My Darling Emma 1857

Rachel Louisa Steer (1825-1896) Photo from The Waterford Foundation, Inc T here is only one single letter from her in my collection of heirloom handwritten correspondences.   Miss Steer here took me quite some time to figure out who she was and how she fit into the puzzle of this project! If you're new here -long story short- I inherited a few hundred 19th century letters mostly addressed to my grandfather's grandma named Emma born in 1857. I have been transcribing these letters since April 2025. Each blog entry is about a letter writer in the collection. Welcome to "My Darling Emma 1857!" Rachel Steer  and her   solo letter had no cover (envelope) BUT on the back had the name of Emma's much older half sister Rebecca Ann Keeler . This letter was signed “ Lucy R Schooley ” and I hadn't come by that last name before in my 20+ year genealogy research or in this letter collection. But a fter some late night snooping, I came to realize Lucy Schooley WAS Rache...

F or the family historians that have inherited a stack full of really old notes, receipts, letters and photos of your relatives, you know how exciting receiving these treasures can be! There is something special about putting a visual face to a name you've read over and over again in those late nights researching. I also find it kinda fun to see if you have any of the same characteristics of ancestors! Oh and I really like seeing their clothing and hairstyles too! In my "stack" of early 20th century family photos were 2 that have always stood out to me. Its 3 beautiful young sisters with a last name I'm not familiar with - Tanquary .  The Tanquary sisters photo taken before 1908 back says: "Children in group taken by Charles Hoffman" "Mollie, Lucy and Mildred Tanquary of Burnt Factory" was written on one of the photos and I took to the good ole world wide web to find out more about this trio and if or how they were related. Their farmer parents wer...

Welcome to... My Darling Emma 1857 If you are NEW HERE be sure to read the beginning of the journey I am on transcribing my family's 19th century letter collection! The Pidgeon surname in my letter collection are from Emma’s maternal side of the family tree. Emma’s mother, Susan Garretson Pidgeon  was the daughter of Issac E. Pidgeon, a farmer (1791-1879) and Mary Saunders (1790-1872) who resided in Fredrick   C ounty , Virginia . Emma's grandpa Issac  was born in York , Pennsylvania to a well known  Quaker family who would eventually relocate to Virginia . At some point, it seems grandpa  Issac's  parents left the church as I did not continue to see them mentioned in Meeting minutes AND grandpa  Issac  himself  is buried in a Methodist cemetery...      I should add a note here that Emma herself IS buried in a Quaker cemetery - Hopewell Friends Burial Grounds in Clear Brook, Virginia to be exact, but she had marr...

Welcome to... My Darling Emma 1857 If you are NEW HERE be sure to read the beginning of the journey I am on transcribing my family's 19th century letter collection!      T oday I want to write about another one of Emma’s cousins who wrote to her in Winchester, Virginia ... this cousin pens her letters from INDIANA, USA 🇺🇸  Esther “Hattie” Griffin   (1844-1895)  Hattie as she mostly signed her letters, was the daughter of William Griffin (a farmer)  and Nancy Childs . She was born in Aurora, Indiana and had 3 siblings (listed below)   whom she mentions A LOT in her letters! Sometime after her correspondences start, Hattie's parents BOTH pass away. Hattie and her adult siblings continue living together on the family farm. 🍎   Children of William & Nancy Griffin   🍎 Nancy "Nannie" Griffin  (1842-1895)  unmarried Louisa Griffin (1843-1904)  unmarried Esther  “Hattie”   Griffin   born ...