52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 6 "Social Media"

 I need to get caught up with the 52 Ancestors prompts. I plan to do several this week until I can get caught up. We'll see how this goes.

Social media. I thought I'd share a few items from the social media of its day: Newspapers. When I found the on-line archives of the Creighton News from Creighton, Knox County, Nebraska, I spent several hours playing around in it. So much to look for between my Huigens, Kain, and Fitzler paternal ancestors who settled there, and some Kennedy relatives, too. Like most small town newspapers there was a lot of local news about the goings and comings of locals and visitors. 

One of the interesting things I found was several mentions of my dad, Joseph Huigens, Jr. Shortly before he was born, his parents moved their family from Know County to Sheridan County on the other side of state. Nevertheless, news of his birth on 12 February 1927 was published in Creighton for his parents' friends in the area.

Creighton News, 24 February 1927

In the news about visitors, I was able to track many of the times  that my dad went back to visit his many grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. 

Creighton News, 10 Jan 1929

My almost 2-year-old dad would have been among those "and children."

Creighton News, 16 October 1930

A few month later my dad, then 3 years old, went with his mother to visit her parents and then to visit her in-laws. That was the last time my grandmother would see her father, He died later that year in December.

Creighton News, 19 November 1931

My dad, now 4 years old would most likely have been the "and son," He was the only one of his brothers and sisters too young to have been in school at that time. 

Creighton News, 3 December 1931

The recovery of my grandmother's mother did not last long--she died five days after my dad and his mother returned home. I'm glad my grandmother got to spend some time with her mother before she passed. 

Creighton News, 8 February 1934

Here is news of a visit on a happier occasion. At almost 7 years old my dad finally gets a mention by name. 

These are all the Creighton News articles that mention my dad that I have found so far. It's fun to think of this little boy going across Nebraska to visit his grandparents and other relatives. I wish I had found these when my dad was still alive. I would have liked to know what he remembered about any of these trips. 

Joseph Anthony Huigens (1927-2013)