By
Melinda Cohenour
Recent efforts in researching my everlasting
FIVE BRICK WALLS brought about such a level of frustration I found
myself wondering why I continue. Of course, I am a Genealogy addict and
the very idea of NOT continuing to research culminates in its own form
of withdrawal. As a respite from such a painful alternative, my thoughts
turned to a review of the most fulfilling "finds" encountered through
the years. What a great idea for a column! But wait.
As I
began exploring that pathway, the stepping stones began to look overly
familiar. Ahhh, yes. I wrote that column ... Some time ago. And, like
magic, here it is.
Treasures. Serendipitous discoveries that have made all those
hours and hours of hard research worthwhile. For this month's column, I
offer up a column published as an ode to Thanks-Giving genealogy. My
treasures. The jewels of discovery encountered through the years.
Thankfulness: Treasures in Research
As we prepare this column, the Thanksgiving Holiday inspired a
review of blessings. One of my greatest blessings is the opportunity to
get to “know” my ancestors – the folks whose genes became part of ME.
And that opportunity has been delivered, in my own circumstance, by the
ability to “travel” the world via the Internet. The title of this column
is directly tied to the technology that has made Armchair Genealogy
research possible.
Just this month, my annual subscription to Ancestry
rolled around. It is no small figure for a senior budget, but in my
mind, it is well worth the expense. This is my primary access to the
world of genealogy, with literally millions of documents scanned in
providing the opportunity to view records often written by or dictated
by long-buried ancestors whose lives were filled with the trivial and
the critical. Through the miracle of modern technology and with a bit of
time and strategic thinking, I am enabled to unlock the secrets of
those who came before me, those who helped make me who I am.
In the process of research, many surprises have come my
way. Glimpses into the lives of these folks often elicited unexpected
tears, or smiles, or even gasps as I found a connection to some famous
(or infamous, Heaven help us) personages. This column was triggered by
your author’s reflection on the things for which to give Thanks. In the
process of recounting the love of family, good food prepared well,
decent health (give or take a few annoying issues), friends who have
enriched our lives, the fundamentals of personal security (shelter,
warmth, utilities), my thoughts centered on the non-essential things
which bring joy. Primary on this list was my love of genealogy.
My family history research has also resulted in making
the acquaintance of so many like-minded researchers. Many are family
members who generously share their own research. Often the researcher
became friend as a result of an inquiry arising from viewing one of my
columns or finding a common ancestor on my family tree. Amazingly, in
reviewing my records many with whom information has been shared have
written back and forth for decades! Also, sadly, many who contributed
greatly to my research have gone on to join our ancestors in Heaven.
Talking about those surprise connections, my most recent
“gift” was the discovery that Garth Brooks is a 6th cousin, once
removed! Now, my husband and I have been HUGE fans of Garth since
hearing his first recording nearly forty years ago. He and his
connection to our family is now documented in my tree. This find was not
mine but came about through my membership in a family Facebook page
devoted to our Creek family lineage. My great-grandmother Flutie Creek
(later Alexander, then Kendrick) was the daughter of Absolom Creek whose
parents were Jacob Haudenschildt Creek and wife, Virginia Lee Younger
Creek. Through this line arises our relationship to both the Younger
boys whose exploits after the Civil War became infamous, and their
cousins, the Dalton boys. One of my columns was devoted to the string of
infamous relatives found through researching these guys, entitled Oh! Those Shady Characters! It was one of my more enjoyable bits of writing for pure fun. Shady Characters
Researching the Dalton boys, one of those intriguing
“coincidences” surfaced. My column back in 2014 explored this unusual
find. Titled: My Strange Relationship with Julia Ann Johnson Whiteturkey
Gilstrap Lewis Dalton Johnson, the column highlights one of the more
interesting ladies to appear in our family. My Strange Relationship.
Another find came in the course of research into one of
my most disappointing brick walls (records documenting the birth in New
Jersey of one William “P. R.” Joslin or Joslyn seem to have been burned
during the Revolutionary War). My DNA test ties to many other Joslin
descendants whose documented trees include the Col. William (of
Deerfield) Joslin. An intriguing line in one of the histories of the
family regarding the Colonel William Joslin read as follows:
"He left Fairfield Township about 1730 and purchased land at the Indian
Fields (East Bridgeton). At this place, he married Christiana Garrison,
daughter of Jacob Garrison, Jr (1676-1751) who lived nearby. "
Being the good little clue follower a researcher must
become, I began research into the Garrison line. (By the way, DNA also
links me to other Garrison descendants, the combination virtually
assuring that we descend from this Joslin ancestor.) In that research, I
found the parents of Jacob Garrison, Jr. to be Jacob “Old Jacob”
Garritsen de Haas (anglicized to Garrison) and wife Christina Cresson
and that brought about the connection to my 7th Great-Grandfather (may
be 8th if we find P. R.’s father was not the Colonel but one of the
Colonel’s sons) Pierre “La Jardiniere” Cresson. Pierre Cresson warrants a
column of his own as his contribution to the New World rivaled that of
almost any other for the impact felt through the centuries. (Stay tuned,
readers, for this is proposed to be my first 2020 column subject!)
Pierre acquired his nom de plume “le Jardiniere” by virtue of the
breathtaking gardens he designed and executed for the Prince of Orange
of Flanders, the Netherlands. (William II, Prince of Orange, was the son
of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange, and Amalia of Solms-Braunfels. On
2 May 1641, William married Mary, Princess Royal, who was the eldest
daughter of King Charles I of England, in the Chapel Royal of Whitehall
Palace in London. William was fifteen, while Mary was just nine at that
time.) Through this ancestor, it appears there are connections to the
Post family and another to the DeMarest family. Research must ensue.
Pierre and family were part of the Huguenot migration to
the New World. Likewise, another ancestor, Bartholomew duPuy, was a
French Huguenot who made his mark on the New World. His story is one of
romance and intrigue and was reported in an Armchair Genealogy column
previously. Another jewel of a find! Bartholomew was the head of the
personal guards protecting the life of one King Louis XIV of France. Bartholomew duPuy
One of the most famous of our relatives was Napa Charley
Hopper, whose story first inspired my interest in family history. His
exploits as the hunter/guide for the Bartleson-Bidwell Party on its trek
from Missouri to California triggered historical references in not less
than four states! An early contribution to PencilStubs, before I
actually committed to do a monthly column: Charles “Napa Charley” Hopper
- The Ancestor whose Adventures Sparked my Interest in Genealogy Charles “Napa Charley” Hopper
No list of treasures in our family tree would be complete
without listing both Hugues dePayens (DuPuy) and Charlemagne. These two
are without doubt THE most famous of all our ancestors. A tribute to
Hugues dePayens was contained in the October 2019 column entitled: An
Incredible Lineage: My 23rd Great Grandfather, Hugues dePayenes (DuPuy) Hugues dePayenes (DuPuy).
Thus far, no column has been devoted to the connection to Charlemagne;
however, that was one discovered decades ago through the inherited
research of my grandmother, Carrie Joslin, who was a pen pal of the
best-known Joslin family researcher, Edith Wessler. Her treatise on the
Joslin (all spellings) family was self-published in 1962 after lengthy
correspondence with all known Joslin family historians in that day and
age. One of her constant correspondents was my grandmother. Following
Mrs. Wessler’s death, her daughter, Carol Wessler Treadway, worked
tirelessly to update the many handwritten journals in which Edith
Wessler maintained her painstaking records. Carol and I became fast
friends, emailing one another frequently through the years until Carol’s
untimely death a few years ago. One day the Charlemagne connection must
become a column.
Thus, my love of genealogy has become one of my most
treasured blessings. I urge each of you to take the time to talk to your
elderly relatives NOW and make notes, take pics, video their
remembrances before those stories are lost. There is a wealth of
knowledge, family lore, grins, tears, and jubilance to be discovered.
And don’t forget to avail yourself of the trove of valuable information
to be found on the Internet. Best travels are often taken in the quest
for Armchair Genealogy!
Click on author's byline for bio and list of other works published by Pencil Stubs Online.
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