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Year 2001
Dear Aika, Alyson, Christa, and Melissa,
I am your grandmother, the mother of your fathers, Matthew Blaine, Frank Wesley, and Steven Benton. My mother was your great-grandmother and her mother was your great-great grandmother and so it goes. These people are our ancestors who lived long ago in a world different from our world today.
In 1800, two hundred years ago, Ships and boats were powered by wind in their sails or by men rowing with oars. On rivers boats floated down stream but one had to travel by land or row back upstream. On land man traveled by foot, horseback, or drove wagons or buggies using horses, oxen and other draft animals. Steam boats, railroad trains, cars and airplanes were yet to be. Roads were not paved and they became muddy with ruts in rainy weather. Homes did not have indoor plumbing, electric lights, radios, TVs, or computers. In 1800 slaves were used on large plantations for labor, the Northern States did not have slaves but the Southern did.
In 1800 medicine relied on herbals and whiskey for pain relief and cures. Anesthetics were not discovered until 1840. The surgery done was mostly amputation. In 1800 there was no photography. If a person wanted a picture of someone an artist was hired to draw or paint their picture. Therefore, only the rich or famous had their picture taken.
Columbus, a European, discovered America with its lands sparsely inhabited by a native people. It seemed like an invitation to any poor man, adventurer, prisoner, scientist or peasant looking for a better life with freedom from old laws and religious persecution to come to America. So they came from different countries and speaking different languages. Some looked for gold, others for land, or a new way to make a living. You have many more ancestors than we know about but I hope you will enjoy these stories of some of the ones we do know. The record of a family’s history is made up of many branches and is called a family tree. It is also called the study of genealogy.
Love , Grandma
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- Delpha Squires Family Tree (4 KB)
Contains Family surnames Squires: Huhn, Elliott, Skippon, Moran, Ray, Comer, Northrup, Chase, Chamness, Teague,
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