THURSDAY'S TREASURE - The 1993 Flemming Family Cookbook

I love October! I love the cooler weather, the changing leaves, decorating the yard for Halloween and celebrating my birthday. One special thing I really look forward to doing each year is baking Pumpkin Bread - eating it as well as sharing it with friends and family. It wasn't something I grew up with - we were strictly homemade Banana Bread people. But that all changed 21 years ago.

My copy of The Flemming Family Cookbook

In the summer of 1993 I organized a Flemming Family Reunion in Birmingham, Alabama. [Click here to see more - 1993 Flemming Family Reunion post] It wasn't the first one ever held, but it was my first to plan. And part of the event included each family receiving a very special family cookbook that I had published, comprised only of special recipes from members of our extended Flemming Family. Each adult was asked to send in 5 recipes that were special to their own families, so that for generations forward families could still prepare the dish exactly as their grandmothers, great-grandmothers and great-great-grandmothers had prepared it. There are even recipes in the book sent in by some fathers and grandfathers.

And one of the recipes that I have made every year - especially in the fall - is "Pumpkin Bread", found on page 43 in the "Bread" chapter.  It was sent in by Jane Hale Flemming (1919-2003), wife of Joseph Lambert Flemming (1918-1985). [One of Jane & Joe's daughters-in-law sent in the same recipe for the "Holiday Specialties" chapter.] Joe is the son Charles Clinton Flemming (1884-1935) and Katherine Aurelia Lambert (1885-1935); his grandparents, Charles Clinton Flemming (1854-1932) and Elizabeth Agnes McCaffrey (1858-1922), are my great-great-grandparents. [NOTE: His father Charles is the younger brother of my great-grandfather Harry Clinton Flemming (1878-1955), making Joe a first cousin of my grandmother Susie Flemming O'Donnell (1909-1999).]

But this recipe for Pumpkin Bread is Jane's recipe, one she made for her own family - including her six children and thirteen grandchildren. I don't know where she got it, or how for how many years she made the bread, but I'm so glad she did. It is THE BEST - full of spices like nutmeg, cinnamon & cloves. It makes the house smell wonderful and the flavor is amazing! It's now part of my family's tradition.



My Much Used Pumpkin Bread Recipe, page 43

For the past ten years or so I began adding chocolate chips to half or all of my recipe before I bake the loaves (the recipe makes two). My middle child made the suggestion after coming home from a school Thanksgiving party proclaiming he had eaten "the best pumpkin muffins." Knowing that he had to be wrong I questioned further and found that he thought the pumpkin part wasn't as good but it had chocolate chips baked inside. So now I often add them to the recipe. I also bake the recipe into muffins and share them, if we haven't already eaten them all.

This is only one of the 297 recipes inside the cookbook. It includes recipes from many family members who are now deceased, including my grandmother, her sisters, and many of her cousins. There are recipes from the next generation younger than them, as well as from my own generation.  Included are recipes for "9 Day Slaw" from Rita Obering Flemming (1923-1994); "Oyster Pie" from Margaret Flemming Selman (1920-2013); "Pecan Pralines" from OD Flemming Daly (1911-1994); "Shrimp Stuffed Potatoes" from Mike Flemming Millican (1910-2003), and "White Wine Sauce" from Jack Flemming (1918-2008) and his wife Georgia Rice Flemming (1918-2005). I haven't tried one recipe yet that isn't yummy.

At the time I had the book professionally printed I was the mother of one child, just one-year-old. Now I've got 3 kids, the youngest a senior in high school. And I've got a cookbook saved for each of them, for when they set up their own homes. I think it's a wonderful family treasure that countless families have enjoyed, and can enjoy for years to come. If you don't have one for you to use, or for your children or grandchildren, I have good news....

**FOR SALE** A couple of years ago I had a second printing of the cookbook made, so that other generations - many who were too little to have their own book twenty years ago, some who weren't even born yet - can have their own copies to use and enjoy. I will be putting some of the books up for sale on E-bay for the next couple of weeks for anyone who may want a copy. Just type in "1993 Flemming Family Cookbook". The cost is just $18.95, plus shipping. On E-bay you can charge the book or books. If you want to buy one and would rather deal with me directly you can contact me by email or Facebook.  ***FAMILY MEMBERS ONLY*** It will make a great gift for the holidays, or to include in a wedding/shower gift.  I only have 26 copies left.  If you want one, don't hesitate to order your copy today. I won't be making any new copies anytime soon.

P.S. - Enjoy the Pumpkin Bread!

THURSDAY'S TREASURES - Lee & Jackson Busts, Horst House - Mobile, AL

In a previous post, I told the story of the house built in Mobile, Alabama, by my great-great-great-grandfather Martin Horst (1830-1878). Read it here. The home still stands in Mobile, built in 1867, making the home 146 years old. In the previous post I describe the arrangement of the rooms in the home. But for this story only one area needs to be highlighted.

Bust of Robert E. Lee in Horst House
Mobile, Alabama

On the first floor of the house there is "a central hall, flanked by two rooms on the right, and a double parlor on the left. In the archway between the two parlors, Martin Horst had placed a bust in bas-relief of Robert E. Lee on one side, and Stonewall Jackson on the other."

In 1993, my father commissioned a reproduction of these two busts to be displayed in the new home my parents were building in Birmingham, Alabama. As my father always loved history - and was the keeper of the family history for both his family and my mother's family - he wanted to honor Martin Horst, my mother's great-great-grandfather.

He had two sets of plaques made. When the artist was creating the molds, he found that the plaques had originally been painted. The artist painted both sets, but my parents had the paint removed from one pair. The pair in Mobile are now painted white [see above picture].


Reproductions of the busts of Robert E. Lee (L) and Stonewall Jackson
Found in Horst House, Mobile, AL

He never did display either pair of busts but they, of course, are very special reminders of Martin Horst, his wife Apollonia Weinschenk (1829-1908), and the glorious life he made for his family after emigrating from Germany in 1846.

THURSDAY'S TREASURE - Our Family Name, Barbara

In my grandfather's Bible, my mother once found this small article from a long-forgotten newspaper (copyright 1920) that he had torn out and saved. It is her name - Barbara. A name that has been passed down one branch of my family tree - from one continent to another, across states, for over 200 years. The name was chosen each time by new parents for their brand new baby daughter, to honor a mother or grandmother or sister whom they loved. Here is how my mother, and my older sister, came to have their name.

In our family I have been able to trace the name Barbara back to 18th century France. I found the name first given to my 6th great-grandmother Barbe Breyer Bour, born June 20, 1750, in Seingbouse, Moselle, France. [Barbe is the French personal name for Barbara.] Her parents, my 7th great-grandparents, were Pierre Breyer (1714-1764) and Anna Marie Schwartz (1713-1761). In February 1770, Barbe married Jean Melchoir Bour, who was born January 1745, in Tenteling, Moselle, France. They had at least two children, including Christine Bour, my 5th great-grandmother.

Christine Bour was born January 1763, in Seingbouse. In 1801 she married Pierre Lang, my 5th great-grandfather. Pierre was born March 1760, also in Seingbouse, France. Together they had at least five children. Their oldest child was Marguerite Lang, my 4th great-grandmother. She was born in April 1802; fourth child and younger sister, Barbe Lang, was born March 1806.

In May 1821, Marguerite married Joseph Frise (1796-1863) in their hometown. They had seven sons and two daughters. Their oldest child was Barbara Frisse, born in May 1822. Barbara is my 3rd great-grandmother. Joseph, Marguerite and their children immigrated to the United States. They settled in St. Anne's Village (now North Vernon), Jennings County, Indiana.

Barbara Frisse married Jean Michael Baptiste Brunette (1818-1863) one month after arriving in America, in August 1846. They had ten children, 7 girls and 3 boys. The name is passed down again at the birth of their fourth child Barbara Brunett. Born in April 1852, Barbara married Philip Huber (1847-1901), an immigrant from Germany, in April 1871, in Bowling Green, Warren County, Kentucky. Barbara and Philip are my 3rd great-grandparents.

Barbara and Philip had seven children while living in Bowling Green, including (my great-great-grandmother) oldest daughter Mary Bertha "Mayme" Huber, born in August 1873, and her younger sister Philomena Barbara "Minnie" Huber, born September 1876. Minnie never married. Mayme married John Martin O'Donnell (1865-1937) in April 1904, after both had moved to Birmingham, Alabama.

Mayme and Johnny had three boys, including oldest son John Huber O'Donnell (my grandfather), born May 1906, and one daughter, Barbara Lena O'Donnell, born November 1909.
Barbara married Howard Alonzo Howard, (1908-1946), and together they had three children including daughter Barbara Beverly, born 1939.

Huber married my grandmother Susan Elizabeth Flemming, (1909-1999), and named their third child (my mother) Barbara Ann. My mother and father named their oldest daughter Barbara Ann, born 1958, almost exactly 208 years after Barbe Breyer was born. So I can trace our family name Barbara for over 200 years, from 1750 to 1958; from Seingbouse, France, to Birmingham, Alabama, for nine generations. Unfortunately, much like my own name which I traced back to Ireland, no Barbara's from this line have been born since 1958. Such a wonderful name....

THURSDAY'S TREASURES - Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness

On this, the 237th birthday of the United States of America, it seems the perfect time to celebrate not only our country's birth but also the gifts that were passed down to us from our ancestors who made it possible for us to celebrate as Americans.


Irish Immigrants Leaving Queenstown Harbour
The Illustrated London News, September 1874

For each of us there were great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers who left their homeland, their neighbors, the culture and very often their own families to take a chance in this new country of which they knew very little. They gathered up all they could carry with them, said good-bye to their friends and families, and left the only home they had ever known and most likely one they would never return to. They travelled by cart or by foot to a sea port where they would board a small packet ship. Once aboard they would climb down into the hull of the vessel with one hundred, two hundred, or more strangers to travel for several weeks across the Atlantic Ocean. With all of the multitude of people stuffed into the ship's steerage area [see post "Packet Ship Gladiator", January 1, 2012,  for more information about steerage] they all shared one common dream - a better life in America.

Many left behind poverty, with little chance to ever change their circumstances. Most left countries with governments that held a tight rein on their individual rights and freedoms. Towns where they weren't allowed to speak, or protest, or gather freely. Where they couldn't vote to choose their own leaders. Where their children faced forced conscription into the military. Where the right to practice the religion of their own choosing didn't exist.



"Irish Immigrants Leaving Home"
Harper's Bazaar, December 1870

They each knew that a better life existed - for themselves and for their children. And for their children's children. They wanted more for their life and for their family. They wanted to be free to choose their own path in life, and be treated as human beings with God-given rights. They wanted to work hard and be rewarded with just compensation. They wanted to have a say in their government and in the laws they lived under. They wanted to freely practice their faith. They wanted the freedom to have a dissenting opinion about their leaders, share it openly, without the fear of reprisals. They wanted this for themselves. But most of all they wanted this for their children.

"From the Old to the New World"
German Emigration
Harper's Weekly, November 1874

They left everything behind for a promise of a better life. They sailed on a ship across a wide ocean, not knowing if they or their family members would survive, or if the ship itself would make it safely. They landed in a port where they couldn't speak the language, maybe had no one waiting for them, had little direction on where to go or what to do next. But they paved the way for each one of their children, each one of their grandchildren - each one of us - to enjoy those unalienable rights we each possess, endowed for us by our Creator.

Among these - Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

America wasn't perfect then and it isn't perfect now. But it's the best there is. And we have our ancestors to thank for giving us the opportunity for a better future. So it's nice today to remember those that made it possible:

Patrick McCloskey (1810-1855) who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1838, at the age of 28, from his home in Ireland. His wife Mary Ann (1805-1871) also immigrated from Ireland, date unknown. They are my 4x great-grandparents.

Thomas McCaffrey (1799-1890), arrived in New York Harbor in June 1825 from his home in County Tyrone, Ireland. His wife Susan (1793-1869) also immigrated from County Tyrone, date unknown. They, too, are my 4x-great-grandparents.

Johann Eckard Horst (1802-1852), my 4x-great-grandfather, arrived in August 1846 in New York City Harbor at the age of 43 with his second wife and five children. This included my 3x-great-grandfather Martin Horst (1830-1878), who was just 16 years old when he arrived. Later my 5x-great-grandfather Johan Conrad Horst (1780-UNK), Martin's grandfather, also arrived here, in May 1860. He was 80 years old when he arrived. They were from Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany.


"Irish Emigrants Leaving Home - The Priest's Blessing"
The Illustrated London News, May 1851

Apollonia Weinschenk (1829-1908), my 3x-great-grandmother and wife of Martin Horst, arrived in the port of New Orleans around 1843, at the age of 14, from her home in Forst, Bavaria, Germany.

 My great-great-grandfather Patrick O'Donnell (1823-1911) arrived in this country in December 1849 from Ireland, along with five of his 7 brothers. He was 26 years old. His wife Bridget Kennedy (1838-1893) immigrated from her home in  County Tipperary, Ireland, sometime in the early 1850's.

Phillip Huber (1847-1901), also my great-great-grandfather, arrived in New York in June 1867, at the age of 19, from Florsheim, Hessen, Germany.

My 3x-great-grandparents, John Michael Baptiste Brunett (1818-1863), and Barbara Frisse (1822-1893) traveled onboard the same ship, from their homes in Seingbouse, Moselle, France, arriving in the port of New Orleans in July 1846. Traveling with Barbara were her parents (my 4x-great-grandparents) Joseph Frise (1796-1864) and Marguerite Lang (1802-1868), as well as several siblings. Marguerite was 44 years old; Joseph was 50.

[NOTE: My Fortier and DeGruey ancestors arrived from France to Canada and then settled in Louisiana before the United States was formed. I have no information yet as to when my Flemming or Jackson family ancestors arrived in America.]



"Immigrants Behold the Statue of Liberty"
Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, July 1887

None of these ancestors arrived as we might imagine - coming into New York Harbor and seeing the Statue of Liberty, stepping off their steamship onto Ellis Island to be officially inspected in long lines. [The Statue of Liberty wasn't dedicated until 1886.] None of these ancestors settled on the east coast - most made their new homes in southern cities. And somehow, through happenstance or through fate, their offspring met other offspring of these immigrants and eventually, over time and over years, my mother and her siblings were created from a combination of all of these immigrants. And that made it possible for me to sit down, in my home in Birmingham, Alabama, and celebrate Independence Day and my great-grandparents' dreams for a better life.

THURSDAY'S TREASURE - Grandmom's Earbobs

One Pair of Grandmom's Earbobs

Treasures can come in all shapes and sizes. The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines a treasure as follows: "(1) wealth of any kind or in any form; (2) something of great worth or value; also : a person esteemed as rare or precious; (3) a collection of precious things." I know that throughout my large extended family there are treasures of great monetary value, treasures passed on through generations and treasurers with great stories behind them. The treasure that I want to share today doesn't fit any of these descriptions. But they are precious and of great worth to me - my grandmother's earbobs.

Susie Flemming O'Donnell
wearing a pair of earbobs - 1992

Susan Elizabeth Flemming O'Donnell (1909-1999) was hoot. She told me at one of my bridal showers in 1990 that she was always invited to parties throughout her life "because she was cheaper than hiring a clown." She was the mother of eight children and the grandmother of twenty. At the time of her death she also had nineteen great-grandchildren. She had been married to the love of her life, John Huber O'Donnell (1905-1964), and was widowed when she was just 54. Her faith and her family kept her going, and she lived 35 years longer as the matriarch of my mother's family.

She was a southern lady - born and bred in Birmingham, Alabama - a product of her times. But she was also a rare, one-of-a-kind treasure to her family, friends and all who had the unique pleasure to meet her. This post can't begin to do her the justice that her life and legacy deserve. So I won't attempt. But I can share these little treasurers that I was able to pick out - after all her other treasurers were chosen - from items that my mother got after her death. These treasures are Grandmom's "earbobs".

Grandmom, as we grandchildren call her, enjoyed dressing up to go out to lunch or dinner with family and friends. She always wore a necklace or a pin, maybe a bracelet or two, with her dress - pants or slacks were not a part of her public attire. Along with her various accoutrements she always wore "earbobs".  They were clip-on earrings, usually quite large and round, and mostly not of any great monetary value.

Earbobs with Matching Pin

She seemed to have dozens of pairs to choose from. I remember as a little girl going off to her bedroom while the adults talked in the living room, and looking in her jewelry box, full of all colors and styles of jewelry. I don't remember picking anything up or trying anything on, but I probably did. Her things were bigger and bolder than the styles my mother had at home in her jewelry case. My Mom seldom wore earrings - and never wore "earbobs". So Grandmom's treasures were unique unto her.

I tried to find the origin of the term "earbob". I couldn't find when or where the word originated, but I found numerous historical museums that had "earbobs" from native Americans in their collections. I found the term used in 19th century literature, as well as in more modern books. Many fans of the movie Gone with the Wind will remember Scarlett O'Hara offering her "earbobs" to Rhett Butler for collateral for a loan (he declined). The use of the word "earbobs" continued, mostly in the South, but the word is seldom heard anymore.

But I can't look at these inexpensive clip-on earrings that I chose as a keepsake from my grandmother without remembering the giggles from me and my sisters and cousins when Grandmom made any mention of her "earbobs". We thought it was so silly a word then. Now I see the word, and the earrings - and, of course, my grandmother - all as wonderful, precious treasures.

QUESTION - Do you remember Grandmom's earbobs? Or your own grandmother's earbobs? Add your memory (or comment) below to share.

THURSDAY'S TREASURE - Catholicism and Our Family's Faith

First, I need to acknowledge that I know this isn't Thursday. It's Friday, Good Friday in fact. But as I thought about my post for today, trying to recognize the importance of this day, I thought about one of our family's real treasures - our Catholic faith. All but two of my mother's ancestors came to America as Catholics and passed their religion down through their children, grandchildren and beyond. It's a faith and a religion that I, too, practice, that my children practice and one that my husband will become a member of tomorrow night, at the Easter Vigil Mass.

My Mother's Lineage

   + Susan Elizabeth Flemming (1909-1999)

             ++ Harry Clinton Flemming (1878-1955)

                   +++ Charles Clinton Flemming (1854-1932)*

                          ++++James Benjamin Flemming (1827-1907)**

                          ++++ Sarah Linza Jackson (1837-1902)**

                                  +++++ William Jackson (1800-1879)**

                                  +++++ Elizabeth (1802-1870)**

                   +++ Elizabeth Agnes McCaffrey (1858-1922)

                          ++++ Thomas Joseph McCaffrey (1832-1896)

                                  +++++ Thomas McCaffrey (1799-1890)

                                  +++++ Susan (1793-1769)

                          ++++ Charlotte Elizabeth McCluskey (1838-1917)

                                  +++++ Patrick McCluskey (1810-1855)

                                  +++++ Mary Ann (1805-1871)

          ++ Pearl Alphonsine Horst (1884-1961)

                   +++ Charles Frederick Horst (1856-1912)

                          ++++ Martin Horst (1830-1878)

                                  +++++ Johann Ekhard Horst (1802-1852)

                                  +++++ Elizabeth Martin (UNK-1844)

                          ++++ Apollonia Weinschenk (1829-1908)

                                  +++++ Matthew Weinschenk (UNK- b. 1842)

                                  +++++ Maria Barbara Biebel (1787-1842)

                   +++ Odalie Felice Fortier (1857-1920)

                          ++++ Jacques Omer Fortier (1813-1867)

                                  +++++ Jacques Omer Fortier (1792-1823)

                                  +++++ Charlotte Adele Chauvin deLery (1796-1834)

                           ++++ Augustine Melanie Laperle DeGruy (1822-1872)

                                  +++++ Jean Baptiste Valentin Dufouchard DeGruy (1751-1838)

                                  +++++ Melanie Gaudin (1786-1853)

+ John Huber O'Donnell (1905-1964)

          ++ John Martin O'Donnell (1865-1937)

                     +++ Patrick O'Donnell (1823-1911)

                           ++++ Richard O'Donnell (1787-1857)

                           ++++ Margaret (UNK)

                     +++ Bridget Kennedy (1838-1883)

                           ++++ James Kennedy (1818-UNK)

                           ++++ Mary Maguire (1833-1893)

         ++ Mary Huber (1873-1913)

                    +++ Philip Huber (1847-1901)

                           ++++ Georg Huber (1809-1900)

                                   +++++ Peter Huber (1772-1858)

                                   +++++ Katharina Busch (1787-1862)

                            ++++ Eva Katharina Fauth (1807-1885)

                                   +++++ Christian Fauth (1776-1828)

                                   +++++ Anna Catherina ( 1777-1852)

                   +++ Barbara Brunett (1852-1896)

                            ++++ John Michael Baptiste Brunett (1818-1863)

                                   +++++ Lucovici Brunett (1800-UNK)

                                   +++++ Catharina Schmidt (1800-1881)

                            ++++ Barbara Frisse (1822-1893)

                                   +++++ Joseph Frise (1796-1864)

                                   +++++ Marguerite Lang (1802-1868)

*Converted to Catholicism

**Baptist
All others Roman Catholic

As you can see, my ancestors on my mother's side are almost all Roman Catholics - in five generations there were at least 20 different families, out of twenty-two, that were practicing Catholics. Families came from France and Germany, from Ireland and Canada. They were baptized in the church, received the sacraments, were married in the Catholic Church and were buried in either Catholic cemeteries or the Catholic sections of the city cemeteries. They practiced their faith, raised their children as Catholics, and it has continued to pass through the generations. In several families I can track them up to eleven generations (but I had to stop because there are just so many, many families!).

The only families that were not Catholic were the Flemmings and the Jacksons. James Benjamin Flemming and his wife Sarah Linza Jackson (my 3x-great-grandparents) were Baptists. They were married in her hometown of Darlington, South Carolina in 1854 and moved to Rome, Georgia, before the start of the Civil War. They remained Baptists throughout their life as did all of their children but one. Their oldest son, Charles Clinton Flemming - my great-great-grandfather - changed the path of his family and their descendants when he converted to Catholicism.

The family story goes like this:

"Charles Flemming was apprenticed to a saddler in his early youth, later going out west where he became deathly ill. He was cared for at this time by a Catholic woman who gave him Cardinal Carroll's book, "Faith of Our Fathers". After reading it, he became a Catholic. After he recovered from his illness, he went back to Rome where he met Lizzie McCaffrey at church. They were married on April 9, 1877." [From "Family History" in 1993 Flemming Family Reunion booklet, written by William A. Powell, Jr.]

History of Catholicism in the United States
Catholicism arrived in what is now the United States during the earliest days of the European colonization of the Americas. The first Catholic missionaries were Spanish, having come with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage in 1493. French colonization came in the early 18th century, with the French establishing missions in the Louisiana Territory districts (including Alabama). The number of Catholics grew during the country's history, at first slowly in the early 19th century. In the mid-19th century an influx of Irish and German immigrants made Catholicism the largest religion in the United States. [Thanks again, Wikipedia]

It remains the largest single religious denomination in the United States, comprising about 22 percent of the population. Worldwide the United States has the fourth largest population of Catholics, with 77.7 million. Mississippi and Alabama have the smallest percentage of Catholics in their state at 6%.

        

                                   

                                                            

THURSDAY'S TREASURES - Horst Family Bible, 1892

Stored in one of my mother's many closets in an upstairs bedroom is this family treasure - The Holy Bible given by Charles Frederick Horst (1856-1912) and his wife Odalie Felice Fortier (1857-1920) to their children on Christmas Day, December 25, 1892. The Bible will have been in the family for 120 years this coming Christmas!

Charles and Odalie Horst are my great-great-grandparents. Charles was the oldest son of Martin Horst (1830-1878) and Apollonia Weinschenk (1829-1908), both immigrants from Germany. The two had married in Mobile, Alabama, and raised their large family. Odalie was the daughter of Jacques Omer Fortier (1813-1867) and Augustine Melanie Laperle Degruy (1822-1872) of New Orleans. Charles and Odalie were married January 10, 1879 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Mobile.

The two soon started their own family - Charles Frederick, born November 15, 1880, and Edward Martin, born May 5, 1882. It was not long after the birth of their second son that the family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, due to Charles' health problems (lung problems, according to family stories).  Charles' father Martin and his family had settled in Cincinnati soon after arriving in America in 1846. Martin's older sister Anna Elizabeth (1827-1877) had remained in Cincinnati after marrying John Ginter (1818-1906), and had raised their five children here. So when Charles, Odalie and their two small sons arrived they moved into the Ginter's home at "30 Rittenhouse".
Charles worked in his previous field in a bar as a bartender. Odalie had two more children here - my great-grandmother Pearl Alphonsine, on November 19, 1884, and Omer Leo, born May 5, 1887. It was while living in Ohio that Charles and Odalie purchased this Holy Bible as a Christmas gift for their children. This Bible, well over a thousand pages, was published in Newport, Kentucky. Newport is on the border of Kentucky and Ohio, at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking Rivers, directly across from Cincinnati. It is now considered part of the Greater Cincinnati Metropolitan area. It was soon after 1892 that the Horst family relocated to Birmingham, Alabama where their descendants now reside. [Charles and Odalie had their fifth child, Odalie Felice on January 20, 1896 in Birmingham.]

The book measures 9.25" x 11.5". It is leather bound with exquisite detail embossed on the cover. The binding is very worn and has deteriorated over time. The back cover is the same as the front but is not as worn. There are no family births or deaths listed, as was common to do in those times. Since it was a gift to the children it's possible that another Horst Family Bible existed (or exists) where these important dates were listed.

The pages themselves are in great condition for the most part; the edges have become well worn and some are more frayed than others. But the book is full of beautiful engraved prints throughout, and in what is labeled "Gallery of Scripture Illustrations". Here are a few examples.

            The Stations of the Cross are printed in color.

There are also several beautifully detailed prayers printed in color, using gold and red.

While looking through the book for pictures I came across a few personal items. Pressed in the pages I found a carnation on one page and what looks like an old corsage on another. The second item didn't have any discernible flowers but did have several stems and leaves wrapped together at the base with wire.

There was also an insert of a photographic print of Bishop Toolen of Mobile, with a handwritten note and his signature: "In remembrance of my twentieth anniversary. T. J. Toolen, Bishop of Mobile." Bishop Thomas Joseph Toolen (1886-1976) was Bishop of Mobile from 1927-1969.

On one of the last blank pages of the Bible was drawings, or scribbles, done by a young child with a pencil. It could have been Charles and Odalie's grandchildren or great-grandchildren scribbling in it dozens of years later. But I like to think that maybe their own children, born in the 19th century, did the same thing that my kids, and me and my siblings did, when we were little and trying to act big and opened that big book, sat down with a pencil and made their own little make on family history.

THURSDAY'S TREASURE - Turn-of-the-Century Christmas in the Horst Home, Mobile, Alabama

Vintage Christmas Postcard  ca. 1900

In my father's family research folders there are thousands of pages of notes, copies of records, letters from family and replies from officials. So it was a wonderful surprise to find a typewritten letter from Regina Lane (1893-1979), my first cousin, 3x removed. She had typed out a nine page "Horst Family Tree", writing as many names, dates and stories as she knew. On a page in the middle of the history is a story she titled "A Little Christmas Fable."

Mary Regina Altice was the oldest of three children born to Emma Elizabeth Horst (1865-1923) and Charles Monroe Altice (1864-1943). Her mother, Emma, was the the fifth of eight children born to Martin Horst (1830-1878) and Apollonia Weinschenk (1829-1908), my great-great-great-grandparents. [My great-great-grandfather was Charles Frederick Horst (1856-1912), Emma's older brother and Regina's uncle.]

Ladies Home Journal
December 1898

Regina married late in life, at age 43. On April 14, 1937, in Mobile, Alabama, she married Maurice Joseph Lane, an insurance man born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was 51 when they married. Regina and Maurice had a 3-month long honeymoon in Europe and lived in Newton, Massachusetts when they returned, a suburb of Boston. Their life together lasted only five short years; Maurice died November 1942. Regina moved back to her hometown of Mobile after his death. In her remaining years she became very involved in service to her church, St. Joseph's Catholic Church, as well as to the community. She was recognized by Pope Pius XII for her service when he awarded her the Pro-Ecclesia-et-Pontificise medal, the highest award that can be bestowed by the Pope to a non-clergy member. Regina died on June 17, 1979, at the age of 85.

In her story, Regina recounts what Christmas was like at her grandmother's home at the end of the 19th, beginning of the 20th century. Her grandparents were both immigrants from Germany, the culture that introduced Christmas trees to the American Christmas celebrations. Regina's grandfather had died fifteen years before she was born, but her grandmother along with her aunt Apollonia "Appie" (1870-1942) and cousin Apollonia Manson (1894-1972) still lived in the family home Martin Horst had built after the Civil War.

Here is her story. . .

A Christmas Fable
"Christmas Eve was a most thrilling and exciting time in the Horst family life. Grandma's beautiful mansion was gay with happy grandchildren. Twenty-three she had, of course some lived in Toronto, Canada, and some in Birmingham, who wouldn't be here for the festivities.

Liberty Head Half Eagle
$5.00 Gold Coin (1839-1908)

Each Christmas time Grandma bought the largest Christmas tree she could find. It always reached to the high ceiling and was decorated in garlands of cranberries, strung on long cords, and garlands of pop corn, and many, many exquisite colored glass ornaments and balls, and tiny candle holders, holding small red candles snapped on the branch ends, and all lighted, till we stood, awe struck at the glowing sight. At about dark the door bell rang, and there was Santa Claus tinkling a bell. He was our Aunt Anna and we never even dreamed it, for we all thought he was straight from the North Pole.



Liberty Head Quarter Eagle
$2.50 Gold Coin (1840-1907)

He came into the parlor and shook each one's hand and gave use each an envelope, with a gold $2.50 piece in it. My sister Zoe always got a $5.00 gold piece in hers because Grandma loved her very much. Then we all received stockings stuffed with oranges, apples, nuts, and small gifts. All the older members of the party had wine and fruit-cake, while we had our goodies of a different kind. There was singing and the children danced, and a good time was had by all, then drowsy and tired we thanked our dear Grandma and a merry good-night was wished to all." 

Vintage Postcard ca.1908



THURSDAY'S TREASURE - Odalie Fortier Horst's 19th Century Lacework

Odalie Felice Fortier was born August 31, 1857 in New Orleans, Louisiana. She was the seventh child of eleven born to Jacques Omer Fortier (1813-1867) and Augustine Melanie Laperle DeGruy (1822-1872), my 3x-great-grandparents. By the time she was fifteen she had suffered the death of both of her parents. Odalie moved with her young siblings to Mobile, Alabama to be cared for by her maternal aunt Julia Elodie DeGruy Mendoza (1828-1914). Odalie is my great-great-grandmother.

Here Odalie met and married Charles Frederick Horst (1856-1912). Odalie and Charles, my great-great-grandparents, eventually settled in Birmingham, Alabama. Together they had five children including my great-grandmother Pearl Alphonsine Horst (1884-1961).

Odalie was very talented in the art of tatting. She used her talent to create the Flemming Family's Baptismal gown in 1884 for her first child. Several of her lace pieces have been passed down through the family. I know of four pieces that have been framed and hang on relatives' walls. Here is one of Odalie's lace collars.

Never heard of tatting before?

Tatting and Its History
"Tatting is a technique for handcrafting a particularly durable lace constructed by a series of knots and loops. Tatting can be used to make lace edging, as well as doilies, collars, and other decorative pieces. The lace is formed by a pattern of rings and chains formed from a series of cow-hitch, or half-hitch knots, called double stitches, over a core thread. Gaps can be left between the stitches to form picots, which are used for practical construction as well as decorative effect." [from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatting]

It is believed that tatting may have developed from netting and the ropework done by sailors and fishers, often made into gifts for their wives and girlfriends. Knotting, as it was then known, would be reworked and become the art of tatting. The French call it frivolite; the Italians call it occhi; the German word for the craft is schiffchenarbeit; the Swedish call it frivolitet.

"At the start of the nineteenth century tatting was a popular English occupation and in 1843 the Ladies Handbook of Millinery, Dressmaking and Tatting was published. This was to be the start of many books on the subject. Up to this time tatting patterns were passed down from tatter to tatter by word of mouth or simply copying other pieces of work. Shortly after this, in 1850, the woman regarded as the 'mother' of modern tatting appeared on the scene. She was Mademoiselle Eleonore Riego de la Branchardiere, a half-Irish, half-French woman who had a 'fancy warehouse' in London and supplied lace-making and embroidery materials. Between 1850 and 1868 Mlle Riego (as she liked to be known)
published eleven little pattern books showing mainly borders and insertions in tatting. Mlle Riego used picots to join the rings together but she used a needle to do it at first and not a shuttle, as it wasn't until 1851 that an unknown writer published instructions on how to join with a shuttle and so improved the method of tatting.

"Probably the main authority on tatting after Mlle Riego was Mlle Therese de Dillmont, a French woman who wrote what is considered by many to be the needlework bible - her Encyclopedia of Needlework published in 1886 and still available and selling well today. In the chapter on tatting Mlle de Dillmont covers many types of edgings and braids as well as projects such as bedspreads combining tatting and crochet.

"In fashionable society a lady never sat empty-handed and idle. She used either her fan or her knotting
shuttle to show off her hands and to make her look composed and graceful as well as industrious." [from navarroriverknits.com/tatting.html]

from Tatting, or Frivolite, by Cornelia Mee
London 1862

THURSDAY'S TREASURES - Flemming Family Baptismal Gown ca. 1880



Daniel Powell Thomas
in Family Baptismal Gown
November 1994

 [This article appeared in the LifeStyle section of The Birmingham News on November 7, 1994, page C-1]

Generations

Hand-me-down christening gown worn by 147 babies - so far

Susan O'Donnell is one of the first people called whenever the women in her family find out they're having a baby.
     And the expectant mothers have more on their minds than just spreading the good news. They want to make sure their baby will be able to wear the christening gown that has been worn by five generations.
     "They've got to get their name in the pot and reserve it for that month," said Mrs. O'Donnell, who keeps the gown at her house in Homewood.
     Her grandmother, Odalie Fortier Horst, sewed the gown by hand in 1880, and Mrs. O'Donnell's uncle, Charles Frederick Horst, was the first baby to wear it.
     Since then, 147 babies - five members of the first generation, 15 members of the second generation, 45 of the third generation, 67 of the fourth generation and 15 of the fifth generation have worn the gown.
     Daniel Powell Thomas - Mrs. O'Donnell's great-grandson and Mrs. Horst's great-great-great-grandson - was the last baby to be christened in the dress on Sept. 25 at St. Peter's Catholic Church. His mother, Susan Powell Thomas, his grandmother, Barbara O'Donnell Powell, and his brother, Matthew, all had wore the gown.
     "It's a beautiful gown," Mrs. O'Donnell said. "It's so elaborate I tell everybody it's a good thing it takes a woman nine months (to have a baby) or she'd never have finished it."

from The Birmingham News  article

Details
     The full-length gown and petticoat are embellished with embroidery and lace that Mrs. Horst made by hand. "To me, that's what makes the dress exquisite," said Mrs. O'Donnell.
     The gown has been worn by babies in a number of states, including Virginia, Rhode Island, Illinois and Louisiana. Three sets of twins have been christened in the ensemble: one baby wearing the gown while the other wore the petticoat, Mrs. O'Donnell said.
     Mrs. O'Donnell and her seven brothers and sisters all wore the gown, as did Mrs. O'Donnell's eight children, 20 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
     "When I was having my first baby (John Huber O'Donnell Jr.), my mama was freshening up the dress," Mrs. O'Donnell said.
     "My husband said we weren't going to put that old country dress on that baby, we'd buy him his own clothes," Mrs. O'Donnell said. "I told him that Mama was going to disown him, and he liked my Mama's cooking, so he let the baby wear it."
     So far, every baby has worn the gown, except for Mrs. O'Donnell's sister's granddaughter. The child lives in Chicago, and Mrs. O'Donnell was afraid to send it in the mail.
     "I told my sister if she wanted to come get it and take it back with her, she could," Mrs. O'Donnell said. "But I wasn't about to send it. I know you can get insurance, but what good is the money if you don't have the gown?"

Restoration
     Although all the lace and embroidery is original, the gown has been repaired, Mrs. O'Donnell said.
     "Some babies weren't as kind as others, and it was beginning to look seedy around the neck," she said. "And the petticoat had to be patched because so many beauty pins had left holes in it."
     Following a tradition in her family, Mrs. O'Donnell was the first person to kiss Daniel following his baptism. The oldest member of the family always receives the first kiss she said.
     The kiss was extra-special because Daniel was Mrs. O'Donnell's birthday present.
     "He was born on my 85th birthday, just like Susan promised he would be," Mrs. O'Donnell said.
                                                           - written by Scottie Vickery

When my second son, Daniel, was born, I so wanted to honor my grandmother and the historic gown that our family held so dear. With my mother's help, I sent a letter to the newspaper to tell them about the dress and it's history in our family. To our delight, a reporter called me and we set up a time for Daniel to be photographed wearing the gown. She also interviewed Grandmom. Daniel was three months old at the time.

I don't know how many more family babies have been baptized since this article ran 17 years ago. My youngest child, now 14, and my nephew, almost 16, both wore it. That brings the number up to at least 149.

Since my grandmother passed away, the baptismal gown is being cared for by another family member. If you are a descendant of Odalie Fortier Horst and would like your baby to be baptized in the gown, please let me know and I'll get you in touch with its caretaker.

from The Birmingham News article

THURSDAY'S TREASURES - Aunt Fannie's Pocketwatch

It's my hope each Thursday to highlight one family keepsake that has been handed down two or more generations, and tell a little about its history and the person or people associated with it. I won't be including who has the treasure now, only "great-grandchild", "great-great-nephew", etc. So if you have a special treasure that you would love to share with the family PLEASE let me know - take a digital picture or two and write up the item's history and send it to me. It will be a wonderful way to share a special family heirloom with family members everywhere.

Frances "Fannie" O'Donnell was born about 1862 in Kentucky to Patrick O'Donnell (1823-1911) and Bridget Kennedy (1838-1883), my great, great grandparents. She was the fourth of seven children, all girls except one boy, John Martin O'Donnell (1865-1937), my great-grandfather.

Fannie married very young - the story is that she was just 16 when she married Jerry Delaney. Little is known about Jerry. The couple married and went to Yellowstone National Park for their honeymoon. This was the world's first national park, having been established in March 1872. They brought back among other things a souvenir glass from their trip. This was one of many adventures they no doubt thought they would share together throughout their life.

Unfortunately, that was not meant to be. Within 6 months of their marriage, Jerry had died and Fannie was a young widow. She never remarried. It's unclear what happened to her for many years; it's most likely she moved in with her parents or sisters. Fannie was living with one of her older sisters Mollie (1859-1936), her husband Patrick Kenealy (1861-1939) and their four children in Louisville at the time of the 1910 Census. She was still living with them 10 years later, according to the 1920 Census. But by the 1930 Census, Fannie had moved to Birmingham and was living with her brother John and his son Charles, age 23.



"Aunt Fannie"
Frances O'Donnell Delaney
1862-1939

My great-grandfather died on December 6, 1937, while in Louisville, Kentucky, attending the funeral of his brother-in-law. Fannie, who was by then 75, moved into her nephew and his wife's home (my grandparents) in a Birmingham suburb. John Huber O'Donnell, my grandfather and the oldest son of John Martin, and his wife Susie Flemming  were living in Homewood, south of the city, along with their three small children, including my mother. "Aunt Fannie" was given a room upstairs in the house, where she spent much of her time. She adored my Mom, who had just turned 3, always holding her and lavishing attention on her.

This no doubt was the reason that when she died, on June 1, 1939, in her bedroom upstairs, she left her wedding ring to my mother. My Mom cherished that ring, and throughout my life I always heard about "Aunt Fannie" and the special gift she gave to Mom. Unfortunately, sometime in the early '80's, while work was being done inside Mom's house, her ring ended up missing. It has never been recovered.
After my grandmother died, Mom chose another special keepsake of "Aunt Fannie's" from her estate. And this is how "Aunt Fannie's" pocketwatch was passed on to me. I don't know if this was a wedding gift or just a special watch but it is beautiful and I feel very honored to have this very special family treasure.