Happy 101 and my Aunt Martha's birthday cards

Ruth of Genealogy is Ruthless without Me was kind enough to award me the "Happy 101" blogger badge in January (that's like 10 years ago in blogger time!).  I was away during my dad's illness, so I forgot about it at the time, but remembered again recently.

Recipients are supposed to list 10 things that make them happy, and pass along the award to others.  So here's 10 off the top of my head:

1. my hubby

2. my cats, especially furry genealogy assistant Roux who keeps me company on or by my desk, and (semi-) feral Ella, who likes it when I take a "petting break" outside

3. ice cream

4. lovely SoCal weather like today (upper 80s and sunny; if only it would stay at that temp)

5. discovering some new genealogy tidbit

6. meeting new cousins (via the Internet or in person) who share my genealogy addic-- um, interest :)

7. reading about the history behind the tree

8. Cajun food

9. having written -- or perhaps more accurately, having written and also edited a time or two

(I'm not sure who first said, "I hate writing; I love having written," but it's a good quote.)

10. comments on my blog!!!! (hint, hint!) :)

I'll pass this along to a few bloggers whose work makes me happy when I read it: "Make a Roux" (a CaliCajun like me, but who can actually cook! :) ), Dionne at Finding Josephine (compelling stories of chasing down her ancestry), Lisa at Adventures in Grave Hunting (fun celebrity graving and SoCal history), and Louisiana Genealogy Blog (whose author does a great job of keeping me up on Louisiana genealogy news).  I was looking for a newer blog (or new to me) to encourage and found one by 5th-graders in Quebec called "All Things Quebec."  Seeing kids blogging, especially about their history, makes me VERY happy!  Their teacher is Evelyn from a blog I already read, A Canadian Family.

Oh, and Aunt Martha's birthday cards of my post title?  They were always late, but knowing I still had something coming after my birthday made me happy, not unlike my late acknowledgement of this blog award. :)  Thanks for the encouragement, Ruth!

Surname Saturday: PATE from Virginia to Louisiana

Today we have my PATE line, from my maternal grandmother. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources available; see my blog for contact info.

Newton King Brady Pate and sister Serena Pate McFarland, c. 1930, probably Ringgold, La., photographer unknown. Privately held by the Hall family, La.

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me.

2. Dad HALL.

3. Mom STEVENSON.

6. Alvin Jasper STEVENSON. Born on 1? or 2 Feb 1897 (We always thought it was Feb. 2, but recently discovered a couple of records with Feb. 1! Typos?) in Athens, Claiborne Parish, LA. Alvin Jasper died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 6 Nov 1974. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery).
On 16 Dec 1926, in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, he married:
7. Edna Maud PATE. Born on 17 Mar 1896 in Heflin, Webster, LA. Edna Maud died in Lake Charles, Calcasieu, LA, on 13 Mar 1986. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery).

14 Newton King Brady or Bradie PATE. Born on 30 Dec 1852 in Sparta, Bienville, LA.  Newton King Bradie died in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, on 15 Mar 1932.  Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Pleasant Grove Cemetery).
On 2 Sep 1886, in Bienville Parish, LA, he married his third wife (previous marriages were to Mary Elizabeth Jones and Mary E. McGraw):
15 Etta Orisca COTTER. Born on 19 Mar 1859 in Ringgold, Bienville, LA. Etta Orisca died in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, on 27 Jun 1937. Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Pleasant Grove Cemetery).

28 Anthony William PATE. Born on 11 Jun 1812 in Smith or Jackson Co., TN. Anthony William died in Heflin, Webster, LA, on 13 Jul 1894. Buried in Heflin, Webster, LA (Bistineau Cemetery). 
About 1840, he married:
29 Emily Lena (or Lena Emily), "Emily" SMITH. Born on 25 Jan 1824 in AR. Emily Lena died in Bienville Parish, LA, on 11 Apr 1896. Buried in Heflin, Webster, LA (Bistineau Cemetery).

56 Willeroy PATE. Born abt 1773 in Bedford Co., VA?  Willeroy died abt 1844 in Smith Co., TN? Buried in Jackson County, TN.
About 1803, he married:
57 unknown. Born abt 1775.

112 Anthony PATE. Born abt 1740 in Bedford Co., VA?  Anthony died abt 1805 in Jackson Co., TN?
He married:
113 Millie. 

224 Edward PATE. Born bef 1732 (1703? 1713?) in VA?  Edward died bef May 1768 in Bedford Co., VA.
He married:
225 Martha TINSLEY? Born abt 1702.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Louisiana's threatened coastal treasures

"Our culture is threatened, our coastal economy is threatened, and everything I know and love is at risk.  Even though this marsh lies along coastal Louisiana, these are America's wetlands." --Rep. Charlie Melancon, with great emotion and with voice breaking, in testimony to a House subcommittee today.

 

Although these photos were taken in Southwest Louisiana (all in 2007 except the last photo), similar scenes of marshland, beaches, and both recreational and commercial freshwater and saltwater fishing can be found all along and near the Gulf of Mexico.

Photos/text copyright 2010, Liz Hall Morgan

Treasure Chest Thursday: Dad's military personnel file, part one

I received my late dad's military personnel file in the mail last week.  I knew it would have a lot of informative yet dry facts, but I also have found some surprising and fun things in it, so I thought I'd share a few pages at a time.  It was worth the two-to-three-month wait for the price: free!  (Contact the National Archives if you'd like to request your relative's records.  Be sure to ask for the entire file if you are requesting records for family history purposes.)

Here are a few of the items (click on any photo in my blog to enlarge it):

Some of the most interesting things were in Dad's initial application to become a Naval Reserve aviation cadet: a handwritten letter from Dad, recommendation letters, the most handwriting of my Grandpa Hall's (on a form) that I've ever seen, and dad's high school transcript, not to mention his photo at age 20, looking a lot like my nephew (those ears! those curls!).

Dad graduated in 1940 and, knowing the draft was coming, thought he'd join the Navy after hearing about it from his brother Bob.  Then he saw a newspaper ad saying high school graduates could apply for the Navy's aviation training, and that was it for him.

George Hall, December 2008, National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola, FL, with the ad that started it all.  Photo courtesy of my sis.

For more, read my Part 2 post here.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan

Update

I've been blogging less lately, so a few quick shoutouts to thank genea-friends for recognition and to preview upcoming attractions:

• I had a "blogiversary" in January which I missed, but that's OK, I didn't blog much last year anyway.  I have blogged a lot more this year, which makes me happy, I think.  Sometimes I think I'd get more genealogy done without blogging, but I did acquire a "new" cousin recently whom I actually met in person (and liked a lot), so there's that!  And I like having a writing outlet that's all mine.

• Ruth of "Genealogy is Ruthless without Me" awarded me the "Happy 101" blog award in January without telling me :), but that's OK, I have a "Google alert" set up for my blog, so I found out anyway.  However it was around the time my dad died, so I forgot about it until recently.   So a belated thanks to Ruth for the encouragement and I'll do the whole post on it sometime soon.  And I follow her blog now! LOL

• Both Linda of "Flipside" and Dionne of "Finding Josephine" awarded me the "Ancestor Approved" award a month or so ago and I'm grateful for the encouragement and will blog about it soon also.  Thanks, Linda & Dionne!

• I also need to update a few things on some previous posts.  I have some names now for my Crossroads, LA basketball teams and also a detail or two about my second-ever blog post, re Grandpa Hall (nothing earth-shattering, just a couple of interesting tidbits).

• I recently received my dad's military file, which I'll begin posting soon.  I knew the kinds of info it might contain, but didn't realize how fun it would be to go through and was surprised at some of the contents.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: My dad's "Pacific"

I've been watching HBO's WWII-focused miniseries "The Pacific" and enjoying it.  I think my dad would have enjoyed it, though I'm sure he would have preferred more on the Navy and naval aviators like himself. :)  So here's a shout-out to Dad and his buddies.

George Hall (standing 2nd from R), possibly with the VF-6 air group attached to the carrier USS Hancock, 1945, at N.A.S. Hilo, Hawaii.  Photographer unknown, but probably an official U.S. Navy photograph, privately held by the Hall family, La.

Unfortunately, this photo was not labeled except for Dad's interesting note about himself.  The names of the others may be in a book our family owns, and I will certainly post more info if I find it.  I am not positive, but this is probably the VF-6 air group my dad flew with from the aircraft carrier USS Hancock.  It could also be a group he trained with.  But it looks like an official Navy photograph, so I'm guessing it's the air group, unless portraits were taken of "graduating" classes of naval aviators?  Dad initially trained on dive bombers, switched to fighters when the Navy needed more fighter pilots, and flew the F6F Hellcat in the last year of the war.

I received Dad's military personnel file last week, and am looking forward to blogging about it.  Meanwhile, you can read my other posts on Dad's Navy service here.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan. Please see my blog for licensing info.