Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - Lydia Gibbs nee Smith

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

“Mrs. Harry Gibbs

The funeral of Mrs. Lydia H. Gibbs, of 780 S. Tamiami Drive, Port Charlotte, Fla., formerly of Stewartsville, was held this afternoon in Stewartsville Presbyterian Church.  Mrs. Gibbs was the widow of Harry Gibbs.

Rev. Earl D. Davis assisted by Rev. M.H. Loololan, former church pastor, officiated.  Interment was in Stewartsville Presbyterian Cemetery.  The pallbearers were George Baylor, George Cole, Ernest Hagerty, Frederick E. Hans Jr., James Csovelak and Delroy Smith.”  

OK...I cheated for this one a little.  Since Lydia had a memorial on FindAGrave, I used her birth year (1892) in my search.  I found her and her husband, Harry, in the 1930 census with their 3 children, Cora, William and Doris.  According to FindAGrave her name was Lydia Hanna Gibbs nee Smith. 

Rest in peace Lydia.

Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - Willis Rhoads

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

“Willis J. Rhoads

The funeral of Willis J. Rhoads, 72, of 18 S. Riverside Drive, Easton, was held this afternoon in St. John’s Lutheran Church, Easton.  Mr. Rhoads died Saturday in Easton Hospital.

Rev. John F. Steinbruck officiated.  Interment was in Easton Cemetery.  The pallbearers were Harry and George Keller, Lester Jones, William Lewis, Irwin Mack and Russell Hartpence.”  

Certainly not a lot of information to go on.  There was no FindAGrave memorial (there is now), but because I'm only seeing the burial/funeral notice on this newspaper page, I searched on Ancestry.com using his approximate year of birth (1892), his state and name.  There were actually a couple Willis Rhoads in Pennsylvania, but I found Willis with his wife Edith in Northampton County (where Easton happens to be) in the 1920 census.  No children were living with them.  No children again in 1930 and Edith was already 42 by this census.  The census records also don't show (by these census years), how many births a woman had.  I miss that bit of information.

Willis' SSDI gave his birth date as July 10, 1891.  After finding this I went to search for Edith to see if she too was in the SSDI (I didn't find her) and I came across Edith in the 1940 census with her husband.  Willis is listed as "Wesley" but everything else fit.  Same city.  Same wife. Same approximate birth year.  You know what else was in the census with them?  A daughter, Arlene S Keller.  There is a correction given for Arlene's last name to be Rhoades.  I guess it'll be a mystery for anyone searching this family.  Was Arlene really their daughter?  She wasn't in the 1920 and 1930 census with them, but she would have been alive then.  If she was their daughter, who was she living with then?  Why was she missed?  There are 2 Kellers that served as pallbearers at Willis' funeral.  We can only hope that the obituary for Willis had much more information.

Funeral Card Friday - Pope John Paul II

I had a memorial card for Pope John Paul II after his death.  It used to sit to the table right next to my bed.  That and a picture of my grandmother Mary Brown nee Quirk.  We moved and I haven't found it since.  It's gotta be somewhere though, right?  I had wanted to share it on a Funeral Card Friday post, but it seemed like that wasn't going to happen any time soon.

Then I looked through a large box of memorial cards that my mother-in-law had passed on to me over Christmas and there were several memorial cards in there for John Paul II.  I was surprised that none of them were like mine.  I guess I shouldn't have been.  Obviously there were millions made so why just have one style?

I love the one at the top of this post.  That's how I think most Catholics remember our beloved John Paul II.  Kind and gentle.  The church isn't perfect, but I think it's safe to say that a vast majority of Catholics loved our pope.  Disagree with him at times...sure, but he was adored, loved and looked up to.  Not the same feeling with our newly retired pope (at least not for this Catholic).  No animosity toward him, but John Paul II was a tough act to follow.

I remember when Pope John Paul II died.  I was a Drill Sergeant at the Defense Language Institute, Foreign Language Center.  Some of my colleagues were quite angry that the flag was ordered to half-staff for his death.  It certainly showed me that anti-Catholic feelings run deep in some people, but I tried to maintain my composure and pointed out that each Pope is the head of state for Vatican City and that the flag was being lowered to honor the head of state, not the religious leader.  I doubt it got through.  Hatred can do that to some people, but you can't change facts (or policy).

Another more amusing story from that day was when a Soldier said, "Pope down!"  He did some push ups (drop, Bruce!).





















Love him or not, Pope John Paul II was one of the longest serving popes in the history of Catholicism. He played an important part in the lived of Catholics from 1978 to 2005.  Karol Wojtyla....Pope John Paul II...rest in peace.

Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - Charles Pavlina

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

“Charles Pavlina

Charles Pavlina, 82, of 51 Green Row, Oxford, died unexpectedly yesterday at his home.

Mr. Pavlina was a miner for 37 years.  He was employed at the Alan Wood Steel Co. in Oxford before he retired.

He was a native of Austria-Hungary.  His wife, Julia, died 21 years ago.  He was a member of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church, Oxford, and the Pennsylvania Slovak Catholic Union, Wilkes-Barre.

Survivors include a son, John, Oxford; three daughters, Mrs. Mary Petersack and Mrs. Julia May, both of Oxford, and Mrs. Sophia Jurinko, Phillipsburg; a sister in Austria, 11 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

The funeral will be held at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the DeVoe Funeral Home, Washington, followed by a Requiem High Mass at 9:15 a.m. in St. Rose Church”

The Social Security Death Index has Charles being born on February 3, 1882 (remember this is not proof of birth!).  The SSDI and the obit apparently have the name wrong, or a variant, because Charles and his family can be found in the 1930 census under the name Pavolina...and his and Julia's tombstone on FindAGrave is Pavolina as well!

Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - Karl A. Morgenthaler

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

“Karl A. Morgenthaler

A Requiem Mass for Karl A. Morgenthaler, 70, Columbia, N.J., was celebrated this morning in St. Jude Catholic Church, Blairstown.  Mr. Morgenthaler died Monday in Monroe County General Hospital, East Stroudsburg.

Rev. Michael Garry was the celebrant.  Interment was in Cedar Ridge Cemetery, Blairstown.  The pallbearers were James R. Snedeker, Howard KaKay, Richard Baumbach and Roy Fostle.

The funeral was conducted from the MacFadden Funeral Home, Belvidere.”  

There is a memorial for Karl on FindAGrave that shows that he served with Co E 132 Infantry during World War I and was a Sergeant.  He was awarded the Purple Heart, was born on November 15, 1893, and is buried with his wife, Myrtle.

Karl's Social Security Death Index information on Ancestry.com showed that his last residence was in New Jersey (which we knew from the obit), but that his card was issued in Illinois.  Oh, how I love the SSDI.  Without that piece of information it may have been much more difficult for someone researching Karl to know that he lived in Illinois!  In fact, Karl's WWI enlistment card was filed in Illinois.  We see from his military marker on his gravestone that he served in WWI and even received the Purple Heart, but did you know that Karl claimed exemption from service on that draft card citing tuberculosis?  Another nice piece of info gleaned from his draft card was that he was single in 1917 when filling it out.  That will help someone narrow down a marriage date.

A possible match for Karl can be found in the 1930 US Federal Census with his wife listed as Irene.  Living next door to a Philip and Katharina Morgenthaler who this Karl lived with in previous censuses.  If this is the right Karl, then he was born in Illinois and lived there through the 1940 census.  This Karl is marked as a veteran of WWI, but that doesn't mean it's him.  There were lots of veterans for that war. By the 1940 US Federal Census this couple had one child, a son, name Karl.  Is this the correct Karl?  Probably, but more research to confirm this would need to be done.

Always keep in mind that just because someone filed for an exemption from military service didn't mean that they didn't serve, especially when Soldiers were in demand.  Thank you for your service, Karl and rest in peace.

Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - John H. Heater

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

“John H. Heater

The funeral of John H. Heater, 71, of 48 N. Delaware Drive, was held this morning at the Adams Funeral Home, Easton.  Mr. Heater died Saturday night in Easton Hospital.

Rev.  Martin Tornallyay of First United Church of Christ officiated.  Interment was in Easton Cemetery.  The pallbearers were Richard Heater, Robert Newman, Russell Sickles and Raymond Lutz.” 

A short burial announcement, but it was enough to tell me where John was buried and there was a FindAGrave memorial there for him...and 3 others!  His wife, Hattie, is on the tombstone as is his son, Harry, but there is another on there...Mary.  I'm guessing Mary is Harry's wife, but that would have to be verified!

A quick search in the 1940 US Federal Census gave me John and Hattie, with John's mother, Ida, widowed and living with him as well as his sons, John and Harry, living at home.

Not a bad bit of information that you can pull with a quick online search.

Random Acts Of Genealogical Kindness - Golden Little

Easton Express, 15APR1964, pg 38

Because we all have collateral information surrounding those obituaries and news articles we copy for our records.  Let's share them and hope that they benefit someone researching their genealogy.

A short one for tonight, but a unique name.

“Golden Little

Golden Little, 53, of 102 Center St., Clinton, died this morning in the Hunterdon Medical Center.

Funeral arrangements are incomplete.” 

Not a lot of information in this brief announcement, but a rather unusual name so hopefully the information would be able to help someone search a few days forward for the full obituary or burial announcement or narrow down a death certificate request.

From a quick Ancestry search of "Golden Little" in New Jersey, I came up with a match in Clinton, New Jersey. In the 1930 census Golden is living with his parents, Howard and Jennie, and his sister, Gladys.

According to FindAGrave (he has a memorial there) he is buried in Locust Grove Cemetery.