52 Ancestors: #36 ~ My Great-Grandmother - Rosalia Rodrigues Vasques

This is part of the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" Challenge begun by Amy Johnson Crow, author of the blog No Story Too Small.



I believe this is a picture of my maternal great-grandmother, Rosalia Rodrigues Vasques. I cropped it from a larger group photo, which I will share at a later time.

I introduced you to Rosalia's husband, Alvaro Borges Da Silva Madeira, in a previous post. If you missed that post and would like to read about Alvaro, who was a Naval Engineer in Brazil, click HERE.

Rosalia was born 4 September 1857 to her parents Mathias Rodrigues Vasques and Margarida De Farias Correa. Rosalia was christened on 8 December 1857 in São Pedro, Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Rosalia and her husband Alvaro were the parents of five children.

1. Maria Isabel Vasques Madeira (1890-?)
2. Agrippina Vasques Madeira (1894-?)
3. Alvaro Borges Madeira (1895-1960)
4. Lucia Vasques Madeira (1896-?)
5. Sarah Vasques Madeira (1900-1942) [My Grandmother]

My records indicate that Rosalia passed away on 24 April 1930 in Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil at 72 years of age.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2014 Copyright by Jana Last, All Rights Reserved

52 Ancestors: #1 ~ Mathias Rodrigues Vasques

This is part of the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" Challenge begun by Amy Johnson Crow, author of the blog No Story Too Small.

Mathias Rodrigues Vasques

Amy Johnson Crow, author of the blog No Story Too Small, has issued the following challenge:

"...have one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem — anything that focuses on one ancestor. Not only should this get me blogging more, but also to take a deeper look at some of the people in my family tree."

I've decided to give this challenge a try…gulp! I already try to publish about two blog posts in this genealogy blog per week, which includes my weekly Fab Finds post. And I also try to publish one blog post per week in my other blogs, Jana's Photo Journal, and Grandpa's Postcards.

But, this challenge seems like a great way to make sure I write about lots of different ancestors in my genealogy blog, instead of focusing too much on just a few.

So, here we go!

The first ancestor I'm writing about for this challenge is my maternal 2nd great-grandfather, Mathias Rodrigues Vasques. I wrote a blog post about him a very short time after I started this blog, which was in April of 2012.

Mathias was born about 1824 in Rio Grande, Rio Grand du Sul, Brazil to his parents Raimundo Rodrigues Vasques and Maria Joaquina Velho.

Mathias and his wife, Margarida De Farias Correa, were the parents of thirteen children. I don't have definitive marriage information for Mathias and Margarida. That's something I need to work on.

Here are their children:

1. Margarida Vasques (7 February 1854 – ?)
2. Maria Do Carmo Vasques (14 April 1855 – ?)
3. Margarida Vasques (21 June 1856 – ?)
4. Rosalia Rodrigues Vasques (4 September 1857 – 24 April 1930) [My great-grandmother]
5. Othilia Vasques (27 November 1859 – ?)
6. Mathias Vasques (31 December 1860 – ?)
7. Raimundo Vasques (28 September 1863 – ?)
8. Joao Vasques (25 August 1865 – ?)
9. Thereza Vasques (Christened 22 December 1867 – ?)
10. Maria Francisca Vasques (9 Jan 1870 – ?)
11. Maria Francisca Vasques (17 June 1871 – ?)
12. Cazimira Vasques (22 July 1874 – ?)
13. Miguel Vasques (15 May 1877 – ?)

As you can see, I have a lot of research to do in order to replace those question marks with dates of death.

I love this picture of Mathias! It's so interesting. It appears that he was in the Brazilian military at some point during his life. Check out his hat on the chair. Doesn't it resemble a U. S. Civil War hat? It's interesting that the military hat styles of that time period were similar in both the United States and Brazil.

I found this picture (below) on the Wikimedia Commons website. It shows an officer (left) and a soldier (right) from the Brazilian Empire's Army, circa 1867. It's interesting to compare this picture with the picture of Mathias in his uniform.


Mathias passed away in 1890 in Rio Grande, Rio Grand du Sul, Brazil. Information for the date and place of death for Mathias was taken from a hand-written pedigree chart written by my maternal grandfather, Debs Warren Webster. I will need to do some research to verify this information.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2014 Copyright by Jana Last, All Rights Reserved

Alvaro Borges Da Silva Madeira ~ My Maternal Great-Grandfather

Today I'd like to introduce you to my great-grandfather, Alvaro Borges Da Silva Madeira. He was born on October 5, 1859 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Joaquim Borges Da Silva and Maximiana De Sa Gomes Madeira. Joaquim was born in Madeira, Portugal and Maximiana was born in Sao Pedro, Rio Grande, Rio Grande du Sul, Brazil.

Alvaro married Rosalia Rodrigues Vasques on January 27, 1890 in Rio Grande, Rio Grande du Sul, Brazil. They were the parents of five children:

1. Maria Isabel Vasques Madeira (1890-?)
2. Agrippina Vasques Madeira (1894-?)
3. Alvaro Borges Madeira (1895-1960)
4. Lucia Vasques Madeira (1896-?)
5. Sarah Vasques Madeira (1900-1942) [My Grandmother]

According to some writing next to Alvaro's photo, Alvaro was a Naval Engineer. I'm not really sure what a Naval Engineer is or what a Naval Engineer did in Brazil during the late 1800s. I found the following definition for a Naval Engineer online.

TheFreeDictionary.com defines a Naval Engineer as

"a naval officer responsible for the operation and maintenance of the ship's engines"

So, does this mean Alvaro was in the Brazilian Navy at some point in his life? I do have another photo of Alvaro wearing what looks like a military uniform. Here it is -

What do you think? Does it look like Alvaro was wearing a military uniform in this photo?

Alvaro passed away on January 9, 1911 at 51 years of age in Rio Grande, Rio Grand du Sul, Brazil.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Thanks for Traveling Frederick! - U.S. Consular Registration Application ~ 1917

This is part of a series of posts in which I share the documents relating to the travels of Watson (Frederick) Emory Webster and his family.

My Great-grandfather, Frederick Emory Webster, traveled a great deal during his life.  He didn't stay in one place long enough to be listed in all of the U.S. Censuses.  In fact, I've only found him listed in three census records.

But, there can be benefits to having an ancestor who liked to travel.  Especially if they traveled in and out of the country, like Frederick did.

One of the benefits of ancestors who traveled is the possibility that they left a paper trail behind them.  I recently discovered this document on Ancestry.com.  It's a United States Consular Registration Application.¹  This application is for my "Traveling Dentist" Great-Grandpa, Frederick Emory Webster.  Because Frederick traveled so much in his life, I've been able to find other documents related to his many travels such as a passport application and passenger lists.  I plan on sharing these other documents in future posts.

After thoroughly looking at the details and information in this document, I was able to glean the following interesting and important genealogical information.

• Frederick's full name
• Frederick's date and place of birth
• Frederick's father's name and place of birth
• Date Frederick left United States – October 20, 1911 (new information)
• Arrived at Curitiba, Brazil around 1915 and he and his family were residing there at time this document was filled out (new information)
• The purpose for living in Curitiba was to practice dentistry (new information)
• Legal domicile was Ironton, Missouri and permanent residence was the same at time this document was filled out (new information)
• Frederick applied for registration at the Consulate in Santos, Brazil about 1915 (need to check for that document too) (new information)
• Wife's name, birthdate and birthplace are listed
• Timeline additions for Frederick's whereabouts from 1907 to 1917 (new information)
• Names, birthplaces, birthdates and present residence of his children
• Middle name and birthdate of oldest daughter, Carlota (new information)
• Middle name and birthdate of Eugene Rollin (new information)
• Physical description of Frederick
• Added bonus – Frederick's Signature

So, if you have an ancestor who traveled a lot (or even a little), make sure you search for any and all documents related to their travels.  Even if you don't know if one of your ancestors traveled, it's worth checking for travel-related documents, just in case.  You may be surprised at what you find.

I had no idea Frederick had registered at the US Consulate in Brazil.  What a find!  Thanks for traveling Great-Grandpa Frederick!  I love the paper trail you've left behind.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

---

1 "U.S., Consular Registration Applications, 1916-1925," database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 December 2012), Frederick Emory Webster, 29 August 1917, no. 10239; citing Department of State, Division of Passport Control Consular Registration Applications, roll #32734_620305173_0258.

Sepia Saturday 149–Recife, Brazil ~ A Vintage Postcard

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

Well, I'm taking you on a virtual trip to Brazil again today!  This vintage postcard of Recife, Brazil is a far cry from the somewhat sad scene of today’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt (shown at the bottom of this post).

It does, however, show a woman near a body of water.  But that is where the similarity ends.  This postcard is part of my Grandpa Debs Webster’s collection of vintage postcards.

Recife, Brazil Vintage Postcard

Back of Recife, Brazil Vintage Postcard

In case you are wondering just where Recife is located within Brazil, here's a map ~

GoogleMaps.com
Click to Enlarge

According to Wikipedia.org,

Recife (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁeˈsifi] ( listen), Reef) is the sixth-largest^[1] metropolitan area in Brazil with 3,743,854 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper was 1.555.039 in 2012.^[2]

Recife is located where the Beberibe River meets the Capibaribe River to flow into the Atlantic Ocean. It is a major port on the Atlantic Ocean. Its name is an allusion to the coral reefs that are present by the city's shores. The many rivers, small islands and over 50 bridges found in Recife city center characterize its geography and gives it the moniker of the "Brazilian Venice."

And now...sit back, relax, and enjoy the sights of Recife, Brazil.

To see what other Sepia Saturday participants have written today, just click HERE.




Thanks for reading!

Jana


Copyright © Jana Last 2012

Sepia Saturday 148–A Visit to Corcovado

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

Today’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt is a curious one.  It shows a group of men, two of whom are police officers.  It appears that one of the officers is handing what looks like a firearm to another man.  But, if you look at the building behind this group of men, you see a person at the window.  Hmm, What was he doing there and why was he watching this group of men?  We may never know.




I wasn’t sure in what direction I was going to go for today’s Sepia Saturday post, but once again my Grandpa Debs Webster’s 1952 photo album came to my rescue.  In this album I found this photo (below) showing two people at a window.  So ya, I'm going with the "person in the window" theme this week.

This photo is one of a series of photos from a visit to Corcovado. Before my Grandpa Debs Webster and his family immigrated to the United States, they made a trip to Corcovado, which is in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Building at Corcovado

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

May 24, 1952

Atop Corcovado mountain stands the well-known 125-ft. statue of Jesus Christ, entitled Cristo Redentor, or “Christ the Redeemer.”

Corcovado Mountain Photo from
Wikimedia Commons  - Copyright Released
Click to Enlarge

Cristo Redentor
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Click to Enlarge

 

How does a tourist get to the top of this mountain?  One way is by the Corcovado Rack Railway.  And this is how my Grandpa Debs, Grandma Willis, and my mom visited Corcovado on May 24, 1952.

Here is a group photo showing tourists at the railway station.  I’ve labeled my grandparents and mom.  My Grandpa Debs wrote on the photo’s edge, “Upper Station” and “May 24, 1952.”

Group Photo at

Corcovado Upper Station

May 24, 1952

Here are a couple photos of the station -



Corcovado Upper Station

May 24, 1952

See the train coming?


Corcovado Upper Station

May 24, 1952

Cristo Redentor or “Christ the Redeemer”

Cristo Redentor or "Christ the Redeemer"

at Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

May 24, 1952

The following photos show fabulous views of Rio de Janiero and the surrounding area.

Notice Corcovado's observation deck where the tourists are standing?

View of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

from Observation Deck

at Corcovado May 24, 1952

See the city down by the ocean?

View from Corcovado May 24, 1952


Another amazing view!

View from Corcovado May 24, 1952


And still another awesome view.

View from Corcovado May 24, 1952



My mom and Willis Webster at the base of the statue of Cristo Redentor or "Christ the Redeemer."

 

L-R:  My Mom and Willis Webster

at Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

May 24 1952

And below is a panoramic photo taken by "The Lucky Toast" from Wikimedia Commons.  The description was in German.  The translation basically says, "Views of Rio de Janeiro from the Corcovado over Ipanema, Copacabana, Sugarloaf, Botafogo, Santa Teresa and the center.  At the top left is Niterói and Rio-Niterói Bridge."

I think it’s absolutely gorgeous!

Panoramic View from Corcovado
Wikimedia Commons
Photo by "The Lucky Toast"
Click to Enlarge

If you would like to see more photos of Corcovado as well as views of Rio de Janeiro and the surrounding areas, including a color photo of the building near the beginning of this post (first album photo above), please click this link:   Rio de Janeiro Photo Guide.  It's worth a look.  There are some beautiful photos at this website, including views at night.

And now, I will leave you with this short Youtube video about the statue, Cristo Redentor or “Christ the Redeemer.”

 

To see what other Sepia Saturday participants have written this week, click HERE.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2012

Sepia Saturday 146–"This Time It Is Really Goodbye"

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

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



Today’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt shows a harbor with ships and lots of people.  This provides me with the perfect opportunity to share more photos from my Grandpa Debs Webster’s 1952 photo album!

This album holds photos of the Webster family’s emigration from Brazil to the U.S.A.  It is essentially a photo travelogue of their immigration story.

The family boarded the S.S. Brazil in Santos, Brazil.  They then made an overnight stop at Rio de Janeiro before embarking on the long voyage to New York City.

While on board the S.S. Brazil, and as the ship left the port at Rio de Janeiro, my Grandpa Debs took some fascinating photos showing various scenes of Rio de Janeiro and the harbor.

Hope you enjoy the photos!  Just click on them to get a closer look.

The photo below looks curiously similar to today’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt showing people on a dock.



If you look closely at this photo below, you can see lots of people standing on the dock.






Hmm, another ocean liner.  Wonder where that one's headed.






Any guesses on what kinds of ships are in the photo below?






I love this shot with the airplane in the sky.  Also, if you look closely, you can see three men in a small boat on the water.





Military ship up close with the Brazilian flag flying.

 




Another shot of the military ship.  Looks like a tug boat or two are on duty.





My Grandpa Debs wrote on the edges of this photo.  I love that he did that!





And this is what he said ~

Top ~ This Time It Is

Bottom ~ Really Goodbye

I wonder how they felt as they watched the shores of Brazil recede from their view, and then turned their faces toward the open ocean and to a new life in the United States of America.  I imagine it was a mixture of sadness, apprehension, and excitement all rolled up together.  At least, that's probably how I would feel.

Before you say goodbye, see what other Sepia Saturday participants have written this week by clicking HERE.


Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2012

Sepia Saturday 145–Preparing to Leave

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

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



This week’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt shows a group of boys with sports gear in tow.  Something’s missing though…yep, you guessed it.  It’s their feet.  According to Alan, feet, or the absence of feet, is the theme this week.

The photo below fits perfectly with this week’s theme.  This is my Grandma Willis Webster.  Well, technically, she was my step-grandma.  But in every way, she was my grandma because she’s the only grandma I ever knew on my mom’s side.

My regular readers may remember that my mom’s mother, Sarah Vasques Madeira, passed away when my mom was very young.  Later, my Grandpa Debs Webster met and married Willis Quillin.


Willis Quillin Webster
with Suitcase and Large Trunk
Click to Enlarge

I love how my Grandpa Debs wrote on the edges of this photograph.  Since it’s a little bit hard to read, I’ll tell you what he wrote:

Top ~ She Is Getting

Bottom ~ Ready For The Trip

Left Side ~ In Sao Paulo July 1952

Right Side ~  Casa De Lucy

So, what trip is Grandma Willis getting ready for and who is Lucy?  Again, my regular readers my already be familiar with the trip my Grandma Willis was getting ready for.

In July of 1952 my Grandpa Debs Webster and his family, including my mom, immigrated to the U.S.A. from Brazil.  I started a series of posts recounting their actual journey HERE.

I also wrote a series of posts about how this branch of the Webster family (my Grandpa Debs and his family), who were living in Brazil at the time, made contact again with a relative in the U.S.A.  You can read about that HERE.

So, just who is Lucy?  She was one of my Grandma Willis’ sisters.  The photo above shows Grandma Willis at Lucy’s home in July 1952, the same month the Webster family immigrated to the U.S.A.  They stopped there for a visit.

I’m sure it was wonderful for my Grandma Willis and the rest of the Webster family to visit Willis’ sister Lucy before they immigrated to the U.S.A.  It must have been a very difficult thing for the two sisters to say goodbye.  Willis did make a visit to Brazil later and my mom thinks that Lucy made a trip to the U.S.A. for a visit as well.  Lucy’s mom, Helena, was also immigrating with Grandma Willis and her family.  So that must have been even more difficult for Lucy.

Moving far away from family is difficult even in today’s world of email, Facebook, Skype, etc.   I can’t imagine how unbearable it must have been back then without all of our modern technological conveniences.

To see what other Sepia Saturday participants have written this week, click HERE.

Thanks for reading!

Jana


Copyright © Jana Last 2012

Sepia Saturday 142–Three Hats ~ Three People

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

Today’s Sepia Saturday photo shows three elegantly dressed people wearing and/or holding three hats.  To be more exact, the two ladies are wearing their hats and the gentleman is holding his hat.

So, here’s my amazingly similar photo I have to share with you today.  It’s a photo of my Grandmother Sarah Vasques Madeira Webster (right) standing with my Great-Grandaunt Crecenciana Aurora Matus Villatoro Reinacher and her husband Theodor Reinacher.


Left to Right -

Crecenciana Matus Villatoro Reinacher,

Theodor Reinacher and

Sarah Vasques Madeira Webster

While it's true that my three relatives are not posed exactly as those in the Sepia Saturday photo, and may not be quite as elegantly dressed, they are each in possession of a hat, making a total of three hats.  And my photo does have three people in it.  And two of the people are wearing their hats and the other one is holding a hat, just like in the Sepia Saturday photo.   (Okay, so do I win this week’s prize for posting the most similar photo to the Sepia Saturday photo??  What?  There is no prize?  Oh well, that’s alright.)

Actually, having this photo in our family's possession is a prize in itself.

Here's a little information about those pictured in my photo ~

My regular readers may remember who my Grandmother Sarah is standing on the right in this photo.  I’ve written several posts about her including a previous Sepia Saturday post.  She was married to my Grandpa Debs Webster.  And they were my mom's parents.

Now I’d like to introduce you to Crecenciana Aurora Matus Villatoro.  Crecenciana was one of the sisters of Esther Matus Villatoro who was married to my Great-Grandpa Watson (Frederick) Webster (a.k.a. The Traveling Dentist).

Esther and Frederick were the parents of my Grandpa Debs Webster, so Crecenciana was an aunt to my Grandpa Debs.  (I’m sorry if this is all very confusing…no there won’t be a test later.)

Crecenciana was born in Arriaga, Chiapas, Mexico on September 14, 1906 and later moved to Brazil.  I wonder if she moved to Brazil to be closer to her sister Esther.

On April 4, 1932 Crecenciana Matus Villatoro and Theodor Reinacher were married in Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Crecenciana also went by the name Chana.  My mom has fond memories of her Great-Aunt Chana.  Following the death of my Grandma Sarah Webster (my mom's mother), Aunt Chana took care of my mom for a while.  My mom was only six years old at the time of her mother's death.

Below is a photo showing Aunt Chana’s front yard in Brazil.


Crecenciana's Front Yard in Brazil

My mom wrote on the back of the photo ~

“Aunt Chana’s Front Yard.  I used to play here when I stayed here after my mother Sarah’s death.”

Back of Photo of Crecenciana's Front Yard

Crecenciana passed away on July 29, 1973 in Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Thank you Aunt Chana for your kindness to my mom during a very difficult time.

To see what other Sepia Saturday participants have written about this week, just click HERE.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Copyright © Jana Last 2012

Sepia Saturday 139–Iguacu Falls - A Vintage Postcard

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



This week’s Sepia Saturday theme has to do with salvaged bones with an interesting picture of a man and a dog.  In addition to the obvious theme of an old man and a dog, Alan at Sepia Saturday suggested possible twists on this theme such as explosives, lubricating oil, fire resistant pain, etc.

Well, I’ve decided to really twist today’s theme.  I’m going with the word explosive.  I think it works perfectly with the vintage postcard I’ve decided to share with you today.  It shows the amazing Iguacu Falls on the border of Brazil and Argentina.  According to About.com - South America Travel, Iguacu Falls is taller than and twice as wide as Niagra Falls.

Iguacu Falls Postcard

Back of Postcard

This postcard belonged to my Grandpa Debs and Grandma Willis Webster.  It was printed in Brazil, but I believe they purchased it in San Francisco, as other postcards in this collection have the following stamp on them -

The Merrian-Webster Online Thesaurus defines explosive as -

1. extreme in degree, power, or effect and 2. marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity .

Also listed are some synonyms that I think fit perfectly with today's postcard:   tumultuous, turbulent, profound, and exquisite.  I love that last one - exquisite!

I think the following Youtube video shows just how exquisite these Falls really are.  Enjoy!

Uploaded by kedarvideo on May 24, 2009

Here are a couple photographs of Iguacu Falls from Wikimedia Commons (click to enlarge the photos):



Iguacu Falls, Brazil
Wikimedia Commons
Martin St-Amant - Wikipedia - CC-BY-SA-3

Iguacu Falls and Brazilian Tourist Complex
Wikimedia Commons
Martin St-Amant - Wikipedia - CC-BY-SA-3.0

For more exquisite Sepia Saturday posts, just click HERE.

Thanks for reading!

Jana


Copyright © Jana Last 2012