In Memoriam

                      Walter LeRoy Grimes
                                            19 June 1931-21 March 2012

This is one of my favorite photographs of my grandfather, Walter.  The little girl he is holding is my mother.  The photo was taken in October of 1953 which would have made my mother a little over a year old at the time.  My grandfather was a police officer for many years and was the deputy sheriff of Harrisonville, MO when a shooting spree took place on the square there.  He was a mild spoken man but boy could he talk.  You could get him going on any number of subjects.  It really didn't matter what it was.  He just liked to talk. 

Here's a link to a news article on the shootings on the Harrisonville, Mo square:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2199&dat=19720425&id=HiQyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=SOcFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5370,7933094 

In Memoriam......

                                                 In Loving Memory
                  Richard Lawrence Wimsatt
                 20 April 1928-12 April 2012



 

Richard Lawrence Wimsatt

This is my favorite photograph of my grandfather, Richard Lawrence Wimsatt, who we lost one year ago today.  He went to town to sell some chickens so he could get the money to buy this bike.  It's my favorite because of the story behind it and it shows what a great personality he had.  Ornery.  Boy was he ornery.  I miss him every day.

Scrap Day Sunday

Today I'm sharing a picture that belongs to my great great uncle, Jesse Grimes.  This photo was taken in front of the Gen. Rufus Putnam house located in Marietta, OH.  The house is now housed in the Campus Martius Museum also located in Marieatta, OH.  Standing outside of the house is Lucy Cox (VanZandt) Jones.  She's the woman standing in front of the doorway on the right.  Next to her is her granddaughter, Betty Jane Miller, an unknown woman in black and her daughter, Helen (Jones) Miller.  Lucy (VanZandt) Jones was the sister of my 3rd great grandfather, William Eldon Van Sant.  They were descendants of Gen. Rufus Putnam through their mother, Pheobe (Merriam) VanZandt.  It's a pretty cool picture in and of itself.  It's the reverse side of the picture that revealed a clue to some unknown information. 

The sentence "the old block house where grandma Merriam was born",  is the one that stuck out to me.  This could only refer to the birthplace of Catherine Huldah (Tupper) Merriam who was indeed the grandmother to William and Lucy.  Catherine (Tupper) Merriam was the daughter of Col. Benjamin and Martha "Patty" (Putnam) Tupper. Martha (Putnam) Tupper was the daughter of Gen. Rufus Putnam and Persis Rice.  So, due to the inscription on the back of the photo,  I have a pretty good idea where Catherine was born.  Even better,  I can still visit the house to this day!

A Quest

In researching the role that my ancestor, Cyrus Merriam, played as a conductor on the Underground Railroad in Ohio, I came across an account given by Thomas Gray.  The account was found in Wilbur Siebert papers that are held by the Ohio Historical Society.  In the account, Thomas Gray gives the names of two slaves that he was helping find their way to freedom, Isaac and Anderson.  He also mentions that Isaac and Anderson belonged to a Mary Ann McDonald of Virginia.  

Now for my quest.  I would like to see if I can possibly track Isaac or Anderson to see if they did find their way to freedom.  There isn't much to go on.  Just two names and the name of the owner.  I just feel this need to know.  If I can find the information that I seek, that will be fantastic.  If not, I've gained some knowledge in how to track African-American lineages, something that I have no experience with.  So I see it as a win-win situation either way!

Scrap Day Sunday

The William Eldon VanSant Family ca. 1920.

Today's offering is a photograph of the the William and Julia (Baldwin) VanSant family.  This photograph would have been taken sometime around 1920.  I'm basing this on the fact that my great grandfather Merlin, who was born in 1909,  seems to be about 8 or 9 years old in the photo.  The photo was most likely taken on Williams farm near Spruce, Bates, MO.  Below is a key which identifies everyone.  

 

Scrap Day Sunday

Funeral Card for Joshua Lawrence Dickerson

Today I'm sharing another funeral home card.  This is for Joshua Lawrence Dickerson.  He was born on 3 June 1828 in Kentucky to William and Esther (Rice) Dickerson.  He married Catherine Cynthia Ann Collins on 23 November 1854 in Macon County, IL.  

The Joshua and Cynthia (Collins) Dickerson Family.  Standing left to right;  Alice Arabella, Lawrence Leander, Charles Richard and Mary Ellen.  Seated left to right:  Margaret Leolla, Joshua Lawrence, Catherine Cynthia Ann and Rosa Dickerson.

 

 Joshua and Cynthia had three other children who were not included in this picture.  Andrew Jackson, Thomas Hamilton, and John W Dickerson.  

 Joshua passed away on 2 Feb 1912 in Charlotte Township, Bates County, MO.  He is buried in Virginia Cemetery in rural Bates County, MO.  

The Dickerson headstone located at Virginia Cemetery.

 

 

Funeral Card Friday

This is actually the funeral home card for 4th great-grandfather Nicholas Adams.  It actually contains a lot of information.  Besides when and where he was born, it also lists the exact time of death.  The funeral was held on 26 January 1904 at 3PM at his residence in Charlotte Township, MO.  

Nicholas Adams