The Case of the Lost and Found Grandma

A WOMAN OF MYSTERY

Years ago, when I first began documenting my maternal family, I reached out to our matriarch at the time, my Great-Aunt Doris. She spoke for hours, naming the ancestors she knew then sharing stories of their lives.

Although she knew a lot about her mother’s family, my great-aunt was less certain about her father’s family, especially his mother, Alice (Manley) Cole.

What little Aunt Doris knew about her grandma was her name and the fact that she disappeared from her father’s life when he was a child.

Alice was an enigma, a woman of mystery. As a family historian/genealogist, I LOVE following clues and solving puzzles, so off to the records I raced.

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Matryoshkas & My Matrilineal Matriarch

Have you ever seen a set of wooden dolls, each one of decreasing size placed inside another? These nesting dolls are called matryoshkas, which means  “little matrons.”

By now, you might be asking yourself why a family historian with mostly British Isles roots is talking about Russian matryoshkas.

Well, today on Twitter, I saw a new writing prompt, #RussianDollChallenge, inquiring just how far back we genealogists have traced our matrilineal lines. This idea intrigued me, so I took a closer look at my mother’s maternal family. It turns out that on that branch, including me, there are ten generations of women whom I have documented.

George Moore

On this day, 20 November 1864, George Moore, my 4th great-grandfather, passed away.

Born in Scotland circa 1811, nothing is known of George Moore’s childhood or his parentage, unfortunately.

Henry Roush

On this day, 16 August 1847, Henry Roush (my spouse’s 4th great-grandfather) passed away.

Henry Roush was born in 1787 in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. His parents are unknown. It has been suggested that Henry Roush might be the son of John Jacob Roush, who married Barbara Elizabeth Wittenmyer in 1774, in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. However, this is merely conjecture.

Anna Barbara (Sturm) Lang

On this day, 13 July 1719, Anna Barbara (Sturm) Lang passed away. She was my 8th great-grandmother.

Unfortunately, little is known about her life. What is known is that she was born in 1654 in Schifferstadt, a town located in the Bishopric of Speyer (modern-day Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany). Her parents’ names are unknown.