How Far Back Can You Go?

 In addition to Veteran's Day, this is also my mother's birthday, so I sort of alternate which I blog about. Today, it's Mom. And a little more genealogy.

I just finished reading a series of books that spans the time period from 1829 to 1919, following one particular family (fictional). It does continue on in an epilogue to bring the people's lives to their conclusions, but the general narrative spans about 100 years. It got me to thinking.

First, here are a couple of pics of Mom that I have not previously shared. These were taken on the same day (professional studio photos), but I don't know the date. However, I am guessing 1916. That would make my mother, Catherine Burnham Rowe Leary, seven years old. I think she looks a little older, but I'll explain why I choose seven with the next picture.

Here is the other picture taken on the same day. This is her mother, Emily Marguerite Fisher Rowe, her brother Merrill Fisher Rowe (Jacques), and her. Jacques (say Jack) is two years older, and I think he doesn't look older than nine. Notice their hands. Mom was large-boned and solid. Jacques was fine-boned. She always said she took after her father.

After reading the books, I got to thinking about who was born the earliest that I actually know. That would be my great-grandmother Rowe (Mom's father's mother). Meeting her is my earliest memory. I was about 13 months old. She was born January 29, 1858. That's 166 years ago. What's the birth year of the oldest person you personally remember?

Here is the day I saw her. She was brought to our house for the specific purpose of meeting me. She was 91. Her name is Annie Cordelia Burnham Rowe



Without getting too entangled in more genealogy, I learned who, specifically, Mom and her siblings were named after:
Catherine (her maternal grandmother Catherine Louisa Hall Fisher) Burnham (the maiden name of her paternal grandmother)
Merrill (his paternal grandfather Merrill Jordan Rowe) Fisher (the maiden name of his mother)
Margaret (never could figure this out unless a derivation of Marguerite) Perham (the maiden name of Annie's mother)- this baby died when only 3 hours old.

I edited (but not enough), worked on autumn olive a little, did miscellaneous things, and Om and I went to Applebees to take advantage of their free veteran's meal.

See A Veteran's Day Story