myHERITAGE HAPPENS

Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts! Copyright © 2010 By Cheryl Palmer

Rumor has it that Dagny Dulin came to New York with a sister and no one else. (Dagny, you may remember is my great grandmother, originally from Norway.) Dagny and her sister were told under no circumstances were they to speak to any men! When they arrived in this country the girls reportedly moved their heavy trunks all by themselves and Dagny suffered a hernia because of this. Dagny ended up needing corrective surgery. The Dr. supposedly left a sponge inside Dagny. After having ten children the sponge is said to have contributed to her death years later. The passenger list shows two people coming from Norway. The other person is a man, not related to Dagny. If Dagny traveled with a sister I have not been able to find her. I believe if she had a sister with her, the sister would have been traveling with someone else also. More than likely it seems I can squash the rumor that Dagny traveled with her sister. If we can squash that rumor what do you think we can do with the rumor reg...

I recently shared that I have come across a pile of items that needed to be scanned. In this pile there was something I was aware I had but hadn't realized the true significance of keeping prior to coming across it again. The items I am referring to are cancelled checks that my mother had written. The oldest check was written in 1979. The most recent checks were from 1999. This stack of checks I have can't be more than an inch thick. I am not sure why I have them and why just these checks. Are these the only ones she saved during this time? Why? What happened to the other checks? I started to think maybe these were for tax purposes, however after looking through them that couldn't be so. If there were checks to be used toward taxes they should be with tax papers anyway, right? I just don't see a rhyme or reason to this bunch of cancelled checks. It is interesting looking at each check to see who they were written to and for what purpose. Cancelled checks from my sist...

Many GeneaBloggers have been posting their evaluations after each show of the new television program Who Do You Think You Are? Because so many seem to be doing this I have chosen not make it a ritual to do so. Justify this to mean, I love the show, I will watch every episode, and I am super pleased a program of this nature is airing on public TV during prime time. Last nights program centered on Lisa Kudrow. For me it doesn't matter who the program focuses on, I just know I have to watch it. Last weeks program on Emmit Smith was suppose to be the most compelling of all seven shows to be aired. I have to agree that the show was very compelling. After seeing that particular episode I think I lowered my standards on what to expect with the future programs. Lisa Kudrow's segment surprised me completely. It was compelling too, but in a different way. Emotions flooded and tears were in my eyes for happiness, sadness and then fulfillment. So very moved was I by the show...again. Eve...

Richard, or Dick as he was known, was born in Spokane, Washington on March 19, 1924. Today would have been his 86th birthday. He died a few days shy of his 74th birthday in Oakland, California. His parents were David Harold DeMoss and Madie Jessie Miner. David was better known as Harold. Eventually, Madie and David divorced. Madie and Richard made their way down to the San Francisco Bay Area. After Madie married a couple more times, Richard started using her husbands last name, Harding. From here on out he was Richard or Dick Harding. Dick was a shipping clerk for thirty years. He was married once in Carmel, California for about eight years and fathered two children, a daughter and a son. He loved to sing and had a pretty darn good voice. He is missed by his family and friends. I wish to say Happy Birthday to him from all of us. Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts! Copyright © 2010 By Cheryl Palmer

This is the back yard of one of the houses I grew up in. More specifically, the home I lived in from my later grammar school years on up through high school. I vividly remember this house being for sale. I vividly remember my parents saying it was way to expensive. I vividly remember my mother saying no to this house. The house was up for sale for what seemed to me to be quite a long time. I am sure I missed most of the discussions my parents ever had regarding the purchase of this house. The few things I do remember though, I remember very well. The house was very expensive and my mother did not want a pool. As time passed the house stayed on the market. As time passed the owners were getting more antsy to sell. As the time passed, the asking price for the home started to fall. Still, my mother insisted, no, she did not want this house with the pool, the pool that was 16 by 32. I don't know how it happened, but my father wanted this house and eventually it became ours. I finally f...

Raney and Hazel McGuire. Prescott, Arizona. Abt. 1965. Scanned image. Held by Cheryl [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE] California. 2010. Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts!

I would say my week entailed some genealogical fun, challenges and spring cleaning! I suddenly realized that I had been so busy doing some things and not doing others. In particular, working on my own genealogy. I couldn't remember the last time I actually worked on it, which left a very bad vibe with me. I decided I needed to take some time for this, so I could feel good about what I had accomplished. Here are a few things I have noticed and worked on... Everything seems to take a little longer these days, and not because I am old! It is more because everything seems to be a challenge, more involved than they should be. If, for instance, I chose to scan, I need to set up my old laptop and scanner in the dining room. I scan my items to the old laptop and then need to transfer them from the old laptop to the new laptop. As if that wasn't time consuming enough I have been challenged with where to find my photos afterwards. Having gone from Windows XP to Vista to Windows 7 an...

Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts!

This headstone is in the Downieville Cemetery in Downieville, California. The monument is for Arthur C Palmer and Catherine Ann Palmer. Arthur C Palmer was born December 25, 1878 in San Francisco Co. California. He passed away on April 24, 1950 in Alameda Co. California. Catherine Ann Palmer was born Catherine Ann Pizzotti on February 12, 1881 in Gilroy, California. She died at sea and is buried in Ponce, Puerto Rico. I do not know the circumstances of her death or where she was headed or coming home from. I have a copy of "Family Facts" handwritten by Catherine dated February 12, 1881. I received a copy from one of her sons back in 2001. Her handwriting was so fancy, it was difficult to read and transcribe the several pages I was given. A few words I haven't figured out yet. The son was the only descendant living when he asked me if I could decipher the papers. Sadly, he passed away before I was able to give him the transcription. I asked him at one point if he wanted wh...

I always thought I was fairly organized with my genealogy, even if I wasn't as organized with other aspects in my life. I thought I could find any document almost immediately. I am not perfect mind you, but pretty organized. This afternoon that myth came tumbling down, almost like the famous brick wall! First of all, my husband came in with an envelope he found on the garage floor (the second garage, along side of the house) and handed it to me saying it was "old love letters" and even mentioned a name, which meant he had read them. I, of course, dropped what I was doing and took the envelope with great curiosity. It turns out there were two letters in the envelope, one from me and one from my sister, each letter addressed to our parents. These letters were approximately 25 years old and each related a similar story, of two separate incidences, at two separate times. How did they get on the garage floor? I don't even know where they came from, or should I say disappe...

Finally. The show has finally taken off in the U.S.A. Originating in Britain, it has taken time for the show to land here. But finally, last night we were able to watch as the show shared Sarah Jessica Parker's ancestry. Following so closely after the Faces of America series, genealogists were anxious to see the differences in the two programs. Would "Who Do You Think You Are?" share actual research that was done? Would the celebrities travel to their ancestral homelands? Every genealogist had their own questions on what to expect out of this show. My sister flew in from Maine the night before the premiere of this program. I wasn't sure I would see it as it aired, although I hoped my family would be interested in watching it when were were all together in my home last night. Some genealogists planned a "Who Do You Think You Are?" party, something similar maybe to maybe an "Academy Awards" party. I thought this was a great idea, so I planned in my h...

Sometime soon you will be receiving the census form in the mail. The form only has ten questions, which I am surprised about. It doesn't appear to me that the census will have much information to share for our descendants when the time comes. Maybe though, there will be the "A, B, C'S" that follow each of the questions. For instance: 1._______ with an a. _____ b. ______c._____ and then 2.________ with an a._________b._______ c.________Well, you get the idea. I seriously doubt there will be questions listed this way, but one can only hope, right? I want to leave as much information in the census as possible! My descendants deserve that, don't you agree? I am looking forward to seeing the questionnaire, this will be the first questionnaire I will be filling out since I became seriously involved with genealogy. I am curious what those ten questions will be. Here is my guess, not in any particular order: 1. Name? 2. Age? 3. Married? 4. Children? 5. Working/school/Ret...

Harry John Harding. Early to mid 1920's. Scanned image. Held by Cheryl. [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE] California. 2010.

Mostly, genealogists who have blogs blog about their own ancestors and family. Occasionally there are times I wish to share other parts of life with you. Today, I want to give all of my thoughts and prayers to Elyse Doerflinger who at age 20, lost her mother last night. Elyse is much to young, at age 20, to loose her mother. Her mother was much to young to loose her life, at age 50. Elyse's mother had been ill and passed rather quickly. Her pain is finally over, may she rest in peace. Elyse is a strong, intelligent young woman, one of the youngest in the genealogy community, who hosts her own genealogy blog. She has written a wonderful tribute to her mother here . Elyse, I want you to know that you have so many supporters from the genealogy community who are willing to help you in any way. The next few days will understandably be very busy, many days beyond will be very emotional. Just remember your genealogy friends are here for you always. Our hearts go out to you. You will be i...

We all love to collect information on our ancestors and their collateral lines. We learn about their lives, what they did where they lived and who with among other wonderful things. How many of us have thought, or taken the time to document our own lives? Do you have documents, pictures and stories of your life organized for your descendants? How long do we still have to wait until the next census release in order to find out more about our grandparents and great grandparents? Why not help those descendants so they don't have to wait, with a book about YOU! I thought about this several years ago when I began a proper filing system and began compiling information about my life. I have a large binder (does that age me?) full of information, all in archival protected sleeves. I started with a copy of my birth certificate and chronologically added documents that have occurred through my life. I have added school documents, photos and stories. Of course this book is never ending ...