Our Cousin Elizabeth (Mattson Line)

Queen Elizabeth II
Our Cuz

Don't be cheeky about it if you want to keep Your Head

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello Family!
Tonight we take an imaginary journey to England to visit our 13th cousin twice removed. I think you know her. She goes by the name Elizabeth II from the House of Windsor. We are related through James IV of Scotland.

Shall we begin with our direct line to James IV?

King James IV of Scotland (14th Great Grandfather)
to
John Drummond of Lennox
(by Jame’s mistress HRH Margaret Drummond Queen of Scotland)
to
John Stewart
to
Archibald Stewart
to
John Stewart of Blackhall, the Younger
to
Marie Lady Stewart
to
Elizabeth Cunningham
to
John Hunter
to
Martha Hunter
to
Nancy Ann Williams
to
Martha Cantwell
to
Frances George
to
Eldora Elizabeth Fiddler
to
Walter Edwin Pierce
to
Violet Mae Pierce (Grandma)
to
Luella, John, Linda, Marvin
to
Us

James IV of Scotland is from the House of Stewart. He is our 14th Great Grandfather. He is Queen Elizabeth’s 12th Great Grandfather. That makes us 13th cousins twice removed (if my counting is correct).


Feeling a little royal are you? Well, now you can have a good reason for feeling the way you do. And if you ever get a chance to visit London, be sure to tell the palace guards that you are the Queen’s cousin and therefore demand to be put up for the night at Buckingham Palace. I mean, its the least one would do for one’s cousin.

British Royal Standard (The Queen's Flag)

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll have a nice cup of tea and a biscuit and watch a bit of tele - BBC America of course. What's on tonight? Well a bit of Scotland I think to honor our proud Stewart heritage.



Simply,
Victor

More Detective Work on the Williamson Line. Samuel Grant Williamson. Great Great Uncle.

Great Great Uncle Samuel Grant Williamson and his wife Celia Dora DeWeese

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello Williamsons!
It's an early morning post. You know how it is, you wake up early, can't get back to sleep so might as well get something useful done. Last night I spent an hour or so in my search for information on my generation's Great Great Uncles and Aunts, the brothers and sisters of Great Grandfather William Jonathan Williamson. The task has proven difficult. I thought I was on to sound information on Ralph Williamson but nothing much to write about. I did however find information on George and Margaret's fifth child Samuel. What I discovered is below. Please click on the picture to enlarge.

Simply,
Victor

Grandma Elda Through the Years

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Tonight three pictures highlighting the funniest woman I've ever known, my Grandmother Elda. She was stubborn, pig headed, at times rude, opinionated, and when you got her laughing she would never stop. It was common for her to laugh to the point of having an accident and rushing to the bathroom in mid story. We loved her visits and dreaded her departure. She was truly lovely and held on to life with both hands tightly.

She didn't go easily into that good night when her time came. She fought death with everything she had and took no prisoners, just ask anyone who spent time at her bedside at the hospital in Bismarck. In the end she lost her battle - as shall we all, but what a fight she fought.

She loved life, yes every minute of it. I tried to think of something fitting to be written on her tombstone, but in the end stopped out of frustration. How could you encapsulate the life of Elda Vercellino into a sentence? One thing I was certain, the phrase "Rest in Peace" didn't belong either. She was not the kind to rest. If heaven allows a bit of mischief and mayhem then you'll find my Grandma Elda at its center.

At her death Earth unleashed a spirit untamed. Give it to 'em Grandma.....

Simply,
Victor

Elda, Great Uncle Ed and Great Grandmother Maria Vercellino.

Elda in the 1950's

Elda and Emmerson

A Tribute to our Family's Lutheran Heritage

Luther Attempted to Reform Catholic Doctrine and Practices and in the
end, started a faith of his own.

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello All,
Before turning in for the night I thought I'd post a musical tribute to the faith of our Lutheran ancestors. Our family's religious history is rich in Lutheran traditions through the Mattson Swedish lines to the Williamson Phlegar and Goodykuntz German lines.

In keeping true to their worship I found an old Lutheran hymn they would all have known. It had to be a popular hymn sung during Sunday services.

I think I found just the hymn (not being Lutheran so this is a best guess). The hymn is called "Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten" and is sung here in German.

Simply,
Victor

New Information on Great Great Uncle Archer Glen Williamson

The Family of George Matthew and Margaret Ann Williamson

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello Williamsons,
In yesterday's post I mentioned wanting to learn more about Great Grandfather William Jonathan Williamson's brothers and sisters. Today I can report a bit of luck. I found our 1st cousins twice removed from Great Great Uncle Archer Glen Williamson. He and his wife Mamie had ten children. I found additonal information on the children of cousin Vera. It is all located in the chart above (click on the chart to enlarge). The chart is missing one of the children. According to Ancestry.Com there is still one living child of Archer and Mamie. Because this person is living their information is not given.


Again, if anyone has information on any of the other brothers and sisters please let me know, and if any of you live near or in Douglas Wyoming, you may want to contact the Reeves family and let them know of your kinship.

ALSO,
We are approaching graduation season. I'd like to know if anyone in our distant family is graduating from high school or college this year. If so, please share the news with all of us. If you can a photo would be very much appreciated along with a paragraph or two about this cousin. Let's celebrate educational achievements in our family.
Yes, spoken by a teacher and Pat will back me up on this I'm sure, being a former educator herself!

Simply,
Victor

A Search for Our Great Uncles and Aunts (Williamson Line)

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello All,
Back from a long two days at Space Camp. We hosted a group of students from Teton Middle School in Wyoming. Good camp all in all and very glad to be home.

I'm curious about our Williamson Great Uncles and Aunts and would like to learn more about them. Does anyone attending these digital online reunions know anything about the brothers and sisters of William Jonathan?
This is what I know. I start with the very basics, The Relationship Chart traceing to me (this allows everyone to see where they link in through your own line). Remember, click on the chart to enlarge.

George and Margaret had a large family. Imagine how many descendants there are today! This spikes my curiosity. I'd like to know if some of the Williamson's I bump into from time to time are related. For instance, we have a bus driver in our school district named Williamson. Are we distant cousins? The only way to find out is to attempt to find the family lines for each of the ones that had children.

All searches must start with information. My dad (Charles) says he knew of a line of Williamsons that lived in Sturgis who descended from one of these Great Great Uncles and Aunts. He tells me that colon cancer ran through that line of the family.

A few other things I found in my limited time tonight. This information below comes from a cemetery in Dorris California. There are four burials under the name Williamson:

It appears that four of our Great Great Uncles and Aunts are buried in the same location near
Dorris California. A picture of the Cemetery is below (click to enlarge),
Why did four of them end up living in the same place at the end? I'm assuming there must be relatives living there now.

I also found this bit of information from the 1900 US Census. (Click to Enlarge)

In it we see George and Margaret Williamson and their dependants living with them at the time. Above their names you'll see an entry for George B. Williamson, a Great Great Uncle and son of George and Margaret. His wife's name is listed as Kate. There are a few children listed as well so at least one of the older children (George) set up a household near his parents.

Any Help? Any Information?

Simply,
Victor

Sir Francis Willoughby and Elizabeth Littleton. Our 12th Great Grandparents. (Mattson Line)

Elizabeth Littleton (1546 - 1594) and Sir Francis Willoughby (1547 - 1596)

Relationship Chart

12th Great Grandparents.
Sir Francis Willoughby and Elizabeth Littleton
to
Henry Hastings and Dorothy Willoughby
to
John Hastings
to
John Seaborn Hastings
to
Joseph Hastings
to
Matthew Hastings
to
Hannah Hastings
to
Nathanial Evans Jr.
to
John K. McCrillis
to
Joseph E McCrillis
to
John Mayberry Dennis
to
Walter Edward Pierce
to
Violet Mae Pierce
to
Luella, John, Linda, Marvin
to
us

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello All,
If its Friday, I'm about to venture into the darkness for another Overnight Space Camp. Before I leave for the school I thought I'd post something on our 12th Great Grandparents on the Mattson Line from the Tudor Era in England. Their beautiful home, Wollaton Hall, still stands today. It is one of those places on our "Must See" list when we all make the family trek to England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland to visit our family's historical sights.

And now a short biography of Sir Francis and Elizabeth

Francis was the second son of Sir Henry Willoughby and his wife Anne, née Grey, and was probably born at Woodlands in Dorset.

His father inherited the Wollaton and Middleton estates on the death of Sir John Willoughby in January 1548/9, but died in August the same year while fighting in Kett's Rebellion. Francis's mother had died the previous year, and Francis spent the early part of his childhood being looked after in Essex by his guardian and uncle, George Medley. His other uncle the Duke of Suffolk, guardian of Francis's elder brother Thomas, was executed in 1554 following the failed plot to place Lady Jane Grey on the throne, and Medley was incarcerated in the Tower of London for a short time, bringing more confusion to Francis's life.

Francis was educated in London, Saffron Walden, and Jesus College, Cambridge. In 1559 Thomas died and Francis unexpectedly became heir to the Wollaton estate (which he came into full possession of in 1564), comprising the two principal manor houses of Wollaton and Middleton and extensive land and coal mines in a number of counties. He also maintained town houses in Nottingham, Coventry and elsewhere, and lived the life of a wealthy country gentleman. He was knighted in 1575.

Sir Francis's marriage with Elizabeth Littleton was stormy, and not helped by a large number of servents who, according to Cassandra Willoughby in her history of the family, interfered in the couple's affairs. Their problems were made public by Francis's sister Margaret, Lady Arundell, who had always disapproved of the match. After some violent clashes in 1578 and 1579, the couple separated, before reconciling in 1588.

Wollaton Hall Today

The Great Hall in Wollaton Hall

In 1580, work began on a project by Sir Francis to build a sumptous modern residence, in which he hoped Queen Elizabeth would stay. Robert Smythson (d 1614) was the architect and general overseer. Work on the new Wollaton Hall was completed in 1588, although Sir Francis did not move into the mansion. Revenues from Sir Francis's coal pits declined in the late 16th century, and the vast expense of the new Hall led to financial difficulties for Sir Francis, who borrowed large sums from various lenders.

Sir Francis was interested in agricultural and industrial innovation. He engaged in woad-planting schemes at Wollaton and in Ireland in the 1580s, and in the 1590s invested in ironworks at Middleton in Warwickshire, Oakamoor in Staffordshire, and Codnor in Derbyshire.
His relationship with his son-in-law Percival Willoughby, whom it was intended would inherit the bulk of Sir Francis's estates, was often strained. Soon after Lady Willoughby died in 1595, Sir Francis married Dorothy Tamworth. He died in London on 16 November 1596, amid suspicions that he had been poisoned, leaving Dorothy pregnant. The pregnancy threatened to disinherit Percival altogether, but in the event the baby was a girl, and soon died.

The Plague Struck our Ancestors. Terrible Sadness (Williamson Line)

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello Everyone,
I walked six miles today and am proud of that fact. With the coming of Spring, I’m feeling the need to try to work off a bit of winter’s providence. In other words, my belt is too tight and its time to work off a few pounds. Will the drive to trim continue or will it evaporate with tomorrow’s alarm in the early hours of the morning? I’m not sure; the Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.

In my researching I came across an something sadly interesting about our 12th Great Grandparents on the Williamson line through the Willis family and with that, something to celebrate with our 11th Great Grandparents.

Relationship Chart

12th Great Grandparents. Robert Atwaters (1479 - 1565) Esquire and Catherine Bright (1470-1565)
to
11th Great Grandparents
Mary Atwaters and Robert Honeywood
to
Katharine Honywood and William Gent Fleete
to
Mary Fleete and William Willis
to
Henry Willis and Mary Pease
to
John Willis and Ester Brinton
to
Henry Willis and Mary Rachel Underwood
to
John Willis and Phebe Bennett
to
Bennett Willis and Katherine Nosseman
to
Jonathan Willis and Anabella Phlegar
to
Margaret Ann Willis and George Matthew Williamson
to
William J. Williamson and Effie Helen Victor
to
Vennie, Ima Della, Inez, Lillie Ethel, Josie, Emmett, Walt, Charles, Maurice.
to
US

Robert Atwater married Catherine Bright of Royton shortly after 1500. They had 12 sons and 2 daughters. The sons all died of the plague before the birth of the daughters. Their daughters were Joyce, who married Humphrey Hales only son of Sir James Hales of The Dungeon, Canterbury, and Mary the youngest born in 1527 who married Robert Honeywood of Henewood in Postling in Kent.

Imagine living at this time in history, never knowing when a terrible plague would strike. They all knew of the black death. Outbreaks occurred on a regular basis throughout Europe. All they could do was pray and hope God would spare them. Well, according to family history our Great Grandparents were not spared. Imagine the grief at losing twelve sons knowing the importance of sons in society at that time. Life was not easy. It was a daily challenge to live.

Dying of the plague was gruesome. This is a description of the course of the disease:

The symptoms of the Black Death included high fevers, fetid breath, coughing, vomiting of blood and foul body odor," says Rebecca Ferrell, graduate student in anthropology. "Other symptoms were red bruising or hemorrhaging of skin and swollen lymph nodes. Many of these symptoms do appear in bubonic plague, but they can appear in many other diseases as well.

Our Great Grandfather and Grandmother survived the plague and prospered. Robert Atwater became a man of fortune and a Justice of Peace in the County. In the list of tenures and in the histories of the County of Kent, Robert Atwater appears as owner of the following Manors during the reign of Henry VIII.

Puttwood in Osprings, Providers in Norton
Bewley in Boughton, Malherbe in Charing
Pette in Charing, Newcourt in Charing
Downcourt in Lenham, Royton in Lenham.

Of course there was some happiness in the Atwater family, which brings us to the story of Mary Atwater.

Our 11th Great Grandmother, Mary Atwater was the youngest of the two daughters of Robert Atwater and Catherine. She was born at Royton in 1527. When she was 16 year old she married Robert Honeywood of Postling in Kent in Feb of 1543. She was given the following Manors from her father: Pette and Newcourt in Charing and Dawn Court and Royton in Lenham, which became the property of her husband as soon as she married according to law.

Mary and Robert resided at Royton in Lenham and Pette in Charing. Robert died in 1576 and was buried in the Church of Lenham. They had 16 children, 2 died young.

The following is an extract from an article entitled "Posterity of Mary Honeywood by her son Robert.

"My father married my mother in 1543" .. "my mother departed this life at my house in Markeshall upon Tewesday ye 16 day of May, 1620 in ye 93 year of her age and according to her desyer was buryed in Lenham Church in ye County of Kent, uppon Saturday then following" . Mrs. Homewood lived to see three hundred and 67 of her descendants, 9 of them in the fourth generation.... ("a dinner was once given by her to a family party of two hundred of her descendants").. who had at here decease ... descended from her 367childern, 16 of her own, 114 grandchildren, 228 in 3rd generation, 9 in 4th ... on many accounts distinguished, but chiefly for her Christian character.

Life continues with all its ups and downs. I'm hoping this post finds all of you on the upswing.
Enjoy your day!

Simply,
Victor

Charles and Joel Williamson. First Cousins. September 1942.

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

When dad was a young boy he and Grandma Elda took long 3 mile walks from Lead to Deadwood in the afternoons to visit their Williamson relatives. Some days they visited Walt and Francis. Other days it was Morris and Josie. Grandpa Charles picked them up when he got off work in Deadwood and drove them back to Lead at the end of the day.

One warm September afternoon in 1942 Elda checked dad out of first grade to take the walk.
"I remember that day," dad said. "I remember it because she checked me out of school. We walked the three miles to visit my Uncle Morris and Aunt Josie."

The picture above was taken that afternoon. Dad is pictured holding Joel Williamson, his first cousin and firstborn of Morris and Josie. Joel was six months old in this picture. Morris and Josie lived on William's Street in Deadwood.

"That house is still there today," Dad said. "Its about four or five houses south of our house on William's Street." (referring to the vacation home Dad, Kevin and I own in Deadwood).

"I remember something else that happened that very day," Dad said when I asked him about this picture. "They had a thermometer on their front porch. I though that if I bit on the red end of the thermometer it would force the mercury to go up." Dad, the ever curious, took the thermometer's bulb in his mouth and bit. The bulb broke and he had his first taste of mercury.
"Everyone panicked," Dad remembered. "They thought I was going to die."

Dad told me that Grandma Elda and Great Aunt Josie were the best of friends. When they got together they'd practice smoking while walking their young sons down Deadwood's main street.
"Everyone smoked in those days," Dad said.

On another visit Dad recalls they visited the Railroad Car Cafe in Deadwood. He and Grandma Elda sat down in a booth. Aunt Josie made an attempt but couldn't quite squeeze in. He said that Elda and Josie laughed about that experience for years afterwords.

Joel Williamson died of colon cancer in 1992. He was 50 years old.

Simply,
Victor

Saint Helena, Roman Empress, Mother of Constantine. Our 46th Great Grandmother

St. Helena, our 46th Great Grandmother
Her Catholic Feast Day is August 18th.

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

Hello to Everyone,
Tis gloomy outside. Rain again and low gray clouds swirl around the Fortress up on the mountainside. I sit by my reading lamp to write tonight's post on our 46th Great Grandmother, St. Helena. She was the mother of the Emperor Constantine (see the post of May 10th)

The Empress Helena was one of history's remarkable women. We owe her a great debt of gratitude for her work to uncover the history of Jesus in Jerusalem and her work to establish Christianity as the Roman religion.

St. Helena was the daughter of an innkeeper in England, and despite her lowly station, was married to Constantius Chlorus, a Roman general. They had one son, Constantine. After 22 years of marriage, her husband was named Caesar under Emperor Maximian, and immediately divorced Helena to marry Maximian's stepdaughter for political gain. Fourteen years later, Constantius died, his son was proclaimed Caesar, and 18 months later, Emperor. Constantine made up for the neglecte his father paid to St. Helena, ordering all honor be paid to the mother of the sovereign. She converted to Christianity about the same time, when she was 63 years old, in the years 312-313.

It was her son who issued the now famous "Edict of Milan", permitting Christianity in the Empire. Constantine sent his mother Helena to Jerusalem to try to find the cross on which our Lord was crucified. When she arrived, she bade all the Jewish Rabbis of the whole land gather to meet her. Great was their fear. They suspected that she sought the wood of the cross, a secret which they had promised not to reveal even under torture, because it would mean the end of Jewish supremacy. When they met her, sure enough, she asked for the place of the crucifixion. When they would not tell, she ordered them all to be burned. Frightened, they delivered up a man named Judas (not Iscariot), saying that he would tell. She gave him his choice of telling or dying by starvation. At first he was obstinate, but six days of total abstinence from food brought him to terms, and on the seventh he promised. He was conducted to the place indicated, and in response to prayer there was a sort of earthquake, and a perfume filled the air which converted Judas. There was a temple of Venus on the spot, which the queen had destroyed. Judas set to digging vigorously, and at the depth of twenty feet, found three crosses, which he brought to Helena.

The true cross was tested by its' causing a man to rise from the dead, or according to others, by healing a woman, or according to others, by finding the inscription of Pilate. After an exceedingly vigorous conversation between the devil and Judas, the latter was baptized and became Bishop Cyriacus. Then Helena set him hunting for the nails of the cross. He found them shining like gold and brought them to the queen, who departed, taking them and a portion of the wood of the cross. She brought the nails to Constantine, who put them on his bridle and helmet, or according to another account, two were used in this way, and one was thrown into the Adriatic Sea.

At 80 years old, St. Helen went to Palestine where she found the True Cross. She built Churches in Bethlehem, Egypt, the Mount of Olives, and Mount Calvary, and died in Palestine during these activities.

St. Helena's Mausoleum

St. Helena's Chapel in Jerusalem

She was buried in a mausoleum attached to the basilicas of Sts. Marcellinus & Peter. Her remains are now located in the Vatican Museum. Although St. Constantine does not appear on the Roman calendar, he is recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church.

Statue of St. Helena at the Vatican

Relationship Line

46th Great Grandmother Empress Helena and Emperor Constantius Chlorus
to
45th Great Grandfather
Constantine and Fausta
to
The Elder Theodosius
to
Honorius the Emperor of Western Rome and Maria
to
Flavius Eparchius Avitus and Clodereius Avitus
to
Papianilla of Rome and Ferreolus Tonantius
to
Miss Tonantius and Sigimaerus I Bishop of Auvergne
to
Ferrolus Duke of Moselle and Wambertus Duchess of Moselle
to
Ausbert of the Moselle and Berthe Queen of Kent
to
Arnoldus of Saxony and Oda De Savoy
to
Ansigisen Mayor of the Palace of Austriasia and Beggue of Landen
to
Pepin Li D’Heristal and Adpaide Concubine of Austrasia
to
Charles Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia and Rotrude Duchess of Austasia
to
Aldane (Aude) d’Heristal and Theuderic Duke of Toulouse.
to
Comte William Toulouse and Waldrate de Hombach
to
Cunigunde De Gellone and Bernard Di Italia King of Italy
to
Pepin II De Vermandois, Count of Senlis and Countess of Vermand
to
Hubert Count of Senlis and Countess de Senlis
to
Sprote De Bretagne and Longsword William
to
The Fearless Richard I, Duke of Normandy and Gonnor De Crepon
to
Richard Il “The Good” Duke of Normandy and Papie Duchess of Normandy
to
Guilaume De Normandie and Miss De Ponthiue
to
Leceline and Baron William Pantulf I
to
Robert Pantuff and Wife
to
Ivo De Pantulf 3rd Baron and Alice Verdon
to
Emma Pantuff and Robert Corbet Baron of Caus
to
Margaret Corbet and Prince Owain Gruffydd of Powys
to
William De La Pole and Elena Rotenhering
to
John De La Pole and Mabilla De La Poyle
to
Margaret De La Pole and John De Gaynesford
to
John Gaynesford and Christina
to
Sir John Gaynesfor and Margaret Elizabeth
to
Margaret White and John Kirton
to
Stephan Kirton and Margaret Offley
to
Helen Kirton and Richard White
to
Robert White Jr and Bridgett Algar
to
John White and Lucy White
to
Ann White and William Thompson
to
John Thompson and Sara Woodman
to
Sarah Thompson and Samuel Hill
to
Benjamin Hill and Betsey Dudley
to
Betsy Hill and Nathaniel Dearborn
to
Deborah Dearborn and Phinas Swift
to
Almira Swift and Joseph McCrillis
to
Isabel Deanora Helgerson McCrilles and John Mayberry Dennis
to
Vesta Althea Dennis and Walter Edwin Pierce
to
Violet May Pierce and Walter Albert Mattson
to
Luella, John, Linda, Marvin
to
US