A Song in Itself

May 5, 2007 at 12:16 PM

How many of us could write songs about our ancestors? Let me give you what I could write about, but can't because, so far, the music hasn't come.

The Civil War: a Northern Great Grandfather and a Southern Great Grandfather.

Seven brothers ages 17 to 27 went to war. Their Dad was a circuit riding preacher in the wilds of PA. with 20 churches. His Dad was a German Soldier hired by the British to fight the Americans in 1776 at Long Island, but he went to the other side after landing. All seven of his sons volunteered from Ohio and Illinois, none were killed or seriously hurt. They fought in all the major battles in the ditches and on horse back.

One brother was visiting his sister in Tennessee when the war broke out and had to walk home at night to escape capture.

My Northern grandfather fought within yards of my Southern grandfather at Missionary Ridge.

My Southern grand father was at the fall of Vicksburg and Appomattox and had to walk home barefooted and without food from each.

My Southern grandfather also had a grand father caught in the war of 1776. This father was Irish. His clan in England refused to pay taxes and were pardoned by the King. They did it again and in 1720 a boy of eight was playing over at his friends house when the British came and rounded up the Fitzpatricks, burned their entrails before their eyes, beheaded them and hung them on spikes on London Bridge. William was put on a boat to America with his name changed to Barron. During the war of 1776 he was Captain William Barron and was killed near Savannah, GA.

Many of us have survived cancer, shipwrecks, truck wrecks and a few upside down horses. It is hard to sing about some of the "things" in our lives, but sing we must; we survived and that is a song in itself.

From Pauline Lerner
Posted on May 5, 2007 at 8:06 PM

I think everyone has interesting things in their family background, but not all of us know about them. I'm a third generation American, and I know nothing about anyone before my grandparents. I assume that most of my Jewish ancestors in Russia during WWII were killed by the Nazis. My parents sometimes told interesting stories about their ancestors who were great allegedly great heroes, but I don't believe them.

From Pauline Lerner
Posted on May 5, 2007 at 8:11 PM

BTW, I like your photo.

From Patricia Baser
Posted on May 6, 2007 at 3:01 AM

My great claim to fame is that Daniel Boone is my great-great-great-great-great grandfather.

From Anne Horvath
Posted on May 6, 2007 at 2:42 PM

When it comes to genealogy, you never know what might pop up. A father of one of my students started tracing his family roots. He found the usual Confederate ancestors, (here in Alabama, that is the norm), but when he went further back, he found his Revolutionary War kin were actually a bunch of Tories. He was very embarrassed.

I don't have any Civil War veterans in my direct family tree. Dad's side wasn't here yet. Mom's side was here (since the late 1600s) and owned farms around PA. They paid $$ for a substitute, which was very expensive.

One of their farms was very close to Gettysburg. They evacuated right before the big battle, and their home was taken over by some Reb Hoo-Hah whose name escapes me.

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A Song in Itself

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