Pandemics & the way things used to be
“In March 1843 the Influenza appeared in Germany and England; in April in France; in June in the New England States and New York; in July in Pennsylvania and a portion of the Southern States;…
Genealogy
Stories about family history
Bringing home the boys of the 28th Wisconsin
I was searching for something unrelated when I came across a collection of 20 carte-de-visite portraits of Civil War soldiers in a 1917 edition of the Oregon Daily Journal. According to the short article, the…
Mystery photo: A genealogy challenge
As a fun genealogy challenge, I occasionally pick up old photos at antique stores and try to track down their identities with the goal of rehoming the photographs back to family members who will appreciate…
Let’s get married, baby
Tumbled down the rabbit hole again. I was hunting for Walter Martin Braun when I happened upon Joseph G. Vermette, a Detroit, Michigan man who was either lucky or unlucky at love. It’s kind of…
Grim news from Clatskanie’s Grand Central Hotel
In researching Nevada Stewart and the Grand Central Hotel in Clatsaknie, Oregon, I came across a couple news items about guests who spent their final night at the hotel. I’m sharing these grim reports because…
Nevada Stewart’s Four Weddings and a Funeral
I went down a rabbit hole this weekend studying a distant cousin named Nevada Stewart (1863-1922) — my second cousin, 4x removed if you’re keeping track. Normally I wouldn’t detour so far off the course…
Unburied Treasure: The Adventures of Preston Horner
In some ways, Preston Horner is a strange place to begin this blog. But then again, everything about this story is extraordinary, and I suppose that’s why it needs to be told. I’ve been researching…