Journey to the Past: More With Cousin Betty and Samuel Brown


When Betty said she had a few things for me, she wasn't kidding. She had done some digging and had found funeral cards, obituaries, a family history printing, photos, wedding certificates, and more. Another gold mine! Would I get it all scanned before I had to leave? Betty was so excited to share what she had. She had more stories to share. I learned about more spotted sheep in the family. Very tragic stuff. 


A sampling of the information Cousin Betty found for me about her family.

The funniest thing was the story of her mother. Arlene had pancreatic cancer. Generally this disease is uncommon in women and a result of heavy drinking and smoking. Betty said her mother never smoked or drank. When Arlene had insisted that she had done neither, the doctor had wouldn't believe her. Arlene was so fed up that the doctor didn't believe her that she had some fun. Apparently Arlene wasn't the happiest sort of soul, so the comical element was greatly heightened. Arlene dressed in a funny dress, borrowed a bottle of alcohol and a cigarette and had her daughter Betty snap a host of pictures. Arlene really got into the fun and began doing all sorts of funny poses and faces. 

My aunt Shelley laughed until she nearly split her gut. Arlene had never shared this side of her personality to Shelley's family and it was quite the treat. I promised my cousin that the photographs would stay in the family out of respect. However, the story of a person fed up with doctors insisting that she did something she hadn't rings true to me. I don't drink or smoke and I'd feel the same way. “Oh, really doctor? You don't believe me? Well, I'll show you.” That's the attitude Arlene had and the one I can fully understand. So funny.

Aside from discussing Betty's family, I also shared that I believe that Samuel Leroy Brown's son Bradley Lewis Brown had died. I had done some digging and had hoped to find Bradley and his sister. If I found them, I'd try to find out about their family to see if the mystery could be cleared up. Betty and Shelley were greatly saddened to learn of his passing. They insisted I need to seek out his sister. I shall, in due time.

In Bradley's obituary, all the facts I had about him lined up except a few. First, it's supposed that Bradley was born in Louisiana and not Ohio or Missouri. Additionally, his mother is listed as Anne Tompkins Brown (the second wife of Samuel). So, the picture we have could very well be Anne and not Mary Jane (or Marietta). In reviewing the birth dates of Bradley and his sister, it would fit better with a scenario that Samuel married Annie around 1940 and then had two children before he died in 1948. The mystery continues! So, what happened to Marietta Hicks Brown and what is the story of Anne Tompkins. Could Samuel have been a bit of a ladies man during his work as a traveling salesman? Is that story true? Hmmmm..... it seems I really must find the cousin now.

This is another installment in a lengthy multi-series post about the fantastic research trip I took to Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio. If you're just joining the this series, you'll be able to see every post under the label Research Trip.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Happy Mother's Day Lura Long

Image
When I think of mothers on my family tree, Lura Smith tops the list of those I look forward to meeting in the afterlife. She is the adopted mother of my Grannie,  Louise Eleanor Long .  Grannie adored Lura. Lura was married to Harry Howard Long (1883-1937). The couple married in Columbus, Ohio on Jun 19, 1907. They were unable to have children and finally adopted their first child in 1916. In May 1920, a baby girl was born in Columbus, Ohio to an unwed mother. The mother died of preeclampsia. This baby girl would become my grandmother. Upon her mother's death, Baby Anderson became a ward of the State of Ohio Welfare Department. She had a caseworker, Ethel Huffman Ackerman, who wanted to place Baby Anderson in the home of Harry Long. The caseworker was a friend and classmate (at Ohio State) of Harry's sister Elizabeth Long. As Elizabeth retells the story, Ethel received Baby Anderson's birth mother's history and felt that Harry and Lura were just the parent...
Read more

Mystery Monday: Which Karlsberger married Charles Stahl?

Image
Genealogy is kind of addicting. Sometimes, I get rather lost in the branches. As such, I run into mysteries that I can't seem to solve from the top down. I figured the genealogy community is awesome and may have ways to help me solve a mystery. Otherwise, perhaps a Karlsberger from Franklin County, Ohio might stumble upon my blog and help me solve this problem. My potential 3rd great-grand uncle George Paul Karlsberger was born on 10 August 1825 in Bavaria. Another researcher suggested his connection to my 3rd great-grandmother Anna Magaretha Karlsberger who married Christian or Christopher Hoppe. Margaretha was born 29 February 1824. There are no definitive records linking George and Margaretha. And Margaretha's parents were not recorded, though parents for George were suggested. As you can see, I am about to head down a twig on the tree that might be gnarled, or legitimate. George Karlsberger had six children born in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio to his wife Maria Elizabeth...
Read more

One Name Place Study: George Townsend of Columbus Ohio

Image
It's once again time to investigate the Townsends of Franklin County , Ohio in an effort to find relatives of William James Townsend who was born around 1842 in Franklin County, Ohio. The next individual listed 1880 US Census is George A Townsend. George indicates in this census that he was born around 1840 in New York. His parents are also listed as from New York and he says he was a merchant. Other household members are Louisa Townsend born around 1840 in New York (parents also from New York).  They have a son Charles W Townsend, who is about 11 in their home. Charles was apparently born in New York as well. At quick glance, this does not appear as close a relation as I would like to see. William was born in Ohio and several records place his parents from Maryland. George and William are around the same age so the different birth places would rule out the possibility of being brothers. Could they be distant relatives? I continued to research George and found him in the 7...
Read more