Book Review: Genealogy in Reverse by Cheri Hudson Passey

Cheri Hudson Passey has lots of hands-on experience searching for living family members of US Army soldiers who were missing or killed in action, with the goal of ultimately identifying and repatriating any remains identified via DNA testing. 

Through the years, Cheri has developed a slew of useful techniques and special tricks for locating people and getting in touch. Now she's written a handy how-to guide to give other genealogists a head start. Especially if you've never tried to trace a living relative before, or haven't tried recently, this book is for you.

Genealogy in Reverse: Finding the Living is a concise (54 page) book with a listing of resources and a mini-case study as well as step-by-step explanations. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Methodology

Chapter 1: Building a solid foundation

Chapter 2: Looking for clues in records

Chapter 3: Researching online

Chapter 4: Researching on location

Chapter 5: People finders and social media

Chapter 6: Reaching out to family

Chapter 7: A word about DNA

Chapter 8: Working through a soldier repatriation case (steps for finding living family)

Tools and resources for genealogy in reverse

Each chapter explores an aspect of the process, including creative tips for research and communication. In Chapter 2, for example, Cheri recommends checking obituaries carefully for names and clues, and looking at Find a Grave memorials as well. In Chapter 6, she cautions that sometimes living family members are reluctant to respond to your call, email, or letter--and she provides good ideas for productive approaches when reaching out to kin.

Yes, Genealogy in Reverse is a slim volume, but the content is solid, based on the author's own experiences and expertise. I found the illustrations mostly helpful as I learned about the process--although I would have appreciated larger images, especially screen shots in the chapter about people finders and social media. The mini-case study in chapter 8 was good, but would have been even better with more specifics. 

Still, I've bookmarked a number of pages that I'll return to again and again as I continue to look for living cousins and in-laws. 

To complement the book's brief content, I suggest viewing Cheri's RootsTech presentation on this topic, viewable for free here.

Genealogy in Reverse is affordably priced and available on Amazon. Check it out if you want a road map to follow in finding living cousins or relatives!

NOTE: I received a free review copy of this book from the publisher, but this did not at all influence my review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Happy 240th Anniversary to Brice and Eleanor

On July 23, 1785, two of my husband's 4th great-grandparents were married. 

The bride, Eleanor Kenny (1762-1841), was the daughter of James and Jane Kenny, born in Pennsylvania. The groom, Brice Smith (1756-1828), was the son of William and Jean Smith, also born in Pennsylvania. 

Brice married Eleanor in the First Presbyterian Church, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. This church, established by Scots-Irish settlers in 1734, continues to welcome worshippers even today.

Eleanor and Brice had eight children together, two sons and six daughters. As their children grew up, got married, and some moved west to Ohio, Eleanor and Brice eventually left Pennsylvania to be closer to children and grandchildren. When the couple passed away, they were buried in Driver Cemetery, Bremen, Ohio. 

My husband descends through this couple's daughter Rachel Smith, who married John Larimer. Rachel and John's first child was Brice S. Larimer, named in honor of his grandfather Brice Smith. Two generations later, Brice Larimer's grandson was named Brice Larimer McClure. Two generations after that, Brice Larimer McClure's grandson was named Brice. Who knows, maybe the Brice name will continue in the generations to come?

Remembering Brice Smith and Eleanor Kenny on the anniversary of their wedding in 1785. 

FamilySearch Full-Text Search: Mary Slatter Wood's Will

Following the theme of Randy Seaver's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, I decided to plug in some names from my husband's family tree and try the FamilySearch Full-Text Search functionality. I've done only a few searches previously and this was my opportunity to experiment a bit more.

AI transcript, highlighting, and summary helped

At first, I searched for my hubby's maternal ancestors from the mid-1800s, and found lots of mortgage and deed listings in legal ledgers. These men and women borrowed money and obtained mortgages for various Ohio properties they bought and sold over decades. Above, hubby's great-grandparents E.G. Steiner and Elizabeth J. Steiner had land dealings in Hancock County, Ohio. 

The AI transcript and the highlighting (shown above) plus the document summary helped me get the gist of these documents quickly. Some of these ancestors, including E.G., had to be legally pressured to pay off loans, but I wasn't particularly excited by any of the content.

Check pages before and after

Then I entered the name of my husband's grandfather, James Edgar Wood (1871-1939), knowing that as a builder, he would also have properties in the deeds and mortgages books. Yup. But he was also the executor of his first wife's will and appears in the probate records, none of which I had ever seen.

Mary Slatter Wood (1869-1925), sadly died of heart problems at the age of 55. Her will, dated four months before her death, leaves everything to her husband. It's a simple and straightforward document with no frills. I was a little surprised to learn that she made no specific bequests to her four sons. Maybe she didn't know she could do that kind of thing, or perhaps she was already feeling so weak that she and her husband James wanted to get the will completed in a hurry. Or maybe her husband insisted on full control because only one of their four children was of legal age when the will was signed.

Because James's name was not necessarily on every page, I clicked several pages forward and backward to examine every part of the complete probate file. Nobody contested the will, of course, and it sped through probate quickly. 

What they jointly owned

I had no idea Mary actually had a share of any property. But, as the probate excerpt at left shows, she had a share of the family's money in bank and stock, worth no more than $40. She also was co-owner of the family's home and the home next door--both of which were constructed by her husband James. 

For probate purposes, he valued the two houses and properties at no more than $25,000. In today's dollars, a century after Mary's death, the combined value is about $460,000, a considerable sum that was inaccessible because it was tied up in real estate.

Mary Wood's death was a turning point for the family. Her son Edgar, away at college at the time of her death, came home for the funeral but never lived under his father James's roof again. James had refused to give Edgar the money saved for education and in fact, wanted his son to forget about college and find work to support the household. Edgar defied his Dad and enrolled in college, paying the way by playing piano at college functions. He was just one college course away from graduation but never was able to pass a French exam, so he left without a diploma.

Thanks to Randy for the nudge to dig into full-text search a little deeper!

Why I Prefer Color Images of Vital Records

 
My great uncle Fred Farkas (1903-1980) was born on this day in 1903, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in a New York City neighborhood crowded with immigrants. He was the 10th of 11 children. Don't read the color image above quite yet! Here's the story.

Fred's birth cert from 1903

Fred's birth certificate originally showed his name as Fred Forkus, because that's how the surname seemed to be pronounced by his parents. His father was shown as Morris Forkus, his mother as Leanie Forkus. 

When I was able to view the certificate image on Family Search--only available at a FamSearch library, not from home--the black-and-white scan (directly above) was readable. However, the original handwritten info was less distinct and the later corrections didn't pop as clearly. 

Then I looked up the cert on the New York City Municipal Archives' Historical Vital Records database. You can see the image here and also in the image at top.

Full color really dramatizes the changes made on January 27, 1942, to correct all of the names. (This full color birth cert is also available on MyHeritage, in its wonderful collection titled "New York City Births, 1866-1909.") 

The color version makes all info on the cert much more readable than the b/w version, which I really appreciate. Not all vital records are available in color, but when they are, I make an effort to check them out.

Why correct the birth cert in 1942?

The only two reasons I can think of for Fred wanting to accurately document his birth in 1942 are: (1) to register for Social Security, and (2) to register with the local draft board during World War II. 

Either way, since Fred's parents had already passed away, who else would have taken the time and trouble to contact New York's Commissioner of Health to have this birth cert corrected? Must have been Fred.

I turned to Fred's WWII draft card, which is dated February 12, 1942, as shown here. He may very well have needed to provide actual, accurate proof of his age, which he could do with the corrected birth certificate that reflected his real surname. 

Remembering Great Uncle Fred with affection on the 122d anniversary of his Big Apple birth.

Planning a Shadow Box for Twin Jewelry

My Mom (Daisy Schwartz Burk, 1919-1981) was a twin. Her sister (my Auntie Dorothy H. Schwartz, 1919-2001) was just a few minutes older. Growing up, they were inseparable. Their proud momma (my grandma Minnie) sewed identical outfits for her girls, including the lacy dropped-waist dresses shown in the photo at top.

To continue sharing family history for the sake of future generations, Sis and I visited a superb custom frame store and we worked with their experts to plan an archival shadow box featuring jewelry worn by Mom and Auntie. At top is a mockup of the arrangement, with a swatch of the ecru linen backing. The jewelry will be meticulously and invisibly hand-stitched to the linen, and the photo will be inset for a dimensional look. 

In the center of the arrangement is a 1920s photo of Daisy and Dorothy, dressed for a special occasion. They're wearing matching pearl necklaces with matching bracelets. Yes, real pearls. One necklace and one bracelet will be mounted on either side of the photo.

Below the photo are two gold bracelets, one worn by each twin when they were preteens. My Mom had these appraised and learned they are real gold but not very valuable--although they are full of sentimental value.

Finally, artistically coiled on the left will be an identification bracelet that was engraved to "Daisy" from her sister "Dorothy, London, 1943." Auntie Dorothy, then a WAC serving overseas in WWII, sent this personalized bracelet to her dear twin Daisy back in the Bronx. 

Mom kept the bracelet all her life and now it will have a place of honor in this shadowbox. Sis and I decided to have the "Dorothy, London, 1943" inscription facing out because I will write a story about the bracelet to be included in the archival envelope on the back of the frame.

This is a high-end approach to sharing, an investment of several hundred dollars that I firmly believe is worthwhile for special items from my family's history. The end result is an attractive heirloom that will be properly preserved and treasured for decades to come. The story of these items will be stored in an envelope on the back of the shadow box.

A less costly option, if you choose, is a ready-made shadowbox frame, available in various shapes, sizes, and colors in many retail stores. That would be a great start if you want to experiment with displaying your family's smaller items.

Twice As Nice: Identical and Fraternal Twins

As a twin and the daughter of a twin, I'm really interested in twins! Above, Sis and me when we were tiny tykes with a little bit of hair. We don't know who's who in this photo, but I'm older by a matter of minutes. 👍 

Twin birth rates

Sis and I recently did a deep dive into twin research. We learned that in the United States, twin births account for 30.7 of every 1,000 births (as of 2023, the latest statistics available). That means just over 3 percent of US births are twins, while a whopping 97% of US births are singletons. 

Yet identical twins stand out even more: only about 4 out of every 1,000 births are identical twins. In other words, identicals represent less than half of one percent of all births, worldwide. 

Identical twins are always same sex, because they are the result of one egg that spontaneously splits. In contrast, fraternal twins can be same sex or opposite sex, because they develop from two separate eggs. Here's more about the difference between identical and fraternal twins. 

Key fact: fraternal twins tend to run in families, but identicals don't. By the way, the highest rate of twin births in the world is in southwest Nigeria, where 45 of every 1,000 births are twins--primarily fraternal twins. 

One or two placentas?

Mom and Dad always insisted that Sis and I were fraternal twins, because there were apparently two placentas. These days, the common wisdom that identicals always share one placenta has been disproved: sometimes identical twins each have their own placenta!

DNA testing is the only scientific way to confirm whether twins are identical or fraternal, which is how Sis and I are absolutely certain that we're identical. Sis says she "always knew" we were identical, but until DNA came along, I trusted my Mom's belief that we were fraternal. I have to admit, Sis was correct all along. 👏

Shadow Box Honoring Dad's WWII Service

Dad (Harold D. Burk, 1909-1978) served in the US Army from March, 1942 to October, 1945. Because he could type, he was assigned as a personnel clerk with the 3163d Signal Service Company, which supported combat troops in Europe by maintaining communication lines. When Dad came home after World War II ended, he put away his military stuff, concentrating on family life and starting a small business.

Preserving items from Dad's military days

Recently, I brought his wartime memorabilia, plus a 5x7 black/white photo of Dad in uniform, to a terrific custom frame shop for mounting in a specially-designed shadow box. I was willing to invest a few hundred dollars to professionally preserve items from Dad's military days and make them look important and worth saving, for the sake of future generations.

My Sis and I are incredibly thrilled with the results! The framers suggested the creative arrangement shown at top. The background is cream linen, with the photo inset by carefully cutting through the backing, to add a dimensional look. 

All items were mounted using archival methods and materials, and the museum glass protects the contents from fading. The wooden frame is a deep, rich black.

We had a nameplate engraved with Dad's name and dates, and it was tacked to the frame for a finishing touch.

Sharing the story

On the back will be a clear archival envelope where I can store other WWII photos of Dad and a written story about his military service. 

Inside the envelope, I'm including a detailed description of the items in the shadow box (clockwise from top right):

• US Army rifle marksmanship badge
• European Theater campaign service ribbon
• Pair of dice (used during Dad's time off)
• Dog tag
• Brass insignia and buttons of US Army and Signal Corps
• Dog tag
• Shoulder patch for his Signal Corps unit

Two years ago, when I created a bite-sized photo book about military ancestors in my family tree, I explained the symbolism of that colorful patch.

The framer is currently fashioning a custom shadow box for my Mom's and my Aunt's childhood jewelry. More about this very soon.

Professional framing is not in everybody's budget, and readymade shadow boxes are readily available in stores like Michael's as well as online. My goal is archival preservation, not just display, so I decided to move up to the more costly  professional solution for Dad's and Mom's special items.

Halfway Through 2025's Genealogical Journey of Sharing

Now midway through my 27th year of genealogy fascination and discoveries, I've been spending time on projects to share family history. This focus sets the direction for much of my research, to fill in gaps and confirm details for ancestors in my family tree and hubby's family tree. 

One way I've been sharing in 2025 is by adding and connecting hundreds of ancestor profiles on the free collaborative tree at WikiTree. I appreciate the ability to categorize ancestors (by birthplace or by burial place or many other categories) and to add a sticker to highlight a specific aspect of an ancestor's life.

At top, part of the WikiTree profile I created for Alice Adelaide Slatter, a little girl from my husband's family tree. She unfortunately died young, as you can see from the special sticker. This is one of the very few stickers I can "code" from memory, because I make a special effort to honor the memory of little ones who were sadly lost too soon. 

Of course I'm continuing to add/flesh out ancestor profiles on Find a Grave, Ancestry, and MyHeritage. No deadlines, no specific goals, just adding and connecting as I follow where the genealogical trail leads me. Plus I'm redoing newspaper research using fresh databases to look for additional social and news items about key ancestors.

Having professional shadowboxes made for Dad's and Mom's memorabilia, a very special way to share, has been a highlight of 2025. I'll post more about these in a few days.

For military veterans, I've got a baker's dozen list of ancestors waiting to commemorate on Fold3 memorial pages, after I receive their US Veterans Administration files. I hope when I finally receive the files that they will be informative. Fingers crossed to complete this by the end of 2025.

I'm still drafting bite-sized ancestor bios to post as memories on Family Search. Note that when I include a photo these days, I put on it a caption and attribution ("courtesy of Wood family" for instance) to make the identification and source permanent. Image here shows a small sample of stories and photos I've put on FamilySearch as memories. Each story starts with a brief headline, usually ancestor name and dates.

In addition, I'm testing colors (above) for a surname word cloud for the bite-sized family history booklet I'm writing about a branch of Wood in-laws. Later this booklet will be turned into a photo book, following these ancestors' lives from the start of the 1900s to the late 1960s.

On this genealogy blog, the top five most read posts from Jan-June 2025 were:

• Genealogy bloggers who are also on BlueSky
• New indexes to New York City digitized vital records
• Change, monitor, or hands off the Family Search family tree?
• What will happen to once-treasured silverware and china?
• Learn for free from big genealogy sites' blogs/videos

Independence Day Penny Postal Greeting

 
Before little Wallis W. Wood (1905-1957) was even three years old, his doting aunt was sending him penny postal greeting cards for every occasion. Above, the front of a colorful July 4th postcard sent from Aunt Nellie (Rachel Ellen Wood Kirby) in Chicago to her nephew in Cleveland, Ohio.

Aunt Nellie warned her nephew not to burn his fingers with sparklers celebrating Independence Day. She also asked whether he remembered his Aunt Nellie. After all, he had met her maybe once and he was only a tyke.

Penny postcards were at their height of popularity in America from 1907-1910. The postcard sent to young Wallis is an example of the "divided back" postcard, with room for a greeting and room for an address and stamp.

Aunt Nellie was a faithful correspondent, mailing postcards for birthdays and holidays to Wallis until he was well into his teenaged years. I'm so lucky to have been able to scan them and save the images with our family's digital collection of photos and materials.

Happy Independence Day!

Family Business: Teddy's Dairy Store

My grandfather Theodore "Teddy" Schwartz (1887-1965) first opened a small dairy store in the Bronx about 1917. The initial location was in a residential neighborhood, 985 St. John Avenue in the Bronx, near Southern Boulevard. The building no longer stands. 

NOTE: At this time, the Bronx was greener and more "suburban" than it became 60 years later. As the city's subway system expanded, a lot of families moved uptown to the Bronx from Manhattan for more spacious (and affordable) apartments or homes, close to good schools, nice parks, swimming pools, and other amenities. The commute to midtown or downtown Manhattan would take an hour or less.

By the 1930s, Teddy had progressed to a dairy store in a busier section of the Bronx, at 2294 Morris Avenue, close to Eastchester Avenue. His store was convenient for people to stop in on their way home from work or at any time they needed milk, cheese, eggs, and staple items.

In 1937, Teddy had moved his store to 679 Fox Street in the Bronx, not far from Southern Boulevard. He was alone behind the counter at 9:30 on the winter evening of December 16, 1937, when three armed men charged in. The villains hit Teddy with the butt end of a pistol and stole $50, scramming to rob two other stores on the same evening. Grandpa Teddy must have been shook up, to say the least, as well as unhappy about losing that much hard-earned money during the Great Depression.

In 1942, Teddy's store location again changed. This time he set up shop at 640 East 180th Street, an even busier and better neighborhood for retail traffic. As before, the entrance was at street level in one section of an apartment building.

Grandpa Teddy did well with that busier location and in 1955, he sold the store to his assistant, who viewed it as a "gold mine." Well, it was certainly hard work with long hours, if not an actual gold mine. It had taken the combined efforts of his wife, three children, and other relatives to operate Teddy's dairy stores over the years. 

I learned about these store locations from family documents and Bronx city directories. The story about Teddy being robbed came from the New York Times, which published a small item about the three small businesses all hit by armed robbers on one chilly December evening in 1937. 

Thinking of Grandpa's entrepreneurial efforts, as the #52Ancestors prompt for this week is "family business."

News Reports of Kathleen Southwood Barnes Slatter in Vancouver

It's been fun using newspapers.com to to learn about the charitable and social activities of Kathleen Southwood (1886-?) She was the second wife of hubby's paternal great uncle, Henry Arthur Slatter (1866-1942). 

Both Henry and Kathleen were born in England. Kathleen was first married to John Barnes and they were the parents of one son, John "Jackie" Barnes. Henry was first married to Alice Winter, and they were the parents of five children.  Both Kathleen and Henry were widowed by the time of their marriage on December 2, 1918. Henry's children were grown and gone, but Kathleen's son was still young.

My research focused on Kathleen's life in Vancouver, after she and her son Jackie traveled from London, England to Vancouver, Canada in November of 1919. They were joining Henry, who was resuming his position as bandmaster of the 72d Seaforth Highlanders at the end of World War I.

According to newspaper mentions from the early 1920s to the early 1930s, Kathleen was active in three local organizations: The Ladies' Auxiliary to Army and Navy Veterans, Vancouver Lodge No. 1 of the Ladies of the Royal Purple, and the Lions Gate Chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire.

Ladies' Auxiliary to Army and Navy Veterans

Kathleen was secretary to the Vancouver chapter of what was then known as the Ladies' Auxiliary to the Army and Navy Veterans. On Monday, February 14, 1921, her name appeared in the Vancouver Daily World newspaper as the retiring secretary of this Vancouver chapter. "Mrs. Slatter gave a splendid review of the work accomplished during the past year," according to the report, noting disbursements of Canadian $417 for relief work. That was a significant amount, worth US $4900 today.

"Mrs. H. Slatter" remained active in this group until at least 1922, as I followed her name in social items in the newspapers. She was on the refreshment committee that hosted a fundraising whist party to benefit Canadian veterans (Vancouver Daily World, June 1922). 

Ladies of the Royal Purple

A social item in the Vancouver newspaper The Province on January 16, 1926 mentions "Mrs. H. Slatter" as a guest at a bridge tea hosted by Lodge No. 1 of the Ladies of the Royal Purple. According to the Wikipedia page of the Order of Royal Purple, this group was originally formed in 1914 in Vancouver, Canada by wives of men who were members of Elks of Canada. 

In February of 1929, "Mrs. H. Slatter" was listed in the Vancouver Sun as a Royal Purple committee member for a Valentine's bridge and whist party that raised money for charitable purposes, such as providing coal and clothes for poor and ill people. She was also mentioned as a member of the sunshine and visiting committee in April of 1930, stopping in to see people who were ill.

IODE

In addition, British-born Kathleen was active in the Lions Gate chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire in Vancouver. This group, founded in 1900, adopted the motto "One flag, one throne, one empire" and promoted the concept of Great Britain and British institutions. Today, IODE Canada emphasizes social activities and community volunteerism.

A century ago, the Lions Gate chapter of IODE was social and also charitable. Its members raised money for veterans' support, and Kathleen was often a liaison with the local military hospital, according to a news item in The Province newspaper of September 11, 1929. She continued to participate in IODE for at least two more years, judging by her mentions in Vancouver newspapers.

And then?

Kathleen is absent from later news reports, and she wasn't mentioned in Henry Arthur Slatter's obit in 1942. One online family tree shows her with a different maiden name, passing away in 1934. I contacted that tree owner for more info, and we agreed to work together to uncover more clues. 

I'm grateful that Vancouver newspapers were so diligent in covering social activities in detail, so I have a good idea of what Kathleen was doing in Vancouver while her husband was a bandmaster and her son was in school.

Happy early Canada Day!

What Will Happen to Once-Treasured Silverware and China?

Do you have old silverware or china packed away in a cabinet or attic? Browsing recently in a "vintage" store, I noticed a wooden chest loaded with silverware. I counted a full service of silver for twelve, priced at $60. On another shelf, I spotted a graceful gravy boat and large serving platter from a set of fine china. Sigh.

Decisions, decisions

I know many families trying to decide what to do with matched sets of champagne flutes, or good silverware, or fine china, or other items from decades in the past. These days, younger folks often have no room for a service for twelve of anything. Plus, more are choosing to entertain casually rather than throwing a formal dinner party with silver, crystal, and the works.

Important!  Photograph a place setting or one specific piece of your set so it will live on in your family history records, no matter what you decide to do. Write down a description and let future generations know the manufacturer and approximate date of purchase or however these items entered your family's hands. Maybe you'll want to write a paragraph about some memorable times this china or silverware or goblet set was used for a family holiday or special dinner. Add a photo of a family meal with this set in use, if you can.

Possible next steps

As noted in my book, Planning a Future for Your Family's Past, I think it's a good idea to consider your options sooner rather than later. My recommendations:

• Talk with your family about whether they would like to have any or all of your treasured china or silverware or goblets (or other items).
• Mention a specific story (or two) of those items being carefully picked out or proudly displayed by an ancestor, to highlight the emotional connection.
• If no one wants the set, offer to have each person take a single teaspoon or just one piece from any of these sets. Better to save a few items than to have the entire set fall out of the family's hands forever. Everyone has room for one item!
• In addition to offering an item to your siblings, children, grandchildren, also consider asking nieces, nephews, cousins to accept one item. This saves more items and it spreads the stories around to more relatives at the same time.

If you have no takers or can only place a few items, you might want to learn more about the value of your china or silverware or goblets. Consider that should these items have some monetary value, the Brooklyn Teacup has excellent advice about various options for selling. 

Another possibility: Depending on the age of your set, a local museum, library, or history society may be interested in using it (or selected pieces) for historical displays. It's worth exploring.

When to start?

It's never too early to start the ball rolling on finding new homes for your crystal or silver or china, if you choose. In my family, a niece with a sentimental streak has raised her hand for Grandma's silverware and china. Another niece now sets her holiday table with her Mom's wedding china mixed with a few pieces from my wedding china and a couple of crystal goblets from her Dad's family. They appreciate the old-fashioned style and the rich heritage that comes with these items.

I wish you the same luck placing your family's special items!

The Wednesday Wedding of Dora Hurwitch and Aaron Hartman

Wednesday, June 20, 1888 was the wedding day of my paternal great aunt's older sister, Dora Hurwitch (1870-1943). She was born in Poland, the daughter of a peddler who brought his family to England where he later became a teacher. The groom was Aaron H. Hartman (1871-1942), a jeweler who was the son of a draper born in Poland. 

Of Dora and Aaron's children, three died before age 20. Their daughter Emily Hartman volunteered as a nurse during World War I and sadly died at age 22 when the flu epidemic swept through the Bermondsey military hospital where she was working in October, 1918. Her tombstone includes the poignant inscription "Thou o lord has done as it pleased thee."

Married by the groom's neighbor

In the 1881 England Census, Aaron Hartman and his family were listed in Sheffield just a few lines below "A. Alexander, Jewish Minister." And looking at the transcribed marriage record for Dora and Aaron from the West Bar Green Synagogue, the minister is "A. Alexander." Clearly the same man, who must have been well-known to the groom's family.

The West Bar Green Synagogue in Sheffield had a number of names and locations during its time. According to this brief history, "Rev. A. Alexander" was a "reader" during the early 1900s. After relocating to a more permanent place in 1914, the synagogue was unfortunately destroyed by German bombing during the Sheffield Blitz of December, 1940.

Aaron and Dora in retirement

In the 1939 Register, Aaron was shown as retired and his wife Dora's occupation was "unpaid domestic duties." Both Aaron and his bride, Dora, survived the blitz. In retirement, they were living in Lymington, Hampshire, England, a ferry ride away from the Isle of Wight. Lymington is more than 200 miles south of the couple's original home in Sheffield. 

Aaron died in December, 1942. Dora died in October of 1943. Both were buried in Ecclesfield Jewish Cemetery in Sheffield, where their children were buried. Remembering these folks from my father's family tree on the 137th anniversary of their wedding in Sheffield, England.

Daily Life, 1920-1940 in the United States

 
Many of the recent ancestors of particular interest in my family tree and hubby's family tree were born or came of age in the United States during the period between the two World Wars. All four of my immigrant grandparents settled in New York City during these three decades, and my parents were very young but growing up. My husband's mother and father were in high school and then he went on to college during the Roaring Twenties.

No wonder I was drawn to this concise and readable book by David E. Kyvig, Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1940. Only 300 pages plus notes and bibliography and a detailed index. See table of contents below.

Unlike conventional history books, Kyvig's book looks at local, national, and international events, plus politics and law, social movements, religion, economic developments, technology, transportation, entertainment and more--all through the lens of how they affected people living in the States, both in rural communities and in busy metropolitan areas. Solid historical and social context, covering well-known events with the focus on the consequences for everyday people going about their daily lives.

Kyvig examines trends revealed by Census data and by numerous studies such as the 1929/1937 books about Muncie, Indiana to understand how American daily life changed in communities from coast to coast after the "Great War," during the Great Depression, and as the economy finally began to turn around. The author examines influences like: Prohibition. Radio. Movies. Car culture. These and other changes gave me more insights into how my ancestors probably lived during the period.

If your local library doesn't have this informative book, you can find it on the Internet Archive here. Dip in and dig a little deeper into how your US ancestors might lived at that time! 

PS There are similar books that explore daily life during other periods in history. I'm checking them out to better understand my older ancestors too.

Remembering Fathers from Hubby's Family Tree

On Father's Day, I want to honor three fathers from my husband's family tree.

• My late father-in-law, Edgar James Wood (1903-1986) was an insurance agent by day, a professional musician by night, and an avid traveler to Europe. At top, a photo of Ed and his wife Marian, on a trans-Atlantic ocean liner headed for Italy. 
• Hubby's paternal grandfather was James Edgar Wood (1871-1939), a carpenter and contractor who built dozens of homes in and around Cleveland, Ohio. James and his wife Mary had four sons--my father-in-law Ed was the oldest.
• Hubby's paternal great-grandfather was Thomas Haskell Wood (1809-1890), a carpenter and carriage maker who brought up most of his sons to be carpenters and contractors. Thomas's own grandfather Elihu Wood Sr. served in a militia for 6 days during the American Revolution, a story that got lost in the family for too many generations.

May the stories of these fathers be remembered long into the future!

Redoing Research--and Finding Elizabeth Light's Obit

Every year, I rotate newspaper subscriptions so I can search different databases for ancestor birth, marriage, and death notices, as well as any social items or even legal woes.

Then I redo my research by either following specific branches of the family tree or investigating ancestors as their birth/marriage/death anniversaries pop up. Rotating newspaper sites paid off this week when I finally discovered where and when two ancestors in my husband's family died--raising a new genealogy question as well.

Elizabeth E. Bentley Light

The Bentley branch has been a special focus of my research into my husband's family tree. My husband's 3d great-grandpa William Tyler Bentley uprooted his family from upstate New York about 1835 and settled in Elkhart County, Indiana with his wife Olivia and their seven children. Alas, Olivia died just a few years later. William left for California a decade later, during Gold Rush fever, and most of his children soon also left Indiana to farm or ranch in California.

William's daughter Elizabeth married widower Emanuel Light on June 13, 1847 and they began their family with two sons, William and Frank. William only appears on the 1850 US Census, so I suspect he died young, before Elizabeth and Emanuel moved to central California late in 1853, bringing along his two children from his first marriage. In California, the couple had two more children, even as one of Emanuel's older sons died.

Obits for Elizabeth and Emanuel

Using my subscription to newspapers.com, I searched for Elizabeth and Emanuel's death notices. I had a vague idea of when they died (before 1900) but nothing specific. Within minutes, I had obituaries for both of these ancestors. Emanuel died first, in January of 1896, in Winters, California, a rural section of the state west of Sacramento. His obit noted that Emanuel had made his home on "the eastern slope of a range of mountains" since 1890. His survivors were listed as his wife Elizabeth, three sons, and one daughter. The survivor count must include his son from the first marriage plus two sons and a daughter with Elizabeth.

Elizabeth's obit was published in May of 1897, saying she died only 16 months after her late husband Emanuel. Again, her surviving children are noted as three sons and one daughter, very likely her husband's son from his first marriage plus two sons and a daughter with Emanuel.

On the 178th anniversary of Elizabeth and Emanuel's wedding, I'm glad to be able to add their death dates to my family trees, all because I redid my research in a newspaper database.

Married 80 Years Ago: Theodore and Yetta

On June 10, 1945, my cousin Theodore Roth (1907-1967) married Yetta Mansfield (1912-2004).

Theodore was a son of Bertha Weiss Roth and merchant Bela Roth, whose first wife was my great-grandmother's sister. Yetta was a daughter of watchmaker Isadore Manfield and his wife Sadie Friedman Manfield. On their marriage documents, the groom said he was born in Hungary, the bride said she was born in Austria. But in other documents, including the Census, she and her parents and one brother were shown as being born in Poland. Huh?

NYC voter register lists naturalization

When Yetta registered to vote in 1942, along with her sister Sylvia, they were required to list their place of birth and indicate naturalization. Yetta told officials that her birthplace was Poland, while Sylvia said her birthplace was Canada, as shown above. Both said they were naturalized under their father Isadore's documentation in 1931.

Next step: Finding Isadore's naturalization. Actually, it wasn't very difficult. 

NY Naturalizations: Bronx and Queens

I went to the free NY Naturalizations website, which is maintained by the Bronx and Queens County Clerks, and plugged in the name of Isadore Manfield. There were 2 results for this name. The first was a painter who arrived earlier in the 20th century and had no family. Not the man I was searching for. 

The second listing was a watchmaker born in Poland, married with four children...including Yetta, her sister Sylvia, and two other children. Definitely my guy, and the papers were a gold mine of details! This Isadore Manfield was naturalized in 1931, renouncing any citizenship from Poland and Austria. 

Thanks to all these documents, I have lots more information about Yetta's background. She and Theodore had one son, Edward. Thinking of them on the 80th anniversary of the Big Apple wedding of Theodore and Yetta.

Shadow Box for Pearls and More

This is my year for framing key family history artifacts. I want to protect them and make them look attractive for passing down to the next generation. Already in the hands of professional framers: a shadow box order for my father's World War II memorabilia. Next project: a shadow box for some of my Mom's items.

A child-size string of pearls and tiny pearl bracelet will be in the next shadow box, along with a photo of Mom (Daisy) and her twin sister (Dorothy), wearing these pearls (shown in photo below). 

When I mentioned the shadow box idea to my Sis, she suggested adding the metallic ID bracelet shown at top. It was hand-inscribed by a London jeweler who wrote "Daisy" on the front and "Dorothy, London 1943" on the back. 

At the time, Dorothy was serving as a U.S. WAC during World War II and was stationed in London for additional training after deployment. Her twin sister Daisy (my Mom) was home in the Bronx, New York, working as a legal secretary and helping her parents with their neighborhood dairy store. This was the first time in their 23 years together that they had been separated for more than a few days.

The shadow box will be made of black wood and feature a brass name plate on the frame, with Daisy and Dorothy's names and dates. On the back of the frame, I'll put bite-sized bios of the twins, explaining the significance of the jewelry items.

Of course I'll post a photo once the shadow box is completed! 

Planning a Shadow Box for Dad's WWII Memorabilia

Above, a snapshot of Dad, Harold D. Burk (1909-1978) during a brief leave to visit family before shipping overseas to serve in World War II.

I'm having his military memorabilia placed into a professionally-crafted, high-quality shadow box frame to keep everything safe and together. The frame store will incorporate special "museum glass" and special archival materials to prevent fading and deterioration. 

Not only is the framer arranging Dad's dog tags, unit insignia, shoulder patch, and Army lapel pins inside the box, she is including the black-and-white photo of Dad in his uniform, shown at top. 

A pro photographer recommended I have a high-resolution scan of the snapshot printed on special paper designed to last for decades. I used Mpix, which offers archival-quality prints. Other companies also offer similar services, so shop around if you want to do this, and also consider photo restoration if needed. 

The goal in creating a custom shadow box is to protect these 80-year-old items and enclose them within a frame and with a story, so they are preserved and passed down to future generations as part of our precious family history. For me, the investment in quality framing craftsmanship will give these items a much longer life and make them look more important than just leaving them in an archival box.

There are so many ways to store and share family artifacts (see my book, Planning a Future for Your Family's Past) but this project is designed especially to showcase artifacts from my Dad's service in WWII, before he met and married my Mom.

I'll share more about this project once I get it back from the framer. And yes, after I join my ancestors sometime in the far future, I have multiple heirs for this new heirloom. 

Were My Family's Baby Names Among the Most Popular of Their Time?

All four of my grandparents were immigrants and their children were all (with one exception) born in New York City during the period 1900-1919.

These first-generation children were: Mildred, Harold, Miriam, Sidney, Fred, Dorothy, and Daisy. I wondered how many of those names were particularly popular at the time.

So I wandered over to the Social Security website section devoted to "popular baby names of the period by decade" and selected the decade of 1910. 

Sure enough, Dorothy was one of the most popular baby names of the 1910s, as was Mildred. By the way, both names were also in the top ten baby names of the first decade of the twentieth century. 

Not one of these given names from my family appears in the top 10 baby names of the past century.

Happy I Hired a Pro Genealogist

 

Earlier this year, I found an official Canadian publication from 1932 showing the naturalization certificate number for Italian-born Paolo Pietroniro (1897-1976), an in-law sibling in my husband's family tree. Actually, at the time, he became a British citizen through the Canadian naturalization process.

Researching what it would take to obtain Paolo's Canadian naturalization documents through the Access to Information and Privacy Act (ATIP), I learned three very important facts: (1) with the certificate number and date, I could skip a lengthy and expensive search process; (2) only a Canadian resident can request naturalization documents; (3) the cost for a naturalization file is just $5 through ATIP. I was pretty sure I had everything needed to make this request, except for my being ineligible to ask for the documents, since I don't live in Canada.

Finding someone in Canada to make the request

Initially, I approached three genealogy folks I know, all with ties to Canada, and asked for their informal assistance in obtaining the naturalization file. But of course these folks have busy lives and they weren't at all familiar with the ATIP process. I hadn't really thought this through. However, one of these nice folks suggested I contact a professional genealogist in Canada. An excellent idea!

So I asked for a video conference consult with Canadian pro genealogist Ellen Thompson-Jennings (well known as the Family History Hound from Hound on the Hunt). I read her blog regularly and I thought she would be a great help. Before we spoke, I had my documents ready to share and made notes about what, specifically, I hoped she could obtain for me.

Expertise and experience for the win

Ellen, who lives in Western Canada, was an absolute pleasure to work with. She listened carefully during our consult, looked at my paperwork, and confirmed that I had the right info to request a naturalization file. Best of all, she told me she had successfully made similar ATIP requests in the past. Whew. We agreed on a reasonable fee, including the $5 official fee, and she prepared the request for submission to Canadian authorities. Now all we had to do was wait.

Five weeks later, Ellen sent me an email with a pdf attachment: The 17 page electronic file for Paolo Pietroniro's naturalization! I learned he spoke, read, and wrote English as well as Italian. There was also lots of info about his trips from Montreal to Italy to visit family (exact dates of departure/arrival), and much more. I am delighted to have this file and am digging deeper into all the details in it.

As a bonus, Paolo's wife's naturalization documents were in the same electronic file. At top is one page from the naturalization of Filomena Damario Pietroniro (1895-1966). She became a Canadian citizen in 1939, having lived in the country for a decade. I was surprised to see that she made a mark instead of a signature. The page has a notation about "ignoring the art of writing," which I interpreted as meaning Filomena was not able to sign her name. In contrast, the documents revealed that Paolo was fluent in English, and he had a flowing signature, probably because he was an entrepreneur running a masonry business in Montreal.

I'm very happy a hired a pro genealogist for this project! Ellen's knowledge and experience were just what I needed to get the job done.

Memorial Day 2025: Awaiting Files from Veterans Affairs

On this Memorial Day weekend, I'm awaiting the arrival of 12 files about ancestors who served in the US military during the 20th century. I requested these records from the US Department of Veterans Affairs via the very efficient one-stop birls.org website created by Reclaim the Records. My earlier blog post explains more about the website and how easy it is to search for ancestors in this database.

From December, 2024 through May, 2025, I've submitted BIRLS requests for a total of 13 ancestors in my family tree and in my hubby's family tree. I'm particularly eager to see the files for my father, Harold D. Burk, who in later years was treated in VA hospitals for medical conditions. I expect that file to have many pages of information about his health and about his service.

All the ancestor names I searched were in the BIRLS database, but I haven't yet heard from Veterans Affairs about whether all have actual files. In fact, the VA already informed me that one distant ancestor has no records on file. Because that ancestor is quite far out on the family tree, I don't plan to appeal to make the agency look further, but it is an option.

Today I'm remembering the service of these and many other veterans from all branches of my family who served their country in years past. This is my #52Ancestors post for the challenge theme of military.

Adelaide Slatter Was Baptized by A "Squire in the Slums"

Today is the 157th anniversary of the birth of my husband's great aunt Adelaide Mary Ann Slatter (1868-1947). Ada, as she was known in the family, was the fifth of six children of Mary Shehen Slatter and John Slatter. All the children were born into increasingly desperate poverty as John struggled to get and keep enough work to support the growing family.

Looking carefully at Ada's baptismal record from St. Mark's of Whitechapel, I read the name of Brooke Lambert as the person who baptized Ada.

It took three nanoseconds of searching to learn that Brooke Lambert was born into privilege, became curate and vicar of St. Mark's after receiving degrees at Oxford University, and led antipoverty efforts for many years. He made his own observations and wrote and sermonized about poverty before Charles Booth undertook his statistical analyses of the poor of London.

A 2007 book by Nigel Scotland, Squires in the Slums, examined the settlements and programs of another social reformer of the time, Samuel Barnett, who along with Lambert was considered a "squire in the slums."

Ada eventually escaped her impoverished childhood: she worked hard as a servant, saved her money, and in 1895, she sailed to America to begin again in Ohio, where her father had settled a few years earlier. Ada married James Sills Baker and they had two daughters, Dorothy and Edith. 

Remembering Ada and celebrating her resilience on the anniversary of her Whitechapel birth.

Crossing the Northern Border at Age One

This week is the 114th anniversary of the birth of my paternal aunt Miriam Burk (1911-1987). 

In this New York City photo, Miriam is the babe in the arms of her mother, Henrietta Mahler Burk. To the left, in the fashionable hair bow, is older sister Mildred Burk. The tyke at lower right is my own Dad, Harold Burk.

Not shown in the photo is Henrietta's husband, my paternal grandfather Isaac Burk, who was then in Montreal, where he often worked as a cabinetmaker and carpenter. He went alone and sometimes the family followed, then returned to New York City where Henrietta's family lived.

The day in 1911 when Miriam was born was sunny and warm. The New York Times headlines that day were about Mexico reorganizing itself politically, possible mayoral candidates, foreign banks doing business in New York, and Mrs. Taft returning from New York to Washington after falling ill. One small front-page item quoted a City College professor as saying that life "must have come from other worlds," with germs brought to Earth on the energy of light rushing through the universe. I kid you not.

In 1912, at the age of one, Miriam crossed the border from the United States to Canada, traveling with her mother Henrietta and two siblings, to be reunited with Isaac in Montreal. While living in Montreal, Henrietta gave birth to their fourth child, Sidney Burk. 

In 1915, when Sidney was one year old, Henrietta brought him, Miriam, Mildred, and Harold back across the border to New York City for good. Isaac soon returned to the Big Apple and that's where they planted permanent roots.

Happy birthday to Aunt Miriam, who was a gracious and glamorous aunt.

If I Could Do It Over: Oral History

A few years before my late father-in-law Edgar J. Wood passed away in 1986, my husband sat down with him on two occasions, to ask questions about the past. He had a microphone set up on the coffee table and a cassette ready to tape his father's oral history. 

This was a first-ever attempt to ask the last of the older generation about family history and his personal history. Great idea, and I'm grateful my husband did this.

Because hubby has a journalism background, he was prepared with lots and lots of questions for Ed, and held a pad and pen to take notes. (Me, looking back now with hindsight: Pages of questions, taking notes--maybe too direct, maybe a little overwhelming for the interviewee.)

Of course, my husband did many things right: He tested his recording device just before the interviewee began. He smiled and looked interested even when the story seemed old. He asked for the time to interview and made sure the place was quiet and free from interruptions. He got his father's agreement to do the interviews. And afterward, he transcribed the recordings to share with family.

Set the stage for a solid oral history

If we could go back in time and redo this opportunity to capture oral history from Ed, I would:

1. Ask open-ended questions that encourage freewheeling answers. "How did you and Mom meet?" encourages the interviewee to tell a story. This should be a conversation, NOT an interrogation. Interviewers can guide the conversation but not force it or make the interviewee feel cornered. The beginning of an interview sets the tone. My late father-in-law was nervous and not comfortable for the first half an hour, I could hear from the recording, but then he got into story-telling mode and recounted some fascinating tales!
2. Allow time for thinking and remembering. It takes time to retrieve memories from decades in the past. When there are pauses in the conversation, take a deep breath and be patient. Don't push the interviewee, don't rush into the next question. 
3. Allow for natural follow-up. Reporters might have to get through a list of questions, but not family historians. Listening to answers, reflecting on what the interviewee says, will naturally lead to gentle follow-up comments and questions. Being overeager is a trap. After Ed got more comfortable, he was able to recall more vividly some high and low points of his life, and he did share some of his stronger feelings.
4. Try not to interrupt. There are stories that folks just love to tell, over and over. But those stories may lead down a fresh path if we listen with interest and respect...and wait for the right opportunity to pose a natural follow-up comment or question. While my husband was listening to a well-worn story, suddenly his father remembered a key new detail! Some of these memories may be positive, some painful, so I think it's best to let the interview unfold without rigid structure, but with an occasional subtle, supportive comment and open, accepting body language.
5. Interview for fairly short periods, with flexibility. Ed sat for two interviews, each an hour long. Now I think that was too long per interview. I would aim for half an hour and see how things go and continue if the interviewee would like to keep going (depending on age and health, etc). I would also encourage the interviewee to jot down stories he or she would enjoy telling in an interview. This should be a positive experience, not a chore. 

Questions and issues

Back in the day, nobody could envision how much genealogy research would or could eventually reveal about the past. So my late father-in-law had no way to know that eventually we would uncover some irregularities in his stories. Not just timing mismatches, but deliberate obfuscations. Looking back, we now know Ed left out certain details and deflected some questions to avoid disclosing difficult facts or feelings.

Even if we had known about these issues at the time of the interview, I believe it would have been a bad idea to challenge the interviewee's version, what that person wanted to remember/convey. 

If I could go back in time and help my husband redo those oral history interviews, I would recommend that he listen with his heart to what the interviewee was saying and the reason for telling the story that way. Maybe I would suggest rephrasing a particularly direct or sensitive question or give a gentle followup question, nothing confrontational. I wouldn't want the interviewee to get upset or to stop talking.

As the family historian who is lucky enough to have oral history content like Ed's interviews, I can always provide context if and when I retell parts of the story for the benefit of future generations. 

If something was too sensitive to disclose at this time (and that was NOT the case with Ed), I would simply leave a note in my files and let the next generation decide what and when to disclose.

What do you think?