Memorial Day is a day set aside to honor our war dead.

My 3great-grand uncle Wilson L Starkey paid that ultimate price. He died during the Civil War. 

Wilson was born in 1835 in Greece, Monroe, New York and his parents were Benjamin Starkey and Mary Ridgway. He enlisted in the Illinois Infantry Volunteers, Company C, 15th Regiment at its formation on 24 May 1861. After his father's death his mother remarried a Daniel Lewis.

He  died aboard the Hospital Ship Red Rover on the Mississippi River on 27 July 1862. Although there is a little confusion as to whether he died the 26 or 27. The official records state the 27th. Exactly how he ended up on the Red Rover is not clear. He had remained with his company until after Shiloh and then was detailed to the Signal Corps and assigned to the gun-boat Bragg. Now whether he remained on the Bragg until he got sick and then was transferred to the Hospital ship is unclear. The records do state that he died upon the Hospital ship Red Rover from Congestive Chills (Malaria) and was buried at Spanish Moss Bend on the Mississippi River. Although, where he is presently buried is not clear. His remains may have been moved to Helena Arkansas, but I have not been able to verify this. After the war many soldiers remains were transferred to cemeteries instead of being left in some field.

Wilson was married for a short time in late 1859 early 1860. The record states that he and Eleanora R Stone  were married but no date or place of marriage is given. The record does state that where ever they were they returned to Eleanora's parents home when she became sick. She died in March 1860. Wilson is listed with Eleanora's family in the 1860 Census in Illinois, but she is not. Her parents state in an affidavit that their daughter Eleanora died without issue and that Wilson never married again before his death in 1862.

**The above information came from a Mother's Pension applied for by Wilson's mother Mary R Lewis. 

Tombstone Tuesday

I am not sure if these are the same tombstone, but different sides or two different tombstones. The pictures were taken by my brother Tony Lee Baker Sr. 

They are found in the Plains Cemetery in Athens Ohio 

 William Martin 

Died

Mar.13.1881

Aged

71Y.6Mo12d

Mary Bodine

Wife of

Wm Martin

My Grandparents Marriage Certificate 

I was blessed to received my Grandparents, John C Bionaz and Elizabeth Grace Hawke, original marriage certificate. If that was not a blessing by itself, on the back of the certificate is the names of those who attended the ceremony.

This Certifies

That on the -19th- day of 

May

In the Year of our Lord 1929

John Charles Bionaz

and

Elizabeth Grace Hawke

were by me united in 

Marriage

at 1205-10th ave San Francisco, Cal

William J Fisher, Pastor

7th  ave Presbyterian Church

Witnesses Evelyn Bionaz

               WJ Hawke

Mr. & Mrs. W.P. Rosewell                                              Mrs. Peter Lewin

Florence J. Prince                                                            Mrs. Elizabeth Lovelace

Mr. & Mrs. L. W. Lewin                                                 Mrs H C. Hawke (Bride's mother)

Mr. J J Boche

H.W. Lear

Mr Floyd H Clayton

Mr & Mrs H? E. Beard

Mr. & Mrs. A.T. Wright

Miss Charlotte Bionaz (Groom's sister)

Mr. John P Bionaz

Mr. Cyril J Watts

Mrs. O. Bionaz (Groom's mother)

??? Emury Bionaz

Hazel Gracia

William Lawler

4 Generation Boche/Bionaz

                                                                                                          about 1935, California
Elizabeth Joan Bionaz is my mother. Her parents are John Bionaz and Elizabeth Hawk Bionaz. Grandpa Johnny's mother is Orpheline Boche Bionaz. Orpheline's parents are Peter J Boche and Charlotte Mary Ducley.
Orpheline and her parents were born in Northern Italy.

Asha was born

25 years ago today, 14 Jan 1988, I went home from the hospital crying my baby just would not come. She was two weeks late and it had been 6 weeks since the doctors first thought she would come. Is this baby ever going to come? I wondered. That night after putting the other children down to bed and getting ready for bed, I went to the bathroom and my water broke. Lucky that I did not have a big mess to clean up, but now what. All the various plans we had for what to do with the other children went out the window. There just was not enough time. So my husband took me to the hospital and dropped me off. Thankfully we only lived about 5 minutes from the hospital. Then he took the other 3 children, all sleepy and not knowing what was happening, to a lady from church who lived about 5 minutes past the hospital. He got back.

The lady who watched the other children said the next day the only way I could of had a girl was if she was named Asha Elizabeth, otherwise it was a boy. Well it was Asha and she was a wonderful addition to our family.
(I would have added a baby picture, but I realized I did not have any already scan and my scanner decided it did not want to work today.) 

Lucinda Dunham Minard (Miner) Winchell

My 3great-grandmother's death certificate. I am grateful to my sister-in-law Lisa for finding this record. She needed to think outside of the box to find it. My 3great-grandmother's name at time of death was Winchell, but everything except the last name is correct.

REGISTRATION OF DEATHS                                 page 75

1. Full name of deceased   Lucinda Michell
2. The Color (a)               White  
3. Sex                              female
4. Age, (at last birthday)   seventy eight  (78)
5. Name of the father of deceased   Charles Dunham
6. Name of the mother of deceased  Mrs. A
7. Occupation of deceased
8. Place of birth of deceased America
9. Name of wife
10. Name of husband Jonas Mitchell
11. Date of birth of deceased August 29  1804  Date of death March 20  1882
12. Cause of death (b) Typhoid Pneumonia
13. Name of place, town or township, and county in which the person died  210 Wells St Milwaukee
14. Name and location of burial ground in which interred  Forest Home 
15. Any additional circumstances

I HEREBY CERTIFY, That the above is a true return of the death and other facts above recorded.
    Dated at   Milwaukee
                        Milwaukee  County,             E H G Meachem   M.D.
    Wisconsin, this 21st   day of   March    1882
         Residence             218 Hanover Street               County, Wisconsin
 

Recorded this       22        day of        March              1882
                  

What I was doing on 9/11/01

I was substituting at Lonoke High School. The teacher was doing something at the school but could not be in the classroom. She had planned on the students watching a video. As classes changed from 1st period to 2nd period some male students came in talking about what had just happened in NY. Now High School students when they have subs try and pull the wool over the subs eyes and try to get the sub to change the lesson plans so they can goof off or have a free day. So when these boys came in talking that was what I thought they were trying to do. Shortly after that the teacher came in and confirmed what the boys were saying and turned the TV to the news and I watched the news all day on 9/11 and talked with students about it all day.

One thing that I thought was amazing was that during the day the projections of how many were dead was 20,000 or more and that when the final death count came out the dead numbered so few compared to the number originally thought. So many people changed their normal routine that day and were thus still alive. My hearts go out to those who lost their lives, but we also remember God was there that day and saved so many more from death.