Tag, I'm It

There really IS a first for everything. To date I've not put any non-genealogy related posts on my blog, but I've been tagged, so I have no choice. For those not in-the-know, being tagged means that you have to answer the question the tagger asks you in your blog, then tag someone else. So make sure you read to the end of this post to see if you've been tagged! And, to put a genealogical spin on it, perhaps my cousins who read this blog might know of other ancestors and/or relatives that had/have the same weird things about them. If so, post a comment here -- if you dare ;).

My tag? I'm supposed to tell 6 weird things about me. I know, I know, coming up with 6 weird things about me should be a piece of cake!

6. I'm an aisle hugger. I can't stand to be at a concert or event and be in the middle of the row (unless it's the front row and there's a wide aisle in front of me). I actually get rather twitchy when stuck in the middle, like I was when I went to see John Edward in Phoenix last year. I got through it because I figured John would know if anything bad was going to happen and I assumed he was a good humanitarian and would have warned me (John Edward is a psychic, if you didn't know ;) ).

5. My taste in music, movies, tv, etc. is opposite the critics. The more a critic liked a movie, the bigger chance I'll hate it (this is also true if Jennifer likes a movie...we rarely agree on movies!). Everyone thinks Chris Daughtry on American Idol is going to win; he's my least favorite contestant left on the show (though I did like his classic performance last week. It scares me that I often agree with Simon). It's also true of movies that win a lot of awards ... I usually don't like them.

4. I don't know why I have a dining room table; the only thing that goes on it is the mail and junk I carry in from my car. I eat at the computer. I should buy stock in keyboard cleaning and manufacturing companies.

3. I got Donna beat: I set my alarm an HOUR before I have to get up. It's a clock radio and is set to go off to the radio station, so I don't have to hit snooze. I do have to be sure it's on loud enough to hear and keep me from falling asleep again. When the radio goes off, the tv goes on and I get up.

2. I LOVE lettuce sandwiches! White bread, Best Foods/Hellman's Mayonnaise, and iceberg lettuce. YUMMMMMMMMMMM!

And the WEIRDEST thing about me:

1. I find dead people. Read my blog. You'll catch on :).

Now, Kelley, Jenna, and Shirley ... you've been tagged. I'll be reading your blogs!

Which One is Which?

I don't think I've posted my McHugh/McCue brick wall yet. If I have, it's been a while so a little re-visiting won't hurt.

There are McHughs on both sides of my family: my father and my mother's maternal grandmother. To the best of anyone's knowledge, there is no connection.
Both McHugh families settled in Luzerne County, PA. It is known that the paternal McHugh line hailed originally from Nanticoke and Wilkes-Barre. It is speculated the maternal McHugh line lived in Pittston.

Thanks to the generosity of a volunteer through the organization Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness, I have an index of a marriage record for a John J. Doyle (b. 25 Dec 1864) and a Jennie McCue (b. 29 Jul 1866), married on 25 Aug 1887 in Pittston, PA. One of these days I'll get around to ordering the record (I'd better hurry before *someone* in this country gets the idea that a 140 year-old marriage record is too dangerous to our country's security to release). Anyway, the birthdate on the index for John is consistent with that which is on his birth record from Birkenhead, England, and the birth year of Jennie is consistent with what US Census records list.

Family had always known Jennie as Jane, though a first cousin of my mother's believes he's heard her referred to as Jennie as well. Speculation, based on naming patterns of the times, abounds that Jennie was short for Genevieve.

I have only one US Census record *speculation* as to Jane's family. An 1871 Census Record from Pittston PA lists the following:

McCue, John 40 M W Laborer Ireland
Jane 30 F " KH "
Mary 9 F " "
Martin 8 M " "
Jane 5 F " Pa
Thomas 3 M " "
Margaret 10/12 F " "

I have nothing to back this up at this point other than a consistency with Jane's birth (give an extra year -- not unusual for census records to be off by that or more) and the Pittston location. Street names are not given on the 1870 Census; however, a browse of 2 pages prior to this page and 2 pages after it fail to show other surnames connecting to *my* Jane McCue. At least that is known.

Perhaps someone will recognize either my names (Jane/Jennie McHugh/McCue) or the names listed on the above census record. Perhaps I'll get off my duff and order the marriage record and perhaps that will give me another clue or two.

Perhaps I'll end up just as stuck as I am now!

Your Ancestors in Pictures (YAP)

Earlier I'd talked about the value of various genealogical communities, particularly of online communities. Tonight I'd like to introduce you to a specific community on AOL that is venturing onto the World Wide Web. You are invited to join us in this endeavor.

The genealogy community on AOL has created an Internet-based website called the Genealogy Community. This site houses many resources for those of us immersed in, playing around in, experimenting with, the Wonderful World of Genealogy. There are message board on which you can browse through and post messages on your searches, find answers to questions, post questions, and get to know other people with this interest. There are links to community members' websites and links to genealogy resources. There are pictures. There are files to download on a number of topic areas. It is a growing community built just for us! Oh, did I mention there are chat rooms with scheduled chats on various genealogy-related topics?

One chat in particular that I'd like to introduce you to is incredible! It is among the most special chats I've ever seen! (Well, I WOULD say that since *I* host this particular chat!). It is called Your Ancestors in Pictures, or YAP. In this chat we talk about many things picture related and how pictures can be an important part of our genealogical journey. Topics have been known to include equipment needed to incorporate pictures in our searches, identifying ancestors in pictures, preserving and protecting pictures, the value of blogging, and even scrapbooking! Important to note: While I host this chat, I am not even close to an expert! I am learning like everyone else! This chat is generally run as a member-helping-member chat unless I have a pre-researched and pre-written presentation.

I am going to host this week's chat in the Genealogy chat room at www.genealogycommunity.com this WEDNESDAY, April 12 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. This week's topic will be two-fold: First an introduction to the chat and the format for those who are new to us, and Second, we will be discussing digital cameras. I hope you will join us with any information you have about cameras: what to look for when purchasing them, how to use them, how to get them onto your computer, etc. Whether you are an expert on the topic or a novice looking for help, I hope to YAP with you there this Wednesday!

You will need to register at the website before entering the chat room, but this is a FREE and painless process. Once registered you can click on the "Discussion Room" link in the center of the page!