A New Quest: Returning Photos to Family

 Genealogy research has long been a passion of mine.  Ever since my mother left me a pile of old family photos and I built my own family tree, I have been fascinated by the endeavor to identify family members and their pictures when available.  While I have done extensive research on my own line, and have quite a number of photos from different lines, there are still a few relatives whose photos I am missing, and of course once you get back in the early 1800’s, you have people who were never photographed at all.  Still, I am always looking for more.

Elizabeth "Bessie" Tucker

 So, a few months ago, I was contacted by Kate Brian Kelly, a woman who has a most fascinating and altruistic hobby of reuniting old photos with family members.  She basically buys old photos in antique stores and the like, then does research to identify descendants.  What she does is truly amazing and inspiring, and she provides the photos free of charge, even though she spends her own money to acquire these lost family treasures.  She reached out to me on Ancestry.com because she had found a photograph of my cousin, Elizabeth “Bessie” Tucker.  She married a Canadian, Lorne Alexander Rapley, and I don’t know if she had any children.  While the original print went to another cousin, I was grateful to see a digital copy.

 Shortly thereafter, Kate contacted me again, having found a photo of Elizabeth’s father, William Newton Tucker, who was my great-great grandmother, Mertie Gamble Count’s, first cousin on both sides of her family.  Her father was the brother of William’s mother, and her mother was the sister of William’s father.  Therefore, they had nearly the same genetic similarities as full siblings.  It was amazing to get a picture of William in his youth.

William Newton Tucker

 Kate runs a facebook group, The Photo Angel, which highlights success stories of reuniting photos with family.  Among her finds, she also discovered baby photos of my great-grandfather's, George Sylvester Count’s, sister Florella and Brother Hugh.  I suspect these pictures may have once belonged to my Aunt Martha Counts who died in 2012, as they turned up in Connecticut where she lived, but I honestly don’t know.  Anyway, it was great to see these.

 Following these experiences, I have decided it is time that I did my part to bring lost family photos to life.  I have already purchased a few batches of old photos with identifying writing on them, and using online resources like Ancestry and Familysearch, I will see who I can find.  I know I am always grateful when someone brings a new family picture to light, and I am expecting that others will be equally pleased to reclaim a little bit of their own personal heritage that might otherwise be lost forever.

 Therefore, I’ve started a new blog, to detail my research.  Following this post, the photos and individuals highlighted here will not be my own family.  Anyone is free to copy and share the pictures I find and share on this blog.  I think posting them here will be the easiest way to disseminate them to as many relatives as possible.

 I am not seeking renumeration for my work, though that means I may not be able to afford to do as much as I would like.  It can get expensive buying photos that are 100+ years old.  Different people have different reasons for wanting them, and antique stores can drive prices up based on demand.  I’ll buy what I can, and research when I have the time.  Either way, it is one of my many passions, and I feel it is good work well worth doing.

Stupid Knees

 My life as of late has been unnerving.  With much in the way of family strife and physical hardships, 2021 has definitely been the most painful year of my life.  I’d like to say I’m nearly out of the woods, but it just seems like as soon as I start to feel that way, something new comes up.

The latest problem I am facing is recurring knee injuries.  A couple of months ago, I had a bout of patellar tendinitis in my left knee, and now I fear I’m dealing with a torn meniscus in my right.  The past week has been painful, and I’m currently waiting to see if bed rest and anti-inflammatories will allow it to heal (doctor’s orders).  I don’t know if I’ll be healed enough to work on Monday, and that is scary, as I’m close to broke, and I can’t afford to lose much more time.  People are counting on me, but my body is causing me to let them down.  I don’t know how I can deal with this.

I know a lot of people are understanding, but there’s only so much I can falter before they lose faith in me and consider me unreliable.

My physical body performs strenuous tasks that are beyond the norm for most people, and as I’m getting older it seems my super powers are waning.  I’m still capable most of the time, but I have to be careful not to go too far.  Yet, the annoying thing is, my physical problems don’t arise from anything particularly straining; they crop up unexpectedly when I’m not in Hercules mode.  It’s frustrating!  I’ll be walking on my day off and suddenly my knee will start hurting.  What the hell?

So here I am, lying in bed, wishing I could be working on something, but just waiting to see if I can even walk tomorrow.  Have I not suffered enough for one year?  Can I please get a good break?

The Kirtons of Hampshire

 It’s been a long time since I wrote about my Kirton ancestry.  I have discovered a few things over the years, and continue to pick away at it, seeking to push back the line ever more.  Here is some information I’ve discovered since I wrote my Kirtons of Kentucky blog entry, 10 years ago.

The earliest ancestor I’ve identified thus far is William Kirton, born circa 1762.  He and his wife Elizabeth (maiden name currently unknown) lived in Hampshire county, England.  There they had a son, Richard Shaw Kirton, born 13 November 1794.  Richard was a shoemaker, so it’s possible that his father was, as well.

Richard Shaw Kirton married Elizabeth Carpenter on 26 April 1818 in Maryleborne, Middlesex, England. They had 4 daughters and a son that I’ve been able to uncover.

Elizabeth Kirton (born 21 July 1820, died 5 December 1822)

Sarah Kirton (born 19 January 1822)

Ann Kirton (born 5 July 1824)

Richard Thomas Kirton (my 4x great grandfather, born 4 July 1830, died 22 February 1910)

Louisa Kirton (born 1835)

I am not sure when the Kirtons moved from England to the United States, but I suspect it was around 1850. Richard Thomas Kirton married Ellen Hyler in 1854, and he and his father appear separately on the 1860 census.  Richard Shaw Kirton lived in Cincinnati, while his son settled in Covington, Kentucky, just across the state border.

By 1870, Richard Shaw Kirton was living with his daughter Louisa “Lucy” and her husband, Elttin Edgely, in Cincinnati, Ohio.  He was also living with them in 1880 according to the census.

Louisa and her husband had two known children, Elizabeth “Bessie” Edgely (born 1856) , and George Edgely (born 1858).  Bessie married Charles Roberts and had children, but more research is needed on those lines.

Richard Thomas Kirton and his wife Ellen had two sons, Nelson W. Kirton and Sidney Alfred Kirton, and from there we run into my column from 10 years ago, The Kirtons of Kentucky .

A few added details are that both Nelson and Sidney Kirton also worked as shoemakers.  I’m having a hard time figuring out when Nelson died, as he simply vanishes from records after the 1880’s.  His wife, Sarah Drusilla Wallwork, got remarried on 24 November 1892 to Jerome Boyd, so I suspect Nelson may have died before then.

Nelson’s two sons, Newton Charles and Sidney Alfred, both started working as train porters around 1900.  Newton (my great-great grandfather) worked his way up to Fireman by 1910, while Sidney ended up becoming a house servant before his death in 1932.

Where I Am Now

 I'm loath to write about myself these days, because to be perfectly honest, it's painful.  The last few years have taken a toll on me, and the past six months have tested and tortured me.  Some of it I brought on myself with poor decisions and allowing myself to be manipulated, though much of it has been beyond my control.

Each day is still a trial.  I am anxious and sad, but I never have the chance to work on it because there's a constant series of events that keep getting in the way, and I'm too busy trying to address everyone else's problems.

I get triggered all the time by people and what they say and how they say it, but I have to suck it up or let it go.  That's what a lot of people would say a man is supposed to do, and it's what those of us who don't live in ivy-league, rose-tinted luxury have no alternative but to do, but it can suck having to ignore my own emotional needs.  The people who care about me don't realize the full extent of what I'm going through, but most people don't care at all.

Exactly when can I stop hurting?  When do my mental needs become a priority.

I still have a family that keeps me going, but they all have issues that I'm dealing with.  My youngest daughter has a mental disorder that requires that she have constant supervision, my son has had issues with substance abuse, and my middle daughter has bouts of depression and anxiety.  My father is elderly and back to being a workaholic, but he is willing to help, though he gives a bit of attitude and gets pissy about it sometimes.  That in itself isn't helpful when I feel bad enough asking for help.  And on top of that, I have a serious, live-in girlfriend who has her own emotional problems from an abusive childhood.

I feel like I'm writing way too much, but I have to do something to get this garbage off my chest.

Physically, I'm not doing as well, either.  I hide how sick I feel, and I'm not sure how much of it is just psychosomatic and what is actually illness.  I've been feeling weaker than normal, exhausted, achy, and I've been forgetting things.  My left knee has been a concern but the doctors said it was just patellar tendinitis.  I've felt my heart rate and blood pressure going up which concerns me.  I get headaches frequently, and sometimes "aura" headaches, where I see a glow which leaves me unable to see for a few minutes (though this is nothing new and I've had them on and off for my entire adult life).

So forgive me if I'm getting a little tired of playing with the puzzle pieces of my life and wondering when I'll get a break.  I'm still here, and I'm doing my best, but I need people to help me and stop beating me down.  In time, I might finally get back to a place where I can enjoy living, though right now I have to wait, and work to make sure others can find some enjoyment out of my continued existence.

My Hyler Line

 Lately, I’ve been poking around with genealogy again, as I have on and off over the past 11 years.

In researching my mother’s line, I have long been perturbed by the Hylers.  It’s a small section that I know very little about, but I continue to look around and see what I can dig up.

It goes back to my 5x great grandfather, Anthony V. Hyler, who was born in New Jersey about 1794.  He was a shoemaker by trade.  His wife is unknown, and she died sometime before the 1850 census. They moved to Ohio and Kentucky, moving back and forth between the two states.  In 1830, they lived in Mason County, Kentucky, and in 1840 they were in Lewis, Ohio.  Anthony was living with his children in the 10th ward of Cincinnati, Ohio in 1850.

I’ve been able to identify 4 children through census records, though there may have been more that either died or moved out before 1850.

Ellen Hyler (my 4x great-grandmother, born August 1824, died 28 January 1901) married Richard Thomas Kirton in 1854.

Jeremiah Hyler (born 1828 in Kentucky, died 1891 in Cincinnati, Ohio), married Mary Ann Ralphy in 1850.  I’ve yet to identify any children they had.

Albert Hyler, born in 1834 in Ohio.  I have found little about him, though there is an Albert Hyler who joined the US Army on 9 December 1852, as an Albert Hyler born in Ohio is in a Register of enlistments.  In that enlistment, his civilian profession is listed as “shoemaker,” so this lends more circumstantial evidence.  After that, the trail is unclear.

Ann Maria Hyler, born in 1840 in Ohio.  She married Napoleon Marshall and they had 7 known children.

It is not surprising that Richard Kirton was also a shoemaker.  It was probably this trade that brought him into contact with the Hylers.  Ellen and Richard had 2 sons, Nelson and Sidney, Nelson being my 3x great grandfather, and a shoemaker as well.  He was the last shoemaker in the line as far as I can tell, as Nelson’s son, Newton, became a train engineer.

There still lies more possibilities along the Hyler line.  One interesting potential connection could be Adam Hyler (originally Huyler, or Hiler), a New Jersey whale boat captain of German descent who preyed on the English as a pirate during the Revolutionary War.  He could possibly have been Anthony’s grandfather.  There’s also a James Hyler, born about 1795 who could possibly have been Anthony’s brother.  Sadly, New Jersey records from the end of the 18th century are sparse.

So, the hunt continues…

Getting Back Online

 Hello, everyone!

I'm sorry that it has been so long since I posted.  Actually, this is the first time I've been on the blog in over a year, and I see I've missed several important comments from family.  It has been a crazy few years, but as I continue to rebuild my life, I will find time to get into contact with everyone.

In the coming weeks, I hope to share more information about my personal exploits, and new publishing projects!  I have a new multi-author anthology in production, and I hope it will be a successful revival of my floundering publishing company.  I also want to find time to write again, as it has been far too long since I did.  All in good time.

I want to thank all of you who have been encouraging, even during these dark years.  Truly, there have been times where a few kind words have been the only things that have kept me from giving up.