Okay, about 30 some odd years ago, we lived in a wonderful, very small community, where everyone was related...except us...we thought...we found out later that Bob was related to one of the families there, on his mothers side, but we had no idea that she was related to me as well, until this month!
So, a few weeks ago Cloris, Becky's grandmother, (and two of my children's 4th grade teacher, just a fun side-note), called Bob to find out if he knew a man who was related to them. He had passed away and she was really concerned about knowing who he was, and how he was related to them. If Bob didn't know him, she was going to the funeral to find out who he was! Of course Bob had no idea who he was, because we have never been close on that side of the family, trust me it's a large family. Bob started doing a little research on him, and couldn't find anything, so we kind of forgot about it. That same day she called back and said that she had found out who he was and how he was related! Bob and Cloris started talking about their family and how they were related...they are actually 2nd cousins. She told him that she had lots of photos of their family, but there was one person who she didn't have many photos of...Mary Ann Howard Bergeson, her great-grandmother.
Well, then my ears perked up and I started listening because, Mary Ann Howard was my grandfather's aunt on my mother's side.
Let's just start with the common relatives for Bob and Cloris. Meet, the Niels Bergeson family.
Meet the Howards!
So...this is my family, on my mother's side. I actually have three grandfather's in this photo, but that's a subject for another day...trust me... ;0) James Howard, my great-great grandfather, is sitting next to Caroline Richards, his second wife. My great-great grandmother died crossing the plains coming to Utah. The two men standing right behind them, right in the middle, are James Howard my great-grandfather, on the left, and John Howard, who is also my great-grandfather, on the right...whew!! Standing next to John, is, Mary Ann Howard, my great-great aunt, who married, Frederick Bergeson, Bob's, great-great uncle. Are you confused yet? We aren't sure who the man with the white beard is. His name is William Griffin, and I suppose he was a friend of the family, no one is sure, but they must have considered him family to include him in the photo.
Maybe this photo will help...or confuse!
So...Mary Ann and Frederick started something big!! And I married, Bob, and it just continues to go around and around. Cloris and Bob and Cloris and I, all share a grandfather and a grandmother, just on different sides! I knew we were all related somehow...hey, Adam and Eve!! There is so much more to this story, all good, it's so interesting, how it all fits together!
My daughter's husband, James, is also related to me on my mother side...the Howard side, I just found that out tonight while doing a little genealogy ;0) I may not even tell them...it's complicated! Sorry LeAnn, (she'll know what I mean). I think he's related to Bob as well, but just through marriage...I think.
Now that I have you totally confused, go and listen to this cute song by, Ray Stevens. My family tree isn't quite like this, but it's a cute song, and makes me feel way better about my situation!
And while you're at it...have a wonderful week!!
Hugs and Love,
Barb
9 comments:
I found lots of distant cousin connections while doing genealogy. It is bound to happen. My first cousin went to pick up his date one evening when her mother said, “You can’t date him; he’s your second cousin once removed.” My cousin was so upset and wanted to know if he was related to the whole stinking county. Ha!
You are adorable, Barb! Loved reading about your family tree and yes, I am confused by it all. I kind of want to stick out my tongue at them while the picture was taken so they'd smile. I know that is what they did back then but still. :-) xo
What a great story Barb, isn't just crazy how all that came about. Is is funny how they never smiled back then. I can't help it even when I'm taking a picture of someone, I smile. Trying to take a passport photo was insane. We did a million takes to get one of me not smiling haha. Thanks for sharing your amazing story. One of these days I'm gonna do that DNA test through Ancestory.com I think it would be fun to find more about our family gene pool.
Have a good week Barb!
Saimi
Such an interesting story, Barb! And I always love seeing the old time photos and seeing the styles of that day. Hope your week is a good one! xx Cheryl
Barb....I loved seeing the old photos. As far as I know, we do not have any photos from way back when. Aren't families interesting?! Our daughters gave us (my husband and I) the ancestry tests for Christmas and we haven't even done them yet....kind of forgot about them. Guess we'd better get to work to find out just who we are, huh?! Our oldest daughter jokingly stated that the reason they gave us the tests is because they were hoping we really weren't their parents...ha, ha, funny.....anyways, I hope she was joking......
Geneology is so fascinating Barb! I could spend hours and hours on it and never get bored! How wonderful that you have these photos! What a blessing! We have very few old photos of family members. I find it so interesting how faces and features are passed down through the generations. I have one photograph of my great, great, Great Grandmother and in her face I see all the faces of my cousins! Its amazing. The Valley where I come from, EVERYONE whose family has been there for a while is related in some way. Its all very interesting. Love the Ray Stevens song, lol. He sure had a knack for making us laugh! Love and hugs to you! xoxo
Wow, that was awesome. The photos are marvelous and it's all fascinating.Now you know that I am not surprised at all that we are related. If you can give me the details, I would love to see the connections on both sides. At least that solves the mystery. We truly are sisters in more than one way. Thanks, for all your thoughts on my post. I love you dear girl. I would love if you came down with Amber sometime; we could have a blast for sure.
Let me know the puzzle piece?? Sending lots of love and hugs your way!
Oh my goodness Barb.....how interesting! so you've done gone and married your cousin?? just kidding! Isn't it a small world and sometimes all this information is never passed down from one generation to another. I love family history and genealogy... It's hard to believe that Sam and I are not related...as he has a large family and so do I. My dad was kid #15 in his family, so I have cousins that I've never met. I hope you will record all this history and pass it down to your kids. I'm glad you shared this information... Have a good weekend...and big hugs
I am making a family history book and googled Frederick Niels Bergeson (he's my great-great grandpa) hoping to find more photos of him, and I came upon your blog. Mary Ann Howard is my great-great-great grandma. She actually married a man named Judson Tolman.
Frederick Niels Bergeson married Sarah Ann Tolman. Sarah is Mary Ann Howard's daughter. So you were close!
Not that any of this matters, just wanted to set the story straight. ;) And nice to meet a distant cousin! Hugs!
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