Top 10 Genealogical Finds of 2021

Here we are again at the end of a year - time for me to post my Top 10 Genealogical Finds for 2021.  Once again I don't feel that I've been too productive but I just keep plugging away.  So in my best David Letterman voice, I give you my Top 10 Genealogical Finds for 2021.

You can read my previous year's discoveries here: 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2012.5 2011

Number 10:  The original post was from 2020 Large - Marks Schwartz  but I received some follow up information in 2021.  I was hoping to identify these two photos in the hope that they might be Marks.

I contacted the Photo Genealogist (www.sherlockcohn.com) and I sent her photos, information, and anything else I had related to the family.  She analyzed everything, researched, studied and did her magic to conclude that these two boys were not Marks but his brother, Colman.

Colman Schwartz, 1890, age 5

If you want/need photos identified, I encourage you to get in touch with Ava for assistance.  She is very busy so you'll need to be patient but it is so worth it.

Number 9:  In the Kitchen  I was glad to finally document my mother's 'famous' Tamale Pie.  I realize it's only famous to my siblings and me but someday, maybe someone will find the recipe and make it famous again.

Number 8:  Dick Crawford was a very special friend to my grandfather, Sig Levy, and I was thrilled to be able to learn more about him.  I don't remember ever meeting Dick Crawford or even hearing about him but I'm glad that he's now been "found" (at least in my blog).

Number 7:  With the exception of one decade, my dad spent his entire career working for Dean Witter.  Sure the name changed over the years and today is known as Morgan Stanley but he stuck with them until his death.  I'm glad I was able to find his scrapbook/album and learn more about his time there.

Number 6:  After some anxious moments, we found a photo of my husband's great grandfather, Winfield Scott Byrd.  And as luck would have it, we found ourselves driving through Pocatello, Idaho on a road trip this fall which is where Winfield (and many other ancestors) is buried.  We were happy to have been able to stop and pay our respects.

Mountain View Cemetery, Pocatello, Idaho

Number 5:  I discovered a photo and learned a lot about the 1902 class of Fresno Grammar School and it really gave me a sense of what life was like for my grandfather.

Number 4:  Connecting with people is one of the greatest gifts of blogging.  This year I met two New Friends and was able to obtain a copy of a book that features the home of my grandparents which they owned for nearly 50 years.  

Number 3:  I'd procrastinated for years getting my blog put into print and am happy to say that I accomplished it this year.  Once I found a platform to use and figured things out, it was actually sort of fun to put these together.  In fact, now I'm putting the book together as I blog so that when I finish this post, I'll add it and get the book ordered.  Preservation - Blog Books

 

Number 2:  Who knew Mrs. Gunzendorfer made a Nut Cake?  It wasn't an actual cousin that I baited but with a name like Gunzendorfer, it's not hard to "hook" others who know the name.  I'm so thankful that George connected me with Ann - hey, another new friend!

Number 1:  This year has helped me learn so much about my dad's time in the Army, particularly when he spent time in Germany in 1946.  I'd always wondered how it was that he found himself at the War Trials and after transcribing all of his letters, I learned about that time and his feelings about seeing the Dachau camp.  I only wish he were here so we could talk about - I bet I'd learn even more.

I've started putting together a book with his letters and accompanying photos.  It's going to be a long ride but I'm happy to have the opportunity to document it in one more way.  Hopefully, that will be my top genealogical find in 2022.  I think I'll incorporate this photo, with his caption, in the title.  Watch for a best seller!

While it hasn't been a full year of discoveries, I do feel like I've made some headway with some of my projects.  On to 2022!

52 Ancestors: Name's the Same - Winfield Scott Byrd

A year ago, the blogging prompt was Same Name and I wrote about my husband's great grandfather, Winfield Scott Byrd.  You can read about it HERE.  

A similar blog prompt this week had me thinking about another ancestor(s) who had the same name and it suddenly occurred to me that as I was preparing last week's blog, I found a photo of Winfield Scott Byrd! 

It started with discovering this photo album that belonged to my mother-in-law.  Sure, I'd seen it before but had tucked it away into a box to save for a rainy day.

I showed it to my husband and we couldn't figure out who most of the people were because many of the photos were loose or just haphazardly thrown in.

My mother-in-law had included a Record of the Photographs, although it was written in pencil so it was a little difficult to read.  And not sure how to figure out who was on which page.

On one page there was a photo of an older gentleman who we thought might have been a teacher.  It was 'glued' down but my husband decided he wanted to look on the back to see if it was labeled.  I about had a heart attack as he lifted the photo out and what did we see?  A labeled photo.  And not just any photo but the label read "Daddy Byrd (My Grandpa), January 27, 1935, Nampa, Idaho".  This was Winfield Scott Byrd!

Winfield Scott Byrd, January 27, 1935

88 years old

I'm so glad to have found this - and especially glad that my husband didn't listen to me as he took it out of the album!

52 Ancestors: Same Name - Winfield Scott Byrd

Winfield Scott Byrd was my husband's maternal great grandfather.  As you can imagine, he (along with many others) was named for the celebrated Winfield Scott, who was known as the Grand Old Man of the Army for his years of service.

Winfield Scott was the son of William and Ann (Mason) Scott and was born on 13 Jun 1786 near Petersburg, Virginia.  He was a General in the U.S. Army from 1814-1861 and served in the War of 1812, the Mexican American War, and the early stages of the Civil War.  Historians consider him to be one of the most accomplished generals in U.S. history.  In 1852, he was the Whig party presidential nominee but was defeated in the general election by Franklin Pierce.  In 1855, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General, the first U.S. Army officer to hold that rank since George Washington.  Winfield Scott died 29 May 1866 at West Point and is buried at the West Point Cemetery.

Winfield Scott
photo by Wikipedia

But enough about that Winfield Scott - let's focus on Winfield Scott Byrd, my husband's great grandfather.  My mother-in-law was the only child of Winfield's son, Marcus Burket Byrd, and Pearl Grumer.

Winfield Scott Byrd was born 29 Aug 1847 in Hawkins County, Tennessee.  He was the 5th (out of 13) child of James Anderson Byrd and Margaret/Margerite (Kelly) Byrd.

A grandchild of Winfield Scott has provided us with some stories, although there is no documentation to verify if these are true.  We have heard for many years about "Old Man Byrd", Winfield's paternal grandfather.  I cringe when I hear him called old since at the time of his death he was younger than I am.  We do know many details about William (aka Old Man) and even have a book with some interesting information.  But this is a story that the grandchild of Winfield wrote:

Life was pretty simple in these parts til the Civil War started building up steam, and since this part of Tennessee was not aligned with either the North or the South, tensions were running high between neighbors.  The Byrds' sympathies were with the North.

Some men neighbors, and Southern sympathizers, came by the Byrd farm with the intention of 'bushwhacking' some Northern men.  They asked old William where his sons were, and since they weren't there, they took the old man around the orchard, they leaned him against a tree and shot him explaining "Couldn't get anything out of the old S.B., had to kill him".  This is a quote from granddad Winfield, who was hiding in the barn."

The story continues:

After the Civil War was over, emotions around this part of Tennessee were still running high, and some of the local fellows raised a rebel flag over the courthouse in Whitsburg.  The patriotic teenager, Winfield, climbed to the roof of the building, sawed the pole and let it drop.  In the process, he dropped his saw and broke the handle.  It was never repaired.  Winfield used this saw all his years as a tradesman and carpenter, sharpening it until the blade was thin.  It was his most prized possession.

Winfield married Serena Chestnut in 1869.

Marriage of Winfield Scott Byrd (Bird) and Serena Chestnut
28 September 1869
Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002

While looking closely at this, it could be that Serena was her middle name - could her first name be Mariah?

On 18 July 1870 in Russellville, Tennessee, daughter Una was born.  Several years later a sister was born and in 1876, mother and daughter died of typhoid pneumonia and little Una went to live with her grandparents.

In 1877, Winfield married Mildred Mace.

Marriage of Winfield Scott Byrd and Mildred Mace
11 July 1877
Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002

Together Millie and Winfield raised nine children.  "Little" Una helped raise Byrd kids until she caught the eye of a local realtor, William Moore, who was 20 years her senior.

Clay Center, Kansas was going to be a rail center and the town was booming.  Carpenters were in demand so at some point in the early 1880's, the family joined the boom.  It was there that my husband's grandfather, Marcus Burket Byrd, was born on 18 May, 1887.

But by 1901, the growth of Clay Center had slowed and the Byrd family moved on.  They became pioneer travelers again, and by covered wagon moved to Oklahoma, where Winfield and one of the boys got land grants and began homesteading.  Things went well until a prairie fire destroyed their efforts.  They moved on after that.  This time to Idaho, where some of the older boys worked for the railroad in Pocatello.

They bought a dairy, and the family milked cows.  Winfield followed his trade as a carpenter, and Mildred ran a boarding house for railroad workers.

Millie died from a cerebral hemorrhage on 2 June 1925 leaving Winfield a widow for the next 15 years.  Winfield Scott Byrd died at his home at 905 S. Main in Pocatello on 17 February, 1940.

Winfield is buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Pocatello, Idaho.  Sadly, we were in Pocatello about 20 years ago and at the time had no idea Winfield was interred there.  Next time we will stop by the cemetery to pay our respects.

RIP, Winfield Scott Byrd.