A few years ago I shared some of the oldest pictures of couples that I have for Valentine’s Day. Here are some images of my Cubbage couples. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Art Cubbage and Agnes Speck, circa 1945, New Providence, NJ
Gladys “Babe” Cubbage and Bill Martin, circa 1941, probably Monessen, PA
Margaret “Marge” Cubbage and George Cenkner, circa 1946, Belle Vernon, PA
Minnie Cubbage and Harry Reabe, 1961, New Providence, NJ
(I don’t seem to have any others of Minnie and Harry)
Today is the Winter Solstice, and it’s getting cold here in New Jersey. And with the change in seasons come the change to winter sports! I recently came across some pictures of my father and uncle playing ice hockey.
This is a picture of my father Corky’s ice hockey team in 1957 – the New Providence Rangers. His brother Jeff was also on the team, and the head coach was Joe Dill (wo was their next-door neighbor). The uniforms were maroon and white and had been donated by Summit High School (they were old football jerseys). My father’s thoughts on the hockey team:
“We played in a league (can’t remember the name) and games were at Branch Brook Park Arena (outdoor) in Newark on Sunday mornings – 6am (we had to get up at 3am!). The other teams were Summit Redwings, a team from Cranford and I think Chatham & Englewood. We also played some independent games with private schools like Lawrenceville & Oratory. They had their own rinks. Great Times.”
Side note: be sure to ask your family about any pictures that you have! These awesome details about the league were not noted on my grandfather’s slides – just the date.
My father lived in New Providence, New Jersey as a teenager. The Passaic River ran along the back edge of their yard. The river would freeze over in the winter and Corky, Jeff and their friends would play ice hockey there as well.
Check out the boots as goals!Corky and Jeff on the Passaic River, 1960.What a skater!Fast forward around 20 years and here I am skating in the same place on the Passaic River with my sister, brother and mother.That’s my grandfather Art, on ice skates at age 68, taking our pictures!
I posted a few pictures of the Moms in our family tree. Sadly, I realized that I do not have nearly the same number of photos of the fathers in our tree. I’m not sure if the Dads were behind the camera, or there were more pictures of the mom and baby or children. So here are the few pictures that I have … and Happy Father’s Day to all the Proud Papas out there!
My husband’s mother with her father Michael Petrun, in 1936 in Slovakia. This was the picture on his passport when they immigrated to the United States.My Mom and her father Adolf Haberkern, circa 1960.My husband’s grandfather, Otis Draper, with his father Jackson “Jack” Draper, in Bedford County, Virginia, circa 1903.My Dad, his brother Jeff, and their father William Arthur, in New Providence, New Jersey, circa 1961. (Looks like another Hearts Tournament!)My grandfather, Adolf Haberkern, with his father Karl Haberkern, in New Providence, 1959.My grandmother, Agnes Speck, with her father Frank Speck, in Monessen, Pennsylvania, circa 1927.
I am excited to be participating in a local Boy Scout troop’s Merit Badge Fair tomorrow! It is an afternoon where these young men can begin and/or complete a merit badge or two. I will be helping the scouts earn their Genealogy Merit Badge. I am thrilled to have to opportunity to talk to them about learning about their ancestors and family history!
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Both of my sons have been involved in Scouting. My older son was a Cub Scout for several years, and my younger son was a Cub Scout and is currently working towards his Star rank in Boy Scouts. And you know that I’m going to share about those Boys Scouts in my family tree!
My father Corky and his brother Jeff spent a few years as Boy Scouts after they moved from Pittsburgh to New Providence, New Jersey. This is a picture of Corky’s Bobcat pin. Their father, Art, was a Boy Scout for many years in Monessen, Pennsylvania and had earned the rank of Life Scout (the second highest scouting rank).
Below are some pictures of Corky (age 13), Jeff (age 10) and their parents Art and Agnes (Speck) Cubbage in front of their home in New Providence before the Memorial Day parade in 1954. They had just moved to New Jersey about eight months prior.
Corky at Camp Watchung Camp in 1954. He is the third from the right in the back row (yep, the one making a face!).
Wishing all the local scouts a fun afternoon at the Merit Badge Fair tomorrow! I am an approved BSA Merit Badge Counselor – if your scouts would like to earn a Genealogy Merit Badge, feel free to contact me. I can also tailor this program for Girl Scouts or other youth organizations who are interested in learning about genealogy and family history.
Elisabeth Maria Linnemann was my paternal great-grandmother. She died 53 years ago this week (20 April 1966). I have been thinking about her a lot lately as I’ve been using her as an example of genealogy records in my Intro to Genealogy presentations. I am almost finished with an extensive biography of her, with records and images, but that’s a bit long for here.
When we look into our family history, we often learn things about ancestors that we didn’t know, or that our parents and grandparents didn’t know. What often strikes me about Elizabeth is that she was the only biological grandparent that my father got to know (his other three grandparents shortly before his birth). He called her “Mem” and has shared stories about her, yet there are details about Elizabeth and her family that I have uncovered which my father never knew.
Elizabeth has shown up in some of my earlier posts – stories previously known and unknown about her husband, brother and father. Below are some of the previously unknown details about Elizabeth and her family that I have uncovered and been able to share with my Dad:
Mem was the only daughter of Gerhard Linneman and Barbara Elizabeth Nilkowski. My Dad knew of her brothers that lived in Monessen – Gerhard, George and Christian (Christ) – and has faint memories of seeing “Uncle Christ”. He did not know that she had a brother, William, who moved to Chicago, and that Mem had two brothers who died in Germany, both named Rudolph. My Dad now understands why his Uncle Frank’s middle names was Rudolph.
Mem’s father Gerhard was her mother Elizabeth’s second husband. Her first husband was Christan Fasel, who died a few months before their son Christian was born. Elizabeth married Gerhard within a year of his birth, and Christian was always known as Christian Linnemann. Uncle Christ was Elizabeth’s half-brother.
Mem and her first husband Frank had a third child, Alma Mary, who lived for only one day in 1916. Agnes Elizabeth (his mother) was born in 1915, and Frank Rudolph was born in 1918.
Mem’s father Gerhard committed suicide. This was a complete shock to my father, and he believes it was unknown to many in his family. I wrote about Gerhard’s death here. My dad grew up with Mem, remembered some of her brothers, but had never heard of the suicide. In fact, he didn’t even know that her father had ever been in the U.S. – Gerhard was never mentioned.
Mem graduated from nursing school in 1926, when she was about 29 years old. A newspaper article mentioned that the class of six women had been in training for three years at the Memorial Hospital in the neighboring town of Charleroi, as well as studied at the Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh. This is an especially notable unknown detail about Mem since her daughter Agnes (my father’s mother) also went to nursing school after they moved to New Jersey. It is unknown how long she worked as nurse, but must have stopped by the time my father was born and/or living with her in the 1940s.
Mem’s first husband Frank had a moving and storage company in Monessen, which my Dad knew about. He did not know that the company ran into some troubles in the 1920s. A front-page newspaper article announced the settlement of a case against Frank and his company. A man was accidentally killed by a railroad rail that was dropped by an employee. The widow received $9000 in the settlement. Two years later, another article reported a man was critically injured after being crushed by a truck operated by Frank. By 1936, there was a notice of a final bankruptcy hearing for Frank.
Even when we feel certain that we know about our family history, it is possible to uncover surprises or unknown details about our ancestors. While none of these were truly shocking family secrets (well, maybe the suicide), the others were unknown details that helps us to understand who Mem was, and how these details may have affected her as a mother and grandmother.
Mem & Pap, Christmas 1958, New Providence, NJ
Mem and Pap (her second husband) were my father’s grandparents – the ones he celebrated holidays with, lived with, and connected with as a boy and then as a young man. The details about her life – both known and previously unknown – are parts of her story. I am thankful for who she was and the family that she raised, including my grandmother and father.
Have you uncovered any hidden details about ancestors – big or small – that were unknown to your family?
Elisabeth Maria Linnemann was my paternal great-grandmother. She died 53 years ago this week (20 April 1966). I have been thinking about her a lot lately as I’ve been using her as an example of genealogy records in my Intro to Genealogy presentations. I am almost finished with an extensive biography of her, with records and images, but that’s a bit long for here.
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