It all started with a Prince

This week's prompt is 'favorite name'...well I certainly can't pick one child over the other, but I can chat about a few names that have always stood out to me.  Such as Cleo, Leo, Lorelei, Erastus and Lutie Alma. Cleo and Leo are repeat names from the Sheridan family and were interchanged between first and middle names. In one generation, Cleo Sheridan is a female. The next generation Cleo and Leo Sheridan were twin boys. The next generation we had Cleo Gray, who went by the name Ike. Little Leo McCarthy was born in 1901 and died in 1904 from Diphtheria. Where those names came from and why they were repeated for a few generations I have never been able to figure out. Leo McCarthy son of Alice (Sheridan) and William McCarthy Lorelei Sheridan was the daughter of Leo and Marie (Baker) Sheridan. She was born in 1920 in Lansing, Michigan and died in 1978 in Spokane, Washington. She was my mom's first cousin, and I remember mom saying what a pretty lady she was. Lorelei ...

My 3x great grandfather  Aaron Porter has been my brick wall for over five decades. Researching backwards, I discovered his name and his relationship to me using a variety of methods.  I started with my dad, William N Porter born in 1917 in Flandreau, SD and raised in Sioux City, Iowa.  My grandfather was Harry Edward Porter (went by Edward) born in 1888 in Rochester, Cedar County, Iowa.  My great grandfather was William H Porter born in 1868 in Rochester Township, Cedar County, Iowa.  My 2x great grandfather was John J Porter born in 1818 in Jefferson County, Indiana. His father (my 3x) was Aaron/Arron Porter. From a single page in a Barrick genealogy, I learned this information about Arron Porter: WRITTEN BY AN UNIDENTIFIED BARRICK RELATIVE . Our efforts to trace the Porter line have been unsuccessful, through various sources, principally through Uncle Amos, we learned that Arron Porter was a native of Vermont, and his wife was a native of New York, Lovina Cha...

Being an artist or being artistic can be defined in so many ways. I am not an artist, but I am a crafter. But I don't think I would ever have an item be displayed in an art museum or a gallery. Tho' I have been highlighted in a genealogy magazine and also a cross-stitch magazine. But we do have many people in the family who are creative.  We all grew up with the stories about Uncle Don (Gray) who was married to Grandpa Sheridan's sister Thresa Sheridan. He wasn't a 'blood relative' but was still an integral part of our family. Uncle Don was born 18 May 1891 in Ashley, Gratiot County, Michigan. He was the oldest of two children of Guy and Josephine (Campbell) Gray. He enlisted in the Navy in 1908 and although he was a talented cartoonist, he served his country first and then spent a few years as the writer of the Ma Skinner cartoon promoting the sale of US Bonds to back the war. Those cartoons were a part of the Lansing State Journal newspaper.  Don also painted ...

Finding a minister to preside over a wedding in Fulton (Perrinton), Gratiot County, Michigan in 1875 would have been hard to come by. And a Catholic priest would have been virtually impossible. Elizabeth Holland was born 22 Sept 1857 in Fremont, Sandusky, Ohio, the youngest of three children of Irish immigrants Thomas and Mary (Shevlen) Holland. Michael Sheridan was born 2 Oct 1850 and baptized at St Mary's Church in Scottsville, Monroe County, New York. Michael was the oldest of nine children of Patrick and Margaret (Hughes) Sheridan.  By 1860, the Sheridan family was living south of Fulton twp. (town of Perrinton today) in Gratiot County, Michigan.  The Holland family does not show in records until the 1870 Fulton twp., Gratiot County, Michigan census, living next door to the Sheridan homestead. Township of Fulton, Gratiot County, Michigan 1870 Census - 19 July 1870 Springbrook Post Office pg25 Ancestry.com Michael was age 19 and Elizabeth was only 12.  He was obviously...