This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/ZGB.2ACE/357 Message Board Post: My grampa is James A. Root, married to Mary Mae Davis from Michigan. James was born in Canada, lived a brief time in NY then the family moved to MI. When he was 15 yrs. old he worked for the Belden Lumber Company in Chesaning, MI where a steam boiler blew up and his eyes were scalded leaving him virtually blind . . . could tell only daylight from dark. In 1910, as my mother related the story to me, they were living in Alliance, NB and a "cousin" from Grand Rapids who owned the local livery barn and hotel told him he would give him work if they came to live in Grand Rapids, so the family came by covered wagon to the local area. The cousin's name was Leonard Root, Foster Root is a descendant of Leonard. Anyway . . . I don't know that grampa ever did work for Leonard, but they ended up living north of Deer River until about 1917/18. Grampa worked for the Waleski Sawmill as did his son Clyde. Can anyone fill in any blanks here? did he work for Leonard? did they live in Grand Rapids for awhile? what took them north of Deer River? what kind of work was he able to perform at the sawmill? Questions, questions, all the time questions . . . will appreciate any feedback. Jeanine