Roxbury Joining Wreaths Across America

Roxbury is joining the Wreaths Across America family in honoring veterans by laying wreaths on the graves of the departed servicemen and women. We hope that you will be able to take part in this moving event.

It is our mission to place a wreath in conjunction with Wreaths Across America on all Gravestones in the combined Cemeteries of the First Presbyterian Church and the United Methodist Church to Remember, Honor our Roxbury's veterans and to Teach our future veterans that we are and will be thankful for their service and show them “We Do Not Forget, We Will Never Forget”.

Our service men and women sacrifice their time and safety every single day of the year, to preserve our freedoms. At many homes, there is an empty seat for one who is serving, or one who made the ultimate sacrifice for our Country. We honor our veterans every day. And we think there is no better time to express our appreciation, than during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.

In order to meet our mission we rely on the generosity of individuals and businesses for support. Without the assistance of community-minded individuals just like you, we will not be able to meet our goal of laying wreaths on the 560 veterans’ graves in the combined cemeteries.

We ask that you make a commitment to honor our veterans by sponsoring a wreath and participating on December 13 by laying a wreath or attending the memorial ceremony.

Wreath Laying will begin at 11am in the combined cemeteries. The Memorial Ceremony is not just a Roxbury ceremony, this ceremony will be synchronized across the country. Our ceremony will be held at 12:00pm EST, December 13th at First Presbyterian Church. Refreshments will be served in Fellowship Hall during the wreath laying and after the memorial ceremony.

Thank you in advance for your support. To make a tax deductible donation go to www.RoxburyWAA.org For more information contact:  NJDARFerroMonte@aol.com

Ferro-Monte Chapter, NSDAR Honors its Departed Sisters

With the spring thaw, the Ferro-Monte Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution will move their April 19th meeting outside to the gravesides of their recently departed Sisters. They will be placing DAR grave markers on the resting places of six fellow daughters in Chester, Stanhope, Dover and Succasunna. Beginning at the First Presbyterian Church, 99 Main Street, Succasunna, the chapter will visit five cemeteries in the area.

Ferro-Monte Chapter meetings are held at Roxbury Township Free Public Library 103 Main St, Succasunna, NJ at 10am the 2nd Saturday of the month from October - April. Prospective members are always welcome. If you have an interest in learning about your family tree, we can help you; maybe we can even find a Patriot among your leaves. For information, email: NJDARFerroMonte@aol.com.

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote patriotism, preserve American history, and support better education for our nation's children. Its members are descended from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War. With more than 165,000 members in approximately 3,000 chapters worldwide, DAR is one of the world's largest and most active service organizations. To learn more about the work of today's DAR, visit www.DAR.org.

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. 

Arlington National Cemetery

Yesterday I attended the internment of my cousin's husband at Arlington National Cemetery. This is not the first family member who has been laid to rest on this hallowed ground. My uncle (USN) joined his wife in 2010, and there is at least one other known to me.

Dad at John Armstrong's Grave

The history of Arlington itself is interesting. The mansion was originally built by the grandson of President George Washington. It became the residence of Robert E Lee after his marriage to the grandson's daughter. Arlington House as it was known, was confiscated by the Union at the outbreak of the Civil War. On June 15, 1864 Brigadier General Montgomery Meigs appropriated the property as a military cemetery. Sixteen days later Private John Armstrong died in a Washington DC hospital of gunshot wounds received in battle. He was one of the first soldiers buried in Arlington National Cemetery. 

Wednesday’s Child

Wednesday’s Child in the genealogy world is a time to recognize our ancestors who passed far too young. Given the hard life of our ancestors in the 18^th and 19^th and even the early20^th centuries there is no surprise that life spans were far shorter than they are today. Vital records (birth/death records) weren’t officially recorded by the government in most parts of the country until sometime during the 1900s. Before 1850 the US census only listed the head of household, so it is easy to see why finding information on minor children of the time is difficult. Oftentimes the only record of their life is their headstone. So in honor of those whom much is unknown in my own family tree, let me introduce:

Emanuel Hudson – Age 2

Birth 1 Jun 1874 in Hopewell, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, USA
Death 1 Dec 1876 in Blair, Pennsylvania, USAEmanuel was the youngest of 5 children born to William Alexander Hudson and Eliza Metzger. His father died a mere 10 months after Emanuel was born. He is buried in the Mennonite Cemetery in Martinsburg, PA alongside his mum.

Catherine E Ritts – Age 1
Birth 15 Oct 1906 in Antis, Blair, Pennsylvania, USA
Death 25 Jul 1907 in Antis, Blair, Pennsylvania, USA
Catherine was only the 2nd daughter born to Harry & Lizzie Ritts. The Ritts clan numbered 11 with 9 boys and my nana surviving to adulthood. Catherine's remains lie with her parents, grandpa, and a few brothers in the Antis Cemetery.

Margaret Levenia Campbell – Age 11
Birth 17 Mar 1878 in Buckner, Louisa, Virginia, USA
Death 4 Mar 1890 in Altoona, Blair, Pennsylvania, USA
Maggie C, the eleven year old daughter of Henry J and Tressie Campbell died on Tuesday morning at 20 minutes to 2:00 of pneumonia, super induced by grip and asthma combined. Her demise is a great blow to her parents, she being the youngest daughter. Stevens Mortuary, Altoona, PA 1883-1910, p 31, Campbell, Maggie d 3/4/1890 St Marys; a 11 yrs; d/o Henry & Theresa Campbell; r. 2516 Oak Ave*

* Bakers's Mansion, Altoona Tribune, March 6, 1890, Thursday

History Does Matter

My nephew often complains that history is boring, that it isn’t relatable to the present. Tonight I have proof that his hypothesis is wrong. And that the proof involves his family past and present.

Joe Armstrong at
John Armstrong's grave

I’ve had a road block regarding information on my great-great-great grandpa John Armstrong. In my ongoing ancestry quest, I attended a chat tonight on Civil War research tips hoping for someone to help me find more information on John. While I didn’t find a lot of information on John’s individual record, I did find a fascinating book “The Story of the Forty-Eighth, a record of the campaigns of the Forty-Eighth Regiment Pennsylvania veteran volunteer infantry during the four eventful years of it’s service in the war for the preservation of the union” by Joseph Gould. This particular John Armstrong served in the 48^th regiment from 1861 until his death in 1864.
 

The first story that touched me was about the early 1864 furlough of the regiment (pg 156). That trip took the regiment by train from Pittsburgh to Altoona and finally home to Pottsville. What struck me about this trip was the history of these locations for my family. This John came to America from the Isle of Mann in 1838 settling in Pottsville to work as a miner prior to the war.  My 2nd great-grandpa, Michael Armstrong, and his son Edward Lewis also worked the mines until Edward left the area to work on the railroad in Altoona. 

If this was my John Armstrong, he would have left for the war when Michael was 7 and he was dead by the time Michael was 11. He never would have met my great-grandpa Edward or my grandfather or father whom both born in Altoona. He would never know how the tracks he traveled on his last trip home would 87 years later take his great-great grandson on the reverse trip from Altoona to Pittsburgh where my father met my mother.

At this point in time the only facts I know about John’s time in the war are about his final battle at the Spotsylvania Courthouse in May of 1864. Private John Armstrong was wounded by gunshot on May 12^th in Spotsylvania, sent to a backline hospital in Washington DC where he succumbed to his wounds on July 1, 1864. He was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery.

On the day Private John Armstrong was mortally wounded, another soldier Comrade John Morrisey had a premonition he would not survive the day (pgs 178-179). Morrisey turned to his friend Sgt William Wells beseeching him to relay a message to his sister Mary that he died facing the enemy. As the battle commenced, Comrade John Morrisey was shot through the head. During a lull in the battle, Sgt Wells buried his friend.  Later during the war, Sgt Wells was injured and sent to a hospital in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania where John’s sister Mary Morrisey found him. Sgt Wells shared with Mary Morrisey her brother’s last words. This story gave me chills when I realized not only that John Morrisey and Private John Armstrong fought in a battle on the same day that ultimately killed them both, but the hospital where Sgt Wells and Mary Morrisey met was the same hospital where I born... Can anyone say small world.