Wordless Wednesday - L.S. Shepard, Spencer, NY 1915

L.S. Shepard and his auto truck on the lawn west of the Baptist parsonage, Spencer, New York

Wordless Wednesday - 1940 Spencer, New York Co-Op

Spencer Co-Op 1940

Back Row:  Ed Plykas, John Neimi, Elmer Maki, Arne Louko, Bill Koski

Middle Row:  ___, Ensio Koski, Kauppinen, Frank Kippola, Hans Maunula, Arne Aho, ___, Wayne Alve, Reino Hannula, Ray Maata

Front Row: John Maata, Lydia Maata, Ida Walding, Carl Walding

The Spencer Co-Op served its members by bulk purchasing feed, fertilizer, gasoline and fuel oil. On premises was a grain mill. Later the co-op offered limited clothing and grocery options.  

Shopping Saturday - L.S. Shepard Grocery Wagon 1897-1900

Residence of W.B. Garatt, East Spencer, NY
L.S. Shepard's Grocery Wagon
Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Garatt and a visitor

Thursday evening I received a call from a woman who has worked on the Tioga State Bank (NY) calendar since 1980. She had seen the above photograph I had shared with the Spencer NY town historian and asked if they could use it for the 2012 bank calendar. She then asked if I had any other photos, particularly any of women “working.”  I did find a few that might fit that requirement. 

I don’t suspect that during the late 1800s, early 1900s there were a lot of photos taken of women “working.” Most of these photos were professionally done and formal. But I did find one woman in a nurse’s uniform, and a couple of women with children.  We all know that raising children was more important than anything a man could do! So I am hoping they accept the photo of Myra Shepard pushing Howard in the perambulator when he was a few months old.

If anyone has old photos taken of people in the Southern Tier of NY, especially within the reaches of the Tioga State Bank, please let me know and I will put you in touch with the folks who are searching for photos that would be of enough interest that people want to look at them for a month.

Thanks!

Church Record Sunday - Spencer NY Presbyterian Church

The Christmas Day 1910 Bulletin for the Spencer (NY) Presbyterian Church

Society Officers listed on back. Happy to share information with any interested parties.

Wordless Wednesday - Four Generations - Shepard & Day

I found this photo last weekend and placed it in the Shepard genealogy that I am in the process of writing.  The baby in the photo is Howard Shepard, my aunt's father. His grandmother Sophronia A. Day married La Grange Shepard. The Shepards lived in Spencer, Tioga County, New York. The four generation photo also shows Sophronia’s mother, Almira E. Monroe Day. 

 

  

Four Generations

Almira E. Monroe Day, wife of Henry Day

Sophronia A Day Shepard

Eugene L. (son) of L.S. Shepard

Howard (son) E.L. & Myra Shepard

Surname Saturday - Shepard

My blog followers know from previous posts that I am working on a family narrative for my cousin and her children on the Shepard family.  The papers and photos she gave to me in December included several pages of handwritten notes on the Shepard family genealogy. I transcribed those and they are included as an introduction in my narrative. Using the handwritten notes as a starting point, I began to verify each generation, but I immediately had trouble with the second generation. The handwritten notes had the progenitor as Ralph Shepard, born 1609 in Stepheny Parish London and arriving in Boston in October 1635. Ralph, his wife, Thankful, and their daughter Sarah are well documented. But the second generation listed, John Shepard, presented a problem as Ralph did not have a son named John.

I spent the afternoon in our library’s genealogy room where there resides a three volume set of Shepard Genealogy. This book was carefully researched by Gerald Faulkner Shepard and edited by the well-known genealogist Donald Lines Jacobus. So I was pretty confident that the information contained therein was correct.

Mr. Shepard states that there were two large Shepard families that immigrated to the new world. Those were the Ralph Shepard family of Dedham, MA, and the Edward Shepard Family of Cambridge, MA. Those two families take up the first two volumes of Mr. Shepard’s works.  The third volume contains several other Shepard families that immigrated, and he has them carefully marked.  The Shepard family I am researching is actually from John Shepard of Concord, MA who was born about 1633 in Concord, MA. He married Sarah Goble in 1661.  This family eventually ended up on Spencer, Tioga County, New York.

I am so glad I got this straightened out before I wasted any more time trying to connect Ralph Shepard with this family line. 

Military Monday - Ralph Watkins Shepard

As I work through the suitcases of genealogical treasures my cousin bestowed upon me at Christmas I found Ralph Shepard’s Application for Membership to the Board of Managers of the Empire State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.

Ralph was born in Spencer, New York on June 30, 1882 and he lists his descent line from John Shepard born June 17, 1752.  Ralph wrote on his application:

“John Shepard served as a private in Capt. Israel Healds Co., Col Eleazer Brooks (Middlesex, County) Regt. of Mass. militia for six days from March 4, 1776. Company marched from Acton, Mass to Roxbury. Company composed of Acton men.

From “Mass. Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolution.”

Reference to D.A.R Member #71005 (Mrs. D.F.) Cora Spaulding Rolison”

I am happy to share the information on this application with anyone researching the Shepard family line.