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Laid to Rest: Church Death and Burial Records

  Image: rawpixel   Records of our ancestors' deaths can be found in a wide range of places. Beyond death certificates or registers, clues to an ancestor's death can be found in cemetery maps, meeting minutes, even church bulletins.  I've found death information in some unusual places and have learned more about ancestors in the process. I wrote about some of my finds in the article, "Laid to Rest: Church and Burial Records," for the June 2025 issue of Stirpes , the Journal of the Texas State Genealogical Society. They've given me permission to share the article. I hope it gives you some new ideas of where you might find your ancestor's elusive death information. Until next time...   

GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021 - Seeing Double

James, dwarfed by a Union Pacific engine.


 
James' grandpa, James Casey, Sr. enjoys his time on a train.

GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021

Seeing Double -  January 25th entry of a 31-day challenge to post a document, photo or artifact on social media every day in January.  

by Nancy Gilbride Casey


What is it about little boys and trains? Our son James was enamored of trains from the day he first noticed them as a tiny little guy. 

Whenever we saw one, he would want me to slow down the car so we could watch it, or roll the car windows down so that he could hear the train whistle. He collected Thomas the Tank Engine cars and track. I read him Thomas the Tank Engine books, and we watched the TV show too. With every library trip we took, we looked for any book with a train theme. I'm sure there was a train-themed birthday party at some point too.

James also loved a trip to the train museum with his Papa (James D. Casey, Sr.), or visiting other train exhibits in local small towns. Imagine his thrill when we took a ride on the actual Thomas the Train one year in Grapevine, Texas!

The love of trains must run in the family line: proven by this wonderful black and white photograph of James' Papa, standing on a train stairs when he was a little man. It wonderful to see shared interests passed through generations.


NEXT UP: Wartime Letter III

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