Have you begun your new year doing anything at all with your genealogy? I have – I’ve signed up for a writing challenge with the PAAncestors.com website where we chronicle about our ancestors each day for 10 days. It’s nice because they are short and sweet and to the point, approximately 150 words. So far so good.
We post our chronicle to social media. The main 2 that are friendly to hashtags are Twitter/X or Instagram. Not having a whole lot on Instagram I’ve opted to use it this time, but I also have the little option to have it shared on Facebook which allows my family to view it as well – and they tend to comment. It’s working out nicely too as I’m focusing this round of questions on my mom’s side of the family, specifically my Warner family.
Here are cropped photos of what I’ve shared on social media. I know it will be happening again next month on the chance you find that you are interested.
Day 1 I wrote about my great-grandmother, Mildred Laura Dunbar
Day 2 we had to use a map – so I showed the migration of my Warner’s from Bernardston, MA to Potter County, PA to Akron, OH
Day 3 was a marriage story – so I discussed Joel Warner and his “extra” marriage to Gratia Chapin (that never happened)
Day 4 was discussing how a historical event impacted your family so I discussed the boom of the rubber industry and why 2nd-great-grandmother, Mazie Warner, moved to Akron, OH
Day 5 discussed a specific occupation of our ancestor so I discussed how Oliver Chapin Warner, my 4th-great-grandfather was a lumberjack!
Halfway through the challenge – 5 days down, 5 days to go. Hoping you are working on your genealogy in some way to kick off the new year!
Each year in the back of my mind I try to have some sort of goal for the next year. Any goals I had for this past calendar year I know I fell short as I feel as if I didn’t spend any time really working on my own family tree, but I do hope to change that in the coming year.
So here are my goals for 2024.
5) Make Some Headway with my Family Tree
This past year I have met a distant cousin because of this blog and our goal is to try to find out more about our shared 6th-great-grandfather, Philip Morgart. We know he is the father to Peter, but who are his other children? Who are his parents? We want to know!
And let us not forget Andrew Blair and Suzanna Akers – they are always in my thoughts and maybe this will be the year that I chip away at that brick wall (I can only hope).
4) Clean Up my Software
I am not always as good about entering my supporting information into my Legacy Family Tree software so I’m going to try to do better about filling in the missing pieces of information for all the many people in my family tree. Some may say why? But I work so hard to have an accurate tree, and if I don’t have the sources connected to my ancestors, then it could look like I’ve just plopped information into my program and not truly done the research.
3) Create a Locality Guide for Bedford County, Pennsylvania
With so many of my ancestors being in the vicinity of Bedford County, Pennsylvania, I’m going to work on creating a locality guide for this area of the world. For all I know one could already exist out there – if it does I really haven’t seen one, so this would be a helpful tool for me in my continued research.
2) Finish my NGS “Family Foundations” Course
I’ve done the first 2 sessions of the “Family Foundations” course offered by the National Genealogical Society. You have 6 months to go through a variety of modules that educate you in all types of topics related to doing your family tree. FamilySearch, Newspapers, Cemeteries, Vital Records, Research Plans, these are just some of the topics you learn about in the first 2 sessions. I still have part 3 to take covering Probate Records, DNA, Religious Records, and more! I really have learned a great deal taking these courses. They do have a cost (reduced for members) but it’s been well worth it.
1) Do a Better Job of Posting Here
I miss making discoveries that I can share here. Not only do I enjoy sharing what I find – but I have discovered a handful of cousins this way (not realizing when I began this that many people use a blog to do just that, not me – I just wanted what I learn to be out there and possibly help others). So I am going to once again focus on my family history and try to go back to introducing not only stories about my family but new techniques and websites as I did in the past because quite frankly, it helped me to learn, too!
Here is wishing you all a wonderful and Happy New Year! May you achieve all of your own goals this upcoming year!
Today is the final day of October 2023 and did you accomplish anything for Family History Month? I didn’t really have a chance to work on my family history much, but I did seize some time to take some classes that I’ll share with you.
PA Ancestors
I belong to a group on the website PA Ancestors and I began the month by taking a class entitled “Discover Your Ancestors Workshop”. It was very helpful – I found it allowed me to focus on my problem at hand (we worked on a brick wall throughout the workshop). Though I haven’t knocked my brick wall down yet, I do have a better sense of records I need to go through in order to find more information on Suzanna Akers (I focused on her alone as opposed to her and Andrew combined).
In case you are unfamiliar with PA Ancestors, it is a group run by Denys Allen and it focuses on Pennsylvania Genealogy. It began as a podcast and has grown into a group. Just so incredibly helpful as those of us who research Pennsylvania know it can be challenging.
NGS Class: Foundations 102
I also realized that I had not worked on my Foundations 102 class much since ordering it in early July (I thought I had done it in August) and since you have 6 months to complete it (you can get an extension) I figured I’d better get a move on as I was on the second module still.
I did manage to finish module 2, which was all about using FamilySearch.org, I am now working on the module about Vital Records. I still have a deep dive into Census Records, Newspapers, and Cemeteries to go before it concludes at the end of December.
This is a class you can purchase through the National Genealogical Society. I have found them to be quite interesting, some stuff I know, but other things I don’t. My goal is to complete all the classes they have in order to advance my genealogical education.
If you are interested in learning about the educational opportunities with NGS, click here.
Finishing Up the Pennsylvania Genealogy Event, or PaGE
I’ve also tried to watch all the recordings that I wanted to see and their corresponding Q&A videos for the Pennsylvania Genealogy Event, aka PaGE, that took place the first week of August. I spent the extra to have access to the recordings for a few extra months so I could watch everything (if they do this again I’ll know to work less and pay attention more during the live Q&A’s as they really tried hard to have those who attended interact throughout the week).
Some of the presentations were just phenomenal and I’m so glad I took the time to listen to each and every one as I still learned things that I might not have known before.
Most Importantly
I learned throughout the month I need to take the time to spend on my family history. I miss making the discoveries about my family and that feeling I get when I get one step closer to figuring out a monumental find. Between starting a new job, and my son being a senior… I feel like I’m in a whirlwind and never have time to just sit down and relax (when I do I instantly fall asleep, I’m typing this after eating a quick lunch so I hopefully will complete it).
I hope you were all able to make good use of Family History Month, if you made any discoveries please share them in the comments below. If you didn’t because you were busy, I totally understand. There’s always November.
As you all can see I am really behind in my prompts. I will do the best I can to catch up as I am getting use to a new job, which of course translates into a new normal. Now…. onto the next topic in Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks writing challenge. This week we celebrate someone who has gone too soon, and of course I think of the little ones who never really had much of an opportunity to spread their wings and fly and leave the imprint on the world that we are able to do as adults.
Marshall James Edmonson
Marshall James Edmonson was born on 19 October 1896 in Pennsylvania to James Coleman Edmonson and his wife, Phoebe Anna Blair. Marshall was the second child born to the couple, after older sister Frances Jane “Fannie” Edmonson.
Marshall sadly didn’t die of any heartbreaking illness right after being born like so many other children (I have many that have barely made it a day). Marshall survived infancy and lived to be 3-years-old, dying on 20 November 1899.
I was fortunate through social media to find out when and how Marshall passed away. Using the Facebook group “Old Bedford County PA Genealogy (Includes Huntingdon, Fulton & Blair Co)” I asked the following question:
Good Evening Everyone! I have a number of relatives from Bedford County – I know death certificates weren’t mandatory until 1906 – but is it possible that death certificates were done in Bedford County before then? I just found a first cousin twice removed that was born in 1896 and died in 1899 and was just curious if there was more to be found besides his gravestone I came across on Find a Grave. Thank you in advance (if this has been asked before I apologize).
I was very fortunate and received an answer to my inquiry with my first response. A nice gentleman responded with:
There were a few sporadic deaths recorded between 1852 and 1854, and then again from 1894-1906. Since it was voluntary to report deaths the registers are not complete however. I happen to have a copy of the Register of Deaths 1894-1906 Vol 2, D-G by James Boor and fortunately for you Marshall is listed! I’ll give you the data here: Date of record February 22 1900; Name of deceased Edmondson Marshall J; Color White; Sex Male; Age 3 years; Single; Place of birth Kearney; Date of death November 20 1899; Place of death Hopewell; Cause of death Drank dye; Duration of last illness 14 months; Place & date of interment Hopewell November 20 1899; Name of father and mother James and Phoebe Edmondson.
What’s more interesting is that I either forgot that the duration of his illness was 14 months or it never really sank into my little brain until just now. How horrible to have had your almost 2-year-old child accidentally drink dye and then be sick from it for over a year.
Little Marshall definitely died too soon, but it also shows how sometimes you can use social media to ask a question and get the answer you seek.
I pulled up my software program today and saw that it was Ralph Reed’s 102nd Birthday, and figured it was just as good as a day to share photos I took almost a month ago on the 74th anniversary of his death, when my husband and I took a trip to the Mansfield Reformatory.
The Mansfield Reformatory
The Mansfield Reformatory was just what it said, it was a facility that’s initial purpose was to reform the inmates that came to stay. They were “admitted for 18 months, and if they showed progress, they could be released after that time”. If they weren’t reformed, they could be re-sentenced for another 18 months.
At some point in time in the early 1940’s Ralph was an inmate at the Mansfield Reformatory, otherwise known as the Ohio State Reformatory. This is where he met many of the men who he attempted to rob the Reliable Steel Company with,
Old Sparky
Though the Ohio State Reformatory never housed any executions, the Ohio History Connection has “Old Sparky” on loan. It was in this chair where Ralph sat down for the last time.
It was quite sobering when I saw the actual chair. It’s all rather sad when you think of how Ralph was only 27 years old when he was put to death.
I initially tried to go to Columbus to research in the penitentiary records at the Ohio Historical Society, but you have to make an appointment and it was out further than May 4. That will be part 3 of my story of Ralph, when I finally find out what sort of crime he did to get into the Ohio State Reformatory, and why he initially received 2 stays of execution from the Ohio Governor.
After weeks of trying to figure out if I have an “Outcast” in my family, the theme for Week 7 in 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, I’ve finally decided to throw in the towel and move onto the next topic, “I Can Identify”. I’ll admit, this has me initially stumped because so many options go through my head… photos, people, places, and trying to narrow down to one specific thing is difficult.
So I opted to identify a person already in my family tree software, so I asked my son to choose a number between 1 and 2079. He selected 1,642. When I went to my list of people and put in 1,642 the person who was revealed was the wife of my 1st cousin three times removed, Rachel May Colledge.
Rachel May Colledge
Rachel May Colledge was born in East Providence, Bedford, Pennsylvania on 20 June 1883 to Henry McClellan Colledge and the former Jennie Riley. She appears to be the oldest of 8 children. Her father was a farmer while his wife kept house. Jennie (Riley) Colledge died 8 March 1908 from Congestion of Lungs.
Rachel continued to live at home and take care of her father and remaining siblings. Oddly enough, Henry Colledge passed away on 9 November 1921 and Rachel married Murray Walter Ritchey on 29 March 1922.
Murray Walter Ritchey was a farmer as well, also living in East Providence, Bedford, Pennsylvania. In the 1920 Census, Murray is still living with his father, William Cypher Ritchey, the older brother of my 2nd-great-grandmother, Mary Ann Ritchey.
Murray was 41 years old when he married Rachel Colledge, who was 38 years old. They never had any children.
Murray passed away on 9 February 1946 in Everett, Bedford, Pennsylvania of brain carcinoma. Rachel passed away 4 December 1961 in Snake Spring Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania of a “Malignancy with Distraction of Spine and Ribs”. They were both buried at Mount Zion Lutheran Church Cemetery in Breezewood.
My Thoughts
Rachel was the dutiful daughter who took care of her dad. This is a wonderful thing but at the same time I feel a little bad that she was unable to enjoy her youth, not that girls were out there living it up in the early 1900’s, but I feel she must have missed out on some sort of social life with her peers as she was busy taking care of her dad and the younger siblings in the home. It makes me wonder if she and Murray were involved for a while? Or was it just a convenient marriage because of their ages?
I was unable to find any newspaper articles that linked them together before getting married, to see if maybe they attended the same parties, and social gatherings.
I enjoyed being able to identify a person in my software. This was a fun process to just pick a random person, I’ll have to do it again.
Today would have been my great-grandmother, Bertha Childers, 137th birthday. I always found it interesting when talking to my relatives on my dad’s side of the family about Bertha, each person has always described her the same way – “she was very nice, but she put you in your place”.
However, my dad does add that she may have been a little nicer to him because she didn’t see him all the time, which was the truth. He was born in Indiana and raised in Ohio while Bertha Childers lived in Pennsylvania.
An excuse to show my favorite photo, from left to right, Bertha Childers, Margaret Wise, Anna Maria Morgart, and Leroy Blair. From the collection of Anna Maria Morgart Blair.
Her Beginnings
Bertha Childers was born on 14 March 1886 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania to Randall Childers and Sarah Jane Fesler. She was the 7th of 9 children born to this marriage (which from what I have read had “issues”). At the time of Bertha’s birth, Randall was a former Corporal in the Union Army whose occupation was listed as a miner in the 1880 census (they were also living in Huntingdon County so they had moved at some point before Bertha was born).
Sarah Jane Fesler, from the photo collection of Anna Maria MorgartRandall Childers, from the photo collection of Anna Maria Morgart
After the war Randall had chronic ailments so I wonder if that explains some of the “issues” and may explain Bertha Childers no nonsense attitude of life. By the 1900 Census Randall is listed as a farmer, Still living at home at this time, I’m sure she learned the ways of living on a farm. I know my dad told me that Bertha didn’t think anything of going out and killing a chicken and cleaning it up for dinner that same evening.
Married Life
I don’t know how Bertha Childers met my great-grandfather, Andrew Jackson Blair, and I have yet to find a marriage license for them (don’t worry, I’m still looking) but I did find this newspaper clipping about when they married so at least I have something, 19 March 1906.
Found on Newspapers.com from the Bedford Gazette dated Friday, 23 March 1906
Their first child, a son, Darrell, was born 22 September 1906 and died on 22 January 1907 of bronchial pneumonia. Next came a daughter, Vada, who was born on 2 December 1907. Vada lived to be 87 years young, which is surprising as she was born with a cleft pallet and wasn’t really expected to survive. Genevieve came on 14 May 1909 (though it may have been 1910, I’ve not been able to find a birth certificate online or in the list of birth certificates on the website for the Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission). My grandfather, originally named Charley Wilmer Blair, later renamed Leroy, was born on 13 February 1912. Finally, Donald, the baby, was born 23 September 1917.
Bertha raised her children while Andrew was a coal miner. Initially they lived in Huntingdon County (where they were listed as living in the 1910 Census) and then they lived in Cambria County (according to the 1920 Census).
But life changed quickly on 16 November 1926 when the shaft where Andrew Jackson Blair was working caved in, killing him.
Found on Newspapers.com posted from The Evening News on Wednesday, 17 November 1926
Most of her children were raised, but Donald was just 9-years-old, and Leroy was 14, Genevieve had just gotten married to her husband, Ralph Vivian the weekend before Andrew’s death. The 1930 Census does not show Bertha being employed but she still lived in South Fork, a mining town in Cambria County which was the borough they lived in 1920.
William Chappell
On the 24 December 1930 Bertha Childers married William Chappell. Bill, as he was called by friends and family, was another coal miner, and according to my dad one of the nicest men you would ever meet.
A photo of William “Bill” Chappell from the collection of Anna Maria Morgart Blair
They were married just shy of 30 years when Bill passed away of prostate cancer on 20 June 1960. Bertha didn’t have to live long without him as she passed away on 11 November 1963 at my grandparents house in Akron, Ohio. According to her death certificate she had a “cerebral vascular accident/hypertension/diabetes”. I do remember talking to my dad and he said Bertha had been very sick and my grandmother was having difficulty taking care of her, and apparently my grandfather stopped talking to his sister Genevieve because she didn’t help my grandma, but she herself was sick with cervical cancer.
Parts of my family are not the biggest fans of Bertha, and I guess I understand why, but I think she gets blamed for things she really shouldn’t. Most of the rest liked her (basically all her grandkids that no longer lived in Pennsylvania – which they were spread out between Ohio, Indiana/Arizona). I know my grandmother, Anna Maria Morgart, always referred to her as “Mrs. Chappell”. I wish I could have met her just to decide for myself.
In closing here is a photo of Bertha and her siblings that I found on Ancestry.com that was posted by my distant cousin, Joanne Fesler, and since she has taken my photos from my blog and posted them on Ancestry, I feel I can use this photo.
From left to right, William Dodson Childers, Elizabeth Childers Whitfield, Bertha Childers Chappell, Bessie Childers Figard, and Charles Peter Childers. Photo from the Collection of Joanne Fesler.
The prompt for Week 6 of Amy Johnson Crow’s writing challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is Social Media and I have been very lucky to have discovered distant cousins in a few of the Pennsylvania groups I have joined on Facebook.
I know I have eluded to this once before but it has happened again recently in a newer group I’ve joined focusing on the town of Broad Top, Pennsylvania, which is where my grandmother, Anna Maria Morgart, was born.
Encouraged to join the group by my cousin Denny, I wasn’t sure they would even let me in at first because I never lived there, and that seemed initially to be a qualification. But luckily my honesty paid off because I noted in my comments when I answered the questions that I was working on my genealogy and just wanted to see photos of the area to get a better feel for where my ancestors lived.
Oddly enough the organizer is a Horton and I’m sure that I’m related to them in some way.
The post I found about 2 months ago referenced my Blair side of the family. A picture of Clyde Vinton Blair, aka “Shinny” was posted as he ran a store in Six Mile Run. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was related to the person who posted the photo (we are 4th cousins) and we ended up chatting and friending each other. It’s not like we were looking for one another, it just happened by my commenting on her post.
Photo of Clyde “Shinny” Blair posted in the History of Broad Top Township PA and Hopewell PA Areas on Facebook by Mary K. Ritchey Hall
Some of the best parts of groups like these are just reading the memories that a photo or just a person’s name will bring back to the other members. I’m sure if I hung out on Instagram more often I would have similar experiences.
If you’ve never taken the time to join a group from where your relatives are from I suggest doing so. Social media is a valuable tool when working on your family history, you never know what a person may post that may answer a question you have, or even who may have the answer to a question you post.
We all have encountered an oops when working on a family tree, and mine is no exception. Mine is actually a work in progress still and relates to my 3rd-great-grandmother on my paternal side, Eliza Horton.
The oops in question deals with Eliza’s parents. At the time I did the unthinkable as a newbie genealogist and took my cue from whomever she was attached to on the big tree on FamilySearch, which had her mother listed as Elizabeth Horton, no father was listed. It wasn’t until a year or so later that I realized that Eliza was either born out of wedlock or she did not belong to Elizabeth. Both of these scenarios could still be true.
Oddly enough while reading a book written about the Horton’s, no one seems to know where Eliza goes (even below she is listed alone in an excerpt from a book, not under her parents like most are listed). She took care of her grandfather, Samuel Horton, until his death in 1836. Samuel Horton and his wife, Martha Evans, had 11 children together, 6 of them boys (Abner, Josiah, John, Thomas, Samuel, and Septimus) and so I’ve been slowly trying to piece together which of them could be Eliza’s father.
The Horton’s in America by Dr. George F. Horton, found on Ancestry.com
So here is what I do know about Eliza Horton. She was born 2 April 1813 in Broad Top, Bedford County, Pennsylvania, and I read somewhere that she never roamed further than 25 miles from her home, which always gets a wow from me. She married Thomas Foster and they had 16 children together in their over 50 years of marriage.
Their children were Amanda, Miles, Ira, Aaron, Wealthy Ann, Joseph, Elizabeth, William, Louisa, Thomas Jr, Sarah, Septimus, Lewis Thompson, Susan Jane (my 2nd-great-grandmother), Lyman, and Sampson.
I mention before my oops is a “work in progress” because on my personal family tree, I still have Elizabeth Horton listed as her mom. I’m pretty sure that is incorrect, but I figure why make all the changes until I have the correct Horton? On my Ancestry family tree, which is public, I have her attached to a “Horton” male but no name until I can safely figure out which of Samuel Horton’s children she descends from. I will confess I have assumed it’s a son since her last name is Horton. Elizabeth would have been exactly 20 years old in 1813 so there is that chance that Eliza could be her daughter, and she doesn’t marry William Anderson until 1820).
The present scenario in FamilySearch has Eliza’s parents being Thomas Horton and his wife, Sarah Foster. I don’t like this match because that has her marrying her uncle. Did uncles marry their nieces back then? Maybe I’m too clouded by today’s standards to truly be open-minded about this possibility. For some reason even cousins (which I knew happened) doesn’t bother me as much as this uncle-niece option.
It’s easy to see how Eliza could have gotten lost in the shuffle of her family. In the 1820 Census, Samuel and Martha have taken in several of their grown children and it makes me wonder if they continued to care for Eliza once everyone has moved out (and then in turn, Eliza cared for them).
1820 Census for Samuel Horton, found at Ancestry.com
In the above photo of the 1820 census, you can see where Samuel has 14 children under the age of 10 living with he and Martha. I’m sure one of those 9 girls is 7-year-old Eliza. But where Josiah and Abner Horton both are listed separately in the 1810 census, I would guess that they are 2 of the 4 males aged 26-45 living with Samuel and Martha (Evans) Horton.
I have two key things I need to do: 1) is to determine how old each of Samuel and Martha’s children are (I’ve noticed what is on FamilySearch and what I have on Ancestry don’t necessarily complement each other), and then try to find copies of each child’s probate records to see if they mentioned their children in their wills. I was fortunate that Samuel Horton (1752-1836) even mentioned his son, Septimus, who had already passed away.
So this is a “to be continued” post as I slowly make my way through each child of Samuel and Martha to find out who Eliza’s parents are.
For this week I am going to talk about my favorite teacher for the Education theme. His name was Leon Muster, and he was my 7th Grade Geography/Ohio History teacher.
Taken from the 1985-1986 Roberts Warriors Yearbook from Roberts Middle School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
The odd thing about Mr. Muster Muster was that people either loved him or hated him. My sister’s friend HATED him with such a passion because she thought he was so mean. When I came home going on and on about what a wonderful teacher he was, my parents were quite confused. How could this be the same person? I think the same all the time.
Mr. Muster made history class fun. He always had us playing games in teams or other fun ways to help us learn whether it was in the Geography portion of the class (which was the first 2/3’s of the year) or Ohio History (the last 1/3 of the year).
An example of this “fun” was how he brought in a canon he called “Old Betsy” after the canon that played a key role in the War of 1812 at Fort Stephenson. The canon shot caps and he would often “shoot it” in class to keep us on our toes. One day I decided to bring in a canon of my own, as I had one amongst my dad’s toys at my Grandma’s house. Mr. Muster was quite surprised, and I told him my canon’s name was “Victory” as it was embossed on the side of the small metal canon. So he decided to find out what his canon said in the same spot, only to find it just said “Made in Taiwan”.
In the Geography portion of class, we had an Africa test. We all pulled a number out of a hat and it corresponded with a test. The test consisted of going up to a large map of Africa and pointing out places of interest. The key was to be prepared for anything. There was 1 really easy test, and 1 really hard test, and everything else was just a mix of everything. I don’t remember my number but I know I had the easiest test. My places to point out were: the Nile River, Zaire, Egypt, the Sahara Desert, and South Africa, the five most obvious things on the map in 1985-86. I always felt bad as my friend, Pam, had the hardest test. As time went on I always wondered if I truly picked the easy test at random, or if Mr. Muster gave me the easy test.
Going back to Ohio History, we had a project we had to complete on the Ohio Canals. I left my textbook at school when I needed to finish it up. I lucked out that my parents took my sister and I to Gnadenhuten and Schoenbrunn that weekend and I was able to convince my dad in buying me a pamphlet on canals which helped me finish my project and get it turned in on time. I remember confessing my luck to Mr. Muster and he smiled. Ingenuity at it’s best. I still have that pamphlet somewhere.
Mr. Muster would often tease my aforementioned friend because she was Polish. He was too, and they’d go at it. Where Pam enjoyed the challenge, her younger sister disliked Mr. Muster. Funny how people are different.
When I took the final exam for Ohio History I was curious what my grade was. Mr. Muster’s son graduated from high school that year which was the same year as my sister. Their graduation was at the Richfield Coliseum and somehow I found Mr. Muster and asked him what my grade was. I missed 4, still an A but I wanted perfection (I think I wanted him to be as proud of me as my parents). He was also impressed I found him amongst a huge crowd in an even bigger venue (it is where the Cleveland Cavaliers used to play).
I went back and visited Mr. Muster throughout 8th grade and would do my best to visit every month or so when I went to high school. He always remembered me and loved that I was so fascinated with history.
Leon Muster passed away in 2009. Along with being a teacher he helped coach the football and wrestling teams and was a postal worker in the summer.
He refused to sign my yearbook in 7th grade but I convinced him to sign it in 8th grade. He wrote exactly what I said… “I don’t care, whatever you want to write just something. Remember me. L. Muster”. He added the “remember me” part.
Photo of Mr. Muster’s signing of my 8th grade yearbook.
I wonder if he ever thought 37 years later a student would write a blog post about him. I’d say he is definitely remembered (and I even found his spot at the Oakwood Cemetery next to the high school this past summer, then oddly found myself saying hello when I’d take a walk while my son practiced each Thursday evening at Marching Band practice).
He was a one-of-a-kind teacher whom I’ll never forget.
Helping History Come Alive 