Why not Wiley!

Thursday, an article about Wiley Post came up in front of me.  Today, July 22, is the 90th anniversary of Wiley's becoming the first pilot to go around the world solo.  He also set a speed record on the trip.  

Wiley Post

Wiley Post was born Nov 22, 1898 on a cotton farm near Grand Saline, Texas.  His mother was said to be of mixed Cherokee heritage.  Wiley finished 6th grade and he and his family moved to Oklahoma.  This is where Wiley saw his first airplane in 1913.  He enrolled in an aviation school in Kansas City for 7 months.  He wanted to become a pilot for WW1 but the war ended before his training was over.  Bad luck followed Wiley with jobs and he ended up in a reformatory for a year after he resorted to armed robbery.  By 1926, he was a parachutist on a barnstorming circuit.  He worked for awhile on an oil rig but was blinded in one eye after a piece of metal pierced it.  He used the settlement money he received to buy his first airplane. It was also about this time that he met and became good friends with Will Rogers, a well known entertainer, humorist and newspaper columnist.  

Will Rogers

Wiley became the personal pilot for a few wealthy oilmen which allowed him to have access to some of the faster aircraft of the time.  This was also a time when many aviation records were being set.  Wiley set several. His first one was a speed record, NY to LA in 9 hours, 8 minutes, 2 seconds on Aug 27, 1930. On June 23, 1931, Wiley and a navigator set the record for an around the world trip in a fixed wing aircraft. 8 days, 15 hours and 51 minutes.  15,474 miles.  His next record was another around the world trip but this time solo in 7 days, 18 hours and 49 minutes on July 22, 1933. 

Jul 22, 1933 record

But Wiley wasn't finished yet, In 1934, his attentions turned to high altitude flying and helped develop the first viable pressure suit. His first flight in the suit enabled him to reach 40,000 ft.  and later 50,000 ft.  This suit is on display at the National Air and Space Museum. Apparently, the jetstream was discovered during his high altitude flights as well.  In 1935, Wiley attempted 4 high altitude non stop flights from LA to NY but all failed due to mechanical difficulties.  

Wiley in his pressure suit

Pressure suit at the National Air and Space Museum

Wiley Post and Will Rogers in Aug 1935

Wiley's final flight came on Aug 15, 1935, when he took his friend Will Rogers on a trip from Seattle to Alaska.  They came upon some bad weather and landed in a lagoon near Point Barrow, Alaska to fix their location and get directions.  ""On takeoff, the engine failed at low altitude, and the aircraft, uncontrollably nose-heavy at low speed, plunged into the lagoon, shearing off the right wing, and ended up inverted in the shallow part. Both men died instantly.""  Wiley was 36 years old.  And he accomplished all of this as a one eyed pilot. 

Aug 1935

I thought "I think I have some Posts in my family tree, let's check Wiley's family out".  So I did and did not find him related to any of the Posts that I had, BUT he did end up being related to me.  This frequently happens when I look into some of the interesting people that I read about.  This time we go all the way back to the year 1474 to find the common ancestor!  I know that is stretching the envelope a bit for a connection, but the search is fascinating.  We can track our connection thru Great Grandad Ralph Arnold to his mother Elnorah Amos, then to Sarah Mower (wife of our only Civil War ancestor), and back 13 more generations to a couple named Sir Thomas Sayre born in 1474 in Podington, Bedford, England and his wife Margaret Fairfax born in 1476 in Yorkshire, England.  All this making Wiley a 12th cousin 5 times removed to us.  

Images found at Wikipedia.

 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 2023. All rights reserved. 

Small Town to Automotive Executive

 

Oscar Lee Arnold  1888-1956

I ran across some interesting information, I know, I say that a lot!  But I was looking at some census hints in my tree and saw one for Oscar Lee Arnold which led me to other hints about him.

Oscar was born on Sep 19, 1888 in Bedford, PA, the oldest child of Harry Spang Arnold (a carpenter) and Martha Lee.  One census states that Oscar completed the 8^th grade, but by 1910, he was working as a bookkeeper in an office in Pittsburgh.  He was listed as single, but later, on Jun 30, 1910 in Wilkinsburg, he married Lila Moore of Johnstown.  Oscar and Lila had three daughters all born in Pittsburgh.  Oscar’s WW1 draft registration from 1917 shows him living in Houston, Texas and employed as a manager for Ford Motor Company and he was claiming an exemption from military service stating his dependent family and job in the industrial area.  He must have been granted that exemption or not drafted at all because there is no record of him having served. Ford’s Houston assembly plant operated from 1914 – 1932. It did produce war materials from 1917-1918 including boats, trucks and cannons and was developing armor technologies for equipment and men.  Oscar must have been transferred and was working as a Manager for the Ford company while living at 53 N. Fremont Ave in the Bellevue neighborhood of Pittsburgh according to the 1920 census.  Ford had an assembly plant in Pittsburgh from 1915 – 1932. It was located at Baum Blvd & Morewood Ave.  By 1930, the family had moved to Detroit and Oscar has risen to Vice President of a truck division. They lived at 19180 Canterbury Rd, an affluent neighborhood in Detroit, as the house they lived in had a value of $40,000 at that time (selling for over $500,000 in 2022) and they also list a house servant as living with them.  In 1940, the census shows that the family moved once again, (minus the older daughter Helen who had gotten married in 1933) to Chicago where Oscar is listed as a Sales Manager for an automobile company, possible General Motors.  Oscar’s 1942  WW2 Draft Registration card shows him as working for the Nash-Kelvinator Corp in Detroit at age 51. During World War 2, this company manufactured many different things needed for the war effort, from helicopters to propellors to  binoculars.  His youngest daughter, Marion, married an Army officer in 1943 and by 1950, Oscar had retired from the Nash automobile company and lived in the Biltmore Forest neighborhood of Asheville, North Carolina.  After 7 years of retirement, Oscar passes away from a cerebral hemorrhage on Apr 24, 1956 in Asheville.  Oscar’s middle child, Marie, lived with her parents her entire life and lived with her mother  after Oscar’s death until her own passing in 1972.  Lila, her mother passed in 1974 still living on Busbee Rd where they had retired to in 1949. 

 I found Oscar interesting because he was said to be a personal friend of Henry Ford.  Remember, the Ford company was still young, founded in 1903, when Oscar began working there.  So did Oscar meet Henry Ford somehow in Pittsburgh or maybe on a business trip to Detroit or after he began working in Detroit?   That would be interesting to know.  Imagine the conversations!  According to various news articles about Oscar’s death, he worked for the Ford Company in Pittsburgh and Detroit. Then later at General Motors and finally retired as president of the Nash Motor Company in 1949.  All of this with an 8^th grade education.  I did find one article in a Bedford newspaper that listed an Oscar Arnold on the Honor Roll in the Bedford Schools in 1901.  Oscar would have been 13.   I wonder what possible further education he may have had to be able to work as a bookkeeper in 1910?  Maybe self-taught?  Or a business school course?  Obviously, self-made and driven to succeed.

Our relationship to Oscar is that his grandfather, Henry Wertz Arnold, was my 3^rd great grandfather making us 1^st cousins 3 times removed. Not all that distant if you consider that Oscar was Ralph Arnold’s (our great grandfather) 1^st cousin. 

In writing this, which was originally going to just be a short paragraph about a cousin who knew Henry Ford, I came up with more and more questions about the things I was finding out.  I won’t put it all in here, but if anyone is interested in the Nash Company, as I became, here are a few links. I never knew most of this. 

http://www.usautoindustryworldwartwo.com/nash-kelvinator.htm

https://carshowsafari.com/from-cars-to-planes-and-back-again-part-five/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nash_Motors

 

 

Honor Roll under Second Intermediate

World War 1 Draft Registration Card

World War 2 Draft Registration Card

  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 2022. All rights reserved. 

 

Lots of Backyard Visitors

 I've always had an interest in nature.  This interest has pointed me to raising Monarch butterflies, planting some native plants in my yard and feeding the backyard birds to name a few of my activities.  I have to share what happened today.  

When I got up this morning, pre-dawn, I spied 4 Whitetail deer lying down in our backyard just resting.  I'm glad they feel safe enough to do so in my yard.  

Later, within 10 minutes of filling the feeder on my deck, many, many birds showed up.  It is a mild but cloudy day that may have contributed to all of the activity.  I began to notice that there were more than the usual customers arriving.  

First, the 4 Eastern Bluebirds that came yesterday, showed up again.  They are not frequent visitors to my yard, but have been seen the last few years, maybe once a year.  Then I noticed a Mockingbird. I have seen them in other parts of my neighborhood but never at my feeders.  Later, a Flicker came to the suet feeder. They are around but do not appear very often.  A Pileated Woodpecker appeared at the edge of our woods.  Lastly, the local Sharp Shinned Hawk flew in and scared everyone away.  This all happened over the space of about an hour and a half.  Some only made one appearance and others were back and forth all morning.  A special day of bird watching for me.  All I need now is for the local turkey flock to come by!

And, of course, the resident squirrels made their appearances.  We have the Gray, Fox and Red Ground Squirrels.  The chipmunks are not out and about yet.  

Here is a list of the 19 different birds that I  observed today.

Chickadee

Tufted Titmouse

Goldfinch, both male and female

House Finch, both male and female

Cardinal, both male and female

Blue Jay

Junco

Carolina Wren

Mourning Dove

Starling

Mockingbird

Eastern Bluebird

White Breasted Nuthatch

Red Belly Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker, both male and female

Pileated Woodpecker

Flicker

Sharp Shinned Hawk

Some photos from today

 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 2022. All rights reserved. 

Some Valentine's Day History

 While you are out buying those valentine cards for those special someones, think of Esther Howland.  Who is she? you might ask.  Well, Esther was born in 1828 in Worchester, Massachusetts.  And as the story goes, after graduating from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1847 at age 19, Esther received a valentine card from a friend.  In those days most valentine cards were imported from England and were very elaborate and expensive.  Esther felt that she could make a better one and less expensive at the same time.  Her father owned a book and stationery store and she convinced him to order supplies for her to make her vison a reality.  She also would import fancy laces, ribbons and specialized papers to create her cards.  Eventually she added silk and lithographs to her designs.  

Esther's brother was a salesman for his family's book store and took samples of Esther's cards on a sales trip. He returned with $5000 worth of orders.  Esther was hoping for $200.  She immediately setup an assembly line of local women workers to put her designs together to fulfill these orders.  She called her now business, the New England Valentine Company.  

In 1866, Esther injured a knee but managed to run her business from her wheelchair for the next 15 years.  In 1870, she was incorporated but still operated the business in her home.  In 1879, she finally moved the business to a factory.  And by 1880, her company was earning over $100,000 in profits yearly.  About 2.5 million in todays dollars.  One year later, she sold the business to an associate and retired.  Esther died in 1904 and sadly never married.  Esther is credited with commercializing the greeting card industry in America into what it is today.  Her cards are sought after by collectors.  

In looking at Esther's ancestry, I saw one coincidence in that her great great grandfather, John Howland, died ON Valentines Day in 1738, 90 years before Esther's birth.  Esther could also proudly claim that her 4th great grandfather, another John Howland and his wife Elizabeth Tilley, both arrived in America on the Mayflower.  My Heacock family can claim cousinship to Elizabeth Tilley as my 3rd cousin 11 times removed, therefore making Esther Howland my 9th cousin 5 times removed.  

So let's remember Esther this year as we give and receive Valentines and other cards and thank her for her contribution to the industry that has helped keep all of us in touch with loved ones far & near.  

Esther Howland 1828 - 1904

& 

Some of her Valentines

                       

               

The Howland Home, Summer St, Worchester, Massachusetts

 Sioux City Journal, Apr 7, 1908

Esther Howland obituary - Boston Globe, Mar 16, 1904

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esther_Howland

https://www.mtholyoke.edu/directory/alum/esther-howland

http://www.victoriantreasury.com/howland.htm

https://amazingwomeninhistory.com/esther-howland-american-valentine/

www.newspapers.com

 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 2022. All rights reserved. 

Cornish surprise

 I ran across the article link below today in a Facebook group that I recently joined. As I read through it, I recognized two surnames that are in my family, French & Toms. So, naturally, I had to look into them. I did not find them related to the French & Toms families who are my ancestors, but I did find another name farther back that was, John Boscawen. John is my 14th great grandfather, born in 1438 in Cornwall, England and William French's (of the article) 9th great grandfather. John Boscawen's son Hugh is my ancestor and his daughter Christiana is William French's ancestor. William French therefore becomes my 10th cousin 5 times removed. The Boscawen family is also from Cornwall, England.

The Boscawen connection to me is Marie Boscowen who married Peter Coffin (my 12th great grandparents and the ancestors of my Coffins who came to Nantucket). Marie is the granddaughter of the above John Boscawen. Marie Boscowen-Coffin's tomb has this brass plate attached and is located in St Michael's in Penkevil, Cornwall. She died in 1622 at age 77.

Anyway, I found it an interesting article to give us a sense of what alot of our Cornish ancestors may have experienced in those times. And you never know what may pop up in front of you.

https://cornishbirdblog.com/davidstow-moor-a-haunted-landscape/

 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 2022. All rights reserved. 

Week 4 (2023) - Education (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks)

 Not every individual has the same opportunity for education.  You might think that I am referring to a college education or other post high school education, but that would not be the case in this short story about my paternal grandfather's experience.  

Charles Bonadio was born in 1906 here in Pennsylvania. His parents were Italian immigrants who came to America separately between 1900 and 1903.  We know from census records, that his father Pasquale completed 2nd grade and his wife Rose, completed 1st grade, but neither one could read or write.  Rose could not speak English, but Pasquale could.  Pasquale worked at the local brickyard and was able to have enough money to buy a home in 1916 and have it paid for in 13 years time, paying $10 a month. They raised 10 children. 

In order of birth, the highest grade that each completed according to various census records:

1. Mary born 1901 in Italy - she was shown to have attended school at age 9 (4th grade) in 1910.  She    married at 16 (1917) and died the following year.   

2. Jennie born 1905 - completed 8th grade, did attend school in 1919

3. Charles born 1906 - 7th grade, did attend school in 1919 

4. Rose born 1908 - 7th grade,  did attend school in 1919

5. Frank born 1910 - 9th grade,  did attend school in 1919

6. John born 1912 - 7th grade,  did attend school in 1919

7. Bessie born 1915 - 8th grade,  did attend school in 1930

8. Mae born 1917 - 9th  grade,  did attend school in 1930

9. Tony born 1921 - 7th grade,  did attend school in 1930

10. Mick born 1923 - 7th grade, did attend school in 1930 & 1940. Only completed 7th grade by age  16.

Now, according to my grandfather, Charles, he would tell us that he and his siblings had to leave school early due to discrimination towards Italians where he lived. He would say how they were picked on until they just could not attend school any longer.   Despite the short educations, they all were able to read and write and with the exception of Mary, held decent jobs over their lifetimes.  And many of the next generations completed high school and went on to attend college and enjoy successes in their lives.   

In 2006, the local newspaper published an interesting article about what it was like to grow up Italian in their town.  It does seem to support a bit of my grandfather's story.  

I include images here.  

 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 2022. All rights reserved.