CATCHING UP

Charles Jefferson Mansfield

September 28, 1879 - May 14, 1940

with wife Valle (Shelton) Mansfield

Children: tall girl in back row, Ada

baby is Ruthel and girl standing between parents is Lola

Lola Berma (Mansfield) (Steed) Lowe
September 10, 1902 - March 25, 1995
Aunt Lola

Thomas F. Astle

"Tom, Tommy, Dad, Husband"

September 1, 1914 - December 22, 2004

This is his graduation picture from Dorchester High School for Boys. He was sixteen.

The Branches blog has been quiet because it has been a very busy few months at work and at home. We're baaaaack......

NEWEST BRANCH ON THE FAMILY TREE

Laurie St. Hilaire married Jeff Lacharite on July 12, 2008 in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

We wish them every happiness in their marriage.

HUNTING FOR FAMILY

Searching for family members can be an adventure. For instance, I was looking for my son's great-grandfather, Thomas Astle, and his second wife, Elizabeth, in the 1900 Census. I did searches and could not find them. I knew they lived in the North End of Boston, MA, but they did not turn up in the computer search. I finally went page by page through the hundreds of pages of Census for that section of Boston. I found the whole family under the name of Harkins. Elizabeth's maiden name was Harkins. How they got into the Census under her maiden name is a mystery.

If you need information for 1890, good luck, the U.S. Census was almost totally destroyed in a fire. There are just a few remnants left and naturally they are not the ones my family is in. There are various places to look. I have been using city directories to find people in 1890 and between census years.

There was a family legend that Walter Astle, my son's grandfather, was a civil engineer. He was also said to be a butcher as a young man. All of my information showed Walter as an engineer. When I looked in one of the Boston City Directories he was listed as a butcher. The family legend is true.

OTHER RECENT DISCOVERIES
Charles O. Humphrey of Waterbury, VT, was the Master of the Colbyville Grange.

I found this bit of information in Waton's Vermont Register and Farmers' Almanac for 1879.

Paul J. DesLauriers, Sr. was a John Alden in a fourth grade Thanksgiving play at the Greehalge School in Lowell, MA, in November 1945. He also worked the curtain for the other parts of the performance. A man of many talents.

Thomas Astle and first wife, Jane Byrne, were married in 1886 in Danville, Asbestos, Quebec, Canada. This is just outside Montreal. Their son Walter was born there. I have discovered more about this family recently. After Walter was born, they had a daughter, Eliz Astle. She died at the age of three. They had a second son, Thomas Astle. Their third child was a girl, Jane, and their fourth child was a daughter, Catherine.

We found several of the Purvee family buried in the Maple St. Cemetery in Waterbury, VT. This is interesting because some of the Humphrey family is buried very near them. The story gets more interesting because Thomas Astle of Massachuetts, son of Susan Humphrey Astle, married Jenifer Purvee of Vermont in Vermont in 2001. It was not until three years ago that we found out that our Humphrey family had a history in Waterbury, VT going back to the 1790s. Tom and Jenifer currently live within 20 miles of Waterbury. This part of the family tree has come full circle.

Morton Humphrey, of the Waterbury Humphreys, moved his family to California in the mid-1870s. The San Franciso Call of December 7, 1900 mentions Morton as the foreman of a Coroner's jury in an inquest into the death of a man caused by a train wreck. The paper did not seem impressed with the verdict. Headline: Inquest into the killing of Mahoney develops only the meager verdict that he is dead.

SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAYS

Specific day unknown: Barbara Kenneson, John A. Shea, Marion E. Davis, Willie Kenneson. Abagail Eddy would be 407 this month.

1 Thomas F. Astle

3 Michael Hutchinson, Delia DesLauriers

4. Norman Kenneson, D. Humphrey

5 Abraham Monticue Shelton

6 Lillian DesLauriers, Lloyd Curtis

8 James D. Cartwright

9 Ray M. Moran, David J. Cotter

10 Lola Lowe

11 Florence DesLauriers, Cecelia DesLauriers, Alma Humphrey

14 Richard K. Evirs, Diana D. Joyce, Harold W. Humphrey

16 Robert P. Humphrey, Harold H. Humphrey, George W. Humphrey (Robert's paternal great-grandfather)

17 Thomas H. Shea

21 Mildred W. Sullivan

22 Gail Gaudette

23 Karen K. Sullivan

25 Brooke E. Ruberti, Marjorie Davis

26 Joseph L. Sweeney, Ethan G. Evirs, Mary Davis, Sarah H. Rand

27 Amber J. Mingus

28 Charles Jefferson Mansfield

29 William D. Slayers, Jenny E. Slayers

OCTOBER BIRTHDAYS

Specific day unknown: Clara Purvee, Thomas F. Walsh, Leander Gates

2 Edmund Hearn, Oscar Pius Nelson

7 William B. Moran

8 Ellen Rand Humphrey

9 Robert Astle

10 John A. Weatherford

11 Arthur DesLauriers

13 Gwen Davis Humphrey, Brent Mingus

14 Thomas Purvee, Virginia Shelton

15 Kathleen Ryan, Louetta Nicolle

16 Earl Davis

17 Daniel Young, Ariana Humphrey

23 Marion Nicolle, Lydia Whittemore

24 Harry K. Kenneson

24 Charles O. Humphrey

26 Charles R. Humphrey, Carson Dooley, Rev. Calvin Moody

27 Harlie Wheeler Humphrey

28 Paul DesLauriers, Jr.

29 Isaac Whittemore

30 Alexander Shelton

As always cousin Richard Evirs and I welcome your comments, suggestions, stories and pictures. If you have information you would like to share, please send it to sastle@comcast.net.

If you have stumbled on this blog while surfing the net, welcome.

MEMORY VS. REALITY

OUR FAMILY IN MEMORY AND IN REALITY

The family researcher must always be careful to pay attention to the difference between memory and reality.

Case in point. I always get a big kick out of the movie, The Christmas Story. There is a scene in the movie where the main character, a 10-yr old boy, receives a gift from his aunt. The gift is a pink bunny pajama suit. This isn't just pajamas. It is fuzzy suit that completely covers his head, has big floppy ears and two giant bunny feet. He is mortified and does not want to wear it. His parents tell him to try it on and he does. His father calls it a "pink nightmare" and it is.

I always laugh at this scene because I always distinctly remember my brother Charlie wearing just such an outfit when we were kids. It was for Halloween, I think.

This is where memory and reality collide. I was going through some old family photos and came across the picture you see above.

The reality is that it is me in the bunny suit.

Reality hit again when my sister gave me a doll replica of the boy in the movie as a Christmas present. It sits in my breakfront as a constant reminder to check the facts before believing anything, even my own memory.

FAMILY IN THE NEWS

One of the most interesting parts of doing family research is finding new "tidbits" of information that help us paint a clearer picture of our ancestors and their lives. In addition to births, marriages, and deaths, we sometimes find glimpses into the past and how they went about their business of daily living.

Burton H. Humphrey, Sr.

Burton was the son of Charles O. Humphrey and the grandson of Elinas and Nancy Humphrey of Waterbury, VT. He was born in 1868 and he and his family in lived in Barre, VT in the late 1800s. The U.S. Census tells us that he drove an ice cart and was the manager at an ice company.

The Argus and Patriot newspaper was a major source of news for the general area around Waterbury and Barre.

December 12, 1891 tells us: "Burton and his brother Charles went home (to Waterbury) for Thanksgiving day. "

On November 16, 1892 : "George McFarland has sold a half interest in his ice business to B. H.
Humphrey."

On Dec. 14, 1898, same newspaper reported: "Bert Humphrey was thrown from his wagon on South Main street last Friday morning and quite badly shaken up. His nose was broken, a big gash cut in his head and he was otherwise bruised."

Ann Humphrey

Sometimes the news was about a death; but, an obit was sometimes more than just names and dates. Ann Humphrey was the daughter of Elinas and Nancy Humphrey. She was always a little bit of a mystery to us. She never married. The U.S. Census shows her at various times living as an adult with her parents, living with her brother Charles O. Humphrey, and working as a servant in the Fullerton household.

The Waterbury Weavings column in the Argus and Patriot of November 29, 1882 ran the following:

"Miss Ann Humphrey left a line in her room at the hotel Sunday night, saying that she had no home, was not well, her head felt bad, was discouraged and they would find her body in the river near the upper bridge, and another letter to her brother, with directions about her funeral. Monday morning they found her shawl and gloves folded on the bank, then tracks to the edge where she plunged into 12 feet of water. Her body was found a few rods below, in shallow water, frozen to the ice. The deceased was at work in the kitchen of the hotel, and had about $1,000 left her by her father several years ago, which had been used up for her support. She was not very strong."

Ann was 46 when she died. She is buried in the same plot in Hope Cemetery in Waterbury with her mother, father and sister Juliette.

The Telephone Comes to Waterbury

Argus and Patriot, June 6, 1883: "The telephone reached Waterbury last Saturday, but the office was not finally decided on up to Monday morning. An office has been opened in Arms & Haines' store and another is talked of at the corner, perhaps it will be at Evans'drug store. Waterbury can now talk with Montpelier, Barre, Williamstown, Middleses, Moretown, Waitsfield and Warren."

Rev. Calvin Moody

Argus and Patriot, September 10, 1879: "Rev. Calvin Moody, son of George Moody (note: husband of Lucia Eddy Moody, niece of Nancy Eddy Humphrey) a graduate of Middlebury College, now at the Theological Institute at Andover, Mass., supplied the Congregational pulpit Sunday and preached an able sermon. "

Argus and Patriot, May 25, 1881: "Rev. Calvin E. Moody, a native of Waterbury, preaching a very acceptable sermon from the text, :Strive to enter in at the strait gate,". Mr. Moody has been preaching about two years, and is at present supplying a pulpit at Center Harbor, New Hampshire, the old and longest know summer resort on Lake Winnipisseogee (sic.), at the north-western end."

Charles O. Humphrey

Argus and Patriot, June 27, 1894: "Charles O. Humphrey, after a long and painful illness, died at his house near the Center last Wednesday. He was a soldier in the late war, a member of Co. I, 13 Vt Vols, and held the rank of Corporal when honorably discharged at the close of the war. He was a member of Edwin Dillingham Post, Grand Army of the Republic and a respected citizen, whose decease will be sincerely mourned by his family and many friends. Mr. Humphrey was 53 years old and leaves a wife and six children. "

Horace Humphrey

Argus and Patriot, July 20, 1881: "C. C. Warren has bought for $250, it is reported a chestnut gelding 16 hands high and weighing about 1,000 pounds of Horace Humphrey, keeper of the poor farm." (Note: this is interesting because we never knew that Horace ran the Waterbury poor farm. It is even more interesting to note that a man named Ira Humphrey took over the running of the poor farm after Horace. We cannot find a family relationship between the two; but, you can bet that we will keep looking. Seems like a big coincidence.)

Ira Humphrey

Argus and Patriot, March 19, 1884: "Ira Humphrey, who is in charge of the town farm, is reported to have been married at Brookfield a week ago last Sunday, to Miss Ida Shonio of Duxbury." (Note: this is interesting because we have family who married into the same Shonio family.")

Argus and Patriot, November 8, 1899: "Divorces Granted, Ida Humphrey, Waterbury, vs. Ira Humphrey; intolerable severity."

LATE APRIL BIRTHDAYS

20 Jennifer Humphrey, Joseph Corbonara

21 Sabina Walsh McDonnell, Rachel Roadcap

22 David H. Salyers, Gretchen Evirs, Edward Purvee

24 Jenifer Purvee, Brent Mingus

25 Nicole St. Hilaire

26 Phyllis Purvee

27 Kenneth Humphrey, Kenneth Clark

30 Shelton Silverman, Kristine Frankel, Ashley Morgan

MAY BIRTHDAYS

Date unknown: Thomas Jefferson Mansfield, William Evirs, Squire Harper Davis, Orissis DesLauriers.

1 Susan T. Robinson, Irene (Humphrey) Kelley, Susan Tolle

3 Caitlin Purvee

4 Vera Shonio, Rosa Davis

6 Celina DesLauriers, Alma Humphrey

7 Ralph Humphrey, William Rand

8 Ashley Frankel, Lucia Eddy, Thomas Rand

9 Aimee (St. Hilaire) Hutchinson, Nettie Everett Humphrey

10 Maura McNamara

11 Ryan Robinson, Mark Huse Moody

12 Nicholas Mansfield

14 Howard E. Humphrey

17 William Eddy (221 years old today!)

18 Kaithlin Corbonara

20 Chloe Nelson

21 David Vine, Gayle Brewer

22 Edith Nelson, Pamella Nelson

25 Scott Mansfield, Charles Carroll Humphrey

26 Clifford Shonio, Robert Kenneson

27 Francis Rand Humphrey

30 Donna Morgan, Jennifer Turcotte

31 Prosper DesLauriers

NEWEST LEAVES ON OUR FAMILY TREE

Asher John Keltner born February 7, 2008, 8 lbs, 1oz. Parents: Nathan and Anna Keltner.

Jake Paul Pugh born March 11, 2008, 6lbs, 14 oz. Parents: Eric and Wendy Pugh.

OTHER RECENT DISCOVERIES

1. Marriage record for Thomas Astle and Jane Byrne, June 15, 1886 in Angelican-Danville in Canada.

2. Lowell Sun, 1942: First Communion announcement for 109 children at St. Michael's church in Lowell, MA. Among those listed: Paul J. DesLauriers.

3. U.S. IRS Tax Assessment List, 1862, Waterbury, VT. William Humphrey, a one horse wagon worth $75.00 was taxed $1.00.

4. Charles O. Humphrey and Mason Humphrey of Waterbury, listed as part of the junior class of Barre Academy in 1857.

5. Charles O. Humphrey listed as a male member of the Classical Department of People's Academy in Morrisville, VT.

6. Ann M. Humphrey, brother Morton, his wife Ellen, and sister Juliette listed as parishioners of the First Congregational Church, Waterbury, in 1868.

7. Morton Humphrey listed as as a parishioner of Bethany Church, Montpelier, in 1876.

Cousin Richard Evirs and I welcome your comments, suggestions, stories and pictures. If you have information you would like to share, please send it to sastle@comcast.net.

Names, Voters and Why Do This?

Richard Everett Humphrey held by his grandmother Christina (McCoy) Shea

He was born on February 7, 1921 and died May 2, 1992.

He was called Richard, Dick, Rich, Poppy, Grandpa, and brother.

I just call him my dad and I miss him every day.

FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS

Date unknown: John R. Coughlin, Gertrude Kelley, Arthur Humphrey

4 Michael Sweeney, Eric Pugh, Manly Shonio

6 Michael Pugh

7 Richard Humphrey

8 Horace Humphrey

9 Patricia Riley

10 Edwin Shonio, Earl W. Davis

11 Hugh Humphrey

13 Patricia Kerr, Opal Grace Mansfield

14 Allen Weatherford, Donald St. Hilaire, Sr., Donald K. Kenneson

15 Ann Humphrey, Walter Astle, Jr.

16 Tricia Keville

17 Jacob Rager

22 Paul DesLauriers, Thomas Astle b: 1888

25 Lisa Call

28 Sophronia Whittemore

MARCH BIRTHDAYS

Date unknown: Annie Walsh, Florence Evirs, Daniel Shea, Prosper Rich

2 Jonathan Morgan, Joel Morgan

3 Catherine Rankin, Morton Humphrey, Melvie Rager, James Nelson

4 Ronnie Robinson

5 Erin Keville

6 Ralph Slagle

7 Glenn Gaudette, Anna Rand

9 Stacy Baum

10 Barbara Baum

12 Roger Purvee, Lehman Nelson

13 Mary Weatherford

14 Mary Shelton, Mary Poe, Joseph Shelton

15 Brian Sullivan, Daniel Whittemore

16 Diane Humphrey, Jennifer Humphrey, Quinn Sullivan, Charles L. Kelley, Dorothy Bovill, Ulysses Simpson Grant Shelton

17 Eudora Weatherford, Zachariah Eddy

19 George Steed

21 Gersham Davis

22 Barbara Gaudette

23 Donald St. Hilaire, Jr.

25 Odell Rager

26 Ruby Rager, Nancy Kenneson, Thomas J. Evirs

27 Esther Humphrey, Harry A. Kenneson

29 Pearl Kenneson

31 Phillip Gervais, Elizabeth Eddy (211 this month)

ELECTION TIME

Recently the California Voter Registration lists became available on the internet. Since we are all being bombarded by election advertising, I decided to look for some of our relatives. I found some of our Humphrey relatives in the Oakland/Sacramento lists. It was quite interesting for one family.

In 1912 Arthur Humphrey (son of Morton, grandson of Elinas and Nancy Humphrey of Vermont) was listed as a Republican, his wife Mollie as a Democrat and his mother Ellen (Rand) Humphrey as a Prohibitionist. That must have made for some lively political conversations around the dinner table. Then again.....maybe not.

SURNAME MEANINGS AND ORIGINS

The following short information pieces were taken from the Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press.

Astle: habitional name from a place in Cheshire called Astle, from Old English east hill.

Burns: Scottish and northern English topographic name for someone who lived by a stream or streams.

Davis: Southern English: patronymic from David.

DesLauriers: French: topographic name for someone living among laurels, It is frequently a secondary surname in Canada.

Eddy: English (Devon) from the Middle English personal name Edwy, composed of the elements of prosperity, fortune and war.

Humphrey: English: from the Old French personal name Humfrey, introduced to Britain by the Normans.

Hutchinson: Northern English, patronymic from the medieval personal name Hutchin, a pet form of Hugh.

Kelley: Irish, Scottish, and English: variant spelling of Kelly.

Kenneson: Probably Scottish, a variant spelling of Kenison. Variant of Cunieson, meaning the son of Conan.

Keville: English, habitational name for someone from a place called Keevil in Wiltshire, probably from Old English, hollow, woodland clearing.

Malone: Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic, descendant of the devotee of Saint John. Numerous in County Clare.

Mansfield: English; habitational name from a place in Nottinghamshire.

McCoy: Irish (Limerick) ancient personal name meaning fire.

McIntosh: Scottish: son of the chief

MacPherson: Scottish: Anglicized for of Gaelic Mac an Phearsain, son of the parson. It is also established in Northern Ireland.

St. Hilaire: French: habitational name from any of the numerous places of this name in France and Belgium, which take their name from a religious dedication to St. Hilarius.

Rager: Habitational name for somone from either of two places called Ragen: in Tyrol, Austria and East Prussia, Germany.

Shea: Irish: reduced for of O'Shea, Anglicized for of Gaelic, fine or fortune.

WHY DO THIS?

My personal reasons are many. I hunt for members of the family because it is interesting and fun. I want to know where I came from and who I came from. I want to know what my family's role was in building this country. I want to acknowledge their hard work and sacrafice. I want to be able to pass this information along to the members of our family who are not yet born.

I have renewed old family friendships and begun new ones. Some are relatives and some are just helpful people who are also searching for their people. For example, it was about 5:00 p.m. and the sun was setting as we (mother, husband and me) were in Illinois looking at a memorial dedicated to members of the armed services who had lost their lives in WWII. My mother's brother's name was on the memorial. While we were admiring the sculpture in front of the memorial, two other women came to look at the statue. One of them turned out to be the daughter of the artist who sculpted the statue. It was an opportunity for my mother to tell her how much the statue meant to her family.

We have tramped through cemeteries searching for gravestones ("Did you bring the binoculars and the boots?"), looked for old home foundations in empty fields ("I think that empty hole looks like a old cellar!"), spent the day inside a town hall vault in Vermont, and stood in awe in front of the gravestone of our fallen Civil War great, great uncle at Cold Harbor in Virginia.

I have gone into a coal mine to try to understand, even just a little, what it was like to be my grandfather, a coal miner from Kentucky who worked in a cold, damp, dark mine. I have toured the cotton mills of Lowell, Massachusetts, to better understand my grandmother who worked there. I have read books on the great influenza epidemic of 1917 to get a picture of what my grandfather might have experienced and felt when he lost his young wife and brother at that time.

One final thought. When I leave this earth for the final time, I hope that I will meet my long ago relatives. I would like be able to call them by name and know something about them. I know one thing for sure. When I meet my great, great, great grandfather Elinas Humphrey, I will finally get to ask him what his father's name was. Then I will rest in peace.

As always, cousin Richard Evirs and I welcome your comments, suggestions, stories and pictures. If you have a family story that you would like to share, please send it to sastle@comcast.net