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...

The fact that my Great-Grandpa Blue was a Chicago Police Officer is one of those family history facts I feel like I've always known. When my Grandma Blue passed away and I was helping pack up the house, we found his retirement badge, physical evidence confirming to me it wasn't just a family story. As I began to dig deeper into my genealogy, I found his occupation listed a "policeman, city" on the 1950 U.S. census. Then I found his obituary, which listed that he had been a Chicago police officer for 20 years and retired in 1963. This means he began his career with the Chicago Police Department in about 1943. I also found him quoted and pictured in the "Surburbanite Economist - Beverly/Suburban Edition" issue from June 25, 1952 in a section called "Penny for Your Thoughts" where he discussed fishing. His occupation was listed as "city policeman" and his listed address matched what I had found for him in other records from around that time....