Playful Days

I love seeing my grandmother, Loraine Gunzendorfer, as a young woman with her friends.  They seemed to have so much fun together and went so many places! 

I have no idea where they were in most of these pictures, or even who they are, but it is fun to see them ‘playing’ together.  I especially love looking at their clothes – they sure dressed differently 100 years ago!

Tennis, anyone?  Can you imagine playing tennis dressed like this?  I knew my grandfather played a lot of tennis as a young man (I even rescued a few of his tennis racquets years ago) but until recently I never knew my grandmother played, too.



Looks like this was either before or after the match based on how she’s dressed.  I love how she wore her hair up in this little bun – very stylish!  It looks like she’s pointing at something here but I can’t be sure.



Here’s a couple of her friends starting a pyramid.  I have no idea who they are, though.  Check out those bathing suits!



Thankfully she labeled at least one photo – here’s Earle in a canoe.  I’ve seen him mentioned many times in the scrapbook – he must have been a special friend.



She had this written on the page that included this picture but no other photos had two men in it. 

Gene and Earle in Santa Cruz.  Look as ‘tho they expect to have a good time.

Could that be Gene and Earle walking behind these three lovely ladies?  And who are the ladies?  I would venture to say that is, indeed, Santa Cruz in the background.



Here’s Grandma with her girlfriends.  She’s second from the left but I don’t know who the others are.  I’m pretty sure none of these are her BFF, Hallie Hitchcock.  Wonder where she was that day?



And here’s the whole gang.  I think Hallie might be second from the right and Grandma is on the right holding her hat.  They look like they’re being silly!



And one final shot of Grandma by herself – interesting hat she has on.  She looks very thoughtful!



I'm so glad she saved these photos - just wish I had more information about her friends and the places she went.

Photo Gallery

Back to the scrapbook!

Grandma had a lot of memories in the scrapbook which were unmarked but the next pages were labeled well.  She even titled the page!



There is an assortment of photos here, although I can’t identify too many of the people.  I’m not sure why she wouldn’t have liked this photo – it is beautiful and I love her stylish outfit.



Here’s her ‘best’ friend, Hallie Hitchcock.



I’ve done a little research on Hallie and found that she married Horace Read in about 1920.  Sadly, Horace died in 1930 and I haven’t been able to find out much more about Hallie.  I’d love to connect with one of her ancestors so that I can share some of these photos.

Looks like Grandma and the gang went to San Juan Canyon.



Who was the Hollister bunch and how did she know them?





I’m not sure why she would say she’s in the picture though not seen.  When I zoom in on the photo I don’t see her – is she hiding somewhere?

Look at those hats!  Grandma is 2nd from the right, underneath the “sh” in horseshoe.



And here’s a couple of the boys.  Elbert, on the left, was Hallie’s younger brother and a classmate at Monterey High School.



I just love this photo – they look like they’re having such fun!  I have no idea who Marion and Sis are, but I do know that Sis was not her sister since she only had a brother.



It’s so fun to see these photos and to get an idea of what life was like almost 100 years ago. 

Fearless Females: What happened to…..Part 2

Lisa Alzo at The Accidental Genealogist launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees in March, 2010. This year the series is being revisited in honor of National Women’s History Month and the purpose is to focus on the women in our lives and to make sure their stories are told.

Today’s prompt is from March 11, part 2: Did you have any female ancestors who died young or from tragic or unexpected circumstances? Describe and how did this affect the family?

One of my favorite subjects has been my 3rd great grandfather, Emery Waller.  Besides being a favorite, Emery has brought me several new cousins and for someone who comes from a very small family, getting to know these cousins has been a lot of fun (Sarah, we MUST meet in real life soon!).  Emery also brings me a Fearless Female – his first wife, Rebecca Parker.

Based on the age shown on Rebecca’s gravestone, she was born on 10 Oct 1814.  I don’t know much about Rebecca except that she was married to Emery in Hamilton County, Ohio on 31 Jan 1833 by F.N. Skillman, Justice of the Peace.



Emery and Rebecca’s first child, Mary Ann, was born shortly thereafter, sometime in 1833.  By 1838, another daughter, Caroline, would join the family.  The 1840 census shows them in Liberty, Butler County, Ohio.  It appears that another daughter, Sarah, was born in 1842 and then things changed for this family. 

On 7 Feb 1845, Rebecca gave birth to her fourth daughter, my second great grandmother, and what should have been a happy occasion was anything but.  Six days later, on 13 Feb 1845, Rebecca Parker Waller was dead.  At 30 years, 4 months, and 5 days she was gone, leaving Emery alone with four daughters.  The fourth daughter was named Rebecca Moriah, most likely in memory of her mother.  Rebecca Parker Waller is buried in Plum Run Cemetery, Warren County, Ohio.

Memory of Rebecca Consort of E L Waller. She departed this Life February 13, 1845; Aged 30 Years, 4 months, and 5 days Look at this as you pas by, as you are now so once was I, as I am now so you must be. For death and follow me.

Life for Emery and the girls was about to change dramatically.  How would he care for these young children?  What would he do?  Why, he would remarry and his new wife would care for them.  And that’s just what he did.  On either 22 Jul or 23 Jul 1845, Emery and Clarinda Meeker were married.  I’ve found reference to several different names for Clarinda so it could be that Meeker was Clarinda’s married name.







By 1850 the family had moved to Clinton, Illinois, and the two oldest girls, Mary Ann and Caroline, were living with Emery’s parents, Salmon and Amelia Waller, just two doors from Emery and Clarinda.  Emery and Clarinda had added two more daughters, Elizabeth (b. 1846) and Nancy Hannah (b. 1848) to the family.

The 1860 census finds the family in Santa Ana, Illinois and while more children had joined the family, some had left.  Living in the household were Rebecca, Elizabeth, Nancy Hannah, George (b. 1855), and Minnie (b. 1857).  Mary Ann and Caroline were now married and living nearby.  But Sarah was gone, and daughter Alice, who was born in 1851, was also gone.  And somewhere along the line, “Sons Waller”, the sons of Rev. E.L. Waller and C. Waller, were born and died as they are buried in McGraw Cemetery in Clinton, Illinois.  Emery and Clarinda had been married for 40 years when Clarinda died in 1885 and, once again, Emery buried his wife.

The family was forever changed on 13 Feb 1845 when Rebecca Parker Waller, wife of Emery Waller, the mother of four young daughters, and my 3rd great grandmother, died.  

Fearless Females: What happened to Dena?

Lisa Alzo at The Accidental Genealogist launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees in March, 2010. This year the series is being revisited in honor of National Women’s History Month and the purpose is to focus on the women in our lives and to make sure their stories are told.

Today’s prompt is from March 11: Did you have any female ancestors who died young or from tragic or unexpected circumstances?  Describe and how did this affect the family?

I actually have two females that fit into this category so today I will highlight the first and the second will come later.

I’ve written quite a bit about my 2nd great grandmother, Rebecca Steen Schwartz, and her daughter (my great grandmother), Bertha Schwartz Gunzendorfer.  Rebecca had many siblings but one of them has been a mystery to me that I would love to know more about.  But her life was too short and, thus, there are very few records.

Dena Steen was born in 1866 in California and was the youngest child of Joseph Steen and Hannah Plotzky.  While this date does make sense, a few details confuse me.  I found a reference to the birth of a daughter to Joseph and Hannah on 10 Feb 1864 in the Sacramento Daily Union, Volume 26, Number 4027, 17 Feb 1864.  While this could be Dena, I’m not certain that it is because when Dena died in 1894, she was 28 years old and this date of birth would have made her 30 years old.  Did Joseph and Hannah, perhaps, have a child in 1864 who died in infancy?  Or at least before 1870 when the next census was enumerated?  Joseph died 27 Jul 1866 so no matter when Dena was born, Hannah was left alone with some very young children.

I first found Dena, enumerated as Dinah, in the 1870 census in San Francisco.  She was 4 years old (so the 1866 date works) and was living with Hannah and her siblings – Solomon (really Samuel), Meyer, Lillie, and Julius. 

I next found Dena, enumerated as Lennie, in Oakland in the 1880 census.  She was living at 628 17th Street with Hannah, Samuel, and Lillie.  Julius was no longer with the family due to his death in 1876.

Next we find Dena in the 1883 U.S. City Directory in San Francisco.  She was living at 506 Hyde Street with Hannah and Samuel and was working as a saleslady with Martin J. Aguirre.  The only reference I find to Martin Aguirre is a confectioner at 429 Kearny, about 1 mile from Dena’s home on Hyde Street.  This Martin was born in 1856 – could Martin and Dena have been linked romantically or was she merely working there? 

The next reference I have for Dena is on 9 Sep 1894 when my great grandparents, Abraham Gunzendorfer and Bertha Schwartz, were married.  This reference to the wedding was noted in the San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Sep 1894, page 5:

The bridal procession was headed by the small niece and nephew of the bride, the former bearing the ring upon a pillow of white satin.  The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Dr. Nieto of San Francisco.  Following the ceremony a wedding collation was served on the lawn, which had been canopied for the occasion.  The bride, a stately and handsome brunette, appeared lovely in a court gown of white faille silk and ornaments of diamonds, gifts from the groom.  The bridesmaids were the Misses Dena, Bella and Jennie Steen, and the groomsmen were Charles Berg, Meyer Steen and A. Gunzendorfer of San Francisco.

What a happy occasion that must have been!

And less than a month later, Dena’s life ended suddenly.  This from the Santa Cruz Sentinel, 3 Oct 1894.

Dena Steen 1866 – Oct 2, 1894

Mis [sic] Dena Steen died suddenly in San Francisco Tuesday morning.  The news of her untimely taking off was a shock to her friends in this city.  She was recently here, and was one of the bridesmaids at the marriage of her niece, Miss Bertha Schwartz, to A.B. Gunzendorfer.  Miss Steen was born in Santa Cruz and spent her childhood here.  Her home latterly has been in San Francisco.  She was a young lady of pleasant disposition, and she endeared herself to all who had the pleasure of meeting her.  In consequence of her death, the reception to Mr. and Mrs. Gunzendorfer at the residence of Miss Steen’s sister, Mrs. L. Schwartz, which was to have taken place this afternoon, has been indefinitely postponed.

And this from the San Francisco Chronicle, 3 Oct 1894, page 10.

STEEN – In this city, October 2, Dena, beloved daughter of Mrs. Hannah Steen and sister of Mrs. R. Schwartz of Santa Cruz, Samuel and Meyer A. Steen and Mrs. G. Samuels of Oakland, a native of San Francisco, aged 28 years.

Friends and acquaintances are respectfully invited to attend the funeral this day (Wednesday) at 1:30 o’clock from her late residence 407 Eddy Street.  Interment, Hills of Eternity Cemetery, by 3:30 o’clock train from Third and Townsend streets.

And that’s it – Dena’s short life was over.  What caused her sudden death?  Was she in some sort of accident?  Was she ill?  Did she commit suicide?  Of course I’d like nothing more than a copy of her death certificate but since she died in San Francisco prior to the earthquake in 1906, the record was almost certainly destroyed.  So now what?  If anyone has any suggestions, I’d love to hear from you.



Dena is buried with her mother, Hannah, in Hills of Eternity in Colma, California.  And next to them (to the right in the picture below) is her brother, Julius.



Dena, you have not been forgotten!

And now I’m 2!

Photo by Markus Reinhardt

I can’t believe it – 2 years ago today I started this blog.  Thanks once again to my friend, Kerry Scott, for pushing me to get started.  I’ve had a lot of fun, learned a lot, documented my discoveries for future generations, and found a few cousins along the way.  What a great experience this has been.

And in honor of my 2nd blogiversary, here’s a photo of my REAL 2nd birthday.



My sister looks so excited to be celebrating her little sister’s birthday – wonder if that was one of my gifts she was holding up or just what she’s so happy about.  That’s Shauna Powell on the left, my sister, and Tim Jackson, our next door neighbor.  And little ole me with the curly hair.

And now I’m on my way to 3!

Fearless Females: What I treasure!

Lisa Alzo at The Accidental Genealogist launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees in March, 2010. This year the series is being revisited in honor of National Women’s History Month and the purpose is to focus on the women in our lives and to make sure their stories are told.

Today’s prompt is from March 6: Describe an heirloom you may have inherited from a female ancestor (wedding ring or other jewelry, china, clothing, etc.) If you don’t have any, then write about a specific object you remember from your mother or grandmother, or aunt (a scarf, a hat, cooking utensil, furniture, etc.)



This is one of my most treasured items – the bracelet from my great grandmother, Bertha “Birdie” Schwartz.  Engraved on the bracelet is B S Graduated June, 1890 so this was a gift she received upon her high school graduation in 1890. 

Another item I treasure is the silver tea set that belonged to my grandmother, Loraine Gunzendorfer.  I remember when she passed away – we were going through her things and this tea set was shoved off into a corner since, apparently, no one cared about it or wanted it.  I asked about it and was told “take it – it doesn’t even match”.  So I did and I love it!



And who could forget the famous spoons that Grandma Loraine had.  These double as a spoon and a straw as the handle part is hollow so you could sip out of the spoon.



I’m sure these were intended for iced tea, but Grandma wouldn’t think of serving iced tea to two little girls.  So what did she serve to us?  Milkshakes!  We’d arrive at her house and the first thing she’d do is mix ice cream and milk for us and served the shakes with these spoons.  Of course, the concoction was way too thick to fit through the straw part but we’d try our best to get it out.  Finally we just gave up and used it as a spoon!   I’m sure my sister and I were the only ones with any memories of these spoons so we were happy to be able to share them after she passed away.

I have so many things from my ancestors that I love but these are items I’ve treasured and had in my home for 30 years.  I hope my kids and grandkids will treasure them, too.

Fearless Females: Working Girl

Lisa Alzo at The Accidental Genealogist launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees in March, 2010. This year the series is being revisited in honor of National Women’s History Month and the purpose is to focus on the women in our lives and to make sure their stories are told.

Today’s prompt is from March 12:  Did your mother or grandmother work outside the home? What did she do? Describe her occupation.

I know that my grandmother, Loraine Gunzendorfer, worked as a secretary as a young woman but from what I know, she didn’t really care about the job or occupation all that much.  My mother didn’t work as we were growing up but after we all moved out, she found her niche working part time in a book store.  Mom is a voracious reader to this day and I’m quite sure she spent her entire paycheck each week on new books!

But Mom’s mother, Clara Fitzgerald Martin Hunter, was a working girl as we were growing up.  Sure, she’d worked as a young woman as my mom was growing up – after all, she was divorced (not too common in the 1940’s) and raising a daughter on her own.  But it was her occupation while she was a grandma that always fascinated me – she was a chicken farmer!  She and her second husband, our step-grandfather, Shell (appropriate name for a chicken farmer) Hunter, raised hundreds or thousands of chickens and sold the eggs to local restaurants, grocery stores, and anyone else who would come along.

I really don’t know exactly how many chickens they had but I would guess it was over a thousand and maybe closer to two thousand.  There were chickens and eggs everywhere!  And boy did we love visiting so we could help with collecting the eggs, cleaning them, weighing them, and putting them into the boxes.  Then after they were put into a huge refrigerator, Grandpa would pile them in the car and off he’d go to deliver them.  I also have memories of people coming by to pick up dozens and dozens of eggs.

Boy this was a lot of work!  Grandma would spend hours “candling” the eggs to ensure there was no blood inside – it wouldn’t be too appetizing to have the restaurant serve an egg with a spot of blood on it.  Here’s Grandma at work in the candling room.



The lights were turned down as Grandma put each egg in to the lit container in order to see shadows of what was inside.  Then she’d turned it over and put the other end in and repeat the process.  This was a very delicate procedure and one we weren’t allowed to help with.  But while she was doing that, we’d sit at a table with baskets of eggs and one by one we’d clean them, careful not to break them.  And after they were candled, we'd weigh them and put them into batches of small, medium, large, extra large, and jumbo.  Our favorites were the “pee wees” – little ones about the size of a fifty cent piece.  We’d carefully take them home and share them at Show & Tell.

Here’s Grandpa Shell with his hens.  Looking at them now it doesn’t look too humane to have them all shoved in those cages but it was handy when they’d lay an egg and it would roll down into the trough.  We could walk by with a big egg basket and quickly collect lots of eggs.



There were also areas that were like a big stall where the hens would all run loose.  I don’t remember collecting eggs in there so they must have been the young chickens who weren’t producing yet.  I didn’t really like going in there as those birds would run around and sometimes even fly at you.

I know these chickens were a lot of work.  When we’d be visiting, Grandma and Grandpa would have someone come to the house to “chicken sit” if they wanted to go out to dinner with us.  And traveling even overnight was next to impossible for them.   I will always remember Grandma sitting in the warm Fresno sunshine, cleaning eggs while listening to her beloved San Francisco Giants on the radio.

I think Grandma and Grandpa must have rubbed off on me because we’ve raised chickens in the past.  It wasn’t a business for us but we did enjoy watching them interact with each other and our kids loved them, too.  And now that we’re grandparents, we’re passing the tradition on to our grandchildren as we’ll once again raise chickens so they can learn more about them.  10 days ago we became the proud owners of new chicks, all of whom have been claimed and named by the grandchildren.  It’s amazing how fast they grow as these chickens aren’t even two weeks old yet.



Some great memories with Grandma and Grandpa, chicken farmers!