#12-2020. Popular Labor Day weekend in Dillon-1979

#12-2020 Popular.  1979 Labor Day weekend in Dillon, Montana!  A popular weekend!

In September 1979 I was in Dillon, Montana for the annual Labor Day weekend festivities.  It was and is a very popular weekend in southwestern Montana.  It is the County Fair and Rodeo weekend.  It is the weekend that many return to their “roots”, hold family reunions and celebrate the end of summer.  

Dillon, Montana is in Beaverhead County, the largest county in Montana.  There were and still are more cows than people.  My father was the veterinarian and had a veterinary practice in the county and parts of other counties.  His speciality was large animals, and cows were a big part of his practice.  He traveled to many ranches through the year, often eating in homes or cookhouses at the ranches because of the distance from Dillon.  Sometimes he was gone for a couple of days during calving time or fall rush of working cattle.  For many years the roads were not even paved so ranchers were very generous to provide him a hot meal.  

And so began the tradition of my Mom (Helen) & dad (Don) hosting a “feed” at their house in Dillon after the parade on Labor Day.  This was their way of thanking clients and friends for feeding Don!  It was common knowledge that Helen would have food available.  And of course, my sister & I grew up with many of the ranch kids, so our house was often the common meeting place for many.  She feed lots of people throughout the Labor Day weekend!

Since it was a popular weekend, my grandfather volunteered to babysit my son for an evening.  This would be his first time at Dillon Labor Day weekend!  Of course I  joined my friends and family in the local celebrations downtown.  The celebrations occurred in the bars up and down Main Street.  Meeting friends & relatives you haven’t seen in years, is always fun and requires a “cheers” or more than one!

On Monday of Labor Day weekend is the Parade.  It is the last day of the festivities with a rodeo in the afternoon.  It is a very popular day.  But since I had celebrated too much, I thought attending the parade was not a wise decision and it would be best to stay at my parent’s house & stir the goulash and help get things ready. Mom took Greg, my son.   It was normal to have 50 people descend on the house after the parade, quickly eat and rush to the rodeo which started about 2 hours after the parade ended.

This is my mother's recipe for goulash. 

She gave me this recipe when I married.

She made more than 1 batch for a crowd.

Since I didn’t feel 100%, I laid down to rest.  Yep, fell asleep.  Suddenly my mother was at the bedroom door, holding my son who had attended his 1st parade, crying loudly.  I woke up immediately!  My first thought was I had burned the goulash!  And believe me, mother’s goulash was good, expected at the lunch and heaven help me if I had burned it!  Through tears she told me about the jets flying over of the parade and that one had hit the grain elevator where the parade passed by.  In disbelief of the events unfolding, and that my immediate family was safe, I rushed to the hospital.  The human hospital.  Dad was on the board of trustees for the hospital & had already left for the hospital to provide help.  He even stopped at his veterinary hospital to get x-ray film.  I was a medical lab technician and I had worked with the medical technologist there.  Anticipating injuries and fatalities, I rushed to help. The lab welcomed me with open arms.  We prepared for a major disaster as it was common to have thousands of people in town for the weekend and at the parade.  People, who had ever been employed at the hospital rushed to help.  I said, I can draw blood on patients until my best friend is brought in.  Knowing she was at the head of the parade on a horse and the jet had gone down near the front of the parade, I was worried sick.  And then we waited.

Suddenly Dad came into the lab and said he was going home to eat.  What???  Dad leaving; highly unusual.  He told us there was limited injuries; maybe 2 or 3 with burns.  Imagine our surprise!  But a welcome surprise.  There were many things that happened that day, many positive things displaying how a small community comes together & works together in a crisis.  Some things were truly unbelievable.  

My husband who was at home in Huntley, was on a tractor piling corn silage during harvest, and heard the first news of the crash on his radio.  He knew my family always stood by the depot for the parade.  He rushed to the phone to call my parents house.  He was quite glad to hear good news that we all OK!

My family is standing in the lower right of the left hand picture.  

So a popular weekend turned into a popular memory; one I will never forget!  Nor will the town of Dillon or anyone who was there!  And I think of it every time I make goulash!

#11-2020. Luck. 52 Ancestors in a Year

#11-2020.    Luck

With genealogy, luck is a word often used.  Sometimes luck when searching for ancestors is a huge part of the research.  Was the luck due to good investigative research process, or the angel on the shoulder luck?  Sometimes, one never knows!  

Most of my luck was inherited.  The luck is in the form of physical information. With any luck, I have several generations of information, which might include the person I am researching or writing about.  Yes, that includes pictures that are labeled.  I have funeral cards, address books from my mother and grandfather, newspaper articles, family group sheets done by others, lists of families done by ancestors (before family group sheets were a “thing”), a couple of Family Bibles and stories written by my mother.  

My Luck is a thank you to my mother who inherited and added onto to her family history.  Long before computers!  My Luck is a thank you to my paternal grandfather who also kept track of family, labeled pictures and worked his grandddaughter, Donnee, to pass down family history.  He was prolific in writing his family history, or his life story, through out the years.  

The unlucky part is that seldom is there a citation noting where they found the information.  My mother always said when asked where she got it….”Well Aunt Gilla said”.  Apparently she was the expert!  But which Aunt Gilla?

Gilead Ann Jasper born in 1839 in Kentucky and died in 1934 in Philomath, Benton County, Oregon.  This Gilla was a sister to my mother’s great grandmother.  She must have known some of the history, first hand.  Was she the Aunt Gilla who "said"?

But there is another Gilla in the family.   Gillian Ann Lloyd, born in 1873 in Walla Walla County, Washington and died in 1947 in Tacoma, Washington. This Gilla was a sister to my mother’s grandfather.  And she collected and worked on the family history.  Was she the Aunt Gilla who "said".

Both Gilla’s were probably referred to as Aunt Gilla.  

I love this picture of Aunt Gilla Jasper Irwin and the story. What knowledge and information she had.  I sure would like to talk with her!

The article says that Gilla is 90 years old.  So the article would have been written about 1929.

But as the majority of newspaper articles are lacking the name of the newspaper as well as the date.

My luck will be earned finding it!

#10-2020 Strong Women. The Heath Sisters

#10-2020 Strong Women.  The Heath Sisters

I have always admired the story of Mary Heath and her sister Lois.  

They were the daughters of William Heath (a Revolutionary War veteran) and Polly Heath.

Lois Heath was born 1787 in Pendleton County, South Carolina.  

Lois never married

Mary “Polly” Heath (my 3rd great grandmother) was born on 14 October 1807 in Somerset, Pulaski, Kentucky.    

The birth dates are from family information, not confirmed yet.  

 Mary was married to John McHenry Jasper on 27 March 1828 in Somerset, Pulaski, Kentucky.   Seven children (Elizabeth, Andrew, Nancy, William, Thomas, Gilead and Lois) were born to Mary & John in Kentucky before they followed the trail to Missouri in 1841.  Lois Heath Jasper (who was named for her aunt)  born in 1841, was a baby when they journeyed to Missouri.  Another daughter, Minerva was born in 1844 in Missouri. 

Family story indicates that Lois joined the Jasper family after her father had died in 1829.

Tragedy struck the family when John Jasper died in 1845 near Whiteville, Missouri.  Mary was left with  8 children, the oldest, Elizabeth was 16.  In 1848, two daughters, Elizabeth and Nancy (age 16) married on the same day in December.  

In the 1850 (4 November 1850) Census, Mary was living in Tremont Township, Buchanan County, Missouri.  Mary was the head of the household at age 39 but she can not read or write.  The children living in the house were Andrew (19), William (16), Thomas (14), Gillard (11), Lois (8) and Minerva (6).  I have yet to locate her sister Lois in 1850 census.

In 1851 Mary's oldest son, Andrew as well as his sister Elizabeth Jasper Ownby & her family crossed the plains to Oregon.   Another daughter, Nancy Jasper Langston, losing her husband on the trip, crossed the plains in 1852.  Andrew came back to Missouri and escorted his mother Mary, her old maid sister Lois, and his siblings to Oregon in 1854.  The wagon load consisted of  Andrew, William, Thomas, Gilead, Lois and Minerva along with Polly and Lois Heath.  

Mary carried this tin of scrap material and notes in her pocket across the plains.

The family story is that after enduring many hardships and privations, much of the stock having died; when they reached Green River, Wyoming; the family stayed there while an older son went on to obtain food and supplies.  These he got from other members of the party who had gone in advance of the train to locate a home for the family.  The Jasper family crossed with an ox team, but not all of the family was able to ride at one time.  Gilead Ann walked the major part of the trip and carried a small baby part of the way.  Gilead would have been 15 and Minerva, the youngest would have been 10.   (I am not sure what baby she carried.) Lois, my Great Great grandmother was 13 years old.  The family settled in Benton County, Oregon where Mary’s daughters lived.

With children to support and feed, Mary often was a housekeeper or operated a boarding house.  

In the 1860 Census, Mary is living in the Butte Precinct of Benton County, Oregon.  The children living with her were Andrew, William, Thomas and Minivera.  The other daughters, Lois and Gillard (Gilla) had married.  Lois Heath is living with her niece’s family, Elizabeth and Jesse Owenby in the Lloyd Precinct of Benton County, Oregon.  

About 1864 Mary & Lois moved to Waitsburg, Washington where Mary’s daughter, Lois Jasper Lloyd and her husband A. G. Lloyd lived.  

In the 1870 census, the sisters were living with Mary’s son, Andrew Jasper in Waitsburg, Washington.  Lois was 84 years old. And Mary was 68 years old.  

Both sisters are buried in Waitsburg at the City Cemetery.  Mary died in 1876 at the age of 69 and Lois died in 1878 at the age of 90.  

The sisters had traveled from one coast to another—Lois from South Carolina to Oregon, while Mary traveled from Kentucky to Oregon—mostly by oxen team.  I can’t imagine the hard life that these women endured throughout their life.  But they survived.  The hard work these women did is the reason that their descendants were successful.  They did not know the word "quit".  

#9-2020 Disaster. The Meek Cutoff Oregon Trail

#9-2020. Disaster. Terrible Trail: the Meek Cutoff, 1845

The trail that my 3rd Great Grandfather, John Lloyd,  took on the way to Oregon.  The Meek Cutoff was a major disaster for many who traversed that portion of the Oregon Trail.

Stephen Meek, a frontiersman, was hired as a guide in Missouri for wagons trains in 1845 but apparently he was fired when they reached Fort Boise.  Being out of work, led him to convince several captains of trains that he knew a shorter route to the Williamette Valley and they hired him as a guide.  I am sure that the travelers were tired, hot and dusty by the time they reached Fort Boise.  They knew that there was tough passage through the Blue Mountains, a long trail down the Columbia River to the Williamette Valley.  Many were quick to jump at the chance of getting there faster and easier.  But little did they know of the bad fortune that would occur.

The Meek Cutoff wound across the high desert area of Oregon, heading northwest to the Williamette Valley.  Stephen Meek had some idea of where to go, but there were many problems on the trail.  The trail was difficult, water was impossible to find in many areas, many people were sick and it was hot and dry.  Without water, many oxen gave up and died.  There were people upset with the guide, threatening to kill him.  

The wagon train had endured many hardships on the trip, but the lack of water, fatigue and running low on provisions began to take a toll on the pioneers.  It was even reported that in desperation many put salt on grass for food.  

As John Lloyd set out from Missouri, with his 2 wagons and 10 family members, what was he thinking?

Was he thinking of the difficult trails ahead of him, the length of the trip, the hardships endured and the possibility that they might not make it to Oregon?  Was the promise of a better future or opportunity or prosperity so enticing, that one would think only of the end result, not of the trip?

John and family set out in 1845 with the “The Savannah Oregon Emigrating Society” that was also known as the “Tetherow Train”.  Solomon Tetherow was the captain [not a guide] for the main body of wagon for the full distance.  What was his experience and qualifications?

From Captain Tetherow’s journal, a wagon train rule required each outfit to have 100-150 lbs of flour, 75 lbs of meal and 50 lbs of bacon for every person.

John Lloyd was elected to the executive council of the “Savannah Oregon Emigrating Society” at a meeting on the Missouri bottom on 28 April 1845.  Many of the people listed on the wagon train roster were somehow connected to the Lloyd family, mostly by marriage.  Since the number of wagons was large, they were broken down into 4 platoons, each with captains,so a hollow square could be easily formed every night,  

In Lewis A. McArthur, “Mary’s  River,” Oregon Georgraphic Names, Portland, Oregon, Oregon Historical Society, 1952 edition,, p. 389 states that St. Clair and John Lloyd were alternate captains of the last platoons to take the Cutoff.  

John wrote to his brother, Robert, in Rutledge, Grainger County, Tennessee on 25 March 1847 from Polk County, Oregon Territory.

(I assume this is the first letter written from Oregon Territory to his brother.)

He stated that they were 6 months and 3 days from the time they left their old home until we got to Linton on the Williamette.  They had no more bad luck than is common for Oregon immigrants.  They lost 18 head of cattle out of 37 and one horse.  They found the road passable but many bad places.  He went on stating that neither of his wagons got turned over on the trip.  It is without timber most of the way.  He stated that there were about 700 wagons, 10 or 12,000 head of cattle, a good many horses and mules, little rain and dust in abundance.  He also stated that they did not all travel in the same company but in a good many small companies.  He said they were not molested by the Indians but they stole a good many horses.  He continues by saying that they crossed all the waters that we came to without any difficulty except green river and deshoots (Deschutes) and they rafted across the green river but had to take their wagons apart to cross the deshoots.  John stated that their provisions held out well with the exception of “flower” (flour) which got somewhat scare.  He stated that they had bacon, coffee, sugar, tea rice and dried fruit after we got to our Journeys end.  The trip from the states to Oregon is a journey that can be performed with very little ease.  

While John endured hardships, his letter indicates that they were on the Meek Cutoff as he wrote they had to take apart the wagons to cross the Deschutes river.  All the members of his family arrived in Oregon so while they watched disasters around them, they were safe.  

If you are interested in the Meek Cutoff of 1845, I have listed the sources that I have used.  They are very interesting ready to understand the hardships that the pioneers endured crossing the Plains to prosperity.

Clark, Keith and Lowell Tiller, Terrible Trail:  The Meek Cutoff, 1845.  Caldwell, Idaho: The Caxton Printers LTD, 1967

Wikipedia, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meek_Cutoff), “Meek Cutoff”, viewed 23 February 2020.

Lockley, Fred.  Captain Sol. Tetherow, Wagon Train Master.  Pamphlet. (Portland, Oregon: Fred Lockley) no date.  

The story was even made into a movie!

#8-2020 Prospertiy. Missouri to Oregon

 

#8-2020 Prosperity. Missouri to Oregon

One of the legacies in my inherited family genealogy collection is a series of original letters written by my 3rd great grandfather to his brother in Tennessee.  These letters have been digitized and donated to the Fort Walla Walla Museum in Walla Walla, Washington.  John writes about the financial struggles in Missouri in 1844.  His letters continue after he moves to Oregon.  He continued to write to his brother and family until his death in 1877. 

In nearly every letter, John writes about the prices of agricultural commodities, his life as well as genealogical information such as who died, married or child was born.  They are true treasures. 

I have often wondered if the reason he decided to relocate in Oregon as due to finding prosperity.  Were prices for ag commodities better in Oregon?  There was land available.

John Lloyd, born in 1796 in Caswell County, North Carolina and died on 6 January 1877 in Colfax, Whitman County, Washington.

He was 80 years old, traveled from North Carolina to Oregon and then to Washington by horse, and oxen and wagon.

Excerpts from his letters:

On 10 June 1844 he wrote to his brother in Tennessee that he had raised corn, wheat, hemp and oats.  He had 8-9000 lbs of tobacco on hand which would not bring more than $2 per hundred.  John wrote that he had a large frame barn, using as a tobacco barn.  It was 29 X 29 1/2 ft square.  He had 120-130 acres under fence and 1/3 of it is in pasture.  He had bought land in Missouri after leaving Tennessee in 1824.

Then in 1845 he and his family (including 8 children) moved to Oregon.  John, his wife Nancy and children used to 2 wagons and oxen to travel the Oregon Trail to Benton County, Oregon. 

Oregon—25 March 1847. John wrote that the Weather is mild, ground not froze more than one inch deep, great deal of rain in the winter.

Good country wheat, oats, barley to grow.  The grass commences growing in the fall season, but dies in July or August.  Great country for horses, cattle and sheep but poor country for hogs.    Fence 43 acres of land, broke up about 30 the first spring, sowed 18 or 19 acres in spring wheat, balance in corn.

On 14 November 1852 John writes that Oregon is a remarkable easy country to live in particularly for those that has many cattle, a man in Oregon with good milch cows can realize more clear money free head from them.  Cows sell here for $75-100, heifers calves at weaning can not be purchased at $50 per head.  Wheat is worth $3 per bushel.  Coffee was 33 13 cents, sugar 12 12 cents, butter 50 cents, cheese 37 1/2 cents.  Beef is worth 8 cents per pound on foot, hogs $8 per hundred.  Grass oats $1.25 per bushel, potatoes $2.  Syrup cost 28 cents, dried fruit 10 cents, salt $2 per hundred.  Boots cost $2-3 per pair.  

His letter on 29 April 1852 he writes that “Horses from $150-200 dollars, sows and calves 50-75 dollars, oxen $100-150 Dollars, bacon 25 cents per pound, sugar 8-12 cents per pound.  Coffee 19-18 cents per pound, labor $2 a day.  Gold is easy obtained in the county.”

Perhaps the best explanation for seeking prosperity in Oregon is in his letter of 

14 November 1852, where he writes “donation Bill which gives 640 acres of land to heads of family who settled on the same prior to the 1st day of December 1851 and remains on the same four years     Said Bill Allso gives 320 acres to heads of families who settles on the same between the 1st day of December 1851 and 1853 at which time the donation Bill (proves) the best of the land is claimed in the section of the country where we live-- ---

John’s letter of 19 January 1866 states that wheat  $1  oats 75 cents per bushel   pork $10  per hundred beef cattle on foot  $5.50 per hundred   good horses from $150 to 200 a piece   our currency is gold   no property sold in this country for greenbacks   yet there has been a great many debts paid off in greenbacks—I had to take over $1400 where I had loaned gold—the only thing the Republicans and Democrats agree in is in abusing the greenbacks.  

Finally on 10 January 1869, perhaps prosperity has finally come as he writes; “money moderately plenty~ we had very good crops las year wheat 55 cents per bushel oats 40 cents  hay $10 and 12 per ton.  We have not had any cold weather as yet  the grass has been growing slowly all fall and winter.”

The letter of 3 June 1869 he gives prices “Flower is selling at $3 per barrel  dull sale at that—money are not as plenty as it had been-cattle are quite high   good large horses are selling high    sheep a fair price    bacon low---taxes very high   my tax for the last year was $80—I have an income in the way of interest of $270 and some little groath in stock. 

Although John never traveled back to Missouri or Tennessee, he was granted his donation land, helped his children obtain their donation land and helped raise grandchildren.  Despite all the struggles to emigrate to Oregon Territory in 1845, he found prosperity.  

#7-2020. Favorite Discovery

#7-2020 Favorite Discovery.   52 Ancestors in a Year

I think my all time favorite was the discovery of the passenger record for my 2nd great grandfather, Peter Paul Deewall.  From years of research, I knew the story by heart of when he came to the United States,  as well the story of why he came to America and who he had traveled with.  

But I could never find a passenger manifest with his name.  And believe me,  I looked,  using all the tricks I knew about genealogy research. 

One day I decided I was going to find Peter.  Deciding that I WAS going to find Peter, meant I had to go back to the basics.  There were several stories passed down by various family members, but I found the one written by his daughter, Mary Etta Deewall Kurtz.  

Peter was born in 1820 and died in 1890.  Mary Etta, the oldest child, was born in 1849 and died in 1940.   She would have been 41 years old when her father died, so I assumed she knew his story that she wrote.  

I took that story and read it line by line looking for clues; probably using my finger on each line; slowly reading and thinking of clues.  I referred back to the 1850’s census and examined who was in the household and his neighbors.  (in the genealogy world it is called a FAN Club; Friends, Associates and Neighbors).  Sure enough, the people, according to the family story, that he traveled with were his neighbors.  But two differences; the spelling of the names.  The family story said that he traveled with his best friend, Ludwig Odom and his mother and her son Peter.  Peter’s neighbors in 1850 were Mary Otto, Peter Otto and Lewis Otto.  I had never caught the spelling variation when looking at the census before.

Was Mary Etta's story correct?  Odom vs Otto.   Ludwig vs Lewis.

Realizing that spelling difference occur and that Lewis could be an English name for Ludwig; I started a new search.  And within minutes I had found the passenger list!  I had looked for Mary Odom for years, but never Mary Odom Widow!  Mary was indexed as "widow" for her last name!

How could I be sure that this was Peter Paul that I was looking for?  Especially since Peter Paul’s last name was Duval?  And not Deewall.

The family story said that Ludwig and Peter Paul were best friends and when the Odom’s decided to go to America, they encouraged Peter to go to posing as the driver of the team and wagons as he apparently had problems with his stepfather.  

A month before my search for Peter Paul, I had found Ludwig Odom’s confirmation record at a church in Ludweiler, Germany.  Sure enough, in the same database was Peter Paul Duval confirmed in the same church in Ludweiler Germany as his best friend Ludwig Oden.  Again birth dates matched.

With the help of a friend, originally from Germany, we examined microfilm from the community of Ludweiler.  There was actually a stammlisten or originating list, which is a genealogy list of everyone in the community.  There was MY Peter Paul with the exact birth date that he used in America!  The same birth date used in the family history that I inherited.  But even better, was the Odom’s history stating that they left for Amerika in 1842!  There is no mention of Peter Paul leaving, but the family story is that he left in the middle of the night!  

In Germany  Ludwig Odom, was Ludwig Oden.  A spelling mistake, perhaps; a pronunciation difference, perhaps.  But I think I found the correct people and verified a family story.

Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

Original data: 

Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C.

#6-2020 Same name 52 Ancestors in a Year

#6. Same Name

It seems that the Germans from Russia used the same names, over and over again, sometimes in the same generations!  And it seems every family used the same names.  

The most used male names seem to be (at least in my husband’s family) are Henry (or Heinrich), Conrad (Konrad), August or Jacob.

The female common names are Katherine, Katharina, Maria or Anna.  (Catherina too)

Leroy’s grandfather’s name was Henry.  But I have yet to discover his birth certificate with his “real name” because I think when he came into the United States at age 7, his name was listed as Philip.  Philip was his father’s name, or the name he used in the United States, but on the passenger list he is listed as Henry.  (  Research from a census record in Warenburg, Russia indicates Philip's name was Heinrich Philip Gabel.)

It is possible that first names were confused on the passenger list, but it is also possible that they went by those names in Russia.  German males were often given the first name of Johann, and then 2 “middle names” that they used in order to lessen the confusion.  So a male often used either one of the middle names.  Females were often named Maria for the first name and again they might have 2 middle names.  

Henry (Heinrich) is a common Gabel name.  When Philip came into the United States, his passenger record states that he is going to his brother Henry, in Lincoln, Nebraska.  But there were 2 Henry Gabel’s in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1907.  And which Henry was his brother?  And there is possibly other Henry Gabel’s in Nebraska in 1907.  (currently working with DNA to separate out the Henry's!)

And Philip had a brother Henry.  He was actually in the Hardin area at one time.  He died in 1951 and is buried in Hardin, Montana.

And then there is this Henry Gabel buried at the Huntley, Montana cemetery.  I found his grave by grave dowsing, and find the headstone by using a sharp metal stick.  (the headstone is concrete and was buried under about 6 inches of sod).  The information was confirmed by cemetery records, but there is no birth or death date listed.  

Another Henry Gabel