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Most – Month 10 of 12 Ancestors in 12 Months
Seriously, How Many Years?
Well, here’s a fun fact that you may not know about me…I am 32 years older than my youngest sister. Our mother was very young (16 almost 17) when she had me and much, much older (49) when she had Angelina. Geraldine “Jerrie” McLeod Watkins Bernal was born on May 20, 1938; I was born on May 8, 1955; Angelina was born October 4, 1987. No fertility treatments were involved with Angelina; in fact, my mother thought she had the flu. When she went to the doctor, he insisted on a pregnancy test which my mother laughed at. After all, she was sure that she had gone through menopause. Oops, she received an unexpected surprise. Throughout her pregnancy, the doctor took notes at all of her appointments. Finally, my mother asked if he was planning on writing an article about her. He acknowledged that indeed that was his plan. I have no idea if it ever came to fruition. My mother had a normal pregnancy with no issues. Later she claimed that having a child late in life just kept her young.
While my mother is the family record holder of having children with the largest age gap, it is by no means unusual on the Anthony side. It seems that large gaps between children run in the family. My great great grandmother, Maria Christina Schaefer Schmidt had 16 children. Her oldest child was my great grandmother, Gertrude Schmidt Anthony, who was 24 years older than Maria’s youngest child, Henry. Maria Schaefer was born in Germany and married Heinrich Joseph Schmidt. They had their first daughter, my great grandmother, Gertrude Schmidt, on August 8, 1867. The family of three immigrated to the United States in 1870 and settled in La Crosse, Wisconsin where the rest of the children were born.
My great grandmother Gertrude Schmidt married John Peter Anthony. They had 10 children and there was a gap of 19 years between their first-born, Henry (1886) and their youngest daughter, my grandmother, Anna Agnes Anthony, who was born in 1905.
Interestingly, the current generation in our family also has some significant age gaps between children. Angelina and her husband Derek have a gap of 14 years between their two girls. My nephew Seth and his wife Jamie had a baby in 2024. There is a 20-year gap between Jamie’s oldest daughter and her youngest.
Life is often unpredictable. Think back to your high school years. Remember all the plans and goals you had at that time. Chances are that your life took some unforeseen turns, and certainly we have all had things that happened to us that we could never have envisioned. Often, the best path is to embrace the unexpected as our mother did. Through her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren her legacy lives on.
Posted in Anthony, Coble, Genealogy, Vaughters
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Tombstone – Month 9 of 12 Ancestors in 12 Months
Dying by Library Paste
You never know what may spark an interest in learning about the past or encourage a genealogical passion in discovering the journey that our ancestors took. “When I was in high school, one of my best friends lived near a very old cemetery. We would occasionally walk through the cemetery and examine the gravestones. I found it fascinating. Later, I took a writing class at Coffeyville Community College and one of our assignments was to go to a cemetery and select a gravestone. We were instructed to use whatever information we could find on that gravestone and create a story about that person. This is one of those assignments that I always remembered (Coble 27 May 2021).”
For me, it’s all about the stories. As a retired librarian, I was intrigued by an article I read in the Las Vegas Review Journal, titled Paste Eaters Tombstone. In fact, the tombstone is inscribed with UNKNOWN MAN DIED EATING LIBRARY PASTE. This tombstone is found in Goldfield, Nevada; the unknown man died July 14, 1908.
Historically, all kindergartners have been admonished not to eat library paste. Today, most schools use Elmer’s glue. While the glue is nontoxic, eating it is still discouraged. However, back in 1908, library paste was indeed toxic. In addition to water and flour, in 1908, library paste “contained alum, a common additive in adhesives that serves the purpose of 1) preventing mold by keeping excess moisture out and 2) whitening the mixture for improved aesthetics. As our hungry vagrant discovered too late, alum is also toxic in large doses (Let Them Eat Paste).”
According to the Carson City Daily Appeal in articles dated July 20 and July 21, the unknown man who died was suffering from starvation with his digestive and respiratory organs in very bad shape. Dr. Turner performed the postmortem examination of this man who died near the automobile garage in an alley in Goldfield, Nevada. This man was nearly dead when he found a pint jar of library paste. It probably tasted pretty good and was a little sweet due to the alum in the paste. With his body in such bad shape, he inevitably died soon after ingesting this toxic mixture. He has never been identified, but he did have a letter on him that may be a clue. It was addressed to Mr. Ross of Goldfield.
Goldfield, Nevada was established in 1902. Then good fortune struck. “After a significant gold discovery in 1904, Goldfield grew to be the wealthiest and largest city in Nevada, boasting three newspapers, five banks, a mining stock exchange, and what was likely the longest bar in the country – boxing promoter Tex Richard’s Northern Saloon, which required 80 bartenders to handle its clientele (Goldfield, Nevada).” During its peak time as a gold boomtown, Goldfield had a population of 20,000. Alas, this heyday did not last. By 1910, Goldfield only had a population of 1,500 which was a significant loss. In 2022, the population was just 212.
It’s safe to assume that some people who came to Goldfield in the early 1900s had a run of bad luck, lost everything and became destitute. Our “Unknown Man” may have been one of those.
Sources
Coble, Jacquelyn. “At the Cemetery – Week 21 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.” Journeying with Jacque, 27 May 2021, journeyingwithjacque.com/at-the-cemetery-week-21-of-52-ancestors-in-52-weeks/.
“Goldfield, Nevada: Goldfield Ghost Town: Goldfield Hotels.” Travel Nevada, 3 May 2024, travelnevada.com/cities/goldfield/.
“Jul 21, 1908, Page 1 – The Daily Appeal at Newspapers.Com.” Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s – Newspapers.Com, 21 July 1908, www.newspapers.com/image/465245108/?match=1&terms=Unknown+Man.
Lane, Taylor. “The Little-Known History of Goldfield’s Paste-Eater Grave.” Review Journal, Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11 Aug. 2024, www.reviewjournal.com/local/local-nevada/the-little-known-history-of-goldfields-paste-eater-grave-3121012/.
“Let Them Eat Paste: Sanford’s Library Paste Jar.” MSU Campus Archaeology Program, 17 Dec. 2021, campusarch.msu.edu/?p=4287.
Ugc. “Paste Eater’s Grave.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 25 Jan. 2017, www.atlasobscura.com/places/paste-eaters-grave.
“Unknown Man (Unknown-1908) – Find a Grave…” Find a Grave, www.findagrave.com/memorial/24301650/unknown-man. Accessed 29 Aug. 2024.
Posted in Genealogy
Tagged Goldfield Nevada, Unknown Man
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Wordless Wednesday 9/25/24
Posted in Coble, Wordless Wednesday
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Wordless Wednesday9/18/24
Posted in Coble, Wordless Wednesday
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Wordless Wednesday 9/4/24
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Wordless Wednesday 8/28/24
Posted in Anthony, McLeod, Wordless Wednesday
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Members of the Club – Month 8 of 12 Ancestors in 12 Months
A Presidential Connection – Part 2
It was a hot and sunny day in Indian Wells, California. Gary and his friend Norm Jackson were enjoying a friendly game of golf. All of a sudden, someone hit into them. This is an unacceptable practice in the game of golf and can be dangerous. Since it was summer in the desert, the course was pretty deserted, and Gary and Norm were not known for playing slow so there really was no excuse. While annoyed, they understood that sometimes things happened and continued to play. However, the third time of being hit into, the ball actually rolled between Gary’s feet. Irritated, Gary immediately turned around and said, “WHAT!” At that point the Secret Service agents came out of the woodwork. It turned out that the person hitting into them was former President Gerald Ford. Gary immediately switched tactics and calmly said, “Mr. President, you can play through.”
Gary had another encounter with the former President. While living in the Palm Springs area, Gary was the principal percussionist for the Desert Symphony. One memorable time, the symphony was hired to perform at a wedding reception on Clancy Lane in Palm Desert. After rehearsal off site, Gary loaded all his equipment into his truck and went to the venue to set up while everyone else had dinner (ahhhh, the joys of being a percussionist). When he arrived at the house, he was met by several gentlemen dressed in black suits, white shirts, skinny black ties, little coily things behind their ears, and suspicious bulges under their jackets. It was the Secret Service. They asked Gary if they could search his truck and equipment. He, of course, complied and when they asked him where he would be during the search, Gary told them, “I’ll be standing in the headlights where your partner can see me at all times.” Unbeknownst to him at the time, former President Gerald Ford, former Ambassador Walter Annenberg, former Secretary-of-State Henry Kissinger, and several other high ranking governmental officials were all in attendance at this particular wedding.
Oh, if only Gary had realized that Gerald Ford and I were cousins. I’m sure their interactions would have been much more interesting. Of course, the cousin connection is a little distant. Gerald Ford and I are 10th cousins; we share 9th great grandparents, Henry Howland and Mary Newland. In my last blog post, I shared my discovery that Richard Nixon and I are also cousins; we are closer cousins because Richard Nixon and my grandfather, Donald Watkins, shared 4th great grandparents, Anthony Smith (who is a direct descendant of Henry and Mary) and Lydia Willets which makes us 5th cousins twice removed. Therefore, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and I are all cousins (Richard and Gerald were 7th cousins three times removed).
Gerald R. Ford’s inauspicious beginning contained no hint that he would someday hold the highest office available in this country.
Gerald R. Ford was not his birth name. His parents were Leslie Lynch King and Dorothy Ayer Gardner and he was named after his father. Leslie Lynch King, Jr. was born on July 14, 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska. Unfortunately, Leslie King, Sr. was abusive. According to biographer, James M. Cannon, “a few days after Ford’s birth, Leslie King took a butcher knife and threatened to kill his wife, infant son, and Ford’s nursemaid (Gerald Ford).” Just two weeks after Leslie King, Jr. was born, his mother took him and left, moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan to live with her parents. Dorothy then married Gerald R. Ford on February 1, 1916 at which time the family began calling Leslie, Jerry.
In 1935, Leslie Lynch King, Jr. officially changed his name to Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. even though he was never officially adopted by his step-father.
Gerald was a good student and talented athlete, graduated from Yale Law School in 1941, and became a lawyer. After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Ford enlisted in the Navy.
Reminiscent of John Howland, Gerald’s and my 9th great grand-uncle, who fell off the Mayflower, “During a vicious typhoon in the Philippine Sea in December 1944, Gerald came within inches of being swept overboard (Gerald R. Ford Biography).”
After the war, Gerald returned to Grand Rapids where he became involved in the Republican party. He went on to serve 13 terms in the House of Representatives. His political ambition was to become Speaker-of-the-House. He never accomplished this goal though he did become the minority leader of the House.
According to the Gerald R. Ford Biography, he “developed a reputation for personal integrity, hard work, and the ability to deal effectively with both Republicans and Democrats.”
It is perhaps this reputation that launched him on a path that was never his intention. As reported in ConstitutionCenter.org, in 1973, President Richard Nixon appointed Gerald R. Ford as Vice President when then Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned because of accusations of unethical behavior involving tax evasion. Then Gerald R. Ford became President in 1974 when President Nixon resigned due to the Watergate scandal.
“Ford became the first, and so far the only, person to become President without winning a general election for President or Vice President (constitutioncenter.org).” According to Henry Kissinger who was Secretary-of-State at the time, “Gerald Ford saved the country. In fact he saved it in such a matter of fact way that he isn’t given credit for it.”
Perhaps we would all be better people if we would adhere to Gerald Ford’s philosophy of life that he was taught by his parents, “Work hard, tell the truth, and come to dinner on time.”
But that’s not all…my membership in the presidential descendant’s club has been expanded. Descendants of my 9th great grand-uncle, John Howland, include:
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, my 8th cousin three times removed
- George Herbert Walker Bush, my 11th cousin two times removed
- George Walker Bush, my 11th cousin three times removed
Sources
Bomboy, Scott. “Gerald Ford’s Unique Role in American History.” National Constitution Center – Constitutioncenter.Org, 14 July 2024, constitutioncenter.org/blog/gerald-fords-unique-role-in-american-history.
“Gerald Ford.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Aug. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Ford.
“Gerald R. Ford Biography.” Gerald R. Ford Foundation, 23 July 2021, geraldrfordfoundation.org/gerald-r-ford-biography/.