What They Saw: Joseph Noah Abernathy (1875-1957)

I love putting my ancestors' lives on a historical timeline. Admittedly, I have only blogged about a couple of them, but I sincerely find the process very helpful in better understanding what their lives were like. Joseph Noah Abernathy, father-in-law to my great grand aunt Gladys Marie Campbell Abernathy, lived to be 81 or 82 years old (depending on which birth year you believe to be accurate). When preparing his timeline with the help of Family Tree Maker 2012, it seemed he saw quite a bit. So much so I thought I'd share.

A short preface: Joseph Noah Abernathy was born 1875 or 1876 in Longtown, Perry County, Missouri to Sion and Margaret Abernathy. A few eras he witnessed, likely without realizing it, were the Atlantic Slave Trade, the western expansion of the United States, and a mass immigration to the United States and Canada.  He witnessed five wars and outlived three children.

1880: Noah was enumerated for the 1880 U.S. Federal census on June 18th in Perry County, Missouri. He was one of seven children in the household of Sion Abernathy.

St. Maurus Church
Photo by Mark S. Abeln

1896: While still residing in Perry County, Noah married Marry Elizabeth Kirn on February 3rd. The service was conducted by a Catholic priest at St. Maurus Church in Biehle, Missouri. Noah was just under the age of twenty-one and had a guardian consent to the marriage. Later that year Noah and Marry had a son, Henry William Abernathy.

1898: Spanish - American War

1899: Noah and Marry had another son, Walla B. Abernathy.

1900: Noah and family were enumerated in the summer for the 1900 U.S. Federal census. Noah was farming in Perry County, Missouri (southeastern part of the state).

1901: President William McKinley was assassinated in September. Just over a month later, Noah and Marry had another son. His name was Harry Joseph Abernathy.

1903: Wright Brothers first flight.

1904: Noah and Marry finally have a daughter, Lydia Margaret Abernathy.

1907: Lona Loretta Abernathy, another daughter, arrives.

1908: Ford Model T is first manufactured.

1909: Noah and Marry gave birth to another daughter, Olga Mary Abernathy.

1910: Noah and family were enumerated in the summer for the 1910 U.S. Federal census. Noah is farming in Bollinger County, Missouri. Bollinger is a neighboring county of Perry, just to the south.

1912: Titanic disaster.

1913: Noah and Marry must bury one daughter, Olga Mary. Just shy of three weeks later, another daughter arrives. Her name was Bertha May Abernathy.

1914: World War I begins.

1915: A Christmas present for Noah and Marry is another daughter, Sadie S. Abernathy.

1918: Noah fills out his World War I draft registration card. He was still farming in Bollinger County, Missouri at the age of 43. He was described as having gray eyes and gray hair. This is also the year of birth for his daughter Cora Irene Abernathy.

1920: Noah saw women receive the right to vote. He and his family were also enumerated in the 1920 U.S. Federal census. They were still farming in Bollinger County, Missouri.

1921: Noah and Marry gave birth to Hersel Harold Abernathy.

1923: Noah gave his oldest daughter Lydia away in marriage. He also watched son Walla B. tie the knot.

1925: Another son gets married: Harry Joseph.

Photo by Arthur Ash III via
FindAGrave

1928: Son Hersel Harold Abernathy dies in the fall.

1929: The stock market crashes, and the Great Depression begins.

1930: While Noah and his family are enumerated for the 1930 U.S. Federal census, there's a Holocaust going on in Eastern Europe. Noah is a general farmer in Bollinger County, Missouri.

1931: Noah is just one state away from the Dust Bowl.

1932: Daughter Lona gets married.

1939: World War II begins.

1940: Noah and family are again enumerated for the U.S. Federal census in Bollinger County, Missouri. And Noah is still farming.

1941: The beginning of the year saw daughter Cora get married. The end saw an attack on Pearl Harbor.

1945: Nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

1947: Beginning of the Cold War, and the death of another son. Walla B. passes away in January.

1950: The Korean War begins, and Noah's wife of 54 years dies.

1955: The Civil Rights Movement is underway.

1957: Joseph Noah Abernathy died in a nursing home at Stoddard County, Missouri. Noah was laid to rest beside his wife at Plainview Cemetery in Bollinger County.

Photo by Arthur Ash III via FindAGrave

3 Birth Dates for Joseph Noah Abernathy

The first one is fairly easy to dismiss; it's from an index, and I can see how the mistake was made. An entry for Joseph Noah Abernathy in Ancestry's WWI Civilian Draft Registrations states he was born 20 Apr 1875, but an image of the draft card shows 20 March 1875. So right off the bat two is down to one.

But then there's his death certificate. It gives Noah's birth date as 3-21-1876, and one of his daughters is the informant. Furthermore, his tombstone in Bollinger County, Missouri's Plainview Cemetery offers the same birth year. And we are quickly back up to two.

I do have some extra evidence to consider. The marriage license for Noah and his wife Marry Elizabeth Kirn states Noah was under the age of twenty-one at the time the license was purchased, in January 1896. Unfortunately for my research, both birth dates would bring about that result.

I lean toward the birth date on Noah's World War I draft registration card simply because he should have been the one to provide that information. I guess other arguments could be made, though. What do you think?

By the way, Joseph Noah Abernathy (1875/6 - 1957) was the son of Sion and Margaret Abernathy. He was also the father-in-law to my great grand aunt, Gladys Marie Campbell via her marriage to Noah's son Harry Joseph Abernathy.

Gideon, Killicrankie, & a Merry Christmas to You!

[Originally posted last year. I hope you and yours are having a wonderful holiday season. Every visit you make to this blog I take as a gift and hold it dear.]

"When Gideon [Lincecum] was seventeen years old and clerking in an Indian trading post in Eatonton, Georgia, his employer, Ichabod Thompson, brought him from Savannah a black English violin as a Christmas present. It was the treasure of his life. Not being acquisitive of worldly goods, it was the only possession he cherished throughout his life.

It was at dawn on Christmas of 1810 when young Gideon answered a knock at his door and found the kindly Ichabod Thompson standing outside with the violin in his hands. Gideon, barefooted and in his night gown, stepped outside the door to accept the wonderful instrument, the dearest Christmas present of his life. He placed the violin against his shoulder and, disregarding the cold wind, played a Mississippi popular tune, Killiecrankie.

To commemorate this momentous occasion, every Christmas dawn thereafter, for sixty-three years, Gideon arose from bed wherever the day found him, and, as he was, in nightclothes and barefooted, played his Christmas tune three times." [Lois Wood Burkhalter, Gideon Lincecum, 1793-1874 (University of Texas Press, © 1965), 290 & 291.]



Merry Christmas from Lincecum Lineage!

The Jingle Bell Rock (Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories #21)

This was originally posted last year as part of Blog Caroling, but I think it fits nicely with the Holiday Music Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories prompt. Don't you? Good! Here it is again. :-)

When my brother was quite young, he and Grandpa Logue would team up to sing "Jingle Bell Rock." Grandpa would start with "Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell." Then he would point at my brother who would yell, "ROCK!" And, yes, that would continue over and over for some time during our visits. Though not a traditional carol, this is a Christmas song I often think of every year and invariably find myself singing.

Death and Burial of Sallie Caroline Matson Lewis

Sallie Caroline Matson, my 3rd cousin, was a daughter of James Vardeman Matson and Mary Lincecum. I have two birth years for Sallie. According to her death certificate, Sallie was born 24 February 1855 in Texas. According to her tombstone, however, her year of birth was 1856. Either way, she was just a young teenager when she married Mr. H. M. Lewis in December 1870. Widowed a couple decades later, Sallie spent about half of her life in Hubbard, Hill County, Texas. That is where she died 14 December 1924, less than a week before what would have been the 54th anniversary of her marriage.

The cause of Sallie's death was listed as Euremia. According to Wikipedia.org, uremia loosely describes the illness accompanying kidney failure, "in particular the nitrogenous waste products associated with the failure of this organ...Early symptoms include anorexia and lethargy, and late symptoms can include decreased mental acuity and coma. Other symptoms include fatigue, nausea, vomiting, cold, bone pain, itch, shortness of breath, and seizures."

Sallie was laid to rest in Fairview Cemetery at Hubbard.

Sarah Matson Lewis
1856 - 1924

(FindAGrave Memorial #11231900) 

That Special Card (Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories #4)

[Originally posted last year.]

As much as I grumble about putting up Christmas decorations, there is one thing I do like to display -- my Christmas cards! While I might procrastinate on getting mine in the mail, I sure do love getting them.

My display is nothing fancy, I just tape them to the front door. I'd show you a picture, but I haven't received any new ones yet. (C'Mon, people! It's the 4th already!) And, yes, you will find some are put up year after year. Maybe I really like the cover, or maybe the sentiment is significant, or maybe the sender wrote a special note. I also have some that have been placed in a scrapbook. The ultimate destination for all that I want to keep and remember. I try to write out beside them who was the sender so there's no guessing or unnecessary fondling. :-)

There is one card, however, that has its own page in the scrapbook. It is the most special card I have received to date -- the last Christmas card from my Aunt Cindy before she passed away. I separated the two sides so the front and inside could both be seen at a glance. Looking at it is always bittersweet, as it brings a smile to my face and a tear to my eye.

Our German Angel Ornaments (Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories #3)

[This was originally posted in 2009 for the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories. As you will read, I was running behind on my posting then. Thankfully, I am on time this year (for however long it lasts).]

I'm running a little behind in posting for the Geneabloggers Advent Calendar, but still wanted to share some special family ornaments with you. To be honest, I don't know a lot of details about the angel ornaments pictured above. I can tell you they are from Germany.

From the time I was in kindergarten through second grade, my father was stationed at Hahn Air Force Base. I imagine things were difficult, at least at first, for my parents. Especially since we initially did not live in base housing. We first lived above the store pictured here. It was across the street from a big church. There was one other American family that lived there, as well. As for me, all the memories are good ones. The three main things I tie to Christmas in Germany are the ornaments, German chocolates Mom always had for us, and snow.

Germany is really the only placed we lived that had a lot of snow. While we did live in Colorado for a bit, I don't remember much of it. The absolute best thing to do in the snow was go sledding. It was so much fun! I didn't mind climbing to the top of the hill when I knew I would be flying back down it! That is, if I kept me and my red sled out of the ditch. :-) The only unfortunate thing was the dreaded snowsuit my mother made us wear!

One time, I was sledding down a hill that had a fence at the bottom. Somehow, I managed to find the hole in the fence and went right through it. I remember grabbing onto a small tree and hanging on. When I looked down, I saw a road with cars going by! Funny thing is, I don't remember being scared. I don't remember hanging there too long, either, as my Dad was soon there pulling me up and out. That was something else that made the sledding special. It was something me and my Dad always did. Mom was not fond of the snow, and my little brother was still a bit too young to be able to go by himself.

It's neat how a few little angel Christmas ornaments can bring back so many memories!