna married (1922) Sebastian Rys (b. 1893). Michał married (1933) Anna Dziekan (1912-1966).

There are still Laska and Furman families living near Podborze in the city of Dębica as well as elsewhere in Poland.

Surnames of the Laska-Furman family lines include: Kolacz, Lesniowski, Rzegocki, Wnuk, Partyka, Kilian, Midura, Pula, Surowiec.

[Written for the 115th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.]

Flash Family History: Mizera and Lisowski

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 18:51:00 +0000

My grandmother, Zofia Mizera (1894-1970), was the first of her family line to immigrate (1913) to the U.S. (Detroit, MI). She was the second oldest of Piotr Mizera (1862-1943) and Anna Bober’s (1862-1941) six children. Zofia married (1916) Wincenty Lisowski (1884-1956) and they had 4 children including my mother, Lucille (1918-2007). Lucille married (1944) Joseph Laska (1914-1974) and they had 3 children, including me, Jasia.

The Mizera and Bober familes lived in and around Wojnicz, Poland. Earliest records of the Mizera family line date back to 1790 and for the Bober family line, 1760. These families were peasant farmers, practiced the Catholic faith, and served in the military as required. Both families lived in the area from the time of first written records.

Being of the Polish peasant class, the Mizera and Bober family members were not formally educated and were mostly illiterate, although Zofia was literate when she came to the U.S. Their villages were in the section of Poland that was Austrian-ruled after the country was partitioned (1772, 1793, 1795). In 1920, Zofia sponsored her sisters’ Mary (1890-1959) and Halina’s (1901-1996) immigration to the U.S. Mary married (1922) Baltazar Dembowski (1890-1948) and they had 2 children. Halina married (1924) Stanley Laba (1892-1953) and they had 2 children. Zofia, Mary, and Halina were the only siblings from the Mizera-Bober family that immigrated to the U.S. Remaining in Poland were their sister Michalina (b.1903) and their brothers Jan (b.1895) and Antoni (b.1898)

It is not known if there are still members from the Mizera-Bober family line still living in the area of Wojnicz, Poland. Some are know to have resettled farther west in Poland and others also live in Ireland.

Family surnames: Kubon, Piechowicz, Liszka, Baran, Turek, Molecki, Opiela, Palka, Banas

My grandfather, Wincenty Lisowski (1884-1956), was the first of his family line to immigrate (1912) to the U.S. (Detroit, MI). He was the oldest of Wojciech Lisowski (1855-1911) and Jozefa Adamski’s (1865-1924) 11 children. Wincenty married (1916) Zofia Mizera (1894-1970) and they had 4 children including my mother, Lucille (1918-2007). Lucille married (1944) Joseph Laska (1914-1974) and they had 3 children, including me, Jasia.

The Lisowski and Adamski familes lived in a number of small villages near Łódź, Poland. Earliest records of the Lisowski family line date back to 1823 and for the Adamski family line, 1794. These families were peasant farmers, practiced the Catholic faith, and served in the military as required. The Lisowski family colonized to the area from parts unknown. The Adamski family was in the area from the time of first written records.

Being of the Polish peasant class, the Lisowski and Adamski family members were not formally educated and were mostly illiterate, although Wincenty was literate when he immigrated to the U.S. Their villages were in the section of Poland that was Russian-ruled after the country was partitioned (1772, 1793, 1795). Following WWII (1952), Wincenty’s sister Waleria Lisowski Wojciechowski (1889-1966) and her two sons, Antoni (1926-2006) and W. (living), also immigrated to the U.S. (Detroit, MI). Wincenty and Waleria are the only two of Wojciech and Jozefa’s 11 children who immigrated to the U.S. More recently, in 1978, Wincenty’s grandnephew, M. Lisowski (living), also moved here.

There are still Lisowski and Adamski families living in the same area of Poland and throughout the country as well as in Germany, Sweden, and the U.S.

Surnames of the Lisowski - Adamski family lines include: Marcinkowski, Szalecki, Cieslak, Juszczak, and Janiak.

[Written for the 115th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.]

Carnival of Genealogy, 114th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:54:00 +0000

Welcome to the February 4, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. This is without a doubt the most exciting edition of the COG all year... It's the 5th Annual iGene Awards edition! Cue the spot lights, cue the orchestra, bring on the dancers! The annual awards ceremony for genealogy bloggers near and far is here again. This is the very special event where bloggers select their "best of the best" articles on their blogs from the previous year. Selections are made for the following categories: Best Picture (photo), Best Screen Play, Best Comedy, Best Biography, and Best Documentary.

Pour yourself a glass of bubbly, don your best suit or gown, and take a seat. The show is about to begin. In the interest of moving this event along we ask that you please hold your applause until the end (but feel free to share comments along the way ;-). And don't forget to silence your phones! And now the drum roll begins and the Academy of Genealogy and Family History presents... the 2011 iGene Awards!

Charles Hansen presents Carnival of Genealogy #104 iGene Awards posted at Mikkel's Hus, saying, "I really find it hard to pick the winners, but I did have some good articles this year for my second iGene Awards."

Randy Seaver presents The iGene Awards for 2011 for Genea-Musings Posts posted at Genea-Musings.

Bill West presents THE 2011 WEST IN NEW ENGLAND GENIE AWARDS posted at West in New England.

Dorene Paul presents The 5th Annual iGene Awards for the 114th Edition of Carnival of Genealogy posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio submits her picks for the 5th Annual iGenie awards."

Brenda presents Competing with Myself for iGene Awards (and Winning) posted at Brenda Dougall Merriman, saying, "Competing with yourself for iGene Awards can be a rewarding exercise (if you’re into self-flagellation) but also fun as you examine your yearly output. Good thing it was just me I was up against: the iGene Academy in its wisdom declared winners in all categories."

Steve Danko presents It's Time for the 5th Annual iGene Awards posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog, saying, "Best Picture I have. Best Documentary I have. But, the other three categories… not so much. Nonetheless, with a little creative interpretation of the categories and (in one category a blatant case of backposting to my blog something I had previously posted elsewhere) I managed to find some winners for the 5th Annual iGene Awards."

Greta Koehl presents Live from Falls Church, Virginia: It’s the iGene Awards! posted at Greta's Genealogy Bog, saying, "Slim pickin's after a quiet year, but I did manage to come up with something for each of the five categories. And, as usual, a great opportunity to lampoon awards shows!"

Jasia presents Creative Gene's 5th Annual iGene Awards posted at Creative Gene. I always have fun looking back at the blog posts I've written and selecting them for the various iGene award categories. Come see which I've chosen for this year!

Julie Goucher presents Anglers Rest: Carnival Of Genealogy 114: Creative Gene's iGene Awards for 2011! posted at Anglers Rest, saying, ".....And the nominations are......"

Carol presents iGene Awards, 114th Carnival Of Genealogy, Reflection's Awards Go To posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "The year of THE Trip, as well as some research provide many nominees, and of course, winners. Of course there is an after party, wait till you hear about the menu for that! That menu gets the nod from this southern born gal and her Man. Oh, and the venue isn't half bad either. Bring on the grits!"

John Newmark presents Fifth Annual iGene Awards posted at TransylvanianDutch, saying, "The TransylvanianDutch Chapter of the Academy of Genealogy and Family History is proud to participate once again in the iGene Awards."

Donna presents The Envelope, Please... 2011 iGENE Awards! posted at What's Past is Prologue, saying, "Donna Pointkouski submits her picks for "the best of the best"."

Becky Wiseman presents The 2011 iGene Awards for Kinexxions posted at kinexxions, saying, "iGene x 2. Double the pleasure? I'll leave that up to you, dear reader!"

Linda Gartz presents I-Gene Awards 2012-And the winners are... posted at Family Archaeologist, saying, "A dress designer from Vienna modeling her masterpiece, my grandmother's diary of her travels from Austro-Hungary to America in 1911, my hang-dog chagrin at being named "Linda," a 1912 Chicago saloon photo, and an intimate look at falling in love 70 years ago. I hope you enjoy my I-gene picks for 2012."

Kristin Cleage Williams presents The 5th Annual iGene Awards! posted at Finding Eliza, saying, "A young girl growing up in Detroit in the 1930s. A short story with mellowrummies and ghosts. Drama in old Montgomery with a narrow escape as dawn breaks. And more in this years Igene Awards roundup on Finding Eliza."

Cynthia Shenette presents 2011 Favorites In Review: And The iGene Goes To... posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "The buzz of excitement is in the air! It's that time of year again! I chose my favorite posts from 2011. I don't know if they are my best, but I enjoyed writing them, and my followers seemed to enjoy reading them. Thank you host, Jasia! Let the festivities begin!"

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to all the presenters and award winning posts! I hope everyone enjoyed the show and I look forward to reading your blogs and looking for the 2012 winners!

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will really stretch your writing abilities. But you're up for a challenge, aren't you? Well if so, you're going to really enjoy this next edition because you're going to write your entire family history!!! No, I haven't lost my mind. It's doable, and here's how we're going to do it...

Have you ever heard of "flash fiction"? If not, check out "flash fiction" at Wikipedia. The basic idea is to write a story that's shorter than a short story. What better month to do this than in February, our shortest month? For our purposes we're going to apply this "flash" concept to our family history, instead of writing fiction, and we'll limit it to 300 words (roughly a little over 1 typed page) per family line. So if you choose to write about each of your 4 grandparent's family lines, that would top out at 1200 words total or 300 words per each of the 4 grandparent's family lines. Of course you can write about just one family line, you don't need to write about multiple lines. You should expect to have to write, rewrite, and revise, to end up with a good condensed family history. So, write up your "flash family history" and submit it to the Carnival of Genealogy. The deadline for submissions is March 1st (that's 11:59pm, your time zone, on March 1st). I can't wait to see what you'll do with this challenge!

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Share |

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

Creative Gene's 5th Annual iGene Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:26:00 +0000

It's iGene Awards time again! I'm lookin' back at 2011 and showcasing my best and favorite blog posts in 5 categories. I'm hoping you'll enjoy revisiting these posts from last year. They nicely represent my work, my friends, and my family.

I bow to you, my faithful readers, and take the stage to present... Creative Gene's iGene Awards for 2011!

Best Comedy

I'm not much of a comedic writer but like anyone, funny things do happen to me. In Memories of My MC I write about one such event. It wasn't funny at the time, but it sure gives me a chuckle to remember it. It gets the iGene Award for Best Comedy.

Best Biography

I always find it challenging to write about family members I've never met and who I have very little information about. Such was the case with my Grandma Carrie. When I wrote Sweet Caroline, I struggled to come up with photos and stories about her. But in the end, I think I ended up with a pretty good article summarizing her life. It gets the iGene Award for Best Biography.

Best Documentary

My visit to PARI resulted in a 6-part series of articles detailing the many features the Polonica Americana Research Institute has to offer. It's a true gem for Detroit-area Polish genealogy researchers. Located on the grounds of scenic Orchard Lake, it is a facility to be proud of! PARI, Part 1, Who, What, When, Where, and Why (and the 5 other segments of this series) get the iGene Award for Best Documentary.

Best Screen Play

I'd love to see a Food Network show about Polish cooking. I would offer my article, Duck Blood Soup, Breakfast of Champions, to the creators as inspiration for one of the episodes. I don't know if the TFN has any Polish chefs on staff but I do know that Martha (Kostyra) Stewart is Polish and a good cook as well so I'm going to cast her in the leading behind-the-stove role. So, Duck Blood Soup gets the iGene Award as Best Screen Play! (Martha's photo from Wikipedia)

Best Picture

The iGene Award in this year's Best Picture category goes to, The Summer of '42. I just love these photos of my mom and her best friend posing for the camera. I think they must have been having a wonderful time on a hot summer day in the city!

That wraps up this year's awards. I hope you enjoyed the show! Stay tuned to see what will appear here on Creative Gene in 2012.

Bucket List GeneaMeme

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:34:00 +0000

I saw this meme going around and thought it would be fun to join in. The instructions are as follows:

The Bucket List GeneaMeme (courtesy of Geniaus)

The list should be annotated in the following manner:
Things you would like to do or find: Bold Type.
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type.
You are encouraged to add extra comments after each item.

The genealogy conference I would most like to attend is... the Southern California Genealogy Jamboree, to meet a lot of my online genealogy friends and to soak up some of the Cali sun!
The genealogy speaker I would most like to hear and see is... Iwona Dakiniewicz. She's done research for me before but I'd like to hear her speak about the area of Poland my ancestors (and she herself) were/are from.
The geneablogger I would most like to meet in person is... Steve Danko. We were separated at birth and one day we will meet again!
The genealogy writer I would most like to have dinner with is... Denise Olsen, my genea-tech idol.
The genealogy lecture I would most like to present is... none. I'm not into public speaking.
I would like to go on a genealogy cruise that visits.... Poland! I'd love to take a cruise across the Atlantic to Gdansk, spend 2 weeks visiting my 4 ancestral villages in Poland, spend another 2 weeks sight seeing around Poland, and spend 2 more weeks photographing villages and doing research for my friends. Then I'd like to board the cruise ship and head home!
The photo I would most like to find is... Szymon Lipa, my great grandfather. Or any photos of any of my great grandparents.
The repository in a foreign land I would most like to visit is... whichever one in Poland that has the Państwowy Urząd Repatriacyjny that contains formation for my Mizera and Bober families.
The place of worship I would most like to visit is... the 4 churches where my grandparents and great grandparents were baptized in Poland.
The cemetery I would most like to visit is ... Wojnicz Cemetery in Wojnicz, Poland.
The ancestral town or village I would most like to visit is... Grabno, Wojnicz, Tarnow, Debica, Bobrowa, Nagoszyn, Podborze, Zgorsko. They are all villages of my ancestors and they are all very near each other so I might as well visit them all as long as I'm dreaming!
The brick wall I most want to smash is... I don't have any brick wall ancestors.
The piece of software I most want to buy is... Painter Essentials.
The tech toy I want to purchase next is ... a new cell phone. I've filled the one I've got with apps and now I need one with more memory.
The expensive book I would most like to buy is... R.L. Polk City of Detroit Directory for 1920.
The library I would most like to visit is... Salt Lake City so I could photograph/download all the documents for all of my ancestors. I've given up hoping to see those images online.
The genealogy related book I would most like to write is... my family history, volumes 1, 2, 3, and 4.
The genealogy blog I would most like to start would be about... not going there. I've got too many blogs to keep up with now, lol!
The journal article I would most like to write would be about... the men I have loved. Don't count on that one ever being made public, lol!
The ancestor I most want to meet in the afterlife is... my grandmother, Karolina Lipa Laska. She died young and never met most of her grandchildren, including me. She was also my only grandparent who was fluent in English so I won't need a translator, lol!

And Donna Pointkouski added some items of her own. I'm borrowing a few...

The celebrity I’d most like to see on Who Do You Think You Are? is… Bobby Vinton because he's Polish and I'm a big fan of his. I'd like to see him go back to Poland to find his family roots.
The genealogical records I would most like to see become available online are… all the records/films that the FHC has in their vault for Poland, Russian Poland, Austrian Poland, and Prussian Poland.
The family heirloom I would most like to own is… my grandmother's diamond necklace which was supposed to be handed down to me but wasn't.
The living cousin I would most like to find is… any of my maternal grandmother's sibling's offspring in Poland.

I don't think it's likely I'll achieve most of the things on this bucket list but hey, it's fun to dream!

New Year's Resolutions Past and Present

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 20:24:00 +0000

I'm not always successful in achieving my New Year's resolutions but in 2011 I was. My resolution for 2011 was to "fill in the holes" in my family tree. I didn't expect to fill in every hole of course, and honestly, I filled in more than I expected to. My crowning achievement was finding Julia Laska and knowing that my cousin Ray was doing the happy dance in heaven when I did. Julia was just one of many new names, dates, places, and/or events added to my family tree in 2011.

I like that kind of past-year review! :-)

Now it's time to look forward. I've been giving my genealogy some thought and much as I like researching, it's time I set a goal towards getting some of what research I've already done better organized. With that in mind, my New Year's resolution for 2012 is to get some of the digital audio recordings of my mother transcribed. I'd like to get them all done, of course, but I have no idea how long it will take me to do them so I don't know if it's reasonable to expect to get them all done this year. Therefore, I'm going to play it safe and just say "some".

Just curious... has anyone tried using voice recognition software on digital audio recordings? I'm wondering if it would work for my purposes. If you've had success with this, please let me know what VR software and microphone setup you used. Thanks!

Carnival of Genealogy, 113th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 10:58:00 +0000

Welcome to the January 4th, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for today's edition is, "A Dickens Christmas". We're all taking a look at Christmases past, present, and future. Charles Dickens was a genius story teller and his timely work, A Christmas Carol, was the inspiration for our posts included here. I know you'll enjoy reading about these little vignettes of Christmases then, now, and yet to come! So without further ado, pour yourself a glass of eggnog (if you've any left ;-) and let's take a peek at where the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Future will take us...

Dorene Paul presents A Dickens Christmas: Christmases Past, Present, and Future posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio recalls Christmases past with a big family and Christmases present and future with an even bigger extended family."

Wendy Littrell presents A New Type of Christmas Ghost posted at All My Branches Genealogy, saying, "Follow me on a journey to discover the Ghosts of Christmas Past that began before I was born, continuing through my childhood and the childhood of my children, up to the present and what I believe the Christmas that has yet to come holds for me!"

Janet Iles presents Carnival of Genealogy: A Charles Dickens Christmas posted at Janet the researcher, saying, "Janet recalls visits with her grandparents at Christmas and dreams of a Christmas with all her family."

Karen K presents COG: Christmas past, present, and future posted at The Road Backward, saying, "A Christmas Carol, with a twist: Christmas of 1992, 2011, and 20??..."

Donna presents Christmas: Then and Now posted at What's Past is Prologue, saying, "Donna Pointkouski shows us what a difference 40 years makes in Christmas: Then and Now."

Becky Wiseman presents kinexxions: Christmas :: Past - Present - Future posted at kinexxions, saying, "70+ people for dinner, caroling by telephone, and perhaps a future Christmas in Hawaii... past, present, and future!"

Apple presents Ghosts of Christmas posted at Apple's Tree, saying, "Traveling through the mists of time the past is a bit cloudy, the present sharp and clear and the future just a shadow."

Dawn Westfall presents Christmas Past, Present & Future posted at Wisteria, saying, "I didn't just write about a Christmas future, I posted a photo of the future!"

Cynthia Shenette presents An Interview With My Grandmother posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "A local newspaper interviewed my grandmother in December 1954 about her Christmas traditions. I thought the clipping I had of her interview was lost, but didn't serendipity strike! I found it a week before Christmas! The Spirit of Christmas Past was with me that day!"

Jasia presents My Dickens Christmas posted at CreativeGene, saying, "It's fun to look back, celebrate the present, and dream of the future. Christmas is a magical time of year and almost anything is possible. Come read about my holiday!"

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I sure enjoyed reading about all those Christmases past, present, and future! The Christmas holiday is the perfect time to reflect on the meaning of the holiday, the people from our past that we've shared the holiday with, and how we're celebrating Christmas now. And one can always dream about Christmases to come! Thanks to all the writers who participated in this edition. You are much appreciated!

Call for Submissions! The topic for the 114th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is: The 5th Annual iGene Awards! For those not familiar with the iGene Awards, you can see the previous years here, here, here, and here. We'll announce our best blog posts from the previous year (in this case, 2011) in the following 5 categories: Best Picture (that would be a photograph), Best Screen Play (story you would make into a movie including the cast), Best Documentary (investigative research), Best Biography, Best Comedy. Write up a blog post with links to your best articles in these categories and submit it to the COG! Feel free to use the iGene graphic if you'd like. The deadline for submissions is February 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Thanks for the poster, fM!

Share |

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

My Dickens Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 03:28:00 +0000

Holidays come and go. Years go by. People move away or die. Memories are what bring them all back to us. I treasure my memories of Christmases past and the people who were a part of them. I also wish I could have spent a Christmas with some family members who I never knew. I had a very nice Christmas this year, surrounded by family and friends and together we made more memories. I can't help but wonder what Christmas will be like in the future. Come along with me as the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Future take us visiting...

First, the Ghost of Christmas Past takes us back to a Christmas before I was born. That would be the Christmas of 1952...

This photo was taken in the parlor at my grandparent's house in Detroit. By Christmas 1952 my grandparents, Wincenty and Sophia, had been living here in the U.S. for 40 and 39 years respectively. Walerja (Wincenty's sister) and Waclaw (Walerja's son) had just immigrated to the U.S. They were DPs (Displaced Persons from Poland) sponsored by my grandfather. This was their first Christmas in America and they were living with my grandparents at the time. The photographs on top of the television are of my mom and her sister Helen. Those pictures were taken in the early 1940s. I never met my grandfather. He died 6 days before I was born. I never met my Grand Aunt Walerja either. She died in 1966 but my family had lost touch with her by then.

I have a few precious memories of my grandparent's house in Detroit. My grandmother died when I was 14 but she sold the house and moved out of Detroit two years prior to that. This parlor room was in the front of the house just off the dining room. In later years, this room wasn't used as a parlor. The dining room was used as the parlor/living room once my grandmother stopped entertaining (she went blind).

"I have always thought of Christmas time as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time." - Charles Dickens

And next the Ghost of Christmas Present comes for a visit and takes us to the dining room of my current home for Christmas 2011...

Those of you who were following my blog back in 2008 will notice that I've redecorated since then! Here is my dinner table on Christmas Eve just a few hours before everyone arrived. The guests at our Christmas dinner table this year included my son and his girlfriend of 3 years, my daughter and her boyfriend of 8 years, my brother and sister-in-law, my best friend (who moved to Alpena, Michigan just a month before Christmas), my husband and myself. We had a wonderful evening, lots of good company and good food followed by Mass at a local church. I do believe that Christmas Eve is my favorite evening of the year!

I was blessed to be together with my family and friends on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day was celebrated with my husband's family at his younger brother's house. It was also a lovely day but with 5 nieces and nephews aged 10 and under it was a bit more boisterous. OK, maybe it was more than just a bit more boisterous... how about down right raucous, lol!

"I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year." - Charles Dickens (A sign with this quote on it hangs on the wall to the right of the Christmas tree in the photo above.)

So that leaves us with a visit from the Ghost of Christmas Future... as we look at Christmas 10 years from now here's the picture I'd like to see...

My husband and I are living in a condo having moved from our current home. Joining us for Christmas Eve dinner will be our two children and their spouses, 4 grandchildren, my brother and sister-in-law, and my best friend. We will celebrate Christmas Day with my husband's younger brother and his family and his sister and her family. There will also be a Grand Niece in attendance. Kaj, Vladi, and Josie will be a part of our holiday celebrations too. Everyone will be healthy and leading happy lives. It will be a white Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The U.S. will not be at war. The economy will be fully recovered and unemployment rates will be very low. Solar energy will be the main source of power for our homes, businesses, and automobiles. We'll all be using the Internet2 at broadband speeds 10 times what they are now. And the entire country will have free WIFI coverage for our computers and cell phones. Oh what the heck, as long as I'm dreaming this scenario up lets say the politicians in Congress have learned to get along and play nice and have adopted a spirit of cooperation too!

"And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless us, every one!" - Charles Dickens

[Written for the 113th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, "A Dickens Christmas"]

Let It Snow!

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 04:44:00 +0000

It's that time of year again, time for blog caroling at footnoteMaven's place. I always enjoy seeing which carols people like listening to. I've shared a few of my favorites in the past and this year I'm sharing another favorite... Let It Snow!

I'm a Midwestern girl and in these parts we like snow for Christmas. I can do without it the rest of the year but when it comes to Christmas, I like mine white!

Let It Snow : Lyrics

Oh the weather outside is frightful,
But the fire is so delightful,
And since we've no place to go,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

It doesn't show signs of stopping,
And I've bought some corn for popping,
The lights are turned way down low,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

When we finally kiss goodnight,
How I'll hate going out in the storm!
But if you'll really hold me tight,
All the way home I'll be warm.
The fire is slowly dying,
And, my dear, we're still good-bying,
But as long as you love me so,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

[written by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne in 1945]

My latest favorite version is by the cast of Glee! You can hear it and sing along to the lyrics on YouTube:

Merry Christmas!

Carnival of Genealogy, 112th Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 10:44:00 +0000

Welcome to the December 4, 2011 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for this edition is: An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving. We're writing about Thanksgiving holidays of yesteryear and we have some GREAT stories here! This is a terrific edition of the COG but I must warn you, when you read these articles you're likely to suffer from cravings, smiles, belly aches, snacking, and of course, your mouth will start to water. It's unavoidable. But you'll love them! Thanksgiving is America's most food-centric holiday so it goes without saying that these stories are about good eats. But that's not all. Come along then and see what I mean. Pour yourself a nice glass of wine, (I believe it's white that goes with poultry, no?) and pull up a chair up to the dinner table. The Carnival is back in town!

Bill West presents EATING AT THE KIDS' TABLE posted at West in New England, saying, "Some good memories about childhood Thanksgiving, and one teenage memory of a forgotten turkey"

Kristin Cleage Williams presents Thanksgiving - 1991, Idlewild, Michigan posted at Finding Eliza, saying, "Memories of our snowy Thanksgiving in the Michigan north woods. Fifteen people, a 29 pound turkey with all the trimmings and lots of passionate discussion. Does Thanksgiving get any better?"

Heather Wilkinson Rojo presents A Most Memorable Thanksgiving posted at Nutfield Genealogy, saying, "It was a Thanksgiving full of power outages, uncooked turkey, and bad weather, but it ended up being everyone's favorite Thanksgiving (except for my Mom, the hostess, who remembers it with great horror!)"

Dorene Paul presents Aunt Alpha hosted the Steen Family Thanksgiving in 1927 posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio reflects on the Steen family Thanksgiving in 1927, which included families from both the city and the country."

Julie Goucher presents Carnival Of Genealogy 112 - An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving posted at Anglers Rest, saying, "Imaginings of a First Thanksgiving."

Denise Olson presents A Tale of Two Turkeys posted at Moultrie Creek Gazette, saying, "In our family, turkey used to be a staple at both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. Not anymore! Here's why . . ."

Jasia presents Thanksgiving in Detroit posted at Creative Gene. Most people think of automobiles and Motown records when they think of Detroit but we are also known for one heck of a grand Thanksgiving Day parade! Come read about my childhood memories of the parade and Thanksgiving dinner at my house. Oh, and I've got pictures! :-)

Karen Hammer presents Ancestor Soup: Pink Bowl posted at Ancestor Soup, saying, "The Pink Bowl has been a constant at our holidays dinners since the late 1950s or early 1960s. So far, five generations have eagerly anticipated whatever the cook placed in it."

Katie Pirolt presents Thanksgiving Traditions posted at Katie's Grove, saying, "I interviewed my mom, aunt and uncle about what Thanksgiving was like for them growing up. The family was very large and my grandmother and great grandmother worked and prepared for a week to make the dinner special. The big traditional thanksgivings lasted from the 50's all the way up to the late 70's until the children all moved out and started traditions of their own."

Carol presents An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving, the 112th Carnival of Genealogy posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "Old fashioned or traditional, or both? A review of our families and our "traditions" reveal some that are old fashioned, and some that are new. New, old, traditional, old fashioned, all that really matters is giving thanks. Of course, we really enjoy the food part of our traditions, don't you?"

Charles Hansen presents An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving for COG 112 posted at Mikkel's Hus, saying, "Sine I do not like pumpkin pie I got my choice of pie every year, most times apple, but sometimes mincemeat. mmm"

Frances Ellsworth presents An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving, the 112th Carnival of Genealogy posted at Branching Out Through The Years, saying, "Good memories."

Joan Hill presents COG 112 - An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving: 1960, The First Thanksgiving At Hungry Hollow posted at Roots'n'Leaves, saying, "Tho the year was 1960, in many ways it felt like 1860 -- a time when we seemed to value the simple ways of country life."

Cynthia Shenette presents Holidays Are Like People... posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "People change and holidays change the way people do, so I decided to write about how my Thanksgiving holidays have changed over the years."

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. Well, didn't I tell you it would make your mouth water? I just love this edition. The authors all deserve a big round of applause for recording all the memories of old fashioned Thanksgivings. Bravo! )( )( )( )( I laughed, I sighed, and my mouth watered. Great writing, all!

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the COG will be: A Charles Dickens Christmas. We're going to borrow Charles Dickens' idea and have some visits from the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. First show us a photo from a Christmas/Hanuka/Kwanzaa past and tell us what you know about it (or just share a story about a past holiday if you don't have a photo to share). Then share a photo from your Christmas/Hanuka/Kwanzaa celebration this year (it can be a photo of holiday lights, a tree, etc., it doesn't have to have people in it) and tell us something about how you'll be celebrating the holiday this year. And lastly, write about a future Christmas and how you'd like to celebrate it. (Feel free to let your imaginations go on this one!) Write up your visits by the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future and submit them to the Carnival of Genealogy. The deadline is January 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Thanks for another wonderful poster, fM!

Share |

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

Thanksgiving in Detroit

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:51:00 +0000

Long before I was born a Thanksgiving Day tradition was started in Detroit. That tradition was a parade. The first parade was put together in 1924 and there has been one on the streets of Detroit every year since except for 1943 and 1944 when it was suspended because of a materials shortage due to WWII.

In the early years, the Thanksgiving Day parade was sponsored by Detroit's J. L. Hudson department store. It was first broadcast on radio in 1931 and on television it's been carried nationally since 1959. Every year there are common elements... floats, marching bands, clowns, and Santa Claus. And each year there are changes to the floats and marching bands. Big balloons and paper mache heads were added also.

J.L. Hudson sponsored the parade until 1979 when it was handed over to the Detroit Renaissance Foundation. They then handed it over to the Michigan Thanksgiving Parade Foundation in 1983. It is put on every year with help from many generous corporate sponsors and more than 4,000 volunteers. The warehouse where the floats and costumes are stored gives tours throughout the year.

The parade route has changed a few times over the years. I believe it has always had Woodward Avenue as a part of its route. I know that some of my grand aunts and uncles attended the parade because I've see their photographs of the parade in family photo albums. I believe many of my cousins have attended the parade in person too. I went to the parade for the first time on Thanksgiving of 1973 and didn't attend in person again until this year, 2011. But I've watched it on TV every year as far back as I can remember.

As a child, I used to look forward to watching the Thanksgiving parade on TV. At the end of the parade Santa Claus was greeted by the mayor of the city and presented with "the key to the hearts of the children of Detroit". This marked the official beginning of the Christmas season, my favorite time of the year! Children all throughout the city and the metro Detroit area knew that starting then you had to "be nice" or Santa wouldn't bring you what you wanted for Christmas.

When I was a child, you never saw Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving! Not on houses, not in stores, and there was no Christmas music played on the radio yet either.

I can remember my mom cooking in the kitchen on Thanksgiving morning and popping into the living room (the only room in the house that had a television) to check on the parade. I still remember the smell of her sauteing onions, celery, and green peppers for the stuffing... what a wonderful scent! Mom would play up my excitement with questions like, "Any sign of Santa yet?", "Did you count the marching bands? How many so far?", or my favorite comment, "Let me know when you see Santa. I don't want to miss him!" And sure enough, when I called out to her to announce Santa, she'd come running. We'd always judge how good a Santa he was, if he looked real or fake, and if he had a friendly face.

My dad and brothers weren't into the parade or Santa. I don't remember them ever watching the parade with me or being a part of my parade experience.

Just about the time the parade was over (about 11am), mom would pop the turkey in the oven. She'd have stuffed it with her traditional sage stuffing, using a recipe from her Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. Then she'd take a break from the work in the kitchen and we'd look through the 3" thick stack of sale ads that always came in the Thanksgiving Day edition of the Detroit News (which we had home delivered). Oh how I loved looking at all the toys in those ads!

In the afternoon I'd "help" my mom in the kitchen. I didn't do much, really, but she'd find something for my little hands to work at. Our Thanksgiving dinner consisted of turkey, stuffing, gravy (made from scratch, of course) with mushrooms, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, dinner rolls, and cranberries in the form of canned Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce. After smelling that turkey cooking all afternoon we all came to the table with our mouths watering. Mom was a really good cook and the food was always fantastic. For dessert she always made pumpkin chiffon pies with made-from-scratch whipped cream in the shape of snowflakes on the top. Oh man, my mouth is watering just thinking about those dinners!

Sadly, I have no pictures to share with you from my first visit to the parade in 1973. I know I took some photos but I have no idea what happened to them. I do, however, have a few photos to share with you from this year's "America's Thanksgiving Parade" as it is now known. I only stayed for half the parade but when I got home I turned on the TV and watched the second half. I think mom would have loved this year's Santa. I think he looks great! What do you think?

The crowd cheered as the parade began.

The first balloon this year was a new one, Kermit the Frog.

Lots of clowns!

Horses are always a crowd favorite.

These uni-cyclists got lots of oohs and ahhs.

Local marching band.

More happy clown faces.

It wouldn't be an all-American parade without Uncle Sam.

New float this year, from Art Van Furniture. The biggest ever!

Here he is, the jolly ole man himself!

Plan to be Remembered, Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:19:00 +0000

I'm reposting an article I wrote 5 years ago at this time of the year. The information is still relevant so I thought I'd give it another go around...

I've spent a lot of time (years) on genealogy research and one of the most significant things I've come to realize in the course of my research is that most people don't plan to be remembered. Think about that for a moment and you'll realize how simple and profound that is. If people planned to be remembered we wouldn't have half the trouble we have finding them or learning about them! I don't think most people want to be forgotten when they die, so why don't they put some planning into being remembered?

The obvious reasons that come to mind are: thinking about one's mortality is uncomfortable; too busy living to think about dying; I haven't done anything important enough to be remembered for; too much bother, or in the case of those with immense egos... I don't have to try to be memorable, I already am! But there are other reasons why people don't plan to be remembered.

In the old days, the options for preserving something of one's self were much more limited than they are today. Take my ancestors for instance. They were were all poor peasants (is there any other kind?) in a poor country (Poland). Literacy was not an option for them (pretty much until my grandparents' generation). So they couldn't write their family history or an autobiography. Cameras, especially in the early days of photography, were only for the wealthy. So how could the common man preserve something of them self? Some could sketch or paint. Some could carve, sculpt, weave or sew. The rest? They would likely only be recorded in history as entries in their church parish registries for baptisms, marriages, and deaths. And in the case of Poland, such vital records weren't kept for common folk until the late 1700s. If they were lucky, they might get a tombstone and a grave that their family essentially rented for a time. Then they faded into obscurity when the next generation couldn't afford to pay their grave renewal fees.

These days things have changed dramatically. We have all sorts of ways of preserving something of ourselves to be remembered by. Even the poor farmer (modern day peasant) in Poland can read and write (Poland has a very high literacy rate (99.3%). So writing something becomes the most basic of options. Beyond that, in many countries around the world even the common man now has the ability to record themselves digitally in audio, video, or static photos. And while having a grave and tombstone may still indicate status or wealth in some areas of the world, in other areas it's not as important a way to be remembered as it used to be. More and more often people (at least in the U.S.) are choosing alternatives like cremation and opting for having a "foundation" created in their name, or a brick dedicated to them at a public venue.

But even with all the new options available for preserving something of ourselves many still won't do it. They'll leave it to their loved ones to remember them in an obituary or with a donation to their favorite charity. They'll hope that they'll be remembered kindly. They won't get it unless they've been involved in genealogy research... if you don't go out of your way to deliberately leave something of yourself to be remembered by you'll become just another of thousands of names on someone's tree. Future generations will look at your name and life dates and wonder about who you were and if they look like you or enjoy the same hobbies or talents.

As genealogists we know how much we would treasure an audio recording of gg grandma chatting merrily with her sisters or daughters in the kitchen while cooking up a holiday dinner. Wouldn't you just love to have that!?! Or how about a video of gg grandpa sitting around the table with some of the guys from the village at a simple Saturday night card game discussing the condition of the fields, the likelihood of rain in the next week, and their concerns about their lazy teenage children who want to sleep till noon? How precious that would be! And yet if you'd asked gg grandma and grandpa if they wanted their conversations recorded while they were cooking or their pictures taken while they played cards they probably would have laughed at the idea and probably protested too. But if you'd asked them if they would prefer to be remembered as real people, ordinary though they may be, or forgotten as anything more than just a name and date on the family tree what do you suppose they would answer?

Ordinary daily events can become real treasures if we just take the time and effort to record them. The thing is, we as genealogists can recognize this. We get it, in a way that others don't. It's up to us to carry our cameras, video and/or audio recorders with us when we have a chance to spend time with our loved ones. We need to find a way to get those photos that nobody wants taken. If we can't be so obtrusive as that than at the very least we can come home and write up a summary of the visit.

Thanksgiving and Christmas are coming soon. They are great opportunities to get together with loved ones and create a time capsule of sorts. All you have to include is a brief write up of who was there, perhaps their ages if known, the topics discussed over dinner, a short list of the foods served, a synopsis of the weather, and perhaps some personal reflections or observations. At a minimum we can all do that much.

If you have a camera, consider making a photo diary of the day. Record the images you might not normally think to photograph such as:

the environment/weather of the day
the home/restaurant you will be gathering at (even if it's your own!)
the food on the table
a family pet
the place where you go to worship if you do so
candid photos (mom in the kitchen, dad in front of the TV watching a football game, etc.)
maybe a photo of something new in your community, like a new library or restaurant that just opened (anything to mark time)
and don't forget to turn the camera on yourself!

For people with a digital camera this is virtually cost free. But even those with film cameras can capture the day with one roll of film. Even with developing costs it can be less than $10 for a genuine keepsake!

A collection of photos and a write up of the day, maybe throw in the front page of a local newspaper (or a screen shot from a news agency web site) and/or a podcast of CNN international news and you have one dandy, quickly and inexpensively put together time capsule that will preserve not only something of yourself but of everyone you spend holiday time with. Whether you burn your time capsule elements to CD/DVD, upload them for online storage, or print them out and stick them in a special file folder (or do all three), you can preserve something of yourself (and others!) with a little planning. You might consider burning a copy of your time capsule to DVD as a gift for the host/hostess. What a thoughtful and creative gift that would be! Heck, you might even want to make additional copies to send to friends and family out of state or out of the country. Just make sure you keep a copy for those family members in the future who will be looking at your name on the family tree and wondering about you. Genealogy is so much more than just names on a tree. Plan to be remembered!

Wishing a happy, healthy, and safe Thanksgiving holiday to all my friends and acquaintances online!

Jachowicz, Poet of Poland, Poet of Children

noreply@blogger.com (Jasia) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 21:22:00 +0000

SUNSET

The sun went down, with it one more day has passed away;--
The church-bell heralded its death through the twilight grey;
Tomorrow, at the same time and hour, with bell-tones clear,
Another day shall disappear:
And after that a third, and so
Our whole life day by day shall go
An old man thought, --up and down he paced with feeble tread.
What does the old man mutter? the thoughtless children said.

The Old Man

Gaily with your pastimes you amuse yourselves today,
But your life is fleeting imperceptibly away.
See you the sunset, children fair?
Only look! see over there:
The clouds with red and gold inwrought,--
Their play a moment was forgot.
And while they looked with earnestness
The old man spoke of sinfulness
Repentance and a saving grace,
How swiftly day to day gives place;
And of the vanities of earth,
They understood not then its worth.
In riper years alone their might
The sunset shone upon their sight.
They thought of what the old man said many years ago,
And finer feelings filled their hearts all with a holy glow.
The world's snares deceived them no more,
Love of wealth and glory was o'er;
Flown away as if with the wind,
And if for earthly joys they pined
The old man's sunset crossed their mind.

-- by Stanisław Jachowicz (1796-1857)

I've chosen this poem for the Great Genealogy Poetry Challenge because the author, Stanisław Jachowicz, was born and spent his early years in the same section of Poland (Galicia) where many of my ancestors lived. I feel a tie with him.

Jachowicz is best known and revered for his poetry for children. "His fables and proverbs can be found in almost every house in Poland." The heroes of his stories and poems were not animals or trees but children. There is much wisdom to be found in his words, as is evident in the poem above.

Stanisław Jachowicz
Born: April 17, 1796 in Dzikow, Poland.
Died: December 24, 1857 in Warsaw, Poland.

Sunset by Stanisław Jachowicz. From Poets and Poetry of Poland by Paul Soboleski. Knight and Leonard Printers, 1881.