Baltimore Life Insurance Company Genealogical Abstracts

I recently attended a webinar hosted by the Illinois State Genealogical Society called "Some Great, Seldom-Used Resources:  A Genealogical Potpourri."  Tim Pinnick did a great job of bringing to light several resources I had no idea existed, including one called "Baltimore Life Insurance Company, Genealogical Abstracts" by Jerry M. Hynson.

From the Introduction, written by Sharon Ann Murphy, PhD Candidate, Corcoran Department of History, University of Virginia:

Incorporated by the state of Maryland in December 1830, the Baltimore Life Insurance Company was among the first to actively sell life insurance in the United States....The Baltimore Life sold their first policy in May 1831 and had only 25 policies on their books by the end of that year.  But as early as 1833 the company was able to move into second place in the industry behind the New York Life Insurance and Trust Company, and by 1835 they possessed approximately 24% of the overall American market share.
....the Baltimore Life was the only company positioned to sell life insurance in the South, although its business was largely confined to Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C.

As I have several brick walls in the areas covered by Hynson's book, I purchased a copy, which arrived today!!

Here are a couple of examples of the information contained in the book:

Clendenine, Dr. Alexander:  Born 8 July 1791, York District of South Carolina.  Resides in Baltimore, Maryland.  Physician.  On an extended trip to the Southern and western states of the U.S.  Insured by his wife Mary Louisa Clendenin 25 April 1842.


Funk, Solomon:  Born in Mansfield, Ohio in 1825.   Resides in Hannibal, Missouri.  Cabinetmaker.  25 March 1849.


Giles, John (Negro):  Born in St. Mary's County, Maryland.  Age 26 as of December 1842.  Servant/Slave owned by Seraphim Masi, Washington, D.C.  Purchased by Mr. Masi to prevent separation of Giles from his family.  13 April 1842.


Stull, E.W.:    Note requesting life insurance on self for 3 year period, while in the military service.  No other data given.  23 November 1836.

Unfortunately, at first glance, it appears that none of my ancestors took out a life insurance policy with the Baltimore Life Insurance Policy.  However, it's still an interesting glimpse into life in the first half of the 19th century in America.

I would be happy to do a quick look-up if you think your ancestors might be listed in this great little resource.  Direct email me at bellmergenealogy@gmail.com with the surname you are looking for.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend.

Karen

Baxter and Waterbury, Winthrop's Fleet 1630

I've accumulated a really nice personal genealogy book collection over the years, including such wonderful resources as "Directory of the Ancestral Heads of New England Families 1620-1700" compiled by Frank Holmes, "Maryland Revolutionary Records" by Harry Wright Newman, and "Kentucky Obituaries 1787-1854" by G. Glenn Clift.  I typically purchase the books for a specific research goal, and unfortunately, don't usually go back and review the book again.
After attending last night's Illinois State Genealogical Society's webinar "Some Seldom Used Resources:  A Genealogical Potpourri," (thank you, Tim Pinnick!), I was inspired to revisit my bookshelf resources.  I pulled out "Directory of the Ancestral Heads of NE Families," and while doing a quick scan using my list of surnames, I discovered my ancestors and my husband's ancestors both arrived in America aboard Winthrop's Fleet in 1630!!  It's more than likely the two men knew each other, and survived many hardships together.  I wonder if they ever dreamed their descendants would come together more than 350 years later.
Recheck  your bookshelf resources, and who knows, you might discover a piece of genealogical serendipity like I did!

Ruby Jean Ottaviano - Area 51 is True!!

This could be my favorite obituary of all time.  Godspeed, Ruby Jean!!

Ruby Jean Ottaviano
Formerly Miss Ruby Jean Mashburn, died May 4, 2012.  Ruby Jean Mashburn was born August 11, 19(none of your business), and grew up to be a beautiful, lovely lady.  Ruby Jean was raised in Independence, MO.  Jean blossomed into a gorgeous beauty when, after graduating from East High School, she met a handsome Sicilian man named Salvatore G. Ottaviano, the youngest son of Georgio and Rosa Ottaviano.  After a proper courtship period Ruby Jean Mashburn became Mrs. Salvatore G. Ottaviano, marrying her heart's love on January 27, 1950.  Just a few months later, however, her Marine husband was called to Korea.  The war bride stayed in Kansas City, MO.  Upon her husband's return home to the U.S. shores she went to San Diego, CA, to greet him from his time of service to our country. She also fell in love with California.  Mr. and Mrs. Ottaviano moved to North Hollywood, CA, in the early 50s and Mrs. Ottaviano, known as Jean, worked for the government in a very high-level security job at Lookout Mountain under President Kennedy and later President Johnson (The Roswell UFO crash was true - Jean saw the government's  pictures).  She then went to work for the U.S. Customs Service and retired from the U.S. Department of Labor.  Jean and Sam loved to travel back and forth to Kansas City to visit family and dear friends, mostly by Route 66.  They made this trip over 22 times, always stopping in Lost Wages, NV.  Sam and Jean loved Sin City as they always stayed in the best hotels and had seats for all the major performers - not to mention 21, keno, and craps!  Jean leaves behind a loving, devoted husband of 62 years who is heart-broken.  She also leaves behind a lovely sister, several wonderful nieces and nephews, several wonderful great-nieces and great-nephews, three great-great nephews, and her cat "Baby" who already misses her time with Dr. Phil.  Jean Ottaviano was loved by all of her family and will be greatly missed.  We will always remember her beauty, grace, and kindness.  Visitation will be 10-11 a.m., Wednesday, May 9, at St. Mark's Catholic Church, 3736 Lee's Summit Rd., Independence, MO 64055, where the Mass of Christian Burial will begin at 11 a.m.  Burial will follow in Calvary Cemetery.  Online condolences may be offered at www.passantinobros.com.  Passantino Bros. Funeral Home & Cremations.  Family Owned.  2117 Independence Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64124.  (816) 471-2844

1940 Census - What Memories Will It Trigger?

I was most excited about the 1940 census because it would allow me to find my grandparents, Floyd and Mildred Robertson, as a married couple, along with my mom Kay and her brother, Ron.  Because they lived in a rural area of northwestern Missouri, they were relatively easy to find.

I sent the image to my Uncle Ronnie, my genealogy partner in crime.  The image triggered some wonderful memories:

The 1940 census says the folks paid $6 a month in rent.  Wow.  Your grandpa's occupation was salesman (clerk) in an electrical store.  I'm guessing that the store belonged to Ed Noble and was in Gilman City.  I know that within a year or so after 1940, Ed Noble had a contract to teach morse code and electrical circuits to Army recruits in Kansas City. Ed was one of the early amateur radio operators in the country.  He had a big-rig Ham radio setup in his hardware store (and in his home) and continued to use it until he died.  I saw one rig and he explained its operation to me when I was a teenager.  I was impressed.  Maybe this, being state of the art, was what led me to be interested in electronics. Ed was also into TV and built/repaired sets all over the Harrison County.  I am sure your grandpa learned about electrical circuits from Ed.  After WWII, your grandpa again worked with Ed wiring half the farm houses in Harrison County when the Rural Electrical Association (REA) went into effect and made it possible to bring electricity to people living in the country.  I also know that Ed had a furniture store in Bethany (after WWII - I believe) and I think your grandpa worked for him there.

When you find your family in the 1940 census, be sure to share the images and see what memories they trigger!  It helped me add more to the story of my grandfather beyond just names and dates on a page.

Distractions and Procrastination

My last blog post was March 14, and it's hard to pinpoint the biggest distraction that's kept me from posting since then.  The list is long:  Pinterest, the nice weather, my grandson Jack, my television addiction, reading The Hunger Games trilogy, Twitter, reading other people's blogs, my new exercise program, etc etc.  I haven't done any of my homework for the 1940 Census release, which is probably for the best since I've read (on blogs and Twitter!) that it's running slow this morning.  I still have stacks and boxes of photographs to sort through, scan, and tag; data needs to be entered into Family Tree Maker; podcasts are piling up; and several new genealogy books are waiting for me to crack the cover.  I haven't done any real research in a couple of months.  Sad state of affairs, wouldn't you agree??!!
Perhaps today will be the day I'll skip Pinterest, Twitter, television, and other people's blogs, and get organized and make a plan to stop the distractions and procrastination.

Sometimes It's a Small Note That Has the Biggest Impact

My great-grandfather, John William Gannan, was a hard-working dairy farmer from Harrison County, Missouri.  I had the great good fortune to know both he and my great-grandmother, Jane Waterbury Gannan, well into my teens and early 20's.  (My profile photo is Jane on the family farm, probably waiting for my great-grandfather to bring in the cattle from pasture.)

I received this note from Grandpa in 1978, the year I graduated from Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg, Missouri.  I had worked summers and during the school year, sometimes three jobs at the same time, in order to put myself through college.  For some reason, this note was very inspiring to me, and I've kept it all these years.

  

Grandpa probably never attended school beyond grade school, but he was very proud of the fact that I was able to finish college.  

Here's a couple of photos of Grandpa.

The last photo is of my great grandfather (on the left), and his son Harold Gannan, who stayed on at home to help run the farm.

Miss you, Grandma and Grandpa!

Digital Memories

Like everyone else, I have a box of old VHS and micro-cassette home movie tapes stored in the back of the closet, begging to be digitized.  Luckily, my brother John owns a small company that does just that, so he graciously offered to tackle the job of converting all my tapes to a more permanent digital format.
John sent me a message this evening, telling me to check our shared DropBox folder, to review the first clip he had digitized.

This small clip brought tears to my eyes, as I heard my Grandfather's laughter for the first time in many years.  It's an inconsequential little movie, taken in the backyard of my grandparent's house when my son was not quite a year old, but it brought back very powerful memories of all the wonderful times spent with them.   My grandfather passed away in 1986, and my grandmother in 2004, so having this digital memory is such a wonderful thing.
I know the box of tapes will hold many more digital memories, and can't wait to see what else we uncover.   If you have a box of old tapes sitting around, what are you waiting for?!!  Convert them and see what treasures they hold.