52 Ancestors - Week 8: I Can Identify

I Can Identify this little girl...

Mary Eliza "Maimie" David  (1877-1971)
Photo by A. D. Lytle Studio, Baton Rouge, La.

     The 1880 U.S. Census lists my Great Grandparents, Samuel Walker Booksh and Arabella Maria Tisdale Booksh, living with Sam's parents, Charles Booksh and Eliza Leonard Booksh, in the 9th Ward of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana.

     Also living with them are four grandchildren, identified as Elisa Mary age 22, Charles C. Booksh age 19, Mary Eliza Booksh age 3, and S. B. David age 4. Elisa Mary (Mary Eliza in church records) and Charles C. (Charles Everitt in church records) were the children of Sam's oldest brother, Charles Edouard Booksh (1838-1911).

     Several people have assumed that 3 year old Mary Eliza was the daughter of Sam and Belle because the census taker omitted her surname and put a ditto mark behind her name. We know from the family bible and church records that Sam and Belle had only four children, Samuel Walker Jr., Charles Leonard, Wilton Tisdale and Arabella Guinevere. We have puzzled over who this Mary Eliza was for years, but the mystery has finally been solved.

     By making a list of every Mary Eliza and Eliza Mary connected to the family it was clear that the Mary Eliza listed in the 1880 census was Mary Eliza "Maimie" David. She and her brother Seth Booksh David were the children of Sam's sister, Eliza Elizabeth "Lizzie" Booksh and her husband, Joseph Johnson David (pronounced Dah VEED).

     Lizzie Booksh was born 11 April 1855 and married Joseph David on 11 May 1875. Their son Seth Booksh David was born 19 February 1876 and Belle and Sam were his godparents. Daughter Mary Eliza David was born 30 June 1877. Lizzie died young at age 22 on 31 March 1878 and is buried in the David plot in Magnolia Cemetery in Baton Rouge. Joseph David had remarried by the time of the 1880 census and is listed in the 4thWard of West Baton Rouge Parish with his new wife, Amelia, age 21. 

Favorite Name

Arabella Guinevere Booksh, c1910

        Arabella Guinevere Booksh was the name listed in the family bible. I was named for her, my Great Aunt Vera, and her sister-in-law, Armelle Dufilho Booksh. I loved them both like grandmothers and I knew them as Noo and Nan. When I started doing genealogy research, I discovered that Noo had many more names than I realized.  Arabella Guinevere Booksh was just the first.

She was born 13 August 1889 in Grosse Tete, Louisiana, the last of four children. She was named for her mother, Arabella Maria Tisdale. Her father, Samuel Walker Booksh, my Great Grandpa Sam, was raised Catholic and Noo was baptized Arabella Genevieve Booksh. Genevieve was a saints name, necessary for Catholic baptism, and we all know Guinevere was no saint.

In the 1900 census she is listed as Vera "Bevoksh," age 10. The surname appears to have been written as "Bwoksh" by the enumerator and was extremely difficult to find. The family includes Sam, Bell, their children, Sam Jr., Leonard, Wilton and Vera. They are living at 142 Constance Street in New Orleans with Vera's mother Eliza Pratt Tisdale, listed as Liza Tisdale and her son Harry and daughter Lee and grand children May and Ruth Pierce. May and Ruth were the children of Belle's sister, Mary Bernice Tisdale Pierce, who died in 1886.

In the 1910 census she is listed as Vera B. Booksh age 19. The Samuel W. Booksh family is living at 1311 St. Mary Street in New Orleans. The family name is spelled correctly and the household consists of Samuel, Belle, Samuel Jr., Charles L., Wilton and Vera B.

In 1920 she and her husband John P. Ventress are living with her parents, Samuel W. Booksh and Bella Booksh along with her brother Charles L. Booksh and his wife Armelle Booksh and Lea Tisdale at 1831 Bayou Road in New Orleans. All four Booksh siblings, Sam Jr., Leonard, Wilton, and Vera, were married in the same year, 1912.

In 1930 she is listed as Vera Ventress and she and husband Posey, as he was called, are living with Sam and Belle "Brooksh" at 1831 Bayou Road. Living with the family are Charles Leonard and Armelle, Wilton and his children, Wilton, William and Susie.

By 1940 Vera Ventress is Head of Household, living at 3003 Ponce de Leon Street with brother Wilton, his daughter Emma, and sister-in-law Armelle. That is where I remember them as a child.

Besides being known as Vera and Belle she was also called Roonie by her brother Wilton and Noo by his children and grand children. Arabella Guinevere / Vera / Belle / Roonie / Noo died  at age 89 on 10 March 1977.

In the Census

Week #5
[Don't believe everything you see] In the Census

Through the years I have noticed several online family trees have given my great  grandparents, Belle Tisdale and Samuel Booksh, an extra child. I know from church records, from other family members and from the family bible that she and Great Grandfather Sam had only four children: Samuel Walker Jr., Charles Leonard, Wilton Tisdale, and Arabella or Belle, also known as Vera. But other trees insist on adding Mary Eliza, born about 1877. I finally figured out why.

The 1880 U. S. Census lists the Booksh family in West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, as:
Booksh, Charles, age 72
              Elisa Elizabeth, age 60
              Elisa Mary, age 22, Grand Daughter
              Sam'l W., age 26, Son
              Bell M., age 25, Daughter-in-Law
              Chas. E., age 19, Grand Son
              Mary Eliza, age 3, Grand Daughter
 David, S. B., age 4, Grand Son

Charles and Elisa Elizabeth are my great great grandparents. Elisa Mary is the daughter of their oldest son, Charles Edouard Booksh. Samuel and Belle are my great grandparents who were married 23 April 1878. Charles E. is Charles Everett, son of Charles Edouard Booksh and brother of Elisa Mary. Mary Eliza, always called Maimie, age 3, is the daughter of Charles and Elisa's daughter, Mary Eliza Booksh and her husband Joseph J. David. The census taker made a mistake and did not enter her last name.The S. B. David that follows is her brother and Mary Eliza and Joseph's son, Seth Booksh David. Mary Eliza died 31 March 1878 and her children are living with their grandparents.

Evidently some researchers assumed Mary Eliza was the daughter of Sam and Belle and incorrect trees are being replicated. Let this be a warning. Don't accept online trees as fact. Verify the information with real research in historic records before you include it in your family tree.

 For more about the Tisdale-Booksh family please see my other blog, Belle's Letters, which is a   compilation of papers, letters and photos passed down in the family.

Longevity

Wilton Tisdale Booksh Sr.
1886-1985

    The oldest-lived ancestor that we know of in our Begue Booksh family tree is my grandfather Wilton Tisdale Booksh Sr. 

     Born 7 February 1886 in Grosse Tete, Iberville Parish, Louisiana, to Samuel Walker Booksh and Arabella Maria Tisdale, he was 99 years old when he died on 9 June 1985 in New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana.

     I was lucky enough to have been able to listen him tell stories of his family and to sit with him and look through old family photos. Much of what I knew about the Booksh family came from him and his sister, my great aunt Vera Booksh Ventress.
     
    Wilton was a sugar chemist and spent many years working "in the tropics," Cuba, Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras, as well as at sugar mills in Louisiana.  I remember as a child that he spent the fall grinding season in Louisiana and the winter season in the tropics. 



    On 16 July 1912 Wilton married Emma Collins Francis in New Orleans. A newspaper article in the Times Picayune described the event:

   "The marriage of Miss Emma Collins Francis, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles A. Francis to Mr. Wilton T. Booksh, both of this city was quietly celebrated on Tuesday, July 16, at 4 o'clock, at St. George's Church, in the presence of the families and a few intimate friends. After the solemn and beautiful wedding services, which was performed by Rev. Byron Holley, The bridal [couple re]ceived the congratulations [of those] present. Later a dinner [took place at An]toine's restaurant..." New Orleans Times Picayune, 1912-07-21 p.18

   Wilton and Emma had four children: my father Wilton Tisdale Jr, William Francis, Marie Ernestine, and Emma Francis.

      In October 1916 the Louisiana Sugar Planters' Association newsletter contained a notice that said:
 "CHEMIST now employed in Louisiana factory desires engagement in the tropics, eight years experience, speaks the Spanish language, Address Wilton Booksh, care Belleview Plantation Company, Franklin, La., USA"

    In November 1917 Wilton applied for a passport for himself, his wife and two sons, Wilton and William, to travel to a sugar mill is El Salto, Guatemala, for the 1917-1918 sugar season. He gave his address as 7102 Birch Street in New Orleans, the home of Emma's parents, Charles Alfred and Anna Belle Francis. Wilton and his family appear on several ships passenger lists, including one in 1918 returning from Puerto Barrios, Guatemala and in 1919 returning from Havana, Cuba to New Orleans.

   On 19 February 1918 Wilton registered for the draft (World War I). He gave the same 7102 Birch Street address in New Orleans.  He was described as tall and slender with brown hair and grey eyes.

William and Wilton Booksh, Guatemala, c1918

   In the 1920 census the family is living on Benachi Avenue  in Biloxi, Mississippi. Listed are Wilton, age 33; his wife Emma, age 31; sons Wilton, age 6; William, age 4; and baby daughter Ernestine, 6 months old.  The surname on that census is spelled Bocksch, the same spelling as his great grandfather Carl Frederick Bocksch, who was born in Baden, Germany, about 1775. His parents were Johan Bocksch and Maria Lang. The family story is that he was a German soldier.

  On 7 February 1925 daughter Emma Francis Booksh was born in New Orleans and the next day Emma died. On 3 November 1926 Wilton married Agnes Gladys Lincoln in New Orleans. They had three children including twins Charles Leonard and Thomas Lincoln. Thomas died a few months later. Their last child was John Richard.

   When I was a child Grandpa Booksh came for Sunday dinner every other week when he wasn't working at the sugar mill. He always had interesting stories and even taught me a little Spanish. I also remember many interesting trips to visit him at the sugar mill at Cedar Grove, Louisiana, in the 1950s. After I married and moved to Florida, we always enjoyed visits to Grandpa and Noo (my great Aunt Vera) whenever we came back. 

   I remember one time asking him about the family story that we were related to Benjamin Franklin. He said, "Well, that's what my mother told me, but when I asked Louisiana Light and Power for free electricity, they wouldn't give it to me." It wasn't until I got interested in genealogy that I found out the story was true. Benjamin Franklin was our sixth great grandmother's first cousin. Benjamin Franklin's grandmother, Abiah Folger, and our ancestor, Joanna Folger, were sisters.

   There were many other surprises in that family tree. For more on the Tisdale branch see Belle's Letters


 

Booksh or Tisdale Photo

Booksh or Tisdale family group, circa 1895

This is my Photo for the second week of the 52 Ancestors Challenge.

Who are these people? The only one I can identify is Samuel Walker Booksh, the man in the first row with the handlebar mustache, fourth from the left.

Judging from the women's clothes and hats and the two military uniforms the gathering occurred in the late 1890s. It could be Booksh family members in New Orleans or Grosse Tete, Louisiana or Tisdale family members in New Orleans, Louisiana, or Mobile, Alabama. The large photo is 8" x 14" and was pasted to a dark cardboard backing. When I copied the photo it was in the possession of my aunt Emma Frances Booksh Sarradet in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is now probably in the possession of her son Steve Sarradet, Jr.

Great Grandpa Samuel Walker Booksh would have been about 45 years old in 1898. His wife Belle Tisdale Booksh, maybe the woman to his right, would have been about 43 years old. Next to her may be oldest son Sam Jr., about 17. Sons Leonard and Wilton and daughter Belle do not seem to be in the photo.

I have shown the photo to many members of the Booksh and Tisdale extended families but no one had ever seen a copy of the photo or knew which family it was. Does anyone out there recognize it?

52 Ancestors Challenge

I started this blog to use for postings in Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge. It's a series of weekly prompts to get you to think about an ancestor and share something about them.

The prompts for January are:
     Week 1: Start
     Week 2: Favorite Photo
     Week 3: Longevity
     Week 4: Invite to Dinner
     Week 5: In the Census

So let's get started...

This story starts in April 1988 when the National Genealogical Society had their annual conference in Biloxi, Mississippi. My mother, Vera Begue Booksh, lived in Long Beach, Mississippi then and I drove up from Florida to take her to the conference.

Vera Begue Booksh stands by the second largest Live Oak in Mississippi in Long Beach.

She and my Aunt Marie had been doing genealogy for about 20 years and I offered to put their information on the computer. I never intended to get into it myself, just put their research into a genealogy program and print it out for the family.


Finally we sat down with all the family group sheets, pedigree charts, papers, and photocopies that she had accumulated. I turned on the tape recorder, and we started climbing into our family tree. I picked up one of the photocopies and asked, "Now where did you find this information?"

Mama said, "Oh, that was from the New Orleans Library. We did a lot of research there...

"OK," I said, "Do you remember what book you got this information from?"

"It was a big red book."

"I need to put down the name of the book as the source of the information."

"I don't know the name of the book!" Mama was indignant. "What? You don't believe me!"

I could see this was not going to be as easy as I had thought.  I could put all Mama's data into the computer, but I was going to have to go out onto some shaky limbs to document the sources. Soon I was hooked and I've been doing genealogy ever since.

Fast forward to 2009 when I finished the first draft of a book on the Begue family. Mama and Aunt Marie were both still alive and able to read the draft and offer corrections and additions. Other relatives also added information and at last we were ready to publish. In 2012 I got my first copies of  "Mama Said:The Mostly True Story of the Begue Family of Louisiana and Mississippi." (It's available at Amazon.com.)

As I say in my introduction, If Mama's family had a motto, it would have been, "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." Her family had a lot of good stories. There were stories of lost fortunes and disinheritance, stories of larcenous lawyers and disreputable relatives, stories of mysterious apparitions and ghostly happenings. They were passed down from mother to daughter like treasured pieces of needlework. I remember hearing many of these stories told and retold, as we sat on Grandma's porch on summer evenings.

But putting those stories into a book was not the end of the story. I had started in on doing more research on my father's Booksh side of the family. There was so much information that it would require more than one book. One particular ancestor called out to me. Great Grandma Belle Tisdale had left a trunk full of letters and photos of her family. I decided to start a blog as a way of organizing the transcriptions of letters and my research on the letter writers and people mentioned in the letters as well as a little history of what was happening in the Louisiana area at the time. I'm up to 1875 if you would like to take a look at belletisdale.blogspot.com

Now fast forward again to just a few days ago when I got a phone call from a man named Begue who lives here in Central Florida. His son had a genealogy project for school and he wanted to get a copy of my book. He turns out to be my third cousin once removed. So this story has come full circle to a new start for a new genealogist.