Max Pellack ~ I'm Not a Diamond Heiress with a Tiny Flluuuffy Dog in a Sparkly Flllluuufffy Handbag!

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 13 (In the Paper)

In 2002 I was contacted by a relative that I had recently managed to find in my fractured family tree.

She told me a geologist had contacted her about trying to find descendants of my grandfather who in 1965 quietly went back to using his assumed name. He continued to use his assumed name until he died in 1986. He was buried with all the details of his assumed name on his headstone. 

This geologist had been unable to locate my grandfather as he was searching by the name he had been born with. 

I was very curious what this geologist might want, and was stunned when he told me of my grandfather's connection to a diamond find in 1961 in northern Saskatchewan. 

Winnipeg Free Press, September 20, 1961

There was a brief time in the 1960s where my grandfather went back to using his birth name.  

Winnipeg Free Press, September 15, 1961

After taking a prospector's course while in prison he went in search of diamonds. He had claims. He let them lapse. He said he had a partner who learned to prospect while in prison. It's my guess he didn't want anyone to know he had been in jail so claimed an unnamed partner. 

The Geologist who found me was researching the mining of industrial diamonds in northern Saskatchewan. He shared with me the details.  De Beers was rumoured to be connected to the company who had assessed the product my grandfather sent for testing. That company said there was no diamonds in the material grandpa sent. De Beers sat and waited until everyone forgot, formed a partnership with a few other companies, and then they quietly set up shop mining diamonds. De Beer's was mining the very same area my grandfather found his diamonds until they sold their shares in 2006. The area is still being mined. 

I  was surprised to find the name of the geologist who contacted me in two articles (1) (2) since he didn't disclose that he was a part of the project when he was talking to me. This discovery has left me even more curious about his intent when he first contacted me. I wasn't able to offer him any information since I didn't know anything more then he provided. I suspect I didn't give him whatever information he was looking for. 

If only my grandfather had maintained his claims ~  a Diamond Heiress I would be. Instead my grandfather squandered away my true destiny as a princess dripping in diamonds. 

AND with that my destiny as the owner of a tiny flluuuffy dog in a sparkly flluuufy handbag was squandered. As you can see she is not able to be sequestered in a tiny sparkly flllluuuuufy handbag. 




Now, don't get me wrong. I love my dog. We saved her from a shelter. We are what is referenced as Foster Failures. She was our foster dog, but very soon after her arrival we knew we couldn't part with her. She is an Irish Terrier crossed with Belgian Shepherd. She's smart, well behaved, sheds like a demon and is rather large. She does not fit into a sparkly fllluuuuufffy handbag.  

I was destined to be a diamond heiress with a tiny miniature dog that I could carry in a handbag. No flllluuuuffffy handbag with a miniature canine and no diamonds - not even one!

My online searching found a lot of information about my grandfather's diamond discovery, but sadly there was no record of it within my own family. There are more IN THE PAPER records for me to explore as listed in the University of Saskatchewan New Index. (3)



Unearthing the lost stories. 

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!




DISCLAIMER (for anyone who read the previous entry): this is an updated blog from 2016 

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post*** 

Sources:

(1) The Northern Miner, Volume 81, Number 22, July 31 to August 6 1995, Retrieved March 30, 2019 from https://prosperitysaskatchewan.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/falc-history-from-northern-miner.pdf

(2) Times Colonist, March 19th 1993, Retrieved March 30, 2019 from https://www.newspapers.com/clip/28366629/times_colonist_victoria_british/

(3) University Of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan News Index, Search: Pellack, Retried March 30, 2019 from https://library.usask.ca/sni/search.php?query=pellack

    

Other Sources:

Barren Lands: An Epic Search for Diamonds in the North America Arctic, Retrieved March 30, 2019 from    https://books.google.ca/books?id=qPhdCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT184&lpg=PT184&dq=max+pellack+diamond&source=bl&ots=Oue5EMtdpE&sig=ACfU3U0IO7LiwdFK2r1cEiFvDTbHvHlEQA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjK6fDvqKrhAhXHwFQKHdnVAW4Q6AEwA3oECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=max%20pellack%20diamond&f=false

History and current status of diamond exploration in Saskatchewan, Retrieved March 30, 2019 from http://publications.gov.sk.ca/documents/310/88677-harvey.pdf

Technical Report, Big River Property, Saskatchewan, Canada Retrieved March 30, 2019 from http://www.goldsourcemines.com/_resources/TECHRPT.pdf

United States, Securities and exchange commission,  Washington, D.C. 20549, Form S-1, Registration Statement under the Securities Act of 1933, Legend Mining Inc., Retrieved March 30, 2019 from  https://content.edgar-online.com/ExternalLink/EDGAR/0001393905-08-000188.html?hash=4ffcca59754d3f088c2783eb6f557e3fdf65b86aa9eb9eecf69ef5e81b75f2bf&dest=LGND_EX3-2_HTM#LGND_EX3-2_HTM

Winnipeg Free Press, September 15, 1961, retrieved online March 30, 2019

Winnipeg Free Press, September 20, 1961,retrieved online March 30, 2019

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

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My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

British Home Child - Alfred Augustus Baker (age 12), and his siblings

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 12 (12)


I have chosen to feature 12 year old Alfred  and his siblings for this week 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge - the prompt is 12 which was the age young Alfred was when he arrived in Canada, all alone, and headed to the Northwest Territories with a stranger. 

In the 1891 census I find my X3 great grandmother with three children living at 182 Beresford Street in the Newington district of London, England. Jemima Jane (nee North) Baker marital status is listed as married & her occupation is wife,. Her husband, Alfred A Baker, is not recorded as living with the family. Daughter Mary, who was baptized alongside son Alfred Augustus Baker on the 30th of April 1890, is also absent from this census. The three children listed are Amy Louisa (my X2 great grandmother) age 16, Alfred Augusta age 4, and Edith Jemima age 3.

This is the last time I find any records for Jemima Jane (nee North) Baker. I find no records for Alfred A Baker after the marriage record for him and Jemima on the 2nd of November 1874 at  All Saints, St Pancras Rd, Camden, England. Where the parents of Amy, Alfred, and Edith were  after 1891 is a mystery.  All three of the recorded children I could find ended up in Canada.

July 25, 1898 Alfred arrives in Canada as a British Home Child. He arrived on the ship Labrador through Quebec to the Toronto Bernardo's home for 'distribution'. What a strange way to word the program that was sending young children in need to a new country for a new life. It seems to me that the phrase really did portray the results of the program. The intent had been to send children from England to new families in Canada. Sadly that isn't what happened for many of the children sent by ship to Canada and elsewhere in the world. The record that I find notes that "In 1898, A. A. Baker, 9, arrived at Quebec, Canada, along with a group of 92 children en route to Toronto, Ontario, Canada." 1  

The documents indicate that Alfred was 9. Alfred was 12. His BHC Registry ID #: 55283.

My online researching indicates that sometimes the incorrect age listed was done in legitimate error. Sometimes it was done to allow for more years of service for smaller children. We will never know what the actual reason was for Alfred.  The follow up documents I found note that he was born in 1898, and was 12 when he arrived. 

Where exactly Alfred ended up isn't a story that was passed down through my side of the family. In the August 1903 edition of Dr. Barnardo Magazine Ups and Downs on page 55 Alfred is noted as having received a Silver Medal for good conduct & length of service. The April 1903 issue of the same magazine mentions a letter that says Alfred A Baker will be 17 in April. It also says that Alfred A Baker arrived in 1898, and was placed with Mr. Johnston. The British Home Child Registry notes that Alfred Augustus Baker was going to Avonhurst**, Northwest Territories, Canada with Mr. Johnston. The records indicated he remained there until 1903.  Where he went in 1903 I have not yet found.  My Alfred Augustus Baker was born in April of 1886 he would have been turning 17 in April 1903. Alfred Augustus Baker received a long service Silver Medal in 1903, and Alfred A Baker was placed from 1898 to 1903 with Mr. Johnston. I am fairly confident all the documentation is about the same Alfred Baker. I have heard many stories about the terrible situations British Home Children ended up in upon their arrival in Canada. I am hopeful that 12 year old Alfred Augustus Baker was treated well by Mr. Johnston since he chose to stay with him for at least the 5 years.  

Alfred Augustus Baker married Flora Isabel Cameron who was born in Saskatchewan. He was listed as a clerk in the 1916 census, and a farmer in the 1921 census. I haven't yet found their marriage record. I have them on birth records, and supporting census records. The first recorded child I find for them was Amy born in 1912. Their second child Frank was born in 1914. They had a male child who was likely stillborn in 1916. In the 1921 census they have only the two children who are 7 & 8 years old. All three children were born in Saskatchewan. Both Alfred and Flora died in Victoria, British Columbia. I have yet to find any record of when they moved from Saskatchewan to British Columbia, and whether their children joined them. I have found no further information for Alfred Augustus Baker.

Alfred's sister Edith Jemima Baker was a British Home Child arriving in Canada 25th of July 1902 when she arrived on the ship New England to the port in Boston. She then traveled to Canada, Edith Jemima Baker is listed as residing at Bernardo's Home in England in the 1901 census. Her age listed as 13 matches all of my research to date.  I find a record of Edith at the New Road School in London, admitted the 8th of  January in 1894. I know this is my Edith because the birth date matches, and her father is listed correctly. Noted right above her birth date on the admission record is 'weak intellect'. I wonder if this relative shared my 'late reader' label. There is no indication that she lacked intelligence later in life.  "In 1902, Edith Baker, 14, arrived at Boston, Massachusetts, USA, along with a large party of about 400 children en route to Toronto and Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Her brother, A(lfred) A(ugustus) Baker arrived previously in 1898 on the Labrador with Barnardos." 2  There is no record that I can find who Edith lived with in Canada until she moved to Manitoba to live with her sister Amy Louisa (nee Baker) Dendy. In 1905 Edith married John Zarn, and they had 8 children.

Amy Louisa Baker was my X2 great grandmother. She was born on the 18th of March in 1875 in England. She died 23rd of December 1949 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She married William Herbert Dendy on the 10th of December 1893 in England. William Herbert Dendy was born on the 27th of July 1867 in England, and died 25 December 1929 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They had 11 children. Six children were born in England, and 5 in Canada. My great grandmother was their first born in Canada. The family immigrated to Canada in 1903, and settled in Manitoba. They did try their hand at farming in Alberta for a time (see Bachelor Uncle Blog for more about that) and also lived in Saskatchewan where their 9th child was born.  

Amy Louisa (nee Baker) Dendy on right, William Herbert Dendy in back.
Likely their daughters Amy in back, Rose (my great grandmother) in front
not sure who the other two are, but based on ages there are a couple to choose from.
Guessing 1909 since Rose looks about three so Amy was probably expecting Den who was born in 1909 

I don't know if my X2 great grandparents came to Canada to be closer to Amy's siblings who had been sent to Canada as British Home Children. Amy was already married when her younger siblings left to Canada in 1898 and 1902. Amy and her family arrived in 1904, and originally settled in Manitoba where my great grandmother Rose was born.  Amy and family were then living in Saskatchewan in 1907 and 1909 where two sons, Albert & Den, were born. I don't know when Alfred married Flora (from Saskatchewan), but their first born child was named Amy in 1912. It's possible that Amy Louisa moved to Saskatchewan to be closer to Alfred. We also know that Amy Louisa was living near Edith in Manitoba. The records indicate that Amy Louisa and her family were moving between Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Alberta during the years of 1903 and 1929. I don't know why that was happening at a time in the past when most folks didn't move around a lot.   

I don't know what happened to their sister Mary. 

I don't know what happened to their parents Alfred A Baker & Jemima Jane North. 

I do know that the family names continued in the family's of all three children. 

I do know that all three went on to have family's, and appear to have been successful in life.

I do know that Amy's daughter Rose (my great grandmother) was so attached to her family that she took her brother out of the institution as soon as she was able (see Bachelor Uncle Blog for more about that). 

I also know that Edith Jemima remained connected to Amy Louisa's family after her marriage because I found her playing matchmaker for niece Amy Florence Dendy in 1906. 

Amy Louisa was born Amy Baker, and married William Herbert Dendy to become Amy Dendy. Her daughter was born Amy Florence Dendy, and when she married Jack Baker she became Amy Baker. Amy Baker became Amy Dendy, and then Amy Dendy became Amy Baker. I was only able to tease this apart using the video of my grandma explaining a family photo along with this side story. 


The things you don't know until you do. 


If you know more please comment or message me with the details. 

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

** Not to be confused with the current Northwest Territories. In 1905 the landscape of Canada changed with the creation of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Avonhurst is, and always was, part of Saskatchewan. 


Sources:

1 RootsChat.Com, RootsChat Reference Library, Database for Special Interest Groups(DBSIG), British Home Children, Quick Search. as retrieved March 20, 2019 from
http://surname.rootschat.com/lexicon/dbsig/dbsig-quick-search.php?dbsig_num=1&surname=BAKER&view=3969#top_data

2 RootsChat.Com, RootsChat Reference Library, Database for Special Interest Groups(DBSIG), British Home Children, Quick Search. as retrieved March 22, 2019 from http://surname.rootschat.com/lexicon/dbsig/dbsig-quick-search.php?dbsig_num=1&surname=BAKER&view=3968#top_data




Amended Web Links

Alfred Augustus Baker, British Home Children, A Virtual Cemetery, Find A Grave, Retrieved February 5th 2021 from 

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/222328905/alfred-augustus-baker?fbclid=IwAR1SzKI3L1zLtPfJAdY4RYoaFsJeOLjPAkbl_MRwDob1d_sMPGvu3Vjbwxw

Edith Baker Zarn, British Home Children, A Virtual Cemetery, Find A Grave, Retrieved February 5th 2021 from 

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/111283305/edith-zarn

additional sources:
British Home Children registry as retrieved March 22, 2019 from http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/bhcInfo/55283

Retrieved March 19, 2019 from
https://canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com/ups-and-downs-1903.html

Retrieved March 20, 2019 from
https://bifhsgo.ca/cstm_upsAndDowns.php?page=1&nr=50&scl=sna&sn=baker

Retrieved March 20, 2019 from http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/search

Retrieved March 22, 2019 from
http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/bhcInfo/55313






***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

The Merrill Family ~ Historical: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints & Plural Marriage

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 11 (Large Family)


When I began searching my family tree with this week's prompt of LARGE FAMILY I discovered many of my ancestors had large families. Many of my female ancestors had more than a dozen children each. Some of my male ancestors remarried after their wife died creating a second family with as many children as the first had. I also noticed how many of the babies and children died long before achieving adulthood. I realized it would be very hard to choose just one family. Then I noticed something intriguing.

Not so long ago I was looking at my X3 great grandmother Artemissa Merrill. She was born the 1st of June 1842 in Cramahe Township in Ontario, Canada. She married Solomon Bayes who was born the 31st of Aug 1845 in Cambellford, Ontario, Canada. They were married on the 8th of November 1867 which is almost exactly100 years before I was born. Artemissa died on the 14th of November 1936, and Solomon died before her on the 16th of September 1907. Artemissa did not remarry after Solomon's death. They had 5 children. My X2 great grandfather was their oldest child: Franklin Sheldon Bayes  born on 20th of January 1869 in Cambellford, Ontario.

Artemissa with daughters Blanche & Ethel

Artemissa and Solomon's family was one of the smaller families I found looking at that time in my family tree. 

Are you wondering why I chose to feature Artemissa in this blog posting about Large Families?

My discovery this week is that Artemissa's first cousin X1 removed (my first cousin X6 removed) was Hosea Merrill. Hosea was born on the 10th of April 1802, and died 5th of February 1864. He was 61 years old when he died. He married Mary Ann Saxton on the 25th of April 1825. In April 1837 Hosea was baptized into the Mormon faith. Wife Mary wasn't baptized until 7 years later in 1844. The Merrill family was part of the migration of the Mormon followers as they traveled across the United States seeking a place they would be accepted. In the book Pioneers and Prominent Men of Utah there is a record that “Hosea Merrell resided in Big Cottonwood, Salem, Menden and Paradise, Utah.” Hosea and Mary had 8 children with 6 surviving to adulthood. One of their sons accepted polygamy, and had 2 wives. The remainder of their children followed the Mormon faith, but did not practice the tenant of plural marriage. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints terminated the practice of plural marriage in 1890. Hosea, Mary, their children, and descendants went on to be very involved in the growth of the LDS church.

While researching the extended parts of my family tree before I understood that plural marriage was an accepted practice at the time I was very confused. How could the wedding of the second and third wife happen while the first wife was still alive. How could one man have so many children the same age. I was viewing the details through my own bias. I took another look at the research I was engaged in with an open-mind, and focused on a reasonable exhaustive search. It was then that everything began to make sense.


Bringing it all back to Artemissa - below is her death certificate:

Searching with an open-mind!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

sources

ESSHOM, FRANK. Pioneers and Prominent Men of Utah: Comprising Photographs, Genealogies, Biographies (Salt Lake City: Utah Pioneer Books, 1913 pp 1033.

As retrieved March 16th 2019 from
https://sites.google.com/site/terryandnancysmithfamily/home/family-histories/hosea-merrill




***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of to the blog post***

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

Bachelor Brothers - Uncle Alf & Uncle Charlie

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 10 (Bachelor Uncle)


This week I introduce you to Uncle Alf & Uncle Charlie - my great uncles. 2 brothers who never married. 

Although uncle Alf never married he lived with a lady named Deedee for about 27 years. 

A cousin shared this story: "When they came to stay, Deedee wouldn’t sleep with Alf because they weren’t married.  Mum used to have fits because our house wasn’t large, and she’d have to prepare two sleeping spaces for them. " 

Alf & Charlie's parents were: 
William Herbert Dendy
BIRTH 27 JUL 1867 • Balham St Mary, Surrey, England
DEATH 25 DEC 1929 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
and
Amy Louisa Baker
BIRTH 18 MAR 1875 • Ealing, Middlesex, England
DEATH 23 DEC 1949 • Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Alf was the older of the two born on the 29th of May 1900 in London, England in the south west district of Clapham. When he was 3 years old the family immigrated to Canada.

Charlie was born the 6th of September 1912 in Calgary, Alberta where the family was farming in the east side of the city. 

Alf & Charlie were the best of friends as adults. They enjoyed hunting and trapping in a shared cabin. They were roommates for parts of the adult years. They were very connected to family. 

uncle Alf on the left, uncle Den (Dennis Dendy 1909-1999) on the right - with my grandma & her brother

                     

The cabin where Uncle Alf & Uncle Charlie were hunters and trappers. Uncle Den joined them until he got married.

This wasn't always the case. When Charlie was young he was placed in an institution because he had seizures. He also had strange behaviour that scared his mother. He would begin running across the room, and not stop until he banged into the wall, and fell to the floor sometimes having a seizure at the end. We now know that what Uncle Charlie had was complex partial seizures in addition to the generalized seizures. It was the early 1900s, there was little in the way of treatment for epilepsy, and Charlie was too strong for his mother to handle when he was having a seizure. Charlie was placed in what was then called a mental institute. After moving into the institute Charlie never had any further seizures. He stayed at the institution in Portage La Prairie until his younger sister Rose, my great grandma, got married in 1925. Rose wasn't able to get her brother out of the institution as a single woman. Once married she and her husband were able to get Charlie released. I have not yet found any records of Charlie's admission to the institute which leaves this at the family lore stage for now. All the Dendy children were close, and when Charlie returned that hadn't changed.
UPDATE: Found in the 1931 census residing in the 'Home for the Aged, Infirm, & Incurables' in Portage La Prairie - Page 3 of 12

Charlie's birth name was William after his father. Shortly after William was born his sister Rose (my great grandmother) had a friend tell her if the first William died then this one would too. Big sister Rose spent two days crying before her mother asked what name she wanted the baby to have. Rose chose Charlie. Family lore says that Charlie legally changed his name as an adult. The baby who died was called Wilfrid James Dendy (25 Feb 1902 [Clapham, London, England] to Dec 1903 [Norwood Cemetery London, England]), and not William as young Rose had been thinking.

When I went looking for photos I was surprised to find almost no photos of uncle Alf, but many for uncle Charlie. In discussion with family member I discovered that Charlie traveled out west to visit my extended family members, but Alf never did which is why we have so few photos of Alf.

My only memory of meeting either of them was when my family visited their apartment in Winnipeg, Manitoba. When my brother and I arrived uncle Alf was super excited to present us each with an ice cream bucket full of hard candies. The buckets were almost too heavy for us to hold since we were probably too young to be eating hard candies. The visual of all those brightly coloured candy has stayed with me all these years. Uncle Charlie was there too, but uncle Alf presented the bucket so his face is clearly etched in my memory.

My favourite family story about uncle Alf was about when they lived on the farm. All the chickens unexpectedly died. Knowing that the feathers were very valuable uncle Alf plucked all the best feathers off each chicken. He tossed the chickens on the burn pile after they were plucked since no one was sure why they died so eating them was likely a bad idea. Several hours after he had accomplished his task those chickens began to wake up, and wander around. Some of them were fully bald, and some still had the less choice feathers attached to them. The chickens had not been dead - they were very drunk. They had gotten into the silage, and passed out after consuming the fermented grains. Imagine how they felt when they woke up hungover, and bald thinking their friends were the worst pranksters ever.  Uncle Alf dutifully rubbed butter on those chickens to protect their skin from the sun until their feathers grew back. We now know that butter does nothing to protect from the sun. I wonder if it smelled like frying chicken on that farm awaiting the feathers regrowing. 

My favourite family story about uncle Charlie is when he came to visit my grandma's family in Victoria. He would take his 3 nieces downtown, and give them some money for a pop and fries while he went to the pub for a beer. They would order a single soda and plate of fries to share, and pocket the remaining money for future treats. Uncle Charlie would come check on them, and give them more money before heading back into the pub. They would repeat the process a few more times. His nieces remember these visits fondly. This was the late 1950s or early 1960s. Imagine what society would think of this today. 

Charlie with 2 of his nieces (my two aunts)

BACK: my great grandpa (Hap/Ernest), my great grandma (Rose), my aunt, my great Uncle Bill (Johnson),
Teedie (who uncle Alf may have lived with),  FRONT: my mom, my great uncle Alf 

uncle Charlie with one of his nieces

The things we don't know until we do!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of to the blog post***

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

Snake Hips - Swayze

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 9 (At the Courthouse)


This week I am changing direction, and focusing on how this bramble bush first began. 


Almost 27 years ago I was out for a night of fun with friends in a local club. The music was blaring. Everywhere people were dancing. A tall guy that I didn't know asked me to dance. Out to the dance floor we go, and the first thing I noticed was what a great dancer he was. The way he shook those hips reminded me of Patrick Swayze in the movie Dirty Dancing.  The movie had been released a few years earlier, and was available for rent on VHS. I must confess I watched it on the big screen twice, and rented it several times. I was a fan of that movie & Swayze's snake hips. That night was the first of many dances with the man I would later marry. 

We have been together 27 years, and are parents to 2 fantastic young adult men. That night on the dance floor is where our story began, and is the root of our bramble bush family tree. 












What neither of us knew on the dance floor that night was that Chris is the 7th cousin X2 removed of Patrick Swayze. Those snake hips are a family trait. It's all in the jeans ...err I mean genes. Recently I was away for a week of training, and Chris joined me for a social night with music provided by a DJ. After we had been on the dance floor for a few dances one of the younger students in the class asked Chris where he got his moves. Chris told him they were way more impressive in the 80s. Those hips are still Chris' trademark. DNA knows. 

Look up to the wedding photo

can you see the resemblance between 

Chris and his 7th cousin X2 removed?

I should have posted video of the hips!

Are you asking yourself what hips and Patrick Swayze and my husband have to do with AT THE COURTHOUSE?


I'm so glad you asked!


Their common ancestor is Samuel Swayze who was a judge in New Jersey. 

Samuel's grandparents immigrated to the United States separately, and later married in New York. Although there is no indication they knew each other before arriving in the United States they may have. Samuel's grandparents (Patrick's 8th great grandparents & Chris' 10th great grandparents) were John & Katherine (nee Kinge) Swasey. 

My research indicates Samuel was one of the first Justices of the Peace & County Judges in the area. He was a member of the Society of Friends or more commonly known as Quakers. In 1737 he moved his family to an area of New Jersey that became known as Swayze Settlement. 

Judge Samuel Swayze was one of the first to use the SWAYZE spelling, and Snake Hips Patrick made the spelling the one most familiar to folks. The name can be found with many variations: Swaysey, Swasey, Swezey, Swayzey, Swazey, Swazy, Swacy, Swacey, Sweasy, Swacie, Swecey... 

Samuel Swayze was born the  20th of March 1689 in Southold, Suffolk County, New York, U.S.A. He died the 11th of May 1759 at the age of 70. He was buried in the Chester Congregational Cemetery at Morris County, New Jersey, USA.  He was married to Abigail Penelope Horton (known as Penelope).

Penelope Horton was born the 14th of February 1690 in Southold, Suffolk County, New York, U.S.A. She died the 1st of December 1746 at the age of 56. She was also buried in the Chester Congregational Cemetery at Morris County, New Jersey, USA. where Samuel was laid to rest when he died 13 years later.

In April of 1747 (after Penelope died) Samuel married Susanna (nee Baldwin) Huntington who had also recently been widowed.  Samuel's will left his wife, Susanna, an inheritance to be used during her natural life. I have not researched what became of Susanna, but in looking more closely at her line my interest was peaked in whether the actor Alec Baldwin was related to Susanna whose maiden name was Baldwin. More research for another time. 

The First Congregational Church of Chester in New Jersey' celebrated their 275th Anniversary in 2014. You can meet Samuel & Penelope Swayze at this link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6gxAdbnxgk

I wanted my children to know their role in their family story!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of to the blog post***

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!