Cabin Memories

I've written about The Cabin before. We just enjoyed a lovely weekend there. We spent time with Uncle Johnny, Aunt Julie, my brother Carl and his wife, Heather and daughter Emily and cousin Molly with her children, Grace and Logan. It was great weather, though a bit hot. We hiked, ate, talked, played in the creek and slept like babies. It all passed too quickly. Every time I go to the cabin, I'm reminded of the generations who were there before me. Recently, Mom brought some old photos for me to scan and many of them were taken at the cabin. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have.

John Borgreen, Bill Johnstone, Elvira Borgrren Whiting, Nell Johnstone Borgreen, Judy Borgreen, John Whiting

John Whiting, Carl Borgreen, Bill Johnstone, John Borgreen, Elvira Borgreen Whiting, Judy Borgreen

Nell Johnstone Borgreen

Jerry, Carl and Jimmy Borgreen

Bert, Jim, Steve, Rose Mary Johnstone and Nell Johnstone Borgreen

Carl Borgreen and Steve Johnstone

Jim Johnstone

Nell Johnstone Borgreen

Gust Borgreen

Gust, Nell and Carl Borgreen

Nell and Carl Borgreen



Carl Borgreen and Jack Johnstone

Nel and Carl Borgreen

Rare photos

                                   Ruth, Elvira, Ebba, and Carl Borgreen age 5 or 6 Borgreen home
Spent last weekend scanning a bunch of photos that Mom brought over to share. Some I'd seen and had copies of, but many were new to me. Many showed relatives who I'd never seen before. I was very excited to get this photo of some of the Borgreen siblings. I had no pictures of Ruth or Ebba. This photo dates to about 1912 and was taken in Great Falls MT.

Barking up the wrong tree...

Identified by Ruth Wellens, niece of Mary and Louise Marxer

The other day I logged onto Ancestry.com and was scrolling through recent activity when I came across this photo, posted by a distant cousin. "Aunt Louise" ie Louise Marxer; except I don't think it is Louise. I contacted my cousin and told her that I had this same photo and it was labeled "Mary Marxer". Mary and Louise were sisters and my grandfather, Edward Marxer, was their little brother.

I went digging through photo albums and boxes and found my copy of the photo so I could post it and my reasoning to my cousin. I also fished out other photos of Mary and posted them, as well. Then the wheels started turning and I began to remember snippets from research that I'd done years ago. More digging revealed photos of Louise and the story of how she and my grandmother, Marie Marxer (wife to Edward) where good friends. In fact, Louise was Marie's maid-of-honor and I had photos of that event. These are the only photos I've seen of Louise.

Identified by Marie Marxer, sister-in-law to Mary and Louise Marxer

Given that Grandma Marie Marxer was such good friends with Louise and later became sister-in-law to both Mary and Louise, I have to believe that she knew the identity of the person in the photograph. The neice, Ruth, knew them as well, but was much  younger and may have confused the two. I'll post more pics of both women and let you be the judge.

Now for the "barking up the wrong tree" end of this tale. The photo prompted me to delve into the family of Louise and I found her married to Harold B. Hobbs. But my Harold and my cousin's Harold were not the same person. So I went looking for more proof and found their marriage record on Familysearch.org. This was the proof I needed to confirm that I had the right Harold, afterall. I could have to easily been lead down the wrong path, tracing a line that was not related in any way, shape or form. I've posted all my findings on Ancestry and am happy to note that my cousin is making corrections, as I would have done, had the table turned the other way. Its not about being right, its about recording what is true and accurate.

Ok, now for more pics of Mary and Louise Marxer.

Louise Marxer 1935

Louise Marxer 1935

Louise Marxer 1935

Louise Marxer 1935

Mary Marxer

Mary Marxer



Mary Marxer

Mary Marxer

Facebook Family History Group Pages

So I did an inventory of the number of family members I was connected to on Facebook and decided that the Johnstone family line needed a family history group page. We are at 11 members to date and a New-To-Me relative was added by my cousin. Bonus. I've been adding old family photos, scans of documents and family history information so everyone can see the research that's been done. I'll be posting questions to the elder family members in hopes of solving a few history mysteries too. Here's hoping they step up and share what they know.

What the What?

Email from Uncle Johnny,

"Hi Judy & Jennie & Jimmy, Here is the info on the lady that called 
seeking info on the brothel that Grandpa Gus was supposed to have next 
to the blacksmith shop.

Get busy Jennie , we need FACTS !!!!! A group is doing a history on 
the brothel's on the lower south side and this is what they have 
learned so far.

Grandpa had owned the house next to the shop and had an ice cream 
parlor on the ground floor and black girls upstairs. Most ot the 
customer's were black porter;s from the rail road.

He started it because he saw how much money the place across the 
street was making in there " house " !



Johnny ,"

Of course the search was on. City directories show that Gust and family lived at 303 3rd Av S. from around 1906 (no record for 1905) until 1913. By 1914 they were living at 709 2nd Ave. South. The blacksmith shop was at 301 3rd Av S., which would have been right next door.
This sketch was found on pintrest. It was pinned by the researcher, ReAnn, in Johnny's email. I've sent an email to ReAnn, requesting any info she's willing/able to share and also her sources for this information. At first glance it looks like the info was provided by J. Wiseman. He is probably a generation or two removed from the actual source and that brings his story into question. The next logical step is to do a title search on the property to see if Gust retained ownership of it for all those years. I also want to search tax rolls for those years. Hopefully will get to the bottom of this mystery soon.

http://pinterest.com/pin/65935582016421086/

 

Starting the year off with a bang

I was so happy to sign into Ancestry.com and find an offer for a 6-month subscription for $49. Heck yes and happy upcoming birthday to me. I've been busy attaching records from there. I've also been busy looking at obituaries at Familysearch.org. The content on Family Search continues to impress me. It all feels very good after a big dry spell. Happy New Year everyone.

Happy 2013

Happy New Year