Category Archives: Family History

Family History Friday: Cousins & Family Reunions!

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Family really is an important part of life.

We are born into a family, we grow up in a family, and even when we’re grown up, and move away, and start our own family, we can’t seem to stay away from the family we grew up with.

I love the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond! She wrote a fun blog post about cousins, and a family reunion their family had. It sounded like so much fun! You can read about it here!

Start today planning a family reunion for next summer! Enlist help in planning and contacting your relatives from a favorite cousin. And when you get together next summer share Family History information. You’ll be so amazed at your ancestors and the things they accomplished in their lives.

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Family History Friday: Paper or Electronic?

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“Think twice before converting your files or family history research from paper copies to electronic versions. Although the quality of a CD has supposedly improved enough to last forever under proper storage conditions will your descendents 100 or more years from now have a computer that can read them? Good, quality paper can last 500 years, and all that’s needed to read it is sun or candle light. Go ahead and use your computer, but make periodic printouts for posterity.” Family Tree Magazine

Something to think about.

I like having paper, and electronic copies of my Family History.

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Pioneer Day!

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-July 24, 1847-

 this is the day the Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley.

The Pioneers were an amazing group of people. They were Brave enough to leave a home they knew. Strong enough to sail across the ocean, walk mile after mile toward their goal. Spiritual enough to know they could do whatever was required to do, with God’s help.  Happy enough to sing and praise God in-spite of hardship. Faithful enough to believe God had a plan for them. They had enough Endurance enough to keep going, and start a new life in the valley.

These are my pioneer ancestors:

John Griggs White

Lucy Miranda Bailey

Joel William White

Joseph Moorhead Thomas

Mary Ann Thomas

Francis Anne Thomas

William Davis

Lucy Davis

John Davis

Jean LeSueur

Jane Caroline LeGresley

Jane Caroline LeSueur

David Daniel Jones

Ann Jones

Richard Dye

Mary Malden

Mary Malden Peek

I am so grateful to them for their lives, and for all they did to make life better for me.

Family History Friday: Karen Petra Hogensen -Part 2

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To read Part -1 go here!

Karen Petra married her husband Christian Hogensen on the ship while they traveled across the Atlantic Ocean. After they arrived at New York they traveled by train to Florence, Nebraska. There they were organized into handcart companies and began the trip west. Their company consisted of 235 people, sixty handcarts, and six wagons.

The journey was quite hazardous. Once Petra did not feel well, she fell to the rear of the line and fainted. She was picked up by a horseman who was traveling to California. By the next morning she was rested and ready to help pull the handcart. While they were fording the Green River, she was swept off her feet by the current. A soldier saw her go down and urged his horse into the river and rescued her. They arrived in Salt Lake City September 4, 1859. They were weak, but very thankful. 

Family History Friday: Karen Petra Hogensen

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Karen is my darlin’s 2nd great gandmother.

She was born in Norway in 1830. Her father died when she was quite young. When she was old enough she became a nursemaid to the children of a wealthy family, and later she became cook for the family. 

She went to a church meeting that was being held nearby, out of curiosity, and was very impressed. The meeting was with Mormon missionaries. After investigating the church she was baptized. When the family she worked for became aware of her baptism, they were concerned for her welfare. After a discussion with their minister, it was decided that Petra could still work as long as she didn’t influence the other servants. She met Christian Hogensen at the Mormon meetings. He had just joined the church previously.

     Petra wanted to emigrate with other members of the church in 1859, but she had no money. Christian offered to loan her the money. Petra accepted and they sailed from Liverpool, England on the William Tapscott in the spring of 1859. This proved to be a very romantic voyage for Christian and Petra. They were married while they were still on the Atlantic Ocean. 

Story taken from “History of Bear Lake Pioneers”.

Family History Friday: Rooting out Hindu Family History.

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–I love this!!–

We sometimes take for granted the amount of information we can find about our family history, right at our finger tips.

Most of us can go back several generations with a simple search on Ancestry.com or Family Search.com.

In India, in order to find your family history, you have to know they do things a little different.

I found the most fascinating story on BBC News, about how a woman from India did some research on her family history. They have a special person who keeps track of their family history, and a special way of keeping track of it.

I know you will enjoy it too! You will find it here!

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Family History Friday: Joseph Martin

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Joseph Martin was my second great grandpa. He was born about 1829 in the Michigan Territory. He was a Civil War veteran who is listed in the Becker County list of pensioners. It says that he lost an eye. He received $18 a month allotment. He is one that I have been trying to find more info on.

I will be looking for more information about him. Please let me know if you know something.

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Family History Friday: Louis Seymour Martin

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I never knew my Great-Grandpa Martin. He died when my dad was a little boy. He was the first dead person my dad ever saw. He was in a coffin in the parlor at home. My dad remembers him having a large white handlebar mustache, that had yellowed from using tobacco. He was a blacksmith, and owned his own shop. This picture is of him in his shop. Not the best quality, but I love it. My dad also told me that Great Grandpa was a bootlegger. I don’t know any more about that, but I bet he was one of many. He also drove a stage coach from Ponsford to Calloway, Minnesota. He hauled trees to the lumber mill during the winter months, putting the logs on a big old sled, and crossing a frozen lake. He lost a toe from frost bite, doing that job.

It sounds to me like he was a colorful character. I admire him for taking different jobs. I’ve had to do the same myself. I’m sure he must have had a lot of stamina to do some of the jobs he did, pounding iron sounds like it would be exhausting. I have loved hearing about him. I bet he was a great guy.

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Family History Friday: “Year in Review!”

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Photo from Burst of Creativity

I’ve said before that

“Family History is also Family Present.”

I say that, because what we record now, will someday be the Family History of our descendants. Oh, how we wish our ancestors had kept better records, and how grateful we are when they have.

I came across a really fun and easy idea for recording “A Year in Review.”

Melissa over at Bursts of Creativity does a mini scrapbook, recording the events of the year. If you did this as the year is happening, it would be all done at years end. Melissa describes it like this: “This is a year in review MINI – it doesn’t have to be huge and it doesn’t have to take a ton of time to make.”

I absolutely love this idea!! To see what she does, and get ideas, go here!

Thanks Melissa for your wonderful idea!