SNGF-The Ancestors' Geneameme

Time for Saturday Night Genealogy Fun. This week's mission is to participate in the Ancestors' Geneameme. Below is my contribution.

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 (colour optional)
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type
You are encouraged to add extra comments in brackets after each item 

Which of these apply to you?

1.  Can name my 16 great-great-grandparents
2.  Can name over 50 direct ancestors
3.  Have photographs or portraits of my 8 great-grandparents [I have photographs of everyone but my great grandfather Charles William Radcliff. I should have it soon.]
4.  Have an ancestor who was married more than three times [I have more than one, the closest being my maternal great grandfather Clyde Thomas Vanzandt, who was married 8 times, although he only actually had 4 wives]
5.  Have an ancestor who was a bigamist
6.  Met all four of my grandparents
7.  Met one or more of my great-grandparents [I have met them all, although I only remember my great grandmothers and my step great grandfather. One of my great grandmothers is still living.]
8.  Named a child after an ancestor [This is something I've thought about. If I have another daughter, she will be named for some of our ancestors.]
9.  Bear an ancestor's given name/s [My name is pretty unique. I have yet to meet anyone with the same given name.]
10.  Have an ancestor from Great Britain or Ireland [On both sides]
11.  Have an ancestor from Asia
12.  Have an ancestor from Continental Europe [Haven't proven it yet, but I'm pretty sure I have this one both sides.]
13.  Have an ancestor from Africa [It was a complete surprise when I stumbled across that one because no one had said anything about it.]
14.  Have an ancestor who was an agricultural labourer
15.  Have an ancestor who had large land holdings 
16.  Have an ancestor who was a holy man - minister, priest, rabbi
17.  Have an ancestor who was a midwife
18.  Have an ancestor who was an author [Probably not an author in most people's book, but my great grandmother Evelyn Edna King Carson had a weekly newspaper column.]
19.  Have an ancestor with the surname Smith, Murphy or Jones [On both sides]
20.  Have an ancestor with the surname Wong, Kim, Suzuki or Ng
21.  Have an ancestor with a surname beginning with X
22.  Have an ancestor with a forename beginnining with Z
23.  Have an ancestor born on 25th December
24. Have an ancestor born on New Year's Day
25.  Have blue blood in your family lines
26.  Have a parent who was born in a country different from my country of birth
27.  Have a grandparent who was born in a country different from my country of birth
28.  Can trace a direct family line back to the eighteenth century
29.  Can trace a direct family line back to the seventeenth century or earlier
30.  Have seen copies of the signatures of some of my great-grandparents
31.  Have ancestors who signed their marriage certificate with an X [I'm sure there were some; I just haven't came across them yet.]
32.  Have a grandparent or earlier ancestor who went to university
33.  Have an ancestor who was convicted of a criminal offence [But I did have one that had to pay a penance.]
34.  Have an ancestor who was a victim of crime
35.  Have shared an ancestor's story online or in a magazine (Tell us where) [Does this blog count?]
36.  Have published a family history online or in print (Details please) [This is something I have been considering for a while.]
37.  Have visited an ancestor's home from the 19th or earlier centuries [Most probably no longer exist today, but I can always hope. I know Bolling Hall, home of my Bolling ancestors is still standing and currently operates as a museum.]
38.  Still have an ancestor's home from the 19th or earlier centuries in the family
39.  Have a family bible from the 19th Century
40.  Have a pre-19th century family bible

A Bit Late but SNGF-Signs You Have GOCD

I'm way behind on blog posts and my Google Reader, but this Saturday Night Genealogy Fun was too fun to pass up. It's a little late, but here are my 10 signs I have genealogy OCD.

• You know more about your ancestors than older relatives who actually met them do.
• When a family member mentions someone passing away, you check to see if they're connected to the family and, if they are, immediately start looking for their obituary.
• You regularly check local newspapers and funeral home websites in the areas your ancestors lived to see if any familiar names show up.
• You visit an area your ancestor lived and have memorized directions to every cemetery, but have to ask directions to the nearest hotel or restaurant.
• You pack your genealogy items before you pack your clothes when going on a trip.
• You find a book on local cemeteries at a yard sale and consider buying it even though none of your family has ever lived in the area.
• You spend days trying to figure out how your sister's husband connects to your 2nd great grandmother just because they have the same last name.
• You move to a new place and unpack your genealogy files before your kitchen stuff.
• You look forward to marriages because it gives you another branch of the family to research.
• You encourage your 5 year old to ask daddy to take her to the park just so you can have an hour or two of uninterrupted research time.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Heritage Pie Chart

16 Great Grandparents

• William Merch Radcliff, born 1 Nov 1881 in Gilmer County, WV, died 15 Sept 1974 in Weston, Lewis County, WV. He married Bessie Ethel Collins 27 May 1910 in Oakland, Garrett County, MD.
• Bessie Ethel Collins, born 10 Nov 1891 in Gilmer County, WV, died Oct 1980 in Weston, Lewis County, WV.
• Riley Neal, born 15 May 1887 in Lewis County, WV, died 16 Nov 1968 in Linn, Gilmer County, WV. He married Aulda Jane Messenger 13 Aug 1911 in Gilmer County, WV.
• Aulda Jane Messenger, born 13 Aug 1891 in Gilmer County, WV, died 16 Jan 1973 in Weston, Lewis County, WV.
• Francis Scott Carson, born 20 Aug 1878 in Gilmer County, WV, died 23 Dec 1946 in Gilmer County, WV. He married Dora C Grose 29 Mar 1914 in Gilmer County, WV.
• Dora C Grose, born 10 Feb 1894 in Sand Fork, Gilmer County, WV, died ?
• Frank Elman King, Sr, born 19 Dec 1891 in Wetzel County, WV, died 21 Sept 1966 in Weston, Lewis County, WV. He married Alta Edith Smith 6 Jan 1918 in Wetzel County, WV. He married Anna Belle Jones 10 Dec 1921 in Gilmer County, WV.
• Alta Edith Smith, born 31 Mar 1895 in Green District, Wetzel County, WV, died 1919 in WV.
• James Walter Sweat, born 6 Nov 1874 in Ware County, GA, died 18 Feb 1940 in Nashville, Berrien County, GA. He married Addie Mae Deen 1 Nov 1896 in Pierce County, GA.
• Addie Mae Deen, born 8 Sept 1881 in Blackshear, Pierce County, GA, died 13 May 1966 in St. Cloud, Osceola County, FL.
• James Thomas Hayes, born 5 Jun 1889 in Valdosta, Lowndes County, GA, died 13 Feb 1960 in Nashville, Berrien County, GA. He married Minnie L Rice 27 Oct 1912 in Berrien County, GA. He married Charlotte Jane LNU
• Minnie L Rice, born Nov 1897 in GA, died ca 1931 in GA.
• William Walter Vanzandt, born 30 Jan 1884 in Kentucky, died 19 Jan 1963 in Chandler, Warrick County, IN. He married Martha Matilda Elizabeth Davis 20 Oct 1905 in Boonville, Vanderburgh County, IN.
• Martha Matilda Elizabeth Davis, born 19 Nov 1881 in Chandler, Warrick County, IN, died 22 Oct 1961 in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, IN. She was previously married to Thomas Huggins.
• Lora D Boling, born 7 Nov 1897 in Pellville, Hancock County, KY, died 26 Sept 1961 in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, IN. He married Eva Mae Sanders ca 1897 in Pellville, Hancock County, KY.
• Eva Mae Sanders, born 13 Jul 1907 in Pellville, Hancock County, KY, died 31 May 1988 in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, IN. She later married Andrew Cooper.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Do Some Random Research

This week Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings borrowed an idea from Christ Staats of Staats Place (Freaky Friday: Random Research Reports) for Saturday Night Genealogy Fun.

The idea is to take a random name generated by the Random Name Generator, put it into the search engine at Ancestry or FamilySearch. The first census result is the person you will be researching. The goal is to use whatever resources you have available to learn more about the person and report the results in your blog.

My random name: Juanita Stephenson.

In the 1930 census, Juanita Stephenson is living in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. She is Negro, aged 26, married at age 19 to Wilson Stephenson (age 25) with two children, Lucile (age 7) and Monte (age 4y6m). The census record indicates that both she and her parents were born in Missouri. The head of the household is her divorced mother, Rosa Barrett (age 56). Also in the household is a sister, Edith Barrett (age 30).

I checked Missouri Marriage Records 1805-2002 to see if I could locate Juanita's marriage. I found that she married Jasper Stevenson 21 Jan 1928 in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri.

Working backwards, I next found Juanita in the 1920 census, also in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. She is listed as black, age 16, born in Missouri with her parents born there as well. The head of the household is again her mother, Rosa Barrett (written as Rosa Barratt), age 46, divorced. Also in the household are siblings Edith (age 21), Bertha (age 14), Clarence (age 11) and Than (age 3y2m). Interestingly, Bertha, Clarence and Than are all listed as mulatto while Juanita, Edith and their mother is listed as black. Possibly, the younger children have a different father.

Juanita appears in the 1910 Census for Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri as Wanita. She is listed as age 7, mulatto, born in Missouri with parents born in Missouri. Her mother is again head of household, listed as Resa Barrett, widow, age 36. Also in the household are siblings Ethel W (age 16, married), Edith (age 13), Bertha (age 6), Clarence (age 3). It is interesting that Juanita is listed as mulatto since she was listed as black or negro in the two following censuses.

I wasn't able to find a death record, but since Juanita's approximate date of birth was ca 1903, I decided to check FindAGrave. I found her in Cedar Hill Cemetery, located in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. According to the cemetery notes, this cemetery was formerly called East Cemetery and a number of African-Americans are buried in it. Juanita's birthdate is given as 6 Jun 1902 and her deathdate is given as 10 Apr 1970.

On a hunch, I checked the cemetery for other names and found several family members, including Juanita's husband, Wilson J Stevenson; her mother, Rose A Barrett; and what is probably two of her sisters. An Edith Barrett Heard, born 17 Jan 1897 died 10 Apr 1956, fits with the approximate date of birth for Juanita's sister.

The second possible sister is Bertha M Simpson, born 23 May 1903 died Oct 1977. The birthdate is close to that of Bertha Barrett. Also, the mother of Bertha is given as Rosa Irvin/Irwin and two of her children are named Juanita and Edith.

It is unclear who Juanita's father was. Her mother married Thomas Barratt 26 Apr 1892 in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. Juanita's mother is listed as divorced and going by her maiden name in the 1900 census with only two children, Edith and Ethel. I haven't found any other marriage records for Rosa, but she is listed as widowed in 1910 and divorced again in 1920.

Looking at the 1910 census, you can see a six year gap between Juanita and her next oldest sister. The fact that her two older sisters are listed as black while she and her younger siblings are listed as mulatto seems to indicate they have different fathers. When you look at the 1920 census, there is 8 year gap between the two youngest children, which could indicate different fathers as well.

Rosa Barrett's death certificate indicates that she was widowed twice. Juanita was listed as informant on her mother's death certificate.