Friday's Photo: Edna and Mary Anne Sledge

This photo is from the collection of Mary Martin Smith. Mary's grandmother was Mary Anna Sledge who married Thomas Jefferson Martin II of Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Mary Anna was his first wife, and she passed away in 1918. 

If this Mary Sledge is Mary's grandmother (I could be wrong . . . ), who is Edna Sledge? 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Edna and Mary Anne Sledge, photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004. 

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day - 81 years ago today

Whit Criswell Bryan standing in front of the Mobile Hospital Number 2 in 1942. 

My father, Whit Criswell Bryan, was a young pharmacist mate stationed in the Territory of Hawaii when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He had only a week prior to the bombing been assigned to the USN's Mobile Hospital #2.

Dad relayed some information about the bombing and had some photos and pictures, but I really did not know much about the mobile hospital. However, the oral narrative of Dr. Henry Felch Page Jr, found at the Library of Congress, added much more to the mobile hospital pictured in my head. Click on the link to hear his stories. 

More of my Pearl Harbor Remembrance posts can be seen at the links below. 

Pearl Harbor 79th Remembrance

Friday's Photo: Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day 2012

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day - 2019

Thoughts of Dad on Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day 2014

Remembering Dad and Pearl Harbor: Naval Mobile Hospital # 2

Friday's Photo: Pearl Harbor 

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day - Dad was stationed at the Mobile Naval Hospital #2 in Aiea Heights, Territory of Hawaii

#52ancestors Post Fifty-One: The Second Anniversary of Mobile Hospital No. 2, Pearl Harbor - August 1943 

Friday's Photo: Pearl Harbor Survivors, Whit Bryan and Bob Brunner - 1991

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Henry Felch Page, Jr. Collection (AFC/2001/001/24783), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Friday's Photo: Minnie Thomas - Who were her parents?

This photo is from the Marguerite Cook Clark collection. Minnie's name is written in green ink, like many others, and was probably labeled by Marguerite's mother, Maggie Martin Cook.

My original scan of this photo was dark. Using the photo-enhancing tool at My Heritage, I was able to clean up the image and get a good look at the young girl's face. 

I did not make headway in the identification of Minnie Thomas. I assume, but I need to know for sure that Minnie or her family lived in or near Bienville Parish, Louisiana, at one time or another. This photo was a tintype and as they were used from the 1850s to the early 20th century, dating the picture is difficult. 

Was Minnie her nickname or her given name? And what about Thomas? Was that her family's surname or her married name? 

Do you have Minnie Thomas in your family tree? 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Minnie Thomas photograph, n.d.; digital image, from the privately held photo collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2022. Photos were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Friday's Photo: Sledge Family Photo Identified as G. M. and Hixie W. Hartsfield

This photo came from Mary V. Smith's collection. She wrote that the family photo album of Henry Collin Sledge, of Bienville Parish, was given to her mother, Anna Laura Martin, by Niler [Nila] Sledge Edwards. Mary also wrote that she copied the identifications that were on the photos. 

The young boys are wearing clothes similar to boys' clothing in the 1850s and 1860s. I did not find any young boys in census records matching these names. However, I did find a G. M. [Godfry Milledge] Hartsfield and his wife, Hickey W. Sledge Hartsfield, buried in the Hartsfield Cemetery in Columbia County, Arkansas. In Biographical family histories of southwest Arkansas, volume I, Hickey was identified as Hixey Whitfield Sledge, daughter of Whitfield H. Sledge. Could these be children of G. M. and Hixey Sledge Hartsfield?

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12744303/hickey-w-hartsfield: accessed 17 November 2022), memorial page for Hickey W. Sledge Hartsfield (15 Aug 1818–1 Dec 1880), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12744303, citing Hartsfield Cemetery, McNeil, Columbia County, Arkansas, USA; Maintained by Diane Gravlee (contributor 47083760).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12744284/godfrey-milledge-hartsfield: accessed 18 November 2022), memorial page for Godfrey Milledge Hartsfield (24 Mar 1812–20 Nov 1887), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12744284, citing Hartsfield Cemetery, McNeil, Columbia County, Arkansas, USA; Maintained by Diane Gravlee (contributor 47083760).

Sledge family photo labeled G. M. and Hixie Hartfield, photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

Southwest Arkansas Genealogical Society, Biographical family histories of southwest Arkansas, volume I (Southwest Arkansas Genealogical Society, Magnolia, Arkansas: 1986), 199; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/372461-redirection : accessed 25 October 2022).

Clippings from The Baylor County Banner - Seymour, Texas - November 1, 1923

Sadly, this is the only photo I took of the 1 November 1923 issue of the Banner. If I didn't
find family information in an issue, I would take a photo of the title and date on the front page 
to confirm that I checked that issue. However, there is part of an article in this issue about  Knight's Garage that may interest others, so I decided to clip and post it. Please know that the issues from 1923 have not been digitized and are available to view in the original paper format at the Texas State Library and Archives in Austin, Texas.

My grandparents, Redic E. Bryan and Myrtie Hairston, and my great-grandparents, Phillip A. Hairston and Lodema Criswell, moved to Baylor County in 1905. My father, Whit Criswell Bryan, was born in Seymour in 1920. He was the youngest of seven children born to Redic and Myrtie. 

In April 2019, I visited the Texas State Library and Archives to read Baylor County Banner issues that could not be found online or on microfilm. I photographed articles with information about my father's family who lived in Seymour. While sorting through my family finds, I realized I had photos of articles that might interest others looking for family. I have pictures of numerous articles from 1923 and a few from other years. I will post as time allows. 

Thank you to Matt Gwinn at the Baylor County Banner for giving me permission to post these clippings.  If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Note that in the article, old and new photos of the garage can be
found in the previous issue (25 October 1923). 

Diana

© 2022 

O. C. Harrison, The Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), 1 November 1923, Vol. 6, print; Texas State Library and Archives, Austin, Texas, 2019. 

Dad Wore Many Hats - A Veteran's Day Post

Whit Criswell Bryan 1920-2001
Photo taken about 1943

1967 at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

As I looked for a photo of Dad to post on Veteran's Day, I realized that during his 29 years serving in the United States Navy, he wore many hats - both literally and figuratively. Dad attended the U.S. Navy School for Hospital Corpsmen in Sandiego in 1940 and served as a Hospital Corpsman throughout his career. However, with each new duty station, Dad had a new job that was often unlike the last one. 

His first duty station was in the Territory of Hawaii, where he worked as a Pharmacist Mate, helped to build a portable Naval Hospital, and witnessed the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He worked at medical clinics on ships, naval bases, and at the USNR Midshipmen's School at Columbia University in New York City. 

In 1967, Dad served with the 3rd Marine Division in Vietnam very near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), where he spent weeks sleeping in bunkers he called foxholes. 

Dad was proud to have served his county, and I am happy to honor him now. 

1962, Rome while on a nine-month
Mediterranean Cruise. 

1940, a new recruit in San Diego

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Honor a Servicewoman on Veteran's Day: The Military Women's Memorial Register

In October, servicewomen and supporters of the Military Women's Memorial gathered in Washington, D. C. to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the memorial. The Military Women's Memorial (MWM), at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery, pays tribute to all servicewomen of the United States Armed Forces from the Revolutionary War through the present day.

At the heart of the MWM is the Register, an interactive database that preserves the names, service information, photographs, and memorable experiences of the women who defended our country. Only ten percent of the three million military women are named in the Register. 

This Friday, November 7th, is Veteran's Day. Honor a female friend or family member who served or is serving in the military by adding her name and story to the Military Women's Memorial Register.  

Notes About Registering

I added my mother, Elizabeth Davis Bryan (above), to the Register and learned that an account must be created to add yourself or another servicewoman. The only required information is the servicewoman’s name and the branch of service, but a photograph and other information can be added. 

Links

Military Women’s Memorial - https://womensmemorial.org/

Register - https://womensmemorial.org/make-herstory/

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Sources 

Military Women's Memorial, photograph, n.d.; digital image, from the photo collection of the MWM, 2022. Used with permission. 

Military Women's Memorial register page for Elizabeth Davis Bryan, Military Women’s Memorial  https://womensmemorial.org/ : accessed 16 September 2022).  

"Preserving Her Story," Military Women’s Memorial (https://womensmemorial.org/ : accessed 16 September 2022). 

"Women in Military Service Memorial," NSDAR, (https://www.dar.org/national-society/historic-sites-and-properties/women-military-service-memorial : accessed 16 September 2022). 

From the files of Marguerite Cook Clark: Mrs. J. F. Dring

Written at the bottom of the obituary is
"Rev Dring our pastor twice"

Mrs. J. F. Dring was Sibbie Smith prior to her marriage to Rev. John Franklin Dring. Rev. Dring served as pastor of the First Methodist Church in Ringgold, Bienville Parish, Louisiana from 1915  to 1917 and from 1933 to 1935. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

 

"Mrs. J. F. Dring," newspaper clipping, June 1965,  unidentified newspaper, from the privately held collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2021. Obituaries were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Marguerite Cook Clark, A History of First United Methodist Church, unpublished manuscript, from the privately held collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2021. Obituaries were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Friday's Photo: Henry B. Giddens and Others in the Dining Room

There are more questions than answers about this photo. As a family history researcher, I am always looking into the lives of my ancestors, but it is a real bonus to see the inside of their homes. This is obviously someone's home and might be the home of Henry B. Giddens. He was a first cousin of my second great-grandfather, George L. Giddens. I wonder if George ever sat at this table. 

This photo was generously shared with me by another Giddens researcher. Henry was named as well as his daughter, Jennie, on the right in the white dress. 

In 1910, Henry and his wife, Martha Jane Vann, owned a home on Fayetteville Street in Clinton, Sampson County, North Carolina. Could this be the home on Fayetteville Street? 

Jennie was born in 1886. She would have been 14 years old in 1900, but she looks older than 14 in this photo giving it a date after 1900. The young man and the other young woman in the picture are not identified. The young man could be a teenager. By 1910, Henry's youngest son, Oscar Henry, was 32 years old. However, Henry was a guardian to four grandsons ages 12 to 18, as his daughter, Annie Laura Slocumb, died in 1905, leaving Henry as guardian. 

C. O. Brown was a photographer in both Sampson and Wayne counties. He was found advertising in local newspapers between 1898 and 1916. Why was he taking pictures inside the home? Was it a special occasion? Everyone in the photo was well dressed. Jennie married in 1908, and Maggie married in 1907. Were they getting ready for a wedding? 

If you have answers to any of my questions OR more questions, I would love to hear from you. 

Andrew Quinn and Margaret Flanagan of Caherawoneen Near Kinvara in County Galway

Caherawoneen - 2016 [1]

Andrew Quinn, the son of James Quinn and Catherine Fahey (also seen as Fahy), was born around 1846 in the Parish of Kinvara, Townland of Caherawoneen (also seen as Caheravoneen) in County Galway, Ireland. Andrew married Margaret Flanagan on 28 November 1883 in Kinvara. Margaret, daughter of Patrick Flanagan, is said to have lived in nearby Moy. Andrew Quinn was a farmer.  At the time of the 1901 Census, Andrew Quinn was 55 years old.  He was living with his wife, Margaret, and seven children of their children. Andrew Quinn died on November 21, 1901. His burial place is unknown. [2]

For family reading this, Andrew was the brother of my husband's great-grandfather, William Quinn (1851-1903). The brothers were born in Caherawoneen along with many other Quinn family members, but by 1901, the only Quinns living in Caherawoneen were the families of Andrew and William Quinn. [3]

 

The Children of Andrew Quinn and Margaret Flanagan   

  

Mary Quinn was born on 19 October 1884. She immigrated to New York City in 1901 and by 1908 was married to James Sarsfield. They had at least five known children; Frances (Frank), Margaret, Katherine, James, and Mary. Mary died on 2 August 1970 and is buried with her husband and at least two children in Mount St. Mary’s in Flushing, Queens, NY. [4]

James Quinn was born on 11 November 1885. [5]

Bridget “Delia” Quinn was born on 4 January 1887. Delia arrived in New York City on 14 February 1910. She did not marry and lived with her sister Nora. Delia died in May of 1977 and is buried in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Westchester County, New York.[6]

Patrick Quinn was born on 08 February 1888. He married Mary Conroy in New Quay Church on 28 February 1927. According to Owen Quinn, Patrick and Mary had five children. Daughter, Teresa, wrote in 2001 that she was born in New Quay, County Clare, but that her father was born in Caherawoneen, next door to Bid and Mick Fahy.[7]

From the Files of Marguerite Cook Clark: Grand Bayou Methodist Church History

Grand Bayou Methodist Church, in Bienville Parish, Louisiana, disbanded on 24 October 1984 and merged with Ringgold Methodist Church. On 7 August 1985, the church was moved to the Wimberly Cemetery where it is used as a Memorial Chapel. This photo, taken in June 2007, shows Grand Bayou Methodist Church in Wimberly Cemetery.

The history was compiled in 1982 by Marguerite Cook Clark for the 100th anniversary of the church and found, along with the event program, in her saved files. To see Grand Bayou Methodist Church prior to 1930 click on this link. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Sources 

Marguerite Cook Clark, A Brief Statement of the History of the Grand Bayou Church and event program, 1982, unpublished manuscript, from the privately held collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2021. Documents were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Grand Bayou in Wimberly Cemetery, photograph, June 2007; scanned images, original photograph from the privately-held collection of Diana Bryan Quinn, Virginia Beach, VA, 2022. 

“Bistineau Chapter LSDAR Meets in Old Church,” The Bienville Democrat, 29 Oct.1987, p.4; database and images, The Digital Archives of The Bienville Parish Library  (http://bienville.advantage-preservation.com/viewer/?i=f&by=1987&bdd=1980&bm=10&bd=29&d=10291987-10291987&fn=bienville_democrat_usa_louisiana_bienville_19871029_english_4&df=1&dt=10 : accessed 28 October 2022).

From the Files of Marguerite Cook Clark: Grand Bayou Methodist Church Before 1930

The photo above was not labeled, but the transom window above the door matches those in the photos below identifying the church as Grand Bayou Methodist Church in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. 

Grand Bayou was destroyed by high winds, and in 1930, this building was torn down by members. All salvageable lumber was used in the new building. 

Another post, From the Files of Marguerite Cook Clark: Grand Bayou Methodist Church History, tells more about the history of the church. 

1911 is the date on the above photo of some kind of group or choir at Grand Bayou Methodist Church. To see larger images of many of the subjects in this photo click here.

The image below is Grand Bayou Methodist Church, dated 1905. Scroll down to see enlarged portions of the image. 

Rev. Thomas Jefferson Martin is the man with the beard in the center second row from the back. It is not known if he was the minister of the church during this time. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Sources 

Marguerite Cook Clark, A Brief Statement of the History of the Grand Bayou Church, 1982, unpublished manuscript, from the privately held collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2021. Documents were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Grand Bayou Methodist Church, photograph, n.d.; digital image, from the privately held photo collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2022. Photos were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Grand Bayou Methodist Church Choir, photograph, 1911; digital image, from the privately held photo collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2022. Photos were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Grand Bayou Methodist Church large group, photograph, 1905; digital image, from the privately held photo collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2022. Photos were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.