August 10

ANNIVERSARY...

Margaret Emaline Carter married John Norris Rhoades 1882

Margaret Carter was the daughter of Ned Jonas Carter and his first wife Melinda Emiline Clingan. Her half-sister, Minerva Adaline Carter Arnold, was my great-great-grandmother (mother of Annie Arnold Hicks).

Margaret and John Rhoades had 12 children, of whom only 5 survived to adulthood.

i. Mary Parlie 1883-1940

ii. Abner Samuel 1885-1968

iii. Rosa Emaline 1887-1960

iv. William Albert 1890-1891 (died age 9m 24d)

v. Early Ernest 1891-1892 (died age 1y 12d)

vi. Lillie Susan 1893-1893 (died age 15 days)

vii. Millie Mae 1894-1894 (died age 3m 11d)

viii. Twin girls 1895-1895 (died at birth)

ix. Ned Herbert 1897--1983

x. Martha Louisa Elizabeth 1901-1984

xi. Infant boy 1903-1903 (stillborn)

Photo: Abner Samuel Rhoades

Photo: Martha Louisa Elizabeth Rhoades and her husband Albert Sandridge

In this photo, my great-great-grandmother Adaline Arnold is seated 2nd from left, and her half-sister Margaret Carter Rhoades is 3rd from left. The date marked on the photo is 22 July 1941. Margaret died in May of 1942. Adaline died in 1946. I actually have stories (or at least interesting information) about almost every one of the people in this photograph. But we'll save them for another day.

 

August 08

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Cleffie Lorene Hicks Burford 1917-2004

Well, this is a tough one because I have hundreds of pictures of her and I really want to post them all, and tell the whole story of her life, and her influence on my life. 

Cleffie Hicks Burford was the mother of my mother.

Photo: Cleffie (left), Wathada (right), me and my firstborn, 1980.

Cleffie was the daughter of Ulysses and Annie Arnold Hicks, the third of their nine children.

Photo: Irene, Annie holding Cleffie, Ruby.

Cleffie married Lester Burford in 1935, and they had four children: Wathada (my mother), Morris, Bob, and Ron.

I wish I could tell you all the wonderful memories I have of all the people in this photograph...

I did gather together Cleffie's 'memoirs' along with other family stories and photos from her branch of the family tree in my book "The Woods Is Full Of 'Em" ... (jus' sayin').

Cleffie and Lester celebrated their 50th anniversary in 1985.

Cleffie died in September 2004. I miss her every day.

August 07

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Mary Viola 'Ola' Hicks Romalow 1890-1935

Photo: Ola Romalow with her children.

I have been unable to find an substantial information about Ola Romalow, other than what is stated in our family history. She was the daughter of David Anderson Hicks. David married Belle Hindman and they had 2 children, John Timothy and Mary Viola. (The 1910 census indicates they had 5 children, only 2 of whom were living. I don't know anything about the other three. Most likely they died at birth or in infancy or early childhood.)

Photo: David Anderson Hicks

David was the oldest brother of my great-grandfather Ulysses F. Hicks. (Ulysses was the photographer who took the picture above.)

Photo: John Henry and Malisa Hicks family, David is seated on the right. Standing L-R: Felix, Felix' wife Ida holding daughter Rosie, Ulysses. 

Viola Hicks married Edward Romalow. I cannot find any records of him. The only documentation I have been able to find is the 1910 census in which 'Viola Ramelow' was listed in the household of David and Belle Hindman Hicks as their daughter, married, age 20. Apparently Viola and Edward had at least 3 children, as evidenced by the photograph above.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Okay, well I found out some information about Ola's husband and children, and I wish I hadn't. Her husband was E. H. Ramelow. He was born in Germany. They had 3 children: Hazel, born in 1917, Harold, born in 1923, and Harvey, born in 1928. (It's likely they had more than three, because the children in the photo don't appear to be 5 or 6 years apart in age.) Hazel died at age 20 from pneumonia complicated by pregnancy with eclampsia. She was married to Everett Williams. Harold died at age 6 from septicemia (blood infection) from a nail puncture wound infection. Harvey died at age 3 from gangrenous stomatitis/toxemia (blood infection). I have copies of their death certificates. I've no idea whether any of those three are the children in the photograph or not. Ola was 45 years old when she died, and I don't know anything more about the cause or circumstances of her death. And I don't know anything more about her husband, either.

August 06

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Seth William Gard 1828-1910

Seth Gard married Sarah Ulm and they had six children. In the same year that the last child was born, he married Eliza Jane Helpman Conklin -- so I assume Sarah died at or shortly after the birth of the last child. 

Photo: Seth and Eliza Gard

On the Find-A-Grave website the following notation is made on both Seth and Eliza's memorials:

"They had no children. After she died, Seth took off for California."

There are three Seth Gards in our family history. The Gard family is traced back to John Garde, born about 1539 in England. The first Seth Gard in our family was born in 1775 in New Jersey. He is the ninth generation from John Garde. Seth Gard's father, Gershom Gard, fought in the Revolutionary War. Seth Gard fought in the war of 1812. 

On the Find-A-Grave website there is a picture that is supposed to be Seth Gard (1775-1845).

I assume this is a painting, not a photograph. I have my doubts as to it really being Seth Gard born in 1775 because the haircut and suit look much more modern than that. At any rate, Seth William Gard was the grandson of Seth Gard, the 11th generation from John Garde.

The last Seth Gard in our family genealogy was a nephew of Seth William Gard. He was born in 1860 and died in 1861, age 1 year and 10 days. He was the son of George Liddle Gard. George Liddle Gard was a brother of Seth William Gard. Seth and George had a sister named Adaline Lucretia Gard. Adaline married Asa Gibson, who was the father of my great-grandmother Lora Gibson Burford (Lora > Lester > Wathada > me). That's how the Gard family is connected to our family. The Gard connection is what qualified my mother and me to become members of the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution).

August 05

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Leonard Elmer 'Junior' Till 1928-1990

Junior Till was the son of Leonard and Madge Treat Till.

Madge was a sister to my grandmother Christie Treat Thomas.

Junior married Mary Louise Nelson and they had four children: Cindy, Doug, Nick, and James Elmer.

Photo: Mary holding Doug, Cindy, Junior

(Doug is kissing Mick Thomas -- Doug and Mick and Rita Heinze were all born within 2 months in 1949. The full photo from which this was cropped shows all three of them.)

Ruth holding Rita, Eileen holding Mick, Mary holding Doug.

Ruth was Junior's sister. Eileen was married to my dad's brother Bernarde. (He's the one in the photo behind Eileen, looking at Mick and Doug.)

 

August 04

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Etta Lee Arnold Jackson 1900-1945

Etta Lee Arnold was the sister of my great-grandmother Annie Arnold Hicks.

Photo: George, Annie, John, Marlie, Etta

Photo: John Henry and Adaline Arnold family -- back row, George and Annie, front row, Aunt Peggy, Adaline holding Etta, John, Henry holding Marlie. (Aunt Peggy is the woman who raised John Henry Arnold. She was his aunt.)

Etta married Ben Jackson and they had six children -- Alvis, Wincel, Calvin, Dulcie Mae, Coy Lee, and Carol.

Photo: Etta Lee and Ben Jackson with Alvis and Wincel.

Photos: Alvis, Wincel, Calvin

I have met Alvis and Calvin Jackson in person, at the annual family reunion, in 1984. Here are photos of them with their wives. Also a photo of Carol with her husband.

Etta Lee Jackson died at age 44 with tuberculosis. 

Here's a photo of her and Ben taken shortly before she died.

August 03

MEMORIAL...

Elsie W. Till Muske  1898-1978

I don't actually have a photo of Elsie Till Muske, but I thought I'd give a brief history of the Till family.

Carl Till was born 1840 in Russia, and died 1924 in Michigan. He married Justina Gruening 1869 in Rozyszcze, Volhynia (now Ukraine), Russia. She was born 11 Jun 1844 and died 08 Jan 1907 in Michigan. They are both buried in Ruggles Cemetery, Baroda, Michigan.

 CHILDREN of Carl Till and Justina Gruening --

i. August Friedrich Till 1875-1952

ii. Johann August Albert Till 

iii. Pauline Wilhelmine Till 

iv. Ernestine Till 

v. Carl Julius Till

Pauline, Justina, Julianne, August, Ernestine, and Carl Julius came to the USA July 21, 1892, on the ship Darmstadt, departure port of Bremerhaven, Bremen, Germany. 

August Carl Friedrich Till married Augusta Reinhardt 06 Nov 1897 in St Joseph, Michigan.  She was born 1877 in Germany.

Children--

i. Elsie W Till 1898-1978

ii. Agnes Margaret Till 1901-1984

iii. Leonard Carl Richard Till 1903-1968

iv. Edgar R Till 1910-1942

v. Ruby J Till 1913-2000

vi. Vera V Till 1919-1997

I have pictures of all the children EXCEPT Elsie.

Photos: Agnes, Leonard, Edgar, Ruby, Vera

Leonard Carl Richard Till married Madge Eleanor Treat -- my grandmother's sister.

And that is how the Till family is connected to our family.

Here's a picture of Madge and my grandmother Christie Treat (Thomas) in their school days in Ohio:

And here's a picture that includes Madge and Leonard, along with Madge's (and Christie's) brother John Treat and his wife Mabel, my mother, my brother Ricky, and me...

This was taken on the front porch of Madge and Leonard's house in Bangor, Michigan, in 1958.

August 02

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Nancy Ford Thomas 1858-1931

Nancy was my father's grandmother, wife of Charles H. Thomas.

Charles and Nancy had six children: Clarence, Roy, Effie, Melvin, Renue, and Bill (my grandfather).

Photo: Nancy (left) with some of her children. I'm not absolutely certain who's who in this photo. The old man with the white beard I'm pretty sure is Nancy's father, William Ford. Next to him is Renue. The man on the right is probably Charles. The two boys in front I believe are Mel and Bill. The little girl might be Georgianna, who would be Roy's daughter -- so the man in the white hat I believe is probably Roy. Georgianna was born in 1908, and looks to be maybe 5 years old in this picture. So that would make it about 1913, in which Bill would be 14 years old.  

Photo: Nancy Ford Thomas

August 01

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ...

Martha Elizabeth Evans Byrd 1860-?

Martha Elizabeth -- called "Lizza" -- is on the left, Adaline Carter Arnold on the right. 

Adaline Carter Arnold was my great-great-grandmother, mother of Annie Arnold Hicks. Lizza and Adaline were half-sisters. Lizza's mother, Jane Evans, married Adaline's father, Ned Jonas Carter. Ned already had 3 children from his 1st wife, and Jane had 2 children from her first husband -- Martha Elizabeth and Josiah Marion Evans -- when they married. They went on to have eight more children.

Martha Elizabeth Evans married Russ Byrd, and they had 3 children: Martin, Oscro, and Ethel.

(Birth records for the oldest son list him as "Jas Martin A. Byrd". I don't know if Jas is an abbreviation for 'James' or not, and I don't know if he was called James or Jas or Martin...)

Photo: Etta Arnold and cousin Ethel Byrd