The Millinery of Mathilda Lorke
I love vintage hats and jewelry – and newspaper research. Last year when conducting research for a client, I found a milliner in Marysville, Kansas named Mathilda Lorke. She sparked my interest so I explored her world for a while. Here is what I found. Mathilda Lorke (1854-1917) was born May 20, 1854 at Goldbach,
The Adventures of a Missouri Marine: Lewis A Mothersbaugh, USMC, 1898-1902
This is the beginning of a story of a man named Lewis Arthur Mothersbaugh, “Uncle Bud” and me. I never had the chance to meet him but I have gotten to know him through Bud’s own words. As we sorted Roma’s possessions following her death in 1988, I discovered a small leather-bound book that looked
Uncle Gene, United States Marine
Eugene Allen Siegel (1918-1991) was born on this day in 1918 in Florence, Missouri to Carl C. and Mary DeHaven Siegel. His mother died when he was 16 months old; the only mother he knew was Roma, who married his father in 1927. Of my maternal uncles I feel I knew him the least. During
Hidden in the Archives: A Gift from Roma
In the mid-1980s, likely for a school project, I interviewed my grandmother Roma Rasa Siegel about our family history while my mom and I took notes. I feel very blessed to have those notes and I look back on them once in a while. They contain errors, but “warts and all” remain a prized possession.
What Is Your Hobby, Doctor? A Man, His Hobby, and An Inspiration
My Uncle Pete might have been considered a renaissance man in his time. His plate never seemed to be empty. He was a doctor, a naval officer and a needlepoint guy! Wait, What?!?!?! Yep. It seems throughout his life, he understood that hobbies were important. This post is really about his woodworking from his own
Fred Rasa, Man about Town
My great grandfather Frederick Henry Rasa (1873-1937) has been on my mind a lot lately. He was a farmer, entrepreneur, stock-raiser, store owner, bank and telephone company founder, and first-generation American. His parents, Friedrich A.W.L.F. (1846-1929) and Wilhelmina Brandt (1852-1927) Rasa, were born in Germany and immigrated with their parents to the new world. Fred