Huguenot History Featured in "Family History" magazine

If you're interested in Huguenot history, check out the November 2009 issue of "Family History" magazine. There is a great article entitled "The French Connection." that details Huguenot history in Great Britain. The estimated 250,000 of them married into the populace after arriving there in the 1500s and 1600s and it is now reported that 80% of the UK population has Huguenot blood.

There is an excellent synopsis of the persecution of Huguenots in France that caused them to scatter to places as widely diverse as the "new colonies" that became America, to Africa. The writer references the book, Days of the Upright, a History of the Huguenots, in describing the meaning of the word "Huguenot":

"It is a combination of a Flemish and a German word....In the Flemish corner of France, Bible students who gathered in each other's houses to study secretly were called Huisgenooten, or 'House Fellows', while on the Swiss and German borders they were termed Eidgenossen or 'Oath Fellows. Gallicized into Huguenot, often used deprecatingly, the word became, during two and half centuries of terror and triumph, a badge of enduring honour and courage.'

The magazine is published in London, England. I found my copy in the Barnes and Noble store in Eugene, Oregon.

THEY'RE MARRIED!

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Brinton and Ashley Cary of Bend, Oregon. 

Decades ago one of my weekly tasks as a news editor for a small community newspaper was to write the wedding stories.  I had so little patience with the mothers of the bride and bridegroom who wanted every little detail included...from the everlasting description of the bride's dress to the "delicious refreshments," the "gorgeous flowers" and the impressive honeymoon destination. I was certain the women had never had another exciting moment in their lives.  WELL....

It's a good thing that newspaper aren't publishing those kinds of articles anymore because I spent last night writing about my grandson's wedding (thinking it, not actually putting it on paper!) and I am sure that it would have been a 50 page manuscript when completed!  I am now walking in the shoes of those women I found so irritating...and I'm only one of several grandmothers.  :-)

So I will refrain from publishing my version of the wonderful day and simply say that this was a beautiful wedding and my grandson chose well.  All of you in our extended family now have another cousin or niece.

SATURDAY IS THE BIG DAY!

I have an excuse for non-posting for so many days:  I am just too excited that my grandson, Brinton Cary, is marrying Ashley Henderson on Saturday, October 24!! 

It will be a wonderful day with so many friends and family planning to attend that I will never figure out who they all are.

Another lady to add to our huge extended family!  Check back here after the weekend for photos and details!

Are We Related?

The following chart was published in Twigs and Branches in March 1991. It is a great way to explain the reason there are so many "cousins" in our Elting line!

 2 parents
 4 grandparents
 8 great grandparents
 16 great-great grandparents
 32 great-great-great grandparents
 64 great-great-great-great grandparents
 128 great-great-great-great-great grandparents
 256 great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents
 512 great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents
 1024 great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents

That Pesky Final "E"

"...One never knows what will be found in military records. The affidavits filed on behalf of Civil War veterans' widows are especially interesting and usually filled with all sorts of information in their attempts to prove not only that they are the actual widow, but that they are destitute and have not remarried.

The following information appeared in an August 18, 1886 affidavit signed by Mary (Brodhead) Eltinge as explanation for why her last name differed from that of her late husband, Daniel D. Elting. Who would suspect that a comment on the age old 'to E or not to E' dilemma of our family would be found there?

              '...that for a number of years prior to the year 1860 nearly every branch of the Elting family wrote and spelled the family name with the final 'E' and which was the original way of writing and spelling the name in English. That Daniel D. Elting the husband of the claimant always wrote and spelled the name without the final 'E' and the only reason why claimant wrote and spelled the name with the final 'E' on Eltinge was that she considered it the correct way and liked it better and the name when written looked more finished and appeared better.'

One would think that the actual descendant of the Elting(e) family would have the final say, but he died first, so I guess she won. To further complicate the issue for the government, Dr. Edgar Eltinge sent an affidavit re Daniel's death, but listed the name as Capt. Daniel D. Eltinge! That caused the paper to be returned with the the question 'Is Dr. Eltinge clmts brother?' scrawled across the bottom of the page. Poor Mary. Adding that final 'E' to her name just increased her problems. "

                 Originally published in "The Historian" official newsletter of the Bevier-Elting Family Association of New Paltz, NY.  June 2003. Page 2.  By Grace Elting Castle

"The Recipe"

I'm still cleaning my office...and finding amazing piles of paper that there is no reason to keep! But a few treasures are appearing that will be added to this blog in the coming days. The following was published in "On Huguenot Street," the official newsletter of the Huguenot Historical Society of New Paltz, NY, in February 2000. I thought you might enjoy reading about an adventure I had with two of my grandsons.

A Whole Gallon of Yuck

By Grace Elting Castle

Eric Roth's newly-discovered recipe for non-alcoholic beer seemed just the right project for two young Oregon men about to make their first trip to New Paltz and their ancestral stone houses. The ingredients were carefully collected, the recipe decreased to a more manageable one gallon, and the project was begun.

Kyle Utterback, the 12-year-old in charge of most of the cooking during this special three week visit to Grandma's Illinois home, measured and stirred and wondered if this was really the way it was supposed to be done. His 14-year-old cousin, Ty Cary, observed the preparations and was certain that nothing good could come of anything that smelled so badly!

The plan was to save a special bottle of the 'brew' to take to Eric so that he could sample it during Stone House Day and perhaps have his photo taken with the cook and his helper (critic). But, on the morning the trip was to begin, 'the recipe' as it had been dubbed, was smelling so obnoxious that Kyle refused to taste it, and Ty announced that he would not be riding in the same car as the special bottle!

It was left to Grandma Grace to be the official taster---and she has yet to recover! This recipe turned into the most horrible, foul-tasting and smelling concoction imaginable. No, actually, it was unimaginable  and indescribable. Such spitting and sputtering you have never seen. Nor are you  likely to have ever witnessed such hilarity and carrying on as was displayed by the boys as they watched their Grandmother try to recuperate from 'the recipe.'

Needless to say, the brew was promptly poured down the sink, followed with a little prayer that it wouldn't eat the drainpipe, and our faithful archivist escaped having to pretend to like his special bottle of brew. We suspect it was the yeast that created the stench and bad taste---but we're not brave enough to try it again to be certain!

Note: The editor's note that appeared with my article stated that food historian Ms. Peter G. Rose, confirmed that the foul taste was probably due to the increased potency of modern yeast as opposed to the weaker consistencies commonly used in the 19th century. Alterations to the original recipe were also published.

Those Office Cleaning Surprises: Carlisle Notes

Though I don't do it nearly often enough, I love cleaning and sorting the stacks, piles and files in my office. Yes, it's the typical writer's room with just enough (most of the time) room to get to the computer, but this "stuff" is all really important, you know? 

So, recently I've been diligently going through everything trying to get this room to match the rest of the house.  Some months ago I donated a large amount of my books...but alas they've been replaced by new ones.

I've started to ship off files of information collected over the past decades hoping that the new owners will actually get around to writing about the topic that I once thought was "the one!"  I've stopped clipping items from the daily newspaper, except for items that might be used in upcoming articles for PI Magazine.  Good starts, I think. 

A couple of days ago, somewhere in one of the heaps, I found an envelope postmarked "1979" and received from my great-aunt Frances (Carlisle) Lanigan, who has since walked on. Inside was a treasure trove of family genealogy information.  Obviously, it was sent in response to my request when I thought genealogy was my calling.  I've since realized that the family STORIES are what I love to research and to write about, but I am so happy to rediscover Auntie's notes.

My Grandmother Pearl (Carlisle) Smith, Frances' older sister, had often mentioned that "We're related to President Grant."  I had forgotten about this note from Auntie:

            "Dency Ann King's mother was a Grant before marriage---
a relative of Ulisses (sic) S. Grant---the president."

Dency Ann (King) Carlisle was my great-great grandmother, grandmother of Pearl and Frances.

I'll have to check with the family genealogists' records to see what proof there might be, but this is the kind of interesting tidbit that can lead to an interesting family story.

These interesting names and dates were included in the envelope of notes. The persons mentioned are my great-great Carlisle grandparents and their children, including my great-grandfather John Edward Carlisle.  I do not have "official genealogical verification" for these dates, though I have no reason to doubt them.

George Carlisle                                b. Nov. 20, 1831

Dency Ann (King)                            b.  Feb. 28, 1837

                                                          d. Dec. 25, 1912

Children:

Ebenezer Ashley                             b. Oct. 15, 1852

                                                         d. March 1933

Frances Antoinette                         b. Nov. 3, 1855

John Edward                                   b. Oct. 24 or 26, 1857

George Washington

      Dennis                                       b.  Nov. 19, 1860

Ellroy Ellsworth                              b.  Dec. 14, 1862

Archibald                                         b. July 2, 1865

Jeffie & Sister  (died as babies)    b.  June 23, 1867

Minnie Dency                                 b. Aug. 26, 1870

                                                         d. Jan. 11, 1940

Hector Gregor                                b. Dec. 12, 1872

                                                        d. Jan. 12, 1940

It was John Edward Carlisle (above) who married Lillias Ann Horner. Their only child, Pearl Eleanor Carlisle was my grandmother. An earlier entry on this blog sought contact from anyone having information on the late Lillias (sometimes written as Lillian)  Horner Carlisle.