Halloween 2013

Halloween 2013, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Happy Halloween to all my readers. 

Anthony and Grayson love Halloween too!

Halloween 1952

Halloween 1952 in Cranston, RI

I have always loved Halloween! The back of this photo is dated July, 1953 and since people didn't run right out and get their photos developed, this must be Halloween, 1952.

This photo is very faded so I worked on it quite a bit before posting it. I just noticed that I have on a "rain hat" over my costume. My mother was a "helicopter parent" and bundled me up whenever SHE felt cold. It must have been a rainy and cold Halloween night. I am wearing a Bugs Bunny costume and holding an egg. If I didn't remember this costume, future generations would think this was an Easter photo! (Label your photos now!)

Many years later, my Dad told me that he took me around the neighborhood and at each house was offered a "shot" by the man while I sang "Wide Open Spaces" to entertain the woman who lived in the house. Good thing we walked! Certainly, this is not a Halloween tradition I would continue. At this time, there were not a lot of houses with children in them. By 1956, this changed.

I am surprised that my parent's photo collection doesn't have more Halloween photos in them. My mother must have forgotten to take them. It seemed that my father was ever so slow to come home to take me out. I even had to wait for him to eat supper. It took forever! 

Tombstone Tuesday: Phares David FRAZEL

Phares David FRAZEL, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Maplewood Cemetery, Marlborough, MA

This just in! Hubs grandfather was Worshipful Master of his Masonic Lodge. It would have been nice to have a Masonic Symbol on his gravestone. His Lodge was merged with another in 2003 but it is still in local Hudson, MA. The Wikipedia page for his Lodge lists him with the same dates as this card. This is probably why I have a formal photo of him! This may date the photo....

Fearful Things

Vent, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Fearful Things!

Never mind witches, goblins, vampires and zombies, I can tell you what things kids are really afraid of. I expect you have forgotten all about something in your elder relative's home that scared you!

I was reminded of it this week when my daughter and I replaced a floor vent in both our homes with ones that were more attractive. (Do you like my new one pictured here?)

When I was a small girl, we would go often to my great aunts home on West Broad St. in Westerly. In her large living room and dining room area, there was a hug heating vent in the floor. It must have been created to heat the whole of the downstairs rooms. It was massive. When the furnace roared to life, it caused a maelstrom of dust and air! I was terrified the first time it happened. After that, I avoided walking in that room.

My mother thought I was the most fearful of little children. I didn't like riding in the convertible, didn't like heights and didn't like to recklessly jump off the concrete back steps. Mom was a thrill seeker as long as it did not muss her hair or clothes. She had priorities. 

My grandparents (and my husband's parents) too had radiator heat in their rooms. My daughter told me she remembered being afraid of the noise. See, these childhood memories are worthy of Halloween fright?

I wasn't afraid of the radiators because my grandmother kept the radiators on full blast in both bathrooms. It was like the jungle in there. She hated a cold toilet seat. It was so hot in there, one simply could not breathe. You went in and got out as soon as possible. The towels were toasty warm. 

High School Common

High School Common, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Plaque near the front of the Walker Building on the other side of the Old Common Cemetery. Lacking a "official sign" for the burial ground,  this tells us what the land was set aside for before the people were buried here.

Family History Trippin' Book Review

As part of the Parmenter Adventure, I read the recent ebook (in Kindle book format) on my iPad mini to help me become better organized and focused as a researcher. 

Family History Trippin' by Thomas MacEntee can be purchased at Amazon.com. (This book was given to me to review by the author.)

Review by Midge Frazel, 23 October, 2013 (review located at Amazon.com and Goodreads)

Genealogists and family historians are alike in that they know that researching families is a never ending adventure. Planning these adventures brings out the travel agents in all of us and forces us to become organized and planned before we pack the suitcase. With so many kinds of family history trips, it is difficult to give sage advice about the preparation or should I say, it used to be difficult to help others. Armed with a studied copy of Thomas MacEntee's ebook, Family History Trippin', my tie-dyed bandana and my mobile technology, I set out an adventure with a fellow genealogist. Putting what you read and study into practice is the only way to measure how valuable a book purchase can be.

MacEntee's book gives a good overview of the process of looking before you leap with  suitcase in hand. No longer can you grab your cell phone, cord and charger and just bolt out into the world. Libraries and other repositories, (town halls and historical societies) are low staffed and have irregular hours. Many people working in them have not enough experience with the public. You must know where you are going, when they open and close, whether you need an appointment and what equipment you can or can't use.

In addition to the answers to these question, you need to consider the people you are researching with and what information (directions, maps and phone numbers) you need to bring with you. This ebook gives many app lists, travel ideas and pre-trip ideas for consideration. Is your trip local (library, historical society, local conference or meeting) or many miles away (genealogy conferences and cruises)? What lodgings and places to eat are nearby? What is going on at home and other kinds of distractions will there be?

Case in point. MacEntee suggests making your own genealogy packing list and provides advice about leaving no stone unturned before you pack for your trip. The local library a fellow genealogist and I visited suggested an appointment and asked if we were going to need help from a librarian. They made us leave our tote bags with them. Did we each have a pencil?, they asked. We answered their questions and armed with our tablets, and a camera we joyfully entered the secured historical room. My pre-visit and a map of the local area helped us a lot.

Even experienced researchers can benefit from reading this ebook. I would not have thought that a planning and packing list would be needed and that an app would be so, so useful. Thank you Thomas, for making the details of a trip be so pre-organized that so the information could be gathered, have time for a enjoyable lunch and visit a graveyard all in a six hour period without stress.

House on Parmenter Road

Photo by Midge Frazel, 15 Oct 2013

Ancestor's Home, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Amos Parmenter & wife Mercy Wood

Diane and I thought it might be fun to take a ride down Parmenter Road (in Framingham) and while we were driving slowly on this very windy road, she reminded me that there was mention of a house on this road in the Parmenter genealogy.

I was reaching for my notebook when we saw this house. Because it had a plaque on it I was pretty sure that this is the one mentioned. Steve pulled into the driveway but stayed at the end while I grabbed my camera and Diane and I got out of the car. I framed the house with the stone wall and snapped this shot. It was such a New England looking scene. It is what we all dream of when we think of how our ancestors lived.

Honestly, I expected to see Amos or his wife Mercy any minute. It was one of those odd psychic moments. I stood still for a few seconds. Since this couple was one of hubs 5th great grandparents, it was highly unlikely, but New England descendants feel very close to the land where their people lived. 

Not seeing a house number, I took a photo of the mailbox which reads, 15 Parmenter Road. (I won't show that here even though it did not have any present owner's name on it.). 

Using my telephoto zoom on my camera, I was sure I got a clear enough photo of the plaque. Upon arriving home, I used software to get close enough view to read the plaque. It was placed on this house by the Framingham Historical Society. Circa 1713 does seem to fit since many men built a house just before they married. Amos and Mercy married on 21 Dec 1715.

Photo by Midge Frazel, 15 Oct 2013

Amos Parmenter (Parmenter genealogy #86, pps. 20-21) Information given was by a descendant but doesn't list a death date for Amos. I will continue to search for more information. Their son Joshua is hubs descendant. 

Tombstone Tuesday: When Cousins Marry

Side by Side: Mary & Benjamin Rice

In the past, it was not so unusual for cousins to marry, especially when several brothers or sisters came early to America and then moved to neighboring towns in later generations. Arranged marriages may have been about land alliances or who was going to take care of aged family members.

Benjamin and Mary's gravestones are side by side in the old Common Cemetery and this is where I first noticed the differences in the height of the gravestones. It may not look like much but if one gravestone is going to be larger, it is usually the husband. When I took a close look at these gravestones, I was surprised that she died first.

That's the thing about old gravestones, it is not always easy to tell if they are replica/replacements or when they were placed there.

Most folks cringe when I mention that first cousins did marry. Did you?

Trip Down Parmenter Road

Family History Trippin'
(Thomas MacEntee's Book)

Photo by DMB, used with permission

The information presented in Thomas's book about preparing for a family history research trip gave me the idea about locating a present day map of the area. It paid off. I would not have noticed this road as it is set in from another road. As Steve drove, Diane and I were looking at the GPS on our phones to see where the intersection of the roads led us. He opened the window and she took this snap of the granite town marker (for Framingham) and the street sign.

I am going to write a short review of Thomas's ebook later this week. It really gave me focus for this local adventure. 

Researching Adventure

Outside Library, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

This past Tuesday (15 Oct 2013), fellow geneablogger, Diane M. Boumenot, (One Rhode Island Family) who is a Parmenter descendant, like hubs, came to our house and we had a mini adventure going to the library in Sudbury, called the Goodnow Library. In their historical room, they have the only copy of the Parmenter genealogy that we can find. We spent a pleasant two hours working with it and the bound copies of the Sudbury and Framinham Vital Records. Since I can come to this interesting library at any time, I let her work on what pages she wanted and I focused on a silver book about Mayflower passenger George Soule since hubs and I are both Soule descendants.

It was then that I noticed the Goodnow book section and photographed it for a future visit. There was a bound copy of the Goodnow genealogy as well as the Goodnow family newsletters, amusingly called "Goodenow's Ghosts". [Goodnenow Family Association Web site] Since those are online, I didn't pull them down to look at. It pays to investigate everything you can that is online before going to a historical society or library.  Hubs took several photos of us, like the one above, so we can remember our adventure and share it with our readers and our Facebook community.

Before she arrived, I plotted a course "through the wilderness" so that she could see that we weren't going very far from the library since she had to get back through Providence, RI before the massive traffic. She is employed and took a vacation day to drive up and check out our area. Just by luck, I noticed that near the Wayside Inn, there was a Parmenter Road and we decided to drive there and check it out. Am I glad we did....

[adventure  posts to be continued...]

Thrice Rice: Mary Rice

Thrice Rice: Mary Rice

As you can see in the clip from the Marlborough Cemetery Book, there was confusion over who Mary's parent's were. Franklin P. Rice identified her as Mary Graves but further research tells us that this woman, Mary was the daughter of Samuel Rice and his second wife, Mary Dix. 

This makes Benjamin, Mary's husband, her first cousin. You can see why Franklin Rice dismissed that as not possible in 1908 when he did his research.

Mary's gravestone is in excellent condition and is not as "primitive" in appearance as her husband. She died in 1736 and her husband died in 1748 so it is possible that her gravestone was carved and placed here after her husband's gravestone.

Her birth record indicated of day of the week and only give a "first week" of August as part of the record. This also may have added to the confusion over which Mary this was.

Thrice Rice: Benjamin Rice

Thrice Rice: Benjamin Rice

Benjamin Rice of Marlborough is a third generation descendant of Deacon Edmund Rice. The life of Deacon Edmund Rice is well researched and is presented to all in this document amusingly called, Edmund Rice 101. 

Benjamin Rice was born in Marlborough on 22 Dec 1666 and lived his whole life there. He was the father of nine children. One of his sons Deacon Mattias Rice (of Northborough) was the first husband of the second wife of Ens. Abraham Rice. This just goes the demonstrate how intermarried this family is in this area. Benjamin lived to be 82 years old.

Adorned with the swirling rosettes, the lettering on this gravestone is all uppercase and you can still see the lines the gravestone carver used as a guide. The death head is not the same style as the "lightbulb head" found on area gravestones.

My husband is descended from Benjamin's brother, Daniel Rice. As we don't know where Daniel is buried, we have adopted Benjamin as our own for this period of time.

Presenting with an iPad

Presenting with an iPad

2013

In 2012,  Blogger, Lucie Constantino (Lucie's Legacy) used her iPad (2) to do a presentation. I was intrigued.
 Here's her post.
 

I created my presentation in my old version of PowerPoint (2003) on my Windows 7 Desktop computer and used Dropbox on both my desktop computer and my iPad mini (shown here) to move that presentation to my iPad.  On my iPad mini, I have the purchased app called Keynote (which is a presentation application). 

I purchased the VGA to lightning end adapter. (Cost $50). It is also available in the older model for older iPads with the 30 pin end (dropped to $30) Since I wanted to walk around the room, I downloaded the app Keynote Remote for my iPhone. (Cost $.99) This way I could use my remote to move forward and backward through the presentation.

Photo by Midge Frazel, 2013

It is important for you to know that you must have Bluetooth enabled on both devices and there must be wi-fi available in the room to use the Keynote Remote. (I could have just swiped through each slide on my iPad mini if there was no wi-fi available but you must stay tethered to the cables if you don't use the remote. It would be fine if there was a podium you could use and all the cables were long enough.)

The photo below is what a VGA port looks like. (12 pins, female) and the other slot is for the power cord)

Photo by Midge Frazel, 2013

 You must follow the directions to turn on Bluetooth to connect the iPad and the iPhone (with a code). I have done this already since my case is a Bluetooth enabled keyboard. The black cord shown here is the VGA cord to the adapter and the other end is to the wall (to the projector). The projector was mounted in the ceiling. 

Photo by Midge Frazel, 2013

Notice that the VGA cord is considerably heavier and had to be laid carefully on the table so it wouldn't slip off and crash my iPad mini to the floor.

Photo by Midge Frazel, 2013

This is a photo of the end of the VGA cord that connects to the port on the wall (or onto the projector). I brought my portable power strip because I never plug any of my electronics directly into an electrical plug. This photo shows the plug for my iPad mini. It needs to be plugged in while you are presenting. My iPhone was fully charged and when I was done with my testing and my full presentation with questions, it was at 66% battery drain.

The directions for doing this was in the help file of both Keynote and Keynote Remote.

The Last Presentation

Comfortable Silence Presentation

12 October 2013 Acton Memorial Library, Acton, MA

Photo by Sara Campbell, 2013

Photo by Pat Stano-Carpenter

Welcome to my blog: Items in my Cemetery Kit

Cemetery Kit Collage, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

THE Cemetery Kit

Many people ask me about the items I carry with me in my cemetery kit. This idea came from Sharon Carmack's book, Your Guide to Cemetery Research, which is out of print but may be available at your local library.

Not shown are my husband and boneyard buddy (who drives and carries the bags), the large mirror and my cell phone and camera. The husband is not for sale but the large mirror can be bought at Walmart or Target and is not expensive. 

I also do not own a hand held GPS device but my friend Brian Zoldak uses one everywhere he goes to get the exact location. He recommends a Magellan Sportrak and is waterproof and available at Amazon.com. There are many models and a wide variety of prices.(his model)

I linked a couple so you can examine them more closely.

Photography Reflector

1. Gravestone Rubbing Kit (pellon and wax)
2. David Lambert's Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries (2nd edition)
3. Small Mirror
4. Moist Wipes for Hands
5. Off Bug Spray
6. Binoculars (for looking a gravestones a distance away)
7. Kleenex (achoo!)
8. Hand sanitizer
9. Bag to hold small items and toilet paper 
10. First Aid Kit
11. Sunblock
12. Pens & Sticky Notes and flashlight
13. Spray Bottle with Water ONLY
14. Grass Clippers
15. Whisk Broom (large)
16. Clorox Wipes (can be kept in the car)
17. Umbrella (and we have needed it)
18. Paper Towels and Trash Bags
19. Hand Wipes
20. Face Mask
21. Whisk Broom (small) (very, very soft)
22. Fanny Pack (holds voice recorder and keys)
23. Disposable Gloves
24. Cortaid Poison Ivy Wipes
25. Non Scratch scrubber sponges
26. Off Bug Spray (wearable)
27. Cushion for sitting on the ground
28. Water Bottle Holder (clips on belt or bag)
29. Tape Measure (for measuring stone or distance between stones)

I have since added a small pair of scissors to cut paper towels and trim "strings" on flags.

Stephen and John Rice

Brothers At Rest

With so many men with the same surname, I was not sure about which Benjamin Rice was the father of these two sons. I decided to take both gravestone photos and worry about it when I had researched the boys.

Stephen's gravestone is so beautiful and it is another Rice gravestone that is in the Farber gravestone collection. Because at 19, he died as an unmarried adult, his gravestone is larger than the little brother, John, who died two years prior. Poor Susanna.

She was Susanna WEEKS and she and her husband are buried in the Brigham Cemetery which I have not yet visited. I was surprised that they are not buried with their sons but she was 82 when she died and maybe no one remembered where her sons were buried. To be so close by and not buried with them seems cruel.

Tombstone Tuesday: Double Gravestones

Double Gravestones

This double gravestone of husband Jonah Rice and his wife Phebe is a mystery! It doesn't appear in the 1908 book by Franklin P. Rice and I don't know why. Jonah's father and grandfather are buried in this same cemetery.

It is set aside from the other gravestones and that makes me wonder if it was moved here from another cemetery. The Rice family has it listed in this cemetery.

It is very hard to read. It is the dark slate favored by this area. The lettering seems worn for its age. 

Phebe's maiden name is not known by the Rice family. I put a lightened version of part of the husband's gravestone so you can see how hard it is to read.

Deacon Thomas Barrett of Concord

Photos by Carolyn Stone, used with permission

Deacon Thomas Barrett

Carolyn Stone shared these photos she took at Old Hill Burying Ground in Concord, MA of Deacon Thomas Barrett's gravestone because she knows that I am studying "Undifferentiated faces" this month. It is hard not to believe that this is not a portrait of this man, isn't it? I suppose we'll never know.

Deacon Thomas Barrett at Find-a-Grave is an example of the fine sharing that is going on in the gravestone lovers community. Let's be positive and hope it continues.

Family Reunion Idea

DSCN1599.JPG, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Family Reunion Idea

At the Edmund Rice 2013 reunion, this great idea was put out on one of the tables. The idea is to visually show which child of Edmund the people at the reunion are descended from.

The board was carefully taken out of the room without moving the "sticky notes" so that it would be studied by the Board members.

Hubs is a descendant of Edward. It is nice that he's in the "in crowd".

Tombstone Tuesday: Elizabeth Barrett

Prepare for Death: Elizabeth Barrett

Elizabeth BARRETT, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Elizabeth Barrett was the wife of Zoroable Rice. Her slate gravestone is as intriguing as the one that was carved for her husband. I have not seen the "wings" of the undifferentiated or "portrait" face depicted in the tight upright position like this on other gravestones. Her footstone is also decorated.

The lovely ornamental carvings on the side panels of her gravestone did not leave enough room for her name, relationship or the dates. As you can see, there's a lot of hypenation and spacing issues.

The daughter of Thomas Barrett and his wife Elizabeth Stow and the sister of Lydia (who also married into this family) was born 12 Jun 1677 in nearby Sudbury. She married Zoroable on 4 Feb 1728/9 in Marlborough. As her parents are buried in Spring Hill cemetery, they must have moved to Marlborough at some time.

Elizabeth died in 1770 before her husband. She was 67 years and 10 months as we can see by this clip of the carvings. She is buried alongside her husband in the Old Common Cemetery in Marlborough, Middlesex, MA

The epitaph or verse on Elizabeth's gravestone is the one that appears (in several forms) on so many New England gravestones.

Behold & see! as you pass by,

As you are now, so once was I;

As I am now, so you must be,

Prepare for Death, & Follow me.

Elizabeth's gravestone can be examined more closely here.