The Burned Over District

During the early to mid 1800s, New York State, primarily from the Finger Lakes to Lake Erie experienced religious revivals described as the Second Great Awakening. Because the religious fervor was so strong, this area was also referred to as the Burned Over District.  The Second Great Awakening played an important role in women’s rights, education reform, peace advocates, and the question of slavery.  It spawned many new religions such as Mormonism.  

I became aware of the importance of the Burned Over District, because I now have the original journal of Adeline Cleveland Hosner (1809-1882).  Adeline’s journal was edited by William Heidt, Jr. and published by the DeWitt Historical Society (now known as The History Center) as The Pioneer Clevelands.  Adeline Cleveland Hosner is my great-great-great-grandmother.

I also now have a typed version of the original unedited journal, which The Pioneer Clevelands doesn’t provide.  The forward to the typed manuscript – a project lead by Dale and Metta Winter - explains how the journal was found and the role it played in Ithaca College’s Burned Over District Project.

“In 1974, because the Burned Over District was so important to the religious history of New York State, a group of faculty and students from Ithaca College decided to do some research into the area, its history, and its spiritual values. In looking through church records, the group discovered, much to its delight, the personal journal of a woman named Adaline Cleveland Hosner.”  [Dale Winter]

“The overall theme of Adeline’s journal is the recorded process of a woman’s spiritual quest. In its pages she traces and comes to understand the religious experience as it manifests itself in the daily events of her life.”  [Dale Winter]

Mr. Winter goes on to describe the journals: “The manuscript is a coverless booklet made by folding 42 sheets of 16” and 12-1/2 “ paper in half and hand sewing them together along the fold with fine linen thread making an 84-page booklet measuring 8” by 12-1/2”.   The first entry is March 1838; the last August 7, 1882.”

I look forward to the hours of work ahead reading through the entries to extract important family history information, and really getting to know Adaline.   The first entry tells of her mother’s death as well as her sister’s illness, which resulted in the loss of a child. 

Journaling Emotions

The events of this past week made we realize the importance of journaling emotions. Putting feelings on paper helped me work through the events, and then be able to channel those emotions in a positive manner.

When reading my journal, future generations will understand the frustration and anger I experienced following the recent historic nor’easter, which in turn illuminated the poor management and emergency response of Northeast Utilities and Connecticut Light and Power. 

On November 6 (Day 8 of power outage) my journal entry reads:

“Anger? Doesn’t cover it for the over 2,000 homes in Newtown (this does not include the rest of the state) that remain without power.” 

But my journal entries also share how well we adapted to lack of power for over a week. I wrote how fortunate we were to have a wood stove to keep us warm and on which to cook. 

Corningware Cornflower Percolator

Photo from GoAntiques.com

The first few days we made coffee in the Corningware percolator I had purchased at a church yard sale several years ago just for such an event.  We cooked delicious one-dish meals each night.  We heated water on the wood stove each morning for our pump style coffee carafe to be used as a convenient hand washing station.  And an added benefit was the wonderful conversations with neighbors who converged in the street to share storm stories and to catch up on the latest news.

We realized our biggest challenge was keeping busy as many of our daily activities center around having power and water, and so I wrote down what we did to fill each day. I utilized non-power ways to clean the house; my husband worked at cleaning up yard debris in our yard as well as our neighbors’ yards.

Sadly, my great-grandmother’s diaries tell me so little about what she felt as this January 6, 1944 entry represents.:

“Not very cold -Addie went to Asbury Park today. Marian and I took her to the Black Diamond at noon. I did some shopping. It got colder in the p.m. Very windy. We got home at 3:30 in time to do some extra washing. I ironed two dresses.”

As genealogists we understand the importance of keeping a journal and leaving a piece of who we are for our children, grandchildren and beyond.

Tuesday's Tip: Blogs and Journals - A Lesson Learned

My husband volunteers at the local Family History Center.  Recently one of the volunteers gave him a DVD of an April 2010 conference held in Salt Lake City, A Celebration of Family History.  The DVD is a wonderful compilation of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, a talk by Latter Day Saints President Henry B. Eyring, a talk by Historian David McCullough, and wonderful family history research stories.  In his talk, David McCullough stated he tells his students if they want to be famous, all they need to do is keep a journal. Keep a journal; write down what is happening and how you feel about it.  In our increasing virtual world that information is becoming scarce.

His words have been resonating with me, because I have tried to keep a journal; in fact I have at least four almost empty journals sitting on my shelves right now.  My plan for a page a day went awry when I found myself writing way too much, and so I got discouraged.

I know that through blogging I am sharing and preserving my genealogy research, but I also know I should document the other parts of my life. To do this successfully I need to develop a formula for journal writing.  I will work on that and then add to my Genealogy Goals for 2011 – Keep a Journal.  Wish me luck!

A Lesson Learned

I am in possession of twenty years of my great grandmother’s diaries. She started writing a diary in 1944 because of the war. I learned that she went to the small town of Jacksonville, NY each week to wrap bandages for the troops.  She would document how many bandages she was able to make. Occasionally there would be a birth, marriage or death mentioned, but for the most part the information was disappointing. I knew the temperature that day, and what area of the house she cleaned. I learned that my great grandfather came over from the barn for lunch, and that their son stopped by. But as for what was going on in the community, economic, social, political, there was nothing. And there was nothing of how she felt about her life or what was happening in the world.  I started to transcribe those diaries of Jessie Tucker Agard and have labeled the document, “Life on the Farm.”  They begin like this:

January 5 - Rather mild -Addie [Tucker] went up to Merritt’s while Arthur went to Trumansburg. She sent a box of clothing to Asbury Park by parcel post. Addie and I went to the Red Cross with Alice. There were seven of us to make surgical dressings. I made 110. It is very interesting work. January 6 -Not very cold -Addie went to Asbury Park today. Marian and I took her to the Black Diamond at noon. I did some shopping. It got colder in the p.m. Very windy. We got home at 3:30 in time to do some extra washing. I ironed two dresses. January 7 – Cold - Cleaned the rooms for the weekend. Was too tired to go to the WCSC tea at Julia Lueder’s. Have felt like grip, but guess I am going to fight it off by being careful. Got a nice letter from Adeline. The sun has gone back almost to the big barn when it rises. January 8 - 9 a.m. 2 above zero; cold wind -Emma Kelsey’s funeral. Went to spend Christmas with her brother, Tom. All had flue. Emma taken to hospital. Had pneumonia. Baked bread, blueberry pie, hickory nut cake. Martha Schwartz gave me the hickory nuts last year. Bill, Marian and Johnnie Will went to Ithaca in p.m. Stayed to supper at LaRue’s.

I suspect that our genealogy blogs and personal journals will greatly help future historians and genealogists with their particular research.