Geiger Field..... Now GEG

 

Spokane played a unique part in the history of aerial warfare in the World War II days and afterwards. Called Sunset Airport, the facility was taken over in 1939 by the Army Air Corps for a training base. Eleven of the twenty groups of B-17 bombers stationed in England during World War II were trained in part at Geiger Field.

The history of aviation in Spokane began in 1911when a daredevil pilot flew across the country from Ohio to win a bet. In 1912, aviators were flying in and out of Glover Field (below Monroe Street bridge). After World War I, a Flying Circus staged stunts and took customers up for $5 ($81 today). Another new landing strip was created in the near valley and dubbed Parkwater Field (now Felts Field since 1927). 

Geiger Field was named in honor of Maj. Harold Geiger, an aviation pioneer and war veteran who, incidentally, never was in Spokane. 

After the war, personal air travel burst upon Spokane. Commercial airlines used Felts Field but soon found that was an inadequate location. In 1938 the city purchased 1280 acres of land west of town for a new airport to be named Sunset Airport (soon Spokane International Airport). Sunset Airport was renamed Geiger Field in 1939. 

So why is our Spokane airport designated GEG?  Easy answer. There are dozens of airport designations beginning with "S" and very darn few beginning with "G."  So we became GEG. 

(If you'd enjoy reading more on this history topic, read "From Geiger To Glory," by Marshall B. Shore, in the 1996 Vol. 40, No. 4, The Pacific Northwesterner..... can be accessed at the Eastern Washington Historical Society archives at the MAC.)

Multi-Course Dinners...... Would You Survive?

 The holidays are nearly upon us and family dinners are likely being planned. Will you be using "mom's antique china" dishes and/or fixing a multi-course dinner?? Likely a resounding NO!

Antique and thrift shops these days seemingly always have "grandma's old china set." And these dishes end up in such shops because people don't "eat like that" any more. The day of 16-course dinners is long past. 

Dinners in days of yore were dress-up affairs (eating in a corset for hours??) and lasted a very long evening. Up to sixteen courses could be served on fancy china, fancy linens, fancy flatware, fancy glassware, etc. etc. All of which had to be hand washed and carefully stored away. (They had maids in those days.)

A typical Very Fancy Dinner might include these courses:

• raw oysters
• soup, a thin or cream soup
• hors d'oeuvres
• fish
• vegetables (asparagus, artichokes or corn)
• sorbet
• hot roast
• "entremets" a half-way mark, likely to be sweets
• game (wild birds or beasts)
• salad
• pudding
• ice cream
• fruit
• cheese

Guests were not supposed to eat everything; it was like picking from a buffet. (Think of all the hours of preparation and wasted food.) And the portions served were usually small. (And, I'd guess, not very hot.)

"Turning the table" meant turning first to talk to the person on your right and then, when the hostess switches, to the person on your left.

AND, all of that dressed like this (in a dozen layers) and having had maids spend hours on your hair just for one dinner! Would you???

Rules of the Road, 1913, Part 2

 

Want to know more about the history of traffic lights? Ask "Grandma" Google! Click to Wikipedia!

Continuing the Digest of Traffic Ordinance, City of Spokane

SPEED LIMIT

Speed must not exceed 15 miles an hour inside of fire limits. In other parts of the city 20 miles an hour may be maintained. NOTE: State Law provides that outside of thickly settled or business portion of any city or town speed must not exceed 24 miles per hour.

In crossing or turning, speed must not exceed one-half the legal speed limit.

In proceeding by inertia or momentum of car, the feet of the driver must be on both pedals. 

PENTALTIES

Violation of ordinance subjects the offender to a fine of not less than one dollar nor more than 25 dollars, or in default of payment imprisonment in city jail not exceeding ten days.

Hummm...... how fast to you drive when heading east or west on I-90 through the fairly straight and empty (but beautiful!) part of our state????? At 25 MPH, getting to Seattle would take 14 hours. Ouch. 

Manresa Castle in Port Townsend

 

 

Port Townsend, Jefferson County, Washington has a castle! Did you know? Have you been there?

Manresa Castle, as it's commonly called, sits high on a hill overlooking Port Townsend and was completed  in 1892 as the home of Charles and Kate Eisenbeis. He was a prominent member of the community and in 1878 had been elected the first mayor.

First referred to as the "Eisenbeis Castle," the residence consisted of 30 rooms (and only three bathrooms) and was reminiscent of the Eisenbeis' native Prussia. The walls were 12 inches thick and the roof was slate. Tiled fireplaces and finely crafted woodwork were installed by German artisans.  

Charles died in 1902 and Kate remarried a few years later; the Castle was left empty for almost 20 years except for a caretaker. 

By 1928, the Jesuits had purchased the Castle for use as a training college. They added a large wing housing a chapel and sleeping rooms and also installed an elevator. They named the complex "Manresa Hall" after the town in Spain where Ignatius Loyola founded their order. 

The Jesuits left in 1968 and the building was converted into a hotel. The elements "Manresa" and "Castle" were taken from the two previous owners to create the current name. 

You may vacation-stay at Manresa Castle for just under $300 per night. Ghosts perhaps included. 

Rules of the Road, 1913, Part 1

 The Digest of Traffic Ordinance, City of Spokane (1913)

LAW OF THE ROAD

Keep to the right, near the right hand curb.

In meeting other vehicles, pass to the right. (sic)

In overtaking other vehicles, pass to the left. 

Before starting on street, give an audible signal.

On turning to the left into another street pass to the right of and beyond the center of the street intersecting before turning.

In turning to the right into another street turn the corner as near the curb as practicable.

In crossing from one side of street to the other, turn to the left so as to head in the same direction as the traffic on that side.

Do not stop with the left side to the curb.

RIGHT OF WAY

All vehicles going in a northerly or southerly direction have the right of way over any vehicle going in an easterly or westerly direction. 

In slowing up or stopping with other following, signal by raising the hand vertically.

A signal or request from a person riding or driving a restive horse or driving domestic animals requires that the automobile should be stopped or remain stationary until animals have passed.

In moving slowly keep close to the right hand curb to as to allow faster moving vehicles to pass on the left. 

In 1913, Spokane published the "Automobile Guide and Directory." This booklet listed by license number each business or person owning a car or truck and the brand owned. A few representative pages were reproduced in The Pacific Northwesterner, Vol. 43, Issue 2, October 1999. Just glancing through the list, I noticed these makes of cars: Packard, Rambler, Buick, Ford, Winton, Franklin, Lozier, Reo, Chalmers, Brush, Cadillac, Mitchell, Elmore, Overland, Midland, Indian, Pierce-Arrow, Baker Electric, Maytag, Flanders and many more. Very few of those names are recognizable today! 

U.S.S. Spokane, 1944-1973

 

The U.S.S. Spokane was named for the city of Spokane and was built in New Jersey; she was classed a light cruiser. The Washington cities of Seattle, Tacoma and Olympia also had Navy ships named for them.

Commissioned after the end of World War II, the Spokane never saw any war-related action.  

Spokane departed New York for training and battle practice near Guantanamo Bay. In 1946, she visited several European ports. In 1947, the Spokane represented the U.S. Navy at the wedding of Her Royal Highness, Princess Elizabeth of England. On Christmas Day, 1947, she was boarded by 100 guests and underprivileged English children as the invited guests of the crew for dinner, party, movies and tour of the ship.

Completing her goodwill tour, Spokane joined a group staging bombardment exercises in the Atlantic. She was decommissioned in 1950 and assigned to the mothball fleet of the New York Group, US Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Struck from the Navy's list of vessels in 1972, she was purchased in 1973 for scrap. Her final voyage took her to Brownsville, Texas, to be dismantled. 

Naval tradition mandates that the city in whose honor a ship is named give a silver service to its officers. In 1946, the citizen of Spokane purchased a silver service for the newly constructed USS Spokane. The 135-piece included service for twelve officers. This silver set is on display at the Naval Reserve Training Center by the VA Hospital in Spokane. (Could not find an image of Spokane's silver; this set belonged to the USS Maryland.)

Taken from an article in Vol. 39, No. 3, 1995, of The Pacific Northwesterner.

German Funerals

 

Quoting from website The German Way, "German Funerals: Death in Deutschland."  Image for a YouTube video.

"The German way of death is perhaps even more regulated than the German way of life. The German propensity to regulate almost every aspect of daily life carries over into the afterlife, with Germany's funeral industry among the most regulated in the world."

"Strict German laws and regulations concerning the burial or cremation of a deceased person reduce competition and increase the costs. The German funeral industry is protected by laws, that, with few exceptions, make burial in a cemetery mandatory even if the deceased has been cremated. There is little free choice for families faced with the death of a loved one."

A typical German funeral can cost from $5500 to $11,000 or more! Even with cremations, a "certified" coffin is required and a plain  wooden coffin can cost over $700. A typical cremation costs upwards of $8000. 

"Those Germans who choose burial over cremation usually have a limited stay in the cemetery of their choice. Because of space limitation, most German cemeteries allow their "guests" to rest in peace only for a maximum of 10 to 30 years. After that they must relinquish their grave to another deceased soul. Only in some historical German cemeteries will you find the graves of people who died over a century ago." 

"German restrictions don't end with the laws that dictate where a corpse has to go. Most German cemeteries have codes and regulations that determine in great detail what may or may not appear on a loved one's grave marker." (Thankfully, this "rule" is changing.)

The scattering of cremated remains on land or at sea is generally verboten in Germany. When it is done, it is almost always done illegally. To scatter in a lake is out of the question for thoughts of water being contaminated by cremains. 

As an American, you do not want to pass away in Germany! Getting your body, or even your cremains, shipped home is a total tangled nightmare. 

So we learn from that article on The German Way website. 

Punishments In Old Virginia

 

Reading Ulysses P. Joyner's The First Settlers of Orange County, Virginia, I thought to share bits about early forms of punishments there and the reasons for such punishments. 

Reasons for punishment in the early 1700s included: killing a slave, stealing a horse, absenting oneself from church, illicit cohabitation/adultery, failure to pay taxes, insulting the minister,  failure to keep his appointed stretch of road in good repair. having a "base born" child, drunkenness, stealing, murder, disturbing the peace and being a vagabond.

Punishments included:  time in the stocks (either the stand-up or sit-down sort). "This was a form of public ridicule and humiliation since the prisoner's ankles, wrists and neck were shackled in the stocks on the courthouse lawn and the public gathered to taunt him/her." 

Those convicted of stealing would have one or both of their ears nailed to the pillory for a specified time at the conclusion of which the sheriff used his sword to cut the sorry soul loose, leaving the ear affixed to the pillory.

Though women criminals were often dealt with as harshly as men, the usual punishment imposed on women for minor offenses was the "ducking pool" or "dunking stool." The lady was placed on the stool attached to the end of a long pole in a public area and was "ducked" or dunked in a pool of water, a spectacle enjoyed by all except the victim.

As I read these pages, I was stuck by how much the idea of public humiliation was part of the punishment. Yes, loosing an ear was painful and awful but being put on display as a criminal was likely just as painful for the victim. I personally think that using thirty minutes in public stocks would be great punishment for minor offenders today.

Trees: An Arboretum of Tree Lore

 I purchased this little book in an airport gift shop, killing time between flights. It's been a deee-lightful and most informative read. For instance: 

"A seed hidden in the heart of an apple is an orchard invisible." (Welsh Proverb)

"A tree has roots in the soil yet reaches to the sky. It tells us that in order to aspire we need to be grounded and that no matter how high we go it is from our roots that we draw sustenance." (Wangari Maathai, Kenyan Political activist, 1940-2011)

"Never say there is nothing beautiful in the world anymore. There is always something to make you wonder in the shape of a tree, the trembling of a leaf." (Albert Schweitzer, 1875-1965)

"Into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul." (John Muir, 1838-1914)

"A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit." (Greek proverb)

"What we are going to the forest of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another." (Mahatma Gandhi, 1869-1948)

"A person who loves trees and forests is known as a dendrophile. That person could also be called another obscure term: nemophilist. Or you could simple call that person a tree hugger."

"You might come across a miniature whirlwind of leaves, thought by some to be created by a fairy dance, with tiny fairies riding on the leaves. Try catching a leaf in the air before it touches the ground...the fairy riding it will grant you a wish."

"Acts of creating are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets, but humbler folk may circumvent this restriction if they know how. To plant a pine, for example, one need be neither god or poet; one need only own a shovel." (Aldo Leopard, 1887-1948)

P.S. This little book cost $8.95.

Lewiston, Idaho, High School Yearbook 1924

 

In a Spokane thrift store, I rescued this wonderful treasure! Inscribed: Property of Allene Robinson, who was a Junior that year. Besides pages of names of current students, this annual contains Alumni Lists dating back to 1890!!! There are also pages of class news bits, jokes, etc. What a find, I thought. If you want this, do let me know. It will not never go back to a thrift store! Donna

Locality Guide: Needful Research Tool

 

Remember the old TripTik Travel Planners offered by AAA? When you were planning a trip, you'd contact AAA and ask for a customized TripTik and a little flip-booklet of all the roads, attractions, lodging and eats was furnished to you. It became the "bible" for your trip. 

I propose to you today that a Locality Guide for your genealogy research is parallel to the old TripTik. When you're "going to" (researching) in a particular place, don't you want to know the roads and places there?????  And, F.Y.I., creating a Locality Guide is  part of many how-to genealogical study courses. 

So. What to include in a Locality Guide? For imaginary visual impact, picture creating a Locality Guide for  Washington State or even better, a Washington State county. Here might be the chapters to include:

• Historical Background & Geography
• Local & County Government Agencies
• State or Provincial Government
• Laws
• Archives, Libraries, Museums, Historical Societies
• Historical Context Materials
• Research Guides
• Genealogy societies & Social Media
• Census Records
• Government Vital Records
• Maps & Gazetteers
• City Directories
• Newspapers
• Cemeteries & Funeral Homes & Onsite Grave Locators
• Religious Records
• Probate Records
• Local Land Records
• Federal Land Records
• Tax Records
• Immigration & Naturalization Records
• Military Records

Imagine searching out and then compiling all that information for your target research place!  Seems to me, it would just about guarantee success in your search. 

Robyn M. Smith on her website, Reclaiming Kin, describes what a Locality Guide is: "It's a document you create that contains key snippets of information relevant to genealogical research in a specific locale. The idea is to have one central guide that you can refer to time and time again when you are researching that place." I agree!

"Going Dutch"

 

It was once thought that the origins of the term "going Dutch," used when two or more people share an activity but agree to each pay their own way could be traced back to the 17th-century animosity between England and The Netherlands. The two nations were known to engage in frequent disagreements regarding political boundaries and trade routes, and 'going Dutch' was said to be a British slur referring to the Netherlanders' negative reputation for stinginess.

However, a closer look reveals that this expression was actually a 19th-century American creation. An 1873 edition of the Missouri newspaper The Daily Democrat called on "our temperance friends" to impose the "Dutch treat," in which "each man pays his reckoning," in local saloons as a means of combatting public drunkenness. 

The etymology of this use of the word "Dutch" can be traced to a community of immigrants who were not, in fact, from the Netherlands at all, but Germany....also known as Deutschland, whose phonological similarity to "Dutch" led to the common American misnomer "Pennsylvania Dutch."

Here are some other Dutch-related idioms that have made their way into the English lexicon:

• Beat the Dutch:  to exceed expectations
• Double Dutch: gibberish
• Dutch agreement: an agreement made while intoxicated
• Dutch courage: courage brought on by alcohol
• Dutch nightingales: Frogs
• Dutchman's draught: a very large beer
• 
  

(Thanks to the Viking Daily, Monday, April 15, 2024, aboard the Viking Kvasir.)

Railroad Land Grant Universities Part 2

 

Railroad Land Grants Part 1

 Rail lines have played a crucial role in the development of America. After the Civil War, rail lines accepted huge gifts of land to subsidize railroad construction and operations across the American Plains and Canadian Prairies. Leaders in both countries contended (and rightly so) that whoever controlled access across this region would control the Pacific Coast.

The rail lines across middle America differed from rail lines in the East. These lines fostered towns and communities. Between 1850 and 1871, railroad companies were given an estimated 185 million acres of land from individuals and from governments. The Federal Government offered 20 square miles of land for each mile of track laid in territories and 10 miles of land for each mile laid in states. These land grants were in alternate sections with the government holding every other section. 

Much has been argued about the this land-granting method: who got rich? No question, the rail lines were built. Too many politicians in Washington felt that the land in the west was desolate or frozen and of little worth. By 1900, when James J. Hill took control of the Northern Pacific and greatly expanded the reach of the rail lines and fostered extensive publicity to bring in settlers. The immigrants flooding into Eastern ports came for the exact purpose of buying land and were not disappointed. 

Another, lesser known, factor pushing development of rail lines across the plains and prairies was a sobering realization that America needed to consolidate her land holdings or possibly lose them to Texas or Mexico and maybe even to Britain and France. Washington politicians realized that the East could not afford to be cut off from the West. 

So land grants acted as a form on non-cash subsidy, making the construction of extremely expensive rail lines across 1000 miles of unsettled land financially feasible for private companies. Ultimately this newly settled land would allow the creation of many thousands of new farms, ranches, mines and towns.

German Webinars & German Databases

 

I've belonged to the German Genealogy Group for several years and have ALWAYS gleaned information from their monthly 14-page newsletter (comes via email). They specialize in "things German" and offer nearly 24,000,000 imaged records on their website. If you have German roots, you better check this out: www.GermanGenealogyGroup.com. Membership is $15 annually.

Legacy Family Tree Webinars will present German History For Genealogists on Wednesday, October 16th at 2:00ET. "Knowing the most important dates in German history can be helpful to your research."  This webinar is free on the day it's presented; thereafter it goes into their vast library which you can access for a $49 annual membership fee.  They have handouts too! To register, go to https://famlytreewebinars.com/webinar/luther-napoleon-and-the-kaiser-german-history-for-genealogists. 

The Kentucky Genealogical Society will present Finding a German Parish Record on Tuesday, October 15th at 7:00ET. To register go to: https://kygs.org/event/finding-a-german-parish-and-online-parish-records.

The Sept-Oct 2024 issue of Family Tree Magazine features an article discussing the history of German civil registration, civil record formats, how to locate German civil records plus other tips. Many libraries carry this magazine or you can order a copy (or subscribe??) by clicking to Family Tree Magazine. 

My maternal grandmother was 100% German. I remember visiting her and being treated to smerkase (probably got that wrong) but it was a toasted piece of dark bread, spread with cottage cheese and topped with jam.  Mighty darn good, too, I do recall. 

And did you know that the U.S. Census Bureau confirms that as a people, we are fully 1/4 of German ancestry. Interesting. I am, are you???

Genealogy Shows & Movies

 

I've discovered that there are more genealogy-related movies available to me on my iPad that I'd have guessed!  I just watched (for free on YouTube!!) Yesterday's Children, where Jane Seymour in today's time is driven to learn about a family 80 years ago in Ireland and reunite that family. It was SO good. 

And certainly Finding Your Roots is THE NUMBER ONE genealogy show on public TV. Did you realize you can watch PBS shows on your phone, Kindle or iPad for free????

And of course there are more history-museums-archaeology type videos posted on YouTube than you'd have time to enjoy. There is the History Channel, Archaeology Channel, etc. All free!

So no need to watch dreary, depressing, or silly TV shows unless that's your thing. There are genealogy shows to enjoy!!!

Roosevelt Roots in the Netherlands

 

Did you know that FDR had Dutch roots? I did not but I learned that factoid on my spring 2024 trip to Holland. 

The forefather of the Roosevelt family of New York was a man named Claes Martenszen van Rosevelt. Five of his children were baptized in the Reformed Dutch Church in Amsterdam, although the family probably lived in what we'd today call a suburb, Oud-Vossemeer.  In 1655, Claes had moved his family to Manhattan and bought a farm. 

The website for the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum lists the complete ancestral pedigree of FDR as well as listing his descendants. 

The little town of Oud-Vossemeer is very proud of its connection to the American Roosevelt presidential family. They have established a website (www.rooseveltoudvosemeer.nl) and here's what I learned: 

The Roosevelt Foundation of Oud-Vossemeer was established on September 17, 2015.

Its goal is to set up and maintain an information centre that allows visitors to discover more about the place of origin of the American presidential family Roosevelt. Exchanging and spreading information on this subject to organizations and persons is also part of our objective. Amongst other things, the foundation organizes exhibitions in order to realize this goal.

A continuing big question is were FDR and "Teddy" related? Well, distantly.

Theodore, 1858-1919, s/o            FDR, 1882-1945, s/o

Theodore, 1831-1876, s/o            James, 1828-1900, s/o

Cornelius, 1794-1817, s/o            Isaac, 1790-1863, s/o

James, 1759-1840                        James, 1760-1847

Why the discrepancy with dates for James???? Well, that's what Google found for me.............. you check it out. :-) 

Irish Potato Blight..... Caused By?

 

How did the Irish Potato Famine of the mid-1800s originate? I came upon one possible answer in an unlikely book: The Conquest of Nature: Water, Landscapes and the Making of Modern Germany, by David Blackbourn, 2006. He wrote:

 "One result of the greatly increased traffic across the world's oceans was that we would now call 'biological invasions.' It was not just people, cotton and tobacco that crossed the Atlantic but other, less desireable  species also made these journeys as stowaways in cargo holds, ballast tanks or attached to the ship. The invasive species that created the most alarm in the newly unified Germany were two arrivals from North America... the vine disease phylloxera and the Colorado Beetle, both of which attacked potatoes."

Wanting to know more, I turned to Google. Wikipedia stated: "it is assumed that winds spread the spores (of phytophthora infestans) that caused the widespread devastation of potato crops in Ireland and northern Europe beginning in 1845, leading to the Irish Potato Famine." Also, " The potato blight was found across the Eastern part of the U.S. and Canada and crossed the Atlantic in 1845, probably with a shipment of seed potatoes for Belgian farmers which ultimately spread to all the potato-growing countries in Europe.  

If you'd want to read more, Google to The History Place: Irish Potato Famine, the Blight Begins or Milestones in History: The Great Hunger, article by Eugene Finerman, 2009. 

This last article was subtitled: "Ireland's potato famine was caused as much by a government's gross negligence as by a devastation of crops."    

Kinship of the World

 This image comes from an article in a 1977 issue of The Ensign, publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Even asking Grandma Google :-) I could not find a better image for this post..............

QUESTION: What really is world history? Isn't it the story of cousins who could just not get along? (That made you smile, didn't it?) Yes, we living today are cousins of a sort because populations have expanded and contracted as wars, fires, floods, plagues and other disasters impacted them. 

It is estimated that the Black Death plague in England in 1348-1377 carried off 40% of the population. That same plague alone in Europe in 1720-1721 claimed 20 million people. 

Many families were completely wiped out; many surnames died out; many families were left with no descendants. You and I survived because somehow, miraculously, our ancestral line survived. Or at least one or two of them did. 

Quote from this article: "For example, in the U.S. in 1960 there was about an 80% chance that a man would have no descendants with his last name 13 generations later. The chance of a kinship line dying out depends on the death rate of the society and the number of children in each family. Even in a society were couples have many children, there is a 20-30% chance that a family line will die out after ten generations or so."

What does this mean to us as we search out our family history? It means we must realize that many of the family lines existing in the year 1700 have no male descendants bearing that family name living today. 

THOUGHT: A typical extended pedigree chart can comprise 100 or more surnames and if each person's tree was totally unique to him/her, in 30 generations (about 1000 years) every person would have two billion ancestors..... for more people than there were in the world in A.D. 1000. Could that really be so? No way.

Somewhere along the line our ancestors were already related to each other, marrying 5th, 6th or 7th cousins without realizing that. So instead of having MORE ancestors the further back we trace, eventually we will have fewer and fewer. 

And if our ancestors wee related, albeit distantly, the same must be true of all of us. Again quoting from the article, "As we research our genealogies we find our pedigrees mingling with those of hundreds of thousands of others until we are all traveling on the same broad road of ancestry back to the fathers of the human race." 

The diamond pedigree reminds us most surely of the brotherhood of all mankind. 

English Census Records

 

For what years can we access census records in England?  There are nine  censuses available: 1841, 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891, 1901, 1911 and 1921. Sadly, the 1931 census was totally destroyed by fire and no census was taken in 1941 due to World War II. (In 1939 there was taken a National Registry and ID cards issued.)

Found it interesting that the English censuses included the name for each person in the house whereas U.S. censuses didn't begin doing that until 1850. 

If you cannot read the info in that last paragraph, just Google that title. 

Tips to realize and remember:

• English counties are also known as shires (Worcestershire, Somersetshire, etc.) comparable to our U.S. states.
• Ind. independent or having own means; also may be reported as gent/gentleman.
• Pensioner usually referred to someone retired from the Army
• Scholar meant the child or person was attending school
• Ag Lab mean agricultural laborer
• F.S./ M.S. meant female/male servant

Just for fun, using www.freecen.org.uk I looked by my mother's maiden name, GURNEY, in the 1841 census. Viola! There were 104 hits!!  And I've never explored them!!! 

Green Peas: A History

 

  

"Fresh green peas were considered a delicacy by King Louis 14th of France. To his wife, the subject seemed all consuming. 'This subject of peas continues to absorb all others....a pleasure of having eaten them and the desire to et them again are among the great matters which have been discussed for the four days past.' One of Louis' wives wrote in a letter dated 1696: "It is both a fashion and a madness."

The history of peas is long and jumped quickly from country to country. Certainly by 1793 in America "peas were popular with all classes of people."

Recipe for Dressed Peas from a 1744 cookbook published in London:  Place one pound of peas in sauce pot with 6 TB of butter; simmer and dust with flour. Add any sweet herbs desired: parsley, basil, mint. Stir in 1/2 cup flour and bit of boiling water "slowly stewing the mixture." Lastly, add some diced ham. 

(Thanks to The Magazine of Colonial Williamsburg, September 2023.) 

Did you know that Washington ranks #1 in edible dry pea production, contributing 45% of the U.S. production.  Our dry eastern Washington fields are good for dry peas, lentils (all colors) and chickpeas. There are three types of peas grown here:

• Garden peas - grown from seeds
• Sugar peas - grown for the whole edible pods
• Field peas - grown for dried seeds

Isn't September a dandy time to make a pot of pea soup???

Google: Your Internet Swiss Army Knife

 

Even if you've never used a Swiss Army Knife, I'd bet that some in your family have one and use it regularly. That little pocket tool is just that useful.

That's why some compare Google to your Internet Swiss Army Knife. Certainly there is not just one all-purpose tool (think kitchen gadgets and pans) but Google for genealogy comes close to fitting that definition. 

How do I use Google? (How do YOU use Google?)

History of Labor Day..... Were Your Ancestors Involved?

 

Okay, we all mark Labor Day as an end-of-summer holiday. But do we know WHY we have a holiday labeled "Labor Day?"

In 1894, Congress voted to have a national holiday to honor the nation's workers and their contributions to the well-being of the country. The impetus for this decision was to celebrate the achievements of American workers and, specifically, the establishing of an 8-hour workday and abolishment of child labor, among other achievements.

Tidbits from Vogue magazine dated 1925: Where did the idea that you can't wear white after Labor Day originate? In a quote from the magazine we read: "It's a fashion rule that has been parroted by grandmothers, magazines and teenage girls for generations, as if it's a statue that society has always abided by." 

This crazy idea traces back to the elite of the Gilded Age. Every summer the rich would move from the crowded, sweltering cities to the cooler places by the ocean, such as Newport of Southampton, and remain for the entire season. Packed away in their travel trunks were their summer wardrobes of white. White clothing was cooler in summer, reflecting sunlight. But another factor for the elite to wear white was a subtle way of showing you were not doing any manual labor which would dirty your white clothes. 

And one certainly could not wear white back in the city where the streets were dirt or mud and were covered in horse poop and rotting garbage. 

Dutch Doorknobs & Treats

 

In April 2024, I was blessed to spend two weeks in Holland on a Viking riverboat cruise. Besides learning that Gouda cheese is “wunnerful,” I eagerly soaked up lots of Dutch history. Since many family historians find that they have a family line going back to the Netherlands (proper name of that little country), I thought I’d share some of the Dutch history bits that I learned.

 

Two major treats sold on the street were waffles (on left) but not like ANY waffle I'd ever seen. This pix shows 40 different toppings! All major "bombs" to your tummy for sure, but oh, so yummy. The other pix shows fries with mayonnaise; see the little top cup for the mayo? Everybody eats these so of course I had to try one. Made it through half of those fries. 

A very cute thing I noticed were the doorknobs. The one on the right is an apple and says "den gouden appel." So many homes had their front doors opening right onto the street so a doorknob was a must. (And a key.)

So ends the saga and snips of my trip to Amsterdam, Holland..... or more properly, the Netherlands. Hope you enjoyed my sharings.

Dutch Chocolate

In April 2024, I was blessed to spend two weeks in Holland on a Viking riverboat cruise. Besides learning that Gouda cheese is “wunnerful,” I eagerly soaked up lots of Dutch history. Since many family historians find that they have a family line going back to the Netherlands (proper name of that little country), I thought I’d share some of the Dutch history bits that I learned.

 

So what's the big deal about Dutch chocolate? 

Well, Dutch-processed cocoa powder is also referred to as Dutched Chocolate, is made from beans that have been washed with an alkaline solution that neutralizes that natural acidity and gives the chocolate a darker color and smoother, softer flavor.

The Dutch are known for their chocolate. The Netherlands was the first country to mass produce cocoa powder used for making chocolate drinks and baking and chocolate bares. 

There were dedicated chocolate shops everywhere and every tourist shop also carried packaged chocolate. I was surrounded by chocolate goodness!! 

While yes, I certainly did bring some Dutch chocolate home, I found a website that sells the real thing:  www.realdutchchocolate.com.  You can purchase milk chocolate, dark chocolate, chocolate with hazelnuts or licorice. Go for it!

If that doesn't ring your bell, know this: the consensus is that YES, dark chocolate is by far the healthiest form of the treat, containing the least sugar and because of its cocoa content, it has higher levels of substances that protect the body's cells. 

The price for that one-pound chocolate shoe? About $5.00...... it was pretty much 1-for-1 when I was there. Notice how they mark it 4,95 and we mark it 4.95.  And no, I did not get one. 

TIDBIT ON WOODEN SHOES:  They were made from willow wood which held up better to the mostly-constantly-wet ground. 

I

Tilted Houses?

 

In April 2024, I was blessed to spend two weeks in Holland on a Viking riverboat cruise. Besides learning that Gouda cheese is “wunnerful,” I eagerly soaked up lots of Dutch history. Since many family historians find that they have a family line going back to the Netherlands (proper name of that little country), I thought I’d share some of the Dutch history bits that I learned.

After noting the houseboats and the bicycles, look closely at the houses. This was called "the laughing row" because the buildings tilt to one side! And why? Because they are centuries old and because the ground is soft. Not all structures tilt, to be sure, but the ones that did surely did catch my eye. 

Which is straight, the trees or the house??????

I quite longed to go inside one of these "leaning houses" and see how they cope. Do the floors slant? 

While I surely did admire all the ancient old buildings, churches and government buildings, to me they all did need sand-blast-cleaning (inside and out). Centuries of grime shadowed their splendor. 

Bicycles Everywhere!

 

In April 2024, I was blessed to spend two weeks in Holland on a Viking riverboat cruise. Besides learning that Gouda cheese is “wunnerful,” I eagerly soaked up lots of Dutch history. Since many family historians find that they have a family line going back to the Netherlands (proper name of that little country), I thought I’d share some of the Dutch history bits that I learned.

Yes, bicycles are EVERYWHERE. We were told that there are about 18,000,000 people in Holland and at least 25,000,000 bikes. Our guide quipped, "I have three!" Bikes have the right-of-way, not pedestrians. We were constantly told to watch out where we were walking!! 

Some bikes are super fancied-up (note the "oog-gga" horn) and some are modified to carry small children or old folks. We were also told, with a big smile, that if you were angry with your wife or boyfriend, you'd push their bike into the canal! That must be true, he said, for every year they haul out hundreds of bikes from the canals. 

We were also taught that there are NO school buses in Holland. The children ride their bikes to school...... up to an hour each way!!!  And it rains over 200 days per year!! No sissies there for sure. And with all that bike riding, the only chubby folks I saw were the tourists. 

Would you or I be up to riding a bike every day, everywhere?????