Nancy P. Taylor, Fitting Together the Pieces to the Puzzle of Her Life

This past week I was reviewing some of my husband's ancestral lines and once again came upon Nancy P. Taylor, listed with the family of John B. and Elizabeth J. Taylor in new.familysearch.org. We have a copy of the family bible page that lists the children of John and Elizabeth and there is no Nancy or even room for her in the family lineup. Their second son James D. was noted to have married a Nancy, so I felt pretty sure that is how she fit into the family.

The Uno Family's Son Albert - World War I Casualty

As I sorted through my friend's family paper work to organize their family history I separated the documents by surnames, creating a collection for each. When it came to the Uno family it was obvious that I needed to create a file just for Albert, the second son by that name, who gave his life while serving in the U.S. Army in France during World War I. The collection represents a son and brother that the family did not want to be forgotten and now fills a one-inch notebook. The first item is a medal of a cross with a band above with the word SHARPSHOOTER and the second is a ribbon connecting the bar above with the name Mrs. B Uno and below the medallion 1932, Portland, Oregon, American Legion Auxiliary with a blue star. This was an emotional moment for me as my own grandfather who was just five years younger, trained in the U.S. Army at Oregon State University towards the end of the war and never had to leave this country. War certainly changes the course of people's lives and for mothers the heartache can last forever.

The Uno Family at Milwaukie Pioneer Cemetery

The night before last I could hardly sleep as I pondered the family of Andrew and Brita (Larsen) Uno and the difficulties that they faced as immigrants from Sweden in 1884 and 1886. The record of their marriage, dated 17 June 1886, is on microfilm at the Clackamas County Records Office. They had three children, Emma born in 1887, Albert W. born in 1891 and died in 1893, and Albert born in June of 1893. I was very curious as to the actual dates of birth and death for the first Albert, so I looked at findagrave.com for the family burial information. Noting that they were buried in Milwaukie Pioneer Cemetery, in Milwaukie, Oregon near my home, I felt impressed to visit the cemetery the next day when there would likely be volunteers there for the Memorial Day weekend.

A Friend Provides an Early Morning Serendipity Moment

Sometimes I just don't feel like writing and I am not even sure why. I often get caught up in the project of the moment, losing focus on every day things. Then along comes a serendipity moment or hot topic and I can fill pages. This week I had one such experience with the Gates family. On Wednesday morning I awoke to find an email from a friend with whom I have collaborated on some New England research. This is what she sent:

"Check this out I think you will find something of interest."

http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ski/scott/diligent.html

Created by Scott and Kathyrn (Leedom) Ives

Family Vacations and Genealogy Experiences

This past week we took a week off from the normal routines of life to have a short vacation. Now that our children are no longer teenagers, my husband and I are able to get away with much less fuss, we just leave the kids at home. With a little envy, I have enjoyed reading the posts of Randy Seaver about his Legacy cruise with his wife. I am not sure a cruise is my cup of tea, but we might have to try one just to see. For me the best vacation includes a little genealogy research, even though my husband is not really interested he tolerates my interest in this. While at his mother's home this week I shared some of my current projects with her. Over the years I have enjoyed many family vacations, both as a child and later as a parent. We need these times to recharge our systems and they can also incorporate some history, both personal and cultural. Here are some of my favorites.

My Memories of My Mother

My mother is a great blessing in my life and the lives of our family. Her family moved to Oregon in September of 1941 and she has lived here ever since. In that time she lived in Portland, St. John's Woods, St. Johns, Linton, Portland and Clackamas. Overall, for the majority of her life Portland was her home. At the age of twenty she married my father and together they raised two daughters and two sons. My siblings and I all married and settled in the Portland area. We are a close family and that is mostly due to my mother and the way she raised us. She is a great example of what a mother should be and do.

Difficult Family History Issues

No family is perfect. At marriage most of us are young and naive enough to think that we have found happily ever after. As we mature and begin to explore our family history we may become aware of details that most people prefer to keep as unmentionables. In the past people were more guarded about difficult situations that come up in some degree in almost every family. These may include adoption, divorce, spousal infidelity, child abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, mental and/or general health issues, etc. Some of these hidden secrets may be found in newspaper articles, court records, old family documents and even personal letters.

1940 Oregon Census Index Serendipity Moments

Today it became reality. The 1940 census index for Oregon went online and is fully searchable, with downloads of images. Over the past month I worked as an administrator and indexer for many hours. I actually indexed for five of the New England States - New Hampshire was already gone when I thought to do this. This is my area of specialty in my Accredited Genealogy work. These are the states that I indexed and what I completed in 5,000 Records/125 Batches:

Oregon 36

Connecticut 1

Maine  1

Rhode Island 1

Vermont 1

Massachusetts 73

Illinois 3

Iowa 2

Nebraska 5

Utah 1 

Washington 1

3 blank batches

Pro Bono Work and Volunteer Service

Today there was a survey request on the APG Members List about Pro Bono work and other volunteer service provided by the members. The following is my response. 

My volunteer work provides me with experience and a great sense of satisfaction. It is important to pace yourself when doing pro bono work and other volunteer service. This is some of the my volunteer work:

The Family of Gedeon Senecal

For today's post I am sharing the story of the family of Gedeon Senecal previously published in the June 2010 Bulletin of the Genealogical Forum of Oregon. As we worked on this project for the fiftieth birthday present for one of his descendants, we experienced many serendipity moments. We worked to create an accurate family history based on family information and historical documents. Please excuse any errors. If you have an interest in this family or wish to share additional information, pictures, documents, etc. we would love to hear from you.