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-One confirmed blood relative in WWI
-One confirmed blood relative who owned large pieces of Manhattan and Brooklyn at one time
-One confirmed pirate of some notoriety
-One possible relative who came on the Mayflower as a manservant to a wealthy family, although there are still a few holes that prevent confirmation on that
-One confirmed relative who lived in Stratford-On-Avon in the time of Shakespeare. The town was never that big, so its possible they might have hobb nobbed.
- A direct relationship to one of the first European families in the Mohawk Valley of New York.
I enjoyed reading everyone's stories and while these aren't impressive, I thought I'd add to the lot...
My GGgrand-daddy was a young child during the Civil War. He lived in rural Louisiana just north west of Baton Rouge on the family farm. Word had gotten out that the Confederate Army was coming through which meant they would take anything there was to eat and so the family went into action. The horse, cow and pigs were hidden in the woods. GGGgrand-daddy spent the day digging a hole to hide the canned food and valuables. They covered the loose earth with cut wood and waited and hoped. It wasn't long after that when the boys in grey showed up looking very fine and impressive and GG-grandaddy at the age of five was feeling very patriotic and with a sudden burst of inspiration ran right up to the fence to greet the leader of this little unit. The story goes that a man on a horse, stopped to greet the little fella who promptly told the Captain(?) that the animals were hidden in the woods and the food and valuables were hidden under a pile of wood.
The story is told with amusement now, but I doubt anyone was amused at the time.
My g great grandfather and family lived directly in the path of Iowa troops heading into Missouri. My g grandfather was born there but the children until 1867 were born in Illinious. But none of the family served in either army. I believe that is one of the areas of Missouri where civilians were all evicted and the farms burned. They never went back. Ironically when they came back to Missouri, they settled in Bates county, which bordored Kansas, and was completely emptied and everything burned during the war. This was also the area where Jessie James operated, and I heard stories of them or family offering a hide out.
They were tough and determined sorts. Albert, my great grandfather, died in 1940 in Los Angeles, shortly after he was around to be in the census at 91 years old.
I take my family history as a source of example when things seem to be to 'big' and I feel sorry for myself.
Same line, one of the g grandfathers was one of the first transported to America as a convict slave after passage of the Transportation. He and his brother stole a couple of shirts off a line and were trying to sell him. His brother later married the customer he'd found who was also taken across the sea as they believed she knew it was stolen. But my g ? great grandfather actually argued his case and got what would have been a hanging offence since his shirt was worth too much reduced to eleven years transportation. Their parents had not lived in London but one of the rural areas outside during the time the commons were being enclosed for sheep, which explains why they were living on the streets in London a generation later.
I'm pretty sure that all of my ancestors had an encounter with history, since they lived it
One of my ancestors was married into the Hawaiian royal family of Kaua'i. I'm not a direct descendant of that family, though. I guess it was a second marriage. My great-grandfather was the brother of a famous Cuban diplomat. My parents, my brother, and I were living in Tehran at the start of the Iranian Revolution.
...it is possible, and believed by some, that this same ancestor was also a direct descendant of John Knox, who founded the episcopalian church.....
Knox was ordained an RC priest, then later joined the Church of England already in existence, to work for the young King Edward. He later became a Calvinist, and founded the reformed church in Scotland, known as the Presbyterian Church in later times.
My parents, my brother, and I were living in Tehran at the start of the Iranian Revolution.
I'd urge you to record your own story. You did, indeed, live history. Make sure you record your family's feelings about what happened. (And put how you got to So Cal.)
Not such a notable person that he ended up in the general curriculum of US history, but he was well-remembered locally. Israel Hilton Buker was my gggg-grandfather. I'm descended from his second wife: Sally Black. They married when he was 60 and had 8 kids (guess Viagra wasn't needed in those days! ). A partial snip of his biography, found in Muskingum County, OH history (I won't vouch for 100% authenticity. it's generally accepted that some people become so notable that facts rightly belonging to other people are attributed to them. As if they needed their life story to be even more puffed up. His military record has been verified).
Quote:
Notes for ISRAEL HILTON BUKER:
Israel H. Buker was born in Gray, Cumberland County, Maine, on April 17 ,1756. His father died when he was only 18 months old. On this account he was bound out when he was but two years of age, to a farmer and tavern keeper. He continued to work for this man until he was 19 years of age.
When young Israel, who was working on a farm in Maine, heard the exciting news of the battles for freedom fought at Lexington and Concord, he joined the company of volunteers that was drilling in the neighborhood. He had to be secret about his enrollment because his employer was a Tory. When the company was ready to march, Israel was with them. His employer, seeing Israel among the company, told the captain of the company that Israel could not go. The captain of the company ordered his men to halt and destroy the house of the Tory but, when the wife of the Tory intervened and told her husband that the soldiers would surely destroy the home, the Tory let Israel go, and his home was spared.
The company joined Washington's army, and Israel was at the battles of Trenton and Princeton, and crossed the Delaware river with Washington through the ice. He was with the army during the disasterous and awful encampment thruogh the winter at Valley Forge. He was also present at the surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga, New York.
Washington also had a life guard (probably for his own safety), and Israel was a member of that squad for a time. He was a member of the regiment which celebrated, famous French General Lafayette, armed, equiped, clothed, and commanded. Israel was made an orderly - sergeant in this regimen, and frequently saw general LaFayette who on one occasion, personaly addressed him. Later he became sergeant- major of that regiment. When LaFayette was promoted, the regiment was commanded by another Frenchman, Talleyrand.
Israel was injured durring a skirmish, the ball passing through the back of his neck, at another time a ball passed through his hat. As an orderly - sergeant Israel carried a sword given to him by LaFayette. The pay was small and was in depreciated currency. His discharge was signed by George Washington, giving him credit for eight years and one month of unbroken service.
Affadilla Moody Deaver was another regional legend. She was the second wife of another one of my gggg-grandfathers. Fiesty lady
The closest I came to any is by my brother in law who recently passed. His great grandfather was Edward Everett. He was a preachers son and graduated fom Harvard at like 14. He became congressman from Boston;Senator from Mass; govenor of Mass;secretary of state; Ambassador to the court of St James;president of Harvard. He is best remember as being the then thought to be featured speaker a Gettysburg. He and his friend Daniel Webster where considered the great speakers of their day.He spoke for two hours before Lincoln at Gettyburg.
One of my ancestors was a feudal king in Punjab during the nineteenth century, until he was ousted from the throne in a coup orchestrated by a relative.
The closest I came to any is by my brother in law who recently passed. His great grandfather was Edward Everett. .......He spoke for two hours before Lincoln at Gettyburg.
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). A partial snip of his biography, found in Muskingum County, OH history (I won't vouch for 100% authenticity. it's generally accepted that some people become so notable that facts rightly belonging to other people are attributed to them. As if they needed their life story to be even more puffed up. His military record has been verified).
