Generation ivory

Searching City Directories

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:46:01 -0700

Up until this last weekend I had never searched for my ancestors in any city directory. I didn’t realize how helpful they could be!

Recently I have been doing a lot of research on Mathew’s first family in New Jersey when he was married to Mary Cox. This last weekend I spent most of my genealogy time working on one of Mathew’s grandsons, Clem Ivory. Clem’s father was the son of Mathew H. Ivory, who was the son of Mathew Hayes Ivory Jr.

I found many records for Clem including US Census records, military draft cards, city directories, and death records.

I found Clem in the 1897-98 McKeesport City Directory. McKeesport is a small city in Pennsylvania. He lived there with his family comprising his father Mathew, mother, Celia, brother Harry, and sister Mary. Click here to see the image from the city directory. I also found Clem and his family in the 1901-02 city directory for McKeesport. Click here to see that image.

The records didn’t really give me any vital information like births, deaths, etc., but it did give the address of 617 Water Street. From there I went to Google Maps and I found exactly where the house had been. Now it is a parking lot, but back in 1900 there were houses or some sort of housing along Water Street.

The 1897-98 directory states that Clem “bds”(boards) at 617 Water Street and that his father Mathew “h” owns the house.

The 1901-02 directory states that Clem was a laborer working for the railroad.

Like I said, they directories don’t give vital information, but it does tell you a little bit more about the person and sometimes their address and occupation. I have had so much fun researching Clem because somewhere between 1902 and 1910 he managed to do something to get into prison. The 1910 US Census states he was in the Allegheny County Jail and later in the 1920 US Census he is in the New York State Prison for Men. I am currently trying to figure out what Clem did to wind up in prison.

One of my new favorite documents to research is city directories. They give a different aspect of our ancestors that we may not get anywhere else. I will keep everyone up-to-date with what I find out about Clem and Mathew’s first family.

From 8mm to Home Theater

Sat, 26 Dec 2009 19:39:57 -0700

This year for Christmas I digitized old 8mm and Super 8 videos my grandfather had and digitized them onto DVD.

A couple months ago I was thinking I wanted to digitize the old home movies I had heard about from my dad and his sisters. I went over to my grandfather’s and asked him if he still had the old movies. He pulled out a few boxes full of movies! There were so many reels of film in there. I couldn’t believe he had that many!

I took the film to a company here in Utah to have them digitize it. Their prices were pretty reasonable compared to other places I looked at.

It was really fun working on getting the music and transitions to the videos once I got them back from the digitization place. My dad and I worked on them for a couple of nights and put really fun music to the videos and put them onto DVD’s. The movies that I gave to my grandfather and my dad and his siblings were 7 years of Christmas from 1960-1967.

I also digitized my parents wedding for my mom. My mom had no clue that my grandfather even had those old movies so when she unwrapped the DVD with her wedding on it she was so shocked! She wanted to watch it over and over.

It is so fun helping bring back memories of people because I get to hear stories that otherwise wouldn’t be told. As my dad and I were going through the videos he would bring up a story that he remembered. He said he had totally forgot about things until he saw those videos. The same thing happened on Christmas when we watched the videos at my grandfather’s house.

Back to Blogging

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 13:01:46 -0700

It has been a while since I have blogged! I guess that is what you get for working full time, going to school, and Christmas just a few days away.

I am happy to say that I am done with finals and my Christmas shopping is done - well, I have one little project that I am working on left that I need to finish tonight and then I will be completely done!

I got a pretty cool email yesterday from a guy named John Enslen. He is a missionary down at the Church History Library here in Salt Lake. He was asking for information on Mathew Hayes Jr. I have emailed Elder Enslen back and forth for the past couple of days. I will keep posted on new events with him.

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec 12, 2009

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 08:44:24 -0700

I served my LDS mission in Southern Alberta, Canada. My first Christmas there we went to St. Michael’s, an elderly retirement home, and sang Christmas carols to them. It is amazing how just a little song can make someone’s day. Most of the people there didn’t have family or their family wasn’t in a position to visit them on Christmas day.

I remember a couple of women mouthing the words along with us as we were singing and then start to actually sing with us. Smiles started to show on their faces which in return made mine smile because I knew that

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec 10, 2009

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:50:28 -0700

One thing that I have been working on for Christmas this year is digitizing some of the old 8mm and Super 8 film that my grandfather has of my Dad and his siblings. I got them back today and have been spending the whole night watching them on my computer. One part of the old movies fits perfect with today’s theme on the GeneaBloggers website.

My Dad was telling me that one year for Christmas he got an army uniform and a toy gun. Him and his best friend would play for hours dressed up and shooting their guns. Watching these old movies has been so fun tonight I wanted to share part of it with you. Below is the movie of my Dad in his army outfit and gun he got for Christmas.

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec 6, 2009

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 22:33:14 -0700

One of my fondest memories of my old house was when my parents were telling my grandparents my plan to catch Santa Claus.

A couple of days before I was thinking to myself that I really wanted to catch Santa Claus putting out all of the gifts under the tree. Sure I had seen him in the mall a couple of times, at my school, and just about everywhere else you could imagine in the past month, but I wanted to actually watch him put my presents under the tree.

I sat there thinking how I could accomplish this without him knowing and catching me. After all, I didn’t want to become a “bad boy” just because I wanted to watch him in my house. I also wanted to know how he got in my house because we didn’t have a chimney and fireplace. All of the movies showed that was how Santa got into your house.

I told my parents my great plan to hide behind my door when I heard him come in the house and then then slowly peek around the corner looking into the living room. The placement of the furniture would make it so he wouldn’t see me peeking around the corner. Does this plan sound like similar ones you have heard in the past...

When my grandparents came over they were in the living room with my parents talking. I was in my bedroom right next to the living room and just as I was coming out of my room my dad was telling the story and showing them how I would hide behind the corner. Even though I was probably only 4 or 5, I could tell that they were making fun of me. It made me so mad I turned to them and said, “Fine! You just wait until I actually do catch him, then you will all be sorry you made fun of me!”

It is really amazing some of the memories you remember from being so young. I know that is one memory that will be passed down to my kids and hopefully onto their kids. I do wish that I could end this little story saying that I did catch him that night, but he was just too sneaky for me and has been ever since...

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec. 5, 2009

Sat, 5 Dec 2009 16:13:41 -0700

Near my house in Taylorsville, Utah, there is a street named “Christmas Street” and every year they decorate the entire street and tell the story “Twas the Night Before Christmas”. Each year we drive our car down the street and read the story and look at the lights.

There are many people that sync their lights to music. It is really quite something to see and hear. Scroll down or click on the link to view one of the houses someone has synced to music.

One really great place to go see lights here in Salt Lake City is to go down to Temple Square. Every year after Thanksgiving the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints displays christmas lights thru New Years. There are over one million lights on the square and hundreds of people visit Temple Square every night to see the amazing lights and celebration of Christmas. For more info on the lights and other events at Temple Square, click here.

Picture taken from Directory of Salt Lake City

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec. 4, 2009

Fri, 4 Dec 2009 20:45:36 -0700

One of the best ways for families to have at least once a year updates is to send Christmas cards. Some families live far away from each other and aren’t always able to see each other very often.

Christmas cards are great for those loved ones that are far away because most people put pictures of the family in the cards. They also often include and great overview of the years events.

It is fun to see the change in you family over the years with the pictures. There are quite a few cards that we get each year that have family pictures in them and since we don’t a lot of the families very often it is great to see the change that has happened in the past year of the last time we saw the family.

There are many ways to create your own Christmas cards. Some people, like my mother, use scrapbook materials to make her own and then share them with a card club.

You can take your own photos to places like Walmart or Walgreens and have them printed into Christmas cards from a little kiosk in their stores. Printed cards and pictures are cheap and fast. You have the option of having them printed right and there or you can do a one hour photo printing for a little cheaper.

There are many websites that you can create your own Christmas cards and have them printed and sent to you. Some of these websites include:
• KodakGallery.com
• Shutterfly.com
• Hallmark.com

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec. 3, 2009

Thu, 3 Dec 2009 19:16:55 -0700

Christmas Tree Ornaments - It seems like every year the ornaments on our tree are always different. I swear either my Mom goes out and buys new ornaments every year or she is just amazing at the variety and arrangement she does each year - my guess is that she is just amazing at it.

There really is no rule as to what kind of ornaments you can put on your Christmas Tree. Some people decorate their tree every year with ornaments their kids made in school, while other decorate it with the most elegant bulb, lights, and anything that makes it look shiny. Either way, decorating the Christmas Tree is always unique and inspiring.

I remember a tree my grandmother had in her home. My memories recall it being 50 feet high when in reality it was probably only a 12 foot tree. Isn’t it amazing how when you are little things seem so much bigger than they really are? It was always a joy to go to my grandma’s house when she had that big tree because I remember standing on the little balcony that was upstairs and being able to reach over and touch the top of the tree. It seemed like there were a million light on that tree is shone so bright. I know my grandmother spend hours working on just that tree alone.

The other day my Mom started to get out all the Christmas decorations and last night I was looking through some of it and came across a couple things that I remember making for her in school. I think most children can say that they made an ornament for the tree sometime in their lives whether it was at school, church, or daycare. Even though most of those decorations definitely look like they were made by a child, those are the ones that will get passed down from generation to generation.

Christmas Advent Calendar - Dec. 2, 2009

Wed, 2 Dec 2009 17:23:52 -0700

I think most of us agree that during the holidays we put on a few pounds, but who can blame us when we have such wonderful food always in front of us. Between company parties, family parties, and parties with friends, there is no doubt that we put on a few extra pounds. Isn’t that one of our New Year’s resolutions - to lose weight?

We all have our favorite food that we eat during the holidays. Some of us eat cultural food, home baked good, specialty meals, etc. No matter what kind of food we eat, we all have our favorite traditions.

One of my families favorite parts about Christmas is the chili my Mom makes. Every Christmas Eve the house fills with the simmering chili smell. For years it has been a tradition in my family that we get together with my grandparents on Christmas Eve at our house and eat chili and finger food, play games, and watch a movie.