Kentucky Ancestors PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY THE GENEALOGICAL COMMITI`EE OF THE KENTUCKY HISTORICAL SOCIETY OLD STATE HOUSE, BOX H, FRANKFORT. KENTUCKY Volume I, Number 2 October,1965 GENEALCX}ICAL WORKSHOP WAS WELL RECEIVED Over three hunc\rec\ pro£essLonaL ar\d amateur 8ene8Lo8Lsts attenc\ec\ tt\e Fourth An"aL Kentucky - LndLana Genea\og±ca\ Workshop Ln FraT\kfOrC on July l9. The Kentucky Society, Daughters of the American Revolution and the Ken- tucky HlstorLcaL Society were hosts £or the all-clay me-etLn8 heLc\ ±n the Old State House. Ancestor-hunting enthusiasts fran Oklahoma, Florida, New Jersey, Virginia, IL\±no±s, Ohio, IT\C\±ana anC\ Kentuc`ky hearc\ speeches by outstanc\±ng autt\or- ities. They asked questions and efforts were made to answer the questions. Lieutenant Governor and Mrs. Harry Lee Waterfield invited all who arrived early for the Workshop to visit the Old Governor's Mansion, Sunday, July L8 at 8 p.m. About sixty enioyec\ their grac±o`s hosp±taL±ty, vt\±ch ±nc`Luc\ec\ a tollr of the beautifully restored and furnished mansion, then refreshments of punc`h and cookies. Mrs. Frank Sower and Mrs. George Cheek assisted in entertaining. The Monday morning session featured George B. Everton of Logan, Utah. He and his family are publishers of a quarterly magazine, The Genealogical Helper. His two books !E± !±±±!±: Ee9!S £9!: Genealogist and !±± !±9!± P99!S £e±: Genealogists are ''musts" for anyone doing family research. Mr. and Mrs. Everton talked about the problems facing the person gathering data on £am±Ly history. "ey oE€ered su88eStLons anc\ ur8eC\ that County recorc\s be c`areEoLLy searchec\ Ear information. They advised that records be considered Carefully and compared in an effort co c\eterm±ne LE there are c\iscrepancies ln them. Recorc\s are o€teT\ Written down years after the event took place. Exanine every family Bible you find to see wherl it was printed. If the date of printing of the Bible is later than the dates of births, deaths and marriages recLOrded in it; those dates may need tO be accepted With caution. There ±s a poss±b±L±ty that they may have been recorc\ec\ Eton mem- ory or copiec\ Eton another Bible anc\ there may be an error. Cens`s recorc\s are not in£aLLLbLe. The person 8±V±T\g ±T\€Ormat±On tO the c`ensus taker may T\Ot remember the exact ages OE the members o£ the Eam±Ly. The afternoon speaker was Miss Margaret R. Waters of Greenwooc\, Indiana. She ±s a teacher ±n tt\e Technical High School ±n lnc\±anapoL±s anc\ has c\or\e 8eneaLog±caL work for about twenty-£±ve years. She has pubL±shec\ a "mber of books on genealogy. |4 she explained the method used tO measure and divide land in the Northwest Territory and showed how easily a Parcel Of land COuld be located. The library was full Of People taking advantage of their visit tO the Historical Society to do some much needed researC`h. The Workshop was a succ'ess! --O-- BELIEVE IT OR NOT In the July issue of Kentucky AncLeStOrS the editor asked about the Oldest tombstone ±n Kentucky. Mr. Stratton Harmon, 30 River Hill Road, Louisville, Ky. sends in this in- scrLpt±oT\ O£ a Stone, €OunC\ ±n Oven County, wh±ct\ he now has ±n his home. Jack Harmon / Borned Feb lO l654 / Died April l7 1859 / Aged 2O5 years / Gone but not forgotten / John Harmon ........ There ±s a \±st o€ names uT\der the €±na\ `'John Hamon`' but these are not legible. No, your eyes are not deceiving yoll. Moreover, Mr. Harmon has twelve pages o€ c\ocumeT`tary Proof that the ±nSCrLpt±on chec`ks oL`t anC\ that there c`ouLd have been a Jack Hamon who was borT\ ±n V±r8±`±a LT\ L654 anc\ who died ±n Oven County Ln L859. +T`C\eeC\, his great-great-8ranC\Eather John Harmon, A KeT\tuCky PLoT\eer Who Was oT\e OE the defenders o£ Bryan's Station, c\±ec\ Ln L868 w±th±n a mile o£ the spot where the tombstone was £ouT\C\ -- aged \O8, the seconc\ co Last RevoL`- tionary Soldier alive! --a-- Mrs. Charles P. Fitzner, 401l Lambert Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky 40218 writes asking, ''Have you seen The East Kentuck±an2 It ±s a marvelous journal on East Kentucky history and genealogy. Thought other members would be interested, also." l5 IF NCyI' IN A WHISPER By Ralph L. Schroeder Once she sat b±8 ±n Paris. She had a dulcet voice. She talked a great I deal. As she talked she L±stenec\. t\er name was Gertruc\e, Gertrude Stein. She said, ''A Rose is a . ." Then bang, World War II ended with her Brewsie "1LLLe. 1m it Willie said, ''. They always talk about it. About what, saLc\ Pauline. About ±t. about what ±C ±s, about hO`1 about ±t, about wt`at Lt ls about, about. what are you gO±n8 tO C\O about ±C, about how about ±t." Before that. while s±tt±r\8 ±nSic\e OE ±g±±± ±±T\ America, Get- truc\e L±steT\eC\ tO Gertruc\e saying, '`To some Lt ±s astoT`iSh±ng tO have been born. To some ±t Ls a puzzle that they can remember everyth±n8 except the having been born. Gradually no one kT\CtwS abO`t ±t.'' For the geneaLog±sC, the hunter o£ ancestors. this, in part, ±S the problem. How does one not only recapture a date of birth, and others sig- T\±E±c`ar\t, but sometimes ever\ aT\ e\uS±Ve name? To whom does one turn, or where does one go to search the forgotten facts? It is a problem. Let us talk about it. There are recorc\s Ln c`ourthouse, church anc\ BlbLes £ec\eraL cens`ses and military files. There are academic and historical libraries whose repos±tor±es hoLc\ re8±Ona\ anC\ Loc`aL histories. Graveyarc\s that have not been Liberatec\, though too Often ill kept, reveal c\ata. There are Lnc\±v±d- uaL persoT\S tO Whom One Car\ turn. You say, `'But we know all this.' The Question ±S neLCher where nor wt\at, but how?" That ±s the problem. Let `s talk about it. Let `s cons±c\er the ±nc\±v±c\uaL person. Ul`Eort`nateLy tt\±s creature, the individual. comes in categories. From the genealogist viewpoint an individual is either a professional or an unprofessional being. While neither has yet grc,\m wings, you must Step before the Professional-genea1- o8±St not SO mlCh V±th awe aS W±th a great C\1nk±n8 O£ CO±nS. Certainly everyoT\e COt\CedeS the fact that a PrO£eSS±Ona\ has aS "ch r\eed OE €ooc\ aT\C\ CLoth±ng as does the unproEess±or\a\; anc\ ±C ±s uT\Seem\y tO ask anyOT\e to c\o hours o£ work wLtho`t rec`crmpense. You canT\Ot ask SOmeOne tO Scan 16 newspapers, as an example for the years l824 through l838, simply for the chr±LL oE ±t. Even b\±T\k±n8 through an accumulation oE one year wouLc\ serve smartly. If, however, you formulate a modest request, enclosing your retum emve\ope, you shouLc\ anticipate. notw±chstanc\±nB the proEes- s±oT\aL 8eneaLo8±St, an answer that ±S not beT\eath tt\e C\ign±Cy oE a Latch- string. To do less betrays the age in which we live. Ours ±s a moc\em era. We have \eEt the quL\L and ±T\k u±th±n the shac\ows oE the past. There ±s, beyoT\d Our teChnOLo8±CaL concern. an ±T\- 8ather±n8 OE hLstor±c`a\ materials. Ln very £acC our LLbrar±es implore us to preserve our recorc\s, to c\onaCe these to them Ear safe keep±n8. Lt ±s not eT\Ou8h. Let alone the Lnsu£E±c±ent spr±nkL±n8 O£ tt\eSe \±brar±eS, tt\ose that exist have barely begun tO awaken tO the neec\ OE ice peapLe. Genealogy, beLn8 but One Small facet o£ research. ±s T\O \On8er a rich mal``S £aT\Cy. Ever\ the h\mbLe are 3ost±£1ec\ ±n askln8 C\ueSCLoT\S, ±n aT\C±cipat±n8 aT` anSwero They may T\Ot be able to ioumey E±ve hunc\rec\ miles to see a recorc\ tt\at ±s be±T`8 kept Safe. Yet there Ls a means oE reproc\uction to- c\ay so that these recorc\s. `,Lth±n reason, can be made available through the mails for a nominal fee. certain'1ibraries publish findings to fountain the genealogist. I±± Kentucky Historical Society, see±n8 an Oasis, has added Kentucky AT\C`eStOrS tO its List oE p`b\±catLons. It ls t\o meaT\ thLn8 to watt upoT\ its Success. Ln ac\c\±t±on, ue have a Eew soc`LetLes with LLbra- rLes where materials are obtainable oT\ a Loan basis, a8a±n at a T\OmiT`a\ cost. Unfortunately these services are still too thin to meet ollr public r\eec\s. Let tt`e clay c`ome, aT\C\ Soon, when Our LLbrar±es, perhaps through patronage, 8O Stalwart ±T` StrLc\e besLc\e our age. As the Lac\y who sat b±8 Said, "a±tLT\8 means SOmeth±n81£ soneChLn8 is comln8." --a-- Mr. Sc'hroec\er ±s an author and 8eneaLog±st ar\d Ln \962 compLetec\ a book ''WHERE A LAD IS" an accollnt of Vachel Lindsay, the poet.