Vee, Would you believe that, when we planted one of our flower beds, I insisted on putting in holly hocks along the west wall of the garage? I have always made "southern ladies". Bob thought I was crazy because they are only weeds. I informed him that weeds are flowers growing where they are not wanted! So I got my holly hocks; pink, lavender, white, and some with a hint of yellow. (Got some other old fashion flowers also.) Keep reminding us of the days when people enjoyed life. Ellen Colangelo

Vee, Is there anything about a Pluto BADER/BEITER in that book? He was buried in a cemetery somewhere in NIAGARA COUNTY. His daughter, Mary BADER, was born in Buffalo, ERIE COUNTY, OCT 1874. Pluto is my greatgrandfather. I looked through microfilm at the local LDS FHC in Upland, Ca, but did not find him on the vital records film. What agency is in charge of burial permits and has archived records in NIAGARA COUNTY? Somewhere there is an url for the cemetery (he was listed on it, but that was before I knew he was related). If anyone sees the Pluto BADER on any Niagara cemetery website, kindly email me at: Zona@cyberservices.com

Vee, I know you won't believe this but just last weekend I was stopped at a yard sale about 5 miles from my house and there were two little girls about the age of 6 and 7. They were making hollyhock dolls. The hollyhocks are abundant here in Potter County,PA......which is mostly farmland. I see them mostly in rows of about 35 feet long next to drives. They are pinks and oranges and whites and yellows. I have none yet but have a mess of rootings to put in next year. Rose ----- Original Message ----- From: Vee L. Housman <housman@adelphia.net> To: <NYNIAGAR-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, August 29, 2000 4:00 PM Subject: Hollyhock Dolls > Dear Group, > > Well, I suppose you now realize that you have encouraged me to write down > some more history. Granted it's in the form of memories again but just > picture your mother or grandmother enjoying hollyhock dolls as much as I did > as a kid in the 1930s. Here in the Town of Porter, I still see hollyhocks > growing. > > Now, maybe some of you might not even know what hollyhocks are and that you > may not have even seen them. Well, just in case, this is what I remember > about them. I don't recall that I have ever seen hollyhocks growing in > someone's flower garden. I kinda remember that they generally grew up > against fences or in the back of someone's scruffy yard. I have the feeling > that they had always been there. > > But there they were, growing up very tall, around five feet or so. And when > they came into blossom there were two parts of the blossoms that fascinated > us kids-the fully bloomed large blossom and the bud that the was coming into > blossom. What we did was to pick the big pretty blossom and made certain > that it still had its long stem (about 1/2 inch) attached. Then we picked > the bud that was only beginning to show some petals. And that's when we put > together the pieces of our hollyhock dolls. > > What you do first is take the bud and carefully peel away the little green > leaves from the base of it. And when you do, you'll notice that the white > base of it has a number of holes in it. What you do is take the big pretty > blossom and carefully insert its stem into one of the holes in the bud. And > what you then see is a beautiful flower girl with a beautiful full skirt and > what with the holes in the bud you see her eyes and then, to top it off, > there she is with a beautiful tall hat on top of her head of smaller flower > petals. And then you continue to do that with different colored hollyhock > blossoms and then line them all up on your porch railing or on your steps or > wherever you are at the time and you marvel at the beauty of your hollyhock > dolls. Scarlet O'Hara never looked as beautiful as your hollyhock dolls. > > vee > > > > ==== NYNIAGAR Mailing List ==== > Were your ancestors in Niagara County by 1860? You might find their > names at <http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyniagar/extras/1860.html>, > transcribed from 1860 county maps! > >

Dear Group, Well, I suppose you now realize that you have encouraged me to write down some more history. Granted it's in the form of memories again but just picture your mother or grandmother enjoying hollyhock dolls as much as I did as a kid in the 1930s. Here in the Town of Porter, I still see hollyhocks growing. Now, maybe some of you might not even know what hollyhocks are and that you may not have even seen them. Well, just in case, this is what I remember about them. I don't recall that I have ever seen hollyhocks growing in someone's flower garden. I kinda remember that they generally grew up against fences or in the back of someone's scruffy yard. I have the feeling that they had always been there. But there they were, growing up very tall, around five feet or so. And when they came into blossom there were two parts of the blossoms that fascinated us kids-the fully bloomed large blossom and the bud that the was coming into blossom. What we did was to pick the big pretty blossom and made certain that it still had its long stem (about 1/2 inch) attached. Then we picked the bud that was only beginning to show some petals. And that's when we put together the pieces of our hollyhock dolls. What you do first is take the bud and carefully peel away the little green leaves from the base of it. And when you do, you'll notice that the white base of it has a number of holes in it. What you do is take the big pretty blossom and carefully insert its stem into one of the holes in the bud. And what you then see is a beautiful flower girl with a beautiful full skirt and what with the holes in the bud you see her eyes and then, to top it off, there she is with a beautiful tall hat on top of her head of smaller flower petals. And then you continue to do that with different colored hollyhock blossoms and then line them all up on your porch railing or on your steps or wherever you are at the time and you marvel at the beauty of your hollyhock dolls. Scarlet O'Hara never looked as beautiful as your hollyhock dolls. vee

Dear Group, Back in June I posted a message to the list about my memories of the German Prisoners of War at Fort Niagara during WWII. In July the gist of it appeared in our Niagara Gazette. A friend of mine sent an email to me at the time; however, by then I had changed my email address and it bounced. Well, this afternoon she sent it to me again and I feel certain that you will enjoy reading some more about the POWs from the vantage point this time of a little farm girl who lived (and still lives) on East Avenue in Town of Porter. BTW, East Avenue used to be called Poverty Ridge. vee Hi, Vee Saw Don Glynn's article in the July 16 Gazette, quoting you on prisoners and thought I'd add my ten cents. In those days a lot more farming was being done than there is now. Just about all of East Avenue was being farmed - the place south of us that is now Acome, our place, Coolaw (now Hiddie), Gushee, Phillips (now the folks across the road from Dorothy [Samples]), Jows (Dorothy's dad), Schumacher, Walt Myers, and Hosmer. South of where Acome is now was Lige Pearson and he farmed where Ruth Myers lives now. The whole road was being farmed and lots of places elsewhere in the Town of Porter that is now residential. Up and down River Road, Route 93, Calkins Road, Cain Road, Porter Center, etc., etc. All the able bodied American men were off fighting the war and all these farms had crops that had to be harvested and there was the prisoner-of-war camp full of able bodied men [at Fort Niagara]. So they were farmed out. They were parceled out in units of 15 prisoners with an armed military guard. For our farm, we got two units totaling 30 prisoners and two guards. We started them picking peaches. By the second day, the guards hung their rifles in a tree and picked right alongside the prisoners. The prisoners never even looked at the rifles. They knew when they had a good thing going and were not about to rock the boat. We paid them piecework, the same as we would have paid the local help if it were available. The prisoners, who were mostly family men, were allowed to send the money home to their families. Where else but in the good ole USA did that ever happen? The prisoners were tickled pink to be able to get out of the camp and actually EARN MONEY that they could send home to their desperately needy families. The weather got very hot and the prisoners would come into the back yard and eat their lunch under the shade of the sugar maple on our back lawn. My brother and I were just little kids at the time (I was only 9 when the war ended) and we used to circulate among the prisoners. This made my mother nervous, as she worried that one of them might try to take us hostage or something. She used to stand on the porch and watch over us. Her fears were allayed one day when one of the prisoners beckoned us over and pulled a tattered old wallet out of his pocket, opened it up and showed us a picture of his family, himself, his wife and two children that were about the same age as my brother and I and who were towheads. He offered to share his lunch with us but we declined. This was all done by hand signals as he spoke no English and we spoke no German. My Dad could speak German and was able to communicate to a certain extent - they had no trouble understanding his college-learned Baerlliner Deutch but he was having trouble understanding their various low-German dialects. Anyhow, my mother went to the head of the stairs on the porch and asked, "Does any one speak English?" A man got up, came to the foot of the steps, removed his hat, and stood with hat in hand. Mom said, "Would you please tell the men that we have fresh, cold milk for any that would like it." He turned around and said something in German, and you should have seen the flurry of movement as the men rushed to dump the tepid coffee from the quart canning jars that they had brought from camp. Mom had, the night before, taken the bottom shelf out of the refrigerator and placed four gallon jars of milk (we had three cows) in the bottom. She brought the jars out and filled the canning jars as the men lined up (very orderly). And so it went thru peach harvest and apple harvest. One of the prisoners that was assigned to our farm was only 14 years old. Several of them were middle-aged. They were all of them very polite and respectful and I guess it won't surprise you to learn that, when the war was over and they were all shipped back to Germany - they gathered up their families and caught the next boat back to the USA or Canada. I'm outa time and gotta go. Hope this helps your cause. Ask Dorothy - I don't think her Dad had any prisoners at his place, but her uncle Howard Myers, the biggest beekeeper in NY State had many of them and some of them kept in contact with him after the war was over. Ask Tom Tower's Dad. There's gotta be several people still around who will remember the prisoners. Ask Rennie Holloday. That's her maiden name. She and her sister and hoards of other young girls from the village used to go down and flirt with the prisoners thru the barbed wire. Gotta go, Jane [Richardson]

Can anyone tell me the location of Oakmont Cemetery in Niagara Falls? Also, does anyone have an index for this cemetery? Thanks a genealogical million, Rose

Happy that you came back. I have only been on the list for a couple of weeks but have enjoyed reading everything you write and contribute to this list. Keep up the good work, people like you make genealogy research fun. Jan Researchng Declute, Lloyd, Brown ---- Original Message ----- From: "Vee L. Housman" <housman@adelphia.net> To: <NYNIAGAR-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, August 28, 2000 8:21 PM Subject: OK, you win! > Dear Group, > Thanks soooo much for letting me know that you care so much about me and > that you enjoy what I enjoy doing most--genealogy research and writing a bit > of ramblings. > > luvya all, > vee > > ______________________________

I'm wondering if anyone has access to the 1860 census information who could do a look up? Looking for the complete record of PATRICK POWERS, Niagra County, Lockport, ID# NY582667697. Thanks very much, Ray

This is of considerable genealogical importance. Click on the highlighted url. Zona --------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Gordon A. WATTS" <gordon_watts@telus.net> To: CENSUS-CHAT-L@rootsweb.com Date: Mon, 28 Aug 2000 20:45:01 -0700 Subject: [CENSUS-CHAT] Response to ATI Request Message-ID: <00a001c0116d$e5d62ce0$4af635d1@telus.net> Greetings All. Just a quick note to let you know that I have received a response to my Access to Information Request relating to the Report of the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census, and the Report of the Environics Research Omnibus surveys relating to Historic Census. My request, sent 14 August 2000, was received by the ATI Officer for Industry Canada 21 August 2000. The response dated 22 August 2000 stated that "every effort will be made to complete it as soon as possible." Under the terms of the Access to Information Act I should have a response to my request within 30 days. We will, however, have to wait and see. To my knowledge John Manley has yet to view the Report of the Expert Panel. I have recently made many changes to the Post 1901 Census Project website. Most pages have been updated and will continue to be updated as I have new information to add. Please visit at http://www.globalgenealogy.com/census New links on the "Other Sites" page include those to several submissions made to the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census. These include those of Statistics Canada head Ivan Fellegi, National Archivist Ian Wilson, and Privacy Commissioner Bruce Phillips. Other new links take you to Bills and Motions of the House of Commons and the Senate that relate to Post 1901 Census. If you have a webpage having information and/or links relating to Post 1901 Census and would like a reciprocal link please contact me. Happy Hunting. Gordon A. WATTS gordon_watts@telus.net Port Coquitlam, BC Keep up to date on Post 1901 Census information at http://www.globalgenealogy.com/census and http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Farm/7843/poll.html Download and circulate Post 1901 Census Petitions now from http://www.globalgenealogy.com/census/petition.htm This message has been posted to the Alberta-L, Canada-Census-Campaign-L, Can-British-Columbia-L, Census-Chat-L, Colchester, Lunen-Links-L, Nova-Scotia-L, Ontario-L, PictouRoots, Roots-L, Watts-L, and Wiltshire-EMI-L mail lists. Permission to forward without notification is granted.

Dear list, Currently seeking info on the following family: Zebeedee or Jebidiah Stout MESSEROLL b June 20,1825 married Diana (Jane) NEWTON b April 5,1825 possibly Lancastershire England. Children: Mary Jane 1847 (In Newfane) Charles 1849 Diane Emmaline 1851 Anne Elizabeth 1853 Phillip Hart 1856 Nancy Lydia 1858 Daniel Charles July 12,1866 Any assistance greatly appreciated. Sincerely Rick

This is what I posted to the old PA-Dutch genealogy list several years ago. I was prompted to write it because a few of the list members were getting restless due to a few postings that had to do with local customs, old recipes of our ancestors and a bit of sharing of memories that had to do with growing up in that special culture. I hope that you can relate to it no matter what country your ancestors immigrated from. DINOSAUR BONES January 18, 1998 I got to thinking today about the similarity between dinosaur bones and genealogy. An archeologist digs for years and years, finds big fragments of dinosaur bones and small fragments of dinosaur bones. He labels each piece as to where they were dug up and at the glorious end, he puts together the complete skeleton of his dinosaur. He stands back and admires his accomplishment, knowing that everyone will appreciate the magnificent skeleton he has put together and has placed in a museum. And, in a way, that's the way a number of us have started out--building our family structure and labeling each fragment as we went along. And, in the end, we print out our magnificent ancestral chart, hang it on the wall and . . . and . . . and . . . we don't find many of our family moved by it. Why? Because all that we have put together is a framework of BONES!! No one has a clue as to what sort of flesh surrounded those bones nor the history of them. And that's when we realized that unless we got to thinking about how that skeleton grew and lived--maybe as a persecuted Mennonite in Switzerland in the 1500s, maybe as a German who somehow managed to live through a generation of the Thirty Years War, a German who immigrated into Pennsylvania only to find himself in the middle of the French and Indian War with the Indian massacres threatening on a daily basis--and as a Pennsylvania-Dutchman on through the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, WWI, WWII and on into the newer bones of that skeleton. Without knowing a single thing about the history of the bones, all that anyone can see is just a pile of meticulously labeled bones. And, in a way, that's what we've been talking about these past couple of days. We've been sharing memories of our childhood and in so doing, there is no doubt but what a number of us have realized that we have posted something to the list that maybe we should at least make a printout of and put it into our "memory books." With this list we span a number of generations. We have great-grandparents, grandparents, parents and our kids. It pleased me that the Baby Boomers (the younger generation) were interested in how the old Depression Babies managed to "conquer" the computer. It seemed as though we were sitting down as one big family and talking about our mutual family history. Comfort food, yes; yucky food and yummy food, yes. But at the same time we were adding another fragment of flesh onto the skeleton (and, yes, I could add, "In more ways than one!") With those on the list who were a bit annoyed that the big family was no longer paying strict attention to the bare bones, I have a feeling that they are at the early stages of their family research. They're still digging up the bones and labeling them. And for that, I would like to give them all the encouragement in the world. It ain't an easy task. But I would also like to warmly say to them that when they get their whole magnificent skeleton put together, come back, sit down for some coffee soup and sugar bread and let us help you put some flesh on those bones of yours. Vee L. Housman

Last October, I lectured at the Niagara Falls Public Library on Beginning Genealogy (so many people have piles of papers and records but do not know what to do with them). I have not done research there so can only tell you what they told me they have as records. Niagara County Federal Censuses - 1790 through 1920 Niagara County State Censuses - 1855 through 1885 Index to 1900 Index to 1850 for Town of Niagara Microfilmed newspapers - Niagara Gazette from May 1854 - Wilson Star 1890 - Niagara Courier - Daily Cataract - The Suspension Journal - The Niagara Falls Journal - City Directory from 1886 They also have a notebook of obituaries - 1979-1996 If you cannot find what you are looking for, as I've suggested before, visit the Niagara County Historian's Office in Lockport. Good luck, Ellen Colangelo

Pluto BADER married Matilda, who had their child Mary on OCT 1874. Pluto was buried in a cemetery in NIAGARA COUNTY somewhere. How can I find out which cemetery or the date he died on? Zona Himmelsbach www.mamarocks.com/roses_for_you.htm

Dear Group, Sheesh, youse guys sure know how to fill up a person's inbox! :-) Oh, by the way, this message is from me and if you need directions as to where the delete button is on your computer, check out your manual. I understand completely, really I do. I guess that last evening I was overly tired. My sister and I had gone over to Deb's house to help her unpack a whole bunch of stuff that had been cleaned out of her grandmother's apartment and which ended up at Deb's. I did what I could manage to do but some times the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. And along with the physical work was still getting through the realization that Grandma was no longer with us. It's tough to cope with physical pain along with mental pain. First of all to Ellen Seebacher, thanks for your total support of me and for the messages that I post on occasion that others may feel to be "off topic." Chris Leonard hit it square on the head when she said, "i think she needs us as much as we need her. the worst thing for someone with cancer is isolation from friends and shared interests." You got that right, Chris. I don't know how I could have gotten this far without all of your support. Ellen Colangelo has been my guardian angel through all of this and she, coupled with all of the rest of you, makes me realize that for my own sake, I NEED ALL OF YOU! I can only hope that all of you know that we're a very special group here. The basis of this list is local genealogy--that's why we got here in the first place. But unless you put some flesh on the bones of your ancestors, all that you're left with is just that--a pile of bones. Hopefully my occasional ramblings of personal memories might put a pound or two of flesh on those bones. I'll sign off right now and follow this message with one that I wrote over two years ago that has to do with the relationship of dinasaur bones and genealogy. Thanks soooo much for letting me know that you care so much about me and that you enjoy what I enjoy doing most--genealogy research and writing a bit of ramblings. luvya all, vee

----- Original Message ----- From: Ellen Keyne Seebacher <niagara@unchi.org> To: <NYNIAGAR-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, August 28, 2000 1:06 AM Subject: Re: Labor Day & other stuff I for one will look forward to these postings and agree these people are valuable to any list ! Mary > > NYNIAGAR is about the family history and local history of Niagara > County, New York. Personal reminiscences from folks who grew up in > Niagara County -- especially from our older subscribers! -- _very > much_ fall under "family and local history", and are _welcome_ here. > > (In fact, I'd been thinking about asking various contributors, Vee > included, for permission to reprint reminiscences on the Niagara > County NYGenWeb site, because I think they're so valuable. Excepting > possibly the maiden name of that elusive ancestor's mom :), what could > be more valuable to genealogists than others' memories of our area of > interest?) > > > Because my physical and mental health is still rather frail right > > now due to my recent ordeal, I have decided not to respond to the > > message but instead just to unsubscribe to the list. Yes, I know that > > it was only one person who sent me such a message but then I don't > > know how many people have unsubscribed to the list because of my > > occasional "ramblings." > > Very few, I hope, but if others have considered unsubbing because of > reminiscence postings -- may I suggest you use your "delete" keys for > messages not of interest? (Or, if you'd rather read only queries, you > might prefer the GenConnect query boards for Niagara County.) > > I'm heartsick that we've lost a treasured contributor to this list. > I've reiterated to Vee that her health is the most important thing for > her to concentrate on right now, but that I'd gladly welcome her > rejoining us whenever she feels better. I know I speak for many > others when I say that the list will miss her terribly. :( > > > Ellen Seebacher (NYNIAGAR list manager) > > > ==== NYNIAGAR Mailing List ==== > For a list of Niagara County records microfilmed by the LDS church, see > <http://www.familysearch.org>. >

You know, I'll bet there might only be one or two people aware of my presence on this list because I am busy with research and rarely talk about anything else on a list......however, just this once I would like to say something. I have been "disciplined" by list owners. Some lists don;t even let you place inquiries or pleas for help on the mail because they have inquiry places on the County page. Most have some kind of strict guidelines that they go by. This particular list suprised me that they allowed such talk but......who am I? I believe if someone has the need to tell their private life, mention surnames of aunts, etc.......well, they have a need. Vee is going through a rough time in her life. Surgery. Fear. Let us be just a bit considerate and allow her to go through it. It is up to the list owner to decide what is fit to be printed to all of us and what is not. If she has no guidelines, she has no guidelines. It is that simple. If there is a problem, please address the list owner and allow her to decide. Once she has done that, shut the heck up and live by her rules or unsub. NOW.......could we have a surname posting? Is there anyone researching Moore's who went from PA to Niagara Falls? Are there any cemeteries online that I can search? What is the url? Thanks, Rose ----- Original Message ----- From: D.E. & M.E. Newsom <jusfrens@mediaone.net> To: <NYNIAGAR-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, August 28, 2000 5:19 PM Subject: Vee L. Housman Ramblings List > I'll be the first to subscribe to the Vee L. Housman Personal Ramblings > List! > YOUR RAMBLINGS have been of great value to many of us---even the > personal stuff! > > The person who made the "private" suggestion is simply IGNORANT of the > valuable service you have provided to all of us on the NYNIAGAR list. > We all share our private lives when we submit ANYTHING to a list of this > sort. > > Vee, PLEASE come back to us!! > > > ==== NYNIAGAR Mailing List ==== > Several genealogical and historical societies and libraries are > available to researchers in Niagara County. For available resources, > see <http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyniagar/extras/nigensrc.htm>. > >

I'll be the first to subscribe to the Vee L. Housman Personal Ramblings List! YOUR RAMBLINGS have been of great value to many of us---even the personal stuff! The person who made the "private" suggestion is simply IGNORANT of the valuable service you have provided to all of us on the NYNIAGAR list. We all share our private lives when we submit ANYTHING to a list of this sort. Vee, PLEASE come back to us!!

Posted on: Niagara Co. NY Queries Reply Here: http://genconnect.rootsweb.com/genbbs.cgi/USA/NY/Niagara/255 Surname: Gerald Condon, Merlin Condon, Gerard Condon ------------------------- These boys and their two sisters Pearl Pachoud and Eva Pachoud were placed in an orphanage in Lockport, NY after the death of their mother around 1911. Their father is unknown. The two boys, am not sure if it was Gerard or Gerald, were adopted out together - they were young. Pearl was adopted out and lived in fort Edward, NY. Anyone with information about the boys, please e-mail me. The family was origianlly from Croghan, Lewis County NY.

From Ellen: << ..... I'm heartsick that we've lost a treasured contributor to this list. I've reiterated to Vee that her health is the most important thing for her to concentrate on right now, but that I'd gladly welcome her rejoining us whenever she feels better. I know I speak for many others when I say that the list will miss her terribly. :( >> -->> Ellen and All, You said many things in your message after reading Vee's unsubscribe message. I realize Vee herself will not see this, but I think there are two primary things here: 1) I agree. The most important thing for Vee right now is doing whatever gives her the most peace of mind, pleasure and healing as possible. On or off list.. But, yes... she will surely and sorely missed here if she stays offlist. 2) I'm happy that "remembrances" are deemed "on topic" on this list. For those who do not wish to go that direction, it's easy to "delete" and move on to the next post. We have lots of different types of posts here - and that's a good thing! That's the "list stuff". On a personal note, I'm just sorry that a valued list member was made to "feel bad" for sharing her memories. I understand that it was done privately - and that's good - but still - why the need at all? Multiple conversations are possible here... so why not just start up one of interest and "carry on"??? And why not just be "glad" we have folks who "do" want to share their memories? Sounds like there were a lot of wellwishes sent to Vee privately... and just this "one"... that didn't ... but it comes at a vulnerable time... so while not the majority, all it would "take" is one, when you are not feeling up to snuff. Ah well.. Ellen.. thanks for publically commenting... hope Vee reads (and takes to heart) your private message. I'm sure she'll get others as well. To all of "you"... I enjoy this list. And part of "that" is because there "is" variety. We can discuss surnames, availability of records, the latest cemetary walk.. or "what life was like when"... We can take that local history walk via a pioneer book... or look a little closer to home.. and talk to people "now".... in our own families if it isn't too late... and with folks here on this list!!! It's "all" part of the fabric of what we do! debbie CAhobbies@aol.com

> I received a negative response today regarding last night's message > about my sister and me. [snip] Let me state this very clearly (I'll be editing the list's welcome message so that it's understood up front): NYNIAGAR is about the family history and local history of Niagara County, New York. Personal reminiscences from folks who grew up in Niagara County -- especially from our older subscribers! -- _very much_ fall under "family and local history", and are _welcome_ here. (In fact, I'd been thinking about asking various contributors, Vee included, for permission to reprint reminiscences on the Niagara County NYGenWeb site, because I think they're so valuable. Excepting possibly the maiden name of that elusive ancestor's mom :), what could be more valuable to genealogists than others' memories of our area of interest?) > Because my physical and mental health is still rather frail right > now due to my recent ordeal, I have decided not to respond to the > message but instead just to unsubscribe to the list. Yes, I know that > it was only one person who sent me such a message but then I don't > know how many people have unsubscribed to the list because of my > occasional "ramblings." Very few, I hope, but if others have considered unsubbing because of reminiscence postings -- may I suggest you use your "delete" keys for messages not of interest? (Or, if you'd rather read only queries, you might prefer the GenConnect query boards for Niagara County.) I'm heartsick that we've lost a treasured contributor to this list. I've reiterated to Vee that her health is the most important thing for her to concentrate on right now, but that I'd gladly welcome her rejoining us whenever she feels better. I know I speak for many others when I say that the list will miss her terribly. :( Ellen Seebacher (NYNIAGAR list manager)