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| Image courtesy of FindMyAncestry.com |
I have been spending a lot of time watching my streaming PBS channel while I crochet. Being that the weather is not conducive to being outside (with the exception of Snow Shoe Day), there isn't a lot else to do. One show that has gotten me hooked is called Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who researches the genealogy of celebrities.
This made me remember that I have documentation of my dad's mom's family which I have never really paid attention to. My Gramma Brehmer died when I was pretty young. I have vague memories of her but nothing really concrete. I have no idea who her parents or siblings were, and isn't that a shame.
I dug up the genealogy document that my uncle gave to me last year to peruse through it. I recognized a lot of the surnames: Schwanke, Siem, Fenske.
This made me remember that I have documentation of my dad's mom's family which I have never really paid attention to. My Gramma Brehmer died when I was pretty young. I have vague memories of her but nothing really concrete. I have no idea who her parents or siblings were, and isn't that a shame.
I dug up the genealogy document that my uncle gave to me last year to peruse through it. I recognized a lot of the surnames: Schwanke, Siem, Fenske.
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| Image courtesy of Teach Me Genealogy.com |
As I was reading through it, I came across an excerpt from a newspaper, dated May 5, 1911, that made me realize that my kids came by their saloon game naturally:
"William Benike (a cousin or uncle or some relative to my paternal grandmother) suffers big loss in bad blaze on Tues.
About all that was left of Potsdam was wiped out by fire Tuesday. The blaze being caused by the chimney at noon time. The family were at dinner and had a close call, not discovering the roof overhead in flames until it was nearly ready to fall in. The structure and barn is a total loss, while a few household goods and the bar of the saloon conducted by Mr. Benike were saved."
The document goes on to recount a memory of William's son, Oskar: Oskar Benike would tell of days his father, William, owned a saloon in Potsdam. They would go to Rochester to bring liquor back to Potsdam in a wagon. Gangs of thieves would be waiting at the present location of the outdoor theater on Hwy. 62. William would tell Oskar to lie down in the wagon and would lace the horses when they were near there.
So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that my kids like to play saloon!
On the other side of the family, I discovered a tidbit about my maternal grandfather the other night when I went to visit my aunt Donna. She was showing me a recent antique doll she had been gifted that was manufactured circa World War I. She said that she had an affinity for World War I because on the day her father was supposed to ship out overseas to join the fighting, the Armistice Day treaty was signed--November 11, 1918. On November 11, 1940, my aunt Donna was born.
I never, ever knew that Grampa was that close to serving in World War I. I don't remember my mom ever talking much about her family; more likely, she did talk about it and I just didn't listen.
The other thing I discovered about Grampa Prokasky was that he shares a birthday with Molly! Granted, he died long before I was born, but that still seems like something I should have known.
Staying in the Prokasky family, it's always been a point of pride--I don't know why--that my Gramma Prokasky was a maid for Dr. Plummer and his family and lived at the Plummer House during her employment there. It's not like that makes me related to the Plummer family at all, but it's a connection to the history of my family and the history of my community. That's kind of cool.
Whenever I can talk about the fiasco of Molly's birth certificate without getting angry, I always say I should have petitioned the court to change her name legally so that her middle name was Claire (instead of Ann) in honor of my two grammas who were both named Clara. If I'd had the money at the time, I would have done it.
I wish I would have paid more attention to my elders when they talked about their elders so I would know more of my family history than I do. That would be my advice to my children and grandchildren: Let us tell you so you know where you came from. Ask us questions. Listen to our stories. Embrace your heritage!
"William Benike (a cousin or uncle or some relative to my paternal grandmother) suffers big loss in bad blaze on Tues.
About all that was left of Potsdam was wiped out by fire Tuesday. The blaze being caused by the chimney at noon time. The family were at dinner and had a close call, not discovering the roof overhead in flames until it was nearly ready to fall in. The structure and barn is a total loss, while a few household goods and the bar of the saloon conducted by Mr. Benike were saved."
The document goes on to recount a memory of William's son, Oskar: Oskar Benike would tell of days his father, William, owned a saloon in Potsdam. They would go to Rochester to bring liquor back to Potsdam in a wagon. Gangs of thieves would be waiting at the present location of the outdoor theater on Hwy. 62. William would tell Oskar to lie down in the wagon and would lace the horses when they were near there.
So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that my kids like to play saloon!
On the other side of the family, I discovered a tidbit about my maternal grandfather the other night when I went to visit my aunt Donna. She was showing me a recent antique doll she had been gifted that was manufactured circa World War I. She said that she had an affinity for World War I because on the day her father was supposed to ship out overseas to join the fighting, the Armistice Day treaty was signed--November 11, 1918. On November 11, 1940, my aunt Donna was born.
I never, ever knew that Grampa was that close to serving in World War I. I don't remember my mom ever talking much about her family; more likely, she did talk about it and I just didn't listen.
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| Image courtesy of AZ Quotes |
The other thing I discovered about Grampa Prokasky was that he shares a birthday with Molly! Granted, he died long before I was born, but that still seems like something I should have known.
Staying in the Prokasky family, it's always been a point of pride--I don't know why--that my Gramma Prokasky was a maid for Dr. Plummer and his family and lived at the Plummer House during her employment there. It's not like that makes me related to the Plummer family at all, but it's a connection to the history of my family and the history of my community. That's kind of cool.
Whenever I can talk about the fiasco of Molly's birth certificate without getting angry, I always say I should have petitioned the court to change her name legally so that her middle name was Claire (instead of Ann) in honor of my two grammas who were both named Clara. If I'd had the money at the time, I would have done it.
 |
| Image courtesy of www.tmgenealogy.com |
I wish I would have paid more attention to my elders when they talked about their elders so I would know more of my family history than I do. That would be my advice to my children and grandchildren: Let us tell you so you know where you came from. Ask us questions. Listen to our stories. Embrace your heritage!
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