52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Service

It is Week 19 in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks’ writing challenge. This week’s writing prompt, Service, is timely because in a couple of weeks is Memorial Day, a day we remember our fallen soldiers and sailors, those who gave everything to protect others and our country.

During this time of tribute, I would like to acknowledge our direct ancestors who have served in the wars fought on American soil. “All gave some; some gave all.”

So Far Away

It is week five in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks’ writing challenge. This week’s prompt is titled So Far Away. Luckily, the ancestor about whom I was writing today, Daniel Busch, fits perfectly into this category.

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On this day, 2 February 1836, Daniel Busch (my spouse’s 5th great-grandfather) passed away.

The son of Ludwig and Anna Catharina Busch, Daniel was born in 1750 in the small town of Büdlich, located in the Kurfürstentum Trier, also known as Électorat de Trèves, an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire. This principality was part of a larger area contested by German and French rulers for hundreds of years.

Abraham Sell

On this day, 16 June 1786, Abraham Sell passed away. He was my 8th great-grandfather.

Born in 1715, in Germantown, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, Abraham Sellen/Sell was the son of Heinrich and Margaret Zellen/Sellen. Abraham joined elder siblings Peter, Jacob, John, Barbara, Elizabeth, Mary, and Anthony. In 1720, little brother Henry was born in Germantown.

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.

Maria Eva (Sell) Dill

On this day, 23 March 1813, Maria Eva (Sell) Dill passed away. She was my 7th great-grandmother.

Born on 14 August 1753, in Union Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania, Maria Eva Sell was the daughter of Abraham Sell and Maria Johanna Zimmerman. She joined older half-brother Jacob Forney Sell (born to father Abraham and his first wife Charlotte Louisa Forney on 10 December 1742).