Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Thos H. York & Isaac James Sowers - Philadelphia Area

Signed up at ancestry.com this morning. After all, I gotta do something to get through this winter. I do have some forks in the fire with my latest business adventure, but that's what I said three months ago. Time will tell. Some smart web savvy person will "get it" and of we go.

I mentioned to my mother about finding a David York (grandfathers uncle) born in Dover, Delaware after she hinted that some/part/all of the family does originate from there. I spliced a few things together and it all made sense, but she disagreed with his occupation in 1880; an "ice helper." Naturally she probably wasn't listening (I get blamed on that too) but she didn't take into account this was when he was 19.

I get blasted from all angles when I discover something. She doesn't do the internet and never will, so she still thinks it's almost like a magical box with immediate answers. One thing I keep finding on this side of the family is the reference of being a chauffeur with Abington Township in Montgomery County Pa. I've found it three times with the following:

Isaac J Somers - great grandfather
Uncle Babe Toomey - grand mothers brother
My grandfather - he did drive a gas truck at one time

So what was a chauffeur in those days? Truck driver? Probably a combination of that and an actual limo car/buggy driver. After all, that was the classification here in Florida to be able to drive a truck before they changed the licensing requirements back in the early 1990's. I believe the same was true in Arizona where I had a license in the late 70's.

This one surprised me on ancestry. Not sure who posted it. Could be that black-white part of the family I heard about today. Edit: Nope not that part of the family. Somebody in Millville, NJ.




Another discovery in what appears to be my great grandmothers parents judging by the records I have and the dates. By the way, the dates on these tombstones were unknown until today by our immediate family. There's also a reference found in that they were married on February 6, 1876.




Occupations sure were different in this time. A few house painters here and there. Gasoline attendants, sergeant of police, envelope maker, picture show attendant, dairyman, and shirt textile mill worker.

I was getting pretty frustrated after awhile trying to find stuff, then my nephews daughter pops in and more or less told me I was doing it wrong. Oh okay, a nine year old knows eh? Apparently so. But if I did go through all the long video introductions I would have eventually found it. Yep, just like the TV commercial. Once names on my personal tree are entered, little leaves do pop up leading to more information. Shown below is as far as I got this afternoon.



Incidentally I would have never gotten this far had it not been for my mother who did much of the tree work in the past. There's still more to go on the Guthrie side that will go into great-great grandfather, and further, or to one born in 1763.

1 comment:

  1. Very interesting! I have from the cemetary in Abington a list of all the Yorkes interned there, dates and cause of death. I also took pictures. I'll find that stuff and scan it for you. If I remember right, one of Pop Pops brothers was quite young and died of a broken neck.

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