The Coin that survived the Civil War

In honor of the 150th Anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War  I've chosen the following which I think you will enjoy.


Take a good look at this coin.  Look at the year.  Wow!

1858 50 cent piece

My Great Great Grandfather,

Andrew S Davis, put this coin in his boot and wore it all through the Civil War.  Family members say this was his "lucky" coin.  It served him well because he survived the war, married and began a new generation.  My cousin has this coin today and plans to give it to his son who he named Andrew Davis.  That is so cool!

Here is a note that his grandson, Stuart Davis (my grandfather) wrote regarding this coin.  I have transcribed it in case it is difficult for you to read.

"This 50 (cent) piece was carried by Grandfather Davis in Shermans March to the sea.  Also up the coast to Washington to be mustered out at the close of the war."

Andrew S. Davis enlisted in Company E, Iowa 4h Infantry Regement on August 8, 1861 at the age of 40.  He was wounded at one time and in a hospital for about 4 months.  He was promoted to Full Corporal on January 1, 1864.  He mustered out on July 24, 1865 at Louisville, KY.  He also was a flagholder at the Grand Army of the Republic in Washington at the close of the war.

I am so proud of my gr gr grandfather!

Here is the only picture the family has of Andrew S Davis.  We believe this was his wedding on November 6, 1866 to Anna Schafer. 

See more below:

Andrew Davis' unit 4th Iowa Infantry Company E fought in the battle of Pea Ridge. The Pea Ridge National Military Park is at that location today. He was in Sherman's "March to the Sea", which took place thru Georgie after Atlanta was "accidently" burned down. He also went up the ocast. After the war he was mustered out in Washington D.C. after they had the "Grand Review" (parade) of the Army. He fought for the Union.||This was in the book " History of Polk County" regarding the military.||550 HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.||Castellin, Thomas (Costello], captured at Gaines' Landing, Miss.; December 24, 1862.|Danforth, Andrew J.|*Davis, Andrew S., veteranized as corporal January 1, 1864.|Dixon, John, discharged November 24, 1862.|



In case any one is reading this.  Andrew is my brick wall.  I have no idea what he did from the time he was born in West Virginia in 1821 until he joined the war in Iowa.  Course, Davis is a difficult name to research.  :)

Happy Post Birthday Mom



Happy Post Birthday Mom.....

 
My Mother would have turned 79 today. 
So I am thinking of her today and how much my sisters and I miss her. 

Marjorie Pauline Davis Lyon was born on April 5, 1932 in Ruthven, Iowa.  She died on April 14, 2007 in Gresham, Oregon. She is buried in Crown Hill Cemetery, Ruthven, Iowa where many of her family members are laid to rest.

Mom was an Iowa farmers daughter.  She had five brothers and no sisters!  One year she had a prize cow that won a blue ribbon at the county fair!

Mom would have been thrilled if she found out her girls, Nancy, Mary, Susan and Sandy got together last month in California.

Susan, Nancy, Mary and Sandy - March 2011

We Love and Miss You Mom  

"I don't want to play in your yard........"

Do you remember this song? Earlier this month my sisters and me got together in California for a few days. What a blast we had. Anyway - during one of our car trips my sister Sandy starting singing this song and asked if we remembered it. Yes we did and came up with most of the lyrics to it as well all chiming in together singing the song. That peaked my curiosity. When I came home to Oregon, I went on line to get the lyrics. Here they are.

CHORUS
"I don't want to play in your yard
I don't like you any more,
You'll be sorry when you see me,
Sliding down our cellar door;
You can't holler down our rain barrel,
You can't climb our apple tree,
I don't want to play in your yard
If you won't be good to me."

We thought it was so mean. If we were the little girls, we would have really been hurt by our best friend saying these things to us! This was just the chorus. Supposedly there are some more words here:

Once there lived side by side, two little maids,
Used to dress just alike, hair down in braids;
Blue ging'am pinafores, stockings of red,
Little sun bonnets tied on each pretty head.
When school was over, secrets they'd tell,
Whispering arm in arm, down by the well.
One day a quarrel came, hot tears were shed:
"You can't play in our yard,"
But the other said:


Next day two little maids each other miss;
Quarrels are soon made up, sealed with a kiss.
Then hand in hand again, happy they go,
Friends all thro' life to be, they love each other so.
Soon school days pass away, sorrows and bliss,
But love remembers yet, quarrels and kiss;
In sweet dreams of childhood, we hear the cry:
"You can't play in our yard,"
And the old reply: CHORUS

It was good to see the girls made up and were friends again.

Another amazing thing is "I Don't want to Play in Your Yard was published in 1894, words by Philip Wingate and music by H.W. Petrie.

Wow! For you enjoyment you can listen to the song here.

Note: Picture comes from The Graphics Fairy

New Cousins!

What a thrill to meet new cousins! Especially when they are interested in what you are interested in.

Yesterday, I met a cousin on my fathers side of the family. Then this morning I received an e-mail from her father! How exciting - two new cousins within a day.

We are all descendants of Lazarus House. I look forward to exchanging information with Cheryl and Harry regularly. Welcome to our family.

One Lovely Blog Award

Oh my - I had seen this wonderful picture of the tea cup and saucer with flowers. It is a wonderful and delicate picture of beauty.

Much to my surprise - I received this award! Thank you Margel of 2338 W. Washington Blvd for bestowing this award to Mary Jane's Genes. It is truly a thrill for me! If you have not read Margel's blog it is a must read!

The Rules of Acceptance are:

1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who granted the award and their blog link.

2. Pass the award on to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered.

3. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

So here are my "lovely blog" choices.

1. Journey's Past

2. Lost Family Treasure's

3. Lucy's Legacy

4. Meanderings and Wanderings

5. My Family Research Adventurers

6. Old and Interesting

7. 'Over Thy Dead Body'

8. Rainy Day Genealogy Readings

9. Recepe Ruby

10. Roots'n'Leaves

11. Sassy Jane Genealogy

12. Sharing a Slice of Life

13. Swedish Thoughts

14. The Armchair Genealogist

15. The You Go Genealogy Girls

The above genealogy blogs have been a treat to read! I have enjoyed each one of them. You should check them out and add them to your reader if you are not already.

Good hunting to you all. And thanks again Margel. :)

Dear Children

This is a letter my Great Grandfather wrote to his children before he passed away in 1939. The neat thing about it is that we have his original letter plus it was written in his own handwriting!
John W Lyon
B 1860
D 1939

I have transcribe the letter the best I could below.

Olin, Iowa

Dear children
I am so glad for this chain while I wright menny letters that does not belong in this chain still I look forward to the time when it will return and I will have the opertunity to keep the chain unbroken. Sickness, axidents and death are on our trail while we are getting up in years we may not be the first to make the missing link. All my ancesters on my fathers side have been taken with a stroke before they were sixty year old and I am now 76 am still able to express my thoughts to you for which I return thanks to my blessed Lord I can not help thinking how our children are scattered out from us and it is not likely we will ever meat as one family again as one family some of them are 3,000 miles apart but I do hope after my decease you will keep up the chain letter.
When we are writing this chain we wright a little different than we wood if we were wrighting a personal letter for various resons what wood be new to those in Cal or Ga wod not be news to those in Cedar Rapids and Davenport, but what about the conditions as they exist in the world today can you not see the ware cloud rising in the east and and the Bible seys all nations will be involved and the (??) is not exception then what about our Grand children. While some of them will be too young to take part in the ware yet they with us will have to suffer privation. President Roosevelt is not to blame for these conditions these conditions have been coming on for years but we could not see them as we do today but the Lord has promest us if we are only faithfull our bred and water will be there.

Transcribed by Mary Hellman 02-22-2011

One thing leads to another.....and another....and another

A post or so ago I wrote about Leah Hunt Riggs, a sister of my gr gr gr gr grandmother Rebecca Hunt Rivers. It was about how she (Leah) traveled to Oregon on the Oregon trail. Well, from there I wanted to find the guy (last name Hunt) who wrote the article. He surely is a relative!



I had found some correspondence through Rootsweb.com. between Dean Hunt and a couple of other people and when I e-mailed him it came back as undeliverable. After all this was a conversation that had happened many years ago and it was about that article! So from there I e-mailed another lady that was included in that conversation and withing an hour (I'm not kidding!) I had a new e-mail address for Dean.



Then, about an hour after that I received an e-mail from Dean that read Hi Cousin! How thrilling. At least I thought so. Come to find out, he is a descendant of Rebecca and Leah's brother Tunstall Hunt. Tunstall is the maiden name of Rebecca, Leah's and Tunstall's mother Rachel, who married Ambrose Hunt on October 27, 1797. Wow!



This is the most thrilling and rewarding hobby ever!



So happy hunting and keep looking. You never know what you will find.