Posts

Showing posts from December, 2011

My Paternal Grandfather, Harold Murrell--Part one.

Image
Harold O. Murrell Happy New Year to everyone in the blogosphere! I have decided to start things off by diving into my paternal line. My paternal grandfather was Harold Osmond Murrell (August 16, 1903--October 9, 1996.) What a sweet man. I am blessed to have so many fond memories of him. This picture is from a wallet of his from when he was a young man The story of grandfather begins back in St Philip, Barbados.  He was one of four children born to a George Murrell, a carpenter, and a Frederica Augusta Inniss. The two daughters Lillian and Edna never married. Rupert, my grandfather's older brother did marry and had a family. There were not many opportunities on the island beyond sugar cane and fishing so my grandfather sought out opportunity elsewhere. Rupert being the oldest took on the responsibility of caring for his sisters and his own family. A couple of years back, my father told me the story of when my grandfather left the island. My grandfather went down to

Wordless Wednesday: My Paternal Grandparents Wedding Photo

Image
Ethel Smith Murrell and Harold Murrell My paternal grandparents Wedding Photo from 1932. They were married at Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem  by Adam Clayton Powell Sr.

My Mind Is Back In Hyde County Folks!

Image
I am back in Hyde County folks. No, not physically but in my mind in terms of researching my family tree. For those of you who are new to the blog, my Whitney family line came from Hyde County, NC.  I am very  thankful for the helpful nods I have been given along the way while studying my ancestors. I had on the Ancestry.com message board for Hyde County an inquiry about additional information regarding my 3rd great grandparents, Thomas Whitney and Margaret Merritt (Merrick) Whitney. A very helpful Kay M. Sheppard told me about two publications that could help me with my research. Both provided details about the land called the "Donnell Farm," where I believe my ancestors worked and eventually I believe were laid to rest at. The first publication is called "Hyde County,(NC) Land Divisions in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries" by  Richard B. Lupton. This book has tons of information regarding the different land divisions in the county as well as backgroun

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Image
Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and good tidings for the New Year!

Wordless Wednesday: My Daughter's First Christmas! December 2007.

Image
Christmas 2007 My baby girl. What a sweet angel!

So Where Do I Go From Here? Looking At What Maybe To Come In 2012.

We are now almost at the close of 2011 and I have started to reflect on this year's genealogy journey and I wonder where it will take me next year. I am certainly hoping for a chance to dive further back on my paternal side of the family. My father's side of the family has been challenging in regards to finding out information. My father's father came from St Philip's Parish, Barbados and my father's mother's line has proved to be the greatest challenge of all. My grandmother's mother came from Wilmington, NC  according to family oral history. After this, much is a mystery regarding the woman I refer to as "Miss Ella." I call her Miss Ella because it seems to be the only thing that had remained consistent about her name over the years. She became involved with the church associated with Father Divine and did not remain in contact with the rest of the family. Maybe with the release of the 1940 census, I might be able to crack this brick wall. We'

Blog Caroling: O' Holy Night.

Image
I finally decided to join in on Blog Caroling. Thank you to Footnote Maven for putting forth a beautiful tradition. Here's one of my favorite versions of this song, "O' Holy Night." To me, Patti LaBelle could sing the Encyclopedia and I would be mesmerized. So enjoy and sing along if you like. Now this version includes only the first verse before the chorus, the chorus and then the chorus is repeated... but it is absolute heaven to listen to. I can feel my grandma next to me raising her hand to to the Lord in praise whenever I listen to it.  O' Holy Night Composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chretiens"(Midnight, Christians) by Placide Cappeau. Singing version created by John Sullivan Dwight (information courtesy of Wikipedia) O holy night, the stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear Savior's birth! Long lay the world in sin and error pining, Till He appeared

Wordless Wednesday: Christmas When My Mom And Uncle Were Little.

Image
I am not sure what year this was. The expression on my Uncle's face is priceless. I have to ask my mom if she recalls the story behind this picture.

A Tragedy For One...Leads To An Opportunity For Another.

Since I just finished part two of my family history movie which was about the Mitchell family line, I thought this would be a good time to do a post on how my 3rd great grandfather Mortimer Mitchell came to own his land in Riverdale, NC. If you missed that post, here's the link  The Mitchells . When I received Mortimer's deed sometime ago, the first thing I researched was information regarding the people he bought his land from.  Maybe by doing this I would be able to unveil more information about my ancestor. The owner of the land was an Elizabeth Williams and her husband is listed as a witness on the deed, R B Williams. I found it rather curious that the wife was the owner of this land due to the fact that this deed was dated from March 1878. So I did some digging. It turns out that Elizabeth was originally Elizabeth Tolson who married a Gabriel Hardison back on Dec. 7, 1858. Elizabeth and her first husband were married until some terrible events unfolded in December 1866.

The Mitchells: Part Two of My Family History Movie

Image
Okay, this Windows Movie Maker Program I am starting to really get into. This is a great way to document the discoveries I have come across and since I have family in different parts of the country, it makes the perfect way to share those discoveries. So here's the latest installment.

Wordless Wednesday: Here's My First Movie With Windows Live Movie Maker.

Image

I Am So Excited About What I Have Been Working On.

Okay, I have been away from my blog for a few days here for good reason. I started playing around with a program on my computer called Windows Live Movie Maker and Bam! Now I have a new hobby. LOL. I just finished my first family history movie with images of my ancestors on my maternal line; more specifically of my ancestors who came from Morehead City and Riverdale, Craven, NC.  I feel like Ken Burns all of a sudden. Well anyway I am going to tweak the movie over the next couple of days and then let a couple of people in my family view it and see what they think. I will keep you posted.