Illinois, Missouri, Kansas Oh My

I have been so busy.  I feel like I am going to meet me coming in when I am going out. 

I visited with my dear friend Carol in Columbia.  Hopefully she will be out of the hospital and in a nursing home by the end of the week.  It was great seeing her and talking to her. 

I ended my Camdenton (home town) visit by meeting up with two good friends from my old workplace.  Again I enjoyed a great meal, great conversation, and lots of catching up.  I left Camdenton on Friday to travel back to my sister’s so we could attend the Strange Folk Festival in O’Fallon Illinois on Saturday.

Friday night a friend of my sister, Rose came by on her way to spend Saturday with her son.  A little wine, lots of conversation followed by beautiful pictures of Rose’s trip to England, Scotland and Paris.  Somehow all of us woke up fairly early, Rose made it to her son’s house and we made it to the Strange Folk Festival. 

We left my sister’s Sunday just to travel back to Camdenton to take care of some last minute business.  Monday found us in route to my daughter’s home.  I am happy to say we made it.  Monday night was spent watching TV and just relaxing. 

Today I took the van into the Chevy dealership, which in my opinion, is the best place to go when you need service.  My visor fell off about 6 months ago and it has been a nightmare to get it fixed.  I would walk into a Chevy service department with it and I would get instant run around.  Some would say it was a conversion van part the others would say it was a GM part.  All of them would differ on cost and delivery time.  I finally said “enough” because I knew I would get it fixed here without a run around. 
Afterwards I drove to my daughter’s house for a day of browsing stores.   Unfortunately two of the stores were used book stores.  We did sell the books we had in the van but we are also replaced them twice….  Kerouac, Harrison, Reynolds to name a few authors but the best find was the Moravian church book.  I didn’t find any mention of my ancestors but the book was so interesting and the price was so right I couldn’t turn it down.  The book I am reading now is “Notorious Royal Marriages” by Leslie Carroll.

Tomorrow we are going to the gardens and I will be posting pictures then.  It has been a great week.  I am going to post a song with this post.  It is sung by Wendy J Francisco who also sang “God and Dog.”  The question I have is this… was it the wine or is this song funnier than heck? 

Just An Update

We left Highland IL Monday and drove to Lebanon MO for 4 nights.   We drove to Camdenton today to visit with friends, take care of business and visit the old home place.  I decided to rent a car because getting the van into a hospital is a nightmare.  There are height restrictions and parking garages and walking for miles.  This morning started with us getting up late, then we got a call saying the car was going to be late and everything went topsy turvy after that.   I felt like I was running all day.  Truthfully I am worn out. 

I saw friends, took care of business, renewed my license, had mom’s phone repaired, and tomorrow I will visit with Carol in Columbia.  I am looking forward to seeing both Belle and Carol.  I just have a bad feeling I can’t bring her Long John Silver because she is on a special diet. 

My daughter will be going with us to Columbia and she came down this evening. She is spending the night in a hotel, there is just not enough room in my little house on wheels.  She burned me a wonderful CD with a great variety of music.  I have been working on a CD for her for the past two nights so she will be taking home some of my music.  Our taste in music is very eclectic.  There is one album I have been wanting.   When my divorce became final my ex husband retained ownership of it and  I haven’t been able to find it since.  It is Gordon Jenkins' Seven Dreams.  Released date was 1954.  I finally saved enough to purchase it.  I am beyond excited.  Robert, Hannah’s beau, will put it on CD for me.  If you have time look it up.  My two favorite dreams is “The Conductor” and “The Nightmare.”

Scott (Number Two Son) I will burn a copy for you as well. 

I am alive, well, and kicking.  I have been so busy that I can’t blog.  I will try to do better.  Life is good….. no life is GREAT!!!

Click here for pictures of Olney Illinois cemetery.

Click here for Newton Illinois Cemetery.

Just For Fun

We made it to Highland on Friday. We are having a great visit DESPITE the rain that is falling today.

I am posting the rest of the pictures of Vincennes Indiana.

In Vincennes we visited the Clark Memorial.  A beautiful memorial that stands on the site of Fort Sackville to commemorate the capture of the fort from British Lt. Governor Hamilton and his soldiers by Lt. Col. George Roger Clark.  Also on the ground is a statue of Francis Vigo, a fur trader who helped the American forces during the Revolutionary War.

To the side of the the Memorial is the Old Catherdral Church also known as St. Francis Xavier Church.  It is the oldest church in Indiana.  The current church is the third church to be built on this site and was built between 1824 and 1834.   On the grounds is the church, the library, a museum, and the old French and Indiana Cemetery.  There are over 4,000 early settlers buried in the cemetery.  Most of the stones are gone.

The old Church and the Clark Memorial sit on the bank of the Wabash River.

Our last stop in Vincennes was at the courthouse.  A beautiful building with a War Memorial beside it. 

Vincennes, childhood home of Clint Barnes, David Goodnow, Alvy Moore, Red Skelton, Jan Fields, is a beautiful historical town. It also has a lot of "firsts" - first newspaper in Indiana (1799), first Masonic Lodge (1809), first bank (1814), first post office to name a few.


Enjoy the pictures

Click here for pictures of the Court House.

Click here for pictures of the Old Cathedral and Cemetery.

Click here for pictures of the Clark Memorial.

Yesterday and Today

Yesterday I received a most wonderful gift from my adopted daughter, Belle.  She was at the hospital visiting my best friend, her mother, Carol.  Carol was having a good day and  Belle called and said “Pepper, here’s mom.”  That meant a lot to just hear her voice.  We have been friends for 28 years.  She will be in the hospital for a couple of weeks.  Hopefully she will improve enough to be sent home and if not, to a nursing home that is closer to home.  Belle, thank you so much.  I will be seeing you on Wednesday!!!!

Getting sick is not a good thing because I am behind in my blogging.  I need to stop taking so many pictures but there are so many interesting things in the world.  Mom and I went from Oolitic Indiana to Vincennes, Indiana.  We stopped at a Baptist Church in Washington Indiana with a marvelous historical cemetery.  Beautiful old stones rich in symbolism.   Spent way to much time there and took way to many pictures.

We didn’t get to Vincennes until late but I still went out.  Mom and I walked the main street and just got lost in the architecture.  At the end of Main Street is the Lincoln Memorial Bridge and the Clark Memorial.  I was taking pictures left and right.  I thoroughly enjoy being a tourist.  Vincennes is a town rich in history and is just a beautiful river town.   I definitely could go back.

Now I am going to try to learn something about architecture.  I love walking the Main Streets and driving the side roads but I have no idea of what I am looking at.  I just know what I like but I don’t know what it is…. The only cure for that is to learn.  Bear with me folks this is another long one….  This is what I have learned.

  Federal Style 1790 – 1820

The Federal Style became popular in the U.S. in the early years following independence. It has little ornament and is strictly symmetrical.

Greek Revival – 1820 – 1860

Patterned after Greek Temples. A bolder and more vigorous style than Federal. It had a cubical mass, a low pitched roof, dental decoration on the eaves and often an attic half story.

Italianate Commercial 1850 – 1890

Inspired by Italians villas this style was characterized by over-hanging eaves, supported by decorative brackets. This style from the Victorian era emphasized picturesque massing and exuberant designs. This was aided by use of cast iron, which allowed intricate designs to be produced cheaply and quickly.

Romanesque Revival 1880 – 1900

This style is part of the Victorian era, which began in the last half of the 1800’s and lasted through the turn of the century. This style is inspired by medieval Romanesque architecture and was very popular in Germany and among German immigrants. This style has heavy, rough masonry, bold appearance with big round arches. It often has a stair-step gable.

Neoclassical 1893 – 1930

Following the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago, people began to favor more controlled, classically inspired designs. These buildings have more refined ornament, which typically includes columns, cornices and decorative swags. Tall buildings are typically separated into three parts: the street level, middle stories, and the upper zone, which is supported by a cornice skyline. Simplified classical motifs enliven the building surface.

Period Revival Styles 1895 – 1930

The revival styles were a mix of historically inspired styles, characterized by using carefully studied historical details in a free, eclectic manner.

Art Deco 1925 – 1940

Art deco was born in Europe at an International Expo In Paris. Forms are simple and cubic, with a mechanized feel, very streamlined and smooth. This style abandoned Neoclassicism and was popular not only in architecture but in designs for cars and jewelry.

Now Click Here For Pictures of Vincennes Main Street.

Click here for Washington Indiana Cemetery.

Tomorrow we are back on the road heading to Highland IL.  To quote my daughter, Hannah “WOOT”…. Woot is a good thing.

Bedford and Oolitic Indiana

Thank you for your comments on my last blog.  I was tired but I was also sick.  I woke up yesterday and my glasses wouldn’t fit.  I did put them on but after thirty minutes when I took them off I had an imprint.  I looked bad and probably scared a few small children.  I took two non drowsy allergy pills and took off down the road.  The swelling went down but my headache remained.  It was an interesting and cruddy day.  I don’t want to get ahead of myself so lets say I saw things and I was happy to be back on the road. 

September 13 and 14 found us in Bedford and Oolitic Indiana.  Bedford is known as the limestone capital of the world, and is surrounded by limestone quarries.  Bedford is known as the limestone capital of the world, and is surrounded by limestone quarries.  A common name for the light gray Indiana limestone quarried in south central Indiana is "Bedford limestone", or "Bedford Oolitic limestone". Much of the limestone used in the construction of various Washington, D.C. monuments was quarried in the Bedford area.

The cemetery in Bedford was wonderful with old stones and statuaries.  I was told to stop there and I am so glad I did.  The most poignant stone was about a WW I veteran who was injured by “shell shrapnel” in 1918 and remained in the hospital until his death in 1940.   His stone listed all of his battles and I was struck by how much he saw at such a young age.  I also found a Stonecutter’s Table stone.  The cemetery was very well tended and it was a a lot of fun exploring it.

We walked down Main Street and visited the Courthouse, which was beautiful.  Then we took off for Oolitic.  The courthouse in Bedford had a very tall statue with beautiful carvings at the base of the statue.  On each side of the statue was statues of eagles.  Behind the main statue was two cannons.  In the Oolitic Indiana town hall they had a statue of Joe Palooka – Defender of Democracy!!!  For those that are too young to remember Joe Palooka – google it.  Poor Joe look a little anorexic and his cheek looked damaged but it is so cool. 

Enjoy the pictures.  I will post more of my adventures tomorrow.

Click here for Bedford Indiana Cemetery pictures.

Click here for Bedford Indiana Pictures.

Click here for Oolitic Indiana Pictures.

 

Too Tired

To Tired To Blog

The Reno Brothers of Seymour Indiana

The Reno Brothers played a very significant role in our history but I don’t think there are many out there that are aware of them.

The Reno Brothers Gang were a group of criminals that operated in the Midwestern United States during and just after the American Civil War. Though short-lived, they carried out the first three peacetime train robberies in U.S. history.

The gang was broken with the lynchings of ten of its members by vigilante mobs in 1868. The murders created an international diplomatic incident with Canada and Great Britain, a general public uproar, and international newspaper coverage. No one was ever identified or prosecuted for the lynchings.

J. Wilkison (also known as Wilkinson or Wilkerson) Reno moved to Indiana in 1813 from the Salt River region of Kentucky, one of the Civil War Border States. He married Julia Ann Freyhafer in 1835. Future gang members Franklin (Frank), John, Simeon (Sim), and William (Bill) Reno were born to the couple in Rockford, Jackson County, Indiana. There was also another son, Clinton ("Honest" Clint), and a daughter, Laura. In their early years, the siblings were raised in a strict, religious (Methodist) farming household and were required to read the Bible all day on Sunday, according to John Reno's 1879 autobiography. Neither Clint nor Laura was involved in the gang's crime spree. It was after the hanging that Clint started getting into trouble and Laura turned respectable.

The brothers got into trouble early. John claimed that he and Frank bilked travelers in crooked card games. Also, the Renos were suspected when a series of mysterious fires broke out around Rockford over a period of seven years beginning in 1851. The community also suspected the brothers in the theft of a horse. The crimes caused considerable tension in the town and Wilkison and four of his sons fled, living near St. Louis, Missouri for some time, before returning to their farm in 1860. The war broke shortly after and the brothers enlisted in hopes of escaping the angry citizens of the town. Thanks Wikipedia!

To cut to the chase the brothers were a whole lot of trouble.  

After burning the town of Rockford and folks started moving out, the Renos bought the property dirt cheap. They had quite a racket going on that involved burglary, robbery, extortion, bribery, arson, gambling…..

In October 1866, the gang made national news when it robbed an Adams Express money shipment on the Ohio and Mississippi train just east of Seymour. They came away with about $10,000 in one of the first train robberies in the U.S. History.

May 22nd 1868 was the beginning of the end for the Reno Brothers Gang. On that date the gang robbed another train in Marshfield Indiana. May 23 edition of the New Albany Ledger reported: ‘The last train of the night on the Jefferson, Madison & Indianapolis Railroad left Jeffersonville, Indiana at 9:30 p.m. and preceded north. The train stopped at a refueling station in Marshfield at about 11:00 p.m. to take on water and wood. As the engineer and fireman were seeing about the locomotive, they were waylaid by a gang of twelve men who moved out of the darkness of the densely wooded, swampy area. The railroad men were quickly overpowered and the engine and Adams Express car uncoupled from the rest of the train and taken at full steam toward Seymour. Four of the robbers broke into the express car and were fired upon by the messenger. His shots were ineffective and he was badly beaten with pistols and crowbars, and then thrown from the door of the car. He was found the next morning on the rail embankment barely alive." The outlaws got away with an estimated $96,000 in government bonds, cash and currency notes.

Frank Reno and gang members, Charlie Anderson, Albert Perkins, Michael Rogers and Miles Ogle headed for Windsor Canada. Sim Reno and William Reno went to Indianapolis Indiana. Of course Sim and William were arrested first on July 27 1868. The brothers were transferred to New Albany, Indiana jail to await their trail. In August the rest of the gang was located by the Pinkerton Detective Agency. When an extradition order could not be obtained, the men were released. So Allan Pinkerton tried again and an international drama ensued. Pinkerton sent a formal letter, arrest warrants and descriptions of the gang’s crimes to U.S. Secretary of State William Seward, whom Pinkerton knew from his Civil War days. Letters passed from the United States to Canada and Great Britain and back. When it seemed that Canadian Governor-General Viscount Monck was ready to give in and deliver the two outlaws, the Queen’s Council demanded a letter of assurance from U.S. President Andrew Johnson that the gang members would receive protection from Indiana vigilance committees. In October 1868, Frank Reno and Charlie Anderson were released to the custody of Allan Pinkerton.

On October 29 1868 they were jailed in New Albany with the rest of the gang members. Each of them occupied an individual cell in the big stone jail, considered the strongest in southern Indiana.

On the night of December 11, 1868, a train left the Seymour, Indiana depot. The train carried a large group of vigilantes to Jeffersonville, Indiana. The vigilantes then travelled by another train to New Albany, Indiana. The group arrived in New Albany around 3 a.m. on December 12, 1868.

There the vigilantes overpowered the jailer and I believe 4 more including the sheriff’s wife. The Reno Gang was hung.

The brothers are buried in the City Cemetery in Seymour Indiana. It is a sad little cemetery with many graves unmarked, broken, vandalized…. with the exception of the Reno Brother’s graves. A stone path leads to the fenced area where they are buried with military markers and flags. A marker at the beginning of the path tells their story. Interesting.

Thanks to Outlaw History for the rest of the story.

Click here for pictures of the City Cemetery in Seymour Indiana.

Breathe

We left this morning and it started raining.  I had washed the van, wrote down all of the places I wanted to see, mapped out the trip and it rained.  We passed beautiful old cemeteries, main streets, a state park and that is when I said “THE HELL WITH THIS.”  So we stopped in the middle of the day and found a place to stay the night.  Of course as soon as we did, it stopped raining.  I am thankful it did because I filled up the trash can with water and washed off the road grime. 

Tomorrow will be warm and sunny and we will be able to explore. 

My D60 is dead.  I get an error message “Error. Press shutter release button again.”   I did some research and it appears that this is a fatal error message.  Funeral services need to be held.  The camera is less than 3 years old and I am going to hang onto it until I find a camera shop.  Then my lens shot craps and I have been researching what is a good everyday lens to use.  If any of my lurkers have a suggestion I would love to hear it. 

We are in Columbus Indiana and tomorrow we will continue our journey to Illinois,  Missouri, and Kansas.  Belle – you know I  am close enough and if anything happens call me and I will be there. 

Leaving Brookville Ohio

We had a wonderful visit with Sarah and her husband.  The last time mom saw her was in 1948.   They are such a delightful couple and we enjoyed the conversation and the wonderful memories. The date bread that we were given was very good.  It was kind of sad to leave.

When I came home I visited with Freddy and his delightful owners.  They are in their 80s and have been on the road for 18 years.  They are interested in the same things mom and I are so I told them to head for Germantown Ohio for some wonderful historical buildings and Mexican Food…… what…. you were expecting German food?  Hah

We were considering heading to Zanesville Ohio but decided to head towards Illinois.  We will be visiting with my sister and her family on the 18th.  She lives just outside of St. Louis.  I have been busy with mapping out our trip and making a list of the places we want to see.  One of the places is a ghost town outside of Sturgis KY.   We will be able to avoid the interstate most of the way. 

So tomorrow it is good-bye to eastern time hello to central time! 

If we get that far…  so much to see…  life is good.

alrightokuhhuhamen

After we finished exploring Ashland Ohio, we decided to spend two days just hanging out at the campground.  It was Labor Day weekend and the place was packed!  There were horse rides, hay rides, parades, scavenger hunts…. it was a lot of fun to sit and watch.  We met our neighbors and enjoyed visiting with them off and on.  I usually try to avoid KOAs because of the cost but the Butler Mohican KOA cost as much as the rest of the campgrounds in the area.  It was a beautiful place.  Those with a big rig will white knuckle it to the park because the roads to the park is a little curvy, hilly, and at times down right intimidating.  There are also Amish on the road.  I am so happy I live in a van.  I got right back on the roads and had a blast. 

We did visit the Bunker Hill Cemetery and the Ohio Memorial Shrine on our way to Brookeville Ohio.  We drove the back roads to Brookeville and went through some beautiful country.  Yes Hannah, there is something peaceful about acres and acres of corn.  It is never boring.  Between corn fields are beautiful old homes and quaint old towns.  Not to mention the churches and the cemeteries.  The history is always fascinating to me.

One of the towns we explored was Widowville Ohio.  Named because of all the wives left as widows during the Civil War.  There are towns that are now villages and some towns that are just memories.  Each of the towns I visited or drove through has a story and a past.  Sometimes I get lucky and I find the stories or I will just walk the quiet main streets making up my own stories.  Those I will never put on my blog. 

It is the same as walking through a cemetery.  Each of those stones holds a piece of a person’s past.  It is interesting to read those stones and look up names.  I haven’t really gone to a cemetery to find someone other than family.  I like to just drive and discovered them on my way to wherever it is I am going.  Today I drove with the intention of finding someone.  I have always loved the music of Rich Mullins.  I knew he was raised in Richmond Indiana and buried in Hollansburg Ohio.  That is where we went today.  Once again I drove through acres of corn and I found myself at peace.  I love to drive through farm land I guess.  I did find him and I did say “thanks” as well as “alrightokuhhuhamen”.

Tomorrow I will be cleaning the van, washing windows, and doing some printing.  Then on the 10th we will be visiting a cousin that lives in Franklin.  It is going to be a great ending to a wonderful week.

Enjoy the pictures.

Click here for pictures of the Bunker Hill Cemetery.

Click here for pictures of the Ohio Memorial Shrine.

Click here for Mt. Gilead Ohio Cemetery.

Click here for New California Ohio Church and Cemetery.

Click here for Ithaca Ohio Church and Cemetery.

Click here for Hollansburg Ohio Cemetery

 

Just A Field

Just a field across from the rv park.  A great place to walk and think.

Yesterday, around 4 pm, I heard the loudest scream and of course I immediately thought someone was being murdered.  I looked over where the screaming was coming from (my neighbors in a pop up) and their 2-year old was PITCHING A FIT.  He was upset to come home from his walk and see his “house” collapsed.  His mom took him for a walk while dad broke camp and it broke that poor kid’s heart when he came back from his walk.  He was screaming and crying and asking “where’s my house?”  It was sad….. okay it was also funny.

Click here for the rest of the pictures.

We Are In Ashland Ohio

The hometown of Robert and Catherine McKean my g.g. grandparents.

Today we went to the library and I found their obituaries.  I didn’t find out who their parents were and that was disappointing.  After the library we went to the cemetery.  I wasn’t going to try to find their graves because Ashland Cemetery is huge and laid out a little odd.  It is all mixed up.   I will admit this is the first cemetery I have been to that gave me the creeps.  I had the feeling of someone being behind me.  I found myself constantly turning around which was a little irritating.  It is a very active cemetery is all I have to say.  Please don’t send me email invitations to attend your church. 

After the cemetery mom and I went to a car show.  That was a lot of fun even though I didn’t have a clue about some of the cars but there were note cards on the windshields telling us all about the car.  I might not be an expert on cars but I do admire the old ones and the work someone put in to restore them.

Then we bought groceries and headed home.  When I drove to this park I thought  I would never get here.  It is so isolated and way out in the boonies.  The road to the park was curvy and hilly.  It was a nightmare to drive because I was tired.  This time around I decided to try another road but it was just like the one I avoided.  The only difference was I enjoyed the drive and I let out a few WEEESS and WOOOO HOOOOs.   The scenery was spectacular.

Last night I took out the grill and cooked up a freezer full of sausage, polish sausage, hamburger, and pork chops.  We will be eating well for the next two weeks.  I took the last two hamburger patties out last week and made spaghetti.  It tasted really good.  We make soup, chili, and whatever else to stretch out the meat supply. 

The weather is getting chilly and mom and I are talking about the southern states.  Our plan is to visit a cousin in Franklin on the tenth, then travel to Highland to visit family, then onto Kansas to visit more family, and finally stay a week in Lebanon MO.  I need to renew my driver’s license and I want to spend sometime with my girlfriend who hopefully will be out of the hospital and into a nursing home.

Yes Belle I plan to pick you up and take off to a cemetery.  I am wanting to go to the Waynesville cemetery and then drive around to some of the smaller towns. 

Click here for pictures of St. Joseph Cemetery in Decatur Indiana

Click here for pictures of another cemetery in Decatur Indiana

Click here for pictures of Ashland Ohio Car Show

Click here for pictures of the cemetery in Ashland Ohio

FINALLY!!!!!!!

Click here for the rest of the pictures of my grandkids.  Thank you Scott SO much for these.

Malachi, Isabel, Jaeda, Hayden	Anna and Rusty aka James
My sons, Rusty aka James and Scott	Isabel and Scott being goofy

Wabash Indiana

On September 1st mom and I went to three cemeteries and the town Wabash Indiana.  I try to research the towns I plan to visit.  Especially if it is a historical town.  One of the things I research is notable folks.   In Wabash some of their famous citizens  are Loren M. Berry ( pioneer of the Yellow Pages telephone directory), Dr. Rick Brandenburg (noted entomologist), Jimmy Daywalt (race car driver) and Crystal Gayle…. She wasn’t born in Wabash but she was raised there. 

On January 26, 1856, the first passenger train arrived in Wabash. The railroad continued to play a major role in the development of Wabash. The big Four Railroad (the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad) were persuaded to build shops in Wabash. The railroad nor the canal nor the Indians brought Wabash its greatest claim to fame. At eight o'clock on the evening of March 31, 1880, Wabash became the first electrically lighted city in the world.

During the Civil War thousands of Indiana young men volunteered for service and  many companies were raised in Wabash County. Four regiments, the 75th, the 89th , the 101st, and the 118th, began their military training at Camp Wabash. This camp, also known as Camp Pettit, was located just south of the Wabash River in what is now the incorporated city of Wabash.

Both World Wars drew from Wabash County which provided not only personnel but also materials necessary to carry on the war effort. The Service Motor Company produced ambulances and engines for airplanes needed during World War I. During World War II the Honeywell Company made bomb sites and tank periscopes. The General Tire Company produced rubber products. Wabash County has been justly proud of her role in the defense of the nation and perpetuates the memory of these sacrifices with an eternal flame shrine in front of the Courthouse.

Click here for pictures of the town of Wabash Indiana.

Click here for Fall Cemetery Wabash Indiana.

Click here for pictures of Pilgrims Rest Cemetery Huntington Indiana

Click here for pictures of Mt. Hope Cemetery Huntington Indiana.

Huntington Indiana

Yesterday mom and I went to Clear Creek Cemetery to try to find the graves of my ancestors on my father’s side.  It was another cemetery that had fallen due to lack of care.  It had the stones that were broken or missing.  Some of the stones had fallen over and I flipped a couple over only to discover the words were faded.  It was sad.  I did find some of the people granny talked about and that was interesting.   I am in a town I have never been before and yet due to stories I was told I remembered those I never met.  These stories have been written down and someday someone will read them.  I burned my children out with stories of old and the genealogy.  All I have to say is “your gg grandparents” and they run for the hills.  I have not printed out my family history and even though I have seriously considered it I doubt if I ever will.  I have been researching my family before there were computers.  Sarah I will print out the Peavyhouse Genealogy out for you. 

After we explored the cemetery I drove to Jefferson Street and wandered.  I was in awe of architecture of some of the older businesses.  Mom and I were amazed at the old brick mansions in town as well.  I could see Cousin Sally riding down Jefferson in a carriage…. she was obese and she had a skinny husband that catered to her.  She loved to get dressed up and show off.  These are my Granny’s memories of the stories that was told to her.  Stories she wrote down for me.  Silly little scraps of paper. 

My granny’s family were farmers, small business owners – they never lived in the brick mansions that she was told about.  They were comfortable but not well off. If it wasn’t for the fact that they had such large families they would fade into obscurity.  In fact one almost did – Peter Hamrick.  His wife couldn’t afford  his funeral and I never did find out where he was buried.  He could be in an unmarked pauper grave.  I have his story, a part of him lives in me, he is not  forgotten.

After walking the streets, I drove to the library and met a lady that was the county historian, genealogist extraordinaire…    She gave me some wonderful ideas on how to unlock the McKean/Lash family and she also helped me unearth a few goodies about the Binkley and Kitt families.  I am excited to be heading to Ashland on Friday.   Needless to say I spent a least 6 hours with her and I had a ball! 

Life is Good!!!

Click here for pictures of Huntington Indiana

Click here for Clear Creek Cemetery and Church

BAH

I have managed to lose my blog that I wrote last night using both Live Writer and Microsoft Word.  How I managed to lose what I wrote last night using two bleeping programs I don't know.  Instead of feeling frustrated I will chalk this up to being talented. 

That is right I am just talented...

I have no blog today.  I am sitting in a coffee shop using their internet but I will rewrite it when I get parked tonight.  We are still exploring Huntington Indiana and having a grand time. 

I forgot to ask for decaf and I am now feeling the caffiene.  I am going to drive mom crazy today.

Life is good!