Lost obits

I've been going over some ancestor files once again to see if anything new has popped up in my newspaper sources.  Some I find; some I don't.

I'd love to find the obituary for William M. McCabe (1885 - 1951), born in West Bloomfield, Ontario County, New York, married Margaret O'Connor O'Toole about 1923 and died in Rochester, New York in 1951.  I have a very brief death notice but no obituary.  He is buried in Canandaigua with his family at FindaGrave Memorial #123806832.  Bill McCabe was my husband's step-grandfather - the only grandfather he knew.

Note of 22 Mar 2020:  Found this short obit recently:

FultonHistory
1951 Aug 20, Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, New York

William M. McCabe, U2[sic] S. Fitzhugh St., Aug. 18, 1951.  He leaves two sisters, Mrs. Mary Miller and Mrs. Elizabeth Meyers; two brothers, James and Arthur; several nieces and nephews.  Funeral from Charles Kennedy Funeral Home, 1601 Main St., E., Tuesday morning at 8:30 and at St. Mary’s Church at 9:15 o’clock.  Interment in Calvary Cemetery, Canandaigua, N.Y.

Another ancestor, from an earlier time, is John Farnum (name later spelled  Farnham).  There are actually three John Farnums in a row that are elusive, as well as their ancestor Ralph Farnum:

Ralph Farnum (married Elizabeth Holt).  He was born 1633 in Rochester, Kent, England and died 1691 in  Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts.  He was my 9th great grandfather.

Ralph's son, John Farnum (married Elizabeth Parker) was born 1664 in Andover and died in 1729, also in Andover.  

John's son, John, usually seen as Farnham, who married Joanna Barker, was born 1684 in Andover, died in 1762 in Andover.  He does have a FindaGrave memorial, but no obituary so far.

Next in line is John Farnham, born 1711 in Andover, died 1786 in Andover.  John married Sarah Frye.  He is in the Old North Burying Ground in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts and his FindaGrave Memorial number is 13999583.  This John was my 6th great grandfather.

My 5th gg was Daniel Farnham.  I have nothing but a beginning and an ending for him:  1741-1814 and a wife's name of Lydia Porter.

Alfred Farnum (back to the "um" again) begets Sarah Farnham (back to "ham") who married a Riley and begets my 2nd great grandmother, Angeline Riley, shown elsewhere in this blog. 

Anyone have an obit for any one of these ancestors?

11 Mar 2015 - She's 18!!

I know all grandparents say this - but it really doesn't seem possible she is 18 already!!  I was there at her birth and it seems like a couple years ago.  Here she is in 1997 at our home in Danville, CA:

And then there is now - on her way to college in the fall!!

Happy Birthday, my awesome Gracie Girl!

2015 Mar - Another Computer Crash

The computer gremlin got me again!  Apparently I've had too many genealogy programs open at once along with several news archives and word processing programs - without saving enough.  This from a former word processing trainer!!  Wow!  I won't be ignoring that anymore.  Found a super computer geek by the name of Lee Weese who did the impossible and saved the hard drive, fixed all kinds of errors and set me on the straight and narrow.  Fortunately I had good backups, so I don't believe I've lost many files.  Find him at

Rent@Geek.  Thanks, Lee!!!!

My New Genealogy Angel

Genealogy Angel Kim contacted me about photos of my Parks ancestors that were in her possession.  What a surprise and what a treat since these were photos we've never seen.  These are my great aunts and great grandmother:  Olive, Nettie, Lottie and Cora.  As for the second photo, we believe it is Lottie with her mother and my grandfather, Arthur Parks - the only baby picture we have of him.  Great grandmother is Mary Catherine Ortman Parks  Thank you, Angel Kim!!

A Cousin Finds a Coffin!

One of the wonders of genealogy is finding awesome cousins!  I, of course, have the best cousins!  Recently Cousin Eileen from Wisconsin was having trouble with her e-mail and, not finding my e-mail address, went to my blog to locate me.  Seeing my Coffin mystery, she put her awesome sleuthing skills to work and came up with Aunt Sybil!!  Thank you, Eileen!!  Here's how it turned out for Sybil Coffin, born September 1867 in Michigan to Isaac and Jeanette (Richardson) Coffin.  She married my 2d great uncle, John Washington Burrill, in Minneapolis in 1889.  John Wesley Burrill was born to them in 1891.  After a move to California, participating in the Yukon Gold Rush, John was killed in a cable car accident in 1898.  He is buried in Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.

With an 8 year old son, Sybil married on 20 Sep 1899 John William McDonald in Colusa, California.  John was a widower with three sons, William Andrew who was 13, John Lovett who was 6, and Royal Rozell who was 5.  They lived in Arbuckle, Colusa, California where John was a laborer in a warehouse.  The marriage did not survive.  Sybil filed for divorce, the divorce being final in March of 1906.  Sybil became a housekeeper for a farmer by the name of Alonzo B. Metsker as shown in the 1910 U. S. Census.  In 1911 there is a news notice of real estate transfers of property from Sybil and her son to an Ella Feize of San Francisco property on Edinburgh Street.

And this is where Cousin Eileen comes in.  She located a marriage of Sybil McDonald to Clifford  Clarence Martin on 1 Dec 1913 in Vancouver, Washington.  Sybil had relatives in Oregon and may have moved north after 1910.  Clifford Martin was 31 and a native of Oregon, and Sybil was 46 at the time of their marriage. They lived in Brownsmead, Clatsop, Oregon, where it appears they had 43 somewhat uneventful years until Sybil's death on 24 Sep 1956.

 

I trust that Sybil's years with Clifford were happy years for the two of them.  The Grim Reaper came to visit and disrupt those happy years on 12 Feb 1916 in Boring, Clackamas, Oregon when Sybil and John Burrill's son, John Wesley Burrill, died of pneumonia, one day shy of his 25th birthday.

One mystery remains to be solved.  In the 1910 census while Sybil is a housekeeper for Alonzo Metsker, there is a Lawrence H. McDonald living with them, age 3.  He is noted as a "ward."  His age would indicate he was born about 1907, possibly making him a son of Sybil and John William McDonald.  He was not related to Metsker which may be why he was enumerated as a "ward."  I've not yet found Lawrence in later documents, making him the unsolved part of this puzzle.

To sum up Sybil's life, she lost a husband in 1898, her mother in 1900, her father in 1906, went through a divorce also in 1906, and lost her firstborn son in 1916.  I try to remember Sybil's trials when I think I am feeling bad!!

According to a FindaGrave entry, Sybil is buried in Twin Oaks Memorial Gardens in Albany, Linn County, Oregon.  Thank you, Eileen, for your awesome sleuthing in putting the final pieces of this mystery together!

Bill's Been Pinned!

"We honor veterans" is a program designed to thank veterans and their families for their sacrifice and service to our country. Journey of Hope Hospice in St. George and our local VA partner coordinate to begin better understanding the complex end of life care needs of veterans. Through discussion, life review and special "pinning ceremonies," we work to ensure that the contributions and extra needs of this special group are recognized and respected. Bill has been on the advisory board of Journey of Hope Hospice, has taken the training necessary to work with veterans and has done much to raise the awareness of hospice in Southern Utah.

A touching part of the program is the pinning ceremony. It’s a "thank you" for service to our nation. Bill was presented with a special  pin as a token of thanks and gratitude.  The ceremony took place at the Ivins Nursing Home.

Happy New Year