Life responsibilities continue to take precedence over research and blogging. I suspect this will continue for another month or two. I hope I'll be able to post more regularly once Fall arrives, but not sure of that yet.
My husband and I have been trying to de-clutter our house a bit. As a genealogist, that is a particularly challenging thing to do. It is hard to know what family-related items to keep and which to let go of.
I am currently providing a (probably temporary) home for all my parents' photo albums and slides. That has prompted me to start clearing some of my shelves. I also came into possession of some account books belonging to my grandparents. While I probably won't look at them often, I do want to keep them. I think I'll get some plastic boxes to store them in.
A quick search on the web showed me that the problem of what papers to keep is one most family researchers struggle with.
While on-line services and databases are an easy way to store scanned items and back-up research, there is no guarantee those sites will continue into the future. Scanning and backing up to external hard drives is useful for some items. But what to do with all the paper?
With all the new old family stuff finding its way to my house right now, I need to figure out how to manage it.
I have 2 big boxes of old family financial records that should have been destroyed 20 years ago after my grandparents died. I am slowly shredding those. I haven't taken a serious look at the photo albums or slides, yet. I suspect I will scan some of those, but not all.
Some researchers only keep paper copies of original documents or items they have had to pay for, like birth or death records from a clerk's office. Some don't print out a record that they find on-line; they just add the electronic version to their computer records.
Maybe it is because when I started doing research, paper was the ONLY way to do it, but I find it very hard to not keep paper copies of my source material. Today as I was sifting through old binders of research, I found a notation of the first query letter I ever wrote: in October 1977 to Harold M. Jones in Hankinson, North Dakota. My notes say he responded. I wonder if I still have that letter somewhere? My record keeping then was different than now, so I'm not sure where that letter might be.
So I have no answer yet to these questions, but wanted to share since it is on my mind. If anyone has some suggestions, I'd love to hear them.
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Saturday, August 5, 2017
Postcard to Miss Cassie Williams from A.C.R., 4 May 1910
I came across this postcard the other day while helping my mom sort through some boxes. Not sure how it came to be in my mom's stuff since we don't know Cassie Williams.
The card is addressed to Miss Cassie Williams, 1536 N Main Ave., Scranton, Pa.
The message was written from Frederica, Delaware on 5/4/10 (May 4, 1910). It reads:
"The same on both sides (Thoughts of You) I am getting along very nicely I haven't smoked yet. If I knew I would get what we were last talking about I never would. ACR."
A rather cryptic message. I wish ACR had signed his/her complete name.
1536 N Main Ave., Scranton, PA is now the location of an auto sales place.
On the 1910 census for Lackawanna Co., Pennsylvania, I found a Cassie Williams, single, born about 1877, age 33, who worked as a bookkeeper in a department store. She was living with her parents, John and Ann Williams (both age 70) and siblings, Jennie and Frank Williams. I suspect this might be the correct Cassie Williams.
The family is found in 1900 in the same place. The daughter of the correct age is shown as Catherine Williams, born August 1877, single, and working as a bookkeeper.
On 14 September 1912, this Catherine Williams married a Frank Covert in Detroit, Michigan. The 1920 census shows Frank and Catherine living in East Pennsboro, Cumberland Co., Pennsylvania. The 1930 census shows Frank and Catherine in Atlantic City, New Jersey. And in 1935, they were in Volusia Co., Florida. Frank was 60 and Catherine was 59. None of the censuses show any children.
Without more information, I can't be sure that the Cassie Williams who got this postcard is the same as the woman I found on the census records.
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The card is addressed to Miss Cassie Williams, 1536 N Main Ave., Scranton, Pa.
The message was written from Frederica, Delaware on 5/4/10 (May 4, 1910). It reads:
"The same on both sides (Thoughts of You) I am getting along very nicely I haven't smoked yet. If I knew I would get what we were last talking about I never would. ACR."
A rather cryptic message. I wish ACR had signed his/her complete name.
1536 N Main Ave., Scranton, PA is now the location of an auto sales place.
On the 1910 census for Lackawanna Co., Pennsylvania, I found a Cassie Williams, single, born about 1877, age 33, who worked as a bookkeeper in a department store. She was living with her parents, John and Ann Williams (both age 70) and siblings, Jennie and Frank Williams. I suspect this might be the correct Cassie Williams.
The family is found in 1900 in the same place. The daughter of the correct age is shown as Catherine Williams, born August 1877, single, and working as a bookkeeper.
On 14 September 1912, this Catherine Williams married a Frank Covert in Detroit, Michigan. The 1920 census shows Frank and Catherine living in East Pennsboro, Cumberland Co., Pennsylvania. The 1930 census shows Frank and Catherine in Atlantic City, New Jersey. And in 1935, they were in Volusia Co., Florida. Frank was 60 and Catherine was 59. None of the censuses show any children.
Without more information, I can't be sure that the Cassie Williams who got this postcard is the same as the woman I found on the census records.
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