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.)