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On my father's side, there were 2 Irish Robin Hoods and a Basque pirate (all that explains my aversion to gov't, heheheh!) At a certain point, the Spanish Crown offered him amnesty if he put himself and his galleons and men at their disposal.
He did. |
My Great Grandfather was "Julius Caesar" Conklin. Who would name a kid that? :shock:
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Originally Posted by grann of 6
My Great Grandfather was "Julius Caesar" Conklin. Who would name a kid that? :shock:
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my mom's family were moonshiners
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I'm related to Daniel Boone!
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my ancestors arrived in America 16 generations ago on the wooden ship Arbella
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My G-grandfather founded a small town in Ill. that was on the trail to the capitol of IL.He owned an Inn and Abe Lincoln spent the night there several times. My grandmother had a bridge named after her.
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My great grandfather was a bigamist (went out for a loaf of bread in the 1900s and didn't come home), went back to Denmark, got married (my great grandmother was still alive here) and had twins (relations we don't know about).
My grandfather on my mother's side was in marines and he was involved in the searching of houses at the San Francisco Earthquake in the 20s. My mother was a 4-star USO woman before she met my dad. |
1) english ancestory....related to sir fracis drake....
2)rumored relation to tennesee earnest ford 3) scottish ancestory....family name "turnbull".... Ancestor turned a charging bull headed toward ruler in scottland. Saved life of royalty....i was told there was a book in scottland written about my ancestor...no longer in print, though and have not been able to get copy. American name changed to trumble. My mother has been a member member of turnbull society! |
Not too much on my side. There was supposed to be a dancer but no one would talk about her. Wonder what kind of dancing she did? My great-grandmother wouldn't let anyone talk about her.
Now my husband's side, well, his grandfather and great-grandfather on his mother's side were arrested together for running shine. But his grandfather on his father's side was never arrested that I know of. There was also supposed to be witches on both sides of my husbands family. But these people came from the mountains and explained things the best they could. |
My paternal grandfather left home when my dad was six months old and never came back. Grandma received word a couple of years later that he had died and was buried in Nashville. When she and my uncle went to bring his body home, it couldn't be located. Family thinks he just wanted to disappear. Grandma raised all six children on her own and never remarried.
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Hmm. Something interesting about your ancestors. Should that be funny or a fact? We will go with funny for the moment.
My husband's grandparents lived the last 30 years of their life in the same household without speaking a word. They would write notes or pass messages through their children. I was never able to find out what started it. Not sure they even knew by the time I came along near the end of that 30 years. |
On my Father's side...My Great Grandfather was Teddy Roosevelts barber in the White House...
On my Mothers side...My Great Grandfather was 100 percent Mohawk Indian...grew up on the reservations and married an Irish woman off the boat...She passed away in 1903 having her 13th child...He remarried and had another child with second wife scottish lady... |
My great, great, great grandfather was born in SC. He was the only survivor in his family in an Indian raid. His mother had thrown a quilt over him as he slept, and they missed seeing him. He was two years old at the time.
He was taken in by a neighboring family to be raised. He became a preacher and donated the land and timber for one of the oldest churches in central SC. I'm rather proud of him. |
Originally Posted by purrfectquilts
My husband's grandparents lived the last 30 years of their life in the same household without speaking a word. They would write notes or pass messages through their children. I was never able to find out what started it. Not sure they even knew by the time I came along near the end of that 30 years.
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My father was a driver for Al Capone. He used to tell us stories. My mothers family changed their name from Custer to Kuster after Little Big Horn - they were so ashamed of "Uncle George"
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My grandmother, as a child, lived in Las Vegas when there was only 10 families there. I am descended from Queen Victoria's father. My great....grandfather was a major contributer to the establishment of Harvard University. My uncle Ralph was the originator of the ID bracelets you wear in the hospital.
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Both my grandmother and my husband's grandfather died in the great influenza epidemic of 1918, each leaving 3 little daughters, just about the same ages. My mom was the youngest of her sisters, and DH's mom was the oldest of her sisters. The families lived 500 miles from each other.
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The big mystery in our family is my grandmother's mother-lots of scandal, there. Gr-gr grandfather was born illegitimate-baptised with only a first name, which he later changed. Then he took up a last name as well. Named his first 3 sons, who all took other names as adults. All left Quebec and followed my gr-grandmother to Michigan, where she had married a man with the same last name. They had 3 kids before he "disappeared", "drowned" or whatever. . . My grandmother and her brothers were taken away from the mother due to being left in a state of "want and neglect". Gr-gr went on to have at least 3 other chiildren, only one of which had a father on the birth certificate-and that one listed my gr-grandfather, who'd disappeared over a year before. When I went to the county building where the legal papers are held, I was offered yet another birth certificate that I hadn't expected-that of a baby born to a gr-gr uncle and aunt . Odd thing was, the aunt had been married at the time to a different uncle. She didn't marry the father until 9 years later! And around that time, everyone of them disappeared from the area and I only find rare tracks of them after that-the majority left no death certificates or anything that I've been able to find! The other sides of the family were all respectable farmers, and the funny thing was, my grandma was a very refined lady-hard to believe she was born into a family like that!
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On my mother's side, there were Hungrian gypsies! I wanted to find out MORE about them, but she was so ashamed and wouldn't talk about them --- and they were GENERATIONS before her.. I think it sounds intriguing....maybe explaines something about my needing to "explore"
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My grandmother and grandfather on my Dad's side owned a farm. My grandpa made moonshine and ran it. The Feds came to their farm one day and were going to arrest my grandpa and said they were going to take the jar of evidence (moonshine on the kitchen sink) to prove my grandpa was running shine. My grandmother picked up the jar and said to the Feds, this jar? This is your evidence? She then proceeded to dump the contents down the drain. Bye Bye evidence! They never could find his still. Rumor has it that it was hidden under the manure pile.
My grandmother on my mother's side came over on a ship as a stowaway. Tough and strong women!!!!! |
This sounds interesting.....
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Boy, am I lucky. I found a 2nd cousin who had already done all the research ... I just have to finish the thread from his grandfather to my grandfather to me. Our forefathers came over on the Mayflower and future generations were involved in following wars. I am eligible for D.A.R.
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No one famous in my family as far as I know. On mother's side my great great grandfather was full Cherokee.
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Great post ! will be watching. have spent many years tracing family histories of our families ( mine and husbands) have found.. everyone has a story.. it they are interested in looking !
love reading everyones post ! hope more come ! Ell |
Grandmother was born in the hills of Missouri, no record of her birth. She was "assigned" a birth date when she applied for social security. They used school records to guesstimate her age.
Another ancestor ran supplies for Jesse James, legend has it Jesse buried a pouch of confederate money along a fence line of this ancestor's property. |
Originally Posted by stitchinwitch
On my mother's side, there were Hungrian gypsies! I wanted to find out MORE about them, but she was so ashamed and wouldn't talk about them --- and they were GENERATIONS before her.. I think it sounds intriguing....maybe explaines something about my needing to "explore"
No fame or fortune here,Poorly educated hard working people,I was the first to go to college some thought I was "high falutin" lol.....However .... I had a great uncle that was literally "tared and feathered" I seen the scars myself. Had another great uncle that was an organ grinder, I still remember his monkey. Hmmmm My moms parents did think my dads family were gypsies lol. (dad attended 14 differnt grade schools and 8 high schools and still managed to earn his diploma He was a great football player lol) |
I had a great-great grandmother who was a bootlegger LOL
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Mom's side came from Germany in the late 1600's. Settled in SC then relocated to MO. Gr-gr-gr-grandfather built a house that my family still owns. He & wife had 12 kids. Some were in the Civil War but not my gr-gr-gr-grandfather. 1 of his brothers drowned on his way home after the war when his boat sank. Gr-gr uncle became deaf as an adult and was killed when he stepped off a train and another train was backing up and ran over him. He's buried in the family cemetery behind the house. His brother was killed at age 16 when he got kicked in the head by a horse. Gr-grandmother was the only one of the kids to have children so the house and property turned to her. She died when my grandmother was only 5. Gr-grandfather remarried to an "old maid" who was in her early 30's. They stayed on the farm until on of his sons was old enough to take it over then went to live in town. Mom found out after her grandparents died (they did a lot of her raising) that the man she had always thought was her dad wasn't (he had died when she was little so she didn't know him either). Uncles told her it was someone else and that grandma had just married the other guy. Grandma would never admit it even on her deathbed so my mom went to her grave never knowing the truth for sure.
Dad's side...still working on. I know one of my grandfather's (not sure how many greats back) was also killed by a train. He was picking up coal along the train tracks. Stepdad's side-his mom died when he was just a yr old. She died from giving birth to his brother and also getting the flu at the same time. The brother was so little the dr said he wouldn't make it. They made him a bed in a wooden box and opened the woodburning stove door. Built a small fire and sat the box on the open door to keep him warm. He survived! Didn't ever amount to much but he lived! Diannia |
On my mothers side, I'm related to William Teach (Blackbeard) and my daddy's side, Jimmy Carter (Please, no boo-ing!!!)
Oh, and my DH is related to the *Dukes* who established Duke University. |
Great-great Aunt worked in a bordello in SoCal.
Related to Patsy Ramesey's sister by marriage. |
Texas- in the early 1800's Moses Austin began to try to colonize Texas. He became ill and turned the job over to his son,Stephen Fuller Austin. Stephen got the first 300 settlers there about 1832. He also was held prisoner in Mexico and became ill after that and really never recovered his health.
There are historical plaques at the State capital in Austin. Moses is called the Grandfather of Texas and Stephen is called the Father of Texas. Stephen's sister, Emily Margaret Brown Austin Bryan Perry is my direct ancestor. Books have been written about all of them. it's nice having those in my book collection. Peachpoint plantation is still in the family. (the original house was tiny-nothing like in the movies). the family cemetery is still there. at Jones Creek,near Freeport, where reunions are held. Oh and my Mother was psychic. (hope i spelled that right) |
My great grandmother moved from Tennessee to Oklahoma by covered wagon when she was 12. When she got married she refused to move by covered wagon again and they moved to Colorado on the train.
A 5 great uncle left home when he was 14 and came out to "Indian Territory" on his own. |
Love reading all these notes on family history as I am a genealogist. One of my ancestors was named Fitch and he was sheriff of Nottingham. My son has been a deputy, my grandson,a police dispatcher and my daughter is senior assistant to the sheriff in Spartanburg, SC. Oh I forgot most of all my father was a policeman in Scranton, PA and retired from there. Things get passed down don't they?
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I have a famous ghost! ;) :lol:
My g-g-g grandmother was Martha Ward Swycaffer. She and her sister were traveling and had stopped at the Valecito stage stop. Her sister was ill, and died there, her ghost haunts the stage stop. http://www.prairieghosts.com/vallecito.html She married Joseph Swycaffer, who himself was quite a character, and was a partner in the first mail service between Yuma, AZ and San Diego, CA. There is a story told of him that he was in route to San Diego when he was robbed by a band of renegade Indians. They took the mail and his horse and mules, leaving him in the desert to die. He made it back to Yuma, and after he recovered from the heat and dehydration, borrowed a horse and went after them. He found them having a heyday with the mail sacks, and chased them off, got his mail sacks and animals back and continued to deliver the mail. William's side has a story that's a lot more fun!! His 9th great grandparents were Japhet and Deborah Leeds. They are the parents of the Legendary "Jersey Devil". Supposedly, when Deborah became pregnant with their 13th child, she got angry, saying, "I've already given him 12 children, I'd sooner give birth to the spawn of the devil than to give him another!" She shouldn't have said that! :lol: The child was born with horns and cloven hooves, killed the midwife and ran off to the woods. It became known as the Jersey Devil. |
One of my ancestors was the woman on the Indian head penny. The story has it that she tried on the head dress and someone took a picture. The image ended up on the penny. Her father was someone at the mint.
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Charlee -- why am i not surprised about that info on William's family???? LOL LOL
My GGGgrandfather (on my maternal side) was Major John Hockenhull. He served in the Civil War as a doctor. He founded one of the first gold mines in Georgia that caused a gold rush there. There is a book about him called Hockenhull Gold. My paternal side of the family were moonshiner's also!!! Wouldn't it be funny if the other moonshiner decendents here were all related???!!! LOL I just found out a few weeks ago that not only am I eligible for The Daughters of the Confederacy but also for the DAR!!! |
My great Grandfather Eamonn O'Ragailligh (Edmund O'Reilly), was broken out of jail and put on a boat with my great grandmother and their 5 youngest kids, shortly before Easter 1916 by his two oldest sons- ages 14 and 16. He had stabbed a garda trying to arrest him for singing a forbidden song. The 16 year old died in the Easter Rebellion. The 14 year old eventually emigrated to Australia. My grandfather was born on the boat, two days out of New York, and corresponded with, but never met his older brother in Australia.
On my dad's side, my grandmother, another Irish immigrant, was famed for her cooking, and worked in some famous summer homes- she did all the dinner parties for Robert Montgomery when he was a movie star, along with other wealthy patrons. Her funeral was well attended by both the local farmers and her very wealthy employers.... |
Originally Posted by amandasgramma
Charlee -- why am i not surprised about that info on William's family???? LOL LOL
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Haven't found the exact link but on my father's side, we're rumored to be related to Daniel Boone, and can prove that we're related to Johnny Cash. On my mother's side we're descended from a cousin of Marie Antoinette.
This is a great thread, I love stories like this. |
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