The Book of Me, Written By You - Prompt 13: Special People / Iconic Figures

 

The Book of Me, Written By You
Prompt 13: Special People / Iconic Figures

 

"The Book of Me, Written By You" is a GeneaBloggers project created by Julie Goucher of the Anglers Rest blog. The concept: a series of blogging and writing prompts that help family historians capture their own memories and write about themselves.



Prompt 13: Special People / Iconic Figures

This week’s prompt is Special People / Iconic Figures

    •    If you had to hold a dinner party and could invite a maximum of 12 special people who would you invite?
    •    You can NOT include family in this – the special people could be famous or historical people.
    •    What meals would you serve and why.
    •    Perhaps include the recipe or a photo if you decided to actually cook the items!


I'm just going to provide my list of 12 people without comment.
You may comment, if you like! ;-)

John Quincy Adams
Tom Hanks
Bill Clinton
Thomas Jefferson
Teddy Roosevelt
Harry Truman
Albert Einstein
Henry Ford
Harrison Ford
Hillary Clinton
Ida M. Tarbull
Sandra Day O'Conner


Families are Forever!

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday - Thanksgivings past (1941, 2003)

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday

Thanksgivings past

1941 - 2003

Happy Thanksgiving 2013!

What fun! I put "Thanksgiving" in my image finder and these two came up!

[Titled: Thanksgiving - 1941 - kids]

 This is Lohrville, Iowa - 1941 - Uncle Leo Kinnick's house. Especially appropriate, because cousin Dennis Ford (upper left; on the stump, lower left) will celebrate his 75th Birthday on Sunday, December 1, 2013. That is me, Bill, upper right, in front of that neat car!! I'm also in the lower left, as well... the cute kid, of course! Lower right is cousin Karen Kinnick, on the right, and her neighbor, on the left.

[Titled: Thanksgiving - 2003 in Branson]

From the left: Larry Johnson, Annette Lamb, Bill Smith, Nancy Smith, Ben Rathsack, and Arrion Rathsack, using automatic setting on Annette's Camera, I think, at the time... technology constantly challenges...  ;-)

Families are Forever!  ;-)

Hometown Monday - Old Carrollton School in final days

Hometown Monday

Old Carrollton School in final days

 

From: Coon Rapids Enterprise, Thursday, November 14, 2013. Front Page Story:

Sometime next summer the 1937 Carrollton School House will disappear from the rural landscape, following action by the Carrollton Community Heritage Club at their October 28 meeting. After nearly a decade of effort trying to save the building, the group dedicated to preserve the memories of the Carrollton Community have realized the task is too large and
expensive to achieve.

“Our intentions were to refurbish the building, maybe put an apartment in there, maybe a
community center,” said Rosemary Paulsen, one of the members of the CCHC.

The group even spent money in 2006 to have asbestos removed from the building in hopes that a renovation could eventually take place.

“We had all kinds of plans, of course, but we had no real money and the building continued
to deteriorate,” Paulsen added. “I hate it. It’s really sad. It’s the last standing public building in Carrollton. It would have been nice to save it,” Paulsen said.

The final straw, Paulsen said, was a report from Sebern Structural Services of Panora, who
was commissioned to document the deterioration and provide necessary costs to rehabilitate.
From there, the group solicited bids for demolition and the one from Mike Daniels was accepted.
Paulsen said he’ll fit the job into his schedule and will have it down by next summer.

Carrollton, the first county seat in Carroll County, had a school as early as 1856. In 1909 a consolidated school in Carrollton was built and in 1936 it burned down. It was replaced with this all-brick building and for many years it had 10 grades, although in the last years it was limited to eight grades. It closed in 1959.

Paulsen said that now plans for the demolition have been made, new ideas for the school property can begin in earnest. Not surprisingly, several have already been made, such as making an historical interpretative park or maybe shelterhouse. Many other ideas will circulate when the large group of Carrollton enthusiasts gather for the ‘Old Settlers’
Picnic’ on August 16 of next year.

In the meantime, Carrollton Community Heritage Club members can continue to enjoy
the Old Carrollton Park which it has developed on property which once was home to the
community’s first grocery store.


Families are Forever! ;-)

The Book of Me, Written By You - Prompt 12: The Year You Were Born

The Book of Me, Written By You
Prompt 12: The Year You Were Born

 "The Book of Me, Written By You" is a GeneaBloggers project created by Julie Goucher of the Anglers Rest blog. The concept: a series of blogging and writing prompts that help family historians capture their own memories and write about themselves.

Prompt 12: The Year You Were Born
This week’s prompt is The year you were born
What happened:
    •    Historical
    •    Films
    •    Music
    •    Books
    •    Television

The Year was 1939… (per Wikipedia) Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939

Jan 1 - Hewlett-Packard is founded as an electronic company in Palo Alto, CA
Jan 24 - An earthquake kills 30,000 in Chile
Mar 3 - In Bombay, Mohandas Gandhi begins a fast protesting against British rule in India
Apr 14 - John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath is first publishes
Apr 30 - The 1939 New York World's Fair opens
May 1- Batman, created by Bob Kane, makes his first appearance in a comic book
May 2 - Lou Gehrig ends his 2,130 consecutive baseball game streak, he has ALS
Jun 6 - The first Little League Baseball game is played in Williamsport, PA
Jun 12 - The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is officially dedicated in Cooperstown, NY
Jul 1 - Dr. Bill is born in Iowa
Jul 2 - The 1st World Science Fiction Convention opens in NYC
Jul 3 - Theodore Roosevelt's head is dedicated at Mount Rushmore
Aug 2 - Albert Einstein writes to U. S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt about developing the atomic bomb using uranium. This leads to the creation of the Manhattan Project
Sep 1 - Nazi Germany invades Poland - beginning WWII
Sep 28 - Warsaw surrenders to Germany
Oct 17 - Mr. Smith Goes to Washington premieres in Washington, D.C.
Oct 24 - Nylon stockings go on sale for the first time anywhere in Wilmington, Delaware
Nov 15 - In Washington, D.C., U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt lays the cornerstone of the Jefferson Memorial
Nov 16 - Al Capone is released from Alcatraz, due to deteriorating health caused by syphilus
Dec 15 - The film Gone with the Wind premieres at Loew's Grand Theatre in Atlanta, GA


... and lots, lots more... see link! ;-)

Families are Forever!

Shared Memories of JFK Assassination for GeneaBloggers

Shared Memories of JFK Assassination for GeneaBloggers

 

 

Our GeneaBlogger leader, Genealogy Ninja Thomas MacEntee, has asked that those of us with memories of that day, 22 November 1963, share whatever memories we do have. He was too young at the time, to have memories of his own. We are to include a relevant image, as well, as the memories will be collected at Pinterest.

 

I was a young officer in the United States Air Force, on that day, working in my green office, at my green desk, with a radio on another green desk, not too far away, in our series of semi-trailer vans that made up our radar unit. This was a Radar Bomb Scoring detachment, part of the Strategic Air Command. Our location was a mesa west of and above St. George, Utah. We had earlier (a couple of months) moved from another Mesa located west of Winslow, Arizona. We had two officers and 25-30 enlisted men in our detachment. [I also had a wife and young daughter, at our home, in town]

The only really clear memory is standing around that radio, shocked to hear of the assassination attempt, and awaiting the (unbelievable, but nearly inevitable) news of Kennedy's death. The rest is a blur. Shock always is.


Families are Forever! ;-)

75 Years Ago This Week - November 15, 1938

75 Years Ago This Week

November 15, 1938

75 Years Ago This Week began March 1, 1938 - my mother and father were preparing to get married later in the month. I'm continuing this meme, from time to time, as issues warrant.

[Image: Babe Towne Baseball Card]

From Page 5, Coon Rapids Enterprise, Thursday, November 14, 2013:


75 Years Ago
November 4, 1938


No longer will “Babe” Towne, former Chicago White Sox catcher, be the center of attraction at
our annual baseball reunions. [See: 5 prior stories here on Babe Towne!]

“Babe” is gone. In the language of the diamond which he loved so well, he “struck out” suddenly from a heart attack while sitting in his car in front of the Textor’s cafe last Saturday afternoon.

“Babe” had been working for the Pioneer Hybrid Seed Corn Co. at Spencer the past couple of months where he was rated as one of the best salesmen. Saturday, with his wife, he returned to Coon Rapids to start his campaign for sheriff as the Republican nominee. Sitting in his car he was happily greeting an old friend when his heart failed him without warning. Ed Zavitz who was with him at the time called Dr. Wolfe who arrived almost immediately but too late to be of assistance.

Funeral services were held 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Coder funeral home here, conducted by the Rev. O.E. Cooley.

A Masonic escort accompanied the body. Interment was made in Spencer. Jay King Towne son of Dr. E.B. and Angeline Towne, was born at Coon Rapids, March 12, 1880. He passed away October 29, 1938. He grew up in Coon Rapids and graduated from the local schools.

After playing ball around Coon Rapids for about two years he went to Rock Rapids where he played his first professional ball. In 1901, he played ball in Madison, SD. He continued to play until 1903 at which time an opportunity came to him to play with Des Moines in the Western League. In 1905, he played with Milwaukee in the American Association, coming back to Des Moines in 1906. In the middle of that summer he went to the Chicago White Sox as a catcher and played until the end of the season. Following this he played several years of minor league baseball.

After retiring, he went to Sioux City where he was in partnership with Tom Fairweather, owning the Western Franchise at that place. On December 23, 1926 he was married to Nettie Lilly. After living in a number of places, they established their home at Coon Rapids in 1934 where they continued to live until recently when they moved to Spencer.

[image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Babe_Towne.jpg]

"In July 1906, Towne was batting .357 when he was purchased by the Chicago White Sox. He played in 14 games and also pinch-hit once in the 1906 World Series, which the White Sox won."
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babe_Towne

Note: Wikipedia article erroneously states that he died in Des Moines, Iowa; same date.


Families are Forever!  ;-)

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday - Book Blog Tour Upcoming

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday - Book Blog Tour Upcoming

[Click image to go directly to Amazon.com]

See what people are saying about this new Christmas book, based on our family history research and life experiences. It is historical fiction in "The Homeplace Saga" series, but you very well may recognized some folks from your own family and the world around you as you get involved with these family activities.

Amazon Review by Jennifer Alfrod:

"Getting an advance copy of "Christmas at the Homeplace" was a real treat. Though I hadn't read any of Dr. Bill's previous books I found the characters easy to get to know and I was soon asking, "What happens next?" As a genealogist, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the start of a local genealogical and historical society in the town. I also enjoyed learning about the unique challenges of a family running a large Trust in the town. Now that I've read this book, it is just a matter of time before I go back and read his others."



Here is the tentative schedule for the upcoming tour, running from November 15-25:

Thursday, Nov 14 - Tour Schedule at The Homeplace Saga blog

Friday, Nov 15 - Tour Schedule at Dr. Bill's Book Bazaar blog with YouTube video

Monday, Nov 18 - Interview with Jessica at Literaryetc.com 

Tuesday, Nov 19  - Guest Post with Lisa DuVal at I Feel So Unnecessary

Wednesday, Nov 20 - Review with Lisa DuVal at I Feel So Unnecessary

Thursday, Nov 21 - Guest Post with Kayla Emerson at Green Mountain Couple

Friday, Nov 22 - Review with Julie Goucher at Anglers Rest

Saturday, Nov 23 - Review with Mindy Wall at Books, Books, and More Books

Sunday, Nov 24 - Guest Post with Brandee Price at Bookworm Brandee

Monday, Nov 25 - Tour Wrap-Up at Dr. Bill's Book Bazaar blog

Hope you join us on the tour, each day!

Families are Forever! ;-)

The Book of Me, Written By You - Prompt 11: Military

The Book of Me, Written By You
Prompt 11: Military

 

 

[I am third from right; leaders of RBS Express radar train]

"The Book of Me, Written By You" is a GeneaBloggers project created by Julie Goucher of the Anglers Rest blog. The concept: a series of blogging and writing prompts that help family historians capture their own memories and write about themselves.


Prompt 11: Military
This week’s prompt is Military
    •    Did you join the military?
    ◦    Were you encouraged or discouraged?



I participated in the Air Force ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) at Iowa State University, as an integral part of my college/university education. It was an intentional choice. My parents weren't particularly thrilled about the choice, but did not discourage it. My Dad always said: "If you choose to do something, do it well." I did that. I was among the top small handful of leaders throughout my ROTC experience.


My three-year active duty Air Force experience began in July 1961.
See some of it here: http://drbilltellsancestorstories.blogspot.com/search/label/Air%20Force

    •    Did a family member?

My uncle (mother's brother) served in Army Intelligence, part of Occupation Forces in Japan, immediately following World War II - see here and here, for example.
Also, brother-in-law went through same Air Force ROTC program I did, four years ahead of me.

    ◦    Regular or for a particular incident
I served three years of regular service during time of Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis - got out just before Viet Nam Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions passed Congress.

[RBS Express train, on location in rural Nevada]

    •    Did you or your family serve overseas in the line of Service either during a war or a posting

I served in remote locations in the USA only.

    •    Any thoughts, photographs, memories relevant
See links above for a few examples. Also, this post, just earlier this week. The following is the radar "workroom" from the RBS Experess  - our local detachment was similar - in a semi-trailer, rather than a railroad car.

[Airmen at work in radar "workroom" on the RBS Express]

Families are Forever!

75 Years Ago This Week - My first appearances in Mom's Diary!

75 Years Ago This Week

My first appearances in Mom's Diary!

Boy Baby Rattle

75 Years Ago This Week began March 1, 1938 - my mother and father were preparing to get married later in the month. I'm continuing this meme, from time to time, as issues warrant.

On Thursday, November 3, 1938, Mom wrote:

Made pancakes for breakfast. It was raining. I threw up in morning. Did dishes & separator & went in to town. Pete got his hair cut & we ate dinner with the folks. Came home early & did up the chores, ate supper & went to bed.

On Tuesday, November 15, 1938, Mom wrote:

Really sick in morning and at Noon. Pete here to dinner. Felt OK after dinner. Washed hair, made cookies. Scalloped spuds for supper. Pete here early. Pete shaved while I did the dishes. Read & listened to the radio awhile and then went to bed early.

My comments:

I was born on July 1, 1939, about eight months hence... what do you think?

Families are Forever! ;-)

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday - Air Force Transfer - 1963

Wordless (nearly) Wednesday

Air Force Transfer

1963 - 50 Years Ago

Lt. Bill Smith, at work in radar trailer

The Coon Rapids Enterprise
Thursday, October 31, 2013, page 5

50 Years Ago
October 17, 1963

First Lt. William L. Smith has been transferred to St. George, Utah from Winslow, AZ, as part
of Detachment 9, 11th Radar Bomb Scoring Squadron (Saco USAF).

Lt. Smith is second in command of the 80-man unit whose mission is to score electronically simulated bomb runs by Strategic Air Command B-58, B-52 and B-47 bombers. During the coming months, Lt. Smith will be engaged in training twenty-five new men in all phases of the detachment operations.

Lt. and Mrs. Smith and their daughter, Annette, 3, will make their home in St. George, Utah.

Lt. Smith is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Leverne Smith of Coon Rapids. Mrs. Smith is the former Nancy Bolger. Both graduated from the Coon Rapids High School in 1957.

Families are Forever! ;-)