William Nason (or William Nasonne) is our first known ancestor. In the 1500s Nasons began appearing in Stratford-upon-Avon, Wellesbourne and Charlecote villages, county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Before that, they may have lived in another part of England, or arrived from Holland, as one 19th century writer posited. The information on William Nason is sketchy. He may...
Frank Pavlosk
Frank Pavlosk, my great grandfather, was born on October 1, 1871. He immigrated from Marienwerder, West Prussia, in 1887 or thereabouts when he was in his late teens. Marienwerder is now the northern Polish city of Kwidzyn, located about 60 miles from the Baltic Sea. He left with his brothers and sisters, and they never went back. Their mother and father remained in Prussia. The family were...
Sister Time and A Beautiful Walk
My sister, Sharon M. Doherty Longworth, and my brother-in-law, Christopher Longworth, enjoyed a good visit with us last month. On Thursday afternoon, October 14, 2021 we had a beach walk at Orient State Park. The weather was picture-perfect. We even found beach glass for Sharon. Chris made a video which captures that most beautiful memory of that day.
Orient Beach Video 101421
Carl Anderson (1856-1930)
Reading over documents and written family stories, I have seen an evolution in the spelling of Carl Anderson’s name: Karl Andersen (Norway), Carl Andersen (1901) and Carl Anderson (1930). I don’t know why he changed the spelling of his name. My Uncle, Ernest Andersen, thought it may have been to “Americanize” it. In its wake, some of Karl’s grandchildren go by “Anderson” and others “Andersen...
The Family Farm Hurv to the Andersen Family in Froland, Norway
The Hurv farm was in Froland, a municipality about 10 miles north of Grimstad. It borders Grimstad and Arendal in Aust Agder county. In 1968, family members still lived on the farm. It is spelled Fróðaland (“Froo’s (farm) land”) in Old Norse. Grimstad is a coastal town in southern Norway. According to Odd Ronning Andersen, a cousin I corresponded with in 1968/1969, Norwegians used their farm...
Ed Murphy: Gay Blackmailer and Activist
Ed Murphy is not a relation, but he’s an interesting story in my life. Ed was an integral figure in the “Chickens and the Bulls” homosexual blackmail scandal in the mid-1960s. He was probably involved in a series of blackmail schemes run by the Mob out of the Stonewall Inn in New York as well. He stole, and threatened and blackmailed most of his life. He got away with it...
Mom and Dad’s Burial
Three years ago this week, on June 14, 2018, we buried Mom and Dad in Rosedale Cemetery in Linden, New Jersey. Both my parents had originally been cremated, but my sister, Sharon, and I decided to bring them back home to New Jersey for burial. Mom and Dad both grew up, met, married, and started a family in Elizabeth, a town about five miles away. There is a special closure in coming...
Frank Burton Doherty, Jr.
Frank “Doc” Doherty was my father’s older brother. He was born on July 19, 1920 in Hammond, Indiana. I’m guessing the “Doc” nickname comes from the pronunciation of “Doherty” as “Docherty,” from the original Irish, “O’Dochartaigh.” Frank Doherty was a big bear of a man: handsome, charming, with a wonderful smile. He was, like my father, a “man’s man.” One story my father told me...
Edna Nason Doherty
Edna Nason was born in Hammond, Indiana on April 24, 1898. Her father, Fred R. Nason, was born on July 27, 1861 in Girard, Pennsylvania. Her mother was Florence Curtis, or Curtiss, born in 1864. Her grandfather was David Nason, born on November 26, 1820 in Otego, New York. His wife was Eunice Godfrey of Girard, Pennsylvania. Family names were important to my grandmother. Her oldest son...
Mary Paloske
Mary Paloske died or was interred on April 9, 1947. She was 43 (or 49) years old. Easter that year was celebrated on April 6. It was her last holiday. I believe that she died from a stroke, and that her death was unexpected. Her father, Frank Paloske (or Pavlosk) deeply grieved her passing, and spent extravagantly on her funeral. Mary Paloske was born on November 27, 1904. (The 1910 U.S...