Photo Friday: Researching to Prep for Research

Fun Finds on the West Family!

In yesterday’s Wedding Wednesday post, I introduced my great-grandmother Beatrice Harris’ second husband Raymond Montgomery West. Well, I really should be spacing out my blog posts more, but I think these next two records are so cool that I want to share them right now. Like, right now!

Check this out: This is the birth register for Jefferson County, Ohio, kept by the Jefferson County Probate Court.

"Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRMH-L5P : accessed 4 February 2016), Samuel West in entry for Carl West, 06 Dec 1889; citing Birth, Smithfield, Jefferson, Ohio, reference p 362, county courthouses, Ohio; FHL microfilm 900,039.

Look who it is – Ray West…and a brother, Carl! Both were born to Samuel West and Sallie Ray, who we saw named on Ray’s marriage certificate. Carl is the older of the two, having been born December 6, 1889. Ray followed along about a year and a half later, on April 16, 1891. How neat is it to see this written out?

But wait, there’s more!

So, Samuel West and Sallie Ray? Well, they got married on July 25, 1889. How do we know? Bam!

"Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XZPV-FKQ : accessed 4 February 2016), Samuel West and Sallie Ray, 25 Jul 1889; citing Jefferson, Ohio, United States, reference p 450; county courthouses, Ohio; FHL microfilm 900,075.

They were married in Smithfield, Jefferson County, Ohio by a Minister of the Peace.

So, my West family, if your parent and my grandmother are siblings, this is the marriage certificate for your great-grandparents. And if your grandmom or granddad is the sibling of my grandmom, Sam and Sallie are your great-great-grandparents!

Not only that, but if Samuel West was 23 years old in 1889, that means he was born in 1863. Which means that he was...born during the Civil War!! (Sorry, I get a little enthused!)

Even though I’m not descended from the Wests, I still think this is super exciting!

P.S. Contact me if you'd like a larger digital version of the marriage document,  which will be easier to read, or just pull it from the web, using the link in the caption box.

Wedding Wednesday: Beatrice Harris and Ray M. West

Today’s post is inspired by the Wedding Wednesday genealogy blog prompt over at Geneabloggers.

On this Wedding Wednesday, I am highlighting the marriage of my great-grandmother Beatrice Harris to her second husband, Raymond Montgomery West. Below is their legal marriage record from the Probate Court of Belmont County, Ohio, including their approved application for a marriage license and their marriage certificate itself. They were wed by a Justice of the Peace in St. Clairsville on September 23, 1947.

Note: This document gives Player as Beatrice's last name. This is the last name of her mother Ardenia's second husband, Tim, who had been married to Ardenia since 1935, when Beatrice was 20.

 A few things we know about Mr. Ray (as my Dad knew him):

• He was a native of Ohio, having been born in Mt. Pleasant, Jefferson County, to Samuel West and Sarah (Sally/Sallie) Ray.

• He is 24 years older than his new wife, she having been born in 1915 and he in 1891. (23 years, 11 months and 29 days, if you want to be precise!)

• He was a mill worker at the time of their marriage, and had spent much of his adult life working for iron and steel mills and the coal mining industry in the Ohio River Valley (Powhatan Point, OH; Moundsville and Weirton, WV)

My branch of the family is actually not descended from Mr. Ray – we are descended, through my grandmother, from Great-Grandma Beatrice’s first husband, Steve Evans (also known as Theodore Johnson – we’ll get to that in another post). But Mr. Ray fathered 4 children with GG Beatrice and they (and their descendents) are as much my family as anyone else! Mr. Ray is the only companion my father knew for his grandmother. He married my great-grandmother when she was the divorced mother of 6 children who were not his and in a difficult financial place. They remained together until his passing in 1971.

Family, do you have any pictures of Mr. Ray, or of Mr. Ray and Beatrice together? Any memories or stories you’d like to share about him and his personality? Please share!

Photo Friday: Columbia Hospital for Women

My maternal grandfather, Louis Allen Shepherd, was born at Columbia Hospital for Women in Washington, DC on December 29, 1922. 

 

Here's a photo of the hospital, located at 2425 L Street NW, taken sometime between 1909 and 1932:

Courtesy of the Library of Congress, National Photo Company Collection.

The building still stands and, having been renovated to house condos, is now known as the Columbia Residences:

From Wikipedia, uploaded by AgnosticPreachersKid, used per Creative Commons license CC BY-SA 3.0.

According to Wikipedia, Al Gore, Duke Ellington and Katherine Heigl were also born here. Interesting!

Digging Into My Southern Roots

I’ve mentioned in a few previous posts that I’m currently taking a year away from work to chase a couple of my passions, namely travel and family history research. And you've probably seen sprinkled here and there recently a mention of the fact that I was moving to New Orleans. Well, I’m super excited that as of last week, I am officially in The Big Easy and will be making this my home for the next few months. And just as I was doing when I was back home in Philly, I’m taking advantage of geography in my quest for genealogical information.

Heretofore on this genealogical blogging journey, I’ve been focusing on my mom’s paternal lineage, particularly her father’s mother’s story. I’ll still be sharing stories related to Katherine Jane Sheppard/Shepherd’s life – there are lots to tell! But, while I’m down here, my plan is to dig into my southern roots and start telling some of those stories as well.

My maternal grandmother, Elnora Mae Cooper

 

The Genetic Genealogy Hunt Has Started!

Exciting News: My maternal uncle (one of my mom's brothers) has ordered a DNA kit! This means we are about to start walking down the genetic genealogy path to see who his father's father - my maternal great-grandfather - is!

My maternal grandfather, Louis Allen Shepherd, with his mother Katherine Sheppard/Shepherd.

 

If you've been reading this blog, you know that we don't have any documents that say who my grandfather Louis Allen Shepherd's dad was. And his children don't remember him ever discussing it, or giving any indication that he even knew. So as I've been doing my genealogical research, it's been a question we come back to with each new document we find. 

Finding Family in the Cemetery

Two of the other things my mom and I came across while researching in Salem on Friday - with help from the volunteers at the Salem County Historical Society - were the final resting places of two members of the Kilson family: Carl Kilson and his mother Bertha (Allen or Ellis) Kilson.

They are buried in Evergreen Cemetery, right outside of the City of Salem.