it made my day!
BY SHARLA CERRA
I run the Facebook page and this website. Often someone makes a comment that really makes my day, or there is an event that really makes my day. I thought I would share a few of them.
"i've never seen that picture of my m0m!"
he had never seen a single picture of his mother's parents.
I am so poud of the Historical Society's photo collection, which includes over 1,000 original vintage photographs and thousands of digital copies of family photos shared by so many people. Sometimes the photographs include family friends as well as members of the extended family. What a rare treat when someone sees a photo for the first time.
When the picture above, shared by Deb Matthews, was posted on Facebook, it go a reaction from Jonathon Bernadt: "Joyce is my mom! I've never seen this picture!"
On two occasions, a person had never ever seen a picture of their grandparent. The first was several years ago, and I don't remember who it was, but the grandfather had graduated from Table Rock and we have pictures of the graduates, so I was able to scan his photo and email it to her.
The other person was Tom Freeman. He had never seen a single picture of his maternal grandparents, who had died before he was born. His mother was indifferent to family history. Tom knew nothing about his grandparents.
One day, I stopped to deliver a newsletter to Tom, an avid fan. I could hardly wait to show him something else. I had been researching a Civil War veteran, Wilbur Perry, whose unmarked grave I had located through cemetery records. To get a military tombstone, I needed a date of death and my search was fruitless. I posted what I had on this website. Soon after, I got an email from a descendant, Mara Blake of Coloado, who had also reached a dead end on the date of death. Then, Luella Hinrichsen of Dubois, who had been reading the old issues of the Argus, finally came across Wilbur's obituary, with an accompanying article containing an extensive story of his death by his treating doctor. That made my day.
Then, with Mara's information, I made a stunning discovery.
Wilbur Perry and his wife Hester had descendants living in Table Rock and Burchard. In Table Rock was great grandson Tom Freeman, and a host of the children and grandchildren of Tom's brother Rob. The Table Rock contingent were descended from Wilbur's daughter Lizzy and the Burchard contingent from Wilbur's daughter Hattie.
I searched the photographs in our collection.
There were Tom's grandparents in a photograph shared by Terry Korrel. It was of a gathering of neighbors at the Purcell home around 1900. There was Lizzy Perry, Wilbur & Hester Perry's daugther, and there was her husband Henry Freeman. Their faces were very small--but very precious.
"Tom," I said as I sat there that day, "What can you tell me about your grandparents and great grandparents on your mother's side?"
"Nothing," he said sadly.
I said, "I've seen you visiting your parents graves, just stopping by to say hello. Have you been the graves of your mother's parents? They are closer by, after all."
Tom was speechless for a few seconds, then looked at me with a dazed look. "I had no idea they are buried there! I don't know a thing about them, not even that."
"Did you know that your grandma Freeman's father was a Civil War veteran, a drummer with the 10th Virginia, who spent time in two different Confederate prison camps?"
Tom was close to tears. "How do you learn these things?" he asked.
Then I showed him the pictures. It was an emotionally charged moment.
As I left, Tom said again and again, "I can't thank you enough. You don't know how much this means to me."
Well, it just MADE MY DAY.
Not long after, the new military tombstone for Tom's great grandpa Wilbur Perry arrived, and the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War had a formal dedication ceremony. All of the local descendants, descendants from Iowa, and Mara Blake of Colorado were there. Again. my day was made. Indeed, it was one of the proudest and emotional moments of my life outside of my family life.
When the picture above, shared by Deb Matthews, was posted on Facebook, it go a reaction from Jonathon Bernadt: "Joyce is my mom! I've never seen this picture!"
On two occasions, a person had never ever seen a picture of their grandparent. The first was several years ago, and I don't remember who it was, but the grandfather had graduated from Table Rock and we have pictures of the graduates, so I was able to scan his photo and email it to her.
The other person was Tom Freeman. He had never seen a single picture of his maternal grandparents, who had died before he was born. His mother was indifferent to family history. Tom knew nothing about his grandparents.
One day, I stopped to deliver a newsletter to Tom, an avid fan. I could hardly wait to show him something else. I had been researching a Civil War veteran, Wilbur Perry, whose unmarked grave I had located through cemetery records. To get a military tombstone, I needed a date of death and my search was fruitless. I posted what I had on this website. Soon after, I got an email from a descendant, Mara Blake of Coloado, who had also reached a dead end on the date of death. Then, Luella Hinrichsen of Dubois, who had been reading the old issues of the Argus, finally came across Wilbur's obituary, with an accompanying article containing an extensive story of his death by his treating doctor. That made my day.
Then, with Mara's information, I made a stunning discovery.
Wilbur Perry and his wife Hester had descendants living in Table Rock and Burchard. In Table Rock was great grandson Tom Freeman, and a host of the children and grandchildren of Tom's brother Rob. The Table Rock contingent were descended from Wilbur's daughter Lizzy and the Burchard contingent from Wilbur's daughter Hattie.
I searched the photographs in our collection.
There were Tom's grandparents in a photograph shared by Terry Korrel. It was of a gathering of neighbors at the Purcell home around 1900. There was Lizzy Perry, Wilbur & Hester Perry's daugther, and there was her husband Henry Freeman. Their faces were very small--but very precious.
"Tom," I said as I sat there that day, "What can you tell me about your grandparents and great grandparents on your mother's side?"
"Nothing," he said sadly.
I said, "I've seen you visiting your parents graves, just stopping by to say hello. Have you been the graves of your mother's parents? They are closer by, after all."
Tom was speechless for a few seconds, then looked at me with a dazed look. "I had no idea they are buried there! I don't know a thing about them, not even that."
"Did you know that your grandma Freeman's father was a Civil War veteran, a drummer with the 10th Virginia, who spent time in two different Confederate prison camps?"
Tom was close to tears. "How do you learn these things?" he asked.
Then I showed him the pictures. It was an emotionally charged moment.
As I left, Tom said again and again, "I can't thank you enough. You don't know how much this means to me."
Well, it just MADE MY DAY.
Not long after, the new military tombstone for Tom's great grandpa Wilbur Perry arrived, and the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War had a formal dedication ceremony. All of the local descendants, descendants from Iowa, and Mara Blake of Colorado were there. Again. my day was made. Indeed, it was one of the proudest and emotional moments of my life outside of my family life.
DESCENDANTS OF A LARGE FAMILY FIND EACH OTHER -- AND GET A LARRY LAYDEN MEMORY
I got teary eyed as one after of the large Wilcox family responded to a query about whether there was anyone out there. Byron died in 1938 at the age of 100. His wife Sophie Parrish Wilcox died in 1920 at 77. They had seven children. He was a Civil War veteran and he was Table Rock's first rural mail carrier (soon joined by James Talbot). According to his obituary, they first came to Nebraska from Pennsylvania in 1867 but then returned. However, in1874 they came back and lived in Johnson and Pawnee counties. They settled on a Clear Creek homestead. He farmed except for twelve years when he was a rural mail carrier.
All oft is so neat to have a site where Table Rock people can find each other. What a day, each day that I saw the messages pile up!
All oft is so neat to have a site where Table Rock people can find each other. What a day, each day that I saw the messages pile up!
normalu toby wilcox started the chain
Hi my husband is the 2nd great grandson of Byron Lord Wilcox who originally came to Nebraska between 1866 & 1868 .... I was wondering if anyone with the surname Wilcox on this site is related. The last person to live on the family farm that I know of was Goldwin Wilcox & his wife Rosie. To my knowledge the farm was between Pawnee City and Table Rock. I know we are related to Owen Wilcox in Lincoln ... Thanks
Mike Wilcox:
Goldwin and Rose were my grandparents. Their son Earl Wilcox was my dad
normalu REPLIED TO MIKE:
OH ... Awesome.. Goldwin's Brother, Elmer is my husbands grandfather. Elmer married Grace Smith and they moved from Table Rock to Lincoln. Great to meet you Mike... My Husband is Ronald Raymond Wilcox.. His father Delmar Raymond was born in the farm house and was killed in WWII in 1944 over the English Channel. Ron was raised by Grace and Elmer.
carrie wilcox farset
My dad was Lyle Wilcox son of Ernest who was the son of Byron [and Sophie Wilcox].
amy hanna-klepper
Hello, I'm Amy Hanna-Klepper. My mom was Dorothy Wilcox. Granddaughter of Byron. Nice to meet you. So exciting!
patti wilcox
My dad was also the son of Ernest. He was Robert F. Wilcox
deb hanna
My Mother Dorothy Wilcox Hanna was a daughter of Ernest Wilcox. Lord Bryon is buried in the Table Rock cemetery. I believe my sisters and I know where that home place was located.
jan stauffer
My mom is Ruth Anderson. Daughter of Ernest and Addie Wilcox.
mike wilcox
I grew up 1/2 mile east of Rose and Goldwin. The house has been replaced but some of the out buildings are still there
kay wilcox
My dad was Chauncey Wilcox son of Ernest and Addie Wilcox. I have been working on the family history.
mike wilcox
Mike attached a Google map of Goldwin & Rose's farm:
vicki wilcox billings
Vicki, Mike's sister, said about the map:
Looks like the barn is gone now too? Still remember the sheep grandpa Goldwin raised
norma lu
Oh wow this is so wonderful having all your stories!!!
Mike thanks for this picture!!! Can you tell me where the house & barn would have been?
So sorry they are gone ! It is the house my husbands father Delmar Raymond was born in May of 1919!
mike wilcox
The house would have been west and north of house, the red barn sets east and south . The big tin barn is across the creek and still standing.
vicki wilcox billings
Yes, you put up a lot of square bales in the one that's still standing. The rope swing was in that barn, too.
sherry wilcox
My dad was Ernest Wilcox son and I'm the sister of Patti Wilcox.
vicki wilcox billings
Hi Everyone, I am the daughter of Earl and Beverly Wilcox. Mike is my older brother. Yes we lived up the road from family farmstead. A lot of good Memories growing up there!
bonus! a memory from larry layden!
I am the uncle of Vickie and Mike. Their father, Earl, was my brother-in-law. I
I remember visiting Earl's parents at there farm in the early 50's.
Goldwin raised a lot of sheep back then. I can remember the hill side being covered with sheep being led by one wearing a bell.
I remember seeing a horse walking in a circle hitched to one end of a pole about a foot off the ground. The other end was attached to a gear driven turnbuckle which was attached to a spinning driveshaft pole hooked to a press used to compress the sheared wool into a bale which could then be loaded on a wagon an taken to the train depot and shipped to a wool market.
This memory is 65 years old and was witnessed by a 10 year old kid so might not be all together accurate.
Goodwin had two collie sheep dogs who would run up to me and nearly knock me over. I never saw such affectionate dogs. One was the color of Lassie and the other was white with black markings. You could tell they were happy dogs.
Now isn't that awesome! Don't you wish you could have a message stream like this for YOUR family? It made my day every time someone chimed in!
a stone for civil war soldier william mcneal ....next to his mom!
The McNeal family was were in the first wave of pioneers to come to Table Rock, in 1856-1857. James and William -- perhaps they were called Jim and Billy -- were the oldest, and there are many younger siblings. In 1860, their father died . William and his brother James had just reached manhood at this point and were on their own, and their little brothers and sisters were split up.
William and James enlisted in the Army. As with some others from Table Rock, William went with a Kansas unit; of course, Kansas is only a few miles from us.
Within months, an officer in his unit wrote a letter to the Brownville Advertiser newspaper about the activities of the regiment. Included in his letter was a description of men who were ill. He said that William McNeal of Table Rock was ill with the measles and pneumonia and was not expected to survive.
It was that January 1862 comment in the newspaper that sent me looking for William McNeal. He was not on the Veteran's Memorial in Table Rock or on any other list that I could find. Even his own family had forgotten him, as evidenced by some probate records 50 years after his death in which survivors of the family, the younger siblings, signed an affidavit about who their siblings, living and dead, were. But I found him in census and other records. I even found a mention by Fannie Norris that she had taught William and James.
William did survive the measles and pneumonia. I know that he did, because a few months later, he was reported killed. All the records says is, "Died crossing Kansas River." As far as I can ascertain, he is the only Table Rock boy who died in the war.
William's remains were never recovered so no stone marked his place in history.
It took help getting a stone in his memory.
Genealogist Chris Heer signed off on the application, which required a family member.
Luella Hinrichsen discovered and confirmed that Eleanor Morton was William's mother -- she had remarried and was buried under the name Morton. It turned out that two sisters and three nephews were buried in the same family group.
Katie Kreifel of the Table Rock Cemetery Association dug into her records and located a gravesite next to Eleanor -- be still my beating heart!
Lynn and Becky Woltemath of River Valley Monuments in Auburn installed the stone with their usual loving and meticulous care.
Generous donations from those who have attended the Civil War fundraisers, the Community Club, the Legion Auxiliary, the Historical Society, and others, have paid for the installation of this stone and others and for the special bronze Civil War star "flag marker" for this and other graves.
And today I looked at the new stone for the first time. At the left is his mother's tombstone.
A 22-year-old soldier now remembered, by his mother's side.
Now THAT made my day.
William and James enlisted in the Army. As with some others from Table Rock, William went with a Kansas unit; of course, Kansas is only a few miles from us.
Within months, an officer in his unit wrote a letter to the Brownville Advertiser newspaper about the activities of the regiment. Included in his letter was a description of men who were ill. He said that William McNeal of Table Rock was ill with the measles and pneumonia and was not expected to survive.
It was that January 1862 comment in the newspaper that sent me looking for William McNeal. He was not on the Veteran's Memorial in Table Rock or on any other list that I could find. Even his own family had forgotten him, as evidenced by some probate records 50 years after his death in which survivors of the family, the younger siblings, signed an affidavit about who their siblings, living and dead, were. But I found him in census and other records. I even found a mention by Fannie Norris that she had taught William and James.
William did survive the measles and pneumonia. I know that he did, because a few months later, he was reported killed. All the records says is, "Died crossing Kansas River." As far as I can ascertain, he is the only Table Rock boy who died in the war.
William's remains were never recovered so no stone marked his place in history.
It took help getting a stone in his memory.
Genealogist Chris Heer signed off on the application, which required a family member.
Luella Hinrichsen discovered and confirmed that Eleanor Morton was William's mother -- she had remarried and was buried under the name Morton. It turned out that two sisters and three nephews were buried in the same family group.
Katie Kreifel of the Table Rock Cemetery Association dug into her records and located a gravesite next to Eleanor -- be still my beating heart!
Lynn and Becky Woltemath of River Valley Monuments in Auburn installed the stone with their usual loving and meticulous care.
Generous donations from those who have attended the Civil War fundraisers, the Community Club, the Legion Auxiliary, the Historical Society, and others, have paid for the installation of this stone and others and for the special bronze Civil War star "flag marker" for this and other graves.
And today I looked at the new stone for the first time. At the left is his mother's tombstone.
A 22-year-old soldier now remembered, by his mother's side.
Now THAT made my day.
first time to see a photo
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I wanted to know what year the Maple Grove Country School, now one of our museums, was built. Having had no luck locally, I turned to the Nebraska State Historical Society. I discovered that they had histories of many of the country schools in Pawnee County, written by teachers and/or students one year in the early 1900s.
Some had photographs. In a country school history in Dry Branch I found a photocopy of a photograph of Henry Hunzeker's home; he was apparently a major patron of the school. My sister Sherry and I spent quite a bit of time taking pictures with our phones With some retouching, this is what we got. The names are not given, but I'm assuming that is Henry Hunzeker. With him is a younger woman, might be a wife, daughter or granddaughter but I don't know. I posted it on FAcebook and got this response from Quentin Fankhauser, whose mother Stacy is a Hunzeker: This is my great great grandfather, and great great grandmother I believe. First photos I've seen of them! |
didn't know who his great grandparents were
One day I stopped to visit Tom Freeman & my cousin Frances Workman. As I often do, I asked Tom to run over his family lines for me. On the Freeman side he had little knowledge because his grandparents had died before he was born and no one really talked about them. He knew his dad's name and his grandpa Henry Freeman's name.
I gave Tom a copy of the newsletter that I was mailing out. It included a story about an upcoming dedication of the grave of a Civil War veteran, Wilber Perry. Wilber's grave had recently been identified and a military tombstone secured for it.
That very night Luella Hinrichsen posted an obituary for one of Wilber's daughters, which led to another obituary, and finally to the realization that Wilber and his wife Hester, buried next to him, were Tom's great grandparents.
The next day I stopped to see Tom, with the evidence in hand. In the meantime he had read the article about Wilber Perry and the name had struck a chord. He hasn't sure, but he thought his grandmother Freeman may have been a Perry. With the materials that I brought him, we confirmed.
Tom said several times, "I can't tell you how much this means to me. He now knows who his great grandparents are, that they are buried in the Table Rock Cemetery, and that his great grandpa Perry was a Civil War veteran.
I gave Tom a copy of the newsletter that I was mailing out. It included a story about an upcoming dedication of the grave of a Civil War veteran, Wilber Perry. Wilber's grave had recently been identified and a military tombstone secured for it.
That very night Luella Hinrichsen posted an obituary for one of Wilber's daughters, which led to another obituary, and finally to the realization that Wilber and his wife Hester, buried next to him, were Tom's great grandparents.
The next day I stopped to see Tom, with the evidence in hand. In the meantime he had read the article about Wilber Perry and the name had struck a chord. He hasn't sure, but he thought his grandmother Freeman may have been a Perry. With the materials that I brought him, we confirmed.
Tom said several times, "I can't tell you how much this means to me. He now knows who his great grandparents are, that they are buried in the Table Rock Cemetery, and that his great grandpa Perry was a Civil War veteran.
the first two tombstones for long forgotten civil war veterans
It's a long story, but I have found that five Civil War veterans have unmarked graves in the Table Rock Cemetery. Military tombstones have been installed for the first two, Henry Mumford & Wilber Perry.
I found their names on the Veterans Memorial in the park. Henry Mumford had once had a private stone but it had fallen into small pieces over the years. There was no stone for Wilber Perry. I had to document their military history as well as secure their dates of birth and death, and it took quite a bit of doing. Finally done, the Table Rock Cemetery Association, the Table Rock Historical Society, and River Valley Monuments of Auburn (who agreed to accept delivery) signed off on the application. In April 2016, they were installed, and that made my day. On May, 2016 were dedicated in a ceremony representing the combined efforts of the Union Civil War organizations i Nebraska. That made my day, too. Finally, Mara Blake posted a thank you on Facebook. She is another of Wilber's descendants, the great granddaughter of Wilber's son Oliver. She, and her grandmother before her, had long searched for Wilber's grave, without success. They did not even know when he died. Mara & I found the missing information together, very exciting. And her thank you made my day: Thank you Sharla Cerra, and all of those involved, in creating this incredible event, and for all of the work involved in documenting and ordering the headstone and its placement. Words cannot express my gratitude for all that you've done, and continue to do, in preserving and honoring our past. |
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research discoveries
Maybe no one else cares, but I do. Here are a few things that I've discovered that really made my day:
Finding a photo of captain jennings
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discovering that N. L. Fellers was a single young woman
Frank Taylor bought the Argus in 1887; it was then five years old. Around 1912, he sold the paper to go off and be postmaster. He eventually came back. His biographers say it was just a couple of years and minimize his absence, but it was considerably longer.
In the meantime, N. Fellers was on the masthead. At first N. Fellers was editor & publisher, After a while, A B. Heer was the proprietor, N. Fellers the editor, and Vic Fellers the publisher, presumably the guy who put the paper into print. In running through all the Fellers names, I realized that I had no idea who N. Fellers was. When I tracked "him" down, I discovered that N. Fellers was Nellie Fellers, a young woman of 24 when she became editor of the Argus! And I was almost as surprised when I discovered that A. B. Heer was Anna Belle Hansen Fellers Heer, Nellie's mother. (Vic was Nellie's brother). Anna Bell acquired the last name of Heer when as a widow she was remarried, to Ben Heer, in 1914; his wife of many years, Martha, had died a couple of years ago. With the ever ready help of my friend Luella Hinrichsen, I discovered that Nellie had died at 37 following giving birth to a daughter. She had married a Horton and moved to California. By that time, the paper had been sold back to Frank Taylor. When I eventually found her obituary in the Argus, I found an article that said virtually nothing about her |
as a person -- very unlike Frank Taylor -- and, more importantly, did not even mention her significant role with the Argus. In those days, newspaper people commonly printed notes about the editors of other papers, usually in praise. The silence leads one to believe that there were bad feelings over the exchanges of ownership, but there is no one left to tell.
Anyway, N. Fellers was a woman and so was A. B. Heer. Surprise! It made my day. |