Did Ancestry.com Index Every Will and Probate Record in The Wills and Probates Databases?

Christine Manczuk on the Ancestry Island blog reminded me that a user can browse the Wills and Probates collections on Ancestry.com - see her post San Diego Will and Probate Files ARE Available at Ancestry Through the Browse Option (posted 5 November 2015) for details on how to find Counties and Volumes of probate records for a specific County in any state.

Ancestry.com claims that these Wills and Probates databases are indexed.  When they first were provided in early September, I went through my list of ancestors in California and searched by name with not-exact spellings.  I found none of the persons I searched for.  I didn't know if my ancestors had a probate record or not, but it was worth searching.

Here is a search for the surname Carringer in all of California in this database:

That certainly shows me that they didn't add any surname of Carringer to the index for all of California.  Is that accurate?  I don't know.

I am looking for a probate record for David Jackson "D.J." Carringer, who died in San Diego city on 20 January 1902.  I thought that I would browse through some of the volumes from this time period to see if he was just not indexed.

After a bit of checking, I determined that the Probate Orders and Decrees volumes 26-28 for 1902 to 1904 was the most likely set that would hold a probate record.  If I found one, I figured that the first entry would be in the January to June period of 1902, with possibly more entries later.

I found the January 20, 1902 period on this record set in volume 27, and the court dates at the top of the pages are sequential - they don't skip back or forth.  I have searched about 140 images so far by checking the neatly written "In the matter of the estate of ..." on the left margin of each page for each matter brought before the court.  There are often three to six of these on each image.  Here is the lower part of one of the pages, image 238 of 621 from Volume 27 of these records.

I decided to search for some of the names that I saw on several of these pages - I chose:

*  Moritz Muchlig
*  James Kelly
*  Grace Ziemer
*  James A. Smith
*  William H. Ferry.

William H. Ferry's name can be seen on the left page of the image above at the bottom of the image.

I then searched this California, Wills and Probates, 1782-1999 database for these names.  Here is the search results for William H. Ferry:

There were no search results for any of the names I listed.  There were very few results for any of the names I tried - I probably tried 50 or so.  Only one matched the date for which I had found the record.   
I doubt that the Ancestry index is so bad that less than 5% (and perhaps only 2%) of the indexed names are correct.  I think it is more likely that Ancestry.com did not index some of the volumes of wills and probate records for San Diego County.  

A search in the collection for the number of index entries in San Diego County indicates that there are 156,155 names.  I checked 20 of the entries, and they are all from the Record of Wills volumes.

So it appears that the indexing is selective - there are 22 volumes of Probates and Decrees from 1886 to 1917, and two volumes of Record of Wills from 1897 to 1918.

There is nothing in the "About this database" text that indicates that some of the volumes are not indexed.  The implication in the description of all of these probate databases is that they are all indexed and that searches are reliable, at least as far as indexing can be.  I'm disappointed that Ancestry did not flag the volumes that were indexed or were not indexed.  That would have been relatively easy to do, and would have helped users understand that they would have to browse some volumes.

Obviously to me, that is not the case.  A user needs to do some testing in these probate databases to see if names in specific volumes are actually indexed.  If they are not, then the only way to search those volumes is to search them manually - page by page and sometimes line-by-line - to determine if there is a record for their ancestor.  That is a lot more difficult than just using the search engine.

I'm not complaining here...I can do this manual search at home any time of day rather than on microfilm at the Family History Library or at a local FamilySearch Center.

Thank you, Christine, for reminding me of the browse function in these databases.  Now I need to complete the 1902 Probates and Decrees volume.  It should take another two hours or so. I'll let my readers know if I find anything for my second great-grandfather, David Jackson "D.J." Carringer, in these records.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/did-ancestrycom-index-every-will-and.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Jeff Savage Won the Genea-Musings Contest for a RootsTech 2016 Registration

I opened my 2016 RootsTech 2016 registration contest on 22 Ocrober in Win a FREE RootsTech 2016 (February 3-6, 2016) Registration Here on Genea-Musings, setting a deadline on 2 November 2015.  

I had 15 entries that followed the rules, and on Tuesday evening I went to www.Random.org and put 15 in the maximum number field, pressed the button to create a random number between 1 and 15, and the winner was 13.

I numbered my 15 entries 1 to 15 from the reverse order that they contacted me, and the winner was JEFF SAVAGE.

Jeff's entry said:

*  He really wants to learn from the RT2060 presentation - Digging for Ancestors: Bureau of Land Management.

*  Jeff wants to visit the Genealogy Wall Charts exhibit in the Expo Hall - he wants to print out a chart while at RootsTech.

I have sent Jeff the certificate for his free RootsTech 2016 registration (a $249 value).  I look forward to meeting Jeff in the Media Center in February.

There are still contests for a free RootsTech registration - I just saw the Ancestry Insider announced his today - check out http://www.ancestryinsider.org/2015/11/rootstech-2016-free-pass-contest.html.  He has a great contest idea - and it helps provide him blog fodder for the rest of the year!

There should be other contests by RootsTech Ambassadors soon - keep an eye out for them in your blog reader or on Facebook.

Note that I am a RootsTech Ambassador, and have a complimentary RootsTech registration provided by RootsTech.  I committed to providing blog posts of this contest, RootsTech announcements, events and my RootsTech experiences on a regular basis.  Heh, I would have anyway!

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/jeff-savage-won-genea-musings-contest.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Treasure Chest Thursday - Post 287: 1704 Marriage Record of Michael Metcalf and Lydia White in Mendon, Mass.

It's Treasure Chest Thursday - time to look in my digital image files to see what treasures I can find for my family history and genealogy musings.

The treasure today is the  1704 marriage record of Michael Metcalf and Lydia White in the Mendon, Massachusetts town record book:

The snippet for the marriage (on the right-hand page of the image above):

The transcription of this record:

Micall Medcalf and Ledia White married the 21 of March 1704 

The source citation for this record is:

Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 4 November 2015), Mendon, "Town Records and Earmarks, with Births, Marriages and Deaths," page 69 (image 42 of 106), Micall Medcalf and Ledia White marriage entry, 1704; citing original data from Massachusetts town and city clerk records in Jay and Delene Holbrook, Massachusetts Vital and Town Records (Provo, Utah : Holbrook Research Institute), Microfiche collection.

The record before this record was dated 14 July 1704, and the record after this record was dated 13 May 1705.  I have entered the date of this marriage as 21 March 1704/5 in my RootsMagic database. 

Michael Metcalf (1680-1761) and Lydia White (1686-????) are my 7th great-grandparents on my mother's side.  I am descended through their son Michael Metcalf (1706-1771) who married Melatiah Hamant (1704-1751) in 1728.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/treasure-chest-thursday-post-287-1704.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

First Look at New Search Connect Feature on MyHeritage

While Gilad Japhet announced the new Search connect feature at a conference in July 2015, MyHeritage announced that it is now available today in their blog post, Introducing Search Connect[TM] - Every Search is Now a Record. 

Read the entire blog post for more details.  There are screen shots that demonstrate how it works.

A link for Search Connect is http://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-6/search-connect-searches-by-myheritage-members.  There are over 28.5 million records in this database.  MyHeritage has included it in the Family Tree Collection also, so these search matches will show up in a SuperSearch of all record collections on MyHeritage..

You know me by now - I always like to test fly this type of feature.  I figured that MyHeritage users might have entered some of my end-of-line ancestors, so I entered one of my end-of-line ancestors Martin Carringer (1758-1835) with names only (no birth or death date) with the "Exact match" box unchecked:

The results gave me over 4,400 matches:

However, none of them were for my Martin Carringer (at least with that surname spelling).

I went back to the search form, and made the search Exact, and ended up with zero matches.  So now one besides myself (and I didn't show up on the match list) has searched for this person.

So I thought "well, let's try another one."  One of the Seaver surname mysteries is the 1634 immigrant to New England, Robert Seaver (1608-1683).  I entered the names (with no birth or death data), and checked the Exact match box:

I clicked the orange "Search" button and received exactly zero matches:

Hmmm.  What about just a surname search?  I deleted the first name, kept the last name and the "Exact match" check:

The results gave me 117 matches - there have been 117 searches for the "seaver" surname:

So those results might be helpful.

The second match was of interest to me - so I clicked on the link for the name of "Philip Seaver."  That provided information about the searcher of the person, and also a list of the other searches performed by this searcher (two screens below):

I could follow any of this searcher's search attempts, and I could contact the searcher by clicking on the orange button above.  That took me to the MyHeritage Inbox where I could send a message to the searcher.

So the system works, but it depends on users of MyHeritage searching for persons in the MyHeritage record collections and family trees.  28.5 million entries in a database is not really large, so I would expect this may work better when there have been more searches performed.

I wonder how many searches I have performed?  I can't find my own searches here - maybe someone can find me if they search for Martin Carringer (the second screen above) and click on it and let me know what I've searched for on MyHeritage!

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/first-look-at-new-search-connect.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Adding a New Source Citation in an Ancestry Member Tree Profile

I almost always create a source citation for a record relating to a person in my family tree in my RootsMagic genealogy software program, using the source templates based on Evidence Explained as a guide.

I wanted to see how easy it was to add a new source citation to a profile in an Ancestry Member Tree.
For this test, I noticed that I had an approximate death date for Andrew Seaver (1705-1771) which indicated he probably had a probate record, but I did not have a source citation for the Death Fact.  Here is his profile in my Ancestry Member Tree:

I highlighted the Death fact on the screen above to see if I had a source citation for it, but there was no "purple snake" from the Fact to a source.

Can I find a record that indicates a death date?  I searched for him on Ancestry.com, and easily found a 29 page probate record in the Massachusetts, Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991 database:

Over on the right side of the screen above is the source citation information created by Ancestry.com.  It is:

Description

Notes : Probate Papers, No 19962-20064

Source Information

Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
Original data: Massachusetts County, District and Probate Courts.

I could attach the record to the person in my tree, and have the source automatically created by Ancestry.com.  But I want to create a new source in Ancestry with Evidence Explained quality for this record to determine how easy it is to do.  I created a source citation in RootsMagic for this record:

Massachusetts, Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991, indexed database with digital images,  Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 3 Novamber 2015), Middlesex County, Probate Papers. No. 19962-20064, Case Number 20061 (images 1173-1201 of 1265), Andrew Sever administration, 1771; Original data: Massachusetts County, District and Probate Courts.

I want to try to put all of that into Ancestry.com as my source citation.  On the profile for Andrew Seaver (first screen above), I clicked on the "Add Source" link below the list of Sources.  That opened the "Create Source Citation Information" screen (two screens below):

As you can see, there are four areas to enter data - Source, Citation, Media and Facts or Events.

I clicked on the "Create a new source" link under "Source" and filled in the fields as best I could:

The problem with this method is that Ancestry has a "one size fits all" source citation - it's designed for a book, with an author, title, publisher, publisher location, publication date, call number, note and repository.  I added information to the Title, Publisher, Publisher Location and Note fields.

At the bottom of the screen above is a link to "Save Source" (not shown).  I did that and the "Create Source Citation Information" screen opened.  I filled in some of those fields:

Again, I clicked the "Save Source" button on the bottom of the screen above (not shown).

I did not attach the Media item - maybe I'll try to do that in another post.

I did click the "Death" Fact in the list of "Facts or Events" in order to associate the Source with the Death Fact.

Okay, I think I'm done.  When I go back to the Profile page for Andrew Seaver, I clicked on the "Death" Fact and now see the "purple snake" going from the Death Fact to the newly added source citation:

I can click on the "View" link on the source citation and see the source citation for this Fact:

Again, it is not "all together" - it is separated into Citation information, Source information, and Repository information.  IMHO, it is better than the Ancestry-supplied source citation because it has true citation information - the record series, image numbers, the person's name, etc.

This took me about 15 minutes to figure out the first time.  I can do a RootsMagic source citation for this record in less than two minutes because I know how to do it.  I'm sure that practice would reduce the time on Ancestry.

Readers may wonder why I don't just use the Ancestry-supplied source citation and be happy with it. You know, I could copy and paste it into RootsMagic, or attach record images and the automatic Ancestry sources to persons in my Ancestry Member Tree.  Well, I've spent the last 6 years trying really hard to craft Evidence Explained quality source citations for persons in my RootsMagic database, and I really don't want to have an Ancestry-supplied source citation in my RootsMagic database.  It's as simple as "I don't want to crap up my database after spending a lot of years crafting quality source citations."

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/adding-new-source-citation-in-ancestry.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Kalle and Aila Visit in 2003 -- Post 385 of (Not So) Wordless Wednesday

I'm posting old (and sometimes new) family photographs from my collection on Wednesdays, but they won't be wordless posts like others do - I am incapable of having a wordless post.

Here are some of the most precious (to me) images from my Seaver/Leland photograph collection:

The parents of Mia, one of our 1994 Exchange girls, visited us in May 2003.  Kalle and Aila traveled from Tornio, Finland to San Diego, and we then visited Victorville (to see our daughter Tami), Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, and Lake Havasu in Arizona.   We had a wonderful time sharing our lives together, sightseeing, and took a few good photographs.

1)  This the four of us in our family room before our travel adventure:

2)  At the Grand Canyon, here is Kalle and I resting after walking around the rim:

3)  Randy at the Hermit's Rest area:

4)  Kalle and Aila on the canyon rim:

5)  We took the train into the Grand Canyon from a town outside the National Park - here are Aila, Linda and Kalle posing in front of the train:

6)  Linda and Randy with a stuffed buffalo in one of the nearby towns.  Big guy, sharp horns!

We enjoyed the two weeks we had with Aila and Kalle - they are really happy and friendly people.  They learned a lot about United States history, geography and politics on this trip.  

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/kalle-and-aila-visit-in-2003-post-385.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Finding Genealogy Software History

When I wrote Dear Randy: Why Do You Use RootsMagic? yesterday, I needed to refresh my memory about the different versions of Family Tree Maker and RootsMagic.  

I went to Wikipedia and input "genealogy software" in the search field and easily found a summary of all genealogy software (known to Wikipedia users):

There was a neat chart on this page with links to different types of genealogy software and to specific Wikipedia pages for the listed programs:

At the bottom of that list is a link for "Comparison of genealogy software" (note that there is also a link for "Comparison of web-based genealogy software").  I clicked the link for "Comparison of genealogy software":

This is a relatively long list, with columns for Latest version, Latest release, Free to use, Free software, Software license, Windows, OS X, Linus, Android, and iOS.

I wanted the history of Family Tree Maker software for my blog post - so I clicked on Family Tree Maker on the list above and scrolled down to the version history (4 screens shown below):

The list above is an excellent history of the development of the two different programs named Family Tree Maker (up to Version 16, and then 2008 and later).

There is similar information for all of the genealogy software programs on the Wikipedia page for "Genealogy Software" and "Comparison of genealogy software."

I have not checked the veracity of the information about each program - my guess is that the different companies try to keep the information up-to-date and accurate.

This was very useful in refreshing my memory of when I started using Family Tree Maker 5 in about 1998.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/finding-genealogy-software-history.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Tuesday's Tip - District of Columbia Collections on FamilySearch

This week's Tuesday's Tip is to check out the District of Columbia record collections on FamilySearch.

There are 8 record collections on the list of over 2,000 record collections available on FamilySearch.  See all of them at https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list

By putting "district columbia" in the Filter field in the upper left-hand corner, the user can see the eight collections:

The available collections are:

*  District of Columbia Birth Returns, 1874-1897; Browse Images only, no indexed records, last updated 25 May 2012

*  District of Columbia Births and Christenings, 1830-1955; 109,908 indexed records without record images, last updated 09 Mar 2012

*  District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840-1964; 81,744 indexed records without record images, last updated 22 Aug 2014

*  District of Columbia Deaths, 1874-1961; 437,136 indexed records with record images, last updated 05 Dec 2014

*  District of Columbia Marriages, 1811-1950; 780,433 indexed records with record images, last updated 03 Jun 2015

*  District of Columbia Marriages, 1830-1921; 239,999 indexed records without record images, last updated 03 Mar 2012

*  District of Columbia, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, 1863-1872; Browse Images only, no indexed records, last updated 23 May 2014

*  District of Columbia, Glenwood Cemetery Records, 1854-2013; Browse Images only, no indexed records, last updated 21 Jan 2014

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/tuesdays-tip-district-of-columbia.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Dear Randy: Why Do You Use RootsMagic?

A "dedicated reader" of my blog, Gary, asked this question in email recently.

1)  First, a little history:

*  I started out with Personal Ancestral File in the 1990 time frame.  When I added sources, they were in the Notes text.

*  I switched to Family Tree Maker 5 in about 1998, after I got a CDROM drive, because it seemed to be more capable than PAF and had fields for source citations and other features.  I stuck with it until Version 16 released in 2006.  I still use Version 16 for some reports.

*  I had heard about RootsMagic software, and bought RootsMagic 3 in 2006 (I think) to try it out.  I was able to transfer my FTM database using GEDCOM, learned how to use RootsMagic, and have stuck with it ever since.

*  I also have Family Tree Maker 2014 and Legacy Family Tree Version 8 on my computer at this time, and use them occasionally.  I also have worked with Family Tree Builder, Family Historian, and Branches, but don't use them at this time.

2)  Why RootsMagic?  I have several reasons based on my experience with all of the above:

*  I like the layout - it's relatively simple and uncomplicated.  I can read the fonts.  I can make it pretty.  I can color code family groups.  The menus and icons are intuitive.

*  I like the navigation - with one click I can see any of the Views; and with one click and some typing I can find a specific person.  Minimizing clicks is important to me.

*  I like the Edit Person screen - the buttons are identified, and I can add notes, sources and media easily.

*  The Source Templates are very well organized - I can use the source templates to craft a new master source for record types I am not familiar with.  The templates provide fields for both the Master Source and the Source Detail.  The templates create A Footnote, a Short Footnote and a Bibliography citation.  I can create free-form sources easily - with one click, fill in some blanks, and I'm done.  All sources can show master text, detail text, media, quality and repository information.

*  It creates many reports, lists and charts.  I have always used reports to provide information to correspondents.  The lists are helpful.

*  It interfaces nicely with the FamilySearch Family Tree.  I can add content to the Family Tree from RootsMagic, or from the Family Tree to RootsMagic.

*  It tells me if there are record Hints on MyHeritage and FamilySearch for my tree persons.  I can easily check to see if there are records there that I've missed.  I wish it interfaced with Ancestry.com, AmericanAncestors, and Findmypast.com also!  I wish it permitted me to import the information and record image directly into RootsMagic, but it doesn't.

*  It has a Research Log and To-Do list capability that I can use to define tasks completed and tasks to do at a specific repository - like the Family History Library.

*  I can import and export a GEDCOM file in order to transfer information from one program or website to another.  I can choose which persons or person groups to include.  I can choose to exclude RM-specific features, like source templates.

*  It has a Relationship Calculator.  I love it!

*  I can create a RootsMagic website for free.  I can use the RootsMagic app to see my database on my iPhone or tablet for free.

*  The Support is excellent - email, forum, newsletter, videos.  All for $29.95 every two years or so.

3)  I'm not going to discuss the other genealogy software programs in detail.  I know that many of them do all or most of those things, and perhaps more.  For instance:

*  Family Tree Maker 2014 syncs with an Ancestry Member Tree, including bringing attached media items from Ancestry into FTM.  I wish RootsMagic did!  It doesn't, so I create a GEDCOM file in RootsMagic, put it into FTM 2014, and sync it into a new Ancestry Member Tree.  However, because of a known problem in FTM 2014, extraneous blank spaces are put into source citations, notes, etc.

*  Legacy Family Tree 8 creates much better narrative and other reports, in my humble opinion.  So I GEDCOM a file into LFT 8 when I need a new report (usually 10 generations).  LFT 8 also has more types of reports about the database.

4)  The bottom line is that RootsMagic 7 is easy for me to use, especially for data input, navigation, source citation creation, and FamilySearch Family Tree interfacing.  Even after 9 years, I don't use all of the features available in RootsMagic, but I'm gradually learning more features.

I hope that answers the question, Gary!

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/11/dear-randy-why-do-you-use-rootsmagic.html

Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Today Would Be "Gramp's" 124th Birthday

My grandfather, Lyle Lawrence Carringer, was born 124 years ago today, on 2 November 1891 to Henry Austin and Della (Smith) Carringer in San Diego, California. He saw so much in his lifetime of 85 years, and enjoyed almost every minute of it, often expressing awe and wonder at nature, engineering feats and science. I believe that he had a wondrous life.

Lyle was over-protected as a boy because his parents had lost a baby boy in 1890. His parents built a house on 30th Street in San Diego and owned most of the block. He learned from the school books of his parents - the McGuffey's readers and almanacs - and attended school, graduating from San Diego High in about 1912.

Here is a picture of Lyle as a boy of 4. Check out the hair and the outfit.

Lyle was curious and inquisitive, and as a boy and teen he explored San Diego and environs on foot or on his bicycle, and on the trolley that ran down 30th Street to downtown. He attended Sherman School and San Diego High School, graduating in 1913 at age 21.  He started working at age 14 in 1906 as an errand boy at Marston's, a downtown San Diego department store, and learned how business worked.

As a young man, he stood 5 foot 7 inches and weighed 123 pounds dripping wet. So, he enlisted in the Marines in 1917, but never got out of San Diego, serving at the PX in Balboa Park.  Here is a photo of Lyle in his U.S. Marines uniform:

He had met, and then married in 1918, Emily Kemp Auble and they soon had a baby - my mother, Betty, in 1919, who was an only child. Soon, they built a house on the same block (2130 Fern Street) as his parents and settled in, with Emily's mother, a widow. The book case in the home was full of popular novels, travel stories, popular magazines and the encyclopedia. Lyle progressed at Marston's and eventually became the accountant and the paymaster for the store.

Here is a picture of Lyle, Emily and Betty in 1919.

Like most people of the time, he had his own account book to tally his income and his expenses. Four of these books still exist - from about 1920 to about 1945. In them, he counted the eggs collected from the henhouse and sold, the daily expenses at the grocery store, his income and bank deposits, the trials, tribulations and expenses of driving and maintaining the car (tires were very fragile, the roads were terrible), and details of where they drove and with whom they visited. The details are fascinating - to me, at least. On the home block, there was always plenty to do. More houses were built for rental, and his parents house was moved from the corner to the center of the block. Repairs to the homes and rentals were endless, furniture was bought, sold or scrapped, gardens were put in and tended. I have rental agreements, rent receipts, home repairs and appliance purchases for the years 1940 to 1975.

Excursions to Balboa Park, La Jolla, the beach, Tijuana, or the mountains were weekly occurrences. There were cousins in Whittier and Long Beach, and they often visited them, stopping at Knotts Berry Farm in Garden Grove for dinner. The family took several long road trip vacations - going all the way to Victoria BC one year - and the journal tells all about it (where they stopped, who they visited, how much things cost, etc.) - fascinating!

My mother married in 1942, and I was born in 1943, my first brother in 1946, and my second brother in 1955. My father went into the Navy in August 1944, and my mother and I moved back in with her parents. My grandparents doted on me, told me stories, took me places, and let me explore my little world. My grandfather had a movie camera, and I have many 8 mm films of my early childhood (which still need to be transferred to DVD). I believe I got my love of history, geography and family from my grandparents - nurtured in my early life by time spent with them.

This is a picture of Lyle and his grandson Randy in 1945 - obviously happy to be so high up in the world.

After his parents died in 1946, Lyle inherited the whole set of property. He and Emily moved into his parents home and sold the Fern Street home and the vacant lots on the south end of the block (which was our ball field playground). With these proceeds, they bought a small parcel of land on Point Loma with a postcard view of San Diego Bay. They built a home on the lot and moved into it in 1951. This home became our Christmas haven - since it had a fireplace, and we spent many happy Christmas Eves snug in our makeshift beds waiting for Santa to visit us.

Gramp took us fishing on Shelter Island on San Diego Bay, out to the end of Point Loma to visit the lighthouse, and explore the tidepools, or we climbed the hills and explored the canyons near their house. He had always collected stamps and had many overseas correspondents. He went monthly to the Post Office to buy sheets of new stamps, and often gave plate blocks and single stamps to my brothers and I for our collections.

Lyle finally retired in 1961 after 55 years at Marston's, and settled into his retirement. He still came over to the 30th Street property and worked on the buildings and the gardens, and to see his daughter's family and to talk to his grandsons - to hear about their education and exploits and dreams. He was so proud that his daughter and grandson had attended and graduated from college.

Here is a photo of Lyle and Emily in about 1970.

He succumbed in November 1976 to colon cancer, and his dear Emily joined him soon after in June 1977. Their deaths pained me, but became the catalyst that made me examine my own life and beliefs, and firmed up my life's goals.

My grandfather was the most moral, upright and intelligent man I've ever known. He spoke quietly, listened well, was a fountain of wisdom, and enjoyed good humor. He never lost his sense of awe and wonder.  He had no religious training or beliefs because of the way his parents grieved over the loss of his baby brother in 1890.

During his life, he witnessed and experienced - either in person or via newspapers and TV - the development of the automobile, the movie camera, running water and toilets in the home, the washing machine, dishwasher, and refrigerator, dirt streets to paved roads to interstate highways, telegraph to radio and television, barren scrub land to Balboa Park to a classical city park, creation and development of the San Diego Zoo and Palomar Observatory, gliders to airplanes to blimps and rocket ships, Sputnik to Mercury to Gemini to Apollo to the moon landing, war (Spanish-American, WW I, WW II, Korean, Vietnam), peace, boom times, recession and depression times, 16 Presidents, a 58 year marriage, the birth and growth of a daughter and three grandsons. It was a wondrous life.

The best thing he ever did, perhaps intentionally or perhaps subconsciously, was to spend endless time with his family - wife, daughter, grandsons and friends - telling them stories, listening to their stories, hopes and dreams, playing board or card games, and encouraging everyone he met to be a good person - to be the best they could be.

We always called him "Gramp" and we always went over to "Gram and Gramp's house." I think my mother called him Dad and my father called him Lyle.

His legacy was threefold. One was financial - the real estate holdings that he built up over his lifetime provided a decent retirement for him and Emily, and for my parents, and an excellent inheritance for my brothers and I. More importantly, the legacy of kindness, love, thrift, and happiness provided a wonderful example to his grandsons. Lastly, there was the wonderful stash of family history material - papers, books, photos, movies, and memories.

I miss him greatly. I wish that I could have him back for just a month or so - to ask him questions, to hear more about his family, his life and experiences, to thank him for loving me and molding me and providing the impetus to study genealogy and family history.

Thank you, Gramps for your rich and diverse ancestry.  I know you would enjoy knowing about your ancestors beyond the ones you knew - the German immigrants to New York and Pennsylvania, the English immigrants to New England and New York, the Dutch and French immigrants into New York, etc.  

Who do you miss the most? Who had a wondrous life in your family? Who loved you and molded you? Tell me about them - please?  Better yet, tell your children and grandchildren about who you miss most.

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Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

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