Mar. 2011, Weeks 1-4: Emery Julius OGDEN

Just under the wire (it is still March, at least for a few more hours), here is the information on my maternal grandfather that I planned to post on the four Sundays in March.

Week 1: Birth

Emery Julius OGDEN was born 9-Sept-1896 most likely in Union Co., SD. South Dakota did not start keeping birth records until 1905. According to a database of pre-1905 births that the SD Dept. of Health put together here, my grandfather was born in Union Co. I don’t know who provided that information to them or when. On his 1918 WWI draft registration form, Clay Co., SD is his place of birth. His 1929 marriage license lists Spink in Union Co., SD as his birthplace. On his children’s 1945 SD Census cards, someone listed Elk Point, Spink Co., SD as their father’s birthplace. However Elk Point is in Union Co., not Spink Co. In his obituary and on his funeral card, his birthplace is given as Elk Point, Union Co., SD.

His parents were William Frederick OGDEN and Mary Elizabeth HERREN. My grandfather was most likely born at home on his parent’s farm. Further research to pinpoint his birthplace will involve tracking down the location of the farm in 1896 using land records and any county directories that may exist. I can also try looking for a birth announcement in area newspapers.

Week 2: Marriage

Emery OGDEN married Esther Louise JOHNSON at the Morse Memorial Methodist church in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE on 19-Mar-1929. My sources for that information are their obituaries and a Rushville newspaper clipping from 22-Mar-1929. I wish I had gotten their marriage records 30-40 years ago when my aunt was the County Clerk for Sheridan Co. She could have helped me locate so many records that I could use now.

Week 3: Death

My Grandpa Ogden died on 8-Apr-1984 in the Bennett County Memorial Hospital in Martin, SD. I don’t have the cause of death. He is buried in Fairview Cemetery, east of Rushville, NE. I have two obituaries for him, a funeral card and pictures of his grave marker from when I was last there in 1995. I still need to order the death certificate from the SD Dept. of Health, just to be thorough.

Week 4: Misc.

My grandfather was a merchant. He owned stores in Pine Ridge, SD and Martin, SD that I know of. I remember the clothing store in Martin. His son-in-law, my Uncle Dennis GREGG, took over and ran it after my grandfather retired. He also owned a garage in either Rushville or Gordon.

My grandfather was a roamer. He was born in south-eastern SD and lived in Union Co., Charles Mix Co., Tripp Co. Mellette Co., Todd Co., Shannon Co., Bennett Co. and Pennington Co., all in SD. He also lived in Sheridan Co., NE in both Rushville and Gordon at various times. I’m working on figuring out a timeline of where he was when. I need some input from my mother and to look into land records, county directories and newspapers. I’ve got point-in-time locations from US and SD censuses and other sources, but there are some discrepancies and I don’t know exactly when he moved between the various records.

According to the SD Census records, my grandfather graduated the 6th grade. The 1910 US Census states he had attended school sometime since 1-Sept-1909, when he was about to turn 14. That’s too old for 6th grade, so I think he may have gone beyond the 6th grade but didn’t make it all the way through 8th grade. He most likely went to public schools in Charles Mix Co., SD. I have no ideas what school records still exist from back then.

Emery OGDEN registered for the WWI draft on 5-Jun-1918. He enlisted in the US Army in Sept-1918. He served at Camp Funston in Kansas, the epicenter for the Spanish Flu epidemic. The first cases appeared there in March 1918 and by the time my grandfather arrived word had begun to leak out to the press of the huge number of flu-related deaths at the camp. It must have been a very frightening ordeal for my grandfather. He served as a cook. According to his obituaries, he was discharged in 1919. I’m still working on trying to piece together his service record.

Feb. 2011, Weeks 1-4: Mary Julia (KAIN) HUIGENS

Last week we pretended it was the last week in Jan. so I could wrap up what were supposed to be four weekly posts on my paternal grandfather, Joseph Andrew HUIGENS. This week my procrastinating self is going to cover the four planned Sunday blog posts for February in one day. Here then is the info on my paternal grandmother, Mary Julia (KAIN) HUIGENS.

Week 1: Birth

My Grandma Julia was born 19-May-1894 near Creighton in Knox Co., NE. This is supported by her marriage license, SS-5 application, the SSDI, her grave marker, obituary and funeral card. It also corresponds to the US Census for 1900 through 1930. My notes say she was born in Bazille Mills, a small setlement north of Creghton. I cannot locate any source to support that. That assertion may have come from my mother’s genealogy research and may come directly from my grandmother. County directories and land records may reveal exactly where the Kain family was living in 1894. My grandmother may also have filed a delayed birth certificate in order to apply for her Social Security card. That would only provide secondary information, but it may be the best I can get.

Week 2: Children

I covered her marriage to my grandfather here. So for the women’s second week, I’ll cover their children.

1. Paul Joseph HUIGENS, b. 26-Nov-1914 in Knox Co., NE, d. 28-Nov-1914 in Knox Co., NE. He is buried in St. Ludger’s Cemetery.
2. Arnold Francis HUIGENS, b. 4-Apr-1916 in Knox Co., NE, d. 9-Oct-1993 in Newton, Harvey Co., KS.
3. Lawrence John “Bud” HUIGENS, b. 31-May-1917 in Knox Co., NE, d. 15-Sept-1996 in Strasburg, Adams Co., CO.
4. Rita M. “Sis” HUIGENS, b. 1-Aug-1918 in Knox Co., NE, d. 1-Aug-1991 in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE.
5. Frances Rosalie “Toots” HUIGENS, b. 2-Sep-1919 in Knox Co., NE, d. 16-Sep-1976 in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE. She was married to Willard LAHAYE. I remember attending her funeral in Rushville. She is buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Rushville along with my grandparents and my Aunt Sis.
6. Berneice [sic] Margaret “Babe” HUIGENS, b. 21-Jun-1921 in Knox Co., NE, d. 26-Apr-2008 in O’Neill, Knox Co., NE. She was married to Lewis COKER. She was the last of my dad’s siblings to die.
7. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS, b. 12-Feb-1927 in Sheridan Co., NE. This is my dad.

Week 3: Death

My grandmother died on 29-Apr-1979 at Parkview Nursing Home, Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE. I don’t have the cause of death. For that I need to order her death certificate. I have the funeral card, an obituary and photos of her grave marker. I remember visiting her at the nursing home when I was home from college for Christmas break in 1978. She died a few months later. I was not able to make it back for her funeral. She is buried next to her husband in St. Mary’s Cemetery. I visit their graves on those rare occasions I get back to western SD where I grew up.

Week 4: Misc.

I previously wrote about the uncertainty of her name. The only other detail on her life that I’d like to know is her schooling. I have the same questions and research plans as I have for my grandfather. Did she go to public school or the Catholic school at St. Ludger’s in Creighton? How far did she make it in school? I’ll need to investigate any existing Nebraska school censuses and St. Ludger’s school records to answer these questions.

Jan. 2011, Week 4: Misc. info regarding Joseph Andrew HUIGENS

I was supposed to do this blog post on the last weekend in January. Wonder which ancestor I inherited procrastination from? It would be nice to have someone to blame. So let’s pretend that it’s still the middle of winter and February is right around the corner.

Aside from birth, marriage and death facts, what else do I know about my paternal grandfather?

According to the 1920 Atlas of Knox County, he owned 160 acres in section 9 of Logan Township, Knox County, NE. I covered what I know and don’t know about his land ownership and movement here.

He registered for the World War I draft on 5 Jun 1917, but never served. From the registration form, we know he was tall, of medium build and had brown hair and brown eyes.

I’d like to know about his schooling. Did he go to public school or the Catholic school at St. Ludgers in Creighton? How far did he make it in school? I’ll need to investigate any existing Nebraska school censuses and St. Ludgers school records to answer these questions.