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Wordless Wednesday – 7/7/21
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Conflict – Week 26 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
Conflict Because of a Conflict
Malcolm McLeod was born July 12, 1900 in Bruce, Ontario, Canada to John and Sarah (Liggett) McLeod. His family immigrated in 1902 and settled in San Bernardino, California. He didn’t have much education; he didn’t continue with school after 7th grade. Malcolm enlisted in the army May 20, 1917. The 1920 census documents that while serving in World War I, Malcolm was in the field artillery and worked as a cannoneer. According to information handed down in the family, as part of his combat experience, Malcolm was gassed. This had become a routine feature of trench warfare. Malcolm’s regiment, Battery B 18th FA, was transported back to America on the ship, Manchurian, on April 23, 1918. Malcolm was discharged from the army on July 20, 1919.
Anna (Annie) Agnes Anthony was born to John and Gertrude (Schmidt) Anthony on July 25, 1905 in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The family moved to San Bernardino, California shortly after Annie was born.
Malcolm and Annie got married in 1923 when Malcolm was 23 and Annie was 18 in San Bernardino, California. At first as they settled into married life, they were very happy. Their son William was born in 1930 and their daughter Geraldine (my mother) was born in 1938.
Unfortunately, they did not remain a happy family; conflict ensued. By 1938, the family was living in Vallejo, California where my mother was born. My grandfather was a welder at Mare Naval Base. My grandmother once told me that after the war, my grandfather was a different person than the one she married. I knew that my grandfather was in World War I and as a child just assumed that this is the war she was talking about. However, the dates certainly don’t make sense; she must have been referring to World War II.
It’s likely that things changed for Malcolm after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941 as American entered the war. This may have triggered lingering PTSD from WWI. Working at the naval base may have brought its own stresses. In 1942, Malcolm filled out a registration card for WWII. On the back of the registration card, it states that he had a limp due to an injury. The injury itself may have traumatic.
Regardless, Malcolm became an alcoholic who occasionally became violent. When it became too much, Annie left him. She was totally unprepared to raise two children on her own and had no skills to support them. She began to work as a waitress in bars and restaurants and moved frequently. They descended into poverty and struggled to survive. Despite this bleak situation, Annie managed to maintain an optimistic world view.
Groups – Week 25 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
More than Camaraderie
The stars aligned when a particular group of teachers found themselves in the 300 building at Desert Springs Middle School during the early years of the school. The six of us became much more than colleagues or neighbors; we became friends and a work family. We happened to have similar philosophies and shared a strong work ethic. We were all proponents of encouraging creativity and let our passions shine through.
Our building was a pod of six classrooms with a shared center room. We turned this room into our own mini teachers’ lounge. We moved in a refrigerator (given to us by a teacher’s aide) and a microwave. We not only worked on lesson plans, created projects, and brainstormed during our prep periods, but we also ate lunch together. Additionally (and festively), we celebrated birthdays and holidays together. Jim’s wife, Peggy, would come in on those special days and decorate. We were so fortunate to support each other while also having a lot of fun.
Groups are an important facet of life – some we choose; some we fall into; some are conscious decisions; others are imposed upon us. According to www.nobaproject.com, “Joining groups satisfies our need to belong, gain information and understanding through social comparison, define our sense of self and social identity, and achieve goals that might elude us is we worked alone.”
As we explore our immigrant ancestors, this description of groups helps explain why immigrants often settle in areas where other immigrants from their native country have settled. I wondered why my maternal grandmother’s father and mother both ended up in La Crosse, Wisconsin where they met, married, and had many children before moving on to San Bernardino, California. Both had been born in Germany and moved to Wisconsin with their families.
“By 1900 more than one million Germans had settled in Wisconsin.” www.wna-trip.www1.50megs.com/heritage.html. Immigration was a challenging prospect. In order to arrive in America, most German immigrants endured six weeks of “poor food, sea sickness, disease, crowded sleeping quarters, boredom, and death of others” in order to have an improved standard of living ( Germany/Prussia was in the middle of an economic depression during this time) and political and religious freedom. There was much anti-Catholic sentiment in Germany by some and the families of both my great grandfather and great grandmother were Catholic.
My great grandmother, Gertrude, was born in Germany in 1867. Her parents, Heinrich and Maria Schmidt, immigrated to New York with their young daughter. They arrived on May 24, 1869 from Hamburg, Germany on the Borussia. They then settled in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
My great grandfather, John Peter Antony, immigrated with his mother Otillia “Tilly” and his brothers in 1880, also settling in La Crosse. John changed his name from Antony to Anthony about 1886. (Two brothers retained the surname Antony while the other two brothers changed it to Anthony.)
John and Gertrude married in 1886.
Groups can help us find others with a common culture. By joining groups, we can learn new skills or gain information and knowledge. We can share interests, focus on goals, fulfill interests, and achieve personal growth. Our families are groups that help us understand our identities.
Wordless Wednesday 6/23/21
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Father’s Day – Week 24 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
Family First
My father, Billy Dean Watkins, was born April 1, 1930 in Henryetta, Oklahoma to Donald and Fanny Watkins. His brother, Donald Claud, was 3 years old. Shortly thereafter, Fanny followed her mother and brothers to California, leaving her infant and toddler in Oklahoma. Donald and Fanny divorced in 1932.
Donald married Alta May Jones sometime between 1938 and 1940. They went on to have two more sons, Kenneth Gerald (1945-1964) and George Edward.
Living in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, my dad went to Joplin, Missouri on July 14, 1948 to join the Air Force during the Korean conflict. He got his training at Chanute Air Force Base in Illinois. He received several medals: Army of Occupation Japan Medal; Korean Service Medal; Good Conduct Medal; United Nations Service Medal for Korea. He was honorably discharged from the Air Force on July 13, 1952 at March Air Force Base in California. (While at March, my dad met my uncle, William McLeod, who introduced him to my mother.) At the time of his discharge, my dad was a staff sergeant with the 33d Bombardment Squadron.
Billy Dean Watkins stayed in California after leaving the Air Force. He and my mother, Geraldine McLeod, were married on June 13, 1954. I was born on May 8, 1955; my sister, Becky Sue was born on February 17, 1959, and my brother, Billy Wayne was born on August 13, 1961. Our family lived in Beaumont, California until June 1966 when we moved to Bartlesville, Oklahoma. We stayed there for a year then moved to Coffeyville, Kansas.
My dad, Bill Watkins was a quiet, calm man with a sly sense of humor. He valued family and was unconditionally supportive. He was not materialistic, instead appreciating the simple things in life. We almost always had dinner together every night and used that time to catch up and share what was going on in our lives. We often took “Sunday drives” just to enjoy the scenery. An icee, Dairy Queen ice cream cone, or A&W root beer was a special treat. He encouraged our dreams. When I was in elementary school in the 1960’s, I decided I wanted to be an FBI agent or an astronaut. My dad encouraged my aspirations even though they weren’t possibilities at the time (women, other than three women in the 1920’s, were not allowed to be FBI agents until 1972, and it wasn’t until 1983 that Sally Ride became the first American woman to go to space).
My dad was always well-informed. He read the newspaper every day, cover to cover. He also believed in the importance of voting and took this right very seriously (he took me to the polls the first time that I was eligible to vote). He maintained that people should make a difference in their community (he was a deacon and later an elder in the church; at one point he was a police reservist; he and my mom were foster parents for a time).
Reading was something that he engaged in regularly. He particularly enjoyed Perry Mason novels and books by Louis L’Amour. Often on Sundays after church, we would stop at the store and each of us kids was allowed to buy a comic book. Another pleasure was movies; we never missed a John Wayne or Disney movie. (My dad once sat next to John Wayne at the bar at the Rusty Lantern in Beaumont, California and said that John Wayne was just the nicest guy. Apparently, John Wayne was a regular at the Rusty Lantern as he traveled to and from L.A. and Palm Springs. https://www.pe.com/2014/08/31/back-in-the-day-rusty-lantern-was-standout-in-older-era-of-restaurants/. My dad managed a service station in Beaumont, California and met many celebrities in the days before I-10 was built and the road between L.A. and Palm Springs went right through Beaumont.)
Thoughtfulness was one of his defining characteristics. On Valentine’s Day he would buy my mom a large heart-shaped box of chocolates and he would buy small heart-shaped boxes of chocolates for my brother, sister, and me so that we each felt special. My sister Becky said that one of her fondest memories is of Dad giving her a yellow rose each year on her birthday. She still has a special locket that he gave her.
My dad had his struggles too. As a baby, he was tragically abandoned by his mother. I wrote about this in my blog post titled Namesake on January 22, 2021. Later as an adult, he was once held up at gunpoint when he was at work. When the police asked him to describe his assailant, all he could describe was the gun. Unfortunately, my dad also had some health issues. He was diagnosed at 18 with high blood pressure and had an enlarged heart. He died way too young on November 10, 1982.
Wordless Wednesday 6/16/21
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Bridge – Week 23 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
Bridging Skeleton Trees and History
In the late 1800’s, genealogists focused on building “skeleton trees” which consist of the “bare bones” of people’s lives including their names and the dates of births, marriages, and deaths. Today most genealogists focus on building family narratives and telling the “whole story.” The foundation of chronicling this family identity is accuracy, authenticity, and comprehensiveness of the information.
Washington Clark was my 3rd great grandfather on my father’s side. A genealogist in the 1800’s would proclaim that Washington Clark was born in 1828 in Lee County, Virginia, died in Chicago, Illinois on September 14, 1864 and was buried on September 15. He married Lavina C. Burchett on January 28, 1847. Lavina was born in 1828 in Virginia and died in 1900. Washington and Lavina had five children: Samuel Clark, Droucilla Clark, William Franklin Clark (my 2nd great grandfather), Henry David Clark, and Mary A. Clark.
An historian in the late 1800’s would focus on the Civil War as the major historical event that occurred during Washington Clark’s life. The historian might summarize, “The Civil War in the United States began in 1861, after decades of simmering tensions between northern and southern states over slavery, states’ rights and westward expansion. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 caused seven southern states to secede and form the Confederate States of America; four more states soon joined them. The War Between the States, as the Civil War was also known, ended in Confederate surrender in 1865. The conflict was the costliest and deadliest war ever fought on American soil, with some 620,000 of 2.4 million soldiers killed, millions more injured and much of the South left in ruin.” https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/american-civil-war-history
A genealogist today might bridge the information from the earlier genealogist and the historian and hopefully bring life to great-great-great grandfather Washington:
Washington Clark was born in 1828 in Lee County, Virginia to Robert Clark II and Rebecca Harris Clark. He married Lavina C. Burchett on January 28, 1847. Lavina was born on April 22, 1828 and died March 2, 1900. Lavina was a devout Christian and her Baptist church was very meaningful in her life. Washington and Lavina had five children.
Washington was a farmer and supported the confederacy.
He enlisted in the Confederate Army on February 1, 1863 at Jonesville, Lee County, Virginia. He was in the 64th Regiment, Virginia Mounted Infantry. On September 9, 1863, Washington and his regiment were guarding Cumberland Gap. Morale was low; the Union had just won major battles in Vicksburg and Gettysburg. The Confederate soldiers were also struggling because they had little combat experience and were greatly outnumbered by the Union. Feeling defeated, Brigadier General Frazier agreed to an unconditional surrender.
As part of the surrender, Washington Clark was captured at Cumberland Gap. Then on September 24, 1863, he was transferred from Louisville, Kentucky to Camp Douglas, Illinois.
Camp Douglas is often described as “the North’s Andersonville” and was one of the largest Union Army prisoner-of-war camps for Confederate soldiers taken prisoner during the American Civil War. According to http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/207.html, “Like all Civil War prisons, Camp Douglas had a high mortality rate: one prisoner in seven died in Chicago. Poor sanitation, hastily constructed buildings, and harsh weather conditions were to blame. By the end of the war more than 4,000 rebels had died in the camp.”
Washington Clark died on September 14, 1864 of inflammation of the lungs while still a POW.
Military – Week 22 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
Family Ties to the American Revolutionary War
Military service has been the foundation of our country. The United States has a distinct personality with a set of evolving values. The American Revolutionary War gave us a hard fought independence. Americans tend to be generous in heart and spirit. It’s in our nature to strive for excellency. We have the mindset that we can achieve anything. For this week’s theme on the military, I am exploring family ties to the American Revolutionary War.
Joseph Hanslap Watkins (1788 – 1870) and Margaret McElroy (1793 – 1878) were married on November 18, 1814. (Joseph and Margaret had a son, Samuel; Samuel and Susannah had a son, John Calvin; John and Lavina had a son, Donald; Donald and Fanny had a son, Billy Dean who was my father.) Joseph and Margaret’s fathers both enlisted in the American Revolutionary War.
Joseph’s father was Stephen Watkins (1763 – 1839). Stephen enlisted as a private in Captain Jonathan Sellman’s Company, Colonels Smith’s and Hall’s 4th Maryland Regiment in May, 1776 in Anne Arundel, Maryland. He fought in the Revolutionary War battles of Long Island, White Plains, and Monmouth. He was discharged at West Point on May 20, 1780.
According to https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Order_of_battle_of_the_Battle_of_Long_Island, “the Battle of Long Island (sometimes called the Battle of Brooklyn) was a decisive British victory early in the American Revolutionary War over American forces under the command of Major General George Washington, and was the opening battle in a successful British campaign to gain control of New York City in 1776.”
Margaret’s father, Thomas McElroy, was born in Drummore, County Down, Ireland in 1751. He immigrated to America in 1773 and settled in Drumore, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. (According to https://www.littlebritain.org/a-history, “the majority of townships in Lancaster had been given names reflective of the original roots of their citizens, such as Caernarvon (Welsh), Conestoga (Native American), Sadsbury (English) & Drumore (Irish). Most landowners in this newly formed township of Little Britain were of Scots-Irish descent.” Thomas enlisted in the American Revolutionary Army in Chester, Pennsylvania in 1776.
Thomas served as a wagoner or wagon driver. The American colonies at the beginning of the Revolutionary War were mostly rural. Much of the land consisted of forests, marshes, and swamps. The terrain was extremely rugged. Existing roads were inadequate. Travel was slow. “It took Washington ten days to travel from Philadelphia to Cambridge to take command of the Continental Army.” http://webdoc.sub.gwdg.de/ebook/p/2005/CMH_2/www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/revwar/risch/chpt-3.htm Because of these issues it became policy to hire wagons and drivers to provide transportation for the troops and supplies. Sometimes local people were hired for this duty while at other times, soldiers were given this responsibility.
After the war, Stephen’s 3rd wife, Sarah, applied and received his Revolutionary War pension. Thomas, however, applied for his Revolutionary War pension but was denied. His pension was rejected because he was a wagoner which was not considered military service.
(One of my goals as I continue my research is to explore membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution. It has been challenging to obtain primary source documentation on various ancestors. Some researchers confuse Stephen Watkins with his father and add information indiscriminately without ensuring that the right Stephen is involved. Stephen Watkins II also has a nephew named Stephen Watkins. Additionally, there are many, many men named Stephen Watkins who are not related to our branch. Then there is the spelling of Hanslap, Hanslep, Hanslip, Hanstep, or Hanslape. Add to that Frances (female) or Francis (male) Warman or Warmen or even Norman who are on two sides of the family. And the challenge continues…)