Showing posts with label texas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label texas. Show all posts

Friday, 18 September 2015

A Pair of Doctors.

I have been diving back into researching my American ancestors and thought I would introduce you to the two Doctors in the family. Both of them are my Great Great Great Grandfather's. From my understanding, they were both family doctors - general practitioners.

1. Dr William Simpson Robinson

He was born on November 6th, 1823, in Tennessee to parents James Robinson and Catherine Mann. In Navarro County, Texas, he married Mariah Adelaide Riggs on September 21st, 1852. They had 13 children. William passed away on January 4th, 1887 in Dresden, Texas. He is buried in Dresden Cemetery.

Dr William Simpson Robinson
Dresden, Texas, 1848
[Source: Family Collection]
Grave of Dr William Simpson Robinson, Dresden Cemetery
[Taken by Caitie on July 8th, 2009...the day I caught the genealogy bug!]

2. Dr George Washington Spencer

He was born on January 6th, 1832 in Alabama, to parents Peter Spencer and Mary Cooper. By 1840, the family had moved to Itawamba, Mississippi. On March 14th, 1855. he married Frances Elizabeth McWilliams in Mississippi. They had at least nine children - I'm still confirming if there were more. Come 1870, George, Frances and their children had moved to Texas. George passed away on May 24th, 1904, in Frost, Texas. He is buried in Frost Cemetery.

Dr George Washington Spencer
Frost, Texas, 1880s
[Source: Family Collection]
Grave of Dr George Washington Spencer, Frost Cemetery
[Taken by Caitie on July 8th, 2009]
I'm still learning about the lives of my American ancestors. I know the Australian side like the back of my hand. The American side, not so much. I find it much harder to research them when I'm not there among the physical records my family has. My Uncle is currently going through all of my Grandma's genealogy stuff. Oh how I wish I was there with him!

Were any of YOUR ancestors Doctors or Medical Specialists?

Sunday, 27 July 2014

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Ahnentafel Roulette

It's time for another round of Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, well Sunday morning for me! This week's challenge from Randy at Genea-Musings is Ahnentafel Roulette.

Here's the challenge:

1. What year was one of your great-grandfathers born? Divide this number by 80 and round to a whole number. This is your "roulette number."

2. Use your pedigree charts or your family tree genealogy software program to find the person with that number in your ancestral name list (some people call it an "ahnentafel" - your software will create this - use the "Ahnentafel List" option, or similar). Who is that person, and what are his/her vital information?

3. Tell us three facts about that person in your ancestral name list with the "roulette number."

4. Write about it in a blog post on your own blog, in a Facebook status or a Google Stream post, or as a comment on this blog post.

5. NOTE:  If you do not have a person's name for your "roulette number" then "spin" the wheel again - pick a great-grandmother, a grandfather, a parent, a favorite aunt or cousin, yourself, or even your children!  Or pick an ancestor!

Here's mine:

1. Dividing each of my Great Grandfather's birth years by 80 gave me either 23 or 24.

2. This led me to a couple of unnamed people. Instead, I picked my Great Great Great Grandmother Matilda 'Tillie' Gowan (1840 - 1908) who married John Young (1836 - 1888) in 1860 in Mississippi, USA.

Matilda 'Tillie' Gowan Young
Approx 1880's
[Source: Personal Collection]
3. Three facts about Matilda 'Tillie' Gowan Young

a) She was born on December 18, 1840 in Mississippi, USA to Richard Gowan & Susan Peacock. She had 9 siblings.

b) She and John Young had 7 children - Emma Rosalie Young (1861 - 1868), Matthew Garret Young (1864 - 1933), Mary Gowan Young (1867 - 1927), Susie Fannie Young (1870 - 1928), Matilda May Young (1873 - 1936), Terri Pearl Young (1875 - 1959), & Frank Richard Young (1878 - 1958).

c) She is buried in White Church Cemetery, Blooming Grove, Texas. Her grave says she died on August 20, 1908, but her death certificate says she died on August 21, 1908.

Grave of Matilda 'Tillie' Gowan Young
White Church Cemetery, Blooming Grove, TX.
[Source: Personal Collection]

Monday, 12 May 2014

Cousins Galore!

Last week, Randy from Genea-Musings posted this Saturday Night Genealogy Fun Challenge:

1)  Take both sets of your grandparents and figure out how many first cousins you have, and how many first cousins removed (a child or grandchild of a first cousin) you have.

2)  Extra Credit:  Take all four sets of your great-grandparents and figure out how many second cousins you have, and how many second cousins removed you have.
HINT:  Make a Descendants Chart with your genealogy software program!

3)  Tell us the grandparents and great-grandparents names, but don't give the name of living cousins unless you want to. 

4)  Are there any of those lines that you don't know all of the cousins names?  Do you care? 

5)  Tell us about them in your own blog post, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook or Google+ post of your own.  Be sure to drop a comment to this post to link to your work. 

I love my cousins. However, I have no first cousins on my Dad’s side. They’re all on my Mum’s side and live in Texas, so the time that I get to spend with them is rare and extra special for me. The last time I saw my cousins was in June/July 2012, the last time I was in Texas.

Grandparents

1A. William D. D. Gow & Eunice Hazel Dyer had 2 children – my Dad & Aunt. My Aunt has never married nor had children. Hence, no first cousins on this side.

First Cousins & First Cousins 1x Removed
2nd Jan 2011, Texas, USA.
Grandad's 80th.
1B. Nancy Robinson & Herbert K. Renfrow had 3 children – my Aunt, Mum & Uncle.
Aunt Molly has 2 daughters, and my Uncle David has 4 daughters. That’s right, no male first cousins! My brother is the only grandson. Both Molly’s daughters have children. One has 3 boys, and the other has 2 boys. David’s eldest daughter has 2 children – a girl & boy.

1C. My Step Grandmother, Vivian Young, had 2 children – my Step Aunt & Step Uncle.
My Step Aunt has 1 daughter while my Step Uncle has no children.

Total
First Cousins: 7
First Cousins 1x Removed: 7

Great-Grandparents

2A. William Gow & Elizabeth Croal had 2 children – William (my Poppa) & Adam. Adam only lived for 24 hours, so no cousins there.

2B. James Albert Dyer & Eva Florence Mackay had 6 children – Claude, Eunice (Nanna), Earle, Vera, Noel & Enid.

Claude never married nor had children.

Earle had 1 daughter, Lorraine. I met her for the first time at his funeral in 2011. Lorraine has 3 children who I also met at the funeral.

Vera had 5 children – Noela, Shirley, Terry, Peter & Brian.
Brian died when he was 24. I am not sure if he had a child before he died or not.
Noela does have children but I have no idea how many.
Shirley has 2 daughters who both have children and a son who died in his 20’s.
Terry has 2 children, who between them have at least 6 children that I know of.
Peter, well, he has a son that I know of. That son might have children. I think Peter has been married a couple of times so he probably does have more children.

Aunty Vera’s family is huge itself and I have never been able to keep up. I still need to get her to write down a list of all of her descendants for me.

Noel had 3 children – Dawn, Rodney & Stephen.
Dawn passed away a couple of years ago. I am not 100% sure if she had children. I think she did, but not sure. Rodney & Stephen both have children but I do not know how many.

Enid had 4 children – Debbie, Gregory, Kerry & Leonie.
Leonie died when she was a baby.
I think Gregory might have children, but again, not sure.
Debbie has 3 children that I know of.
Kerry has 2 children, one of which has 4 children, and the other I’m not sure about.

Thus far,
Second Cousins (definite): 14
Second Cousins 1x Removed (definite): 10

Who knows what the actual numbers are though!

2C. Wiley Durwood Robinson & Maud Ella Sharp only had one child, my Grandmother, Nancy.

2D. Roscoe Eugene Renfrow & Ethel Eva Thompson had 4 children – Flora Nell, Roscoe Eugene Jr, James Calvin & my Grandad.

The Female Cousins.
Mum is the adorable little girl front right.
Flora Nell had 3 children – Becky, Betsy & Peggy.
Becky has 2 daughters. Between them, they have 5 children.
Betsy has 2 sons. One has 2 children.
Peggy has a daughter and son. The daughter has 1 son.

Roscoe Eugene Jr had 2 children – Terri & Larry.
Larry does not have any children.
Terri has a son and daughter. The son had his own son born in January this year.

James Calvin had 2 children – James Calvin Jr & Michael.
James Calvin Jr. has 3 daughters. One daughter has 2 children, one has 3 and the other has 1.
Michael has 1 son.

Thus far,
Second Cousins: 12
Second Cousins 1x Removed: 15

Total
Second Cousins: 26
Second Cousins 1x Removed: 25

The actual numbers are going to be much higher.

I seem to be more clued up with cousins on my Mum’s side of the family even though I rarely see them! While I was doing this, I updated my tree on Ancestry.com by adding second cousins once removed who I had not listed. I definitely have some homework to do on my Aussie side though.  

Monday, 30 December 2013

A Mother & Sons.























My Great Great Grandmother Mary Frances Smith (1861 - 1955) with her sons. Corsicana, Texas, 1940s.

Left to Right: Great Grandfather Roscoe Eugene Renfrow (1892 - 1982), Ernest Bascom Renfrow (1888 - 1979), Arthur Otis Renfrow (1894 - 1982), Frank Daniel Renfrow (1897 - 1962), Luther Marvin Renfrow (1887 - 1965).

A Cute Bunch.






This photo was taken in Corsicana, Texas sometime during the 1940s.

Left to Right - Grandad (Living), Walter Paul Kessinger (1930 - Unknown), June Kessinger (1932 - Unknown), James Calvin Renfrow (1926 - 1990), Launa Renfrow (1902 - 1999) & Vivian Renfrow (Living).

How they are all related?

  • Grandad & James Calvin Renfrow are brothers.
  • Walter Paul & June Kessinger are also siblings. 
  • Grandad & James are first cousins with Vivian.
  • Walter & June are the children of Cleo Renfrow, who is a first cousin of Grandad, James & Vivian. Therefore, Walter & June are their first cousins once removed.
  • Launa is Grandad, James & Vivian’s Aunt, and Great Aunt of Walter & June. 

Fact: Vivian is the only remaining first cousin of my Grandad’s, and I met her at a family reunion in 2011!

Saturday, 21 December 2013

Kids at Christmas.

How cute are these kids!

Christmas 1956, Texas.
From my personal collection,
L-R: Aunt Molly, Mum, and their cousins Jim & Mike.
December 1956 in Corsicana, Texas.
Mum was 23 months old, as she would have turned 2 at the beginning of January.

Monday, 7 October 2013

A Century Milestone.

Church News for Friday, Oct. 4, 2013

Blooming Grove United Methodist Church (Blooming Grove, Texas) will be celebrating 100 years in its present location next weekend.

The Church originally began as a Methodist mission church in 1869 in a building constructed on land on Rush Creek, which was donated by Richard and Susan Gowan nee Peacock.

Richard & Susan Gowan were my Great Great Great Great Grandparents! They also donated land for White Church Cemetery near by, which is where they are buried.

Saturday, 14 September 2013

Launa & Cleo.

Did you see that photo I posted of my Great Great Aunt Launa Renfrow, with her niece Cleo in 1913?

Well, this is a photo of Launa (left), her husband Ben Thompkins & Cleo. Photo taken in May 1978, Grand Saline, Texas, USA.

I believe that due to their small age difference, Launa & Cleo were more like cousins, rather than aunt & niece.

Photo from my personal collection


Thursday, 12 September 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Launa Pearl & Dolly Cleo.

Launa Pearl Renfrow (1902, Texas - 1999, Texas) with her niece Dolly Cleo Renfrow (1910, Texas - 1988, Texas). This photo was taken in approximately 1913 in Texas. Launa was my Great Great Aunt, and Cleo my first cousin twice removed. I think this is such a beautiful photo of the girls.


Tuesday, 27 August 2013

Video: Why I Love Genealogy.

NEW VIDEO! 

I didn’t have topic planned, so I talked about why I love genealogy, how I caught the gene bug, and mentioned a few other things :)

Sunday, 28 July 2013

Census Sunday

The US 1930 Census featuring my Great Grandparents.

1. Wiley Durwood Robinson & Maud Ella Robinson nee Sharp.
They lived in Corsicana, Navarro County, Texas, USA. Maud’s mother Julia Sharp is living with them, as well as a Lodger, Alice Wilson. Wiley & Maud adopted my Grandma a couple of years later.

US 1930 Census for Wiley & Maud Robinson. Source: Ancestry.com.au




























2. Roscoe Eugene Renfrow & Ethel Eva Renfrow nee Thompson.
They also lived in Corsicana, Navarro Country, Texas, USA. In 1930, Roscoe & Ethel had 3 young children - Flora, Roscoe Jr & James. My Grandad was born a year later.

US 1930 Census for Roscoe & Ethel Renfrow. Source: Ancestry.com.au





























Tuesday, 25 June 2013

Tombstone Tuesday: White Church Cemetery

The Gowan/Young plot at White Church Cemetery, Blooming Grove, Texas, USA.




Buried here are my Great Great Great Great Grandparents Richard Gowan & Susan Peacock, and my Great Great Great Grandparents John Young & Matilda Gowan.

Tombstone Tuesday: James & Mary

My Great Great Grandparents, James Lewis Renfrow & Mary Frances Smith. They married in 1885, Mississippi, USA.


James L. Renfrow
Born: 18 Mar 1861, Mississippi, USA, to Lewis Renfrow & Nancy Sargent.
Died: 16 Jul 1939, Corsicana, Texas, USA.
Buried: Rose Hill Cemetery, Blooming Grove, Texas, USA.

Mary F. Smith
Born: 1861, Mississippi, USA, to Daniel Guyton Smith & Louisa Brister.
Died: 13 Dec 1955, Corsicana, Texas, USA.
Buried: Rose Hill Cemetery, Blooming Grove, Texas, USA.

Tombstone Tuesday: George & Frances

My Great Great Great Grandparents George Washington Spencer & Frances Elizabeth McWilliams. They married in 1855, in Mississippi, USA.





George W. Spencer
Born: 6 Jan 1832, Alabama, USA, to Peter Spencer & Mary Cooper.
Died: 24 May 1904, Frost, Texas, USA.
Buried: Frost Cemetery, Frost, Texas, USA.










Frances E. McWilliams
Born: 28 Aug 1837, Mississippi, USA, to Jesse McWilliams & Susannah Last.
Died: 25 Dec 1908, Frost, Texas, USA.
Buried: Frost Cemetery, Frost, Texas, USA.

Tombstone Tuesday: Julia & Jessie.

My Great Great Grandmother, Julia Latchapalee Sharp nee Spencer.



Born: 5 March 1859, Mississippi, USA to George Washington Spencer & Frances McWilliams.
Married: 1885, to Jessie Mitchell Sharp.
Died: 15 January 1940, Texas, USA.
Buried: Frost Cemetery, Frost, Texas.



My Great Great Grandfather, Jessie Mitchell Sharp.



Born: 11 Dec 1855, Texas, USA, to Jesse Euing Sharp & Mary Couch.
Married: 1885, to Julia Latchapalee Spencer.
Died: 17 Oct 1930, Corsicana, Texas, USA.
Buried: Frost Cemetery, Frost, Texas, USA.

Saturday, 22 December 2012

Sunday's Obituary.



The obituary for my Great Great Grandfather James Lewis Renfrow.
Born: 1861, Mississippi, USA.
Died: 1939, Texas, USA.
He had 7 children with his wife Mary Frances Smith. 


James L. Renfrow & Mary F. Smith





















My Great Great Grandparents James Lewis Renfrow & Mary Frances Smith.

James Lewis Renfrow
Born: 1861, Mississippi, USA
Died: 1939, Texas, USA

Mary Frances Smith
Born: 1861, Mississippi, USA
Died: 1955, Texas, USA

They married in 1885 in Mississippi & moved to Texas sometime between June 1892 & May 1894.

Wednesday, 19 December 2012

Monday, 3 December 2012

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Happy 80th Birthday in Heaven Grandma! You were taken away from us too soon. I know you’re looking down on me from heaven, and I know you’re proud of me for all that I’ve done so far with my genealogy. I wish I could show you and tell you everything I’ve found. You’d be amazed :) I wish I could have known you. I love you!

Nancy Robinson
Born: 3rd December 1932, Texas, USA.
Died: May 1980, New Mexico, USA.


Sunday, 2 December 2012

Happy Birthday Maud!

Happy 121st Birthday to my Great Grandmother Maud Ella Sharp!
Born: 2 Dec 1891, Texas, USA
Died: 24 May 1974, Texas, USA.