Books - 52 Weeks of Personal Genealogy & History - Week #23

Books. What was your favorite book, or who was your favorite author from your childhood? What do you like to read now? Books or other formats? This is a weekly challenge from GeneaBloggers called 52 weeks of personal genealogy history.

In elementary school, I was addicted to mysteries and my first favorites were the Nancy Drew series. Another favorite was The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and the rest of the Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis. I continued to read mysteries and sci-fi/fantasy books throughout school and the standout books were The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien.

I do read a bit online, but my favorite format for reading is still a book. I'm tempted to buy a Kindle or other e-book reader, but haven't bought one yet.

An ongoing favorite is the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. The books are a mix of historical fiction, fantasy involving time travel, and romance. I discovered them after a trip to the UK in the early 90's and little did I know that the series would last this long. It was originally supposed to be a trilogy, but there are now seven books in the series with more to come. The series starts out going between post WWII and the 1700's in the Scottish Highlands and later moves to America. While I loved the first three books in the series, I found the later books to be overly long and not as interesting. Still, she has me hooked to find out the ending and the resolution to a mystery that was introduced in the first book.

Another series I've enjoyed are the Harry Dresden books by Jim Butcher. These are about a modern day wizard that solves unusual cases in Chicago.  My most recent book purchase is something completely different: Toward the Flame by Hervey Allen. It's a memoir of the author's experiences in WWI and involves the same division that my great-uncle served in.

Surname Saturday - Top 100 Irish Last Names Explained

Today's Irish Central has an article on the Top 100 Irish Last Names Explained. My Irish Creedon surname is not that common, so I wasn't surprised that it didn't make the list. The explanations are short, but might provide a bit of info when you run across a new name.

The MacCarthy name is associated with some of the same areas as the Creedon name. That name is much more common, so it did make the list:

"MacCarthy - Mac Ćarthaigh (cárthach, loving). The chief family of the Eoghanacht and one of the leading septs of Munster, prominent in the history of Ireland from the earliest times to the present. MacCarthy is the most numerous Mac name in Ireland."

The full article is here: The Top 100 Irish Last Names Explained. If you click on the Print button above the article text, you can bring the entire article up on one page.

Tombstone Tuesday - Timothy and Mary Ann Matson Creeden

This is the grave of my great-great-grandparents, Timothy and Mary Ann Matson Creeden in St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery in Celina, OH. The grave is in the Northeast Section, Row 13 of the cemetery. Timothy was born in 1846 in County Cork, Ireland and Mary was born in Clinton County, OH. The inscriptions read:

Timothy
Creeden
Died
Dec 14, 1899
Aged
53Y 8M 19D

Mary A.
1851 - 1925

CREEDEN

We were quite surprised to find such a large monument for them. From probate records, it appears that Mary purchased the lot and monument after Timothy's death. This picture was taken by the Mercer County Genealogy Society. More pictures are at: Find a Grave

Daniel Matson - Sunday's Obituary

Mansfield Ohio News, Jan. 10, 1928

Daniel Matson was the son of Asa Matson and Dolly Clevenger. He was born on Feb. 13, 1842 in Clinton County, Ohio and was the brother of my gg-grandmother Mary Matson Creeden. The Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) mentioned in the obituary was a fraternal organization of Civil War veterans who had served in the Union Army.

Secrets - 52 Weeks of Personal Genealogy & History - Week #22

Week 22. Secrets. Describe something about yourself that won’t be found on any record 100 years from now.  This is a weekly challenge from GeneaBloggers called 52 weeks of personal genealogy history.

Vehicle Assembly Building

I worked at the Kennedy Space Center during the summers when I was home from college. My Dad spent most of his career there and we often met for lunch or sometimes went touring around some of the lesser known places.

One thing that won't be on our work records is that we went up to the top of the 525 foot high Vehicle Assembly Building and walked on the roof! The glass elevator going up was exciting in itself and gave a strange sensation of standing in place while the ground quickly moved away. It was a beautiful clear day and the view at the top was breathtaking. That's a lunch break I'll never forget!