Ghosts of Christmas Past

Merry Christmas to All!

Iris, Eleanor, Jean and Junior, c. 1921, at 833 N. Capitol.

And a Happy New Year!

Summer at the Lake

Summer at the lake! Some of us have been doing it since the 1920s and would probably still keep at it, if it were more convenient.

Here are some summer photos from days gone by.

Lots of fun with the little kids at the lake.

At the lake -- kids in the front row are Junior and Grace, Middle Row: Jean, Eleanor and unknown girl; Back row -- Unknown boy, Minnie, Iris

Here's the Leatherman family.

Eleanor, Jean, Iris holding Grace, Junior with J.P. and Minnie behind.

Jean's best friend, Fran Pike, was a few doors down.

Jean with Fran Pink outside Leatherman Cottage

Jean and Grace with Fran and others.

Fran with unknown boy (possibly a Henny brother?), unknown girl, Jean with Grace in front. 
Note proximity of trees to beach and high water. Taken before breakwall added.

Detail of Jean and Grace from above photo.

Jean -- on the breakwall.

Grace and Martin Krauss. (I've got to run this through photo and straighten out that background!)

Note that the beach was very large (low water) and the breakwall has been done. Approximately taken 1950.

 Here comes a new generation! Ken with Nancy Marzolf.

Cousins together!

Looks like this must be around 1952. Taller kids are Susan Porter and John Marzolf; Sitting on left is Jim Marzolf with Anne Porter and Jack Porter on the ground. 
At the right is Nancy Marzolf holding Deet and David Krauss.

 Deet, David and Jack.

Cousins in a boat!

Another crooked horizon! David, Anne, Patty, Jack, Deet (in back with Mutty)

From the Deet-and-David collection.

And yet another.


Three grumpy Krauss kids.

Patty, Mutty, David

Deet with Mary Anne Krauss (Mutty)

Can anyone identify the guy standing behind Deet?

 Deet with Patty and Mutty Krauss. We have come a long way.

This is the photo everyone hopes someone tore up and forgot!

There are more to be scanned! And don't forget to send photos you might have!

Wedding Time!

On June 15, we say Happy Anniversary to Nancy and Walt Taylor! Nancy and Walt have kept the Leatherman line going for two more generations!

So, I thought I'd share a few wedding photos and news clips from the family. Below is the announcement seen in an earlier post of William S. Wood and Bessie Granger, Minnie Wood's parents.

Here's J.P. and Minnie!

And Minnie in a wedding portrait.

And just so we know we're all legal, their wedding registration! (They're third from the bottom; scroll over to the far right for details on minster, witnesses)



Nancy's parents, Iris Leatherman and Wendell Marzolf, had their marriage documented here.
 

And here they are at the lake!

Grace Leatherman and Martin Krauss were married at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in a service officiated by Marty's dad, Reverend Frederick Krauss.

Grace told Mary Anne (Mutty) that she wanted no guests since her mother, Minnie, was too ill to attend. Her sister Jean and Ken Croope were the witnesses.

Jean Leatherman and Ken Croope had the same low-key wedding, married across the street from 833 North Capitol by Reverend Krauss.

Here's a look at the reception of Grace's son, David, when he married Bonnie Bletcher. Now their kids are pushing 30!

Annie Taylor and Jason Minshew were married at Nancy and Walt's Flagstaff home. After living years in Austin, they've moved back to Flag.

The most recent family wedding was Grace's grandson, Mark Elinsky, to Katie Ricchutio in 2013 in a beautiful interfaith ceremony.

I'll be scanning what photos of the other weddings I have soon. I'm sure I have candids from the weddings of Nancy and Walt and John and Pat Marzolf. But that leaves a lot of others, so if you have a favorite wedding picture of you and your spouse or your parents, either send me the photo (and I'll return it after scanning) or a digital copy!

Meet Your Sixth Cousin, Barb!

Just when you thought you knew all the cousins on the Leatherman side, think again!

Here's a great story! I've known Barb Swartz for about five years or so. She's part of my wine tasting group, Cork Poppers. Add to that, she's an incredibly creative woman and an amazing cook who always gets asked to bring the salad because they are culinary masterpieces. Each year we co-host a make-and-take tea for friends. She's a kindred spirit.

She's also a cousin!

One day I was working on the family tree and I knew Barb had done some genealogy work and I had a question to ask her. As she was looking at our tree, which I was scrolling over she yelled "Stop! Go back to Eve Gochenour!

Eve Gochenour Welty is our sixth great great grandmother, a seventh-generation direct descendant. She was born between 1730 and 1736 in Mannheim Township, which is either in Lancaster (probably) or York, Pennsylvania. Her family line takes us back to 14 generations (for us -- make that 16 for the youngest Leathermans -- Ollie, Theodore, Clara, Alicia, Tara and all of John's big brood!

Sebastian G. (Basthli) Gochenour (Cougenour) was born between 1543 and 1545 in Fischenthal, a canton of Zurich, Switzerland. I don't have a death date or any information related to emigration.

Cousin Barb with her husband, Mike

 

So, don't think you have to run into a Leatherman to find a relative! You never know what you'll find when you keep looking!

Mr. and Mrs. Wood

We've talked a little about Henry and Angeline Leatherman but what about Minnie Wood's parents? We know that William S. Wood was a confectioner in Buffalo. Census records conflict as to whether he was born "at sea" or in Buffalo, but we know he was born in 1850. We don't know his parents' names.

Elizabeth Granger (Bessie) was the daughter of Elizabeth and Stephen Granger. They emigrated to the U.S. from England around 1836 or 1856 (still to be determined). On the 1870 census, her mother described herself as a "huckster" and her father "a boatmaker." It appears Bessie had a twin brother, Stephen, and two other siblings, James and Mary (although Mary only shows up in one document). She was born in 1829 in England.




City Directory data indicates and Elizabeth Granger working in a confectionery company in Buffalo, but it is unclear as to whether or not it was Bessie or her mother. It is probably through this avenue that she met William S. Wood.

They were married in _____. And, from this clipping it sounds as though their wedding reception was lovely!

The Woods had moved to Lansing by 1905 (City Directory) and while in Lansing he first worked at Lansing Confectionery Company.

 They later owned grocery stores.

They lived in the house at 833 N. Capitol for at least two years before Minnie and J.P. were married.

Iris recalls a "grandmother or someone" living with them when she was quite young. This would be Bessie.

We know that William died in 1917 and is buried in Mt. Hope Cemetery in Lansing. When Jean and Jeanie would decorate the cemetery graves, stories about his confectionery work were always part of the day. Jeanie has his recipe book -- but that's the subject of another post.

We don't know when Bessie died. A photo of her holding Jean as a baby was taken in 1919. The only Elizabeth Wood in Mt. Hope cemetery died in 1905 so either it isn't her or the dates were badly mangled. She is not in the same plot as William and their son, Irving -- so her demise is (at present) a mystery.

One of the things you discover when you start digging into all this is the difficulty of finding people from England. Yes, you can search the Great Britain and Wales census and birth records. But good luck narrowing down the names of Wood and Granger! Especially if you aren't quite certain from which part of England they hailed. We know Elizabeth Granger (Bessie's mom) was born in Wales from U.S. census data -- but we don't have a maiden name to be able to search Welsh birth records!

So, the mystery of the Wood family will continue. Stay tuned!

Happy Mothers Day to All the Moms

Here's a Happy Mother's Day recognition of the women without whom we would be here today!

It all started with Minnie Wood.

Here she is with Iris!

Iris, Eleanor and Jean.

And the same trio a bit older!

The four sisters at Otsego Lake.

And here they are on Grace's wedding day. 

Happy Mother's Day!