February 16, 2022
Introduction: In this article, Melissa Davenport Berry shows how diary and journal snippets published in old newspapers can help you understand your own family history. Melissa is a genealogist who has a blog, AnceStory Archives, and a Facebook group, New England Family Genealogy and History.
Some of the most overlooked sources of genealogical background information are diaries and journals. If you are working on the family tree and do not have these sources in your own family line, try a search looking into published diary records – it will help you understand the life and times of your family.
Even if you had no idea your ancestor kept a diary or journal, there’s a chance portions of it were published – or, perhaps, snippets from the diary or journal of someone going through similar experiences in the same place at the same time as your ancestor. Newspapers sometimes printed these snippets, and an online collection of newspapers, such as GenealogyBank’s Historical Newspaper Archives, is a good place to look for them. In this article I present entries from two diaries I came across in my GenealogyBank searches.
A Diary from the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad
In 1917 the city of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was preparing for the golden anniversary of the coming of the Union Pacific Railroad, and the Wyoming State Tribune published snippets of a diary relating to its pioneer days and how the town appeared in 1867 when the railroad came.
The diary was loaned out by William Levi Whipple, whose father, I. C. Whipple, is the author and came to Cheyenne to stake his fortune.
I. C. was born to Cyrus Avery Whipple and Mary Ann Freeman, and a descendant of many old New England families including Mathew Whipple of Ipswich, Massachusetts.
I. C. Whipple became a wealthy cattleman and merchant, and his narrative reveals his simple startup and the work he did.
August 13, 1867:
“Clark and I took mules and went after water. Came back and went to drift and cleaned out to 14 ft. 4 [in.] high and 3 ft. wide and commenced packing and getting ready to go to Cheyenne city. Put up some posts and slabs for shanty. Got over to Hay camp for dinner [Henry Hay would later partner with Whipple in the Union Mercantile Store] and started for city at 1 o’clock, arrived at sundown. Found quite a city and building fast.”
September 10, 1867:
“Got up this morning found quite a frost on [the] ground. Harnessed team after breakfast and started out. Stopped and went all through and over Natural Fort three miles this side [of] Hay camp. Took our dinner at Lone Tree. I drove oxen this afternoon to city of Cheyenne, arrived about 7 o’clock. Found [my] family in a tent. Weather pleasant.”
The newspaper article highlights Whipple’s diary entry recording the arrival of the railroad line, saying that he “witnessed the birth of Cheyenne.”
November 13, 1867:
“Had dinner at noon and then we all went down and saw them lay ties, track, and [then came] engines 28 and 29. A great many people out. They got track into city limits at 4 p.m. Weather very nice and warm.”
A Diary from the Revolutionary War
In 1893 Boston, Massachusetts, was about to commemorate Bean town’s role in the American Revolution. The Boston Journal covered many connections to this pivotal time in the nation’s history.
As this article reported, “an interesting and valuable relic of the year 1775” was the diary and almanac of Joshua Green, which was in the possession of his great-grandson, Dr. Samuel Abbott Green, who was the Librarian of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
The newspaper article printed Green’s entry from April 19 – the day of the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
Here is a transcription of this significant diary entry, to which I added from a transcription as it appears in Facts Relating to the History of Groton, Massachusetts, Volume 2, written by Dr. Samuel A. Green (p. 136).
April 19, 1775:
“Last night all the grenadiers and light Infantry of the [British] army [in men of war boats over the Charles River to Cambridge] set out for Concord, and at Lexington killed eight of our people. They were followed and joined this day by Earl Piercy’s brigade of regiments, but were attacked and obliged to retire [to Charlestown] with the loss of: killed – one Lieutenant, one Sergeant, one drummer, and 62 rank and file; wounded – two Lieutenant Colonels, two Captains, nine Lieutenants, two Ensigns, seven Sergeants, one drummer, and 157 rank and file; missing – one Lieutenant, two Sergeants, and 24 rank and file.”
Green’s diary records many events and people, such as Col. Leslie’s expedition to Salem, Dr. Joseph Warren’s oration, and schoolmate Harrison Gray Otis.
Green’s niece Anna Green Winslow also kept a diary, and mentions her visits with him. Her diary is loaded with fascinating tidbits, specifically on the role of women during the Revolution: The Kinsfolk of Anna Green Winslow Taught Her How to Spin Liberty!
These diary entries give us snapshots of the places and times our ancestors lived in, and can contribute to your understanding of your own family history.
Stay tuned for more diaries!
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