Vacation!

Vacation, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

I'll be back to blogging after a week off! I know you can't wait. See you in about a week....

Meeting Karen

IMG_1601, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

 Karen Stanton Cook and I are cousins through our immigrant ancestor Thomas Stanton. She came from NY to the reunion held last weekend. She is my Facebook friend and will attest, to all who ask, that I actually exist!

Her husband took photos of all the attendees, including one of hubs and myself. 

She says I look taller on my Facebook page! At least I look taller somewhere. Behind me is my own display board, which I donated to the church a a conversation piece.


As most of the reunions that I attend are held in Connecticut, I choose only one or two to go to each year. The Stanton Society is smart. They don't have one every year. The last one was in 2008. It gives the committee a lot of time to prepare.


It was amazing how much they crammed into three days for activities. I was told 140 people attended. 


It was a great location and I hope that they have it here next time (after I am retired). It was a beautiful day. 


Thanks, Karen for letting me use your photo in my blog. By the way, she lives in NY. The car license plates in the parking lot were from many states. There are a lot of Stanton descendants.

Cook Book

Cook Book, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Since I threw out cookbooks before we moved, the last thing I needed was a cookbook. Hubs bought one without asking me. It seems he did not buy it for me. He bought it for my friend Joyce who likes to read cookbooks with old recipes. Well, the nerve of him!

This one has a recipe by Grace Dension Wheeler. I am amused.

Walking in the Footsteps

Walking in the footsteps, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

The land, the past and the future...

 

I spend a lot of time thinking about how lucky I am to be a New Englander and to have the opportunity to see and walk in the places where my ancestors lived, worshiped and worked.
It makes the past more believable and the research process more interesting. At this reunion, I am impressed with the people who come from many states away to learn about their ancestors.

Many still carry the Stanton name as their maiden surname or as their male surname. These family historians are more passionate about their investigations and enjoy the company of others with the same history.

So, that why I took this photo just outside the front of the church. I wanted you to see my feet. It is what genealogists do. We help people walk back in time to find their family history. Everyone needs to think about that every day.

Modern Church Sign

DSCN0520, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Today, this is the kind of sign that is posted by New England Churches. It lists the pastor's name, the time of worship and the name of the church. 

Old Church Sign

Old Church Sign, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Because this church is historically significant, this sign announces the two names of this church. Established in 1674, it is important for those to visit to understand that this is not the original church/meetinghouse.

Like taking the sign in the cemetery, when visiting historical locations, I want to be able to remember how I arrived there and be able to guide others to the location.

This is a quick way to remember the address.

See the sign to the very right of this photo? I didn't want you to miss this massive tree and the stone wall that Connecticut is famous for having. 

However, I missed the white one room schoolhouse in the background!

 

All Around

Round, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Heating Grate 

I don't imagine too many people notice the ornate heating grates that dot the walkways in the pews areas in The Road Church in Stonington, CT.

The pews are enclosed and I can imagine that because this church is currently in use in chilly New England, it can be mighty cold in the winter. When I visited, it was mighty hot.  Most of the windows were open.

In the upper gallery, where the organist is located, there are gallery benches for overflow of people. Those people are the ones who did not pay to "own" a pew for 99 years.

I made this photo sepia toned because the carpet is a red color and doesn't look that good from the number of feet that trample through this church yearly.

Tombstone Tuesday: Rev. James Noyes

Photo by Frederck E. Burdick, town historian (please respect his copyright)
CD of this graveyard is available for purchase from him.

Used with Permission

This gravestone, one of the most amazing in the Wequetequock Burying Ground in Mystic, CT (1650), the oldest graveyard in Stonington, is a fine example of a tablet stone and are very hard to photograph because you must be up above it to get it all in the frame. I visited this graveyard with Fred a few years ago and decided not to take any photos but just walk around and look at the stones he pointed out. So many of my ancestors are buried there.

I didn't know, at that time, that my Stanton line is from this man's wife, Dorothy Stanton. That's the line I used to join the Thomas Stanton Society and the late Bernie Stanton told me that not too many people have chosen to join with this line.

I like the words, "In expection...", because he was a minister for more than 55 years. He should expect a good spot in Heaven, don't you think?

Inside the Church

Attempted Panaroma, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Classic New England Colonial Church

From the gallery next to the organ, this is the view. I am not good with height so this is quite blurry.

Everything is so narrow. The stairs up to the gallery are not even wide enough for my tiny feet!

 

The people enter via the doors next to the front of the church. Imagine being the bride! You'd been seen immediately and not have so far to walk. But if you were late for the service, everyone would know. I love being a New Englander!

Old Stone

Field stone in front of lower door, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Stepping Stone 

 

Being a New Englander, I understand that we never throw out something that might be old but is still useful.

This said, when I am old, I hope my grandsons don't throw me out!

I'd like to imagine that this stone (near the road side of the church) might have been here or nearby when the first meeting house was built.  I don't know that for a fact but it is a nice way to think about it.

Did my ancestors walk on this stone? Did small children sit on it to rest while walking to and from school?

Well, after all, this is a blog about stone!

Pequot Trail

The Road Church from Pequot Trail, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

"Back" of the Church

It never ceases to amaze me how confusing it must be to come to New England and try to figure out how the ancestors lived if you have not lived here your whole life!

I stood at the edge of the church property at 903 Pequot Trail and took this photo of the First Congregational Church of Stonington (the Road Church).

The front of the church does NOT face the main street.

Those driving by must be confused! This building was erected in 1826. The first building, long gone, was a Meeting House and church in 1674 by the British. Yes, the founders were considered British at that time because it was quite a long time until the Revolution.

I love the stone foundation and the ways that stone is used around the church.

The Road Church

The Road Church , a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

The Road Church, Stonington, New London, CT 

 

Yesterday, hubs and I went to Stonington, New London, Connecticut for the 2012 Thomas Stanton Reunion. It is a multi-day event with many activities. (Note: I did not visit any cemeteries!)

It's a long way to go for just a few hours but I wanted to see this church where it was held in the nearby parish house.

I took a lot of photos since it was a picture perfect day.

I used my iPhone app called Photosynth to practice taking panoramic shots. The software stitches the shots together but it is hard to keep your hand still to take the images.

This is the only photo that captured the whole of the church at once. I used an app called Snapseed to make it look this good.

This week, I will blog about this experience since it is of interest to several of my readers who live far away and may never see this great church or attend a Thomas Stanton Reunion.

Thomas Stanton Reunion 2012

Gravestone of Dorothy STANTON

wife of the Rev. Mr. James NOYES

photo by Fred Burdick and used with permission

This weekend is the family reunion of the Thomas Stanton Society. Because of family circumstances, I decided not to attend except for a single day (Saturday). It is a long way to go for just a few hours.

The last reunion was in 2008. Seems so long ago!


I don't like passing up this well attended reunion because it is a very active one which only meets every third year. However, one of the most interesting things is that I am one of the few people claiming descent from Dorothy. Isn't that cool? Actually, when I examine my genealogy work as a whole, I tend to look at it with a matriarchal perspective. The women in my family were the recorders of events, lived longer than their spouses and were strong willed.

I won't be able to report much about this reunion since I will arrive in the cool of the morning, chat with people and eat lunch before we head back.  I've made a display board to leave behind.


They are holding this reunion in the church in Stonington, CT called The Road Church. I have never been there. Many people in my charts worshiped there. I'd like my own photos of the outside and inside. That I will report about.


By the way, this is a three day event! Dave Stanton, President, is very "hi-tech" and has an active area online for members to join, discuss their line and get to know one another. They are also on Facebook.


I will get to meet a Facebook friend too. That doesn't happen to me often.

United Zylonite Company

I probably would have taken years to find out what the United Zylonite Company was that is mentioned in the biography of  Charles Edward Stewart.

 But I decided to see what Google could produce:


Images of the items manufactured

Charles Edward Stewart

Grandpa Charlie, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

At archive.org, I located a badly digitized copy of The Genealogical and Biographical Record of New London County Connecicut. Published in Chicago by J. H. Beers & Co. in 1905. You can see how faint the printing is.

I found out about it from a footnote in a paper written about my Scholfield family that was shared with me quite some time ago by another researcher.

Unfortunately, the pages I needed weren't there! After an appeal on Facebook and Twitter, my friend Dorothy who works at the Mystic River Historical Society in Mystic offered to photocopy the missing pages and mail them to me. The information in those pages matched with what I previously researched. (always a good thing!)

Yesterday, I decided to find out exactly what was in this out-of-copyright book and I discovered (again) that the list of people and families in the book is in at index early in the book.

I have printed the first few pages to study while I look at TV in the evening. But, while they were printing, I started at the back and looked at the last 15 or 20 pages. Much to my surprise, my great-grandfather, Charles Edward Stewart, was one of those whose biography appears.

The clipping here is just part of the information that was given. I did clip the whole section for my notebook. 

The listing of his ancestors (and mine) would have been very useful to me in 1999 when I started researching back further. It is obvious that the information was taken from R.A. Wheeler's History of Stonington. The wording is very much the same. I don't imagine they worried about plagiarism in those days! 


It suddenly dawned on me that my great grandfather must have known about the first part with the ancestors (and given) the information in the clip above. Some of this is in his obituary and some is new information!


Isn't it fun when you get new information? It has really inspired me to dig deeper and finish my investigation of the Stewart Hill Cemetery and the obituaries of those people.

Bathing Cap

Bathing Cap, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

My husband says I look "pretty good" for an 8th grader in this swimsuit and bathing cap.

"Jailbait", I replied.

August, 1960 at Bonnet Shores Beach, in Rhode Island.

Have a great weekend!

DNA Project

Arrived!, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

I ordered DNA kits for hubs and myself on Tuesday and they arrived Today (Friday). 

This is what is inside:

 

Death Comes to Sarah L. Stewart

[26 Apr 1900]

Sarah L. STEWART, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Death Comes to Sarah L. Stewart1

North Stonington, April 10 [April 10, 1918] - Sarah Louise Stewart, daughter of the late George W. Stewart and Phebe E. (Palmer) Stewart, and widow of Nathan S. Edgecomb, died at her home in this village early this morning.


She had been feeble health a long time. Five days ago she became much worse and declined rapidly until the end.


Mrs. Edgecomb was born in this town in May, 1844. [29 May 1844]  Thirty-five years ago [1883] she became the second wife of Mr. Edgecomb, who has been dead for several years. [26 Apr 1900]


She was kind-hearted and generous, a good neighbor and much loved by all the children who lived near her.


She had been a member of the Third Baptist Church for 50 years.


Mrs. Edgecomb is survived by two brothers, all now remaining of a family of eight children, Cyrus H. Stewart of Stonington and 2William E. Stewart, who lived with her. She also leaves four nephews, a niece and two step-daughters3.

1 Newspaper not identified

2 Year: 1910; Census Place: North Stonington, New London, Connecticut; Roll: T624_142; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0525; Image: 165; FHL microfilm: 1374155.

3 Year: 1870; Census Place: North Stonington, New London, Connecticut; Roll: M593_113; Page: 432B; Image: 864; Family History Library Film: 545612.

Compare this information to the obituary below:

Dea. Nathan S. EDGCOMB

Sarah Louise STEWART, buried with her sister in The Stewart Hill cemetery, was the second wife and widow of Nathan S. EDGCOMB. When he died, she buried him with his first wife in the Edgcomb Cemetery in North Stonington, CT. [Photo by Brian Zoldak, 2012, used with permission]

I have been working on the folks buried here and as it is a multi-generational family, it is slow going. I have figured out that my Daniel (cabinet maker) and this family are related! But, that is a story for another day.


Nathan S. EDGCOMB's first wife, known as Mary HALLETT, was really Prudence Mary HALLETT. As you can imagine, I was annoyed when I found out her name did not match her gravestone. But, would I want to be named Prudence? [No.]


She died in 1878 and Nathan married Sarah in 1883 when she was 39. They had no children. As she is my relative, I will post her obituary which was given to me by the North Stonington Historical Society.

Special Marker

Sarah F. SCHOFIELD, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

This small marker next to my 2nd great grandparent's stone has been scratching my head.

Mystery solved: A reader from my circle at Google+ (Carol) suggests: "Those are funeral home markers, sometimes they are ALL I find on graves, they last for years, and for that I have been thankful. The newer ones don't always have raised stamped dates like this one, the dates appear to be attached with paper print type materials. Has her death year ever been inscribed ON the monument??" 

Yes, I think this is right. I have taken photos of funeral markers near gravestones! This is why this was vaguely familiar. Yes, Carol, the year of birth and death are on the monument (see like below) Let's have a round of applause for Carol!
I keep wondering what it is doing there. Sarah Frances Gardiner, wife of Joseph Schofield was born in 1845 not 1856 as it says on this marker. She did die in 1944.

There are birth and death years on the stone. Since her husband died in 1917, I think that the monument was put there when he died. As custom in my family, her year of birth and the line would have been put there at the same time and the year of death put there when she died.

Perhaps this was a sister of her husband Joseph who was unmarried and had the same name? No, that isn't the case.

Is this some kind of fraternal marker for her? It seems so generic>

Ideas are welcome.

Cape Flowers

Cape Flowers, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

For many years, we enjoyed a few days at the beach on Cape Cod. For many reasons, I decided to skip this year and put my money into other ideas.

I knew I would miss my vacation. When I have been there in the past, I enjoyed walking around and taking photos.

Enjoy the flowers while you can. Life goes by so fast.

Tombstone Tuesday: Look Around

Dow Gravestone, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Take Photos of Surrounding Graves

It pays to take a few shots around the family plot. This is what my parent's gravestone "looks at" every day! I went looking for this photo when my friend Barbara Fallon told me where the DOW gravestone is located (by section and road name) in River Bend Cemetery.

The original of this photo can be "zoomed" around in enough for me to see large names on monuments.

When I took this photo I was looking for my grandmother's parents. I didn't find them. Why? Because they are buried in Georgia. I wouldn't have looked there!

On my way to the Stanton reunion in mid-July, I will go to Westerly and take the photo of the Dow gravestone.

Sentimental Sunday: Floating Away

Floating Away, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Looking at the Bottom of the Ocean

On this Sentimental Sunday, I remember fondly my pre-teen days of going in the ocean and playing all day. 

Not being a strong swimmer, I was content to stay close to shore. I remember this floation "boat" that you could lean forward onto the front and look down at your feet in the water.

This is at Bonnet Shores, RI

Edgcomb Cemetery Wall

Edgcomb Cemetery Wall, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.
Photos of Edgcomb Cemetery #54 by Brian Zoldak, used with his permission [Photos taken 4 July 2012]

North Stonington, New London, CT: Cemetery #54

Update at end of post
Last week, I blogged about the sisters buried in the Stewart Hill Cemetery in North Stonington and I wondered if Nathan Edgcomb, husband of Sarah L. Stewart was buried with his first wife. It was a lucky guess. He's buried in Edcomb Cemetery #54. Brian Zoldak tracked him down. This is a tiny family cemetery off the beaten path in North Stonington. 


Find-a-Grave's listing for the cemetery must have been taken from this transcription. Notice, that there are RELATIONSHIPS with each name (probably from the Hale project of the 1930s). That's what you need to see, so that if you are working with families in New England in this time period, you can start to get the records you need. Unfortunately, the person who put up the information for this cemetery, put 13 burials, repeating one person.

1. Edgcomb, Nathan S., died Jan. 12, 1875, age 78
2. Edgcomb, Julia E., wife of Nathan S., died Aug. 25, 1854, age 47
3. Edgcomb, Louise, wife of Howard M., died Sept. 10, 1870, age 23 yrs. 8 mos.
4. Edgcomb, Henry C., son of Nathan S. & Julia E., died Oct. 16, 1848, age 18 yrs. 8 mos.
5. Edgcomb, Nathan S., born Nov. 4, 1827, died Apr. 26, 1900
6. Edgcomb, Mary Hallett, wife of Nathan S., born Mar. 10, 1834, died Oct. 17, 1878
7. Edgcomb, Cyrus H., son of Nathan S. & Prudence M., died Feb. 15, 1863, age 7 yrs. 1 mo. 22 days
8. Edgcomb, Harry H., born Jan 30, 1869, died Nov. 24, 1909
9. Maine, Cyrus Wheeler, born May 18, 1822, died July 14, 1894
10. Maine, Julia Edgcomb, his wife, born Dec. 22, 1825, died Oct. 22, 1870
11. Edgcomb, Annie M, wife of Howard M., died Oct. 23, 1886, age 51
12. Edgcomb, Anette M. Lamb, wife of Howard M., died Feb. 20, 1898, age 54

Little family cemeteries like this one are endangered. It is important to photograph them and share the photos with family so that everyone does go off looking for it (many are not on public land), get lost, get snake bites or worst of all topple over a headstone by mistake. Thank you Brian for your excellent work.

As you can see, I have determined that the earliest burial is Henry C. Edgcomb who was a teenager when buried here.  


Now, can I connect the folks buried here with my distant cousin Daniel Edgcomb, who made the table I own? 

Update! My "unofficial research assistant, whose name is Linda, and I share many CT ancestors. She found a genealogy and a paper online that will be a big help. Take a look at the title of this paper!

Umbrella

Umbrella, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

It is hard to work while everyone around you is on vacation. This is our new umbrella. Since I am not actually taking a vacation (which I define as going somewhere) this year, this is a symbol of "doing nothing".

Family Calendars

Family Calendars, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

As a mother, wife and grandmother plus genealogist, I endure a lot of teasing about my obsession with calendars.

Since 1958, I have kept a calendar or journal of some kind. To non-genealogists, this is oddly eccentric.  As we genealogist and family historians know, the earliest New England resources and information about families that came to this country are in such journals and Bibles.

I can take the heat. I have transcribed calendars like the large one shown here into the "subject notebooks" that are in the front. The small calendars, meant for tucking in your pocketbook or briefcase are the ones for the earliest years of my marriage. The worst records are the ones I kept electronically. Think about that. I kept changing platforms and some of it got lost from device to device.

As I have become older, I am relying more and more on these records. I refer to them often, nearly every day. I transcribe the information into the notebooks on New Year's Day.

I am amused at how often my daughter asks me a question about an event. My mother hated that I did this and could tell her exactly what we did the year before on a holiday.

I'm sorry. I like the way I do this! 

Ready 4 the 4th

Fourth of July 2012, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

I am decorated inside and out and I am making patriotic cupcakes for our tiny family gathering tomorrow. Rain will not spoil our day.

I can't wait to wear my glow stick bracelet that is tri-color and relax to watch fireworks on TV.

Sparklers scare me. My parents told me not to play with matches and then handed me a sparkler. Does that sound familiar? My dad was mad that I didn't like it. The other kids ran around with them and acted as if they weren't dangerous.

Yikes!

Tombstone Tuesday: Cemetery Whiz Team

 Introducing Walt and Marie

Sometimes, people cross your path that you know are going to be fascinating right away. Walt and Marie Seelye of Colorado are just my cup of tea. I hope you like their posts for my Tombstone Tuesday today.


They have far too much experience to be in my beginner cemetery class but they were a joy to have. They might live far away but they have family here in Massachusetts and have ancestors in my home state of Rhode Island. They might even be related to me! Cool.

I crowdsourced the symbol on this gravestone on Facebook and asked the famous Douglas Keister to take a look and give me some help with identifying it. It is KNIGHT of Malta and is a Masonic symbol.  It is so amazing to have a famous person as a contact.


Their blog is located at: WMCemeteryNotes. They have a great post about lichen and gravestones!


By the way, they live near the fires in Colorado. I don't know how they took the class while living with  all that worry, do you?

Mother and Son

Milner Sculpture, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Mother and Son

In River Bend Cemetery in Westerly, RI, is this lovely sculpture with a very large base. I cropped that out so you could see the detail.

Mothers and sons are on my mind today, with now having two grandsons. 

Yesterday, I was reading the book I bought about the granite industry in Westerly and much to my surprise there was information about this very monument. (Oddly, nothing about the family that paid for it but I will have to look into that!)

Milner Monument By John Francis Brines (1860-1905) [Built From Stone, The Story of the Westerly Granite Industry page 85]. His father was a stone cutter and John made this sculpture at a young age. He died at 44. Amazingly, I took his gravestone too without knowing it.

Taken in July on a picture perfect day, this is one of my favorite photos.