Surname Saturday: SNOOK (SCHNUCH)

The SNOOK family, originally spelled SCHNUCH, was a German one which joined one of the latter waves of immigration from the Palatinate to the Hudson River Valley in New York State. Over time, the spelling was Anglicized to "Snook". I have been unable to determine the meaning of the name.

Stories and History:

Ahnentafel #1344 - Johann Theis SCHNUCH (c. 1675 - c. 1714) - Johann was born in Vielbach in the Palatine. On 9 Jul 1708, he married Maria Magdalena OSTER (b. c. 1688) in Germany (probably the Palatine). I do not have death places for him or Maria, so I do not know if they migrated to North America with their children.

Ahnentafel #672 - Johannes SCHNUCH - born in Grenzhausen, the Palatine, he married Juliana Catharine Stroder KLEE on 20 Feb1732/3. I have very little information on this couple; however, they must have immigrated to North America, because at least one child was born there.

Ahnentafel #336 - William SNOOK (1742 - 1812) - born in either Dutchess County, New York or in New Jersey, he married Elizabeth [?] and had at least one child born in Union County, Pennsylvania. It is believed that his place of death is somewhere in Pennsylvania.

Ahnentafel #168 - Mathias SNOOK (1775 - 1852) - he is the first SNOOK ancestor for which I have any solid information. He was born Union County, Pennsylvania and married Maria Christina KLECKNER there in West Buffalo Township. They had eleven known children and eventually moved to Clinton County, Pennsylvania. It was there, in Loganton, that both Mathias and Maria died.

Ahnentafel #84 - Levi SNOOK, Sr. (1807 - 1889) - born in West Buffalo Township, Union County, Pennaylvania. In 1826 he married Margaretha WOLFART (1806 - 1882) in Centre County, Pennsylvania and had at least 10 children; I'm still sorting out possible others besides those listed in his grandson's biography here. Levi and his wife lived their remaining days in Centre County; they died and were buried there.

Ahnentafel #42 - Reuben Wolford SNOOK (1833 - 1912) - his biography can be found here, and a photo of him and his second wife appears here.

Ahnentafel #21 - Rebecca Catherine SNOOK (1865 - 1960) - her life has been sketched out here.

Ahnentafel #10 - George Rice WESTABY, III (1890 - 1972)

Ahnentafel #5 - Helen Mary WESTABY (1915 - 1997)

Ahnentafel #2 - my children's paternal grandfather (living)

Ahnentafel #1 - my children's father (living)

More About the SNOOK Family:

1. Online database (I update this at least once a month): SNOOK ancestors and relatives (no info on living persons available)

2. Some SNOOK obituaries on my website

3. Posts about SNOOK ancestors and relatives on this blog

4. Some scanned SNOOK photos

5. My  SNOOK Virtual Cemetery on Find A Grave

The SNOOK Immigration Trail:

Vielbach, the Palatine, Germany > Grenzhausen, the Palatine, Germany > Dutchess Co., NY > Union Co., PA > Clinton Co., PA > Centre Co., PA > Custer (now Rosebud) Co., MT > Dawson Co., MT > Yakima Co., WA > Thurston Co., WA > Clark Co., WA > Spokane Co., WA

Mug Book Monday: Samuel Austin SNOOK (b. 1859)

"Mug books" are collections of biographical sketches usually found within county histories of the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-centuries, particularly in the United States. Each Monday, I'm highlighting ancestors or relatives who were featured in these mug books.

     "SAMUEL A. SNOOK, proprietor of a well-known hardware store in Johnstown, Cambria county, Pennsylvania, is a representative of one of the old pioneer families of this country, being of the eighth [sic - sixth or seventh] generation of the Snook family in America.
     "William Snook, the great-great-grandfather of Samuel S. [sic] Snook, was the great-grandson [sic - son or grandson] of the pioneer ancestor of the Snook family, who emigated to this country from Germany. He married and raised a family.
     "Matthias Snook, son of William Snook, married Christina Kleckman [sic - Maria Christina Kleckner], and had a number of children.
     "Levi Snook, son of Matthias and Christina (Kleckman [sic]) Snook, was a farmer in Center [sic - Centre] county, Pennsylvania, where his death occurred in 1877 [sic - 1889]. He was a strong supporter of the Union party. He married Sophia Kleckmer [sic - Margaretha Wolfart(h)], and raised a family of children: 1. Matilda, married John Frazin. 2. Rueben [sic] W., of whom later 3. Jacob W., married a Miss Stover. 4. Elizabeth, married George Walford. 5. Kate, married John Rute. 6. Matthias, unmarried, was killed during the Civil war. 7. Elias W., married Rinda Reid, 8. Amelia, married Charles Bierly. 9. Barbara, married Nathaniel Courier. 10. Levi W., married a Miss Berry.
     "Reuben W. Snook, eldest [sic - third] child of Levi and Sophia (Kleckmer) [sic - Margaretha Wolfart(h)], was born in Center [sic] county, 1833. He followed the occupation of farming in Clinton county, Pennsylvania, for about ten years, then removed to Bellefonte, Center [sic] county, Pennsylvania, residing there for about five years, and is at present (1906) living in retirement in Forsythe, Rosebud county, Montana. He is a member of the German Reformed church. He married Mary Walker, daughter of Daniel and Mary [sic - Hannah] (Erhardt) Walker. Daniel Walker was a farmer and mill owner, and one of the largest landholders in Myles [sic - Miles] township. He had children: Samuel, Jerry, Jonathan and two daughters. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Reuben W. Snook were 1. Samuel A., of whom later 2. Emma, married Amos Fehl. 3. Ellen, married Ira Brungard. 4. Rebecca, married George Westaby. 5. Sadie, married James Kenealy. 6. Annie, married a Mr. Armstrong. 7. William. 8. John. 9. Edward. 10. Howard. 11. Elizabeth. 12 Maggie. [Correction: some of these children were not Mary Walker Snook's, but were instead Reuben's through his second wife, Elizabeth Nearhood. There are also children missing from this list.]
     "Samuel A. Snooks [sic], first son and eldest child of Reuben W. and Mary (Walker) Snook, was born in Myles [sic] township, Center [sic] county, Pennyslvania, May 23, 1859. He was educated in the public schools of Bellefonte, where he was apt and studious. He then served a three years' apprenticeship to the wire drawing trade, and then held a positon of clerk in the Cambria County Bank of Johnstown; was with Bantly Fronheiser for three years, and then in the hardware business with John Dibert until 1889, when the flood of May 31, of that year, destroyed the building. Mr. Snook established a hardware store at No. 514 Main street, in 1899, and has conducted this very successfully up to the present time (1906). He is highly respected and esteemed by a large circle of friends and business acquaintances. He is a member and trustee of the United Brethern church, and a stanch supporter of the Republican party. He is a member of Johnstown Council, No. 401, Royal Arcanum.
     "He married, April 10, 1889, Annia G. Shaffer, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Kantner) Shaffer, who had six children: Sarah, John E., Mary, Catherine, of Allentown, Annie and Margarett. Samuel Shaffer was a salesman. The children of Samuel A. and Annia G. (Shaffer) Snook are: Earl, born February 9, 1890. Clyde, October 11, 1892. Mary E., November 27, 1894. Robert W., October 3, 1898. John S., February 5, 1901."

---

Samuel Austin SNOOK was the brother of my children's 3rd-great-grandmother, Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY. There is a great deal of genealogy in this biography, some of it correct, some of it definitely not so. While transcribing this biography, not only did the genealogical errors make me cringe, but so did the obvious and numerous spelling and punctuation errors. Of great interest to me, however, is the note that Samuel's business was destroyed by the Johnstown Flood of 1889. This was one of the worst disasters in history of the United States in which 2,209 people were killed from the South Fork Dam on the Little Conemaugh River bursting, causing 20 million tons of Lake Conemaugh to cascade down the river. It damaged or destroyed five towns, killed 99 complete families, and caused $17 million dollars (the equivalent of over $407 million dollars today) of damage. To date, only the Galveston Hurricane of 1901 and the attacks of 9/11 in 2001 produced more casualties. Several movies and numerous books, including one written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough, have featured this disaster.

This biographical sketch was taken from Volume III of the History of Cambria County, Pennsylvania with Genealogical Memoirs, by Henry Wilson Storey, published by The Lewis Publishing Company of New York and Chicago, 1907. Samuel's sketch was found on pages 626 and 627. This county history, transcribed and with images, can be found at the Cambria County, Pennsylvania GenWeb site.

Mug Book Monday: Reuben Wohlford SNOOK (1833 - 1912)

"Mug books" are collections of biographical sketches usually found within county histories of the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-centuries, particularly in the United States. Each Monday, I'm highlighting ancestors or relatives who were featured in these mug books.

 

     "REUBEN W. SNOOK.--Born in Center [sic - Centre] county, Pa., June 27, 1833, and reared and educated in that sturdy old commonwealth, Reuben W. Snook brought to Forsyth, Mont., the qualities of industry and frugality for which the people of his native state are distinguished, and has put them to good and productive usefulness. His parents, Levi and Margaret (Wohlfort [sic]) Snook, were born in Pennsylvania and they there died; the former in 1879 [sic - 1889] and the latter in 1881 [sic - 1882]. Their ancestors on both sides of the family came to the United States with a Germany colony in 1684, and settled near York, Pa., where they were profitably engaged in farming for generations. [Correction: The SCHNUCH family came to Dutchess County, New York c. 1736 and the WOLFARTH family came to Berks County, Pennsylvania sometime before 1730. Reuben's maternal grandfather, Phillip WOHLFARTH, I did immigrate to York County, Pennsylvania from Berks County.] Reuben Snook remained at home working on the farm and attending the district schools in his neighborhood as he had opportunity until he reached the age of maturity. After leaving school he learned the trade of a carpenter. He worked in his native state as a journeyman and railroad bridge builder until 1883. In the spring of that year he brought his wife and children to Montana and located at Forsyth. There he followed the business of contracting and building for eight years, and erected most of the frame buildings that were put up in the early growth of the town--about forty in all. In 1893 he quit working at this trade and homesteaded a ranch on the Yellowstone which he sold soon after and removed to his present ranch, one mile from Forsyth. This ranch, compromising 168 acres, was purchased by Mr. Snook in 1890, and is devoted to horses, cattle, farming and dairying. Mr. Snook also owns valuable town property in Forsyth. In politics he is a Republican, and has rendered faithful service in various official stations. He was a justice of the peace for a number of years, was appointed public administrator in the spring of 1901, and was census enumerator in 1900 for district No. 104, then in Custer county.
     "Mr. Snook was married in Center [Centre] county, Pa., in 1858, to Miss Mary Walker, a native of that state, who died there in 1873 [sic - 1870]. He contracted a second marriage in 1874 [sic - c. 1871], at the same place, being united on that occasion with Miss Margaret [sic - Elizabeth] Nearhood, also a Pennsylvanian by nativity. They are the parents of seven children: Annie, wife of W. H. Armstrong, a stockman near Forsyth; William, living at home; John and Howard, cowboys; Edward, an Alaska miner; and Lizzie and Maggie, living at home. The children of the first marriage are: Austin, married and living at Johnstown, Pa.; Emma, wife of Amos Fehl, a tanner at Clearfield, Pa.; Helen Martha, wife of Ira Blumgard, a farmer in Center [Centre] county, Pa.; Rebecca, wife of Rice Westerby [sic - George Rice Westaby, II], living at Forsyth, Mont., and Sadie, wife of J. H. Kenealy, a dairyman, near Forsyth."

---

Reuben Wolhford SNOOK was my children's 4th-great-grandfather on their father's side. The above biography, while giving a detailed description of Reuben's life in Montana, is an example of how such biographies can be riddled with simple errors such as spellings and dates which are off by a few years, as well as gross errors such as the completely incorrect background on the immigration from Germany to colonial America. While I'm still sorting out Reuben's children by both wives, I do believe several children are missing from the lists detailed here. There is also a family story that says the Snooks first went to California from Pennsylvania, before heading to Montana, but so far, I've found no documents to back this up.

Forsyth, Montana was originally a part of Custer County. In 1901, Rosebud County was formed from part of Custer County with Forsyth as the county seat.

This biographical sketch was taken from Volume Part II of Progressive Men of the State of Montana, published in Chicago by A. W. Bowen and Company, c. 1902. Reuben's sketch was found on pages 1815 and 1816. This county history, along with many others, can be found at the Internet Archive.

Tombstone Tuesday: Mary Ann (WALKER) SNOOK

Grave of Mary Ann (Walker) Snook, Row 2, Grave 4, Brungart Cemetery, Miles Twp., Centre Co., Pennsylvania. Photographed by Storres Myers, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Pennsylvania and privately held by Miriam Robbins Midkiff, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Spokane,Washington. 2010.

Two weeks ago I received a notice from Find A Grave that my photo request for the tombstone of my husband's 3rd-great-grandmother, Mary Ann (WALKER) SNOOK, had been fulfilled. Needless to say, I was thrilled because I hadn't even been sure there was a marker for her grave! I had put in the photo request so long ago, that I had completely forgotten about it. The main reason I doubted there was a marker was because I'm pretty sure that Mary Ann died during or shortly after childbirth, leaving her husband, Reuben Wohlford SNOOK, with about nine little mouths to feed. Reuben married shortly thereafter to Elizabeth NEARHOOD, and between them they created another eight or nine little mouths! I figured with all these mouths to feed, Reuben probably couldn't afford to buy a marker. I suppose it's possible that his family and in-laws helped him out, for as you can see, this is a beautiful and quite large marble obelisk. The base reads:

MARY A.
Wife of
R. W. SNOOK
Born May 7, 1835
Died June 4, 1870
Aged 28 ys. and 28 ds.
---
Blessed are the dead which
die in the Lord.
First Corinth 15 C 57 V
But, thanks be to God
which giveth us the victory
through our Lord Jesus
Christ

Although the marker does not say it, the first phrase, "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord" is also from the Bible; Revelations 14:13.

If you look carefully at the first photo, you can see to the left of Mary Ann's grave is the grave of Margaretha "Margaret" (WOHLFART) SNOOK, Mary Ann's mother-in-law. The photographer, Storres Myers, sent me some information on the cemetery which gives some history and lists all the known graves:

St. Luke's Evangelical Church, also known as Brungart Church, was founded in 1868 on a lot donated for the purpose by George Brungart, who was the son of the early immigrant Martin Brungart from York County. The cemetery was begun at that time. After the church was discontinued, the building and property were sold in 1948. There is no one assigned the responsibility for the care of the cemetery, however, someone does mow the grass occasionally.

Storres has promised to take any photographs I request at this cemetery. Since several generations of both Mary Ann and Reuben's families are buried here, I think I've hit the jackpot! Thank you so much for your assistance, Storres!

Wordless Wednesday: Reuben Wohlford and Elizabeth (NEARHOOD) SNOOK

Reuben Wohlford and Elizabeth (Nearhood) Snook. C. 1873 or later.Original photograph privately held by Troy Midkiff, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Vancouver, Washington. 2010.

Saturday Night Fun with #21

Every Saturday night, Randy Seaver posts a fun activity at his blog, Genea-Musings. Last night, he asked us, "Who's number 21 on your ahnentafel list?"

Number 21 on my ahnentafel is one of my paternal great-great-grandmothers, Mary E. "Mae" (McARTHUR) YORK RANDELL RICHMOND, (1875 - 1959). I've written quite a bit about Mae over the years. You can read my original AnceStory about her on my website here. Photographs of Mae appear here and here. After writing in October 2007 about the mystery of Mae's marriage to her first husband, my ancestor James L. YORK, I was able to write another post in March 2008 exclaiming my delight in finding their marriage date and place. And in May 2007, Mae appeared as a part of my series on finding my ancestors in the 1930 U.S. Federal Census. Way back in February 2006, I found her entry in the Gratiot County, Michigan Birth Records. I also wrote about how I was able to find her death and burial dates by contacting the sexton for the cemetery where she was buried.

My husband's number 21 is Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY. While I don't have an AnceStory about her, her obituaries appear on my website here. As part of a research log, I blogged about how I requested them through Random Acts of Genealogical Kindess in December 2006. In May 2007, we were able to locate and visit Rebecca's grave. I submitted a story about Rebecca's buttonhook for the 2nd Cabinet of Curiosities in December 2007. In February 2008, I posted a photo of Rebecca in an old general store for one of my early Wordless Wednesdays, followed by an explanation the next day. Another photo of Rebecca and her daughter Izma can be seen here.

Thanks, Randy, for this fun activity. It's nice to remember that I've researched and written so much about this generation!

Friday Findings: GenLine, CRAPSEY Burials, Cousins, and SNOOK Graves

Due to the Blogger debacle this week, I was not able to post my Friday Findings in a timely manner. Here's a rundown of my research results for the week of July 26 - August 1, 2008:

More on Many Marriages
While entering the marriage records of my husband's granduncle, Lee Joseph "Mick" MARTIN, I realized that the witnesses for his third marriage, to Martha Isabell (JONES) DVORAK, were his daughter from his first marriage and her husband. Hmm... It made me wonder if his first wife had died by then (I'm not sure how their marriage ended; by divorce or by her death?). I couldn't find any death information for her, but I did find Isabell, as she was called, on the SSDI.

Swedish Parish Records
Also following up on last week's findings, I went to my local Family History Center to use their free subscription to GenLine, the Swedish parish records database, to find and verify my great-great-grandmother's birth (Ida Charlotte (GUSTAVSON) HOLST). I had never used it before, so it took some time. Fortunately, it has a nice tutorial, available both in English and Swedish. It is necessary to know the name of the parish to do a search. The records appear in digital image format, not unlike looking at a roll of microfilm. They are not indexed by name in any way, so it takes some searching. All I had for Ida's birthplace was Hamnada, Sweden. I had no idea where this location was, and used both Wikipedia and the FamilySearch Library Catalog to find it, without any success. I had a feeling I was spelling it incorrectly. I then did a Google search and found a mention in someone's online family tree of a "Hamnada-Småland, Krnberg". I went back to Wikipedia to look at the political structure of Sweden. Småland is one of 25 provinces (landskapen) of Sweden and has no political structure as of 1634. It is a cultural, geographical and historical subdivision. Kronoberg is a county (län), a political subdivision, that lies in what is a part of Småland. I still could not find Hamnada or a a similiar name in any of the lists of municipalities (similar to American townships), villages, or cities of Sweden.

I went back to GenLine, and looking up Kronoberg County records, I noticed that Hamneda was one of the parishes. Bingo! They had birth and christening records up through 1861 (I don't recall the beginning year), so I went to take a look. In 1861 alone, there were NINE Ida Charlottas (no Charlottes) born in Hamneda parish! Only one had a surname close to GUSTAVSON, and that was a Ida Charlotta GUSTAFSON born, it appears on 29 December 1861 and baptized 31 December 1861. I say "appears", because I am not certain of what the dates stand for. There are three numbers and a month before each record. The first number is the record number, as they are all in sequence from 1 until the last record. Then comes the month abbreviation, which is very similar to our English month abbreviations. Then two numbers follow. The first number is always lower than the second number, and none of the numbers go beyond 31, so my assumption is that the first one is the birth date and the second one is the christening date. The words "Births and Baptisms" appear at the the top of each of these pages (in Swedish, of course), adding credence to my theory. I used FamilySearch's online Swedish Genealogical Word List to figure out the words.

My Ida Charlotte GUSTAVSON was born 28 October 1861, but I need to find my source of information for that. Her 1900 U. S. Federal Census enumeration does have October 1861 as a birth date. I ran out of time to double check 1860 records, and there are none available at GenLine for 1862. I will need to search other nearby parish records, too, I think. I also did not have time to figure out how to save or print the image with the birth date of the Ida Charlotta GUSTAFSON I found. This was an interesting first foray into Swedish records, and I felt I learned quite a bit.

CRAPSEY Burials
I've been trying to find a death date for my 4th-great-grandmother, Lura Ann (JACKSON) PECK CRAPSEY. I know she was deceased by 1900, when my step-ancestor, the Rev. John CRAPSEY, Jr. was listed as a widower in the Federal Census for that year. She was alive as late as 1891, when her husband filed an application for a pension based on his deceased son's military service. They were living St. Paul, Ramsey Co., Minnesota. Attempts to have a volunteer at RAOGK look up her death records did not work out. I then came across John's obituary stating he was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery. There is a Forest Lawn Memorial Parks and Mortuaries in Ramsey County, and I contacted them to see if I could find burial information (and thus a death date) for the Crapseys. I received an immediate response that there was no record of either one in their records. I need to follow up with wording from John's obituary to make sure that the Forest Lawn Cemetery he was buried in is the same as what Park and Mortuaries company now manages, when their records begin, and if they have record of John and Lura's children being buried there (it's possible, if their children are buried there, that John and Lura are buried without markers).

Cousins
A distant LEWIS cousin of mine, Bob Stefanich, contacted me to tell me about another cousin of ours (related more closely to me than Bob is) and that the LEWIS family reunion is occurring today in Fruitport, Muskegon Co., Michigan (wish I could be there)! I've contacted Jim with the hope that I can get more information on the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of my 2nd-great-grandparents, George Emmett LEWIS and Mary WILKINSON.

Also, a McARTHUR cousin contacted me. She lives in Michigan and is able to visit the ancestral cemeteries. She promised to take some tombstone photos of some of our mutual ancestors...so exciting!

SNOOK Graves
Speaking of ancestral graves, I heard from a Find A Grave photo volunteer--Catherine Bryon--who photographed the graves of my husband's 3rd-great-grandfather, Reuben Wohlford SNOOK, and his second wife, Elizabeth NEARHOOD, at the Forsyth Cemetery in Rosebud Co., Montana. Click on the links to view the photographs. Thanks, Catherine!

Mrs. R.C. WESTABY in Elsie's Place

Source: Westaby, Rebecca Catherine (Snook). Photograph. C. 1920s. Original photograph in the possession of Troy Midkiff, Vancouver, Washington. 2008.

Isn't this a wonderful photo? It features my husband's great-great-grandmother, Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY (1865 - 1960) in "Elsie's Place", probably in Seattle, King Co., Washington in the 1920s. The title of this post is the caption on the back of the photo, which is how I know the name of the owner of this store. I've blogged about Rebecca (and her buttonhook) before, here. But I have no idea who Elsie was. She doesn't appear among any of the names I have related to Rebecca or her ex-husband, George "Rice" WESTABY, II. Perhaps Elsie was a friend or a distant relative. I have another photo of Rebecca outside her daughter Izma's dress shop, which would not have been this same store. I suspect Rebecca was in Seattle to visit Izma when both photos were taken, as she is wearing the same dress--but different shoes--in each of them. Rebecca was living in Salem, Marion Co., Oregon at the time.

This photo reminds me of the I Spy books my children had when they were little:

I spy three Coke ads and one for Hires,
Campbell's Soup and some hanging lamp wires.

If you click on the photo above, it will take you to my Picasa web album, and you can zoom in even more. What other goodies can you spy? Leave your answers in the comments feature below. Extra points if you can make an I Spy rhyme!

Wordless Wednesday: Mrs. R.C. WESTABY in Elsie's Place

(click on photo several times to enlarge)

Source: Westaby, Rebecca Catherine (Snook). Photograph. C. 1920s. Original photograph in the possession of Troy Midkiff, Vancouver, Washington. 2008.

The Buttonhook of Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY

[Laura and Carrie] dressed carefully in their woolen winter dresses and nervously combed their hair and braided it. They tied on their Sunday hair-ribbons. With the steel buttonhook they buttoned their shoes.

"Hurry up, girls!" Ma called. "It's past eight o'clock."

At that moment, Carrie nervously jerked one of her shoe-buttons off. It fell and rolled and vanished down a crack of the floor.

"Oh, it's gone!" Carrie gasped. She was desperate. She could not go where strangers would see that gap in the row of black buttons that buttoned up her shoe.

"We must take a button off one of Mary's shoes," Laura said.

But Ma had heard the button fall, downstairs. She found it and sewed it on again, and buttoned the shoe for Carrie.

At last they were ready. "You look very nice," Ma said, smiling. [1]

When I was a girl, my favorite books were the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Living on a small farm in rural Alaska with no electricity or running water, I could relate very well to her experiences. One of the things I also enjoyed doing was perusing a reproduction of an early twentieth-century Sears, Roebucks, and Co. mail-order catalog, that had pages and pages of button-up shoes. Now outside of museums, I have never seen button-up shoes, but my husband and I were blessed a few years ago to receive a button hook that had belonged to his great-great-grandmother, Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY, a woman who was alive when he, his brother, and several cousins were born. Unfortunately, to my knowledge no one ever took a five-generation photo for posterity. There were some four-generation photos taken when my father-in-law was a boy, however:

The woman on the far left in this photo is Rebecca at about age 79. Her son and daughter-in-law, granddaughter, and great-grandchildren also appear here.

First, a little history about Rebecca: she was born on 21 August 1865, probably in the Nittany Valley of Centre County, Pennsylvania to Reuben Wohlford SNOOK and Mary Ann WALKER. She was the middle of about half a dozen children, and her mother died when she was five years old. Reuben remarried to Elizabeth NEARHOOD and they had nine more children.

According to my father-in-law, the family came out west to California by covered wagon, and Rebecca walked behind the wagons much of the way. I have not found evidence that they ever made it to California. Perhaps they did, or perhaps they changed their mind along the trail. At any rate, they ended up in Forsyth, Custer (now Rosebud) County, Montana at least by the late 1880s. There Rebecca met and married George Rice WESTABY, II, always called "Rice," around 1888. They had seven children: Clarice Orvilla, a little girl born in 1889 who died in infancy; my husband's great-grandfather, George Rice, III; Guy Steven; Izma Ann (the only surviving daughter); Charles Wilson, Reuben Wohlford; and Lynn Walker WESTABY. What I like about Rebecca and Rice is that they named their children with family names. Many were named for relatives, and WILSON, Wohlford (from WOHLFART[H]), and WALKER were all ancestral surnames.

By 1920, Rebecca and Rice were separated, the older children all living on their own or with their spouses, while Reuben and Lynn lived with Rebecca and Rice in their homes, respectively. I've never heard what the cause of separation was, nor have looked for a divorce record for the couple. The family story passed down was that Rice married twice more before his death in 1927. Records from Rosebud County have not been filmed by the Family History Library; they are also archived in various locations, and both time and money must be invested to obtain the records I need to flesh out this family a little more. I do know that Rebecca's father and step-mother, as well as some of her siblings, are buried in the Forsyth Cemetery. Rice died in Forsyth as well, but his body was sent back to Illinois to be buried with Westaby family members in Thompson Cemetery, Jo Daviess County.

Rebecca, meanwhile, moved on. It is said that she lived in Sheridan, Wyoming for a while, but the next time I find her is in the 1930 U.S. Federal Census in Salem, Marion County, Oregon, working in a cannery. She would have been 64 years old at this time. Why she came to Salem is somewhat vague to me; her youngest son Lynn may have lived there, but he died while swimming in either Tillamook Bay or the Columbia River in 1923 (again, oral history unverified). He had an artificial leg, which may have accounted for his inability to survive whatever caused his drowning. According to family history, his body was never recovered. At any rate, Rebecca lived alone during her senior years. Her children were scattered from New Jersey to Montana and Idaho to the Yakima Valley of Washington State. According to her obituary, she made quilts all the way up until four years before her death, caused by a stroke and fall in her bathroom.

Now about that buttonhook: there is a wonderful website for The Buttonhook Society where I found information about this handy tool. It seems that buttonhooks were used for more than buttoning shoes, as buttons on gloves, the back of shirtwaists, boots, and many other articles of clothing were popular during the 1880s - 1910s. In fact, buttonhooks were still produced in the 1920s and 1930s. How were they used? The tip of the hook would be threaded through the buttonhole from the outside of the shoe or clothing. Then the button would be grasped with the hook and carefully pulled through the buttonhole. Obviously, pulling too hard on the hook could result in the button flying off, as the example from The Long Winter, above, tells us. Rebecca's buttonhook has no manufacturer's mark, and the handle is a resinous material that appears to be an early plastic, indicating that this is a newer model. So I doubt this hook has much monetary value, but its worth as a family memento is priceless!

[1] Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Long Winter (1940; reprint, New York: Harper & Row Publishers, Inc., 1968), 76.

This post was written for the 2nd Cabinet of Curiosities Carnival hosted by Tim Abbot of Walking the Berkshires. What unusual or unique items from the past do you possess?

Connecting with Cousins on Memorial Day

Three years ago, my husband, children and I traveled across the state of Washington to spend Memorial Day weekend with my in-laws in Vancouver, Washington, which lies just across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon. I always enjoy this cross-state visit, as the longest leg of it--driving along the Columbia River on the Oregon side--follows both the Lewis and Clark trail and the Oregon Trail. I enjoy imaging the explorers and pioneers traveling the same route, and seeing Mt. Hood towering in the distance.

While in Vancouver, we went with Norm's parents and sister to Park Hill Cemetery in Vancouver, to visit and photograph the MIDKIFF, TOLLIVER, DAVES (step-ancestor), LUKE, and CHAPLIN graves. The following year, 2005, we made the same trip, and I insisted that we were going to travel down to the Willamette Valley to visit and photograph the grave of one of Norm's great-great-grandmothers, Rebecca Catherine (SNOOK) WESTABY, buried in Salem, as well as the graves of my great-great-grandparents, Charles Frisbe STRONG and his wife, Mary Lucy WRIGHT. Charles and Mary are two of only four of my ancestors buried west of the Mississippi River, and the other two are nowhere near my home! My paternal grandfather, Robert Lewis ROBBINS is buried at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas, and a 4th-great-grandmother, Lura Ann (JACKSON) PECK CRAPSEY, is apparently buried in St. Paul, Minnesota. So to actually be able to be within a few hours of an ancestor's grave is a big deal to me, and I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity.

When we arrived at Belle Passi Cemetery in Woodburn, Marion Co., Oregon, where Charles and Mary are buried, we found that the graves had already been cleaned and decorated. They were surrounded by other graves, obviously of the family of their daughter, Ethel Melissa (STRONG) HASTIE, who is buried there along with her husband, the Rev. Ezbon Roy HASTIE. I remember visiting the widowed Aunt Ethel in 1979, when we first moved to Washington State, and remembered meeting her son.

We were rather rushed on that visit, and so I didn't have time to try to find out how to contact the family. But on the way home, I had a couple of ideas that could work for you to help you connect with cousins on Memorial Day. Obviously, I could have looked up the Hastie family in the phone book in Woodburn, or on Dex Knows when I got home. But what if you are looking for descendants of an ancestor, yet you don't know your cousins' surnames?

First off, you need to know where your ancestor is buried. If their grave is in your hometown or nearby, you're in luck. If you are like myself and live far from your ancestral cemeteries, it's important to obtain death certificates and/or obituaries of your ancestors to determine their final resting places. I use Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness quite frequently to get obituaries of ancestors. They're easier and less expensive to access than death certificates. Once I have the name of a cemetery in hand, I use Find A Grave, Interment.net, Dex Knows, or Cemetery Junction to find an address and telephone number (check out Cyndi's List of Cemeteries as well).

My next step is to cold call the cemetery office during local business hours. I have had so much luck with this! You would be amazed at how helpful cemetery employees are! From phone interviews I have discovered the names of other ancestors and relatives buried in the same cemetery, the names of the funeral homes that provided services (I'll post more about this in the future), the names and addresses of the lot owners (which may be obsolete, but may provide relatives' names). I always try to obtain the lot number of the grave(s) I am interested in, and sometimes the employee will mail me a cemetery map. I ask the cemetery employee if it's okay to send them an info packet that they could place on my ancestor's grave (see following paragraph). In fact, I have been so successful in this type of research, that I've created a form that I use to help me remember all the questions I want to ask when I call.

The fourth step is to write a letter explaining that I am a descendant of the ancestor buried in that cemetery, and that I am doing genealogical research on the family. I leave contact information: a phone number, mailing address and e-mail address. This letter is folded and sealed in a zip-lock bag and then placed in an envelope which is addressed either to the cemetery office or to a volunteer in the area that I've contacted through the local genealogical society or Random Acts. The cemetery employee or the volunteer can then place the info packet (my letter in a zip-lock bag) on the grave, hopefully weighted with a small rock or wedged into a crevice of the headstone, so it won't blow away. If this is done about a week before Memorial Day weekend, there's a chance that I could connect with another descendant of that ancestor who has come to the cemetery to clean and decorate the grave! If the cemetery doesn't allow an info packet left on the grave itself, ask if your letter could be placed in your ancestor's file at the office.

So what's the purpose of this? To hopefully connect with other relatives of a common ancestor and exchange information...photos, documents, stories, etc. It's likely that the two of you have missing information that the other may be seeking. Perhaps you'll break down a brick wall! Memorial Day weekend is only two weeks away, so I hope you'll take advantage of this tip. Good luck to you!

More Obituaries: SNOOK and WESTABY

Joyce Obland, a volunteer for Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness, obtained some obituaries for my husband's family and sent them to me this week. George Rice WESTABY, II was Norm's great-great-grandfather. George, his father-in-law, Reuben Wohlford SNOOK, and Reuben's second wife, Elizabeth NEARHOOD, were all residents of Forsyth, Rosebud Co., Montana. I've posted their obituaries on my website here. I especially like the flowery and sentimental obituary for Elizabeth.

The obituaries have provided me some new information, and as I add the information to Norm's family tree database, analyzing it as I go, I'll probably come up with even more details, as well as questions to add to my research "To Do" lists.

I recently found a very interesting online biography of Reuben in Progressive Men of the State of Montana, which added quite a bit to my understanding of this family.

Research Log - Obits for Norm's Ancestors, Part 2

Heard from Christine Gray, RAOGK volunteer for Multnomah Co., Oregon. She will be looking for obits for Emma Alice LYTON and John Franklin MARTIN. Requests reimbursement of 25 cents per obit (copying fees) and $1.25 parking fee. She's done a lookup for me before; found Leona Mary MARTIN's obit a month or so ago, and did a great job.

Also heard from Joyce Obland, RAOGK volunteer for Rosebud Co., Montana, willing to look up obits for George Rice WESTABY, II, Reuben Wohlford SNOOK, and Elizabeth NEARHOOD. She requests reimbursement for gas (50 cents per mile is the standard donation...however, she has a 60-mile round trip to do her lookups), plus $1.00 per obit copy. I e-mailed her back and told her I will have to wait until after the holidays, as the $30.00 for gas is a little much right now.

Lastly, I heard from Linda Kolinski, RAOGK volunteer for Los Angeles Co., California. She had done an online search in ProQuest Historical Newspapers in the Los Angeles Times (1881 - 1985), and was unable to obtain an obituary for either Clark Pleasant R. TOLLIVER or Senna COLLINS.

Research Log - Obits for Norm's Ancestors

Requested obituaries though various RAOGK volunteers for Norm's ancestors:

Peder Johnsen LERFALD
Regina LERFALD
Clark Pleasant R. TOLLIVER
Senna COLLINS
Emma Alice LYTON
John Franklin MARTIN
George Rice WESTABY, II
Reuben Wohlford SNOOK
Elizabeth NEARHOOD (step-ancestor, second wife of Reuben Wohlford SNOOK)
Angelia Rebecca LUKE.