In The City: Where Some Of My Ancestors Lived #52Ancestors ~ Week 32
I can only imagine. Where did some of my early ancestors traveled in the cities they settled down? I wonder? Are there buildings or tress still standing during the days of my ancestors’ days? Did my ancestors leave a trace of their existence? Can I search where their homes were located?
Yes, I have visited some of the places where some of my ancestors lived. Just a thought. Some of us live or have lived in the same cities as our ancestor but, in a different space and time. We can walk in the foot steps of our ancestors and relatives.
I’m thinking about some of my ancestors who lived in St. Joseph, Missouri. Some of my relatives lived there back in the days of slavery and segregation. My relatives were the enslaved when the Pony Express began in St. Joseph, Missouri. I can only imagine that they heard of the news of the pony riders.
As I began searching for my relatives through old news papers, I wasn’t aware that I’ve been to places where they traveled. Yes, we shared the same places. And know I can see things in a new light as we travel in places where my ancestors resided.
There’s a block that I’ve traveled many times. I wasn’t aware that my Grandfather Leo was riding a horse and it broke its leg. The horse was shot and Leo was charged for reckless driving in 1901.
I’ve been to Lake Contrary. It has changed through time. I didn’t know that my my step Great Grandfather, Thornton Walters drowned there at the age of 43. I read the news articles of that day in Aug of 1903. He was there with family and friends for a picnic. He was fishing in a boat and reached over, losing his balance. (He was paralyzed on one side.) The person in the boat with him couldn’t swim.
I have viewed the 102 River. I didn’t know that my Great Uncle James Washington drowned there in 1889 at the age of 16. I read the article of his tragedy. He was swimming in the middle of the stream near the bridge where it was deep. He caught a cramp. His body discovered the next day.
Other places that were in the times of my early relatives and the buildings are still there . But through time the changed into museums. ,Patee House Hotel and Jesse James home. I can only imagine what my ancestors experienced in their time.
I have been to cemeteries where some of my relatives were buried. I’ve come across tombstones dating back to the birth of a relative born in 1852. Many tombstones are loss and or covered over into the ground. I can imagine other early family members standing by the grave sites just as I was in the present.
In the city where I live, the place where my roots run deep, I can experience the past in the present moments. The torch has been passed on to generations and generations to come. Will they know the stories of our past? Will they be interested in searching out the family connections?
May we imagine how we connect with the city we lived in.
May we explore where our ancestors settled down.
May we leave stories behind for generations to come.
Amen.
Thanks for reading.
In The City: Where Some Of My Ancestors Lived #52Ancestors ~ Week 32
God bless you.
S. A. Blakley
Photo is the place where some of my ancestors and relatives resided. Memories: Many funeral recessions passed these blocks, kids playing in the streets: Oh, the memories we created.
Week 32: In the City ~ Generations Café via facebook
“They went and built a skyscraper seven stories high / About as high as a building oughta grow!” (Sorry — it’s been awhile since I’ve thrown in a random song lyric.) Were any of your ancestors “city folk”? Did your farming ancestors leave any tales of trips to the big city? What was the “big” city they would have visited — and how is it different today? Feel free to leave your links and stories in the comments.
Week 33 (Aug. 16-22): Tragedy
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