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When I was a teenager, I was at my grandmother's house and she had out a box of old pictures and papers. I found a newspaper clipping of my grandmother and grandfather's wedding from April, 1928. My mother was born in November of 1928. I remember thinking, "WOW, I didn't know things like that happened back then!" LOL. I asked my mother about it, and she said yes, her mother was pregnant for her when she got married but that I shouldn't mention that I knew this to my grandmother.
Fast-forward to 1995. I was living at my mother's house and my grandmother lived there also. It was Valentine's Day, and as I'd gone through the train station, I'd picked up bouquets of flowers for both Mom and Nana. I gave them each one, and my grandmother was so tickled. Then she sort of stared off into space and said, "Valentine's Day...I got engaged on this day 67 years ago." My mother was going to be 67 that November 12. Later I laughed and said to my mother, "So, they got engaged and you were conceived that night!"
I have seen quite a few "early births" and they were a little more common than one would expect back then.
My grandparents were married shortly after my grandfather was discharged from the service near the end of WWII. We had always known them to had been married a day of after New Years, 1945.
Their first child was born in Sept, 1946.
There had been some doubt in recent years that they might had actually been married a year later, due to a slip up in conversation, which they did finally admit to.
After both of their deaths a small box was found in a desk which nobody had seen before; it contained a pile of old letters and documents from the 1930s and 40s. One letter was dated August, 1945 and addressed to his wife to be--in her maiden name---it was describing my grandfather's journey back to the US from the south Pacific by ship...so we knew they could not had been married Jan 2, 1945. We went to the vital records for the city and we found they had in fact been married in late February, 1946---oops.
I was told my g grandmother was evicted from home when she was very young because the Union forces burned out their home. As of yet much of her history is still unclear, but I discovered my g grandfather lived in the Missouri county next to Kansas that the Kansas troopes entered to quell the long continuing civil war in Missouri. The next child after him was born in Illinous. The one after that was back in a different part of Missouri. So something caused them to go. No one in the family fought for either side and refugees of both persuasions went north so no idea what their 'side' was.
But this got me to do some studying about the pre war civil war and anarchy in Missouri. Turns out that was the first county to be virtually emptied of residents by the infamous order 61 (I think that's the number) which depopulated a county of civilians. The could take personal things, but no farm equiptment, stock or stored food. They had a week to be gone. The army took whatever they needed and the dwellings and farm buildings were torched to the ground.
Missouri had refugee camps scatteed nearby the six counties in which this order was applied so at least they did the best choice and went north. Not only had I never read anything about the situation in Missouri but in other border areas. Learned something about family AND history.
It also explains why they sat out the war. Few of those with union sympathies who were evicted did. The order was applied equally to supportes of the Union and the Confederacy.
Did your family live in either Jackson, Cass, Bates or Vernon counties on the Missouri border? I grew up in Cass County, Missouri, and know a lot about its Civil War history. I also had relatives living there and in Vernon County during the Civil War. Not all people were forced out, but many were. Some historians call Order No. 11 one of the greatest atrocities in American history because the army was turned against the people (innocent civilians). People lost their lives and their property was confiscated without any due process.
Ironically, last week was the 150th anniversary of the Lawrence Massacre, which was the event that forced Gen Ewing to issue his infamous order.
Feel free to contact me if you want more info about the area's history.
I have seen quite a few "early births" and they were a little more common than one would expect back then.
My grandparents were married shortly after my grandfather was discharged from the service near the end of WWII. We had always known them to had been married a day of after New Years, 1945.
Their first child was born in Sept, 1946.
There had been some doubt in recent years that they might had actually been married a year later, due to a slip up in conversation, which they did finally admit to.
After both of their deaths a small box was found in a desk which nobody had seen before; it contained a pile of old letters and documents from the 1930s and 40s. One letter was dated August, 1945 and addressed to his wife to be--in her maiden name---it was describing my grandfather's journey back to the US from the south Pacific by ship...so we knew they could not had been married Jan 2, 1945. We went to the vital records for the city and we found they had in fact been married in late February, 1946---oops.
My paternal grandmother's mother had two children already when she married my great-grandfather, with whom she had seven more. The story was that she worked as a maid for a man with a sick wife and he had raped her. We're a little skeptical about the rape part, since she stuck around to have a second child with him, but who knows how things went in those days. This would have happened in the 1880s.
My sister has done our genealogy, and she's been contacted recently by a descendant of my grandmother's older half-sister asking if we have any clue who the father of her grandmother might have been. We have no idea.
Our closest match on a Y-chromosome test was a guy from our area but with a different last name. The genealogist in the family was able to provide the rest of the story as the DNA confirmed the story of a "non paternal event" that an elderly relative had told her about 50yrs ago. Now he comes to our annual reunions! Its all good.
I come from a long line of staunch Methodists so imagine my surprise when research revealed not just one or two, but four or five of my female ancestors not only having a child out of wedlock, also having that child proudly baptised under their own surname, in church!
This is going back 4 and 500 years, my family tree is old and very well researched by many people.
I had no idea that single moms were even acknowledged back in Tudor England, but it seems they not only were acknowledged, they also demanded full respect from society and the church, for their illegitimate children!
There are even some corresponding court records where they have sued for child support, and won.
My female ancestors didn't take any chit from anyone...and I wonder where I got it from...down a mine in Cornwall apparently!
I am of the opinion that no one is born accidentally in God's eyes. He has things planned out. However, many children are born unexpectedly, today and back a few generations ago. However, a few generations ago, it was not uncommon for the prospective parents to have a shotgun wedding to cover it up.
I was studying some cousins and I found a couple that married in January and had a daughter in July. I don't think the baby was three months premature. Makes me wonder if the dates are off or if someone had a shotgun wedding.
Getting married for the kids doesn't always turn out well, though sometimes it does. Having kids out of wedlock is more common today and not really taboo as much anymore. I guess back then most couples decided to get married anyway, and divorce was pretty rare. So these bundles of joy weren't always so joyfully accepted. I'm glad the men took care of their kids, unlike some dads today, but I digress.
Anybody else found some surprise children in your family tree, especially a few generations ago?
It always makes me wonder how they found out and what anybody knew. I would think the immediate family of the couple would know, if they could do the math (though many people were illiterate back then). Was it a scandal or not really talked about? Did this couple lie about the dates to their children? That would be easy to do back then. It just brings up so many questions that can't really be answered. It doesn't matter really that the child was unexpected. Children are wonderful either way. I just always wonder about it. Life was so different from one generation to the next.
My great-grandparents had a big 50th anniversary party when I was six or so. It was a surprise party thrown by their sons (my grandfather and his brothers). Years later, my grandfather told me his parents pulled "the boys" aside afterward and said, "Thank you so much for the party, but this is only our 49th year." Uncle D, the eldest brother, said, "No, it's your 50th. You were married in 19XX and I was born in 19XY" (the following year). They said, "No, we were married in 19XY and you were born six months later." They never said anything and we all just assumed. Uncle D is highly religious and was very upset and shocked to find out that he had been conceived out of wedlock. I think he's still mad about it!
My paternal Grandmother, who was born in 1886, was always very proper. She had one child, my father. As I worked on the genealogy, I found that her parents had 11 children and their wedding happened less than 9 months before their first child was born.
This was amusing to me, since I assumed my Dad's side of the family was kind of staid, but really, the great grandparents were hot for each other.
My family dates back to 1630 in Salem Colony. As part of my genealogy research I came across a scholarly paper about research that was done into church wedding and birth records of the era which indicated that approximately half of all Colonial brides were pregnant at the time they were married.
Seriously, did you think people were really different in those times?
My family dates back to 1630 in Salem Colony. As part of my genealogy research I came across a scholarly paper about research that was done into church wedding and birth records of the era which indicated that approximately half of all Colonial brides were pregnant at the time they were married.
Seriously, did you think people were really different in those times?
Ah, but was that due to lack of someone to officiate the wedding? And were the "births" actually baptisms or christenings that did not happen until the baby was a few months old?
My great-grandparents had a big 50th anniversary party when I was six or so. It was a surprise party thrown by their sons (my grandfather and his brothers). Years later, my grandfather told me his parents pulled "the boys" aside afterward and said, "Thank you so much for the party, but this is only our 49th year." Uncle D, the eldest brother, said, "No, it's your 50th. You were married in 19XX and I was born in 19XY" (the following year). They said, "No, we were married in 19XY and you were born six months later." They never said anything and we all just assumed. Uncle D is highly religious and was very upset and shocked to find out that he had been conceived out of wedlock. I think he's still mad about it!
My mom said her grandfather said that the first baby can be early, and its fine, but all the rest take nine months. Lots of 'premature' births for the first one then I guess.
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