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An early Halloween Story.....

In the spring of 1819 the residents of Ipswich’s Chebacco Parish (now the town of Essex) saw lantern light in the graveyard at night. Soon they discovered that the graves had been disturbed, and several families discovered that their relative’s graves were empty. Eight graves, going back to 1811, were disturbed.

According to a book by Christopher Benedeto, the winter of 1817-1818 was mild and the weather conditions were perfect for body snatching. Two little boys die

Since 1995, Ira Glass, one of the greatest storytellers of our time, has been the host of the radio show “This American Life,” a weekly hour-long show that is primarily journalistic non-fiction but also features essays, short fiction and occasionally memoirs.

I had the pleasure of seeing Ira live this past weekend at Jones Hall here in Houston. My experience was less like sitting in a large hall and more like sitting in a living room listening to a fascinating storyteller spin a variety of yarns.

I just came across some interesting information regarding my grandfather, Frank Boyd. Frank originated from Waycross, Georgia. What I now know about Frank is his mother's name was Parilee and Peter Boyd was his father.

What is my interesting information? Frank had a wife. Her name was Inidiana and they had a daughter, Annie.

To some this just may be this is great, you found a grain, that little piece that gives our search gratification. What I found was sadness.

I had an Aunt Annie that I never kne

News Clipping from the Salem Evening News, June 3, 1938 (a Massachusetts Newspaper).

Old houses in Essex Of Historical Interest

“To start this series of articles on Old Houses in Essex, which will appear in this paper every Friday for a period of several weeks, there can be no more fitting house to start with than the first house over the line in Essex from Hamilton, on the main road from Beverly to Gloucester through Essex.

This house is known by the old settlers of Essex as the “Joe Gill Allen” h

I previously wrote "Searching For Me" but have come to an additional afterthought. I look like my father, Cecil Boyd.

Out of his six children that's what everyone said. Then I thought of his father, Frank Boyd. Frank died when I was five, so my recollection is not that keen but I remember that his complexion was a reddish bronze. He had high cheekbones and shiny soft hair, known to African American's as good hair. But there were his eyes. His eyes seemed to have the ability to look through you as

We recently completed a video that we were hired to do by Bright Sky Press, a Houston-based publisher of fine books for national and international trade distribution. The video explores the message of Venerable Master Miao Tsan, abbot at Vairocana Zen Monastery in Garden Grove, CA, lecturer and author of several books including his newly published, “Just Use This Mind.”

We have mothers and fathers and think that's enough. It's not. You look at their faces searching and wondering how theirs made you. Finding an ancestor says that's where my eyes come from. I like wearing socks and loafers. My parents didn't but someone in my past does. I know this because I don't know a name, and haven't seen a face, I know their walk. They walk like me, or I walk like them.

I successfully researched my mother's father side and was able to obtain information back to 1825, Bob and

To celebrate Family History Month we are announcing our next three webinars:

• Blogging for Beginners with DearMYRTLE on Wednesday, October 20, 2010
• New Family History Technology with Paul Larsen on Wednesday, October 27, 2010
• Organize, Share, and Publish Your Digital Photos with Heritage Collector Suite with Marlo Schuldt on Wednesday, November 3

Join one or join all three! Registration for every webinar is free and open to anyone. Register at www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp.

Hotel Windham

Bellows Falls, Vermont

Bellows Falls, Vt Oct. 31^st 1929

Dear Eunice,

We left North Adams in a snow storm yesterday morning for Troy N.Y. at 9.43 A.M. got to Troy at 11.55 A. M. Took N. Y. Central train to Albany at 12.50 got a room at the Stanwix Hotel right near the Union Station had dinner at Woolworths 5 & 10 cent store took a walk around wonderful store and buildings & we saw here in Albany, went to the Albany Theatre at 2.15 P.M. until 4.30 P.M. went out to supper at 6.40 went up

There are many spiritual elements to writing the book In Wake of a Following, and with them, comes fear. I worry that stirring up memories from the 1950s Virgin Mary sightings will release a measure of bad karma. My investigation is a lot like descending into a dank, unlit basement. Deep down, I’m troubled. With each bad thing that happens to my loved ones – my sister’s cancer, financial stress, a recent car crash – I wonder. Is my writing obsession a catalyst of doom?

I search for strength to co

I started looking for my Rufkahr ancestors about 15 years ago. Since then, I have discovered where we came from (Algermissen, Hannover, Prussia, Germany) and that there are 3 branches of the family. The Ohio branch spells their name as Rofkar (pronounced Rafker), the Missouri branch (my direct line) who spells it as Rufkahr (pronouced Roughcar) and an Arkansas branch spelled Rofkahr (pronounced Rofker). There is also an off-shoot spelling of Roughcore from my Missouri line. The family gossip is