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An Exploration of my Family's Genealogy, Ancestors and Their Journey Through History
Chasing Family Ghosts
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Jul 10, 20234 min read
The Gentle Giant
John Sherman "Jack" Fasig was born on 18 March 1894 in Lancaster County, PA where his father, John Sr. had a tobacco farm. He moved with...
Jul 4, 202312 min read
Colonel Smith And the 71st PA At Gettysburg, Part 2
The story continues. For Part 1, click here. Colonel Richard Penn Smith, Jr. was standing with General Alexander Webb near the Copse of...
Jul 3, 20238 min read
Colonel Smith And the 71st PA At Gettysburg, Part 1
A family history story in honor of the 160th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg Richard Penn Smith, Jr. (R. Penn Smith) was born on...
Jun 5, 20235 min read
The Publisher
Joshua Ballinger Lippincott was born in Juliustown, Burlington County, New Jersey, on 18 March 1813. He was the only child of Jacob...
May 15, 20238 min read
An Admiral In Two Theaters
Morton "Mort" Lyndholm Deyo was born on 1 July 1887 in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was appointed to the US Naval Academy, Annapolis,...
Feb 20, 20235 min read
The High Altitude Pursuit Pilot
Captain Hugh M. Elmendorf, for whom Elmendorf Air Force Base was named, was never assigned to Alaska, nor is there any record of his...
Nov 28, 20226 min read
The Pattons, Part 4: "Georgie"
The story of the Pattons continues. Click here for Part Three. Before he had the nickname "Old Blood and Guts", he was simply known as...
Nov 21, 20225 min read
The Pattons, Part 3: George II
The story of the Pattons continues. Click here for Part Two. George was born as George William Patton in Charleston, West Virginia (then...
Nov 14, 20226 min read
The Pattons, Part 2: Brothers George & Tazewell
The story of the Patton family continues. Click here for Part 1. George Smith Patton was born 26 June 1833, in Fredericksburg, Virginia,...
Nov 7, 20223 min read
The Pattons, Part 1: Peggy And John
The Patton family entered my family tree on 8 January 1824 when Margaret "Peggy" French Williams married John Mercer Patton. Margaret was...
Aug 21, 20228 min read
The Presidents' Confidante
George Bruce Cortelyou was born 26 July 1862 to Rose (née Seery) and Peter Crolius Cortelyou, Jr. in New York City. He was educated at...
Aug 15, 20225 min read
The King of Late Night TV
John William "Johnny" Carson was born on 23 October 1926 in Corning, Iowa. He was the second of three children of parents Ruth Elizabeth...
Jun 27, 20226 min read
"Backwards And In High Heels"
She was most remembered for the blissful partnership with Fred Astaire in sparkling musicals that brightened Depression-era America. He...
Apr 11, 20226 min read
The Candy Man
I am a big fan of eBay. It is a treasure trove of interesting items and I continually search for artifacts related to the family. Here...
Apr 4, 20226 min read
The Only First Lady, Part Four
Varina's story concludes. Click here for Part One, here for Part Two and here for Part Three. The reasons for the move to New York City...
Mar 28, 20228 min read
The Only First Lady, Part Three
Varina's story continues. Click here for Part One and here for Part Two. Final surrender ended one kind of suffering and began another. ...
Mar 21, 20225 min read
The Only First Lady, Part Two
Varina's story continues. For Part One, click here. Anticipating a call for his services since Mississippi had seceded, Jefferson Davis...
Mar 14, 20227 min read
The Only First Lady, Part One
Varina Howell Davis was not any happier at the prospect of her husband being president than he was. Jeff Davis was no politician and she...
Feb 21, 20224 min read
The Wit of Cousin Abe
In honor of Presidents' Day, I thought I would share some stories that Abraham Lincoln used to tell (Click here for the original post...
Dec 6, 20216 min read
Cheddar Man 2 - The Face of Controversy
When I initially did the post on Cheddar Man, (click here to view) I omitted the issue of what he may have looked like. Facial...
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