New York Gravestones

Lamb's Tree, Two has a fantastic link today: http://newyorkgravestones.org/.  They are trying to get all the tomb stones for New York state.  Part of the Gravestones Photo Project (GPP), there are also sites available for Massachusetts, Oregon and Utah.

According to their site: "The mission of this project is to capture digital images of gravestones of our ancestors. As decades pass-- many stones are becoming harder, if not impossible, to read the inscriptions they originally contained. 

By archiving the images, we can help save these important records and also assist researchers using this valuable resource."

I do not see any of my ancestors yet, so time to start editing my photos to their specifications and adding them.  The specifications alone are worth visiting the site: http://www.sampubco.com/gpp/crop.htm.

I only wish that all the tombstone project sites would get together to form a comprehensive site, instead of having to check and add to all the known sites.

The Erie Canal

"Map of the Canal, and Profile of the Canal" -- from: Marco Paul's Voyages & Travels, Erie Canal / by Jacob Abbott. (Harper & Brothers, New York, c1852) -- frontispiece.  From http://www.eriecanal.org/maps.html

In writing a post on local history, I thought it interesting to connect my current location, Syracuse, NY with where I grew up, Buffalo, NY.  Buffalo is also where my ancestors settled and stayed for generations.

The Erie Canal is well known in upstate and western New York as the reason cities such as Buffalo, Albany, Utica and Syracuse became prime trade locations and grew so large.  Connected to each other by 363 miles of hand- and horse-dug canal.  The Canal ended at the Hudson River, where ships head to New York City.

Known as Clinton's Folly, then governor DeWitt Clinton dreamed up the project and used his political savvy to have it created.  No one believed something of that mass could be created.  The canal was built between 1817 and 1825.  The Erie Canal is what made New York City America's largest and busiest port as it connected it to the west.  According to http://www.epodunk.com/routes/erie-canal/start.html, "Cities along the route boomed. The population of Syracuse, a swampy settlement of 250 people in 1820, grew to more than 22,000 by 1850. The city's salt industry supplied half the nation's salt.

The Erie Canal lasted until the 1920's, due to the rise of railroads and highways.  In Syracuse, the Erie Canal is now Erie Boulevard and is has the Erie Canal Museum.  Other parts have trails for hiking, biking and snowmobiling.  One can also take a canal boat ride which even goes up and down on the locks.  I highly recommend taking a trip if you ever get the opportunity.

Just this week I learned from my great-great-great grandfather Gottlieb Finck's death certificate that he was a canal lock tender.  It is thrilling to know that my family played a part in such an important part of our country.

Sources:

http://www.epodunk.com/routes/erie-canal/index.html#

http://www.nyscanals.gov/cculture/history/

http://www.nycanal.com/recreation/nycanalrec.html

(No) Tombstone Tuesday - Adam Fleeman

My 4th great grandfather, Adam Fleeman, does not have a stone.  The top photo is around his final resting place and the grass above is where he is located.  Died 25 Nov 1889. Buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, NY.

Book Swap

Has anyone checked out the PaperBack Swap?  A friend recommended it to me and so far it is fantastic!  You post books (paperback and hardcover) you no longer want and ship them to people who do.  You then can choose books from others and they send them to you.

You get 2 free book credits for signing up and posting 10 of your books.  You then get one for every one you send out.  There are a few genealogy books and a lot of history and travel ones.  I think we need to get more genealogy books up there!  There are a lot of people who have them on their wishlists...

If you do sign up, please use me as a referral and ask me to be a buddy: amandaea129

Enjoy the inexpensive books and helping the environment!

Fantastic Research Worksheet

Genealogy Gems News has a wonderful research worksheet which goes with the genealogy proof standard.  The best part - it's free!  Check it out here!

Probate File - Carolina Casillo

Carolina (Izzo) Casillo died 2 Oct 1934 in Buffalo, NY.  She left part of her estate to her children Amalia Berni, Alfred M. Casell, Angeline Frascelli, Lucy Murphy and Clara Catalano.  The majority was left to her husband Marco A.

Her estimated personal worth was $ 1400.

Family Search Correction?

My great-great grandfather is listed in the FamilySearch International Genealogical Index and a Pedigree Resource File with the incorrect death date.  I cannot seem to find a way to correct this.

He is Jacob Gress, died 11 Aug 1932, Buffalo, NY (married to Elizabeth Fink).  The death date listed, 25 Apr 1957, is actually for a Jacob Gross, of no relation.

Any suggestions?