A to Z April Challenge: Z is for Zilch

This is a continuation of LAST APRIL’s challenge about HEIRLOOMS. When my sister and I cleaned out our parents’ home, we had to make many decisions about what to do with all the stuff. Which things are truly “valuable” and which have only sentiment in their favor? Should we sell it, keep it, or throw it away? To help ensure a future for our family’s heirlooms, I plan to leave a booklet for my daughters telling the stories of what they will inherit one day. (Not TOO soon, I hope!)

is for Zilch which means a quantity of no importance.

I suppose this girdle box would be considered something of no importance. Of course, a girdle itself would have been very important to some women in years past. Even if they didn’t need help keeping their stomach flat, they needed the hooks to hold their hose up.

You might think that when I "inherited" the girdle box, I got zilch. However, what was inside the girdle box was and IS important: diplomas.

Yes, my grandaunt Violetta Davis Ryan had rolled up her 3 college diplomas and inserted them into the box which just so happened to be the exact size she needed.

Just this past year I donated two of her diplomas to James Madison University. She was an alumna of the early years when JMU was the Normal School and State Teachers College. Read the story HERE if you are so inclined.

I survived the challenge. Now gimme that badge!

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

52 Ancestors - ROAD TRIP: Jolletts in the Northwest

image from Pixabay

Westward expansion defined 19^th century America. Thomas Jefferson’s Louisiana Purchase in 1803 nearly doubled the size of the country. He believed that the health of the country depended on independent citizens who owned their own land and farmed their own farms. By 1840, nearly 40% of Americans lived west of the Appalachian Mountains and east of the Mississippi River. They had left their homes in the East in search of economic opportunity. Like Jefferson, they associated land ownership with freedom.

At least three of my Jollett families were among those who left Virginia to build a new life in the Northwest, the part of the country now known as Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

Clarissa Ann Jollett, daughter of James and Nancy Walker Jollett, was born in Orange County, Virginia about 1793. When she was 20, she married John Sampson. The Sampsons were a prosperous family in Virginia, all well established with very large farms.

So why did they leave Virginia in 1836? It seems they had already achieved economic independence. John and Clarissa were hardly a young couple starting out. They were nearly 50 years old. But they did it anyway with 8 children in tow. Maybe the move was to ensure more opportunities for the children.

Clarissa’s unmarried brother James accompanied them.

While I don’t know the exact route they took, it is likely they went north to Maryland to pick up the National Road.

 

from Google Images

This was the first major improved highway funded by the United States government. It was truly the gateway to the west for travelers and pioneers alike. 

Columbus, Ohio was their first significant stop where they spent the winter. A granddaughter was born there. Then in the spring of 1837, the Sampson gang arrived in Wayne County, Indiana, where they farmed for several years. In a book honoring the early pioneers of Indiana, several of the Sampsons were featured. John and Clarissa’s son John recalled that there were deer and turkeys roaming the woods near their farm and that they always had plenty of food on the table as a result. 

Two years later they moved on into Clay County. There in Dick Johnson Township, John and Clarissa purchased about 80 acres of land. Over the years they added to the parcel, developing quite a valuable farm.

Clarissa's brother Simeon and his family may have traveled with them as well, but clearly they did not stay together for long.

In 1840, Simeon Jollett was in Jefferson, Ohio, enumerated as Simeon Jolly. Clarissa’s family had already moved on to Indiana.

MALES
1 under 5	Robert
1 5-9	?
1 10-14	Henry
1 40-49	Simeon
FEMALES
1 5-9	Elizabeth
1 30-39	Nancy

In 1850, Simeon, aka Simon Jolley, was in Harrison Township, Indiana with his wife Nancy, and three children Robert, Elizabeth, and G.W. (George). I’m confident this is the same family from the 1840 census; plus, now I can see Simeon and Nancy were from Virginia. Henry had married and moved his family to Fayette, Ohio. Still no sign of the daughter Catherine who supposedly had married one J.J. Hunter. Simeon was working as a shoemaker.

 

1850 Harrison Twp, IN census

By 1860, Simeon and Nancy Jolly “no -e” had hit the road once again, this time to Tippecanoe, Indiana. Only George was still at home. As for the whereabouts of Robert and Elizabeth, I have no clue. Vanished.  There is no shortage of Robert Jolly’s and Robert Jolley’s in Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana, so he could be any one of them. Meanwhile, Henry and his family were in Randolph, Illinois.

 

1860 Tippecanoe, IN census

Between 1860 and 1870, Nancy died. In 1870, Simeon lived with his son Henry and family in Lexington, Illinois. Catherine’s son Charles was there too, enumerated as Henry’s nephew. Now Simeon’s son George was among the missing. 

 

1870 Lexington, IL census

John Sampson died on his farm in Clay County, Indiana, at age 73. In 1875, Clarissa died at the home of her son Sanford. The two are buried in the Stunkard Cemetery in Brazil, Clay County, Indiana. Other members of their family are buried nearby as well.

 

Tombstone of John and Clarissa Sampson
James Jollett's name is inscribed on the top

When and where Simeon Jolly/Jollett died is another mystery that might require a road trip of my own to solve.

Amy Johnson Crow continues to challenge genealogy bloggers and non-bloggers alike to think about our ancestors and share a story or photo about them. The challenge is “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.”

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

A to Z April Challenge: Y is for Yellow Pyrex

This is a continuation of LAST APRIL’s challenge about HEIRLOOMS. When my sister and I cleaned out our parents’ home, we had to make many decisions about what to do with all the stuff. Which things are truly “valuable” and which have only sentiment in their favor? Should we sell it, keep it, or throw it away? To help ensure a future for our family’s heirlooms, I plan to leave a booklet for my daughters telling the stories of what they will inherit one day. (Not TOO soon, I hope!)

is for Yellow Pyrex.

A square bowl, a small casserole dish, and 4 small bowls comprise my little collection of vintage Pyrex. As far as I know, these pieces were originally my mother’s although they certainly could have belonged to my grandmother and I have just forgotten.

The casserole dish is small, so it is perfect for the two of us but not so much for company. Baked beans or a meatloaf typically get baked in this dish. A salad, coleslaw, or cubes of watermelon fit nicely in the square bowl.

I must confess that I usually think of Pyrex as just ordinary, everyday kitchenware, rather low-end. But it cleans up easily and performs like a champ. No wonder many households today probably have some old Pyrex in the cupboard. The fact that it holds up so well and lasts so long makes it easy to find in thrift stores and antique shops.

The history of Pyrex is quite interesting beginning as glass for railroad lanterns. Who knew? The development of colored opal glass grew out of a need for strong crack-proof cookware for soldiers in World War II.

Pyrex came only in clear glass for many years until the 1940s when color was introduced. Apparently Pyrex collectors pay close attention to the color because the various shades of blue or yellow or green are clues to the age and collection.

I thought my yellows were all the same, but clearly the soup/cereal/ice cream bowls are a much lighter shade while the square bowl and casserole are bright.

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

A to Z April Challenge: X is for Xerocopy

This is a continuation of LAST APRIL’s challenge about HEIRLOOMS. When my sister and I cleaned out our parents’ home, we had to make many decisions about what to do with all the stuff. Which things are truly “valuable” and which have only sentiment in their favor? Should we sell it, keep it, or throw it away? To help ensure a future for our family’s heirlooms, I plan to leave a booklet for my daughters telling the stories of what they will inherit one day. (Not TOO soon, I hope!)

is for Xerocopy.

Simply put - document copies, like from a Xerox machine even if the machine was NOT Xerox but a different brand, Canon or HP, for example.

A couple years ago, I finally went through my cardboard box of copies of documents that I had gathered about my various family lines and organized them into binders, one for each major line. Looks neat and organized, don’t you agree?

But inside the binders, it’s a mess. Smart family historians and genealogists insert divider tabs for individual people in that line, or for types of documents such as Census, Deeds, Wills, etc. Not me. Each document is in a clear sleeve, but there is no order to how they are arranged in the binder.

At least they’re in a binder on a shelf.

 

Bookshelf in the "gene cave"

“Making copies” - one of my favorite skits from "Saturday Night Live." There was a time when we all started talking like Richard.

Wendy! Wendita. The Wendenator. Making copies and keeping up with the Challenge! The Wendmeister~

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

Sepia Saturday: Nothing Too Good for Tourists

Sepia Saturday challenges bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday prompt made me take another look at a couple photos of my grandaunt Velma Davis Woodring and her friends. The date was 25 March 1925. The place, Edge Lawn Inn.

 

Elise Taylor, Velma Davis, and
Thelma Hockman
March 25, 1925

Since in 1925 the girls were students at Harrisonburg Teacher’s College (now James Madison University - Go DUKES!), I could not imagine why they would have been staying at an inn. And where was it?

 

Elise Taylor, Leta LeVow and
Thelma Hockman
March 25, 1925

A search for the Edge Lawn Inn brought up a brief mention of it noting it was south of Harrisonburg. By “brief,” I mean THAT was the extent of the information. No picture. No history. Not even an exact location. My inquiry at the Harrisonburg Rockingham County Historical Society produced nothing either.

So I gave up on trying to find out more. After all, what is there to be gained other than perhaps a little factoid that had nothing to do with Velma or her friends?

Leave it to Sepia Saturday to make me look again. A broad Google search for a misspelled Edge Lawn - I typed “edgelawn” - gave me this ad for the Edge Lawn Inn.

from Automobile Blue Book, vol 2
on Google Books

Velma Davis, Leta LeVow, and
Thelma Hockman
March 25, 1925

The picture of the inn rang a bell. I remembered another photo of the same group of girls in front of a house that I always assumed was the home of one of Velma’s friends. I reasoned that the girls probably spent the weekend with a friend from school. I knew it was not Thelma Hockman’s house since she lived next door to Velma in Shenandoah. Maybe it was Leta LeVow’s house in Waynesboro. Maybe it was Elise Taylor’s home in Staunton.

Velma Davis and Thelma Hockman
Elise Taylor
March 25, 1925

I checked the date. 25 March 1925.

I checked the clothes. Same clothes.

The house was apparently the Edge Lawn Inn.

Using my online newspaper subscriptions, I found several mentions of the Edge Lawn Inn as the venue for reunions, birthday parties, card parties, bridal showers, and other social events. The Edge Lawn Inn placed an ad promoting its Thanksgiving Dinner menu. A small notice advertising dishes and furnishings for sale hinted that perhaps updating was underway at the Edge Lawn Inn. Coincidentally - or not - there was an estate auction next door to the Edge Lawn Inn on March 25, 1925. Were the girls there to bid?

I saved the best for last. The news article is not about the Edge Lawn itself but about its former owner. What a headline!

from Harrisonburg
Daily News Record
14 Oct 1927
Newspaperarchive.com

There you have it - the sum total of what I have learned about the Edge Lawn Inn.

However, I learned quite a bit about the Automobile Blue Book in which the ad appeared. Published between 1901 and 1929, the Blue Books were a series of guides for people traveling the United States and Canada by car. The highway system was in its infancy. Roads were built for local travel, not intercity. The Blue Books relied heavily on maps and landmarks denoting when and where to turn since road signs did not always exist. Originally the aim was to provide point to point directions along routes connecting automobile supply businesses, auto repair and auto maintenance businesses. Advertisements were primarily for hotels, restaurants, auto dealers, and garages.

Unlike today’s GPS devices that point to shortest or fastest routes, the Blue Books followed the routes that offered interesting scenery and places for rest and maintenance.  

Places for rest - like the Edge Lawn Inn. “Nothing too good for Tourists.”

Follow the route to Sepia Saturday - no Blue Book necessary.

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

A to Z April Challenge: W is for Wendy's Rock

This is a continuation of LAST APRIL’s challenge about HEIRLOOMS. When my sister and I cleaned out our parents’ home, we had to make many decisions about what to do with all the stuff. Which things are truly “valuable” and which have only sentiment in their favor? Should we sell it, keep it, or throw it away? To help ensure a future for our family’s heirlooms, I plan to leave a booklet for my daughters telling the stories of what they will inherit one day. (Not TOO soon, I hope!)

is for Wendy’s rock.

This is just a chunk of “Wendy’s rock.”

Wendy’s rock is what my maternal grandparents called the BIG boulder that sat on a curve along Route 33 crossing the mountain from Greene County into Rockingham County. As a young girl, I went with them each summer to visit my cousins in Shenandoah, Virginia. That meant following oil trucks and tractor trailers curve after curve up one side of the mountain and down the other.

It was a sloooow ride.

Spotting certain landmarks was my way of knowing just how much longer it would take before getting to my cousins’ house. “There’s that rock!” I would say every time. It sat on an outside curve of what would be a LOOOONG fall if the guard rail wasn’t there.

When the State embarked on road improvements to widen portions and even straighten some of the stretches of Route 33, “Wendy’s rock” was one casualty. It was too big to shove out of the way; it had to be blasted into pieces.

Of course, we had to stop and grab a souvenir.

This YouTube video shows a ride at the OTHER end of Route 33, but it is similar to the drive from Greene into Rockingham. You will get a sense of those curves. 

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

A to Z April Challenge: V is for Victorian Table

This is a continuation of LAST APRIL’s challenge about HEIRLOOMS. When my sister and I cleaned out our parents’ home, we had to make many decisions about what to do with all the stuff. Which things are truly “valuable” and which have only sentiment in their favor? Should we sell it, keep it, or throw it away? To help ensure a future for our family’s heirlooms, I plan to leave a booklet for my daughters telling the stories of what they will inherit one day. (Not TOO soon, I hope!)

is for the Victorian table that once stood in my grandaunt Violetta Davis Ryan’s living room but now is in mine.

I have a love-hate relationship with this table. In fact, for the past couple years, I have been tempted to paint it, not the marble though, just the wood. 

Don’t freak out, you furniture purists, but I have been thinking about doing something like this:

However, I fear I do not have the steady hand to pull off something this beautiful and intricate.

I could easily paint and apply an antique glaze like this though:

Trends in furniture change rather quickly. I remember shopping for antique washstands with my mother in the 1970s and 80s. We would always express shock that our ancestors would cover their beautiful oak pieces with green paint. Returning old furniture to their former glory was the goal.

Recently with the development of chalk paint and milk paint, Pinterest has been flooded with old buffets, dressers, beds, tables, and chairs painted and distressed.

I have removed plenty of paint from old furniture. If I can do it, so can future generations.

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.