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It turns out there’s a little disagreement about the mother of my great-grandmother, Anna Dora Roberts Bays. I’ve always thought she was Sarah Tackett, the daughter of Abner Tackett and Elizabeth Caudill. I’ve recently found out, though, that one of my cousins believes her mother was Rosa B. Williams. This morning I decided to see what I could find out. Sure enough, in the 1910 US census, I found Hiram Roberts, his daughter Anna D., and his wife Rosa B. I figured I had to be wrong on this one, and started changing my computer records (don’t ever do that until you’ve given things at least a day to settle out). The 1890 and 1880 censuses are incomplete, so I couldn’t go back and check them. So I started trying to find out more about Rosa B. Williams. I didn’t find much, other than an 1880 marriage between Hiram Roberts and Rosa B. Williams in Morgan county, Kentucky. That was more evidence that I had made a mistake somewhere, although as far as I knew, Hiram was born in Rowan county. So I started checking Rowan county records.
I found a marriage record for Hiram Roberts and Sarah Tackett in Rowan county (22 May 1884) witnessed by his father (Hiram) and her father (Abner). This was my original source for Sarah Tackett. I also found Hiram and Sarah buried next to each other in Caudill cemetery in Rowan county. This is the same cemetery where Anna and her husband (my great-grandfather Joseph Walter Bays) are buried. So that leads me to believe that Anna’s mother was Sarah Tackett, who died in 1888 (one year after Anna’s birth). However, Hiram died in 1905, so he doesn’t show up in the 1910 census. There is a Rose B. Roberts in that census, who is a widow. Her father is living with her, and his name is listed as William “Eaegan.” She also lives fairly close to my great-grandparents.
So were there two Hirams? One in Morgan county and one in Rowan county, both born about the same time. Or was there one, who was married to both Rosa and Sarah at the same time? I haven’t been to Morgan county yet, so I can’t verify that 1880 date for Rosa’s marriage to Hiram. I don’t know yet, but here’s what I suspect happened.
Hiram married Sarah in 1884. They had at least one child, Anna, born in 1887. Sarah died in 1888. In 1890 (not 1880), Hiram remarried, to Rosa (Williams or “Eaegan,” I’m not sure which). This explains the widow Rose in the 1910 census (who had no children living at home). It also explains why Anna and Joseph are buried in a Caudill cemetery, since the Caudill’s would be Anna’s relatives, and Joseph’s by marriage. There’s still a couple of questions, though, and I think I’m going to have to make a trip to Rowan county (and probably Morgan county) to try and clear them up.
If you like audiobooks, and I know lots of people do, then Random House Audio has an offer for you.
To promote their Car Share Program, they’re offering 5 free audio downloads. All you have to do is sign up for their monthly newsletter on the website, and they’ll email you a link to the downloads. Pretty easy. You don’t get really weird titles, either.
- The Geometry of Sisters by Luanne Rice (10 hours 48 minutes)
- The Alibi Man by Tami Hoag (6 hours 2 minutes)
- “Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades” from The Demigod Files by Rick Riordan (1 hour 17 minutes)
- “Including One Called Hell” from Fraud by David Rakoff (35 minutes), and
- “Mercy Watson to the Rescue” from The Mercy Watson Collection, Volume 1 by Kate DiCamillo (20 minutes).
Not bad for a little time. Thanks, Random House!
What am I talking about? Your 2010 Census form, of course! We sent ours in last week, so we’re already part of the (currently) 54% participation rate for Indiana. You can see how that rate changes in the widget I’ve added to my sidebar, or you can check your own area’s rate at the Census website.
So, what is the census, and why is it important?
The census is a count of the population of the United States conducted every ten years. It’s specifically mentioned in the Constitution (Article 1, Section 2) for the purpose of apportioning members of the House of Representatives and direct taxes. The 14th amendment changed the method of counting people (“other Persons” than free now counted as whole people, rather than three-fifths), while the 16th amendment changed the way taxes are apportioned. While the Constitution doesn’t explicitly allow the use of census data for any other purposes, neither does it prohibit such use.
The main purpose of the census is still the apportionment of House members. That’s why Indiana is now down to 9 Representatives, instead of the 11 it had when I was born. That reason alone makes it very important to complete and return your Census form. You do want Indiana to have all the Representatives it’s entitled to, don’t you? Currently, another big use of census data is in the allocation of Federal spending. The funding of hospitals, job training centers, schools, senior centers, emergency services, and public works (bridges, highways, etc.) are all affected by the census. With the state of Indiana’s budget, it’s important that we count everyone. Finally, it gives people like me a huge amount of information to mine for little nuggets of fascinating information. If you’re concerned about privacy, don’t worry. It’s against the law for anyone, especially Census employees, to reveal specific data (names, addresses, Social Security numbers or telephone numbers). The Census Bureau treats this very seriously.
Historically, minority groups such as African-Americans, Hispanics, and the homeless have had low participation rates. I hope this will change this time, and I encourage everyone in minority groups to participate. If you’re in a same-sex relationship, please see this information from the Williams Institute on filling out your Census form correctly.
Need another reason to return your Census form? It’s required by Federal law. There’s a $100 fine for not answering the Census (although I don’t know personally anyone who’s ever been fined). In addition, there’s a $500 fine for providing false information in the Census form.
I’m still having some behind the scenes problems, but everything else looks pretty good.
Let me know what you think of the new look.
I’ll be doing an upgrade tonight, and then we’ll get back to normal around here.
I hope.
I’m reading Bill Bryson’s The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid in preparation for next month’s book discussion. Although I’m about seven or eight years younger than Bryson, his memoir of growing up in Iowa in the fifties is bringing back some memories for me. It really was a much simpler time: less crowded, less technologically advanced, and stupid people were allowed to do stupid things all the time.
One thing I’ve remembered: It was the late 60’s or early 70’s. We were burning trash in an open fire in the back yard (yes, it was still legal, even then). My brother (although he’s not stupid – anything but!) heard a ticking sound, and went to see what it was. Turned out it was an aerosol can someone had pitched in the trash. Well, needless to say, the can exploded just about the time he got there. He had the extremely good sense to drop and roll, which is more than I would have done.
So, did anyone learn anything from this experience? Well, my parents learned not to put aerosol cans in trash you’re going to burn. I think my brother learned not to get too close to an open trash fire, because you never know what’s going to happen. Me? I learned that you don’t wear shirts made of synthetic fabric.
Like Bryson’s stories, this one ended well, with no lasting harm to anyone involved. If you haven’t read his book, you really should. And if you can come to our book discussion, we’ll be very glad to have you.
Well, we had our book discussion of The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer today. It went quite well. Lots of discussion, very lively. There were myself and ten or eleven women present. I did learn one thing today: Even when men and women are reading the same book, they’re not reading the same book. I enjoyed The Tender Bar very much, which surprised me. I don’t usually like memoirs.
It did bring back memories of when I was living in Florida. Alcohol was never a part of my family life, but when I went to Florida, I also started drinking a little. Later, I started going out after work every night with my boss. He was going through a really bad time with his wife, and we’d get totally messed up. For some reason, the bars we went to were never like Dickens/Publicans. Maybe a regional difference? After a while, I decided that wasn’t something I wanted to do, so I just stopped. Since then, I hardly ever drink alcohol.
Sometimes I miss those days.
(Crossposted from Book Talking)
On March 17th at noon, we’ll be discussing The Tender Bar by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer J.R. Moehringer. The Tender Bar is the author’s memoir of growing up in a household of mostly women with an absent father. He tells about his search for a father in his life, and how the men of the neighborhood bar become surrogate fathers.
“The Tender Bar is a beautiful, gravelly love letter to [an] amorphous father, a melancholy romance between a boy and a corner saloon that’s as smoky and heart-crackling as a Sinatra 78.” – The New York Times Book Review
This best-selling and award-winning book is a fascinating, highly entertaining look at growing up with a big piece of your life missing. Come join us at noon on the 17th to learn more.
We meet at the New Albany-Floyd County Public Library.
Our library had an African drumming workshop today. It was well attended, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Here’s some photos from the second session. I wish I had my camera at the first workshop, because there were about four times as many people there.
My New Albany Gallery
I’ve started bringing my lunch (with my schedule, usually dinner) to work with me. It costs less, and it’s healthier. Here’s what I made for today. It’s pretty quick and easy.
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