Congratutions to Nephew Joey!!

Congratulations to nephew Joey, a proud graduate of Margaretta High School, 2012!! Joey is seen to the left with his cousin Amber, also a 2012 MHS grad. This was the first time that my mom, Joyce Parker Orshoski, was unable to be at her grandchild's graduation. (That is of the grandchildren from Ohio.... She did miss some of the graduations of the grandkids who reside in Georgia.) Mom was at Katie & Casey's double graduation celebration in 2010, not long before she lost her battle with cancer. Mom was such a booster of Margaretta High School, and she would have been so glad to attend yet another graduation.






Here are just a few of the Orshoski grandkids who shared in the celebration of MHS's 2012 graduation.
















Our extended family still gets together often, and we think of Mom and Dad every day!

















GO BEARS!!

Ernst Warnke

Ernst Warnke (sometimes spelled Earnest Warnkey) is buried in Block 70 of Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. The date of his interment was June 8, 1866, and the cause of death was listed on the cemetery interment card as "killed by horse." He was age thirty at the time of his death.

In the register of settlers listed in the book SANDUSKY THEN AND NOW, there are three members of the Warnke family who were considered pioneer settlers of Sandusky: Carl, Ernst, and Franz Warnke. A search on the immigration records portion of Ancestry Library Edition indicates that several members of the Warnke family emigrated from Germany in 1854. Carl, Wilhelm, Ernst, Emilie, and Charlotte Warnke were on the ship George Canning, which arrived in New York City on May 22, 1854. An 1860, a Sandusky City Directory shows a Charles Warnke working as a shoemaker in Sandusky. Charles is often the Americanized form of the name Carl.

While we do not know a great deal about Ernst Warnke, he must have been a brave young man to have left his native land and start a new life in the United States.

52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy: Family Traditions

The prompt for Week 23 of 52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy, from Amy Coffin at We Tree, and hosted by Geneabloggers, is:

Family Traditions: For which family tradition are you most thankful? How did the tradition start? Which family members have been responsible for keeping the tradition alive and how has it shaped your own family history?

A family tradition that was started by my parents, Paul and Joyce (Parker) Orshoski, is that the Paul Orshoski family would have their main family Christmas celebration at lunchtime on Christmas Day. This allowed for everyone to be able to attend the festivities on the "other" side of the extended family on Christmas Eve. We used to have our own quiet dinner early on Christmas Eve, and then get our best church clothes on and attend Christmas Eve church services, where all the school age children in the family had to say a "piece." I can recall memorizing verses, and repeating them just as fast as I could, so I wouldn't forget a word!

Another tradition in the Paul Orshoski family was the annual Christmas photo card, sent to family and friends both far and near. Through the years, our loved ones could see the children grow and change, and those old family photo cards are still a treasure to our family.

Today, some of us now send out digital photo cards via email or Facebook, and not all the members of our multi-generational family can make it to the big Orshoski family gathering at lunch time on Christmas Day. The tradition still stands, and I can honestly say that except for a couple times when illness kept me home, I have been with members of my Orshoski family every year. The memories are bittersweet, as now our parents are gone, but there is always a spot at the family table on Christmas Day for our ever-growing family!

Beverly Ann Hasten

Beverly Ann Hasten was born in Sandusky, Ohio on June 6, 1936 to Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. Hasten, and she died when she was only 4 days old. Beverly's parents moved west to the Kansas City area, but I suspect that they came back to visit the grave site of little Beverly often, as evidenced by the lovely bench adjacent to their daughter's tombstone.Beverly Ann Hasten was buried in Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery.

Marriage Records in Family Search for My Great Grandma and Grandpa Yeager

After spending a few minutes browsing through Family Search, I quickly learned interesting details about my father's maternal grandparents' marriage. First, I ran into their marriage record that was recorded at the Erie County Courthouse. I had always thought that they were married in Ottawa County, Ohio, since my great grandmother, Lena Piehl, was from Oak Harbor, in Ottawa County, Ohio. Their application for marriage was recorded on September 28, 1903, on page 115 of Volume 12 in the large books of Marriage Records housed in Erie County Probate Court. Judge U.T. Curran signed the license. Grandma's surname was misspelled Pheil, and her father's name was listed as Martin, instead of Ferdinand. The minister who was expected to perform the ceremony was Rev. Joseph Widmann, a minister at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Sandusky, Ohio. I always recall hearing it said that Grandma Lena Piehl Yeager was a staunch Lutheran, and I was very surprised to hear that she was married in a Catholic Church, though I knew that Grandpa Andrew Yeager had been baptized as a Catholic in Germany.

Having at hand the exact date of the marriage license, I then looked up their marriage record in the St. Mary's Catholic Church Records, a part of the Ohio Diocese of Toledo Catholic Parish Records, 1796-2004 available at Family Search. The record states that Andrew Yeager married Helena Piehl at St. Mary's Catholic Church on September 30, 1903. Standing up for them were Uncle Frank Yeager and Aunt Martha Piehl. Father F.A. Reuter signed the record, and on the right hand side of the marriage record is written in Latin a phrase that roughly translated reads:

Mixed Religions

To the best of my knowledge they raised all their children in the Lutheran faith, and many of their grandchildren and great grandchildren also were brought up as Lutherans. Though they were labeled as having a marriage of "mixed religions" they celebrated both a 25th and 50th wedding anniversary, with large family gatherings to celebrate each. In my memory bank, I recall Great Grandma Yeager as a very quiet, soft spoken dear older lady. She was as gentle as could be, and I personally never heard her raise her voice to anyone. Looking at these 1903 marriage records makes me think that either Grandma or Grandpa Yeager, or perhaps both of them, may have been considered rebellious, for marrying outside of the faith in which they were brought up! On my way to work in downtown Sandusky, I pass by the Erie County Courthouse and St. Mary's Catholic Church several times a week. Now I can associate both of those buildings with my dear great grandparents!

Sentimental Sunday: Four Winds Baseball Team in the early 1960's

Pictured above is a picture of the Four Winds Little League team after their team had 23 straight wins. Mr. Ken Stauffer coached the team, which was part of the Margaretta-Bay View-Townsend League in the early 1960s. The Four Winds Restaurant was the sponsor of the team. The restaurant was located close to the entrance of the old Sandusky Bay Bridge, and many summer tourists frequented the Four Winds. The news clipping below identifies the individual Little League players on the Four Winds team.

Sadly, both Ken Stauffer and his son Tom are now deceased. Though the Stauffers are no longer with us, the memories of Little League baseball from another time remain with us.

Mrs. Carrie Cowan Endean

According to the June 10, 1972 issue of the Sandusky Register, Mrs. Carrie Cowan Endean passed away on June 1, 1972 in Carbondale, Illinois. Funeral services for Mrs. Endean were held in Sandusky on June 11, 1972, with the Rev. James Baldwin from the the First Presbyterian Church officiating. Mrs. Endean was buried at Oakland Cemetery. She was the mother of Mrs. William F. Burger, the wife of a longtime physician in Sandusky, Ohio. A marker from the Daughters of the American Revolution adorns the tombstone of Mrs. Carrie Cowan Endean.


















By performing a search in the Descendants Database of the D.A.R. Genealogical Research System, I was able to learn a great deal of family history information related to Mrs. Endean. She was born on January 27, 1884 at Crawfordsville, Indiana. She married Frederick Endean on September 11, 1907. Mrs. Endean's Revolutionary ancestor was James Cowing, a native of Virgina. James Cowing furnished supplies to the American troops during the Revolutionary War, according to the VIRGINIA PUBLIC SERVICE CLAIMS INDEX.