https://s3.amazonaws.com/omeka-lplks/original/3a6b4088f73cdb73c822abea8a5ae1f0.pdf ff41244b830388c83c0a1b7b0d89709e PDF Text Text ,~!~ {; ,; ".-'-- .~ '"'- ... ) �" , I',. Til PI8 liB 1\ ! VOLUME III NUMBER 4 , ," i,:. r, \'"' , ,, , ',' ," Publi sh ad Quarterly By: 1)ouglas CountH. Genealogical SodetH P. O. BOX 3664 LAWRENCE, KANSAS 66044 �"THE PIONEER" Published Quarterly By: The Douglas County Genealogical Society P.O. Box 3664 Lawrence, Kansas 66044 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------Spring 1980 Vol. III, No. 4 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------Page Contents 112 'Officers - By-Laws . • • . . • • • . Ethics 115 Eldridge Biography . . . . . 116 "Quantrill's Loss, Museum's Gain". . 118 Genealogist's Code of . . 120 Douglas County Petitions for Naturalization. ~'$10 Buys Clues to Ancestry at 'Nation's Root Cellar'" · . • 123 Douglas County Cemetery Information. . • 125 Douglas County School Information. • • • • 132 "In Search of the Family Tree" (article written about Mrs. Helen King in 1971). ......•.•. ..•. . . 132 l35 Queries. , Workshop Registration. . · . . l38 * * * * * * * * * * * Dear Readers, This is our final issue of "The Pioneer" for this year. my final message to you as society president. It is also We had hoped to do more for the society the past two years but looking back we see some wor.thwhile accomplishments. It We hope that all of you will support and attend our workshop June 7. surely help us to find some of our needed answers. ~lill , We sincerely hope we can elect the officers we need for the year 19801981 before July 1. i , There are so many worthwhile goals to be met as an active, working genealogical society. My deep, deep "thank yousIf go to each and everyone of you for your support and hours of help over the past months. Sincerely, �'Officers: President: Mary Jamison Vice President: Secretary: Jane Wiggins Treasurer: Cora Fellenstein Genealogist: Emma Berg Librarian: Editor: . B Library Committee: Pauline Elniff, Irma Kidwell, Georg~an~ rune Membership and Special Publicity: Maxine Hougland, Irma K~dwell, Dorothy Clarke Typing: Jane Wiggins Indexing: Kathryn Bunton, Dorothy Wiggins ., History and Records: Nettie Wismer, Dorothy W~gg~ns Pioneer: Judy Sweets, Emma Berg, Jane Wiggins, Mary Jamison BY-LAWS Of The DOUGLAS COUNTY GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY ARTICLE I: Name. This organization shall be a non-profit organization known as the County Genealogical Society. Dou~las ARTICLE II: Purpose The purpose of this organization shall be to promote interest in genealogical and historical study and research and to conduct such projects as shall contribute'to that end, which includes the acquisition and maintenance of a genealogical library. ARTICLE III: Eligibility Any individual interested in promoting the objectives of the society is eligible for membership. Prospective members may attend two meetings as guests before being required to pay annual dues. ARTtCLE IV: Officers Section One: Officers shall be president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, librarian, genealogist and editor, and they shall comprise the executive board. The executive board shall be required to.meet at ,least once between regular meetings. Action of the board shall be by I simple majority, with the president voting only in case of a tie vote. Four (4) members of the executive, board, shall constitute a quorum. �Section Two: Officers shall serve a one-year term and shall not serve more than two consecutive terms in one office. Individuals shall not be eligible to serve as officers until they have been dues-paying members for six months, with exception of the first year. Section Three: The fiscal year shall run from July 1 to June 30. Officers shall be elected at the annual meeting in April, and assume duties on July 1. Vacancies in the offices except that of president shall be filled by election at the next regular meeting and shall complete the unexpired term. ARTICLE V: Parliamentary Procedure The meetings shall be conducted under Roberts Rules of Order, revised. ARTICLE VI: Duties of Officers Section One: The duties of the president shall be to preside at all the meetings of the society and the executive board; to appoint all committees; and shall be an ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee and auditing committee. Section Two: The vice-president shall assume delegated by the president, or in the absence president, or in ca~e the office shall become for a meeting place for the organization, and the members of said meeting place and time of the presidential duties or incapacity of the vacant; shall arrange for notification of the meeting. Section Three: The secretary shall keep the minutes and records and a roster of all members, and shall conduct all correspondence under the direction of the president. Section Four: The treasurer shall handle the funds, have a depository therefore and duly account for the same by presenting a report at all general meetings of the society and by submitting all monthly receipts and cancelled checks to the president before each meeting. All checks written in the name of the society must be signed by both the president (or vice-president in the absence of the president) and treasurer. A special auditing committee consisting of three (3) members shall be appointed by the president at the beginning of each fiscal year and shall present a report to the members at the next regularly scheduled meeting. All funds shall be deposited in the name of the society. Section Five: The librarian shall have custody of all genealogical and historical material of the society and shall maintain a catalogue of such material and make such arrangements as the society directs for placement of the materials acquired by the society and shall be chairman of the library committee. Section Six: The~enealogist shall be responsible for all requests for genealogical research from which funds are received, and the accounting to the treasurer for said funds. �·Section Seven: The editor shall be responsible for the publication and mailing of the quarterly and maintaining its mailing list, and shall also be chairman of the quarterly committee. ARTICLE VII: Meetings Unless otherwise directed by either the executive board or a majority of members present at a regular or special business meeting, the monthly business meeting of the Douglas County Genealogical Society shall convene at 7:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month. Seven (7) members of the organization shall constitute a quorum. Action of the organization at regular or special business meetings shall be by simple majority, unless otherwise indicated in the by-laws. The president (or vice-president in the absence of the president) wi~h approval of the executive board, has the power to call special business meetings if the need arises. If there is either a change in the monthly business meeting or a special business meeting is scheduled, all members must be, notified by either telephone or mail as soon as possible. ARTICLE VIII: Committees The president shall appoint such committees as deemed necessary, including nominating and auditing committees, and special projects committees as ,the organization directs. ARTICLE IX: Dues Annual dues shall be $5.00 per member, plus an additional $2.50 per member from'the same household, payable before or at the July ~eeting. Each member paying the $5.00 dues shall be entitled to one free copy of each quarterly and shall receive a 50% discount on copies thereafter that he (or she) may purchase. Members joining after the July 1 date and paying the $5.00 fee shall receive all back issues of the quarterly for that fiscal year. ARTICLE X: Amendments These by-laws may be amended at the regular meeting of the society by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of members present, provided the proposed amendment has been submitted in writing at the previous regular meeting. ARTICLE XI: Dissolution On the dissolution of the Douglas County Genealogical Society, after making provisions for payment of all liabi'lities of the society, the officers shatl dispose of all its assets exclusively for charitable or educational purposes as shall at the time qualify as an exempt organization(s) under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law). REMEMBER TO REGISTER FOR THE JUNE 7 PUBLIC WORKSHOP. PAGES 135-138. -- . - ...... , 114 ~ INFORMATION ON �THE GENEALOGISTS' CODE OF ETHICS The fourth annual meeting of the Federation of Genealogical Societies ; held in Omaha, NE on August 10th, [1979] has brought forth a "Code of Ethics" which the Federation will recommend that all genealogists be , asked to sign when applying for membership in each of their society members. There has been some questions arise concerning the strong wording in this code. The GENEALOGISTS' CODE OF ETHICS is as follows: "In order to protect the integrity of Public Records and library books, I am ethically bound and hereby agree: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. That I will treat with the greatest care and respect all public records and library books which may be made available for my use. That I will speak with courtesy to all employees of a vital.' records office, or of a public library, when requesting to see any vital record or library book, and that when finished with such record or book, I shall express my thanks to the person attending ·to my. requests. That I will not tear, erase, mark or remove any public record or library book, and will refrain from mutilating, defacing or otherwise destroying any part of such public record 'or library book. That when I have finished viewing any public record or library book, I will return it to the proper or designated place. That I will not repeat or publish any item which will reveal the illegitimacy of any person born within the past 75 years. This pledge is freely made by me upon penalty of forfeiting my membership in this society. Signature This Code was adopted as it was felt that if we are to ask state 1egislaturers to open vital records to genealogists, we should take steps to ,show that genealogists are worthy of this trust. Most of us already to1lowthe methods and requirements set forth in the Code, but each of us have heard of or seen the misuse o~records and library books; and we all know we would not publish an illegitimacy without the consent of the persons involved. But by using the "honor system" already strong among genealogist and possibly printing the code ou,the back side of your membership card, we can physically show public officials we are ~incere in respecting and caring for public records and library books. The code was meant as a guide and can be adjusted to fit your society requirements. We hope you will consider adopting this Code or desigt'ting a similar one for your society. Copied from The Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies bulletin D.ecember 1979. 115 �COLONEL SHALOR WINCHELL ELDRIDGE. Lawrence. Among the pioneers of Kansas, and its:-most energetic and useful business men, as well as its best free-state men, may be ranked Sha10r W. Eldridge, who was born at West Springfield, Massachusetts, A~gust 29, 1816. His grandfather, Elisha Winchell, was an officer in the Revolutionary army; and an uncle, Sha10r Winchell, died in the service in the war of 1812, and several of his other relatives were soldiers in both wars. His father, Lyman Eldridge was a mechanic. His mother's name was Phoebe Winchell. The Winchell family have a printed genealogy running back for several hundred years, which is fully referred to in the sketch of Hon. Reuben W. Ludington, in this book. Sha10r W. Eldridge had but little of the advantages of education, merely those of the common schools of his time, but he became, nevertheless, a. man of good practical business scholarship, and acquired a fund of information which made him a leading business man in all his multifarious pursuits. His early tastes were for large enterprises. In his youth he engaged in trade and in various occupations until he was twenty years old, when he l~unched out as a railroad contractor, .and took a large contract on the Cpnnecticut River Railroad, embracing some of its heaviest work. He had important contracts afterward on the Wooster & Nashua, in Massachusetts, the Keene Railroad in New Hampshire, the Hartford, Fishkill & Providence Railroad, the Middletown & Berlin Branch, and afterward on the extension of the Connecticut River Railroad, Vermont Central, New Jersey Central, and the New Haven & N~rthampton, and other contracts. These works occupied his time for about twelve years. I When he abandoned this kind of work he started for Kansas, arriving at Kansas City January 3, 1855. He then purchased of General S. C. Pomeroy, the American House, at Kansas City, which General Pomeroy had previously purchased for the Emigrant Aid Society. This house was the head-quarters of the free-state men, and in it Colonel Eldridge and his family had many thrilling adventures. The pro~slavery men stopped at the house in their incursions into Kansas, and their demonstrations frequently produced difficulties and threatened disaster to the house. Edwin S. Eldridge, his youngest brother, was with him in all these trials, and proved himself a man of expedients as well as courage. At one time the house was beset by the border-r.uffian, Captain Pate, and a large body of men, demanding that the free-state men be delivered to the mob, when Colonel E1dridf,e and his brother, Edward, stood at the door with arms in their hands and conunanded them to halt at the peril of their lives. A ~ong interview followed, and Pate gave up the effort. A half dozen prominent obnoxious free-state men were then in the house, and their lives were saved by· this desperate courage against fearful odds. When Governor Reeder escaped from Kansas, in May, 1856, he went to this house and was hid away for three weeks, making many hair-breadth escapes. At.one time, Mrs. Eldridge, to whose heroic courage her husband was greatly indebted, quickly covered Governor Reeder up with a bed, and as :the ruffians ap~roached the door of the room, she and her sewing girls sat quietly at work,-whi1e a whole company of exasperated men looked upon the scene, chagrined and disappointed at finding nobody in that room but a q~iet family at 116 �work. At least a half dozen times similar expedients were resorted to, to :prevent him from being discovered. His meals were handed to him over the transom, or clandestinely carried to him as circumstances suggested, but 'he never came to the public table. Finally it was determined that the 'Governor must be got away from the place, and some means planned for his 'escape. The steamboat Converse lay at the wharf for the night, on its 'downward trip. Its captain was about the only free-state steamboat commander on the Missouri river. With him Kersey Coates arranged that he ,should take the Governor on his boat about six miles below Kansas City, in 'disguise as an Irish laborer. A man was confidentially hired to bring a skiff 'from Wyandotte to a secluded spot just below the city, and to this Governor Reeder and Edwin S. Eldridge and his wife were to repair in the dark. 'Governor Reeder was dressed in heavy brogans, corduroy pants and a striped :hickory shirt, his whiskers and mustache shaved off, his false teeth taken out, and a dirty clay pipe in his mouth. Thus attired he sat and smoked :in the public hall, and afterward walked quietly away, seeking the place selected. Here he met Mr. E. S. Eldridge and his wife, and the three entered the little boat and proceeded down the river about six miles to a 'wood-yard. Here he hid himself till morning, and when the boat came along hailed it, and it landed. The captain gruffly inquired, "Where are the 'passengers?" Reeder replied that there \-lere none but him. To this the captain responded in a very angry manner, reproving him for hailing his boat, and gruffly ordering him aft among the deck hands. Thus Governor Reeder escaped from Kansas, where hundreds of desperate men sought his life, traveling the 'entire trip to St. Louis as a deck passenger. In the early part of 1856, he leased the Free State Hotel in Lawrence, and opened and equipped it as a first-class hotel. On May 21, 1856, it was destroyed by Sheriff Jones and his posse, under indictment as a nuisance by the pro-slavery court, David R. Atchison aiming the first cannon. After finding that cannon balls had little effect upon it, the house was fired and totally destroyed, with nearly all the furniture, provisions and groceries. Colonel Eldrirlge was present and witnessed the destruction. Immediately after he ,was appointed to go to Washington with a memorial of the free-state men, and attended the Philadelphia Convention which nominated Fremont, and was also a delegate to the Buffalo Convention, where he was appointed one of the National Committee, and made its agent for the Kansas' immigration., Under this authority, he conducted large bodies of men to Kansas through Iowa, Nebraska, and back of the then settlements of Kansas, through where Holton now stands, to Topeka. With one of these parties, numoering about three hundred and fifty men, he was captured by United States troops. The cannon was buried but many of the arms were taken. Afterward Colonel Eldridge headed a company of men who recaptured these arms from the government officers at Lecompton. He raised large amounts of provisions ~nd ammunition which he brought in at various times during the entire period of the difficulties, and was among the leading men of the times who did a vast amount of service in the free-state cause. He procured a large amount of lead pipe at Council Bluffs, powder and other ammunition, and although he paid for them, had a fight at that place to take them away. The same trip Robert Morrow procured two hundred stand of arms of Governor Grimes, of Iowa. In the elections of 1857 he was an influential leader. By entreaties he influenced Secretary Stanton, acting Gpvernor in the absence of Governor Walker, to call the newly-elected freestate Legislature together to secure a vote upon the Lecompton constitution. 117 �Lane, in the meantime, had been holding meetings allover the Territory 'for the same purpose, and the-members of the new Legislature had met to :demand the same action, but Colonel Eldridge absolutely went to Lecompton :and came back with the proclamation. In 1857 S. W. Eldridge, with his brothers, Ed. S., Thomas B., and Ijames M., erected the Eldridge House in Lawrence, at a cost of eighty thousand dollars, furnished, opened and conducted it until it was destroyed 'by Quantrill, August 21, 1863. The same year he started a daily stage line 'from Kansas City to Topeka, Lawrence to Leavenworth, and Independence, Missouri, to Weston, Missouri. He enlisted as a private in the 2nd Kansas ,regiment and was elected lieutenant, serving six months. In 1863 he was ap,pointed a paymaster in the United States Army by President Lincoln, and served about one year, when he resigned. In 1868 he was appointed quarter:master-general of Kansas, by the Kansas Legislature. In 1869 he was elected !county commissioner of Douglas county. The same year he was elected city 'marshal of Lawrence. In 1865 he rebuilt the Eldridge House at Lawrence. In 1867 he built the Broadway HoteL.in Kansas City, now called the Coates House. In 1871 he built the Eldridge House at Coffeyville. In 1872 he built the Otis House at Atchison. He became a Free Mason at Kansas City, Missouri, in 1855. He believes in the principles of the Christian religion. He has been a Republican since ,its first organization. He was married to Miss Mary B. Norton, by whom he has had seven children, three only of whom are living. The surviving children are married and in prosperous circumstances. His wife was among the most cultivated, patriotic women of Kansas, a helpmate in the true sense of a good wife and affectionate mother, and to her, more than all others, he is indebted for all that there has been in his character as a useful man and good citizen. There were few women among the pioneers of Kansas so universally beloved. She died March 5, 1869. January 25" 1871, he was married to Miss Caroline ~oby, of Dundee, New York, a most estimable, intelligent lady. Colonel Eldridge is now largely engaged in the mining business in the San Juan country, in company with his brother, Edwin S., and others. The United States Biographical Dictionary, Kansas Volume. ~ub1ishers, 1879. Submitted by Lance Reppert, Lawrence, Kansas. S. Lewis & Co., * * * * * * QUANTRILL'S)LOSS MUSEUM'S GAIN By David Olson J-W Staff Writer TOPEKA -- Larkin }lilton Skaggs was a former Baptist preacher who gained the dubious distinction of being the only member of Quantrill's raiders to be killed during the sacking of Lawrence in 1863. Nearly 150 pioneer Lawrence residents died during that Aug. 21 raid, a testament to the fever pitch of the conflict between Missouri pro-slavery forces and Kansas "free~staters." 118 �Now, thanks to a'donation by the descendents of one of the men who ,witnessed Skagg's death, the Kansas State Historical Society has the 'raider's rifle and a four-page account of the story. An official of the historical society says the acquisitions help document previous accounts of Skaggs' part in the raid. I "The whole story is kind of a grisly affair," says James Nottage, 'assistant director of the state historical museum here. "After Skaggs what a beautiful name for a bandit -- was killed, accounts say townspeople 'dragged his body through the streets. His body was never buried. It was 'left in the open to rot. Skaggs became for the people a kind of symbol ,of their frustration over the raid." Nottage retells the tale based on the account of John Wesley Willey, :a mill operator near Lawrence whose children donated the historic rifle :and Willey's hand-written account of what happened to the historical society. Willey, Nottage says, emerged from his house the morning ,for water. Just before hearing the sound of gunfire from the of Lawrence, he was warned by a rider that the town was under 'armed himself and set out for Lawrence, joining several other ,the way. of the raid direction attack. \-Jilley riders along Upon arriving in Lawrence at the house of John Speer, publisher of the LaWrence Tribune, Willey's group challenged and captured one of Quantrill's ~en who had been accused of killing Speer's son earlier in the day. The ~aider bolted for freedom but was recaptured after what was described as a "spirited chase across the countryside." A second escape attempt followed, but shot from his musket and the raider fell. first, and the man was dead. He was later of'border raids on Lawrence and Osawatomie and his men. another of Speer's sons fired a A volley of shots followed the identified as Skaggs, a veteran conducted by Hilliam Clark Quantrill Skaggs' rifle and a purse containing three dollars were taken from his The purse and money were donated to the state historical society by the Speer family in 1933, and the weapon was given last summer. ~ody. The rifle, a .71 caliber Austrian Augustin carbine, is labeled a true artifact by Nottage. The historical society has several relics, including bones reputed to be the remains of Quantrill and some melted glass from a burned building, he says. But true artifacts are rare, Nottage says. "Artifacts have historical value - they were actually used by people and we can learn from them," Nottage says. "Putting those bones out in a ~isp1ay case isn't going to tell us anything about Quantrill." The significance of Willey's four-page account of Skaggs' death serves to help sort out earlier stories, Nottage says. It provides the best account available of the ori'gina1 pursuit and capture of the raider, he says. The carbine is on display with other pieces of Quantrill history in the historical. muse:um, 120 W. 10th in Topeka. Nottage says that because of the diary's deteriorating condition, it cannot be put on display. However, it i,s available to historical researchers, he says. I Copied with full permission from the Lawrence Journal-World, Sunday, Submitted by Mary Jamison, Lawrence, Kansas. ~ebruary 17, 1980. 119 �Petitions for Naturalization Douglas Co. Kansas, taken from Naturalization Petition and Record Book Vol. I: Oct. 25, 1906 to Feb. 5, 1924 Continued from. last issue of The Pioneer: p. 101 Name: Peter Perik1y Coutrakon (listed on certificate of arrival as Pangiotis Contracos) Residence: 713 Mass. St., Lawrence, Kansas Occupation: Confectioner Birthdate: 5 Nov. 1884, Karaspia, Greece Emigrated: from Patras, Greece, about 1 July, 1914, arrived N.Y. on vessel, "U1tonia" (or "Laconia") Declaration of intention: Lawrence, District Court, Douglas, County, 9 May 1918 Marital status: unmarried. Resided in Kansas since: 1 July 1918 Description: at age 33, 5'6", 133 lbs., black hair, gray eyes, no distinguishing marks. p. 44 Name: Daniel da Cruz (took this name after arr1v1ng in U.S.) Original name was Manuel da Cruz Narciso (or Narcizo). Residence: 904 Ohio St., Lawrence, Ks. Occupation: Teacher in Kansas University Birthdate and place: 1 }mrch 1880, Villar (Cadaval) Portugal Emigrated: from Liverpool, England about 28 July 1911. Arrived N.Y. on vessel "Lusitania". . Resided in Kansas since: 28 Sept. 1916. Declaration of Intention: 12 Feb. 1915 at Washington, D. C. Supreme Court. Wife's name: Lenore Reger da Cruz, born Frederick City, Maryland. Children: None Description: (at age 34), 5' 8!~", 142 1bs., dark complexion, residing Brookland, D. C. where he was at that time a Clergyman . . p. 56 Name: John Emil Carlson Address: 1013 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, Kan. Occupation: Contractor Birthdate and place: 31 Mar. 1873, Asa, Sweden Emigrated: - from Guttenberg, Sweden about 12 March 1892. Arrived N.Y. on vessel (name unknown) Resided in Kansas since: 10 Aug. 1898 Declaration of intention: 30 Sept. 1918 Douglas Co. District Court Marital status: unmarried Description: (age 45), fair comp., 5' 7~", 145 1bs., light hair, blue eyes. './"- . - ..- ' '. .~-, ".- - 120 ... ' - '"-. " . -. .... .. - ~ -"::-:;;:-",' �Naturalization Petitions continued: p. 70 Name: Morris Cohen (listed as Martin Kohn on certificate of arrival) ReSIdence: 922 New Jersey St., Lawrence, Ks. Occupation: Junk dealer Birthdate: 26 Sept. 1891, Washilsok, Russia Emigrated: from Antwerp, Belgium about 12 Dec. 1906, arrived N.Y. on vessel "Kroonland" (or "Kurland") Declaration of intention: 13 March 1918, Douglas Co. District Court Wife's name:-Mary Cohen, born Washilsok, Russia Children: One Resided in Kansas since: 5 Jan. 1915 DescriptiOn: (age of 26) dark complexion, 5'2", 145 lbs., brown hair, brown eyes, no visible distinctive marks. 122 Name: Andrew Christopulos (or Andreas Christopoulos) Name changed to Andrew Chrest in U.S. Residence: 9l4~ Mass. St., Lawrerice, Ks. Occupation: Restaurant keeper Birthdate and_ place: 24 Dec. 1892, Patres, Greece Emigrated: from Patres, Greece about 10 Arpil,19l2 arrived in N.Y. in vessel "Athens" (or "Athinai Hel") Resided in Kansas since: 1 April 1917 Declaration of intention: 23 May 1917, Douglas Co. District Court Marital status: unmarried Description: (age of 24) dark complexion,S '6", 165 lbs., black hair, brown eyes, no visible distinctive marks. p. p. 1 Name: Rhody Delahunty .ReSidence: 1106 Rhode Island St., Lawrence, Ks. Occupation: Teaming Birthdate and place: 20 Aug. 1843, Kings Co., Ireland Emigrated: from Ireland to U.S. about 1 Aug. 1865, arrived N.Y. on vessel "Pennsylvania". Resided in Kansas since: 1 March 1866 Declaration of intention: 4 April 1870 at Douglas Co. District Court Wife's name:-Julia Delahunty Children: Eight p. 19 Name: Heinrich Disque Residence: Douglas County Occupation: Farmer Birthdate and place: 14 April 1853, Hermerebergerhof, Rheinfalz, Germany Emigrated from: Rotterdam, Holland about 10 Aug. 1873, arrived N.Y. on vessel (unknown) Resided in Kansas since: 1 Oct 1878 Wife's name: Magdalene Schutz Disque, born in Vorder, Weidenthal, Germany Children: Seven 121 �Naturalization Petitions continued: p. 63 Name: Paul Ducommon (or Ducommun) ReSidence: 817 East 13th St., Lawrence, Kansas Birthdate and place: 15 Jan. 1893, Petits Ponts, Canton of Neuchatel, Switzerland Occupation: Clinical pathologist (a bacteriologist at age of 22) Emigrated: from Le Havre, France about 13 Sept. 1913, arrived N.Y. on vessel "Chicago" Declaration of intention: 6 Jan. 1915 ( and 30 Oct. 1920?) in Douglas Co. District Court Marital status: unmarried Description: dark comp., 5' 4~", 120 lbs., brown hair, brown eyes, no distinctive marks Resided in Kansas since: 29 Sept. 1913 p. 64 Name: Mark Julius Ducommon (or Marc Ducommun) Residence: 817 E. 13th St., Lawrence, Kansas Occupation: Chemist (age 20), later Bacteriologist Birthdate and place: 19 Nov. 1894, Petits Ponts, Switzerland Emigrated: from Le Havre, France, about 13 Sept. 1913, arrived N.Y. on vessel "Chicago". Declaration of intention: 9th Jan. 1915 in Douglas Co. District Court Resided in Kansas since: 29 Sept. 1913 Marital status: unmarried Description: dark complexion, 5'8", 135 Ibs., brown hair, black eyes, no distinctive marks. p. 128 Name: Maria (or Marie) Deibel Residence: 1211 Kentucky St., Lawrence, Ks. Occupation: Teacher Birthdate and place: 20 Sept. 1894, Dutenhofen, Germany Emigrated: from Hamburg, Germany, about 29 July 1911, arrived Philadelphia on vessel "Grof Waldersee" Declaration of intention: 30 Oct. 1920, Douglas Co. District Court Last· foreign residence: Giessen, Germany Resided in Kansas since: 1 Sept. 1911 Marital status: unmarried Description: (at age 26), complexion fair,S' 2", 136 lbs., red hair, gray eyes, no distinctive marks. To be continued in future issues. More information may be obtained directly from the petitions. Compiled and submitted by Judy Sweets, Lawrence, Kansas. 122 �$10 BUYS CLUES TO ANCESTRY AT 'NATION'S ROOT CELLAR' By Forrest Hintz Staff Writer PITTSBURG -- Ben Downey, in the Personal Census Service Branch here, didn't have much information to go on in my case. Only the name of a grandfather I'd never known and a state. He pulled a film of the 1900 census from the files and threaded it into a reader. The machine whined briefly and displayed a readout. "That was an easy one," Downey said. "Sometimes it takes longer to find the film than the listing. We'll make a transcript of it." The transcript contained a w~a1th of detail. For example, it showed that my grandfather was born in Wisconsin in October 1859, and his parents were German immigrants. He could read and write and spoke English; had been married 14 years, had a mortgaged fram and sold milk. It showed that my grandmother was born in Iowa in January 1861 to Irish immigrants. She also had been married 14 years and had borne two children. She could read and write and spoke English. My father was listed, too, but not his sister, who died a few years later. Census information since 1900 is ·confidentia1 and can be released only to direct, bloodline descendants when certain conditions are met. Last year, the office handled 195,000 requests for a search of the records. Some applicants wanted only proof of age. Others were trying to trace their ancestors, with the result that the facility is sometimes called the "nation's 'Root' cellar." Francis A11ai, director .. said the Personal Censns Service Branch tlasbui1t here in 1958, primarily to provide proof of age for Social Security applicants and others whose birth records were incomplete or non-existent. "This is the only place in the U.S. where every census record since 1900 is under one roof,"'he said. "Everything before that, including the first census in 1790, is in the National Archives." Each year, he said, the age search workload is from 6 percent to 10 percent lower than the year before because of better record-keeping. However, there has been a tremendous increase in the number of requests for genea10gical information. "We're an unusual government agency," A11ai said. "We get no appropriated money. We have to operate solely on what we can generate in fees. That pays our 145 employees, 10 of whom are kept busy answering correspondence." A WPA project in the 1930's undertook the enormous task of alphabetizing the old lists, beginning with the 1900 census. These were to be coded for a Soundex system and filed alphabetically by states. Only the 1900 and 1920 censuses were completed, however. A11ai said the rest probably never will be done because "unless we can see our way clear to amortize what we do, we don't do it." "We know that 56 percent of our work comes from seven states and 78 percent of it comes from 14 states, and we have those." He said all census records have been filmed. 123 �Although some records are easy to locate, others are extremely difficult. Indians, for example, sometimes were listed by their Indian name on one census and by their Christian name on another, making comparison almost impossible. The same applies .to Alaskan Eskimos, and birth records often are fragmentary or non-existent. }tisspe11ings are cornmon on the census rolls, which is why the Soundex coding system is used. Said A11ai: "Enumerators were paid by the number of heads they counted, not how well they spelled." Questions asked by the enumerators through the years record the changes that have taken place in the nation. In 1790, they wanted to know how many slaves were owned. In 1860 they wanted to know those who were insane, idio~ic, paupers or criminals. By 1880, they had a supplemental schedule for Indians and the sick. They wanted to know if you had a radio set in 1930 and when you last worked. Because of the interest in genealogy, Mrs. Marty Brown said the facility has brochures listing sources of information unavailable in the census records. "We can't always provide all the answers," she said. "But we can help narrow down the search. For example, some asked the state or country of the parent's birth, and that gives a clue as to where to look. Some asked the age at the first marriage. It's simple to figure when that was, and many states or counties can't search without an exact date." She said census records prior to 1900 are now public, and the film can be obtained from the National Archives through most libraries. However, you must make your own search of the records. An application is required to launch a search of the records since 1900. The applicant's signature must be verified. An intentionally false statement can result in a $10,000 fine and five years in prison. "We're very particular about confidentiality," Mrs. Brown said. "If one of your ancestors is living, you must have his written consent for the search. In the case of a deceased ancestor you must furnish proof of death, preferably a death certificate. As alternate sources, you can use an obituary notice, cemetery record - even a picture of his tombstone if it shows name and date of death. We always return all original documents sent to us." She said applicants should furnish as much information as they have; names, dates, addresses (those are often extremely important) and anything else that can help identify and verify the search. The fee for the initial search is $8.50, plus $2 for each "line entry." A line entry is the complete census record of one person for the year in question. The resulting transcript is certified accurate. Copied with permission and credit to the July 2, 1979 "The Wichita (Kansas) Eagle". ---Submitted by Mary Jamison, Lawrence, Kansas. * *** '* * Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get. - Unknown 124 �DOUGLAS COUNTY CEMETERIES: REST IN PEACE By Jeff Collins J-W Staff Writer While the dead in Douglas County rest in peace, the living continue to care for their graves, even in rural areas where the gravesites may be tiny and remote. According to county records, more than three dozen cemeteries, several more than 100 years old, are dotted across rural Dougals County. Who keeps the old graveyards from becoming choked with brush? Who keeps the roads leading to them cleared? Who pays for it? How do the little cemeteries endure? Most of the rural cemeteries are small -- the largest is just smaller than 8 acres -- and many are filled with graves of the forebears of families living nearby. The Stull Cemetery, for example, contains clusters of graves of the ancestors of the Stulls, the Wulfkuhles, the Walters and the Bahnmaiers; descendents of all live in the area. In some cases, the families of those buried in a cemetery take the chief responsibility for its maintenance. "My great-grandfather, my grandfather arid my father are all buried in the Vinland Cemetery," Woodrow Sturdy, president and sexton of the Vinland Cemetery Assn., said. "That's one reason I took on the job. To make sure it was maintained in good shape." Or as George Deay, president of the Deay Cemetery Assn., said, "A man wouldn't want to bury his relatives or relatives he didn't know in a hog lot." Records in the Douglas County tax appraiser's office show 37 rural cemeteries in the county. Albert Gilpin, the auditor in the Kansas Secretary of State's office responsible for overseeing maintenance budgets of cemetery corporations, said most rural cemeteries in Kansas, and in Douglas County, fall into four categories: Registered cemetery corporations that sell plots to the public, whether to make money or on a non-profit basis. Cemeteries run by cemetery districts. These cemeteries tend to contain fewer than 10 acres and have very few burials a year. They receive a portion of the county's annual tax levy to pay for maintenance and improvements, but not more than 1 mill (a mill is $1 of tax for each $1,000 of assessed property value) can be levied for anyone cemetery district. -- Church and other religious cemeteries maintained by churches with plots available only to church members and their immediate families. -- Private cemeteries maintained by volunteers. rural areas. 125 These are common in �Maintenance standards for cemeteries in Kansas include mowed grass, sturdy fences and adequate entrances, Gilpin said. Michael Kracht, state assistant attorney general, said that cemeteries that are not maintained properly may be designated as abandoned, and poorly administered cemeteries may be turned over to a trustee for liquidation. Kracht is reviewing the Williams Cemetery, a one-acre graveyard in the Colyer cemetery district in southwestern Douglas County that is landlocked, which violates the standard for adequate access. Ben Brohammer, 'secretary of the Colyer cemetery district, said, "The people living where the access is are not free enough'to let anybody in that wants to." He said district officials are attempting to find a solution to the access problem. Douglas County has seven cemetery districts, all based in the western half of the county, Darlene Hill, county budget director, said. Only residents living in the districts pay cemetery taxes, which ranged from .33 to .95 of a mill this past year (meaning the cemetery tax on a home with an assessed value of $10,000 ranged from $3.30 to $9.50 last year). Budgets for the districts this year varied from $475 in the Twin Mound district to $3,700 in the Colyer district, Mrs. Hill said. For many cemeteries not in districts, money for maintenance usually comes from donations from nearby residents or relatives of the people buried there. In some cases, people donate time to maintain the graveyards. The Deay Cemetery, five miles southeast of Eudora, relies on volunteer labor and donations for maintenance, George Deay said. The cemetery began in 1859 when his grandmother was buried there, he said. His grandfather and uncles took care of the half-acre graveyard before him, Day said, and when they died, he took over the job. "It's something that needs to be done, that's all," he said. Some of the upkeep on individual plots is done by relatives, he said. "A lot of_times, say, a man dies, and his wife, she'll come and rake the ground and seed it down," Deay said. Sturdy, who maintains the Stony Point and Vinland cemeteries, said volunteers did much of the upkeep of the two Palmyra Township graveyards until a few years ago. Mowing and other jobs were handled partly by supporters who would join one day a year for a "cemetery day." But that stopped when "we got to the place where we have enough money to maintain them," he said. Sturdy estimated maintenance costs about $400 a year for the Stony Point Cemetery and $600 a year for the Vinland Cemetery, both about three acres. A maintenance fund pays the bills, he said. Most maintenance money goes ,to paying to have the grass mowed, cemetery officials unanimously agree. 126 �· THE GROVER CEMETERY: VIOLATION OF A SACRED TRUST? By Melissa Cordonier J-W Staff Writer For centuries, cemeteries have been considered, legally and morally, as specially protected. According to an Albany Law Review article, early Greeks "carefully guarded the private rights of individuals in their places of interment." U.S. Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Cardozo, while serving as a judge on the New York Court of Appeals, once ruled that "the dead are to rest where they have been laid unless reason of substance is brought forward for disturbing their repose." Historically, laws have been passed to protect burial plots, and Kansas state codes have at least four different articles relating to the formation, care and preservation of cemeteries. But for private cemeteries, especially for those lacking visible signs of use as a cemetery, the law is less clear, according to the state attorney general's office. The Grover Cemetery in Lawrence is a case in point. According to historical records, Joel Grover, one of Lawrence's founding fathers, and his wife, Emily, were buried in a family cemetery on a parcel that is now the southeast corner of 23rd Street and Lawrence Avenue. A residential subdivision, Springwood Heights, is being developed on the site of what some local residents say was the Grover family cemetery. But because no visible signs of a cemetery exist today, and the plot was not recorded in the land's deed, the cemetery, if it exists, may not be protected legally. Glenn Kappelman, president of Parkside Investors, the group developing Springwood Heights, said he was aware of the stories about the Grover cemetery, but he said there was no written or physical evidence of the burial plot. said. "We just don't have any written or scientific evidence," Kappelman "It's all been hearsay. I wish we could get it resolved." Pending some development, however, he said the lots on which the cemetery may be.located will be sold as planned. Kappelman, who is active in the historical society, said he regretted the uncertainty surrounding the Grover cemetery. He said he had tried, before development of the land began, to determine whether the cemetery existed but to no avail. He said he often wondered about pioneers who were buried in unmarked graves, and he said he thought it was unfortunate that a part of history would be lost to future generations. According to records compiled by the Douglas County Historical Society, Joel Grover came to Lawrence in l854.and served as the city's first marshal. Grover settled his family on a large tract on what is now the southeast corner of 23rd Street and Lawrence Avenue. 127 �Grover played an active role in early Lawrence history, the records show. He was a colonel in the Free State forces, was elected a state representative in the late 1860's, and served as county commissioner in 1870. When Joel Grover died on July 28, 1879, the Lawrence Daily Journal said, "He was a man of decided opinions, and had no patience with men who were more easily swayed ... according to Mr. Grover's wishes, he was buried upon the farm, a short distance south of the house." Joel's wife, Emily, died on December 14, 1921. Her obituary states that "burial will take place at the home where she has lived for 66 years." The Grovers' son, Ernest and Jay, who never married, lived on the family homestead until their deaths in 1953, and they were buried in Oak Hill Cemetery. The Grover brothers' survivors, who had moved to California, sold the family homestead, and the land passed to various owners. One sales agreement, executed on Sept. 6, 1961, specifically mentions a cemetery on the property. "It is expressly understood and agreed that a small burial ground exists on the southwest portion of said real estate," the sales agreement reads, and the legal description of the property shows that the cemetery may be in the Springwood Heights development. Merle Ward, Rt. 1, lived on a farm just to the west of the Grover brothers for several years before and after their deaths. The Ward family knew the Grover brothers well, and they remember the Grover cemetery. Recently, Ward returned to the old Grover place. On a knoll south of where the house once stood (it has been razed), stand several tall evergreen trees, and Ward identified the area, now lots 6 and 7 in Springwood Heights, as the site of the cemetery. But Kappelman said he had heard stories that the remains had been removed from the Grover homestead. And Arvella Frazier, daughter of the late Bernard (Poco) Frazier, a nationally known sculptor who o\vned the land for 13 years, said she remembered some "holes" near the evergreen trees. "When we inoved in, there were big holes in the ground surrounded, by tall evergreens," she said. "We speculated that it might have been a cemetery because they used to mark them with evergreens. We thought the graves might have been moved. But we sure didn't know. It was sort of a guess." Although all of the property owners prior to the Fraziers remembered that a cemetery might have been on the property, and some remember the specific site, none can recall the removal of the remains. A check of burial data at Oak Hill Cemetery, where the Grover brothers are buried, and at Memorial Park Cemetery shows no record of Joel and Emily Grover. But even if the graves still remain on the old homestead site, the laws on preservation of cemeteries such as the Grover plot are cloudy, according to Michael Kracht, assistant attorney general. 128 �Kracht said that although case law indicated that the mere burial of bodies in a given plot has constituted dedication of the plot as a cemetery, the Grover case "is a question of fact for a court to decide." A state statute passed in 1979 requires cities or counties to prevent the use of a cemetery for "any purpose other than for burial," and Kracht said the law included those cemeteries where no physical evidence existed. However, the law also states·that cities must have "established, acquired or otherwise assumed control" of the cemetery. In addition, Kracht said, there must be proof, such as dedication in a property deed, that bodies are buried there. UNTOLD TALES STILL ETCHED IN STONES Untold stories lie buried among the bones at the old graveyards scattered through rural Douglas County. The stories unfold slowly in the imagination of the visitor who walks among the marble and granite tombstones of the silent cemeteries. Echoes of Kansas' past can be heard in the familiar names, the names . of people living today where their ancestors stopped on their way West in the last century. The Stull Cemetery nine miles west of Lawrence is the final resting place for Isaac, Aaron and numerous other Stulls. Clusters of graves belong to the forebears of the Wulfkuhles, the Halters, the Bahnmaiers and other living Kanwaka Township families. Were the pioneer families as devout in life as they were in death? The most common epitaph is religious: "Blessed are they who die in the Lord" reads the grave marker of Meredith S. Hendricks, 1857-1902. How brutal was life on the edge of America's civilization? Children's tombstones usually are small and simple, stating only the name of the child and the years of birth and death. But the marker above the grave of two-year-old Juanita May, 1915-1917, is a notable exception. The small white stone, carved in the shape of a.heart, bears the inscription "Our Darling." How was death greeted? The stone:·bearing the name of Addie Richardson, 1875-1907, says she has "Gone from a home of love to her heavenly home above." A poem is inscribed on the tombstone of Rose Anna Scheer, 1846-1895: "Peaceful be your silent slumber Peaceful be your grave so low You no more will join our number You no more our sorrows know." Sometimes the natural deterioration that comes with age has a way of twisting tombstone messages. On the curve-topped tombstone of Louisa Scouten, who was buried in 1866 in the Mound View Cemetery just west of Clinton Lake, a hand with an extended index finger pointing heavenward was sculpted at the top of the grave marker 129 �with the words "There is rest" carved in the white stone. But the tombstone has toppled, and the hand now points due east, toward Lawrence. the previous three articles were copied with full permission of the Lawrence Journal-World,Sunday, March 30, 1980. Submitted by Dorothy Wiggins, Lawrence, Kansas. " IStaH photos by Kent Ven"Hoesenl A weathered gravestone marks the final resting place of Ida C. Hellstrom, 151891, in Mound View C;:emetery in rural Douglas County. (This .cemetery "was' copied "in AprJ:l', 1976 - b-y" }irs. 'Gladys' Aiken~ an'd publi'shed" in~ Vol'''-~'-I, No. 3 of "rhe' Pioneer" .): r .' ". DOW CEMETERY By W. L. Hastie, 1940 The Dow cemetery, or burying ground, is located one-half mile south of Stony Point school-house, and one-fourth mile east, on the farm that was preempted by Ladd Dow, the father of Charles Dow, who was killed by Coleman, November 21, 1855, in a quarrel over this quarter section line. 130 �Charles Dow was the first buried on this plot of groound. Ladd Dow came to Kansas soon after the death of his son, and'. took possession of the farm. Early in the spring of 1873 Ladd Dow and Geor'ge W. Hastie (my father) traded farms, and this is the first I remember seeing this burying ground: as I recall, there were about fifteen graves showing at this time; one child was buried there soon after we moved to this farm. Stony Point cemetery was established that same spring, so there were no further burials in Dow cemetery. As I remember, three graves had stones set on edge around them, stones being eighteen inches high and covered over with flag stones; one small plot had a high picket fence around it. It is now a pasture and hard to find the graves. Ladd Dow was buried in Stony Point cemetery but in later years his remains and those of his son Charles were removed to Baldwin City cemetery. So far as I have been able to obtain, the following are buried there: Three children of Josiah and Sarah Mcqueen, Robert Bryson, born Oct. 28, 1856, died 1858, Kansas Lillie, born Jan. 5, 1858, died i862. These two girls were buried the same day. One son of Samuel and Angevine Gill, Robert, born Aug. 3, 1857, died Sept. 3, 1857. Three infant children of George and Helen Fitz, one boy and two girls. I wrote Mrs. Myra Fitz Rodman, of San Diego, California, and quoting from her letter in reply: "I can't give you much information about the children. My recollection is there were two girls and one boy that died in infancy, never were named, don't think they lived a day and I remember I asked my mother once what was the matter that they died. Se replied, 'Because I didn~t have care.' That was true, I wonder,they didn't all die-- cold log houses, nothing to do with, doctors so far away and no nurses, neighbors not near and not all good in sickness, but think the babies must be buried in the Dow cemetery, no other place at that time." Children of Sol Lapham and wife are buried here, and a young man who made his home with the Varnums. This being the only burying place in Coal Creek valley, many of the early settlers found the Dow cemetery their last resting place. I have been told there are as many as seventy-five burials. Vinland Cemetery was established in 1872 and Stony Point in 1873, so no further burials in the Dow cemetery. Note April 1980 c"The cemetery is located on the Augelli farm 1 mile south of Vinland, 1 1/2 miles west and 1/2 mile south to historical "Dow Cemetery" marker, then east in a pasture. No stones are showing but a very few are laying under the pasture grass. There is no road to the site but visitors l31 may walk to it. �Excerpts taken from the book: RURAL SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES OF DOUGLAS COUNTY, KANSAS written by Goldie Piper Daniels STARR (YOUNG) SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 19: About 1870 the district purchased two square acres in the SE corner of the NE 1/4 of Sec. 16 Twp. 12 Range 18 from the Treasurer of Douglas County for the sum of $10.00. This was from school lands set aside by the legislature of 1864. For years there was friction between the Irish and the German residents of the community and one of the disagreements was on the name of the school (Starr or Young). The teacher John Godfrey was the superintendent of the Sunday school. The Annual Report of 1897-98 showed the district clerk to be; J. W. Slutz and director was Henry Hafner. The teacher was Lottie.Brune whose salary was $25.00 per month. The Census Report showed the following families with children of school age: W. H. AGNES, Mary and Ima ANGEL, Cloyd BAHNMAIER, Lewis BEEDER, John and Ella CUMMINGS, Lula and Joseph GROWEL, Mildred LA HUE, Sylvia and Thurell McDONALD, Mary SHUTZ, Frank SLATZ, Elizabeth SLUTZ, William SLUTZER. Vera Nelson was teacher for 1898-99. Other teachers beginning 1900 were: Maggie M. Cullum, Carrie Bla.keman, Vera Smith, Katherine Migliario, Minnie Williams, Viva McKenzie, Golden Starr, Clara Marlin, F. C. Migliario, Fred Migliario, Mildred La Hue. Members of the board were Fred Sulzen, W. P. Gravel, and J. L. Fitzpatrick. Submitted by Emma Berg with permission from~the author. ****** IN SEARCH OF THE FAMILY TREE by Gloria O'Dell (1971) Biblical families recited their genealogy back over ma~y-. ·generations.to identify themselves and their place in time. Today's pace meagerly allows for a given name, middle name (frequently shortened to an initial) and a surname. Ever more common is the computer which abstracts personal identity reducing people to a positive or negative impulse on the electronic computer tape or a number filed in numerical order rather than by name in alphabetical order. Mrs. Joyce Kline, secretary of the board of directors of the Topeka Genealogy Workshop, says there is a definite increased interest in family history. 132 �"Records are more available now than before and the Vietnam war has made people wonder who they are and where they came from;' she said. These questioning people are turning to family genealogy to find out Family history is not limited to biblical figures or to descendents of the Mayflower passengers. Increased membership in the Workshop reflects this resurging interest. Formed five years ago with six members, today's membership fluctuates between 70 and 120 with a constant turnover. Afternoon and evening groups meet mainly to help educate people to do their own research. The group has a private library composed of donated materials to aid other members. One such Topeka woman has expanded her family's identification through research of their family tree. Mrs. Glenn G. (Helen) King has been piecing together the puzzle of her children's ancestry for 10 years. Working on family history is "really like working a gigantic jigsaw puzzle," she says. Like a puzzle, many pieces look as if they fit, then don't. It's a puzzle which has no complete picture on the box cover to act as a guideline. Mrs. King's genealogical interests go back to her childhood: "My grandmother used to tell me stories of when they lived on the corner of the Indian reservation in Jackson County. I was always fascinated by her tales." However, it was the query of "two great-aunts in Colorado that really got me started," she explained. "They had a published account of the Imlay family, but nothing on the Morrison side who lived in eastern Kansas. Since I am close to Burlingame and Harveyville where the Morrisons lived I was able to do the necessary research." A trip to the cemetery, an early find in the Kansas State Historical Library and her personal curiosity ignited and fueled the search for the pieces. Ten years later, she has traced one lineback 12 generations into the l600s. Other branches of the family go back five or six generations. While most people can~ot go beyond their grandparents, Mrs. King can refer to any of the numerous ancestors by name and how she found them with immediate recall. In her research she has gathered together historical books, genealogical references, phone directories, military records, and correspondence with persons throughout the United States, Canada and Scotland. Separate notebooks for each branch of the family, notes indexed by states, and clippings of all kinds, fill six bookshelves, a three-drawer file cabinet and numerous card files. "It's taken a great deal of time. Interests in ceramics and cake decorating were put aside to make more time for family research." Still, she says, "I am behind in my correspondence, as she pointed to letters filed in the first fourth of her file drawer. One query in a genealogical magazine two years ago still brings in mail. One side of her family, the Fairs, has gathered together annually for 39 years for a family reunion in Manhattan. "This was a great boost in knowing older relatives," she said. "I would recognize names in census records that I had heard people mention at the reunion." 133 �This type of direct information can prove to be a stumbling block. "I"ve yet to convince an uncle that the persons buried in Circleville are his great-grandparents, not his grandparents," she said. "Sometimes, too, someone may not tell of a family member who has "disgraced" the family or perhaps will leave out incidents which are not favorable. When this happens, Mrs. King says she doesn't press for details, "They're too close to the situation yet" and she respects that reticence. Three years ago Mrs. King and her sister decided to chart the relationships of persons attending the reunion. The reunion. invitations mailed to 100 families contained forms for the family to fill out and return. Equipped with a return of 60 per cent, Mrs. King filled out seven huge sheets of paper displayed at the reunion so those attending could see just how they were related. "They knew they were cousins but didn't know exactly how,'" she said. Mrs. King, secretary of the Fair family reunion this year, said she compiled a mimeographed history which is revised as the other 40 per cent contribute their personal interlocking puzzle piece. Chance conversations can open the doorway to the lost brother or cousin which completes the family picture for a generation, or can open up a new family for others. Mrs. King tells of her sister overhearing two women ask about a Jonathan Fair at the historical library. Introducing herself, she explained her family had a J~nathan Fair and perhaps they could be of the same family. A little research into Civil War. records eS.tablished that the Jonathan Fair the two women were looking for was actually a Parr who had changed the spelling of his name to Fair after the Civil War. "Variant spelling of a name that hasn't been changed legally, carried down through generations can be one of the biggest stumbling blocks," Mrs. King pointed out. Names, too, can be inadvertently changed in records because a census taker heard it differently, or someone's handwriting was not clear. In this business of depending on records, a fly speck in the family Bible can transform a "T" into an "F", or a discolored and faded record might obliterate a person's name. Finding a name frequently marks the beginning of an extensive search to verify it. Interesting sidelines can come out of plotting the family tree. She has discovered that three branches of her family five and six generations back all had lived in the same county in Indiana and had come to Kansas. "They probably were not even acquainted. The more I research the smaller the world becomes." Her research, however, has not been confined to her own family. As a member of the Clan Morrison of Arnerica,Mrs. King has helped other Morrisons in their search. One such referral turned up a Robert Marion Morrison better known to his fans as John Wayne. Hrs. King is a strong advocate of doing her part in helping generations who follow. A compilation of marriages in Adams County, Ohio, is to be sent to Ohio to add to their records. The Harveyville cemetery will have accurate records because of the work Mrs. King has put into completing ~he available records and organizing the information by alphabetical order, plot numbers and families, adding any kind of information that might be helpful to someone later. She takes her portable typewriter and folding chair along to record tombstone 134 �inscriptions which a fellow historian reads. Many small cemeteries have incomplete records or none at all. Some records are kept in shoe boxes in the home of the cemetery record keeper and are extremely vulnerable to extinction unless someone puts them together in an organized form and files them with the county or library. She presently is teaching a community service course on family genealogy at Washburn and is an active member of the Topeka Genealogy Workshop. "The interest in family history is making a comeback," she says happily. Her own family, her husband: Karl, 18; Marty, 16; Anita, 14; and Connie, 7, she says, however are mostly content to let her do the work and research. Their interests right now center on fishing skating, and Blue Birds. Should anyone ask them to identify themselves, however, they're equipped to give more than name and serial number as they find their place in the jigsaw puzzle. Copied with full permission from the Topeka Capital-Journal, Sunday, January 3, 1971. Submitted by Jane Wiggins, Lawrence. Mrs. King has taught beginning and advanced genealogical classes at Washburn University, Topeka, for 10 years. Specific topics among others that she will discuss June 7 at our public workshop are: "The Kansas State Historical Society Library - The Genealogical Gem on the Prair.ie." "Local Historical Museums and Societies." "Public and University Libraries." "Church Archives, Libraries and Cemeteries." * * * ** ****** QUERIES Queries are free to members. They should state at least two facts to gain the best results. There are many of our ancestors who have the same first and last names and this might hasten our answers. Queries are for the present time free to non-members. cern Kansas related ancestors of fifty years or more. They must con- Mrs. Maxine Hougland, 1920 Harper St., Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Am hunting marriage date of Luther DILLON, b. Ohio 1832 and Harriett THOMPSON (THAYER) b. S. Carolina 1837 (dau.of Emiline THOMPSON) ca. 1853 ca. 1853 in st. Joseph, Missouri. Mrs. Maxine Hougland, 1920 Harper St., Lawrence, Kansas 66044 James M. HOUGLAND d. 6 Jan. 1883; married Elizabeth WILSON (b. 30 May 1821, Hardin Co., Kentucky) 16 April 1844, La Plata, Missouri. Lived many years in Macon, MO. Ten children all born in Macon, MO. James was born ca. 1823 in Kentucky, where? l35 �Mrs. Maxine Hougland, 1920 HarperSL ; Lawrerice,Karisas ·66044 James M. HOUGLAND b. in.KY ca. 1823; d. 6 Jan. 1883, l-f.acon, MO. Married Elizabeth WILSON 16 April 1844 in La Plata, MO. (b. 30 May 1821, Hardin Co., KY; d. 14 Dec. 1920, Olathe, KS~ buried in Olathe Cemetery, dau. of Hugh and Nancy Ann WILSON). Who are James' parents? Mrs. Harold Geigle, 1691 N.E. Buck SL ,\oJ'estLitin, Oregon 97068 Would like to contact anyone related or who knows about the FAUBION family There is a History book being done on them. Also a reunion will be held Aug. 10, 1980. Apri1Sams, 215 Quince St. #10, Salt Lake City, Utah 84103 Does anyone have any information concerning the WATKINS family who lived in Douglas County, KSfrom 1861-1889? The father's name was Reuben W. WATKINS, b. 1820, Alabama. Wife's name, Mary Annette STOKES, b. 182?, Georgia. Children: Martha Jane who married Hi11iam WILEY, John H., William Thomas, James Wesley, and Delilah C. WATKINS. Did Delilah marry a HUFFMAN (HOFFMAN)? When did William Thomas die? Any information appreciated. Jean Ford, 418- 11th St., Greeley, Colorado 80631 Desire information concerning (Nancy?) Ann LOVE, wife of Wm. M. LOVE. She died 11 Jan. 1889, probably in Osage Co., KS. Was she buried in Osage Co.? Mrs. Pauline B. E1niff, 820 Sunset Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 The 1850 Federal Census for Indiana, Elkhart County, Harrison Township lists John FISHER, age 54, birthp1ace- Pennsylvania; Catherine, age 41, also born in Pennsylvania; children born in Ohio--Samue1 17, Sarah 14, Catherine 10, Mahala 8, Susan 6; born in Iridiana--Levi 4 and Matilda 2. Looking for any further information on this FISHER family. Mrs. Pauline B. E1niff, 820 Sunset Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Jacob and Margaret HESS, bor.n in Germany, lived thirty miles from Baltimore, Maryland, 1841 when daughter, Margaret, was born; moved to Elkhart, Indiana where daughter married Samuel FISHER in 1858. Would appreciate any information on this HESS family in Maryland or Indiana. Mrs. Pauline B. E1niff, 820 Sunset Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Seeking any information about the parents of Betsey Ann GAINES, who was born 20 May 1819 in Culpeper county, Virginia, and at an early age moved to a large plantation near Clarksville, Tennessee. Married George Klugh GORDON. In 1840's they moved to Tazewell county, Illinois where he died in 1847. There Betsey Ann married Azariah D. McCLURE 27 March 1853. They had four sons. Mrs. Emma Semple Berg, R.F.D. 2, Box 224, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Would like to correspond with and share and exchange information with anyone related to Samuel KUHN, my immigrant ancestor, who came to America with the Patatine~emigration in 1710 and settled on the Hudson River 'in New York. '- His gr. gr. gr. grandson was John COON (my great grandfather). Have much information to exchange. 136 �Mrs. Emma Semple Berg, R.F.D.2,Box224,Lawrerice;Karisas·66044 Will exchange information on the following surnames: KUHN (COON), COLE, MULLER (MILLER), WEIS (WIES), KREISELER, SEMPLE, BERG, FURY, ADAM, VOSS, NUPHER, MANCK. Mrs. Emma Semple Berg, R.F.D. 2, Box 224jLawrence, Kansas 66044 Seeking information on parents of Elizabeth (Betsy) COLE, born 23 January 1800 in Dutchess County, New York. Married John COON in 1820. Raised family in Phelps, (Ontario County), New York and later migrated to Michigan and later to Elyria, Ohio. Mike Landwehr, 725 39th Street, West Des Moines, Iowa 50265 Daniel L. WALTER, Minister of German Methodist Episcopal Church, was b. Switzerland in 1833. In Douglas County area 1877-1883, he married 2nd wife, Catherine Wilhelmine "Minnie" Henriette (BRljMMELSIECK) BRIME (or BRUNE). Need date and place of marriage. Daniel WALTER died in Eudora 1907, and is buried in Eudora. He was survived by his wfie Minnie, and by 2 sons who lived in Leavenworth. Need date of death and place of burial of Minnie WALTER. Will exchange BROMMELSIECK or WALTER info. Mrs. Elizabeth Wiggins Sanders, Route 5, Box 220, Warrensburg, Missouri 6409~ Joseph H. HARRISON settled in 1854 west of Lawrence (now the J.B. WIGGINS farm). His father,Jesse HARRISON was born in Huntsville, Alabama, later moved to Lafayette, then to Johnson counties in Missouri. Several HARRISON'S were listed in Cedar County, MO in 1850, including Jesse and Joseph. It is possible that Jesse went to Burlington, KS. No trace of any others has yet been found. Would appreciate any information on the HARRISON family and will be glad to exchange iriformation. GENIE'S HELPER will check the indexes of these volumes for surnames requested when SASE is enclosed: Original Owners.in the City of Lawrence, Kansas (founded 1854) copied by the D.C.G.S. Kansas Historical Collections - Vol. X, 1907-08 Collections of the Kansas Historical Society - Vol. XVII, 1926-1928 History of Shelby County; OhIo and,. Representative Citizens - A.B.C. Hitchcock, Sidney, Ohio, 1913. 862 pages plus Index History of Shelby County Ohio with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of its Prominent Men and Pioneers - First published 1883. 398pages.- - -- -Atlas Map and Directory of Shelby County Ohio 1?75-l900. 130 pages. Address Mrs. Pauline B. E1niff, 820 Sunset Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Ms. Jane Wiggins, 2020 Stratford Road, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 Looking for descendents of Lewis M. LA DUKE who resided near Eskridge, Wabaunsee County, Ks. from early 1870's until his death in 1924. Married 1st Lorinda Granger HART, 2nd Ida DAUGHERTY. Had 5 children by first wife and 6 children by second wife. 137 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Douglas County Genealogical Society Subject The topic of the resource Douglas County (Kan.) -- Genealogy Douglas County (Kan.) -- History Description An account of the resource This collection is comprised of the publications of the Douglas County Genealogical Society, including issues of The Pioneer (the quarterly newsletter of the Society) as well as directories, various indexes compiled by members of the Society, and other resources of interest to genealogists and researchers studying the history of Lawrence and Douglas County, Kansas. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Douglas County Genealogical Society (Lawrence, Kan.) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Lawrence Public Library (Lawrence, Kan.) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1977 - 2013 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource text Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Douglas County (Kan.) Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Pioneer, Vol. 3, No. 4: Spring 1980 Subject The topic of the resource Douglas County (Kan.) -- Genealogy Douglas County (Kan.) -- History Douglas County Genealogical Society (Lawrence, Kan.) Description An account of the resource The quarterly newsletter of the Douglas County Genealogical Society in Douglas County, Kansas, containing information regarding the organization, activities, and membership of the Society, and articles of interest to those researching family ties to or the history of Douglas County, Kansas. The contents of Volumes 1-12 of The Pioneer are indexed in a separate publication. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Douglas County Genealogical Society Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Douglas County Genealogical Society (Lawrence, Kan.) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1980 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright, Douglas County Genealogical Society Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PIONEER_VOL3_4_SPRING1980 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Douglas County (Kan.)