1896 graduation
The graduating class at Murray Public School in 1896: Back row: Ann
Tehan, Lillian Mast, Judge William H. Donahue, Minnie Martin and William
Boyd; front row: Bertha Hanna, Grace Wells, Thomas Wells, Margaret
Murray.
Note: The Web version of this issue of The Roots Tracer contains all of the words and all of the non-decorative graphics of the original paper version, but does not preserve the original typographical formatting.
THE LIVERMORE ROOTS TRACER INDEX VOL XII NO. 2 Message from David - 387 New members - 387 Notes from Program Chairman - 388 Murray School Graduation, 1896 - 388 Family Art Documented - 389 Great Register, Murray Township, Alameda Co., Livermore Precinct 2 - 390 QUERY - 393 HOW I Avoided Confusion in Kansas - 394 PROFILE: Darrel Thomas JOHNSON - 397 The Bookshelf - 398 PROFILE: Karen E. Travers JOHNSON - 401 Where to find it - 402 PROFILE: Harold Forris MORRIS, Jr - 403 PROFILE: Connie L. Adams PITT 404 OBIT: Absalom MENDENHALL - 405 PHOTO. William MENDENHALL & Wife - 405 VOLUME X11 WINTER 1992-1993 NUMBER 2 Livermore-Amador Genealogical Society PO Box 901, Livermore, California 94551
LIVERMORE-AMADOR GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY P. 0. Box 901, Livermore, CA 94551 President David ABRAHAMS 510-447-9386 1st VP and Membership Virginia MOORE 510-447-8316 2nd VP and Programs Jolene ABRAHAMS 510-447-9386 Recording Secretary John WALDEN 510-443-2057 Corresponding Secretary Dixie NEWBURY 510-447-1868 Business Manager Clarence PARKISON 510-449-8656 Publications Chairman George ANDERSON 510-846-4265 Publicity (acting) Jolene ABRAHAMS 510-447-9386 Livermore Cultural Arts Council Rep Don JOHNSON 510-447-4746 The Livermore-Amador Genealogical Society is exempt from Federal Income Tax under Section 501(c)(3) (literary and educational) of the Internal Revenue Code and California Taxation Code 237020.
The Roots Tracer is a quarterly publication with articles of interest to the genealogist. Members are encouraged to submit their "Profiles" as well as articles of general interest. Queries are free to members, $1.00 to non-members. The deadline for each quarterly is the 15th of June, September, December, and March. Send to: Roots Tracer, P. 0. Box 901, Livermore, CA 94551 Any book presented to the Society will be reviewed in the quarterly along with the purchase price and address of the publisher. Our Library is located in the Pleasanton Public Library building, 400 Old Bernal Ave., Pleasanton, CA. Meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday, monthly, at Congregation Beth Emek, 1866 College Ave., Livermore, CA. Membership in LAGS is open to any individual, library, or society. Our fiscal year is September 1 through August 31. Membership includes a subscription to the quarterly Roots Tracer. Publications (Prices are postage paid) Surname Index (1988) $7.00 Livermore Cemeteries (1988) $19.00 Pleasanton, Dublin Cemeteries (1990) $14.00 The Bookshelf (1992) $3.00 Roots Tracer Index $6.00 Livermore Cemetery Index $6.00 Prices subject to change Send check or money order to: Livermore-Amador Genealogical Society, P. 0. Box 901, Livermore, CA 94551
Message from the President The first quarter of our fiscal year has come and gone. We have had several very fine programs - from both our members and speakers from other clubs. And during the next quarter we have plans for more fine programs. Jeanne Tanghe gave a presentation on the benefits of belonging to other genealogy clubs. She has joined several whose members specialize in the same areas she is researching. By becoming a member of such clubs we not only have more resources available to us, but can also provide help to their members. As another example, I belong not only to LAGS, but also to the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society and the Jewish Genealogy Society of Great Britain. As a result, I now have expanded my research capabilities, and can provide other researchers with information on my family - something they may not have had access to before. I'm sure there are other members of LAGS who also belong to other clubs. Therefore, DURING THE NEXT TWO MONTHS I WOULD LIKE TO COMPILE A LIST OF MEMBERS WHO BELONG TO OTHER CLUBS, WITH THE NAMES OF THOSE CLUBS. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DO NOT ATTEND MEETINGS, PLEASE SEND YOUR LISTS TO ME AT OUR P.O. BOX. THE LIST WILL THEN BE PUBLISHED IN THE NEXT EDITION OF ROOTS TRACER. Now, to another subject: LAGS is in need of an Historian. We have filled every other position at this time. The Historian is responsible for keeping the Society scrapbook, which contains photos, newspaper articles and other memorabilia that past Historians have deemed worthwhile. I have asked for a volunteer at the last two meetings, but to no avail. Won't someone please step forward and take on this rather benign task?
WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS Terry (Henry) Crane Earl P. Moore
NOTES FROM THE PROGRAM CHAIRMAN Jolene Abrahams The programs for the coming months should be a lot of fun for all of our members and guests. At our January meeting, our very own Rhett Williamson will perform a Re- enactment from the Revolutionary War. Rhett will portray one of his ancestors who was a doctor in the War. The February meeting's program: Bring your old photos to have photographic negatives made by members of LAGS . These negatives can then be printed for distribution to your families, etc. The program for March will feature High Tech and Genealogy. On April 24, LAGS and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are co-sponsoring a one-day genealogy seminar. It will be held at the Livermore Stake, 1501 Hillcrest Avenue, Livermore. For further information, please contact either Mary Lynne Horton, (510) 443-5407, or myself, (510) 447-9386, or write to us at the LAGS address.
75 Years Ago, 1917 Twenty-two employees of the Livermore Fire Brick Company went on strike Thursday for higher pay. The striking workers were demanding 25 cents per day and time-and-a-half pay for Sunday work. 'Aunt Mary' Smith celebrated her 91st birthday last Sunday with a family reunion. Mrs. Smith has been a member of the Harlan family, which crossed the plains in 1846. Postmaster Callaghan notes that beginning Nov. 2, First Class postage will rise to 3 cents for each ounce. 100 Years Ago, 1892 "In the death of John W. Kottinger, which occurred last Friday, Murray Township lost one of its oldest and most highly respected citizens." Advertisement: Choice fruit and farming land for sale. The well-known Taylor tract in what is known as "the Big Field" in the Livermore Valley has recently been divided and a portion of it will be sold. (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory now sits on this particular parcel of land.)
Make Sure All Family Art is Properly Documented Q: I have inherited a nineteenth century portrait of a woman that is supposedly by a known Italian artist. It belonged to my mother and my grandmother before that. I think the painting is of one of my ancestors, but unfortunately, my mother passed away before I ever had the chance to ask her what she knew about it or how my grandmother got it. Can you help me? A: Perhaps, but it's not going to be easy. You or someone else in your family should have asked your mother about the painting while she was still alive and had her give it in a written statement. If it makes you feel any better, thousands of inheritors across the nation find themselves in this exact same situation every year. They live around works of art or fine antiques all their lives, either in their homes or the homes of their parents, grandparents or other relatives, but never think to ask what these treasures are or whether they have any family significance. The owners pass away and the descendants are left with mysteries. Here are the two most important things to remember in any situation where fine art is going to be passed down through a family: - If you own fine art and have not yet documented it, do so immediately. Save your descendants the trouble of having to ask. - If someone in your family owns art and has not yet documented it, have them do so immediately. Proper documentation includes noting the artist, the subject matter, how and where it was acquired, how much was paid for it, and so on, how it has been handed down over the years, and so on. In addition, all documentations should be accompanied by current appraisals or names of appraisers qualified to set values just in case descendants decide to sell. This protects them from being taken advantage of by deceitful buyers. As for your painting, you can acquire biographical information about the artist, assuming he's known, through standard library research. Identifying the sitter or how the painting came into your family is going to be more difficult. You can try calling or writing various members of your family, showing them photos of the painting and seeing whether they know anything about it. Check to see whether anyone owns old family photograph albums-you might be able to identify the sitter from an old photo. The possibility also exists that the painting could be part of a matched pair with the husband's portrait being owned by another branch of the family. If you come up empty handed, about all you can do is hire a geneologist to trace your family members back to the time of that painting and hope you can somehow locate pictures of these people from sources outside your family. Good luck. Art, Antiques & Collectibles, August, 1992 from Bev Ales
Surnames developed from several sources, such as a person's occupation (Baker, Carpenter, Taylor, Skinner); his physical characteristics (Armstrong, Little, Redman, Young); or his place of settlement (Hilton, Brook, Meadows, Knowles). Almost one third of American surnames are derived from a father's name (Johnson, Davidson, Williams, Mac Donald).
[At this point, the printed copy of the Roots Tracer reproduces 3 2/3 pages from the "Great Register, Alameda County, Murray Township, Livermore Precinct No.2" from 1896. There are about 180 names with much data about the persons. For this online version of the Roots Tracer, the data could not be transcribed manually because the effort would have been too great, the pages could not be rendered by optical character recognition because the printing is too faint, and the pages could not be reproduced as images because the file size would be too large for our server. The reader is referred to the printed copy of the magazine for this data.]
QUERY HOLMAN Thomas B. HOLMAN was born in 1854 in Lincoln County, Kentucky. He was living in Oakland, CA with wife Sophie in 1915. Where were they married? What was Sophie's maiden name? When did they die and are there any known descendants? Leland C. WORKMAN 1824 SE 36th Terrace, Topeka, KS 66605-2532
How I Avoided Confusion in Kansas By Chuck Rockhold By the end of May the temptation was just too great. With the low cost air fares I could afford to visit Kansas in search of information on both my great grandfather and my great-great grandfather, who had lived there from about 1870 to 1906. My wife was committed to take some classes during her summer off from teaching, so I called my brother Dick to see if I could interest him in going. We agreed on a schedule for a five day trip and I eventually got through to TWA and made the reservations. TWA was apologetic that they could only come up with $140 tickets instead of the lowest fare of $125. Not too bad I thought, for a round trip flight to Kansas City. I went to the LAGS section of the Pleasanton Library and discovered that there was a Republic County Genealogy Society located in Belleville, the county seat (population 2500). I put together a one page letter asking altogether too many questions with the hope that I would at least get answers to some. Was there a local historical museum? Did they have a list of cemeteries and were they indexed? Was there a library having a local history section, and finally, could I meet you during my visit? The letter was mailed by June 17, well before our July 24-28 planned visit. By the July 14, LAGS meeting I had not yet received a reply. Ron Bremer was the guest speaker at LAGS that night and provided valuable insight such as his list of "bestor" and "worster" sources of information; new found insights that I could apply to my undertaking. Besides entertaining us, he also pointed out the difference between a particular and a general search and reminded us that since we may never again visit a given area, we would do well to get everything we need while we were there. Pretty neat stuff, I thought as I was preparing to go off into battle. Republic County would probably never cross my sights a second time. Ron pitched his $100 book, Compendium of Historical Sources, as the meeting drew to a close. That looked like a great book to own, but at $100, it exceeded my book budget for the next few years. As a token of appreciation, I did buy a copy of another book that he had, Stamp Out Chaos! Eliminate Confusion!, by Vincent L. Jones, for $10. With a title like that, how could I miss? That night I read my new library addition from cover to cover, all 40 odd pages. This was good stuff. Jones's thesis was that with forethought and dedication to his principals, you could make a lot more progress, and even sleep nights. Since I wanted to make progress and enjoyed sleeping nights, it sounded like good advice to me! Jones offered many worthwhile suggestions such as, general searches should be jurisdictionally organized; geographically, in time of interest, in the full range of surnames of interest and finally with sources to be searched. The next couple of evenings were spent developing an outline for the upcoming trip. Since I tend to get easily confused, I thought this outline would provide a convenient baseline plan to revert to, particularly if things weren't going too well. With this objective in mind, I added my own touch, the distinctions between "musts" "shoulds" and "coulds". This helps focus one's attention on the real mission, especially when time is running short and all bases have not yet been covered. My masterpiece is included herein. By Thursday night July 23, the eve of my departure, I still had not yet heard from my earlier letter. It was 9:00 PM and I was busy packing when the phone rang. On the other end of the line was a very gracious lady. Ruth Raha had formerly been head of the no longer existent Republic County Genealogy Society. She apologized for not writing and offered that she worked in the county library, did genealogy for others and would try to answer my questions. Twenty minutes later, I had more going-in information than I ever imagined possible. I knew the local library hours, what departments on what floors of the court house contained which records and the whens and wheres of the local historical society. She outlined where I could browse the index of all cemeteries in the county and told me where each was located. Now this was progress! ******************* Because of this undeserved string of fortuitous information, the trip was a resounding success. Two omissions from my search outline were caught in transit and will be included for future reference; don't forget to search tax records in the court house and get a good local map. One bonus benefit of the search outline was that it provided an effective means for me to delegate much of the work to my brother, since he now knew what to look for. While in the Belleville Library, I was able to get a copy of their index of all county newspapers going back to 1877. They are available on microfilm and I have begun bringing them in through the Pleasanton Library on inter-library loan. Reviewing newspapers, except for specific known events, is too time consuming to undertake during a short visit. Another important contact was made in Scandia, a nearby town (population 480) where my ancestors had lived. The have a nice historical museum that is staffed by local volunteers and is open mostly by appointment. We were able to arrange a visit for Sunday afternoon; they opened up just for us. In setting up the appointment, I had mentioned over the phone, the purpose of our visit. When we arrived, Ms. Gwen Loring, the volunteer, had a prepared packet of information on my ancestors for us to take home, she also directed us to others who were equally helpful. Since they subsist on donations, after I returned home, I mailed a check in appreciation of her effort. She has subsequently written to me enclosing further information and has given me three references of local people who could help. One of the gems furnished by Ms. Loring is from The History of the State of Kansas, A. T. Andrews, 1893: "J. M. Rockhold, M.D., physician and surgeon, was born in Hiram, Ohio, at the age of ten years went to Illinois, remaining there until 1855; then went to Avon and began reading medicine with Dr. J. J. Rowe, remaining there six years; part of the time was engaged in the drug business; in 1860 began its practice, in 1867 emigrated to Iowa, remaining there two years, in 1870 came to Kansas, locating in Belleville, where he engaged in the practice of medicine, remaining there two years, and then located in Union Township and took a homestead on Section 14, remaining there about five years; then bought a farm on Section 15, remaining there until 1881; besides attending to his practice, improved three farms, which he still owns; has eighty acres broken on the farm he bought and 120 on the homestead; a good house on each place, good barn, stables and orchard, three acres of fruit trees on the last place, a spring which furnishes water enough for 1,000 head of cattle, and has about sixty head of cattle on the place; also owns a fine residence in Scandia and has made all he has since he came here; when he landed in Belleville in 1870 and had $6.40 and a large family. Was married in 1849, in Illinois. They have mine living children - David T., Zurretta, Lafayette, Ettie, Freddie, Van, Orpha, Arthur and Jessie. Is a member of Eclectic Medical Society of Kansas, also member of I. 0. 0. F." One last comment. Two days after I arrived home, at 6:00 AM I received a phone call from a lady named Doris Shelburne who was calling from Fairbury, Nebraska. She was seeking information on the Rockholds as that was her grandmother's maiden name. Given the hour, I eventually became coherent and asked her how she had found me? She said that the Belleville paper comes out on Thursday, and it had mentioned that my brother and I were in town in search of family history. Her niece who lives in Belleville had seen the article and called her in Nebraska. When I asked her how she knew where I lived, she said that she had called the local motel where we stayed and that they had given her my address. She would make a good genealogist! July 16, 1992
Genealogical Search July 24-28, 1992 Jurisdiction Republic County, Kansas Period Primary 1871-1910 Secondary 1860-1912 Surnames of Interest Primary Rockhold, Tarbell, Thorn(e) Secondary Sons-in-law of John M. Rockhold, Catlin, Holliday, Williams, Wylie Daughters-in-law of John M. Rockhold Peck, Reigal, White Other Hines, Shoup, Strong Records/Sources to be Searched Musts Land records Probate Court (testate & intestate) Cemeteries (Republic City & Scandia) Vital (birth, marriage, adoption, divorce, death) Genealogical Society (Belleville) Judicial Court Shoulds Library (County history-copy book) Church (Congregational, Republic City; ?, Scandia) Municipal Court, Scandia (John M. Rockhold was a Justice of the Peace) Coulds Historical Society Fraternal (Grange, Masons) Newspaper (obituaries) Identify old photos? Other 1. Obtain a phone book for follow up. 2. Establish a follow up contact, e.g., a high school kid to do follow up record searching.
The Bookshelf Reviewed by George Anderson Fifteen new additions to the LAGS Library are reviewed briefly this quarter. The titles are listed in the box at the right. ******************** Books reviewed this issue Virginia Will Records Passengers and Ships Prior to 1684. Penn's Colony: Volume I Handbook of Genealogical Sources Family Diseases: Are You at Risk? The Land of the Lake: an Early History of Campbell County, Tennessee The Civil War and Campbell County, Tennessee My Family Tree Workshop: Genealogy for Beginners Church of Christ, Bristol, Bristol Co., Rhode Island - 1687-1775 1860 Census, DeKalb County, Illinois Surname Lists and Index, Marin County, California Membership Roster and Ancestor List, Heart of America Genealogical Society and Library, Kansas City, Missouri Genealogical Collection of the Central Library of Contra Costa County, California Hayward Area Genealogical Society Library Listings Genealogical Researching in Eastern Canada. An Address Guide to Quebec and the Atlantic Provinces Family Group Sheet Collections for Pomeroy and Person, and variations thereof ******************** Virginia Will Records. 1982. Published by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore. 984+xvii pages, 6x9 inches, hardcover, indexed. Donated by Lucile White. A massive amount of data on Virginia, extracted from The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, the William and Mary College Quarterly, and Tyler's Quarterly. This book was actually given to LAGS by Lucile White many years ago, but was misplaced when our library moved into the Carnegie building. It has never appeared in our "Bookshelf" catalog. Some idea of the amount of information in this book can be inferred from the size of the index: about 16,000 different names. The data is of high quality also, because wills often spell out kinships with authority. ******************** Passengers and Ships Prior to 1684. Penn's Colony: Volume I. 1962, reprinted 1992. Edited by Walter Lee Sheppard, Jr., published by Heritage Books, Inc., 1540-E Pointer Ridge Place, Bowie, MD 20716. 245+xi pages, 6x9 inches, soft cover, maps, indexed. Donated to LAGS by the publisher. When the Mayflower made its epic voyage in 1620, there were several on board with a sense of history. Detailed accounts of that voyage and a complete roster of passengers were preserved. Unfortunately, nothing like that happened when William Penn sailed for the Delaware on the Welcome in 1682. What is known about the passengers on that ship and on those that followed in the next few years is collected in this book. An index of ships' names and a full-name index of person names are included. ******************** Handbook of Genealogical Sources. 1991. By George K. Schweitzer. Published by the author, 407 Regent Court, Knoxville, TN 37923-5807. 217 pages, 6x9 inches, soft cover, self-indexed. $12.00. Donated by Judy Person. LAGS already owns 12 Schweitzer books. They have proved especially popular with our library patrons. Most are about individual states, or about one of America's wars, but this is a high-density collection of sources covering the whole field of genealogy. The best description of this book is "a mini-encyclopedia." There are 128 chapters, each only one to three pages long, and arranged alphabetically by title, from "Adoptions" and "Ads in genealogical magazines" to "WPA records" and "Writing source citations." The facts, the references and the advice are crammed in with no padding. As a physicist myself (Schweitzer is also a physicist), one chapter caught my eye. It is titled "Group Theory," the name of a particularly abstract mathematical tool used in physics. The chapter has nothing to do with mathematics or physics, of course, but with a cute trick for tracing ancestors with common names like James Black. The trick is to link James Black with neighbors having uncommon names like Stiff and Welhoff, and then to use the often-justified assumption that friends and relatives migrated in groups to trace the Stiffs and Welhoffs to find where James Black may have come from. Schweitzer may have been inspired in this idea (if it is his own) by the technique of radioelement tracing, in which a radioactive isotope is used to track a stable isotope of the same element. This is an impressive book, well worth buying or using in our library. ******************** Family Diseases: Are You at Risk? 1989. By Myra Vanderpool Gormley. Published by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore. 165+xii pages, 6x9 inches, hard cover, illustrated, unindexed. $14.95. Donated by George and Harriet Anderson. Genealogy is often defined as "finding out who we are." This phrase is usually taken in a spiritual sense, but in a harder view, we literally are what our ancestors were, to the extent that nature prevails over nurture. And what our ancestors were is often something that we wish they weren't.
Family Diseases is a short, easily read, eye-opening summary of medical problems that can run in families. Would you believe that there are 124 national organizations that each deal with a different genetic disorder? One of them is the International Joseph Diseases Foundation, founded by Rosemarie Silva of Livermore. Mrs. Silva has spoken to LAGS several times. Another is the Hemochromatosis Research Foundation, which I belong to because both of my brothers were diagnosed with this rare blood disease. Ms. Gormley discusses most of these inheritable diseases with the aim of inspiring genealogists to begin collecting medical information about their relatives. Her point is that there is an urgent need to learn where we and our loved ones are at risk, for several reasons. One reason for compiling family medical information is that some inherited diseases can be treated if they are diagnosed early enough. That is the case with hemochromatosis. Another reason is that prospective parents can get more intelligent genetic counseling if they have a valid family medical history. Such counseling may lead to an alert for certain symptoms among children, or to prenatal testing, or even to avoidance of parenthood. Another reason for genealogists to be interested in the health of their kinfolk is an altruistic one - well-documented family medical histories are needed by researchers to advance the science of medicine, for the benefit of all. Because I have compiled descending genealogies for all of my great-grandparents, I was asked by Dr. Bareikiene of Philadelphia to send questionnaires to 40 of my closest relatives, as part of a research project on hemochromatosis. Ms. Gormley's book, in my opinion, is must reading for all genealogists. We can give our relatives something much more valuable than a list of names, dates and places if we go to the extra trouble of searching out the medical problems and the cause of death of everyone we research. Ms. Gormley tells us how to do this. ******************** The Land of the Lake: an Early History of Campbell County, Tennessee. 1941, reprinted 1991. By Dr. G. L. Ridenour. Published by Action Printing, Ltd., Jacksboro, TN. 128+x pages, 6x9 inches, soft cover, illustrated, indexed. Donated by Judy Person. Campbell County, Tennessee, lies near the Cumberland Gap, the great gateway in the Appalachians through which spilled the first flood of westward-pushing pioneers in the 1700s. Indians and Indian fighters, hunters, explorers, settlers and soldiers made much history in Campbell County, as did modern man when he built the Norris Dam there as part of the TVA project. This is nominally a history book, but it does contain many lists of names of early Campbell County citizens, and an index of about 1400 person names. The book is enlivened by many half-page anecdotes with titles like "John Barleycorn Passes Away" and "Colonel Colyer Gets Dose of Cockleburrs." ******************** The Civil War and Campbell County, Tennessee. 1992. By Gregory K. Miller. Published by Action Printing, Ltd., Jacksboro, TN. 110+x pages, 6x9 inches, soft cover, illustrated, indexed. Donated by Judy Person. As mentioned in the previous review, Campbell County, Tennessee occupies a strategic position near the Cumberland Gap, one of the few openings in the great Cumberland barrier between the eastern seaboard and the interior. Control of the Gap passed back and forth between the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War as troops alternately advanced and retreated through Campbell County. East Tennessee never wanted to secede from the Union. The state as a whole voted 105,000 to 47,000 to join the rebellion, while Campbell County voted 1000 to 59 in opposition. Thousands of men from East Tennessee fled over the border to Kentucky to join the Union forces, often to return as whole companies to fight against their secessionist neighbors. This book also is primarily history, not genealogy, but there are lists of local Civil War veterans and Civil War burials. The index contains about 500 entries for persons and subjects. ******************** My Family Tree Workbook: Genealogy for Beginners. 1982. By Rosemary A. Chorzempa. Published by Dover Publications, Inc., New York. 59+iii pages, 8- 1/2x11 inches, soft cover. $4.25. Donated by George and Harriet Anderson. This is a children's book - a collection of forms to help a child gather information for a first family history project. Members of LAGS may find it useful to copy some of these pages for their children or grandchildren, or to inspect the book with a view to buying one for them. ******************** Church of Christ, Bristol, Bristol Co., Rhode Island - 1687-1775. Ancestor Microfiche Number 0000048. 37 pages on one fiche. Indexed. Donated by Judy Person. This fiche devotes 25 pages to baptisms, 2 pages to the census of 1688- 1689 for Bristol, which was then in Plymouth Co., Massachusetts, and 12 pages to the index. All of LAGS microfiche and microfilm is kept by the reference librarian at Pleasanton Library. ******************** 1860 Census, DeKalb County, Illinois. 1982. Copied by Marilyn Robinson. 269+ii pages, 9x11 inches, indexed. Donated by Judy Person. Ms. Robinson has transcribed and indexed (by surname only) over 19,000 names of residents of DeKalb County, Illinois in 1860. She gives the full census entry, with minor exceptions that she spells out carefully in the introduction. ******************** Surname Lists and Index, Marin County, California. 1990. By Jerry Lynn Smith, P.O. Box 1511, Novato, CA 94948. Index of 1669 different surnames. Donated by Marilyn Fullam. ******************** Membership Roster and Ancestor Index, Heart of America Genealogical Society and Library, Kansas City, Missouri. 1991. Edited by Joanne Chiles Eakin. Published by HAGS, 311 E. 12th St., Kansas City, MO 64106. Donated by Marilyn Fullam. This book is much like our own surname book. It is self-indexed with 1659 entries, each listing the ancestor's name, the date of a vital event, the locality of that event, and a key to the HAGS member who submitted the entry. The membership list is included in the book. ******************** Genealogical Collection of the Central Library of Contra Costa County, California. Catalog of genealogical books at the main CCC library at 1750 Oak Park Blvd. in Pleasant Hill. The list includes 891 books arranged alphabetically by title. Circulating books are excluded. ******************** Hayward Area Genealogical Society Library Listings. Catalog of the HAGS Library holdings, housed at the San Lorenzo Library, 395 Paseo Grande, San Lorenzo. The library contains 361 genealogical books. HAGS and LAGS have made similar cooperative agreements with the Alameda County Library System, and in fact, our written agreement was modeled after that written by HAGS. ******************** Genealogical Researching in Eastern Canada. An Address Guide to Quebec and the Atlantic Provinces. 1983. By Michael J. Denis. Published by Danbury House, P.O. Box 253, Oakland, ME 04963. 32 pages, 8 1/2x11 inches, soft cover, not indexed. The author states that the purpose of his book is "to give the researcher as complete a list of addresses as practically possible, and also to give brief notes on the types of records which are outstanding in their unusualness, or to give a brief listing of what records are available and their time span." ******************** Family Group Sheet Collections for Pomeroy and Person, and variations thereof. Donated by Judy Person. These are sheets reproduced from the huge data base maintained by Yates Publishing Co., P.O. Box 67, Stevensville, MT 59870. For Pomeroy, Pomroy this collection includes 19 group sheets, unindexed. For Pearson, Peirson, Person, Persons, Persson, Pierson there are 43 sheets, plus an index of 118 names contained on them.
ALAMEDA COUNTY DEEDS To obtain a copy of an Official Record, the County Clerk-Recorder suggests (a) come to the office of the recorder (hours 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM) and request a copy, or (b) contact a Title Company, or (c) request a copy by mail providing the office with the following information: (1) date the document was recorded; (2) type of document; (3) name under which the document is recorded; (4) recording series number. Contact: Rene C. Davidson Clerk-Recorder Alameda County Courthouse 1225 Fallon Street Oakland, CA 94612-4280 ------------------------------------------------- MAP SOURCES The U.S. Geological Survey has several free publications that will help beginning and advanced genealogists. A 12-page booklet "Maps Can Help You Trace Your Family Tree" will introduce you to what a genealogist needs to know to access not only USGS maps, but also maps in the Library of Congress, National Archives, and other sources. Another booklet, "Map Information Sources", lists addresses and phone numbers of many commercial firms and professional societies. Some of these offer historical and specialty as well as foreign maps. Any state index and price list for topographical maps is also available. Call 1-800-872- 6277, or write to: U. S. Geological Survey 523 National Center Reston, VA 22092 (From ROOT DIGGER, NOV. 1992) ------------------------------------------------- CENSUS RECORDS Also from the November 1992 ROOT DIGGER Newsletter---- Places that you may never have thought to look for various records: The 1790 census for present-day Washington D. C. is in the enumeration for Montgomery and Prince George Counties, Maryland. The 1820 and 1830 census records for Wisconsin are with Michigan, and the 1860 census for Wyoming is with Nebraska. The 1836 Iowa Territory census includes Minnesota. The 1840 Montana census is with Clayton County, Iowa. The 1860 Colorado census is with Kansas, Montana is with Nebraska under "unorganized territory", Oklahoma is with Arkansas (Indian Land). Wyoming is with Nebraska. Nevada is not named, but records are with the census for Utah. ------------------------------------------------- SALT BOOKS OF GEORGIA If your ancestors lived in Georgia during the Civil War they may be listed on the Salt Books at the Georgia State Archives on microfilm #73/4. Families who were supplied the scarce commodity are listed by county. Salt could be used in lieu of money as barter. The state intervened in the distribution of salt in order to assure equal access for all. San Joaquin Genealogical Society Vol. 12, No. 5. -------------------------------------------------
50 Years Ago, 1942 - November 2 "Death took the last one of Livermore's pioneer families when David Archer Mendenhall passed away in Palo Alto. He was the son of the late William Mendenhall, who laid out the city of Livermore."
THE LIVERMORE HERALD ---- April 6 1907 Another of the early settlers of this valley and a pioneer of California has answered the last call. Absalom Mendenhall was found dead on the banks of the Arroyo Valle between Dos Mesas and Cresta Blanca Tuesday afternoon. He had left his home on the first named place to get a team and was found as stated soon after by one of the workmen at Cresta Blanca. Deputy Coroner Reimers was notified and he went out after the remains. An autopsy revealed the cause of death as a valvular disease of the heart. The funeral which was largely attended took place Thursday afternoon from the residence of Jessie Bowles. The services were conducted by Rev. James B. Stone. The internment was in the family plot at Oak Knoll Cemetery. The honorary pallbearers were Volney Still, Hiram Bailey, D.M. Teeter, J.W. Clark, Daniel Inman and F.R. Fasset. The casket bearers were W.H. Farragher, William Schluter, 0. McDonald, C.E. Beck, T.D. Coffman and George Beck. Deceased was born in Ohio and was 76yrs, 7mos, and 15 days old at the time of his death. He came to California in 1850 and located in Santa Clara. He came to the Livermore Valley in 1869 and settled on what was known as the Arlington Place. Later he engaged in the stock business in the Livermore mountains and for many years his time has been divided between his range and his home in Livermore. Deceased leaves a wife and six children, four of whom were by a former wife--William Mendenhall of San Luis Obispo, Henry Mendenhall of Nevada, Mrs. Mattie Church of Oakland, Douglas Mendenhall of Napa, Ernst Mendenhall and Mrs. Josie Winsor of this place. He also leaves a brother, William M. Mendenhall, of this place and Mrs. William Johnson of Danville.
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