I Wish for More Tools at AncestryDNA

My mother, wearing the hat, and 

her sister were not surprised 
when their DNA differed. 

I have been a fan of Ancestry.com since I started my membership in 2000 so was very pleased to try their new Autosomal DNA test last summer. Since then, I have coerced three family members to take the test and have several thousand matches, but organizing and taking the time to look at them all is an overwhelming task.

I have 58 pages of DNA matches with 50 matches per page - that's 2,900 matches. One match is immediate family (my mother), another is close family (my aunt), and I have two 3rd to 4th cousin matches; one who I know and love and one who also matches my mother and my aunt, but we don't have a clue as to how she matches us. Ninety-eight of my matches were in the 4th to 6th cousin range making the remaining 2,700+ matches distant cousins in the 5th to 8th cousin range. 

Now, triple the 2,900 matches as I am the administrator for both my mother's and my aunt's DNA. And, add my brother's DNA as his is processing. This will give me approximately 11,600 matches to wade through and more are added each week! Looking at over 11,000 matches is impossible so I don't look beyond 4th to 6th cousin matches. 

Of all of those matches, I have had a few new leads, but I have yet to find any new conclusive matches. Honestly, I can find more by searching the Public Trees at Ancestry.com. 

A newer tool at AncestryDNA puts a leaf next to any match that contains someone in my tree, but, in all of my current matches (almost 8,000), I only have two leaves. 

I have read that having the raw data from AncestryDNA will really help with the matches and that will come soon.  I know that if I can access that raw data, I will need to upload this data to another site such as GEDmatch or FamilyTree DNA.  However, are all those persons who match my DNA going to upload to another site? 

So AncestryDNA, make our matches easier to manage and please grant my wish!

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: Said to be Mary Rourke

This photograph is said to be Mary Rourke, mother of James Murray. I received a copy of this picture from a distant family member who received it from another distant family member. 

James Murray was the father of my husband's grandmother, Susan Murray. There are many who read this blog that can say that James Murray was their grandfather or great-grandfather which would make Mary Rourke their great or great-great grandmother. 

Does anyone have a similar picture? Is this Mary Rourke? 

While I am asking questions, when did James Murray die? What did he do for a living? Does anyone know?

Diana

© 2012

My Other Genealogy Blog

Reddick Bryan 1793 to 1864

If you look to the bottom right on this blog. You will see, above the ads, "My Other Blogs." The Budget SLP is my professional blog and most of you reading this blog won't be interested in my speech and language posts. The other blog is another genealogy blog, The Reddick Bryan Family. Anyone related to my Bryan or Regan family may be interested in this one. Early Giddens family information may sometimes be found at this blog as Jacob Giddens, a brother of my ancestor Mitchell Giddens, lived in the same communities as the Bryan families in both Georgia and Louisiana. 

Reddick Bryan was born in 1793 in North Carolina. His second wife, Elizabeth Span Regan was also born in North Carolina. Both, Reddick and Elizabeth, migrated to Georgia and later settled in Bienville Parish where they both are buried. 

I am slowly writing about this family in the form of a timeline. My last post was about the family in 1821. However, in addition to writing about my Bryan family, I have found much information about slaves owned by the Bryan and Regan families. If you are interested in Slavery and the Bryan Family, click here. 

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: Mary Lucy Glynn Giddens

Mary Lucy Giddens was my great-grandmother. She was photographed with a Mrs. Weller. The picture below also found in the album is labeled Weller's Farm. This farm was in Phillipsburg, Warren County, New Jersey where Mary Lucy Giddens lived with her family.

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

Whit Criswell Bryan  1920 - 2001

My father, Whit Criswell Bryan, a 20 year old pharmacist mate, was stationed at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He had transferred from the U.S.S Aragonne to The Mobile Naval Hospital No. 2 on December 1, 1941. 

When the attack on Pearl Harbor began, Dad said that he was delivering newspapers for a friend who had a paper route. He had driven a friend’s car and was at a top of a hill when he saw the planes coming in; first thinking that they were US planes. When the bombing occurred, he left the car and ran back to the Mobile Hospital. He told my brother that, from the hill, he could see down into the cockpits of the Japanese planes. 

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: The James Children

Dorothy, John, and Evelyn James - about 1925

This picture of the children of Elizabeth Giddens and her husband, Louis M. James was taken in Easton, Pennsylvania about 1925.  Elizabeth was the sister of my grandmother, Edith Giddens, and the daughter of Charles Giddens and Mary Lucy Glynn. 

Evelyn James Lilly,  the last surviving child, died this week at age 91. Evelyn was my mother's first cousin. I only remember meeting her once, but my mother often talked about her cousins,  Dorothy and Evelyn. 

Click here to see Evelyn's obituary. 

Diana

© 2012

Get Your Flu Shot!

From the Baylor County Banner - October 24, 1918
However, this was not the end. Influenza continued its deadly campaign into 1919. 

Last year, I looked for information about some soldiers from Baylor County, Texas who died during World War I. Not surprisingly, about half of them died from disease rather than from fighting overseas. By 1918, the influenza had spread around the world. Most families would not make it through the pandemic untouched as it is estimated that at least a quarter of the United States population fell ill and more than 50 million died worldwide before its end in 1920.

My father's Hairston family lost a family member.  Hugh Gresham, of Estelline, Texas, was just 19 years old when he died of influenza in 1919. 

In NYC, my great-great grandmother, Julia Harvey Glynn died of bronchial pneumonia on February 12, 1919. Could influenza have been a contributing cause of the pneumonia?

Schools, church services, lodge meetings, theaters, bars, factories, and even courtrooms were closed to limit the spread of the disease. In Baylor County, Texas, where my grandparents lived, 29 deaths* were reported by the Baylor County Banner on December 19, 1918. In the months ahead, many more in that community and millions worldwide would lose their lives to influenza. 

To learn more about this pandemic, watch Influenza 1918 at the American Experience from PBS. 

* Deaths reported by the Baylor County Banner on December 19, 1918 occurred between October 18 and December 15, 1918. 

• Ben F. Martin - 1/2 year
• Mrs. Orval Cox - 19 years
• Henry E. Lewis - 31 years
• J. Covington - 30 years
• Katie Jones - 10 months
• Grace Lowry - 17 years
• J. H. Patterson - 68 years
• Mrs. Rosa Tipps - 23 years
• Luther Jones - 15 years
• E. E. Breedlove - 38 years
• Mrs. W. T. Wheeler - 46 years
• Infant of Mrs. and Mrs. Tim Nix - 1 month
• Mrs. H. A. Lowry - 29 years
• Burnett Bailes - 18 years
• Mrs J. A. Bailew
• Annie Lee Caldwell - 14 years
• D. A. Holman - 84 years
• Albert Wirz - 22 years
• Mrs. T. J. Praytor Jr. - 36 years
• Frida Wirz - 15 years
• Mrs. C. B. Daniel - 32 years
• Mrs. H. C. Harrison - 29 years
• W. H. Strange - 37 years
• N. B. Williams - 39 years
• Leonard E. Hill - 32 years
• J. N. Cassle
• Claude Clouse - 3 years
• Mrs. Claude Clouse
• Mrs. John McCauley

Diana

© 2012

_________________________________________________________________

Sources: 

John M. Barry, The Great Influenza, The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History (Penguin Books, 2005).

Influenza at Camps. The Baylor County Banner [Seymour, Texas] October 24, 1918.

Harvest of Death. The Baylor County Banner [Seymour, Texas] December 19, 1918.

Honoring Our Veterans

Veterans Day Poster Gallery - 2012 Poster

Today is Veterans Day, a day that we honor our veterans. Veterans Day, originally Armistice Day,  began after WWI to honor those who fought in "The Great War." In 1954, November 11th became Veterans Day, an official United States holiday, honoring all armed service veterans. 

For more information visit History of Veterans Day at the United States Department of Veteran Affairs. 

Today, I am posting a short list veterans from the various branches of my family tree; many who did not serve in traditional U. S. armed forces. Most served during wars and some volunteered while others did not.  I will save this list for next Veterans Day and add to the list as I find more. If you know of others, please comment below or send me an e-mail. 

Whit Criswell Bryan, USN - WWII, Korea, Vietnam

Elizabeth Bryan, USN

William Joseph Quinn III, USA - Korea, Vietnam

James G. Richardson II, USA

John Joseph Quinn, USA - WWI

Charles Giddens, USA and USN - WWI, WWII

Mitchell Giddens, USA - WWI, WWII

Joseph Oscar Noah, USA - WWI

Terrell Bryan, CSA - Civil War*

Tilman Capers Bryan, CSA - Civil War*

Joseph B. Bryan, CSA - Civil War*

George Luellen Giddens, CSA - Civil War*

Seth H. Davis USA, Civil War

Simon Baker Bryan, Georgia Militia - Second Seminole War

James Bryan, Georgia Militia - Second Seminole War

John Regan, Georgia Militia - Second Seminole War

John Giddens, NC Minutemen - American Revolutionary War

Ralph Regan, NC Militia - American Revolutionary War

*I didn't know if I should include my ancestors who fought in the Confederate States Army, but found the following at the Sons of the Confederacy website: 

"First, and most significant is the fact that by Public Law 85-425, May 23, 1958 (H.R. 358) 72 Statute 133 states –“(3) (e) for the purpose of this section, and section 433, the term ‘veteran’includes a person who served in the military or naval forces of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War, and the term ‘active, military or naval service’ includes active service in such forces.”

"As a result of this law the last surviving Confederate Veteran received a U.S. Military pension until his death in 1959, and from that day until present, descendants of Confederate veterans have been able to receive military monuments to place on graves from the Veteran’s Administration for their ancestors. A Confederate Veteran should therefore be treated with the same honor and dignity of any other American veteran."

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: William J. Quinn, 1931 and 1933

I thought that the Quinn / Murray family would enjoy seeing these. These are copies of William Quinn's Chauffeur's Licenses from 1931 and 1933. He drove a bus in New York City.  

Diana

© 2012

Sunday's Obituary: Charles Allen Giddens

Found at Newspapers.com - Click here to view. 

Charles A. Giddens was my great-grandfather. The father of my grandmother, Edith. This obituary contains a few errors and didn't tell the whole story.  

Charles was the son of George L. Giddens and Luellen Bradshaw and was born in Giddensville, Sampson County, NC. George L. Giddens married Sarah Rich after the death of his first wife in 1890.  

In North Carolina, Charles worked in his father's store and was once postmaster in Giddensville. 

By 1891, Charles was in New York City where he delivered milk. He married Mary Lucy Glynn, my great-grandmother in Manhattan on March 31, 1891. 

By October of 1891, the Giddens family was living in Crew, Virginia where he owned or co-owned a dry goods and shoe store.

He left Crew, Virginia in 1894 and moved to Phillipsburg, New Jersey where he worked as a laborer in one of the many factories. 

From about 1898 and 1920, he owned a dry goods store in Phillipsburg . Around  1920, he divorced his first wife and in 1922, married Estella Moyer Rosenburger.  They relocated to St. Louis, Missouri where he opened a clothing store. 

Around 1946, Charles Giddens and family left Missouri to settle in Edinburg, Texas where Charles and Estella opened a hotel - The Giddens Hotel. 

By 1952, Charles was retired and living in Sedalia, Missouri where he died at the age of 92. 

Charles was preceded in death by his children Elizabeth, Warren, Florence, John, and Georgie. Edith, my grandmother, was living in New York and his son Charles lived in Florida.  Mrs. Roy Wilhite was his step-daughter - Margarette Rosenburger Wilhite. 

Diana

© 2012

Friday's Photo: At the Beach

My father, Whit Criswell Bryan (1920-2001) and his sisters who were visiting from Borger, Texas.  His sister, DeRay (1904-1987), is on the left and his sister, Marie (1901-1986), is on the right. These sisters raised Dad who was orphaned at age nine. They visited our home in Virginia Beach (at that time, Princess Anne County) in the summer of 1959 and this was the only time that I met them. Look closely at the picture and you will see me on the left - the unattended child who is about to go into the water. 

Diana

© 2012

Sunday's Obituary: Dr.Span Ragan

Dr. Span Ragan* died on January 24, 1875 in Georgia.  He was born on April 1, 1818 and was the son of Elizabeth Span Regan Bryan and her first husband, Joseph Regan. This tiny piece of paper was found in Terrell and Harriet's Bryan's family bible. 

*Note that Span changed the spelling of his last name from Regan to Ragan. The spelling of his first name varies as Span or Spann from document to document. 

Diana                                                                

© 2012

Friday's Photo: Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery now has a burial database of its more than 400,000 burials. The database, the ANC Explorer, is searchable on-line and is also available as an app. Photographs of gravestones can be downloaded from the site. These photographs, found using the ANC Explorer, show the gravestone for William J. Quinn, my father-in-law. On the back of this stone, is the birth and death information for his wife, my mother-in-law, Doris Mary Quinn. 

Diana

© 2012

Sunday's Obituary: Joseph Albert Glynn

Joseph Albert Glynn was my great-great-grandfather. He was born in Putney, Vermont on February 13, 1835, the son of Joseph Glynn and Nancy Read. He died on November 2, 1905. He was the husband of Julia Harvey and father of daughters Caroline "Carrie" Glynn Alter and Mary Lucy Glynn Giddens (wife of Charles A. Giddens.) His obituary is below. The name and date of the newspaper are unknown. 

Albert Glynn, 70, a farm laborer, was found dead in his home in East Putney Thursday morning. He lived alone and for sometime he had been ill with heart disease. On Wednesday night Will Richards, who lives at M. C. Ingall's stayed over night with him leaving early in the morning. About 8 o'clock Mrs. John Nicholas who lived near by and who had shown him many kindnesses went to his house and found him dead on the floor.  He had prepared breakfast and had been seized with a sudden attack of heart disease while doing his work. He leaves two daughters, one in Phillipsburg, N. J. and one in New York. The funeral was held at the house at 10 o'clock Saturday. Rev. R. C. Charlton officiating and the burial was in Maple Grove cemetery. 

Diana

© 2012

Making Assumptions

Julia Harvey Glynn with her daughter Caroline

My great-grandmother, Mary Lucy Glynn, wife of Charles A. Giddens, was the daughter of Joseph Albert Glynn ("Albert") and Julia Harvey.  Joseph Albert Glynn was well documented in Putney, Vermont, but Julia Harvey appeared to have no past before her marriage to Albert.  I made the following assumptions about Julia Harvey:

• I assumed that Julia married Albert in Vermont before relocating to NYC where she is found on the 1870 census. 
• I assumed that she might be the 15 year old Julia M. Harvey that lived in Washington, Vermont with a glove manufacturer in the 1850 census.
• I assumed that Julia may have come from Ireland alone as family didn't appear present. 

In genealogy, it's okay to make assumptions, but it's not okay to turn these assumptions into facts. In the "genealogy world," I have seen many assumptions such as maiden names, birth and death locations, and even parents of ancestors turned into facts.  

I have made this mistake several times and one was pointed out to me this week.  On my website, posted in about 2003, I listed an ancestor's death place as Erath County, Texas. She married in Erath County, her husband had a business in Erath County, and she is buried in Erath County so I ASSUMED that she died in Erath County and that is what I put in my family tree and on my website. However, she died in Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas. 

So, before you add those facts to your database, your tree at Ancestry, or your website, think about that fact - How do you know this? Do you have a source? If not, leave it blank and look a little harder or wait – it may come to you.

Now back to Julia Harvey. I left her marriage date and place blank in my database years ago. I didn't pursue this fact, but it came to me yesterday as a "hint" while I was entering her husband, Albert Glynn, into my family tree at Ancestry.com - Albert Glynn married Johanna Harvey in Walpole, Cheshire, New Hampshire on June 9, 1861. I started to question this, but saw that Albert's birthplace, age, and parents were listed accurately.   So now my first assumption was proved as incorrect and I am looking for Johanna Harvey, as well as Julia Harvey. 

FYI - my second assumption is also incorrect. Julia M. Harvey is not my Julia Harvey. In 1870, my Julia was now Julia Glynn, living in NYC while Julia M. Harvey continued to live in Washington, Vermont. 

Diana

© 2012