Monthly Events - October

I received idea from Tonia of  Tonia's Roots....she does this daily, I'm going to do it monthly. Events of our family and our ancestors - birth-dates, marriages, deaths will be listed each month for that month. (Those currently living will not have their last name nor full dates posted).

October 4, 1941 Marriage of Hays C. Post and Margaret Troyer Post (Santa Barbara Mission)
October 13, 19-- Robert (youngest son) - Birthday
October 16, 19-- David (nephew) - Birthday
October 18, 19-- John and Kim (son-in-law/beautiful daughter) - Anniversary
October 24, 1936 - Lucie Hays Coulter (great-grandmother born 1861) - Death
October 25, 19-- Barbara (sister-in-law) - Birthday
October 27, 1947 - Orvey Jermain Post (grandfather born 1886) - Death
October 31, 19-- John (son-in-law) - Birthday

This list is by no means complete - it's a project in the workings.  Watch for it on the first of each month.



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Wordless Wednesday - Not So!

This was suppose to be a Wordless Wednesday but it got out of hand! :)

I recently came across this photo with my sister's family photos.  It is my dad but nothing indicates what year this was taken/where it was taken/or how old dad was at the time it was taken.  I thought at first that the object in his arms was a pumpkin and that he was in or near a pumpkin patch.  But upon closer look I'm not sure that's the case. I'm 'assuming' this picture was taken somewhere in Los Angeles CA since that is where he was born and raised.  I don't think he lived out of Los Angeles county his entire 74 years. The background of the broken fence, the scraps of wood, the overgrown bushes does not make this an appealing (to me) place to be.

It is probably fall as the trees are leafless.   Anyone have any thoughts on the picture?

I LOVE his cap, overalls, and boots...

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved



Saturday Night Genalogy Fun - Birth Order

It's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun as a challenge from our own Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings

My job is to:

1) Pick one of my ancestral lines - anyone - patrimonial, matriarchal, zigzag, from a famous ancestor, etc.; Pick a long one if I can.

2) Tell which position in the birth order that my ancestor was in each generation. For example "third child, first son. Also list how many children were born to these parents.

3) Share my Birth Order on my own blog post.

Here's mine (I picked my mother's line):

1. Mary D. Post 1943- ) - second child, first daughter of Hays Post and Margaret Troyer (2 sons, 1 daughter)
2. Margaret Troyer (1909-1987) - first daughter of Elmer Troyer and Mary Motzko (2 sons, 3 daughters)
3. Mary M. Motzko (1883-1953) - first child, third daughter of Philipp Motzko and Maria Fietzek (2 daughters)
4. Maria Fietzek (1857-1927) - daughter of Martin Fietzek and Catherina Dyga (4 sons, 6 daughters)
5. Catherina Dyga (1816-after 1857) - daughter of Franz Dyga and Unknown (2 (known) daughters)
6. Franz Dyga (1 (known) daughter)

Numbers 4 through 6 were born in Poland but I have no additional information on them. Not a very long line but I'm working on it!


Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Thankful Thursday: Memories of Griswolds

While recently searching on-line for a large family gathering that I, in a VERY weak moment, volunteered to organize I found a picture (postcard) of a place that brings back many memories.  Griswold's is was located in Claremont, California.

Griswold's was the place of many of our family gatherings, both large and small, over the years and I thought WOW this would be great for get-together - but alas it's not to be - like all good things it's gone the way of the years and closed down in 1998.  They had a charming little pastry shop as you walked in the front door. They had regular dining as well as banquet rooms.

Griswold's is was located in Claremont, in southern California.  Not far from Route 66 it was a quick stop for truckers and also a favorite stop for tourist and/or locals for many years.

A little history behind it is that George Griswold and his family arrived in Claremont about 1915.  Here they began cultivating the land and using the already abundant fruit trees to make candid fruit and preserves.  Starting with a small gift shop they sold these to travelers who then sent them home.  The legacy of Griswold's continued even through several owners and their expanding the business.  Griswold's finally went Smorgasbord with a dinner theater.

In 1998, after years of scaling down the restaurant eventually was sold in a trustee's sale.  The building was leveled and Griswold's was left a memory for many after 80+ years.

Now after an afternoon trip down memory lane I'm still at a loss as where to hold our holiday get-together. So I'm back to work!



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Wordless Wednesday: Hmmmmm

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Scrapbook Saturday - Moms Scrapbook

Page 8





1. Dorothy 1926 (Troyer)

2. no writing underneath but it's Margaret Troyer

3. Dorothy 1926 (Troyer)

4. no writing - Dorothy & Margaret Troyer

5. Eliz. & Eleanor 1926    

  6. Baby George (Ketchum)

Pictures probably taken in Goshen, Indiana 



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved



Happy Birthday Grandma Troyer

1952 B'day Gift from Elmer & Mary Motzko Troyer

Dear Grandma,

I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday Grandma.  I really wish I had more memories of you.  I don't remember you giving me this picture but I know it was my 9th birthday and we lived in our house in Los Angeles.  It wasn't long before you died...maybe 6 months.  Mom told me you made this picture...I look at it and it reminds me of you.  You were that sweet little girl once...out taking your dog for a walk.  This picture hangs in my bedroom today as it has for the last 57 years.

I've come to know you a lot from reading my mom's diaries and looking at old pictures. Even a couple memories popped back into my head, like a Thanksgiving dinner at your home in Pomona.  I've always been sorry we didn't live there when you did - so that we could have been closer - maybe I'd have better memories then.  We moved there a couple years after you died so we could be close to Grandpa and my cousins.

I just want you to know Grandma I'm thinking of you on this birthday which would have been your 127th.  It's easy to remember your birthday because it's the day after mine!  This made my thoughts of you even fonder.  Say 'hi' to Grandpa Troyer and to mom and dad and Jimmy for me.  I love and miss you all.

Love, your grand-daughter



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Thankful Thursday - Simple Pleasures - Flowers

I was thinking the other day about flowers from my childhood.  My mother loved flowers and would often take an afternoon off from raising five teens to go to the Arboretum and Botanic Gardens in Arcadia, California to just walk around and 'calm her frazzled nerves' as she used to say.  In Phoenix we have the 'Desert Botanical Gardens'.  I've never been there, or any Arboretum for that matter, that I can remember.  One of these cool fall evenings I'd like to do so...seems like a wonderful place to just 'chill out' after a long hot day.

Roses on Southridge

I remember mom used to grow flowers at our homes in both Los Angeles and Pomona, California.  Snapdragons, Sweet Peas, and Roses were the ones I specifically remember but I'm sure there must have been many more.  When my husband and I lived in Long Beach, CA and in Las Vegas, NV we had Roses, that were planted by previous owners, that bloomed every year.  It amazed me that I didn't have to do a thing. They'd look so nasty during the winter and I'd want to pull them out, but come early spring they popped right out again and would last until it got cold again.  We also had Impatiens in Long Beach.


Southridge Flowers

  
Another flower that adorned our back yard in Las Vegas were the ones on the right.  I'm not even sure what kind of flower they are - maybe Irises?  I loved having them and the roses above with no hassle!

Zucchini Plant

We tried to use our little garden in back of our condo here in Phoenix, Arizona to grow some vegetables this year...we got beautiful plants but no veggies off them....rather disappointing.  It was my first attempt at gardening so maybe next year it will work.

My very favorite flowers are Impatiens, Sunflowers, and Daisy's.

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Wordless Wednesday

Us - 1964

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved, Mary Post Warren

Super Sunday Sisters - Margaret and Dorothy Troyer

Margaret Elizabeth Troyer (older girl) and Dorothy Helen Troyer (Dorothy was named after her cousin Dorothy Helen Herman born approximately 1905, died, approximately 1910 at the age of  5 years) were the only children of Elmer and Mary (Motzko) Troyer.  Margaret was born June 16, 1909 and Dorothy was born April 5, 1913.  Since both their parents came from large families I'm sure it seemed odd to have such a small family...but the small family atmosphere is what made Margaret and Dorothy so close.



The picture to the right was found in mom's scrapbook...and although it is not identified I am almost positive it is Margaret and Dorothy - the blond hair on the older girl, the little bit of darker hair on the younger girl and the age difference seems to fit the picture above.  Was this for Halloween they were dressed like this?  Or maybe it was for a school costume party? Then again they could be dressed in play outfits that mom and dad gave them for Christmas or Birthday gifts?  Or maybe outfits that their mom just made them for fun?   I wish I knew the real story behind them.

Family Picture taken in 1929 - right to left - Elmer, Mary, Margaret, and Dorothy Troyer.  Taken at their home on 10th Street in Goshen Indiana.

Dorothy Helen Troyer married William Oliver Haines in 1934.  You can read more on their family by following link above.  Dorothy's best friend (her sister) Margaret stood up for her at the ceremony.

Dorothy and Margaret stayed close during their married lives...they lived within  walking distance (a few blocks) in Pomona California. They raised their large families together - Dorothy had 1 son, 3 daughters; Margaret had 2 sons, 3 daughters.  Dorothy outlived Marget by about 17 years dying in April 2004;  Margaret died in September 1987.

Read more about each of them by clicking on the links in the first paragraph above.

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved



Scrapbook Saturday - Moms Photos

Page 7



  Picture 1: Near Hart, Michigan

Picture 2: Holland, Michigan

Pictures 3-6: Baby George Ketchum in Detroit,

Summer 1926 died in June 1927

Pictures taken in Michigan probably about 1926 

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Elmer and Mary Troyer's 25th Anniversary



1952 Elmer and Mary Troyer - Pomona, California





For more information please read:

Mary Motzko


Today, September 10, 2010 would have been my grandparents 102 wedding anniversary.
They were married September 10, 1908 in Nampa, Idaho



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Myrtle Frances Engel Warren



AKA Grandma Warren

12.21.1908 - 09.09.2001

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved





What Did They Do?

My challenge this week from "Sharing a Slice of Life" is to research and show our ancestors occupations.    So here goes..........


Ever wonder what your grandparents did to make a living?  Or what their parents did to support their families?


Well let's see - on my mom's side of the family

Margaret Troyer Post (1909-1987) - a newspaper reporter for the Culver City News (Culver City, California) and before that the Goshen News Democrat (Goshen, Indiana).  She gave up her job to become a SAHM (Stay-at-Home-Mother, in 2010 language). Raised 5 children.

Elmer David Troyer (1884-1963) - carpenter in Goshen, Indiana and in California

Mary Motzko Troyer (1883-1953) - full time wife, homemaker, and raised 2 children.

Phillipp Motzko (1852-1910) - laborer and farmed his own land

Maria Fietzek Motzko (1857-1927) - full time wife, homemaker, and raised 10 children 

Joseph J. Troyer (1849-1915) - had a large family farm, passed down from his father John and his grandfather Yost, where he cultivated the crops and sold them to make money.

Elizabeth Schrock Troyer (1853-1938) -

John Troyer (1805-1889) - had a large family farm, passed down from his father Yost, where he helped cultivate the crops and sold them to make money.

Elizabeth Yoder Troyer (1811-1883) -

On my dad's side of the family:

Hays Coulter Post (1913-1987) - printer, first with Rogers-McDonald in Los Angeles, California and then with Avery Label in Monrovia, California.  He was a very active in the Printers Union.

Orvey Jermain Post (1886-1947) - actor under the name Jermain(e) Post.

Bess Coulter Post (1883-1945) - a seamstress, working for Sam Goldwyn Studios and MGM Studios in Hollywood, California.  Also raised 3 children (two of which died in childhood, one of which is unconfirmed)

William H Coulter (?) - 

Lucy Hays Coulter (1861-1936) - a seamstress and then in charge of the wardrobe department at Sam Goldwyn Studios and MGM Studios.  Prior to that she raised 4 children while traveling with various live theater groups and working as a seamstress for them.

Jermain E. Post (1851-1894) - Lawyer in Salt Lake City, Utah

Elizabeth Clayton Post (1857-1929) - Librarian; Wife, Homemaker, Raised 2 children

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Apron's, Apron's, Aprons Everywhere

This time of the year I do a lot of canning and freezing of fresh fruits and veggies and store them up for the winter.  I do a lot of commiserating with my female ancestors while I'm 'slaving away' in the kitchen with my electric stove, microwave, food processor,and dishwasher.  I think how they must have done these same things...only with a wood burning stove, no quick cooking microwave, only a knife to chop veggies or grate cheese, nothing but water to wash their pots and pans (and then if they wanted them washed in HOT, SOAPY water they had to heat the water and make their own soap!).  I'm done with a couple dozen jars of tomatoes or jam within a couple hours.  Can you imagine how long it took someone in the 1850's to do the same?

Grandmas and Great-Grandmothers always wore an apron.  Mostly made out of muslin....hand sewn.  I have a couple aprons my mother made me when I was younger but I like to 'perserve' those and so wear just old clothes when doing this work.  Recently a friend of mine gave me an apron pattern....I use to sew years ago but haven't dug my machine out in about 20 years....I'm going to DO it now....if I can just find a place to set it up.  The price on this pattern is $18.95!  That sounds like a year to me, not the price for a pattern!  When I started sewing patterns were about 50cents to a dollar each.  My friend assured me she got this one on sale for 99cents. That's beside the point! How can anyone afford to make clothes today with the  price of a pattern being almost $20?  I think I'll start making my own patterns....isn't that what our ancestors did?

Grandma's Apron

by Poetry of Tina Trivett

The strings were tied, It was freshly washed, and maybe even pressed.

For Grandma, it was everyday to choose one when she dressed.

The simple apron that it was, you would never think about;

the things she used it for, that made it look worn out.

She may have used it to hold, some wildflowers that she'd found.

Or to hide a crying child's face, when a stranger came around.

Imagine all the little tears that were wiped with just that cloth.

Or it became a potholder to serve some chicken broth.

She probably carried kindling to stoke the kitchen fire.

To hold a load of laundry, or to wipe the clothesline wire.

When canning all her vegetables, it was used to wipe her brow.

You never know, she might have used it to shoo flies from the cow. 

She might have carried eggs in from the chicken coop outside.

Whatever chore she used it for, she did them all with pride.

When Grandma went to heaven, God said she now could rest.

I'm sure the apron that she chose, was her Sunday best.

Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved

Labor Day and School Days

Ahhhhh, Labor Day weekend is about to come upon us once again.  'Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.' per  United States Department of Labor website.  It was first celebrated on September 5, 1882.



1949 - Jimmy 2nd grade
Mary 1st grade

Today, Labor Day, has many other meanings - it's the unofficial end of summer and school vacation (although in Arizona most of our schools started on August 7 - a month prior to Labor Day).  When I was a child school usually started the day after Labor Day. It's also marks the beginning of football season (seems to me though these days that football is played year round, but that's another blog).

The most important thing for me as a teenager was that the Los Angeles County Fair started on or about Labor Day weekend. It was held at the fairgrounds in Pomona, California - which was just a couple miles from our house.  There was concerts, rides, Fun Houses, and cotton candy!  When the Ferris Wheel broke down with a wheel full of people those at the bottom used to envy those at the top and vice versa.  I always wanted to be stuck high up...don't know why because I'm not crazy about heights...must have been the thrill of it all and the 'I can do' attitude a teenager has.  I loved that 'Fun House' too...the whacko mirrors and the  the 'ghosts' hiding in unknown places and then jumping out at you when least expected....it was all the best.

Best of all was every year we got an extra day off school and free tickets.  Plus it was fairly inexpensive at other times...rides were a quarter and admission to the park was about a dollar.   All this for 2 weeks was more fun to look forward to than the holiday, going back to school, and football.



Mary Post Warren

© copyright 2010, all rights reserved