Week 11’s theme is “Fortune.” Merriam-Webster gives several definitions for fortune: A large sum of money; prosperity attained partly through luck; or destiny, fate. Here’s my story. Finland has a long and often confusing history.  It fell under Swedish realm in the 1300’s.  During the 1700’s Russia terrorized the people of Finland and was eventually ceded to…

As I sit here and contemplate the hint for this this week which is “Name is the same” I was drawn to my ancestor Charles Brown. When I started researching him, I found him in a small town in Iowa called, funny enough, Charles City. However, there were actually two Charles Browns who seemed to…

I have twin cousins, Toni and Teri.  Everything you hear about that special bond between twins was certainly true in these two.  They would finish each other’s sentences or reply with the same comment simultaneously.  They even would find out they both purchased the same article of clothing or piece of jewelry.  They even married brothers and went through…

Lee comes from a long line of Barneys in the United States. The Barney’s originally were Quakers living in England and came to America in the late 1600’s. Jonathan Barney, Lee’s 3rd great grandfather, was an early settler to Johnsburg, NY prior to 1807. It is possible he was influenced by the persuasiveness of John Thurman…

While in the Navy, I received orders to Spain.  Before I left, my grandfather gave me an old letter from a cousin of his who lived in the Netherlands.  My grandfather, or Pake, was born in the Netherlands and immigrated to the United States in 1912 with his family at the age of 4.  As an adult, Pake…

Week 6’s theme is “Valentine.” From Amy Johnson Crow….Do you have any Valentines from any of your ancestors? Or maybe you have an ancestor named Valentine. (I remember when I was little being surprised to learn that Valentine was a “boy’s name.”) How about an ancestor that you wish you could exchange valentines with? Have…

This recipe for Olikoken is from my Beppe (grandmother in Friesian) Mary (Vierstra) Dykstra. Mary Ola Vierstra was born on September 4, 1908, in North Strabane, Pennsylvania, to Antje (Anna) B. Boersma and Meinte Gerben Vierstra, recent immigrants from the Netherlands. She was the last born of 6 children and the only one born in…

PROMPT from Amy Johnson Crow: Tell the story of a favorite photo — who is in it, when and where was it taken, and why was it taken. Remember, it doesn’t have to be a sepia-toned Victorian era photo. It could be a photo you took last week! (We are part of our own family…

My father’s name was Joseph but went his entire life as Joe.  He was named after his grandfather Joseph Gerbens Dijkstra, who was named after his father Gerben Dijkstra. Joseph Gerbens Dijkstra was born in Workum, Friesland, Netherlands on Wednesday, 18 Jan 1871. He was the fourth child of Gerben Willem and Klaaske Douwes (DAMSMA) Dijkstra.  In…

My grandmother told me once that one of her ancestors served on the USS Constitution – “Old Ironsides”.  I remember during one of my childhood trips to visit my other set of grandparents, who lived in Massachusetts, we took a trip to visit the USS Constitution. Little did I know at that time that one of…