Tuesday's Tip - Now What? from DNAeXplained

 

 

You've read about the FDA's

order/letter to 23andMe by now,

I'm sure if you are at all interested

in DNA testing.

 

Here's a link to Roberta Estes' blog

DNAeXplained

explaining what you might want to

do now with your results and information:

 

DBAeXplained - Now What? - 23andMe and the FDA

 

Happy Hunting,

 

Revis

 

Motivation Monday - You Put off DNA Testing!

 

Okay, are you one of those who have been

debating on whether DNA testing would help

in your quest to break brick walls, etc. in your

genealogy research?  If you think you might

want to test at 23andMe, read this post by

 Roberta Estes of DNA-eXplained

regarding 

"FDA Orders 23andMe to Discontinue Testing".

Why test, you would probably ask me or others?

 

Andrew Jackson Festervan

 

For me, testing was to meet cousins and learn

about ancestors I knew nothing about.

 

Before I tested, I did not know

many of my Grandmother Neoma

Kolb Cauble's mother's family.

 

I match in atDNA with members of

Andrew Jack Festervan's family.

Andrew Jack was my Grandmother's

great-uncle, a brother to her Grandmother

Martha Ann Festervan/Festervand Martin Beasley.

Though I have yet to meet them in person, in 2014

my plan is to join them in Louisiana, if possible. 

 

Get motivated and test - if you want to!

 

Happy Hunting!

 

Revis

 

 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday - Nancy Cooksey Musgrove of SC and Neshoba Co. MS

Nancy Cooksey Musgrove 

b. 1805-SC

1850 U.S. Federal Census (Union Co. SC)

d. 20 Sept 1870-Neshoba Co. MS

[my 4th great-grandmother]

Nancy Cooksey Musgrove Find a Grave

Happy Hunting, 

Revis

[and yes, I know it's 

not completely

wordless!!]

Remembering Our Veterans 2013

This VETERAN'S DAY, I say "Thanks"!

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Thankful Thursday - James Monroe Stuart family of Fisher County, Texas

I am "Thankful" for a whole

lot of things.  One of them is a 

strong sense of family and love of

country.  

James Monroe Stuart was born

26 Jan 1863 in Neshoba County, MS

and died 13 Feb 1947-Fisher County, TX.

My Stuart family of 

Fisher County, Texas and

the Stuart's of Neshoba County, MS

have continually kept in touch and

visited over 123 years since "Monroe" 

brought his family to OK and TX.

This picture is a get-together of

Monroe's daughter-in-law, 

Mamie TEEL STUART, and

her family near Roby, TX.

Mamie is the lady at the

front right of the picture -

with her apron on. 

We called her "Mama Stuart". 

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Travel Tuesday - Orange, Texas postcard

 

Orange County Court House, Orange, Texas

 

 

Oran Martin Dennis, my great-grandfather, 

was born in Caldwell

County, Texas and later

lived in Tom Green County, Texas.

 

One of his younger half-brothers,

Marion William Dennis,

and his family lived at Orange, Texas.

 

No writing on the back, unfortunately!

Card is in my possession and

was part of the albums of

Nina Ada Baldridge Dennis,

Oran Marion Dennis' wife.

 

Happy Hunting,

Revis 



Maternal Monday - Grandmother Neoma Kolb Cauble and Two of her Sisters

Three of the Daughters of Robert Franklin Kolb;

Different Mothers, Same Father!

Picture in possession of Revis C. Leonard, 

believed to be taken at funeral of Robert F. Kolb

Left Back: Blanche Kolb Smith Farr

(Mother: 2nd wife Rilla Oliver 

Adams who was b. Feb 1881-Monkstown, 

Fannin Co., Texas, d..12 Mar 1917-Lufkin, 

Angelina Co., Texas. (1 child with Robert F. Kolb)

Rilla later married  Joseph Enos Shortal in 1906 at 

Honey Grove, Fannin Co., Texas) 

Back Right: Neoma Ann Kolb Cauble (my Grandmother)

(Mother: 3rd wife Neoma Ida Martin 

who was  b. 26 Oct 1873-Webster

Parish, LA, d. 7 May 1937-Rotan, Fisher Co. TX. 

Married 1st:

Alna Ivin Campbell (5 children), 

2nd a Harrison (no children), 

3rd-Robert Franklin Kolb (5 children).  

Her parents were: 

William W. Martin and

Martha Ann Festervan (Festervand), 

a/k/a "Mattie", who married

2nd Isaac Elijah Beasley, 

who my dad calls "Grandpa Ike". 

Front Row:  Luna L. Kolb (never married)

(Mother: 1st wife Laura Leola Brooks, 

who was a cousin to her husband, 

R.F. Kolb (3 children with him) and was 

born 12 Nov 1876-Jasper Co. GA, 

d. 7 Dec 1899-Grapeland, Houston, TX).

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Wordless Wednesday - Jordan Ham, Fannie Parker Ham and Grand-daughter

Grandpa and Grandma Ham a/k/a Hamm

Jordan Ham Frances "Fannie" Parker Ham and

grand-daughter Bertha Teel

Tishimingo, Johnston County, Oklahoma 

[My 3rd Great-Grandparents]

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Tombstone Tuesday - James Hardin

James Hardin, my 3rd great-grandfather,

was born ca. 1801 in Tennessee.

Long time Hardin-Harden-Harding

researcher Oran Hardin believed my James

to be the son of Joseph Hardin, Jr.,

who was the son of Col. Joseph Hardin

of Knox Co., Tennessee.  This is not proven,

though autosomal DNA cousin matches of

my family members with Hardin descendants

suggests that this is indeed James' line.

 

For years we hunted for James' gravesite.

Cousins walked the graveyards of Hill

and McLennan Counties, Texas. 

 

Wife, Louisa Mathews Hardin, had continued

up through Texas with her grown children.

But where was James?

 

On Find-A-Grave a couple of years ago,

I found where Pete Rost took these pictures

of our James Hardin's gravestone.

 

Died Mar 29, 1877

"Aged 76 years & 3 months"

Peoria Cemetery, Peoria,

Hill County, Texas.

 

Here's the link to the Find-A-Grave page:

James Hardin page

 

 

Never give up looking.  You never know

when someone will post your elusive ancestor.

 

Happy Hunting,
Revis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More info on the Sons of Darling Barber Yates

Wordless Wednesday - Sons of Darling Barber Yates

I posted this picture on Wordless Wednesday
 in July.  One person is NOT the son of Darling Barber Yates.

These were "Guards at Neshoba County Fair"
and they are as follows:
Upper Left: James Oliver Yates (Farmer);
Upper Right: Andrew Yates (Banker);
Bottom Right:  George Washington Yates (M.D.); 
and man on Bottom Left: a Johnson 

Happy Hunting, 
Revis 

Wordless Wednesday: Improvement in Cultivators. : The Portal to Texas History

James Campbell Stroud

Lockhart and Devine, Texas

Improvement in Cultivators. : The Portal to Texas History

Happy Hunting, 

Revis

Maternal Monday - Pearl Teel Frazier

Pearl Teel 

was one of my

great-great-grandfather's (William

Perry Teel) sisters.

Pearl was born 30 Jan 1884-Dekalb, Bowie, TX

and died 17 Dec 1950-Hugo, Choctaw, OK. 

She married Julius Caesar Frazier (Native American

Indian [Choctaw]) in1903 

in Spencerville, Choctaw, OK.

In 1935, Pearl and Julius Frazier

lived in Antlers, Pushmataha, OK.

By the 1940 census, they

lived in Hugo, Choctaw, OK.

I am told this is one of Pearl 

and Julius' children.

Isn't this a sweet picture?

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Friday's Faces From the Past - Who Are These Guys?

My family has no idea as to the identity of

these young men.

The picture was in my

Grandmomie Eva Nell Stuart Dennis'

 stash of pictures we sorted after she died.

No markings on the picture at all.

Probably out of my Grandmomie's mother or

father's families:

Teel, Stuart, Ham, Perry, Petell, Petill, Cochran,

Parker, Wheeler, Cockrum, Stuart, 

Musgrove, Yates,Cooksey, Jones, Oliver, etc...

Anyone recognize them? 

Happy Hunting!

Revis 

Wordless Wednesday - George Washington Dennis

George Washington Dennis 

b. 5 Jun 1881 - TX

m. 14 Jul 1912-Caldwell Co., TX to

Callie Bonner (daughter of Samuel Adlot Bonner)

d. 23 Mar 1925 - Alexandria, Rapides, LA

buried: body brought back by train

to Caldwell Co., TX to be buried

One son: Daniel Dennis (nothing known)

Happy Hunting,
Revis Leonard

Maternal Monday - Sophia Caroline Titsworth Teel Graffman

Sophia Caroline Titsworth, the 

daughter of Alvin Clark Titsworth

and Sarah Francis Smith Titsworth,

was the first wife of my gr-gr-grandfather, 

William Perry Teel. 

Sophia was born 1 Aug 1866 in Texas (probably 

Paris, Lamar, Texas).  She and William Perry 

Teel married on 7 Oct 1888 in Lamar County, Texas.

Researcher Hollis Stanford found this record

as we researched our TEEL families years ago.

My family assumed that she must have died

(with no child by W.P. Teel) and William

Perry Teel then married Jennie Ham

 on 22 Sept 1890 in Bowie, Texas. 

Sophia married James Henry Graffman on 24 May 1896

at Paris, Lamar County, Texas. 

While researching records last week in

Lamar County, Texas, I stumbled upon

census records which led me to

Sophia Graffman, wife of 

James Henry Graffman. 

And there she was!! Sophia!!

Yes, bigger than life, there was 

Sophia Caroline Titsworth Teel.

Not dead.

You know where this is going, right?

And yes, there's more to this story. 

Much more.

Stay tuned. 

And if you're a descendant of 

Sophia, please contact me.

I have questions. 

Happy Hunting, 

Revis 

Wordless Wednesday - Cottonwood School, Tishimingo, IT [Indian Territory]

Cottonwood School near Tishimingo, Indian Territory

[where my family went to school]

Naming and numbering of those in picture done by my cousin, Louise Merritt.

Happy Hunting, 

Revis

Maternal Monday - update to Mamie Teel with schoolgirls Tishimingo, Indian Territory

 

 

On July 18, 2013, I posted a

picture of my great-grandmother Mamie Teel

(who married Jeff Stuart) with other

schoolgirls at Tishimingo, Indian Territory, OK.

 

The link to that post is below:

 

Mamie Teel with schoolgirls

 

I'm posting the picture again -

with the names of the girls!

 

 

Left to Right:

Lois Shamburger, Emma Stuart,

Mamie Teel (would later

marry Jeff Stuart), Mamie McWhirter,

Stella Cooper, Essie Chance, and Teacher (unknown).

 

Happy Hunting,

Revis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday: Patriot Day - 2013

 

 

 

Romans 8: 38-39

Revis

 

Family Recipe Friday - Eva Nell's Cinnamon Rolls

We called her "Momie" and/or 

"Grandmomie" depending upon whether

you were one of her 7 children or

a grand-child.

I remember Eva Nell [Stuart] Dennis, my 

Mother's mother, being a wonderful cook.

Eva Nell was the great-grand-daughter of the

lady who set me on my quest of genealogy

many years ago - Catherine "Kate" Petell Teel.

Below is a picture of Grandmomie Eva Nell

with her boys - 6 of them!  My mother

was the oldest child and ONLY girl!!  

Eva Nell Stuart Dennis with her six boys at the home of her brother, 

George "Shorty" Stuart in Texas

I remember Grandmomie as a single mother with 

the younger boys left at home.  With little money, 

working two jobs at times to support them, 

she did what she could to make 

sure they had food on the table. 

I LOVED her Strawberry Cake and her Fried Pies!

And I do remember her Cinnamon Rolls.  Here is a

scan of that Cinnamon Roll Recipe: 

I think of her desserts and candy quite 

often (especially during holidays)! 

I am glad that our Dennis and Stuart families

have cookbooks with those old recipes in them.

Has your family done a cookbook?  If not, maybe

you should think about doing one!  

One day your younger family members

will appreciate it (I really believe that)!

Remember I mentioned Eva Nell's Fried Pies?

Well, it's Friday and I wish I wasn't at least a 4 1/2 hour

drive away from Texas Hill Country Furniture

and 

Natty Flats BBQ up near I-20 off of Hwy 281, south

of Mineral Wells, Texas (west of Fort Worth, Texas).

Because if I were closer, I'd be calling in to see if my

cousin was making Fried Pies today!  

One of Eva Nell's grand-daughter's makes

wonderful Fried Pies and Natty Flats BBQ sells them.

Texas Hill Country Furn and Natty Flats BBQ

But, hey, it's Friday...and I can dream, right?

Sweet Dreams of a Sweet Lady who was a

Sweet Cook!!  

Happy Hunting!

and oh - Happy Sweet Friday!

Revis

Follow Friday - Tangled Roots and Trees

 

 

There are so many genealogy and DNA related blogs and

websites to keep up with that I get behind with my reading!

 

Keeping it short and sweet today, I want to share
with you one of my "lately" favorites:

 

Tangled Roots and Trees

  

It's also found on Facebook at:

Facebook - Tangled Roots and Trees

 

I think you'll like this blog a lot!

Happy Hunting!

Revis



Wordless Wednesday - Ruby Lee Blankenship

Rubie/Ruby Lee BLANKENSHIP

Oklahoma TEEL and BLANKENSHIP families

Happy Hunting,

Revis

Friday's Faces From The Past - The 4 Unknown Brothers!

While my Mother and I were 

sorting through her mother's (my Grandmomie,

Eva Nell [Stuart] Dennis) photos,

we came across this photo

of four (4) boys - most likely, brothers.

Don't you just love the expressions

on their faces?

There are no markings on the photo.

No hand-written notes on the back.

No photographer stamp with a location. 

My Grandmomie and her children

went through two (2) house fires before

all the kids were out of high school.

All photos, possessions, etc. were destroyed. 

She and her DENNIS 

husband divorced after 

my parents married.  Most 

pictures she then had in her possession 

were given to her by family members of 

her family after the last fire.

So this leads me to believe that 

this group of boys could be from these

families: the William Davis STUART and

Hannah [JONES] STUART 

descendants of Neshoba Co., 

MS and TX; or

the William TEEL and Virignia [PERRY] 

or [PEERY] Teel families of VA, MO, OK and TX;

or the Jordan HAM and Frances "Fanny" PARKER

family of AL, TX and OK.

If you recognize these boys, 

please contact me! 

Happy Hunting - 

and Happy Friday - 

Revis

Wedding Wednesday - Linnie Bean and James Harmon Kolb

James Harmon Kolb 

married

Linnie Ausy Bean

on 04 Oct 1899

at Oak Grove Church,  

Grapeland, Houston Co., Texas 

James Harmon Kolb was a

brother to my Great-grandfather,

Robert Franklin Kolb.

Happy Hunting,
Revis

Funeral Card Friday - Willie Elmo Kolb

Funeral Card for Willie Elmo Kolb,

one of my Grandmother's brothers.

I remember him and his wife, Nora Mae

Bristow Kolb, well. 

They lived at Sweetwater, Texas,

when I was young.

Uncle Elmo was the son of

Robert Franklin Kolb and

Laura Leola Brooks (who was a

cousin to her husband).  They

lived in the Grapeland, Texas area.

Willie Elmo and Nora Mae Bristow Kolb.

Picture taken in their yard or in the yard of

his sister, Luna Kolb at Sweetwater, Texas.

This picture brings back sweet

memories to me...all the old ones I knew

 have passed on. 

And for some reason, this scripture from

Numbers 6: 24-26 came to mind:

"The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face shine upon you

And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,

And give you peace."

May you have a blessed weekend,

and

Happy Hunting!

Revis



Those Places Thursday - Lower Skippack Mennonite Church, Skippack PA

My ancestor Johannes KOLB came to America

in 1707 with his brothers, Martin and Jacob.

They settled in Germantown, but by 1709 or so

had removed to Skippack, Montgomery Co., PA.

On December 15, 1709, Johannes bought land

in Skippack. 

The family worshipped at the Skippack Mennonite

Congregation which was established ca. 1702, 

the 2nd oldest Mennonite congregation in America. 

"Later known as the "Lower Skippack", 

this congregation would become the largest and most influential in young America. It would establish Mennonite policy and practice in the new world, as church elders had remained in Germany." [from Skippack Historical Society_The Hunsicker Family page

And yes, the Hunsicker's are kin!!

Lower Skippack Mennonite Church 

(the first church was built in 1719; this

one built in the 1800's)

When the denomination split in 1848:

 (the Mennonite Church [MC] and 

the General Conference Mennonite Church [GCMC]), 

the members that stayed with the MC split 

and started the Upper Skippack Mennonite Church, 

which is now known as the Wellspring Church of Skippack. 

 The Lower Skippack Mennonite Church became affiliated with the GCMC and that is where my Kolb family has held their family reunions for many years.  A few years ago the two Mennonite denominations joined together again.  But today the Lower Skippack Mennonite Church continues on and is not affiliated, as to my understanding, with any particular Mennonite

denomination; and on its website states: 

"A non affiliated Christian Church" 

The cemetery near the church is beautiful.  

Many of my kin are buried there: 

  We walked and talked among 

the graves for at least an hour when we

attended the 2007 reunion.

Christopher Dock, the school teacher:

Some of my family - and newly

found kin - enjoy visiting 

at the end of the 2007 "300th

Anniversary of the Kolb Brothers

Coming to America". 

I loved going to Skippack.  

And as the Terminator says, 

"I'll be back", you can count on that.

This place of my Johannes Kolb and 

his brothers and their families was a

place that touched my soul...

And, yes, I will go back!

Happy Hunting, 

Revis 

Wordless Wednesday - Boyd and Elmo Garrett

Boyd E. and James Elmo Garrett

sons of W.E. Garrett and

Mary Catherine "Polly" Smith

(AL and TX Garrett's)

 

 

 

Happy Hunting,

Revis

 



Talented Tuesday - my cousin Marty Stuart

Yes, he's still making music, and though

I have other talented folks in my

ancestry, today I wanted to feature

my very talented (what instrument does

he not play?) cousin, Marty Stuart.

 

We got to attend one of his concerts

at New Braunfels, Texas earlier this summer.

What a good time we had!

 

 

 

Me, my sister and my Mother with her

3rd cousin, Marty Stuart at New Braunfels, Texas

 

Catch Marty and the Fabulous Superlatives

if they come your way!  You won't be disappointed!

Marty Stuart website

 

His season finale of RFD-TV's "The Marty Stuart Show"

was taped in his hometown of Philadelphia

(Neshoba Co.) MS.

 

 Marty and my Mother share 2nd great-grandparents,

William Davis Stuart (a/k/a Stewart/Steward)

(b. 22 Feb 1832-AL, d. 20 Jul 1907-Neshoba Co. MS)

and Hannah Jones Stuart

(b. 03 Oct 1833-AL, d. May 1904-MS)

 

 

Mother's great-grandfather,

James Monroe Stuart, and

Marty's great-grandfather,

John Leroy Stuart,

were children numbers 10 and 11

out of a total of 13 for

Hannah and William D. Stuart.

 

William Davis Stuart is close kin

(probably a son) of

William Stewart (d. aft 1870) of Winston Co. MS 

and wife Polly.  Y-DNA testing of one of their

descendants and one of my MS Stuart male cousin's

confirms us as a match.

 

Happy Hunting,
Revis