MISSING LINKS: RootsWeb's Genealogy Journal Vol. 4, No. 49, 1 December 1999, Circulation: 376,614+ (c) 1996-99 Julia M. Case and Myra Vanderpool Gormley Editor-at-Fault: Julia M. Case Co-Editor-to-Blame: Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG * * * * * IN THIS ISSUE: o Recording Family History o Web Links o Virtual Bouquet for the EUREKA RECORDER, Nevada, USA o Successful Links: Guided to the Stones o Holiday Decorations Inspired by Family History o Somebody's Links o Letters to the Editors o Humor o Reprint Policy, Back Issues, How to Subscribe/Unsubscribe * * * * * RECORDING FAMILY HISTORY by Ronald_Caseby Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 4DN KFHS No. 6796 I have enjoyed reading about collecting history from living members of the family. I did just this in 1974 with my mother and the following are notes I made then from what she told me. I hope you will enjoy this trip into life during most of this century. My Mum is still alive and enjoys being reminded of the things she now forgets about her youth and later times. She says she is so glad that I made the records and can now talk to her about things that really matter to a 98-year-old. EARLY MEMORIES OF WILLIAMINA MACFARLANE, WIFE OF THE REV. ALEXANDER CASEBY I was born at Loanmouth, Carmyllie, Forfarshire on 26 May 1901. My father was Charles MACFARLANE and mother Jemima Smith RAITT. Some of my earliest memories are connected with my two widowed grannies, Anne ORMOND and Anne MOLLISON. One lived in Forfar and had a drawer of treasures that I loved to peep into. It contained small homemade objects. One I particularly remember was a pincushion in the shape of a frog. We used to go to visit her in a pony and trap borrowed from our other granny, who lived in the country. Every week we used to walk across the fields to her house to ca' the kirn. That means churn the butter. I had as a reward a newly baked girdle scone with the new butter spread on it by granny using her thumb instead of a knife. I had buttermilk to drink with it. At the age of five I started school at Carmyllie and was there for five years -- thereafter schools at Inverarity and Rescobie. I enjoyed all lessons but particularly Nature Study. I spent long happy leisure hours with my father in the garden and knew weeds from flowers at an early age; school nature lessons only increased my interest. My dress for school was made of tweed with a cotton pinafore on top and hand knitted woolen stockings with boots that sometimes buttoned. My mother made my underwear. There was a soup kitchen at school in which I could have a bowl of soup and a slice of bread for a penny. That also bought a slice of bread spread with syrup at the local village shop. The schools were between three and five miles distant and I walked in all kinds of weather along rough country roads and across fields to get to classes on time. In general school days were happy days until just before I was 14 the headmaster made offensive advances towards me and I went home and refused to return to school. One cold day I was helping on top of a threshing mill and caught a chill which turned into rheumatic fever. I was very ill. As a result I was not too strong for a while, but I was always happily occupied at home with father in the garden, or in the evenings, as a child playing tiddlywinks, knitting, sewing or making cat's tails, outside games with ball or skipping rope or a version of hopscotch called pallies. I also had rag dolls. Father had an ear for music, and was also a good singer. He had a squeeze box or melodeon on which he could play all the popular dance tunes; also many of Burns' songs. Our cousins and friends would join us and we would have many happy evenings with father entertaining us. At the time of my birth father was gardener and farm manager at Drumyellow for a period and employed by Mr. FALCONER, the member of Parliament for Forfarshire. Dad never stayed very long in one place. I can remember 18 flittings mostly made by farm carts. His last post where he remained for some considerable time was as gardener at a mansion house at North Dron, Dairsie, Fife. In the country we had no grocery vans of any kind. Father had a good allowance of flour, oatmeal, and milk with which mother made scones, bannocks, and oatcakes. Hens in a run provided plenty of eggs. Rabbits and hares were always plentiful. One of the great highlights of the year was when someone came to kill a pig. Then we lived high! Black and white puddings, potted meat, liver, kidney, heart, and trotters. Large joints were salted and put in a barrel. Hams were hung from the rafters. The bladder was blown up by a bicycle pump and lots of games were played using it as a large ball. With the garden full of vegetables and fruit we lived well. When Dad went to market at weekends he brought back treats of peppermints, chocolate, or oranges. My mother cared for us so well. Baking, cleaning, knitting, mending, feeding the hens she was always busy. There were cats as pets but later in life she had a little Pomeranian called Tottie who was her dear companion. She used to take Tottie for a walk, carrying her in her arms at times and on other occasions strolling along slowly knitting a sock with Tottie at her heels. In some of Charles Dickens' books stories are told of children aged six onwards working. Up to 1915 many children from 10 years old onwards worked in shops, gardens, and factories. The usual age was 14. At that age my eldest sister Annie went into service. My brother, George Grant, had farming in his blood at which he worked until enlisting on his 19th birthday in the Black Watch. Two months later he was killed at Ypres. Mother never got over the loss of her only son. Sister Maggie started work before she was 14, in Forfar. Father bought us bicycles and though I was still not fully recovered from rheumatic fever I was enrolled as a dressmaker with an apprenticeship of five years in Lindsays of Forfar. Wages to start with were 2/6d weekly for the first year rising to 5/-, 7/6 10/- and 12/6d each year thereafter. In fine weather Maggie and I cycled to work. When it was stormy we stayed with an aunt in town. Flower Show time brought excitement as my father exhibited there regularly and gained awards and cups in many classes. Competition was intense and before shows the family all took turns to guard the garden, for crops were often plundered by jealous competitors. The seasons brought joys of searching the hedgerows for birds' nests, or picking blueberries and brambles with which mother made jellies to join the jams made from garden fruits. I was familiar with the cries of corncrake and cushie-doos, could spot owls and flying bats in starlight. As I grew older I became interested in crochet and many examples of my work are still in use. My largest piece of work was a tablecloth of crocheted lace inset into linen. It took three years to make. It was given to the Queen on the occasion of her marriage as a wedding gift by a friend of mine who had purchased it from me. In her letter of acknowledgement the then Princess Elizabeth said it would be kept at Holyrood House for her use there. I had attended and become a member of Rescobie Church throughout my growing-up years. After my apprenticeship I gained a position as a coat maker in Carmichael's Fashion shop and life was passing happily and busily by with work on weekdays and church on Sundays. Into my life at this time came a young man. His name was Alexander CASEBY. He was four years my senior, and intending to go to Africa to be a missionary. We became engaged on the 21st March 1922 before he went to Nyasaland. Originally it was intended that he would come home to marry me but plans were altered and I traveled out to Africa -- the journey being a story in itself -- and we were married on the 30th April 1924. At the time of writing this we have celebrated our Diamond Wedding anniversary. * ADVERTISEMENTS * "How a Vegetable Changed the World," "Life in 1000 AD," "The US Plains Cavalry," "Custer, The Boy General," "Glittering Misery or Frontier Lives of Cavalry Wives," "The Recipe for an 1860 Dinner for Eight," "Funeral Practices," "The Rifle," "History of the Hospital." These are a few of the articles in the current issue of HISTORY MAGAZINE. Find out how you can get a free trial copy by visiting . * * * SOMETHING FOR NOTHING? Get 300 personalized address labels FREE from iPrint.com! Pay only $1.45 for shipping within the U.S. Limited-time offer. First-time customers only. To get started, visit . * * * Great holiday gifts for genealogists! HATTIE'S CLOTHESLINE offers coffee mugs, mousepads, totebags, T-shirts, and sweatshirts designed especially for family historians. Makes a perfect holiday gift! Plus buy one, get one at half price, now through December 31. Visit or call 800-673-1344 today! * * * Remember the prom, the big game, opening night, or band camp? Who did you have a crush on? What was your favorite class? The best memories get even better when you share them with friends. Find your old high school friends on ClassMates.com -- your 24-hour, 7-day a week online class reunion. * * * * * WEB LINKS AUSTRALIAN GENEALOGY INFORMER (newsletter) BOARD FOR CERTIFICATION OF GENEALOGISTS (BCG) CASEBY, CAISBY, KASEBY, KISBY, KEASB(E)Y HANNUKKAH [URL includes everything between the angle brackets.] MISSING LINKS HOLIDAY PAGE -- THE SEVENTH REINDEER MORE PALATINE FAMILIES, MORE PSYCHIC ROOTS, LECTURES, SEMINARS RIVERBOATS, STEAMBOATS, STERNWHEELERS, SIDEWHEELERS, BOAT AND CAPTAIN DIRECTORIES, BOAT OWNERS and STEAMBOAT COMPANIES STEAMBOAT PRESS * * * * * VIRTUAL BOUQUET. On Wednesday, November 24th, I e-mailed the EUREKA RECORDER's office in Nevada, to see if there was a mention in the paper of a deceased relative in 1932. I thought I would receive a yes or no, and cost. My pleasant surprise, on Friday, November 26th, was to find a photocopy of the paper in the mail for me. I feel this is an exceptional service and helps us on the other side of the earth (Australia) with our genealogy. Gaynor * * * * * SUCCESSFUL LINKS: GUIDED TO THE STONES by Sherry E. Jumper My cousin and I drove from Texas to Alabama for the sole purpose of getting a picture of the grave of my husband's ancestor, John RIGNEY, who died in 1847. We arrived about 3 p.m. and went straight to the small community of Maysville. I had received information from a fellow researcher, but all I knew was that the family plot was near Maysville. We looked until almost dark and couldn't find anyone who knew where the plots might be, so we checked into a motel for the night. We were at the library when it opened the next morning and soon found that the graves were about 3/4 mile east and 1/4 mile north of a small graveyard named Bellview on Bell Factory Road. We drove back out there and stopped to eat lunch from the tailgate of my truck. I have to say that this area was breathtaking. It was part of the Tennessee Valley when these ancestors settled there about 1805. There are mountains and valleys. We located the Bellview Cemetery fairly easily and calculated the approximate area of the family plot. We drove to the area and found a new housing development. My cousin didn't think it would be in there so we went slightly past it and turned onto a dirt road beside a cotton field. We were driving in the general vicinity, but couldn't see any headstones (we knew that five of the stones should still be standing). As we drove on my cousin spotted a deer ahead of us and he just stood there until I looked at him and then he jumped into a clump of trees. We soon ran out of dirt road and had to turn around, without finding the graveyard. As we drove back I told my cousin I wanted to check out the new development being built. She didn't think it would be worthwhile, but I was driving so I turned into the first street. After this street turned to the right, I saw the roof line of an old house out in a clump of trees. I told my cousin I was going to turn down the next street in that direction and check it out. When I turned down the street, straight in front of us was the clump of trees where I had seen the house. Across a small clearing was another clump of trees. THE HOUSE WAS NOT THERE. We got out of the truck to talk with a construction worker and ask him if he had seen any graves in the area. He said he certainly had, they were right there in the clump of trees. My cousin and I just looked at each other. We then climbed over downed trees and through vines to access the graveyard. We took pictures of all the stones (they were not only John RIGNEY's, but also several of his children and their spouses). After we were in the graveyard, we also realized the significance of the deer. We were in the clump of trees where he had jumped. I believe I was guided to the stones, by whom I am not sure. When reading a gravestone in a cemetery old, And find a family's story told Let me as long as life shall last, Live for today but revere the past. * * * * * HOLIDAY DECORATIONS INSPIRED BY FAMILY HISTORY by Sharon Gagliano Grandpa KEAYS was a lumberjack as were his father and grandfather before him. He was born in a log cabin in 1877 in the Wisconsin woods. I have transformed a long shelf in my kitchen into that forest. I have collected miniature pine trees, turned small branches into oaks and maples. A mirror is a little pond with cattails made from toothpicks and a dab of clay. There are little figures that represent the family. Grandpa Henry is just a little guy, hiding behind a snowman. Twins Jack and Jane roll large snowballs and great-grandpa Arthur walks his dog through the woods. This gives our grandchildren an idea of what our family looked like so many years ago. * * * * * SOMEBODY'S LINKS. To subscribe to the new SOMEBODY'S LINKS NEWSLETTER, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE to: . We will continue to publish a few notices in MISSING LINKS most weeks. You may also wish to read and post about genealogical treasures at RootsWeb's "Somebody's Links" GenConnect board: . * * * If any ANNINs need information, I have a copy of the ANNIN Centennial Celebration, August 15th, 1866. In my grandmother's effects was a handmade cross-stitch pattern book made by Miss A. Marg. KOCH in 1807. A poem was written in the book and signed by "your loving sister, E.C. EHLERS" in 1842 in Reinsbuttel, Germany. The EHLERS are thought to be from Fehmarn, Germany. I am trying to trace the ownership through my THIESSEN, EHLERS, MOELLER line. Some time ago someone left at the Iowa Genealogical Society Library a "souvenir" document apparently issued by the court, which is a marriage license and marriage record combined from Lucas County, Ohio for R.V. OBERDORF and Verdie V. WREN, March 5, 1921. It has a gold colored framing pattern around the printed material, is approximately 17" by 13" and has the seals of the City of Toledo and the County of Lucas. The paper was probably off-white in the beginning and has aged to a light brown color. I brought it home to try to find someone who is interested in having it for the cost of postage. Contact me by e-mail or contact Rhonda Riordon, Ex. Director of IGS at 515-276-0287. Joyce Brown in Iowa Someone recently asked about "Sunday soldiers." I was browsing through one of my Norfolk old photo books and came across a photo of a parade on Sunday soldiers -- also known as Saturday night soldiers. "Sunday soldiers were local men who served in their local detachments at weekends and away at a summer camp. Their skills were often displayed on such parades and `Field Days' in the days before the First World War." Basically they were the Territorial Army known as the TA today in UK. The photo shows the territorials of 5th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment on parade in Downham Market in 1912. Although not the ancestor in question -- unless terribly lucky -- I could scan the photo and send to the researcher who asked originally. There are a few children standing in front of the men but you can easily see the uniforms, although of course it is in black and white. Dawn Quadling, Norfolk, UK I received from Social Security an application which isn't my ancestor's. I will send it to the correct family if they will contact me. The name is: Sophie Inga ERICKSON, DOB 11-11-1880 in Elko, Minnesota. Parents' names: E. John ERICKSON and Jonella OLSEN. Judy Jordan * * * * * LETTERS TO THE EDITORS In response to Sherron's anecdote about the little songbird in the supermarket, I'd like to tell you about my granddaughter's version of "Old MacDonald." My Dutch husband and I are Opa Danny and Oma Donna to our grandchildren -- all of whom have the Dutch nationality. So when two-year-old Anja (whose Irish dad has taught her English) heard the age-old nursery song, she repeated it like this: "Oma Donna had a farm, ee-aye, ee-aye oh!" Donna de Vries * * * This issue [ML 4:48] brought back some memories that I'd like to share with you. The SIMONDS name has been associated with Berkshire County, England, for many years; my data goes back to 1228. The family has been landowners and residents of the county steadily since then, settling in and around Reading. In the 1700s, a distant cousin started a brewery, "Simonds Brewery," in Reading. Another cousin, some years later, started a bank in Reading, the "H&G Simonds Bank," to help finance the brewery. These two lines of SIMONDS continued strong in making beer and lending money until the mid-20th century, when the brewery and the bank were purchased and absorbed by other interests. My wife and I went to Pangbourne, Berks, in 1995 to meet some cousins and learn more about the family first-hand. A highlight of the trip was a visit to the churchyard at Hurst, not far from Reading, where cousins by the dozens are buried. After stumbling about in the grass for a few minutes we were approached by the verger. I identified myself and said I was looking for the graves of SIMONDS ancestors. "Ah, yes," he replied. "Brewing or Banking? We have them all!" That remark broke the ice and we had a wonderful time photographing stones and gaining much useful information. Several other churches treated us in a similar manner, all seeming interested in our queries and pleased to be able to help. Terry Simonds * * * Alan Ellis wrote, "I have had the pleasure of ringing at all the towers noted, including the St. Lawrence Jewry noted in your version of the rhyme." That brings to mind something I noted when going through records of that church. A number of foundlings, infants left by unknown persons, were baptized with the last name LAWRENCE. I have noticed a few other cases where foundlings were given surnames derived from the church at which they were left. . . Pierce Reid * * * [Thanks to all of you (and there was a crowd) who provided additional information, references, and verses for the several nursery rhymes we've beaten to death in recent weeks. Here is just one more in response to Alan Ellis's remark "There is a second verse to this rhyme ["Oranges and Lemons"], naming several other London churches. Now, if only I could find it!"] I seemed to remember printing out a full version of this rhyme which came from the London-request list a couple of years ago, and was attributed to THE OXFORD DICTIONARY OF NURSERY RHYMES. After a bit of digging I found it and here it is: Gay go up and gay go down To ring the bells of London Town Bull's eyes and targets, say the bells of St. Margaret's, Brickbats and tiles, say the bells of St. Giles', Oranges and lemons, say the bells of St. Clement's, Pancakes and fritters, say the bells of St. Peter's, Two sticks and an apple say the bells at Whitechapel, Old father Baldpate, say the slow bells at Aldgate, Maids in white aprons, say the bells at St. Catherine's, Pokers and tongs, say the bells at St. John's, Kettles and pans, say the bells at St. Anne's, Your owe me five farthings, say the bells of St. Martin's, When will you pay me? say the bells at Old Bailey, When I grow rich, say the bells of Shoreditch, Pray, when will that be? say the bells at Stepney, I'm sure I don't know, says the great bell at Bow. Here comes a candle to light you to bed, Here comes a chopper to chop off your head. Alternate verses from THE ANNOTATED MOTHER GOOSE by Baring-Gould: Halfpence and farthings, Say the bells of St. Martin's You owe me ten shillings, Say the bells of St. Helen's When I grow rich, Say the bells of Fleetditch When I am old, Say the bells at St. Paul's Penny Gerstein * * * * * HUMOR. Thanks to Richard A. Pence who sent this story with a cover note that read, "Baskin' robins, indeed. You asked for it." A marine biologist developed a race of genetically engineered dolphins that could live forever if they were fed a steady diet of seagulls. One day, his supply of the birds ran out, so he had to go out and trap some more. On the way back, he spied two lions asleep on the road. Afraid to wake them, he gingerly stepped over them. Immediately, he was arrested and charged with transporting gulls across sedate lions for immortal porpoises. * * * * * DONATIONS HELP ROOTSWEB HELP YOU AND ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. 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