Time for Funnies!

 

1910 swimming costumes

WikiTree & Geni: Have You Looked?

 

I heard a respected genealogy expert (Arlene Eakle) once say that you could and should check 50 sources to fully document any one family group. Bet we've not been doing that, right?

Two places we might look are places were family trees are posted and genealogists collaborate. WikiTree has been around since 2009, currently (as of March 2026) has 1,326,162 community members with 44,622,928 ancestors on trees. Geni offers 208,319,099 profiles connected in its trees. 

Both websites are free so why not check them out?

Wikitree Strong Points: strong focus on accuracy and sourcing; collaborative environment, free access and helpful community.  Potential Weaknesses:  relies on user input; potential for inaccuracies and unsourced claims, not a record repository and can be clunky and unintuitive.

Geni Strong Points:  collaborative world family tree; curator program, DNA features, GEDCOM support. Limitations: reliance on user-generated content; lack of internal record database and does offer subscription for premium features.

Recommendations: always verify information; focus on well-sourced profiles, consult original sources whenever possible, don't rely on any one tree for all your information; use these collaborative websites as starting points not definitive sources; always cite your sources. 

Money Laundering

No, not the illegal process of making large amounts of money generated by criminal activity. I'm talking about with-soap-and-water WASHING money. No, not in a wringer washing machine.

Spotting this tidbit in the March 19, 1910 issue of the Colville Examiner, I just had to share it with you:  "Representative Wiley of New Jersey has a bill before Congress providing that all paper money which reaches the treasury be burned and new clean currency furnished in lieu of it. In support of this measure he had a current $1 bill microscopically examined and the report on its condition laid before the house committee on banking and currency. The bill in question had on it 92,000 germs of different diseases and paper money generally has been found to carry germs of smallpox, scarlet fever, typhoid, tuberculosis and diphtheria.

"Desiring to aid in this crusade against diseased paper money, the Examiner hereby announces that anyone having dirty paper money in their possession may bring it to this office and receive in exchange a clean paper every week in the year. An editor takes so many chances in this world that a few million germs more will not make any great difference. It's the absence of these money germs that makes trouble for us."

This is a hoot!  I think the newspaper is saying "Baloney!" to the idea of "dirty money" and just telling folks to come in and subscribe to the paper......... bring your money to this office and exchange it for a clean paper every week????  Too funny. 

What is really too funny is that Spokane's historic Davenport Hotel, during this same time period, offered the service to its guests of washing their coins and pressing their currency as part of a high-end service idea. Supposedly this added to the prestige of the hotel. 

McNeil Island & Prison

First off, McNeil Island was, indeed, a tiny seven-square-miles island in Puget Sound west of Tacoma. Its name comes from William Henry McNeil, a captain of some Hudson Bay Company steamers. Oregon Trail pioneer and advocate, Ezra Meeker had a homestead on McNeil Island where the prison yard would be but sold it in 1862. (Isn't it interesting how history overlaps?)

In 1867, Congress authorized a territorial jail in the Washington Territory; in 1875 this became a federal penitentiary. The original cellhouse was built in 1873; by the end of 1875 the total prison population was nine. There are several websites available to you giving a chronological history of the place and are most interesting reads. At one time, the island provided for itself by raising vegetables, fruit, pork, beef and milk. By 1947, the incarcerated population was 320 individuals. Additional prison cells were added as the inmate population increased as did the housing facilities for the prison staff. McNeil ultimately had a capacity of 853 prisoners; the prison was closed in 2011and the land was deeded to the Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife for continued use as a wildlife refuge. 

One of the more famous inmates was Robert Franklin Stroud whose story was portrayed by Burt Lancaster in the movie Birdman of Alcatraz. (He was at McNeil but the movie was Alcatraz??)

Perhaps one of your family members was a "guest" at McNeil Island? Want to find out? 

The McNeil Island Penitentiary records, spanning 1875-2010, are primarily held by the National Archives at Seattle and the Washington State Archives, Digital Archives. They include inmate case files, mugshots and registers of prisoners received. Key digital records are accessible through Ancestry.com and the Washington State Archives, Digital Archives (www.digitalarchives.wa.gov). 

Indian Princes Buried in Utah?

 Some time ago, a friend told me that as a youngster, she enjoyed roaming a nearby cemetery where she lived in Beaver, Utah. She clearly remembers seeing this tombstone and asking folks who this was? Here's what Google taught us:

"The "Indian princess" story associated with Beaver, Utah, is a family legend about an East Indian woman who converted to the LDS faith and moved to Beaver. The narrative is a specific family tale and there is no historical record of an "Indian princess" of this kind in Native American history or in the founding of Beaver, Utah. The concept of an "Indian princess" is often a romanticized and inaccurate portrayal of Native American nobility which didn't exist in the European sense."

Just for fun, I did some sleuthing on FindAGrave. Entering "King" in the first name box yielded 15,958 hits.  Entering "unknown" showed 307,472 hits.  What really was sad was the entries for "baby" as the first name:  786,412. This one really was awfully sad. 

FindAGrave vs. BillionGraves

I'd bet we all use one of these cemetery-searching websites. Maybe some of us use both. Is one better than the other? What's the difference between the two? Well!

The focus of Findagrave.com is on the individual. Contributors can create a "memorial" (web page) for anyone. There is no requirement for a photograph of a headstone or anything else but a name. BUT a Findagrave memorial can potentially contain much additional information such as biographical information, photos, obituaries and information on other family members.

The focus of Billiongraves.com is photographs of headstones with their geolocation tags. To submit a photo to BillionGraves, one must use their app and a GPS enabled camera or smart phone. Having these GPS coordinates, can save hours of wandering time when visiting a large cemetery. 

Both websites are free to use, so you decide. Just do realize that all of the information on these two websites is secondary, not primary (with the exception of the location of the grave). Despite efforts to ensure accuracy, there is no way on either site to document the primary sources of the information.... with the exception again of folks adding other forms of documentation. Even though a date is "carved in stone" the stone is a secondary source, not a birth or death certificate.

Women's Safety Bicycles

 

In the carriage house adjacent to the Campbell House in Spokane was a most interesting display of  a Woman's Safety Bicycle in the 1890s. "Medium-sized wheels and a chain drive eased the physical strain of bike riding. A string skirt guard, hygienic breathable leather seat, and pierced metal chain guard made riding safer for women." The image is of Helen Campbell riding on the handlebars of just such a bicycle. Below is that bicycle. 

Bicycles revolutionized women's lives. It necessitated changes in clothing (shorter skirts and (horrors) trousers); it offered independence from home or husband; it became a symbol of women's liberation and a tool for the feminist movement. 

These early bicycles were heavy (up to 50 pounds) compared to today's bikes at 20-30 pounds. In 1890, a new safety bicycle cost between $100 and $150, roughly $3000 to $4500 in today's money, making it a luxury item for the wealthy. Prices did drop to an average of $75 by the mid-1890s due to increased competition. They represented a significant investment, often costing one to two month's wages for an average worker. So Google says. 

What garb do you wear when riding your bike? And what is your bike like? Aren't you once again you live today and not in the 1890s?