.

Here, gathered in our beloved South Dakota, are a few members of our Williamson / Mattson Clan. Charles and Luella are to be blamed (be kind, they didn't know what they were doing). We're generally a happy bunch and somewhat intelligent (notwithstanding our tenuous grasp on reality). I'm also proud to say that most of us still have our teeth.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Digging up the Williamson Roots. A Messy Job with a Few Victories.

From My Desk at Space Camp
Pleasant Grove

Hello All,
This Saturday finds the camp full of younglings, all soaring through space in our five simulators. My desk sits at the crossroads. I've got one simulator in front of me, one to my left and one behind me. I've got my Programming Guild in the computer lab at one of the school and two other simulators going in two other parts of the school. It was a nearly uneventful overnight camp with 43 students from one of our elementary schools and a staff of 23

As director I'm on duty through the night. I can lay down, which I do. I can sleep, which I get little of, especially if the 10-14 year olds are too excited to sleep. Last night I finally got to lay down at 12:40 A.M. Just as I drifted off, I heard one of the junior high volunteers in the staff room next to my office cough. There was a pause, then a loud cough followed by the sound of rushing liquid.
"Vomit," I thought to myself. Vomit is my worst nightmare. Vomit on carpet is pure hell on Earth. Usually when someone explodes they wake up and come to get me or one of the other chaperons. This boy didn't. I picked up my flashlight, turned it on, and reluctantly pointed to where he slept on the floor on a pad.

The boy was laying on his side in a pool of what belonged in his stomach and not on my carpet! He was sound asleep. I turned on the lights, kicked him gently a few times to wake him up. He jump up startled to find himself swimming in his own digestive juices. It was almost funny (if it wasn't disgusting).

Twenty minutes, and a great deal of cleaning up later, everything was back to normal except for that lingering smell that hangs in the air for several days to remind you of the fun you had. I finally fell asleep around 1:30 A.M. . I was up again at 6:20 A.M. to get things ready to wake the camp of 67 up at 7:10 A.M. for breakfast.

It's now 4:32 P.M. The Center closes at 5:00 P.M. I'll soon find my way up the mountain to the Fortress (I live 4 minutes from the school), sit, enjoy something cold and listen to the silence.

Today's Find in the Family Roots

Could this early photograph from a box of old photographs found in the attic of a home once owned by a distant relative of a Williams (close enough to Williamson to count) be the craft that brought our ancestors to Earth? Imagination can be a good substitute for facts in a pinch.

I took some time during my break and did a bit more research on the Williamson line. The current prevailing theory on the mystery of Matthew and Selina Williamson's origins are that they were alien humanoids from a distant world who crash landed in Virginia around the year 1800. They adapted into our society but kept a non existent profile to avoid revealing their true identity. They had children, and after a few decades of looking for spare parts, were able to repair their space ship and leave Earth sometime after the birth of George Matthew Williamson in 1834. Why George was left behind is another mystery to be solved during our next seance.

Today I may have to rethink our working theory. I was looking at the 1880 Census
and discovered something that will help redirect my search. This is the actual page from the census.

Click to Enlarge

You'll see the entire family of George Williamson listed. You'll see our common ancestor, William J. Williamson recorded as a 21 year old.
Below you'll see the headings found at the top of the census sheet.

Click to Enlarge

Notice the last two categories listing the birth place of the father and mother of the person mentioned on the line.
Notice that George Matthew Williamson lists the birthplace of his father and mother (Matthew and Selina) as Virginia.
I know it isn't much but it does give more direction. From this new evidence we know that Matthew and Selina were born in Virginia sometime between the years 1790 and 1815 (ish). That adds weight to the theory that they were part of the original Williamson family that came to Virginia in the 1680's. It isn't the proof we need but it does anchor our family solidly into Virginia's history.

Something else I found interesting. Notice the categories labeled "Cannot Read" and "Cannot Write". Look at George Matthew's Children. Notice that George and Ella Williamson (12 and 10 years of age) can read but are listed as cannot write. Also notice that all the school age children were in school at the time.

Interesting. That might explain why many Williamson DNA carriers lack readable handwriting skills. So, if anyone asks why you never learned to write legibly tell them you have a handicap passed on from generation to generation of scratchers.

The battle continues as we dig deeper into our roots.

Simply,
Victor