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Lottie Packard: Twice Widowed, Mother of Ten, and a Birth Certificate That Raised More Questions Than it Answered
When I first came across Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Packard (1870-1952), she wasn’t my ancestor. She wasn’t even related to me by blood or marriage. In fact, I almost skipped past her entirely. Then I started reading the records. One document lead to another until the outline of an extraordinary life slowly emerged – a young wife,… Continue reading
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The Mystery of Kelso’s Sticking Salve
While sorting through several boxes of genealogy items this weekend, I came across this artifact in my collection that was given to me by my great aunt Dorris (Sickels) Smith (1926-2019) who was married to my great grand uncle DeBurl Smith (1922-2013) (brother of my maternal grandmother, Audra). DeBurl Smith’s mother was Ola (Kelso) Smith.… Continue reading
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When the Family Tree Spouted An Unexpected Branch: David Clinton Rogers (1888-1962)
In order to compile a more complete picture of family history for my sons, I’ve also done extensive research on my husband’s lineage. For a long time, David Clinton Rogers, my husband’s maternal grandfather, was another frustrating brick wall on my tree. I could easily find my husband’s grandmother in records, but David seemed to… Continue reading
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Chloe Ann (Headley) Kelso (1857-1956): A Life Across Four Generations
Of all the treasures in my genealogy collection, these original tintypes are among the most precious. They are two of only a few early photographs I have of my 2X great grandparents, Chloe Ann (Headley) Kelso and Oliver Hazard Perry Kelso, and every time I look at them I’m reminded how remarkable it is that… Continue reading
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From Gas Pumps to Kitchens: The Recipe Cards We Couldn’t Wait to Collect
In a previous post I talked about recipe cards my Mom received after gasoline fill-ups in the 1970s. Searching through the cards last night I discovered there was actually an index at the back of the group and while she has bequeathed me the cards she collected, there were actually two more sets to the… Continue reading
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Peggy’s Brownies: A Handwritten Recipe and a Lifetime of Memories
Some recipes become favorites because they’re delicious. Others become favorites because they’re woven into our happiest memories. When I was growing up, my maternal Aunt and Uncle, Barbara (Luttrell) Nafziger (1932-2007) and Marvin Nafziger (1927-2010), lived on a farm in West Unity, Ohio. As a city kid, visiting the farm felt like stepping into another… Continue reading
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If This Trivet Could Talk
Genealogy isn’t only about names, dates, and family trees. Sometimes the most meaningful connections to our ancestors are the ordinary objects they touched every day. This cast steel trivet sat in my paternal grandmother Elizabeth (Maynard) Manley’s home throughout my childhood, and I can still picture it in her kitchen. After she passed away in… Continue reading
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From the Vintage Recipe Box: Cold Oven Cake 1976
One of my favorite discoveries has been just how many wonderful old recipes are still worth making today. This one, a Cold Oven Cake, came to me by way of B. Dylan Hollis (YouTube and TikTok creator), whose love of vintage recipes inspired me to give it a try. I was intrigued by the unusual… Continue reading
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Hamburger Pie: A Taste of the 1970s
Food has always been one of the most meaningful ways to connect with the past. Every loaf of bread, hearty stew, simple cake or treasured family recipe tells a story about the people who came before us, the ingredients they had available, the traditions they carried with them, and the love they shared around their… Continue reading
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In Grandma’s Own Words: The Memories of Elizabeth (Maynard) Manley (1907-1998)
As a child growing up in the 1960s and 1970s I have fond memories of visiting my paternal grandparents in Tecumseh, Michigan. A couple of Sundays a month, my dad would load my mom and the children (my brothers, Jeff, Stephen, and I) into the car and make the 45-minute drive north from Toledo, Ohio… Continue reading
