My Genealogy Website Is Launched

My genealogy website for 10 generations of my ancestors is launched:  http://www.krsmith.net.

I would appreciate your viewing the website and sharing your feedback with me.  This is my first attemp that actually works after 3-4 years.  I am very pleased with this attemp.  The hosting service:  http://www.genealogyhosting.com/ and the excellent support staff were the difference. 

I hope you read and enjoy this genealogy website.

My Dad's Name Is Roy!

Image via Wikipedia

The title is a strange way to begin.  However, the assumption of Roy as the name for Dad can be and to me is  confusing.  At birth my father was named Lawrence Oran Smith by his parents.

Dad was the second of five siblings and the middle of three boys.  The siblings were (in birth order) Horace Howard Smith, Jewell Fay Smith, Ferman Lester Smith, and Esther Adena Smith.  For reasons I have yet to discover, Grandmother Arwood (their mother) called some of her children by their first name and some by their middle name.  I knew my aunts and uncles by the following names:  Howard, Lester, Jewell, and Dean and my Dad as Roy.

Dad's mother, Lillie Day Smith is the daughter of Joseph Hall Smith and Cordelia Elizabeth Hussey.  She was born 19 September 1880, Newton County, Missouri, U.S.A.

Image via Wikipedia

 Lillie Day married George Washington Smith (no relation) 14 February 1899, Newton County, Missouri. George Washington is the son of James Madison Smith, and Nancy Jane Baker.  George Washington died 7 July 1912, Newton County, Missouri. The ancestors were known for longivity in life.  His early death left Lillie Day five active children to feed and care for as well as her many, chickens, geese, fruit orchard, berry patch, a few livestock, and the wheat fields which they leased.

George W. Smith is listed as the head of the household in the 1910 U.S. Federal Census for Benton Township, District 0117, Newton County, Missouri.  Also appearing are the following individuals:  Lillie Day Smith, his wife, Howard Smith, son


The family stories are that Dad was large for his age and very strong. These stories claim that because he looked so much like his Uncle Roy he was called Roy. I have never discovered a picture of Uncle Roy so I don't know if their was a family resemblance or just a physical structure resemblance.  As soon as he was old enough, he was accustom to working in the fields and with the livestock from dawn to dusk. As he reached his teen years he was able to perform the task for plowing, harvesting, and clearing as well as the older men. During his teen years he would board with his Uncle John Schumacher while he worked on the Schumacher farm all summer long and was very good at controlling the mule teams.  When Uncle John purchased his first motorized tractor, he soon taught Dad how to use it properly.  That was Dad's duty for the summer; he really enjoyed driving the tractor and learning the mechanics involved. Those skills and the work ethics he learned he carried with him through out his life on this earth.



Note:  add links for websites; photos; tags

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newton_County,_Missouri

Willamette Valley Farms

Just finished a short trip through some of the local farmlands.  The skies are still hazy from the Russian smoke but not as dark as yesterday.  It is difficult for me to  always understand that phenomena.  My mission was to pick up our Iris order from Cooley's Iris Gardens and then to stop at Nanemann's on the way home for the last of the apricots for the season and a couples of boxes of berries.  Also, I enjoy riding through the Oregon mid valley farmlands this time of year.  http://www.travelsalem.com/

The awesome sight are the fields of California Oriental Poppies.  Each field is one color:  red, yellow or orange.  And, each field is in full bloom and waiting for the right time to harvest their seeds for next year sales.

The farmers are buy harvesting their 2nd crop of hay and the bales are stacking up in the fields.  I saw trucks waiting to enter the road with 2 piggyback trailers.  The vegetable crops are really green in the fields and the have begun to harvest the green beans.  The early crop of green beans never materialized this year. The first crop of corn is being harvested and two more harvests should follow. 

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I purchased also bought kotata berries http://www.oregon-berries.com/other_berries.cfmand and triple  crown blackberries.  Two more weeks and the season will be closed. I am doing my part by eating and freezing what I can.

It is 3 days before my birthday and the celebration has begun.  I love the entire birthday environment.  Gifts or no gifts it really doesn't matter.  It is the emphasis and greetings that I enjoy the most.  One of my daughter-in laws is taking me to lunch next week and then to view an Art Gallery at the Salem, Oregon Conference Center.  It will be a delightful afternoon.

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Gilcrease Art Museum, Tulsa, OK

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Late Spring 1998 my younger sister and I were in Tulsa, Oklahoma to visit and care for our mother  who, at age 84 years, had fallen and broken her hip.  We sisters vowed to re-visit some of the sites that were special to us and find some new places too.  The first choice was to stop at Swan Lake in one of the Tulsa Parks and enjoy the grace and beauty of the swans who resided there.  We were not disappointed;  however, I must say the grandeur of the park was not as powerful and beautiful as I remembered. 

Another day took us to Gilcrease Art Museum, http://www.gilcrease.org/, where we enjoyed the sites and recalled many of our wonderful memories. Quoting from their Art Education Outreach Program that can be viewed at their web site:

Image via Wikipedia

"Gilcrease believes all students should have the opportunity to participate in programs that foster creative growth. With schools facing multiple budget cuts, arts organizations around the community are stepping up to meet the needs of thriving young artists in the area. That’s why Gilcrease has teamed up with JP Morgan Chase and The Barnett Family Foundation Award for Arts and Humanities to offer full-tuition scholarships for our week-long camp program.


"Applications are available for those who qualify. For more information or to receive an application, please contact the Director of Education/Public Programs at lanette-coppage@utulsa.edu or 918-596-2737."

During our the summers in the 1940s we were both able to participate in the Museum's summer art programs for public school children.  We were encouraged by what we learned and achieved while 
being surrounded by all that we could see.  Often in our guided tours there were many questions that were asked and answered. 

Again quoting from the Museum's home page: 

"Tulsa's Gilcrease Museum is one of the country's best facilities for the preservation and study of American art and history. The museum's charm, beauty and art collections draw thousands of visitors from around the world to the hills just northwest of downtown Tulsa for a glimpse into the past. Gilcrease Museum houses the world's largest, most comprehensive collection of art and artifacts of the American West. The Museum also offers an unparalleled collection of Native American art and artifacts, as well as historical manuscripts, documents and maps.


"Beyond the extensive Gilcrease collections and exhibits are its beautiful facilities and gardens. Themed gardens have been developed on 23 of the museum's 460 acres."

Our visit brought us much joy.  The art, the surroundings, the quiet placed to reflect were as powerful and exquisite as we both remembered.  We had so many enjoyable workshops, learning adventures and art experiences there that have stayed with us all of our lives since we left Tulsa.  Each of us still enjoy the impact that art, its culture, and the artists bring to us. Quoting from Wiki:  "The museum now houses the world's largest, most comprehensive collection of art of the American West as well as a growing collection of art and artifacts from Central and South America. The museum is named for Thomas Gilcrease, an oil man and avid art collector."

Memories do last; they do get better; and if you are fortunate, you can create them again in a different time period.  It is a joy to have your life enriched by your own experiences with art.

Image via Wikipedia

Summer Days & Nights

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Like so many other places, we have experienced a "peculiar and unusual" Spring and early Summer.  Until yesterday the morning temperatures have been below 70 degrees with a soft gentle breeze.  This has meant that I, who do not like the heat, the dry wind or the sun can have a pleasant morning working in my garden. 

In 1937 while living in Tulsa, Oklahoma my parents began purchasing Iris from Cooley Iris Farm in Salem, Oregon and continued doing so through the end of WW II.  My mother purchased Iris from them until the mid 1980s.  My husband and I living in Salem, Oregon have bought Iris for our gardens from Cooley's Iris Gardens http://www.cooleysgardens.com/  since 2002.  We thank highly of their quality of plants, choice of colors and their wonderful service.  Being just a short distance from our home makes it a delightful jaunt to visit the grounds.  The beardeed Iris had beautiful, colorful and quite large blooms; however the green leaves and stems were damaged by the winds, the rains and consequently leaf rusts.  All of the plants were dug; discarded or kept.  Salem now has an organic recycling program so the discarding was quite easily accomplished.  The Iris that were kept were washed thorougly, trimmed, dried and dusted with Comet powder to aide in preventing disease.  The others were gifted to friends.  The re-plants have been in the ground two weeks and we are looking forward to next Spring's blooms.

Our Oriental Lilies are now (4) years old; they have mutated to a common dominant color and their aroma is still pleasant.  After their blooms are spent  they will be dugged, discarded and new bulbs purchased for planting in the fall.

Our goal this year is to move towards flower beds that are easier to maintain and flowers that are bright and colorful to view. 

Our garden gives us a great deal of pleasure.  I am contented when I am working in our garden and am aware of the peace and beauty that surround me.  Gardening is a great pleasure.

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Drafts of Future Postings

Quilting with Grandmother Arwood
Train Ride with Aunt Jewell - Tulsa, OK to Joplin, MO
Quail Hunting with Dad - Newton County, Missouri
Circus Comes to Tulsa, OK
Gilcrease Art Museum, Tulsa, OK

Circus Comes to Tulsa, OK

Memories of the circus coming to my home town, Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Original Photo:  National Geographic Traveler, January-February 2009 issue.  Name of photographer is not available.  I contacted the magazine several times but had no response.

The children sitting on the curb are representative of my size and age when Dad and I began watch the rail cars unload the circus.  The elephants were always the first off because they were the ones that raised the tent poles and raised the tents. 

Every year our plan was to arrive at the Tulsa Train Depot before the circus began to unload the cars.  It was an active, exciting time inside the depot and intensified as we hurried down the stairs to the railroad tracks and the many circus cars.