Sometimes the paper gets it wrong

"Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wright and children," announcement, Alexandria Times-Tribune, 27 July 1914; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 14 March 2015).

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wright and children, John and Virgil Wright, motored to Anderson yesterday and spent the day with Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Wright.

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Oftentimes, the newspapers just don't get it right.  If you've ever been misquoted during an interview, you know what I mean.  Or maybe even witnessed and event and then read the paper the next day to see that it was mangled by the press in the reporting.  Happens all the time, even with the gossip columns of old, apparently.  At least it appears that way in this item.

Charles Wright was a brother to Jesse Wright, so it makes sense that he might have motored to Anderson to visit him.  However, his children were not named John and Virgil Wright.  Charles' children were Fred, Edna, Erma and Paul.  

Now Charles and Jesse did have a brother John Wright, who had a son, Virgil.  John was my maternal 3rd-great grandfather.  At first I thought this story might have meant that Mr. and Mrs. John Wright instead of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wright, but the Mrs. John Wright, my 3rd-great grandmother, Ellen, had passed away in December 1913 so there was no Mrs. John Wright at the time.

What I think happened, was that Charles Wright and his wife went to Anderson and visited his brother, Jesse, and took along his other brother John and John's son, Virgil.  Somehow in the telling of the story to the press, the names and relationships became mangled.

Census Sunday: Eugene Kunce household, 1940, Cass County, Indiana

My paternal grandaunt, Clara Elnora (Haley) Kunce, was enumerated in the 1940 census in Logansport, Cass County, Indiana, in her husband, Eugene's household.  They were living in the 1st Ward of the city at 12 Columbia Street.

1940 US Census, Cass County, Indiana, population schedule, Ward 1, Logansport, enumeration district (ED) 9-9, SD 2, sheet 3A, household 57, 12 Columbia Street, ; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 22 March 2015); National Archives, Washington, D.C..

The family consisted of Eugene C, aged 38, and Elenora, age 39, and son Lowell, aged 12.  All of them were born in Indiana, and their residence in 1935 was listed as Van Wert, Ohio.  They were renting their home, and the monthly rent was $10.  Eugene had completed 3 years of college, Elenora had completed the 8th grade, and son Lowell had completed the 5th grade. Eugene's occupation was listed as an Evangelical Minister.

Prior to this find, I didn't realize that they had a pastorate at this location.  In 1930 they were in Huntington County, Indiana and must have had a pastorate in Van Wert, Ohio in between then. 



Census Sunday is a daily blogging prompt used by many genealogy bloggers to help them post content on their sites.

State & Federal census sheets are filled with information for genealogists. Both the population & non-population schedules give us insights into the lives of our ancestors. What have you found that is Surprising? Reassuring? Bewildering? Census Sunday is a daily blogging prompt suggested by Colleen Pasquale of Leaves and Branches.

Birthday Surprise for Mrs. Peet, 1914

"Birthday Surprise," announcement, Alexandria Times-Tribune, 13 July 1914; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 14 March 2015).

BIRTHDAY SURPRISE

A pleasant surprise was given at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Peet yesterday in honor of Mrs. Peet's birthday.  All the guests arrived with well-filled baskets and at the dinner hour, all the good things were spread and piled high on tables out-of-doors for all to enjoy the feast.  Among those in the party were Mr. and Mrs. Virgil Bowers and son, Herbert, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Brown and daughters, Kathryn and Dorothy, Mr. and Mrs. George Allen and son, George, Mr. and Mrs. Jim Wright and daughters, Helen and Oliva, Mr. and Mrs. Harry Morgan and son, John, Miss Hazel Folden, Erma Wright, Elsie McCord, Lillie, Martha and Vana Allen, Gladys Hall, Nellie Lenard, Mary Moore, Joe Gaither, Virgil Wright, George Hardcastle, Miles Gooding and Fred Wright.

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Another social mention of my maternal great-grandfather, Virgil Lee Wright (1894-1972) attending a birthday party.  Several other names of family members were also in attendance.

The Mr. and Mrs. Jim Wright are James and Clara (Hicks) Wright, Virgil's aunt and uncle.  Two of their daughters, Helen and Oliva, were also in attendance.

The Fred Wright who attended the party was the son of Charles and Bertha (Leonard) Wright, Virgil's aunt and uncle.

So at this one party were several of my 2nd-great grandfather's neighbors as well as his first cousins.