MISSING LINKS: RootsWeb's Genealogy Journal Vol. 4, No. 29, 14 July 1999; Circulation: 333,885+ Copyright (c) 1996-99 Julia M. Case and Myra Vanderpool Gormley Editor-at-Fault: Julia M. Case Co-Editor-to-Blame: Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG CONTENTS: Two Longs and a Short; Family Reunions: Summer Fun for Genealogists; Virtual Bouquet; Successful Links; Family Reunion; Letters to the Editors; Reprint Policy; Call for Articles DONATIONS TO HELP ROOTSWEB HELP YOU ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. For Details about support levels, benefits, and payment options (including credit cards), please visit or e-mail . RootsWeb's mailing address is: RootsWeb, P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. (Please Include your e-mail address on all correspondence and checks.) * * * * * TWO LONGS AND A SHORT by Dick Pence Copyright 1997 [Note: This story, adapted to various changing events, has appeared in more than 150 newspapers and magazines since it was first written about 1984. The following version appeared in The Washington Post in 1991, shortly after a computer glitch caused a "long-distance blackout" on the East Coast.] Those big phone outages of the past couple of weeks have had me feeling a bit guilty over what's been happening. You see, I remember exactly how all this started. Back in 1950 I was a novice seahand aboard a cruiser based in Philadelphia, barely six months out of high school and fresh from the plains of South Dakota. One Friday night in November, we were granted shore leave at the end of a two-week training cruise. Homesick and seasick, I headed immediately for the row of pay phones that lined the dock. Depositing a carefully preserved nickel (remember?), I dialed "O." The following is a roughly verbatim account of what transpired after the Philadelphia operator answered. "I'd like to place a station-to-station collect call to the Bob Pence residence in Columbia, South Dakota," I said in my best telephone voice. The Philadelphia operator was sure she had heard wrong. "You mean Columbia, South Carolina, don't you?" "No, I mean Columbia, South Dakota." I had tried to call home once before and I was ready for that one. "Certainly. What is the number, please?" I could tell she still didn't believe me. "They don't have a number," I mumbled. Like I said, I'd tried to call home before and I knew what was coming. She was incredulous. "They don't have a number?" "I don't think so." "I can't complete the call without a number. Do you have it?" she demanded. I didn't relish being even more of a bumpkin, but I was in the Navy and I knew authority when I heard it. "Well, the only thing I know is . . . TWO LONGS AND A SHORT." I think that's the first time she snorted. "Never mind. I'll get the number for you. One moment please." There followed an audible click and a long period of silence while she apparently first determined if, indeed, there was a Columbia, South Dakota, and then if it was possible to call there. When she returned to the line, she was armed with the not-insignificant knowledge necessary to complete her task. In deliberate succession, she dialed an operator in Cleveland, asked her to dial one in Chicago, asked Chicago to dial Minneapolis, and Minneapolis to dial Sioux City, Iowa. Sioux City called Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and the operator there dialed one in Aberdeen, South Dakota. At last, Aberdeen dialed the operator in Columbia. By this time, Philadelphia's patience was wearing thin, but when Columbia answered, she knew what had to be done. "The number for the Bob Pence residence, please," she said, now in control. Columbia didn't even hesitate. "That's two longs and a short," she declared. Philadelphia was set back for an instant, but valiantly plowed on. "I have a collect call from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for anyone at that number. Would you please ring?" "They're not home," said Columbia, again not missing a beat. Philadelphia digested this and decided not to press the issue. Instead, she relayed the message I'd already heard: "There is no one at that number, sir. Would you like to try again later?" Columbia quickly interrupted: "Is that you, Dick?" "Yeah, Margaret. Where are the folks?" Philadelphia was baffled, but her instincts told her to look out for the company. "Sir, madam . . . you can't . . .," she sputtered. Margaret ignored her. "They're up at the school house at the basketball game. Want me to ring?" I knew I was pushing my luck with Philadelphia, so I said it likely would be too much trouble to get them out of the game. "No trouble at all," said Margaret. "It's halftime." Philadelphia made one last effort. Mustering her most official tone, she insisted: "But this is a station-to-station collect call!" "You just never mind, honey," said Columbia, "I'll just put it on Bob's bill." Philadelphia was still protesting when the phone rang and was answered at the school house. "I have a station-to-station collect call for Bob Pence," she said, knowing at that instant Ma Bell had somehow been had. "This is he," replied my father. "Go ahead," whispered an astonished Philadelphia. I'm glad I couldn't see her face when I began my end of the conversation in the time-honored fashion of all Mid-Westerners: "Hi, Dad, it's me. How's the weather?" "Jeez," said Philadelphia and clicked off. Here is the confession. I have a friend who's retired from AT&T and he insists it was the next Monday morning that the company began to automate its long-distance service. Now look where we are. [Reprinted from TWO LONGS AND A SHORT AND OTHER TALES OF THE OLD WEST, a collection of anecdotes about growing up in small-town America, by Richard A. Pence. Copyright, 1997. Used with permission. You can order directly from the author via e-mail (he will bill you). Single copies $11.95, plus $1.50 postage; for quantity prices or for information on ordering by regular mail, go to: .] * * * * * FAMILY REUNIONS: SUMMER FUN FOR GENEALOGISTS by Rhonda McClure OK -- so family reunions don't always conjure up the best of memories. For some of us they bring back traumatic memories of having our cheeks pinched by Aunt Bertha. For others they may bring back memories of foods never before seen and never seen again (thankfully). For genealogists though, family reunions are a chance to come together and share what they have been working on since the last gathering. Some groups have reunions each year. Others have them less frequently. They can be and should be fun. However, planning them requires preparation, delegation, and a little dedication too. Usually a successful reunion is the result of the work of many committees, each with its own responsibility. Since no one can do it all, it works well to have committees for the following: * Accommodations * Activities * Clean-Up * Family History * Food * Money (both for expenses and fund-raising) * Photos * Setup * Signup * Welcoming Each committee should concentrate solely on its portion of the reunion. By doing this, the jobs are evenly distributed. You will also want to decide what type of reunion you are going to have. Will it be a highly scheduled reunion similar to a genealogy conference? Or will it be more laid back, just good friends getting together for food and fun. When deciding what type of a reunion to have, be sure to keep in mind the weather of the locale in which you will have the gathering. f you are in the summer in Florida, plan some indoor activity for the afternoon (it will either be way too hot outside or it will be raining). Also keep in mind the mix of people who will be coming. There should be activities that will appeal to all age groups. Decide who is to attend. Is this the Descendants of John AYER reunion or is it the AYER Family Reunion? Will you have information of interest to spouses and descendants of all the AYERs? What types of reports and other research aids will you have available? Being in the high-tech world now, see if someone can put together a computerized slide show of old pictures and sound bites. When planning the accommodations, keep these things in mind: * What tourist spots might be close by? * Can the hotel handle some of your indoor activities? * What is the nightly cost for the rooms? * What is the cost for food? * Is the hotel or meeting place easy to find? Planning the food can be difficult. People have their own favorites. You may find that certain foods are harder to come by in one area than in another. So while technically not necessarily a consideration when looking for the hotel, it might be good to keep it in the back of your mind. It is also a good idea to plan ahead for possible dietary restrictions of those who will be attending. Allergies and diseases can limit the types of foods some people can enjoy. You don't want their fun to be spoiled by not being able to enjoy the food (at least a large portion of it). Some excellent books to help you plan your upcoming reunion are: Beasley, Donna and Donna Carter. THE FAMILY REUNION PLANNER. New York: Macmillan General Reference, 1997. Crichton, Jennifer. FAMILY REUNION. Workman Publishing, 1998. Fiock, Shari. FAMILY REUNIONS & CLAN GATHERINGS. Yreka, California: Coyote Publishing, 1991. Heaton, Alma. WAYS TO ENJOY REUNIONS. Mehew, Randall K. ORGANIZING FAMILIES & REUNIONS. Orem, Utah: Keepsake Paperbacks, 1990. And on the Web, visit these sites: Family-Reunion.com Reuniontips.com * * * * * VIRTUAL BOUQUETS: KUDOS FOR JOHN by Sharon Hammond Cords I want everyone to know about John Kopp, a volunteer of Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness . John has gone out of his way, no! more than out of his way, to find information for us, "us" being myself and my second cousin, Paul Hammond Jr. of Tennessee. John spent days walking a cemetery for us and researching the town newspaper and then even talked with the town Mayor for information for us. No other reason -- just to help us out. John Kopp is a warm gentleman, with a heart of gold. I have never met Paul. We just happened to find one another through another researcher with whom he goes to church. She saw my query on the Conway County, Arkansas site and wrote to me -- and the rest is history. This happened several months ago. Paul is 75 years old and didn't know he had any Hammond family members left. He never knew what happened to his father or his aunt and uncles. John Kopp went above and beyond the call of duty by finding burial sites of Paul's grandparents (my great- grandparents), a couple of uncles, an aunt, and even sent us the obituaries on Paul's grandparents. Paul cried when I sent him the information. He called me and asked me for John's address so he could write to him and thank him personally. Paul had so much happiness in his voice -- there are no words to say how wonderful it was. He "belonged" again, thanks to John. Because of the kindness of one man, John Kopp, a complete stranger to us, we have now a strong foundation to find the rest of the family and maybe, just maybe, we will find other cousins alive, well, kicking and waiting to find us. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, John Kopp of Conway, Arkansas, and RootsWeb, for giving Paul so much joy and for giving me fill for the void in my family history. Words just can't begin to say what is really being felt, but thank you is all we have. Thank you, RootsWeb, for providing all of us with a place for this great service. * * * * * CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING ON COUNTY AND SURNAME RESOURCES AT ROOTSWEB. . If you are a genealogical or historical society member, bookseller, professional genealogist, or have something else to sell to genealogists, please visit the appropriate County or Surname Resources and post information on the "For Sale" board. Messages that are not county-specific may be posted at: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~classifieds/genbbs.cgi/ForSale. The classified advertising boards are specifically for commercial activity. RootsWeb strongly encourages all genealogy vendors to post advertisements on these free boards. * * * * * SUCCESSFUL LINKS: This was first published 14 July 1999 on . GREAT GLEE AND A GOOD LESSON by Kathleen T. Choi I have to share my excitement. I've been looking for an Emily LEWIS who married Anson CLARK before 1859, probably in Indiana. No luck. However, I found the marriage of Anson CLARK to Emily LADD in 1854 in Lagrange, Indiana, exactly where Anson's and Emily's son was born. In the 1850 census, I found an Emily LADD in Lagrange living on the farm of the Olmstead LEWIS family with an infant daughter. Since she had no job description, such as housekeeper, and since she was born in New York, like the Lewises, I guessed she was a widowed daughter or niece and possibly my Emily LEWIS. Olmstead LEWIS is also in the Lagrange 1840 census. It indicates he had two daughters in the right age range for my Emily, which was encouraging. So, I've been trying to find Olmstead LEWIS in New York, which he couldn't have left until after 1830, based on the age of his other children who were born in New York. I always wondered, however, if I was on a wild goose chase. Plus The census gives no indication where in New York the Lewises lived. I decided to go back to the 1850 census and see if I could find that other daughter. I looked for wives aged 22-28 (based on the 1840 census) born in New York. One of them was an Eliza Ann SPRAGUE, wife of James M. Sprague. As I was copying the dwelling and family numbers, I realized, "They're on the same farm!" I have no idea how I missed that all the times I've looked at that census. I went to the IGI (which has never yielded anything on my other Lewises). James M. SPRAGUE married Eliza Ann LEWIS in 1840, just after the census was taken. Knowing her age, from the 1850 census, I searched for an Eliza Ann LEWIS, b. 1817. I found one born in Hampstead, New York. No parents, just a "relative" named Austin C. BROWN. Then I checked on James SPRAGUE. He is very well documented and from Granville, Essex, New York. So now I have narrowed the area of New York I have to search. It's a terrific break. This was a good lesson. Keep going over your notes. How I missed that the Spragues lived on the same farm I'll never know, but thank heavens I kept the census printout. * * * * * FAMILY REUNIONS: Details about many of these are available at: . ANDRUS reunion (descendants of William Henry ANDRUS b. 1832 at Castleton, Ontario, Canada), 2 August 1999 in Belleville, Ontario, Canada (100 miles east of Toronto) at West Zwicks Island Park under the roof. Some related families are SEABORN, SABINS, PERKINS, STODDARD, ROWE, and WATSON. Contact Robert B. Andrus BAILEY reunion (100th consecutive annual reunion of descendants of Groombright and Mary (MOORE) BAILEY, 1 August 1999 at the Pfizer Recreational Center near Terre Haute, Indiana. Contact William A. Harrison . BARKSDALE reunion, 30 July - 1 August, 1999, Greenville, South Carolina (events at family church area; Fountain Inn). Contact Barksdale . BROUSSARD. International reunion of BROUSSARD and related families, 30-31 July 1999 in Lafayette, Louisiana during the World Acadian Congress. Contact Errol Brent Broussard, 120 Canebroke Lane, Lafayette, LA 70508; phone 318-989-8676; . EDWARDS reunion, 1 August 1999 at the Rural Hill Methodist Church, Winston County, Mississippi. Contact Tommy Edwards . HARIG reunion, 18 July 1999 at Maier's Grove, Blandon, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Contact Bob Rumpf . HARTZELL reunion, 15 August 1999 at Bender's Church near Biglerville, Pennsylvania, north of Gettysburg. Contact George T. Hartzell, 1 Turner Drive, Fayetteville, PA 17222; phone 717-352-2196; . HEIT reunion, 1 August 1999 at Sampson State Park, Ovid, New York. Contact Leola Sutton . HOEFS reunion, 30 July through 1 August 1999 in the Beaver Dam area. Contact Dave and Ruth Hoefs . MAPLES, MCDERMOTT, GREENWALT reunion (descendants and friends of Marmaduke MAPLES and Annie GREENWALT), 1 August 1999. Contact William Maples . MANEVAL (MANEWAL) reunion, 7 August 1999, Wellsboro, Pennsylvania. Contact Jim Maneval . MEENACH reunion (descendants of the Rev. Robert F. MEENACH and Anna Margaret BAILEY), 1 August 1999 at the Rotary Park at South Shore, Kentucky. Contact Robert Meenach . MIESS reunion, 30 July 1999, Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Also includes BALDT, FABER, FELTY, HEILZE, KUNKEL, KNECHT, SCHLAUCH, SCHOTT, REISEN, SENSENBACH, FREITAG, LEISS, FEARNLEY, WILLIAM, ROTH. Contact Susan Schlach . STEWART (93rd reunion of descendants of Walter STEWART and his seven sons by two wives), 7-8 August 1999 at Fairview Presbyterian Church, Greenville County, South Carolina and New Harmony Presbyterian Church, Laurens County, near Greenville, South Carolina. Contact Mary S. Rawlinson . TANKERSLEY reunion, 28 July 1999. Every year during the last Weekend in July, TANKERSLEYs meet at Wheeler Lake in North Alabama. Contact C.T. Jewett . WHITMAN reunion (family from western South Carolina and North Carolina), 1 August 1999. Contact A.B. Albritton or phone 912-537-2990. WOOLSEY reunion, 30 July through 1 August 1999, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Contact Willie Woolsey ; 916-922-7471 * * * * * LETTERS TO THE EDITORS: Ripley's Redux. Last week, Ron Wolley's Letter concerning "Ripley's Believe It or Not" was published in MISSING LINKS, with the following interesting results. [ed.] When I went into my e-mail today, I had 15 messages (this is very unusual, as my normal is about five) -- the Review was one of them, plus a couple from friends of mine. The rest were all queries about the Woolley genealogy. Although some of them were not matches, a number of them are going to be quite helpful in getting information on the family. As of the time of this e-mail to you I have received more than 30 queries. It looks like Ripley has struck again. And, as a matter of fact, two of the people were able to continue their research into their family history because a family member was written up in "Ripley's Believe It Or Not." So maybe it isn't such a bad idea to check out back issues of his articles and books. Maybe someone will find that long-lost "black sheep" or "famous" relative. Thanks again, Ron Woolley * * * I would never have thought to look in "Ripley's Believe It or Not," but I surely hope my descendants will think of that, as I was in his column twice -- once about 1941 and again about 1943. I am also in THE GUINESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS. I have the world's record for attending the most schools. In 10 years, I went to 265 schools because of travelling with my parents in Vaudeville. Wilma W. Horton * * * I have another interesting tidbit to add about using Ripley's articles for genealogical research. My grandfather had an original article from a 1939 newspaper which gave a short, but interesting history of Henry Francisco (the oldest man in the Revolutionary War). I scanned the article in about a year ago and it can be found at: Robert Matthews * * * I have been looking for my half sister for two years but because women [often] change names at marriage it is impossible, even the Social Security Administration tried to no avail. So I tried the first name, year of birth (actually I tried several years) in the city in which I thought she was born (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) pa.). There were 374 people with that first name so I started going through the list, and knowing the second name, narrowed the field. With that information I went to the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) and found a record of her death in 1997. I hope this will help someone find their lost family Paul Dickinson * * * * * SUPPORT ROOTSWEB WITH JUST A CLICK. Now you can support RootsWeb and free genealogy online by going to: and clicking on the "Show me commercial banners" option. This automates certain extra commercial banners on Surname Helper, GenConnect, and search- engine pages, which generate revenue for RootsWeb. This in turn enables RootsWeb to obtain funds for more free genealogical materials and to provide better services to online genealogists. Thank you for supporting RootsWeb. * * * * * PERMISSION TO REPRINT articles from MISSING LINKS is granted unless specifically stated otherwise, PROVIDED: (1) the reprint is used for non-commercial, educational purposes; and (2) a copy of this notice appears at the end of the article: Written by . Previously published by Julia M. Case and Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG, Missing Links: RootsWeb's Genealogy Journal, Vol. 4, No. 29, 14 July 1999. Please visit the MISSING LINKS Web page at . * * * * * CALL FOR ARTICLES, STORIES. MISSING LINKS welcomes articles about genealogical research methods and sources from all parts of the world. Please send your article for consideration for publication to . MISSING LINKS also welcomes delightful, amusing, amazing, cautionary, or otherwise wonderful and educational tales of genealogical research for the "Successful Links" section and articles acknowledging the efforts of particularly helpful librarians, archivists, town or county clerks, and other frequently unsung heroes, for publication in the "Virtual Bouquets" section. Please send such stories for consideration for publication to Julie_Case@prodigy.com. BACK ISSUES of MISSING LINKS are available for download from and BACK ISSUES of ROOTSWEB REVIEW from . TO SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE (or UNSUBSCRIBE) to: .