Bruce Judson Cheney
Born: October 28, 1917, Dover, New Jersey
Relation to Author: Grandfather
Elizabeth (Betty) Charlotte Paulus
Born: November 23, 1919
Died: December 16, 2009, Randolph, New Jersey
Relation to Author: Grandmother
Marriage: May 23, 1943
This won't be a long post. I just find it interesting to know that Betty Paulus and Bruce Cheney (aka Nana and PopPop) were married during World War II. As my very smart wife says, life goes on. And that is good to know.
It is good to know that people were still getting married despite the uncertainty of the war at that time - the allied invasion of France (D-Day) was one year away and in the Pacific the battle of Midway, a turning point, was one year passed but getting to victory against Japan was a long and hard two years away.
While one might say that American civilian and military deaths were far less than European and Asian countries, it still must have been a trying time. I'm glad there was still time for those at home to live their lives.
I expect to spend a good deal of time on World War II, since it directly impacted many of our ancestors. In future posts, I'll look to learn and write about the people that stayed home and those that served and what their world was like.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Trusting in God Persevere
I bought a key chain in Belfast (which I still use) with the Keenan coat of arms. It says the following on the back about the origins of the name Keenan:
This is the anglicised version of the Gaelic MacFhionnain meaning "son of Fhionnain" from "Fionn" meaning "fair". The census of 1659 lists the variant MacKeenan as a principla name in the barony of Ardee, Co. Louth. Some were historians to the MacGuires of Fermanagh between 1345 and 1508. The motto for Keenan is "Trusting in God persevere".
I don't know much faith to put in this, since it is a key chain from a tourist spot in Belfast (where we found info on a fantastic black cab tour). But then again, it does seem to track pretty closely to something else my uncle found. And I like the idea that we were historians.
This is the anglicised version of the Gaelic MacFhionnain meaning "son of Fhionnain" from "Fionn" meaning "fair". The census of 1659 lists the variant MacKeenan as a principla name in the barony of Ardee, Co. Louth. Some were historians to the MacGuires of Fermanagh between 1345 and 1508. The motto for Keenan is "Trusting in God persevere".
I don't know much faith to put in this, since it is a key chain from a tourist spot in Belfast (where we found info on a fantastic black cab tour). But then again, it does seem to track pretty closely to something else my uncle found. And I like the idea that we were historians.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Hail to the Chief - the Physician-in-Chief
Francis Gilman Blake
Born: February 22, 1887, Mansfield Valley, Pennsylvania
Died: February 1, 1952, Washington, DC
Relation to Author: Great Grandfather In-Law
Learning about an ancestor - or in this case your wife's ancestor - is made much easier when someone else has already done the research and synthesized it for you. Such is the case with Francis Gilman Blake. So esteemed was he that the National Academy of Sciences published a "biographical memoir" of Dr. Blake (available here to download as a pdf). After reading it, I understand why.
His curriculum vitae is almost three pages long, but here are some of the highlights:
- 1913 M.D. Harvard Medical School
- 1918-1919 World War I, Active Duty - Pneumonia Commission
- 1921-1951 Chairman, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine
- 1941-1947 Dean, Yale University School of Medicine
- 1941-1946 Consultant to the Secretary of War and President of the Board for the Investigation and Control of Influenza and other Epidemic Diseases
- 1943 World War II expedition to New Guinea to study scrub typhus fever
- 1946 Awarded United States of America Medal for Merit, the highest civilian honor, for work on scrub typhus fever
Although all the accolades and achievements listed above are amazing, the real beauty of the biography is how much we can learn about Dr. Blake as a person (information I lack when looking at most other ancestors). The author says Dr. Blake was a very talented clinician, clinical investigator, teacher and administrator. The memoir gives examples of how he excelled in each of these areas and I plan to explore that more in another post.
As I am undertaking this genealogical research, I see that there are a few different categories of historical individuals. First, there are the many people that participate and make their small but meaningful contributions to their world. Second, there are the very few that receive recognition (fairly or not) for major impacts on their world. Finally, there are those that make a major impact on their world but receive less recognition. Dr. Blake falls into this last category.
In future posts, I will explore Dr. Blake's abilities as a teacher, administrator and clinician. I will also delve into his role during the Pandemic Influenza of 1919 and his role in the overall expansion of our knowledge of infectious diseases.
Born: February 22, 1887, Mansfield Valley, Pennsylvania
Died: February 1, 1952, Washington, DC
Relation to Author: Great Grandfather In-Law
Learning about an ancestor - or in this case your wife's ancestor - is made much easier when someone else has already done the research and synthesized it for you. Such is the case with Francis Gilman Blake. So esteemed was he that the National Academy of Sciences published a "biographical memoir" of Dr. Blake (available here to download as a pdf). After reading it, I understand why.
His curriculum vitae is almost three pages long, but here are some of the highlights:
- 1913 M.D. Harvard Medical School
- 1918-1919 World War I, Active Duty - Pneumonia Commission
- 1921-1951 Chairman, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine
- 1941-1947 Dean, Yale University School of Medicine
- 1941-1946 Consultant to the Secretary of War and President of the Board for the Investigation and Control of Influenza and other Epidemic Diseases
- 1943 World War II expedition to New Guinea to study scrub typhus fever
- 1946 Awarded United States of America Medal for Merit, the highest civilian honor, for work on scrub typhus fever
Although all the accolades and achievements listed above are amazing, the real beauty of the biography is how much we can learn about Dr. Blake as a person (information I lack when looking at most other ancestors). The author says Dr. Blake was a very talented clinician, clinical investigator, teacher and administrator. The memoir gives examples of how he excelled in each of these areas and I plan to explore that more in another post.
As I am undertaking this genealogical research, I see that there are a few different categories of historical individuals. First, there are the many people that participate and make their small but meaningful contributions to their world. Second, there are the very few that receive recognition (fairly or not) for major impacts on their world. Finally, there are those that make a major impact on their world but receive less recognition. Dr. Blake falls into this last category.
In future posts, I will explore Dr. Blake's abilities as a teacher, administrator and clinician. I will also delve into his role during the Pandemic Influenza of 1919 and his role in the overall expansion of our knowledge of infectious diseases.
It's Not What You Think
John Keenan
Born: 1784, Cross Keys, Country Antrim, Ireland
Died: 1871, Hogansburg, St. Lawrence County, New York, USA
Relationship to the author: 3rd great grandfather
The Keenans – the author’s maternal grandfather's line – came to America in 1821 from County Antrim in Northern Ireland. As this is 20 years before the potato famine, it begs the question as to why they made the trip when they did.
If we look at Irish history – particularly history of Ireland in the north (Ulster) – we know that much of the legal discrimination against Irish Catholics was in the past by 1821. The laws that punished Irish Catholics from the early 1700s (the Act of Settlement, the Penal Laws, and Preventing Growth of the Popery) were reversed in the late 1700s (Catholic Relief Acts). Although there was still not full political participation, things seemed to be looking up.
In addition, there was no major violence to speak of right around that time. There was violence aplenty in the 1600s as Britain fought to bring all of Ireland under control and after as Ireland tried to free itself, culminating in The Battle of the Boyne (1690), but that is well behind them. The rebellion of 1798 by Lord Edward Fitzgerald in Dublin had an parallel effort in County Antrim led by Henry Jo McCracken. Both rebellions were defeated and left 30,000 dead. But that was 20 years prior to John Keenan and family leaving Ireland.
If we accept that it wasn’t discrimination or war, then what was it?
Emigration to the United States around 1820 was light compared to what it would be during and after the potato famine. In 1821 only 1,518 Irish left for the United States. Although that number would have an annual peak in the 1820s of over 12,000 (1828), this pales in comparison to the more than 37,000 that would leave Ireland in 1841 or the 221,000 in 1851.
So what led the family to leave with such a small number of Irish that year? The best bet is the search for more farmland. Ireland was seeing rapid population growth starting in 1770 of roughly 12 percent per decade. This was putting a strain on the limited land available. For the first fifteen years of the 19th century, farmers could divide land to their heirs without losing money as the Napoleonic Wars kept demand for grains high which lead to steadily increasing prices. When the Napoleonic Wars ended, prices stagnated or fell. This meant parents could not divide their land among their children and might find it hard to survive on the land they currently had.
America on the other hand had plenty of land in 1820. It won a war of independence then survived some growing pains by enacting a new Constitution (1787), bought land from Napoleon to expand west of the Mississippi River (1803), and fought a second war with Britain (War of 1812) whereby they maintained independence and pre-war borders. In 1820, America was settling down and there was no obvious violence expected in the immediate future (and as we know nothing would happen until 1860).
With land disappearing in Ireland and opening up in America, it makes sense that some Irish decided to emigrate. It is interesting to think that our ancestors were part of that small group (50,000 total during the 1820s) that left before things would get really bad.
In future posts, we’ll spend some more time looking at life in Northern Ireland before the Keenans left. We can look more at Elizabeth’s armies conquering Ireland, King James’ actions following that, and the hated Oliver Cromwell. We’ll also look at the Keenans’ life in New York after their arrival.
Born: 1784, Cross Keys, Country Antrim, Ireland
Died: 1871, Hogansburg, St. Lawrence County, New York, USA
Relationship to the author: 3rd great grandfather
The Keenans – the author’s maternal grandfather's line – came to America in 1821 from County Antrim in Northern Ireland. As this is 20 years before the potato famine, it begs the question as to why they made the trip when they did.
If we look at Irish history – particularly history of Ireland in the north (Ulster) – we know that much of the legal discrimination against Irish Catholics was in the past by 1821. The laws that punished Irish Catholics from the early 1700s (the Act of Settlement, the Penal Laws, and Preventing Growth of the Popery) were reversed in the late 1700s (Catholic Relief Acts). Although there was still not full political participation, things seemed to be looking up.
In addition, there was no major violence to speak of right around that time. There was violence aplenty in the 1600s as Britain fought to bring all of Ireland under control and after as Ireland tried to free itself, culminating in The Battle of the Boyne (1690), but that is well behind them. The rebellion of 1798 by Lord Edward Fitzgerald in Dublin had an parallel effort in County Antrim led by Henry Jo McCracken. Both rebellions were defeated and left 30,000 dead. But that was 20 years prior to John Keenan and family leaving Ireland.
If we accept that it wasn’t discrimination or war, then what was it?
Emigration to the United States around 1820 was light compared to what it would be during and after the potato famine. In 1821 only 1,518 Irish left for the United States. Although that number would have an annual peak in the 1820s of over 12,000 (1828), this pales in comparison to the more than 37,000 that would leave Ireland in 1841 or the 221,000 in 1851.
So what led the family to leave with such a small number of Irish that year? The best bet is the search for more farmland. Ireland was seeing rapid population growth starting in 1770 of roughly 12 percent per decade. This was putting a strain on the limited land available. For the first fifteen years of the 19th century, farmers could divide land to their heirs without losing money as the Napoleonic Wars kept demand for grains high which lead to steadily increasing prices. When the Napoleonic Wars ended, prices stagnated or fell. This meant parents could not divide their land among their children and might find it hard to survive on the land they currently had.
America on the other hand had plenty of land in 1820. It won a war of independence then survived some growing pains by enacting a new Constitution (1787), bought land from Napoleon to expand west of the Mississippi River (1803), and fought a second war with Britain (War of 1812) whereby they maintained independence and pre-war borders. In 1820, America was settling down and there was no obvious violence expected in the immediate future (and as we know nothing would happen until 1860).
With land disappearing in Ireland and opening up in America, it makes sense that some Irish decided to emigrate. It is interesting to think that our ancestors were part of that small group (50,000 total during the 1820s) that left before things would get really bad.
In future posts, we’ll spend some more time looking at life in Northern Ireland before the Keenans left. We can look more at Elizabeth’s armies conquering Ireland, King James’ actions following that, and the hated Oliver Cromwell. We’ll also look at the Keenans’ life in New York after their arrival.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Justice at Cold Harbor
Justice (or Justus) Cheney
DOB: May 11, 1835, Hopkinton, NY
D: June 3, 1864, Cold Harbor, VA
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle, brother of 2nd great grandfather Jesse Cheney
Justice Cheney was born and lived in the north country of New York State – Hopkinton, St. Lawrence County, NY. The census of 1860 list Justice living with his parents and working as a farm laborer. On December 18, 1863, at the age of 28, he enlisted in the Civil War and on December 29, 1863 he mustered out from Malone, NY.
On May 9, 1964 Justice joined Company G, 7th Regiment, NY Heavy Artillery. The records of Justice's service after joining are incomplete, but the US Army concluded that he did not live a month after joining the company. The army has concluded that Justice Cheney died from injuries suffered at Cold Harbor on June 3, 1864.
The battle of Cold Harbor came 3 years after the beginning of the war and 10 months before Lee’s surrender at Appomattox (April 9, 1865) and Lincoln’s assassination (April 14, 1865). At this point in the war, General Grant, newly installed as General-in-Chief of the United States Army that spring, was trying to get around Lee’s right flank (Both Armies were in Virginia - with Lee’s army facing the Atlantic Ocean and Grant’s army facing the western United States), so he could destroy Lee’s army, then move on to Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, and end the war.
Grant fought the battles at Wilderness, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, then Cold Harbor – collectively known as Grant’s Overland Campaign – with this goal in mind. Grant was not successful and after Cold Harbor, both forces moved on and met at Petersburg. Here, both sides dug in and fought for 10 months. The trenches at Petersburg would be a preview for World War I.
It is often noted that more Americans died during the American Civil War than in any other conflict – which considering the magnitude of losses during more modern wars illustrates just how bloody our civil war was.
Cold Harbor stands out to me as one of bloodier battles in a very bloody war (estimated casualties for all 12 days are as many as 15,000 for Union Army and as many as 5,000 for the Confederate Army*). In Cold Harbor, the confederates were dug in. They say Grant threw three corps at the Confederates in seven minutes. In those seven minutes the confederates shot 7,000 men (this number is disputed by Rhea**).
Ward’s Civil War book notes that the charge at the beginning of Cold Harbor was the only mistake Grant admitted to. “If I had it to do over again, I don’t believe I’d make that charge at Cold Harbor," said Grant***.
It is not uncommon to hear that soldiers had a sense of foreboding before battles that would turn out to be devastating in the Civil War. Both Civil War and Atlas of the Civil War say soldiers at Cold Harbor felt that foreboding and pinned notes to their backs so they could be identified and family notified.
Apparently Justice never did this since the record on him is a bit unclear. The company muster rolls for the summer of 1964 have Justice marked as absent starting at the end of June. One roll marks him as injured, another notes that he was missing since Cold Harbor. The Roster for the 7th Artillery Regiment says Justice was injured at Cold Harbor and then absent during future rolls. The army concluded, and reasonably so far as I can tell, that Justice died from injuries sustained at Cold Harbor.
Thanks to Gordon C. Rhea’s book Cold Harbor: Grant and Lee, May 26-June 3, 1864, we know a good deal about the New York 7th Heavy Artillery Regiment’s role in the battle on June 3. In future posts, we’ll explore that role in the overall thrust of the battle. After that, we’ll look to see what that regiment did before Cold Harbor.
*The Civil War Battlefield Guide, Second Edition. Kennedy, Frances H. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 1998.
**Cold Harbor; Grant and Lee, May 26-June3, 1864 by Gordon C. Rhea. Louisiana State University Press, 2002.
***Civil War; An Illustrated History by Geoffrey C. Ward. Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher, New York.
DOB: May 11, 1835, Hopkinton, NY
D: June 3, 1864, Cold Harbor, VA
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle, brother of 2nd great grandfather Jesse Cheney
Justice Cheney was born and lived in the north country of New York State – Hopkinton, St. Lawrence County, NY. The census of 1860 list Justice living with his parents and working as a farm laborer. On December 18, 1863, at the age of 28, he enlisted in the Civil War and on December 29, 1863 he mustered out from Malone, NY.
On May 9, 1964 Justice joined Company G, 7th Regiment, NY Heavy Artillery. The records of Justice's service after joining are incomplete, but the US Army concluded that he did not live a month after joining the company. The army has concluded that Justice Cheney died from injuries suffered at Cold Harbor on June 3, 1864.
The battle of Cold Harbor came 3 years after the beginning of the war and 10 months before Lee’s surrender at Appomattox (April 9, 1865) and Lincoln’s assassination (April 14, 1865). At this point in the war, General Grant, newly installed as General-in-Chief of the United States Army that spring, was trying to get around Lee’s right flank (Both Armies were in Virginia - with Lee’s army facing the Atlantic Ocean and Grant’s army facing the western United States), so he could destroy Lee’s army, then move on to Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, and end the war.
Grant fought the battles at Wilderness, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, then Cold Harbor – collectively known as Grant’s Overland Campaign – with this goal in mind. Grant was not successful and after Cold Harbor, both forces moved on and met at Petersburg. Here, both sides dug in and fought for 10 months. The trenches at Petersburg would be a preview for World War I.
It is often noted that more Americans died during the American Civil War than in any other conflict – which considering the magnitude of losses during more modern wars illustrates just how bloody our civil war was.
Cold Harbor stands out to me as one of bloodier battles in a very bloody war (estimated casualties for all 12 days are as many as 15,000 for Union Army and as many as 5,000 for the Confederate Army*). In Cold Harbor, the confederates were dug in. They say Grant threw three corps at the Confederates in seven minutes. In those seven minutes the confederates shot 7,000 men (this number is disputed by Rhea**).
Ward’s Civil War book notes that the charge at the beginning of Cold Harbor was the only mistake Grant admitted to. “If I had it to do over again, I don’t believe I’d make that charge at Cold Harbor," said Grant***.
It is not uncommon to hear that soldiers had a sense of foreboding before battles that would turn out to be devastating in the Civil War. Both Civil War and Atlas of the Civil War say soldiers at Cold Harbor felt that foreboding and pinned notes to their backs so they could be identified and family notified.
Apparently Justice never did this since the record on him is a bit unclear. The company muster rolls for the summer of 1964 have Justice marked as absent starting at the end of June. One roll marks him as injured, another notes that he was missing since Cold Harbor. The Roster for the 7th Artillery Regiment says Justice was injured at Cold Harbor and then absent during future rolls. The army concluded, and reasonably so far as I can tell, that Justice died from injuries sustained at Cold Harbor.
Thanks to Gordon C. Rhea’s book Cold Harbor: Grant and Lee, May 26-June 3, 1864, we know a good deal about the New York 7th Heavy Artillery Regiment’s role in the battle on June 3. In future posts, we’ll explore that role in the overall thrust of the battle. After that, we’ll look to see what that regiment did before Cold Harbor.
*The Civil War Battlefield Guide, Second Edition. Kennedy, Frances H. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 1998.
**Cold Harbor; Grant and Lee, May 26-June3, 1864 by Gordon C. Rhea. Louisiana State University Press, 2002.
***Civil War; An Illustrated History by Geoffrey C. Ward. Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher, New York.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Three Cheney Brothers and the End of the American Civil War
Justice (or Justus) Cheney
DOB: May 11, 1835 (or 1839), Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: June 3, 1864
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle
Judson Cheney
DOB: May 11, 1838, Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: September 29, 1864
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle
Jesse Cheney
DOB: May 7, 1849 (or 1848), Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: October 1, 1929
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grandfather
In the Spring of 1864 the American Civil War was in its last year and three Cheney men (you’ll see that I use the term men loosely – one was still a boy) played their part. Before I get to each man in subsequent posts, and their specific lives (and deaths) in the war, I want to set the stage for the last year of the war.
In the previous year (1863), Lee’s Army of Virginia invaded the north and was soundly defeated at Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863). He retreated to Virginia where there were smaller battles around the Rapidan River in the fall of 1863. In March of 1864, President Lincoln made Ulysses S. Grant General-in-Chief of the United States Army.
The fighting in 1864 – that the Cheneys would contribute to – continued around Virginia as Grant sought to capture Richmond and finally defeat Lee. In the spring and summer, Grant tried to get around Lee’s flank. In the fall, and through the winter and following spring of 1865, the two armies would settle into trench warfare around Petersburg, Virginia before Lee’s final surrender in April of 1865.
Grant earned the reputation of a butcher – of a general that cared little about the lives of his soldiers and would use the North’s troop advantage to win the war - in part due to the battles of 1864. Whether this is fair or not, it is true that there was much bloodshed in 1864 as the war finally moved to its conclusion.
As we will see in future posts, two Cheneys died in this last year (one in the flanking campaign and one in the trenches) and one entered the war late and was present for Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse.
President Lincoln, in his second inaugural address (March 4, 1865), reflected on the bloodshed during the war:
Fondly do we hope -- fervently do we pray -- that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, "the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether."
He spoke these words one month before Lee surrendered and five weeks before his own assassination. The war was soon to pass away. But two Cheneys were already dead.
I wonder if you agree with Lincoln; I’m not sure I do. Were His judgments true and righteous? Maybe society as a whole – even those that opposed it – should pay for such a terrible scourge as slavery. Maybe. Or maybe people that did not own slaves (this includes Union as well as many Confederate soldiers) or did not condone slavery should not have had to give their blood by the sword to repay the blood drawn by the lash.
Whether it was fair, just, or righteous, that was in fact what happened. Two Cheneys died – and many hundreds of thousands more. They paid with their blood and thus ended a horrible institution.
In future posts, we’ll learn more about each of the Cheneys – how they lived and how they died. We’ll learn where they came from, and which battles they fought in.
DOB: May 11, 1835 (or 1839), Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: June 3, 1864
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle
Judson Cheney
DOB: May 11, 1838, Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: September 29, 1864
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grand Uncle
Jesse Cheney
DOB: May 7, 1849 (or 1848), Hopkinton, NY
Deceased: October 1, 1929
Relation to Author: 2nd Great Grandfather
In the Spring of 1864 the American Civil War was in its last year and three Cheney men (you’ll see that I use the term men loosely – one was still a boy) played their part. Before I get to each man in subsequent posts, and their specific lives (and deaths) in the war, I want to set the stage for the last year of the war.
In the previous year (1863), Lee’s Army of Virginia invaded the north and was soundly defeated at Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863). He retreated to Virginia where there were smaller battles around the Rapidan River in the fall of 1863. In March of 1864, President Lincoln made Ulysses S. Grant General-in-Chief of the United States Army.
The fighting in 1864 – that the Cheneys would contribute to – continued around Virginia as Grant sought to capture Richmond and finally defeat Lee. In the spring and summer, Grant tried to get around Lee’s flank. In the fall, and through the winter and following spring of 1865, the two armies would settle into trench warfare around Petersburg, Virginia before Lee’s final surrender in April of 1865.
Grant earned the reputation of a butcher – of a general that cared little about the lives of his soldiers and would use the North’s troop advantage to win the war - in part due to the battles of 1864. Whether this is fair or not, it is true that there was much bloodshed in 1864 as the war finally moved to its conclusion.
As we will see in future posts, two Cheneys died in this last year (one in the flanking campaign and one in the trenches) and one entered the war late and was present for Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse.
President Lincoln, in his second inaugural address (March 4, 1865), reflected on the bloodshed during the war:
Fondly do we hope -- fervently do we pray -- that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, "the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether."
He spoke these words one month before Lee surrendered and five weeks before his own assassination. The war was soon to pass away. But two Cheneys were already dead.
I wonder if you agree with Lincoln; I’m not sure I do. Were His judgments true and righteous? Maybe society as a whole – even those that opposed it – should pay for such a terrible scourge as slavery. Maybe. Or maybe people that did not own slaves (this includes Union as well as many Confederate soldiers) or did not condone slavery should not have had to give their blood by the sword to repay the blood drawn by the lash.
Whether it was fair, just, or righteous, that was in fact what happened. Two Cheneys died – and many hundreds of thousands more. They paid with their blood and thus ended a horrible institution.
In future posts, we’ll learn more about each of the Cheneys – how they lived and how they died. We’ll learn where they came from, and which battles they fought in.
Oh How They Lived
Welcome. I have started this blog to celebrate my (our) ancestors. I believe that all of us, and all of those before us, have lived miraculous lives and done things that are amazing and interesting. Though few of us are descended from prominent figures like John Adams, Frederick Douglass, or Eleanor Roosevelt, everyone has contributed to the events of their times and their stories are fascinating. My goal is to do some research (or perhaps more often, use the research of others) and tell the stories of my ancestors.
The idea for this blog came from hearing some of the oral history of my family and seeing bits and pieces of the genealogy that my father and my uncles (maternal and paternal) collected. With each story I heard and each record I saw, my thirst for more information grew. I was getting a glimpse, but I wanted a full picture.
For example, I have a grand uncle that was a monsignor in the Catholic Church. But I don’t know what exactly what that means – what authority did he have and what things did he do?
In another example, I know the battles in which my relatives died during the Civil War. But I don’t know what other battles they fought in and where those battles fit in the overall thrust of the war.
I also realize that there is so much that my relatives did that I don’t even know about yet. I only recently learned, as I started this project, that my grand aunt was in the Women’s Army Corps. But I don’t know what she did, nor do I know anything about the Women’s Army Corps.
And then beyond individuals and individual events, I don’t know a lot about the world people lived in. What was Ireland like when my ancestors came over to America? What were my great grandparents’ lives like?
So I have embarked on a research project to fill in the gaps between what I know, and what else I want to know to get a fuller picture. I will learn by reading what my father and uncles have already found and searching for new information. I will also read about the historical events around those records. Finally, I will ask you all to tell me what you know and remember.
As I go along and learn, I will publish short pieces about our ancestors on this blog. I recognize that wading through 1920s census records is not everyone’s idea of a good time. I hope that by telling an interesting story, I can make genealogy more accessible to everyone in the family.
So thank you for joining me on this project. I only hope that I can inform and entertain you – and do justice to the amazing lives our ancestors lived. They struggled, they celebrated, and oh how they lived.
The idea for this blog came from hearing some of the oral history of my family and seeing bits and pieces of the genealogy that my father and my uncles (maternal and paternal) collected. With each story I heard and each record I saw, my thirst for more information grew. I was getting a glimpse, but I wanted a full picture.
For example, I have a grand uncle that was a monsignor in the Catholic Church. But I don’t know what exactly what that means – what authority did he have and what things did he do?
In another example, I know the battles in which my relatives died during the Civil War. But I don’t know what other battles they fought in and where those battles fit in the overall thrust of the war.
I also realize that there is so much that my relatives did that I don’t even know about yet. I only recently learned, as I started this project, that my grand aunt was in the Women’s Army Corps. But I don’t know what she did, nor do I know anything about the Women’s Army Corps.
And then beyond individuals and individual events, I don’t know a lot about the world people lived in. What was Ireland like when my ancestors came over to America? What were my great grandparents’ lives like?
So I have embarked on a research project to fill in the gaps between what I know, and what else I want to know to get a fuller picture. I will learn by reading what my father and uncles have already found and searching for new information. I will also read about the historical events around those records. Finally, I will ask you all to tell me what you know and remember.
As I go along and learn, I will publish short pieces about our ancestors on this blog. I recognize that wading through 1920s census records is not everyone’s idea of a good time. I hope that by telling an interesting story, I can make genealogy more accessible to everyone in the family.
So thank you for joining me on this project. I only hope that I can inform and entertain you – and do justice to the amazing lives our ancestors lived. They struggled, they celebrated, and oh how they lived.
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