This is week 4 of the 52 Ancestor Challenge. My grandfather, Owen Elmer McKamey, was a student at Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, Tennessee, Class of 1927. Here he is in his sophomore picture (1925). I love this picture!
He never graduated because his father, John Edward “Mac” McKamey, who owned Mac’s Grocery Store, needed his help to run the store. Here’s a picture of Mac (left) and my grandfather (right). My mom remembers running around the store as a kid.
About a decade later, Owen (or “G-da” as we called him) decided to use his education and become a teacher. He may not have graduated, but he earned enough credits to get a job teaching elementary school in Anderson County, Tennessee.
Mom said he had one room to accommodate several different grades. There was a row of kindergarten students, then a row of first graders, etc. He taught for several years, but eventually, he decided teaching was not for him and started working for the post office. I’m glad he did because it was at this time he met my grandmother. He then tried several other jobs in the years that followed, including working for his brother-in-law. But, being the smart and industrious guy he was, he finally gambled on himself and built his own successful construction company.
We may not always use the education we started out with, but that’s okay. The lessons we learn along the way become invaluable in where we end up. Like my grandfather, I started out in one line of work (meteorology) and then changed to a completely different one (truck driving). I still use my formal education every day I’m out on the road.
Learning is still important to me as I am now transitioning into a new field that requires continuing education…professional genealogy. My Sunday post this week will have more on a week-long institute I am attending.
Genealogy tip: It’s important to properly preserve the family heirlooms and documents we have. Make sure to keep them in acid free sheets or boxes so that generations to come can enjoy these wonderful items.
If you have family documents and are not sure what they mean or how they fit in your ancestor’s life, give me a call. I’d love to work with you to figure it out!
I’m having a great time writing this blog and I’m learning a lot by delving into the stories of my ancestors. But what happens when you’re not sure who to write about next? My science and math brain leads me to something systematic. Organizing your genealogy research is essential to staying sane while you find your people.
In this blog post I’ll tell you about the Level-up Challenge and using Airtable to organize your findings.
Level-Up Challenge
I follow a blog called Dutch Genealogy by Yvette Hoitink, CG (Certified Genealogist). She talks about researching Dutch ancestors, but she also introduced her Level-up Challenge. You can read her original blog post here and her updated post here.
In this challenge, she created six information levels of completed research for each ancestor. The levels range from 0 (unidentified ancestor) to 6 (writing a biography or family narrative about an ancestor). In between, you find out names, vital information, spouse and children, and things like military service and whether they owned land.
To keep track of the data in my Level-up Challenge, I use Airtable.
What is Airtable?
Airtable is a versatile cloud-based tool that combines the flexibility of a spreadsheet with the power of a database. Its allows users to create custom databases, known as bases, to organize and analyze information in a way that is easy to use. There is a free version of Airtable in case you want to try it.
Why Choose Airtable For Genealogy Research?
Flexibility: Airtable adapts to your unique research needs, whether you’re tracking family relationships, documenting sources, or organizing historical records. With customizable fields, views, and templates, you can tailor your database to suit your specific needs.
Collaboration: Genealogy can involve working with others, whether it’s collaborating with family members or sharing with other genealogists. Airtable allows multiple users to access and edit bases in real-time, making it easy to work together on the same project.
Visualization: Airtable offers several view options, including grid, calendar, and gallery views, enabling you to see your data in the most meaningful way. You can create interactive family trees, timeline charts, and maps to uncover connections and patterns.
Integration: Airtable integrates with other tools and services, such as Google Drive and Dropbox. You can also import genealogical data from existing sources, link records to external documents, and automate repetitive tasks to streamline your workflow.
My Level-up Challenge Using Airtable
I’m not the only one who loves Airtable for keeping track of research. Diana Elder and Nicole Dyer, the mother/daughter genealogy duo at Family Locket use it as well. They have kindly taken all the work out of setting up your own base and added a template to the Airtable Universe. This is a place where people add templates they’ve made in Airtable to help others.
Here’s a look at the levels and the records needed to complete that level:
An Example Of Mine
So, I’m going to concentrate on a Stabley ancestor, my great-grandfather Eli Bernard Stabley. I already know a lot about him so my Airtable entry looks like this:
Since I’m already at level 4 for Eli, my next challenge will be to write a research report or case study following the Genealogy Proof Standard.
Are you ready to take the Level-up Challenge?
Using Airtable In Research Logs and Timelines
While using Airtable in the Level-up Challenge is my preference, you can also use Airtable for your research log and timelines. I devoted a blog to making a timeline for your ancestors which you can read here.
But if you would like to see what my research log and timeline look like, here’s an example of both:
Research log:
Timeline:
More On The Life Of Eli Bernard Stabley
Eli was born the eldest son of Frederick W. Stabley and Emma Caroline Welty on 23 May 1874 in York County, Pennsylvania. As a young man, he worked in a cigar factory, a major business in York County in the late 19th century.
By 1899 Eli had a new profession, soldier. He enlisted in the Army just as the Spanish-American War ended and the war with the Philippines began. Eli never saw any combat duty and spent his time at Fort Yellowstone Wyoming. According to the National Parks Service, soldiers were initially stationed at Fort Yellowstone to stop poachers and hunters from destroying the wildlife inside Yellowstone National Park, which opened in 1872.1
After several years, it became clear their presence was more permanent than originally thought and the Army stayed until 1918. Eli was a kitchen orderly who had an unfortunate accident that left him blind in one eye. He remained in Wyoming until his 3-year term was over in 1902 then went back to Pennsylvania. But he didn’t go back to making cigars…
Announcement of Eli’s new barber shop, June 1902 2
In March 1903 Eli married Ida Jane Dettinger in York, but by December of the same year, he had sold the barber shop even though he continued in the profession for several more years. Here is a very old picture of Eli and Ida on their wedding day…
In 1908 Eli went back to what he first knew…cigars. He applied for a license to open his own cigar factory.
Cigar Factory License announcement, September 1908 3
I don’t know if this license ever turned into an actual working factory, but census records and city directories show him making cigars until the mid-1910s.
One last move took the Stabley family to the shores of southern New Jersey. Perhaps news of a better-paying job was the reason to relocate as he became a dye operator for the E. I. DuPont Company in Penns Grove, New Jersey by 1917.
Eli wasn’t afraid to try new things…cigar maker, soldier, barber, and dye operator. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a very long life. He died at the age of 56 in the Naval Hospital League Island, Pennsylvania, which became the Philadelphia Naval Hospital.
Finally
The Level-up Challenge is a great way to stay organized in your genealogy research. Taking stock of what you have on each of your ancestors is a great way to figure out who or what you want to research next. And by using Airtable, you’ll be able to follow the challenge with ease and stay organized along the way.
Genealogy Tip: It’s important to keep track of your research in some way. You don’t want to research someone only to find out you did the same thing years ago. You can use a notebook, a spreadsheet, or Airtable. Whatever form your research log is in, keep it up to date. It will definitely save you time and energy in the long run.
There are many ways to organize your research. If you need some tips and tricks about what I do, I’d be happy to share. Let’s work together to make this year your most productive yet.
2Newspapers.com, digital images (https://www.newspapers.com: accessed 18 Nov 2019), “New Barber Shop,” The Gazette (York County, Pennsylvania), 28 June 1902, p . 1, col. 3.
3Newspapers.com, digital images (https://www.newspapers.com: accessed 18 Nov 2019), “Seven New Factories,” The Gazette (York County, Pennsylvania), 1 Sep 1908, p . 8, col. 1.
We’re now in week 3 of the 52 Ancestor Challenge with the theme “Out Of Place.” Patrick Marion Churchman is my 2x great-uncle on my mom’s side. He was born on Christmas Day in 1836 in Grainger County, Tennessee. He and his two brothers later journeyed to Oregon and settled in the Sheridan area. But before that, he definitely found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.
In the 1850 U.S. federal census, Patrick was a fourteen-year-old boy living with his parents, Joseph Blackburn Churchman and Harriet Mynatt Churchman, in Jefferson County, Tennessee…nothing out of the ordinary here. 1
By 1860, P. M. Churchman, a 23-year-old farmer, resided in Rapides Parish, Louisiana with $7500 worth of real estate.2 How did that happen? I searched the pages before and after his entry hoping to find a surname I recognized or at least someone else who listed their place of birth as Tennessee…nothing. Most of the people living around him were from Ireland, Scotland, and Germany.
Finding the reasons behind his home and wealth in Louisiana will need some digging, but I’ll save that tale for later. Patrick was the lone sibling who left Tennessee; everyone else stayed in Grainger County. It appeared Patrick sought adventure, but soon encountered more than he expected.
In a 1918 article in the Sheridan Sun newspaper, there was an obituary and quotes from Patrick during an interview he had given sometime earlier.3 He shared this story: It was the spring of 1862 in New Orleans when several men approached him and demanded he dismount his horse. They were drafting Patrick into the Confederate Army right then and there. He mentioned joining the 13th Louisiana Regiment to the writer, but Civil War records listed him as a private in Company H of the 16th Regiment Louisiana Infantry.4 His first major battle was in Corinth, Mississippi, where his duty was to collect bodies behind the lines. I just can’t imagine!
Patrick’s Civil War Service Records backed up the ongoing story he shared. His illness worsened, leading to his transfer to a hospital. While recovering, a doctor requested his help in completing furlough slips for soldiers. Patrick not only assisted but also included his name on the list while removing someone else’s. According to his records, he was marked absent in May/June of 1863 because he was hospitalized in Jackson, Mississippi.5
In the following months of July and August, he was “on sick furlough at home in Tennessee” where he stayed until April 1864.6 While he was close to family he got word to his father in Mossy Creek (now Jefferson City) that he was under arrest and in the hospital. His father came the next day, gave him money, and told him to take the oath of allegiance.
Apparently, it worked as he married Christina Metzger in September 1864 in Jefferson County, Tennessee.7 In the 1870 census, he was a grocer working in Jefferson County, but by 1880 he was a 44-year-old farmer living in Polk County, Oregon.8
Had Patrick stayed in Tennessee it’s likely he would have fought in the Civil War, but for the Union as men from East Tennessee did. Who knows if he would have survived that version of his life, but he did live to the age of 81 raising 8 children. He died during a visit to family in Tennessee and was buried in Oregon.
Patrick was undoubtedly strong and clever, as his life experiences clearly show. Yet, someone who survived the Civil War and then journeyed west to Oregon to begin a new life in the wilderness is undeniably brave in my opinion. His unique and “out of place” life was, at the very least, fascinating.
Genealogy tip: It’s important to research all of your ancestors, not just those in your direct line. There are too many wonderful stories out there not to.
Getting started with your genealogy research or don’t have the time to do it yourself? Let’s work together to find your ancestors.
1 1850 U.S. census, Jefferson County, Tennessee, population schedule, District 13, p. 385b (stamped), dwelling 787, family 814, Joseph B. Churchman household; digital image Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com: accessed 2 Feb 2016); citing NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 885.
2 1860 U.S, census, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, population schedule, p. 188, dwelling 1337, family 1318, P. M. Churchman; digital image Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com: accessed 2 Feb 2016); citing NARA microfilm publication M653.
3 “Death of P. M. Churchman,” Sheridan Sun (Sheridan, Oregon), 5 December 1918.
4 National Park Service, “Soldiers,” database, Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System(www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-soldiers-detail.htm: accessed 15 Jan 2023), entry for P. M. Churchman, Pvt., Co. H, 16th Louisiana Inf., Confederacy.
5 “Civil War Service Records (CMSR) – Confederate – Louisiana,” Fold3.com (https://www.fold3.com/image/77835889: accessed 15 Jan 2023), P. M. Churchman, p. 4; citing Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Louisiana, National Archives microfilm publication M320, roll 274.
6 Ibid, P. M. Churchman, pp 5-8.
7 “Tennessee, U.S., Marriage Records, 1780-2002,” digital image, Ancestry.com (www. ancestry.com: accessed 2 Feb 2016), Patrick M. Churchman and Christiana E. Metzger, 5 Sep 1864, image 331; Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002, Jefferson County, Tennessee, 1792 – Dec 1881: Marriages, p. 217; citing Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville, TN.
8 1870 U.S, census, Jefferson County, Tennessee, population schedule, District 9, p. 25, dwelling 181, family 178, Patrick Churchman household; digital image Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com: accessed 2 Feb 2016); citing NARA microfilm publication M595, roll 1540. And 1880 U.S. census, Polk County, Oregon, population schedule, Jackson Precinct, p. 8, dwelling 67, family 68, Patrick M. Churchman household; digital image Ancestry.com (www. ancestry.com: accessed 2 Feb 2016); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 1083.
