Category: Genealogy

So as someone who enjoys genealogy research, it’s always nice to see the name of your ancestor in a census, on a marriage certificate or a ship’s passenger list. It always makes you think of what their lives must have been like.  When I came home from work at Target last night, my wife said “look what I found” She had found among the papers of Louise Marter, who had a massive amount genealogical information she had collected over the last 30 to 40 years. Louise passed away a few months ago and Kathy has been given the task of going through the boxes and boxes of papers to decide the relevancy of each piece of paper  Better her than me because Pack-Rat Edward would be tossing nothing!! Anyway back to  last night’s find. it was at list of school children in the Beverly schools in 1865 and 1866 and there among children was my great-grandfather John or Johnny Ashton Read More

So Who do I think I am? My ancestry comes from all over the Europe!! Over the last fifteen years or so Kathy and I have done a lot of genealogical studying of our family trees, her tree, due to her great skills at genealogy, has many, many more branches than mine!! My ancestors I’m convinced were in the 1800’s equivalent witness protection program! But actually I don’t think it’s that bad so let’s see where those roots reach. On my father’s mother’s side they reach into Saxony and Dresden, Germany. We have a picture of my great-grandfather Herman Meyer in his uniform – he was in the king’s guard! The Meyer family came to the US in 1912. Herman had come a year earlier and according to what I’ve heard he had to get out of Germany, but the relative who told me that wouldn’t tell me why!!! (But I do know that there were some racy pictures of Herman in his house on Walters Avenue in Delanco) My great grandfather and grandmother both became citizens in the 1940s. wonder why?? Now my father’s side also comes from Germany but where I’m not sure! But I do know that his grandmother was from Switzerland and the Haechler family came to America in 1882! So that side of my line is German and Swiss!! Read More