52 Ancestors (1)

I started my “Living in the Past” blog on September 5, 2011 with thoughts of posting odds and ends that I found in my genealogy research. I posted fairly regularly at first but over time it dwindled down to next to nothing. In fact, in 2013, I didn’t have a single post. In August 2014, I was almost ready to delete the blog when I discovered Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. The challenge peaked my interest so I spent some time thinking about whether I wanted to accept it or not. I don’t consider myself a writer so wasn’t sure how it would go. After a couple of weeks, I decided it would be a worthwhile project to tackle. At the time, my father-in-law was living with us. His health was declining rapidly so we were pretty much homebound with him. The challenge gave me something to do while we sat with him in the evenings. Early on I decided that I would write in a timeline format—beginning with birth and ending with death. For every blogpost, I check to see what information I already have for an ancestor. Then I search www.ancestry.com to see what new information I can find. Along the way, I’ve discovered new information, corrected mistakes previously made in my research, and hopefully not made any new mistakes. It’s a fun project.

Here’s a list of my posts.

2014
1. Charles Homer Murphy
2. James Meriweather Lankford
3. George Durie Athya
4. Alice Beman Lankford
5. Electra Burnette Smith
6. Thomas Terrell Burnette
7. Dessie Church—revisited
8. Leroy Thomas Holland
9. Daniel Jack—a Civil War Veteran
10. Minor Smith Hobbs
11. Benjamin Gordon Smith
12. Andrew Turner Holland
13. Helen Margaret Smith
14. Elijah Jeffers Holland
15. Bertha Edna Smith
16. Caroline B. Hobbs

2015
17. John W. Close Sr.
18. Prince Albert Burnett
19. Drucilla Henson (week 3 - a tough woman)
20. Earl Lloyd Murphy (week 4 - closest to your birthday)
21. Bartow Jones (week 5 - plowing through)
22. Henry Church, Sr. (week 6 - So Far Away)
23. Natalia Alekseevna Beklemisheva (week 7 - Love)
24 Jennie F. Church (week 8)
25. Samuel Pride Burnett (week 9)
26. Cindarilla Darliska Amanda Hall – survivor of historic 1900 Galveston hurricane (week 10)
27. Five generations, twice in one family (week 11)
28. The wedding socks—the start of a new family tradition? (week 12)
29. Eliza Amanda Holland (week 13)
30. Lankford Family Reunions (week 14)
31. Robert Durie Athya Sr. (week 15)
32. Nathan Augustus Hobbs, Sr. (week 16—Live Long): A nonagenarian
33. Samuel Cas Shields (week 17)
34. James Xenophon McIlwain (week 18)
35. Lucinda Murphy (week 19)
36. Daisy Lee Shields (week 20)
37. Roy Holland (week 21)
38. Mary Lou Barnhart (week 22)
39. Coraleta McWhorter (week 23)
40. Anna B. Church (week 24)
41. Julia Lee Lankford (week 25)
42. Amanda Larimer Horne (week 26)
43. Samuel Jackson Holland (week 27)
44. Presley Church (week 28)
45. John William Burnett (week 29)
46. Margaret Athya (week 30)
47. Howard Stanley Smith (week 31)
48. Nellie Holland (week 32)
49. Joseph Dudley Jr. (week 33)
50. Henry Clayborn Jones Sr. (week 34)
51. John Billy Shields (week 35)
52. Jessica Corinne Lankford (week 36)
53. Donald Roy Church (week 37-2015)
54. Clarence Franklin Snipes (week 38 – 2015)
55. Edward Francis Murphy (week 39 – 2015)
56. William Charles Holland (week 40 – 2015)
57. Minor Lankford Braden (week 41 – 2015)
58. Virginia Kimmel Johnston (week 42 – 2015)
59. Otis Elmore Lankford (week 43 – 2015)
60. Elizabeth Jones (week 44 – 2015)
61. Hidden Family Treasure (week 45 – 2015)
62. Walter Thomas McEver (week 46 – 2015)
63. Willie Marion George (week 47 – 2015) 
64. Josephine B. Horne (week 48 – 2015)
65. James Close (week 49 – 2015)
66. Chris' Christmas stocking – a family heirloom (week 50 – 2015)
67. Max B. King Jr. (week 51 – 2015)
68. A special Christmas ornament (week 52 – 2015)

2016
69. Samuel C. Murphy (no. 69-2016)
70. William Dearnald Rhinehart (70-2016)
71. Sarah Malonia Rhinehart (71-2016) 
72. Julia Virginia Burnette (72-2016)
73. James C. Lankford (73-2016)
74. John Thompson Athya (74-2016)
75. Maudie Burnette (75-2016)
76. Erastus C. Smith (76-2016)
77. A family heirloom—a special baby quilt (77-2016)
78. Reuben Hobbs (78-2016)
79. Paul Augustus Hobbs (79-2016)
80. John Thompson Smith (80-2016)
81. NINE ZERO—celebrating a milestone year (81-2016)
82. Cornelia Jane Dove (82-2016)
83. Ina Close – (83-2016)
84. Another possible photo of Henry Clayborn Jones Sr. (84-2016) 
85. Scion Jones (85-2016)
86. News Articles from 1893 and 1900 Corroborate 1964 Aaron Hall Holland Letter (86-2016) 
87. Samantha Jane Holland (87-2016)
88. Myrtle Mary Stewart (88-2016)
89. William Henry Church (89-2016) 
90. Connections to Apollo’s history (90-2016)
91. Tabitha M. Murphy (91-2016) 
92. Millicent Virginia Overton (92-2016)
93. Mary Ann Wilson (93-2016)
94. George Nelson Smith (94-2016)
95. Lawrence Lafayette Holland (95-2016)
96. Samuel William Holland Jr. (96-2016) 
97 Blaine Arthur Shields (97-2016)
98. Carroll Harvey Lankford Sr. (98-2016)
99. William H. Murphy (99-2016)
100. William Ellis Burnett (100-2016)
101. Florrie Lankford (101-2016)
102. Aaron Hall Holland (102-2016)
103. William Harrison Holland (103-2016)
104. Henry T. Burnette (104-2016)
105. Mary Daisy Davison (105-2016)
106. George Alexander Merritt Sr. (106-2016)
107. Mary Opal Stone

2017
108. George Richard Horne, Sr.
109. Robert T. Hobbs
110. Willie Lloyd Burnette
111. Keziah Chambers Horne
112. William Elmer Shields
113. Emma S. Lankford
114. The secret is out and just who was Vernell
115. Hayden Edgar George
116. Julia Saphronia Overton
117. Robert Dawson Callaway
118. Vincent Thomas Langford Sr.
119. Wesley Buford Palmer
120. Ethel Odell Jones
121. James Benton Church
122. Wedding memories
123. Eulilla May Callaway
124. Margaret Shaw
125. My AncestryDNA test didn't disappoint
126. Baby Girl Lankford
127. Ollie Von Brooks
128. Harry Thomas Shepler
129. Noel Willis Grant
130. Memorial Funeral Service for George D. Athya
131. Zania Vernell Tarkenton
132. Grady Ernest Arthur
133. Eliza A. Holland
134. Florence G. Smith
135. Sarah Elizabeth Davison
136. Leroy Thomas Holland Death Notice
137. Jessie Pope Mullins
138. Mary Corrine Lankford
139. Henry Clayborn Jones Jr.
140. Amanda M. Holland
141. Harold O. Church
142. John Thompson Smith
143. Samuel Terrell Lankford, a U.S. Navy Veteran
144. Joseph Briscoe Davison
145. Lankford Family Santa Letters
146. Vintage Christmas photos

2018
147. Sarah Cheney
148. A favorite family photo
149. Anniversaries
150. Dinner and a chat with Granny Callaway
151. Maude Maree Shields -- In the census
152. Warner’s Skyline Drive-In Theater
153. Electra Smith's water pitcher
154. Willie Mae Shields
155. My Mama, the strongest woman I know
156. Clara Bell White's misfortune
157. Memories of the old homestead
158. Emerette B. Lankford, the maiden aunt
159. William Edgar Piper
160. Hurricane Agnes floods Manassas in 1972
161. Four Marston infants buried at Hollywood Cemetery
162. Digging in FamilySearch records
163. Kathryn Marston would only celebrate one Mother's Day
164. Unidentified World War I soldier
165. Luther Mercer Overton
166. The wedding of Albert Edward Davison and Stark Campbell Cobb
167. My two Dads
168. John W. Close Jr.
169. Robert L. Hobbs, a Revolutionary Patriot
170. Reliving a Road Trip
171. Elijah Frank Marston—the music man
172. Palace Furniture Company and Pepsi-Cola—a colorful combination
173. Otto Virgil Jackson, the oldest child
174. Joseph Norris Holland - the youngest child of 14
175. Thomas P. Janes Sr., Georgia's First Commissioner of Agriculture
176. Inventories of the Thomas P. Janes Sr. farm
177. Vintage school books
178. I think it will work out real well, the job that is ...
179. Joshua Holland
180. Mary Athya’s 1940s autograph book
181. Milas Odell Shields — a farmer
182. Mary’s ten cent coin pendant
183. Water sports at Tygart Lake
184. James Daniel Rhinehart, a veteran of WWI
185. Katie Lankford
186. Share your photos and make a difference
187. Kevin’s Christmas stocking—a new family heirloom
188. Sweet potato casserole
189. When Macon Drive turned into a winter wonderland
190. Memories of Christmas Past
191. Photos of Christmas past
192. Baby Boy Langford

2019
193. 1935 Paulton school first grade photo
194. Just who were Nora and Dora Dellinger?
195. Thomas Gregory
196. I'd Like to Meet ... Grandma Athya
197. Going to the Library
198. Atomic bomb test number 6
199. Sending love via a Valentine V-mail
200. Henry Clayborn Jones Sr. Family Reunion Photo
201. Holland ancestor at Appomattox Courthouse in 1865
202. Happy memories of a beloved uncle
203. Elizabeth Ann Lankford, one of many Lankford’s buried at Bairdstown Cemetery
204. 12 things I learned about James M. Lankford this week
205. He just wanted to go home!
206. Ruth Miller
207. Miles A. Caldwell
208. Daisy Lee Shields, the beautician
209. Memories of Orchard Knob Baptist Church
210. Let's go to Vegas!
211. Mother's Day tribute to Grandma Shields
212. The beauty of nature
213. William Troy Jones, a veteran of World War I
214. Enoch Reeves Cheney
215. What's in a name?
216. What was Johnnie doing on D-Day, June 6, 1944?
217. Pearl’s story—a life cut short
218. Mama’s legendary biscuits
219. Susan Rich Davison, an independent woman
220. Don't throw those negatives away!
221. Get busy and label those photos
222. The Smith family, an easy find
223. Birthdays of my brother’s past
224. A cookbook for his sister
225. Photo identification—a never ending struggle
226. So many tragedies
227. Smokey Bear—a favorite job
228. Warren G. Harding Senior High School—Class of 1949
229. Zella Holland - a mistake carved in stone
230. Surprise photos from a cousin
231. Long trips, games, and maps
232. Charles Noel Burnett
233. Camp Fire Girls memorabilia
234. James Athya
235. A boy and his bicycle
236. Memories of trick or treating
237. William Owen Cheney Sr.
238. Boot camp graduation, Company 1845, U.S. Navy
239. Thomas Drayton Poore
240. William Norris Lankford
241. An update to Jessie Pope Mullins Langford's story
242. Keeping up a tradition via V-mail during World War II
243. Christmas in Italy, 1944
244. Thirteen random things about me

2020
245. Jemima Durie
246. Curtis Caldwell Lankford
247. Martin William Murphy
248. Roland Lankford, a victim of diphtheria
249. My Grandma, Floria Mae Burnette
250. Moses Horne, a 2nd great grandfather
251. Hattie Jane Rhinehart, from the hills of Tennessee
252. Grover Bennett Lankford
253. Her name was Lillie Mae
254. John W. Lankford, a confederate soldier
255. Mendie Octavia Hayes
256. Embroidered table scarf and pillowcases
257. Barney, a family pet
258. Annie Armstrong
259. Easter greetings during World War II
260. Robert Reeves Cheney
261. Carl Edwin Jackson
262. Matilda Armathine Holland
263. Giving back, part 1—Oregon fires

2021

2022
388. James Stephen Cheney (a 2nd entry, didn't realize I'd already written his sketch!)

52 Ancestors image by Amy Johnson Crow

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