Genealogist's Journal 30 November 2009

Filled with Turkey and basking in the glow of mailing my Christmas Cards, I eased back into work this morning by organizing the genealogy publications that have been piling up in my magazine basket in the living room. This must be done as some of the "stuff" in my living room needs to move to make room for the Christmas tree.

Next, I posted Hoxie gravestones to my Flickr account as another researcher is going to help me sort them out as they fit into her tree too. Wow, that will make it faster. Still it took two hours to label them correctly and start putting them into my tree at Ancestry.com.

With that started, I went back to work on the Jenckes family of Rhode Island. I already had a Catherine Jenckes married to a William Turpin and the line worked down to Eliza Bicknell who married Jabez Champlin Gardiner. I worked at Find a Grave for a while only to discover that RI Historical Cemetery #9 in Pawtucket RI is lost!

And so, it is back to turkey. I made a casserole out of the leftovers. My local grocery store sells this type of thing year round and they call it "Pilgrim Pie". Appropriate for us Mayflower descendants, huh?

Genealogist's Journal 25 November 2009

Turkey prep day!

Worked on getting the Jenckes/Jenks family of Rhode Island in the correct order. Adding in Elizabeth JENCKS who married Samuel TEFFT was not easy as there a three men named Joseph JENCKES. One was governor of Rhode Island. His gravestone is stored at the Rhode Island Historical Society according to the Faber Gravestone Collection. I figured out how to embed in in my blog for a post next week.

The Perkins family that lived here in Bridgewater's branch that moved to Rhode Island is proving to be quite a challenge because so of the people married people already in my tree.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Genealogist's Journal will return next week.

Genealogist's Journal 24 November 2009

It may not be genealogy research but sometimes you just HAVE to dust your office. It's amazing what you find! I put a CD in my Bose player [Autumn Leaves by Ferrante & Teicher bought in a markdown bin several years ago because it was my grandmother's favorite piano duo] and proceeded to dust.

Found, my keyboard brush just as Beyond the Blue Horizon was playing (the name of this blog!) Must be a sign. I shut down my computer and set to work on the keys. Achoo!

I scanned and printed a few more photos and placed 20 or so in archival envelopes. It's a never ending job and I am glad I bought 200 4x6 envelopes last summer. Some days, it is hard to look at old photos of my parents and grandparents. Today, it was easy as some of the photos I looked at were funny snapshots. I guess the older you get the harder this gets.

A fellow researcher sent me some work he did on Bridget Thompson, the first wife of Capt. George Denison and I read through what he sent. He did a great job with the sources and citations. It is hard for me to research past the shores of the US. I don't know how people do it.

I must get back to the Perkins transcriptions!

Genealogist's Journal 23 November 2009

I let out a whoop of joy at the padded envelope in my mailbox this morning! Inside was the 2010 calendar by Family Tree Magazine with the November month being the family photo of my maternal grandmother and her two children. The other photos are equally amazing. I love the one of the old couple on their 50th wedding anniversary.

Today, I started to clean for the holiday because my office is a pit, I left that for tomorrow and concentrated on the other areas of the house. My legs are killing me.

I worked on gathering vital records for the descendants of my Abraham Perkins of South Kingstown, RI. Some dates and places conflict with what my team mates have found so I need to keep careful notes on what I have changed.

Genealogist's Journal 22 Nov 2009

Today is the anniversary of JFK's Assassination. It's one of those days that a person remembers where they were and what happened. I was in high school and the teacher freaked out. I had to go to the school office and get help.

With the Christmas shopping behind me, I can focus on the card prep and the events for December. I am not a holiday person.

I worked today on organizing my photos at Flickr into collections so I can find photo faster for blogging about them. I love doing things like this but it takes up so much time!

While searching for Abraham Perkins land evidence and probate records, I found a will for a woman named Mercy Perkins who is NOT my ancestor. She is the widow Mercy down another generation.

Short work week this week means I will have to put aside research to actually clean and get ready for turkey day.

Genealogist's Journal 21 Nov 2009

I guess it has caught up with me! I have "Pilgrim Fever"! I went back through my gravestone photo folders and found the gravestone photos I took of Elizabeth Tilley's memorial gravestone. After her husband John Howland died, she went to live with her daughter who lived in the Brown household. This graveyard is now in Rhode Island not far from where my husband grew up. It is found by winding your way through a residential neighborhood. I must go back and look around.

I posted the gravestones I took that day plus the ones for Myles Standish that I took last summer.

Then, I ordered a Sony digital voice recorder that was an affordable price. Happy Birthday to me!

Well, back to work on Abraham Perkins and this afternoon, I must get back to working on the Christmas Cards.

Genealogist's Journal 19 & 20 November 2009

Because my knee isn't bothering me as much, I spent most of the last two days trying to get caught up on blog reading and posting.

It is hard to prioritize your work with upcoming holidays! I did look into a digital voice recorder and got some sensible ideas from friends!

Genealogist's Journal 18 November 2009

Posted today at my other blog are two articles worth reading about graveyard issues here in Massachusetts. It's certainly not good news but it is important to bring such issues to the attention of non-genealogical folks. Money is part of the problem, I think.

At the close of my day, yesterday, I gathered pages of abstracts and probate records that reference my ancestor Abraham2 Perkins (David2, Abraham1) in an effort to learn more about him and to narrow down his unrecorded death date a bit more.

Today, is my monthly DAR meeting and as it is being held not too far away, I will attend. My knee still plagues me and since it is my driving leg, I certainly will be in pain when I get there. Ouch!

Genealogist's Journal 17 November 2009

Trying to conquer finding an unrecorded death date can take up a LOT of time! I have gathered many land evidences (that's what Rhode Island land records are called) for Abraham PERKINS, blacksmith, of South Kingstown, Rhode Island. Abraham, son of David PERKINS was born in Beverly, lived here in Bridgewater, MA with his family and as an adult lived in RI.

This is a direct line ancestor with no gravestone and no vital record for his death.

To ease the stress, I worked on an easy project of the NOYES family buried in Elm Grove Cemetery. A man and his three wives are on one monument. Dates match what I have previously worked on.

Tomorrow is another day....

Genealogist's Journal 16 Nov 2009

If November is the month of giving thanks, then it is also the month for questions about family. I have been thinking about how I have been spending much of my time in these last two months of the year, helping others find out more about their families as they visit my gravestone blog or my tree at Ancestry.com. Has anyone else noticed this about November and December?

Since, that seems to be the case for the last two or three years than perhaps I should not try to get any real work accomplished and just wait for questions to appear in my inbox? This weekend I have four such questions and it has taken yesterday afternoon and all of today to try to answer them. One is resolved, one I need to do more research for and one is a family that married into mine and I know nothing much (yet) about them. The last question will have to wait for a bit.

I have been asked to present with my friend Robert Grandchamp, at the January meeting about our collaboration of genealogy and history. I think a "slide show" of my family photos will be what I contribute and then I will let him talk about his book. So much to do!

Genealogist's Journal 14 and 15 November 2009

Yesterday, we traveled to southern Rhode Island to the RI Genealogy Society meeting. It took an hour and a half to get there and of course, the same time to return home. I have not belonged to this state society long but I feel very comfortable with the nice genealogists there. We sat with my friend Rob Grandchamp, the young historian, who roped me into speaking with him at the late January meeting about our collaboration of genealogy and history over a period of two years or more. (Sure, why not, I shrugged)

I would have taken a photo of the tiny cemetery, literally in the parking lot of the church, if it had not been pouring. Classic Rhode Island situation. [HISTORICAL CEMETERY #: SK044 WAKEFIELD BAPTIST CEMETERY SOUTH KINGSTOWN RI]

Josh Taylor of NEHGS did a fine job covering maps and mapping software (I know nothing about this) and a woman named Kristen from the RI Historical Society talked about the progress they are making with cataloging collections. (Doesn't sound like a fun job to me!).

Robert gave me a copy of his first book about his Knight families contribution to the Revolutionary War which will be a fine read. I bought the membership list and looked it over when I got home. The cover looks like a "Wordle" and several of my family surnames are represented. I could have some new contacts!

Today, we are back to regular life and I have too many things to do this week! I am going to try to straighten up my office a bit today instead of doing research.

Genealogist's Journal 11 & 12 Nov 2009

Yesterday, being Vet's Day, I thought about all of the people in my charts who served. I haven't got a really good list like the other genealogist's who blogged about it. That's peer pressure!

Comments in all my blogs are still sitting in my SPAM and for some reason are only appearing in the report I get from my Internet hosting provider on Thursday's. I received another comment on Perpetual Care. It was about a sexton stealing the funds. Wow, is this an awful topic.

My daughter and son-in-law picked out a laptop to have as a second computer. Guess I'll buy it for them but the battery life doesn't impress me. Although, I must admit, I would use a laptop as a desktop computer and mine are mostly plugged in here in the house all the time. Are we never too far from an electrical outlet?

I have a lead on one of the wives of Capt. Benjamin Burrows! I am excited and it is working out to be the right person. I know that if I don't hear from her again, just having her name and her first husband's suname is helping to identify her.

I am off trying to finish my holiday shopping today. I am thankful not to have too much to buy this year. Stores are not well stocked.

Genealogist's Journal 10 Nov 2009

Yesterday, I began the research on the Benjamin Burrows cemetery gravestones that are in the middle section and the back. Some are flat granite stones with only initials. The Burrows genealogy (which is typed and online at Ancestry.com) is a newish compiled genealogy and it can be searched for keywords. As folks who are buried there are mentioned as "buried on Fort Hill" or buried in the "Benjamin Burrows cemetery", you would think it would be easy to locate all of them. It's not. But, it can be narrowed down because this is the type of cemetery where everyone buried there must be a descendant (or spouse of a descendant) of Capt. Benjamin Burrows.

Some of the woman who were buried here are buried without their maiden names but the genealogy does have them. I am using the Gallup genealogy today to try to find any babies who are not mentioned in the Burrows genealogy. I am stuck on two stones SAG and EEG. There is already a Sarah A. Gallup gravestone but maybe she had two stones. It wouldn't be unusual.

In other news, I found out today that Big Bird really is a canary. I have wondered. I looked for him at my bird feeder today but I guess he's busy with his 40th birthday party.

I pulled my copy of Family Tree Magazine's War Service Reference Guide for preparing to participate in a DAR meeting next week. I think I will work on a list of veterans in my family.

Genealogist's Journal 9 Nov 2009

Having yet another cold, I can't say that today was as usual but I did work on another round of gravestones at the Benjamin Burrows cemetery. I wrote and posted a Civil War vet that is buried there and set it to post on Wednesday but it posted today anyway. Blogger can be mysterious. Well, it is posted!

I have only 2 gravestones (with just initials that I can't identify) but I do know they are Gallup folks. I will pull out the Gallup genealogy and see if they match up to children's names.

I recorded the PBS special on the Medal of Honor and watched over an hour of it. Having a Medal of Honor recipient in my line makes me wonder about that. Fortunately, they focused on the later wars and it is a good study in oral interviews.

Randy Seaver's post today about "categories" of genealogists is interesting. I'd sure like to know why people debate this over and over. Don't they have research to do? Blah, blah, blah.

Genealogist's Journal 7 & 8 November 2009

This time of year is always difficult to feel accomplished at the end of a day with all the holiday pressures looming on the horizon. Even though I shop early and buy my Christmas Cards ahead, I never feel ready because I lose weekends of work. I used to be a Weekend Genealogist and now I have flip-flopped my life to make genealogy my work.

Yesterday, I broke down and ordered from Higginson Books, the Fish genealogy because I only have access to it at Genealogy.com and they have become unreliable. Print genealogies are expensive.

I worked on Find a Grave because I never seem to have time to get it it and I plan to work on it more today. I think this will complete my weekend work.

Genealogist's Journal 6 November 2009

Today, I began working on my Graveyard Rabbit Carnival posting for the month. The theme is cemeteries in the news and I found two articles to blog about. Mainly news about cemeteries is concerned with vandalism and lately about some city cemeteries running out of space for burials.

At random, I found this great blog post about a Perkins family here in Massachusetts. Although this is not my line of Perkins, it is a wonderful example of a genealogy line on a man's gravestone. [Source: GenealogyGirls]

I chatted on the phone with another genealogist about what we like and what we don't like about genealogy. It is always interesting to hear about someone elses experiences. Good ideas to ponder.

I spent the rest of the day working on my new system for recording the gravestones for blogging and research. It is amazing how many women do not have their maiden names listed on their gravestones!

Genealogist's Journal 5 November 2009

I had a serious case of the genealogy guilts today and posted the few family photos I have of my husband's ancestors to Flickr and edited them as best I could. One is quite nice as it is a 4 generation "grandmother" photo. I am going to re-borrow it from my in-laws and rescan it when Santa gives me a new scanner. I can't identify the oldest woman which seems like a good "Madness Monday" post.

My husband's two adult nieces are both on Face Book now so I posted these photo to my photos there and tagged them so they will see them. In two photos, their father is the child as he is 5 years older than my husband.

I worked on trying to identify more census and vital records for these ancestors. I finally found the WILDE family if I took off the final E. It seems that it was added when they became Americans.

I worked on cemetery citations for my friend, got a headache, and went downstairs and watched "Ghost Hunters". The rest of the day I read email, tweets and blog posts. It gets dark so early, I feel I have to type faster to get more done.

Tomorrow is my 38th wedding anniversary so for fun I scanned my portrait and put it up at Face Book. I can't believe how much the background of this professional photo has faded. It used to be a lovely sky blue which went well with my coloring. It was displayed, without my permission, in the photographer's studio window in a huge format (bigger than 11 x17). I was horrified and wouldn't buy it. The photographer was angry and sent his worst photographer to photograph my wedding. I only bought 25 photos and I am still not sorry. I received a coupon for a free portrait of my first child. I sure hope they aren't waiting.....

Genealogist's Journal 4 November 2009

I took most of the day off as personal time. It's amazing how far behind you can get in life when you have so many dead guys to research!

As I actively participate in a Flickr group "Weekly Graveyard Theme", I read the theme of the week which was "siblings buried together". I just researched one gravestone with two sons buried together (or maybe it is a memorial stone for them I am not sure) so I decided to use that.

But, much to my amazement another person posted a grave from the Elm Grove Cemetery that I had not seen until last summer of Mallory children all buried together. I immediately browsed around that person's photos and found a photo of my gravestone hopping cousin's mausoleum! I immediately email the link to it to him. What good is having your own mausoleum if nobody can admire it?

With that done, it was time to quit for the day... BTW, days off are more stressful that days of work.

Genealogist's Journal 3 November 2009

Tuesday, the 3rd of November [I am trying to write this at the end of each workday now]

The day started out with great diligence until I tried to find a new laptop/netbook for my daughter and son-in-laws Christmas gift. It is still hard to find one that is not running Windows Vista! The search continues...

I researched several gravestones in the Burrows cemetery project that I have undertaken. It is going well but not fast enough for my liking.

I FINALLY finished backing up all the files on my desktop computer onto the 3 USB based hard drives that I use. With that done, I got caught up on my blog reading, did some filing and decided to look through a Barber genealogy that I knew existed but didn't have full access to before.

Friday is my wedding anniversary, 38 years. Nothing much planned since it is a Friday. Remind me again, why did I get married in such an awful month?

Genealogists Journal 2 November 2009

Shades of the Departed re-posted my last year's post about the "Haunted Cemetery" since my blog has been nominated for the Family Tree Magazine blogs award. It doesn't seem like it's been a year.

I've had a question about citations of gravestones so I have pulled out ESM's book to work up an answer for person who asked. That will take a while to answer.

I backed up all but four files yesterday. My daughter's computer died again so I updated my old Dell in case we have to deliver that to her. I think they'd like a new laptop for Christmas. Obviously no one wants Vista and so few still have Windows XP. I so can see why people are returning to Mac.

I am already getting snail mail requests for donations to the various organizations that I belong to. I wonder if anyone will donate their extra money!

Genealogist's Journal 31 October 2009

Friday the 30th of October [Halloween Eve]

Thursday night our local newspaper ran a seasonal story about a woman who loves gravestones! I immediately started a search for her and finally ended up at Face Book and asked her to be my friend. She does professional face painting and is a ghost hunter so we will have to wait to meet until after her busy season. Cool. She has some of the same local gravestones in her photo albums. Maybe I have found another person to gravestone hop with!

Saturday the 31 of October and Sunday the 1st of November

I took these two days off for family time and for doing a major grocery shopping event. Halloween came and went and we packed up the decorations and took out the small box of Thanksgiving items.

I started backing up some non-genealogy files and will continue that tomorrow and begin the backing up of genealogy stuff.

There is a cemetery in North Stonington where William Wheeler and his wife Emeline Stewart are buried. I investigated resources for a future visit using the New London County cemetery list, Find a Grave and Google Maps. I have located it, found a nearby street address (for the GPS) and have begun the process of deciding which gravestone to photograph. There are three Wheeler Cemeteries in this small town!