VideoGameJunkie Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Have you found anything cool in your family history research? I found out that I'm a descendant of Joseph Smith's grandfather.
JAHS Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) My great-great grandmother Ellen Marie Partington was adopted by Willard Richards, who was secretary to Joseph Smith. She writes of her experiences in Nauvoo when she was a little girl: "I was well acquainted with Joseph Smith, the Prophet. Dr. Richards was his private secretary. We lived close to the mansion where Joseph lived. I was frequently sent on errands to him. I was not old enough to realize what a great man he was, but I loved him all the same. When I went with messages from the doctor, he would pick me up and hold me in his arms while I told my errand and say something pleasant to me and then kiss me and put me down again. I remember well when the heartrending news of his martyrdom reached Nauvoo. Young as I was I shared in great sorrow. I went with the doctor's family to view the remains of the two noble men. I was there when their aged mother was brought in to see them. It was a sight never to be forgotten." Edited October 13, 2014 by JAHS 1
The Nehor Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My g g grandfather was told he had to take another wife and went home downtrodden to his wife and they discussed it. He said he did not want any other wife but they would follow the counsel of the Brethren. They agreed that she would find and select her,My g g grandmother had lots of stories about crossing the planes, escaping Indians, etc but I do not remember them well enough to get the details right without rereading them first.
Coreyb Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My great-great grandmother was one of the women who cooked and laundered for Pancho Villa's band of revolutionaries, or so the story goes
EllenMaksoud Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Have you found anything cool in your family history research? I found out that I'm a descendant of Joseph Smith's grandfather.I met a woman with the last name of Skinner, who I am related to from the 1860's era, and I never see her without asking myself, what went wrong? My Mother, a Webb was born in 1918, so perhaps her parents were born around 1900? Potentially, it would be only another two generations back to that earlier ancestor. Why did we not go to Utah? It is obvious that settlers were building Utah in the years 1860 to 1900. Polygamy was practiced, though I do not know if it was a general occurrence. Mother and I never spoke of her past ancestors save to say her dad was a "Church of Christer" and they had lay ministry. I did learn that there was an off shoot of Mormonism that was briefly called "Church of Christ", though it is doubtful that it bears any resemblance to present day Church of Christ.
teddyaware Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) I grew up in the New York metropolitan area as one utterly oblivious of the Mormons, the son of a father of Russian ancestry and a mother of Yankee/English ancestry. But as a consequence of doing family history, I've since discovered I share common ancestors with at least 5 LDS Church Presidents: Brigham Young, Lorenzo Snow, Heber J. Grant, Spencer W Kimball and Gordon B. Hinckley. For instance, President Hinckley is a direct descendent of Stephen Hopkins of the Mayflower, as am I. Edited October 13, 2014 by teddyaware
halconero Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) My German-Jew great-grandfather got thrown overboard off the coast of Peru from a British Merchant Vessel at the outbreak of WWI, was subsequently put in prison, seduced the jailer's daughter, got her pregnant, and then stole her daddy's key and motorcycle as part of hightailing it to Chile. He later died of syphilis from a prostitute a number of years into his marriage with my great-grandmother. So that's a good one. Edited October 13, 2014 by halconero 1
teddyaware Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) My German-Jew great-grandfather got thrown overboard off the coast of Peru from a British Merchant Vessel at the outbreak of WWI, was subsequently put in prison, seduced the jailer's daughter, got her pregnant, and then stole her daddy's key and motorcycle as part of hightailing it to Chile. He later died of syphilis from a prostitute a number of years into his marriage with my grandmother. So that's a good one. Yours beats mine. But I could at least begin to compete by admitting my paternal grandfather was a Russian Communist US immigrant who ran a so-called "Russian School" that had the hammer and sickle flying outside on the flagpole rather than the US flag. He was also the secretary for a local New York area chapter of the International Workers Order, a Soviet Communist affiliated fraternal organization. I am the opposite of a communist. Edited October 13, 2014 by teddyaware
Duncan Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My dad is German and his uncle, Alois, was a German Communist at the outbreak of WW2. he was rounded up and sent to a camp of some kind. At some point during the war the MP's came to him and said because he was a German National he could either stay in the camp or join the military. he joined the military. He was sent to the Russian front and was fighting there. He became disillusioned with communism while stationed there. He got word that his wife had died and miraculously was able to go home and attend the funeral. While going back to Russia the MPs caught up with his troop train and randomly picked men to fight in the western front because it was collapsing. So he was sent to the Western Front. he and others got to the base and was told he would find his unit some miles up the way. Well, they got lost and stumbled onto some American soldiers who captured them and they were sent to a POW camp in the US until the war ended. So, looking back at Uncle Alois' life in 1945 he lost his wife, his worldview and was essentially captured by both sides of the conflict.
Tsuzuki Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) One of my great great (great?) uncles is this guy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levi_Savage_Jr. Edited October 13, 2014 by Tsuzuki
Bernard Gui Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) My grandfather, Heber DePriest, played the cello, violin, clarinet, and saxophone. He fed his family of 6 during the Depression partly with rabbits he killed with a single-shot Winchester 22 rifle. In my book, that's pretty remarkable. His father was branch president in Cane Creek, Tennessee, just before a mob of Klansmen killed two missionaries and a boy there. His home was burned after his family left to colonize in Manassa, Colorado. Edited October 13, 2014 by Bernard Gui
teddyaware Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 (edited) Deleted Edited October 13, 2014 by teddyaware
Brant Gardner Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 There are some that are more inspiring, but my favorite of my most well-known Mormon ancestor happened when he was a younger man in Eastern Canada. Somehow he me a young woman who lived in Buffalo. He decided that he should go courting. He walked 100 miles and got to the path up to her door--then decided against it and walked a hundred miles home! 1
Hamba Tuhan Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My mum's family joined the Church because several weeks before the first missionaries arrived, a man came to their home late one night, asked for something to eat, and then before leaving offered a blessing upon the family and also urged them to listen to the two Americans who would soon be arriving with an important message from God.
Nofear Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 A week or two before Pioneer Day my wife and I were asked to speak. We found all kinds of fun stories (I have Drusilla Dorris Hendricks in my line and my wife has Elias Adams). One that didn't make it into the talks was about the children of Elias. Elias was incredibly resourceful and a veteran of the war of 1812, a true pioneer, self-made, go-getter' done kind of guy. His sons, kept a lot of that but brights apparently did have some shortcomings. One day while out hunting they came upon a big bear and one of the boys was like, "Hey, wrap my arm with a jacket and I'll hold a bowie knife straight forward and when the bear tries to bit my arm the knife will cut him inside the throat." Fortunately for both parties the bear simply walked off.
Duncan Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Where did he end up? moved back to Germany and my dad said he was kind of reclusive and eccentric, but he had kids
katherine the great Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 There are some that are more inspiring, but my favorite of my most well-known Mormon ancestor happened when he was a younger man in Eastern Canada. Somehow he me a young woman who lived in Buffalo. He decided that he should go courting. He walked 100 miles and got to the path up to her door--then decided against it and walked a hundred miles home!What the what? That's the biggest case of cold feet I've ever heard of! What is it with these Canadians? My Quebecois ggggrandmother was murdered by her son-in-law (my gggrandfather) He was a bad egg...
strappinglad Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Um, I'm related to the Dalton Gang.Well , that clears up a lot 1
halconero Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Yours beats mine. But I could at least begin to compete by admitting my paternal grandfather was a Russian Communist US immigrant who ran a so-called "Russian School" that had the hammer and sickle flying outside on the flagpole rather than the US flag. He was also the secretary for a local New York area chapter of the International Workers Order, a Soviet Communist affiliated fraternal organization.I am the opposite of a communist. Red runs in my family's blood too. My dad grew up in a home dominated by Marxism, Liberation theology, and Catholicism (quite the eclectic mix). They had a lithograph of Vladimir Lenin up next to a painting of the last supper and Jesus' cleansing of the temple. On the other hand, his grandmother (the one who married the German-Jew philanderer) was an Italian fascist who knocked knees with the Mussolini family before emigrating to Chile. Needless to say, my immediate family is still politically charged to a certain extent. My dad is what you would call a moderate with very strong inclinations to the United Order of the Kirtland days.
Guest Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 Have you found anything cool in your family history research? I found out that I'm a descendant of Joseph Smith's grandfather.My great x4 grandfather was Tomas Henry Mitchell, he settled into Sandy Spring, GA in 1813. He built a home called the Mitchell-Tilley House that same year. In is the oldest house in Fulton County. You could almost throw a rock from it and hit the Atlanta Temple. His grandson, Wesley Harris Mitchell build a house (still there as well) that is even closer to the Temple. During the Civil War he served in the Army of Northern Virginia and was with Lee at Appromaddox. He later returned home and founded the First Methodist Church of Sandy Springs. The land upon which the two of their houses stand (if single ownership was still under one name) is some of the most valuable land in the Southeast, which today would be worth around 40,000,000 for the thirty or so acres.
ERayR Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My grandfather, Heber DePriest, played the cello, violin, clarinet, and saxophone. He fed his family of 6 during the Depression partly with rabbits he killed with a single-shot Winchester 22 rifle. In my book, that's pretty remarkable. His father was branch president in Cane Creek, Tennessee, just before a mob of Klansmen killed two missionaries and a boy there. His home was burned after his family left to colonize in Manassa, Colorado. My great grandfather(Russell Rogers) was a colonizer of Manassa, Colorado.
ERayR Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 There are some that are more inspiring, but my favorite of my most well-known Mormon ancestor happened when he was a younger man in Eastern Canada. Somehow he me a young woman who lived in Buffalo. He decided that he should go courting. He walked 100 miles and got to the path up to her door--then decided against it and walked a hundred miles home! Too much time to think.
JAHS Posted October 13, 2014 Posted October 13, 2014 My great-great grandmother was one of the women who cooked and laundered for Pancho Villa's band of revolutionaries, or so the story goes Um, I'm related to the Dalton Gang. Jessie James is my second cousin four times removed.
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