Week 31: Brother

     Oh Brother! Siblings can be such a pain, can't they? Always fighting, taking your stuff, making noise, bugging the bejeezus out of you. Sometimes you look at those who are only children and think, "Oh they are so lucky!" Well, being an only child myself, I can tell you, it's not all it's cracked up to be. While siblings are not always perfect, they are your family.
     I know my dad can attest to the fact that growing up with 8 siblings wasn't the easiest. Especially since he was the oldest and they didn't have a lot of money. They may have done without a lot of material items, but the stories they have from their childhood are amazing. To this day, all my dad's siblings are still around and still get together quite often. Especially all the brothers.
     Dad has four younger brothers: Mike, Kevin, Marty, and Chris. Quite often, they will meet up for breakfast (or other meals) and spend hours just talking about "nothing" as dad calls it. They will just go from one subject to another, chasing rabbits down holes, never running out of things to say. I've had the privilege of sitting around with them listening to some of the stories and let me tell you, it is a hoot. My husband wants to start setting a tape recorder around them just to capture all that is discussed.
     Not only do they get together for meals, but they are also always helping each other out and going places together. My Uncle Kevin drives my dad to his doctor appointments all the time. Even in the cancer treatment room, they are lifting the spirits of those around them with their stories and jokes. All the boys will take trips with my dad down to the lake house in Arkansas to do work and clean it up. My dad says they will start talking once they get into the truck, and don't stop until they get home. It amazes him that they have so much to talk about. Something new they have started doing is making trips out to Uncle Mike's house to help him pick vegetables from his garden. They've got a whole system worked out so my dad can help and not get too overtired. Just over the past few years, they have been getting together more and more. I am so happy my dad gets to have that time with his brothers. He loves them so much and cherishes the time he gets to have alone with them.
     I know life wasn't always easy for them growing up, especially with an alcoholic father, but they sure have a strong bond for life. They have looked past any issues there may have been, and continue to grow closer every day. I know one day this will all change forever, so I treasure all the stories, get-togethers, and memories that I can.
     Many people don't have a close relationship with their brothers that my dad has. It's true just on my mom's side of the family. Sadly, maybe people will go through their lives and never speak to their siblings again. It is tragic for sure, but sometimes there is nothing that can be done. So if you have a decent relationship with your brothers (or sisters), treasure it. I know my Uncles do.

Dad (center) with his siblings

Christmas 2018

Week 30: Easy

     This week's prompt for the 52 Ancestors posts is Easy. No, I don't mean it is easy I mean the topic is Easy. No... I mean... Yeah, that's not confusing. Explaining the topic is about as complicated as some of my research. While some of my research hasn't been too hard, quite a bit of work has gone into proving family stories, family lines, and locations. When I think about the lines that have been easy to research, I think about what made it easy. And the truth is, the reason it is easy is because of the availability of the records. You have to admit, thanks to modern technology, tracking down ancestors has definitely improved through the years. Let's look at some of the ways things have changed.

     I don't know how many generations of your family have been doing family research, but I have some documents from my husband's 2nd great Aunt, Mary Amelia, that contain information about the research she did on the family. These papers were from the 1940s and 1950s. Typed up on a typewriter. Wow! The information on those papers, got me started on the research for my husband's side of the family. How quickly I was able to confirm or deny her research with just a few clicks of a button. But when she did the research, she had to rely on talking with family. There was no going to the library to look up census records on the computer or microfilm. Microfilms started becoming available in the 1960s (from what I could see of my brief search). Most of the research that was done required a lot of work, tracking down information. And if you had family that lived in different towns or states, there were no getting copies of records.

     Copies? Well, not like we have today. Copies included you writing down (transcribing) information from that document. They didn't have copiers, scanners, etc. You were the copy machine. If you had the pleasure of viewing the census books, you had to write down everything you needed from all the pages. So Mary Amelia had to have kept notes and copies of everything that she got either from her own research or from family. Then she would painstakingly try to make sure other family members had copies. The best way to make copies from typing is by carbon paper. That at least cut down on how many documents you had to type. I have to admit, I have no clue what kind of research could have been done during this time or what was available to the public. Churches, health departments, libraries, courthouses, etc I assume. The point I'm trying to make is, this was not EASY!
     Then as documents were finally being loaded onto microfilm, it was becoming easy to go through records. But unless there was an index included, you were kind of flying blind. That's how it was with Census Records. There were no indexes. You had to go page by page looking for your ancestor. And if they moved to a different district, oh forget about it. And even if you found them, guess what, you still had to copy the information by hand. No cameras, scanners, copiers, etc. Honestly, you had to be very dedicated to getting information and tracking down the family to continue to do this often.
     Fast forward to today. Wow! What a difference! Not only are documents being digitized, but they are also available on this thing called the internet.... for EVERYONE to see, no matter where you are. What?! I know our ancestors would be flipping out if they knew how easily their records would be accessible. Especially my great grandparents who purposely went to another state to get married to hide the fact they got pregnant out of wedlock. The lied about when they got married and it was passed down through the years... until their great-granddaughter (me) found their marriage record online. Oops!
     Truth be told, we have it SOOOOOO easy today for doing genealogy research. With just a few clicks of a button, we have traced 5 generations. We can share documents, photos, and stories from all over the world with anyone and everyone. And not only can we research documents all over in our own country, but we can also access documents from OTHER countries now as well. Something completely unheard of unless you took a trip over to the country. So yeah, while some of my research had a been difficult process for me, it would have nearly been impossible years ago. So I am grateful for how "easy" my research is today. (Do you understand the topic now?) I know I came to the game right in the middle of research is easy and I've become pretty spoiled for sure, along with a lot of people. So next time, we want to complain about how "hard" our research is, let's be grateful we have the options we have and the availability of the records today.

Looking through original documents at 

Clay County Archives

How long have you been doing research? How has it changed during your lifetime? What was your favorite way to research? Tell us about it!

   

Week 28: Reunion

     It's summer time! So you know what that means. Reunions are in full swing. Family, Schools, Organizations. It's a time to get together and reminisce, tell stories, meet new people, and make new memories. I've been to a few reunions for my Dad's side of the family when I was younger. I could never understand how we could be related to so many people that I didn't know. I wish I would have been more interested at the time, but again, I was a kid.
     As an adult, I haven't attended any family reunions. Maybe one day I will put one together. With the boom in DNA discoveries and interest in family history research, family reunions seems to be on the rise. The have definitely evolved over the years with all the different activities and events that people do now.
    While doing my family research, I've been looking through newspapers for articles mentioning my family. In the process of combing through articles, I've found some talking about Reunions and Family get togethers for the Swope Family. The town they came from, Plattsburg, Missouri, was a very small farming town. Everything about everyone was published in the paper. There was no privacy it seemed. While it's good for me, it must have been frustrating for them.
     Since I don't have anything from reunions I have been to, I will share some articles about the Swope family and their family reunions in the Plattsburg Leader.

1939

1957

1944

1937

The Hoover family is related to the Swope family

1932

1939

Fire at the National Personnel Records Center

     Forty-six years ago today, a devastating tragedy occurred at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Shortly after midnight, on July 12, 1973, a fire was reported at the NPRC's military personnel records building at 9700 Page Boulevard in St. Louis, MO. Firefighters arrived on the scene only 4 minutes and 20 seconds after the first alarm sounded and entered the building. While they were able to reach the burning sixth floor, the heat and the smoke forced the firefighters to withdraw at 3:15am. In order to combat and contain the flames, firefighters were forced to pour great quantities of water onto the exterior of the building and inside through broken windows. The fire burned out of control for 22 hours; it took two days before firefighters were able to re-enter the building. The blaze was so intense that local Overland residents had to remain indoors, due to the heavy acrid smoke. It was not until July 16, nearly four and a half days after the first reports, that the local fire department called the fire officially out. During the long ordeal, firefighters faced severe problems due to insufficient water pressure. Exacerbating the situation, one of the department's pumper trucks broke down after 40 hours of continuous operation. Numerous times, the fire threatened to spread down to the other floors; but firefighters were successful in halting its advance. In all, it took the participation of 42 fire districts to combat the disastrous blaze. Due to the extensive damages, investigators were never able to determine the source of the fire. Read more about this event on the NARA website: 1973 Fire, National Personnel Records Center - NARA

These are newspaper clippings from the day and the days following

1973 Chillicothe Constitution Tribune

1973 Kansas City Tribune

1973 Jefferson City Post Tribune

     This event has caused many veterans to have trouble getting benefits for their service as well as proper recognition. The NARA has been working since then to put as many files back together as they can, with the help of family also doing genealogy research. I myself have been working on putting back together my 2nd great Uncle's military file that was destroyed. Many millions of records have been restored, but there is still a long way to go.

In honor of this anniversary, my husband surprised me with an interview with his father, Paul Rickards, who was employed at the records center during the time of the fire. He remembers that day very well, so he took the time to tell his son about that day and the days following. I have put together a video of his interview along with photos from the day for him for Father's day and to share with all of you.

So here it is, a first hand account of that dreadful day that changed history forever. 

Week 27: Independent

     In honor of it being the week of our Independence Day Celebration here in the United States, I want to dedicate this post to my husband. Why? Well, he is a 4th of July baby! He was born on July 4, 1981. So I want to wish him a happy birthday and share some wonderful memories through photos. He is definitely blessed to still be alive. When he was just 2, he was diagnosed with Childhood ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a type of cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many immature lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). He spent a lot of his childhood going to doctors and hospitals for treatment. Through God's grace, he went into remission and then was labeled "cured". Sadly, many of the children he was going through treatment with did not survive. So he definitely doesn't take life for granted. I am so lucky to call him mine. My life wouldn't be complete with out him.

Happy Birthday my love!

My hubby with his sisters Lisa and Traci

So cool!

His bear, Snuggles
He had that bear all the way through treatment &
still has it to this day as a reminder he survived

School Pictures 1998-2000

Isn't he so handsome?

His favorite Christian Music Group

Point of Grace

Our first unofficial date - Feb 2002

Our Wedding Day - July 19, 2002

Are you my daddy?

March 26, 2004

Black Canyon, Colorado

2008

Halloween - 2011

Always good for a laugh

Me and My love - 2019

DisneyWorld - 2015

I'm a viking!

Happy Birthday Mark!

Week 26: Legend of Jesse James & Sheriff Joe Rickards

     Jesse James. Now there is a legend. Most people are familiar with this name and it definitely grabs your attention. But if I were to say the name Sheriff Joe Rickards, I guarantee you would have no clue who I'm talking about, nor would you have ever heard of him. And you would be wondering what would these two names have in common. Well, what you would say if I told you, he is the only lawman who was ever able to put Jesse James in jail? Now I definitely have your attention don't I? Well, let me tell you a story.
     Joe Rickards is my husband's 2nd great-grandpa. I've written about him before in a blog post, Capt. Joseph Henry Rickards. If you would like to know more about his full life, read it there. Otherwise, I'm just going to focus on the time he was sheriff in Liberty, Missouri. It was his time as sheriff that makes him a legend in my book.
     Joe Rickards was elected to the office of sheriff in Liberty, Missouri in Oct 1865. He served for two years in this office after his brother-in-law, James M. Jones. In a primarily Democratic town, a Republican like Joe Rickards getting elected definitely stirred up some emotions. Jesse and Frank James were very vocal about this fact, which then caused them to come face to face with this Republican.

The following are excerpts from books and newspapers about this event. The first is an excerpt book written by James Horan called Desperate Men: The James Gang and the Wild Bunch.

     There was scarcely a Saturday night the guerrillas didn't shoot up Liberty, the county seat of Clay. Calvary fashion they would gallop into town on their fine mounts shrieking their wild cries and blazing away with revolvers. Then over to Fred Meffert's saloon for a few drinks There weren't many citizens who protested. It wasn't healthy.
     In the fall of 1865 a minor miracle occurred. In solid Democratic Clay County, a Republican was elected to the office of sheriff. His name was Joe Rickards, a solid, stumpy man with gray, flintlike eyes who refused to be intimidated by the "greatest revolver fighters in the country" and said so.
     One afternoon Sam Holmes, a hanger-on of the guerrillas, rode up to the courthouse and shouted for the sheriff. Told the peace officer wasn't available, he said: "Dingus and the boys are over the Platte County Fair and said to tell Rickards that they're coming into Liberty tomorrow and no ***damned Republican is going to arrest them."
     Late that afternoon Rickards returned to the courthouse and was immediately notified of Jesse's ultimatum. "Better leave for a trip tonight, Joe," his friends warned him. "Those young'uns are bad." "I think I'll stay around," Rickards replied quietly.
     That night the sheriff visited Judge Philander Lucas of the Fifth Circuit Court of Missouri in his chambers. Judge Lucas, who administered a stern but righteous justice in the Jesse James country until the late '80s, told the story to a reporter for the Cincinnati Inquirer, on July 26, 1902.
     "Joe came to me and told me of the message the James boy had sent to him. When he had finished I asked him what he was going to do. He did not say a word, but turning, gave me a very comical and significant wink. 'Joe Rickards' wink meant more than words and on the following day I remained on the qui vive to see what would happen. I did not want to see Rickards get hurt, but at the same time I relied on his good judgement to do the right thing in the right place and time. Besides it was high time that someone had taken the conceit out of those game roosters who were dropping every day or two from a four year course in bushwhacking and who were trying to turn the country upside down with their crazy exploits."
     The gang led by Jesse and including Frank, Clell Miller, Jim Poole, who had led the band on their way to Texas, George White, and some other ex-guerrillas roared into town that morning. "They did so," Judge Lucas recalled, "in a very disorderly fashion, yelling and firing off their revolvers."
     After driving the citizens off the streets and shattering a few signs and windows the Clay County bravos dismounted in front of Fred Meffert's saloon and went in. The jurist continued: "I looked about for Rickards and sure enough there he was right opposite the saloon, with his hat pulled down over his eyes and wearing an old overcoat in which he had never before appeared. The gang had ridden past without even noticing him. The minute they entered the saloon he followed them and drew forth from beneath his coat two six-shooters which he leveled at the gang and said: 'Throw up your hands.'
"They turned, and seeing what confronted them obeyed very quickly. Then as they did so, Joe said: 'Now then, you -- scoundrels, you said that no ***damned Republican could arrest or take you; I'll show you a trick or two about that.' "
     Under the peace officer's gun a deputy relived the bad men of their artillery. The sheriff marched the sheepish gang with empty holsters past the grinning townspeople and into the courthouse where they were arraigned before Judge Lucas. The jurist recalled: "As a matter of fact there wasn't any charge against them, for what killing and robbing they had done had been committed in the war and as an act of reprisal on the enemy. After some palaver and efforts on the part of Joe to find some charge against them, we were obliged to turn them loose after a warning from Joe in the future to mind their Ps and Qs."
     This was to be the first and only time Jesse James was arrested in his sixteen years as America's number one outlaw.

When I first read this, I was floored. This description felt like it was taken right out of the movie Tombstone. Great Great Grandpa Joe was not to be trifled with. It's too bad he was unable to keep Jesse James in custody. It probably would have prevented the following event that took a man's life and set off the James Gang on their spree of robberies.

On the morning of February 13, 1866, the pent-up storm broke over Missouri with  band of howling riders pounding their way through the streets of Liberty to commit what is the first bank robbery in the United States. The crime was accompanied by the brutal and senseless murder of a schoolboy only a few feet from his front yard.

Newspaper article about the robbery

Bank of Liberty in Liberty, Missouri

The account of the monies stolen from the Bank of Liberty

     As you know, Jesse James was never apprehended and charged for this crime. There are still many who believe that either of the James Boys had anything to do with this robbery. Their mother was very adamant that her boys were innocent until the day she died.

     We had the pleasure of visiting Liberty, Missouri a few years ago. We were able to take the tour at the Museum where the robbery had occurred. The story was fascinating. The bank was set up just as it would have been during the robbery. My favorite part though was walking into a room where they have photos and documents displayed, and seeing a photo of my hubby's 2nd Great Grandfather right there on the wall. 

Sheriff Joe Rickards

     That is the legend that comes to my mind when I think of our family. I will close this post with one last article that was published in the Daily Capital News in 1955. It was an excerpt taken from the book, Death of a Legend: Jesse James by Will Henry:

Update 7/22/19: Since writing this blog post, I have found more articles mentioning the event, but are too big to post on here. I have also been in contact with Chris from the Clay County Archives and he has assisted with contacting people and proving this story. 

Sources:
Newspaper clippings from Newspapers.com
Photo of Joe Rickards from Clay County Archives in Liberty, Missouri
Document of "monies stolen" from Clay County Archives in Liberty, Missouri
Death of a Legend: Jesse James by Will Henry
Desperate Men: The James Gang and the Wild Bunch by James Horan

Other sources mentioning Sheriff Joe Rickards & Jesse James Arrest:
Two Great Myths about Jesse James by Ted Yeatman published in True West Magazine
A letter in the Pinkerton Archives at the Library of Congress (In process of tracking this down)
Other Newspaper clippings referencing the books listed above
Interview with Judge Philander Lucas testifying to the event

Huge thank you to the Clay County Archives for providing a wealth of information about Sheriff Joe Rickards and to the town of Liberty Missouri for preserving the history

Update: I was interviewed by the Extreme Genes podcast & radio show host, Fisher about this topic. You can listen to it here: Episode 294 - Genie Finds Jesse James In Story Of Husband’s Ancestor