Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Wednesday's Child ~ Remembering Asbury

Asbury Bateman Webster Tombstone
From FindaGrave.com
Photo by Crystal Vannest Danko


Asbury Bateman Webster was born on October 20, 1840 in Racine, Meigs, Ohio.  He was the son of my maternal 3rd Great-Grandparents, Moses Augustine Webster and Amanda Melvina Carlisle.  Asbury was the second of eight children born to Moses and Amanda.  He passed away on December 2, 1849 at only nine years of age.  According to the United States Census (Mortality Schedule) for 1850, Asbury's cause of death was "Inflammation of the Lungs" with the duration of the illness being 60 days.1




Asbury Bateman Webster in the US Census, Mortality Schedule, 1850 for Ohio, Meigs County Cropped



I wondered what "Inflammation of the Lungs" meant in today's medical terminology.  I also wondered if this term meant Asbury could have had Asthma.  My understanding is that the tendency to have Asthma can run in families.  Asbury's older brother, Ebenezer (my 2nd Great-Grandfather), suffered from Asthma.  How did I find out my 2nd Great-Grandfather had Asthma?  It was documented in his Civil War Pension File.

In today's medical terms, Inflammatory Lung Disease includes Asthma, COPD, Cystic Fibrosis, etc.  But, what did "Inflammation of the Lungs" mean in the 1800s?

I checked the website
Nineteenth Century Diseases, and it stated the following:
"In the last century, cause of death often was listed as inflammation of a body organ; such as, brain or lung, but this was purely a descriptive term and is not helpful in identifying the actual underlying disease."
I did a bit more sleuthing and found different information in the website  eHistory's Common Civil War Medical Terms.  According to this website, "Inflammation of the Lungs" was the equivalent to pneumonia today.

So, with conflicting information, I guess it's really not clear what the underlying cause of death was for poor little Asbury.


Unfortunately, Asbury wasn't the only child of Moses and Amanda's children who died before reaching adulthood.  They lost three more children:  two under the age of five, and one when he was fourteen years old.

If you'd like to check out Asbury's FindaGrave memorial page, just click the following link: 
Asbury's FindaGrave.com Memorial Page

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last


1 "United States Census (Mortality Schedule), 1850," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M36N-P4J : accessed 30 Jan 2013), A B Webster, Meigs county, Meigs, Ohio, United States; citing NARA microfilm publication M432

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 25, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order) -
  1. “Grandma Did What?” Digging Up the Roots of Family Lore by Sue Shellenbarger – The Wall Street Journal
  2. GeneaBloggers Celebrates Four Years! by GeneaBloggers
  3. "Photoshop" Early 1900's Style by Erica's Adventures in Genealogy
  4. What I learned at SLIG 2013: Ponder and Mull. Sorting Saturday. by Finding Forgotten Stories
  5. Surname Saturday – Dork by Sally Searches
  6. A Timeline - Marcellus Fulton White by Leaves For Trees
  7. Meeting Uncle Donnie by Gail Grunst Genealogy
  8. FamilySearch Wiki Main Page Has Been Revised by FamilySearch Blog
  9. WikiTree Upgrades Its Gedcom Upload Features by Begin with 'Craft'
  10. A Research Guide to the Pennsylvania Archives with Links to Records Online by Genealogy Decoded
  11. Taking Notes From the Bible by Ancestral Breezes
  12. But . . . . What Happened to Marthy? by A Southern Sleuth
  13. How to Export Your Blogger and WordPress Posts by Free Technology for Teachers
  14. Another Look at Genealogy Education by Family Cherished
  15. Just How Many Murders Can One Family Have? by Ancestoring's Ask A Genealogist
  16. Fielding Jollett - A Decree in the Court of Equity by Jollett etc.
  17. A Comment on Blog Comments by The We Tree Genealogy Blog
  18. Treasure Chest Thursday: Grandma & Grandpa Doerflinger’s 50th Wedding Anniversary Album by Elyse's Genealogy Blog

Thanks for reading!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Tech Tuesday - OneNote For Genealogy ~ Research Bookmarks

I absolutely love OneNote. (And no, I don't work for the company and I'm not getting any compensation for this post.) Last year I shared how I use OneNote to create my Fab Finds Posts.

Today I want to share another way I use it. I've discovered that OneNote is a fabulous way to save my place while I'm doing genealogy research. You can think of it as digital scratch paper.

So, here's a real life experience I had while trying to find the death record for my Grandaunt, Edna Lillie Webster. I was looking through a record set on FamilySearch.org when the time came for our family to go to the movies. Hurray! We were off to see The Hobbit! But, I hadn't finished looking at the record set in FamilySearch. Bummer! So what did I do? I just used OneNote as a research bookmark.

It was super quick and easy!

In OneNote, I created a Research Bookmarks Notebook.  I organized the notebook like this:

  • Sections (top tabs) = genealogy websites
  • Pages (along the right side) = ancestor(s)

OneNote for Genealogy Research 1

Saving my place using OneNote -

To save my place while I was researching Edna Lillie's death record, I copied the URL from the record set in FamilySearch.org, and then pasted it onto Edna Lillie Webster's page in OneNote. (see above)


 

OneNote for Genealogy Research URL

When I'm ready to continue searching for Edna Lillie's death record in FamilySearch, I'll just click on the URL on Edna's page in OneNote, and I will be taken back to the exact location in FamilySearch.org where I left off.  How cool is that?!

OneNote for Genealogy Research 2


But wait! There's more!

Let's say you don't want to create a separate Research Bookmarks notebook. Perhaps you've organized your genealogy research in OneNote by creating separate notebooks for different ancestors, surnames, localities or whatever. And you want to just add your research bookmarks within those notebooks.

But what about the possibility of these research bookmarks getting buried and forgotten inside all of those notebooks?  Will they be found again easily without having to go through each notebook? That's a valid concern if you're anything like me. I tend to research more than one ancestor at a time.

Well, there's an easy way to find those research bookmarks again. How? By using the "tag" feature in OneNote.

Simply create a "Research Bookmark" tag in the "Tag" drop-down menu.



OneNote for Genealogy Research Bookmark Tag

Then place that tag next to each research bookmark you create. Tags help you "remember" where you have placed your research bookmarks.


OneNote for Genealogy Research Bookmark Tag 2

To find all of your research bookmarks again, just click "Find Tags" at the top of OneNote.


OneNote for Genealogy Research Find Tags

You will then see this handy-dandy box (below) on the right side of your OneNote page. You can search for tags by Tag Name, Section, Title, Date, or Note Text in the drop-down menu.

Now you're all set to find the Research Bookmark you are looking for and resume your genealogy research.  Once you've found the bookmark you want, just click on it and you'll be taken to that page in your OneNote notebook.

OneNote for Genealogy Research 3 Tags

So, that's it! I hope this will be a helpful tool for you in your genealogy research.

Thanks for reading!


Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Friday, January 18, 2013

Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 18, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order) -
  1. Sepia Saturday: Christine Forever 24 by Jollett etc.
  2. Now It's Six by Kinexxions
  3. Torn and Ragged by Ancestral Breezes
  4. Wedding Photo Challenge! AND Where Was This Picture Taken? by Past – Present – Future
  5. You Genealogists with More Experience than Me, ... . . . may I please have a moment of your time?  I have a question for you. by My Ancestors and Me
  6. Duck and Cover ! by Maybe someone should write that down…
  7. When a Genealogy Hobby Digs Up Unwanted Secrets by Sue Shellenbarger - The Wall Street Journal
  8. Welcome to a New Year of Indexing by FamilySearch Blog
  9. Giving Our Ancestors a Second Chance by The Spiraling Chains: Kowalski – Bellan Family Trees
  10. A Blast from the Past! by Nutfield Genealogy
  11. Treasure Chest Thursday- Help Needed! Can You Date My Ancestor's Furniture? by Carolina Girl Genealogy
  12. In Response to Comments on Family Tree by Genealogy's Star
  13. Family Recipe Friday: Abuelita's Mexican Rice by Many Branches, One Tree

Concerning Blog Awards…some food for thought
  1. Blogging Genealogy: Blog Awards & SEO by Blogging Genealogy
  2. TO AWARD OR NOT TO AWARD???… by Seeking Susan ~ Meeting Marie ~ Finding Family
  3. Blog awards - what do you think? by Leaves For Trees

On Saturday, January 12, 2013, I received a press release from Jen Baldwin announcing major changes to The In-Depth Genealogist Digital Magazine.  I encourage you to check out these exciting new changes by clicking on the link below. 


Thanks for reading!


Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Monday, January 14, 2013

May I Introduce To You…Me

In November of 2012, Gini at Ginisology surprised me with a request to interview me for the "May I Introduce To You" series at GeneaBloggers.  What an honor!

The "May I Introduce To You" series provides a wonderful way for us to get to know our fellow geneabloggers.  Gini does a fantastic job with these interviews.  I'm sure it must take a great deal of time on her part to put these all together.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Gini for giving me this opportunity, and Thomas MacEntee for publishing this series on his GeneaBloggers website.

If you're interested, you can read my interview by clicking this link ~

May I Introduce To You...Jana Last

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Sepia Saturday 159 ~ A Trip to Sunset Beach

Sepia Saturday provides an opportunity for genealogy bloggers to share their family history through photographs.

This is part of a series of posts dedicated to the immigration story of Debs Webster and his family.

Today's Sepia Saturday photo prompt (at end of post) provides the perfect opportunity to share two photos from my Grandpa Debs Webster's 1952 photo album.  I would describe this album as a photographic travelogue about his family's emigration from Brazil to the United States.

The previous
installment of the Debs Webster Family Immigration Story showed that Debs and his family had safely arrived in Glendora, California.  This is the city where their Sponsor, Mr. West and his family lived.  Mr. West kindly allowed Debs and his family to live in a house on his property.

It turns out that Mr. West also owned a beach house.  It was located on
Sunset Beach, which is in Huntington Beach, California.  The two photos below show this beach house during an outing which included both the West and Webster families.

 





I asked my mom about these photos.  She couldn't remember exactly when this outing took place.  But, since the next photo in my Grandpa Debs' 1952 photo album shows the family at Thanksgiving, I think it's safe to assume they went sometime before school started for the kids.

The Webster family arrived in Glendora in August of 1952 and my mom started school that fall, so perhaps they had a little beach getaway sometime in August or on Labor Day weekend.  No matter when the trip occurred, it must have been so fun!

For those unfamiliar with Southern California, this map shows where both Glendora and Huntington Beach are located.


Glendora to Huntington Beach Map
Googlemaps.com

Below is a photo from Wikimedia Commons showing Sunset Beach in 2009.


Sunset Beach 2009 Wikimedia Commons - Author Regular Daddy
Sunset Beach 2009
Wikimedia Commons
Photographer - Regular Daddy

If you'd like to take a virtual trip to the beach, be sure to check out what the other Sepia Saturday participants have written by clicking HERE.


 

Sepia Saturday 159 January 12, 2013

Thanks for reading!

Jana


Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 11, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order) -
  1. Two Brothers Had TB, One Survived, One Didn't by Documenting the Details
  2. FamilySearch Introduces Two New Search Features by FamilySearch Blog
  3. Top 100 Genealogy Websites for 2013 by GeneaPress
  4. Accentuate the Positive 2012 GeneaMeme by GenBlog
  5. Three Kings Day AND She lived “between the stairs”: reminiscing about my Grandmother’s stories during the “Downton Abbey” premiere…. by Nutfield Genealogy
  6. Cousin Bait Strategy Needed by Nuts From the Family Tree
  7. Sepia Saturday – A Parade of Musical Memories by Abbie and Eveline
  8. Researching Our Mutual Ancestor: Mother Nature by Ancestral Breezes
  9. Write Soon Please by A Southern Sleuth
  10. FamilySearch Mobile Indexing App Withdrawn by The Ancestry Insider
  11. A Little Girl’s Daddy by A Family Tapestry
  12. "Downton Abbey" and Family Photos by Photo Detective – Maureen A. Taylor
  13. New Haley Page Added by Are You My Cousin?
  14. Technology Tuesday - Pulling Evidence from Thin Paper by The Last Leaf On This Branch
  15. We're Off. . . on the How to Archive Family Keepsakes Blog Book Tour by The Family Curator
  16. The drafty Ohioan by The Legal Genealogist
  17. A Family Story by Tall Tales of a Family
  18. The Family History Writing Challenge Returns! by The Armchair Genealogist

New Blog Discoveries

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Three Blog Awards, Kindly Given

Within the last few days, my blog has been nominated for three different blog awards!  What a fun and humbling surprise!  I am quite honored to receive these awards from my fellow bloggers.

The initial happiness at receiving these awards soon evolved into a bit of anguish about who I would subsequently nominate or "pay the honor forward."

I really don't want to hurt anyone else's feelings by not nominating their blog.  There are so many deserving bloggers out there and I hate leaving anyone out.

With this in mind, I hope my fellow bloggers who have not been nominated by me at this time will accept a well-deserved honorary award nomination.

Yvonne at Yvonne's Genealogy Blog has given me the great honor of nominating my blog for the Wonderful Team Member Readership Award.  Thank you Yvonne!

award-wonderful-team-member-readership-award

The creator of this award said, “As bloggers, we are also readers. That is a part of blogging as listening is a part of speaking."

RULES:


(i) Don’t forget to thank the nominator and link back to their site as well;
(ii) Display the award logo on your blog;
(iii) Nominate no more than fourteen readers of your blog you appreciate and leave a comment on their blogs to let them know about the award;
(iv) Finish this sentence: “A great reader is…”

"A great reader is one who takes the time to read the words of others, and then replies with words of kindness and encouragement."

The following award nominees have consistently left kind and encouraging comments on my blog. 

  1. Celia at Twigs and Trees
  2. Mariann at Into the Briar Patch
  3. Debi at Who Knew?
  4. Laura at Branch and Leaf...a family history blog
There are so many other bloggers who have also done the same. And for that I thank them too.



My blog was also nominated to receive the Liebster Blog Award.  Liebster in German means "dearest."  How sweet is that?  Thank you Laura at Branch and Leaf...a family history blog for this honor.


liebster-blog-award-small

I had never heard of this blog award.  After doing a little research, I found that there are differing rules accompanying this award.  Some require that the nominee answer a set of questions.  But I found another that doesn't mention any questions.  I think I'll go with the no-questions set of rules.

Liebster rules:

1. Thank the one who nominated you by linking back.
2. Nominate five blogs with less than 200 followers.
3. Let the nominees know by leaving a comment at their sites.
4. Add the award image to your site.

So, here are my nominees for the Liebster, or "Dearest" Blog Award (in no particular order):
  1. Shelley Bishop at http://www.asenseoffamily.com/
  2. Kathy at http://www.abbieandeveline.com/
  3. Michelle at A Southern Sleuth
  4. Cindy at http://rosehavencottage.blogspot.com/
  5. Nancy at http://nancysfamilyhistoryblog.blogspot.com/


The third award my blog was nominated for is the Blog of The Year 2012 Award.  Thank you Sue at Family History Fun for this great honor!

blog-of-the-year-boty-1star

The ‘rules’ for this award are simple: 1. Select the blog(s) you think deserve the ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award.

2. Write a blog post and tell us about the blog(s) you have chosen – there’s no minimum or maximum number of blogs required – and ‘present’ them with their award.

3. Please include a link back to this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award – http://thethoughtpalette.co.uk/our-awards/blog-of-the-year-2012-award/ and include these ‘rules’ in your post (please don’t alter the rules or the badges!)

4. Let the blog(s) you have chosen know that you have given them this award and share the ‘rules’ with them.

5. If you choose, you can now join our Facebook group – click ‘like’ on this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award Facebook group and then you can share your blog with an even wider audience.

6. As a winner of the award – please add a link back to the blog that presented you with the award – and then proudly display the award on your blog and sidebar … and start collecting stars for every time you are nominated. For further information on collecting stars, just click on the link provided in Rule 3.

So, without further ado, here are my nominees for this award (in no particular order).
  1. Jen at http://ancestralbreezes.blogspot.com/
  2. Gini at http://www.ginisology.com/
  3. Jacqi at A Family Tapestry

Please take a moment to visit the blogs I've nominated for these three awards.  They are very well written and enjoyable to read.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Monday, January 7, 2013

Hurray! It's Time To Do The Genealogy Happy Dance!

Thanks to Jen Baldwin at Ancestral Breezes, I was able to do the Genealogy Happy Dance yesterday.  On Facebook, Jen posted a link to the Colorado Statewide Divorce Index, 1900-1939 on FamilySearch.org.

I clicked the link to start searching for a divorce for my Great-Grandfather Frederick Emory Webster, a.k.a.
"The Traveling Dentist."  Why was I looking for a divorce record for him?  Because he was married twice.  Ya, I hadn't mentioned that little fact on my blog yet. I descend from his second wife, Esther Matus Villatoro, who was from Mexico.  His first wife was Kate E. Woodhouse.  She was from England.  Kate and Frederick married in Denver, Colorado on December 10, 1888.

I discovered that Frederick had a first wife some time ago.  After learning this fact, I  was really hoping that he hadn't just left the United States and married again without getting a divorce first.

Would you believe I found Frederick and Kate's Divorce Record Report in less than half an hour?  Yep, it was absolutely time to do the Genealogy Happy Dance!!  There is no index in this record set, but it is alphabetized, which does make it easier to peruse.

I have to admit, I was quite relieved to find the Divorce Record Report for Kate and Frederick yesterday.  Thank you again Jen!  You helped me check off one of my research goals for Frederick.  Finding a divorce for Frederick and Kate was on my To-Do List.


Divorce Record Report for Frederick Emory Webster and Kate E. Woodhouse
"Colorado Department of Health. Colorado, Statewide Divorce Index, 1900-1939," images, FamilySearch  (https://familysearch.org: accessed 6 January 2013), image 1569 of 4516 images, Frederick E. Webster and Kate E. Webster, 1899, Colorado Department of Health and Environment, Denver, Colorado.
As you can see from this divorce report, Fred and Kate had two children together – Myrtie Edna Webster and Earl Webster.  This fact isn't new to me and I've done quite a bit of research about them.  I've found a lot of information on Earl, but not so much on Myrtie Edna, or as my records show, Edna Myrtie (don't know which is right on this one).

Webster Dental & Photo Boats 1896 to 1902 at Lake Charles Louisiana
Webster Dental and Photo Boats circa 1896-1902
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Click to Enlarge

And the Date of Decree is March 14, 1899.  I'm not familiar with divorce lingo, and I'm not a lawyer, so I wasn't sure what a Decree was.  I did a little research online and it looks like it means the divorce is final.  I could be wrong though.  If anyone knows the answer to this, please let me know.  I'd really appreciate it.

Also, it looks like Kate was the one who filed for divorce from Fred.  Now I want to know why.  Was he negligent?  Did he travel too much?  Did she travel with him or was she left at home to care for the kids by herself?  I'm hoping that I can locate the actual divorce records to answer these and other questions.

Assuming the Decree date is the actual date the divorce was final, I was curious to see where Frederick was at that time.  So, I looked at my timeline for him and this is what I found.  I have a photo dated 1896-1902 showing Fred Webster's Dental and Photo Boats at Lake Charles, Calcasieu, Louisiana.  I also have another photo with boats with a date range of 1890-1902 in Morgan City, Louisiana.


Is Kate one of the people in this photo?  If not, just who are all of those people with Frederick?  Perhaps Kate didn't like this bohemian lifestyle of Fred's and called it quits.

Whatever the reason for Fred and Kate's divorce, I'm just so glad to find evidence that there actually was a divorce.  And that Fred didn't just sail away in one of his dental boats to a new life without the proper legal separation from his old life.


Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Friday, January 4, 2013

Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 4, 2013

I have an unusually long list of Fab Finds this week.  It seems that many Geneabloggers have been quite active this past week, now that the Christmas and New Year's holidays are behind us.

So, without further adieu, my Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order) -
  1. Blogging Genealogy: How to get visitors to read more by BloggingGenealogy.com
  2. Locating Ohio Obituaries Just Got Easier by The Corn and Cotton Blog
  3. The Whys of It All by A Southern Sleuth
  4. The Time is Now to Find Your Japanese Ancestors by Japanese Genealogy Blog
  5. With a Little Help From My Friends... by Adventures in Genealogy
  6. Who crossed your Civil War ancestor’s path? by Poore Boys In Gray
  7. A Favorite Christmas Gift! You might want one, too! by Nutfield Genealogy
  8. Where Were They? Turn of the Century Mark by Ancestral Breezes
  9. Taking up fly-by-night genealogy by Dear Myrtle
  10. Is Your Blog Shareable? Make It Easy On Your Readers. Motiviation Monday by Finding Forgotten Stories
  11. New Help for Genealogists on Twitter by Marian's Roots & Rambles
  12. Using DropBox to Backup and Share your Important Files – or Why I Don’t Bother Carrying a Flash Drive Anymore AND Using the National Genealogical Society Book Loan Collection by FamilySearch Blog
  13. I Am Your Audience by Sally Searches
  14. Copyright and the pen name by The Legal Genealogist
  15. Ancestry.com Discloses 2013 Plans by The Ancestry Insider
  16. But I Don't Know Who They Are by Desperately Seeking Surnames
  17. Ohio Genealogical Society–6th Annual Writing Competition by Writing Your Way to the Past
  18. 75 Best State Websites Now Available Online by Genealogy Insider
Several Geneabloggers wrote posts in which they looked back at 2012 and looked forward to 2013.
  1. 2012's Most Popular Posts on "My Ancestors and Me" by My Ancestors and Me
  2. Looking back at 2012 by The Legal Genealogist
  3. Genealogy Goals for 2013 by The Corn and Cotton Blog
  4. 2012 In Review by Begin with 'Craft'
  5. 2013 Genealogy Priorities: Birk, Mahler, Jacobs Families by Climbing My Family Tree
  6. Knowing when to tip over or How I plan to write more this year. Tuesday’s Tip by Finding Forgotten Stories
Jill Ball at Geniaus put together a Geneameme called "Accentuate the Positive 2012."  Many Geneabloggers participated.  I've listed three geneabloggers' posts, but there are so many more.  Jill's post (#4) lists all of the Geneameme participants.
  1. Accentuate the Positive - 2012 Geneameme by Twigs and Trees
  2. Accentuate the Positive 2012 Geneameme by Adventures in Genealogy
  3. Thankful Thursday - Accentuate the Positive by The Last Leaf On This Branch
  4. 2012 - A Very Good Year by Geniaus

New Blog Discoveries

Whew!  Okay, so that's it for this week's Fab Finds.  Have a great week everyone!

Thanks for reading!


Copyright © Jana Last 2013 

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Those Places Thursday–Webster Family Road Trip: California ~ A New Home

This is part of a series of posts dedicated to the immigration story of Debs Webster and his family.

It's been a few weeks since the
last installment of my Grandpa Debs Webster's Immigration Story.  In that post, I shared my uncle's memories of traveling across the country in a crowded unairconditioned car in the middle of summer.  I also shared some photos of an interesting early air conditioning system that some people were lucky enough to have on their cars.

During this long trip, Grandpa Debs Webster and his family had many exciting experiences and visited some very interesting places as they immigrated to the United States from Brazil.  It was really quite an adventure!

But it was probably a bit sad as well.  They had to
say goodbye to the only home most members of the family had ever known.   That must have been very difficult.  But, they said their goodbyes and looked forward to whatever adventures awaited them.

As it turned out, these adventures included: 
a port of call in Trinidad on their voyage to America, arriving in New York City in July, and staying in an unairconditioned upper floor hotel room, buying a car and camping equipment in New York in preparation for their cross-country trip to California, and foraging for watercress to add to their picnic meals

After about a month's travel time by ship and automobile, Grandpa Webster and his family finally arrived at their destination in Glendora, California.


When my Grandpa Debs Webster and his family emigrated from Brazil to the United States, they had a Sponsor named Mr. West.  He and his family lived in Glendora, California along Historic Route 66.  Mr. West graciously let my Grandparents and their family live in a house on his property.

The photos below are some of the last ones in my Grandpa Debs' 1952 Photo Album.  I'm so glad he put this album together which photographically documented their immigration trip.

See the house behind the shed?  (The shed is the building in the foreground next to the huge tree.)  That house is where my Grandparents' family lived until they bought a house of their own.

I think this photo is especially fun because it shows my uncles learning the All-American sport of Baseball.


  
See the car parked next to the shed in the photo below?  That's the 1951 Chevrolet Sedan Grandpa Debs bought in New York before their cross-country trek to California.

  
After arriving in California, it was time for the Webster family to see the sites in their new home state.  Here they are visiting the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  My two uncles are the little boys in the photo and my Grandma Willis is to the left of them.

 The Webster Family in Hollywood California 1952

I hope you've enjoyed reading the Debs Webster Family Immigration Story as much as I've enjoyed sharing it.

Thanks for reading!


Jana


Copyright © Jana Last 2013

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Ancestor Landing Page ~ Debs Webster Family Immigration Story

I really enjoyed reading Caroline Pointer's blog post Blogging Genealogy: How to get visitors to read more.   She had some great suggestions for the genealogy blogger.  One of those suggestions was to create an Ancestor Landing Page for an ancestor or family that we write about often.

I've been writing a series of posts about the immigration story of my Grandpa Webster and his family, who emigrated from Brazil to the United States in 1952. Below is a photo of their family taken on June 10, 1952 before they left Brazil.
 

Webster family before leaving for US 1952


So, I decided to create an Ancestor Landing Page for their story - Debs Webster Family Immigration Story.

And, I'll probably create an Ancestor Landing Page for my Great-Grandpa Frederick Webster, a.k.a. "The Traveling Dentist" in the future.  I'm fascinated by his life and many travels.

Thanks Caroline Pointer for your awesome suggestion about Ancestor Landing Pages!

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2013