Happy Birthday Samuel H Burket!

Today is my 2^nd Great Grandpa Samuel H Burket’s 179th birthday. He was born in April 21, 1841 to John Burket and Elizabeth Ulrich Brown. He was a lifelong member of the Church of the Brethren and resident of Hopewell, PA. Samuel followed in his father’s footsteps farming their land in Yellow Creek. Married twice to women named Mary; with the first Mary [Weaverling, 1841-1872] with whom he had three children – David, John & Elizabeth. The second Mary [Fluke Replogle, 1843-1912] a widow, also brought three children to the marriage. 

Black Beauty by Ann Sewell

A neat find while researching Samuel - he liked to read. These blurbs were in the Everett Press back in 1894.  In honor of his birthday and his liking of Black Beauty I re-read the book during the Covid-19 Pandemic.

With the 1918 Pandemic raging across the country his daughter Elizabeth died in September 7, 1918 of acute meningitis while Samuel died of a stroke on March 19, 1919 at age 77.

History of the Woodcock Family from 1692 to Sept. 1, 1912

History of the Woodcock family from 1692 to Sept. 1 by William L Woodcock
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Resource used to prove silversmith Bancroft Woodcock a Patriot in the American Revolution. Ancestry tree from Robert Bancoft to Clinton Lee Burket.

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Sketch of Alexander Alexander, Who Emigrated from County Down, Ireland, in the Year 1770 and Settled in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania: Together with ... Chart and Record of His Descendants by Walter Scott Alexander
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The life and decendants of immigrant patriot Alexander Alexander. Alexander came from Ireland and fought in the American Revolution. He is a Patriot in the rolls of the Daughters of the American Revolution. This book was used as proof for Alexander Alexander and Bancroft Woodcock applications. Ancestry charts include my grand-father Clinton Lee Burket.

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Fashionistas: Date the Look

I have recently found some old family photos and I don't know a soul. The ultimate goal of course will be to identify the people in the pictures. Unfortunately I'm not even sure what years most of the pictures were taken. So I ask for my costume and fashionista friends to enlighten me what time period these fashions were, well, in fashion.

What style are the girls wearing?

Unknown woman from an unknown era

The boys in what decade?

My grands, guess the year

Wednesday's Child a Mother's Story

Genealogy bloggers tend to reserve Wednesday for stories about children who past to soon.  Today I'm expanding it a bit to include a mother, Mary Burket, and her children. Life was tough in rural Pennsylvania in the late 1800s. Hopewell, Pennsylvania  was primarily a farming community. Early to bed, early to rise; few of the modern day farm conveniences existed then. Families literally lived and died with the crops.

Life expectancy at that time was only about 45 years old. Unfortunately, children dying young was not uncommon. Two of Mary's siblings (Leonard & Hannah) died before she was 10 and one, Daniel, died before she was born. In 1855, John & Elizabeth Brown Burket (my 3rd great-grandparents) welcomed their 12th child into the world. According to the census in 1870 she was the only child living at home, while going to school. That census record shows at 14, she could not write. The 1880 census does not show her inability to write. Whether the question was asked or assumed, the census taker believed Mary had learned to write. Her father had by 1870 retired and had turned the farming duties over to her brother Samuel (my 2nd great-grandpa) who had set up his own house on the farmstead. In 1871, John T Burket passed away at the ripe old age of 64 after tasking Samuel to take care of mother and 15 year old sister. 

Mary married a local boy, Walter Cessna and they set about raising a family in Hopewell as well. August 1874 brought their first child, Elizabeth. By the 1880 census, Elizabeth had a brother and sister to keep her company. Mary and Walter had two more children who lived well into adulthood; David and Earnie May. With the joy came sorrow as well. Mary gave birth to stillborn twins 1886. The Cessna's last child, Glenn, was born on April 30, 1895. It was a difficult birth for both mother and child. Mary lingered 15 days after giving birth, before passing away on May 15th at age 39. Her son Glenn didn't live to see his 3 month birthday. Unlike today with 24/7 social media it is difficult to track the happy and joyous events in an ancestors life. I'm sure Mary had many happy events, but the recorded memories are of loss and a life cut short. Mary and her young children are buried in the Cessna Piper Road Cemetery. 

Surname Saturday: Armstrong & Burket

Armstrong: a name given for strength in battle.  The original family name was Fairbairn, which was changed to Armstrong by an ancient King of Scotland following a battle. As the  story goes, the king had his horse killed under him in battle.  Fairbairn, his armor-bearer, mounted the king on his own horse. For this timely assistance the king rewarded him with lands on the borders, and to perpetuate the memory of so important a service, as well as the manner in which it was performed gave him the name of Armstrong.

Burket has a less exciting origin. Burket (Burkett) originated during the Anglo-Saxon reign in Britian. The family seat was near Birkenhead in Cheshire on the Birket River.

I am currently looking for information on Michael Armstrong born 1856 Pennsylvania – died 1935 Shamokin, Pennsylvania.

The Burket line is confusing, far too many David, John & Samuel. I’m looking for documentation on the parents of John W Burket (born Dec 20, 1806 Hopewell, Pennsylvania – died Dec 11, 1871 Hopewell, Pennsylvania). I have information that his parents are Abraham Lewis Burger and Elizabeth Whetstone.

Obits aren’t Free Anymore

One of the bizarre, but interesting and useful bits of information I picked up during the process of my mother’s passing is regarding obituaries. While once considered news, in the tightening financial crunch newspapers have been facing for many years, obituaries are now considered classified ads. As such, the length of the record of your loved ones passing is counted by word and charged accordingly. Since it is now considered an ad, the rates fluctuate wildly region to region as well as the size and scope of the publication. 


We live in suburbia, our town’s weekly paper charges a couple hundred while the local daily rates are just under $400. The wider the reaching papers such as our state wide paper not only charges for the print ad, but an additional fee to publish it online as well. One story I recently heard was that the obituary in the New York Times for a stockbroker cost $12,000. That was more than the cost of his cremation and memorial combined. Obviously, obituary costs are now something you seriously need to consider when planning your loved ones final arrangements.

I want to thank my BFF Cathy McGuckin for helping our family write mom’s obit. For the record (and one that is still free), this is my mom’s obituary:

MT. ARLINGTON, NJ—Joyce D. Armstrong died on Friday, November 27, 2009, at Morristown Memorial Hospital after a brief illness. She was 77.

Born in Wilkensburg, PA, to the late Clinton and Mary (Ritts) Burket on October 23, 1932, she was a 34-year resident of Mendham until moving to Mt. Arlington in June, 2006.

Joyce graduated then worked at the Business Training College in Pittsburgh, PA, where she met her husband Joseph Armstrong. Joyce and Joe married on June 6, 1955, at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. She would fondly remember their ‘two-year honeymoon’ in Hawaii, while Joe served with the U.S. Marine Corps. Prior to their honeymoon, Joyce enjoyed working for Radio personality Mark Evans in Washington, DC.

Joyce was a member of the Newcomers’ Group of Mendham for more than 20 years and enjoyed playing in the bridge club. She also enjoyed traveling and the Naval Academy. Joyce will be remembered by friends and neighbors for her deep love of her family, her beautiful Mendham home—especially her porch swing, her Christmas Eve and Army-Navy Game parties, and her kindness.

She was predeceased by her brother Clinton (1993) and her sister Maybelle Gillespie (1992). Survivors include her husband of 54 years Joseph, her daughter Kimberly of Succasunna, her son Scott of Wilmington, NC, and her beloved grandson Colin of Rockaway.

A memorial service to celebrate Joyce’s life will be held at the Bailey Funeral Home on Saturday, December 12, 2009, at 1:00 PM. A reception will be held at the Elks Club in Gladstone. Entombment will take place at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis, MD at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made in Joyce’s name to Cancer Center for Education and Patient Support Fund, Morristown Memorial Health Foundation, PO Box 1956, Morristown, N.J. 07962.

Arrangements are by the Bailey Funeral Home, 8 Hilltop Road, Mendham, NJ, 07945—(973)543-4720, www.baileyfuneralhomes.com.