The Names We Share

On July 16, 2023, I traveled 18 minutes with my husband and kids from our home to visit the Pullman National Historic Park. On this day, we drove. But we also could have taken our commuter train just a few stops up the rail line right to the park's visitor center doorstep. Our family loves visiting museums, national parks, and interesting landmarks. We love filling our National Parks Passports with new stamps. There was something deeper and more meaningful to this visit for our family. We were visiting our ancestors' home, walking in their footsteps where they lived, worked, played, learned, and worshiped. On this day, we learned a bit more about what their lives were like in the company town and how our family was a part of American history. My second great grandfather, August HELENIUS, was a tinsmith for the Pullman Palace Car Company. He lived in the company town with his wife, Naima, and their six children. August and Naima were Finnish immigrants who came to the United Sta...

When thinking about our unknown genealogy, many Americans wonder when their earliest ancestor set foot on the North American continent and who that person may have been. I often wonder this and have yet to find the definitive answer. As for my husband and children, we are fairly certain of this answer. I thought this week would be appropriate for this post. This is a genealogical fact that has been known by my husband's family. When I learned of this, I was excited to share with my children that their 12th Great-Grandfather was William BRADFORD, passenger on the Mayflower voyage in 1620, signatory of the Mayflower Compact, and second governor of Plymouth Colony. We would be hard-pressed to find another ancestor arriving in North America before him.   Pictured above: A conjectural image of Bradford, produced as a postcard in 1904 by A.S. Burbank of Plymouth My family is descended from William Bradford through his son, William, by his second wife, Alice CARPENTER. There are seven gen...

Before the Rockford Peaches there was Katherine VAUGHAN and the University of Chicago Women's baseball team, about 40 years before the women's baseball league during World War II. My Great-Grandma Katherine (VAUGHAN) SULLIVAN received her teaching degree from the University of Chicago. I knew about this through my mother. Recently, I found her in the yearbooks from her time at U of C and was excited to find her in the team picture for the University of Chicago Women's Baseball team from 1902. My parents have a large portrait of Katherine in their dining room, so I knew right away which woman was her in the photograph. In the team photo below, she is in the third row, second from the left. To read more about the history of women's sports at the University of Chicago, click the link below: https://news.uchicago.edu/story/look-back-history-uchicago-womens-athletics And more, including the photo above of the 1902 baseball team: https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/collex/exhibits/e...

Every time we take the commuter train into downtown Chicago, a few stops into our ride we will hear over the PA system "Next Stop, Pullman". When we look out the window to the east, we are looking right at the new Pullman National Monument, one of our newest National Parks. But its not really new. The buildings are old. The neighborhood has historical designations and protections. The new national park is the old Pullman factory and company buildings and the surrounding neighborhood of homes and row houses George Pullman built for his employees. The National Pullman Porter Museum is part of it as well.  In all these decades of growing up and living near the Pullman neighborhood, I never imagined it was part of my family history, part of my family's story. Through my research, I have found that around the time my 2nd great grandfather came to America, Pullman was home to a significant Scandinavian immigrant community. Also, my great-great-grandpa was a metal smith going ba...

Below is the immediate family and descendancy of August Johan HELENIUS and Naima LINDVALD, my 2nd great-grandparents, who were the oldest generation of my HELENIUS line to come to America. Living people are not listed for privacy. I have only included information I have personally verified through documents like census, birth, marriage, and death records. If you think there are errors, please reach out to me. This descendancy tree is not yet complete. I will update as I confirm more information. Parents & Siblings All family in this section born and died in Finland to the best of my knowledge  Carl Johan HELENIUS (1832-1909), m. Amanda Sofia LINDHOLM (1849-?) Karl Alfred HELENIUS (1868-1848) Gustaf Rudolph HELENIUS (1870-1951) Oskar Walfrid HELENIUS (1873-1952) Noak Israel HELENIUS (1875-1876) Maria Gustafva Gustafsdotter JERNVALL (1846-?), Naima's biological father unknown, m. Karl Gustaf JEDERHOLM (1829-1878) Artur Alarik JEDERHOLM (1878-1880), half-brother Descendants ...

Below is the immediate family and descendancy of Walter Clarence BLUE (1883-1950), my 2nd great-grandfather. Living people are not listed for privacy. I have only included information I have personally verified through documents like census, birth, marriage, and death records. The photograph above is from the back of a law enforcement ID that belonged to Walter. He was 58 years old in this photo. That would mean the year was 1940 or 1941. This was shared with me by the great-great-grandson of Lestina ARCHER, Walter's wife at the time of this photo. Parents Father: Henry BLUE (1855-1927) Mother: Mary J DILLMAN (1861-1943) Siblings Delbert BLUE (1879-?) Ernest BLUE (1881-1951) Ada E BLUE (1888-?) Clare Celeste BLUE (1891-1953) Edith BLUE (1893-1968) Viola Mae BLUE (1897-1981) Spouses & Descendants Walter Clarence BLUE (1883-1950), m. Mabel Adelia WALKER (1886-1936), m. Lestina ARCHER (1886-1974) Kenneth W BLUE (1908-1977), m. Hazel HELENIUS (1910-1965), m. Saloma BROWN (1906-1994...