Vaclav Loos

The SS Breslau

After years of searching for when Vaclav Loos, my great-grandfather, came into the USA the first time - I FOUND HIM!!!!  I'm so excited!!

Vaclav came to America on 27 June of 1907 after being on the sea for 10 days.  He sailed from Bremen with two other men from his hometown of Libusin, Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) on the SS Breslau.  He landed in the port of Baltimore, Maryland.  According to the manifest, he was 33 and is listed as being a locksmith.  He can also read and write.  Vaclav and the other two men he traveled with were all headed to Dillonvale, Jefferson Co., Ohio and Vaclav is listed as going to the home of Joseph Ibl.  (Side note - Vaclav was married the first time to Marie Ibl, who died giving birth to son, Leo)  Joseph was probably a brother-in-law.  Vaclav had $23.00 in his pocket upon arrival.  He's also listed as being 5'8" tall, had brown hair and blue eyes.

The Greatest Knight Ever.......Seriously

I just bought a new book to read. It's called The Greatest Knight, The Unsung Story of the Queen's Champion by Elizabeth Chadwick. Now, the book is fiction, HOWEVER, it is written with historical accuracy. I can't wait to start reading it.

The book is about Sir William Marshall. William was born in 1146 and, as was common in those times in England, he didn't have a wonderful childhood. Life was hard. It was a time of Kings and wars and allegiences and knights. At the tender young age of 6 William was almost hanged. King Stephen besieged the castle of William's father, John, who had once been a supporter of Stephen, but turned on him. In order for Stephen to make sure that John surrendered the castle he held little William hostage and threatened to hang him in front of his father. William's father, John, being the "wonderful" man that he was told Stephen to go ahead and hang him because - "I still have the hammer and the anvil with which to forge still more and better sons!" Fortunately for the child, Stephen could not bring himself to hang young William.

Because William was the younger son of a minor nobleman he was not to inherit any lands or money and had to make his own way in life. At the age of 12 he was sent to Normandy and this is where he had his first lessons on becoming a knight. He found his true calling jousting in tournaments. He is said to have bested over 500 knights in his career. His reputation grew and soon he was appointed to the house of Henry the Young King in 1170. He and the young king continued to travel at all the tournaments.

William supported the young king in his efforts against his father, King Henry II. For years William lived with and worked for this royal family. In August 1189 King Henry kept his promise to William, who was now 43, and gave William the hand of 17 year old Isabel du Claire - along with her father's lands and estates in England, Ireland, Normandy and France and he became one of the richest men in the kingdom.

After many political moves, William went to the Crusades, supported King John, became a huge supporter of the Magna Carta and eventually helped sign it into law. On 14 May 1219 he died. On his deathbed he had invested into the Knights Templar and was buried at Temple Church.

What I've written here about him is extremely condensed. His life was amazing - he came from nothing and became one of the richest, most respected knights in England. He played hardball with kings and protected queens. He played the medival political game with skill and came out on top.

William Marshall is what little girl's dreams are made of - the ultimate knight in shining armour. He's my 25th great-grandfather and I'm very proud of that.

For more info "Bing" or "Google" Sir William Marshall.

The Feeling

I was just doing the dishes and I was thinking about genealogy....of course, and a thought popped into my head. How do I describe the feeling I get when I find a new ancestor, or when I find new information on someone.

Imagine you're a small child again. It's Christmas morning and you've just come down the stairs.........do you remember the feeling of overwhelming excitement when you see what Santa has left you? Do you remember the feeling of awe and happiness when you see the tree all lit up and the presents stacked under it? That is just a small sample of what I feel everything I find someone, or something, in or about my family.

It's an overwhelming sense of excitement and awe and happiness, but also a sense of reverence and thankfullness, and pride. It gives me goosebumps. No feeling in the world is quite like it.

I feel so honored to be a part of such a family. I feel so inspired by their lives. I feel so thankful to them for all they sacrificed for me....for everything they did for me without even knowing.

And, (bear with me here while I go off the deep end....) I'm thankful for the ways they help me discover their lives. Seriously. Sometimes I feel like I'm spirit-lead. I'll lie awake at night sometimes, thinking about an ancestor I'm having a problem with. Then I fall asleep and when I wake up in the morning I know exactly where to go to look for him. Of course, this doesn't seem to work with Samuel Martin. He's being difficult.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love genealogy. I love my family - present and past.

Research Trip!!!!

I'm excited!!! I'm going on a research trip to Greenbrier Co., WV!! I've been wanting to do this for quite a few years and now it's going to happen. I've got so much to do - lists to make of what I want to look for, what I need to prove, where I want to go, what to pack, etc. I'd forgotten how stressful planning a trip could be! :-) But it's a good stress.

I'm hoping to be able to end the brick wall of Samuel Martin.

Present Past

Twenty years or so ago when people found out that I liked to do genealogy, most of them didn't know what it was, and those that did couldn't understand why I wanted to do it.

For those that couldn't figure out why in the world I wanted to know about my family history I would ask them if they had ever wondered where they came from. Most of the time their answer was "yes" and after I talked to them about it for a few minutes they would become very interested.

I love teaching genealogy to people and will talk about my family history to anyone that asks....or doesn't :-)

What Does Our Family Have To Do With the Great Seal of the United States???

Here's a bit of trivia for you - Who designed the Great Seal of the United States?

Answer - Charles Thomson. (Yes, it's spelled right)

And he's related how?, you ask. Well, he's my 6th great-grand uncle.....which means he was the brother of my 6th great grandfather, David Thompson. (Yes, it's spelled right.)

Sit back, kick your shoes off and I'll tell you the story...............

A long, long time ago, in the very early 1700s to be exact, in County Londonderry, Ireland a family by the name of Thomson lived. However, just because the family lived in Ireland, and some of the children were born there, they were actually Scottish.

A little info here - many families from Scotland moved, or were driven out of Scotland, and went to Ireland due to religious persecution. The term Scot-Irish was given to them. HOWEVER, they were NOT Irish. The true Scot-Irish NEVER intermarried with the Irish and kept their Scottish bloodlines true.

Anyway, back to the story............

Charles Thomson was born in 1729. He had two or three brothers, one of which was David. Their mother died sometime around 1739 and his father and the boys left Ireland for America. The father died at sea and the boys were left orphaned and penniless and when they reached America they were seperated.

Not much is known of how my David had to spend his childhood, but he acquired land in Frederick County, Virginia (now Mineral County, West Virginia) in 1749. In this same area, five miles from David's home, were the Thomas Hanks family (Grandfather of Abraham Lincoln)and Rebecca Bryan Boone's parents. (Wife of Daniel Boone) David farmed and raised a large family of 8 children with his wife, Mary. Their son, David Jr. was my line.

However, this story is about my 6th great-granduncle, Charles. You notice that Charles and David spelled their last names differently. Charles chose to keep the original spelling of the name and David chose to add the "p".

When Charles was seperated from his brothers after landing in America he was cared for by a blacksmith in New Castle, Delaware and was educated in New London, Pennsylvania. In 1750 he became a tutor in Latin at the Philadelphia Academy. He was also the founder of a group that became the American Philosophical Society. But that's not all...............

Charles was a good friend to the Indians and during the French and Indian War he was an opponent of the Pennsylvania proprietors' American Indian policies. He also became a leader of the Philadelphia Sons of Liberty. And that's not all.............

In the 1770s he was a leader in the revolutionary crisis. John Adams refered to him as "the Samuel Adams of Philadelphia." He also served as secretary of the Continental Congress through it's entirety (15 years). Along with John Hancock, who was the president of the Continental Congress, Charles' name appeared on the first published version of the Declaration of Independence in July 1776. (He signed as secretary) Charles was also considered "The Prime Minister of the United States" as he was so involved in the conduct of foreign affairs. And that's not all...........

Charles was also the most responsible for coming up with the Great Seal of the United States. It seems that three seperate committees had tried to come up with a suitable design for the national seal that would satisfy the Continental Congress and they couldn't do it. Charles took it upon himself to take designs elements from the three committees and combined them into one work. Once he had the basic idea, William Barton refined it and the Congress accepted it and that's what serves as our national seal today.

From other sources ---

Charles Thomson – Principal Designer of the Great Seal
Although few people today have heard of Charles Thomson (1729-1824), he was one of America's most significant and influential Founding Fathers – a man very well qualified to translate the idea and ideals of America into symbolic imagery.

As the only Secretary of the Continental Congress for its entire fifteen years, Thomson was a tremendous unifying factor. He kept the minutes of all sessions of Congress, including special minutes of all the secret affairs. His journals and files became the archives of our nation.

From www.greatseal.com --
"No person in the world is so perfectly acquainted with the rise, conduct,
and conclusion of the American Revolution." – John Jay

Not Your Father's Secretary
Before the Constitution took effect in 1789, the Continental Congress was both the Executive and the Legislature. There was no President of the United States, only a President of Congress (elected by Congress).

Thomson's job combined what are now the domestic duties of the Department of State, the duties of the Secretary of the Senate. and the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

"It's as true as if Charles Thomson's name were on it."
As Secretary, Thomson's name was regarded as an emblem of truth. In all the factional disputes of the Revolutionary period, his judgment was respected. During the rumors and uncertainties of the Revolutionary War, Thomson helped the Continental Congress retain the faith and support of the people by insisting that full and honest reports be issued, under his signature, concerning all battles and engagements whether won or lost.

His reputation was such that his reports were in great demand. When a Congressional paper appeared containing his signature the expression was frequently heard, "Here comes the Truth."

Ranked closely to the President, Thomson stands to the right of John Hancock in the painting of the Declaration of Independence seen on the two-dollar bill. In fact, Hancock's and Thomson's are the only two names on the Dunlap broadside, the copy of the Declaration printed the night of July 4th – the only version made public for the next six months.

John Adams said Charles Thomson was
"the Sam Adams of Philadelphia, the life and cause of liberty."

Thomson was keenly aware of the slavery problem.
Writing to Jefferson in 1785: "It grieves me to the soul that there should be such just grounds for your apprehensions respecting the irritation that will be produced in the Southern States by what you have said of slavery. However, I would not have you discouraged. This is a cancer we must get rid of. It is a blot on our character that must be wiped out. If it cannot be done by religion, reason, and philosophy, confident I am that it will be one day by blood.

He was largely responsible for the establishment and continuation of the American Philosophical Society, a key vehicle for colonial communication and unification. A man of high intelligence, Thomson was avid promoter of useful knowledge – especially scientific agriculture, which he put into practice on his farm for thirty years.

And, last but not least, Charles Thomson purchased a farm that another one of my ancestors had settled on. Rowland Ellis, my 7th great-grandfather, built the house and farmed the land that Charles Thomson eventually bought and lived out his life on. The farm is near Bryn Mawr, PA.

If you ever need to do a report on someone for history, this is your man.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

In honor of St. Paddy's Day I thought I'd try to write something about one of my Irish ancestors, so I've decided to tell you a little bit about my 6th great-grandfather, Nehemiah Hutton.

Nehemiah was born in County Cavan, Ireland about 1690 to Thomas Hutton and Sarah Starkey. At an early age Nehemiah, who was a Quaker, left Ireland and sailed for America arriving here on 5 January 1716. He settled in Chester County, Pennsylvania and aquired 250 acres of land there. In 1723 he married Mary Miller, also from Ireland and also a Quaker, at the New Garden Monthly Meeting in Chester County and they proceeded to start a family.

It seems Nehemiah, being a "typical" Irish man, liked to partake in the spirits once in awhile and in 1724 this got him in trouble with the church. ---------

Quaker minutes: "10 Mo 12, 1724: 'Whereas Joseph & Nehemiah Hutton being both overtaken in Drink in ye County of New Castle & have condemned ye Same Under their hands which papers were read heere to ye Satisfaction of this Meeting & Appoints Benjamin ffred to read ye Same in ye Next first dayes Meeting.'"

Nehemiah lived until about 1735.