Saturday, January 31, 2009

School Souvenir from Old Bosna School

Among the treasured items I found in the box I've been writing about (see my last few posts) are little booklets called "School Souvenirs". I hadn't heard of these before last week, so as I discovered the first one that had belonged to my Grandma Mollie (Koleber) Margheim in 1913, I wrote about it. Last night I found another one that had belonged to my dad's younger brother Alfred Margheim. It's precious to us because Alfred died at the age of 9 in 1933.

Pictured at left is the envelope it was enclosed in.
This is the front cover. I like the quotation: "Education molds the mind For broader life in humankind."

The first page in this photo says: "With the compliments of your teacher, this gift is presented to you, believing that it will grow in value as the years glide by." That certainly proved to be true!
Page 2 offers "Character of a Happy Life" , a poem by Sir Henry Wotton, concluded by this quotation from James Whitcomb Riley: "It's the songs ye sing, and the smiles ye wear That's making the sun shine everywhere. "












Page 3 contains the poem "Beautiful Thoughts" by Leone B. Wienkers. The left side of the Centerfold first offers this advice: "Study To Show Thyself Approved". It is followed by this admonition: "Count that day lost, Whose low descending sun, Views from thy hand, No worthy action done".












The school and class information is finally presented in the centerfold. Old Bosna School, District No. 22, Trego County, Kansas, 1929-1930, Emma Merle Sitz, Teacher
PUPILS: Wilbur Charles Dolezal, Alfred George Margheim (My uncle), Ernest Ludwig Margheim (My dad), Forrest Eugene Zeman, Harold David Zeman, Frank Junior Schmitt, Albert Fred Kvasnicka, Dale Edward Dolezal, Clara Marjorie Dietz, Arvilla Ruby Papes, Julius Dietz, Fern Rose Papes, David Dieta, Crystal Lamberta Reeder, Worley Dorman Reeder
SCHOOL BOARD: Henry F. Dietz, Clerk, John W. Reeder, Director, William Papes, Treasurer; Mrs. Carrie Gregg, County Supt.

Page 6 displays the poem "Memories of School and Home", followed on page 7 by four quotations on the topics of Education, Books, Art, and Music.











The final page in the book offers this wonderful little poem by Medeline Bridges. "For life is the mirror of king and slave. 'Tis just what we are and do; Then give to the world the best you have. And the best will come back to you."
The book was printed by Colonial Printing Co, Mansfield, Ohio

After I discovered and reviewed this beautiful little souvenir booklet, I searched online for a picture of OLD BOSNA SCHOOL. Believe it or not, I found one! It's part of a copyrighted collection owned by photographer Mary Heller and is viewable here: http://tinyurl.com/b35gan I signed her guest book and promptly received a reply from her. As it turns out, she is a family friend of the Reeder family, whom you'll see listed as pupils in this book. We just never know what kind of connections we can make as we explore the histories of things like these little School Souvenir booklets. I think they are precious. It's too bad they aren't part of our school culture today.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Organizing My 'Blog Food Box'

After a busy day at my "real job" I hurried home tonight to tackle this box I brought home from my Dad's house. I rifled through it hurriedly last week and found myself sneezing from dust and paper particles. The cardboard box was giving me FITS! So I bought an inexpensive plastic container to temporarily place the contents in. I transferred things into it and tried to pull it over near me in "my chair". So much for cheap--the handle came right off in my hand!

But I persevered. Tonight I went through everything piece by piece and sorted it according to which family member it referenced.

I found my parents' high school year books, papers from when my mom and dad bought their first house in 1947. My dad and step-mother's high school diplomas (1940 and 1942). I even found the paper issued to my parents when my twin brother and I were dismissed from the hospital 2 weeks after our birth in 1947! My dad kept his high school report cards and they're in this box. Church dedication programs, obituaries, funeral cards, letters, newspaper clippings, invitations, greeting cards...you name it, it's in this box.

I'm going to scan and blog about many of the papers before I start going through hundreds of photographs. That will be the easy task. Properly storing these keepsakes is going to be the challenge for me. My work is cut out for me, isn't it!

I'm so grateful my dad was a "keeper". It'll be fun to sit down with him soon and go through these things and note his comments! What memories these things will stir.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Grandma's 'School Souvenir' Books

Note: This is the 2nd in a series of posts revealing an item I discovered when I opened the "Box of Blog Food", the box full of treasures from my Dad's house that I wrote about here.

The book at left says "Souvenir", "Lest We Forget" and 1913 at the bottom left. Embossed across the bottom is "The Foundation of Every State is the Education of It's Youth." It belonged to my grandmother, Mollie Koleber, who was born 1902.

This is the next page where is printed this poem: "The school is out, vacations come, The bell has ceased to sound, The old school house has lost its hum, And silence broods around."

"When the heart of the home is in league with the school it is well with the child."
Identified on the second page is "Excelsior School, District 28, Trego County, Kansas; Bertha Mensing, Teacher", followed by the list of pupils and the School Board, as is visible in this photo at left.
The double-page spread in the middle of this little book is an assortment of quotations.
And this illustration decorates the final page of the book.









I have a BONUS: The Souvenir Book from the next school year!

Here are the following pages in the order they appear. It's dated 1915-1916.



The final page offers this illustrated poem: "Wisdom is the olive that springeth from the heart, Bloometh on the tongue and beareth fruit in the actions."







Tuesday, January 27, 2009

From the Box: Grandpa's Note Book

When I opened the "treasure" box of papers and pictures that I retrieved from my Dad's house recently (that I wrote about here), I first found this little notebook that was adorned with a "bathing beauty" on the cover. The book is a very small one--it measures only 3" x 5". I recognize the handwriting in it as my grandfather's--John Ludwig Margheim. My Grandpa Margheim was born in 1900 in Wakeeney, Trego County, Kansas, the youngest of the 9 children of George Jacob and Mary Katherine (Winter) Margheim. "Jacob and Katie" immigrated to America from Merkel, Russia in 1886, whose ancestors had settled along the Volga River as emigrants from Germany in the mid 1700s.
Grandpa's dad, Jacob, died when Grandpa was 12 years old, so Grandpa quit school and worked to help support the family. So I'm amazed to see that he wrote in his little "Note Book" in cursive handwriting, with accurate spelling. The pages in the picture above reflect what we essentially call "Family Group Records"! My Grandpa was a genealogist, or family historian, or at least the family record keeper! On the page at the bottom right of the collage above you may be able to discern the record of Jacob Margheim at the top of the page. Born 7 May 1856 in Friedenfeld, Russia, died 15 Oct. 1912 at age 56.
This little note book is a treasure to me. Grandpa (pictured at left in 1968) was a rather quiet man and I find it really interesting to see that he kept records of his family members in such a book. I know that's not an unusual practice, but think about it. How many men who were scraping out a meager living for their families on the plains and farms of Kansas in the early part of the 1900s would take the time to sit down and make a written record of their family members? Maybe a lot of them did, but I'm surprised my Grandpa took the time to do this. There are a lot of things we don't know about our grandparents during the years we're able to be with them, aren't there!

Saturday, January 24, 2009

My Box of Blog Food

What is a "box of blog food"? It's a box that is found FULL of important historical family papers, photos, books, letters, certificates and other documents! Enough to blog about for a full year! I discovered such a box two days ago and my breath was taken away.

My dad is a "keeper", a "saver", a genealogist's dream! He recently had a new furnace installed in a storage room at his house and in the process of making room for that furnace, boxes had to be moved. I noticed one poor box that was close to caving in as heavier boxes were piled on top of it. I acted on my urge to rescue that box, and I put it in my trunk and hauled it home. That was several weeks ago!

Finally two days ago I brought that box into the house thinking I'd take a quick peek at its contents, tape it up, and move it to my attic for storage. Little did I know what treasures it held.

The first item I saw was a newspaper from my home town of Great Bend, Ks dated July 9, 1942. I knew that my parents were married July 9, 1943, but I didn't know the significance of the 1942 date. As I looked at the newspaper I discovered it commemorated my dad's induction into the Army with a photo and accompanying story.

As I dug deeper into the box I found such things as (1) letters from my brother when he was stationed in Viet Nam, (2) a letter that my dad received while in the Army from HIS grandfather in Kansas---written in German, (3) a little log book my grandfather kept of his farming and household expenses, (4) school papers that belonged to my Dad's younger brother, who passed away at age 9, (5) both my dad and my step-mother's high school year books, (6) lots and lots of photographs--some are family portraits taken in the early 1900s.

So in the weeks to come I'll be posting specific details about the contents of this box full of blog food! I'm so excited about this "find" that I hope to be able to scan, organize, document and archive these things regularly in the months to come. Wish me luck, and check back often.

Monday, January 19, 2009

My Family Quilt

At the top of the sidebar at right, it says "I want my grandchildren to know who my grandparents were." My paternal grandparents were a very big part of my childhood and a strong part of our nucleus family. I was lucky to be with my Grandpa and Grandma often as I grew up and they were very special to me. My twin brother Dennis and I lived with them for 2 years before we started school and before my Dad re-married. My Grandpa was the Head Custodian at Hoisington High School in Hoisington, KS and occasionally let Dennis & me go to work with him. We felt quite privileged as 4 year olds roaming those HUGE halls of high school. My Grandma let me lick the bowl when she prepared her homemade apple cake. I have so many memories of the special times I spent with my grandparents. I don't know if my grandchildren will ever be interested, but I sure hope they'll want to know who my grandparents were and what they meant to me.
My oldest step-daughter Becky makes "Memory Quilts", so last year my husband secretly asked her to make one for me as his Mother's Day gift to me. He scanned photos of my family and emailed them to her. How easy is that? Our technology makes such things possible like never before! Becky took her daughter Raichael shopping with her to pick out the fabric for the quilt. That involved my granddaughter, who knew my favorite colors. It was a way to expose my granddaughter to the family members of her Grandma Becky. The photos in the quilt are of me and my twin brother, my husband, my son, my parents, both natural and step, and all my grandparents. What a treasure!
I don't have the quilt displayed yet, but plan to hang it on the wall. It can be a great conversation starter!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Happy Birthday to My Mother

Ruby Nadine Flanders Margheim Craine
January 17, 1925 - July 14, 1990

My son marvels that I'm a person who finds meanings in dates. I admit, each day as I think of the date or look at the calendar, my mind goes to remembering anything important that might have happened on that date. Not just birthdays or anniversaries, but other milestones, large and small. It's those small ones that my son is amazed by.

But today was my mother's birthday. I never got to celebrate it with her because I was raised by my Dad and step-mom. But I always remembered her birthday anyway. It was a special day in my mind. So today I'm wishing my Mom Happy Birthday. I just realized I have no pictures of her as a baby or small girl. I need to write to my half-sister and ask if she has any she can share.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Thank you, Amy Coffin

Today at WE TREE, Amy Coffin paid tribute to my dad Ernie Margheim and his blog "Ernie's Journeys" and I just have to post a very sincere "thank you!" The support, encouragement and acknowledgment that comes from our Genea-Blogger friends is awesome. I'm grateful!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

In Memory of Mary Cowell Roberts

In Loving Memory
Mary Alene Cowell Roberts
1923-14 January 2009

My husband's Aunt Mary Roberts passed away yesterday in Waynesburg, Greene, Pennsylvania. We love you and miss you.

Left to right in this photo above are Mary Cowell Roberts, who was married to Boyd Roberts, then my husband's mother and Boyd's sister, E. Irene Roberts Jamison, then Boyd's youngest sister Joyce Roberts Miller, then at far right is Hester Lily Day King Roberts, mother of Joyce, Irene and Boyd Roberts and mother-in-law of Mary Cowell Roberts.
Aunt Mary is pictured in this photo at right with her other brother-in-law Roy Roberts, brother of Mary's husband Boyd Roberts.
And below are Boyd and Mary Roberts.



Saturday, January 10, 2009

Happy Birthday Colonel



Happy Birthday, Colonel!
Lt. Col. Lafayette Richard "Dick" Jamison
January 10, 1917
March 2, 1997
Pictured at left is my husband Larry Jamison, at home on leave from the Air Force in 1968.
At right is his proud father, Lt. Col. L. R. Jamison.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

One of My Favorite Photos: Weekly Prompt #1

I like this picture of the "Becker Band", which includes several of my granduncles and grandaunts. I didn't know them personally so I feel fortunate that a cousin has shared this picture with me. It was probably taken around 1910 in Kansas.
The women left to right are Edna Becker, friend Deborah Sutton, Mabel Becker and Esta Becker. The men from left to right at Bert Becker, Bill Lillich (future husband of Mabel Becker) and Lew Becker. The Becker siblings' sister Nannie was my maternal grandmother. I wish I could have heard them play and sing! Posted by Picasa

Monday, January 5, 2009

104 Tidbits About My Genealogy Habits

I read this post from Julie at GenBlog and thought it would be a lot of fun to personalize for myself since it deals with only Genealogy-related items.

The list should be annotated in the following manner:
Things you have already done or found: bold face type
Things you would like to do or find: italicize
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type

Belong to a genealogical society.
Researched records onsite at a court house.
Transcribed records.
Uploaded tombstone pictures to Find-A-Grave.

Documented ancestors for four generations (self, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents) .
Joined Facebook.
Helped to clean up a run-down cemetery.
Joined the Genea-Bloggers Group on Facebook.
Attended a genealogy conference.
Lectured at a genealogy conference.
Spoke on a genealogy topic at a local genealogy society.
Been the editor of a genealogy society newsletter.
Contributed to a genealogy society publication.
Served on the board or as an officer of a genealogy society.
Got lost on the way to a cemetery. (I get lost leaving my house.)
Talked to dead ancestors.
Researched outside the state in which I live.
Knocked on the door of an ancestral home and visited with the current occupants.
Cold called a distant relative.
Posted messages on a surname message board.
Uploaded a gedcom file to the internet.
Googled my name. (aka The Ego Search)
Performed a random act of genealogical kindness.
Researched a non-related family, just for the fun of it.
Have been paid to do genealogical research.

Earn a living (majority of income) from genealogical research.
Wrote a letter (or email) to a previously unknown relative.
Contributed to one of the genealogy carnivals.
Responded to messages on a message board or forum.

Was injured while on a genealogy excursion.
Participated in a genealogy meme.
Created family history gift items (calendars, cookbooks, etc.).

Performed a record lookup for someone else.
Went on a genealogy seminar cruise.
Am convinced that a relative must have arrived here from outer space.
Found a disturbing family secret.

Told others about a disturbing family secret.
Combined genealogy with crafts (family picture quilt, scrapbooking).
Think genealogy is a passion not a hobby.
Assisted finding next of kin for a deceased person (Unclaimed Persons).
Taught someone else how to find their roots.
Lost valuable genealogy data due to a computer crash or hard drive failure.
Been overwhelmed by available genealogy technology.
Know a cousin of the 4th degree or higher.
Disproved a family myth through research.
Got a family member to let you copy photos.

Used a digital camera to “copy” photos or records.
Translated a record from a foreign language.
Found an immigrant ancestor’s passenger arrival record.
Looked at census records on microfilm, not on the computer.
Used microfiche.
Visited the Family History Library in Salt Lake City.
Visited more than one LDS Family History Center.

Visited a church or place of worship of one of your ancestors.
Taught a class in genealogy.
Traced ancestors back to the 18th Century.
Traced ancestors back to the 17th Century.
Traced ancestors back to the 16th Century.
Can name all of your great-great-grandparents.
Found an ancestor’s Social Security application.
Know how to determine a soundex code without the help of a computer.
Used Steve Morse’s One-Step searches.
Own a copy of Evidence Explained by Elizabeth Shown Mills.
Helped someone find an ancestor using records you had never used for your own research.

Visited the main National Archives building in Washington, DC.
Visited the Library of Congress.
Have an ancestor who came over on the Mayflower.
Have an ancestor who fought in the Civil War.
Taken a photograph of an ancestor’s tombstone.
Became a member of the Association of Graveyard Rabbits.
Can read a church record in Latin.
Have an ancestor who changed their name.
Joined a Rootsweb mailing list.
Created a family website.
Have more than one "genealogy" blog.
Was overwhelmed by the amount of family information received from someone.
Have broken through at least one brick wall.
Visited the DAR Library in Washington D.C.
Borrowed a microfilm from the Family History Library through a local Family History Center.
Have done indexing for Family Search Indexing or another genealogy project.

Visited the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Had an amazing serendipitous find of the "Psychic Roots" variety.
Have an ancestor who was a Patriot in the American Revolutionary War.
Have an ancestor who was a Loyalist in the American Revolutionary War.
Have both Patriot & Loyalist ancestors.
Have used Border Crossing records to locate an ancestor.
Use maps in my genealogy research.
Have a convict ancestor who was transported from the UK.
Found a bigamist amongst the ancestors.
Visited the National Archives in Kew.
Visited St. Catherine's House in London to find family records.
Found a cousin in Australia (or other foreign country).
Consistently cite my sources.
Visited a foreign country (i.e. one I don't live in) in search of ancestors.

Can locate any document in my research files within a few minutes.
Have an ancestor who was married four times (or more).
Made a rubbing of an ancestors gravestone.
Organized a family reunion.
Published a family history book.
Learned of the death of a fairly close relative through research.
Have done the genealogy happy dance.
Sustained an injury doing the genealogy happy dance.
Offended a family member with my research.
Reunited someone with precious family photos or artifacts.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

99 Things Meme

Thank you Greta for posting this on your blog: Greta's Genealogy Bog. I thought it looked like easy fun:
Things you’ve already done: bold

Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to - leave in plain font

1. Started your own blog.
2. Slept under the stars.

3. Played in a band.
4. Visited Hawaii.
5. Watched a meteor shower.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to Disneyland/world.
8. Climbed a mountain. (A small one.)

9. Held a praying mantis.

10. Sang a solo.
11. Bungee jumped.
12. Visited Paris.

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch.
15. Adopted a child.
16. Had food poisoning.

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty.

18. Grown your own vegetables.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.

20. Slept on an overnight train.
21. Had a pillow fight.

22. Hitch hiked.

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill.
24. Built a snow fort.

25. Held a lamb.

26. Gone skinny dipping.
27. Run a marathon.

28. Ridden a gondola in Venice.
29. Seen a total eclipse.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.
31. Hit a home run.

32. Been on a cruise.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.

35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language.

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing.

40. Seen Michelangelo's David in person.
41. Sung Karaoke.

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.

43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant.

44. Visited Africa.
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.

46. Been transported in an ambulance.
47. Had your portrait painted.

48. Gone deep sea fishing.

49. Seen the Sistine chapel in person.
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkelling.

52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud.

54. Gone to a drive-in theatre.
55. Been in a movie.

56. Visited the Great Wall of China.

57. Started a business.
58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia.
60. Served at a soup kitchen.

61. Sold Girl Scout cookies.

62. Gone whale watching.
63. Gotten flowers for no reason.
64. Donated blood.

65. Gone sky diving.

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp.

67. Bounced a cheque.
68. Flown in a helicopter. 

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.

71. Eaten Caviar. 

72. Pieced a quilt.
73. Stood in Times Square.
74. Toured the Everglades.
75. Been fired from a job.
77. Broken a bone.

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.
80. Published a book.

81. Visited the Vatican.

82. Bought a brand new car.

83. Walked in Jerusalem.
84. Had your picture in the newspaper.
85. Read the entire Bible.
86. Visited the White House.
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.

88. Had chickenpox.
89. Saved someone’s life.

90. Sat on a jury.
91. Met someone famous.
92. Joined a book club.
93. Lost a loved one.

94. Had a baby.

95. Seen the Alamo in person.

96. Swum in the Great Salt Lake.

97. Been involved in a law suit.

98. Owned a cell phone.

99. Been stung by a bee.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Good Things Come Out of Difficult Times

Wonderful things can come out of trying times. Last summer my Dad spent nearly 2 months in the hospital and nursing home recovering from a broken leg and complications from diabetes. In preparation for his return to his home, where he lives alone at age 87, I relocated 'storage' items and prepared a new room as his bedroom. In doing so, I came across many photo albums and framed pictures I had never seen. Among the albums I discovered was one that had belonged to my step-mother. It was a remarkable find, for my step-mother, Phyllis Jean Jones Margheim, was not interested in revealing anything about her personal life prior to marrying my Dad, nor was she interested AT ALL in discussing anything about her family's history. In fact, she adamantly refused, saying "The only thing that matters is who we are today".
In my 47 years with my "Mom" I had seen one or two photos of her after her high school graduation. But it wasn't until 5 or 6 years ago that I ever saw any pictures of her as a child. And in browsing through this recently-discovered photo album of hers, I found this precious little photo of her as a toddler, with her arms clasped around the neck of a turkey (?). I love the picture. I love looking at the coat and shoes she was wearing. I wish someone had written on the back where it was taken, how old Phyllis was and who the turkey belonged to! I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to "dig" around in Dad's storage room and find this album. I'm grateful to have this picture! I treasure it.