52 Ancestors #20: Dianne Kay Palmer Wetjen

Happy Birthday Dianne!

Dianne Kay Palmer was born to Gladys Hackett and Nelson Palmer on the 21st of October 1940.  The story is that they expected a boy and were going to name him Paul (after Nelson's brother-in-law, Paul Mohney).  But judging from the adorable baby book that Gladys compiled they were more than happy with their bright eyed baby girl.  Dianne was also greeted by sibling, Doris, who had waited 11 years to be a big sister.

Dianne grew up in Butler Pennsylvania where her father taught school.  He also had the best camera around, taking pictures for the school and many at home.  He frequently captured her with her mother:

Nelson also took stunning pictures of Silver Lake and the Mohney's vacation home in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey.

Dianne graduated from Butler High School in 1958 and began her studies at the State University of Pennsylvania, Indiana where her mother had also been a student.  She remembers that she had wanted to be a doctor but that was not an option for women in those days. Choosing between secretary, nurse and teacher, she started in education.  But she was really looking for her MRS degree.  And she found just the man for it!  Theta Chi fraternity was going caroling in the snowy town. Dianne didn't want to go but she accompanied her roommate.  The group was led by Alan Wetjen.  She remembers he had a red wool jacket with frat pin made with rubies and pearls and gold.  Dianne has always loved jewelry!!  They were walking and singing when things got slippery and he held her hand to keep her from falling.  When she got home, she told her roommate she was going to marry him.  She was the first girl in her class pinned at the Coronation Ball ceremony in January.1959.  Al came down over Christmas and met her family.  They married at the end of her sophomore year in 1960 on her parent's anniversary of August 21.  From the looks of her high school graduation photo it's no surprise that Al was glad to lend a helping hand!

Dianne finished her education at Alleghany College in Meadville, PA where Alan was teaching. They also spend their first 4 summers in Tallahassee where both completed Master's degrees.  Alan's degrees are in Math and Dianne's are in Reading.  After building a lovely home, Alan decided he didn't like where he was teaching and they moved to Long Island New York where both found teaching positions.  This was their home base for many years.

After 10 years of marriage, they were ready to add to their family.  Son Eric was born in 1969.  Dianne said he was "fun enough for her" and enjoyed watching him grow as she continued her work as a reading specialist.

Dianne and Alan retired in 1994 to Marco Island Florida.  Of course, being retired didn't keep her from being busy!  Dianne has helped found two charter schools, ran two large clubs, and worked to add a wing to the local library!  She was recognized for all she does in the local paper and, of course, it included a pictures of one of her lovely cats.

She is still a force in the community.  Dianne also has a flair for fashion and I love looking through her photos to see what the popular hairstyles were throughout the decades!!  Of course, I can't leave you without a sneak peak at the lovely man she married!

Alan Wetjen with his trademark smile!

52 Ancestors #19: Doris Drake and James Hackett

It seems likely that I will never have 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks as I had hoped for this year.  But I always believe that something is better than nothing so here's another post!

James Sends Greetings to Doris

Doris and James on their wedding day

I wrote about James Nelson Hackett previously here.  I even included a copy of the newspaper wedding announcement to Doris Laura Drake.  So I was thrilled when our aunt Dianne Palmer Wetjen showed me a postcard she had from James to Doris written in 1899, less than 2 years before their wedding.

Here is the address side:

One cent for a postcard that traveled from Westline Pennsylvania to East Sharon (see the handwritten note far left referencing McKean which is the likely final destination) Pennsylvania that must have passed through Wellsville, New York.  Though the card is dated 21 December, it is postmarked 22 December and was in Wellsville December 23.  I wonder when it reached Doris?  No street address needed at least!

This is my transcription of the note:

                                                                                                   Dec. 21 1899

                                                                    Westline                                       

Miss Doris L Drake

                                                           Dear Friend:-

I will write you a few lines to let you know that I am still among the land of living & won't be to Smethport before Xmas or rather Saturday. So you can't look for me as soon as you did expect but I will be there in time to have a fine sleighride providing that the weather is suitable for us.

I send my regards to all.  I am the same as ever.

                                                                           J

I find it so sweet that he would reassure her that he was coming and even give her something to look forward to.  It appears that he attempted to cross out the word Xmas to tell her it wouldn't be until Saturday.  Christmas was on a Monday that year so I'm wondering if he was coming later in the holiday week.  He was only about 30 miles away from his hometown of Smethport. I wonder what he was doing in Westline at the time.

Here is a map of the locations including Olean where they were married in August of 1901.

Thanks Dianne for keeping this amazing artifact from 115 years ago!  It makes me think there was a love story here that I wish we knew more about.

52 Ancestors: #17 Capturing Four Generations

I've heard it said that we can only remember two generations back - our parents and our grandparents.  So it is always exciting when we can get four generations together and document it in a photo.  Of course, the youngest generation is usually an infant when the photo takes place.

So we were excited earlier this year to take a 4 generation of the Hammon-Brooks-Norton-Cox family.  I've uncovered another 4 generation photo here at Silver Lake New York just hanging on the refrigerator.  So to honor these events I am posting the three different 4-gen photos in my data base.  

Here's my newest discovery:

#1

Hackett-Palmer-Norton

The very tiny man in the middle of this photo is James Nelson Hackett, affectionately known as Grandpa Hackett. I wrote about him here.  This picture was taken at Butler PA on Easter Sunday, April 1968 at the home of his daughter, Gladys Dorothy Hackett Palmer.  Grandpa Hackett died the next year in April of 1969.

Gladys is the small woman next to him and they are both standing in front of her very tall husband, Nelson Pattison Palmer.  To Nelson's right is his son-in-law, Clinton Edward Norton, and his daughter, Doris Jennie Palmer Norton.  Nelson and Gladys' youngest daughter, Dianne Kay Palmer Wetjen is on their left (and her husband Alan Wetjen is probably taking the photo).  

The three adorable children are Eve, Phillip Nelson and Chris Norton.  It's so cool that this time the youngest generation is old enough to remember their great-grandfather.  Here's how it looks in a chart:

                                                 James Nelson Hackett

                                                                  |

                                                 Gladys Hackett Palmer

                                                                  |

                                                 Doris Palmer Norton

                                                                  |

                                                Eve, Phil & Chris Norton

#2

Here is a picture from my side of the family (which I published previously here):

Spangler-Nifong-Autry-Brooks

Here is the family tree tracing the women from left to right.

Rebecca Jane Spangler Nifong

     |

Mary Esther Nifong Autry

       |

Ruth Autry Brooks

         |

Walter Allen Brooks (my father's brother)

#3

Hammon/Brooks-Norton-Cox

And finally here is the newest four generation photo, taken this past Mother's Day 2014:

And in case you can't remember these faces I'll give the tree.

Jean Hammon & Robert Autry Brooks

|

Janet Esther Brooks (Norton)

|

Danielle Helen Norton Cox

|

Chloe Rose Cox

52 Ancestors #10: James Nelson Hackett

We are ten weeks into the challenge from Amy Johnson Crow to blog about 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  This is make and break for me - it's starting to seem tiring but I learn something every week so I plan to press on.  I usually try to post on Sunday night but it was busy with a run to the airport yesterday so I'm taking this gorgeous Monday morning to write about my husband's great-grandfather:

James Nelson Hackett

Known as Jamie to family and Jim to friends, he was born on 1 March 1878 in Smethport, McKean, Pennsylvania. He was the oldest of four children born to George Hackett and Ormanda Burt.  Jamie spent his entire life in McKean county and made his living as a farmer with a fertilizer sales business on the side. He was not a big man.  His World War I draft registration card describes Jamie as being 5 feet 7 1/2 inches tall and of medium build.with black hair and brown eyes.

It is fun to read various reports of James Hackett in the McKean County Miner, the local paper.  Here is the notice of his wedding to Doris Laura Drake.

This wedding date continued for the next two generations as their daughter Gladys married Nelson Palmer on the same date in 1928 and her daughter, Dianne married Alan Wetjen on this day in 1960.  It was warm weather for all of them!

James and Doris had two surviving children, Leo and Gladys.  Gladys is my husband's grandmother. Two daughters, Opal and Pearl, died as infants.  Jamie was a life long Methodist and involved in the community as a charter member of the Grange. He was physically active, even climbing a tree at age 75 to shake the hickory nuts. (His son-in-law, Nelson, was too nervous to do it himself!)

 After Doris died in 1958, James lived another 11 years on his own.  Eventually he would spend the winters in Butler PA with his daughter Gladys because she worried that he would live on oatmeal (which he loved but he would never wash the dish afterwards!).  His last days were spent in a "rest home" in Smethport where he died on 8 April 1969.  Both James and Doris are buried in Smethport's Rose Hill Cemetery.

Even though James stayed in the same area his entire life, his posterity has traveled far and wide, from Africa to Tahiti, and points between.  I wonder if he would have liked to travel too.

Who is the REAL George W. Hackett?

I was excited to find an obituary and gravesite for George W Hackett, Phil's 2nd great-grandfather.  Now I have birth and death dates!  The Hackett family were solid Pennsylvania citizens spending decades in McKean County.  George was born and died there.  His son James (Phil's great-grandfather) was born in McKean County and died nearby in Potter County.  And so it goes.  So it should be simple to find his George's parents, right?  WRONG!!

There are many trees on Ancestry that point to a James Hackett as the father of our George (also known as George W).  James appears in the 1870 as James Hacket (one t) with a son named George.  But this George is listed as being 10 years old.  Our George was born in 1852 (per his gravestone and his obituary) which would make him 18 in 1870.  Yet all the other particulars check out, especially that they are living in Keating, McKean County, PA.  Looking at other 1870 census records, we find numerous George Hackett/Hackets born in the 1850s in Pennsylvania - much closer in age to our George.  But none of them living in McKean County.

So what to do?  Looking at the original image of the 1870 census helps.  Here George, son of James, is listed before a younger son, named Judson.  Judson's age is clearly marked as 12.  The numerals used for George's age are very faint with a clear one and a curled 0.  Or is it a 6?  I think it should read as 16.  Even though this doesn't match with the age calculated from his obituary/gravestone, it DOES make sense when we look at the numbers recorded on other censuses as George aged.

George's age as listed on the 1900 census would have him born in 1856.  In the 1910 census, his birth year is calculated as 1853 and in the 1920 census, it finally appears corrected at 1852.  I need to go and find the 1860 and 1880 census records to complete the set.  It will be interesting to see how old George is listed on these!  It appears that math was not his strong suit  - or maybe he just didn't like birthdays?

So if we assume that the Hacketts stayed in McKean and also that the age listed on the 1870 census is indexed incorrectly, we can conclude that George is the son of James and Eliza Hackett, with a younger brother named Judson!  Now on to climb more of the Norton/Palmer family tree.