The Importance of a Wedding Veil to Family Historians

My sister-in-law is helping her mother with a very special project. They are creating a scrapbook of 48 women in their family who have worn the same wedding veil in each of their weddings.  The scrapbook will accompany the veil as it continues to be passed down through generations.  They have photos of all the women in the family wearing the veil - except for one.

Her name is Jeanette Augusta Meier, the daughter of Abraham Meier and Minnie Eising.  She was born in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon on 26 November 1902.  Jeanette is the granddaughter of Aaron Meier and Janette Hirsch.  Aaron Meier came to Portland in 1857 and later with  Sigmond Frank founded the Meier & Frank department stores in 1873.  

The Meier family were Jewish pioneers from Bavaria and very  prominent socially.  Aaron and Janette's son Julius Meier became the 20th governor of Oregon in 1931.

Jeanette Augusta Meier

Jeanette Meier was married to Walter David Heller on 14 November 1922 in Portland, Oregon.

Walter Heller, born 18 September 1894 in San Francisco, California to Moses Heller and Adele Walter.  Walter is the grandson of Martin Heller and Babette Kuper.  Martin Heller was a Bavarian Jew who came to San Francisco in the 1850's.  He was president of Congregation Emanuel in San Francisco from 1876 until his death in 1894.  The Heller family was also very socially prominent in San Francisco.

Since the bride was from Oregon and the groom from California, I have been trying to cover both areas.  I have searched these newspaper collections online:

• Chronicling America   http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/

• Historic Oregon Newspapers   http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/

• Californai Digital Newspaper Collection

   http://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc/

• ProQuest Historic San Francisco Chronicle online

I found several articles about the wedding, but no photos.  I have also contacted the Jewish Genealogical Society of Oregon, the Oregon Jewish Museum, and the Oregon Historical Society, and no luck there either.  I tried the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the Bancroft Library on the University of California at Berkeley campus.   The collection had previously been housed in the old Magnes Museum in Berkeley.  I was told that the materials are as yet unprocessed and there's no way of telling whether this collection contains the photo I am looking for.

So I have reached out to people who might be able to help.  Like Janice Sellers who is the author of Ancestral Discoveries.  Janice is currently the vice president of the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogy Society and has promised to spread the word.

If you know of any resource that I might try, please let me know.  There has to be a photo of Jeanette Augusta Meier Heller on her wedding day wearing that veil out there somewhere!

And the Award for County Clerk of the Year Goes To. . .

Jarrod Fritz

County Clerk of Fleming County, Kentucky

This morning I sent an email to Mr. Fritz requesting information on how to obtain a copy of a marriage record from his office dated 1818.  

Four hours later I received a reply with the marriage record in question scanned and sent as an attachment to the email.  

When I replied back asking how much I owed the County of Fleming, he replied that it was "On The House."

I have to tell you it was the nicest thing anyone has done for me in some time -  I got warm fuzzies all over!

Thank you Mr. Fritz! 

I LOVE A PARADE!

For the past 48 years, Nevada City, California has held its annual Constitution Day Parade.  It is reported to be the oldest and largest Constitution observance in West of the Rockies.

Since my mother lives up in the area of Nevada City, my husband and I drove up there from Stockton today and brought her with us to watch the parade.  Although the weather was very warm, the skies were a beautiful blue in the Sierra Nevada foothills today.

My very pathetic & lame attempt at a selfie of me and my husband.

The judges review stand.  

This marching band traveled 250 miles - Watsonville, California to Nevada City, California - to be in the parade!

Love the authentic Revolutionary War era costumes.

The Ophir Prison Marching Kazoo Band & Temperance Society - these guys are not really prisoners and most certainly are  not temperate, but they are a most excellent marching band!

Above is Barack Obama and FLOTUS, the tail end of over 150 people who portrayed all 44 U.S. Presidents and their First Ladies. No you aren't seeing things - that is a cardboard cut-out of Michelle Obama! The Famous Marching Presidents of Nevada City, California  describe themselves as " a unique collection of citizens who see it as their civic responsibility to portray the 44 Presidents of the United States and their first ladies in honor of Constitution Day, the signing of the document that frames this country."

The parade had over 75 entries from all over California including two high school marching bands and a couple of elementary schools as well.  The wonderful Shriners were there, some dressed as clowns and driving in their little cars.  There were antique automobiles, fire trucks and horse drawn carriages.  There were politicians riding in shiny new convertibles.  The Captain John Oldham Chapter, NSDAR marched in the parade with a 15ft x 21ft recreation of the U.S. Flag that flew over Ft. McHenry when Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner in 1814.  It had 15 stripes and 15 stars.  This year marks the 200th anniversary of the Star Spangled Banner!

Two Weeks in September - Great Happenings in Stockton, California

There is a an old saying around my neck of the woods - "Nobody comes to Stockton on purpose."  Well I think that many minds may be changed when they learn about some great events coming up in the next two weeks.

Thursday, September 18th - 6:00 pm - Troke Library, 502 West Benjamin Holt, Stockton

The San Joaquin Genealogical Society will have its first meeting after the summer break.  Local author and historian Barbara Filbin will discuss San Joaquin County Pioneer Cemeteries.  Ms. Filbin has published 19 books, the most recent being "Four Lost Pioneer Cemeteries in Northern San Joaquin County, California.

Friday, September 19th - 5:00 pm - Chavez Central Library, 605 North El Dorado Street, Stockton

There is going to be a whole lot of celebrating going on! The downtown Stockton Cesar Chavez Central Library will be turning 50 years old -- FIFTY AND FABULOUS!!!! Mark your calendars and come spend an evening with them!

Saturday, September 20th - 9:00 am - University Park, corner of California and Magnolia Streets, Stockton

17th Annual Family Fun Day at the Park - There will be so much going on it is best to check out the website and see for yourself all the great activities.  The day will start off with a parade led by  Clifford the Big Red Dog, the mascot of University of the Pacific - Power Cat, dancing clowns and more!

Family Day at the Park

Saturday, September 27th - Free Admission to Participating Museums sponsor by the Smithsonian Magazine.

To receive your free Museum Day Live! ticket for two people you must register at their website.  Once registered, you simply choose the museum you want to visit and download your tickets.  

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

As a gift for participating in Museum Day Live, you will receive the digital edition of Smithsonian magazine free for one year with no obligation, beginning with the October edition. 

In San Joaquin County, the museum participating is:

The Haggin Museum at Victory Park, 1201 North Pershing Way, Stockton

Haggin Museum Website

Vote For Best Blog With County Clerk Information

Have you checked out my page on California County Clerks?
If you like what I've done then take a minute to vote for me - The Educated Genealogist - at the County-Clerks.com website.  County-Clerks.com is a directory of every single county clerk's office in the United States.

Help County-county clerks contestClerks.com decide who has the best genealogy site on the web! The entry with the most votes (entry in 1st position) by September 30, 12:00AM EST will be rewarded a $50 Amazon Gift Card. Second place (site in 2nd position) a $25 Amazon Gift Card.

To cast your vote for the best blog with county clerk information click HERE.

Great Indexing Project, GeneaSleepover and Lineage Societies

If you have been living under a rock lately, maybe you haven't heard about the FamilySearch Great Indexing Project.  The goal is for 50,000 people to index just one batch of records in a 24 hour period beginning Sunday July 20th at 6:00 pm and ending Monday July 21st at 6:00 pm.

To help this project along, Dear Myrtle is having a first ever "GeneaSleepover" via Google hangouts.  She and her cousin Russ Worthington will be in the hangout for 24 hours talking about everything genealogy and also serving as cheerleaders for the indexers.

 She has invited oodles of people to help keep the hangout going.  I was thrilled to be invited to appear on GeneaSleepover.  I will be joining Myrt and Russ at 6:15 am Pacific time.  The topic of discussion for this segment is all about lineage societies.

Below is a very brief list of some of the more popular lineage societies:

NationalSociety Daughters of the American Revolution - 

Any woman age 18 and over who can prove direct blood lineage to a patriot ancestor who performed military or patriotic service between 1775 to 1783.

The application must be submitted with documentation to support each and every NAME, DATES and PLACES of BIRTH, MARRIAGE and DEATH.  The documentation must also show a link from child to parent in each generation from the applicant to the patriot ancestor.

NationalSociety of the Colonial Dames of America 

ny woman eighteen years of age or over and is descended from an ancestor who came to reside in an American Colony before 1750, and whose services were rendered during the Colonial Period.

Daughtersof Union Veterans of the Civil War 1861-1865 

Direct descendants of honorably discharged soldiers, sailors, and marines who served in the Union Army or navy during the War of the Rebellion of 1861-1865.

GeneralSociety of Mayflower Descendants 

An applicant for membership must be over eighteen years of age and show proof of direct descent from one of the Mayflower passengers.

Ladiesof the Grand Army of the Republic  

Membership is open to female descendants, and legally adopted daughters, ten years of age or over, of honorably discharged Union soldiers, sailors and marines of the Civil War, 1861 to 1865

NationalSociety Colonial Dames XVII Century 

Any woman eighteen years of age or over and is the lineal descendant of an ancestor who lived and served prior to 1701 in one of the Original Colonies.

NationalSociety Daughters of the American Colonists  

members are descendants of a man or woman who rendered patriotic or civil service to the American Colonies prior to 4 July 1776.

UnitedDaughters of the Confederacy 

Women no less than sixteen years of age who are blood descendants, lineal or collateral, of men and women who served honorably in the Army, Navy or Civil Service of the Confederate States of America, or gave Material Aid to the Cause. 

My Patriot Acestors

Randy Seaver over at GenaMusings posted an article about his Revolutionary War ancestors.

What a great idea to honor our ancestors who in some way or another aided in the cause for freedom.

I have a few patriot ancestors myself and want to share them with you.

PETER BESS - 6th great grandfather

Born 1758 and died 17 February 1832 in Lincoln County, North Carolina.  He had 3 wives:  Christina Whittenburg, Elizabeth Forney and Leanna van Dyke Jenkins.  I descend through his son Boston Bess and his wife Polly Carpenter. Peter provided material aid.

JOHN TEETER BEAM - 7th great grandfather

Born 1732 in Hamburg, Germany and died 15 November 1807 in Lincoln County, North Carolina.  John had 2 wives:  Rebecca Raynolds and Elizabeth Rudolph.  I descend through his son John Derrick Beam and his wife Mary Hoyle.  John signed an Oath of Allegiance.

DAVID BOWLES - 7th great grandfather

Born 1730 in New Kent County, Virginia and died January 1807 in Bourbon County, Kentucky.  He was married to Winnie Minerva Rice.  I descend through his son Jesse Bowles and his wife Hannah Perkins. David was a Captain in the Virginia Militia.

CHRISTIAN CARPENTER - 7th great grandfather

Born 1725 in Switzerland and died 15 July 1799 in Lincoln County, North Carolina. Christian was married to Mary Kiser.  I descend through his son Peter Carpenter and his wife Susanna Cox.  Christian furnished supplies.

TOLLIVER CRAIG - 7th great grandfather

Born 1704 and died 5 August 1799 in Woodford County, Kentucky.  He was married to Mary Polly Hawkins.  I descend through his daughter Joyce Craig and her husband John Faulconer.  Tolliver was a defender of Bryant Station in 1782.

MARY POLLY HAWKINS CRAIG - 7th great grandmother

Born 1716 in King William County, Virginia and died 1 January 1804 in Scott County, Kentucky.  She was married to Tolliver Craig.  I descend through her daughter Joyce Craig and her husband John Faulconer. Mary carried water to the soldiers at Bryant's Station in 1782.

BAYLIS EARLE - 6th great grandfather

Born 5 August 1734 in Westmoreland County, Virginia and died 6 January 1825 in Spartanburg District, South Carolina.  He was married to Mary Prince.  I descend through his daughter Anna Nancy Earle and her husband Ephraim Timothy Rees.  Baylis was a footman, Cavalary Horseman and furnished a wagon and team for the militia.

NATHANIEL HAYDEN - 6th great grandfather

Born 21 February 1726 in Braintree, Suffolk County, Massachusetts and died 5 September 1812 at Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.  He was married to Zerviah Sutton.  I descend through his son Barnabus Hayden and his wife Sarah McClellan.  Nathaniel loaned money for the war effort.

MICHAEL HOYLE - 7th great grandfather

Born 12 January 1732 in Germany and died 12 March 1792 in Lincoln County, North Carolina.  He was married to Margaret Dellinger.  I descend through his daughter Mary Hoyle and her husband John Derrick Beam.  Michael furnished supplies.

BATSON NAYLOR - 6th great grandfather

Born May 1759 in Maryland and died 7 November 1830 in Davie County, North Carolina.  He was married to Eleanor Austin Smith.  I descend through his son Benjamin Naylor and his wife Mary W. Rhodes. Batson took an Oath of Fidelity.

EPHRAIM TIMOTHY REES - 5th great grandfather

Born 17 September 1755 in South Carolina and died 21 April 1823 in Trigg County, Kentucky.  He was married to Anna Nancy Earle.  I descend through his son Thomas Prince Earle Rees and his wife Mariah Fristoe.  Ephraim was an Adjutant & Brigade Commissary.

JOSEPH REES - 6th great grandfather

Born 1732 in Duck Creek, Kent County, Delaware and died 5 March 1795 in Camden District, Richland County, South Carolina.  He was married to Ann Reynolds.  I descend through his son Ephraim Timothy Rees and his wife Anna Nancy Earle.  Joseph was a member of the South Carolina General Assembly.

EPAPHRODITUS RHODES - 6th great grandfather

Born 1735 in Christ Church Parish, Middlesex County, Virginia and died 1816 in Albemarle County, Virginia.  He was married to Ann White.  I descend through his daughter Mary W. Rhodes and her husband Benjamin Naylor.  Epaphroditus provided material aid.

RICHARD THOMAS - 5th great grandfather

Born 19 October 1758 in Orange County, North Carolina and died 13 November 1843 in Bath County, Kentucky.  He was married to Elizabeth Bowles.  I descend through his daughter Sarah Anderson Thomas and her husband Lewis Wilson.  Richard served as a Private in the 6th North Carolina Regiment.  Richard's brother was General Philemon Thomas who became famous during the War of 1812.

HENRY WILSON - 5th great grandfather

Born 1 March 1754 in Augusta County, Virginia and died 1 November 1848 in Flat Rock, Bourbon County, Kentucky.  He was married to Frances Faulconer.  I descend through his son Lewis Wilson and his wife Sarah Anderson Thomas.  Henry served as a Private, a Sergeant and an Indian Spy.

ABNER WOMACK - 5th great grandfather

Born 7 January 1764 in Prince Edward County, Virginia and died 14 February 1845 at Butler County, Kentucky.  He was married to Agnes Nancy Reed.  I descend through his daughter Camilla Womack and her husband Peter Solomon.  Abner served as a Private in North Carolina.

6 Generations of my Maternal Line

Top L to R:  3rd gg Margaret Dilks Robinson, 2nd gg Laura Robinson Berry, 

                   gg Hazel Berry Harris

Bottom L to R: grandmother Mary Ellen Harris Skillman, my mother, and me

Today, over at the Olive Tree Genealogy Blog, author Lorine McGinnis proudly showed off 6 generations of her maternal line.  

I am fortunate to have photos of 6 generations of my maternal line to show off as well.  

My 3rd great grandmother is MARGARET DILKS.  She was born 16 May 1839 in Pittsburgh, Alleghney County, Pennsylvania to Arthur Dilks and Margaret Bowman.  On 28 August 1855 in the same city, Margaret married David Robinson, a recent Irish immigrant.

Their daughter, my 2nd great grandmother, LAURA CORDELIA ROBINSON was born 12 June 1862 in Pittsburgh.  The family moved to Des Moines County, Iowa the next year.  David became the blacksmith in Dodgeville which is located outside Burlington.

On 19 September 1880, Laura Robinson married William Campbell Berry II.  Their daughter, my great grandmother, HAZEL BERRY was born near Burlington on 15 July 1896.  Sometime before 1900 the Berry family moved to Allen County, Kansas.

It was there that Hazel married Hillary T. Harris on 4 November 1915 in Iola, Allen County, Kansas.  They moved across the county line to Bronson, Bourbon County which is where my grandmother, MARY ELLEN HARRIS was born on 29 September 1916.  

The Harris family moved to Garnett, Anderson County where my grandmother graduated from Garnett High School in 1934.  The day after graduating, Mary Ellen and her best friend packed a bag and went to Wichita where they both became employees of Fred Harvey as "Harvey Girls."

In 1935, when my grandfather, Darrell Kenneth Skillman, graduated from Garnett High School, he went directly to Wichita and brought my grandmother back to Garnett where they were married on 4 November 1935.

Their oldest daughter is my mother who married my father and it is from that union that I am here today.  

The Power of a Community and Social Media

I live in Stockton, California.  The City of Stockton, for the most part, doesn't ever get good press.  It has been said more than once - "No one comes to Stockton on purpose."

Well just this week a very good thing happened.  A mysterious appearance of a headstone in the parking lot of a local tire shop brought different people from the community together to return the headstone where it belonged.

A City of Stockton work crew, a city inspector, a community service officer with the Stockton Police Department, a member of the San Joaquin Genealogical Society and the Facebook group called Stockton Memories.  They all worked together to solve the mystery.

You can read the story HERE.

The Naturalization Puzzle

UPDATE:  Judy Russell, The Legal Genealogist, was kind enough to answer my questions regarding the status of Elizabeth Hobrock Borgstadter's citizenship.  Scroll down and read her comments.  Thank you Judy!

I recently wrote about my 2nd great grandfather Fred Borgstadter and my quest to determine whether he became a U.S. citizen before he died in 1929.  You can read about it HERE.  Go ahead and click over and read the short post so you are up to speed and can follow along with my new puzzle.

The other day, I came across a post from Jennifer Holick who shared a story from the Los Angeles Times about a man who is trying restore his grandmother's U.S. citizenship posthumously because it was taken away from her  when she married a man who was not a U.S. citizen.

After reading the article I wondered if my 2nd great grandmother, Fred's wife,  had her U.S. citizenship restored before she died in 1932.

Here is what I know for certain:

• Elizabeth was born in Beardstown, Cass County, Illinois.
• Fred Borgstadter filed a Declaration of Intent in 1880 in Cass County, Illinois
• Fred married Elizabeth Hobrock in 1881 in Cass County, Illinois.  Fred filed his Intent the previous year but was not a U.S. citizen at this time.
• Fred and Elizabeth Borgstadter BOTH had to register as enemy aliens in 1918 in Lincoln County, Kansas.  In the previous post, I showed Fred's file.  Below is a page from Elizabeth's.

Fred Borgstadter filed a Petition for Citizenship on 12 February 1921 and on 18 May 1921 signed the Oath of Allegiance and became a U.S. Citizen.  But what about Elizabeth?

The Expatriation Act of 1907 defines the citizenship of women married to foreigners. Women assume the citizenship of their husbands, and a woman with US citizenship forfeits it if she marries a foreigner, unless he becomes naturalized.

So in 1907 Elizabeth lost her U.S. citizenship.  Can you imagine what she must have felt when that law was enacted?  By 1907 she and Fred had been married for almost 30 years, had 4 children and had moved to Lincoln County, Kansas where they were farmers and well known and respected in their community.

Ten years later in 1917 - to add insult to injury - they are both required to report to the U.S. Marshall.  They fill out a long form, are fingerprinted, have a "mug shot" taken and are issued ID cards they they must carry on their person at all times identifying them as enemy aliens of the United States.

When Fred was naturalized in 1921, Elizabeth was legally an alien also.  Was her citizenship restored to her when Fred became a citizen?  Would there be a record of that somewhere?

The 1907 Expatriation Act was repealed in 1922 by the Cable Act.  This was also known as the "Married Women's Act," and three important changes were made:

1. Women no longer naturalized through derivative citizenship, but must apply for their own citizenship. If married, she did not need a declaration.

2. Women no longer lost citizenship through marrying an alien, unless her husband was ineligible to become a citizen.

3. Women who lost their citizenship to an alien eligible could be naturalized and did not need a certificate of arrival if she had lived continuously in the US

If Elizabeth had her citizenship restored to her through this act, there would have been a court record.  Women who lost citizenship by marriage and regained it under Cable Act naturalization provisions had to take the Oath of Allegiance and file it in any naturalization court--regardless of her residence.  

The Cable Act was amended in 1931, allowing females to retain their citizenship, even after marrying "aliens ineligible for U.S. citizenship.  So was her citizenship restored to her under this act?

So the questions I am looking to answer are:

Is there a record from 1907 showing that Elizabeth's U.S. citizenship was taken away from her?  

Was her citizenship restored when Fred became a citizen in 1921?  If so then would there be a document showing that?

If  it wasn't restored when Fred became a citizen, then when and under what law was it restored to her?

Elizabeth died in 1932.  I hope that she didn't die without her U.S. Citizenship rightfully restored to her.  

Judy G. Russell said...

>>Is there a record from 1907 showing that Elizabeth's U.S. citizenship was taken away from her?

It's called "a marriage certificate." Seriously. The instant she married a non-citizen, she automatically lost her US citizenship under the Expatriation Act of 1907 (34 Stat. 1228, section 3 ("any American woman who married a foreigner shall take the nationality of her husband").

>> Was her citizenship restored when Fred became a citizen in 1921?

Yes, automatically on his naturalization. Well, not exactly restored; she was considered naturalized (so it wasn't restoring her native-born citizen status).

>> If so then would there be a document showing that?

Nothing except his naturalization certificate.

There's a wonderful two-part article in Prologue, the magazine of NARA, written by Marian Smith of USCIS on this. It starts here  and is well worth reading.

Judy G. Russell said...

Let me throw in one more wrinkle here: the actual fact is that Elizabeth never did lose her citizenship. The courts eventually decided that the 1907 act only applied to women who married after 1907. But it was an open question for a long time, many people (including courts and government officials) interpreted it as applying to any woman who ever married a non-citizen, and Fred and Elizabeth may have simply assumed that Elizabeth also had to register as an alien. But in reality, given the way the law was ultimately interpreted, the fact is she never lost her citizenship.