Week 16 - A Quiet Life - 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

 My Mom fits this theme, at least on the surface.  I would ask her frequently to tell us stories from her childhood etc, but her answer was always "I don't have any stories".  End of conversation. Yes, it seems a quiet life.  I realize now, too late,  that I was not asking the right questions or asking them in a vague way that allowed her this answer.  But having said this, she did tell us a few things in passing.  

There was the time her brother chased her with  a fake snake and after that she could not even look at a photo of a snake.  In later years, her young rambunctious grandsons tested that and it was not quiet!  

They had a Victory Garden during WW2. Possibly quiet unless there was a snake involved!

When she was little, her mother would dress her and her brother up for contests and parades.  Parades would not be quiet.

Her paternal grandmother was Italian and never learned much English.  My mom would sit with her and some cousins listening to stories in Italian.  She had no idea what was being said as she never learned to speak Italian.  Depending upon how animated the stories were, maybe not quiet. 

Her wedding had excitement, when the planned venue for the reception had to cancel at the last minute and they had to scramble to find a new location.  Not quiet.

I think she must have had a busy social life as a teenager, as she would sometimes speak of friends. One in particular was from an Italian family. Her name was Santa.  I think if you spent much time with Santa, it would not be quiet.  She was very boisterous and happy and loud, but mom loved her and would look her up whenever we visited her hometown.  I think my mom was drawn to this type of friend tho, as she had another one later in life who was the same.  Mom probably thought she was a quiet person but these friends drew her out of her shell and she would have fun with them.  Many of her newer friends were made when she started riding horses. Not always a quiet activity.  

My mom lost her mother when she was 10 years old and  seven years later, in one years time, she lost a loved aunt and three of her four grandparents, a tragic kind of quiet for their home and the families. My baby brother died at birth and his absence was quiet. After her mother died, mom stayed quiet about an illness she had because she became afraid of hospitals where her mother spent the last two weeks of her  life.  

So I think my point is that no one's life is really quiet. It's full of everyday happenings, happy and sad.  You might not be doing adventurous things or travelling to exciting places, but the everyday things make it a life full of activity. I guess it all depends upon how one defines quiet whether or not you have a quiet life. 

Please give credit and post a link to my blog if you intend to use any of the information written here. My blog posts are © Ann M Sinton 2026. All rights reserved. 

An Autumn Memory

 Just today, I read a blogpost that reminded me of  shared childhood memories and thought I would write mine down as well. The author of the blog grew up on the same street as I did.  It was a great neighborhood.  The shared memory involves the orchard that she writes about.  

The post that stirred my memory can be found here:  https://open.substack.com/pub/nancyhonicker/p/mein-freund-nikolaus?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

My memory is of Sunday drives that our family would take in the autumn back in the 1960's.  We would always go out to the Hegins Valley in Schuylkill county and visit the same Blazer Orchard.  On our way to and from we would watch for an especially colorful tree bursting with the reds, yellows and oranges of autumn.  Dad would pull over and we would get out and collect a few of the most colorful leaves.  I can remember, in the days before seat belts in cars, standing up in the back seat and leaning over the front seat to look for the trees. It was a very beautiful and scenic trip out to the farmlands. When we arrived at the orchard, Mom would pick out her purchases, always Red Delicious and Golden Delicious apples were brought home.  The orchard had many types of homegrown fruits and vegetables and regularly advertised in our hometown newspaper.  We always looked forward to these short trips every year. Just one small but special childhood memory.  

Pottsville Republican, Oct 17,1964

Pottsville Republican, Oct 12, 1963

Pottsville Republican, Aug, 24, 1962

My family has other connections to orchards.  I wrote about my great grandfather who was a prominent orchardist in both Indiana and Pennsylvania.  His son also went on to establish his own orchard in Biglerville, Adams county, PA and supplied apples to the Musselman company.  Their story here:

 https://eclecticann.blogspot.com/2022/02/week-7-landed-52-ancestors-in-52-weeks.html

My husband and I drove thru the rolling hills in Adams county a number of years ago and we were amazed at the acres and acres of fruit trees.  I have a fruit crate from my grand uncle's farm. It serves as a nightstand now.  But I do remember my grandfather having fruit from his brother's farm.  It was delicious! We have continued visiting various orchards and farm markets over the years with our children and grandchildren, sometimes picking our own apples and peaches. A tasty family legacy.

Please give credit and post a link to my blog if you intend to use any of the information written here. My blog posts are © Ann M Sinton 2026. All rights reserved. 

Week 6 - 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Favorite Photo

 As stated in the introduction to this week's theme of Favorite Photo, it is hard to ask a family historian to choose a favorite.  There are so many. The photo that I chose to write about has several reasons to place it in that category.

In May of 1921, a family reunion was held by the McGuins.  The McGuins are my great grandmother's family. There were several posed group photos and candids from this reunion taken but I like this one best for several reasons. First, it is a casual pose of Mom and her daughters.  Even my photographer husband  liked it for that reason. And next it is two generations  which would not have been possible a year later. Mom, Rebecca Growden McGuin fell ill later that summer,  and never recovered well, died April 17, 1922.  Her daughter Theresa is my great grandmother and it is one of the few photos of her as a younger woman. 

Each woman in the photo has a different expression on her face.  Mom looks pleased to have all of her children about.  Clara looks determined, for what reason, I don't know.  Agnes looks worn and tired and sad.  Mary looks funloving and pleasant and Theresa looks like don't mess with me.

This reunion made the local newspapers, as many of that time did, detailing the location and attendees and the fact that it was noteworthy for being the first time the family was all together in one place. One small inaccuracy is that there was another son, the eldest child,  who died young at age 23 in 1833. 

Bedford Gazette, May 20, 1921, pg 4

 The women in the photo are left to right:

Clara McGuin Fisher : She was born on 30 Mar 1863 at Beans Cove, Bedford Co, PA and married John Thomas Fisher on 22 Jan 1889 at Bedford.  She was Thomas' 2nd wife. He brought two daughters into the marriage. Clara and Thomas had no children of their own. Clara died on 26 Aug 1949 at age 82 in Bedford.  Her husband died the following year.

Everett Press, Friday, Aug 31 1945

Rebecca Growden McGuin :  She is the mother and was born on 18 Aug 1839 in Cumberland Valley,  Bedford Co.  She married William Thomas McGuin on 5 Jan 1858 in Centerville, Bedford Co.  They would have 9 children,  4 daughters and 5 sons.  Her husband died in 1905.  Rebecca died on 17 Apr 1922 in Bedford, the last of her siblings.  She was living with her youngest child, Theresa at the time of her death. 

Agnes Melissa McGuin Dumpert : Agnes was born on 26 Jan 1861 in Bedford, Bedford Co.  She married Joseph Dumpert on 6 Feb 1878 in Beans Cove, Bedford Co. They would have 5 children, 2 daughters and 3 sons. This family appeared to move frequently.  Between 1879 and 1900 they lived in Bedford PA, Ohio, Nebraska, Indiana and finally back in Bedford. According to her death certificate she was divorced at the time of her death on 24 Dec 1949 in Harrisburg, PA. Her former husband died in 1936.

Muncie Evening Press, Wed, Jan 4 1950

Mary Josephine McGuin Will : Mary was born on 4 Feb 1876 in Bedford.  She married Peter Will on 21 Nov 1897 in Bedford.  They would have 3 daughters  all in Bedford.  Mary passed away on 14 Jan 1943 in Bedford.  Her husband died in 1949.

Bedford Gazette, 24 Nov 1899

Theresa Beatrice McGuin Arnold : My great grandmother, Theresa, the youngest child of Rebecca, was born on 9 Oct 1880 in Cumberland Valley, Bedford Co. She married William Ralph Arnold on 18 Jun 1902 in Bedford.  They would have 10 children, 5 daughters and 5 sons all in Bedford, PA. Her husband died in 1961. Theresa died on 22 Dec 1967 in Bedford.  

Bedford Gazette, 1967

Please give credit and post a link to my blog if you intend to use any of the information written here. My blog posts are © Ann M Sinton 2026. All rights reserved