An Unusual Boat
My husband’s great-great grandfather, August Meydam, immigrated from Danzig, West Prussia (now Gdańsk, Poland) to Elderon, Wisconsin, USA in the early 1880s. A certified carpenter and wagon maker in Prussia,…
Genealogy is a real family pastime in our world. Even those of us who don’t do the research love to talk about history & family stories.
Here you’ll find some of our favorite stories that we’ve uncovered over these years of putting together ancestral family trees (specifically Dilley/Hanson, Meydam/Reinecke & Phalen/DeMars).
We’ll also include links to interesting historical info for more background. Heck, we might even include a history blog we’ve written ourselves from time to time. After all, we love history!
Women and the Wisconsin Business University
During and after World War I, young, single women began entering the workforce in greater numbers. One of the exciting career paths that opened up to women during this period…
That Bastard Art Shepard!
"That bastard Art Shepard!" The first time my grandmother, Grace Shepard Dilley, uttered these words in front of us, my brother and I were dumbstruck. Grandma! Really? Yes, based on…
Little Christmas Eve: How Stories about Traditions May Help Your Research
Merry Christmas and happy holidays! For many of us, the holidays and special occasions our families celebrate together are golden for uncovering new stories and reminiscing on the old ones.…
The Golf Outing: A Love Story
Couples have all kinds of stories about how they met. Some sound like they're straight out of a fairytale. Others... well, don't. Some stories are so typical of the era…
Got Everything Packed, Honey?
Wisconsin in the late 1800s was all about farming. The dream of many of its settlers was to clear land and farm. Not so with my great-grandfather, Leroy Dilley. He…
Grandpa’s Immigration to America
It's been 100 years since my grandfather, Erick Hanson, immigrated to America. Wow! 100 years! It doesn't seem like that long ago, since he still lives in my memories. The…
Attempts at Becoming a Modern 1920s Woman
Imagine a time, not that long ago, when young women were homemakers. When they came of age, they got married (up if possible), took care of their husbands, managed the…
Invader in the Barnyard
When you begin writing stories for your family tree, don’t forget to write your own! These stories are the most important, because, well, you were there. You remember things first…
The Ugly Green Dress
I always got the impression that my grandmother, Grace Shepard, was something of a party girl when she was young. You’d never know it from the garden-loving, oil painting, and…