Joined Oct 2011
4,468 Posts | 4+
Gwendraeth Valley, Carmarthenshire, Wales.
Family History
- Thread starter Crystal Rainbow
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Joined Oct 2011
40,550 Posts | 7,631+
Italy, Lago Maggiore
I like to remember how my German great-grandmother met my Italian great-grandmother at the end of WW I.
She was born exactly in 1900 in Offenbach, Baden-Württemberg, from a family of local land owners. Unfortunately their property was near to the borderline with France so that, as WW I was beginning, her parents sent her and the two sisters abroad, to Innsbruck, Austria. I cannot say if it was late 1914 or early 1915.
Well, in the last phases of WW I Italian Alpines were able to defeat Austrian army advancing in Austrian territory, conquering a part of Tirol. Now, advancing in Austria my great-grandfather arrived in the region of Innsbruck and coming back to Italy he carried with him a blonde German .... [guess: my great-grandmother].
One of the sisters followed them to Italy [Pordenone] and the other one went to Montana [US].
It seems that the German .... followed the Italian Alpine because of love, in fact in 1922 they got married in Venice.
She was born exactly in 1900 in Offenbach, Baden-Württemberg, from a family of local land owners. Unfortunately their property was near to the borderline with France so that, as WW I was beginning, her parents sent her and the two sisters abroad, to Innsbruck, Austria. I cannot say if it was late 1914 or early 1915.
Well, in the last phases of WW I Italian Alpines were able to defeat Austrian army advancing in Austrian territory, conquering a part of Tirol. Now, advancing in Austria my great-grandfather arrived in the region of Innsbruck and coming back to Italy he carried with him a blonde German .... [guess: my great-grandmother].
One of the sisters followed them to Italy [Pordenone] and the other one went to Montana [US].
It seems that the German .... followed the Italian Alpine because of love, in fact in 1922 they got married in Venice.
Joined Feb 2011
9,998 Posts | 3+
Cumbernauld Scotland
I like going to those places where you get antiques just to look at furniture that must have belonged to a family and you can feel that it still holds family memories. I always feel quiet saddened when I see old postcards written from people talking about their holidays. People throw away old photographs of relatives and are not passed on. very sad.
Joined Dec 2011
284 Posts | 1+
Home is Michigan, a cinder-block dorm in Texas oth
Joined Sep 2011
24,135 Posts | 8+
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Is there a quiet seaside town in Wales where they don't mind Americans?
Sure, and in England too, some are commercial beaches but then you get your quaint little hideaways that are beautiful and chilled.
And don't be silly, we love you guys from the US!
Joined Dec 2011
284 Posts | 1+
Home is Michigan, a cinder-block dorm in Texas oth
Sure, and in England too, some are commercial beaches but then you get your quaint little hideaways that are beautiful and chilled.
And don't be silly, we love you guys from the US!
I've stayed with a girlfriend who lives in Kent, more than once, and for the most part everyone seemed indifferent. I will be living there for the summer actually.
Joined Aug 2009
67 Posts | 0+
Land of Dragons and too many sheep
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Is there a quiet seaside town in Wales where they don't mind Americans?
The island of Anglesey in North Wales is a lovely place to visit, a little touristy, but North Wales is only across the Menai Straits and is pretty much covered in history...Caernarfon castle and Conwy castle are really worth the visits. We love the Americans too, my flatmate is from Iowa, they just can't drink!
North Wales Tourism - Search Places to Visit in North Wales
Caernarfon Castle#
I'll add my own family history, I am from a military family, so pretty much all the men have served in some kind, whether conscription or voluntary. My dad, grandad and his 2 brothers all served in the RAF. My grandad's brother saw active service during World War 2, as an engineer for the RAF Liberators bombing targets in Italy. My great grandad's brother was in the Queen's Own Royal Regiment (later on the Staffordshire Yeomanry), I don't know much more other than that. I have a small shooting trophy too, with QORR, Himley Troop, 1895.
On my mums side, her dad was in the Royal Tank Regiment as a driver (Centurion tanks) during the 1950's, he grew up in Weston-Super-mere and experienced the bombings during World War 2, over 17,000 incendiary fell on the town in 1 day. My great grandma's brother served in World War 1, he died shortly after returning from France and his name is listed on the war memorial in Clent, Worcestershire.
Joined Jun 2010
401 Posts | 1+
Rhondda, South Wales
Interesting bunch in my tree (well, interesting for farmers anyway), with my favourite story being related to an ancestor of mine (my I forget how many greats grandfather)...John Twyman of Thanet in Kent. No-one will have ever heard of him unless they've researched, but he was a colourful chap. I don't have the dates at hand as I'm on lunch at work, but it was sometime in the early 17th century and he was in Margate for a bit of a booze-up and got more than a bit drunk. He then got involved in a bit of an altercation with the local vicar...early ASBO I suppose. lol. Just shows that while historical events might pass, people really don't change from one century to the next.
Joined Oct 2011
4,468 Posts | 4+
Gwendraeth Valley, Carmarthenshire, Wales.
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I hope you don't think the British are ant-American because we're not despite what you might read on this forum at times, and you'll certainly be welcomed in Wales. I recommend, because of your Prince Madoc connection, staying at Tremadog (Madoc's town in English) or nearby at the more modern yet attractive Porthmadog (Madoc's Port) which I believe was used as the setting for the 'Sixties classic tv series "The Prisoner". Just realized in was Portmeirion...visit that too!Is there a quiet seaside town in Wales where they don't mind Americans?
Joined Jul 2011
78 Posts | 0+
Utrecht,The Netherlands
My family has done several attempts to fully restore the family tree, however it proves to be very difficult, as family names are often based on the towns people lived it, and because of this it happens a lot that we cross into bloodlines that are not related to our own. As far as known, the family on my father-his-mother side goes back to around 1550, where we decent from a baron in Flanders. The family on my mother-her-father side goes back around 1640. I will have to do some digging at home for the correct years and what the names and occupations of these people were.
I will now go into the family of my father-his-mother's side, who I believe to have been farmers for the better part of 3 centuries.
The photo above is probably the oldest photo of this side of the family, I believe it dates back to around 1860. The man on the chair would be my great-great-great-grandfather, and the boy standing behind them is the father of my great-grandmother.
The boy in the previous photo has grown up, and already has 6 kids! My great-grandmother is not with them yet, as eventually there were ten kids in the family. Therefore this photo can be dated a couple years before 1886, probably around 1880.
This is one of my great-grandmother's brothers, he was called Koop or Uncle Koop. He is wearing his Dutch WWI uniform, and was in service off and on for four years. The Netherlands where neutral at the time, and he was only called in when frontlines shifted, or massive surges of Belgian refugees flocked to the border.
Eventually my great-grandmother married this man above, he was more handsome when he was a young bloke, but can't seem to find a decent picture. He also lost his eye, not because of heroic war adventures, but because his horse had an abces on his behind. When cutting it open the puss jumped in his eye, melting the eye away!
Here they are, probably around their 50th anniversary! This is around the 1960's where you can see the American Capitalism going international with one of the first Coca Cola signs in the Netherlands haha!
On the other picture you can see the marriage between my grandmother and grandfather. My grandfather just returned from the Dutch Colony of Indonesia, where he was a soldier in the Royal Dutch Army during 1947-1950 where he witnessed the 'Politionele Acties' [ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politionele_acties]Politionele acties - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]
He was in charge of supplies, and actually negotiated in person with Soeharto, who was than still a military tribal leader, about 400 cubic metres of wood to be supplied to the Dutch army. Soeharto became the second president of Indonesia after the first one was outcast.
Thats it for now, I apologize for the large pictures
I will now go into the family of my father-his-mother's side, who I believe to have been farmers for the better part of 3 centuries.
The photo above is probably the oldest photo of this side of the family, I believe it dates back to around 1860. The man on the chair would be my great-great-great-grandfather, and the boy standing behind them is the father of my great-grandmother.
The boy in the previous photo has grown up, and already has 6 kids! My great-grandmother is not with them yet, as eventually there were ten kids in the family. Therefore this photo can be dated a couple years before 1886, probably around 1880.
This is one of my great-grandmother's brothers, he was called Koop or Uncle Koop. He is wearing his Dutch WWI uniform, and was in service off and on for four years. The Netherlands where neutral at the time, and he was only called in when frontlines shifted, or massive surges of Belgian refugees flocked to the border.
Eventually my great-grandmother married this man above, he was more handsome when he was a young bloke, but can't seem to find a decent picture. He also lost his eye, not because of heroic war adventures, but because his horse had an abces on his behind. When cutting it open the puss jumped in his eye, melting the eye away!
Here they are, probably around their 50th anniversary! This is around the 1960's where you can see the American Capitalism going international with one of the first Coca Cola signs in the Netherlands haha!
On the other picture you can see the marriage between my grandmother and grandfather. My grandfather just returned from the Dutch Colony of Indonesia, where he was a soldier in the Royal Dutch Army during 1947-1950 where he witnessed the 'Politionele Acties' [ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politionele_acties]Politionele acties - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]
He was in charge of supplies, and actually negotiated in person with Soeharto, who was than still a military tribal leader, about 400 cubic metres of wood to be supplied to the Dutch army. Soeharto became the second president of Indonesia after the first one was outcast.
Thats it for now, I apologize for the large pictures
Joined Dec 2011
284 Posts | 1+
Home is Michigan, a cinder-block dorm in Texas oth
The island of Anglesey in North Wales is a lovely place to visit, a little touristy, but North Wales is only across the Menai Straits and is pretty much covered in history...Caernarfon castle and Conwy castle are really worth the visits. We love the Americans too, my flatmate is from Iowa, they just can't drink!
North Wales Tourism - Search Places to Visit in North Wales
Caernarfon Castle#
I'll add my own family history, I am from a military family, so pretty much all the men have served in some kind, whether conscription or voluntary. My dad, grandad and his 2 brothers all served in the RAF. My grandad's brother saw active service during World War 2, as an engineer for the RAF Liberators bombing targets in Italy. My great grandad's brother was in the Queen's Own Royal Regiment (later on the Staffordshire Yeomanry), I don't know much more other than that. I have a small shooting trophy too, with QORR, Himley Troop, 1895.
Maybe those boys from Iowa can't hold their liqour but I've been known to drink 300 pound men under the table! But then again I 'm half Polish.
My Polish grandparents came to live in London for a few years after WWII. My grandmother loved England so much that she went and joined the RAF sometime after they moved to London (or so my family tells me- both of my grandparents held high positons in the Polish military during the war). Perhaps your Grandad and his siblings and my grandmother met once in the past
Joined Oct 2011
4,468 Posts | 4+
Gwendraeth Valley, Carmarthenshire, Wales.
What a marvellous story: for me far more interesting, because very human, than general history which relates mainly to military and political events, although without which your ancestors would never have met it seems. Do you have any photos?
Joined Oct 2011
4,468 Posts | 4+
Gwendraeth Valley, Carmarthenshire, Wales.
Thank you so much for the excellent photographs that bring the past to life and which we can all relate to.My family has done several attempts to fully restore the family tree, however it proves to be very difficult, as family names are often based on the towns people lived it, and because of this it happens a lot that we cross into bloodlines that are not related to our own. As far as known, the family on my father-his-mother side goes back to around 1550, where we decent from a baron in Flanders. The family on my mother-her-father side goes back around 1640. I will have to do some digging at home for the correct years and what the names and occupations of these people were.
I will now go into the family of my father-his-mother's side, who I believe to have been farmers for the better part of 3 centuries.
The photo above is probably the oldest photo of this side of the family, I believe it dates back to around 1860. The man on the chair would be my great-great-great-grandfather, and the boy standing behind them is the father of my great-grandmother.
The boy in the previous photo has grown up, and already has 6 kids! My great-grandmother is not with them yet, as eventually there were ten kids in the family. Therefore this photo can be dated a couple years before 1886, probably around 1880.
This is one of my great-grandmother's brothers, he was called Koop or Uncle Koop. He is wearing his Dutch WWI uniform, and was in service off and on for four years. The Netherlands where neutral at the time, and he was only called in when frontlines shifted, or massive surges of Belgian refugees flocked to the border.
Eventually my great-grandmother married this man above, he was more handsome when he was a young bloke, but can't seem to find a decent picture. He also lost his eye, not because of heroic war adventures, but because his horse had an abces on his behind. When cutting it open the puss jumped in his eye, melting the eye away!
Here they are, probably around their 50th anniversary! This is around the 1960's where you can see the American Capitalism going international with one of the first Coca Cola signs in the Netherlands haha!
On the other picture you can see the marriage between my grandmother and grandfather. My grandfather just returned from the Dutch Colony of Indonesia, where he was a soldier in the Royal Dutch Army during 1947-1950 where he witnessed the 'Politionele Acties' Politionele acties - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
He was in charge of supplies, and actually negotiated in person with Soeharto, who was than still a military tribal leader, about 400 cubic metres of wood to be supplied to the Dutch army. Soeharto became the second president of Indonesia after the first one was outcast.
Thats it for now, I apologize for the large pictures
Joined Feb 2011
9,998 Posts | 3+
Cumbernauld Scotland
I love these interesting stories, that story about the horses pus. You could not make it up
My grand-grand-father was making hay in a distant field alone. In the evening the horse came back home pulling the cart/wagon with him dead on top of the hayload. Had a heart attack and horse brought him home.
My grandfather played accordion in secret parties during prohibition. He sat on the roofs or in a branch of a tree. He had trouble getting away if police arrived since he had to climb down first.
My grandfather played accordion in secret parties during prohibition. He sat on the roofs or in a branch of a tree. He had trouble getting away if police arrived since he had to climb down first.
Joined Apr 2010
591 Posts | 3+
Tennessee
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[ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Claiborne]William Claiborne - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]
^My first ancestor to come to America from England. Sadly, all the wealth that his family acquired in the 1600-1700s did not fall to my family!
An interesting story about my great-grandfather and his two brothers: They all served during WW2. My great-grandfather was a fighter pilot who flew the P-40. He was shot down in the Pacific theater, broke his leg in the crash, and was housed by a kind local family, who hid him from the Japanese. His two brothers served in the European theater. They were in separate companies doing separate missions, but one night in Italy they literally stumbled into each other at an Army base. I always thought that must have been so great to be surprised by your brother that you hadn't seen in a year or more.
^My first ancestor to come to America from England. Sadly, all the wealth that his family acquired in the 1600-1700s did not fall to my family!
An interesting story about my great-grandfather and his two brothers: They all served during WW2. My great-grandfather was a fighter pilot who flew the P-40. He was shot down in the Pacific theater, broke his leg in the crash, and was housed by a kind local family, who hid him from the Japanese. His two brothers served in the European theater. They were in separate companies doing separate missions, but one night in Italy they literally stumbled into each other at an Army base. I always thought that must have been so great to be surprised by your brother that you hadn't seen in a year or more.
Joined May 2009
14,691 Posts | 61+
A tiny hamlet in the Carolina Sandhills
1. Lemuel Riddick was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses, Business partner of George Washington (Great Dysmal Swamp), and sitting member of the Committee of correspondence which produced the Patrick Henry "Give me Liberty, or Give me Death" speech. Had he survived, he quite easily could have been a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Lemuel Riddick (1690 - 1776) - Genealogy
2. Mills Riddick (Lemuel's Grandson) was a businessman/merchant in Suffolk Va. In the late 1830s, he built an enormous Greek Revival style house. Because it was so out of scale and opulent for the small town of Suffolk, the locals christened it "Riddick's Folly." During the battle for Suffolk in 1863, Federal troops used it for a headquarters, and the grafitti can still be seen.
Riddick's Folly
These are the interesting ones.
Lemuel Riddick (1690 - 1776) - Genealogy
2. Mills Riddick (Lemuel's Grandson) was a businessman/merchant in Suffolk Va. In the late 1830s, he built an enormous Greek Revival style house. Because it was so out of scale and opulent for the small town of Suffolk, the locals christened it "Riddick's Folly." During the battle for Suffolk in 1863, Federal troops used it for a headquarters, and the grafitti can still be seen.
Riddick's Folly
These are the interesting ones.
Joined Feb 2011
9,998 Posts | 3+
Cumbernauld Scotland
My Dad had played a accordion in the East-end of London and was born in Bethnel Green the same time the Cray twins were around. My partner's family name is Fyffe and one of his family was William Fyffe that sang I belong to Glasgow.
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