Sunday, February 22, 2009

They Drove Away and Forgot Vivian

I've done research on the families of our sons-in-law and daughters-in-law so I could prepare pedigree charts for our grandchildren. I'm trying to visually inspire them to become interested in their ancestors and hopefully kindle a spark of curiosity that will carry them into further research as they get older.

One of my sons-in-law is a descendant of Wesley Clayton Muma. In researching Wesley, I read the most interesting and visually-stimulating story and have reprinted it below. This account is taken from History of Hood River County, Oregon 1852-1982 by Hood River Historical Society, page 303.

From the "History of Hood River"
Wesley and his brother Sidney came to the United States from Alberta, Canada in 1922. They worked in the lumber industry in Estacada, Oregon for several months. After earning enough money, they returned to Canada to get their families and bring them to the United States. Wesley had purchased a 1919 house car and left it at Bonners Ferry in Idaho (as seen in the photo postcard at right), where they entered the USA in 1923. Traveling in the house car were his wife, Violet, and eleven children, All born in Canada. Their first job when coming to Oregon was picking apples at Nunamakers in Odell; they followed the harvest to the Willamette valley, then to Dufur, to the largest apple orchard for the harvest. Wesley decided the family should go to California to "pick up gold in the streets." While traveling through Portland, a kindly lady stopped to ask Mr. Muma if he was in town from the children's farm. Assuring her that all the children were his, they left for California. In their faithful house car, traveling eighty miles a day was fantastic, if there weren't too many flat tires. After working for a year in Los Angeles, Mr. Muma decided to return to Hood River. Leaving Los Angeles, they counted noses and discovered Vivian was missing. In the excitement of leaving, they had left her behind. Returning to the house, the found the seven-year old Vivian sitting on the steps crying. Starting out again, they arrived in Hood River to stay in the spring of 1925. They moved to the Upper Valley to farm and work hard to raise a large family. Three more children were born here - Jiggs, Buddy, and Dickey. They raised the school population considerably by starting nine children in school at the same time. They had two school buses; one was a covered wagon, driven by Mr. Melquist. Alvy Hardman drove a canvas-covered truck for the other bus. Ned Van Nuys delivered the milk on horseback. The Mumas operated a dairy farm for several years, delivering milk to the Upper Valley and around Mount Hood. There were many campsites around the valley in those days - Midway, Homestead, Cloud Cap, Cooper Spur and Bluebucket Inn. Faster cars eventually did away with those places. Six of the Muma boys served in World War II. Daughter Aileen married Gus Maurer and lived in the area all her life. Wesley Jr. married Elsie Ross and lived in Los Angeles. Ross moved to California, where he married Dorothy Patereau, who came from a pioneer family in the Upper Valley. Dorothy's parents, with their fourteen children, had moved to Bakersfield, California about 1929. Buddy and his wife Hazel lived in the Hood River area. Bubbs and Dickey lived in Alaska. Cliff married Leona Smith , from a pioneer family who came to the valley in 1923, and remained in the Upper Valley. Jimmy and his wife Rita lived in Portland. Wesley (Sr.) was the first to pass away, in 1939, leaving Violet to raise their last three children at home. Violet worked until she was eighty two. She passed away on her ninety-second birthday in 1978.

Friday, February 20, 2009

Passing Along the Kreativ Blogger Award to One at a Time

I was flattered last week to be awarded the Kreativ Blogger Award by Wendy Littrell at All My Branches Genealogy and then later in the day by JoLyn Day, author of the Mount Timpanogos Graveyard Rabbit Blog. I've been really busy this week with my full time job and tending to my Dad, Ernie Margheim, as he's been hospitalized and has undergone surgery. There just hasn't been enough time in any of my days this week to pass this award on to any of my blogging friends. But I stopped a publication job I'm working on this evening to take the time to pass it on to just ONE blogging friend. I'll try to take them one at a time and hopefully will acknowledge my 7 choices before the month is out!

Gayle Gresham, author of the Colorado Reflections blog is my choice to receive the Kreativ Blogger Award! As a fellow Colorado resident and history enthusiast, she so engagingly spotlights our beautiful state and shares terrific illustrated stories of its history. I'm grateful to Thomas MacEntee of our GeneaBlogger group for notifying me of Gayle's presence in the blogging community! Congratulations, Gayle!
Gayle, the rules are fairly simple:
1. Copy the award to your site.
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate 7 other bloggers.
4. Link to those sites on your blog.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominate.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Thanks to Wendy, JoLyn, and Colleen for the Kreativ Blogger Award

I was thrilled to read this morning that Wendy Littrell at All My Branches Genealogy awarded me, among many others, the Kreativ Blogger Award. I admit it--it gave me a nice feeling! I've only been blogging 5 months and I spend very little time on the posts I put on Grace and Glory. Not because I'm lazy or nonchalant, but because my life is very hectic right now. I want to be a good blogger. I try to be good at anything I do. But the time contraints hinder that effort. I'm just delighted that people want to read what I post! It amazes me.
Wendy also granted this award to my Dad, Ernie Margheim who authors "Ernie's Journeys". I'm going to post the award to his blog in his absence. But his current hospitalization is going to prevent either of us from spending the necessary time to review the other award winners so we can determine who has yet to be honored with this award. There are so many authors who are deserving. In fact, I think anyone who goes to the work and devotes the time to share their genealogy-related information with us in a blog deserves to be awarded!
The geneablogging community is like nothing I've experienced before! Dad and I are both so proud to be part of it. It's wonderful to share with others who show such caring for their families, their histories, their stories, their colorful lives. My own immediate family members aren't interested in my blog, nor in my ancestors, my photographs, my stories. But others who participate in this wonderful ancestral research understand and care, and they show it!
Wendy started out my day by presenting this award to me, and JoLyn Day ended it by offering it to me also on her terrific blog The Mount Timpanogos Graveyard Rabbit. And I just learned that the wonderful Colleen Johnson at CMJ Office also nominated me. Honestly, I'm overwhelmed! Thank you very much, my dear friends, Wendy, JoLyn, and Colleen! I must add that it's the perfect color for the sidebar of my blog. Has anyone noticed that I like the pink and green color combination? LOL.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Valentines: Four Generations




Top photo: John and Mollie Margheim
Second Photo: Son of John & Mollie: Ernest and wife Phyllis Margheim
Third Photo: Daughter of Ernest Margheim: Becky (Margheim) and husband Larry Jamison
Bottom Photo: Son of Becky Jamison: Matt and wife Lucja Klein

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Jackson and Mary Phelps Blood

They say money doesn't grow on trees, but we can find great treasures on trees--our Family Trees!
I recently got an email from a lady named Margaret who inquired about my relationship to Jackson Blood, whom she found on my family tree posted at Ancestry.com. The name wasn't familiar to me so before I answered her I had to look at my database to see who he was. I found that he was married to Mary "Polly" Phelps, whose brother Arva is my 3rd great grandfather. This makes Mary Phelps Blood my 3rd great grandaunt. So I'm not really related by
"blood" to Jackson Blood. (Just had to add that).
I replied to Margaret about my connection and she very graciously blessed me today with these photos of Jackson and Mary Phelps Blood, their gravestones and this photo of their house!!


Jackson Blood was born in 1795. In 1815 he came on foot to Yates and purchased a farm near the lake, where he remained until 1830. He then removed to a farm which he purchased on lot 2, just south from Lyndonville, where he remained till his death in 1875. His wife was Mary Phelps, a native of New Hampshire. Their daughter, Mrs. Ira Martin, resides on a part of the same place. C. Jackson Blood, a son and a prominent citizen of Yates, died in the town in 1888. Source: Landmarks of Orleans County, New York, by Isaac Smith; http://tinyurl.com/btz3da
JACKSON BLOOD (22 Jan 1793 - 2 Sep 1871) Newspaper: The Medina Tribune; Thurs., 7 Sep 1871Surnames: BLOOD, PHELPS

Another of the older citizens of Yates has gone. Mr. Jackson BLOOD died of cholera morbus, about two o'clock on Saturday last, after a brief illness of a little over two days. Mr. BLOOD was one of the Pioneers of this town, having moved and settled here in 1818. He was born in New Ipswich, N. H., on the 22d day of January, 1793, and was consequently in the 79 year of his age at his death.

Mr. BLOOD resided in Boston and Cambridge about the time of the war of 1812, and stood two different drafts for that war. He was married in 1814 to Miss Mary PHELPS, his now surviving widow. He made his first visit to what is now the town of Yates in 1817, having made the journey from N. H. and return on foot. The following year he moved his family, with an ox team, first to Batavia and thence to this town, the journey occupying twenty-one days. He made a public profession of religion and was baptised into the Yates Baptist Church on the 22d day of September, 1822, being the first person baptised into that church after its organization on the sixth day of June previous.

His funeral was attended to-day by a large concourse of friends and citizens from the Methodist house in this place. Rev. W. T. Potter, the Pastor of the Baptist Church officiating, assisted by Revs. Dr. Chamberlain and K.(?) E. Brownlee. The sermon was from the 17th Psalm, 15th verse. Yates, Sept. 4th W. T. P.
Posted by: Orleans County Genweb staff, 1 Nov 2006
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nyorlean/obitb3.htm
Interment in Boxwood Cemetery - "B"
Town of Ridgeway, Orleans County, New York. Transcribed by: Richard and Shirley Nellist. Contributed by: Richard Nellist, Town of Ridgeway Historian. Formatted to htm by: Doug Murphy
Material may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material
Jackson and Mary are both buried in Boxwood Cemetery, Ridgeway, Orleans, New York. Mary was born in 1794 and died September 17 1883.
I'm very grateful to Margaret for sharing these precious photos with me. I'm posting this information here on my blog because this was one of the reasons I started writing this blog. I realized it could be a good "repository" for me to keep track of emails, new contacts, and discoveries of new information about ancestors and other relatives. I can "tie things together" here until I have time to update my database and my family files. As I "publicize" my work and my findings, others may discover connections too! And we're all blessed.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Christmas Card from Old Bosna School teacher

Among the treasures I found in my 'Blog Food Box', the box of papers & keepsakes I recently brought home from my Dad's house, was this Christmas card from his school teacher. Her name was Emma M. Sitz and she taught at the Old Bosna School in Wakeeney, Trego County, Kansas during the years 1927-1931 when my dad attended that one-room school. Included with the Christmas card was her picture (at left). If you look closely at the card, you'll notice her initials are engraved in gold lettering at the top. The verse says: "Christmas comes by a beautiful road, A road full twelve months long. May each sunny mile be lit with a smile, and cheered by a merry song." Emma M. Sitz

I think it's wonderful that students in those days were given such a beautiful card by their teacher. The card itself is printed on stiff, heavy cardboard, and enclosed in a heavy, sturdy envelope lined with decorative foil paper. Remember these were the years of the Great Depression.

Addendum Oct 23, 2012:
Emma Merle Sitz (Mrs. Cecil C.) Reeder
1911-2006