We're All Relative

Mariam Keshishian and Her Four Generations

2011-11-28T23:48:00.000-08:00

This wonderful picture was taken on May 10th, 1920. My grandmother, Dorothy Basmajian Paloutzian, is seated on the ground, third from the left. Interesting fact: My grandmother and her two cousins also in the photo, Zabel and Violet Zaillian, married three of the Palouztian brothers; Ed, Vern and Roy.
The writing on the bottom of the photo translates as "Mariam Keshishian and her four generations. May 10 1920. Fresno." Mariam was born around 1840 in Turkey, and died in Sanger, CA on 18 July, 1925.

Front Row (Sitting):

George (Cal Jack) Basmajian; Mike Basmajian; Dorothy Basmajian Paloutzian; Erch Basmajian Kazarian; Leo Chooljian; Astig Chooljian Murachanian; Maron “Mike” Chooljian; Lilly Zaillian Bushnell; Mae Zaillian Perch (Lilly and Mae are Nishan and Hosanna Zaillian’s daughters. Their children Mary and Jim were not born at the time of this photo); Doris Kershaw Richards; Paul Kershaw; Pearl Kershaw; Albert Kershaw; Ruth Kershaw; Gladys Shishmanian Karabian; Violet Zaillian Paloutzian; Bertha Tusan Minasian; Dick Tusan. Eddie Mekealian.

Center Row (Sitting):
Nishan (George) Zaillian; Hosana Zaillian; Helen Basmajian – holding Margaret Basmajian Pashayan; Mary Badigian Basmajian; Zoren Zaillian Garabedian; Bidzar or Bidzarchali Chooljian (Sister of Nishan Chooljian); Gadar or Gadarchali Keshishian Chooljian; Susie (Susie Mama) Keshishian Zaillian; Mariam Keshishian*; Khatoun Ouzounian**; Lucia Basmajian Shishmanian; Rose Shishmanian Zaillian – holding Zabel Zaillian Paloutzian (Rose’s son, Sarkis “Ray”, was not born at the time of this photo); Roxie Shishmanian Parichan; Anna Basmajian Tusoosian; Aznive Tusoosian Mekealian; Arestakes Mekealian – holding Archie Mekealian.

Back Row (Standing):
Horine (Khoren) Basmajian; Dikran (Richard) Basmajian; Peter Garabedian; Murgrdich Chooljian; Nishan Chooljian***; Giragos Chooljian (Husband of Gadar and father of Nishan Chooljian and Bidzar Chooljian); Charles Kershaw; Paul Kershaw; Garabed (Adjam) Ouzounian; Thomas Shishmanian; Maron Zaillian (Older brother of Nishan seated at left end of center row); Harry Tusoosian and his sons Leo Tusan and Carl Tusan.

*Mariam Keshishian’s three daughters are beside her. On the left is Gadar Keshishian who was married to Giragos Chooljian, and Susie Keshishian who was married to Sarkis Zaillian. On the right is Khatoun Keshishian who was married to Kervork Basmajian, and after he died, she married Adjam Ouzounian. Mariam's sons are Paul Kershaw (he changed his name from Keshishian) and Peter Kershaw (not in photo) and Jacob Keshishian (not in photo).

**Khatoun Ouzounian’s first husband was Kervork (George) Basmajian. Her children from Kevork are Dikran Basmajian, Horine Basmajian, Lucy Shishmanian and Anna Tusoosian.

***Nishan Chooljian’s wife, Zevart, was not in the picture. Their daughter, Jessie Chooljian Garry, and their twin sons, Carl and Kenneth Chooljian, were born after the time of this photo.

Mary Basmajian's obituary translated from Armenian

2011-09-01T14:26:00.000-07:00

Mary (Mariam) Badigian Basmajian (1886-1957).

Many thanks to Arevik of ArmenianAncestry.com who completed this translation. The notes in brackets are mine. Here is the original article.

Ms. Mariam T. Basmajian's death

Ms. Mariam Tigran Basmajian had a sudden death on February 25th in her Fresno apartment, surrounded by her family and doctor.
Funeral was at 10AM on February 27th at the Saint [Holy] Trinity Church, with the presence of a crowd of both genders. The casket of the deceased was covered with flowers. Church service was done by priest Der Babgen Gasparian and Senior “Sarkavag” Hrach Dzerkoyan.
Talented Ms. Henriet Devejian sang "To the upper Jerusalem". A eulogy was given by Der Hayr.
Then the casket of the deceased was transported to Ararat Cemetery, where a eulogy was given by P. Khosrov Badikian.
After the funeral the husband and children of the deceased served a requiem dinner (hokejash) for her memory in the church hall to more than 90 people.

Biography: Ms. Mariam Basmajian was born in Baghech Sultik town [Bitlis Sultanate] on January 10th, 1886 to Hovhannes and Margarit Badikian.
She came to the US with her mother and brother Vartan in 1907 and settled in Fresno.
Miss. Mariam Badikian got married to Digran Basmajian in March of 1908, creating a happy and honorable family, always fitting to the famous Badikian name of sacrifices and honesty.
She had two daughters and two sons. She was married for fifty years, being a kind and honest mother.
She was a happy and hard working person, treating her children and husband the same, often filling her eyes with tears of happiness.
The deceased Ms. Mariam was a member of Saint [Holy] Trinity Church Union of Women, Union of Baghech's Orphan care and Verashinats Union of Tigranakert.
The deceased Ms. Mariam Basmajian is leaving a kind name and a real mother's memory. Her death is being mourned by husband Digran Basmajian, sons Mihran [Mike] and George Basmajian, two daughters Ms. Aghavni Balutsian [Dorothy Paloutzian] and Ms. Yerjanik Ghazarian [Erch Kazarian], two daughter-in laws and seven grandchildren, as well as her brother and his wife Vartan and Rozi [Rose] Badikians and many relatives and friends.

A relative

Zaillian Family Photos

2011-05-28T09:47:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share some photos I scanned on one of my visits with Gloria Perch Attoian almost a year ago. This first picture we believe is Susie Keshishian Zaillian, aka "Susie-Mama". Can anyone else verify that information? I wonder where and when this photo was taken. Maybe in Turkey, or upon her arrival in the U.S.? Notice she has some reading material in hand, and a watch (?) pinned to her dress. Does anyone know Susie's Armenian first name?

We think this picture is of Hosanna Tutunjian Zaillian's mother, based of some group photos that Gloria had of Hosanna's family. Gloria had thought this was the picture of Susie-Mama. Isn't it interesting that she is posed writing on a tablet? Maybe she was a teacher?

Here is Nishan (George) Zaillian as a young man, he was Susie's oldest of the three boys, Nish, Maron and Yesneak.

This is Mae Zaillian Perch, Nishan's second child and Gloria's mother.

Another photo of Mae. I can see Gloria in this photo.

Nish and Hosanna Tutunjian Zaillian. According to the 1930 census record, they were married in 1907. He was 20 and she was 15.

Maron and Rose Shishmanian Zaillian. They were married in 1911; He was 22, she was 19. Rose was my grandmother Dorothy Basmajian Paloutzian's first cousin, and Maron was her first cousin, once removed (first cousin to my great-grandfather Dikran Basmajian, Dorothy's father). Maron and Rose's daughters Violet and Zabel also married Paloutzians, my grandfather Ed's brothers, Roy and Vern.

Nishan George Zaillian

John Thomas Doherty

2010-11-08T20:34:00.000-08:00

I decided to spend the rainy Sunday doing some genealogy, so I went over to http://www.sfgenealogy.com/ to see what was new. They are always posting new resources there, and yesterday I was in luck! I found San Francisco Mortuary Records, scanned images of records from several San Francisco mortuaries, all indexed. Since I have several family branches in San Francisco, I started plugging in names to see what would turn up. I found a record for John Thomas Doherty (1876-1936).

John was the youngest child of Roger and Ann Doherty, my great-great-great grandparents. I did not have the date of his death, so it was great to find this record. There is also a lot of information that I already had that is further confirmed by the same information in this record from the funeral home. His parents' names are confirmed as Roger Doherty and Ann (McLaughlin) Doherty. The order for the funeral was given by Mrs. Elizabeth Levenberg, John's sister, better know to us as "Peeps". Their address is given as 55 Elsie St., San Francisco. This is in the Bernal Heights neighborhood.

I had John's birth date from his WWI draft registration card and it is confirmed here as 18 Jun 1876. He died at San Francisco Hospital of carcinoma of the esophagus and bronchopneumonia. I found a record for one other relative, Blanche Davidson Rommel (1881-1949), the younger sister of Peeps' first husband (and my great-great grandfather), Ewen Davidson (1872-1898). Ewen was Claire's (Mammy) father. I'll keep looking!

Paloutzians and Torigians

2010-10-18T23:32:00.000-07:00

I've been working on scrapbooking and identifying photos recently. This photo has writing on the back, in Armenian, and I requested a translation at ArmenianAncestry.com .

The only people I can identify for sure are Goohar Paloutzian (standing at the far left), and Tatevos Paloutzian (standing 3rd from the right), and their 5 sons at the front right: Ed, Frank, Ernie, Roy and Vern. Since the name Torigian was mentioned, I have compared this photo to another picture of the Torigian family (also from Parchanj), and I think the 2nd woman on the left is Tourvanda Torigian, and the man on the far right is her husband Markar Torigian. Can anyone identify anyone else?

The translation I received:

On the left side there is a name along the date:

Garabed Torigian - 1919 July ...

On the right side:
On July 13 participated ... Garabed Torigian ... ( I think here it says birthday, but I am not sure)

This is Markar and Tourvanda Torigian and their sons Antranig (Trigger), Madiros (Martin) and Nish, taken about 1925.

Manoug Paloutzian's Family - Photos From Cousin Bob

2010-07-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

I connected with Bob Paloutzian (Harold Robert, son of Oscar and May, grandson of Manoug and Mary) through his granddaughter Lindsey on Facebook. Lindsey is Ken Paloutzian's daughter. Bob sent along some pictures of Manoug, Mary and their family. The picture above, from left to right, Harry, Manoug, Pearl, Lucille held by Mary, and Harold. Lucille was born in 1905, and the youngest, Oscar was born in 1907, so it is a good guess to say this picture was taken in 1906.

Here are Manoug and Mary's children a few years later, maybe 1910-11, if Oscar is 3 or 4 years old here. In the back are Harry, Harold, Pearl, and in front are Oscar and Lucille.

This is Mary and Manoug with son Oscar.

Mary, in her 90's, with Harold, Harry and Oscar.

Here are Mary and Manoug with two of their grandchildren, Harold Robert (Bob), who sent these pictures to me, and Oscar James (Pat). Pat and Bob are the sons of Oscar Asadoor, Mary and Manoug's youngest child. I don't have any pictures of younger sister Betti; maybe she'd like to send me some! This was taken about 1939-40, making Manoug about 79 years old and Mary about 69 years old.

This picture was given to my father by Paul Parvanian, who was Mary's nephew. (Paul Parvanian was Barbara Bujulian's father, for my Bujulian cousins.) You can see the address on the house as 2045; this is on Palm Grove Ave. in Los Angeles. Here it is on Google Maps. Use the Street View and see that it looks pretty much the same. It is actually a duplex I think, as Manoug and Mary's address was 2047, according to Manoug's death certificate. Manoug and Mary are buried side by side at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, Los Angeles County. My Mom and I got some pictures on our way to San Diego in June.

Larch Plot, C97 grave 2

Thank you cousin Bob for the pictures! If anyone else has pictures they'd like to share, let me know! I can help you scan them, if needed.

Paul Keshishian gets married.

2010-06-29T18:41:00.000-07:00

Paul Keshishian was born 21 Dec 1880 in Diyarbekir, Turkey, and came to the United States sometime before 20 Jun 1900 when he and his sister Suzie Zaillian (and her 3 sons) are found living in Franklin, Norfolk, Massachusetts on Chestnut Street. Paul's occupation at that time is listed as "woolen weaver". I have not been able to locate any immigration records for Paul, his sister Suzie, brother Jacob, or his mother, Mariam. I do have records for Mariam's other children: Khautoon (Touma) Basmajian, Gadar Chooljian and Peter (Bedros). I don't think that Mariam's daughter Arschalous ever came to the U.S.

I discovered Paul Keshishian and Margaret Ferguson McClary's marriage record in the Rhode Island marriage record database on Ancestry.com. They were married on December 27, 1907 in Providence, Rhode Island by an Armenian priest. As the on-line record only had the names and dates, I went ahead and sent for the complete record from the Rhode Island State Archives. I was surprised to find quite a bit of information in this one document. Some of the information confirmed what I knew, and some things were new to me.
Paul Keshishian was the youngest child of Mariam Keshishian and I didn't know his father's name, but here it is on the marriage record as Elijah. The record shows that Paul was born in Armenia, was 28 years old and was a loom fixer. Margaret was 27 years old, divorced and had a daughter, Esther (who ended up married to Jake Zaillian, son of Arschalous Keshishian Zaillian, Paul's sister).
So, another piece of the puzzle. The only picture I have of Paul is in the large 5 generation picture of Mariam Keshishian's family, which I haven't been able to scan yet. Margaret is not in that picture, but their children Doris, Paul, Pearl, Albert and Ruth are sitting in the front row. By the second generation, all the Keshishian males were using the last name Kershaw. Henry Keshishian (1920-2005), son of Peter, was the last in the family to use the name.

Well, at least he has a name now.

2010-04-18T22:06:00.000-07:00

I had posted a group of old photos of my Armenian relatives awhile back. Well, I figured they were relatives, as the photos were unidentified and we just didn't know who they were. The pictures were in a box in the garage at my Grandma and Grandpa Paloutzian's house when it was cleaned out, in 1985 I believe, after Grandpa passed away. Based on what I know now, I think the pictures were probably from Tatevous Paloutzian's things (my Grandpa Ed's father).
This is one of the pictures:

Recently I was contacted by my cousin, Mary Shamshoian, via Facebook (my new favorite genealogy resource!) and she had seen these pictures and had some of the same ones in her collection of family photos. And hers had a name written on the back!! Uncle Sahag Tatoian. I did a quick look-up in the Dzeron Village of Parchanj book and saw that my great-grandfather Giragos Tatoian had a brother Sahag. The book shows a + by his name, meaning deceased (at the time of publication, 1938), but also an asterisk, for which there is no explanation given. That, plus the fact that he had his picture taken in Boston is all I know about him. I cannot locate any records, so far. I'll keep looking!
Giragos Tatoian and his wife Altoon had 3 daughters, Goohar (Pearl), Aghavni (Dovie) and Agnes. Goohar, my great grandmother, married Tatevos Paloutzian; Dovie married Levon Garbedian; and Agnes married Soghomon Googooian. Agnes was Mary Shamshoian's grandmother.

Not everything in my mailbox is a bill!

2010-04-11T23:06:00.000-07:00

Look what I got in the mail:

This is John Henry Golden's (1873-1949) death certificate from the county of Silver Bow in the state of Montana (Click to enlarge). Of course, it didn't just arrive in my mailbox on it's own; I did have to send for this record. The information on death records is only as good as what the informant knows. In this case, the informant was Paul D. Golden, son of the deceased. The year of birth given is 1872. I have been using 1873, as that is what John Henry wrote on his naturalization papers. Since I haven't been able to locate his Irish birth or baptism record, I don't know that I can verify which is the correct year.
John Henry's parents' names are also given; Tom Golden and Mary Coleman, more confirmation of that information.
The cause of death listed is apoplexy due to arteriosclerosis.
Other information includes his burial at Holy Cross Cemetery in Butte on 23 June 1949.

Basmajian Easter 1984

2010-04-03T10:21:00.000-07:00

Easter 1984 at Joann and Pete's.
From left to right:
Joann Kazarian Seeley, Auntie Vee Basmajian, Cindi Kazarian, Mark Bujulian, Auntie Erch Basmajian Kazarian, Robert Paloutzian, Tom Paloutzian, Michelle Paloutzian, Jeanne Paloutzian, Pete Seeley, Uncle George Basmajian, Tim Seeley, Auntie Arlene Paloutzian Bujulian holding Joy Paloutzian, David Kazarian, Merlin Kazarian, Adam Paloutzian, Denva Kazarian, Stacy Bujulian, Gary Kazarian, Uncle Frank Kazarian, Matthew Seeley and Uncle Harry Bujulian.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

2010-03-17T22:04:00.000-07:00

My great grandfather, John Henry Golden (1873-1949) and his siblings were born in Drumacoo, which is a landholding outside of Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon, Ireland. Landholders like John Henry's parents were tenant famers, or just tenants, meaning that they didn't own the property they lived on. You can see a map of the area here.
For those of you who thought the family was from Co. Mayo, the county borders changed in 1899, and what was once in Mayo is now in Roscommon. You can see on the map that Drumacoo is also very close to the border with Co. Sligo. Martha Golden visited Drumacoo a few years back and she sent me these pictures.

If any of you are interested in buying a piece of our ancestral homeland, you might want to check out this property.

I've been trying to expand my information for the Golden family and recently searched and purchased some records from the County Roscommon Heritage & Genealogy Company . I previously had them conduct a search for records of John Henry Golden's birth, but they didn't find anything, but suggested that there might be records on other family members. I was able to find the church marriage record for Thomas Golden and Mary Coleman who were married on 1 Dec 1866 in the parish of Ballaghadereen, Co. Roscommon. They were Roman Catholic and the witnesses were Thomas and Mary Sharkett. No other information was recorded. I found civil birth and church baptism records for John Henry's siblings Winifred (1867), Brigid and her twin, Patrick (1871), and Margaret (1876). All list the parents as Thomas Golden and Mary Coleman, Roman Catholics from Drumacoo, Ballaghadereen, Co. Roscommon, although Drumacoo is spelled all different ways (Dremacoo, Dromachro, Drimachoo, Dremecoo); that's just the fun of genealogy! I can't figure why John Henry doesn't have any records. If anyone takes a trip to Ireland (or wants to send me), I have a mission for you! I have sent for John Henry's death record to see if it has any clues.

Winifred, Bridgid and Margaret all came to the United States, to Montana. John Henry was listed as the destination on Margaret's ship arrival record, and Winifred, John Henry and Margaret were all living together in Anaconda in 1900. Brigid married John Francis "Frank" O'Connell, lived in Helena, MT and moved to Oregon between 1920 and 1930. After the 1900 census I have essentially no records for Winifred or Margaret. I think Winifred died that year as I saw a mention about the administration of the estate of Winifred Dolan (her married name) in the Anaconda Standard in Sept. 1900. She did have 3 daughters, Winifred, Mary and Margaret, but I don't know what became of them. There aren't records available on-line to help figure out these mysteries. Some library, cemetery and county record searches are the next steps.

Auntie Mary

2010-02-17T08:06:00.000-08:00

Auntie Mary was married to my grandpa Ed Paloutzian's brother, my Uncle Ernie. I didn't see them very frequently growing up, but when I did, they always remembered me and were so kind and loving. Auntie Mary's sister, Auntie Pearl, was just as kind. Even though she wasn't really my Auntie, she greeted me like family the few times I met her. What wonderful women; they will be greatly missed.

Mary Paloutzian
We celebrate the life of Mary Paloutzian who departed peacefully into the hands of our Lord in her sleep on Thursday, February 11, 2010. She was born on August 10, 1910, in Malden, Massachusetts, with her mother, Gladys (Koobatian) Kelarjian, her father Joseph Kelarjian, her brother Andrew, and sister, Pearl. She moved to Fowler, Ca., in 1920. Raised on the family farm and being the eldest of the three siblings, she was introduced to daily chores and care for the family. She graduated from Fowler High School in 1928. In 1931, she was introduced to the love of her life, Ernest Paloutzian, and they were married on September 11, 1932, in the family home on the farm where she was raised. Our mother had a passion for loving people in many ways, especially her cooking. Her favorite thing was to entertain family and friends. She was a fantastic cook and you never left her home feeling as if you hadn't had enough to eat. She delighted in preparing all the Armenian delicacies and being sure everyone's plates were filled again and again. Family favorites were her, yalanchi, choereg, kufta, dolma, and Holland Rusk pudding. Her presence was immediately known when she walked into a room. She radiated love and warmth to her entire family and all her friends. She was very creative and artistic, even learning to play the piano by ear. Our family wishes to thank Green Gables Care Home, Susan Kazaryan and Nancy Hinds Hospice for the loving and wonderful care our mother received from them over the last five years. She is survived by her children and their spouses, Dr. Rodney Paloutzian and his wife Shari of Fresno, Judy Carmichael and her husband Frank Aguilera, of Fresno, Allan Paloutzian and his wife Sue of Oceanside, Ca.; four grandsons and their spouses, Brett and Christy, Dirk and Bonnie, Kyle and Tyler and Sheree; and 11 great grandchildren. A Memorial Service honoring her will be held at First Armenian Presbyterian Church, 430 S. First Street, Fresno, Ca. 93702 on Saturday, February 20, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to first Armenian Presbyterian Church or Nancy Hinds Hospice, 1616 W. Shaw Ave., Suite C-1, Fresno, Ca., 93711

Golden Family Pictures

2010-02-11T19:03:00.000-08:00

Cathie and Jay Sheldon shared some Golden family photos with me and I wanted you all to see them, too.

Walter, Robert, Tom and Jack Golden

Margie Golden, 1940 (19 years old)

John H. Golden in San Francisco, 1938

John H. and Anna Golden (my great-grandparents) about 1946.

Robert, John Henry and Paul Golden, father and sons.

Christmas Greetings from the past!

2009-12-26T09:34:00.000-08:00

Paloutzian family Christmas 1956

Ed and Dorothy, Mary and Ernie, Louise and Frank, Judy, Raymond, Arlene, Nancy, Goohar and Tatevos, at 834 N. Harrison, Fresno, CA.

Steele/Golden family c. 1953

Chickie and Mammy (Andrew and Claire), Betty, Margie, Cathy, Susan, Bill, Mary Ann, Don, Tom and Anne at 1040 Vagedes, Fresno, CA.

One thing leads to another

2009-10-23T21:57:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has worked on genealogy puzzles knows how one piece of information can lead to a whole lot more. Earlier this year, my family and I attended the Descendant's Day Picnic at Black Diamond Mines Regional Park. At the celebration, the park staff had several huge white binders full of documents, lists and other information about the families who lived in the mining communities that used to exist in the area. My great-grandfather Andrew Steele was born in Somersville, along with his siblings. While looking through the binders I found an index or list that had church baptisms with Steele (or Still) family members listed. I just recently received copies of these documents. What I have posted are scans of photocopies of pictures taken of the original records of Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Antioch, CA. They are in Latin. There was a Catholic Church in Somersville called St. Patrick's, but I read that it was mainly used for Sunday masses.
John Steele - Rosa (Rossi) Turra marriage record
Joseph V Steele baptism record

Andrew Steele baptism record

Joseph's record lists the names of his Godparents (Latinized, of course): Vincentius Rossi and Cesarina Rossi. I have found Vincent and Cesarina (and family) in the census records, living in Stockton. I think Vincent is Rosa's brother. An interview recorded and transcribed by staff of Black Diamond Mines Park of Richard B. Steele (and family) indicates that Rosa Rossi was brought to the U.S. by her brother, but his name wasn't mentioned.
John and Rosa's wedding record list ALL FOUR PARENTS' NAMES! (All the genealogists gasp). Both John and Rosa's fathers' names were written on their death certificates, but not the mothers' names. John's parents are written as Josephi Steele and Maria Rossi. (His death certificate says his father was John). Rosa's parents are written as Matheii (hard to read) Tura (sic) (her maiden name is Rossi, and Mathew Rossi is listed as her father's name on her death certificate) and what I think says Baptistima ________ (I cannot make sense of the last name). Note John and Rosa's son Richard's middle name was Baptist, and Joseph's middle name was Vincent.
So now I'll be trying to find information that connects Rosa and Vincent as siblings, and also trying to find any more information on both John and Rosa's parents (my great-great-great grandparents!)

It helps if you're looking in the right cemetery...

2009-08-24T13:40:00.000-07:00

About a year ago, in an attempt to locate new on-line information, I subscribed to NewspaperARCHIVE.com, which has thousands of images of newspapers from all over the United States and internationally, too. I was able to locate a lot of articles, such as marriage notices and obituaries, which provided me with tons of new information. In particular, I was looking for information about one of my great-great-grandfather's brothers, Bedros Paloutzian. Bedros was one of the four Paloutzian brothers who came to California. The others were Kachadoor, Hovhannes (John) and my g-g-grandfather Manoug. Sometime between his arrival in New York on 25 May 1891, and 10 July 1900 when the census-taker took down the information, Bedros started going by the name Peter Thompson. (Bedros is the Armenian form of Peter.)
The name change made it very difficult to track his 8 children and unknown grandchildren, because while Paloutzian stands out among records as an obvious relation, the name Thompson just blends right in and could be anyone. I had the family located in each of the US Census records for 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. After that, I didn't have much. I looked in the California death records available on-line, but couldn't find a Peter Thompson that matched what I knew. It was likely then that he died between the 1930 census and 1940, when the death records available on-line begin. (Earlier death records are available on microfilm, but that involved a trip to the library on Wednesdays or Saturdays from 1:00 to 4:00. I am now a member of the Merced County Genealogical Society and have more convenient access.)
But thanks to my subscription at NewspaperARCHIVE, I was able to find Peter Thompson's obituary.

This gave me the married names of his daughters, and that he was buried in West Selma Cemetery. So, I wanted to find his headstone. On my way to Kingsburg, I stopped in Selma at the old section of the cemetery at Floral and Thompson. I didn't have the grave location, I just figured it was a small enough area that I could find it. Well, I wore myself out pacing up and down the rows of headstones .As you can probably guess by the title of this entry, and to make a long story shorter, I was at the wrong cemetery. I even went back there, with my sister Joy, a second time after calling the cemetery office and getting the location of Peter Thompson's grave, still thinking it was the West Selma Cemetery. The cemetery at Thompson just south of Floral is North Selma Cemetery. I was looking at a USGS map in my office one day when I noticed the other cemetery, also on Thompson Ave., which is actually the West Selma Cemetery. It is south of Highway 99 on Thompson near Park St. This is where Peter Thompson and his wife Mabel are buried. Their son Haig is there as well. He was a flying instructor who died in a plane crash at the age of 33.

Grandma Golden

2009-08-10T23:06:00.000-07:00

Jean Elizabeth Golden
Our beloved mother passed away peacefully on Friday, July 31, 2009. She was born April 7, 1921, in Fresno, California to Andrew and Claire Steele. Betty graduated from St.Therese school and from San Francisco College for Women. She married Robert Golden in Fresno in 1944. They established Golden Insurance Agency where Betty worked for 40 years. Betty was a lector and Eucharistic Minister at Our Lady of Victory Parish. She was a member of Third Order of St. Francis, YLI, Serra Club and a volunteer for Catholic Charities. She was preceded in death by Robert, her loving husband, of 54 years; her brother, Br. Andrew (Don) Steele, FSC; and her grandson, James Stone. Betty is survived by her nine children and their families, Mary Ann and Tom Paloutzian, Susan and Don Sturges, Bill and Shirley Golden, Catherine and Jerry Johnson, Margaret Golden, Patti and Tom McMurry, John and Maureen Golden, Janet Golden, and Michael Golden; 26 grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren; her siblings, Bernadette Steele and Thomas and Anne Steele; her sister-in-law, Virginia Golden; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. Visitation will be held at Whitehurst, Sullivan, Burns & Blair Funeral Home, on Thursday, August 6, 2009, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. followed by Recitation of the Holy Rosary at 7:00 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, on Friday, August 7, 2009, at 1:30 p.m. Interment will follow at St. Peter's Cemetery.

New friends, old pictures

2009-06-24T15:10:00.001-07:00

I made a connection this week with Alan Ouzoonian, a fellow genealogy researcher. While we aren't related, our families knew eachother and were friends. I wanted to share some photos with him that are (mostly) not identified, so I thought I would post them here as well.

There was a note on this wedding photo, and I got an English translation:
Mr. and Ms. Kar-ean(k)*
we are giving -- to you as a memory of Mr. and Ms. Ba(ou)la(ou)ltsian**.
Year of 1921

* unfortunately I can't distinguish the fourth letter and am not sure if the last letter is k.
** not sure if it says Baloultsian, Balatsian, Bouloutsian or Boulatsian. ou or a are not very distinguished... (I, Michelle, am guessing Paloutzian)

Armenian in English letters:
Ter yev tikin Kar-ean(k)
knvirenk -- i hishatak
Ter yev Tikin Ba(ou)la(ou)ltsiani
1921 tvin
The wedding picture was taken in Boston.

This photo above of a woman had a note on the back and my mom had written a translation that she thinks she got from Auntie Louise Paloutzian that says "May 22, 1923, A gift in remembrance of your grandmother Toorvanda (Theresa) Kachadooryan of Perchanj." So, it is a grandmother of a Paloutzian or a Tatoian, maybe.

I think the man above could be Giragos Tatoian.

The photo above reminds me of Tatevous Paloutzian.

Roger Doherty

2009-06-04T00:19:00.001-07:00

This obituary was published in the San Francisco Morning Call newspaper on 27 July 1891. Roger Doherty was my great-great-great grandfather. He and his wife Ann(e) had 6 children; William, Ann, Mary Jane, Elizabeth, Lily and John. Mary Jane died sometime between 1880 and 1900. She was listed at age 14 in the 1880 census record. William and John seemingly did not marry or have children. William might have been married for a short time as he is listed as a widower in one census.
Ann married Edgar Coxe and had one son, William. He also did not marry. Ann and her family lived next door to her mother on Elsie St. in San Francisco.
Elizabeth (Peeps) was married to Ewen Davidson and had, Claire (Mammy). Ewen died, and she later married Louis Levenberg (Pop), after his wife, Elizabeth's sister Lily, also died. Lily and Louis had 2 daughters, Mildred and Loretta. Peeps had 3 more children, Joseph (Bud), Elizabeth (Beth) and Louis (Lou).
Interesting to note in the obituary: Roger was a native of the Parish of Mohul(sic) in County Leitrim, Ireland; Leadville, Colorado papers are asked to copy - was there a relative there?; Roger would be buried at Mount Calvary Cemetery, one of the cemeteries that was later moved to Colma, CA.

Aunt Ida

2009-05-05T13:54:00.000-07:00

Ida T. Levenberg Sept. 10, 1914-April 27, 2009 The family of Ida T. Levenberg announces her passing into the hands of Christ on April 27, 2009, at the age of 94. Ida is survived by daughter Lynne, grandchildren Scott, Tracy, Marci, Ann, Larry and Tom and grandchildren Kristen, Eric, Lucas and Joey. Ida was preceded in death by her beloved husband Bud Levenberg and son Kerry Levenberg. Ida was born in Fresno, CA to Lawrence and Angela (Breda) Pedroncelli. After her marriage to Bud they relocated to Campbell, CA in 1936. She was involved with a local theater group called the Highlighters. She owned and operated one of the first child care facilities in Campbell, known as Tot-Lot, for over 40 years. Ida and Bud were past presidents of the Holy Family Retreat Association and very involved with the Catholic church. She received a commendation by the County of Santa Clara for over 50 years of volunteer service for register of voters. Ida was an expert seamstress and became a horticultural advisor through a Millpond Community newsletter. Ida was truly a talented lady who took interest in her community and devoted time to her faith. She will sincerely be missed by all who were fortunate enough to have known her. A memorial service will be held at St. Christopher's Catholic Church, 1576 Curtner Avenue, San Jose Ca 95124 on Thursday, May 7th at 11:00 a.m.

Black Diamond Mines Descendent's Picnic

2009-05-03T19:14:00.000-07:00

Margie, Mary Ann, Michelle, Liz and John. Family!

Pictured above, staying out of the rain: On the left, Mary Ann Golden Paloutzian and husband Tom in back, Margie Golden in the front. On the right, Liz Steele and father John Steele in the back, Jed Thoma and wife Maggie seated in front.

This weekend a few Steele family members gathered at the Black Diamond Mines Descendent's Picnic. The picnic is held every 2 years for desecendents of the mining communities that used to exist in the area. My great-grandfather, Andrew Steele, was born in Somersville. His father, John Still (later spelled Steele) worked in the coal mines.
John Still(18 Oct 1847-9 Jan 1912) married Rosa Rossi Turra(17 Apr 1860-18 Nov 1939)after her first husband George Turra died (on 15 Aug 1888). She had 2 daughters, Theresa and Georgie Turra, and at least Theresa was born in Stockton. Georgie was born after her father died (1 Jan 1889)and was apparently named after him. John and Rosa were married 12 Nov 1899 in Stockton. They had 6 more children together: Mary (b. 1890), John (b. 1891), Joseph (b.1892), Andrew (aka Chickie, b. 1895), Richard (b.1897) and David (b.1899). I have records showing that at least John through Richard were born in Somersville, CA. (David was born in Tesla, another mining community in Alameda county). Somersville no longer exists, but the site is located within the Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve.
The family was living in Fresno at 1207 F St. when they were recorded in the 1900 U.S. census on 5 Jun 1900.

Above: left to right, Margie Golden, Mike Atkins and wife Meg Thoma Atkins, Maggie and Jed Thoma. Meg and Jed are Margie's children.

Above: Margie Golden and sister Mary Ann Golden Paloutzian. Liz Steele and father John Steele.
John Steele is the son of Richard B. Steele, and the grandson of John and Rosa Steele.
Mary Ann and Margie are the daughters of Betty Jean Steele Golden, the granddaughters of Andrew Steele and the great-granddaughters of John and Rosa Steele.

Are you done yet?

2009-04-30T22:05:00.000-07:00

Friends and family who know that genealogy is one of my hobbies frequently ask if I am done, if I have finished my family tree. The answer is that I will never be done. The tree extends back in time as far as records can take me, and the family keeps expanding every day. I know of at least 4 people in my tree expecting babies this year. I also still have dead ends, places in the tree where I am stuck for lack of information. We also say goodbye each year to people we love. This week we lost my Aunt Ida Pedroncelli Levenberg (10 Sep 1914-27 Apr 2009). She was married to Joseph Francis Levenberg, Uncle Bud, who was the younger brother of my great-grandma, Claire Davidson Steele, known as Mammy to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
I have wanted to post the family tree here on my blog, but haven't been able to find a format which allows it to be easily read and understood. It is too big! Also, since it is always changing, it can only be a snapshot of any point in time.
So, for anyone in my tree who would like to have it, I will e-mail you either a Simple Register Report or an Ahnentafel Report. The Simple Register Report uses a descendant-ordered format starting with an ancestor and moving forward in time to that individual's descendants. The Ahnentafel Report uses and ancestor-ordered format starting with one individual and moving backward in time to that individual's ancestors.
I can also do various chart formats; just let me know what you would like to see.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T11:25:00.001-07:00

This is a picture of my mother, Mary Ann, with her great grandmother, who was called Peeps.
Peeps was born Elizabeth Agnes Doherty on July 9, 1870 in San Francisco, CA to Ann McLoughlin and Rogerty Doherty.
She was married to Ewen Davidson, and had a daughter, Claire (Mammy to her grandchildren and great grandchildren). Ewen died, and she later married Louis Levenberg (Pop), after his wife, her sister Lily, also died. (Lily and Louis had 2 daughters, Mildred and Loretta). Peeps had 3 more children, Joseph (Bud), Elizabeth (Beth) and Louis (Lou).
Peeps died July 21 1949 in Fresno, CA. She is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Colma, CA.

Happy Days

2009-04-07T13:50:00.000-07:00

Happy 88th Birthday today to my Grandma, Betty Golden! This is a picture from her 80th birthday party with her sister and brothers. From left to right, Don, Betty, Bernadette and Tom. If you were at the party in Fresno that day, you might remember that it snowed!!
Also, a happy 25th wedding anniversary to John and Maureen Golden, my uncle and aunt. This picture was taken at my parents' house when they were first engaged.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-23T20:48:00.000-07:00

What? St. Patrick's Day was last week? I'm still celebrating. Here's a photo of some Irish people I know, taken in the summer of 1948, La Honda, CA. Here we see the families of Jack, Walter and Bob Golden with their mother Ann.

If I get any of this wrong, someone correct me. In the back is Mary, Bob, Walter, Walter Joe, Paul, John and Anne. In the front is Jim, Michael, Julia with Margaret, Ellen with Jimmy, Kathy with her back to us, Grandmother Ann, Mary Ann, Betty with Billy, Martha and Bob with Susan.

Margaret Murphy

2009-02-22T20:27:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of Cornelius "Con" Murphy, Margaret "Aunt Marg" Murphy, Bob Golden, Anna Golden and Dan Murphy. Anna Golden and the Murphys are siblings.

Here is Aunt Marg's obituary from the Montana Standard-Post dated Monday, March 11, 1963.

Aunt Beth

2008-12-17T23:41:00.000-08:00

From the Fresno Bee Republican
15 May 1935

Elizabeth Terese ParsonsApril 24, 1911 - December 15, 2008 (97). Wife of the late Charles Andrus Parsons; mother of Charles "Cap"/"Shali" Parsons (deceased) and Lois Parsons Fragomeni; Grandmother of Justin Parsons, Angela Fragomeni, and Annette Fragomeni; sister of Claire Steele, Mildred Lloyd, Loretta Noel, Louis Levenberg, Francis "Bud" Levenberg all entered eternity before their sister; many nieces and nephews and extended family. Beth was a member of St. Emydius Church her entire life, St. Vincent de Paul, Legion of Mary and the San Franciscans. Beth was a native San Franciscan who ventured to China in 1935 to marry her sweetheart. She lived overseas until 1938 traveling between China, Hong Kong, Korea and the Philippines. She had to pack up a household 5 times to go cross country after her naval officer husband was reassigned. Beth's love for traveling didn't stop there, she traveled the globe into her mid 80's. Beth loved to play bridge and was a master player competing in tournaments here and in Hawaii. Although her hobbies and love for travel took her all over the world, she loved San Francisco best. Friends are invited to attend the Vigil: Thursday, December 18, 2008 at 5 pm at St. Emydius Church and the Funeral Mass: Friday, December 19, 2008 at 10 am at St. Emydius Church with burial at the San Francisco National Cemetery, Presidio SF, CA In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the American Cancer Society West Bay Region 235 Montgomery St. SF, CA 94104

What I know about Mariam Keshishian

2008-10-27T16:26:00.000-07:00

In order find more information about my great-great-great grandmother, I needed to put together what I know so far.

I started with the 4 generation family photo dated 10 May 1920. This tells us she was alive in 1920 and in California.
1900 US Census
The earliest census record I can find of the family is in 1900. They are living at 6 Prescott Ave., Chelsea Ward 5, Suffolk, Massachusetts on 14 June 1900. Here are the details of the census record:

Head of household: Jacob Keshishian, born in Turkey Sept 1864, age 35, married 13 years, arrived 1887, occupation: weaver
Catherine, wife, born in Massachusetts Oct 1868, age 31, married 13 years, bore 2 children (2 living)
Charles, son, born in Massachusetts March 1898, age 2
Ester, daughter, born in Massachusetts May 1900, age 1 month
Peter, brother of head of household, born Aug 1874 in Turkey, age 25, married 2 years, arrived 1898, occupation: weaver.
Mary, sister-in-law to head of household, born Dec 1883 in Turkey, age 16, married 2 years, 0 children
Mary, mother to head of household, widow, born Nov 1844 in Turkey, age 55, bore 8 children (7 living), arrived 1898

Mariam’s other children in 1900: Khatoun arrived at Ellis Island 7 Nov 1899 with her husband and 2 sons. In 1900 they were living on Main St., Paterson Ward 8, Passaic, New Jersey. Gadar crossed into the US from Montreal, Quebec, Canada in Mar 1907 with her children. Paul and Susie are living on Chestnut St., in Franklin, Norfolk, Massachusetts with Nish, Maron, and Yesneak, having arrived in 1894. I have no records for Arschalous.

1910 US Census (and other records)
I have no record for Mariam in the 1910 census. In 1910, Khatoun is living in Sanger, CA with her family. Jacob leaves Liverpool, England on 1 June 1900 with son Charles and arrives in Philadelphia with a final destination of 57 Central St., Milford, Massachusetts. where Paul is living (last name is now Kershaw). Gadar is living with husband and son at 139 Spruce St., Chelsea, Ward 4, Suffolk, Massachusetts. Susie and her sons are living in Watertown, Middlesex, Massachusetts. A 7 Sept 1910 naturalization record for Peter has him living at 4 Prescott Ave., Chelsea, Massachusetts with wife Mary. (His WWI draft registration card dated 12 Sept 1918 has him living at 230 Chestnut St., and his wife is Anoush (Peltigian) Both the 1910 and 1918 records have his birth date as 26 March 1874.)

1920 US Census
15 Jan 1920. Mary Keshishian lives on K St. in Sanger, CA. Her age is listed as 85. Khatoun and Paul live in Sanger. I cannot locate a 1920 record for Jacob, he might have died by this time, but I haven’t located a death record either. Jacob’s children Charles (Kershaw) and Lucy (is this Ester from 1900??) are both in the Sanger area. I cannot locate either Gadar or Susie in the 1920 Census, but their children are in Fresno County by this time. Peter, his wife Anoush, and children Ann and Mike are living in Massachusetts with Peter’s in-laws.

Death Records
The only death record I have been able to locate that is a close match is of Marry Kishisian, who died 18 July 1925, in Sanger, CA On the death certificate, her birth is listed as 16 June 1845. Amazingly, her parents’ names are listed, but the name of the informant is not. Her parents are recorded as Garabed Kiaetlian and Toma Ouchlookian. It says she has lived in California for 11 years (since 1914), and in the US for 17 years (since 1908). I don’t know if that is correct, because of the 1900 census record I have (I find it hard to believe that record isn’t of this family, too many coincidences). The 1920 Census has an arrival date that looks like 189_ (it is a bit blurry). Place of burial is Bethel Cemetery. This matches up with the cemetery records at the Sanger district office, which manages the Bethel Cemetery. They have records for a M. Keshishian and a Mary Keshishian, seeming to indicate that there are 2 plots with Keshishians. At the cemetery, there is only one headstone, and it reads, “Manoosh Keshishian, 1844-1925”. Here is the entry on that subject, with pictures.

Have anything to add? Let me know!

52 Paloutzians

2008-10-27T01:44:00.001-07:00

Paloutzian Family Photo, c. 1919?
Peter Thompson’s Ranch, Selma, CA

Front Row (children, seated, left to right):
1.male
2.male
3.male
4.male
5. Clara Thompson (daughter of Peter) (b. 1909)
6.female
7.female
8. male
9. male
10. female
11. Virginia Paloutzian (daughter of Kachadoor)
12 Leo Paloutzian (son of Kachadoor)
13. Jack Paloutzian (son of Kachadoor)
14. Art Paloutzian (son of Kachadoor)

Middle Section (left to right):

1. Ogda (Yughaper) Barton (wife of Charles Barton)
2. Charles Barton (Garabed Arisdagesian)
3. Peter Thompson (Bedros Paloutzian)
4. Mabel (Hnazant) Thompson (wife of Peter)
5. Helen Thompson (daughter of Peter)
6. Martha Paloutzian (wife of Toumas)
7. Toumas (Thomas) Paloutzian
8. Manoug Paloutzian
9. male child
10. Mary Parvanian Paloutzian (wife of Manoug)
11. male child
12. Hovhannes (John) Paloutzian
13. male child
14. Jean Paloutzian ??
15. Kachadoor Paloutzian
16. Audrey Paloutzian ??(asleep)
17. Ernie Paloutzian (behind Roy) (son of Tatevous)
18. Roy Paloutzian (front) (son of Tatevous)
19. Tatevous Paloutzian (son of Manoug)
20. Vern Paloutzian (son of Tatevous) (b. 1915)
21. Frank Paloutzian (son of Tatevous)

Back Row (left to right):

1. Mary Barton (daughter of Charles)
2. Soren Thompson (son of Peter)
3. Agnes Thompson (daughter of Peter)
4. Queenie Thompson (daughter of Peter)
5. Armen Paloutzian (son of Toumas)
6. female
7. female
8. Ernie Thompson (son of Peter)
9. Harold Paloutzian (Paulson) (son of Manoug)
10. Harry Paloutzian (Thompson) (son of Manoug)
11. Effrosini Paloutzian (wife of Hovhannes)
12. baby girl Paloutzian (held by Effrosini)
13. Beatrice Paloutzian (wife of Kachadoor)
14. Lucille Paloutzian (daughter of Manoug)
15. Pearl Paloutzian (daughter of Manoug)
16. Goohar Tatoian Paloutzian (wife of Tatevous)
17. Edward Paloutzian (son of Tatevous)

Manoug Paloutzian (b.1861), Hovhannes Paloutzian (b. 1862), Peter Thompson (b. 1874), and Kachadoor Paloutzian (b. 1877) are brothers. Tatevous Paloutzian is Manoug’s oldest child, and from his first marriage to an unknown woman. Toumas Paloutzian is a first cousin to Manoug, Hovhannes, Peter and Kachadoor.
Ogda (Hagopian) Barton’s mother’s maiden name was Paloutzian.
In most cases, I have the names of the children in the family tree, I just don't know which one is which.

Exciting Steele Family Discovery

2008-10-08T09:00:00.000-07:00

I am so excited!!
I posted on the San Joaquin Genealogical Society's message board on Ancestry, and after exchanging a few e-mails with Sandra Hoskins, she was able to locate the following information:

George Turra - Rosa Rossi
Married 10-24-1886, Stockton, San Joaquin County, California
Volume 5 Page 195

John Still - Rosa Tura
Married 11-12-1889, Stockton, San Joaquin County, California
Volume 5 Page 533

More to come as I add this information into the family tree!

Karabians Donate Scrapbooks

2008-10-03T11:04:00.000-07:00

I read this article awhile back:
_____________________
Hye Sharzhoom
March 2006 • Vol. 27, No. 3 (93)

Karabians Donate Scrapbooks of Clippings on Armenians from Fresno Bee
SARAH SOGHOMONIAN-STAFF WRITER
Scrapbooking has become a popular hobby in recent years.
People make wedding scrapbooks and scrapbooks of their child’s school years. I made a scrapbook filled with my high school memories.
Satenig Karabian began her scrapbook way before it became trendy. In 1930 she began clipping every article out of the Fresno Bee that featured Armenians: marriages, deaths and news stories, Karabian collected them all. Every time she clipped an article out the paper and placed it in her scrapbook, Karabian was recording history.
Karabian, who was born in Bitlis, Armenia, in 1903, came to America with her family in 1906. They settled in Fresno, where other family members already resided, and began their new life. Satenig married her first cousin Benjamin Karabian in 1930. They had no children. This allowed Karabian to become very close to her nieces and nephews.
Karabian, who kept her scrapbook current until her death in 1983, passed the three volumes on to her niece Elaine Karabian Garo and nephew Walter Karabian.
“I have preserved these pages and inserted the originals in plastic covers because I know how valuable they are,” said Walter Karabian, a former State Assemblyman from Los Angeles. “For our Karabian family, every time we turn these pages and show the pages to others, it becomes a wonderful journey down memory lane. Our aunt Satenig always remains in our hearts.”
Now the Karabian family is donating the beloved scrapbooks to the Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State so they can be scanned and archived.
“I trust Dr. Dickran Kouymjian and Barlow Der Mugrdechian to put them in the right environment so that they have the greatest access to anyone who is studying 20th century Armenian life in Fresno,” Karabian said. “I would like to have them available to Armenian scholars and the Armenian Library Museum of America in Boston so that Armenian scholars can access them.”
One thing that Karabian said is noticeable about the scrapbooks is that the farther back in time you go, the less coverage Armenians received by the Fresno Bee. “This shows that in the first half of the twentieth century the community was less accepting of Armenians,” Karabian said. As time went on the newspaper began covering Armenians more frequently, which reflected their growing acceptance in the community.
Satenig Karabian’s scrapbooks are one of a kind. Her love for Fresno’s Armenian community is evident when one looks at the meticulous care used to create the books. Fresno State is lucky to have such a rich piece of history.
_______________________

Benjamin and Satenig were my grandmother's cousins on her mother's side, and Walter Karabian is a second cousin to my father through my grandmother's father's side.
I have just received word from Barlow Der Mugrdechian of the Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State that the scrapbooks have been scanned, and that he will send me the images!! I can't wait!
Happy Birthday to my sister Jeanne!

2008-08-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

Found this yesterday. Published in The Independent Record, Helena, Montana, Thursday July 21, 1949.

John P. Murphy (1878-1950)

2008-08-05T23:47:00.001-07:00

John P. Murphy was the older brother of my great-grandmother Anna (Murphy) Golden. This obituary was published in the Montana Standard on November 24, 1950.

Here is the text of the above article: John P. Murphy Dies Suddenly. John P. Murphy, 71, operator in the electrical department of the Anaconda Copper Mining company in Great Falls, died suddenly Thursday afternoon while at work. Cause of his death was attributed to a heart attack. Mr. Murphy was a former resident of Anaconda. Surviving relatives include four brothers, Henry, Tom and Con Murphy of Anaconda and Will Murphy of Seattle, Wash; two daughters, Mrs. John Bogdden of Great Falls and Mrs. Ray Campbell of Anaconda; three sisters, Mrs. John Golden and Miss Margaret Murphy of Butte, and Mrs. Mary Weist of Anaconda, and nine grandchildren. Funeral services and burial will be Monday in Great Falls.

Now you can read it!

2008-08-05T14:31:00.000-07:00

Here is the text of the article in the previous post:

Published in the Anaconda Standard, Sunday morning, April 6, 1902.

RECEIVES FATAL INJURY

MICHAEL BONES CRUSHED AT THE
WASHOE SMELTER

CORONER TO HOLD INQUEST

Caught Between Engine and Iron Post – Still Alive When Removed From Terrible Position.
Dies at the Hospital.

While endeavoring to get out of the way of the small compressed air locomotives at the new Washoe smelter yesterday afternoon Michael Bones was caught between the engine and an iron post and was fatally crushed.
When extricated from his terrible position Bones was still alive. He was taken to St. Ann’s hospital, and though everything possible was done to prolong his life, he died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Bones was employed at the works as a smelterman. He had been in Anaconda for about a year. He resided at No. 804 East Third Street. He was 23 years of age. John Golden and Mrs. F. B. Dolan of this city were his cousins and a sister, Mrs. J. F. O’Donnell, resides in Helena.
Soon after Bones’ death Coroner Hughes was notified and took possession of the body. An inquest will be held today. Coroner Hughes has investigated the matter, and eye witnesses of the affair will testify at the inquest today.
The accident is said to have occurred just as Bones was about to leave one of the smelter buildings. It is thought that in his haste to get out of the way of the approaching engine Bones did not see where he was stepping until it was too late to move. His injuries were internal.
Despite his short residence in Anaconda Mr. Bones had a wide circle of friends here, and the news of his sudden death was a great shock to them. He was known as a young man of industrious habits. It is probable that no arrangements for the funeral will be made until after the coroner’s inquest.

Ever heard of Michael Bones?

2008-08-02T23:52:00.000-07:00

No? Me neither. At least not until this evening. I was looking through old Montana newspaper images and discovered this article about our cousin Michael. It was published in the Anaconda Standard on April 6, 1902. You can read about his accidental death in the Washoe smelter at age 23. He resided at 804 E. 3rd St., Anaconda. Sound familiar? John Golden and Mrs. F. B. Dolan (Winnie) are listed as his cousins. He also had a sister, Mrs. J. F. O'Donnell of Helena.
Now, if you have heard of Michael Bones, I'd like to hear from you!

Recent Random Records

2008-06-22T00:41:00.000-07:00

I've started to send for records that aren't available on line. Here are a few I've received recently for people in my mom's family:
This is a death notice for Ewen Davidson (Mammy's father) from the San Francisco Morning Call.

This is Rosa Steele's (Chickie's mother) death certificate. You can click on it to see it up close. It says she was born in Genoa, Italy, and that her father's name was Mathew Rossi.

Here is Ann Doherty's (Mammy's grandmother) death certificate. It doesn't tell us much that we (I) didn't already know, but it verifies her date of death, 14 Oct. 1919, and that she is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery (Colma, CA).

Motherlode! A treasure trove of newspaper articles.

2008-06-03T20:27:00.000-07:00

I came across a post on the Ancestry.com message boards from The Genealogy Genie , Jeannie Miyama, a wonderful person who volunteers her time at the California Archives and has access to many old newspapers. In one morning she was able to find and copy 38 articles (mostly obituaries and death notices) for members of my family! I am so thankful! Here are a few:

Levenberg Obituary

2008-05-14T00:40:00.000-07:00

The Library of Congress has a collection of historical newspapers which are available to view on-line. I found this:

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1901.

LEVENBERG—In this city, December 25,
1901. Lillie, dearly beloved wife of Lewis
Levenberg, mother of Loretta and Mildred
Levenberg, daughter of Anne Doherty, and
sister of William and Thomas Doherty, Mrs.
E. L. Coxe and Mrs. E. Davidson, a native
of San Francisco, aged 27 years 1 month and
6 days.
Friends and acquaintances are respectfully
invited to attend the funeral to-day
(Friday), at 1 o'clock, from her late residence,
45 Harriet Street, thence to St. Patrick's
Church for services at 1:30 o'clock.
Internment Holy Cross Cemetery.

OFFICERS and members of Minerva Parlor
No. 2, N. D. G. W.—You are notified to attend
the funeral of our late sister, Lillie
Levenberg:, to-day (Friday), from her late
residence, 45 Harriet Street.
MARY CREIGH. President.
ANNIE L. DONALDSON. Secretary.---------------------------------------
N.D.G.W. is the Native Daughters of the Golden West
You can view the actual newspaper page here.
You can do your own searches at http://www.loc.gov/chroniclingamerica/home.html

Curiouser and curiouser...

2008-05-13T23:25:00.000-07:00

I went to Holy Cross Cemetery in Fresno on my way back to Merced on Mother's Day to find Bert and Mary Church's plots. Success!

But something was off...

Maybe I misheard when I called the cemetery office, but her headstone says Mary died in 1958, not 1968 as I had posted previously. Funny thing is, she is in plot 68, and 68 years old when she died. Funny. Then, I thought maybe having the wrong year is the reason why I haven't been able to find her death record, but, no, I still cannot locate it.

Find Bert, Find Mary

2008-04-20T19:33:00.000-07:00

In February I wrote about finally finding Bert Church's death record. You can read about that here. Bert was the husband of Mary, the sister of my great grandfather, Andrew "Chickie" Steele. Bert and Mary didn't have any children of their own; Bert had a son from his previous marriage. I hadn't been able to find a death record for Mary, nor did I have her birthdate, and I have just been so curious about what happened to her.
So one day several weeks ago I got the bright idea to call up the cemetery. I was home from work early, and now I had Bert's full name and birth and death dates. I just made an educated guess and called the Holy Cross cemetery office in Fresno. They actually have access to the records for all three Catholic cemeteries. And, yes, Bert Church is buried at Holy Cross, in section D, plot 68, #7. So I asked about Mary, and yes, she is buried "next door" in #8! I asked for her death date; she died 24 Aug 1968, 4 days after her brother Andrew. I still can't find her California death record, so maybe she didn't die in California.

511 Cherry St., Anaconda, MT

2008-04-16T20:44:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of 511 Cherry St., Anaconda, MT. The 1896 Anaconda City Directory tells us that Frank Dolan (and, I assume, his wife Winnie and daughters) lived here, as well as John Henry Golden. Several boarders are listed as living in the rear at this address. Frank's occupation is bricklayer with the Anaconda Copper Mining Company. John Henry's occupation is clerk for Joseph Peters. The Joseph Peters entry in the directory reads: clothing, boots, shoes, gents' furnished goods, hats, caps, gloves, underwear, etc. 24 Main .

804 E. 3rd St., Anaconda, MT

2008-04-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

Hi, Michelle:

When I saw your latest update on our Grandfather’s address in Anaconda, I sent it to a co-worker who lives in Anaconda. Turns out she lives a couple of blocks away! She took these pics today and sent me some information. She is going to do some investigating on the house. She and her husband own a few houses in Anaconda and she is very familiar with the history. They have friends who have bought some of these old houses and renovated them to the original state.

This is the house where Grandpa Golden lived with his older sister Winifred, her husband, their two kids and his younger sister, Margaret, in 1900.
Pretty cool!

From my co-worker, who lives in Anaconda – just a couple of blocks away.
Here is a shot of your family’s house. It is a smaller house, w/a "smelterman's" cabin in the back - it was really common to rent those out to the men that worked at the Anaconda Smelter. There have been some additions to the house, but it definitely is in character with the houses in the area and the architecture of the neighborhood. A number of the homes in the area had a nice glassed or open sitting porch on the front, and I think your house did as well. Many were boarded up – like yours – where the front door is. There is a big open lot next to the house. Not sure if it was owned by the same family or not. I include a picture of that as well. If you face the house, the lot is on the left. I believe you can see the smelterman’s cabin from the vacant lot – way to the right in the photo of the lot, behind the main house at 804 E 3RD St and the garage is on the other side of it.

Love to all,
Margie

A Golden Discovery

2008-04-04T23:35:00.000-07:00

I've got this piece of paper with information about the family of my great grandfather, John Henry Golden. It was in a packet of information that was put together when Sharon Bullene was doing a school project. But, I don't know who typed up this page or where the information came from. This is what it looks like:

I started with tracing John Henry and Bridget in the U.S. Census records and was surprised to discover that Winnie and Margaret had also come to the United States.

The 1900 census record shows Winnie and husband Frank (Francis P.) Dolan and their 3 daughters, Mary, Winnifred and Margaret living in Anaconda, Montana at 804 E. Third St. John Henry and Margaret are living with them. Bridget and Frank O'Connell lived in Helena, Montana for the 1900, 1910 and 1920 censuses. In 1930, the family had moved to Portland, Oregon. Bee and Frank had 8 children. I cannot find any records of Margaret, or of Winnie and her family after the 1900 census.

I hadn't found any arrival records for the Goldens, or anyone in my mother's family. The problem is that the older arrival records have less information, which makes it harder to identify a specific person. But, Margaret Golden, sister of John Henry, arrived last of all her siblings, and I found her arrival record!

She arrived in New York on September 21, 1899 aboard The S.S. Majestic, which had sailed from Queenstown (Cobh), Ireland 7 days earlier. She was travelling with a cousin, John H. Finn, (age 28), and she is 20 years old at the time. It lists their last residence as Ballymote, Ireland, which is in County Galway, sort of halfway between Ballaghadereen (the Goldens' birthplace) and the city of Galway. (Hooray for Google Maps!) Other passengers on the ship have Ballaghdereen listed as their last residence. Their final destination is Anaconda, Montana, to join brother and cousin J.H. Golden, living at 804 E. Third St. !!

Here is the 1900 census record:

If you know anything else to add to this story, let me know!

1898 Great Register of Voters

2008-03-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

I sent for and received a copy of the 1898 Great Register of Voters for the Sommersville Precinct of Contra Costa County, CA. Line number 90 reads:
Still, John
occupation: miner
age: 49
height: 5' 4"
complexion: dark
eyes: gray
hair: dark
marks or scars: top little finger right hand off
country of nativity: Austria
residence: Somersville
naturalized: May 23, 1896, Contra Costa County Superior Court

It isn't until the 1910 US census that his name is written as John Steele. John is the father of Andrew Steele (Chickie), and the grandfather of Betty Golden (my grandmother). That makes him my great-great grandfather.

Happy Birthday to my cousin Karen Golden!

I found Bert Church!

2008-02-17T21:00:00.000-08:00

Awhile back I wrote about finding the Steele family plot at the cemetery, but not knowing much about Bert and Mary (Steele) Church. Ancestry.com recently posted California voter registrations from 1900-1968 for various cities and counties. I was able to find registrations for Bert and Mary for several years between 1930 and 1944. The records list their addresses (they moved a lot!), and occupations, and were very helpful because they gave me the correct spelling of Bert's name, which led me to finding his death record and census records showing his family, plus a WWI draft registration record. Bert died 29 Oct 1971, 3 days before I was born. I must be missing some key piece of information about Mary, because I can't locate her death record.

Also in the voter registrations I found a record for Yonovera "Mame" Towey in San Francisco in 1935.

Another Arrival

2008-02-10T16:39:00.000-08:00

I recently found the immigration record of my great-grandmother Mary Badigian Basmajian. She arrived at age 22 with her 52-year-old mother, Markarid (which means pearl) and her brother Vartan, who was 12, aboard the SS Laurent. They sailed from Le Havre, France on December 15, 1906 and arrived in New York on December 28. Also sailing with them was Markarid's nephew, Hovsep Karabian and his wife, sister and 3 small children. The whole group had their passage paid by Markarid's brother, Krikor Karabian, who was living in Fresno.
So, now I have found arrival records for all 4 of my father's grandparents, who each arrived separately with their families!

They came by boat

2008-01-09T17:52:00.000-08:00

I do a lot of my research on Ancestry.com. The site has a huge store of records available and they are always adding more. Since new records are showing up on a regular basis, it is possible that records I haven't been able to locate just haven't been made available yet. Here is an instance of a record I have been searching for finally showing up! What a surprise to find an immigration record for Altoon, Goohar, and Aghavni Tatoian! You can see the record above. They arrived at the port of St. John, New Brunswick, Canada on the S.S. Lake Manitoba on 20 December 1903. Based on the record source, they likely crossed into the U.S. soon after through Calais, Maine. Here is a map of the area.
Interesting tidbit: Altoon means gold or money, Goohar means diamond or precious stone, and Aghavni means dove or pigeon.

Who is buried in Bethel Cemetery?

2008-01-04T14:38:00.000-08:00

Ce Happy New Year!

Over my Christmas vacation, my mom, Joy and I tried to dig deeper and find some more obscure information. No, we didn't take shovels to the cemetery, only a camera. I called up the Sanger District Cemetery and asked about Mariam Keshishian, my great-great-great grandmother. They had records for a Mary Keshishian and an M. Keshishian buried next to eachother, so we went to check it out. Bethel Cemetery is in Fresno County out between Sanger and Del Rey. It is on Bethel Ave., between Indianola and Central Avenues. Here is a map.

The map in the Cemetery office shows there is an M. Keshishian buried next to Mary Keshishian. Out at the cemetery we found Manoosh Keshishian (1844-1925) in the M. Keshishian plot, and where Mary Keshishian is shown on the map, there isn't a headstone. I have never seen the name Manoosh in any records I have found so far. Now, Manoosh is a female name, and the dates are close to what I've found for Mariam, so there could be some confusion in the cemetery records (which are not original records). I have 2 birth years for Mariam from the 2 census records I found for her. In 1900, her birth year is 1845, and in 1920, her birth year is 1835. Her daughter Khautoun was born in 1856, so a 1835 to 1840 birth year is the most likely. Hopefully, there is some more information out there somewhere.

The picture above is from the same cemetery and is the headstone for Kervork (George) Basmajian (1848-1911), my great-great grandfather, husband of Khautoun. Even though the headstone says 1912, we know he died Oct. 10, 1911 because Grandpa Basmajian wrote it in his Bible. Thanks Grandpa!

Mame Towey's Passport

2007-12-04T18:48:00.000-08:00

Ancestry.com has U.S. passport applications dated from 1795 to 1925 including this one submitted by our own Mame Towey! This is what it says:
I, Yonovera Towey, a native and loyal citizen of the United States, hereby apply to the Department of State, at Washington, for a passport. I solemnly swear that I was born at Providence in the state of Rhode Island on the 5th day of October 1878 and that my father, Patrick Towey was born in Ireland and that he emigrated to the United States from the port of Queenstown (Ireland) on or about October 1859; that he resided 42 years, uninterruptedly in the United States from 1880 to 1921 at St. Paul, Minnesota; and that I am domiciled in the United States, my permanent residence being at Chicago in the State of Illinois where I follow the occupation commercial traveller. I am about to go abroad temporarily; and I intend to return to the United States within 2 months with the purpose of residing and performing the duties of citizenship therein; and I desire a passport for use in visiting the countries hereinafter named for the following purpose: pleasure; France, Belgium, Holland, England. I intend to leave the United States from the port of New York sailing on board the S.S. Rochambeau on July 23rd, 1921. An oath of allegiance is signed 30 June 1921.
The reverse has a description and the picture above:
Age: 42 years, Stature: 5' 4", Forehead: high; Eyes: hazel; Nose: ordinary; Mouth: large; Chin: round; Hair: brown; Complexion: medium; Face: oval
The passport is to be sent to 334 Fourth Ave., c/o H.W. Gossard Co., New York City.
There is also a letter from Mame's sister, Dorothy Towey Titus, attesting to Mame's birth in Rhode Island.

Thanksgiving wandering

2007-11-25T17:37:00.000-08:00

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving weekend. I spent some of the weekend working on genealogy on both sides of my family. On Friday, my mom and I went up to the Fresno cemeteries on Belmont Ave. We wandered around for awhile and Mom found the Steele family plot. (We knew it was there somewhere). The plot is in the "old Catholic cemetery", which is Calvary Cemetery. It is located on Belmont Ave. with all the other cemeteries, just west of highway 99. If you are on Belmont Ave. facing south towards the cemeteries, the Calvary section is in the middle of two sections of Mountain View Cemetery. There are a pair of gates that say "Calvary" halfway back from Belmont Ave. to the back fence and the railroad tracks. Just the gates are there, the rest of the area isn't fenced. The Steele plot is southwest of the Calvary gates. So, who is buried there? John Steele (1849-1912) and his wife Rosa (1857-1938) (my great-great grandparents) and their sons, John (1891-1978), David (1899-1938) and Richard B.(1897-1986) and his wife Laura (1899-1991). Andrew and Claire are buried at St. Peter's, and Joseph and Emma are at Holy Cross. Does anyone know where their sister Mary is buried? Her husband was Burt Church, but I don't know if he was a Burton or a Robert or Herbert and I can't find any records on him.

October Cemetery Haunting

2007-10-03T20:41:00.000-07:00

Well, really, I was hunting not haunting. And, actually, it was September 30, but we can be creative in order to make a catchy title!

I was on my way to St. Mary's Church in Fresno and made a short detour to the Ararat Cemetery on Belmont Ave., just to poke around and see who I could find. It was almost hard not to stumble over cousins, some more distant than others. I've posted the photos on Ancestry.com. If you don't have access to Ancestry yet, and would like to, let me know and I will send you an invitation. It is free! If you like, I can e-mail you any of the photos. Here's who I found: Markered Badigian (my great-great-grandmother), Geragos and Gadar Chooljian (my other great-great-grandmother's sister and her husband), Horene Basmajian (my great-grandfather's brother), Khatoun and Garabed Ouzoonian (my great-great-grandmother and her 2nd husband), Harry Tusoosian (Tusan), Susie Zaillian, Yezneak Zaillian, Albert B. Badigian (1920-1923), Harry and Arax Chooljian, Tooma Chooljian, Gadar Zailian, Aram Zailian, Zaven Chooljian, Ralph and Anahid Shamshoian, Chester and Erma Badigian, Arax Chooljian Zailian, Lucy Zailian (1920-1923), Rose and Vartan Badigian (my great-grandma's brother and his wife). I also already have pictures of Dickran and Mary Basmajian, and Giragos and Altoon Tatoian. I have other family headstones, too, but these are the ones from the Ararat Cemetery.

Notes and tidbits

2007-09-24T21:49:00.000-07:00

Anymore thoughts on Mame? Leave a comment here, or send me an e-mail.
For those new to blogging, you can subscribe to these posts at the very bottom of this page, and my entries will be e-mailed to you each time I write.
For the Paloutzian family, I found that the village of Parchanj exists in Turkey now with the name of Akcakiraz, in the province of Elazig; the coordinates are 38 degrees , 37 minutes North; 39 degrees, 16 minutes East.
If anyone would like to be more involved in research, I would be happy to provide assignments for library and cemetery excursions in your area!

Yonovera revealed

2007-09-07T21:55:00.000-07:00

I received quite a few responses to my last post about Mame, and so, with a few new clues, I started digging around and discovered quite a bit! The biggest tidbit came from the 1955 San Francisco City Directory which lists Phillip and Yonovera Garnett, the president and secretary-treasurer of Foundation Garment Inc., living at 1000 Mason St., Apt. 403 in San Francisco. This building is the Brocklebank Apartments and is located across the street from the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill. Finally I had a name to search for in the California Death Index! I found the death record and then had the all-important birthdate and location. The records came tumbling! I haven't found any record with the name Mame, but apparently that is the name she went by, so that's how I will call her. This is a summary of what I've found so far:
Mary Agnes Towey was born 5 Oct 1878 in Providence, Rhode Island to Patrick H. and Margaret (Henery) Towey, who were both born in Ireland. She was their oldest child and had 3 younger sisters, Margaret, Dorothy (called Birdie) and Annie. The family moved to St. Paul, Minnesota around 1881 and lived at 2377 Ellis St. In 1898, the St. Paul City Directory lists Mame's occupation as a clerk with the Northern Shade Cloth Co. and she continues to work there at least until 1905. In the 1909 St. Paul directory we find her family still, but Mame is not listed. In 1910, Mame and her sister Dorothy are living in Seattle, Washington at 1729 Boylston Ave., and Mame is an apartment house manager. Her name is written as Yono V and this is the first instance I have found of her use of the name Yonovera. All records from this time on are for Yonovera Towey, and later, Yonovera Garnett.
On the 4th of September 1921, we find Mame returning to New York from Glasgow, Scotland on the ship "Columbia". Her address is the Hotel McAlpin which was located at 1300 Broadway in New York City. The McAlpin was an oppulent 1,500 room hotel which opened in 1912, and at that time was the largest hotel in the world. On the 9th of September 1922, Mame is on the ship "Carmania", returning to New York from London. Her residence is 276 5th Ave., New York City.
In 1935, Mame is living in San Francisco when she files for a patent for her design of a Girdle and Brassiere. The US patent # is 2036510, and it was issued April 7, 1936. I have copies of the documents which include drawings, descriptions and Mame's signature. On September 8, 1936 Mame is issued a Canadian patent for the same Girdle and Brassiere. It is Canadian patent #360383. Yonovera Towey is the inventor, and H.W. Gossard Co. is listed as the owner.
Sometime between 1944 and 1950 Mame marries Phillip J. Garnett. (The 1944 San Francisco City directory lists Phillip living at 68 Presidio Ave., and Mame living at 1000 Mason St., but both in the Foundation Garments business.) On January 3, 1951 Yonovera Garnett arrives in San Francisco from Honolulu, Hawaii. I couldn't find any other passengers on the ship with names I recognized.
Phillip died in 1956. Mame died in San Francisco on May 24, 1964.
I have compiled the e-mails that I received about Mame from Martha Golden, Mary Cannon, Fr. Paul, my mother and grandmother on Ancestry.com in the "stories" section on Mame's page.

Auntie (cousin) Mame?

2007-08-29T20:58:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to find records for Mame Tuohy (not sure of the spelling). I was told that she was born in Ireland, was a cousin of John Henry Golden, that she married someone named Garnet, and died in San Francisco around 1955. She was present at the wedding of Bob and Betty Golden, and I think I was told that she paid for Aunt Margie (Sheldon) to go to school at the San Francisco College for Women. Are my facts correct? Does anyone have any other information that would help locate her in the 1930 census or the California Death records? So far I haven't been able to find anything.

Finding Pearl

2007-08-17T22:33:00.000-07:00

Pearl Paloutzian (b. 15 Aug 1900 in Turkey) was the oldest child of Manoug Paloutzian and his second wife Mary Parvanian. Pearl was married to Merial Shakerjian sometime before 1920, as the 1920 census record shows them living together in Fresno. They had a son, Benjamin, but the marriage didn't last. By 1930 Pearl and Ben were living in Los Angeles with her parents.
I hadn't been able to find out when Pearl died because I couldn't find a death record for a Pearl Paloutzian or Pearl Shakerjian. I was sharing this information with my parents when they provided a most valuable clue: She had shortened her last name to Shaker! And no one had bothered to tell me they were harboring this information! Anyway, I found Pearl Shaker's death record. She died in Los Angeles county 19 Apr 1976.

The other Thomas Paloutzians

2007-08-05T01:31:00.000-07:00

I had the information from uncle Ernie Paloutzian's family tree, and I had come across the records on Ancestry, but today I finally put it all together and worked out where Thomas (Toumas) Paloutzian, (born in Harput, Turkey in 1870), fit into our family tree.
Thomas' father was Armenag. One of Armenag's brothers was Asadoor (Their father was also named Toumas.) Asadoor had 4 sons, Manoug, Hovhannes, Bedros (Peter) and Kachadoor, all who came to California. That makes Thomas (b. 1870) and Manoug first cousins. Manoug was the father of Tatevous, my great-grandfather.
Thomas and his family lived in California as well, moving from Fresno county to the Los Angeles area between 1920 and 1930. His wife was Martha, and they had 6 children, only the oldest was not born in California; Yeranhouy (b. 1892 in Turkey) married Tateous Apkarian and had 5 children in California: Nergis, Asadoor, twins Vahan and Vartan, and Zabel; Armenhouy (b. 1901) married James Der Hagopian and had at least 2 children, Ralph and Virginia; I'm not sure if Armen (b. 1902) married, Higie (b. 1904) married a man named Kamler, Dickranhoui (b. 1906) married a man named Paul, and Zari (b. 1908) married a man named Adanalian. I haven't located any other grandchildren of Thomas and Martha.
There is one more Toumas, and he was a first cousin to Armenag, being the son of Armenag's uncle Garabed.

On another note, I have been adding marriage and divorce records from the 2 newest data bases on Ancestry: the California marriage database (1960-1985) and the California divorce database (1966-1984). This has been very helpful for family members in my parents' generation.

Would you like to contribute?

2007-07-23T15:42:00.000-07:00

My brother Robert has set up a family website on geni.com for our family, meaning both Paloutzians and Goldens. He took the information from my tree on Ancestry.com (thief!! just kidding, we're all about sharing information here!) It doesn't have the research component and document attachment found on Ancestry, but it does have several really fun tools. There is a map feature that shows all your relatives either by birthplace, or current location. There is a calender feature that allows you to see everyone's birthdays and anniversaries. Anyone who has been invited can add to their profile and upload pictures. I also like the way you are able to scroll around the tree. It is all very easy to use.
Speaking of pictures, photos can also be added to the Ancestry site. If you add pictures to the geni.com site, I will copy and add them to the Ancestry tree for you. Also, if you have been invited to Ancestry by me (and if you want an invitation, just let me know) I have upgraded your status to contributor. This allows you to add pictures and leave comments. If you haven't visited the site, besides the basics of names and dates, I have added references and documents such as US Census records, birth and death notices and military records.
And please do leave comments on Ancestry if you see something missing, or incorrect. Add your birthday, anniversary, name of spouse or children, etc.
As always, please share this blog, and geni.com with other members of our family who have not yet received notice of what we've got going on.

Missing information - do you know?

2007-07-21T21:59:00.000-07:00

A few of the many pieces of information I don't have:

wedding anniverary dates for:

Peeps and Pop Levenberg
Ernie and Mary Paloutzian (11 Sep 1932)
Frank and Louise Paloutzian
Roy and Violet Paloutzian
Vern and Zabel Paloutzian
Jack and Julia Golden, 29 Jun 1931 (Thanks, Fr. Paul!)

dates of death for:

Miriam Keshishian (d. 18 July 1925)
Peter Thompson (brother of Manoug Paloutzian) (d. 24 Oct 1936)
Harold (Paloutzian) Paulson, b. 1903 (d. 14 Sept 1999)
Ann Doherty (mother of Peeps, Elizabeth Levenberg) (d. 14 Oct 1999)
John Thomas Doherty (brother of Peeps) (d. 5 Dec. 1936)
William P. Doherty (brother of Peeps)

updated 11 Nov 2010

In the beginning...

2007-07-18T08:58:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to communicate more with my family about our family tree and the genealogy work I've been doing. When I discover new things, I like to share! And also, you can help me out with any information you have. Please share this blog with anyone in our family!

My tree is on Ancestry.com; if you'd like to see it, send me an e-mail and I'll send you an invitation to view the tree.

I work on different branches of my family as I find new information, and one piece of information can lead to others, and that will keep me going in a direction for awhile.

On Memorial Day this year, my parents, Grandma Golden, Aunt Bernadette and I visited our relatives at cemeteries in Fresno. We "collected" digital pictures of headstones on both sides of my family and I added those to the tree on Ancestry. I also found the headstones of Giragos and Altoon Tatoian at the Ararat cemetery in Fresno. They are my great-great grandparents; my paternal grandfather's maternal grandparents (Ed Paloutzian's mother's parents).
A few weeks ago at my cousin Becky Golden-Harrell's wedding, I was reintroduced to Bill Golden, son of Walter, Jr. He was able to provide some information I didn't have about his family, and that led me to do some more digging on the Golden side. Ancestry recently added a California marriage and divorce index (from the 1960's-1980's, so somewhat helpful), and I found some useful records there.
Random Google searches also turn up interesting things. I found Keith and Ellen Golden's wedding pictures on Ellen's blog recently and was able to add Keith's siblings to my tree. Keith is the son of Jim Golden, and grandson to Jack Golden.
As always, I am pleased to hear from everyone, and especially if you have family information I am missing.