In
loving memory of
Beatrice Hill Sanders Wakenshaw
Sept. 15, 1915 - June 5, 2008
It is with great sadness that I have to inform you of the passing of my grandmother, Beatrice Hill Sanders Wakenshaw (AKA: Grandma Wakey). She died in the early morning hours of June 5th at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Illinois, after a month long battle with cancer. My father, Adam and his wife, Geraldine had been by her side most of the past month. My sister, Ivey and I drove to Springfield the first of June to be with her also. But by then grandma was mostly unresponsive. She did manage to open her eyes when she heard our voices for the first time, so I know she was holding on until we got there. She died that Thursday morning, as she would say, “in her 93rd year”.
Have peace in knowing that she is in a much better place now and all her pain is gone. And I bet if we could see them now, that she is still hugging my grandpa as we speak. She has missed him so. The photo above is Shad and Bea when they first started dating in 1936. I think if we could see into Heaven right now that it would look like this picture.
I was so glad to get all her family together for the reunion in 2005. It was a special time for us all celebrating her 90th birthday at the same time. I will miss our Monday night phone calls. No other person has given me so much info for my family tree. My Grandma Ivey passed away in 2001 before I really started this family tree, so I missed the chance to talk with her. But I have been so lucky to have Grandma Wakey live the long life she has had. I would tell her about old family I have found on the internet and put her in touch with them. And she would tell me stories of the “olden days”. I always had a pen and paper handy when I talked with her because you never knew when she would break out into a story and I would be trying to write names and dates as fast as she talked. Her eyesight may have kept her from ever seeing this web site, but I think she would approve.
My family has decided to have services for her at a later date when we all can attend. Join us in celebrating her life and her 93rd birthday on September 15, 2008 at the First Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois. Services will be at 11 a.m. with a lunch to follow. The church is located at 700 S. Sixth Street. Please click on the photo above (or click here) to read her obituary and sign the Guest Book.
Grandma touched many people with her kindness and generosity. Never asking for anything in return. She lived each day to its fullest and was the happiest person I know. She said it best herself, “Nobody has had a better life than me”.
I love you Grandma. Thank you for being here.
Beatrice Hill Sanders Wakenshaw
Sept. 15, 1915 - June 5, 2008
It is with great sadness that I have to inform you of the passing of my grandmother, Beatrice Hill Sanders Wakenshaw (AKA: Grandma Wakey). She died in the early morning hours of June 5th at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Illinois, after a month long battle with cancer. My father, Adam and his wife, Geraldine had been by her side most of the past month. My sister, Ivey and I drove to Springfield the first of June to be with her also. But by then grandma was mostly unresponsive. She did manage to open her eyes when she heard our voices for the first time, so I know she was holding on until we got there. She died that Thursday morning, as she would say, “in her 93rd year”.
Have peace in knowing that she is in a much better place now and all her pain is gone. And I bet if we could see them now, that she is still hugging my grandpa as we speak. She has missed him so. The photo above is Shad and Bea when they first started dating in 1936. I think if we could see into Heaven right now that it would look like this picture.
I was so glad to get all her family together for the reunion in 2005. It was a special time for us all celebrating her 90th birthday at the same time. I will miss our Monday night phone calls. No other person has given me so much info for my family tree. My Grandma Ivey passed away in 2001 before I really started this family tree, so I missed the chance to talk with her. But I have been so lucky to have Grandma Wakey live the long life she has had. I would tell her about old family I have found on the internet and put her in touch with them. And she would tell me stories of the “olden days”. I always had a pen and paper handy when I talked with her because you never knew when she would break out into a story and I would be trying to write names and dates as fast as she talked. Her eyesight may have kept her from ever seeing this web site, but I think she would approve.
My family has decided to have services for her at a later date when we all can attend. Join us in celebrating her life and her 93rd birthday on September 15, 2008 at the First Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois. Services will be at 11 a.m. with a lunch to follow. The church is located at 700 S. Sixth Street. Please click on the photo above (or click here) to read her obituary and sign the Guest Book.
Grandma touched many people with her kindness and generosity. Never asking for anything in return. She lived each day to its fullest and was the happiest person I know. She said it best herself, “Nobody has had a better life than me”.
I love you Grandma. Thank you for being here.
Mark's Family Tree
Index A-Z Surnames Sources Links Contact Me
First time here?......Welcome to my family!!
A short introduction to Mark's Family Tree, and what this web site is all about.
PLEASE read this if you have never been here before...
Welcome! I hope you enjoy browsing these pages as much as I have enjoyed gathering the information. Here's how my web site works... Begin your travels by finding your family name on the Surname page. Or if you prefer, the Index A-Z pages lists EVERYONE, name by name. Find your name and go from there if you like. When you get where you're going, click on the underlined names to read more about that person on another page. If there is a little camera iconnext to that person's name, you can click on it to see pictures on a separate page. Also take note of any numbers in brackets, like this - [346]. You can click on these numbers to see the source(s) used for the information you are reading.
If you are a member of this family and are NOT listed on this site, please contact me! I would love to hear from you, and would be happy to include your name in my little tree. Any other thoughts, suggestions, contributions, corrections, complaints, etc... can also be directed to me at the addresses below.
I began this "hobby" of mine in May of 2001. I never dreamed it would have come so far so soon. My "hobby" has turned into a full blown "career". It's been a lot of hard work, but I've loved every minute of it. I have met many new cousins on the internet and in person, and have been fascinated by their stories. And the many old family photos that have crossed my desk have been just great. I thank you all for entrusting me with your collections while I scanned them.
I want to thank everyone in this family for lending an ear to my many questions. Without your input, none of this would have been possible. It has been my goal to let future generations know about us. Who we are, what we did, and where we came from. Memories never die, but some do fade away. Thanks for helping me keep them alive and well. What a great family we have!
Hey Mark... What's new?
Well, another year has just flown by, so I guess it's time to update this site. I have decided that from now on I will only update this site once a year. It has just become too much work as the family tree keeps growing each year. As of this moment, there are 12,234 of us in the tree. Each with their own page (and photo page if available), plus each person's family page (and family photo pages if available). Then there is the massive number of Index pages, and the Sources page, Family Links page, and the Surnames page. And then all the extra behind the scenes stuff like the wall charts & morphs (see below), the photos from the 2005 reunion (also below), even the photo of the cute boy at the top of this page has to have it's own file. Add all that up, and there are over 32,000 files that make up this web site.
But all of that is the EASY part! My genealogy software makes the whole web site for me. All I have to do is upload the files to my server. The HARD part is writing the page you are reading now. THIS is the only thing I do from scratch. I write this page and arrange everything you see. All the links have to work, so I have to go through a process to make the words link to another section of the site or to a photo or another web site, etc... so when you click on something, it takes you where you want to go. I actually updated the site last week, but it has taken me this long to write this one page. I kept a lot of this front page the same as last time, since I like the layout and look of the page. There are many subtle changes though, if you read the whole page. And how many of you have figured out that if you click on my picture at the top of this page it takes you to my family? Didn't know about that shortcut did you! Anyhow... I present to you the 2007 version of Mark's Family Tree. Hopefully I have added all the info and corrections you have sent me over the last year. If I forgot anyone please let me know. I am willing to make any small changes or corrections ASAP. Otherwise you will have to wait until next year's update.
Earlier this year I participated in The Genographic Project. A five year study by the National Geographic Society to understand the human journey by tracing our DNA back to the earliest humans on Earth. The study is not meant to tell you who your ancestors are, but to show how your particular strand of DNA traveled the planet through the ages. The earliest human fossils are in Africa, and everyone else evolved from them. Some migrated out to Asia and some to Europe. Once my DNA was processed (which took several months), they presented me with a map, tracing my paternal DNA back through Europe and eventually to Africa. No big surprise as I already knew where my ancestors came from. But still it was interesting to read the report and see a copy of my DNA. Special thanks goes out to Dr. Nancy Manahan for supplying the DNA test kit.
Once I was given my test results, I was free to submit them to FamilyTreeDNA.com which will add me to their DNA database at no charge. FamilyTreeDNA is the company who processed the DNA test kits for the Genographic Project. They have the largest DNA databases in the field of genetic genealogy, and as part of their Surname Project, you can be put in contact with anyone who matches your DNA, thus resulting in finding new family and ancestors. And just yesterday, I uploaded my DNA results to ySearch.org, which is a search engine that combines the test results of FamilyTreeDNA with all other companies who do DNA testing. This makes for a larger database from which to find possible ancestors and family links. Genealogy is getting high tech folks!
In September I took a two week vacation to Illinois. Armed with my cemetery list and maps, I visited 11 different cemeteries in two states, and took over 150 photos of our ancestors graves. I have been keeping a list of cemeteries over the years that I wanted to visit. Places where I knew some of my ancestors were buried. And since most of my family on both sides has their roots in Illinois, it was easy to cover a lot of ground and see as many as time allowed. Every time I go to Illinois, I get to check a few more cemeteries off my list. And with the info I copied from the tombstones I was able to add birth and death dates to many people who only had names before. Not to mention I made several new connections to other family with the new tombstones I found of family I didn't even know existed.
I still get many emails from new cousins who have found this site. Marta Robinson contacted me earlier this year with info on the Prince and Millsap families. I put her in touch with my dad's wife, Geraldine (Prince) Wakenshaw, who knows more than I do about the Prince family. Thanks for sending the info Marta.
Also in January I received an email from Jeff McNeish, an author in Montana who was writing two books about the Smith Mine disaster in Bearcreek, MT (1943), which killed my gg-uncle, Adam Lee Wakenshaw and his son, Robert Lee "Bud" Wakenshaw, along with Bud's father-in-law, Frank Sumicek, and 71 other coal miners. Mr. McNeish contacted me about the information I had on my site about the mine explosion. I put him in touch with my trusty Montana expert, Bob Wakenshaw (Bud's son) who knows more about it first hand than just about anyone. The book, Sons of America, Brothers Underground, chronicles the life of each and every miner who lost their life that day. The second book, Long March Toward Tragedy, gives an account of the events that lead up to the explosion and the rescue efforts & investigation in it's aftermath. Both are very interesting books and I want to thank Mr. McNeish for including Bob Wakenshaw and myself in the Acknowledgments section at the beginning of the book.
In February I heard from Lars Gullsby of Sweden, who sent me some info on his Gullsby family. I was also able to help him find some of his family who immigrated to America. Jean Coulter contacted me in May with info on the McLelland family of Ayrshire, Scotland and their connection to my White family in Montana.
Also in May, John W. Davis of Stuart, Florida sent me two large binders containing all of his research & documentation of the Comstock family. John has spent his lifetime researching his family and it was very kind of him to share his hard work with me. Thank you so much.
Jim Wakenshaw of Berwick on Tweed, Northumberland, England contacted me in June. He sent along info of his Wakenshaw family in England, which was enough for me to connect some Wakenshaws that were previously unknown. Thanks for the info Jim. I look forward to finding the connection between our families.
In July I received an email from Tanya Lervik from Washington D.C. with info on her Biddlecome family. She also sent me an updated report on the Biddlecomes she received from Bruce Biddlecome. I had been in touch with Bruce in the past but had lost contact with him, so it was nice to get this updated version of his tree. Thanks Tanya, and thanks to Bruce too.
Mrs. Jill Nash of Jonesboro, Arkansas contacted me in July in search of info on her husband's father, Arthur Dean Nash Sr. We were unable to make any connections to my Nash family in Illinois. I referred her to Toni & Janet Nash's excellent Nash web site in hopes they would know more.
Bob Wakenshaw and I continue our rambles back and forth. He received a letter earlier this year from his cousin, Marlene Bach in Fairbanks, Alaska. She had sent along the obituary of her aunt, Ida Bubenicek, who passed away this May. Marlene was also wondering what ever happened to her great uncle, Anton Bubenicek. With a little research we found when he came to America from Czechoslovakia, and that he lived in Chicago in 1930 with his wife and two children.
In September I heard from Bob Butler, who was searching for his Butler family and found my web site. He has made the connection between his Philip B. Butler and my Flora Sanders of Pawnee, Illinois. I had previously only known Flora married a Butler, but never knew his full name. Bob Butler has filled me in on his family and sent me a few photos as well. Thanks for the info Bob. I've added your web site to the list on my Family Links page.
And in October I received an email from Jason Hearld of Wisconsin, who sent me some info on his grandmother, Dorothy Helen Sanders and her descendants. Thanks for sending that Jason, and good luck researching your grandfather's Hearld family.
Finally, I would like to list those in my tree who passed away this year. You will be remembered here forever.
Rest In Peace...
Walter William Denby (b. 26 Jun 1931 Carlinville, Illinois - d. 25 Feb 2007 Illinois)
M. L. Thomas (b. 7 Sep 1928 Franklin, North Carolina - d. Apr 2007)
Ida Bubenicek (b. 18 Oct 1911 Wolfsbach, Austria - d. 6 May 2007)
G. Louise Braunwalder (b. 18 Apr 1908 Los Angeles, California - d. 8 May 2007 St. George, Utah)
Gaspare Ralph Altomare Jr. (b. 5 Jan 1922 Westfield, Massachusetts - d. 10 Aug 2007 Albuquerque, New Mexico)
Joe Michaels (b. Florida - d. Oct 2007 Florida)
Chester M. Sanders (b. 20 Jun 1915 Edinburg, Illinois - d. 12 Oct 2007 Springfield, Illinois)
Family Morphs
If you don't know what a "morph" is, then you'll just have to click on one of the links below. I have some new software that I've been having fun with. I've taken some old family photos and used just the faces to morph through the generations from old to new. My first attempt at this was to start with my great-grandpa Wakenshaw and change him into my grandpa Wakenshaw, and then my dad and then to me. It came out so good I decided to make some more showing the women in the family. Starting with my great-great grandmother, and her daughter and her daughter and her daughter, right on down the line. Some of the facial features are kind of spooky as you watch the faces morph into their offspring. Some of us really do look alike! As you click on the links below, give them a few moments to load. A short animation will start after the file has loaded in your browser.
WAKENSHAW - 115 YEARS
John Thomas Wakenshaw --> Adam Forsyth Wakenshaw --> John Adam Wakenshaw --> Mark Wakenshaw
MY SISTER AND HER MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHERS (five generations)
Isabelle Scherrer --> Alva Opal Howell --> Marjorie Juanita Fink --> Connie Jane Ivey --> Ivey Wakenshaw
MY AUNT JEAN AND HER MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHERS (four generations)
Isabelle Scherrer --> Alva Opal Howell --> Marjorie Juanita Fink --> Hilma Jean Ivey
MY MOM AND HER GRANDMOTHER (could be twins?)
Hilma Marie Carlson --> Connie Jane Ivey
MY GRANDPA IVEY AND MY AUNT JEAN
Elmer Earl "Bill" Ivey --> Hilma Jean Ivey
Mark's Family Tree Reunion
held on September 15-16 2005
(note: photo pages are large.... please allow time for them to load)
I left this information on the web
site for all those who want to see the photos from the reunion. This
part of my site still gets many hits, so I didn't want to remove it
just yet. There will probably never be another reunion like this one,
as it was a major undertaking for me and I don't know if I could pull
it off again.
We had just over 90 people for the dinner on Thursday night, and over 65 for the picnic on the lake Friday afternoon. It was a dream come true for me to have you all together at one time. I only wish we could have stayed longer, as I didn't get to visit with some of you as much as I would have liked. I couldn't have been happier with the large turnout, and I want to thank all of those who attended.
The reunion dinner was held at the Route 66 Hotel & Conference Center in Springfield, Illinois. I want to thank Marc Evans and his staff at the hotel for helping me set this whole thing up. As I found out, planning a large gathering is not as easy as it seems. Here are some photos of the hotel and the sign out front welcoming Mark's Family Tree.
I also want to thank all my little helpers... My dad, who helped me hang up the family tree charts in the banquet room, and my grandma who told us when we got them straight! My mom, her friend Phyllis Knapp, and my sister, Ivey, who worked the sign-in table and got everyone their name tags. Also, thanks to cousin Barbara Ann Reichert for bringing the three birthday girls their cake & corsages. And a very special thanks to William Earl Pike for his kind words and Grace before our meal. He did a real fine job on very short notice.
Besides the family reunion, we also celebrated the 90th birthdays of my grandma, Beatrice Sanders Wakenshaw, and my great-aunt, Norma Williams Ivey. Both of these ladies were born on the same day of the same year. A dear friend of the Ivey family, Dorothy Housholder, was also in attendance and celebrating her 90th birthday that same weekend.
As much as I hate speaking in front of large crowds, I did give a small welcome speech after dinner. Then much to my surprise, my dad presented me with an engraved silver platter from the family for my efforts in getting the reunion together. Thank you all for that special gift. The rest of the evening was spent talking & visiting, taking lots of pictures and watching the slide show of old family photos I made. Here are some photos from the dinner.
On Friday afternoon we had our picnic lunch out at Lake Springfield. The weather was just perfect. Thanks to the folks at CWLP for the free use of the Tom Madonia East Park. We had the whole place to ourselves. Thanks also to the KFC on 6th Street for catering the meal and delivering it to the park. A good time was had by all. The kids enjoyed a free run of the park and playing on the dock trying to catch fish. While us "old folks" enjoyed just sitting and talking. Here are some photos of the picnic. All in all, I couldn't have asked for the whole event to turn out any better. It's been something I've wanted to do for a long time. Thank you all again for coming to the party and I hope you enjoyed it half as much as I did.
A few weeks after I returned home I received a box in the mail from my sister, Ivey. In the box was a photo album and the words "Mark's Family Tree Reunion. September 15-16 2005" engraved on the front cover. Inside the album were pictures from the reunion dinner and picnic. Along with the photos in the album were all the thank you notes you all wrote to me during the dinner. I was really touched by reading them and had no idea this was going on "behind my back" during the dinner. Thank you all so much for your kind words. I am proud and honored to have you all for my family.
We had just over 90 people for the dinner on Thursday night, and over 65 for the picnic on the lake Friday afternoon. It was a dream come true for me to have you all together at one time. I only wish we could have stayed longer, as I didn't get to visit with some of you as much as I would have liked. I couldn't have been happier with the large turnout, and I want to thank all of those who attended.
The reunion dinner was held at the Route 66 Hotel & Conference Center in Springfield, Illinois. I want to thank Marc Evans and his staff at the hotel for helping me set this whole thing up. As I found out, planning a large gathering is not as easy as it seems. Here are some photos of the hotel and the sign out front welcoming Mark's Family Tree.
I also want to thank all my little helpers... My dad, who helped me hang up the family tree charts in the banquet room, and my grandma who told us when we got them straight! My mom, her friend Phyllis Knapp, and my sister, Ivey, who worked the sign-in table and got everyone their name tags. Also, thanks to cousin Barbara Ann Reichert for bringing the three birthday girls their cake & corsages. And a very special thanks to William Earl Pike for his kind words and Grace before our meal. He did a real fine job on very short notice.
Besides the family reunion, we also celebrated the 90th birthdays of my grandma, Beatrice Sanders Wakenshaw, and my great-aunt, Norma Williams Ivey. Both of these ladies were born on the same day of the same year. A dear friend of the Ivey family, Dorothy Housholder, was also in attendance and celebrating her 90th birthday that same weekend.
As much as I hate speaking in front of large crowds, I did give a small welcome speech after dinner. Then much to my surprise, my dad presented me with an engraved silver platter from the family for my efforts in getting the reunion together. Thank you all for that special gift. The rest of the evening was spent talking & visiting, taking lots of pictures and watching the slide show of old family photos I made. Here are some photos from the dinner.
On Friday afternoon we had our picnic lunch out at Lake Springfield. The weather was just perfect. Thanks to the folks at CWLP for the free use of the Tom Madonia East Park. We had the whole place to ourselves. Thanks also to the KFC on 6th Street for catering the meal and delivering it to the park. A good time was had by all. The kids enjoyed a free run of the park and playing on the dock trying to catch fish. While us "old folks" enjoyed just sitting and talking. Here are some photos of the picnic. All in all, I couldn't have asked for the whole event to turn out any better. It's been something I've wanted to do for a long time. Thank you all again for coming to the party and I hope you enjoyed it half as much as I did.
A few weeks after I returned home I received a box in the mail from my sister, Ivey. In the box was a photo album and the words "Mark's Family Tree Reunion. September 15-16 2005" engraved on the front cover. Inside the album were pictures from the reunion dinner and picnic. Along with the photos in the album were all the thank you notes you all wrote to me during the dinner. I was really touched by reading them and had no idea this was going on "behind my back" during the dinner. Thank you all so much for your kind words. I am proud and honored to have you all for my family.
Family Tree Charts
These are the charts that were on the walls during the family reunion in 2005.
WARNING: They are rather large picture files, so be patient. They will take time to load...
WAKENSHAW CHART
IVEY CHART
SANDERS CHART
FINK CHART
If you would like a smaller chart of just your family, or any family for that matter, just drop me a line and I will make you one from the info I have on file. It is fairly easy for me to do, and I can email it to you in .JPEG form so you can save it and print it out. Just remember that the more generations there are, the larger the chart will be. So if you want to be able to print it on one piece of paper, then keep your requests to a minimum. A fan shaped chart will cover about five generations, and fit on one page. The boxed charts like I have above will only fit a few generations on one page, depending on family size. Email me for further details.
Mark
Wakenshaw
79
John Silver Drive
Key
Largo, Florida Keys 33037
Information contained on
this site was researched & compiled by Mark Wakenshaw, with the
generous help of my entire family and the many fellow genealogists who
have contributed their hard work to my efforts since 5 May 2001. All
rights reserved. For the use of family history research and
non-profit organizations only. All other use is prohibited. And besides
that, it will make me really mad!
MFT update #38 ~ 26 Nov 2007 ~ Mark's Family Tree© 2001-2008 Mark C. Wakenshaw
Created on a 17" Apple PowerBook G4 with LeisterPro's Reunion 9 for Mac OS X Leopard
MFT update #38 ~ 26 Nov 2007 ~ Mark's Family Tree© 2001-2008 Mark C. Wakenshaw
Created on a 17" Apple PowerBook G4 with LeisterPro's Reunion 9 for Mac OS X Leopard