It's Time to Play ... Tombstone Mysteries

The bottom of this tombstone says:

Text Luke C. 10. V. 42.

I've sent several people queries about this tombstone. I couldn't quite tell what it meant.


Initially, I  thought it said:  Luke 6. 10. V. 42.  After I wrote the first draft of this posting (having looked at the picture at least 100 times), I finally saw the "6" as a "C."  Clearly Chapter and Verse (duh!).  I was so convinced it was a 6 that I couldn't come up with any other option.

It's still rather odd - I expect the person ordering the tombstone wanted the actual text from Luke on the tombstone or just
Luke C. 10. V. 42., not the word text engraved on the tombstone. I could be wrong, but it seems funny!

From the New International Version of The Bible  -
Luke 10:42  ... but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” 

This seems an odd selection for a tombstone.  For some time, I've considered the possibility that I misread the numbers. Could it be 10:12? What about 20:12 or 20:42?

I searched for other possibilities and described them in my second draft of this blog.  Then it hit me -- the woman buried here is Mary.  Now it makes sense.  Here's the verse in context.  Rest in Peace, Mary.

Luke 10:38-42
At the Home of Martha and Mary

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

The tombstone is in Bunker Hill Cemetery, Weissport, Carbon County, Pennsylvania.

Memory of

Mary

Wife of 

Josiah Ruch

Born Feb. 9, 1833

Died Aug. 21, 1892

Age 59 Yrs,  6 Mos. & 12 Days

 Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn
P.S.  I'm not related to Mary or Josiah! 

A Rare Photo - Thomas Richard "TR" Houghton

My beloved Grandpa Houghton (Minter Jackson Houghton) would have been 106 years old on 12 June 2013.

Coincidentally, I recently found a photo of his grandfather, Thomas Richard "TR" Houghton 1846-1923, on ancestry.com. Holy Cow! He looks just like my grandfather. See photo - TR, left and Minter right. In this photo, Grandpa Houghton is in his 80s.  I don't know how old TR Houghton is in the photo but he died around the age of 77.

TR Houghton's first wife, my gg-grandmother, Sarah Jane Cochran Houghton, 1858-1905, died at the age of 47. She was 12 years younger than TR.

After Sarah died, TR moved to Oklahoma (in 1907, age 60) and married Rinda Horton. She was 26 years younger than he; they had one daughter, Lillie Lee Houghton. This photo is from one of her descendents. I've contacted the person who posted it in hopes of getting more information.

When TR died in 1923, his body was sent to West Virginia for burial with his first wife, Sarah, and family. They are in Walnut Grove cemetery, Strange Creek, WV.

Belated Happy Birthday to Grandpa Houghton!

 Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn

Follow the Records

At times I can be very focused on a task.  On occasion I have searched for a single record for several hours.  However, at other times, I'm all over the map.

This morning, for example, I was finishing some research regarding the burial location of my 3rd great grandfather, James F. Cochran, who died while enlisted in the Union Army. I found a record of James Cochran buried in 1864 in Grafton National Cemetery, WV and a J. F. Cochran, Cprl, buried in Antietam (photo right). I believe the latter is correct. 

While looking for more information on ancestry.com, I noticed in the member connect section that someone downloaded some info from my tree on Thomas Richard Houghton who married James F. Cochran's daughter Sarah. Thomas and Sarah are my 3rd great grandparents. I looked at the tree and found it had Cochran information I've never seen.  It provided info on James F. Cochran's father (also James) and his grandfather (Thomas).  On Thomas Cochran's page, there was an image of a transcription for the 1st Census of Greenbriar County, Virginia.
 



 I knew the 1790 US Census for had been destroyed so I googled " 1790 Virginia census" and an interesting result came back:

1790 / 1800 Virginia Tax List Censuses - Binns Genealogy 
www.binnsgenealogy.com/VirginiaTaxListCensuses

This free site provides an index and original images to the 1790 and 1800 Tithable lists.  When I think "Tithable," I think of Elijah Houghton.  Elijah, born about 1746, is my 6th great grandfather. He's a major brick wall.  I've used transcripts of British Tithable lists for clues to his origin.  These were helpful because they show an Elijah Houghton living with a Joseph Houghton in Loudoun County, Virginia, in the 1700s. I believe Joseph is Elijah's father. However, I had only seen transcripts, not original documents or images. There's something very exciting about seeing the actual doc or an image of it -- and Binns Genealogy delivered.

Anyway, Elijah later moved to Culpeper County, Virginia - but I don't know when. I had it narrowed down to somewhere between 1789 and 1810. The new Binn Tithable records show him in Loudoun in 1789 and in Culpeper by 1801.

1789 Loudoun County Tithable List

After saving the images and documenting this new information in my Roots Magic database, I uploaded the docs (with source information) to my ancestry.com tree.  Then I emailed the info to a cousin I met on-line.  Sharing is everything.

Wait, what was my point? I'm meandering. Just like my research.  I wonder if other genealogists do this? Let me pause to write a blog about it called Follow the Documents (done!).  James F. Cochran's burial research will sit on the back burner until another day.  Speaking of back-burner, that reminds me ......

 Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn

A Civil War Letter

This past weekend my husband Steve and I flew to Athens, TN for a Swift fly-in. This is one of our favorite events where we meet friends from all across the US.  One of my good friends asked me to look into her family history regarding a family story that one of their ancestors was Native American. 

She mentioned that she had a cousin who had tried to prove it but was unsuccessful. Twice before I've been asked to prove the legend of the Native American ancestor and both times I was able to clearly show the family's heritage was 100% European.  I felt I might be able to prove this one way or another. 

I started with my friend's grandfather and very quickly moved back several generations. Thus far I've not found even a hint of Native American ancestry.  What I did find was just as interesting.  My friend's gg grandfather was John Siler Tye.  He was a Union soldier with Company D, Kentucky 8th Infantry Regiment. On February 3rd, 1863 he wrote his future wife a letter a month after the Second Battle of Murfreesboro (also called the Battle of Stones River or in the South, the Battle of Murfreesboro - 31 Dec, 1862, to 2 Jan 1863.)

This extraordinary letter tells the tale of the battle.  "Well Susan", he writes, "the truth is the bullets rained around me as thick as hail falling in water." I have more research to do, but this great find is why genealogy is so exciting. Below is a full transcription of the letter.

Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn

Murfreesboro Tenn.,
Feb., 3rd 1863
3rd Brigade 3rd Division
8th Regt., Ky Vol., infty

Dear Miss

I am in good health thank god I hope these few lines may reach you and find you enjoying good health. I have nothing strange at present to write to you my dear. it has been one month to the day since the Battle of Murfreesboro. It lasted 9 days in succession; well Susan the cannons and small arms did roar terrible; well I have been in 3 battles since I entered Tennessee the second time. The first fight was at Rural Hill Tenn. [Nov 18, 1862], the 2nd fight was at Dobing Ferry near a little town called Laverne Tenn [Dobbins' Ferry, near La Vergne, TN, Dec 9, 1862]., the 3rd battle was at or in front of Murfreesboro Tenn. [Dec 26, 1862-January 5, 1863], But I have been quite lucky. I was slightly wounded in the shin with a buckshot they Rebs shot a whole [sic] in my hat that you can let in your fist through. 

Well Susan the truth is the bullets rained around me as thick as hail falling in water; I can inform you that I am well sattisfied [sic] if I never git another fight with them; on Friday Jan., 2nd 1863 our Brigade was in the fight. The Rebels drove us for awhile but we turned them and chased them killing a large number. They say their loss in officers was heavy. They lost out of 2 divisions that attacked us some - turn over - four thousand men and we were not engaged over 2 hours in the main fight.  But we were skirmishing with them all day. I  [illegible, perhaps -was assigned to-] advance skirmishing when they attacked us. Capt. Ranton, commanding, he was killed before we came in from the skirmishing line; so you must excuse me for not writing more. I would like to see you the best in the world but I know not when that will be
So farewell yours truly
John S. Tye     To Susan Jones