Wordless Wednesday

Photo of the Koger Family taken in the early 1950s.
Courtesy of my own collection.

Travel Tuesday

I had never realized how much my great-grandparents traveled until I started going through Grandma Koger's photo albums recently. I found pictures from all over the US and a few foreign countries. On a trip to Arizona in September of 1952 to visit their son, Ralph, my great-grandparents took a trip to Mexico. Here are a few photos that I found that were taken in Nogales, Mexico and made into postcards.

Grandma Koger in Mexico

Grandpa Koger in Mexico

My Great-Grandparents while in Mexico in 1952

My great-grandmother, Ina Koger, also traveled to the Holy Land a couple of times.  Most of the photos taken on her trips were put into a sticky photo album and they can not be removed without damaging them. The following are a few postcards she purchased while on her trips.

Postcard of the Palace of Knossos on the Isle of Crete.

Postcard from Corinth

Postcard from Jericho

Postcard from Rhodes

Postcard Overlooking Jerusalem

All Pictures are courtesy of the author's collection. 

Today's Stroll Through Time - Birthdays - Week 2 - May 10 - 16

Sunday, May 10th, 2015

Ralph Wendell Koger (10 May 1931 - 15 Sep 1956) - Age 25
Great Uncle
Happy 84th Birthday!

Monday, May 11th, 2015

Grace Lucille (Friend) Stubbs (11 May 1909 - 12 May 1993) - Age 84
Great-Grandaunt
Happy 106th Birthday!

Tuesday, May 12th, 2015

Carrie Vernice Ash (12 May 1884 - 18 Nov 1885) - Age 1
4th Cousin 4x Removed
Happy 139th Birthday!

Wednesday, May 13th, 2015

Artie Mince Corder (13 May 1868 - 10 Jun 1934) - Age 66
2nd Great-Grandaunt
Happy 147th Birthday!

Thursday, May 14th, 2015

Charles Frank Stokes (14 May 1885 - 8 Jul 1962) - Age 77
Great-Granduncle
Happy 130th Birthday!

Friday, May 15th, 2015

Daniel Errol Traxler (15 May 1889 - 30 Sep 1937) - Age 48
3rd Cousin 4x Removed
Happy 126th Birthday!

Saturday, May 16th, 2015

Benjamin Franklin Elam (16 May 1856 - 7 Nov 1922) - Age 66
2nd Great-Grandfather
Happy 159th Birthday!

Disclosure - This post was written for the main purpose of finding long lost cousins. If any of these names sound familiar please feel free to contact me or leave a comment on this post.

Have a great day! Go celebrate life with someone you love!

Today's Stroll Through Time - Birthdays - Week 1, May 1 - 9

Free Public Domain Web Graphic

Friday, May 1st, 2015

Jane Coffey (1 May 1862 - 15 Mar 1927) - Age 64
My 2nd Great-Grandaunt
Happy 153rd Birthday!

Saturday, May 2nd, 2015

Johann Anthony Clippinger (2 May 1753 - 1806) - Age 53
My 6th Great-Grandfather
Happy 262nd Birthday!

Sunday, May 3rd, 2015

~A Living Bowling~ - Age 4
1st Cousin Once Removed
Happy 4th Birthday!

Monday, May 4th, 2015

Mary Elmira Stubbs (4 May 1848 - 16 Sep 1921) - Age 73
3rd Great-Grand Aunt
Happy 167th Birthday!

Tuesday, May 5th, 2015

William Stubbs (5 May 1789 - 2 Dec 1861) - Age 72
5th Great-Granduncle
Happy 226th Birthday!

Wednesday, May 6th, 2015

Zelpha Mae Mower (6 May 1884 - 1901) - Age 17
3rd Cousin 4x Removed
Happy 131st Birthday!

Thursday, May 7th, 2015

Permelia A. (Loveall) Barrier (7 May 1826 - 17 Mar 1889) - Age 62
4th Great-Grandmother
Happy 189th Birthday!

Friday, May 8th, 2015

Vernon Nash Tungate (8 May 1929 - 10 Dec 2013) - Age 84
Step-grandfather
Happy 86th Birthday and 2nd Heaven Birthday!

Saturday, May 9th 2015

Marjorie May Toven (9 May 1915 - 30 Jul 2012) - Age 97
6th Cousin Twice Removed
Happy 100th Birthday!!!

The purpose of this post is to find missing living cousins. If any of these names sound familiar feel free to leave a comment.

Happy Mother's Day!!

A Photo of my brother and I, with our mother. Taken 31 Oct 1986.
Courtesy of author's own collection.

I have been thinking about how I wanted to celebrate Mother's Day here on my blog and I think the best thing I can do is talk about some of the mothers in my family tree. Here is a picture of my brother and I with our mother.

The first mother I am going to showcase is Sarah Jane (Dickerson) Hoppes. She was the mother of 12 children. She was born on July 31, 1869, in Indiana and died on October 25, 1967, in Marion County, Indiana, at the age of 98. She is one of my brick walls. I have been unable to find out much about her parents and family. Sarah Jane Dickerson was my paternal 2nd great-grandmother.

The next mother I am going to showcase is my maternal great-grandmother, Carrie Evaline (Elam) Back. Carrie was born on Apr 27, 1897, in Morgan County, Kentucky. She married Junius Back on May 19, 1915 in Morgan County, Kentucky. She was the mother of 11 children all of which lived long lives and 5 of which are still living today. The first child to pass away was in 2005 at the age of 76. Grandma Back lived to be 96 years old when she died on December 24, 1993. I was only 8 years old at the time of her death, but I still have many wonderful memories of her. She was a sweet and beautiful lady.

In contrast to the above mentioned mothers of large families I am going to mention another great grandmother, Ina Leah (Corder) Koger. She was born on October 5, 1909 and died on September 7, 2006 at the age of 96. Some of her story was detailed on a previous blog, Throwback Thursday. Grandma Koger had 3 children. Her first son Earl Winifred Koger was born and died on October 14, 1929, living only a few hours. He had something wrong with his heart. Her second son, Ralph Wendell Koger was born on May 10, 1931, in Fowler, Benton County, Indiana. Ralph served in the military and traveled the globe while serving this country. He went to Arizona, England, and Northern Africa, just to name a few. He loved photography and took pictures during his travels. He loved old cars. He purchased one when he got back home in 1956. He and my grandfather remodeled Ralph's 1932 Chevy.  On September 5, 1956, Ralph purchased an insurance policy on this vehicle. 10 days later he gets into this vehicle and never comes home. He sadly crashed not too far from his home.  He was only 25 years old. Grandma Koger's only daughter, my grandmother, is still living.  Sometimes I sit and wonder what she thought and how she felt every time Mother's Days came around. Was it a celebration or a time of mourning?

As I sit here writing this post, I contemplate my own feelings about Mother's Day.  On one hand I celebrate the fact that I am a mother of a handsome 7 year old boy. But on the other hand, I mourn for the children I have not had. My dream was always to be the mother of a large family, much like the first two mothers I showcased. However, I can relate a little more to Grandma Koger as I struggle with infertility issues. That being said, I appreciate everything all of the mothers that have come before me have done to shape who I have become. I will leave you now, to go celebrate with your mothers. Tell you mother, grandmother, aunt, wife, sister, or daughter, how much you love and appreciate them. Without mothers we would have no society, no freedom, no love, and no humanity.

Happy Mother's Day to All Who Mother!