26Sep 2015 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

Newsflash! Solution to Mystery of a Tombstone Found in a VA River

Genealogy
[caption id="attachment_8599" align="alignleft" width="340"] A tombstone was found in a river...[/caption] There was a tombstone that was discovered in a river in Augusta County. The name was not clear, but what was decipherable included the words, “daughter of J. & S. J. Sutton, born May 17, 1869, died March 18, 1889.” What was the name on the stone? Who did it belong to? Tombstone: SUTTON The name on the stone, if the woman had been unmarried, was Martha C. Sutton. She was the daughter of Joshua and Sallie J. Sutton. But just a little research revealed much more than this. Joshua was married to Sarah Jane Ralston. Sallie is a common abbreviation for the name Sarah. This couple proved to be prolific. Martha C. married at age 18 to Ambrose…
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14Mar 2014 by Vincent Summers 6 Comments

Deciphering a Cryptic 1700s Philadelphia German Tombstone

Genealogy
Decipher a German tombstone? What trick is there to that? I was once deeply involved in genealogy researches. A distant Kite family member had connection to the original 13 settlers of the Philadelphia, PA area. These immigrant families were of German origin. In my pursuits, I had established an email list on a site that went “belly up.” Shortly before that, I had been invited by a Rootsweb representative to transfer my list to their oversight. Interested Researchers As of September 2019, the Original-13 list still exists there. For some, the tombstones of family members of these 13 are of special interest. One tombstone in particular caught their interest. It read very cryptically. Descendants wondered what language was used in the inscription. How did it read? Here is the transcription:…
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