Hi Tom,
I really do need to share with you GenealogyBank‘s latest contribution to my family history research!
I really do love GenealogyBank. Without it, I would not know about the accident that caused the death of my grandmother’s youngest brother. Nor would I have known when it occurred. Nor would I have found out the exact date of death of my gr-grandfather’s youngest sister. Nor would I have found so much anecdotal information about my Dad’s family as he grew up. But the greatest find of all from GenealogyBank solved the problem of where did William go.
William was the older brother of my Dad’s father. He married a girl from Pond Creek, and they started on a large family. But William and his family moved around a lot, from Wilkes-Barre to Plains, both in Pennsylvania, to Jersey City, in New Jersey, to Brooklyn, in New York, to East Orange, in New Jersey, and back to Plains by 1950. In 1950, his youngest brother died, leaving William the last of my grandfather’s siblings still alive.
But, he wasn’t buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Wilkes-Barre, like his three brothers were. So, he must have moved again from Plains, it seemed. But, in 1950, William was 76 years old, so it didn’t seem likely he was going to do much more moving around.
Then I started finding newspaper clippings on GenealogyBank about William’s family many years ago. On at least three occasions during a 20 year period of time, a young child had died – and, according to the newspaper article, was brought to White Haven for burial.
Since I knew his wife had been from White Haven, I suspected her family might have had a family burial plot in a cemetery in White Haven. It took a lot of searching, since White Haven is a cute little, charming little, community, but it does have two cemeteries, neither of which has an office or anyone in attendance during the day. But I did find the family burial plot of William’s wife’s family – and next to them is a stone with the name KROPP on it.
I was able to find who had the cemetery records, and she verified for me that, among the 12 people buried in the KROPP plot is my elusive and peripatetic William! I even got the date of his death! I still have a lot of work to do on this, but it is so much easier starting with a date of death than with an “uh, I don’t know.”
Yes I do love GenealogyBank, and I owe it to you to let you know how much help excitement it has contributed to my genealogy research. I am thrilled for the newspapers there, covering Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Now, I can’t wait for newspaper coverage of Crawford County (Steelville) Missouri so I can get going on my mother’s genealogy!
Thank you so much for GenealogyBank!
Donna
Peachtree City, GA
Tag Archives: Father
Tim Russert, 1950 – 2008
On Father’s Day weekend it gives us pause to learn of the passing of Tim Russert.
Deeply involved with his family as well as his life’s work he wrote about fathers and about his heritage.
His easy manor and gift for telling stories always made us wonder – is there more that we can do to keep the family ties strong; communication ongoing and keeping everyone in touch?
Listen to his narration of an excerpt from his book Big Russ and Me, a Father’s Day tribute to his Dad. Click Here.
He will be missed.
Make the call – keep in touch – family.
Tracking down Family Bibles ….
Family Bibles have been treasured by families for generations, but finding them today can be difficult.
It was common for families to have a family Bible – a large bound book that was prominently displayed in the family parlor – “…a large octavo volume, with a more or less ornate binding, with blank pages inserted on which to record births, marriages and deaths, and sometimes the near-slaying of Isaac, Moses in the bulrushes, the infernal regions and other interesting dramatic and historic incidents narrated in the [Bible]“. (Boston Journal 13 May 1908).
(Image from Antique Holy Bible Item #330235937204 – Ebay.com)
I spotted quite a few newspaper articles that cited the old family Bibles and who their current owners were.
For example – Henry Peters of Trenton, NJ used his family Bible to prove that he was “sixteen years old and two months older than that” so that he could get in to the show at the Trent theater. (Fort Worth (TX) Star-Telegram. Nov 4, 1909).
An article in the Columbus (GA) Enquirer (2 Sep 1898) tells us that “Mrs. Billard, the daughter of the late Rev. Edward Oldrin, who lives on Bank Street [Stamford, CT]” … and that she got it “by inheritance from her father. … The book is in the original binding and well preserved, the Old Testament part having been printed in 1597 and the New Testament in 1596. The covers are of wood.”
This is an important point. Always check the dates that each of the Testaments was printed. Printers often printed them separately and then joined them together when they published the Bible. This is a way to date a family Bible.
“Inscribed on the yellow fly-leat are the words: Edward Oulldron owns this book and after his death to his son Edward Oulldron, given by his grandfather – 1651.” Elsewhere it states “Edward Oldrin’s [note the change in spelling] book, given by his father on is deathbed in the 1827, July 28, to be kept in the family.”
Mrs. Jennie Fairbanks Milligan of Springfield, Ohio brought the family Bible when she was called to testify in a case trying to break the will of the late Delavan Smith of Lake Forest, IL. (Dallas Morning News. 1 October 1921).
John M. Butler of Ocean Grove, NJ found out by double checking his family Bible that he was 101 and not 100 years old when he went to celebrate his birthday. He said it was a “pretty tough job trying to keep track of so many birthdays.” He said with a smile … “I must have lived two years in Brooklyn [NY, the] one year that I was there. That’s the only way I can account for the discrepancy.” (Evening Times – Pawtucket, RI – 17 jan 1901).
But you won’t find the Belin family Bible. It seems that in November 1908, Joseph Belin of Wilkes-Barre, PA “came home intoxicated and threatened [his mother] and then burned the family Bible.” There were 7 prisoners in court that day for “being drunk”. Six of them were fined $1.00 but Joseph Belin was fined $5.00. (Wilkes-Barre (PA) Times Leader – 18 Nov 1908).
Historical newspapers are packed with family history information. Research more than 3,400 newspapers and document your heritage on GenealogyBank.
Give it a try right now.
James L. Sorenson – DNA Pioneer Dies at 86
His lengthy obituary and related newspaper articles appear in today’s Deseret News (UT) – you can read them in Here is the article (used by permission): 
James L. Sorenson, a pioneer in DNA research has died. A self-made billionaire, he used his wealth in many causes.
Genealogists in particular are aware of his efforts with DNA and genealogy. In 1999 he started the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation. The group has collected more than 70,000 DNA samples, together with four-generation pedigree charts, from volunteers in more than 100 countries around the world.
Deceased Name: Inventor, philanthropist James Sorenson, Utah’s richest man, dies at 86
James LeVoy Sorenson, whose success as an entrepreneur, real estate magnate and inventor of numerous medical devices made him Utah’s richest man, died Sunday, Jan. 20, at a Salt Lake hospital. Besides his wealth and business acumen, Sorenson was renowned as a philanthropist.
Sorenson, whose wealth was estimated to be $4.5 Billion last year by Forbes magazine, was 86 years old. He was listed as the 68th-richest American in September 2007. He was the owner of Sorenson Cos., a parent company to 32 corporations in industries including medicine, bioscience, investment/development and manufacturing.
Sorenson held more than 40 medical patents during his lifetime and is perhaps best known for co-developing the first real-time computerized heart monitor. He also invented the disposable paper surgical mask, the plastic venous catheter and a blood recycling system for trauma and surgical procedures, as well as many other medical innovations.“I think success in his mind was someone that had ideas, that had a strong work ethic and a tenacity,” son James Lee Sorenson told the Deseret Morning News. “As you look at examples in the world today, those are important attributes. I think Dad was a calculated-risk-taker, and successful people generally are.” The younger Sorenson said his father’s legacy will be as “a great American inventor, a man with a tremendous amount of innovation.” Among his philanthropic endeavors is Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, which is creating a worldwide, correlated genetic and genealogical database used in ancestry research. His donations have helped a Washington, D.C., university for the deaf and hearing impaired and assisted in establishment of an outdoor performing arts pavilion in Herriman. He gave more than $30 million for restoration of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ temple in Nauvoo, Ill. After the tsunami of 2004 hit Thailand, he donated DNA testing kits to assist in identifying the dead, and Sorenson Genomics — one of his companies — analyzed their DNA, matching some victims with their relatives. He donated land and money to help build the Sorenson Unity Center at California Avenue and 900 West, next door to the Sorenson Multicultural Center. The YMCA’s Camp Rogers in the Uinta Mountains also benefited from his generosity.
He and James Lee Sorenson reached out to help Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C.; together they donated $5 million to the country’s largest university for the deaf and hearing impaired.In April 2007, he gave $6 million to the new Intermountain Medical Center, raising his contributions to Intermountain Healthcare to $22 million. He pledged $500,000 during a fund-raiser for Primary Children’s Medical Center in June 2007. In September 2007, the nonprofit Sorenson Legacy Foundation donated $6 million to the University of Utah, toward the James LeVoy Sorenson Center, which will be dedicated to encourage innovation and discovery among students across Utah. A crisis concerning the Legislature’s refusal to fund some items in the state Medicaid program was averted in 2006 when Sorenson and Intermountain Healthcare donated $1 million each. The next year, the Legislature picked up the tab. Sorenson also was a poet and composer of LDS hymns, publishing some of them in a book titled, “Just Love the People, the World Is our Family.” After beginning his career selling pharmaceuticals to physicians for Upjohn Co. in Salt Lake City, Sorenson started buying real estate in the Salt Lake area. In 1957 he co-founded Deseret Pharmaceutical, and the company became the foundation for the establishment of Becton Dickinson Vascular Access. In 1962, he founded Sorenson Research, which was sold to Abbott Laboratories, a Fortune 100 company, in 1980. He founded LeVoy’s, a company that made lingerie for modest women and used Tupperware-style marketing with parties hosted in homes. He also owned and developed thousands of acres of commercial, residential and agricultural properties throughout Utah. Sorenson, who was born in Rexburg, Idaho, and grew up in central California, is survived by Beverley Taylor Sorenson, his wife of 60 years, and two sons, six daughters, 47 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren.
