52 Ancestors Week 20: Travel

Question

Time for the next 52 Ancestors challenge...

Please share with us a profile of an ancestor or relative who matches this week's theme:

Travel

Share below.

You don't need to share every week to participate, but those who do will earn badges. If this is your first time participating and you don't have the participation badge, or if you pass a milestone (13 shared profiles in 13 weeks, 26 in 26, or 52 in 52) let us know here. For more about the challenge, click here.

Comments

Travel is a hard theme, every one of my ancestors just about travelled! Some of my favourite ones I've already show cased in the 52 ancestors as they lived such interesting lives. 

My Grandfather Percival White travelled around quite a bit, when living in India he was a train driver, so he covered many miles. When the partition of India occurred in 1947, he brought his new wife, my mother and her two sisters to Australia. They travelled by ship. They docked in WA and in SA then finally stopped in NSW where they started a new life. After a few years he decided to move the family to Brisbane and then in his later years he moved to Bundaberg and that was to become his final resting place.

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Annis Bedford was one of the first ones in our family to travel. Her story of her travels from Yorkshire to Utah was written up by Janet Packham Evans.

It was on March 28, 1857 that Annis left from the port at Liverpool for America on the ship “George Washington”. Jesse B. Martin recorded the beginning of the sea voyage in his journal. They arrived in Boston, travelled to Iowa City by train and boat, travelled by oxcart to Salt Lake City. Being a teacher, she kept a diary. She died in Tocqueville, Utah in 1876. 

                                                                                                                                                 

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Eowyn,

TRAVEL?!?..... how you torment us.      Well perhaps you're right in asking this question in these times.   While we can't travel,  thinking back to our ancestor's travels will distract us from being  "house bound".

As always,  thanks for everything you do for us.

Answer 1

Captain William Wheat (1772-1868) traveled the seas, trading with the West Indies and South America.

At eighteen he was mate on a vessel owned by a Connecticut merchant whose son was captain. The ship, with a cargo of horses, was caught in a storm off the Bahamas. The mate, who had directed the shortening of the sail, was surprised by an order to turn the horses loose on the deck and "make all sail;" at the same time the cry of the watch, "Breakers ahead!" was not heeded by the captain at the wheel. Calling a sailor to take the wheel, the mate seized the terror-stricken captain, thrust him below and closed the hatch... When the circumstance was reported to the owner of the vessel the captain was given a berth on land, and the mate was promoted." — Wheat Genealogy, by Silas Carmi Wheat, page 70; published in 1903.

Answer 2

My great uncle Dale Omelia Allison (1903-1978) spent a great deal of time traveling ... he was an officer in the secret service  of the army not long after WWI & during WWII ... thus he traveled all over the world.

He sent home many items from various cultures ... some were war related ... knives .. swords ... and so on.

Dale's niece (and my aunt) Catherine "Katy" Ann Rammel (1928-2017) was a doll collector ... almost every time he went somewhere new he would send her a doll from the country or region.

Below is a photo of Katy with a "small" number of dolls from her collection. 

Answer 3

3G Uncle Charles Truslow was born in what is now West Virginia and loved the water.  In 1851 he began his traveling life on the river as a clerk on the steamship Postboy.  In 1854 he married in Gallopolis, Ohio.  At the beginning of the Civil War, he enlisted in the Confederate Army and was assigned to the quartermaster's department where he held several positions throughout the southern states.  After the war, he again entered river service as Master of the Steamboat Montgomery.  By 1880 he'd settled in New Orleans, Louisiana, eventually becoming president of the Red River Transportation Company.  He died at home in New Orleans on 3 Nov 1914 at the age of 84.

Answer 4

 I guess travel to California after the discovery of gold made me the All American Mutt I am! As a 3rd and 4th generation Californian, my GGrandparents or GGGrandparents were travelers in the 1850’s. David and Magdalena Strauch arrived here in 1858 from Germany via New York and then the Panama route. Elisha Sample Driver born in Indiana, traveled from Iowa with an ox cart in 1850. His wife Elizabeth Forsyth arrived from Illinois via wagon with her parents in 1853. James Whitsitt Blanchard reached California from North Carolina then Illinois in 1853 via steamboat and wagon with his first wife and subsequently married my GGmother Hannah Filer who came from Massachusetts in a wagon in 1850 with her brother. Thomas Johnston was born here in 1855 to William Ekenhead Johnston who arrived in 1853 from Ireland via St Louis and married Jane Strauch born here 1862 to David and Magdalena! My only outlier is my Grandfather Stanislav Hakl, who arrived in New York in 1907 from Russia, wended his way to California to marry Sarah Jane Johnston in 1924.  Check em out! Here's Hannah!

Answer 5

When I first started researching my family tree I could find very few people who travelled and nobody who had emigrated from England. Most of my ancestors stayed in one place or made one journey from a rural location to a city to find work. Gradually as I expanded my research to further branches of my family I have begun to discover some families who travelled overseas. One example is the family of George Hicks Terrill who was born in Cornwall and after he married Elizabeth Ann Gladding in 1854 they emigrated to Melbourne, Australia where they had twelve children and appear to have had happy lives.
George's brother John married Elizabeth's cousin Catherine Gladding and they emigrated to the US and ended their days in Grass Valley, Nevada, California.
 

Answer 6

If you dont count the ancestors who "travelled" all the way from the UK to New Zealand in the 1800s and early 1900s,  then there are lots of people in my more immediate family who have done a lot of travelling.

Because NZ is such an isolated country, it became popular for young people to go an OE - or an overseas experience. This was usually done either between high school and university or after university and before getting married and settling down.

My father travelled by passenger ship to the UK for a Boys Brigade Jamboree in the mid 1950s when he was a teenager.

My older sister did her OE in Europe and the UK in the early 1980s. She met her future husband in Europe while they were on the same bus tour. They got married in 1986.

My aunt made several trips to the UK for genealogical purposes in the 1970s and 1980s. She later went on some cruises around the Pacific.

My mother went on a patchwork & quilting tour to California and Arizona in the 1990s.

And I travelled from NZ to Canada in November 2000. That was a one way trip and I have not been back. I am not in any hurry to go back to NZ either. I find NZ to be too small - and dare I say it - provincial? Canada is perfect for me!! The second biggest country in the world!!

Answer 7

The travelers I want to mention are pioneers, who were primarily agricultural people, who moved long distances on the hope of better opportunities as the country moved west.  The surname is also West, and they were from a part of Washington Co., New York that is on the border of Vermont, USA.   

I have a volume that came down in the family written by a girl named Narcissus West, https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/West-18805 who was the genealogist of her generation.  In it she documented vital records of her siblings, and with it I have been able to document them beyond the small farming town in which she lived.  

It was her brother Levi Wheaton West https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/West-6056 who was the traveler.  With my info from Narcissus, I located him in the censuses, 1850 Ripley, Chautauqua NY, 1860 - 1880 to  Monroe County,  Wisconsin.  After him, I could easily trace his son Ansyl to LaClede Co Missouri.

At one point I was looking for a male West to test our line's yDNA, and called the presumed relatives in Missouri.  I talked with a lovely lady, who listened with interest and all but said "You mean we're yankees?"  The dna did not get tested, but I could prove the paper trail was right.  So I put the corrected information on Findagrave.  

More recently I found a profile on wikitree that was from one of my found West cousins. https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/West-6056 I was able to reach out to that distant cousin to give her back her yankee roots.   All because of a girl Narcissus, who never traveled, but remembered her brother who did and with whom she lost touch.  She wrote about him, so some distant relative would eventually find it and  preserve the line for (we hope) posterity.  

Many families lost touch with their relatives who were pioneers going west, or in this case, west and then south.  Genealogy, and dna can bring us all back together.

Comments

I was curious if we were related..I have West in my tree and Adams too. And, LoL and  most ancestors a few generations in Southern Missouri. Checked we are 8th cousins, 2R.  But our common ancestor is [[Abel-9]] .

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I just had fun looking at our 18 mutual ancestors in 15 generations, which also include the Bosworths, which for me took me to a Mayflower line.  I worked a long time on the Abell/West/Bosworth connection, so I recognise some of your ancestors' names as the cousins!  Cole for example.  My Wests travelled from Swansea MA/RI to NY to VT with their Cole cousins.    If you want real fun, check out our mutual ancestors within 30 generations.   The Abell line is rich with royalty, lesser royalty, and all those barons and knights, and there they are!  It is a history lesson in our genes.    Thanks for responding!

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Yes, we spent 3 weeks last summer in Plymouth soakin' up history.  My 9th GGF w James Cole one of my favorite fun stories Ancestors...he was always in trouble with the Puritans!  Brought home a nice book, "Plymouth Colony, It's History and People". Brings new prospective to the way they lived .

Answer 8

This is a photo from great grand aunt Jennie Parker's album. This is what you did in the summer, if you lived in Western Oklahoma and had the wherewithal to get out of the heat and travel to Colorado. This was considered luxury travel by my maternal family.

    

Comments

What a fantastic photo s much are happening on this photo thank you for sharing Alexis

Answer 9

I have a number of ancestors who traveled.  Great grandma Hughey and many of her relatives moved from Kentucky to northern Michigan to get jobs in the iron works factories inthe frist part of the 20th Century.

My mom's dad emigrated to the US from Austria-Hungaryprior to World War I.

My great-great grandparents and their children migrated from Ontario to Michigan inthe 1880s.

Answer 10

My great-great grandmother, Carrie Dunn, traveled extensively in her youth. From her obituary:

In her youth she traveled in many parts of the world as a traveling companion to the wife of an English Army officer. She rode a camel to see the Pyramids in Egypt, traveled across the Himalayan Mountains, ridden an elephant in India, visited such places as the Holy Land, Arabia and the Scandinavian countries.

She also married my great-great grandfather at the Rock of Gibralter and moved out with him to Utah. Sadly, I don't know much else about her youth and travels.

Answer 11

My Aunt Maud https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Colville-431 was a school teacher.  She married late in life and they traveled extensively. 

Answer 12

My Great grandparents emigrated to the US from Austria-Hungary he traveled before world war one through ellis island and his wife came after also through ellis island as she got an eye infection on the boat and had to spend time in the hospital there.

Answer 13

Most, if not all, of may ancestors traveled...if nothing else, from one town to another in the same state or region. So, for this week's theme, I'm going to focus on a PGM ancestor who traveled from one country to a 'new world.'

Henry Baldwin-5 my 10th GGF was baptized on 8 February 1623 in St. Leonard's Parish in Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire, England. He emigrated from England during the PGM (year uncertain), but was the 21st of 32 signers of the town orders for Woburn, MA in April 1640.

Henry married Phebe Richardson, whose parents traveled from Westmill, Hertfordshire, England to Boston with Winthrop's Fleet in 1630. They, too, were early founders of Woburn, MA.

Henry Baldwin and Phebe Richardson had 11 children, all born in Woburn; however over the years and over the centuries descendants of these travelers have also traveled from East to West settling the country.

Answer 14

This week we learn about how my great-grandfather, Vincenzo raked in those frequent sailing miles: https://allroadhaverhill.blogspot.com/2020/05/52-ancestors-week-20-travel.html

Answer 15

Okay, here's a wild and crazy Story of Travel and Adventure that modern researchers have questioned in recent years. I offer the story here for people to ponder and question for themselves.

My 6th-great grandfather John Peter Salling was a Palatine Emigrant who sailed with his family to Philadelphia in 1733 on the ship Pennsylvania Merchant. They settled in Augusta County, Virginia by 1740. That alone is a substantial amount of Travel, but his story gets much crazier. Keep in mind that John Peter Salling personally wrote a manuscript in German of the story detailed below, from memory. It was then translated to English and incorporated into a report entitled Report on the Back Settlements of Virginia, which the Governor then forwarded to London in 1751. If his story was embellished, as many suspect, then he was likely responsible for that at quite an early date. His story has been repeated in many history books since that time.

The story begins in 1742  when Salling and four others left on an expedition to survey the western frontier lands for the Governor of Virginia. During his journey he was captured by natives who may have been confused by his German speech. As the story goes, he was taken by his captors on a lengthy journey as far west as the Mississippi River during which time he had numerous interactions and adventures. Salling was eventually sold or transferred to French authorities who imprisoned him in New Orleans. Salling finally escaped, making a circuitous journey back to his settlement in Augusta County Virginia in May 1745, reportedly by way of Canada.

There are many versions of this tale, some with rather detailed twists and turns, which further calls into question its veracity. There is no doubt that John Peter Salling himself related the main points of this fantastic story which included Travel all across the American frontier. Is it a true story, or a tall tale? How much of his story was exaggerated? Who knows! If mostly real it was certainly a remarkable story. If not, it's a testament to the incredibly fertile imagination of an early Southern Pioneer. No matter which, it's certainly a story worthy of retelling to my children and grandchildren.

That's the most interesting Travel Story I can think of in my family. You can read more about it here, and also here.

Answer 16

Week 20 - Travel. This week I am selecting John William Russell-16370, who was a school teacher in country Victoria, Australia. His career consisted of him spending a couple of years teaching in one country town, then being moved by the government to another country town for a couple of years, and again and again and again. He may not have travelled around the world, but he travelled more than most people in my family.

In Victoria, School teachers moving from one post to another appointment, were entitled to help with moving costs. He got into significant trouble, making all the local papers, when he forged a signature, to change a document, to get the government to cover his full moving cost, instead of the percentage allowed. We have a lot of newspaper articles on him because of this, and a couple of other incidents.

Answer 17

Lt. Robert Deane, RN, traveled from England to India and the to USA where he lived in New York. Deane-1139

Answer 18

My great grandfather Alberto Thébaud was born in Argentina to French parents, went back to France where he trained as a cook, then back to Argentina where he enlisted and served aboard the ARA Presidente Sarmiento, He travelled the world aboard the ship, including a stay in Senegal, then a French colony. He also traveled to the southernmost town in the world, Ushuaia, where he worked as a cook in the Ushuaia Penitentiary . Then he worked in several hotels, including a long stay in Uruguay. He finally died in the Andean region, in Mendoza, Argentina, while visiting his son Gilbert.

My second great aunt Elsie Bocquel  travelled a lot as well, she was born to French immigrants in a rural town in Argentinian PAmpas, then worked as governess to an aristocratic kid, Enrique Mignaquy Luro, related to the founders of the beach resort town Mar del Plata. Then due to diplomatic travels of their employers, she toured Europe and British India, where she stayed for two years in Shimla. She returned to Argentina after being diagnosed with cancer and died.

Answer 19

An interesting thing about my ancestors I've discovered is that, once they made the passage to America, they settled down, and did not travel much. Either in Ohio or Indiana, they were farmers for generations. I want to find the original immigrant ancestor as much as possible, but all 16 of my 2x great-grandparents were born in America. Nine of my known 3x greats were, however, immigrants and made the passage from Germany, or England, or maybe France or Ireland. William Granger and his wife Ann Hardcastle were both born in England. They were married in York in 1834 (or 1831), and at some point after that came over, settling in Mercer County, Ohio. They had 5-7 children, my understanding being that my ancestor, George Washington Granger, was so named because he was the first son born in America, in 1844. I'm not sure of that because it conflicts with Ancestry records and will need further research. But in any case, they made a major migration with small children in tow, and for anyone who has ever participated in a family road trip you know how stressful that can be! Small wonder they decided to settle down to a quiet life in the country. In fact, that seems to have been the case with all my other 3x greats who came over. They settled. They settled hard.

Answer 20

As my grandma used to say, this member of my family had 'ants in her pants' and certainly qualifies as a traveller!

Louise Felicie Jean/Poussard/Maclean known as Lottie Montal, was a late 19th/early 20th century French singer and stage performer in the 'opéra comique' style. She toured the world with her own and other companies from a teenager up to her late 50s.

Even after her retirement she did not sit still. Although living in London, she had a daughter in France and another in the US to visit! It has been quite a challenge to follow her around the world via the passenger lists and immigration records.

Edit: I am having problems formatting the link to Lottie's profile. Can someone please tell me how? I cannot find the info in the help section and tried a number of ways already!

Comments

Here's the format Jean-1006

Go to her page and at the top the : https:    line copy and paste into the little chain link button under URL on the chat 

When in a profile the format creates this link by putting [[Jean-1006|Lottie Montal]]    

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Thanks for your help Loretta but that format only works in profiles, etc. Finally worked it out - you have to use the 'link' symbol at the top of the comment box (next to the black A)

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That is exactly what Loretta was saying: "copy and paste into the little chain link button"

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Yes as correction, my computer had to install an update in between, of course sorry about that Jay. Main thing is we got it!

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While on this  subject, sorta...I want to know how to copy and paste text into the G2G chat without using a link?  I often want to add a text from a source and the only way I have found is to make it a link

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I've never had a problem pasting text into a G2G post, i.e. getting it there.  However, sometimes it comes out too large or too small, and then needs adjusting.  That can be a frustrating process!

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I wonder what is wrong with my settings then Julie ?  I right click and the paste option is not even there ?  And I see no button along the top for a paste either.

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I have a Mac so it may be a little different.  Wherever the text is that you want, highlight it and "copy."  Then just click into the "answer" or "comment" box for your post, and paste it.  No button or option selection necessary.

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Yes, Mac is totally different obviously, I finally found the answer when I went to the tech chat it's control V   to paste it .....  Here is the question answered in another post and I just used it, it worked !

"As I am sure most everyone knows, the mouse cut/copy and paste functions are disabled on G2G threads.  The workaround is:

CTRL + C to copy
CTRL + X to cut
CTRL + V to paste

For me, this presents two problems:

1. I have to take my hand off of my mouse and that slows me down.

2. When I am copying something with oversized or colored text, there is no option to "paste as plain text."

How I would work around this is to go to the address bar on the top of the G2G thread, right click paste, the info, then right click cop, then to the thread: CTRL + V.  This presented a few extra steps and really slows me down the work flow."

They did a whole discussion on it Copy and Paste keys

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I don't understand why you have to take your hand off the mouse.  I use my mouse with my right hand, and the keys with my left hand.

But except for that (or I guess, including that), you've lost me.  I love my Mac!

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I am so sorry Jay for stepping on your lovely post with tech thing.  Your ancestor seems to have been a dynamic individual !!

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Oh, well Julie that wasn't me having a problem with using control V and having to take my hands off the mouse..  That was just in the linked post about how to solve the problem, see my quotation marks around what the other user said.  But, at least now I can copy and paste, problem solved !

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Tis okay Loretta! I will know about not trying to use the mouse when using copy/paste now - another thing learned today

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Every day is a new learning opportunity !!!