Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Sep 1st - Searching farms and cemeteries with Norm and Marlene.











Greetings!

Today, we met and thoroughly enjoyed Norm and Marlene Miller. Offering to join us in another day of family research, the four of us headed back to Wang. First, we stopped off in Waverly, where my grandfather's second wife had taken him when he died - for burial in her home town cemetery.

Arriving and asking around in town, we found the St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery just north of town east of the railroad tracks. Walking the large hill together in rows, I found his grave overlooking the river, within earshot of the train's whistle. I think he would have approved of the location.



Earlier in the day, we spoke to Constance Soine, another of our cousins be speakerphone from Norm and Marlene's kitchen. Connie had inherited the Soine family farm in Wang, and we asked her if we could visit the farm later in the day. She happily agreed, and gave us directions. She also indicated the location of another church and cemetery we might want to visit. I promised to send her some photos, and invited her to participate in the family tree project on Ancestry. She is eager to do so, and promised to add special stories on family members.


Our visit to the Wang Cemetery was one again the highlight. Combing through the graves stones with Norm and Marlene was so much fun. Here a relative, there a relative, oh look - isn't this one too. It was especially good to show them the special building which had been constructed in 2004 by the membership which provides an explanation of the origins of the church, contains a directory, and a list of the present membership.

But the cream on the cake was what we found inside the church. There are shelves of records of the church committees, ladies aid society, and a great wall display holding photographs of the confirmations from 1902 until recently. Talk about valuable genealogical records! Marlene and Pat had to drag Norm and I out of there.


I'm including one photo that I took of the Class of 1941, which features our own Constance Soine at 14 years old.

To view all of the photographs for the day, click on: Sep 1st -Searching farms and cemeteries with Norm and Marlene

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