Keeping Grandma Alive...and all the others, too (including yourself)
A few weeks ago, I read something written by A. B. Simpson (1843-1919) that made me think about my farming ancestors and the Bright Shiny Objects in their lives. A Bright Shiny Object (aka BSO), for those unfamiliar with the term, is anything that distracts a person from the task at hand for more than just a short time. Simpson,…
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2020 was a trying year, to put it mildly. Everyone’s life was, and still is, disrupted. Some more than others. I already worked from home, and I don’t have kids in school, so much of my day-to-day routine wasn’t turned upside down. Of course I was affected by the shortages of paper goods, hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, meat for a…
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A few weeks ago, I read The Beantown Girls by Jane Healey. The story follows the World War II adventures of three twenty-something women from Boston. This trio of best friends volunteer to be Red Cross Clubmobile girls overseas. One the women, Fiona, hopes to get to the European continent and somehow find out the fate of her missing-in-action fiancé. …
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When I notice an early death in family history records, I’m always saddened. But I’m always curious, too. When I saw that my first cousin, thrice-removed, James C. “Jim” GRIFFIN (1895-1922) died from a boiler explosion I looked for a newspaper article, and I found one. I found something unexpected, too. Jim’s Early Life Jim. GRIFFIN was the son of…
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Henry Lee GRIFFIN was born 29 Apr 1892 in Platt Springs, Lexington County, South Carolina. His parents were Henry David GRIFFIN (1858-1920) and Annie M. WATTS GRIFFIN (1862-1938). His grandfather, William Harris GRIFFIN, Sr. (1820-1870’s) was my 3rd great grandfather. This makes Henry Lee my 1st cousin thrice removed. Early Life On the 1900 and 1910 U.S. Census, Henry lived…
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A recent theme for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks was Large. I thought my 3rd great-grandfather, Renatus THOMAS of Richland County, South Carolina (1799-1874), won the prize in my family tree for having the largest number of sons who served in the Civil War. Five in total: James S. (1828-1912), Renatus Jr. (1832-1863), Shadrack (1835-?), John (1836-1931), and Jesse (1843-1932)….
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