Every family has stories told by the elders to the younger generations. Some are stories of amazing bravery and some are just plain tall tales. Once upon a time in my family, I was told that my grandfather, Pop Pop, had traced our ancestry back to Scotland and Ireland. He even had our family tartan. I was about 10 years old and the idea of knowing where my family hailed from was of great interest to me. Mom Mom told me she gave everything to her only son, my biological father, who threw everything out. He thought it was junk. I cried. But the one good thing that came from it, I developed a passion for history and a love of Scotland.
Fast forward to the present day and now I am purposely given the opportunity to dig into my family past. Unfortunately, I’ve lost contact with the Walker side of the family. (Walker is my maiden name.) Now I get to do the digging and depend on census records, and other documents to chase down my family tree. Once I got started, I realized that some of the stories that I had been told weren’t exactly 100% fact. In the short time I’ve had to chase down my family history, I’ve been able to shake the facts from the fictions.
Story #1 – My grandmother and her siblings were placed in the German orphan’s home in Baltimore. FACT!
I knew that my Mom Mom was born in Maryland in 1918 so the first place I went was to the 1920’s census. During that census, my great grandfather, great grandmother, great aunt Ada, great uncle George, and my Mom Mom all lived on Amos Street in Baltimore[2] My great aunt Lil wasn’t born yet. So, I jumped to the 1930s census. In that census, Florence, George, Lillian and Virginia were all wards of the General German Orphan Home.[3] I am not sure why, but I do know that according to the Baltimore Sun obituary, their father Edward/Edwin Levering died in 1923.[4] Perhaps his death caused his wife Stella to give up their children. I asked Mom Mom once why she was raised in a home. She told me that it was during the Great Depression and her mother couldn’t raise four children. If she gave them to the home, she knew that they would be fed and clothed. I cannot imagine how difficult that would have been to give up your children, but Mom Mom was still bitter about it after all of those years.
Story #2 – Pop Pop was one of 14 children and none of them was a single birth. FICTION!
When I started this project, I had such a difficult time due to the last name. Walker is like Smith or Jones. Add William onto Walker and I am searching for a needle in a haystack! But I have been able to find him and trace him back to my great great grandparents. My Pop Pop was one of five children and none were multiple births. Mary Lauren was the oldest but died after only a year old. Then Pop Pop (William) then Philip, Theodore, and Rita. I am starting to delve into my great grandfather but again, he was another William Walker. Le Sigh!
Story #3 – Irene Duffy immigrated from Ireland and met her husband Mr. Walker from Scotland here in the United States. FICTION – sort of.
While Irene Duffy was born in the United States, her parents weren’t. James Duffy was from Scotland and Catherine Duffy (still working on her maiden name) was from Ireland. The 1900 Census records show that James was from Scotland, Catherine from Ireland and my great great aunt Alice was also born in Scotland. The three of them arrived in the United States in 1882 and moved to Pennsylvania. That is where Gennevie, Mary, Regina, Clara, Isabelle, and Irene were born.[5]
There is so much more that I want to know and find out about my family. This was just the briefest glimpse into the Walker side. There is my Mom’s side which is the Poe family. And yes, according to the family story we are related to Edgar Allan Poe, but I want to find out for sure! Then there is my Dad’s side of the family and their claim is that they are part Cherokee and related to William and Mary of Orange! Mom has started that branch of the family tree and I know that my cousin on my Dad’s side has the Gribble one started as well. I can’t wait to bring them all together in one giant tree!
Families have many stories and spending time to see what is true is a worthy pastime. It is fun to shake the tree and see what interesting facts fall into your hands! For me, I now have a tree started on Ancestry.com. I will be spending free time (which is a hard thing to find when you are working on your PhD) searching for more information on my family. Who know? Maybe one day I will find out if the tartan my Pop Pop had was as a member of another clan or one of our own! A walker was a trade name and it meant fuller of the cloth. They were ones who helped in making tartans for the clans. Every clan had walkers but there was a Clan Walker. For my brother, nephew, and myself, I’d like to find out if we are a member of a larger clan or if we have our own family tartan. It is something I’d love to surprise them with – their own kilts. My brother is another William but he likes Scotland as well. So does my nephew. I helped make him a closet Anglophile like me! Hopefully one day I will be able to find the answers.
[1] “Genealogy-Tree-Tag-Cloud-White-Background-Edited.” Adrian Area Chamber of Commerce. Accessed November 28, 2019. https://www.adrianareachamber.com/event/ldl-genealogy-group/genealogy-tree-tag-cloud-white-background-edited/.
[2] “US Census Bureau Publications – Census of Population and Housing.” Census of Population and Housing – Publications – U.S. Census Bureau- 1920, August 19, 2011. https://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html.
[3] “US Census Bureau Publications – Census of Population and Housing.” Census of Population and Housing – Publications – U.S. Census Bureau- 1930, August 19, 2011. https://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html.
[4] “The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland on June 27, 1923 · 17.” Newspapers.com. The Baltimore Sun. Accessed November 29, 2019. https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/373403412/.
[5] “US Census Bureau Publications – Census of Population and Housing.” Census of Population and Housing – Publications – U.S. Census Bureau- 1900, August 19, 2011.
Seeking History 