Well folks, I have been a busy, busy, bee. Only I have not been doing much genealogy. Ack! No I have been working on getting a blog setup for my beadwork. And today I finally finished getting my first post published, which is my intro post.

It took me a while to find a template that worked and decide on a look that I was happy with, but I finally did. Welcome to Warped Designs a trade-name I have been using since the 1990s. (Although, it appears others have unimaginatively co-opted the name, and so I have had to make a slight, annoying, change to the url.)

If you are interested have a look. If not that’s cool too. I still plan to post genealogy stuff. Unfortunately, time is in short supply these days, as is access to data. I haven’t been able to get to Salt Lake City for research, and travel elsewhere is going to be non-existent for the next year, at least.

Stay safe, wear a mask!

Well, today I am finally back at work after a summer long furlough. I have to admit the vacation was great. The reason not so much. But I accomplished two major projects I had in mind to get done while I had the time. The first was a photo project of clearing out all the digital images I had in my photos apps of documents from my trips to Salt Lake City. Renaming them, deleting, etc. They went all the way back to 2014 up to 2018. Yay! All done

The second was my beaded loom purse. And after 18 years on the loom-done! Already have the beads for my next project all lined up. Can’t wait to start.

Well, maybe not acquaintances. After all my 3x great grandparents haven’t actually ever met me. But it was the thought that counts. Right?

We had beautiful weather on Saturday this last weekend, so the old man and I decided to take a short trip to Chilton, Wisconsin and visit Dennis and Winifred Connelly’s burial place at St. Augustine’s Cemetery. And as long as we were there we would have a picnic.

It was also our new puppy Caesar’s first trip away from home. He did pretty well, just one tummy upset. Thankfully he hadn’t eaten much breakfast.

This is the first time we have actually been out and about since March. I chose a place where no one would think to be on this lovely day, and I was right. Although, we did have a small scare-apparently the groundskeepers decided that it was a good day to mow and weed wack the cemetery. Lucky for us they were just finishing up when we got there. We even fixed some of the grave decorations that they had mowed into and broken or mangled. Very careless of them.

With all the goings on in the world right now it felt good to have a chance to take a deep and cleansing breath.

Lunch was good, the weather was good, the company was good. I guess you could say it was a good day.

This Corona Virus has put a crimp in my research, my time, among other things. So I will not be posting any new articles for a while.

Too many more important things to take care of right now.

Everyone stay healthy!

Worthington Ohio
January 24, 1960

Dear Egg Head and Dad: –
It has warmed up a bit here today, it’s up to 20°. Most of the time the temperature has been around  have had some 20° temperature. I hope it don’t damaged the fruit as it hurts when it hits those groves down there, and to think of all the money they lose. That’s when it hurts most, when it hits the old pocketbook. And of course later we will be paying more up here due to the scarcity of fruit. The cold weather up here hurts us but only our feelings.

That sore throat I had last time I wrote you developed into a real dandy cold, I was off work from Tuesday evening on, although I’m hoping to go back tomorrow.

Ruth and I went to our O.E.S. School of instruction last night the first I’ve been out all week so you see I wasn’t kidding.

We didn’t get up to see Burch this week so I don’t know anymore about him as of now. When Edw. Called last week, or I was writing you, he said

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he was coming down but the stinker never showed up. I hope he comes down before he visit you folks, maybe he can help us decide what to do about Burch. At least I would like for him to talk with Cliff, and see if he draws the same conclusion as Ruth and I, maybe we don’t give the old boy as much credit as we should. That the reason I would like to have someone else’s opinion. I hope we’re wrong about his condition.

We were really proud to hear you were elected assoc. conductress and wish for you all the luck in the world. That means you will be working towards your year from now on, getting ideas and plans together. That’s one installation we won’t miss. To bad Dad can’t be your W. P. Or does your chapter permit husband-and-wife to be W.M. and W.P. together? We had a real nice school last night, our Worthy Grand MatronIs tops, she is surly [surely] an inspiration to all of us. Martha Jane is coming over this afternoon and we are

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going to plan a rehearsal for all our officers before meeting Feb. 10. We are going to have initiatory work that meeting. We have met a lot of people and made a lot of friends in our district and I suppose you are doing the same down there.

We have bought another boat, an 18 foot Thompson with a 60 H. P.  motor, windshield and folding top, etc. It’s a used boat a 57 model and the motor was new last spring. The outfit has had good care and is in good condition, however I want to make a few changes in the back of the boat and refinish it complete. I hope to have it all ready by the time the weather gets good. I’m going to put in the garage down on Morse road which belongs to Steve that works with me at the shop, his garage is large enough to hold it and is is heated so I’ll get a chance to work evenings and weekends from now on. Believe it or not Jack Neff is trying to buy our old boat. I don’t know how he’s going to arrange it but he’s supposed to give me a deposit on it tomorrow

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I told him I would have the full amount in 90 days as that is when I have to have ours paid for. I’ve asked Jack $500 for our old boat, motor and trailer etc. I’m getting this new outfit for $1500 so that will leave me some to finance at the bank. Tell dad he won’t have to worry about getting a “ducking” in this outfit. Ruth said “she’s had it”. We hope to buy an inboard, but they are too rich for my blood, maybe someday in the future on the inboard. We looked at one in good condition (new last year) and the price was $3000 so that’s the reason we are settling for an outboard. which leads me to a proposition I would like to make you and dad. I still want to buy the lot in Canada but can’t do everything I want to at once. I feel the larger boat is a necessity for Lake Erie,that’s the reason I’m going ahead with it. Would you and dad buy that lot for us and I’ll pay you

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back with interest same as at the bank. Think it over and if it’s O. K. we can do it next summer when we’re all in Canada. If you don’t want to there won’t be any hard feelings on our part. I could pay cash for the boat and lot if we would cash our stocks in, but I wouldn’t be able to buy them back it’s such a good price as I bought those at, also I would have to pay a 25% capital gain tax if I cash them in now. Just an idea, Dad said last fall I shouldn’t buy that lot, but I wouldn’t want to see anyone else get it either. If sometime in the future I couldn’t see any possible use for it I could always sell it, maybe at a profit. I don’t think they will decrease in value, do you?

Well I suppose you will say I’ve gone completely off my rocker

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and justly so. – We’ve had our supper now, Martha has been here and gone and we are going to have our rehearsal Fri. eve 5th of Feb. I’ve also made a batch of peanut brittle and it’s 10:30 PM still feel like I’ll go to work tomorrow if we don’t have any snow. So far we’ve only had a trace of snow from the recent cold spell.

Love
Ruth and H. O.

p.s. How is real estate prices holding down there?

I believe this is a letter written by William Shepard, Sr, to his wife Dick. He must have had an operation in Ohio while Dick was still in Florida, or up north in Canada? For a guy who use to be a teacher his grammar is not so good!

Columbus Ohio
Sat. Oct. 26-1957

Re’cd your note of Wed., about 1 pm today.
It is now 2:45 PM I am listening to State &
Wisconsin game and write you as I hear the
game. The weather here has been cool for the
last few days I think it was 35 this am

I have been taking walks almost everyday
and enjoy them very much.

I have no information as to when I may be
able to get out of here. The Dr. has made
no mention as to when I will get the xray
I will mention it to him Monday A.M.
I will advise you as to any information
the Dr. gives me. I think I am
doing very well and hope to be out
of here soon.

Dick when you come back north I
would like you bring me wool hat
and overcoat.

I will not write you too often as
you know I hate to write letters it
also makes me feel nervous
I am sending a clipping from the
paper you remember the Edministes.
Well the ball game is over State
wone 16 to 13 not too good a game
supper is over I was all
ready to take a walk but will

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not, because of light rain falling.

The paper predicts light snow maby.
for tonight

Dick you take your time about coming
home see too all business as we may
not be able get back down there for
some time.

I had a note from Alan David and
Sue Sue was secretary for Alan
I would love to see the family (Bills)
Sunday 12:30PM.

Dick I will close this short letter I
expect H.O. & Ruth to come soon. I will
have them mail this so you may get
it Tues.

The weather is gloomy today with
ocassional bits of snow. In the air
Will try and drop you a short
note Weds. evening.

With love, W.A.S.

Better enjoy 2020, cause we might not have many more new years to celebrate, what with the end of the world coming soon.

On that note — to round out this year of research I thought I would share a couple of fun facts.

Thanks to my current holiday vacation, I have been able to spend a little more time doing clean up and data collection on my Dutch ancestors in my Dad’s line. This would be the Roosa/Rosa line. During this research, a couple of interesting items have came to light.

One of the surnames that can be found in our Rosa line is ‘van der Kerr’. Seen variously as Van Der Karr/Kerre/Karre, etc. This line became part of ours in 1753, when Annette Becker married Gerrit Rosa in Albany, New York. Annette’s mother was a van der Kerr, who was a daughter of Dirk van der Kerr, the immigrant.

In my quest to try and find out more about the van der Kerrs, I ran into the following post on a forum:

Does anyone have information on members of the Scottish Carr (Kerr) family living in the Netherlands in the 16th and 17th centuries? An early American ancestor of mine, Dirk van der Kerr, was always presumed Dutch — he had a Dutch wife and lived in the Dutch colony in New York in the mid 1600s. But recent DNA tests show matches with the Scottish Carr (Kerr) family. Looks like some of the Carrs left Scotland for Holland.

https://www.ancestry.com/boards/localities.weurope.netherlands.general/18803/mb.ashx?pnt=1  Message Boards > Localities > Western Europe > Netherlands > General > Carr (Kerr) Family in the Netherlands. drheldridge Posted: 13 Sep 2014 04:23PM. 

So Dad, it looks like you have a little Scottish in you too!

The other interesting item I can share regards my research on the van Boerums. I was looking over my data for Jan Roosa and his wife Hillegont van Barren who were married about 1670 in Albany, and came to find out that her surname was actually ‘van Boerum’. Hillegont’s family arrived in New Netherlands in 1649, when William van Boerum and his wife Greitje van Gogh, along with a couple of kids, stepped foot in New Amsterdam. If you missed it, the interesting bit is his wife’s surname:

Goch (Gogh) is a town in Germany next to the Dutch border…However, this area was part of the Netherlands province of Gelderland until 1715… the painter Vincent Van Gogh’s surname derives from the same place.

It looks like Vincent just might be a cousin.

Have a great year! Don’t worry I’ll still be posting.