September 2020 – Bridging the Silences

The Extended Wright Family–Uncle Fred, Seafood, Mafia Threats, and Amateur Genetic Research

Great grandmother Laura Sechler and her daughter Ruth did not face the world alone following the death of husband and father George–they had support from their extended family. Second great grandparents John Nelson Wright and Eliza Marshall Wright had a son and four daughters, all born on Prince Edward Island between 1864 and 1878. AContinue reading “The Extended Wright Family–Uncle Fred, Seafood, Mafia Threats, and Amateur Genetic Research”

Father and Son Reunited in Corona

Before we move on from great grandfather Edward Sandford’s time in Corona, California, there is a loose thread to deal with. Edward’s father, James Head Sandford (our grandfather’s grandfather) died on November 26, 1898 and is buried in Corona. From Edward’s story as we have told it so far, it is not clear that heContinue reading “Father and Son Reunited in Corona”

The Extraordinary Life and Accomplishments of Second-Great-Aunt Addie

After the marriage of great grandparents James Louis Hynes and Bessie Gordon in 1905, the Gordon and Hynes branches of our family tree remained entangled in the 1910s and 1920s in surprising ways. These entanglements give us the opportunity to discover things about each of the branches that we would not otherwise have been ableContinue reading “The Extraordinary Life and Accomplishments of Second-Great-Aunt Addie”

Corona, The Crown Colony

Leaving Vermont, great grandparents Edward and Annie Calderwood Sandford, with infant daughter Saada, made their way west. They passed through Cheyenne, Wyoming in the Spring of 1981, where Edward had found a temporary engagement with the Baptist Church, and settled in Northern California later that year. Edward became pastor of the Baptist Church in Eureka,Continue reading “Corona, The Crown Colony”

News of Gettysburg reaches Newburgh and New Zealand

We continue our discussion of second great grandfather James Gordon’s correspondence with his brother William and sister Jane Hawthorn. Recall that James left Northern Ireland for Newburgh, New York in 1857, while William and Jane later established themselves in New Zealand, where their branches of the family remain today. The following letter, again courtesy ofContinue reading “News of Gettysburg reaches Newburgh and New Zealand”