Month: June 2022

My Husband’s Great Grandfather

~ Janet McKee ~ Leave a comment

Here I go working on genealogy again. This time I discovered that my husband’s paternal grandfather was in the linen trade. His occupation as listed in the 1901 Census was Linen Merchant. This is not a total surprise in that I already knew that 2 of his sons (William and James) had spent time in Argentina before the First World War. Their travel to Argentina was in connection with the linen trade.

Another discovery was that this great grandfather was the ancestor who purchased the house on Hawthornden Road in Knock Belfast.

Chad Miles Burns, Wounded, Saipan, 1944

~ Janet McKee ~ Leave a comment

Fierce fighting in the Pacific Theatre of the Second World War.

A Picture and 1000 Words

At age 21, one of seven children, a single good looking young man, my 5th cousin, named Chad Miles Burns, enlisted.

The American war machine had new B-29 Superfortress bombers. A critical objective for American forces during World War II was to place the Japanese home islands within the flight range of these bombers. Chad Miles Burns, was named for his uncle Miles Miller (the Mormon War veteran who marched from Iowa to California and back to Utah), his grandfather, (the baby born in a wagon during the expulsion of the Mormons from Iowa after the mother made the decision to stay with family rather than husband.) Thus, his great grandmother was Harriet Miller, daughter of Josiah H. and Amanda Miller.

Josiah H. Miller

Miles Miller, Mormon Battalion, Utah War vet

The Battle for Saipan began with a naval bombardment on June 13, 1944. 37 warships fired 180,000 shells at…

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Make Way For Ducklings

~ Janet McKee ~ 1 Comment

What a sight met my eyes this morning. Mama Mallard walked along our roadway followed by 5 or 6 little mallards. We had watched her and her mate fo several weeks during April and May. They seemed to have their nest nearby. Then I forgot about them until this morning the Mama suddenly appeared leading her little ducklings across our roadway. What a heart-warming sight.

Stop in Martha’s Vineyard – En Route to Nantucket

~ Janet McKee ~ Leave a comment
Oak Bluffs Landing – Martha’s Vineyard
Cottage Hospital Martha’s Vineyard
Postcard Map – Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Islands
Reverse side of the map postcard above

Note the Postmark Oak Bluffs Mass 1947, a card written to her Grandson in Michigan

I think my sisters were working on Nantucket that summer. They were waitresses at the Grey Gull Restaurant. I visited them there. Many fond memories of Nantucket!

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Guest Post – #Marriage – I Wish I Knew Then What I Know Now! by Pete Johnson (Beetley Pete)

~ Janet McKee ~ 1 Comment

Thank you for this blog post.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

I am sure like me, there have been times when you have wondered what difference might have been made to your life, if your younger self had been gifted with the experience and knowledge you have accumulated over the years.

I invited several friends from the writing community to share their thoughts on this subject which I am sure you will enjoy as much as I did.

I Wish I Knew Then What I Know Now – Marriage by Pete Johnson

When I was a teenager in London, I took it for granted that I would get married. After a long relationship that started in my early teens didn’t work out, I started seeing someone else when I was 22, and that developed well. We got married in 1977, when we were both 25. We had good jobs, sufficient disposable income, and bought a nice flat in a desirable area…

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