Farewell to Washington and Back to Wisconsin The 46th page of Sally’s photo album includes…

Joanna Friedericke Streich (1824-1906) Joanna Friedericke Streich was born on 08 Nov 1824 in Dobberphul,…

Mary Stolp (1871-1915) Mary Stolp. Mary Stolp was born on 06 Apr 1871 in Sandwich,…

Ingerid Torleivsdtr Imré (1796-1887) Ingerid Torleivsdtr Imré was born about Mar 1796 in Hemsedal, Buskerud,…

Trees and Friends and Friends in Trees The eighth page of Sally’s photo album featured…

I was excited a week ago when I started thinking about the event. But now, the…

Peter Morris Cornell (1829-1892) The search for Peter Cornell started fairly early in my adulthood…

What to do with all that beer? A couple months ago, during an extended weekend…

Bennett Nils Christianson (1902-2000) This week of each year is always a little tough. For so…

Remember that letter that Arthur wrote to his brother Floyd back in late January? The…

Friedrich Samuel Aschbrenner (1810-1885) Friedrich Samuel Aschbrenner was born on 19 Oct 1810 in Posen,…

Jacob B. Meyer (1836-1887) Jacob B. Meyer was born on 22 Feb 1836 in Hettingen,…

My latest book, “The Aldahl Family,” is now available. Nearly all my time in 2020…

Caroline Hilson (1863-1940) Today is the 153rd anniversary of the birth of Caroline Hilson. Birth…

In observance of Thank Your Mentor Day, I am writing about the importance of having…

Winter in Marathon Park The 16th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of…

The school picture of this little boy was included in a photo album put together…

Arthur Guy Phillips was 24-years old, love-sick for his gal Florence, and perhaps feeling unappreciated…

After several days on the boat, life was probably getting a bit monotonous. Floyd reported…

Floyd’s 11-year old cousin Donald James Phillips wrote a very newsy article. His account of…

Collaboration Beer Dinner  Forager, Surly, Fulton and Toppling Goliath I just attended my first collaboration…

Hooray! After months and months of effort, the Phillips book has finally been published. Though…

There was a man named John Farris… Nearly every week, a mystery is solved or…

Florence Estelle Manning, the fiance of Floyd’s brother Arthur Guy Phillips, wrote another friendly letter…

As we have seen in earlier posts, women fought to gain full voting rights, missed…

This gal was a 1948 graduate. Her senior portrait was taken by Anderson in Austin,…

Most of the people in this picture have been identified. There is just one question…

On a recent vacation to the Black Hills of South Dakota, we discovered that besides…

DNA and your family history A relatively new addition to the list of tools that…

Cars and Farm The 12th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

This week we remember Frieda Lemke who was born 135 years ago today. Henriette Clara…

Thomas Holmes (1710/11-1796) Oh Wow! Studying Thomas for this birthday post has certainly unlocked another…

While Floyd was in the middle of the Atlantic on his way to the war,…

Yesterday was the 7th annual lefse making day for my family. Lefse is a big…

Bernhard Richard R Krueger (1873-1927) Bernhard Richard R Krueger was born on 18 Nov 1873…

Coolidge comes to town The 29th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of…

Curtis & Yale Friends The eleventh page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of…

Friends and Animals The ninth page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

George Leifheite Miller (1830-1921) George Leifheite Miller was born on 14 Oct 1830 in Nassau,…

John Bennett (1786-1837) John Bennett was born on 04 Apr 1786 in Orange, New York,…

Farm, Home, and Service The 17th page of Sally’s photo album featured a random collection…

An Assortment Ice. Sally. Elizabeth Lemke and Sally Aschbrenner. Aschbrenner swimming, from left, Elsie, Fred,…

As the boat got closer to Europe, danger increased. Floyd didn’t share much detail though….

Robert Boyes (1743-1803) Happy 273rd Birth Anniversary to Revolutionary War soldier, Robert Boyes. Robert Boyes…

People and Indian School The 47th and final page of Sally’s photo album featured many…

Lucretia Brownell (1799-1857) Lucretia Brownell Johnson. If I had a time travel machine, Lucretia is…

Zachariah Miller (1791-1869) Zachariah Miller was born on 01 Apr 1791 in New York. The…

A good book and some meat for all three meals might have made things more…

DC and a Trip Home The 43rd page of Sally’s photo album featured pictures taken…

Camp and Damsels in Distress The 23rd page of Sally’s photo album continues to show…

Farm and Falls The thirteenth page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

Glimpses of Our Trip to Laona, 1920 The fourth page of Sally’s photograph album was…

Margaret Fitz Randolph (1744-1833) Margaret Fitz Randolph was born on 01 May 1744 in Essex,…

Catherine Elisabeth Orth (1825-1897) Catherine Elisabeth Orth was born on 16 Mar 1825 in Holienroth,…

Amelia A. Brace (1844-1926) Amelia A. Brace was born on 22 Mar 1844 in Akron,…

Stengrim Halvorsen (1799-1870) Halvorsen or Halverson? It depended on who was keeping the records at…

Farm and Family Sally’s album starts in about 1920 when she was a teenager. Her…

Floyd spent another day in the middle of the Atlantic. He ate, rested, and took…

Thomas L. Antrim (1686-1732) Thomas L. Antrim was born on 30 Nov 1686 in Northampton,…

Frank Palmer Miller (1874-1925) Frank Palmer Miller was born on 12 Feb 1874 in Big…

Edmund Brace (1797-1884) Edmund Brace was born in 1797 in Connecticut. Where? When? To Whom?…

One of Floyd’s brothers wrote him a letter and signed it “Balsy.” Comparing handwriting and…

Edward Morris (1688-1769) Edward Morris was born on 09 Nov 1688 in Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts…

This first post in the series finds Floyd still on American soil. Floyd was inducted…

Björn Christianson Rukke (1841-1932) Björn Christianson Rukke was born on 11 Nov 1841 on the…

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the armistice was…

Hollywood and Family The 24th page of Sally’s photo album featured photos that were sent…

It’s good to know that Floyd was confident in the ability of the gunners, destroyers,…

Roy, the oldest of the Phillips brothers, penned a letter to his brother Floyd who…

Marta Knudsdtr Horvei was born in about July 1789 on the Horvei farm in Voss,…

As August began, Floyd found himself learning the routine of life on board the USS…

The Meyer Family book is now available.

Gals and Kids and Relatives The sixth page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection…

I really don’t want to be older than I already am, but I sometimes wish…

Guttorm Hillson Wenaas (1828-1913) Guttorm Hillson Wenaas was born on 17 Dec 1828 in Nes…

It’s official! 2016 is here and with it comes the official opening of Family Past…

I have been asked on more than one occasion why I am so interested in…

Stephen Bacon (1677-1766) Stephen Bacon was born on 21 Aug 1677 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts,…

This picture was included in the Margaret Aldahl and Bennett Christianson photograph collection. Who are…

Rebecca Hallett (1675-1730) Rebecca Hallett was born on 31 Aug 1675 in Astoria, Queens, New…

Helen Lucina Baldwin (1855-1932) Helen Baldwin Fawcett (1855-1932) Helen Lucina Baldwin was born on 05…

Knut Olson Aldalen (1787-1851) Knut Olson Aldalen was born in 1787 at the Aldahl farm…

Ole Knutson Aldahl (1814-1890) Ole Knutson Aldahl was born in 1814 (probably), but we don’t…

Boating and Iowa The 30th page of Sally’s photo album included pictures of boating and…

Clara Christine Elsabe Freese (1859-1943) Clara Christine Elsabe Freese was born on 29 Jun 1859…

Bernard Meyer was born on 26 Apr 1809 in Germany. His name has been spelled…

Mary Loker (1680-1767) Mary Loker was born on 03 Aug 1680 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts,…

Floyd’s uncle Clarence Arthur Phillips wrote to Floyd who was still in France. Clarence was…

From her hospital room in Aurora, Florence Manning wrote to Floyd. Florence was the fiance…

Barbara Mary Meyer (1881-1972) Barbara Mary Meyer was born on 09 Jun 1881 in Mendota,…

Wisconsin, Arlington, and Atlantic City The 44th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection…

Rochester Minnesota, like a lot of places, is exploding with craft beer. In the last…

We are back! If anyone happened to notice, we were offline for a while. After…

Thomas Fawcett (1795-1865) Thomas Fawcett was born on 16 Feb 1794/5 in Frederick, Virginia, as…

Samuel Camfield (1645-1690) Baptism Samuel Camfield was born about Oct 1645 in New Haven, New…

Welcome! This blog will offer musings on the favorite pursuits of genealogy and drinking. Combining…

Mary Jane Frost (1825-1915) Mary Jane Frost was born on 05 Feb 1825 in Dorchester,…

Asle Embrickson Torset was born in 1775 in Hemsedal, Buskerud, Norway (Nørde Torset) as the…

Gertrude Lovin Boyce  (1865-1957) Gertrude has made it easy for us to know about her…