Wednesday, June 22
From Seattle to Denver to Ohio
Richland, Washington from 30,000 ft. plus on our Frontier jet.
Zoomed in and got this photo (captions added)
Three hour wait at the Denver Airport, Frontier planes in view.
Jean and Laura enjoy the vast view of the Denver Airport.
Our Ohio destination is the Akron Canton airport.
First stop: Eckis Cemetery west of Youngstown, OH.
Jean and Laura at Adam Kunkel's grave.
Born in Pennsylvania about 1797, Jean's GGG Grandfather.
Kunkle was changed to Konkle in the next generation.
Thursday, June 23
Our first morning walk is around Ridgeview Burial Park, a very large cemetery across from our B&B near Ashtabula in the NE corner of Ohio.
As we will be visiting many cemetery's, I took photos of unique stones. This one a very modern computer controlled engraving on granite. Parent's are still alive, one daughter died.
"Look, we are Mayflower descendents!"
We check out the "Ancestry on back" direction.
This is a closer view of the back, showing about two thirds of the total chart.
General view of part of the huge cemetery.
Nice old leaning building next to the cemetery.
Laura and Jean on the way to the longest covered bridge in the U. S., Smolen-Gulf.
613 feet long, built in 2008. All the timber is laminated - structure is a special truss design.
View from the bridge, the Ashtabula River passes into Lake Erie in Ashtabula harbor.
Friends Bill and Barbara with Laura at their home in Lenox township, south of Jefferson Ohio.
Barbara and Bill escort us to see the Lenox 1865 band wagon.
"Lenox Cornet Band"
The "Fifth Wheel" that allows the front wheels to turn.
How to get in? Use this step and opening under the wagon.
Owned by L. Williams, perhaps the house that Edna Chapin Pritchard visited as a young girl and wrote about later. She was shown the basement where her Great Grandfather Levi had a hidden underground railroad station room. The house was built in 1831, eight years after Levi moved to Lenox Township. Laura & Barbara waiting to meet the person who now owns it.
Downtown Ashtabula, Ohio on Lake Erie.
Jean and Laura about to visit a Chocolate shop.
Evening view of Bula Moon B & B where we stayed three nights.
Friday, June 24
Isaac Williams grave, Revolutionary soldier, buried in the East Lenox Cemetery.
Father of Levi Williams.
Photo taken in the 1950's by Babe Campbell, a descendant.
Flag temporarly removed, the metal star is a Civil War marker - 1861-1865, not when Isaac fought but used show where a veteran is buried.
The inset shows the location of the grave.
This shows the locations of the cemetery and where the Levi Williams house is. It was described as being north of Ray's corner by Edna Chapin Pritchard and a 1850's county map has it marked as belonging to L. Williams.
Charlotte "Tote" Chapin Root is buried on the left, her second husband Eli Root on the other.
We have a beautiful letter written by her to Carrie Matthews Gridley after her first husband died.
Burial place of Edna, mentioned above and also her daughter Jean who first directed us to Isaac's grave.
This natural stone has a lighter layer on top but the inscription was unreadable.
Cast concrete gravestone with intertwined branches - Cordelia and Edwin Lafferty.
Askue is the last name... could the tilt on this stone be on purpose?
The Township cemetery caretaker, who we had a good visit with - he said his clients rarely complain.
In the other graveyard in Lenox Township, these stones were interesting - the "fonts" were like advertising style. Behind the two stones is another that looks typical but it is a metal one, identified by the blue tone and if you tap on them it becomes obvious.
Luke Smith, no connection, had three wives. The third wife outlived him by ten years.
Shy groundhogs across from Barbara and Bill's place.
Barbara & Bill's place, Barbara is a historian of the area, Bill is retired but doing a lot of farming.
Nearby is the house Isaac Williams built in 1823 - probably with the help of his son Levi. That is the year they came to Lenox Township. You can see the three "eyebrow" windows that gave light upstairs.
Copy of an old photo of the house, unknown date.
Side view taken of the north side as was the old photo.
The south side of the house with later addition.
This originally may have been a nearby schoolhouse, moved to this location. Charlotte Williams who married Alonzo Matthews was a teacher in Lenox prior to her marriage there on leap day, 1836.
View of the Isaac property looking southwest.
Great Grandfather Gideon Giddings Matthews was born in nearby Hambden in 1847. Where did his middle name come from? This is the law office of a well known abolitionist, Joshua Giddings in Jefferson, north of Lenox. He served in the House of Representatives 1843 to 1859.
Another National Historical site is the Hubbard House, the final stop on one of the underground railroad lines. Lake Erie is just beyond the house. Next stop by boat would be Canada.
We visit the first Latter Day Saints temple in Kirtland Ohio.
That evening it's a meal at the Ferrante Winery near Geneva, Ohio.
Saturday, June 25
We treck through Amish country on some interesting back roads.
Mesopotamia - now how to we get to Van Wert, Ohio from here?
We visit the "End of the Commons" General Store next to the Mesopotamia Gas Station.
It's Amish country for sure.
An Amish hot rod in the buggy parking only area.
Father and sons
On the way back home, extra 'vehicle' attached.
North Jackson Cemetery
Jean and Laura look for Adam Kunkel's second wife.
This may be her, as we can see Adam Kunkle's name.
Laura points to another Kunkle - William H we think, not sure his connection but a son of a Kunkle.
To Akron... our next stop.
We visit Stan Hywet Hall - it means "stone quarry" in Old English and was the the Tudor Revival designed home built for F. A. Seiberling who founded the Goodyear Tire Company.
It was built between 1912 an 1915.
A seventy acre garden remains from the original 3,000 acres.
We visit the greenhouse also
Fruit on a "Buddha's Hand" lemon tree.
We leave the garden and then cross the state to Van Wert in Northwest Ohio.
We walk around downtown Van Wert, Laura at the first county library in the U. S., dedicated in 1901.
The Van Wert County Courthouse, built in 1876.
Sunday, June 26
IOOF Cemetery
Jean and Laura visit James and Anna Konkles graves.
Also buried here are Melvin and Edna Konkle, Jean's grandparents. And on the left Melvin's brother William and his wife.
Two brothers who died in World War I
Sugar Ridge Cemetery
Konkle graves, Laura standing next to Owen Konkle, her GGG Grandfather. He changed his name from Kunkle to Konkle later in life.
Sugar Ridge Church - the cemetary just to the right.
Panorama photo taken in 1914 at the same church, Jean's grandfather Melvin circled.
Old graves, with modern power in the distance.
Birthplace of Jean's father Hubert and Uncle Dick - when they were born a township line went through the house so they were born in two different townships.
New 'monument' going up in the farm land.
Where Jean's mother's older siblings went to elementary school - Hoaglan Township School - 1892.
Hogland-Jackson High School, where Jean's parent's went to school, no longer used.
View of the back of the school from Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
Jean's Grandparents, David and Maude Neubrecht
Also nearby Jean's Aunt Maxine and her husbands grave.
The Neubrecht farm house, Jean's grandparent's.
The farm from a distance. Later we visit the farm again to meet Jeans cousin and family who now live there.
House formerly owned by Jean's Aunt Maxine and Uncle Bill Pritchard south of the farm.
Road along which Jean's Great Grandfather Peter Neubrecht had a farm near Lima. The house is no longer there.
Blue Lick Cemetery
Peter Neubrecht's wife's parent's are buried here, Johann and Barbara.
Nearby is a grave for an infant son of Peter Neubrecht.
Zion Cemetery
Buried here is Jean's GG Grandmother Dorothea Degan-Neubrecht, wife of Johannes Neubrecht.
Both were born in Germany.
Back to the David Neubrecht Farm where Jean's family often visited.
Laura looking at the Neubrecht barn.
Laura and her sisters visited here when they were much younger.
On the porch of the Neubrecht farm, Laura, Jean, and then Lisa, Brianna, Kent (Jean's cousin) and Lucas.
On the same porch, June 29th, 1977. Jean & Laura, Marguerite & Margaret, David Neubrecht father of Marguerite, and Alane.
Monday, June 27
Early morning walk from our hotel in Van Wert.
A historic house in Van Wert.
We visit Jean's first Cousin, Charlotte Pritchard-Riley in Van Wert
A trip to Lima and Woodlawn Cemetery
Old cabin next to the historical museum in Lima.
Jean next to 6th and 3rd cousin John Newbright (different spelling) and his wife Linda.
This is John (Johannes) Neubrecht's grave, his wife buried in Zion Cemetery.
He was buried here because of a connection to the family who owned the plot.
Burial place of Peter and Magdelina and many of their children.
Back to Van Wert
Konkles all... Tim, Marcia, Jean, Nancy, and Tom.
Added in front, Laura and Jack (Tom Konkle's son)
Jack expresses his feelings about Tom's photography.
Tuesday, June 28
Back to the Akron-Canton Airport
Delphos, Ohio from a distance. Then headed back east towards Akron and Canton.
We visit "Behault" a visitor center near Berlin, Ohio that covers the history of the Anabaptist movement including Amish and Mennonites.
Four school teachers viewing an old school house on our tour.
Leaving Berlin
After our visit in the Berlin area, we tried to get to Dover in time for the Warther museum exhibit but we were a little late. Jean and Tom had been their before.
But in the gift shop Tom bought triple pliers hand carved out of one piece of wood by Mark Warther, a grandson.
