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The Life From The Roots blog topics have changed several times since I began this blog in 2009. I initially wrote only about the family history I had been working on for 20 years. Years later, I was into visiting gardens, historical homes, churches, libraries that had genealogical collections, historical societies, war memorials, and travel/tourism places. I also enjoy posting autographs and photos of famous people I've met or have seen.

Along with my New England roots, other areas include New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and the Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada.

Please check out the labels on the right side for topics (please note, they need work). Below the labels and pageviews is a listing of my top nine posts, according to Google. Four of them pertain to Lowell, MA. These posts change often because they are based on what people are reading.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Fanny's Diamonds and Silverware, Who Has Them Now?

I felt like I was going back in time during my process of obtaining the below will for my 2nd great-grandmother, Frances "Fanny" Maria (Gleason) Poole. Recently, I transcribed parts of a large will for her husband, and noticed he had as an asset, 2,600 books (blog post). Naturally, I wondered what happened to them, and then decided to obtain the will of his wife. To request her will should have been easy and quick once I got the clerk on the phone to tell me the process. Although a nice person, he said I had to write a letter! It was my first letter in well over a year. No word from the clerk in abt. a week, so I called back, and was then promised he'd get right to it. More waiting, and calling, (yes, clerks get sick, and take vacation time during the holidays). During my last phone tag, he said he had it on his desk, and since it was only 3 pages long, he would send it out, free of charge! Glad I was nice to him and very patient, although it was hard.

Turns out, there is no mention of her husband's books, but then, I didn't think she's have them shipped from Illinois to her new living quarters in Massachusetts.

I found it strange she didn't go through a lawyer to write the will, since her son, who lived nearby, was a lawyer. The will was filed January 25, 1904 and proved February 10, 1904. She died January 19th. This must be a record, as I've never seen a will proved so quickly.

I have seen several pictures of Fanny (one is above), but none with her wearing diamonds. It's nice to know several of her pieces remained in the family...not to my line though. My direct line, Annie got to share Fanny's silverware with her brother! Unfortunately, I've never seen the pattern, and I wonder who has it now. The same goes for the diamonds, it would be lovely to just see a picture of them.

My next steps are:

1. Contact several distant cousins to see if they want a copy of the will mailed.
2. Since I determined the relationships of all three witnesses, work on their lineage. They were were directly related to Fanny's sister, Alma. Although Alma isn't directly related to me, her parents were my 3rd great-grandparents.
3. Write a post about where Fanny lived in Brookline, MA.





                                                        Will

I, Fanny M. Poole of the town of Brookline, County of Norfolk, and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, declare this to be my last will and testament, hereby revoking all former wills and testamentary writings by me heretofore made.

        First, I desire that my just debts and funeral expenses shall be first paid.

        Second, I appoint my son, William F. Poole the execution hereof, and Trustee for purposes set out in Section Third hereof, and direct that he shall not be required to give bonds.

        Third, I hereby bequeath to my son, William F. Poole, as trustee, all my right titles and interest whatsoever it may be, in and to the publication known as ‘Poole’s Index to Periodical Literature’ and all supplements thereof and abridgments thereto, and all rights to further publications which may be made in connection therewith, and all right title and interests in the name of said publication, and all agreements in connections with said Index, Supplements, and name and I direct him, as trustee, to pay the income from said property in equal shares to my children, Alice P. Holbrook, Annie Poole, Mary Poole, and William F. Poole. In the event of the death of any of the said children, then her or his share shall be paid to her or his children, then her or his share shall be paid to her or his children, if any; otherwise the said share shall be paid to the survivor or survivors of any said children in equal shares.

        I hereby direct my said Trustee, or his successor, to transfer to the sole survivor of my said children, as soon as he or she shall become the sole survivor, the legal title to all the property herein shown in this action set out. For the purposes of this trust I give my Trustee and his successor the full legal title to and in said property and full power control over and management of the same. In view of the uncertainty of the productiveness of said property in future years, and the possibility that it may be advisable to dispose of said property or a part thereof. I hereby give my said Trustee or his successor full power and authority, at any time, if he deems it advisable, to sell and transfer said property, wholly or in part, in such way and under such terms as he may deem best, the proceeds thereof to be distributed among my said children in accordance with the terms of division of the income herein above set forth.

        Fourth, I give the sum of Twenty Five Dollars each to each of my grandchildren as are living at my death.

        I give my diamond pin to my grandchild Frances Poole.

        I give my diamond ring to my grandchild Grace Holbrook.

        I give my large vases to my sister Alma.

I give my piano, the large family clock, and such other of my household effects as he may desire to my son.

I give my silver ware to my daughter Annie and my son in equal shares.

Fifth, All the rest of my property, of whatsoever nature, kind and description, I give to my children, of which Mary and her heirs is to receive their sixths, and Alice, Annie and William F. and their respective heirs are each to receive one sixth.

In the event of the marriage of my daughter, Mary before my death, or in the event of her death, unmarried, before my death, then the property under this action shall be divided equally among my said four children and their heirs, the heirs of each of my children to receive according to the laws of descent the shares such child would be entitled to if living.

In testimony whereof I herewith set my hand and seal this tenth day of June A. D. 1901.

                                                Fanny M. Poole

Signed and declared by the testatrix, as and for her last will and testament in the presence and sight of us, who at her request, and in her sight, and presence, and in the sight and presence of one another, have hereunto subscribed our names as witnesses.

                                              Arthur K. Brown VF.
                                                Sidney H. Goodrich
                                                Elizabeth P. Brown

Sunday, January 5, 2014

A Little Cheer in the New Year.


Every time I see this photo, it cheers me up, especially in winter and each time I turn on my iPad. The above photo was taken in a nursery in the middle of winter last January. I had just gotten the toy and decided to take practice photos. It soon became my cover photo and I see it every time I go online. Since that day, I took very few flower photos because I wasn't happy with the outcome. The reason for writing all this is to say, I have taken over 4,000 shots this past year, and deleted about 1,000. Many others have to do with genealogy in some way, such as: cemetery stones, war memorials, and a lot of tourist spots in New England.

If you have seen any of my posts for this past year, each photo was taken with this iPad, the majority are clear and sharp. It's works beautifully for cemetery stones and pages from books, really anything but flower close-ups.

One of my "projects" for this year is to go through all photos and get them posted to my blog. It might seem unusual to see bare ground (no snow), green trees and lovely foliage in a cemetery during these early 2014 months, but that is what I intend to do.

Friday, January 3, 2014

Do You Have Any of These Cemeteries for Your Ancestors?


Many years before beginning my blog in 2009, I did my best at keeping records for myself, never thinking I would be sharing it. However, the other day, while reading many Facebook friend's New Year's resolutions, blogs and general ideas how to get organized, something clicked. Only one struck me as the one that would for me. Midge Frazel, of Granite in My Blood blog mentioned doing a list of gravestones she has written about. She also mentioned, on Facebook the following.
  • One thing I have learned lately is to make goals more defined and workable in a short time frame. I have five projects going right now. Four is do-able but one continues to plague me.
    January 1 
  • Barbara Poole     I am going to start following you Midge, you are my new inspiration. Defined goals in a short time frame, love it.

So, I'm using two of her suggestions! You do learn from others, why not try it for 2014.

I began visiting many cemeteries in 1999, 2000 and 2001. A lot changed after 9/11, and I didn't travel as much. My list remained dormant for about 9 years, until I began blogging. You can see, that my list had 121 listings for my direct ancestors only. The various columns are: their relationship to me, cemetery name, location, date of death, date visited and age at death. An additional column lists either a M or F for mothers or fathers side. In the past over 4 years, I've visited quite a few cemeteries and only took 21 photos, so you can see, blogging had little, if any affect on my list.

My problem now is to relearn Excel, because I can't remember how to change the listing to show it alphabetical, or any of the other categories. I didn't even know I had Excel, as my original list was in Access on a XP. Also, I have to learn how to use Microsoft Office with my Win. 8 laptop, and to get the below Vista listing into the new computer. Technology can be a problem for somebody of the "silent" generation.

My next steps are:

1. Double check to be sure all 146 are on Find-A-Grave.
2. Learn how to use Microsoft Office 2013 and Excel.
3. Take additional photos of where other ancestors are, mostly in Connecticut.

For you to take away, one of my best hints is, if a stone is on Find-A-Grave, always make a photo of it and take it with you. This has helped me many times.
 



Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Happy New Year for 2014!

Happy New Year to my readers, face book friends from me and my friends below (the birds, bear and critters).



Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Great-grandparents married on Christmas Day, 1888

Special Christmas greetings to my readers. May your day be magical with those you chose to spend this day with.

 (Photo used with permission from Thomas MacEntee.)
I love this tree, and think it goes well on this post for the Victorian Wedding of my great-grandparents on Christmas Day. 

Marriage Announcement of their Christmas Wedding, Dec. 25, 1888.
Marriage Certificate for my great-grandparents.

Note: This is a re-post from December 2009.

Friday, December 20, 2013

Old Handmade Christmas Cards made by my Grandfather


The Christmas card shows a picture of my mother, born 1919.  I like the garland spelling the word MOM with my mother's photo inside.

There are now two children in the family, see in upper window.  I would have loved to have seen 1923, 1924 and 1925, but they weren't in the collection.

This card is also a birth announcement for another child.  The sisters are shown with their brother.  My grandfather probably had the cards completed before the birth, and wrote in the name and date.

My grandfather absolutely loved England, and went many times.

I found an article which appeared in The Hartford Courant, Dec. 14, 1976. "The Peck Memorial Library (Berlin, CT) announced Monday the opening of a new exhibit of more than 40 Christmas cards. The exhibit, titled 'Christmas From the Bishops,' will feature cards sent by the Earle K. Bishops of Kensington section from 1921 to 1976." This month, I will be posting several of my grandfather's cards.

This was made in 1921, three years after they married.

Note: I have about 30 in his collection. Each card was posted to my blog in December 2009.



Thursday, December 19, 2013

Smoke Stack Christmas Tree



"The smokestack tree contains 5,440 light bulbs over 32 cables anchored to a 102-foot diameter angle ring at the base. The tree is topped with a 19-foot star." Information from The Lowell Sun newspaper, December 2011 (I had it linked, but the article has been removed.)
The tree is located in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Reflection in a nearby mill.

From Wikipedia, "The Wannalancit Mills are an example of adaptive re-use as they contain offices. Part of the mills are owned by the University of Massachusetts Lowell. In 2000, the owners of the mill utilized their smokestack for the city's largest Christmas tree, reaching two hundred and fifty six feet in height."

Originally posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2011.

Daniel Chester French Led Me on a Trail


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_North_Bridge

Sculptor Daniel Chester French's world known statue of the Concord Minute Man stands in front of Diane MacLean Boumenot, a fellow blogger and friend. We were there in October, and the following month I went to the Concord Museum to see the exhibit, "From the Minute Man to the Lincoln Memorial,  The Timeless Sculpture of Daniel Chester French."



General Joseph Hooker, an enormous statue in front of the Boston State House. I saw it less than a week ago, but it too dark to take a photo.
At the Lincoln Memorial, in Washington, D. C., putting his pieces together.
Plaque states this was his drawing of his first studio in Concord, Massachusetts. This needs to be corrected (9/18/16) to read this painting was done by William Merchant Richard French, 1879. The exterior of the Concord Studio, built in 1879 was built next to his family's home on Sudbury Road in Concord. The artist was Daniel's brother.

The Museum exhibit was large, but I'm cutting back my photos, because of the things I discovered on my own, and new photos I want to share. Yes, another adventure trying to find out where Mr. French lived and where he died. Neither of which was easily obtained via the internet, except for wonderful FindAGrave.

When I saw his painting stating he had a studio in town, I asked a multitude of questions, like is it still standing, and where. I was given a map with two locations marked, on the same street, for the house and the studio. It was too dark to look for them, so we came home. Then with a lot of luck, I discovered the studio (now as a house) had just been sold...with photo of the outside, and about 20 interior photos! Thanks to Zillow it made my future visit all the more easier (I removed the address, because of privacy for the new family).

Back to Concord a few days later and I found the house, the former studio. (see below.)

Daniel Chester French Studio 1879

However, I couldn't locate the small house (original studio), so I called the Museum and spoke with two people, and both gave different answers as to where it was. In all, three people tried to help (and one wrote on the map), but I still couldn't find both buildings even after a 2nd trip. It's amazing, I didn't get stopped by the police and questioned as to why I was slowing down, turning around in quite a few driveways and going back and forth.

Regarding his death, all sources I read stated he died in Stockbridge, Massachusetts at his summer home called Chesterwood. The minute I discovered he was buried in Concord, I returned to the town a fourth time in two weeks. FindAGrave was a big help as was a map from the Concord Library online site. Sleepy Hollow Cemetery is quite large, but although it was a warm day, and I was the only one there, I didn't mind, because I was on a mission. The photos below show where he was buried.



Within a short distance of the cemetery is the Concord Free Library, and that meant another stop. Through my reading, I discovered Mr. French had made a sculpture of Ralph Waldo Emerson (after his death) and it was in the reading room of the library. I had been in this library many times (it was where I hung out two days after 9/11), but never looked at the many pieces of sculpture, including two of Louisa May Alcott.


Below is the detail on Mr. Emerson's coat collar.

My photo of the Concord Minute Man was taken several years ago.

I then discovered he summered for 30 years in Stockbridge, Massachusetts at his estate and studio, called Chesterwood, with 120 acres. The good news is, these buildings are open to the public for the price of admission. Please see my post with lots of photos of the studio and estate at: http://lifefromtheroots.blogspot.com/2016/10/where-was-lincoln-memorial-made.html

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Finally, What Was the Good Stuff in The Probate?


Etching of W. F. Poole
New York Times Obituary
A Bill of Appraisement of the Estate of William F. Poole, late of the County of Cook and State of Illinois, deceased was finally signed on 25 March 1895, a year after his death. The Will and Probate as well as the "The Longest Obituary I've Ever Seen" were discussed in previous posts, but I just have to share this with all the librarians who may have learned about him. Yes, he had assets, quite a lot in my opinion, but that isn't what interested me. I wanted to know if the Librarian of the Newberry Library in Chicago, Illinois had any books.

He sure did, 2,600 books, all valued at $1. That portion of his estate was worth $2,600. Why did he have so many books, did they belong to the library or were they actually his? And if they were his, was he going to give them away or donate to the Library. If they were his own, I wonder why didn't he just use the ones at the library and save his money.

Below are copies of the Bill of Appraisement, Agreement with Houghton, Mifflin and Co., and Appraisers' Estimate of the Value of Property Allowed to the Widow.



A BILL OF APPRAISEMENT

of the Estate of William F. Poole, late of the County of Cook and State of Illinois, deceased.
                   One lot of Books (2600 in number) at $1.00 per volume.
                                                                                      Total-         $2,600


             "Agreement between W. F. Poole and Houghton, Mifflin and Co. of Boston, Mass., dated September 30th, 1890, whereby Houghton/, Mifflin and Co. agree to pay royalty on all sales of 'Poole's Index to Periodical Literature.' The value of said contract is impossible to determine, but Houghten [sic], Mifflin and Company have paid to W. F. Poole from the time of the date of said contract, an average of $350.00 a year thereon."