My Big Fat Cajun/Irish/ Scottish/English/German/ French/Southern Family Blog

Treasure Chest Thursday: Dad's Tombstone Tuesday and a treasure chest of memories

2012-01-26T23:10:00.000-08:00

Note: This began as a Tombstone Tuesday, but being about my dad, it ended up as a Treasure Chest Thursday kind of post. And yes, it was my "blogiversary" a few days ago, and I'm still here, but as I had the flu last week and now a cold this week (bleah!), the festivities will keep.

George Constant Hall headstone and military burial marker, Antioch Cemetery (within Big Woods Cemetery), Edgerly, Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, Nov. 2011. Photos courtesy of cousin Janice M. (My (living) mom's info is on the other side, so I'm just posting Dad's half of the stone.)

My dad died two years ago Tuesday. It was the night the New Orleans Saints won the championship that sent them to the Super Bowl. He wasn't really responsive that night, but I'm sure he hung around just to find out how the game ended before he left us; we had the TV on & kept updating him on the score.

I want to tell you so much about my dad; where do I possibly start? He was complex, like most--well, many of us humans (I can be a bit cynical about some of them), but also a man of simple, "old school" tastes and values.

In the last year or so of his life (he had terminal cancer but managed to hold it off for 2 1/2 years on chemo in his late eighties), I delighted in, um, "showing him off" to a few people. I know that sounds condescending, but he was, at times, a real "character" and enjoyed telling stories, whether it was Cajun jokes at my wedding in California or to his newly-discovered first cousins once removed in Louisiana, or World War II tales of derring-do to anyone interested in the war or in planes (he was a fighter pilot in the Pacific and loved, loved, loved flying).

He blossomed in late life as a bit of a raconteur with his Baptist church's choir, the "Agin' Cajuns," who toured area churches and occasionally went on out-of-state concert excursions. And he could be a real ham, too. It occurred to me a few years ago that maybe I got the performing gene (I studied music in college) from him, only I break out in a cold sweat if I actually have to talk in front of a group of people; give me a flute & I'm fine.

I didn't think of the date Tuesday until I was doing genealogy research and came across an obit for someone who died last January. I thought, "Hmm, he died a year after Dad," then I remembered. I was a little sad, but mostly I just miss him in certain moments here and there when I think of him: in seeing a trailer for the movie "Red Tails" and thinking he really would have enjoyed watching the fighter plane footage, in joking about "evening up" some leftover cake with my husband. (Dad had a habit of late-night snacking on sugary food he wasn't really supposed to eat; when caught, he'd say, "Oh, I'm just "evening up" this cheesecake. Look at how ragged that edge is there!")

And then sometimes his words come out of my mouth or I hear his voice in my head (not as scary as it sounds). The other night I was ready to eat dinner and my husband told me to go ahead and start while he finished using the microwave. And before I knew it, I heard my dad's voice saying, "Yeah, I'll wait for you like one hog waits for another!" Which I promptly repeated to my hubby, who laughed. We already have a constant joke about Dad's saying, "that's good eatin'" about almost any critter you can name, catch/shoot and throw sauce over.

Other mealtime Dad-isms that come to mind every time there's a holiday gathering (I suppose because it always seemed to follow saying grace aloud and that's when that usually happens), are "Grab it and growl" and "Take some and leave some." I'm guessing Dad may have been repeating my Grandpa Hall's words. When you have seven kids in the Depression, you definitely have to grab food you want before it's gone and you might have to remind them to leave some on the table for others!

Those are just a few of the things that make me think of him often. There are still many stories to tell about him: I have to tell you about the time he and his brother were interrupted fishing by a truck flying off the interstate into the pond (they couldn't save the man but they did meet the Governor), Dad's "pet" alligator (yes, alligator), his penchant for cooking steaks on the car manifold while traveling, his incredible generosity and much, much more.

I miss his stories, the twinkle in his eye, his growly drawl, hearing a joke for the third (or fifth, or seventh) time, his flirting with his nurses or waitresses or whoever new was in the room (it was completely harmless, though), even his stubbornness. (Yeah, I inherited that. It's the Cajun/Irish-ness, I think. But it comes with tenacity, too, not a bad inheritance. It certainly impressed his doctors. How many late 80-somethings do you know who fish and garden and ride an exercise bike on chemo? He even fished once while wearing a chemo pump. He put it in a plastic bag.) I probably got his sense of humor, and his storytelling influenced me a lot, I'm sure.

We butted heads at times, but that became less as we both grew older. In searching for clues about my grandpa in the last 20 or so years, I have somehow also come to understand my dad a bit more. A year before he died, Dad told me something that let me know he had finally come around to understanding me, as well. He had an episode of internal bleeding so bad I was told to fly home to Louisiana immediately because they didn't know if they could stop it. I stayed a few weeks and when I left, it was very emotional because, though Dad was better, I wasn't sure I would see him again. I might not make it home in time the next time.

Dad told me something that day that stays with me now: "I wish you could stay a little longer. I feel like I'm just getting to know you." Now maybe it sounds a little sad that my dad was just getting to know me at 45, but I've lived in California since I was 25, and our phone chats were never exactly heart-to-hearts (Mom's department), so it was really more like: "Hey, I'm seeing you as your own person now, not just my daughter. And I like what I see." I think that was better than all the "I love yous" that he ever said to me.

I started this blog for fun, as an experiment and a way to share some info with family and possibly connect with cousins researching the same lines, and hey, maybe eventually solve the Grandpa Hall mystery! After Dad died, blogging became a bit of therapy at times, a way to remember him. I wish I had shown it to him, but his spirit is in it, with every story I tell about him or his side of the family (Mom gets less mention because I want to respect the privacy of living relatives--though she's thrilled whenever I write about her ancestors). I guess I'll just have to keep writing about Dad to tell you all out there more, or perhaps I'll learn to edit digital video so one day I can post a clip and you can hear him tell a story or two himself.

Miss you, Dad. Love you always.
--Liz

p.s. You know why a kiss over the ~~phone~~ Internet is like a straw hat? 'Cause it's not felt. That one's for you, Dad. :)

New/updated Louisiana records on FamilySearch

2011-09-30T23:58:00.000-07:00

FamilySearch.org has added quite a lot of new (and free!) Louisiana genealogy records in the last few months, in case you haven't noticed. (You may have to sign up for a free account to view some records, and some collections are partially complete and/or not yet indexed, but fun to explore nonetheless.)

My dad's 1942 draft card (front), found in “Louisiana, First Registration Draft Cards, 1940-1945" on Familysearch.org

From the FamilySearch home page, you can browse by location. Click on "USA, Canada, and Mexico" and scroll down the page to the Louisiana records.

(The collections are alphabetical by state/province--mostly. If you're new to the site, browse around the page after exploring La. & then U.S. groups to make sure you don't overlook something useful.)

In September alone, FamilySearch has added or updated Louisiana-specific genealogy collections for:

• Civil War service records for both Confederate and Union soldiers (indexed)

• World War II and later draft cards: (Click on "browse images." Links of broadly indexed groups will appear.)
     First Registration, 1940-1945, in progress, currently comprising surnames Davis - Linton statewide.
     Second Registration, 1948-1959, in progress, with groups posted by draft board number. The numbers correspond to an alphabetical listing by parish (1 = Acadia Parish, etc). The highest board number currently posted includes a group of cards from Ouachita Parish. Within each parish, names are in alphabetical groups. You can estimate where in the group your relative may appear and enter a number in the image # box at the top of the page then click "return" or "enter"; try checking about halfway numerically, go by 100s, 50s, etc. It takes time and patience but you may find some great info.
    Tip: Record the address info you find here as you prepare to search for your relatives in the 1940 U.S. census, available online to the public on April 2, 2012.

• New Orleans Passenger Lists, 1820-1945 (Click on browse. There are links for two time periods, within which the lists are broadly indexed by date. In spot-checking a couple of time period links, I'm finding 1900s records linked to 1800s headings. Oops. Hopefully this will be worked out.)

• Orleans Parish 2nd District Judicial Court Case Files, 1846-1880 (In progress. Indexed by year, then file number, currently from 1851 to 1873.)

There are more Louisiana-related genealogy collections; these are just the records added this past month.

You'll also find more genealogy records applicable to Louisiana relatives under "United States," such as the World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, also called the "Old Man's Draft" (it was for men of ages 45-64), which is now indexed. In the last few days, several new groups of Confederate records have been added under "United States," as well as a number of other military collections. Can't wait to explore more.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: Arthur Hernandez family

2011-08-31T23:58:00.000-07:00

Arthur and Estelle Catherine (Legere) Hernandez family. Photocopy of original portrait, Hall family collection. Probably taken 1902-3 in Lafayette, Louisiana. L to R: Back row: Marie Una, Leo Alcée, Antonia. Middle: Maria on father Arthur's lap, mother Estelle holding baby Raphael Sidney. Front row: Pierre, Hypolite. (Links go to their pages, if any, on the Find a Grave website.)

The Hernandez children were my dad's first cousins, though they were about a generation older. I wrote about Arthur and Estelle in more detail here. Not pictured are Lucia, who died in 1900 at age 6, and younger brothers Samuel and David, born in 1903 and 1905, respectively. Our mutual cousin Ashton Legere sent my family this photocopy and identified the children; if anyone has a better copy, please contact me.

Copyright 2011 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Cotton mill chimney in Arizona, La.

2011-08-04T15:56:00.000-07:00

Chimney remaining from the post-Civil War cotton mill in the Arizona community near Homer, Louisiana. Photo courtesy of and copyright 2011 by reader Linda [last name withheld for privacy].

One cool thing about having a genealogy blog is that you occasionally hear from new-to-you relatives with whom you can collaborate. An unexpected delight is when a reader like Linda connects with you and you end up with a piece of your family's history.

Linda saw my blog post about James McCoy, my great-great-grandfather who moved from Delaware to post-Civil War Louisiana to work in the first cotton mill west of the Mississippi. Her family now owns the land where the mill once stood, and she was wondering about its history. I gave her some suggestions about where to look up land records (the Claiborne Parish Courthouse, federal General Land Office records, and Arphax Publishing's "Family Maps" volumes) and sent her links with a bit of history about the Arizona community and its cotton mill. And in return, Linda graciously sent me this photo. She says the chimney once had a bronze plaque on it that apparently was stolen.

A photo of the entire building as it once existed is posted on the Louisiana GenWeb Archives site here. There is an Arizona Museum in the area; a Google book search turned up a older guidebook entry that states it is open by appointment only. On my genealogy to-do list (with a long list of others) is to contact them for info they might have on the mill or perhaps even about my great-great grandpa James McCoy, his wife Rebecca Jane Harrell, and their family.

Text copyright 2011 Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Melasie Hollier McBride portrait

2011-07-07T23:43:00.000-07:00

Melasie Hollier McBride (1830-1925), "photo portrait" on paper?, digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Nov. 2006. Original owned by cousins in Louisiana.

This is the only portrait known to me of my great-great-grandmother, Melasie Hollier McBride, daughter of Isidore Hollier and Arthémise Trahan.

She was born 11 Dec. 1830, probably in Opelousas, Louisiana, where she was christened in St. Landry Catholic Church on 16 Feb. 1831. She married William McBride in the same church on 20 Jan. 1852, bore him 10 children, and lived to the ripe old age of 94, surviving her husband by 50 years. A cousin wrote my family in 1990 that Melasie “lost her property during the flood of 1882. At present there is oil on the property; it was sold for delinquent tax payments. She had no income, all was lost in the flood.” She no doubt relied a lot on the kindness of her family, as she never remarried. She died 19 Aug 1925, probably in the Ossun community near Scott, Louisiana, where she lived with her daughter Octavie's family (my great-grandparents) at the end of her life.

Melasie's children and some of her grandchildren are enumerated here, and I describe the happy accident of finding her grave while looking for another here.

Sources include Southwest Louisiana Records, "Louisiana Deaths" at familysearch.org--see "Wm McBride [sic]", correspondence from Paul Ashton Legere, and Melasie's headstone at Sts. Peter & Paul Cemetery in Scott, La. If you find her in the 1870, 1900 or 1920 census, please let me know; I'm still looking!

Photo/text copyright 2011, Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

This is the Face of Genealogy

2011-06-10T14:53:00.000-07:00

In which I start off responding to a GeneaBlogger meme/call to action and wind up telling you why I heart genealogy ...

This is my dad, George Hall. When I was a child, he told me stories of his own childhood during the Great Depression that made it all sound like a Great Adventure, despite being one of seven children with a father who wasn't exactly in the running for "Father of the Year," as I found out later. My grandfather's refusal to speak about his past, and my amazement to find that my dad didn't know his own grandparents' names, are what set me off on my own adventures in genealogy more than 30 years ago. I am sure his storytelling ability influenced both my interest in writing and in family history.

This is my mom, holding me, and standing next to my "Paw Paw" Stevenson. When I wanted to find out more about my mysterious grandpa Robert Hall, my mom was the one who taught me the basics of genealogy and she's still the first person I call with new finds. Off and on over the years, we found out more about Grandpa Hall, though there are still plenty of questions to answer.

For this GeneaBlogger meme, I thought I'd post photos of my parents and me, because the "Face of Genealogy" isn't just wonderful old ancestral portraits -- it's YOU, it's ME, it's whatever you want it to be. It can be collecting lots of names and dates if that's what you like, and yes, it might be the stereotypical white-haired little old lady with glasses in a musty library (me someday, probably), but it can also be a kid interviewing grandparents about their lives, or a military history fan collecting records and artifacts about his or her ancestors' service. It can be a family trip to walk in the steps of your ancestors in their hometowns, or it can also be virtual Google Earth tours of ancestral hometowns that you can save to DVD or e-mail to cousins. There are many "faces" to this hobby, and it's not just about those long gone.

This is me, on my honeymoon in New Orleans, standing approximately where my Carrière ancestors lived in the 1720s. For me, genealogy has been solving many little mysteries of who/when/where like a crossword puzzle addict, chasing my "mystery grandpa" through the records, collecting and identifying family photos, finding new cousins and making new friends, sharing with family, brushing up my college French, learning more about the history my ancestors lived through, and dreaming of visiting ancestral homelands in Acadia, the UK, Ireland, and Europe. Perhaps most importantly, to me, it's preserving stories of my family and the lives they led for those to come.

I've looked up Dutch genealogy words, read about Cajun history, photographed cemeteries, learned new tech skills, joined a Hall DNA surname study, found family history gems in my dad's World War II personnel file, and delighted in visiting where my ancestors lived in one of my favorite cities, New Orleans (and that's just in the last couple of years). It's a varied and fun and wonderful adventure, this hobby, and I invite you to find your own "face" of genealogy.

Text/photos copyright 2011 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: William & Elizabeth (Faress) Cotter, Ringgold, La.

2011-05-31T15:22:00.000-07:00

W. H. [William Hadden] Cotter headstone, Providence Cemetery, Ringgold, La. Photo courtesy of Maxine Morgan.

William Hadden Cotter and Elizabeth Ann Faress Cotter (a.k.a. Queen Ann Elizabeth Fariss or Farris) are my great-great-grandparents. William was from Louisville, Jefferson County, Georgia, and "Lizzie" was from Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. They both died near Ringgold, Bienville Parish, Louisiana. You can see their portraits here or read more about my Cotter line here.

Elizabeth Ann Faress Cotter headstone, Providence Cemetery, Ringgold, La. Photo courtesy of Maxine Morgan.

I connected with Maxine Morgan (no relation to my husband's family that I know of) via Ancestry.com, where we discovered her husband and I have Cotters in common. Maxine, who has contributed quite a few Bienville Parish records to interment.net and USGenWeb, among other sites, graciously sent me these photos and gave me permission to post them here. Thanks, Maxine!

Tombstone Tuesday: Arthur & Catherine Estelle (Legere) Hernandez

2011-03-29T23:12:00.000-07:00

Arthur and Catherine Estelle (Legere) Hernandez headstones, St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery, Carencro, Lafayette Parish, La., November 19, 2007, digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan.

Catherine Estelle (or Estelle Catherine) Legere or Légère ("Estelle Catharine" in Southwest Louisiana Records and Estelle in census records, but "Catherine" according to her death certificate and her great-granddaughter) was my great-aunt, the daughter of my great-grandfather Constant Legere ("Leger" in some records) and his first wife (of four), Estelle Babineau(x). She was born 12 Dec. 1867, probably in Lafayette Parish, La. Extracted death certificate info says she was born in Carencro (in Lafayette Parish), and her birth was recorded in Grand Coteau, at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church (then the nearest Catholic church to the family, in St. Landry Parish). I think the Ossun community near Carencro, where her parents lived, is a safe bet for her birthplace, but that's just my opinion.

At age 15, she married Jean Euclide Brasseaux on 27 Dec. 1882 in St. Peter Roman Catholic Church in Carencro, but he died not long after their marriage (anyone have a date?) and they had no children that I know of. I recall noticing Brasseaux graves in a section near (catecorner from?) the Hernandezes, but I did not check for him on that visit.

Catherine married Arthur Hernandez on 2 Dec. 1884 in the same church. Arthur was the son of Sebastian Hernandez (of Canary Islands descent) and Euphrosine Sonnier (a Cajun). He was born 15 Jan. 1865, in Lafayette, La., according to extracted death certificate info, where his birth is recorded in St. John Catholic Church (now Cathedral) records. Arthur and Catherine farmed in Lafayette Parish and also reared 10 children there. My dad remembered some of his Hernandez cousins, who were a generation older than he and his siblings.

Catherine died 4 Oct. 1930 in Carencro, and Arthur died 4 Feb. 1949 in Rayne, in Acadia Parish. Their children included a teacher and a doctor. More on my Hernandez cousins in a future post.

My sources include Southwest Louisiana Records by Rev. Donald Hebert; U.S. Census records and La. Death Index at Ancestry.com; and La. Deaths at www.familysearch.org. Questions/corrections/additions welcome at hallroots [at] sbcglobal [dot] net.

Text/photo copyright 2011 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

2010 through the rearview & a blogiversary

2011-01-18T04:33:00.000-08:00

Tiramisu's the traditional 1st (wedding) anniversary dessert, right? Divina Cucina, Montrose, CA, 2010.

Happy New Year & Happy Blogiversary to me!

Thought I'd check back in after taking time off during the holidays. It's my second blogiversary, though I only have blogged with any regularity for the last year. I'm still here, still doing genealogy, still mentally composing blog posts while driving (making the title apropos), washing dishes (often while listening to a genealogy podcast), or doing other non-genealogical pursuits. But since my brain doesn't have Wi-Fi, I thought it might help if I got back to the keyboard. So here are some memorable moments from the past year, (mostly) genealogically speaking:

• Receiving the inaugural Rose Blogger award from a researcher I admire, Lucie LeBlanc Consentino, in January, was a big highlight of my entire year, and wonderful encouragement for a fledgling blogger. Other blogger-to-blogger awards were fun boosts & appreciated reminders that I am actually read and even occasionally pondered. Cool!

Dad & me, college graduation, Sulphur, LA, 1989

• My dad's death later that month was certainly the most difficult part of the year, but honoring his life, military service and joie de vivre through my blog has been therapeutic. I've been mostly private about expressing grief, but I'm proud to be his daughter and I hope that shows in what I have shared about him. A quiet "thank you" to fellow geneabloggers who wrote about their own losses this year; in sharing your grief, you reminded me I wasn't alone.

• I met a "new" (to me) cousin, who found me due to a blog post about Pie Day in Scott, Louisiana. Andre lives not far from me here in Southern California. We had a lovely brunch on the beach and have become fast Facebook friends. I keep threatening to hook her on genealogy, and I need to follow up on that soon with a library visit. We're 2nd cousins twice removed through the Légère family, which sounds distant, but we're not terribly far apart in age (OK, I'm older), know some of the same relatives and have similar food cravings, being fellow "Cajun expatriates" out here on the Left Coast.

"New" cousin Andre Arceneaux & me, Hermosa Beach, CA, 2010, wondering if the curly gene is Cajun...

• I "met" a few other cousins this year, "met" being in quotes because I haven't yet met them in person. My term for this is "e-mail cousins." :) They include more cousins (Guidry, Trahan, Blanchard and others) through the Legeres (I "collect" & enjoy corresponding with descendants of my great-grandpa Constant Legere and other Louisiana Legeres; e-mail me at hallroots [at] sbcglobal [dot] net if that's you), a McBride cousin, and a few Pate cousins. It's always fun to trade info and/or get acquainted by e-mail or through Facebook w/"new" cousins. Or to reconnect with cousins you do know. All you lurkers out there, I don't bite. (Well, if you're going after the last boudin link, I can't make any promises.) It was also nice to meet "e-mail cousin" Janice in person this year, my 2nd cousin through the Pate family, with whom I'd collaborated so much I felt I already knew her.

• I published slavery-related records, to warm thanks from bloggers searching for their enslaved ancestors, and to the sound of crickets from anyone not so thrilled that I actually admitted in print that some of my ancestors were slaveholders. Really, though, if most of your ancestors were white Southerners in the U.S., you probably have at least one slaveholder in your tree. (And Northern ancestors weren't immune.) It can be awkward to write about, but by sharing research I've helped at least one person connect the dots to find the likely slaveholders of her ancestors (and therefore resources for finding records of those ancestors), so I think it's worth it. If you don't feel comfortable writing about that particular skeleton in the family closet, consider contributing the info anonymously via the sites Afrigeneas or A Friend of Friends.

• By ordering a copy of Dad's official military personnel file, I uncovered some real gems, including his handwritten application letter to the Naval Aviation cadet program, high school transcript, a photo of him at age 21 (left), and info on his life for several years after World War II. I've neglected posting this series lately; I'm being too much of a perfectionist about posting concurrent info or photos from his military career with it, I suppose. I have info from a few sources and the timeline is a little fuzzy to me. I've been wanting to clarify it by transcribing the DVD of Dad telling stories of his service, but I wasn't ready to watch footage of him for a while. I'll probably get back to it soon.

• I attended one day of the SCGS Jamboree, the annual conference held by the Southern California Genealogical Society, and had so much fun I hope I can attend the entire weekend this year. I enjoyed seminars, exhibits, and especially the people I met, including Elyse Doerflinger, Becky Wiseman, Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Thomas MacEntee, Amy Coffin, George Morgan, Drew Smith, Joan Miller, and several others. I also took home some goodies I'm still exploring and want to write about.


With Becky Wiseman and Elyse Doerflinger at the 2010 SCGS Jamboree

• Lagniappe: Contributing vintage family photos for a cousin's cookbook memoir, which I'll blog about soon ... finally making Mom's peach cobbler from scratch (which came out pretty darn great, for someone who is more of a food assembler than a cook) ... visiting the original Forest Lawn for the first time in years ... celebrating our first wedding anniversary ... having fun on the Morgan siblings' (& impromptu Hall reunion) family vacation to DisneyWorld (until the E.R. detour, but thankfully my hubby is fine now) ... and getting cool genealogy Christmas gifts which I'll write about soon. Hmm... that means I have several things already to write about (besides the backlog in my head and the ones begun in Blogger). Better get crackin'.

Thank you all for reading and especially for commenting, "liking," and e-mailing! Wishing us all a wonderful 2011 with piles of rubble where our brick walls used to be--
Liz

Photos/text copyright 2011 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Saturday Outing: Forest Lawn, Glendale, CA

2010-11-13T23:58:00.000-08:00

(In which I am a silly newbie at Forest Lawn but have a good time anyway... )

I was feeling a bit blah today but it was beautiful out (81, woo hoo!), so I tell my hubby I'm going over to Forest Lawn Memorial-Park to look for third-ish cousins I recently discovered are buried there and to enjoy the nice day. Hubby laughs and replies, "You know, not everyone thinks of a cemetery as a great place to cheer up!" My reply: "Genealogists do!"

While some cemeteries can certainly be dreary, it's rather great to drive not far from your citified concrete, asphalt and stucco neighborhood and enjoy a serene, pastoral setting. Here's proof (click to enlarge the photos):

Liberty section, looking more or less NW (top) and S (bottom).

The silly newbie part? Well, I've lived in Southern California for 21 years, but have rarely visited a cemetery (I have few relatives buried here). Most of my cemetery research has been done in smallish, easily navigable church cemeteries in Louisiana. I visited Forest Lawn as a tourist on a family trip once when I was young, so I knew it was big, but WOW, I had forgotten exactly how big!

Even the map (a PDF is available in search results from the online Interment Locator) didn't get it into my head how big one section could be. Little Miss Independent just figured: I can follow a map! Well, yes, I can, but can I find the plots once I find the correct section? Um, no. The Liberty section, an older one, is especially large. I really should have driven right back down the hill/junior mountain to get more specific directions to find the plots of the cousins I'm seeking (Scott and Tullis family members). But no biggie, I was in the mood to explore, I don't live far from here, and it's not like the cousins are going anywhere! (I did notice the so-unobtrusive-as-to-be-nearly-invisible numbered directional markers and got more info on the way out. I will definitely get a map of this section itself next visit.)

Ankle brace, anyone? My car's on the far left, if you want to compare the hill's steep grade to the level road.

My cousins are buried on a very steep hill. Thanks, guys! I'm not frail or anything, but I have been known to trip over my own two feet when looking at headstones (or a book, or up at architecture) instead of where I'm walking. Down was harder than up, actually (pine straw can be slippery). So I made a mental note to take my cell phone next time; thoughts of indelicately crawling up the hill with a twisted ankle, using mini American flags à la rock-climbing pickaxes came to mind.

Speaking of flags, there were some visible in this section from Veterans' Day.

We're everywhere! (Cajuns and/or Acadians, that is.) Couldn't resist taking a photo--I'm always surprised to see an Acadian name in California. I don't directly descend from Babineaus, but my great-grandpa Constant Légère married a Babineau/x (Estelle, his first of four wives) in Louisiana. I'm guessing Albert G. Babineau was Acadian, because most Cajun Babineauxs seem to spell it with an 'x.' Will have to check Ancestry.com to see if I can find out his story. His wife, presumably, Marie A. Babineau, is buried next to him.

Some markers I just find touching. Having recently celebrated my first wedding anniversary with my husband, I thought this remembrance of Edwin Henry Grobe was particularly lovely: "Devoted companion through forty years of marriage, he lives in memory ... his love and kindness a constant and continuing inspiration, as they were each day of the many wonderful years we shared."

And oh, to be remembered for the ages as your husband's "best girl." So sweet. Will have to add these to Find a Grave, I think.

The western-facing slopes get beautiful golden light in the late afternoon. Not a bad place to rest eternally, nor spend an hour on a lovely day, n'est-ce pas?

Surname Saturday: Surnames tab up on my blog!

2010-11-06T20:30:00.000-07:00

Hey folks, if you have Louisiana ancestors, including French, Acadian, Cajun, Quebeçois, German, Irish, English, Scots-Irish or Scottish, in New Orleans, Northwest Louisiana or Southwest Louisiana, just a quick Surname Saturday note to say: Check my new Surnames tab at the top of my blog! Not all my lines are listed, by any means, but some of my more recent branches are, and some that I hope to be blogging about in the future (such as my NOLA colonials and my dash of German ancestry).

I have more Surname Saturdays in the works, but meanwhile, I'm trying to clean up and sync my citations and notes from among my private Ancestry tree, my Reunion database, and many computer notes and paper files, so that when I do post Surname Saturdays, I can either do it with footnotes, or have reports ready to go for inquiring cousins.

Here's a quick name list. Dates, places and links to blog posts (if any) are included on my blog's Surnames tab. Bogard, Bopff, Boftz, or Bossie?, Burell, Burelle, Burnaman, Burnam, Burnham, Boernemann?, Carriere, Cotter, Davis, Desbordes, Debordes, Farris, Faress, Fariss, Hadden, Hall, Harrell, Hollier, Kilpatrick, Langlois, Lebert, Leger, Legere, McBride, McCoy, Pate, Potier, Poiter, Pothier, Sanmerine, Saumerine, Smith, Stemmann, Stemmans, Stemann, Stephenson, Stevenson, Thommelin, Tommelin, Thomelin, Tomelin, Trahan, Trepagnier, Trepanier, Trepagny, Werich.

Your name isn't here? If it's in NW or SW Louisiana, especially if it's in Claiborne, Webster, Bienville or Lafayette Parishes, check my blog labels or tags list on the right-hand column of my blog just in case I've mentioned your people in passing. Or if you think we might have a connection, drop me a line at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net to compare notes.

Mystery Monday: Mystery photo, La. Legere or Leger family

2010-11-01T23:46:00.000-07:00

This is a copy of a photo owned by P.J. Blanchard, my 3rd cousin once removed. It was originally owned by his grandparents, Hypolite and Oza or Ozea (Landry) Blanchard, of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and is captioned on the back "Alciae Legere, Cameron 18 miles east Grand Chanere [sic] Rd." ["Alciae" is hard to read but it's the closest spelling P.J. could determine.]

There is a Grand Chenier Rd. in Cameron Parish, and there is a Leger or Legere family in Cameron Parish in the 1920 census with a daughter Elza ("Elzea" in Southwest Louisiana Records) who was born in 1901 in or near Kaplan to Alcée Legere (possibly spelled Leger) and Ida Landry Legere. Elza married Alva ("Alvy" or "Cap") Miller and lived in the community of Grand Chenier, in Cameron Parish. She is related to both P.J. and I through the Legere family, but neither of us knew of her before P.J. was given this box of photos. P.J. does remember that his father occasionally visited cousins in the Cameron area, though.

The photo mounting with what looks like a cardstock backing resembles one I have from North La. c. 1905. If it's from the same time period, the woman would probably be a generation older than Elza, perhaps her mother Ida Landry Legere or an aunt? Is there an "Alicia" relative perhaps? Or another "Elzea" or "Alcea" relative? Or could it be from c. 1920 and be Elza? Perhaps Ida Landry Legere is related to Oza Landry Blanchard, P.J.'s grandmother. I'm still investigating this angle along with the Legeres in Cameron Parish.

Meanwhile, P.J. and I would like to know if anyone out there can help us identify the woman. And while I'm asking, P.J. would also love to find a photo of his great-grandmother, Eve Legere Blanchard, wife of Romain Blanchard, of Kaplan, LA. She was born in 1862 in St. Landry Parish to Hypolite "Paul" & Mary (Addison) Legere and died in Kaplan (Vermilion Parish) in 1920. E-mail me at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net if you can help with either request. Thanks!

Another blog update

2010-10-27T23:15:00.000-07:00

Just a note to mention I tweaked my new Surnames page (linked at the top of the blog) by adding a few families who represent the spot of German heritage in my blog's title, and changing some links for a few surnames to be a bit more user-friendly. By the way, I'm a complete novice at German research, so that could make for eine kleine blog fodder. (I only know those words because of Mozart, from my flöte playing and musik study. Je ne spreche pas der Deutsch ... or something like that.)

To my Resources page (also linked up top), I added a link to some La. historical newspapers online (under my "most frequently-used" Internet resources at the top of the page) and a few links for African-American online research.

Hope you find these pages useful. Let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks!

Blog update

2010-10-25T20:11:00.000-07:00

Just a note to point out the links to new pages on the top of my main blog page. I added a "Disclosures" page to make the FCC happy (though I don't have much to disclose, really, despite the word count), and--much more fun--a "Surnames" page with a little info on some of the lines I'm researching (some a little more than others), with asterisks next to surnames with at least one slave owner for whom I have info, and links to related blog posts or lineages I've outlined. Enjoy!

William Hadden will excerpts

2010-10-07T23:40:00.000-07:00

I recently came across some notes given to my family by my cousin Zola Scott Hardy, who extracted info from the will of William Hadden, my 4th-great-grandfather, of Jefferson County, Georgia. Here is a transcription, with Zola's notes in parentheses & my notes in brackets.

Extracts from will of William Hadden
Jefferson Co. Ga. 20 Dec. 1813
died 22 Nov 1819

I, William Hadden of the Co. of Jefferson, Ga. ...

Item #1. my dau. [daughter] Sarah Clements tract of land lying on (looks like) Chevises Creek granted to Samuel Gordon [possibly Wm.'s wife Mary Gordon's father Samuel] containing 150 ac. [acres] & reserving 200 ac. ...
[There is a "Chevises Creek" in SC deed books I found through Google books. I wonder if this land is in Edgefield County, SC? There is a "Cheves Creek" in that county on Google maps.]

Item #2. ... to my two sons Gordon Hadden and William Hadden tract of land lying on the Ohoopie in Wash. [Washington] Co. cont. [containing] 287 1/2 ac.

Item #3. ... to my son Thomas Hadden that part of tract of land on which I now live, lying on Reedy Branch & to the west side of the rd. leading to Hutchins's land toward Ogechee River following the old rd. until it strikes Bothwell's line ...

Item #4. Mary Hadden [wife] the remaining part of the tract of land on which I now live ... after her death it to be divided bet. my son Thomas Hadden and my dau. Mary Hadden my son Gordon Hadden my dau. Margaret Hadden & my son William Hadden ...

Item #4. [sic, should be #5?] my negro man Abram & negro woman Esther & whole of my stock of horses, cattle & hogs, together with my household & kitchen furniture & plantation tools shall be retained in the hands of my executors herein named for the use and support of the said family for five years from date hereof [late 1819? He died 22 Nov. 1819] & after the expiration of 5 yrs. to be divided as follows:
     Household & kitchen furn. equally divided bet.
     my wife Mary Hadden
   [my] child: Margaret Hadden
William Hadden
                    Gordon [Hadden]
                    Mary [Hadden]
      and the negros & stock share and share ...
(Here does not mention daughter Sarah Clements.)

[Of the daughters, Sarah Hadden m. James CLEMENTS; Margaret A. Hadden m. Beniah S. CARSWELL; Mary Hadden m. David COTTER.]

I nominate and appoint my beloved wife Mary Hadden, Exectrix [sic] & Mr. Samuel Clements [possibly related to Sarah Hadden Clements' husband] exector [sic] of this my last will ...

Witness: John Lawsons or Larsons (hard to read)
               Isom MClendon (maybe McClendon)
               Andrew B. Lawson

Extracted by: Zola Scott Hardy, a 3rd great granddau. of Wm. Hadden through his dau. Mary Hadden who md. David COTTER . [Mary] later md. in Stewart Co. Ga. Samuel Garrett [23 Feb 1840]. Find no later record of Mary Hadden Cotter Garrett. Three of her children came to Ringgold, Bienville, La. area: son William Hadden Cotter b. 1825 who md. Elizabeth Ann Farress [Faress, Farris] 19 June 1856 Bienville [Parish], La., dau. Sarah Jane Cotter md. John Hide [or Hyde?] Scott 18 Feb 1846 Stewart Co., [GA], dau. Mary David Susan Cotter md. David Jackson Crumpton Stewart Co. Ga.

"Friend of Friends" Friday: Hadden will, Jefferson Co., GA

2010-10-01T18:05:00.000-07:00

"A friend of friends" was a password used on the Underground Railroad. My "Friend of Friends" posts on slavery-related records were originally inspired by Sandra Taliaferro's essay here. For more of my posts, click here or see others' posts at A Friend of Friends and on Fridays at Geneabloggers.

I recently came across some notes given to my family by my late cousin Zola Scott Hardy, who extracted info from the will of William Hadden, my 4th-great-grandfather, of Jefferson County, Georgia. For today I'll transcribe the portion pertaining to those enslaved and will transcribe more later. Click to enlarge the image; partial transcription is below, with my notes in brackets.

"... Item #4. [sic, should be #5?] my negro man Abram & negro woman Esther & whole of my stock of horses, cattle & hogs, together with my household & kitchen furniture & plantation tools shall be retained in the hands of my executors herein named for the use and support of the said family for five years from date hereof [late 1819? He died 22 Nov. 1819] & after the expiration of 5 yrs. to be divided as follows:
     Household & kitchen furn. equally divided bet.
     my wife Mary Hadden [née GORDON, daughter of Samuel GORDON & Sarah (HOGG?)]
" child: Margaret Hadden [Margaret A., m. Beniah S. CARSWELL]
William Hadden
                    Gordon
                    Mary [m. David COTTER]
                [Note: Item #1 mentions daughter Sarah Hadden, who m. James CLEMENTS.]
      and the negros & stock share and share ..."

Feel free to contact me at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net if you are working this line; I don't have a lot of info but am happy to share what I have.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: Edward Malapart

2010-09-28T23:40:00.000-07:00

Edward Malapart, 1899-1962, St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery, Carencro, Lafayette Parish, La., 19 Nov. 2007.

Edouard or Edward Malapart was the son of my (half-) great-aunt Marie Idalie Legere and her husband, Jean-Louis "Louis" Malapart, of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana. He was born 25 Aug. 1899 in Lafayette Parish, La. (probably in the Ossun area near Carencro--there's still a Malapart Road there) and died in 1962, though I don't know the exact date. I don't know if he ever married or had a family; he's listed in the census as a farmer. Idalie (Eudalie in some records) died in 1901 when her children Edward and Irma (b. abt 1901) were still quite young.

If you're related, drop me a line at the address on my blog. I'd love to know more about Louis & Idalie Malapart and if any photos of them exist.

Hurricane Rita, five years later

2010-09-24T23:54:00.000-07:00

Sulphur, Louisiana, Oct. 2005, post-Hurricane Rita. (The tree fell in front of the house, thankfully, not on it.)

As a child, the solemn tones people imparted when speaking the names Audrey, Betsy, Camille no doubt formed my sense of the power of hurricanes at a very early age. I don't remember how old I was when I learned that I should go into the hall closet and shut the door if a tornado was approaching, or into the hall at the very least, shutting all (wooden) doors behind me so as to be away from all windows. It just seems like something I always knew, like knowing where to duck at this moment if the earth beneath my feet begins to tremble out here on the West Coast.

No doubt the collective community memory, if not the actual experience, of these storms, saved many lives when people evacuated Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas before Hurricane Rita in 2005. And if stories of dead cows found 20 miles inland where they were pushed by Hurricane Audrey's 1957 storm surge wasn't enough to send residents packing, the still-fresh news footage of Katrina's aftermath to the east should have converted even nonbelievers.

Hurricane Rita hit the Louisiana/Texas border five years ago today. I was in California worrying about my family back home in Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas. I don't remember ever actually evacuating ahead of a hurricane in the 25 or so years I lived in Louisiana, only battening down the hatches and stocking up on canned goods and such. But Mom & Dad and other relatives actually got out of town for this storm, even though they live about 40 miles from the Gulf Coast.

Staying away from home for almost 2 weeks was difficult (Calcasieu Parish, my family's home, was officially "closed" due to the lack of electricity in most areas, passable roads and potable water in some. Cell phones, message boards, and e-mail relayed reports on local damage from those who stayed or sneaked in), though it probably paled to cleaning out the putrid freezers and fridges, everyone's least favorite chore, when they returned.

My parents were lucky that only a few trees were downed (and fell away from the house instead of on it) and roof shingles damaged. Many people came home to worse. Some still have repairs left undone, and others cannot afford to return to the coastal areas due to stringent new building codes and expensive insurance premiums.

Some call this the "forgotten" hurricane, because news coverage of it was much less than for Katrina. I suspect, however, that Rita and Ike will be the "Audrey" in the minds of my nieces & nephew and their children in the way that Audrey was the cautionary tale for my generation, told by those old enough and lucky enough to have lived through it.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: Cross Roads champions, an update

2010-09-22T23:21:00.000-07:00

Last August, I posted a photo of the 1924 Cross Roads School male basketball team, whose names were not written on the photo. Here is a possibly clearer version (click to enlarge) and happily, some names to go with it:

Cross Roads Basketball Team, Rural Champions, by Langdon Photo, Claiborne Parish, LA, 1924. Scan of original photograph owned by the Hall family of La., slightly edited for clarity.

Back row, L-R: unknown coach, Isaac "Floyd" McBride, Spurgeon Pate, Ernest Cardwell, unknown coach, unknown man to far right in hat.
Front row, L-R: Cullen Lary, unknown player, Joyce Cowser, Theron Harmon, Simpson Harmon.

Crossroads or Cross Roads is a community near Athens, in Northwest Louisiana. My grandmother, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, a teacher, was coach of the girls' team the same year. My mom found a list of names dictated to her by my grandmother many years after the photo above was taken. She had spelled Cullen's name "Leary" but it is "Lary" in the census and Social Security Death Index, and Floyd is "I. Floyd" or "Isaac" in online trees, but another photo of him online confirms that it's him.

My McBrides are from South Louisiana, so I doubt Floyd's a relative. Spurgeon, however, is a distant cousin of mine through the Pates. Ernest Cardwell may be a cousin to Georgia Cardwell of the girls' team photo I posted last week, and Joyce Cowser is probably a relative of Sula Cowser on the girls' team. Theron Harmon is the brother of Winnie Harmon of the girls' team, and also Janie Harmon, a "special friend" (as my mom would say) of my grandfather Alvin Stevenson before my grandmother came along. Simpson Harmon may be their cousin; he could be the "Harvey S." Harmon in Claiborne Parish in the 1920 census, but I'm not sure. The other female Harmons are probably cousins as well.

If you have young men or teachers who lived in Ward 6 of Claiborne Parish in the 1920 census, you might check the photo to see if your relative is here. Let me know if you can add any names to the photo or clarify the relationships. You can contact me at: hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Surname Saturday: COTTER, Ga. to La.

2010-09-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

Cotter/Pate/Young home, Bienville Parish, La., c. 1959. Photo by M. Hall, privately held by the Hall family, La. Built in the mid-1800s, with an addition built c. 1904, it was the home to three generations of Cotter descendants. The house was located on Hwy. 7, about 3-4 miles south of Ringgold, La., but sadly, no longer exists.

Today we have my COTTER line from my maternal great-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.

(My direct line is in bold; spouses are in bold italic.)

1. Liz HALL (m. MORGAN) - me
3. (living) STEVENSON - Mom
7. Edna Maud PATE (1896-1986)

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). On 2 Sep 1886, in Bienville Parish, LA, she married:

14. Newton King Brady or Bradie PATE. Born on 30 Dec 1852 in Sparta, Bienville, LA (to Anthony William Pate and Emily Lena Smith). Newton King Bradie ("Newt") died in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, on 15 Mar 1932. Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Pleasant Grove Cemetery). Etta was his third wife (previous marriages were to Mary Elizabeth Jones and Mary E. McGraw).
Children: Lucy Elizabeth Pate Corley, Minnie Lee Pate Wimberly, Emily Lena Pate Scott, James Weaver Pate, Zella Estella Pate Young Giddens, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, Ora Adell Pate Woodard, Jasper Brady Pate.

30. William Hadden COTTER. Born 26 Aug. 1825 in Jefferson County, GA. William died 23 June 1901 in Ringgold, Bienville, LA. Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Providence Cemetery). On 19 June 1856, in Bienville Parish, LA, he married:
31. Elizabeth Ann FARISS (or FARESS, FARRIS, etc.), a.k.a. "Queen Ann Elizabeth Fariss" (on her probate record). Born 5 Mar 1837 (to David Farris and Lucy Davis), "Lizzie" was from Catahoula Parish, LA (possibly her birthplace) and died 22 Feb 1870, in Ringgold, Bienville, LA. Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Providence Cemetery).
Children: William Gordon Cotter, Etta Orisca Cotter Pate, David Augusta Cotter, Lucy Elizabeth Salenah Cotter Tullis.
(William's 2nd marriage was to Sophronia or Saphronia Ann Nix Perkins Simmons, on 6 Apr 1873.)

60. David COTTER. Born about 1790-1794. David died before 2 Dec. 1833 in Jefferson County, GA. Probably between 1810-1820 (2 children were younger than 10 years old in the 1820 census), he married:
61. Mary HADDEN. Born about 1792 in Louisville, Jefferson, GA (to William Hadden and Mary Gordon). Mary died after 23 Feb. 1840, possibly in Stewart County, GA (date/place of her 2nd marriage).
Children: Isaac Cotter, Sarah Jane Cotter Scott, William Hadden Cotter, James Augustus Cotter, Mary David Susan Cotter Crumpton.
(Mary's 2nd marriage was to Samuel Garrett, on 23 Feb 1840 in Stewart County, GA.)

"Friend of Friends" Friday: LEGER and other "LE" surnames, SW La.

2010-09-17T02:44:00.000-07:00

"A friend of friends" was a password used on the Underground Railroad. My "Friend of Friends" series was inspired by the essay posted by Sandra Taliaferro here. I am posting slavery-related records occasionally as I come across them, in the hope that it might help other researchers find their ancestors. For more in the series, click here.

Rev. Donald Hébert's Southwest Louisiana Records series compiles church (mostly, but not exclusively, Catholic) and court records for southwestern parishes of Louisiana. (For tips on using the series, read my previous posts here.)

Volume 33 of the series is a supplement containing records from 1756-1904 not included in previous volumes, corrections, and "records of blacks" [the volume's term, not mine] from 1765-1886. Hébert says that some records are mixed into the other volumes; check the entire series if you are researching African-Americans (most churches kept separate registers for slaves, which is probably why the records are separated in this volume). The "records of blacks" section has many records of slaves without surnames, which are alphabetized by first name only, followed by the slaveowner's name. Entries with surnames may refer to free people of color, slaves, or post-slavery records, depending on the date and the person's status.

I copied a page including Legers from the volume; I don't think they're connected with my Legeres (whose spelling is standardized to "Leger" in these volumes), but maybe it will help someone. These aren't technically records from slavery, but I include them as they are church records from 1865-1879 and may help those doing African-American research (spellings are as in the book):

from volume 33, p. 223:
LEGER, Alexis (Narcus & Genevieve VALERY) bt. 1866 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 43) [Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Church Point, La.]
LEGER, Elizabeth (Michel & Pelcile) bt. 1865 (CP Ch.: v.2, p. 36)
LEGER, Henry (Narcisse & Genevieve VALLERY) bt. 1868 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 49)
LEGER, Marie m. 14 April 1879 William NED (GC Ch.: v. 4, p. 313) [St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, Grand Coteau, La.]
LEGER, Narcise Michel m. 1866 Genevieve VALERY (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 8)

Other surnames on the page include LEDE (Amelia through Valentin), LEDET (Jean only), LEDOUX (Louis Palemon only), LEIGH (Mrs., slaveowner on Bayou Boeuf), LEJEUNE (Louis only), and LEMELLE (partial, Alphred through Félicité), in records from 1801-1876. I'm happy to do lookups; just drop me a line w/the given name/s or places for which you're looking at the address at the right side of my blog page under "about me."

p.s. Some of my ancestors owned slaves, unfortunately. Fortunately, I don't mind if you see a familiar surname in my blog and want to ask me about it. I haven't researched all my ancestors' history with (or without) slavery, and I'm a bit new to that area of research, but ask me if you like, I'll look into it. It's weird, it's awkward, but we can be weird and awkward together, and maybe help each other along the way.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

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

2010-09-16T15:34:00.000-07:00

I'm sharing the recently-acquired "official military personnel file" (OMPF) for my dad, a WWII U.S. Naval aviator in the Pacific, a few pages at a time. Click here to see what I've posted so far, and click on any image to enlarge it.

After training as a U.S. Naval cadet in 1944 in Athens, Ga., St. Louis (where he trained in, among others, Boeing/Stearman biplanes like the one pictured below), and Pensacola, Fla., Dad was appointed as an Ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve.

George Hall, Planes of Fame Air Museum, Chino, Calif., Oct. 2009. Photo by J. Morgan, privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

The memo above concerns appointment as an ensign and reporting to the commandant of the Naval Air Training Center in Pensacola, Fla., for further assignments. Dad's cohorts at the time included Arthur Dale Gripton, Robert Watrous Guernsey, Jerauld Anthony Gunzelman and Raymond Joseph Happley.

Above is the acceptance and oath of office, dated June 23, 1944. Dad's oath: "I, George Constant Hall, having been appointed an Ensign, U.S. Naval Reserve, do hereby accept such appointment and do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."

Dad's official notice of his new designation, "Naval Aviator (Heavier-than-Air)." (Meaning he is qualified to fly airplanes, as opposed to balloons or dirigibles, at least according to Wikipedia.)

Find out more about requesting military personnel files here.
Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: an update

2010-09-15T18:32:00.000-07:00

Cross Roads Basketball Team, Rural Champions, by Langdon Photo, Claiborne Parish, LA, 1924. Photograph privately held by the Hall family, La., edited slightly.

Update: My mom found a list of names dictated to her by Grandmother many years after the photo above was taken. Remarkably, in searching online to verify identities, it seems correct. Kudos to Grandmother for her keen memory & Mom for the list. I give you the 1924 Rural Champions and their eventual husbands:

Front row, L-R: Irene Harmon (m. Justin Caskey), Bertha Harmon (m. Lamar Nicholson), Winnie Harmon (m. C. Hicks), Georgia Cardwell (m. Ike Gore), Vera Stevenson (m. Lenton P. "Pete" Frye).

Back row, L-R: Edna Pate (m. Alvin Stevenson), Sula Cowser (m. Howard Barber), Katie Bell Craighead (m. Terry? Gamble), Myrtie White (m. Chelcy Blagg), Mrs. Dave Tarpley [née Willye Lee Kimbell], Principal.

Cross Roads is a community about 3 miles east of Athens, Louisiana. My grandmother Edna Maud Pate, teacher and team coach, is in the hat on the left. (She knew nothing about basketball but learned the rules when she was asked to coach the girls.) My great-aunt Vera Stevenson is sitting on the right in front. ~~I don't know the identity of the others.~~ Edna & Vera became sisters-in-law a couple of years later, when Edna married Vera's brother Alvin Jasper Stevenson.

See the updated boys' team photo, which includes members of the Harmon, Cardwell & Cowser families, here.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: Anthony & Emily Lena (Smith) Pate

2010-09-14T23:23:00.000-07:00

Headstone of Anthony W. and Emily (Smith) Pate, Bistineau Cemetery, Bienville Parish, Louisiana*, February, 2005. Digital photo copyright 2010 by and courtesy of J. Marler, all rights reserved. (Click on the photo to enlarge it.)

Anthony William Pate and Emily Lena Smith (possibly Lena Emily Smith) are my great-great-grandparents, the grandparents of my maternal grandmother Edna Maud Pate Stevenson.

Anthony, a farmer, was born to Mr. & Mrs. Willeroy Pate (her maiden name is unknown) on 11 Jun. 1812 in Smith or Jackson County, Tenn. Emily was born to Mr. & Mrs. [Samuel?] Smith on 25 Jan. 1824 in Arkansas. The couple was married by 1841. They are found in census records in Claiborne Parish, La., in 1850 (and possibly 1840, though there is another Anthony Pate family who lived in Claiborne Parish) and had moved to Bienville Parish by or before 1880. Anthony died in Heflin, Webster, La., on 13 Jul. 1894. Emily died in Bienville Parish, La., on 11 Apr. 1896.

Their children were: Leroy Pate, Mary Elizabeth Pate Harper, Serena Pate McFarland, Jasper Grady Pate, Margaret Josephine Pate Davis, Newton King Brady Pate (my great-grandfather), Anthony D. Pate, May R. Pate Hand, Martha G. Pate, Wilberoy S. Pate, and Jerome B. Pate.

To see my entire Pate line and a photo of siblings Newt and Serena, click here. For more on my Pate line and other Pate families, see the late Jinks Pate Lee's website here.

Questions: Where did they live between 1850 & 1880? [No, I don't think Anthony in the census in Arkansas is "our" Anthony.] Mr. Smith [Samuel?] and his wife were born in Maryland, according to Emily's 1880 census entry, and she was born in Arkansas. Anyone out there have a Samuel Smith or other Smith born (roughly) about 1800 in Maryland who lived in Arkansas? What was Willeroy Pate's wife's name? See "about me" on the right side of my blog for my e-mail address. Thanks!

*Note: Bistineau Baptist Church & Bistineau Cemetery's address is Heflin, La. (in Webster Parish), but according to Find A Grave, the cemetery's physical location, near the parish line, is in Bienville Parish.

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: James McCoy

2010-09-07T23:57:00.000-07:00

Headstone of James McCoy (1841-1906) and half-brother Alexander McCoy (1856-1893), Wilmington and Brandywine Cemetery, Wilmington, Delaware, Nov. 2009. Digital photo courtesy of J. Marler, all rights reserved. (The reverse side of the stone, here, memorializes their parents.)

James McCoy was my great-great-grandfather and one of my few "Yankee" ancestors (among those born in the United States -- most are from so deep in the Deep South that Delaware seems like the frozen North in comparison). A cabinetmaker and thread-mill worker born in Wilmington, Delaware about 1841, James moved to Louisiana between 1865 and 1871 to work as a supervisor of a cotton-thread mill in Arizona, a small community near Homer in Claiborne Parish. (I'm fairly sure he served as a Union soldier for Delaware in the Civil War. Wonder if he mentioned that to any of his Louisiana acquaintances?)

He married Rebecca Jane Harrell and had two children, including my great-grandmother Maggie Elizabeth McCoy Stevenson. The family is listed in the 1880 census in Lincoln Parish, La. Some time after Jane's death in 1881, he either returned to Delaware to live or was simply visiting family when he died there on Jan. 26, 1906.

If anyone has more info on where James lived during his life, his wife Rebecca Jane Harrell's burial place, or what happened to their son "N.," who disappears after the 1880 census (I'm guessing he died young), please e-mail me at hallroots (at) sbcglobal (dot) net. Thanks!

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Madness Monday: Katrina + 5

2010-08-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

Remembering those lost in Hurricane Katrina due to the madness of both natural and man-made disasters. Thinking of those who are still rebuilding their lives all along the Gulf Coast.

For news coverage, see: nola.com, al.com, gulflive.com.

St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square, New Orleans, Oct. 2009. Digital photo copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Back to school in 1901 Louisiana

2010-08-26T23:55:00.000-07:00

This is an ad I found in a 1901 Lafayette, La. Advertiser while doing genealogy research on Ancestry.com. I thought a few of my Tiger pals would get a kick out of reading about Louisiana State University's "oldest and best Sugar Course in America" and its "Instruction thorough, modern, practical, fitting young men for success in any calling." [Sorry ladies, the first woman wasn't enrolled until 1904.]

My dad, George Hall, and his brother John both attended LSU. Dad earned a bachelor's in biology, Uncle John in dairy science. Both attended on the G.I. bill, I think, after World War II.

LSU opened its doors in 1860 as the Seminary of Learning of the State of Louisiana. Hmmm, that means its 150th birthday is this year. I can almost smell the grills firing up for some amazing tailgate celebrations this fall!

Click here for more on LSU history.

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan; all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: Hannah Kilpatrick Stevenson Dobbins

2010-08-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

Hannah E. Kilpatrick Stevenson Dobbins headstone, Tulip Cemetery, near Athens, Claiborne Parish, La. Photo by M. Hall, abt. 2005.

Hannah [the headstone spelling is wrong] was my great-great-grandmother. She married James W. Stevenson (my great-great-grandfather), and later married Giles Weaver Dobbins. She was born Nov. 19, 1848, in Franklin County, Tennessee, to John Milton Kilpatrick and Emily Coleman Morgan. Hannah died Dec. 13, 1927, in Marsalis, Claiborne, Louisiana.

Treasure Chest Thursday: V-J Day

2010-08-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

Note: For some reason, probably my own error, this didn't make the Geneabloggers "Sentimental Sunday" feed, so I'm reposting for "Treasure Chest Thursday." If this is a repeat for you, thanks for your patience. --Liz

Sixty-five years ago Sunday was V-J Day, or "Victory over Japan Day," the day Japan announced its surrender in World War II, at least on the Japanese side of the international date line, where my dad, George Hall, was a U.S. Navy fighter pilot. It apparently was still Aug. 14, 1945 in the United States. (However, my trusty Associated Press Stylebook says that V-J Day is considered to be both Aug. 15, the day fighting ended, and Sept. 2, the day of official surrender.) In any case, I wanted to post a photo of a flyer printed by my dad's aircraft carrier, the USS Hancock, which he kept with his Navy memorabilia (click photo to enlarge it).

"War Over!" flyer, USS Hancock, off Japan, August, 1945, privately held by the Hall family, La. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2010.

The flyer reproduces the text of the message from the Secretary of Navy which was "read to all hands at 0900, Tokyo time, 15 August by Captain Hickey," and President Truman's address to the American people. It also states that the chaplains later led the crew in a prayer of thanksgiving and also a prayer for those who gave their lives in the war.

Dad said he was on patrol in the air in his F6F Hellcat at the time Japan's capitulation was announced, and he & his colleagues celebrated by doing a loop or two and chasing each other around the sky, though they were on alert for any Japanese planes looking to make a final attack. He thought a buddy in his air group (VF-6) shot down the last enemy plane of the war, though I don't know if that was ever proven.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

"What I did on my Treasure Chest Thursday": a Friday review

2010-08-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

South Pasadena, Calif. Farmer's Market, 31 July 2008, from "Benjamin Page's Pasadena and Los Angeles by Benjamin Page," on Flickrphoto, used under Creative Commons license.

Treasured Afternoon
by Liz Hall Morgan

Farmer's market day
Pluots, peaches, plums, oh my!
Heirloom tomatoes

Such dazzling produce
Redyelloworangebluegreen
Drat! No camera!

Sandwiches gourmet
Tuneful French accordion
Al fresco delight

Craved-for gelato
Sicilian pistachios
What more can I say?

Photos in my mind
Hubby and his lovely sis
These are my treasures

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: Pate/Cotter, Ringgold, LA

2010-08-10T19:12:00.000-07:00

Newton King Brady (or Bradie) Pate and Etta Orisca Cotter Pate are my great-grandparents, my maternal grandmother Edna Maud Pate's parents. They are buried in Pleasant Grove Cemetery in Ringgold, Bienville Parish, Louisiana.

Headstone of Newton King Brady & Etta Orisca (Cotter) Pate, Pleasant Grove Cemetery, Ringgold, LA, Feb. 2005. Photo copyright by J. Marler, 2005, used with permission.

N.K.B., or "Newt," as he was also known, was born to Anthony William Pate & Emily Lena Smith Pate 30 Dec 1852 in Sparta, Bienville, La. and died 15 March 1932 in Ringgold, Bienville, La. He married:

Mary Elizabeth Jones 28 July 1874 in Webster Parish, La. (Child: Lilla Pate Collinsworth) After Mary's death, he married:

Mary E. McGraw 20 Sept 1877 in Bienville Parish, La. (Children: Andrew Nelson Pate, Lofa May "Lofie" Pate, Carrie Arminty Pate, Mary Margeana "Margie" Pate Bryan, and Anthony William "Will" or "Willie" Pate) After her death, Newt then married my great-grandmother,

Etta Orisca Cotter, 2 Sept 1886 in Bienville Parish, La. Etta was born to William Hadden Cotter & Queen Ann Elizabeth (a.k.a. Elizabeth Ann) (Farris) Cotter 19 Mar 1859 in Ringgold, Bienville, La. and died 27 June 1937 in Ringgold, Bienville, La. Newt and Etta's children were: Lucy Elizabeth Pate Corley, Minnie Lee Pate Wimberly, Emily "Lena" Pate Scott, James "Weaver" Pate, Zella Estella or Estelle Pate Young Giddens, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, Ora Adell Pate Woodard, and Jasper "Brady" Pate (a.k.a. J.B.).

For more on my Pates, including Bible records, portraits and stories, click here. For other Pate families in Louisiana and elsewhere, check out the late Jinks Pate Lee's website.

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Surname Saturday: McCOY from Ireland to DE to LA

2010-08-07T23:52:00.001-07:00

Today we have my McCOY line, one of my few Northern lines, originating from my maternal great-grandmother. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources are available--just ask! See my blog ("about me" on the right sidebar) to contact me for more info or to share info.

Immigrant ancestor Alexander McCoy's plot in Wilmington & Brandywine Cemetery, Wilmington, Delaware. Digital photo courtesy of J. Marler, Nov. 2009, all rights reserved.

(The direct line is in bold; spouses in bold italic.)

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me
3. Mom STEVENSON
6. Alvin Jasper STEVENSON (Sr.) (1897-1974)

13. Maggie Elizabeth McCOY. Born on 16 Aug 1876 in LA. Maggie Elizabeth died in Minden, Webster, LA, on 11 Aug 1937. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery near Athens). On 30 Nov 1893 in Athens?, Claiborne Parish, LA, she married:
12. John William STEVENSON. Born (to James W. Stevenson and Hannah E. Kilpatrick) on 9 Jul 1871 near Homer, Claiborne Parish, LA. John died in Caddo Parish, LA, on 29 Apr 1942. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery near Athens).
Children: Ethel Gertrude Stevenson, Alvin Jasper Stevenson (Sr.), John T Stevenson and Vera Mae Stevenson Frye.

26. James McCOY. Born abt 1841 in Wilmington, New Castle, DE. A cabinetmaker and then a cotton mill worker, James died in Wilmington, New Castle, DE, on 26 Jan 1906. Buried in Wilmington, New Castle, DE (Wilmington & Brandywine Cemetery). Between 1865 & 1872, prob. in LA (where he reportedly moved to be a supervisor in a cotton thread mill in the Arizona community near Homer, LA), he married:
27. Rebecca “Jane” HARRELL. Born (to Levi Thomas Harrell ("Billy") and Rebecca A. Smith) abt 1854 in AL. Rebecca Jane died in Lincoln or Union Parish, Louisiana, abt 1881.
Children: (son) N. McCoy [died young?] and Maggie Elizabeth McCoy Stevenson.
Note: We'd love to know more about Jane if anyone has more info.

52. Alexander McCOY. Born in 1816 in IRELAND. Alexander was a cotton weaver and farmer and died prob. in Wilmington, DE, in 1872. Buried in Wilmington, New Castle, DE (Wilmington & Brandywine Cemetery). Before 1838, prob. in PA, he married his first wife:
53. Margaret ALLEN. Born in DE. Margaret died in 1849, prob. in Wilmington, DE. Buried in 1849 in Wilmington, New Castle, DE (Wilmington & Brandywine Cemetery).
Children: Martha Jane McCoy Garey or Geary, Ann or Anna McCoy McCartney, Mary McCoy, William "Will" McCoy, and Emily McCoy Colwell.
(Alexander's second wife was Margaret BRANNEN or BRANNON, whom he married 4 July 1850, in Loveville, near Wilmington, DE. They had children Catherine B. "Kate" McCoy Johnson and Alexander McCoy (Jr.).)

Follow Friday: "The Cajuns" website

2010-08-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

Note: "Follow Friday" is a theme used by some geneabloggers to recommend other bloggers, websites or genealogy resources of interest.

Stanley LeBlanc's The Cajuns website has useful info and links for researching South Louisiana ancestors (especially Cajuns, but also others), including history, maps, place names and even a list of hurricanes to hit Louisiana. Stanley also offers various reports for nominal fees.

Now was "b" for baptism, burial, or birth? (Oh my!) And what was that church's name in Duson?

After I e-mailed him that I had mentioned his site's useful key to the abbreviations of Hebert's Southwest Louisiana Records (SWLR) volumes, he replied that he had been meaning to add more abbreviations lists and almost immediately added info for Hebert's South Louisiana Records (SLR) volumes. (Both are under the "Resources" drop-down menu.) How's that for service?

Stanley has also added info for the Diocese of Baton Rouge Catholic Church Records volumes (DOBR) and the Sacramental Records of the Roman Catholic Church of the Archdiocese of New Orleans (ADNO) volumes (also under the "Resources" menu). Each of these multivolume sets do contain a key in each book. However, if you've used library volumes or Internet sources (trust but verify!) and aren't sure about a particular abbreviation later, or if you want to figure out what year a parish was organized to narrow down where an ancestor was baptized, for instance, Stanley's lists can be a big help. His "Corrections" link also points you to published corrections to some of these and other well-known compilations of Louisiana records. Don't neglect checking corrections and additions to these volumes, as you could find an elusive answer in this way. "The Cajuns" thus is a useful complement for your South Louisiana genealogy research, and fun to peruse, as well.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan. All rights reserved.

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

2010-08-05T23:25:00.000-07:00

I'm sharing the recently-acquired military personnel file for my dad, a WWII U.S. Naval aviator in the Pacific, a few pages at a time. Click here to see what I've posted so far, and click on any image to enlarge it.

Last week, I posted Dad's Navy separation document, which listed some of his training to become a Navy pilot. Here are a couple of books he used during that training.

Dad had 13 weeks of "Prep Flight" training in Natchitoches, La., where he no doubt used the book pictured below:

Principles of Flying, manual used by George Hall and privately held by the Hall family, La. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Jan. 2010.

Next was "WTS" [W---? Training School?] at SLI (now University of Louisiana Lafayette) in Lafayette, La. for 14 weeks. Here is the log book for that training:

CPT Pilot Rating Book used by George Hall in US Naval aviator training and privately held by the Hall family, La. Digital photos by Liz Hall Morgan, Jan. 2010.

Dad then trained in Athens, Ga., St. Louis, and Pensacola, Fla. before becoming certified as a naval aviator and receiving a commission. (More on that to come.) Dad also recorded his memories on a DVD; once I learn more about DVD editing, I will perhaps post a snippet or two of digital video and let him tell you about his service in his own words.

Find out more about requesting military personnel files here.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Remembrance of cobblers past

2010-08-04T22:30:00.000-07:00

Proust had nothing on my mom's peach cobbler. I may be 1700 miles away from home, but one bite of this recipe and she was with me. :)

Tombstone Tuesday: Peggy Catherine Stevenson

2010-08-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

[Peggy] Catherine Stevenson, Jan. 21, 1934 - May 3, 1934, Tulip Cemetery, in Claiborne Parish near Athens, Louisiana. Photo by M. Hall c. 2007, privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

Peggy Catherine (there apparently wasn't room for her entire name on the stone or it was a mistake that was not corrected) was my mom's baby sister who died due to Rh disease. The third child of Alvin Jasper Stevenson, Sr., and Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, she is one of those children who live and die between censuses and are thus easily omitted from family histories. My mother and a cousin or two may be the only living people who remember her; no photos exist of which I'm aware. Mom says the arrival of her baby sister was like having her very own living baby doll.

I think she probably would have had light reddish brown hair and fair skin like her siblings. Perhaps the closest I can come to imagining her appearance is by looking at one of the earliest photos of my mom, below (cropped and edited rather clumsily, but it will suffice).

RIP, Aunt Peggy. You are still remembered with love.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan. All rights reserved.

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

2010-07-29T17:44:00.000-07:00

Although a copy of my dad's military separation document is one of the last items in his OMPF (Official Military Personnel File), I'm posting the scanned original as part four of this series. Curiously, the file doesn't contain documents detailing his training as an aviator cadet, but this form lists the types of instruction he received with the location and duration of each, along with a wealth of other info. (Have you neglected military records in your own 20th-century research? You might be surprised at how much info they contain.) It seemed a logical next post as I discuss Dad's military career chronologically.

Notice of Separation from U.S. Naval Service (Form NAVPERS 553) for George Constant Hall, 21 Dec. 1945, New Orleans, Louisiana. Digital scan of original privately held by the Hall family, La.

A military separation document can provide a lot of genealogical information. This one form contains:

my father's full name
birth date and place
residence
date of enlistment
date of entry into active duty
date of commission
date of separation, and
place of separation.

It also details the places Dad received specialized training and the length of each course:

"PrepFlight," Natchitoches, La., 13 weeks
"WTS," Lafayette, La., 14 weeks
"PreFlight," Athens, Ga., 12 weeks
"Primary, St. Louis, 12 weeks
"Basic," "Instruments," and "Advanced," Pensacola, Fla., 27 weeks.

The form states that he served in Fighting Squadron Six (also known as VF-6). Dad was a fighter pilot, and the form tells us that he served aboard the USS Hancock, an aircraft carrier stationed out of NAS Hilo, Hawaii.

Also given are dates and details of his previous employment, as a "derrickman (oil)" for the Union Sulphur Co. in Sulphur, La., and his preference (at the time) to work in aviation after leaving the Navy. The form also lists his formal education (high school) and vocational training (3 months of machinist instruction) as of December, 1945.

Oh, and it tells me that Dad's draft board was in Sulphur, La., where the Hall family had lived since the 1930s. For World War II draft records, only the Fourth Registration ("the old man's draft") is currently open to the public due to privacy laws. I can wait for Dad's registration record--I don't expect to find any info I don't already know--but this is a great clue for my "mystery grandpa" Robert Bunyan Hall, who may have qualified for that registration (men who born on or between 28 April 1877 and 16 February 1897 who were not already in the military -- Grandpa's birth year is listed as 1875, 1877 and 1878 on various forms). Currently, Ancestry.com does not have the Louisiana records (some records are online there), but they are available on microfilm. Woo hoo!

While today's military separation forms (detailing release or discharge from active duty) are referred to as "DD Form 214" or "DD-214," the forms had other designations in the past. The National Archives website states: "Before January 1, 1950, several similar forms were used by the military services, including the WD AGO 53, WD AGO 55, WD AGO 53-55, NAVPERS 553, NAVMC 78PD, and the NAVCG 553." Find out more about requesting military personnel files here.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan. All rights reserved.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: Déjà vu edition

2010-07-28T23:58:00.000-07:00

Tsunami evacuation route sign, Hermosa Beach, California, 25 July 2010.

Hmmm... where have I seen this before? Oh, yeah, my blog post from last summer. Once a Cajun who loves living near the coast but could have to flee its tempests, always blah blah blah ... :)

Surname Saturday: McBRIDE from Eastern USA to Louisiana

2010-07-24T21:15:00.000-07:00

Today we have my McBRIDE line, originating from my paternal great-grandmother. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources below; see my blog ("about me" on the right sidebar) to contact me for more info or to share info.

L to R: Siblings Marie McBride Dupre, Clothilde McBride Devillier, Joseph "Joe" McBride and Octavie "Tavie" McBride Legere on the day of brother Felix McBride's funeral, 10 Dec. 1941, Port Arthur, TX. Photographer unknown; copy of original privately held by Hall family of La. and edited by Liz Hall Morgan.

(The direct line is in bold; spouses in italic. Bracketed numbers refer to footnotes below.)

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me
2 & 3. Dad HALL & Mom STEVENSON
4 & 5. Robert Bunyan HALL & Elia LEGERE

11. Marie Octavie "Tavie" McBRIDE. Born on 31 Jan 1859 in St. Landry Parish, LA. [1], [2] Marie Octavie "Tavie" died in Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, on 29 Mar 1946. [3], [2], [4] Buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA. [2]
On 23 Feb 1889, she married her 2nd husband (1st was Cyprien STEMMANN a.k.a. STEMMANS. Children: Joseph Henri Stemmans, Joseph Ulysse Stemmans, Philomene Stemmans Weber, Ludovic Stemmans):
10. Constant LEGERE [5], [6] in Carencro, Lafayette, LA. [7], [8] Constant was born 26 Oct 1837 in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA to Hypolite Paul LEGERE and Marcellite LEBERT [5], died in Rayne, Acadia, LA [5a], and is buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA. [5b] [Constant had 3 previous wives; click his name above for more info.]
(Children: Elia Legere Hall, Mary "Evia" Legere Hardy, Marie Anita "Nita" Legere O'Toole, Fabien Legere, Claude Legere.)

22. William McBRIDE. [9] Born abt 1822 in St. Landry Parish, LA. [10], [11] William died on 3 Jan 1875??? in Port Barre, St. Landry, LA??? [Everyone & his dog has this date; what is the source? v. 12 of SWLR? Please e-mail me if you know.] Possibly served in the Confederacy in the Civil War.
On 20 Jan 1852 William married:
23. Melasie HOLLIER [9] in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA. [12], [13] Born on 11 Dec 1830 in Opelousas?, St. Landry, LA to Isidore HOLLIER and Arthémise TRAHAN. [14] Melasie died in Scott, Lafayette, LA, on 19 Aug 1925; she was 94. [4] Buried in Scott, Lafayette, LA. [15]
(Children: William McBride, Thomas Jean McBride, Marie Arthémise McBride Duhon Dupre, Marie Octavie McBride Stemmann or Stemmans Legere, Joseph Octave "Joe" McBride, Felix McBride, François Ignace McBride, Mathilde McBride, Marie Clothilde McBride Devillier, Cecile McBride Devillier)

44. Thomas Walter McBRIDE. [16], [17] Born in Virginia. [18] Thomas Walter died on 12 Oct 1824 in New Orleans, Orleans, LA. [19], [20], [21] He was a blacksmith.
In St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA? [16], [23], Thomas Walter married:
45. Julienne BOGARD a.k.a. BAUGARD, BOGART. [22] Born on 25 Aug 1793 in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, LA to Jacob BOGARD and Margaret/Marguerite RITTER. [24]
(Children: Thomas Jefferson McBride, Mary Margaret McBride, Robert McBride, David McBride, Walter Scott McBride, Charles McBride, Mary Anna McBride, William McBride, Mathilda McBride)
After Thomas Walter's death, Julienne married Joseph W. TINSLEY and then Jean Frederick GABEREL.

88. Thomas McBRIDE. [16]
Thomas married:
89. Marie SCOTT. [16]
POSSIBLY, but it has not been proven, they married 28 Nov 1769 in Joppa, Baltimore, MD [27], [28]. More research needs to be done; this record, from an index, may be available on microfilm.

Sources

1. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 6, p. 451, citing Opel. Ch. [St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, LA], v. 6, p. 103: "McBRIDE, Marie Octavie (William & Melasie HOLLIER) b. 31 Jan 1859."
2. Octavie McBride Legere tombstone, St. Peter Catholic Church cemetery, Carencro, LA, photographed by M. Hall, 1995, "Mrs. Constant Legere, 1859-1946."
3. Ancestry.com, "Louisiana Statewide Death Index, 1900-1949 [database on-line]." Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2002, Lafayette Parish, LA, vol. 5, certificate #839.
4. FamilySearch, "Louisiana Deaths, 1850-75; 1894-1954." http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch/start.h-tml#c=1609793;p=collectionDetails;t=searchable.
5. "Transcript of Baptismal Record of Constant Legere," St. Landry Catholic Church, 17 Nov. 1961, Opelousas, LA, Baptism Book VII, p. 64, #47, photocopy of official transcript recorded by Rev. Alcide Sonnier, owned by Liz Hall Morgan.
5a. FamilySearch, “Louisiana Deaths, 1850-75; 1894-1954.,” http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch/start.h-tml#c=1609793;p=collectionDetails;t=searchable.
5b. “Constant Legere tombstone (shared with daughter Odette),” St. Peter Catholic Church cemetery, Carencro, LA, photographed by M. Hall, 1995.
6. Research of K. LeDoux and M. Hall.
7. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 20, p. 250, citing Carencro Ch. [St. Peter Catholic Church, Carencro, LA], v. 2, p. 74, 23 Feb 1889.
8. Ibid. v. 20, p. 250, citing Laf. Ct. Hse. [Lafayette Parish Courthouse, Lafayette, LA], mar. #4319, 20 Feb. 1889.
9. Ibid. v. 5, p. 421, citing Opel. Ch. [St. Landry Catholic Church records], v. A, #17, marriage of Wm.
10. "1860 U.S. Census," Opelousas, St. Landry, LA, p. 187, lines 14-20, 26 Sept 1860, digital image of Nat'l Archives microfilm, www.ancestry.com, b. abt 1825, LA.
11. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, from CD via David Leleux's Rootsweb tree: "McBRIDE, Guillaume [William] (dec. Walter McBRAID & Pouponne BAUGARD) bt. 1 Feb. 1834 at age about 12 yrs. Spons: Christophe STEEL & Anastasie LEGER, wife of Christophe STEEL. Fr. Flavius Henri ROSSI (Opel. Ch.: v.3, p.267)
12. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 5, p. 421, citing Opel. Ch. [St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, LA], v. A, #17: "McBRIDE, William (Walter & Julie BAUGARD [sic]) m. 20 Jan. 1852 Melasie HOLLIER."
13. Ibid. v. 5, p. 421, citing Opel. Ct. Hse. [St. Landry Parish Courthouse, Opelousas, LA], mar. #931: "MCBRIDE, William m. 22 Jan. 1852 Melasie HOLLIER" [civil ceremony following church?].
14. Ibid. from CD, via Denise Talbot's Rootsweb tree: "HOLLIER, Melasie (Isidore & Artemise TRAHAN) b. 11 Dec. 1830, Pats: Isidor HOLLIER & Sophie LANGLOIS; Mats: Pierre TRAHAN & Elene DUPLECHAIN (Opel. Ch.: v.3, p.149)."
15. Headstone of Melasie Hollier McBride, Sts. Peter & Paul Catholic Church Cemetery, Scott, LA, digital photograph by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2009, "McBRIDE/Mrs. Wm. McBride/née/Melasie Hollier/Dec. 11, 1825 [sic - should be 1830]/Aug. 19, 1925/In loving memory/by grandchildren."
16. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 1, p. 423, citing SM Ch. [St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, St. Martinville, LA], [n.v., n.p.]: "McBRIDE, Thomas Walter (Thomas & Marie SCOTT) m. Julienne BONGER [sic]."
17. Ibid. v. 5, p. 421, citing St. Landry Catholic Church records, v. A, #17 (m. rec. of son Wm.).
18. "1880 U.S. Census," St. Landry Parish, LA, daughter Mary "Feuta" [sic] Futhy‚ father's place of birth = VA.
19. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, from CD via David Leleux's Rootsweb tree: (d. bef 1 Feb. 1834) "McBRIDE, Guillaume [William] (dec. Walter McBRAID & Pouponne BAUGARD) bt. 1 Feb. 1834 at age about 12 yrs. Spons: Christophe STEEL & Anastasie LEGER, wife of Christophe STEEL. Fr. Flavius Henri ROSSI (Opel. Ch.: v.3, p.267)"
20. "Southwest Louisiana Records CD 101," Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Hebert Publications (now pub. by Claitor's Publishing, Baton Rouge, LA), via Denise Talbot's Rootsweb tree: "McBRIDE, Walter m. Julienne BOGARD died in New Orleans Children: Thomas; Mary; David; Walter; Charles; William; Anna; Malelda [sic-Mathilda]. Succ. dated Feb. 1825 (Opel. Ct.Hse.: Succ.#349)."
21. Louisiana Gazette, New Orleans, Orleans, LA?, 14 Oct 1824, p. 2, col. 2, via G. Bonnet's Rootsweb tree, died of gangrene.
22. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 5, p. 421, citing St. Landry Catholic Church records, v. A, #17 (m. rec. of son Wm.) -- "Julie BAUGARD."
23. Ibid. v. 1, p. 56, citing SM. Ch. [St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, St. Martinville, LA], n.v. (prob. vol. 1), "BONGER, Julienne (Jacob & Peggy RIDER) m. Thomas Walter [MCBRIDE]."
24. Ibid. v. 1, p. 54, citing Opel. Ch. [St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, LA], v. 1, p. 120: "BOGUEN [sic], Julie (Jacques & Marguerite RAITER), b. 25 Aug. 1793."
[footnotes 25-26 deleted as they don't pertain to this direct line]
27. Rev. Donald J. Hebert, Southwest Louisiana Records, 41 volumes, Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications, 1974-1998, v. 1, p. 423, citing SM Ch. [St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, St. Martinville, LA], [n.v., n.p.]: "McBRIDE, Thomas m. Marie SCOTT."
28. Ancestry.com, "Maryland Marriages, 1655-1850," www.ancestry.com, Aug. 2009, Name: Thomas McBride-Spouse: Mary Scotty-Marriage: 28 Nov 1769 [St. John's Parish (Joppa)?? - see database notes], Baltimore County, Maryland. Original record may be on microfilm; I need to check.

Text/images copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan. All rights reserved.

Follow Friday: "Southwest Louisiana Records" online tools

2010-07-23T18:33:00.000-07:00

Note: "Follow Friday" is a theme used by some geneabloggers to recommend other bloggers, websites or genealogy resources of interest.

Marriage records of my great-grandparents Constant Légère and Marie Octavie McBride (top) and birth record of my grandma Elia Légère (bottom) from Southwest Louisiana Records, v. 20, p. 250. Parents and sources are in parentheses. And oh. my. ... Grandma was born um, seven months after her parents married?!! Hmm... blogger beware, you never know what you're going to notice while writing about genealogy!

If you've done any genealogy research on Louisiana Cajuns, even if only via the Internet, you have undoubtedly come across Rev. Donald J. Hébert's Southwest Louisiana Records (SWLR) volumes. You know, those "Laf. Ch." or "Opel. Ct. Hse." abbreviations seen in many sources on online family trees?

(You DO know you shouldn't trust trees without sources, don't you? And that even with well-sourced trees, you should "trust but verify"? As they say in journalism school, "If your mama says she loves you, check it out.")

Well, whether you have seen SWLR referenced online or used the volumes or CD yourself, you may find yourself stuck on some of the abbreviations later--especially if you didn't copy the abbreviations list in the front of the volume. (Doh!) No worries, just check out this wonderful abbreviations list from Stanley LeBlanc at his website The Cajuns. (Thanks, Stanley!)

Marriage recorded in St. Landry Parish Courthouse, Opelousas, La., for my third-great-grandparents, Paul Légère and Marcellite Lebert, from Southwest Louisiana Records, v. 2, p. 954.

Now maybe you're a beginner and need a little more help deciphering the format of Hébert's entries. Or maybe you've used the volumes a bit, but you want to explore some of the extras. Can't remember which volume contained a large amount of corrections, or slave records, or a St. Landry Courthouse marriage register copy, or perhaps cattle brands? Houston's Clayton Library website has an article on using SWLR, its extra features, and the differing editions. Though slightly out of date, the article is very informative. (There are now 47 volumes covering records through 1915, and the CD covers vols. 1-31.)

Once you find the correct volume, try WorldCat to see if a local library has the volume you need, or if you feel like splurging, visit Claitor's Publishing to purchase a volume of SWLR or other Hébert titles. Bonne chasse!

Blog update & Jamboree

2010-06-10T00:25:00.000-07:00

I added a "Resources" tab above with a page of Internet and book resources for Louisiana genealogy. It's still under construction--these are off the top of my head, and I haven't made the page all pretty yet--but I hope it will help others. Feel free to suggest other good resources for those pursuing Louisiana ancestors.

If you're attending the Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree this weekend and spot me there, say hello. I'll be there Saturday. :)

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

2010-06-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

This week concludes Dad's initial application for Naval aviator training. A great find was letters of recommendation from his minister, principal and assistant principal in Sulphur, Louisiana.

Rev. T.J. Delaughter of First Baptist Church wrote a nice letter, saying local men "speak of [Dad] as being a good honest boy." The pastor, I've been told, would stop by occasionally to have coffee with my grandma Elia Legere Hall, whose biscuits he really enjoyed. Somehow, I doubt many Southern ministers were thin with all the good cooks around back then. They always had some little something ready to serve with coffee for unexpected visitors; that's just how it was done, certainly among my Cajun relatives.

Principal I.D. Bayne's letter. Interesting to see what the Navy underlined in considering Dad for training: "honest, reliable and sincere" and "courteous, industrious and cooperative."

Asst. Principal John S. Whatley's handwritten letter, on older letterhead. I like the old fonts. The Navy recruiter underlined "above the average" and "very cheerful and willing worker," good qualities for a potential pilot.

What treasures! Wonder if other high school grads applying to the Navy required letters of recommendation or just potential aviator cadets?

Find out more about requesting military personnel files here.

It's Official: I'm "Ancestor Approved."

2010-06-08T02:09:00.000-07:00

Thank you bunches to Linda of "Flipside" and Dionne of "Finding Josephine" for honoring me with the blogger badge "Ancestor Approved" for doing my ancestors proud. Genealogy bloggers are a supportive bunch, and I do appreciate the encouragement.

As a recipient, I am to list 10 things I've learned about my ancestors that have surprised, humbled or enlightened me, and to pass the award along to other bloggers whom I feel are doing their ancestors proud.

I was surprised that:

• I have so many French-Canadian ancestors (I grew up in Cajun Southwest Louisiana, so the Acadians were a given, but I wasn't aware of my Quebecois heritage until a few years ago). They're turning out to be some of my most interesting ancestors, as they were among the first settlers of Mobile, Biloxi and New Orleans. (Cousins: This is through Marie Octavie McBride Legere's mom's family line.)

• A couple of my colonial Mobile ancestors entered into a business arrangement with the ancestor of one of my good friends from high school -- a mere 280 years or so before we met!

• I dated my now-husband for 10 years before finding that we're 7th cousins once removed.

• I'm still adding new nationalities to my tree. I have Dutch ancestors through my Acadian lines (!) and a possibly-Swiss soldier ancestor who came to La. -- but no, I'm not adding any more adjectives to the blog title! (There's also Welsh and French-Canadian -- and Scots-Irish, if you want to get technical.)

I was enlightened and/or intrigued to find:

• I'm related to two U.S. vice presidents, Adlai Stevenson (VP to Cleveland) and Alben Barkley (VP to Truman), and also to the VP Adlai's grandson Adlai (the more famous one) who was Illinois governor and Ambassador to the U.N, all related through Mom's Stevenson lines.

• My "mystery grandpa," Robert Bunyan Hall, was apparently married a couple of times before he married my grandma, which may help explain why he preferred that his earlier life (including his parents' names) remain a mystery to his own family (or may not -- this is my biggest brick wall).

• I have a couple of musician ancestors (I have a music degree): My 5th-great-grandfather Jacques Leger arrived in Acadia in the late 1600s as a drummer in the French military, and my 6th-great-grandfather Claude Desbordes was choirmaster at St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans in the mid-1700s.

I am humbled by:

• finding that some of my ancestors held slaves. Not a surprising find, given most of my ancestors lived in the South, but certainly sobering when one reads the actual names of human beings considered "property" on censuses or wills. I am still not sure how to reconcile this fact with nonetheless being proud of some of the same ancestors' achievements. I think it must probably require holding two opposing ideas and/or emotions in one's heart and mind at the same time, though it must be even more difficult for those who descend from both slaveowner and enslaved ancestors.

• the fact that my Acadian ancestors and their descendants in Louisiana, the Cajuns, have maintained much of their culture for more than 250 years, despite being forced from their homes by the British beginning in 1755 and "scattered to the wind" along the U.S. East Coast, in England, France, and elsewhere.

• the fact that whenever I reach out past my own shyness to meet a "new" cousin in person or by e-mail, it is invariably a good experience (whether or not we have much in common besides family), and several have become good friends as well as cousins.

I'd like to pass along the "Ancestor Approved" award to the following bloggers doing their ancestors and/or fellow researchers proud: Anne at The French Genealogy Blog, Felicia at Echoes of My Nola Past, "Hummer" at Branching Out Through the Years, Sandra at I Never Knew My Father, Ruth of Bluebonnet Country Genealogy and Tess of NOLA Graveyard Rabbit.

Surname Saturday: Burnaman, Burnham, Burnam, Boernemann?

2010-06-05T21:00:00.000-07:00

The quick version: Does anyone know of a Georgia (or any) BURNHAM (or similarly surnamed) woman who married a HALL man who could have given birth to a son (Robert, pictured below) around 1878 in Virginia or elsewhere? My e-mail address is at the bottom of this post.

You can see by my title I haven't exactly gotten far on this line. I have all of one person, in fact, my supposed paternal great-grandmother: Georgia Burnaman, Burnam, Burnham, Boernemann? or something similar. And that's IF my "mystery grandpa" Robert Bunyan Hall gave the correct names on his application for a marriage license to wed my grandma. The handwriting looks like "Burnamen," but it's hard to tell.

Grandpa Hall, inter~~national~~state man of mystery.

Here's my research in a nutshell:

Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. The direct line is in bold.

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me

2 & 3. Dad HALL & Mom STEVENSON

4. Robert Bunyan HALL. Born on 18 Mar (1877 or 1878?) near Richmond, VA? Or possibly in Newton, Baker Co., GA? Robert died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 20 Nov 1952. Buried c. 22 Nov 1952 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery). He married a Corrie or Connie or Carrie WILLIAMS and a Jessie [last name unknown] bef. Oct. 1918.
We have not been able to prove much about Robert's life before Oct. 1918 when he met Elia.

On 26 Oct 1918 in Carencro?, Lafayette Parish, LA, he married:

5. Elia LÉGÈRE. Born on 18 Sep 1889 in Ossun, Lafayette, LA. Elia died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 18 Sep 1956. Buried in Sep 1956 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery).

8. George Hall. Lived in VA? or b. c. 1843 and lived in GA (see below)?
Before about 1877-8, he married:
9. Georgia BURNAMAN? BURNAM? BURNHAM? etc. Lived in VA? Or could she be part of the George and Georgia Hall couple living in GA about whom I previously posted? This Georgia Hall was born in 1850 in SC, according to census records.

And IF the Georgia married to George in GA (yes, you read that right -- coincidence? Or was my grandpa making up names on the spot when he wrote "George" & "Georgia" on his marriage license application?) -- anyway, IF Georgia IS the correct mother of my Grandpa Hall, then could she be the Georgia BURNHAM b. c. 1848 in SC to William L. and Frances W. BURNHAM in Saluda Regiment, Abbeville District, South Carolina in the 1850 census? (Siblings listed are Mary E. & Hilliard L. Burnham.) I can't find this Georgia in subsequent censuses.

Note: Grandpa Robert (#4) always claimed to have been born near Richmond, VA. The only logical George & Georgia Hall with a son Robert in the 1880 census I've found is the couple mentioned above who lived in GA. But that doesn't mean they're the correct couple. Or even that he gave the correct names (he wasn't exactly forthcoming about his past).

Thanks for ANY help with this giant brick wall. I know I will probably have to do lots more digging on Grandpa and the HALLs to find "Georgia," but it was her turn in my Surname Saturday post series, so I thought I'd ask the geneasphere about any possible leads on her line.

Questions, hints, leads, I've got the wrong couple/people? Please comment or e-mail me at hallroots ***at**** sbcglobal (dot) net. Thanks!

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

2010-06-03T18:46:00.000-07:00

I'm sharing the recently-acquired military personnel file for my dad, a WWII U.S. Naval aviator in the Pacific, a few pages at a time. Click here to see part one, and click on any image to enlarge it.

These forms continue Dad's application for Naval aviator training. Apparently there was no birth certificate issued in Lafayette Parish, La., in 1921 for him (The Louisiana Secretary of State's website says that statewide records were not kept until "about 1918." Some parishes were probably slower than others to comply), so his parents signed an affidavit giving Dad's birth date and place (actually in the community of Ossun, but the post office address was Scott). This is the most handwriting I've ever seen from my "mystery grandpa," Robert Hall.

Dad was not quite 21 and had to have his parents' consent to enlist. Now this is interesting -- the notary has typed my grandpa's name Robert Lee Hall. I think this is a misunderstanding of "Robert B.," which Grandpa went by ('B' is for "Bunyan"). I may have to look for him as "Robert Lee Hall," in records now, though, if only to leave no stone unturned. But certainly there were LOTS of Robert Lee Whozit's in the South--hence, the mis-hearing--and who would make up a middle name like Bunyan--then give it to one of his sons (my uncle John)??!! Besides, he signed "Robert" on both forms. I'm probably just wishing for a new Grandpa lead here.

Another fun find in Dad's application file: his Sulphur High School transcript. He looks like a fairly solid 'B' student, with some C's. Not surprisingly, his A's are in Geometry and Biology (he studied Bio in college, briefly attended med school, and ended up in the petrochemical industry). Wonder if I can get his college records? More fun to come with his recommendation letters next.

Would you turn over in your grave if your kids posted your HS transcript on "the Internets"? :)

Tombstone (-less) Tuesday: Aurore Legere

2010-06-01T16:17:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a page from Lucie LeBlanc Consentino and declaring this a "Tombstone-less Tuesday" post. This is the only record that I've found so far of the child "Orore," probably a phonetic spelling for "Aurore," daughter of Constant Légère and his third wife, Eudalie or Idalie Landry, and my (half-) great-aunt. Aurore doesn't even appear in that mainstay of Cajun secondary sources, Rev. Donald Hebert's Southwest Louisiana Records. I may check with St. John's in Lafayette or St. Peter's in Carencro (established c. 1874) to see if there is a record of her which didn't make it into Hebert's volumes. By my calculations, based on the info above and the birth dates of the other children, she was born between October 1870 and March 1871.

The list of children excerpted above was probably printed in a church bulletin; I remember the framed original was displayed at my dad's cousin Ashton (a.k.a. "Nacoon") Legere's house. Cousins, was it a written list, or was it done in needlework? I can't quite remember, though I did take notes from it. Not all the info was exactly correct, by the way, if you happen to have a copy (which is why I haven't reproduced the entire list here). It was apparently compiled from memory by Constant or Octavie, his fourth wife, many years after some of the children's deaths, and perhaps expanded by Ashton.

Happy 101 and my Aunt Martha's birthday cards

2010-05-30T17:04:00.000-07:00

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

2010-05-29T23:05:00.000-07:00

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

2010-05-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

"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

2010-05-20T19:52:00.000-07:00

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

2010-05-20T18:00:00.000-07:00

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"

2010-05-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

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.

Tombstone Tuesday: Sts. Peter & Paul Cemetery, Scott, LA

2010-04-13T23:55:00.000-07:00

Entrance to Sts. Peter & Paul Cemetery, Scott, Lafayette Parish, La., Feb. 2009. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan.

In a small town where Cajun French is still spoken, the local Catholic cemetery gate retains a bit of French heritage. No doubt more people who rest eternally here spoke French than English, including my great-great grandmother Melasie Hollier McBride. Now how did Mr. McBride become so fluent in French, assuming he was? Were his mother Julienne Bogard's roots French? These are the kinds of questions that come to mind when I look at my family tree...

Surname Saturday: LEGERE from Acadia to La.

2010-04-10T23:55:00.000-07:00

Today we have my LEGERE line - my main Cajun line, from my paternal grandmother, Elia Légère Hall, pictured below. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources available; e-mail me at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net.

Elia Légère, c. 1905, photographer unknown, probably photographed in Lafayette, La. Scanned photo owned by the Hall family, La., slightly edited by Liz Hall Morgan.

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me.

2. Dad HALL.

3. Mom STEVENSON.

4. Robert Bunyan HALL. Born on 18 Mar (1877?) near Richmond, VA? Or possibly in Newton, Baker Co., GA? Robert died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 20 Nov 1952. Buried c. 22 Nov 1952 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery). (He married a Corrie or Connie or Carrie WILLIAMS and a Jessie [last name unknown] bef. Oct. 1918.)

On 26 Oct 1918 in Carencro?, Lafayette Parish, LA, he married:

5. Elia LÉGÈRE. Born on 18 Sep 1889 in Ossun, Lafayette, LA. Elia died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 18 Sep 1956. Buried in Sep 1956 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery).

10. Constant LÉGÈRE. Born on 26 Oct 1837 in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA. Constant died in Rayne, Acadia, LA, on 19 May 1923. Buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA (St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery).

Constant married: 1. Estelle BABINEAUX; 2. Eudalie/Udalie or Idalie LANDRY; and 3. Marie Irma GUIDRY, all of whom died.

On 23 Feb 1889, in Carencro, Lafayette, LA, he married (his fourth wife):

11. Marie Octavie “Tavie” McBRIDE. Born on 31 Jan 1859 in Opelousas?, St. Landry, LA (to William McBRIDE and Melasie HOLLIER). “Tavie” died in Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, on 29 Mar 1946. Buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA (St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery; buried as "Mrs. Constant Legere." Her first husband, who died, was Cyprien STEMMANN.)

20. Hypolite Paul LÉGÈRE. Born on 10 Jan 1803 in St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA. Hypolite Paul died in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA, on 29 Nov 1861. Buried in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA (St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery?)

On 20 Nov 1821 in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA, he married:

21. Marcellite LEBERT. Born on 15 Feb 1805 in of St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA (to Pierre Jean Joseph Joachin LEBERT and Marie Rose HEBERT). Marcellite died 29 Aug 1844? in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA. (St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery?)

40. Paul LÉGÈRE. Born abt 1758 in CT? (family sent there in 1755 from Acadia) Also said to be "of NY." Paul died on 11 Mar 1818 in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA. Buried on 12 Mar 1818 in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA (St. Landry Catholic Church Cemetery?). On 28 Jul 1789 in St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA, he married:

41. Marie Constance POTIER. Born abt 1769, "of" Havre de Grace, Seine-Maritime, Normandie, FRANCE (to Pierre POITIER and Anne Marie BERNARD). Marie Constance died on 10 Jan 1844 in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA. Buried in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, LA (St. Landry Catholic Church Cemetery?).

80. François LÉGER. Born on 14 Oct 1714 in Port Royal, ACADIA.

On 25 May 1739 in Port Royal, ACADIA, he married:

81. Madeleine COMEAU. Born on 4 Sep 1720 in Port Royal, ACADIA (to Abraham COMEAU and Marguerite PITRE).

160. Jacques LÉGER dit [called] “La Rosette.” Born c. 1663. Jacques died on 27 Mar 1751 in Port Royal, ACADIA. Buried on 28 Mar 1751 in Port Royal, ACADIA.

Before the 1693 Acadian census, in Port Royal, ACADIA, he married:

161. Madeleine TRAHAN. Born in c. 1678 in Port Royal, ACADIA (to Guillaume TRAHAN and Madeleine BRUN). Madeleine died on 8 Dec 1742 in Port Royal, ACADIA. Buried on 9 Dec 1742 in Port Royal, ACADIA.

Sentimental Sunday: The Cajun tradition of "pacques"

2010-04-04T23:57:00.000-07:00

"Egg tapping," photo by Marc Chipouras, used under Creative Commons license.

Although I'm part-Cajun and grew up in Southwest Louisiana, there are some Cajun traditions I seem to have missed out on in my youth. One of these is the Easter tradition of pâques-pâques (pronounced pock-pock), or egg tapping (Pâques is "Easter" in French). It's battle with eggs; two people each take an Easter egg in hand, tap the ends against each other, and whomever comes out with an uncracked egg wins. I don't remember hearing about this game while growing up in Sulphur, not far from the Texas border, but my cousins in the Lafayette area, in the middle of "Cajun Country," are quite familiar with the tradition, which they call pacques (pronounced pock-kay).

Last Easter, a couple of young men on a 50-state motorcycle trip visited my cousins, posting video on the website chronicling their journey. My second cousin Annette demonstrates silk egg dyeing, a craft at which her late sister Mattie excelled, and then a round of pacques is played. I thought readers might enjoy seeing a bit of Cajun tradition. It's the top video link on this web page.

In the towns of Marksville and Cottonport, egg battles get serious. There are organized competitions! The Louisiana Division of the Arts Folklife Program has a great article about it on their website.

Oh, and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention another tradition I found out about: Good Friday is "Pie Day" in Scott, La. It's like pot-luck with pies over at the Begnaud house, where everyone goes and visits and eats free homemade pie! One lady last year reminisced to my cousin about her grandmother's friend who made the best pies--and the friend was my great-aunt Philomène Stemmans Weber, who died in 1968! She must have been some cook for her pies to be remembered more than 40 years later! Wonder if I can find a cousin with her recipe? I'm guessing she did it from her head, like most Cajun women then.

I hope all of you reading had a wonderful Easter, Passover or Spring holiday with family and friends. Does your heritage have an interesting spring holiday tradition? Leave a comment!

Surname Saturday: STEVENSON from County Antrim to La.

2010-04-03T20:39:00.000-07:00

Note: If you're reading on GeneaBloggers, sorry for the second post; I mistakenly hit "publish" earlier in the week before I was ready. :( Blog and learn ...

Today we have my STEVENSON line - my mom's family lineage, backwards in time from North Louisiana through the South and back to SC, PA and County Antrim, Ireland. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. I have to credit my mom with most of the research on this line.

"Paw Paw" Stevenson (#6 below), Mom, and me, June 1966?, Karnack, TX? Photographer unknown. Photo 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).

12. John William STEVENSON. Born on 9 Jul 1871 in Claiborne Parish, LA. John William died in Caddo Parish??, LA, on 29 Apr 1942. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery).
On 30 Nov 1893, in Athens, Claiborne, LA, he married:
13. Maggie Elizabeth McCOY. Born on 16 Aug 1876 in Lincoln Parish?, LA. Maggie Elizabeth died in Minden, Webster, LA, on 11 Aug 1937. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery).

24. James W. STEVENSON. Born abt 1845 in Homer, Claiborne Parish, LA. James W. died in Mineral Wells, Palo Pinto, TX, in late 1880s.
On 13 Oct 1870, in Claiborne Parish, LA, he married:
25. Hannah Etta? or Edwards? KILPATRICK. Born on 19 Nov 1848 in Franklin Co., TN. Hannah E. died in Cross Roads?, Claiborne Parish, LA, on 13 Dec 1927. Buried in Athens, Claiborne, LA (Tulip Cemetery). (Hannah's 2nd husband was Giles Weaver DOBBINS, m. 28 Feb 1889 in Claiborne Parish, LA.)

48. William B. STEVENSON (STEPHENSON). Born abt 1816 in Clark Co., AR. William B. died after 1880 in Titus Co., TX?
Abt 1838, in LA?, he married:
49. Mary BURNS. Born abt 1817 in AL? or MS? Mary died aft 1860, prob. in Claiborne Parish, LA or Titus Co., TX.

96. James STEVENSON (STEPHENSON), (Jr.) Born abt 1785? in Station 96, SC. James died abt 1852 in Aycock, Claiborne, LA. [Note: He followed his brother William "the Riding Preacher" Stevenson, a Methodist minister, to LA, traveling together at times.]
Abt. 1815, in Clark Co., AR or Shelby Co., TN, he married:
97. Anna TABOR. Anna was b. abt 1795 in SC.

192. James STEVENSON (STEPHENSON). Born abt 1730 in Ballycrag?, Co. Antrim, N. IRELAND. Immigrated to America abt 1740? James died in Abbeville District, SC, abt 3 Jun 1822. [Note: His brother was William "Little Gabriel" Stephenson.]
On 16 June 1748? in Washington Co., PA, he married:
193. Elizabeth (WELDON?)

384. STEVENSON. Died bef 1740 in County Antrim, N. IRELAND.
He married:
385. Mrs. Stevenson. (Her 2nd husband was a Mr. WHITE, with whom she came to America & settled in Washington Co., PA)

N.K.B. Pate family Bible transcription

2010-04-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

Cotter/Pate/Young family home, 1960. Photo by M. Hall, scanned/edited by Liz Hall Morgan. The house was located about 3 miles south of Ringgold, La. on Hwy 7 (now US 371), but no longer exists. It belonged to William Hadden Cotter, then Etta Cotter Pate, then Zella Pate Young and their families. Many Pate reunions were held here.

Pate Family Bible Transcription with Annotations
by Liz Hall Morgan

(See my previous post for photos of the Bible and the transcribed pages.)

Bible of Newton King Brady or Bradie Pate (a.k.a. N.K.B. or "Newt") & Etta Orisca Cotter Pate of Heflin and Ringgold, Louisiana, now owned by M. Hall, their granddaughter.
1881 printing, so some events were recorded after the fact.
[Original spelling/punctuation, with corrections in brackets where necessary]

BIRTHS:

Ora adell Pate was Borned October the 28, 1898

Luccy Elizabeath Pate was borned June the 20, 1887 [Lucy Elizabeth]

Minnie Lee Pate was borned Febuary the 11, 1889

Emily Lena Pate was Borned January the 12, 1891 [a.k.a. Lena]

James Weaver Pate was Borned June the 27, 1892 [a.k.a. Weaver]

Zella Estella Pate was Borned March the 6 1894

Edna maud Pate Borned March the 17 1896

Jasper Bradie Pate was Borned August the 26 1902 [a.k.a. Brady or J.B.]

Liller Pate was borned Aug the 9 (1875) [Lilla]

Andrew nelson Pate was borned May the 21 (1878)

Lofa may Pate was borned october the 16 (1879) [a.k.a. Lofie]

Carrie Arminty Pate was borned July the 21 (1881)

Mary Margeaner Pate was borned November the 18 (1883) [probably Margeana--see "Liller" for Lilla-- a.k.a. Margie]

Anthony William Pate was borned August the 1 1885 [a.k.a. Willie or Will]

MARRIAGES:

N K B Pate was Borned Dec the 30 1852 [birth recorded on marriage page] [Newton King Brady/Bradie, a.k.a. Newt]

Etta Orisca Cotter was Borned March the 19 1859 [birth recorded on marriage page]

Lucy married Lee Corley Sept 6_ 1908

Minnie Married Sawyer Wimberly Aug 30_ 1908

Lena Married Doyle Scott Mar 2_ 1926

Weaver married Della Bryan Dec. 15_ 1912

Zella married John Young Dec. 17_1938 [John C., a.k.a. "Blackie"]

Edna married Alvin Stevenson Dec 16 1926

Ora married Joel Woodard Jan 29_ 1934

Bradie married Mattie Bell Green Oct 29 1922 [Brady]

Zella married Talmage Giddens April 14 - 1963

DEATHS:

Lena Pate Scott
August 7, 1926
with Typhoid Fever

Minnie Lee Pate Wimberly
Dec 30, 1935

Jasper Bradie Pate [Brady]
Feb. 8_ 1945

Ora Pate Woodard
September 5 _ 1958

Willie Anthony Pate
Died 1940 ["William Anthony" OR "Anthony William" on various documents. Went by "Willie" or "Will." LA Death Index has 5 Feb 1940]

Andrew Nelson Pate
Died Feb. 4_ 1963

Ollie Corley Pate
Died Sept. 14_ 1963 [Andrew's wife]

Stella [sic] Zella Young Giddens August 7, 1972 [Should be Zella Estella. Note: Edna Pate Stevenson added "Zella Pate Young Giddens died August 8, 1972 to a copy of the "Births" page. I'm not sure which date is correct.]

Lucy P. Corley Feb. 1 or 2, 1977 [Note: tombstone has Feb. 2]

Lofa May Pate Aug 1908

Liller Pate Colingsworth [Lilla Pate Collinsworth]
May 1 1907

Mary Margeaner Pate Bryan
Died Sept. 5 _ 1906
[probably should be Margeana, as "Liller" is written in same hand for "Lilla." She went by "Margie"]

N. K. B. Pate March 15 _ 1932

Etta Orisca Pate June_ 27_ 1937

Treasure Chest Thursday: Pate family Bible, La.

2010-04-01T17:33:00.000-07:00

Pate family Bible, originally owned by N.K.B. and Etta (Cotter) Pate, now owned by their granddaughter M. Hall, La. Digital photos by Liz Hall Morgan, Nov. 2007.

Newton King Brady or Bradie Pate and Etta Orisca Cotter were my great-grandparents and my mom's maternal grandparents. They lived near Heflin, Webster Parish, Louisiana, and then near Ringgold, Bienville, La.

The handwriting is Newt's or possibly Etta's, with some later entries on the marriage and death pages by my grandmother Edna Maud Pate Stevenson and my mom.

The Bible's publication date is 1881, so some entries were made some time after the recorded events.

Transcription to follow in my next post.

Tombstone Tuesday: Legere/McBride (paternal great-grandparents)

2010-03-30T14:06:00.000-07:00

Constant Legere and Marie Octavie McBride, my paternal great-grandparents, are buried in St. Peter Cemetery in Carencro, Louisiana. Carencro is in Lafayette Parish (county) in the southern part of the state.

Headstone of Constant Legere and daughter Odette, St. Peter Cemetery, Carencro, La., Nov. 2007. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan.

Constant was the son of Hypolite Paul Legere and Marcellite Lebert. He was born 26 Oct. 1837 in Opelousas, St. Landry, La. and died 19 May 1923 in Rayne, Acadia, La. He was a farmer who was married four times and had 17 children, though not all lived to adulthood. Octavie, or "Tavie," as she was known, was his fourth wife, and they lived in the small community of Ossun in Lafayette Parish. (Constant's first three wives, in order, were Estelle Babineaux, Idalie or Udalie (Eudalie?) Landry and Marie Irma Guidry.)

Headstone of Mrs. Constant [Marie Octavie McBride] Legere, St. Peter Cemetery, Carencro, La., Nov. 2007. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan.

Tavie was the daughter of William McBride and Melasie Hollier. She was born 31 Jan 1859 in St. Landry Parish, La. and died 29 Mar. 1946 in Lafayette, Lafayette Parish, La. Her first husband was Cyprien Stemmann or Stemann, with whom she had four children. (The spelling has changed in usage over the years to Stemmans and Stemmons.) Cyprien died in 1887, and on 23 Feb 1889, Constant and Tavie were married at St. Peter Roman Catholic Church in Carencro. They had five children, including my grandmother Elia Legere Hall. Both Constant and Tavie spoke Cajun French, and little, if any, English.

Constant and Tavie Legere, c. 1920?, Ossun, La., unknown photographer, scanned photo privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

Madness Monday: Mystery photo edition

2010-03-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

This photo was found in a box of photos belonging to my paternal grandmother Elia Legere Hall (1889-1956), who grew up near Scott, Louisiana, in Lafayette Parish. These could be relatives or friends of hers or her parents (Constant Legere or Légère and Marie Octavie McBride). I'm not sure of the date (one fashion/costume-knowledgeable friend estimates 1901-1905), but there's a clue to the woman's identity on the back of the photo.

She writes: These little proofs are not very good but thot [thought] it would give you some idea of how we are all looking. The boys have short hair now and I look much better than in this. This was made about 16 mo[nths] ago. But don't you think these three boys of mine beauties? Excuse my vanity please.
It's signed: Pae? or Pac? What do you think? Pat? Initials? Oh, and yes, I'm sure she looks much better than in that photo--hideous, right??!! LOL

If initials, I'm leaning toward "P.A.C." (Compare the "c" in "excuse" above it.) The most prevalent "C" names in their area would probably be Cormier, Comeau(x), and Chiasson. There are also Credeur (Caruthers) and Constantin families in the area. None of the "C" names are closely related to our family.

Anyone want to guess at dating the photo or the ages of the people in it?

Surnames of possible cousins: Legere, McBride, Roade, Royer, Devillier, Duhon, Dupre. Less likely might be nieces/nephews surnamed Babineaux, Guidry, Malapart, Hernandez. I'm almost certain it's none of my grandma Elia's siblings, and probably not a niece or nephew. Perhaps it's a former neighbor from the Ossun or Scott area where they lived, or from Carencro, where they attended St. Peter Catholic Church. I may post this on the Lafayette Parish GenWeb genealogy site in case anyone recognizes the family there.

Thanks for your input!

"Friend of Friends": Fariss slave record, Catahoula Parish

2010-03-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

My first thought is that if Alexander is a "boy," where is his mother? Was he sold away from her, or is he being sold away from her? Is he the only slave of David and Lucy (Davis) Farris? Inventory notes refer to two tracts of land and "negroes" [plural], but I see no other mention of slaves in the notes and transcriptions I have. Anyone researching the Farris slave(s) should check for microfilm, if any, of the original records.

My second thought is that the document explains the reasons for the sale of Alexander and other "property." Is this usual? Can other researchers out there tell me?

(The names cut off at the bottom of p. 2 are the same ones mentioned in p. 1. My scanner is being cantankerous.)

Edom L. Fariss (he may be E.E. or Elem Earle Fariss in some records), David's son and administrator of the estate, bought Alexander at auction for $456 (his value was appraised at $400) in September 1841 (below). The probate file is still open in 1847 when a new administrator is sought after Edom's death. Alex's fate may be found in Edom's probate file, dated 31 Dec. 1844 (probably in Catahoula Parish). Edom married Nancy Nettles. After Edom's death, she married James P. Bambrick.

This is one complicated probate packet. It spans at least seven years. David Fariss or Farris was married first to Elizabeth Love and then to Lucy Davis. Elizabeth's children, or their "tutors" (legal representatives for minors), seem to be disputing things with Lucy and her child (my great-great-grandmother). Throw in land which is not selling, an administrator who dies, children who die, minors who become adults, a child or two who married their "tutor," and it gets rather convoluted. If I can understand it all better, perhaps I'll post the rest of the probate packet in a series of posts.

For more research: The Family History Library catalog includes successions (probate records) of Catahoula Parish from 1846-1890 on microfilm. The David Fariss packet is dated 7 Apr. 1841; I don't know if the later proceedings are included on that microfilm. Conveyance (deed) records are available from 1807-1887.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Pate family, near Ringgold, La., 1904

2010-03-18T23:59:00.000-07:00

Pate family portrait, Fall 1904, near Ringgold, Louisiana, owned by M. Hall, Louisiana, granddaughter of the Pates. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Nov. 2007.

L to R, front row: Newton King Bradie (or Brady) Pate, Edna (my grandmother), Zella, Etta Cotter Pate holding baby Brady, Ora, Lucy Cotter Tullis (Etta's sister). Middle: 4 of the 6 girls: Lilla, Lucy, Minnie, Lofie, Margie &/or Lena Pate, though we're unsure who is who. Some facial detail has faded away and it's difficult to tell who some of the children are by only their ages. Weaver, Willie and Andrew are in the back. We are not completely sure that Willie and Andrew are not misidentified for each other.

A wider view reveals more of the lumber being used to add on to the house, Etta's inheritance from her father (All those kids have to be put somewhere!). A neighbor stopped by (R) who apparently thought he wasn't going to be in the photo, and a mule makes a cameo from the far right side.

Note: This hung in my grandmother's room at our house for years. Why we never wrote down who everyone was escapes me, but I can't believe we didn't! LABEL family portraits, even if you think you know who they are--because years later, you may not remember who was who & Grandma won't be around to tell you! :(

Surname Saturday: HALL

2010-03-13T21:26:00.000-08:00

("Surname Saturday" is a daily theme many genealogy bloggers use.)

I'm following ahnentafel (chart #) order for my Surname Saturday posts. (Don't worry if you don't know what that means; it's a genealogy thing.) Unfortunately, my shortest lineage and biggest brick wall is the surname I was born with: HALL.

1. Liz HALL married (Hubby :) ) MORGAN.

2 (Dad) HALL married

3 (Mom) STEVENSON.

4 Robert Bunyan HALL. Born on 18 Mar 1877? in Newton, Baker Co., GA? or 1878 near Richmond, VA? Died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 20 Nov 1952. Buried in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA. On 26 Oct 1918, he married Elia LEGERE in Carencro?, Lafayette, LA.

[Note: Two previous wives: Corrie or Carrie WILLIAMS and Jessie [unknown last name].

5 Elia LEGERE. Born on 18 Sep 1889 in Scott, Lafayette, LA. Elia died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 18 Sep 1956. Buried in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA.

8 George HALL? of GA? or of Richmond, VA area? married

9 Georgia BURNAMAN? BURNHAM? BURNAM?

Unfortunately, this is my shortest line, and my biggest brick wall. For more info, see my posts about my "mystery grandpa" Robert Bunyan Hall, here and here.

Treasure Chest Thursday: John William Stevenson Bible, La.

2010-03-11T23:59:00.000-08:00

Stevenson family Bible, originally owned by John William Stevenson, now owned by his granddaughter M. Hall, La. Digital photos by Liz Hall Morgan, Jan. 2007.

John William and Maggie Elizabeth (McCoy) Stevenson were my great-grandparents and my mom's paternal grandparents, who lived in Athens, Louisiana. The family record pages were taken out of the Bible sometime in the past, possibly by one of my great-aunts who inherited the Bible. The page above reads: "Parents' Names. Husband: J.W. Stevenson Born: July the ninth 1871. Wife: M.E. Stevenson Born August sixteenth 1876 Married: Nov. the 30 1893."

This page reads: "Children's Names. Ethel Gertrude Stevenson was born Oct. the fifth 1894. Alvin Stevenson was born Feb. the first 1897. John T. Stevenson was born Sept. the twelfth 1901. Vera Mae Stevenson was born Nov. the sixteenth 1907[?]" I'm not sure whose handwriting it is, but I believe the dates are correct. However, I do remember my grandfather Alvin celebrating his birthday on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, but after finding this I have discovered that his headstone and Social Security record also read Feb. 1. Huh??!!

Photos/text copyright 2010 Liz Hall Morgan

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: 65 years ago today, Dad joined WWII

2010-03-10T23:22:00.000-08:00

Flight log, George C. Hall, owned by Hall family of La., digital photos by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2010.

After training as a dive bomber pilot, my dad, George Hall, answered the Navy's call for more fighter pilots and began training on F6F Hellcats with Fighter Squadron Six (VF-6) in Hawaii in December, 1944. By the end of February, he was "heading for 'The Big Time'" in the Pacific, as he put it in his flight log, above. His first flight of the war, from the aircraft carrier USS Hancock, took place on March 10, 1945 (below), over Ulithi. He was 23 years old.

Madness Monday: My mystery grandpa, part two, or "Eating an elephant."

2010-03-08T23:59:00.000-08:00

Note: This post continues my "Madness Monday" post from last week about my "mystery grandpa," Robert Bunyan Hall.

Robert Bunyan Hall and Jerome Guidry, Sabine or Neches River, Texas, abt 1918. Scan of original photo owned by the Hall family, La., cropped and edited for fading.

Robert listed “George C. Hall and Georgia Burnaman" [Could it be Burnham? Burnam? It's hard to read] as his parents on the application for a marriage license to my grandmother, Elia Legere, in 1918. This is the only George and Georgia Hall with a son named Robert of approximately correct age in the 1880 U.S. Census I’ve found--so far:

1880 U.S. Census, Georgia—Baker Co., ED 2, p. 36, lines 37-39

Hall, George, W, M, 35, farmer, b. GA, father b. SC, mother b. GA

------ Georgia Ann, W, F, 30, wife, keeping house, b. SC? [strike-through and correction], parents b. SC

------ Robert, W, M, 3, son, b. GA, father b. GA, mother b. SC

Following this family in the census, Robert’s POSSIBLE (unproven) parents would be:

George C. HALL. Born in Feb 1843 in GA. George C. died prob. in Quitman, Brooks, GA after 1910.

Residences:

1850, Lee Co., GA
1860-1880+, Newton area, Baker Co., GA
1900, Cairo, Thomas [now Grady Co.], GA
1910, Quitman, Brooks, GA

Occupation: Farmer [1864-1880+]; woods rider [probably turpentine industry], 1900; church sexton, 1910. Civil War veteran [?? listed as disabled on the GA militia list of 1864, but can't find him in pension indexes]

Bef 1868 George C. married Georgia [C? Ann? BURNAMAN?], who was b. May 1850 in SC. Georgia prob. died in Quitman, Brooks, GA after 1910, possibly in 1928 [I have a death record for a possible Georgia who died in a poor house, and who had no relatives listed].

They had the following children:

2 i. William (b. c.1867 [in 1870 census] - d. bef 1880 census?)

3 ii. Robert (b. c. 1877, shows up with parents only in 1880 census)

George/Georgia HALL census sources [some ages/places vary. Still, I think it is the same couple throughout]:

1870 GA—Baker Co., Newton p.o., p. 68, line 6
1880 GA—Baker Co., ED 2, p. 36, line 37
1900 GA--Thomas Co., Cairo [now part of Grady Co.], ED 89, Sheet 5A, line 3
1910 GA--Brooks Co., Quitman, ED 16, Sheet 2A, line 47. [A Tom Hall, listed as black, is living next to them. Who is this?]

As far as George’s parents, he is included in the 1850 Census in Lee Co., GA, in the household of Lucinda [HALL] Millican [with his probable sister, Amanda Hall] and in the 1860 Census in Baker Co., GA in the household of H.H. Hall. The book “History of Baker Co.” lists Lucy & Henry Holcomb Hall as siblings. George is not listed in the book. I think he may be a nephew or cousin of these Halls, but have no proof yet. I've looked at microfilm of Baker Co. estate records and haven't found anything.

Elia and Robert Hall, Oct. 1946, Sulphur, La. Grandpa, I think, is looking smugly at me from this photo, chomping on his cigar and thinking, "You'll never find me!" Just you wait, Grandpa, just you wait!

Interestingly, my parents visited Newton, GA, on vacation once and someone told Dad he looked like the Halls who owned a local grocery. Why they didn't run right over there and question them immediately, I don't know! But they didn't, and struck out in local records.

George and Georgia do not seem to have had property. Perhaps there are poor house records.

And our DNA is loosely grouped with other Halls whose ancestors were mostly from Virginia. Should I start over there? There are no George & Georgias there in 1880, though maybe one of them is there and widowed or remarried with a son Robert age 2 or 3.

As far as Robert, I've scoured city directories, but need to scour more. There are few Robert B. Halls, but many Robert Halls to rule out, perhaps by following them in census records. With many Southern states and counties he could have married in (see last week's post for his previous wives Carrie or Corrie Williams and Jessie), I'm not sure where to start again. I've already chased down and ruled out a couple of other possible wives. I think I've ruled out the only real Spanish-American War record lead I had. Sigh.

I need to pull back, examine what I've already done, re-focus, and make a to-do list. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

If you've heard of any of these families or have research ideas for me, leave a comment or drop me a line at hallroots (at) sbcglobal (dot) net.

The census is coming! The census is coming!

2010-03-08T22:32:00.000-08:00

I'm just enough of a genealogy nerd to be all excited about this pre-census junk mail from the government. Hubby, amused, agreed that I could be the official census-filler-outer for our household. :) Then I read more about the questions: What?!! "One of the shortest forms in history"? "Ten questions in 10 minutes"? Phooey!!! I was excited to fill out the "long form" in 2000, but looks like I'll have to pass down this blog to someone so my gggg-niece or -nephew (in 2082) will be able to learn more about me than my address. Of course, if genealogists designed the forms, they'd be pages long and no one would ever return them...

Treasure Chest Thursday: A card-carrying naval aviator

2010-03-04T22:44:00.000-08:00

Note: "Treasure Chest Thursday" is a theme used by some genealogy bloggers. It's sort of a fun weekly "Show and Tell" for grownups. You can read more "TCT" posts at Geneabloggers.

Naval Aviator card for George C. Hall (my dad), issued by the Dept. of the Navy, 23 June 1944. Scanned original, Feb. 2010, owned by the Hall family, La.

Page from flight log of George C. Hall, dated 23 June 1944 (the day the above card was issued), detailing flight time to date. Owned by the Hall family, La. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2010.

George C. Hall, c. 1944. Photo privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

Dad originally trained on dive bombers, but switched to fighter planes when he heard more fighter pilots were needed in the Pacific. He flew an F6F Hellcat from the aircraft carrier USS Hancock in 1945 and relished telling tales of his flying days for the rest of his life. While war was serious business, it was also a very exciting time for a kid in his early 20s from a small town in Louisiana.

Tombstone Tuesday: Stevenson in La. (maternal great-grandparents)

2010-03-02T19:28:00.000-08:00

Note: "Tombstone Tuesday" is a theme used by many genealogy bloggers; you can see other tombstone posts at GeneaBloggers.

John William Stevenson and Maggie Elizabeth McCoy are great-grandparents from my mom's side of the family. They are buried in Tulip Cemetery in the Tulip community near Athens, La. Tulip is in Claiborne Parish (county) in Northwest Louisiana.

Headstone of John W. and Maggie E. (McCoy) Stevenson, Tulip Cemetery, near Athens, La., Nov. 2005. Scanned photo by M. Hall, slightly edited and privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

John was the son of Hannah E. Kilpatrick and James W. Stevenson. He was born 9 July 1871, probably in Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, and died 29 Apr. 1942 in Caddo Parish, La.

[Note: Climbing up my family tree via Tombstone Tuesdays is a good exercise. I've found conflicting info on a couple of people I previously thought were squared away!]

Maggie was the daughter of James McCoy and Rebecca Jane Harrell. She was born 16 Aug. 1876 in Louisiana (possibly Mt. Lebanon or Liberty Hill in Bienville Parish, or perhaps in Lincoln Parish) and died 11 Aug. 1937 in Minden, Webster Parish, La.

My mom recently found this photo of John and Maggie while I was in Louisiana. I hope to get a good scan of it soon, but for now, here's a photo of the photo. We have another one of them which has been misplaced somewhere at my parents' house.

Maggie Elizabeth (McCoy) and John William Stevenson, unknown date/place (c. 1900? Athens, La.?). Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2010, of original photo privately held by M. Hall, La.

Maggie and John were married 30 Nov. 1893 in Athens, Claiborne, Louisiana, where they spent the rest of their lives, and had four children: Ethel Gertrude, Alvin Jasper (my grandfather), John T, and Vera Mae.

Madness Monday (well, Tuesday): My mystery grandpa (part one)

2010-03-01T23:59:00.000-08:00

Robert Bunyan Hall, affectionately known as my "mystery grandpa." Unknown medium/artist [colorized photo?], c. 1940s, Louisiana, owned by the Hall family in La., digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan, Feb. 2009.

My first "Madness Monday" post concerns my biggest brick wall--my "mystery grandpa," Robert Bunyan Hall. Grandpa Hall never told his kids the names of his parents, and they eventually learned not to ask. He's one of the reasons I became interested in genealogy when I was young, and I've researched him off and on for more than 25 years. If you're knowledgeable about Virginia, Georgia, or Spanish-American War records, or just like helping others bust up brick walls (ironically, Grandpa was a brick mason), read on. I have put him aside for the last few years but am ready to take a sledgehammer to his big ol' wall again. Would you like to help?

Brief stats on Grandpa:

Robert Bunyan [a.k.a. Bunyon, Bunion] HALL

b. 18 Mar 1878, in Richmond VA, area, or possibly 1877 in GA.
General whereabouts and life before Oct. 1918 unknown.
m. Elia Legere 26 Oct. 1918, Lafayette, LA.
d. 20 Nov 1952, Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA,
Occupation: Brick Mason, Railroad Worker, Contractor

Possible residences before Oct. 1918: Beaumont, Orange, or other cities in TX [worked construction at Gulf refinery; may have worked on railroads in LA/TX]; worked for Wacheson [sp?] & Henigriff in Westlake, LA in 1918 and may have worked in Lake Charles or other LA cities; Atlanta [worked for George Fuller Construction], Stone Mt., GA; Savannah, GA; Louisville, KY; Nashville, TN; [worked on Louisville & Nashville Railroad]; Richmond,VA; Baltimore, MD.

He did claim to be from the Richmond, Virginia area (we can't find a birth record; based on the 1880 census, he may be from GA) and that his family owned a grist mill. At least one of his children thought he mentioned a sister named Fanny, and that she may have died young. His children remember various places in the South he may have mentioned and where he may have lived (outlined above). He said he was in the Navy in the Spanish-American War (we can't find a record of a Robert B. Hall born in either VA or GA) and that he went to Johns Hopkins at one time (no record in the school archives). He said he worked on the railroad (but too early to have a railroad retirement record), as a bricklayer, and as a contractor. He claimed Irish roots, and was Protestant.

He met my grandma Elia Légère in Sept. or Oct. 1918 in Orange, TX, through her brother-in-law, who knew him only as a fishing buddy he met on the Neches or Sabine River. They married soon after (I wrote about their relationship here) and we know his whereabouts (Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana) from then on, but his life from his birth c. 1873-1878 until 1918 (He and Grandma both died in La. in the 1950s) is almost a complete mystery to us. Well, the only answers we've found so far, anyway, just lead to more questions. To wit:

1. My mom (brava!) found his application for a marriage license to marry my grandmother (Elia Légère), on which he entered his parents' names as "George Hall" and "Georgia" [Burnaman? Burnam? Burnham? -- it's hard to read]. Oh, and a previous wife (deceased) is listed: Corrie [or Connie, Carrie??] Williams. (My father and his siblings, by the way, had never heard of any other wives, living or deceased.)

Notes: I can't find a George and Georgia Hall (or G. Hall) with son Robert (or R.) of approximately the correct age anywhere in the 1880 census except Georgia. Nothing in Virginia looks right to me. I should perhaps go back and check for one spouse alone or remarried with Robert.

Williams??!! Really, Grandpa??? Couldn't you have married someone with a slightly less common name? I've barely tried looking for her. "Williams" is worse than "Hall" for searching!

No marriage records for Grandpa in the Orange or Beaumont, TX, areas where we know he lived. No Cora/Corrie/Cornelia/Cordelia or Connie/Constance or Carrie/Caroline Halls who died in Texas so far who died by/before 1918 that I've found who fit.

2. I found his WWI draft registration not long after they became available online--here's the image:

It lists his full name [middle name probably misspelled by the draft board], his birthday, March 18, though the year [1873] is off [it's 1878 in other records], and his description ["medium" height and build, "blue" eyes, "light" hair] fits. He's a natural-born citizen, working as a bricklayer in Lake Charles, LA, for Wacheson [sp?] & Henigriff in Westlake, LA. This all makes sense.

But wait! He has another wife! "Mrs. Jessie Hall (wife), Box [579? 577?], Beaumont, Texas."

The kicker? This record is dated Sept. 12, 1918. What's the big deal? Robert married my grandmother on Oct. 26, 1918, just over six weeks later. What happened to Jessie?

Notes: Could she have died in the 1918 flu pandemic, between Sept. 12 and Oct. 5 or so? I can't find her in Texas death records so far. I'd like to access Sept./Oct. 1918 Beaumont, Texas, newspapers for possible obituaries or lists of those who died from the "Spanish flu," but I don't think they're online for that date. I know Lamar University in Beaumont has them on microfilm; maybe I can request them through ILL or via LDS.
Or: did she die, they divorced, or could he have just left her? Or maybe they were not officially married? Were they separated? He did sometimes travel to get work, so living apart doesn't necessarily mean they were separated.
Would the Beaumont post office have archives of box holders back to 1918? Or was this a rural route box? How do I find out? Would it be on a map, if a rural route?

3. My dad took a Y-DNA test for me a couple of years ago. We're in a Hall DNA study group, but no one has come closer than matching 22 of 24 markers (we tested 37 markers; our closest match tested on only 24) yet--meaning our nearest common ancestor was probably 18-20 generations ago, most likely in the British Isles, perhaps Ireland. Maybe as more folks join, we'll find a closer match.

Interestingly, the others preliminarily grouped with us have roots going back to Virginia in the 1700s, so maybe Grandpa actually was telling the truth about being from Virginia. And now at least we know Grandpa was really a Hall, and not a Dillinger or a Capone! (though the jury's still out on whether he was in trouble with the law--which would explain why he didn't discuss his past... )

More to come, including notes on Grandpa's parent-candidates in Georgia...
If you have ideas, please leave a comment or drop me an e-mail at hallroots (at) sbcglobal (dot) net. Or stay tuned for more info. Thanks!

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan

Légère relatives "light" up our family tree

2010-03-01T17:02:00.000-08:00

Click photo collage to see an enlarged version.

My entry for the 7th edition of the Festival of Postcards, with a theme of "light," (mine is postcard-inspired mail art) is "Légère family of Louisiana."

"Légère" in French means "light," and my Légère relatives have brought joy and light into my life by being the connection to both my Acadian and French-Canadian roots. They have a real lightness of heart, a joie de vivre, and I've pictured the family members who embody that for me. (They also happen to have been the storytellers of the family, especially my late father. He died last month, and I wrote recently of his passing [before knowing about this carnival] that I felt "like our family had lost its spark.")

My grandma Elia Légère Hall is pictured in the center photo lighting candles for a 1950s holiday meal in Louisiana. The only letter I own that was written by her is the background, and her signature cropped from the letter is at the bottom right. I put a photo of her with my grandpa Robert B. Hall in the photo as though it were displayed on the side table.

Clockwise from the top are the following photos:

My dad, George Hall, with brothers John and Bob and their dog, c. 1924, Beaumont, TX. Dad told me stories of their childhood that evoked "The Little Rascals," delighting me as a child.
Yours truly with my dog Dotty c. 1974, Sulphur, LA. I seem to be keeping the Légère family flame alive by being the storyteller and history keeper for my generation, a responsibility I hold sacred.
Cousin Allen Légère, 1980s, Sulphur, LA, the night he told some great stories at my parents' house in LA.
My dad who, from his gesture, I just know is telling a Cajun joke to cousins at my wedding last October in California. Dad couldn't resist entertaining whenever he had an audience. :)
Dad and cousin Ashton Légère clowning around with a big jug pretending to drink moonshine, c. 1945, Sulphur, LA. The same jug is used for prop humor in at least one other family photo.
Dad with cousin Thelma Légère Sonnier a few years ago in Lafayette, La., when I taped her relating family stories for at least two hours--and who told one of my dad's favorite jokes [unbeknownst to her] to us, to our delight.
Grandma Elia as a young woman, c. 1906, Lafayette, LA.

This is the first time I've played with photo collages in Picasa and also the first digital scrapbooking I've tried. I'm really pleased with the result and am looking forward to making some time to explore more options for digital art. I have had some ideas for art-making with my family tree, but I am not gifted at drawing or painting. Digital art could be fun, though, so I'll have to play with it more.

Got any digital scrapbooking or Picasa tips? (I use a Mac and iPhoto.) Leave me a comment!

Photo collage and text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan.

"Friend of Friends" Friday: Slave records

2010-02-26T23:59:00.000-08:00

Note: My "Friend of Friends Friday" theme was inspired by the essay posted by Sandra Taliaferro here.

My U.S. roots are mostly Southern. And some of my ancestors were slave owners. It's not a pretty fact, but it's true. While I can't change history, I can help descendants of slaves find their roots by posting the information I have.

Thanks to recent blog posts by Sandra of "I Never Knew My Father" and Luckie at "Our Georgia Roots", I feel I should go ahead and post whatever small amounts of info I might find--whether beautifully researched and explained or not--especially info from primary sources. I hope this might someday reunite a seeking descendant with their ancestor(s).

So, here's what I have so far:

DAVIS in Louisiana:
The probate record of Mary Ratcliff (Ratliff) Davis, wife of John Davis (my 4th-great grandparents), dated 19 Oct. 1836 in Catahoula Parish, La., lists the following slaves:

"1 negro man--Jack, one woman--Hannah, children Marie, Walker, Betsy"

These notes come via my mom and don't include the whole probate file, so I don't know at this point what happened to Jack, Hannah, and the children, but I may have more notes in files inherited from a cousin. I have not really worked the Davis family yet. (I'm still working on organizing some files I have and will post if I come across more info.)

Excerpt of photocopied estate inventory listing slaves owned by Paul Légère, Sept. 1822, Opelousas District, St. Landry Parish, La. Photocopy owned by Liz Hall Morgan.

LEGERE in Louisiana:
Paul Légère (Legere, Leger) (my great-great-great grandfather), had no slaves in the 1796 census for Opelousas District in Louisiana (according to the Acadian Memorial and Acadians in Gray web sites), but his estate inventory of Sept. 1822 in St. Landry Parish, La., lists the following slaves:

"a negro man named Sam aged about twenty two years"
"a mulato [sic] woman named Mary aged about twenty one years with her child a girl named Susanne about eighteen months old"

Paul's widow, Marie Constance Potier (Potie) Légère, bought the slaves from her husband's estate. She died in Jan. 1844 in the same parish. I don't have her estate record, so I don't [yet] know what happened to Sam, Mary and Susanne. Southwest Louisiana Records by Rev. Donald Hebert could also have records of them in a volume (vol. 33) partially devoted to Catholic church records for slaves.

CARRIERE, LANGLOIS in New Orleans, LA and Mobile, AL:
I also have assorted notes on the Carrière (Carriere, Carrier--Joseph and daughter Françoise) and Langlois (Augustin and son Antoine, who married Françoise Carrière) families of colonial Mobile and New Orleans (early 1700s), but I am trying to organize that info, and will post it in a coherent form in the future. Most of it is from secondary sources, with some estate info that was posted on a now-defunct web site.

Meanwhile, I hope these tidbits will be of help to someone.

Winter 2010 GeneaBloggers Games: My results

2010-02-26T19:00:00.000-08:00

Flags representing (upper) my ancestry as a (primarily) Franco-British-American and (lower) the flag of Louisiana Cajuns (I grew up in SW La.).

I've been participating in the Winter 2010 GeneaBloggers Games as a way to goad myself into tidying up and organizing my myriad piles of genealogical files, photos, papers and books. Has it worked? Well, if I stopped all blogging, reading blogs and replying to e-mail, maybe. Not to mention life in general. But genealogicus interruptus happens, so my desk is only about 2/3 straightened. But it's progress! So yay, I'm a winner!!!

I competed primarily in Events #2 & 3. In #2: Back Up Your Data, I completed Task A & am only partially finished with Task B, so I give myself a Bronze medal. In Event #3, Organize Your Research, I completed Task A (hard copies, books, etc.) about 3 times over and Task D (digital photos) at least once by uploading all my iPhoto photos into Picasa to try out the face recog, so I'm going to give myself a Silver medal there, though I still have some Picasa fooling around to do before I decide to use it for metadata or upgrade to the latest iPhoto or other software.

In addition, I Expanded My Knowledge (Event #4) by reading up on past GeneaBloggers posts for bloggers and I: 1. learned some nifty HMTL code to use, 2. got myself a Creative Commons license, and 3. played around with some label clouds. So the tasks were not the same, but I'm still giving myself a Silver for expanding my blog tech knowledge through catching up with GeneaBlogger tutorials. (I think Thomas would approve--I'd already done two of the listed tasks, anyway. :) )

I also get a Bronze for Write, Write Write (Event #5, pre-publishing blog post task) and a Silver for Reach Out & Perform Acts of Genealogical Kindness (Event #6, commenting on & following blogs tasks)--though I wasn't really competing there, just doing stuff I would do anyway.

So, my tally? 2 bronzes and 3 silvers. Not bad. Now back to real life, and back to focusing on those files and my desk so I can post a new improved desk photo! :)

Treasure Chest Thursday: Cotter/Pate spinning wheel, La.

2010-02-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

Note: "Treasure Chest Thursday" is a theme used by some genealogy bloggers. It's sort of a fun weekly "Show and Tell" for grownups. You can read more "TCT" posts at Geneabloggers.

Etta Orisca Cotter Pate's spinning wheel, owned by M. Hall, Louisiana, Nov. 2007. Digital photo by Liz Hall Morgan.

Today's treasure is a maternal great-grandmother's spinning wheel, which I hung on my mom's living room wall a couple of years ago while we were tidying and wondering where to put things. Why not hang it on the wall? It's a great piece of family history, and we didn't have the rest of it to display.

The wheel belonged to Etta Orisca Cotter Pate (1859-1937), the third wife of Newton King Brady Pate (1852-1932). They lived near Heflin in Webster Parish, Louisiana, then moved just south of Ringgold in Bienville Parish. Together they had eight children, including my grandmother, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson.

But those weren't all the children they raised. When they married, on Aug. 26, 1886, in Bienville Parish, "Newt" came with a ready-made family: six children from his previous marriages, ranging in age from one to 11, who became Etta's children as well. He must have been awfully charming or well off, or Etta must have been dreading becoming an old maid [she was 27] to take on such responsibility. But then, more women died in childbirth or from disease then, so I suppose there were more widowers with children then, as well. But back to the spinning wheel--the Pates had a farm and raised sheep, and Etta spun her own wool yarn for knitting. That wheel must have been spinning a lot, with 14 children to clothe! No wonder she looks so sober in the photo below--the woman needs a nap!

Etta Orisca Cotter Pate, c. 1890-1900?, La., scan of photograph made from original tintype owned by M. Hall, digitally edited (somewhat; this still needs work) by Liz Hall Morgan for spots, scratches and fading.

Etta's middle name, "Orisca," is, according to family lore, after a grandma who was "part Indian." As many "Indian in the family" stories go, however, we can't verify any Native American heritage. That does leave me to wonder where her parents--William Hadden Cotter and Elizabeth Ann Fariss (Farris, Faress)--came up with "Orisca." Elizabeth, or "Lizzie," was also known as "Queen Ann Elizabeth," so maybe her line has a penchant for unusual names.

Any "Indian" names in your family? Ever heard of the name "Orisca"? Leave me a comment!