Last Day Local: Dubois Cemetery, Battle Creek, Michigan

Dubois Cemetery, Battle Creek Michigan

Dubois Cemetery, a Battle Creek city owned cemetery, on the south side of Battle Creek is named after one of the first settlers to the Battle Creek area, Peter Dubois. Peter; his wife, Sally; and three children arrived to the area in 1836, one year before Michigan became a state.  Peter, a Saratoga county, New York native made his home on the property which is now the cemetery.

Dubois Cemetery was part of Battle Creek Township until the city annexed the township.  This area is known as Lakeview, within the city of Battle Creek, and many of the early Lakeview settlers are buried here.  Names such as Willard (of library fame), Minges, as well as Dubois and about 500 others can be found buried here.

Below are a few of the headstones from Dubois Cemetery.  

 Margaret Carr Sprague, daughter of a Revolutionary War soldier

 John Harris, War of 1812 Veteran

 Willard Family Stone

Minges Family Stone

Peter Dubois

If you would like to learn more about Dubois Cemetery, Ryan Holland wrote an article, including pictures of Peter Dubois, published in the Battle Creek Enquirer, found here.

The Find a Grave page for Dubois Cemetery is here.

The Michigan Tombstone Transcription Project for Dubois Cemetery is here.

Wedding Wednesday: Charles White and Caroline Graf of Indiana

I have been trying for months to find the maiden name of my second great grandmother, Mary, who married Caspar Graf.  I have one secondary source that lists it as Wrightweasner, but I have never seen that name anywhere else in my research.

One of the research strategies that I use when I have trouble researching my direct line of ancestors is to start researching collateral lines.  I have been successful in the past finding the maiden names of mothers, but not this time.  I had researched my ancestor, Valentine Graf, and did not find his mother's maiden name.  Next, I went to Valentine's brothers and sisters.  I was hopeful his oldest sister, Caroline, would provide the clues I needed.  Although her records didn't give me what I was looking for, I still found some interesting records for Caroline.

Caspar and Mary Graf's first born, Caroline Graf, married Charles White 21 March 1871 in Miami County, Indiana.  There marriage record is below:

Source: "Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1971-40056-4775-95?cc=1410397 : accessed 14 June 2015), Miami > 1867-1873 Volume 4 > image 241 of 347 citing the marriage of Charles White and Caroline Graf 21 March 1871; County clerk offices, Indiana.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day, Dad

Today we celebrate fathers.  I am fortunate to still have my father in my life.  He turned 90 in February.

My dad has seen a lot in his 90 years.  He lived through the depression in the 1930's, served his country during World War II, graduated from Western Michigan University, became an accomplished teacher and coach, is in the Michigan High School Coaches Hall of Fame, a husband for sixty three years and counting, community volunteer, father to four, grandfather to eight, great grandfather to three and much more to those who know him.

The one title that stands out to me is Father.  He has been a great father and role model for our family.   I hope he has a Happy Father's Day, he deserves it.

You Know You Are the Family Historian When...

Finally, my family knows how crazy I am about genealogy.  I have irritated questioned them enough that they now know who to share their pictures and stories with- ME!!

My Uncle Richard turned 90 in May and his family gave him a surprise birthday party, which I attended.  A couple of days before the party my cousin, Jamie, posted on Facebook to bring my computer because he had pictures to share with me.  You don't have to tell me twice, the computer was in the car.  Plus, I transferred the family pictures that I had to a flash drive to share with him. Afterall, I am not a selfish person.

Jamie was one of the first people I saw when I got to the party and he had his tablet up and running and showed me some of the pictures he had scanned.  I hadn't seen a lot of them.  He, too, had put the pictures on a flash drive.  We exchanged flash drives and I was one happy party goer!

The pictures that Jamie had scanned were from his grandmother's house, Kathryn Fredrick Tritten Puryear Pihl.  My Aunt Kate. Jamie had been spending time at his parent's house while his father was ill and would scan pictures.  He said they were in a big box.  I think we can all imagine the big box, I have one here that I need to go through from my mother's house.

The pictures were an assortment of family pictures.  The pictures included:

• Valentine Graf, my great grandfather,
• Kathryn Fredricks, aka Aunt Kate
• Children of Otto August Fredricks and Daisy Fredricks: Lola, Marie, Leona, Ray, John
• Grandchildren of Otto and Daisy: Rose Marie, Kathryn Marie and John
• Harold Fredricks and family
• My mom!  Audrey
• and many more.

I am in the process of sorting and identifying the pictures.  I have shared some on the Fredricks Genealogy page and with my cousin, Nancy, in California.  They are all wonderful treasures that I am thankful to have.  As you can see it pays off to be known as the family historian, aka the crazy one!  

I am thankful to be known as the family historian and if any other cousins want to share their family pictures with me, I will gladly accept them.

Here are a few of the pictures I have identified and think are special.

My mother, Audrey, holding not sure.

My mother and ? 

Aunt Lola and baby in front of old gas pump. 

 This is one of my favorites.

L-R  Norman Fredricks, Ray Fredricks, Otto Fredricks, John Fredricks, Jeannie Fredricks, Daisy Graf Fredricks, Audrey Fredricks and baby Katherine Marie Tritten

 Harold Fredricks at camp on Lake Eleanor in Brethren, Michigan

 I am still working on identifying everyone.  The tall one in the white hat is Valentine Graf.

 Kathryn Marie Tritten and my mother, Audrey in Brethren Michigan

Daisy Graf Fredricks with granddaughters, Kathryn Marie Tritten and Rose Marie Sandberg 

Oh, Lordy! Lord Stanley is 2!!

My nephew, Lord Stanley, is two today.  The terrible two's?  I think not, he is too cute for me to think he will go through the terrible two's.

Lord Stanley with his Grandma and Grandpa

One of the highlights of 2014 was when my husband, Kirk and I, drove my parents to Alabama to see Lord Stanley and his family, this past December.  I hadn't seen him since he was four months old.  I had so much fun.  I have always enjoyed the 18 month old age. Lord Stanley prefers interacting with men and he enjoyed his time with Grandpa and my husband.  I did get to play a little with him.  He likes trucks, balls, and trains.

One way to get him to sit on your lap-let him have the cane.

Lord Stanley enjoyed trying to get his Grandpa's cane.  He would see it and go right for it. Always, with the cutest grin on his face.  He even crawled under the end table to try and sneak up on it. Grandpa was too quick for him as Grandpa saw the table move.  The other thing he liked to do was to sit in his Tonka Dump Truck and be pushed around the house.  Kirk was on truck duty a couple of times.  Lord Stanley would be pushed from the living room to the kitchen to the dining room and back to the living room in a circle.  He loved it.

Lord Stanley is a bit of a neat-nick!  If he saw a piece of fuzz or paper on the floor he would pick it up and take it to the waste basket.  My husband and I joked about getting him a janitor play set for his birthday, but we didn't.  We went with a Little Tikes water table, instead.  

Lord Stanley has a playful disposition.  He would go over to my brother's speakers and look at my brother with the biggest grin and try to pull the front off of it.  If he did get the front off he would laugh.  It is fun being an aunt and not being the one to make him behave.

Here are a few of the precious moments Lord Stanley had over the past year.  Happy 2nd Birthday, Lord Stanley!

 The last time I saw Lord Stanley, about four months old.

This time I saw Lord Stanley, walking and 18 months old.

 Lord Stanley is a great eater and loves whipped cream.

 Up early and smiling, he is one happy little guy.

Another great smile, I sure do miss this little guy.

 Hmmm! I wonder where Lord Stanley gets his looks from?

 Peek a Boo!  Lord Stanley and his sister, Cutie Pie

No words are needed!

(Lord Stanley and Cutie Pie are nicknames I have chosen to use for my nephew and niece on this blog to protect their identity at such a young age.)

Military Monday: Herman Brien (Breen)

Source:  "World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," [database on-line], Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 16 January 2014), Entry for Herman Brien, serial number 93; United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm.

Do you ever write a blog post, proof read, edit, and publish it and then realize it wasn't very good? This was the case a week ago with this blog post.  I was getting questions that I thought could be answered by the blog post, but when I went back and read it I realized I didn't write all that I should have.  Here is the edited version that clarifies a few things, hopefully!

World War I draft registration cards can be bountiful in information for how little they are.  They provide clues to a family researcher that will help one find more information. Sometimes, the record creates conflicting information, as was the case with this record and his U. S. Citizen status.

The card above is for the husband of my maternal grandaunt, Augusta "Gustie" Fredrich.  Augusta was the daughter of Johann August Fredrich and Louise Fredrike Zastrow Fredrich.  She was the younger sister to my grandfather, Otto August Fredrich(k).  They were known to the family as Aunt Gustie and Uncle Herman.

This draft card is for Herman Adolph Brien (Breen). One of the things I noticed on this card is that Herman states he was native born.  Herman's marriage record and census records state that he was born in Germany.  I believe he was born in Germany and need to find proof of his birth.  The original post I wrote had people commenting that maybe he was trying to hide his German identity because of the anti-German sentiment of the time.  I imagine it was hard for German born American residents during the war.

I believe the other information on the card is accurate.  Most records I have found for Herman and Augusta have used the Breen spelling.  This one is the only one where I found Brien used.

Transcription:

Name: Herman Adolph Brien
Address: 140 Jefferson St. Manistee, Manistee, Mich
Age: 41
Date of Birth: Nov. 17 1876
Race: White
U.S. Citizen: Native Born
Occupation: Locomotive Engineer
Employer's Name: Pere Marquette RR Co.
Employer's Address: Potter St. Saginaw, Saginaw, Mich
Nearest Relative Name: Augusta Brien (wife)
Nearest Relative Address: 140 Jefferson St. Manistee, Manistee, Mich
Signature: See registration card
Height: Medium
Build: Medium
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Gray Mixed
Date of Registration: 7 Sep 1918

Happy Flag Day

The United States is celebrating Flag Day today.  I thought I would share a couple of pictures.

 Fort Custer National Cemetery, Memorial Day 2015

Entrance to Fort Custer National Cemetery

Where in the World is Huldah Rowley Fenn?

I believe Huldah Rowley, my paternal third great grandmother, is the daughter of Hopkins Rowley and Elizabeth Stuart (Stewart), but of course, I do not have definitive proof of this.

Huldah Rowley married Daniel Fenn in Shoreham, Addison, Vermont.  They were the parents of nine children, Orpah, Tully C.P., Betsy, Aminda, Orlo H, Daniel C, Abel, and 2 unnamed. Daniel and Huldah were settlers in the Michigan Territory, arriving in 1833.

I haven't been able to find Daniel and Huldah in the 1810 Census and believe they may have been living with her father, Hopkins Rowley, in Shoreham, Addison, Vermont.  The ages of Daniel's family and Hopkin's family match for that census, but since no names are recorded I can't be sure.

FACT	DATE	PLACE OF RESIDENCE	Page Id
Birth	about 1789	Possibly Pittsford, Rutland, Vermont, United States
Census	1790	Pittsford, Rutland, Vermont, United States	p249
Census	1800	Shoreham, Addison, Vermont, United States	p71
Marriage	28 Feb 1808	to Daniel Fenn-Shoreham, Addison, Vermont, United States
Census	1820	Shoreham, Addison, Vermont, United States	p86B
Census	1830	Shoreham, Addison, Vermont, United States	p192
Residence	1833	Sylvan, Washtenaw, Michigan Territory
Church Membership	5 July 1833	First Baptist, Lima, Washtenaw, Michigan Territory
Death	4 May 1862	Chelsea, Washtenaw, Michigan Territory

Sunday's Obituary: Adeline Glover Tyson McKie

Adeline Elizabeth Glover was the daughter of Frank H. Glover and Hattie Lodema Fenn.  She was married twice: 1)Victor Tyson and 2) Leonard McKie.  The three brothers who preceded Adeline in death were Harry Glover (my grandfather), Claude Glover and Merle Glover.

Transcription:

Adeline E. McKie

Bradenton, Fla.

Adeline E. (Glover) McKie, 95, of Bradenton, Fla., and formerly of Battle Creek, died Monday, Aug. 16, 1993, in Bradenton.

Mrs. McKie was born Feb. 17, 1898, in Bear Lake.  She lived in Marquette moving to Battle Creek in the mid 1920's, back to Marquette in 1943 and to Florida in the late 1960's.

She was a homemaker and a former member of Order of Easter Star, Daughters of the Nile and Jobs Daughters.

She enjoyed traveling and playing cards.

She was preceded in death by her husbands, Victor Tyson in 1944 and Leonard McKie in 1970; and three brothers.

Surviving are sons, Jack G. Tyson of Battle Creek, James V. Tyson of Bradenton, and Francis "Ted" Tyson of Montclair, Calif.; six grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.

Services:  11 a.m. today in Memorial Park Cemetery with the Rev. Delmer Case officiating.

Arrangements by:  Royal Funeral Home

Battle Creek Enquirer Digitized Images Strikes Again!

I don't think of myself as having a lot of research to do in my hometown of Battle Creek, Michigan, but a recent visit to the Helen Warner Branch of Willard Library proved me wrong.  I found quite a few newspaper articles on my Glover side of the family in the library's digitized newspapers.

Barbara Elaine Glover is my first cousin, once removed.  She is the daughter of Merle McKinley Glover and Genevieve Dout.  Although, Barbara was to be married in Virginia her engagement announcement was published in the Battle Creek Enquirer. Barbara's aunt, Adeline Glover Tyson McKie, and her grandmother, Hattie Fenn Glover, lived in Battle Creek.

Source: Women's Page and Social News-Engaged, Battle Creek Enquirer, Battle Creek, Calhoun, Michigan, United States, 1 November 1949, page 6; column 2.

Transcription: 

MISS BARBARA ELAINE GLOVER
Lieut.-Col. and Mrs. Merle M. Glover of Arlington Va. announce the engagement of their daughter, Barbara Elaine to Carl W. Harmon, Jr. son of Mr. and Mrs. Carl W. Harmon, Sr. of Route 4.  The wedding will take place at 2 o'clock Saturday afternoon, December 10, in the Anacostia Naval chapel, Washington, D.C. The couple will be at home at 1240 South Taylor, Arlington, Va. after December 21.

Tombstone Tuesday: George B. Fenn

IN MEMORY

GEORGE B. FENN

HUSBAND

1860                   1935

George B. Fenn, the son of Daniel C. Fenn and Elizabeth Ann (Poor) Fenn was born 24 December 1860, in Michigan.  He died 11 Dec 1935 in Hersey, Osceola, Michigan, at the age of 75 years. George B. Fenn is buried in the Fenn Family Plot in Hersey Village Cemetery, Hersey, Osceola, Michigan.