52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

                   James Alonzo Harley. I have seen and typed his name so many times over the past 20 years of doing family history, but what did I really know about him? Did I know enough to write a blog post about him? Not really, and I figured this was the week to fix that, and challenge myself to see if I could learn more about him than just a few dates and some census records data.            I knew James was our mom’s paternal grandfather and his wife’s name was Kate Landis. Our mom knew both of them when she was a child. James lived most of his adult life in Philadelphia, having moved there around 1881 with his wife and one young son.   But he grew up in the very rural Lower Salford area of Montgomery county PA, just about 35 miles north of Philadelphia, learning the trade of harness making from his father, Jacob Klein Harley.   James Alonzo Harley, my paternal great grandfather ...

          Fire - thankfully I have no stories of an ancestor’s house or barn burning down in generations past. That’s not to to say it didn’t happen, but I have no direct knowledge of it. So I have chosen instead to write about the fires I remember as a child while growing up.   However, what I discovered was that I didn’t have any pictures of that fireplace that I remember so well. But I did find a partial one in the background of a photo, so I took this opportunity to experiment with AI a little and see if I could have it recreate the photo I wanted. For a novice, it turned out pretty good. Our dad always loved a big roaring fire in our fireplace in Brookside. Our house on Cherry Lane Rd had a nice red brick fireplace in the family room off the living room. We had lots of fires in this room (contained to the fireplace thank gosh), but I particularly remember the ones at Christmas time, with the heat of the fire and the sound of the logs popping. ...

          No doubt about it, the first thing I thought of for this topic was Atlantic City NJ and the Atlantic ocean. They both have played a large part of our family’s history and entertainment for over 100 years. In 1919   mom’s parents and my mom (she was just one year old) moved from Philadelphia to Atlantic City, mainly to be closer to the business (The Minerva Yarn Shop) on the boardwalk that my grandfather managed. Not only did my grandparents and my mom enjoy the beach while she was growing up, but most of their relatives visited often from Philadelphia and New Jersey to breath in the salty ocean air.   There was nothing like it! They sure did enjoy themselves and I have photos to prove it.   Nanny (My grandmom) and Dot (my mom) at the beach around 1925 left to right, Lizzie g-grandma Koetzle, Aunt Helen, Dot (mom), Nanny, Uncle Bud Koetzles, friends, kids, and far right (with suit & tie) James and Kate Harley, Wilbur's (Poppop'...

          I could write a book or two on all the cemeteries I have visited over the last 10 years, but for this week’s blog I am going to concentrate on two cemeteries in Tennessee that I try to visit every time I make it down there. Why do I keep going back to these two? I get that question a lot. The main reason is it’s just the feeling I get when I set foot there. They are both so peaceful and beautiful, and they just feel comfortable and known to me.   I first visited these two cemeteries in early August, 2016 with my brother Jim. I had done some research beforehand, and he graciously agreed to accompany me. Both cemeteries are in the picturesque Sequatchie Valley in central Tennessee. Sequatchie Valley view from Parham Chapel The Tollett Cemetery is where my Hinch 3rd great grandparents are buried. Their names are John Hinch and Anna Parham. John was born around 1804 in Adair Co. Kentucky, and Anna was born in 1801 in Elbert Co. Georgia. ...