Genealogy Highs and Lows

So I have been playing on Ancestry again, trying to find more information. My mother’s side of the family is pretty easy to research, as there is alot of information about both the Goyette’s and the Blanchard’s.

And part of my father’s side of the family is easy to research as well. The Borsey’s and the Ede’s left me a great paper trail to follow.

This dashing gentleman is Joseph D. Ede, my great great grandfather. He was from England, and came to the U. S. about 1866. According to oral history, he and his wife Olive were missionaries after they raised their children, and spent some time in China. One of my most valuable possessions is a small bible, given to my grandmother Jessie A. Ede on her graduation from Stamford High School in 1930. He wrote in it, which to me is an invaluable piece of my history.

And this distinguished gentleman is a huge part of why we are who we are as a family. His name is Arthur Nichols, and he is my great granfather on my dad’s side. He worked for the Philip’s Chemical Co. at the turn of the century. He was blinded by a boiler accident, and as I have mentioned before my grandfather went to work at the age of 11 to support him. This is where I hit my genealogy low. This side of the family is stuck at him. I cannot find his wife Clara, nor anything on Arthur before 1920. I do know he was born about 1862 in New Canaan, CT, but that is it. I believe Clara may have been ill (most likely with TB) between 1920 and 1930. Many in my family died from TB during that time period.

And these are the infamous Grandparents in question….Gordon Everett Nichols Sr. and Jessie Agnes (Ede) Nichols. My father’s parents. This was taken a few years into their marriage. They were married when he was 19 and she was 16.

And this would be them, on the left, along with my parents Patricia Marie (Blanchard) and Everett Gordon Nichols, on their wedding day in 1965. This was the year before I was born.

My father told me some more stories yesterday as we were going through photos that I had and photos that were sent to me by a step cousin that I found through Ancestry.

The one that stands out, and really shows how we have become who we are in some respects is this:

My father was not a model child. He hated school. It was obvious by the amount of times he got asked to leave for causing trouble. After they asked him to leave and never come back around the age of 16, he went to work with my grandfather. My grandfather was a mechanic. The first day he asked my dad if he knew how to do a brake job. My father’s response was no. My grandfather then handed him a book and told him to read….then they would do one.

My father thought once not in school, he would be done with learning. My grandfather knew better. Gordon Sr. had only a 5th-6th grade education, and learned everything he knew about being a mechanic because he never stopped learning. He apparently always told my father “Use your head not your hands”.

While my father didn’t appreciate the value of that when he was younger, it was something that he handed down to us as children. School and our education was very important to him. We were required to maintain a C average, and if we didn’t, there were consequences like groundings and such.

And in turn, education has become extremely important to me. That is part of the drive that made me homeschool my children for so many years. I myself, never stop learning. I am like a sponge, and when I am interested in something, I will find all the information I can on that subject.

So, if you listen, you will hear me applauding these amazing people that came before me. It is my way of thanking them for helping to make me who I am, by handing down their beliefs, their morals, and their convictions.

Be blessed!

Edit: If you believe you might be related to me, contact me! One can never know enough about their family! And if you would like to see the family tree thus far, just go to Ancestry and type in Gordon E Nichols. You will find me under the family tree section, with the member name scarty64807. It is an ongoing project, and I am in the process of adding the Borsey line, as well as Cotton.