F is for Farmers and Fraternal Organizations - Family History Through the Alphabet

Farmers
If my father had stayed put on the farm, I might have grown up a farm girl.  (I think I would have loved it!)  For a possible multitude of reasons, he moved from farm to small town and my future was forever changed.  But I have farmer ancestors as far back as I've been able to trace.  Some of them include

• my father, Lee Doyle.  He lived on a farm from his birth in 1913 until the death of his father in 1933.
• Gust Doyle, my paternal grandfather.  He worked a dairy farm until his death in 1933.
• William Doyle, Gust's father, who was a farmer from his youth until near the time of his death.  Though he turned over the ownership of the farm to his son, he continued to work there regularly.
• Fred Gerner, my father's grandfather, who owned several farms in succession. 
• Dixon Bartley, my father's maternal great-grandfather.  He was a farmer in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
• Thomas Smith, another Butler County, Pennsylvania, farmer ancestors.
• Jacob Saylor of Mercer County, Ohio.
• William Bickerstaff, one of maternal great-grandfathers, who was a farmer in Jefferson County, Ohio, during the 1800s.
• Jacob Bell of Jefferson County, Ohio.

Farming in our family skipped a generation.  My daughter is now a farmer's wife.

If your ancestors farmed between 1850 and 1880, you may be able to learn more about them on agricultural censuses.

Fraternal Organizations
Do you have ancestors who were members of fraternal organizations?  Perhaps a Mason, a Rebekah, or an Odd Fellow?  Some fraternal organizations are commonly recognized by their acronyms; others we have to search to find what those letters mean.  I have ancestors who were members of the International Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF); Rebekahs, sister organization to the Odd Fellows; the Masons; Eastern Star, sister organization to the Masons; Loyal Order of Moose (LOOM); and Knights of the Golden Eagle (KGE).

I've been interested to learn more about these organizations because they help me put my ancestors in the society around them.  I also understand that it may be possible to obtain some genealogical information, especially for immigrant ancestors, from some of these organizations.  It may depend on the willingness of the individual with stewardship over the records.  (I've been unsuccessful in getting a response to my request for IOOF records.)  If you choose to search, you'll need to find the locality where your ancestor became a member and/or the headquarters of the organization.

Cyndi Howell of Cyndi's List wrote a blog post, The Age of Fraternal Organizations, in which she shared information about the purposes of fraternal organizations and ways to find more information.

If you'd like to learn a little more about the Masons, Diane Hewson wrote an excellent article, Friday's Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge - F for Freemasony, on her blog, Family Stories: Photographs and Memories.

Lastly, if you haven't a clue what those initials mean in that old newspaper article or obituary, they may refer to a fraternal organization.  Check Genealogy Research: Complete List of Fraternal Organizations: A-L or Genealogy Research: Complete List of Fraternal Organizations: M-Z.  I don't know if the list is really complete but since there are several hundred entries, there's a good possibility you might find what you're looking for.

This post is a contribution to the Family History Through the Alphabet challenge.  Go to the link and you can see other submissions for this meme.  Alona Tester of  Genealogy and History News is the creator and keeper of this meme.  Thank you, Alona! 


Thanks for stopping by.
--Nancy.
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Walter and Nellie

As a bride on June 28, 1906, Nellie Leonhart was gowned in white Persian lawn trimmed with lace. Her dress would probably have had a silhouette like the one to the right - Gibson Girl style with poufed front, narrow waist, and bustle in the back. Nellie was 21 when she married Walter Meinzen, my grandfather's brother. They were married at 4:00 in the afternoon in Steubenville, Ohio, at the home of Nellie's parents, Louis and Anna Mary Leonhart.

I think it's interesting that Walter's sister, Mina, was the bridesmaid, and Nellie's brother, Phil, was the best man. Had siblings been friends with siblings for a while? Mina and Nellie were about the same age. Perhaps they were friends and Mina introduced Nellie to her brother. Or perhaps Walter and Phil were friends, and Phil introduced Walter to his sister.

With only 25 at the home for the wedding supper, it seems a small wedding, probably with family and close intimate friends. Walter's family alone, parents and 10 siblings, could have accounted for 12 of the attendees.

Walter and Nellie went to Columbus for their wedding journey. I wonder whether they travelled by train or by car, and if by car, what kind. And how long did the trip take? In today's cars with today's roads, it's a 3 to 4-hour drive. Because they went on to Youngstown after their wedding trip, they probably took wedding gifts and other necessities to furnish an apartment with them.

As a stationary engineer in Youngstown, Walter would have been an operator of a boiler or some power plant, perhaps for a factory in Youngstown. He probably worked long hours with little time off.

Walter and Nellie remained in Youngstown less than a year. By May of 1907, they had returned to Steubenville and Walter was working at the LaBelle Iron Works, again as an engineer, with little time off and an irregular schedule. They'd been married less than a year. Were they still getting to know each other well, still settling into married life?

Less than a year after their marriage tragedy struck! An unusual accident. The first of its kind. A box around a spindle broke off, which sometimes happened. But this time, the spindle also flew off. And Walter was dead.

It is the news no wife ever wants to hear, and perhaps the worst news a young bride could ever hear.

My heart grieves for Walter, Nellie, and Walter's family. Poor Nellie. I especially grieve for Walter's mother, Elizabeth, who had already lost 4 of her 15 children. Little did she know what the future would hold for her son, Jacob, who also lost his life at the LaBelle factory.

Walter's next youngest sibling was Mina. His next youngest brothers were my grandfather, W. C. Robert, age 14; and Jacob, age 13, at the time of Walter's death. My grandfather, 24 when Jacob was killed in another accident, never spoke about any of his brothers. As I learn about the history of their family, I can see that he would not want to recollect the tragic accidents and deaths.


Newspaper articles tell us that Walter was well-liked and had many friends. He was a member of the Knights of the Golden Eagle, who published a tribute in his honor.

Walter was born on November 13, 1883, and died on May 31, 1907. He was just over 23 1/2 years old.

How I wish he had had the opportunity to continue his marriage with Nellie, have children, and grow old with her.

Nellie eventually remarried and had children. She passed away in 1969.

Walter and Nellie, you are remembered.

Knights of the Golden Eagle

My great-uncle, Walter Meinzen, was a member of the Knights of the Golden Eagle, as were several of his half-uncles, in the early 1900s.  I learned about the organization when I noticed that "KGE" was mentioned in their obituaries.  I began searching to see what organization KGE represented.

I guessed it was a fraternal organization of some kind and found "Knights of the Golden Eagle" listed in several of the Steubenville, Ohio, city directories of the time.  It told the days, time, and location of meetings.

Next I searched the catalog of the Ohio Archives Library at the Ohio Historical Society and learned that it has an undated catalogue of uniforms and paraphernalia manufactured by The M. C. Lilley & Co., in Columbus, Ohio, for the Knights of the Golden Eagle.  It seems that Lilley & Co. began making swords in 1865 and then expanded its product line to include uniforms and other accoutrements for various organizations.

The catalogue (cover and one page below) has illustrations and price lists for its items for sale.  It would have been interesting to photocopy and post the whole catalog because it had some pretty unusual looking garb in addition to what's pictured below.  Looking through the catalogue I wondered what kind of organization this could possibly be.  It all seemed so strange.




















I decided to see what other information I could find.  The Historical Society of Pennsylvania shares the following information about the Knights of the Golden Eagle:

Founded in 1873 by John Emory Burbage, the Knights of the Golden Eagle is a fraternal organization with rituals based on those of the crusaders.  Members pass through three stages: pilgrim, knight, and crusader.  In addition to giving moral and intellectual guidance, the society provided relief to sick or unemployed members and gave survivor benefits to widows and orphans.  In 1900 the Knights of the Golden Eagle had approximately 20,000 members and functioned in twenty states.  The society's motto is 'Fidelity, Valor, and Honor,' and rituals reflect the emphasis placed on the word of the Bible.

The Phoenixmasonry Masonic Museum and Library devotes a section of its website to the Knights of the Golden Eagle.  There you can see photographs of two young men in their uniforms and learn more about the organization.

Do you have an ancestor who belonged to the Knights of the Golden Eagle?

--Nancy.

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