Tag: Family History

Calling all Medine cousins!

 

Medine family photo at the Pleasant Hill farm
The only known photograph of the Gustaf Medine family, taken about 1911 at Gustaf’s Pleasant Hill farm in Mayfield, IL. Photo Source: Drake family photos

I’m looking to reconnect with any relatives of the Medine family from DeKalb County, Illinois!

This semester, I took an online Genealogy course at University of Illinois with genealogist Nicole W. Miller. I feel like I learned so much about developing trends in genealogy, and I developed better practices for researching and sourcing my own family history. One of my accomplishments was writing a formal compiled genealogy for the Medine family. I realized that there are still some close Medine cousins that I know very little about! Continue reading “Calling all Medine cousins!” →

On this day: Edwin Drake

On this day, 97 years ago, my grandfather Edwin Drake was born. This precious photo is him as a baby with his mother, Emma (Medine) Drake.

Emma Drake holding her son Edwin
Emma holding Edwin as a baby. Source: Drake family photo.

A Kaiser in the Great War

Today is the 100th anniversary of America’s entry into World War I. My great-grandfather, Glenn Kaiser, joined the army in September of 1917. He served overseas, fighting in Germany in the 127th Infantry, 32nd Division, eventually being discharged in May of 1919. To remember the 100th anniversary of America’s engagement in WWI, I will be sharing some of his intriguing photos from The Great War.

Kaiser_Glenn_WWI
My great-grandfather, Glenn M. Kaiser, in his Army uniform during WWI. He served overseas in Germany, primarily as a cook. (Image source: Kaiser family photo)

From Mexarp to Mayfield

This semester I’m elated to be taking a course in Genealogy and Library Services. As part of the class, I’ll be focusing my research on the Medine family in Illinois. An introduction to their story is below.

Our family has been researching our roots for over 15 years now, and most of our ancestral lines have been traced back to the immigrant ancestor. I’ve just started doing some research on our ancestors in the Old Country. Lately, I’ve been tracing the lives of my great-great grandfather, Gustaf Medine, his siblings, and his parents in Sweden and America. This has certainly been a puzzle!

Medine family photo at the Pleasant Hill farm
The only known photograph of the Gustaf Medine family, taken about 1911 at Gustaf’s Pleasant Hill farm in Mayfield, IL. Front row: Katharina (Schroder) Medine, Gustaf Medine, William Medine, Jesse Scott Bowen. Back row: Fred Medine, Julia Medine, Augusta (Medine) Bowen, Emma (Medine) Drake, Charles Drake. Source: Personal family photo

Continue reading “From Mexarp to Mayfield” →

C.D.C. Johnson 1954-2017

Johnson_Claurence_portrait.jpgA short time ago, the world lost a great man and my husband lost his father. My words can’t do justice to his legacy. He was a man who loved his children more than anything in the world, and did everything he could to give them a better life. He believed in hard work, perseverance, family ties and the value of education. He taught his children these values as well. He sacrificed so much to raise four children on his own. Continue reading “C.D.C. Johnson 1954-2017” →