Week Ending August 11, 2012

So far, I have been very busy on Ancestry.ca and FamilySearch.org adding tidbits to my family tree. The persons I added information to are:

Charles Edward DEDRICK (1870-1905), son of John and Anne (Crellan) DEDRICK - added his death date of 24 May 1905 in San Diego, CA, USA; Added his tombstone from Mount Hope Cemetery, San Diego; Added a few marriages including 1892 non-marriage to Clara A. Oswald, 1896 to Luthera Nowlen.

Charlotte Hortense DEDRICK (1858-1944) While searching for information on a whole 'nother family line, I ran across Donna (Holmes) Bonaccorso's tree. She is the g granddaughter of Charlotte H. and Mile Holmes. She has some beautiful pictures of Charlotte and Miles and their descendants.

Minnie Lucretia DEDRICK (1866-?), daughter of Samuel Spurgeon and Lucy (Watts) DEDRICK - added a second marriage to William Gidley OSBORN, 24 Feb 1892 in Jackson, Michigan. She already had a son with Calvin E. Gates, Roy C. Gates (188-?). I also added the following children according to 1900 US Federal Census: Ione (b. 1893), Ryland G. (b. 1894), Willhelmina (b. 1897), and Erma M. (b. 1899). Added a death date for Minnie as well: 13 Aug 1916 in Alamo, Michigan, USA and her and her husband's cemetery - Alamo Center Cemetery. As well, I ran across a user family tree. He is the gg grandson of William G. and Minnie L. (Dedrick) OSBORN!

Alonzo L. SHELLEY/SHELLY - my ggg uncle, he died single 18 Feb 1899 in Wyandotte, Michigan. The son of William (1841-?) and Henrietta Anna (Miller) SHELLY, he was  the younger brother of my gg grandfather, Francis SHELLY (1863-1901). They were the last generation to consider themselves Pennsylvania Dutch - River Brethren Mennonite to be specific. The 4 younger brothers, William (b. 1870), Alonzo (1841-1891), Truman (1877-1946), and Preston (b. 1878) have been one of those genealogical mysteries. I believe William married Ida and had a number of children while farming in Michigan and have made a contact to inquire further (since she is descended from William and Ida). Truman lived in Norfolk County all his life, near Courtland, to be precise. Preston falls off the family tree in 1891. As for their baby sister, don't even get me started. At first, I thought she was the daughter of another Shelly family, then found her relatives out in Prince George, BC. She was born Eleavue Rosette and married a Muma from Oxford County. Needless to say, there is a lot of work I need to do on my family tree!

There has been some more but I think I'll add it another time.

A Year Sabbatical (But Not Really)

Hmmm ... A whole year, eh?
Honestly, it wasn't a year where I didn't work on my family tree, visit various archives, search on Ancestry.ca or research every moment of my spare time.
Being a elementary school teacher with - what some tell me - is 11 weeks of vacation, you would think I would have more time. But, as my colleagues know, teachers get asked to sit on various community committees, chair events, speak publicly, etc. My "vacations" are really not holidays: I remain just as busy as during the school year.
I think most of the non-teaching public forget that teachers, doctors, lawyers - they help society not just through their jobs but also through their philanthropic and volunteered time spent trying to make the world a better place. On every committee, you will find one of these (and usually 2/3) professionals tirelessly working  to help the less fortunate on their "vacation." We are driven to help others - that's how we found our calling.
But I digress. So my year was busy. Much of my spare time was spent researching - my other calling. I am a question-maker and a problem-solver. I try to make order from chaos. I like to create. Thus, family history research is my outlet for all and more!
One way to make order from chaos - simplify and streamline. Over the years, I have filled up numerous notebooks with information detailing my journey into genealogy. Notes on what I found in archives, leads from fellow researchers and snippets of information, etc. To go back and reflect on what I found never got done. I lost leads, misplaced key documents, and generally have a mess to deal with. So, over the year, I have worked on making order from my own research chaos.
The result: A research journal. In it, are checklists for the 4 focal research lines. Those lines are the Squire R. & Stephen W. HARRIS connection, The Robert MABEE connection to Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada Mabee family, The Charles S. MUDFORD question of where he originally came from in England, and the Emma/Emily Ruth SHELLY/SHELLEY question of where she went after 1910. Each has a divided spot in my binder with a checklist, family group sheet(s), general pedigree chart, and dates notes. In the front is another checklist that amalgamates all of it into 5 or less research questions. When they are solved, they will be posted.
Four research focal points seems like a good number. Not too much, not too little. The aim is to post completed research on the blog. I can't guarantee the frequency of my posts as research is a fluid task. For those that have come to this blog to comment or contact a fellow researcher, I will check at least once a week for posters.