Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My mother's father, from what I have heard, was a colorful character. His family packed him off on a ship, set him up in a restaurant in NYC. I heard they wanted to get him out of Naples, (Italy) and encouraged him not to return. I never met him and wished I had. I've seen photos and he was quite dapper. My mother's mother, Irish/English was a housewife, mother and later worked in PS 98, NYC. i believe as a school monitor.
My father's mother was a homemaker and all around crazy woman who let us draw on her hallway wall with chalk. I always thought that was pretty cool to do. I liked her for that but I didn't like that she made tomato soup with water instead of milk. Shame!!
My paternal grandfather was a Naval Officer. Such an elegant man and he made things, with metal, lamps, copper etchings. that I still have today. He was an interesting man but I think sad.
I wish that they had lived longer or I was older when they were around. I would have had much different relationships with them.
My maternal grandfather and grandmother’s house in a small town had a room and garage a half level lower connected to the house. There was a bell by the room door and a sign that said “office” above the door. People came to the office to pay Grandpa rent. I have no idea how many rentals he had. He also owned an old schoolhouse with my uncle and they were running slot machines in it at one time along with a plumbing business. Grandma was a home maker.
My paternal grandfather ran a water works for the small hamlet they lived in, it was a crossroads with bars and churches. He did other odd jobs for extra money, cleaning and maintenance on a church was one of them. Grandma worked in a tomato canning factory when tomatoes were in season during summer, taking a bus to get there. They also rented out rooms to boarders at their house, usually to school teachers.
My grandfathers were skilled craftsman who, if they were alive and working today, could command lots of money at their trades which are in high demand.
Unfortunately, neither taught me any skill. I went to college. So I have no skill or trade; only a career.
My maternal grandfather and grandmother were educators. My grandfather had a PhD and was was the president of the community college, and my grandmother had a masters degree and was a history instructor there. My paternal grandfather was a general contractor and built beautiful homes. My maternal grandmother was a stay at home mom.
My maternal grandfather was a coal miner in Jessup, PA for 15 yrs and survived 3 cave ins. He quit after the third cave in when his friend who was working next to him, was killed. He then went to work in the EJ Shoe Factory in NY state. In his old age, he died of the Black Lung.
Wow. My paternal grandfather worked the mines in Carbondale after coming from Italy to the US as a young teen. He hated going to work in the dark, and coming home in the dark. After a few years of that life, he found a job on the D&H railroad and eventually become a hostler in the Carbondale yard. My GM watched the kids and worked in a small grocery store.
Maternal GF was a very talented mason. GM died in the 40’s, never knew what her profession was.
One grandpa worked in the PA mines and the other was a bricklayer. Both were immigrants who worked hard to support their families and I'm so proud of my roots. Both grandmas took care of the home and kids. Tons of love was passed down from both sides of the family.
Maternal GM grew up in a city. She was a tobacco factory worker from 3rd grade until she married a soldier at age 30 and became a housewife. Yes, she married later in life than most at the time period.
Maternal GF grew up in a swamp. He was a career soldier who quit after doing two tours (he enlisted prior to WWII and served seven year total) in WWII - one in Europe and the other in the Pacific Theater. During this time he met his wife who was 7 years older than he was. He worked for Hot Shops at the DuPont plant for a year or two until he was hired by DuPont as a Security Guard. He retired after 30 years service.
I don't know exactly what my paternal grandfather did. He left my grandmother and three children when my dad was four years old, and we never talked about him. My grandmother had to place the children in an orphanage while she looked for work. Since it was 1929 and she had no skills, not even a high school education, this took a while. Eventually she got a job working in the office of a coal company in Chicago and managed to make ends meet.
My maternal grandfather was a career Army man. He served in WWI, and during the Depression, managed a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp in Wisconsin. He served again in WWII and finally retired to a small town where he kept bees and sold honey. If my maternal grandmother worked, I don't know anything about it.
It might be fun to hear about long-gone professions or the ways in which our ancestors made a living, compared to today.
My maternal had a dairy farm, then later in life turned to antique furniture restoration.
Paternal: a real character who couldn't settle down. Traveling salesman for "Watkins" products, on the road selling the dog treats his son invented and some natural laxative he invented himself. Itinerate preacher.
Had his own facility for giving colonics! An early massage therapist back when that was "iffy".
My maternal grandfather was a cowboy at the 6666 Ranch in Texas. My grandmother was a housewife.
My paternal grandfather (well long story there) was an Oklahoma dirt farmer in Indian Territory. My grandma was a housewife.
Had DNA test on Ancestry and my "markers" did NOT match my paternal grandfather, but did match a fellow named Myers living in the same area. Seems my grandmother was a little busy....my dad was a "change of life" baby, was not seen in the only family photo I have of them. So my dad's "father" was not really his father. Go figure. How I wish I could ask them questions!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
