52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 14 "Begins with a vowel"

 Emery and Esther Ogden were my maternal grandparents. Two given names and a shared surname that all begin with a vowel. That seems like a good choice for this prompt.

Emery Ogden about 1929

Emery was born 9 September 1896 in Union County, South Dakota, probably in Spink Township. That's where his parents were living when they got married on 25 January of that year. (and yes, I've done the math and know what that means.) He grew up on his parents' farms in Charles Mix County, South Dakota. On 27 August 1918 he enlisted in the Army. He served as a Cook in Camp Funston in Kansas. After less than four months of service, he was discharged after the end of World War I and returned home to South Dakota. He worked at various job in various places in southern South Dakota. By 1929 he had a car dealership in Rushville, Sheridan County, Nebraska. That was where he met Esther Johnson. 

Esther (Johnson) Ogden about 1920

Esther was born 23 February 1902 in Milan, Rock Island County, Illinois. Her parents moved first to Wayne County in north-east Nebraska and then to Sheridan County. Just before her final year of high school they moved their family to Henning, Otter Tail County, Minnesota. It was on a trip back to Sheridan County to visit cousins that she met Emery. 

They were married on 19 March 1929 at Morse Methodist Church in Rushville by the Reverend Robert L. Embree. After the wedding they lived in Gordon, Sheridan County, Nebraska. 

Over the course of  their marriage they lived in various places in northwest Nebraska and southwest South Dakota, including Rushville, Gordon, White Clay, Pine Ridge, and Martin. Emery ran stores, had a dairy farm for a while; he did whatever he could to support the family through the Great Depression. 

Altogether they had eight children:

1. Ardis Ogden (1930-1930)
2. Shirley Ogden (1931-2014) (my mom)
3. Living Ogden
4. Living Ogden
5. William Johnson Ogden (1938-1988)
6. Living Ogden
7. Living Ogden
8. Living Ogden

 In the summer of 1974, Esther had severe problems with anxiety and Emery had a small stroke that went undiagnosed during the confusion. They spent the next ten years in various nursing homes and elder care facilities in Rapid City, SD, where their oldest daughter, my mom lived. 

Esther died on 24 March 1984 in Rapid. Emery died two weeks later on 8 April 1984 in Martin, SD. They were 82 and 87 when they died. They are buried in Fairview Cemetery, Rushville, NE. 

Grave marker for Esther and Emery Ogden.

If you'd like to know more about them, you can check out their Wikitree profiles at Ogden-5084 and Johnson-111916.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 4 "Education"

Esther Louise Johnson in about 1920

 On the 1940 US Census, they asked for each person's Highest Grade of School Completed. For my maternal grandmother, Esther Louise (Johnson) Ogden (1902-1984) the entry is "H3" meaning that she only completed three years of high school. You might wonder why she did not finish high school with only one year to go. Luckily I don't have to wonder because my mother shared her mother's story with me.

In the summer of 1920, after Esther's junior year of high school in Gordon, Sheridan County, Nebraska, her parents, Swedish immigrant Gustav Johnson (1867-1941) and Rosabell (Strayer) Johnson (1872-1955), decided to move their family from Gordon to Henning, Otter Tail County, Minnesota. When my grandmother went to register for high school in Henning, she was told that she would have to complete two years of high school there rather than just the one. Something about a difference in education standards between where she came from and Henning. My grandmother said nuts to that and never enrolled in her new high school.

Several years later she went back to Sheridan County to visit her cousins. A young man there named Emery Ogden was dating one of her cousins. After meeting Esther and getting to know her, he dropped the cousin and began courting Esther. There were married in Rushville, Sheridan County, Nebraska on 19 March 1929. 

Their first daughter Ardis Rosemary Ogden was born in Sheridan County on 20 September 1930. She died only two days later. My grandmother was so frightened by that experience that when it came time for my mom, Shirley Ann Ogden (1931-2014) to be born, Esther went to back to Henning to be with her mother for the birth. That is why my mother was born in Minnesota and not Nebraska where her parents were living. 

NE/SD Family History Road Trip (part 2)

Day 4, Tuesday, Oct. 22

On Tuesday, we drove from Grand Island to Osceola, NE to visit my mom’s sister and her husband, Roselyn and Alan. They have a lovely home that, like ours, is next to a fire station and has freight train tracks running nearby. Their basement walls are covered with family photos of their five children (my first cousins including Nancy who lives in Grand Island), their grandchildren and their great-grandchildren. Several years ago they made a trip to Sweden and visited Locknevi, where my great-great-grandparents, Carl Jacob and Christina (Jonsdotter) Johnson, lived when my great-grandfather Gustaf was born. They even have a painting of the house where he was born.

After lunch with them, we drove 122 miles north to O’Neill, NE. This is a photo of a barn quilt square we saw on our drive. 

In O’Neill we visited my cousin Julie, who I had not seen since our Aunt Toots’s funeral in 1976. Julie is the daughter of my dad’s sister, Berneice AKA Babe. She manages a quilt shop in O’Neill, which is where we met her. (The quilt leitmotif to this tale was for the benefit of my wife, who loves all things quilt related. I really appreciate her for making this trek with me and tried to do everything I could to keep it interesting for her.)

Julie and I talked a lot of family history. She says I look like my father, which I get a lot. She shared with me the story of how her parents met. Her mother served in Europe as a WAC in WWII. After she returned from the war, she took a job as a switchboard operator in O’Neill. She used her GI Bill money to take flying lessons out at the airport. One day she met Louis Coker, who was a pilot, and he became my Uncle Louie. Her mother did get her pilot’s license, but never had a driver’s license.

One of our great-grandparents, John and Mary (Fitzler) Huigens, our parent’s paternal grandparents, died 38 miles due east of O’Neill in Creighton, NE during the blizzard of 1949. The roads were impassable, so Louie flew Aunt Babe to the funeral. There are advantages to knowing how to fly a plane.

She also told me the story of how our parent’s mother, our Grandma Julia, came home from church one Sunday, opened the trunk of the car and discovered she had forgotten to deliver the Memorial Day flower arrangements. She uttered a four-letter expletive for manure, a word I cannot imagine my grandmother using. This caused my Aunt Babe and Aunt Sis to laugh until their sides hurt, although my grandmother saw no humor in the situation.

Julie then took us out to the cemetery where her mother is buried, so I could pay my respects. We both had a good cry. Then she showed me the grave of our grandmother’s sister and her husband, Leo and Margaret (Kain) Carney.

After we said good-bye to Julie, we headed to our hotel in O’Neill, NE. That evening I got an email and a phone call from a second cousin from Creighton that found me through this blog. I had let her know that I would be visiting and we made arrangements to meet at a café in Creighton the next morning. 

(to be continued)

April 2012: Status of research on Esther Louise Johnson

Here is the status of my research on my maternal grandmother. I've switched to keeping these documents as notes in Evernote. I've set up a notebook for each surname in my ancestry, named starting with the ahnentafel number of the first female ancestor with that surname. So the research status note for Grandma Ogden is in notebook "007-Johnson."

7. Esther Louise JOHNSON
What was her full name?

Esther L OGDEN: grave marker, SD death record, funeral card, obit

Esther Laurie JOHNSON: newspaper report of marriage license [hand-written correction to “Louise”]

Esther Louise JOHNSON: NE state report of marriage, SS-5

To-do: Rock Island Co. birth record, church baptism record, SS-5, newspapers, Sheridan Co. marriage license

To-do: children’s vital records, Rock Island Co. birth record, church baptism record, newspapers, Sheridan Co. marriage license

Who were her parents?

Gust and Rose JOHNSON: 1910 US Census

Gust A and Rose JOHNSON: 1920 US Census

Gust A JOHNSON and Rosabell STRAYER: NE state report of marriage

Gust A JOHNSON and Rosabelle STRAYER: SD death record

Gust. A. JOHNSON and Roseabelle STRAYER: SS-5

Gust and Rosabelle JOHNSON: obituary

To-do: Rock Island Co. birth record, church baptism record, newspapers, mother’s obituary, Sheridan Co. marriage license; children not listed in father’s obituary

When was she born?

23-Feb-1902: Grave marker, obituary, funeral card, SSDI, SD death record, SS-5

abt 1902: 1910, 1920, 1930 US census, 1935 SD Census, NE state report of marriage

abt 1903: 1945 SD Census

To-do: Rock Island Co. birth record, church baptism record, newspapers

Where was she born?

Milan, Rock Island Co., IL: obituary, children’s 1945 SD Census card images, SS-5

IL: 1910, 1920, 1930 US Census

NE: 1935 SD Census, children’s 1935 SD Census cards

To-do: find exact location of family in 1902 land records, Rock Island Co. birth record, county or city directory for 1902, newspapers, children’s census records

Where did she go to school?

Gordon HS: interview with Mom on 7-Mar-2010

To-do: NE school census, Gordon HS records

How long did she go to school?

After 11th grade, family moved to Henning MN, new HS wouldn’t accept all her credits, would have had to retake classes, decided to skip it and did not attend HS in MN, she never graduated from HS: interview with Mom on 7-Mar-2010

11 g: 1935 SD Census

3 years of high school: 1940 US Census\

12 gr: 1945 SD Census

To-do: NE school census, Gordon HS records

When did her family move from IL to Wayne Co., NE?  

Sometime between 1902 birth and Apr 1910 since they are In Wayne Co., NE in Apr 1910: 1910 US Census

“At the age of 2 she moved with her parents to Winside, NE”: obituary (that would make it ca. 1904)

        To-do: IL and NE land records, county directories, newspapers

When from Wayne Co. to Gordon?  

Between Apr 1910 and Apr 1914: 1910 US Census and obituary for Harriet (Howard) STRAYER when Esther is in Gordon

“...in 1920 she moved to Gordon, NE”: obituary [this is most likely when they moved to MN]

To-do: NE land records, county directories, newspapers

When to Henning?

Moved to Henning during summer between Jr and Sr year of high school: interview with Mom on 7-Mar-2010 (that would be about 1919, but they are in Gordon at the end of Jan, begin of Feb for 1920 US Census; they probably moved in the summer of 1920)\

bef. 19 Mar 1929: NE state report of marriage

To-do: IL, NE and MN land records, county directories, newspapers

Where did she live?

313 Spruce St., Gordon, NE in Oct. 1963: SS-5

See father and husband’s records

When did she die?

24-Mar-1984: Obituary, grave marker, funeral card, SD state death record

To-do: Rushville church records (Morse Methodist), probate recordsMar-1984: SSDI

Where did she die?

Black Hills Rehabilitation Hospital, Rapid City: Obituary, SD state death record

To-do: Nothing

What was the cause of death?

Cardio-respiratory arrest, orthostatic pneumonia, general inanition: SD death record

To-do: Nothing

Where is she buried?

Fairview Cemetery in Rushville: funeral card, grave marker photo, obituary, SD state death record

To do: Nothing

The only thing that I'd like to know more about is the exact location of her family when she was born. In 1900 her parents were living in Milan, Blackhawk Twp., Rock Island Co., IL. The census listing indicates they were renting, so land records probably won't help. I need to look for city or township or county directories from this time period.

Latest 1940 US Census Find

I finally found the last of the five ancestral households I wanted to find. I spent most of last night looking through MN ED 56-46 (HENNING VILLAGE) for my Johnson great-grandparents. Lots of Johnson families in Henning, but I could not find Gust and Rose, my Johnson ancestors. They were in MN ED 56-45 in 1930 and according to the Morse and Weintraub Unified 1940 Census ED Finder, they should have been where I was looking.

Tonight I decided to try looking in MN ED 56-45 (HENNING TWP. EXCLUDING HENNING VILLAGE). Guess who was the first household listed on page 1?

That wasn't so hard, was it? I just hope it's that easy to figure out why I can't find my wife's father or his parents on Roselle St. in Oak Park, IL.

More 1940 US Census Finds

I found my mother's family. They have a page all to themselves in Shannon Co., SD, ED 57-2.

And here in Mission, Todd Co., SD ED 61-,1, is my great-grandfather, William F. Ogden with his second wife. Nearby is a Charbonneau family which may be his in-laws. I also found his daughter Ethel with her husband John Kilber. These are my mom's Aunt Ethel and Uncle John.

That's four out of the five households I wanted to find. I've been through Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN several times looking for my last set of great-grandparents. I've found over a dozen Johnson families in this smal town, but not my Gust and Rose. I guess it's time to look into other EDs near Henning.

Census Sunday: 1940 US Census

I've identified the eleven ancestors that I want to look up on Tuesday.
2. Joseph A. Huigens, Jr
3. Shirley A, Ogden
4. Joseph A. Huigens
5. Julia Huigens
6. Emery J. Ogden
7. Esther L. Ogden
8. John Huigens
9. Mary Huigens
12. William F. Ogden
14. Gustaf A. Johnson
15. Rose Johnson

That's a lot of people. More than I thought I'd find. My dad's other grandparents died in the early 1930's. My mom's grandmother died in 1938.

Fortunately I can reduce this to five households.
1. Joseph A., Julia and Joseph A. Huigens
2. Emery J., Esther L. and Shirley A. Ogden
3. John and Mary Huigens
4. William F. Ogden
5. Gustaf A. and Rose Johnson

Next comes determining where they lived in 1940 and then the Enumeration District (ED). For four of these households, this is a piece of cake. They lived in the same place they did in 1930. So all I have to do is find the ED for 1930 and use Stephen Morse and Joel Weintraub's 1940 ED Finder to convert them. Here's the results.

1. Joe and Julia Huigens family in Sheridan CO., NE 1930: 81-27 1940: 81-7, 81-12, 81-18, 81-26
2. Emery and Esther Ogden family near Pine Ridge, Shannon Co., SD
3. John and Mary Huigens in Creighton, NE 1930: 54-6 1940: 54-6
4. William Ogden in Mission, SD 1930: 61-40 1940: 61-1, 61-26
5. Gust and Rose Johnson in Henning, MN 1930: 56-45 1940: 56-46

So that's a little more complicated than I thought. Only two are a direct one-for-one. Still it won't be too bad. These are rural, sparsely populated areas, so I won't have too many pages to look through. By reading the ED descriptions, I can make some educated guesses which EDs to start with.

According to my mom, her family was living on a dairy farm near Pine Ridge, SD when her sister Margie was born in Nov. 1940. That's not where they were in 1930, 1935 or 1945. There are only 8 EDs for Shannon Co., SD: 57-1 through 57-8. Again, these are areas with low populations so it won't take long to scan through them.

It looks like I'm all set for Tues. The harder part will be trying to find various generations of aunts, uncles and cousins. That's a whole other ballgame.

Tombstone Tuesday: The Johnsons

This is the last set of photos of my great-grandparents' grave markers. Gustaf Adolf and Rosabelle (Strayer) Johnson are buried in Inman Cemetery, Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN.

I've now posted pictures of all the grave sites for my grandparents and great-grandparents. Next week it's on to the great-great-grandparents.

Surname Saturday - 59: Persdotter

Back to the Swedish patronymics. This will be last one for awhile.  In the future I may just skip over the Swedes on Surname Saturday or just do one big blog post that covers all my Swedish ancestors of a given generation.

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

14. Gustav Adolph JOHNSON (b. 18 Aug 1867 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 1899 in Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 25 Dec 1941 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)
15. Rosabell "Rose" STRAYER (b. 23 Aug 1872 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 7 May 1955 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)

28. Carl Jacob JOHNSON (b. 1 Jul 1832 in Vrångfall, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 18 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 17 Oct 1915 in Orion, Henry Co., IL, USA)
29. Christina Lotta JÖNSDOTTER (b. 4 Jul 1839 in Slottsbäcken, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 10 Oct 1919 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA)

58. Jonas NILSSON (b. 12 May 1796 in Junkerhorfva, Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 7 Feb 1819 in Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 14 Oct 1862 in Locknevi, Vimmerby, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden)
59. Lisa PERSDOTTER (b. 22 Oct 1796 in Strömsnäs Av Bergebo, Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 22 Apr 1848 in Sweden)

118. Peter STAL (m. 1788 in Sweden)
119. Kierstin LARSDOTTER (b. abt 1766 in Sweden)

The ancestry.com shaky leaf leads to 6 on-line trees with more info on Peter and his ancestors and descendants. Two of the trees are those of my 1st cousin Michael and my 3rd cousin Brenda. Not all of the trees agree on the details and I don't have time right now to evaluate the sources and citations, so for now we'll end with Peter.

SNGF: Two Degrees of Separation

1) Using your ancestral lines, how far back in time can you go with two degrees of separation? That means "you knew an ancestor, who knew another ancestor." When was that second ancestor born?

All of my great-grandparents had died before I was born. So the middle person will have to be one of my grandparents. Here are the earliest born ancestors that each of my grandparents may have known.

Joseph Andrew Huigens (1891-1957) had to have known his grandmother, Anna Helena (Schmitt) Fitzler (1833-1904). They both lived near Creighton, NE according to the 1900 US Census. He would have been 13 when she died. It's possible he also met his other grandmother, Katherine (Toemmes) Huigens Wend (1827-1899). She died in 1899, when he was eight. In 1895 she was living in Iowa with her daughter's family. She died four years later in a mental hospital in Illinois.

Mary Julia (Kain) Huigens (1894-1979) only had one grandparent who did not die before she was born, her maternal grandfather, John Kennedy (1826-1913). She would have been 19 when he died. I have no idea if she ever made the trip to Clinton, IA to meet him, if he ever came out west to Nebraska or if they met somewhere in the middle in Iowa for a family gathering at her aunt's.

Emery Julius Huigens (1896-1984) probably knew all of his grandparents. He was 14 when the first of them died. They all lived near each other in south-eastern South Dakota. His paternal grandfather, James Robert Ogden (1836-1910), was the oldest and the first to die. Emery would have been 14 then. It's also possible but unlikely that he met his great-grandfather, John Jacob Adlebusch (1817-1901). He lived in Sheboygan Co., WI and was almost 80 when my grandfather was born. I doubt that my grandfather was taken to Wisconsin or that my great-great-great-grandfather made the trip to SD at his age.

Esther Louise (Johnson) Ogden (1902-1984) probably knew all three of her grandparents who were alive when she was born. The oldest of them was Harriet Alice (Howard) Strayer (1829-1914). They all lived in the Quad City area in Iowa and Illinois where my grandmother was born.

So I'm pretty sure the farthest back I can go is Esther Louise Johnson to her maternal grandmother, Harriet Alice Howard, born in 1829. There are two other definite possibilities in 1826 and 1827 with a very, very slim chance of 1817.

Thanks, Randy, for another great topic.

Surname Saturday - 57: Jakobsdotter

Back to the Swedish patronymics.

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

14. Gustav Adolph JOHNSON (b. 18 Aug 1867 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 1899 in Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 25 Dec 1941 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)
15. Rosabell "Rose" STRAYER (b. 23 Aug 1872 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 7 May 1955 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)

28. Carl Jacob JOHNSON (b. 1 Jul 1832 in Vrångfall, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 18 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 17 Oct 1915 in Orion, Henry Co., IL, USA)
29. Christina Lotta JÖNSDOTTER (b. 4 Jul 1839 in Slottsbäcken, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 10 OCt 1919 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA)

56. Johan Peter KARLSSON (b. 19 Jul 1807 in Vrångfall, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 17 Nov 1830 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 29 May 1852 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden)
57. Stina Greta JAKOBSDOTTER (b. 3 Oct 1806 in Hallingshult, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 30 May 1845 in Vrångfall, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden)

114. Jakob Hieronymisson (b. 1770 in probably Sweden)

115. Anna Kajsa Samuelsdotter Wistedt

There is a tree on Ancestry.com that takes this line back farther, but I'm not going to use that info until I've spent some time verifying it. 

Apr. 2011, week 4: Misc. info re Esther (JOHNSON) OGDEN

This is the last post on my maternal grandmother, covering all of the miscellaneous info I have on her.

According to my mother, her mother’s family moved from Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE to Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN the summer before my grandmother’s senior year in high school. That would be the summer of 1920, since the Johnsons are in Gordon for the 1920 census and my grandmother was born in 1902. Because the high school in Minnesota would not accept all of her Nebraska high school credits, she would have had to go two years there in order to graduate. So she dropped out. It’s a shame she claim so close to graduating.

Also according to my mother, her parents met when my grandmother was back in Nebraska visiting some of her cousins. My grandfather was dating one of these cousins and dropped her because he was smitten by my grandmother. He must have made a good choice because they were married for 55 years.

The move from Gordon to Henning was at least the third move her family made while she was growing up. They went from Milan, Rock Island Co., IL to Winside, Wayne Co., NE probably in 1904 when she was two. They are in Winside in the 1910 US Census and her obituary says they moved when she was 2. Sometime between 1910 and 1920 they moved to Gordon. Her obituary says 1920, but that is the year they went to Minnesota. If she attended high school in Gordon, they probably arrived there before 1918. The latest date is probably Oct 1919, when her grandmother, Christina JOHNSON, died in Gordon, assuming that she was living with her son’s family when she died. I need to figure out which of her other children were living near Gordon when she died.

After she married my grandfather, my grandmother did a lot of moving around with him between southwestern SD and Sheridan Co., NE. The Ogden’s don’t seem to like staying in one place for very long.

Finally here are some pictures of my grandmother with her sisters, Ruth and Elsie.

ca. 1920

ca. Oct 1971

ca. Aug 1972

Next month I start on the lives of my eight great-grandparents.

Apr. 2011, week 3: Esther (JOHNSON) OGDEN's Death

Only a day late. That’s not too bad, is it? I spent a large part of yesterday finishing up some of the organizing tasks from Dear Myrtle’s Jan. Organizing Checklist for weeks 2 and 3. So I didn’t have time to work on my blog. I wonder if I’ll finish Week 4 of January’s checklist before May. Probably not. Sigh.

My Grandma Ogden died on 24 Mar 1984 in the Black Hills Rehabilitation Hospital, Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD. She was 82 years old.  She and my grandfather spent the last 10 years of their lives in various nursing homes in Rapid City, where my mother, their oldest daughter, lived. My grandfather died a month after his wife.  They are buried together in Fairview Cemetery in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE.

My sources for this information, aside from personal knowledge, are this obituary, her grave marker, the SSDI and her funeral card. On my To Do list are to order her SD death certificate and to look into the records at Morse Memorial Methodist Church in Rushville, NE where her funeral was held.

Apr. 2011, week 2: Esther (JOHNSON) OGDEN's Children

A day late because I was too busy yesterday at my grand-nephew's first birthday party. Living family members come before ancestry.

Since most of my mother's brothers and sisters are still alive, I can't give too many details on my maternal grandmother's children.

1. Ardis Rosemary OGDEN, b. 20 Sep 1930 in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE, d. 22 Sep 1930 in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE (This was my grandparent's first child. She would have been my mother's older sister, if she had lived. She is buried in Fairview Cemetery, Rushville NE near her parents.
2. Shirley Ann OGDEN, my mother. She was born in Minnesota because, after losing her firstborn, my grandmother Esther went to be with her parents when it was time for my mom to be born.
3. Son.
4. Daughter.

5. William Johnson OGDEN, b. 28 Sept 1938 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, d. 2 Oct 1988 in Los Angeles, CA. This is a picture of his memorial stone in Fairview Cemetery, near his parents.  He is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery in Phoenix, Maricopa Co., AZ.
6. Daughter.
7. Daughter.
8. Daughter.

Here is my mother and her brothers and sisters and a later one with the whole family.

Apr. 2011, Week 1: Birth of Esther Louise JOHNSON

Back on schedule in April. We'll see how long this lasts.

My maternal grandmother, Esther Louise JOHNSON, was born on 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., SD, USA. Her parents were Gustaf Adolph JOHNSON and Rosabel STRAYER.

My sources for her birth date are her grave marker, her obituary, a funeral card, and the SSDI. For the location, I have her obituary and my mother's 1945 SD Census card. I still need to get her Rock Island Co. birth record, any church baptism records, her Pennington Co., SD death record, her SS-5 application and newspaper birth announcements. To find the exact location where her parents were living when she was born, I need to check Rock Island Co. land records and county or Milan city directories for 1902. According to the 1900 US Census, Gust and Rose were renting a house in Milan. That may be the same place they were living when their first child was born two years later.

Fearless Females: Day 4

Today's prompt for the Fearless Female Women's History blog challenge is:
March 4 — Do you have marriage records for your grandparents or great-grandparents? Write a post about where they were married and when. Any family stories about the wedding day? Post a photo too if you have one.

Let's see where I stand with having sources.

Grandparents

Joseph HUIGENS and Julia KAIN, 18 Nov 1914 probably at St. Ludgers Catholic Church in Creigton, Knox Co., NE. I do not have church or civil records for this marriage. I do have a picture, though.
Emery OGDEN and Esther JOHNSON, 19 Mar 1929 probably at Morse Memorial United Methodist Church in Rushville, Sheridan Co., NE. Again, I don't yet have civil or church records for this marriage.

I have a newspaper clipping from the Rushville newspaper of 22 Mar 1929. The hand-written correction was made by my mother.




I also have a picture that was supposedly taken on their wedding day.

Great-grandparents

John HUIGENS and Mary FITZLER, 1 Feb 1884 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Henry, Marshall Co., IL. I don't have any church records for this marriage and I have a surplus of civil records. Many years ago my mother sent off for a Certificate of Record of Marriage from Marshall Co. The date on that is 29 Jan 1884. A few years ago, I also sent off for the same record. Ther version I received states 24 Jan 1884. Clearly the people who transcribed the record had different opinions on that one character. To add to the confusion, the wedding announcement from the Henry Republican on 7 Feb 1884 states "Married, in the city, Feb. 1, at the German Catholic Church, by the Reverend Father Hout, JOHN HIGGINS and Miss MARY FITZLER." So is the date on the original certificate the date they obtained the license? I need to get to the courthouse and see the original marriage license.

Frank KAIN and Maggie KENNEDY, 14 Feb 1888 at St. Irenaeus Catholic Church in Lyons, Clinton Co., IA. Again, no civil or church records. Not even a picture.

William OGDEN and 1) Mary HERREN, 25 Jan 1895 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, 2) Mary CHARBONEAU about 1939. No records or pictures for these either.

Gustaf JOHNSON and Rosabell STRAYER, 4 Sept 1899 in Rock Island Co., IL. No details and no church records, but I do have a marriage record index from an on-line database of Illinois marriages. And I have a picture.
So I really need to get busy gathering records, transcripts and originals at courthouses. I do have some church records and civil records for some of my great-great-grandparents.

Fearless Females: Day 2

Today's prompt: Post a photo of one of your female ancestors. Who is in the photo? When was it taken? Why did you select this photo?

This is a photo of my Swedish great-great-grandmother Christina Lotta Jonsdotter. She was born 4 Jul 1839 in Slottsbäcken, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden and died on 10 Oct 1919 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE. She must have been living with her son, my great-grandfather's family when she died since Gust JOHNSON's family is in Gordon in the 1920 US Census.

Stina, as she was also called, arrived in New York on 25 Apr 1881 on the ship The City of Paris. She came to the New World with her husband, Carl Jacob JOHNSON, and their five children.

The photo was probably taken between 1890 and 1910 in Henry Co., IL. I like it because it shows that Stina was not a slave to fashion, but was a very practical woman. The photograph also has an ethnic feel to it. She may be in America, but she is still Swedish through and through.