Category Archives: Cleages

Louis Cleage – Spelling His Name In Various Records

Cleages, Investigations

While looking for my great grandfather Louis Cleage I encountered various spellings of his name.

1870 United States Federal Census
Name:  Lewis Cleage
Home in 1870:  District 5, McMinn, Tennessee
Age in 1870:  16
In 1970 Louis Cleage was living in McMinn County with who I think are his parents and siblings.  I cannot be positive because relationships were not given in the 1870 census.  No job description but he was born in Tennessee. I can’t find them in the 1880 Census and by that time Louis was Clage and married.

Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002
Name:  Lewis Cloge
Spouse:  Sela Rice
Marriage Date:  25 Apr 1872
Marriage County:  McMinn

State of Tennessee, McMinn County
Marriage Bond
Lewis Cleage
23 day of April 1872

1880 United States Federal Census
Name:  Lewis Clage
Home in 1880:  Hackberry, Loudon, Tennessee
Age:  28

Tennessee Census, 1810-91
Year:  1891
Name:  Lewis Cleage
Township:  Dist. 7 Male Voters

1900 United States Federal Census
Name:  Louis Cleag
Home in 1900:  Precinct 8, Jefferson, Alabama
Birth Date:  Jun 1850

1918 Indianapolis Indiana City Directory
Living with his sons Jacob and Henry Cleage
Cleage, Lewis

I haven’t found him in the 1920 census and I haven’t found a death certificate yet. I do not know when or where he died.  I don’t have a photograph of him.

I later found his death certificate. You can see it here:  Louis Cleage’s Death Certificate and you may see his burial spot ->  Louis Cleage’s Burial Spot

Awards

Allen, Cleages, Eliza, Grahams, Investigations

In the past several months I have received several awards for my blogs. (I used to have two blogs, one for my maternal line and one for my paternal line.  I combined them awhile ago.)  I put off posting them because I am supposed to pass them on to 10 or 15 other bloggers and it seemed like almost everybody I follow already has received the awards, some multiple times.

Today I was determined to find ten bloggers to pass the awards on to and to be able to post my awards.  I spent several hours going from blog to blog and it started to be funny to me because I found that bloggers were receiving the Ancestor Approved Award just before I got there.  In one case two people passed on  the award right behind each other!  I don’t quite know how to handle this.  I have decided that I will fulfill the other requirements and not pass on the awards at this time.  If someone reading this has not yet received the Ancestor Approved Award, email me!  I’ve got to post so people will stop thinking I haven’t received the award and keep sending them to me!  So here goes…

Dionne Ford of Finding Josephine gave Finding Eliza two awards some months ago, The “Versatile Blogger Award” and “One Lovely Blog Award”.  I apologize for taking so long to respond. I have to list seven things about myself and link back to Finding Josephine.

1.  I can milk a goat.
2.  I swam across Lake Idlewild and back when I was in my 40’s.
3.  My third daughter, Ayanna, was born at home.
4.  I home schooled my four youngest children.
5.  I studied Spanish, French, Norweigian and Arabic with varying degrees of success.
6.  I recently began strength training with my sister.
7.  I didn’t get my driver’s license until I was 29.

I received the Ancestor Approved Award at My Cleages and Reeds (Now combined with Finding Eliza.) from Nolichucky Roots,  Bill West of West in New England and Nancy at My Ancestors and Me   On Finding Eliza I received the Ancestor Approved Award from Nolichucky Roots and Missy of Fables and Endless Genealogies.  I must admit to fiddling around with the award in Photoshop and adding my own ancestors, photographs.

This award was created by Leslie Ann Ballou at Ancestors Live Here. Leslie asks that recipients list ten things they’ve learned about any of their ancestors that have surprised, humbled, or enlightened them and pass the award on to ten other bloggers who are doing their ancestors proud.  Here are my ten things. I’ve linked to those I blogged about.

1.  I was enlightened to learn that the story my mother told about Eliza was true but not exactly in the way she told it.  Eliza’s story is here. There are 3 parts to the story and a chart.
2.  I was surprised to find that Annie Belle and her brass band ended up in Detroit after living in Florida and Tennessee.
3.  I was saddened to learn that my great grandmother’s sister, Willie Allen Tulane had lost two of her three children in infancy.
4.  I was enlightened and humbled to find that my great great grandfather Dock Allen tried to escape slavery by running and so met my great great grandmother Eliza and gained his freedom.
5.  I was moved to tears when I found my grandmother Fannie Turner Graham’s father with his parents and siblings in the 1870 census and was able to take the family back a generation.
6.  I was thrilled to receive copies of records from the Cleage plantation where my ancestors were slaves.
7.  I was surprised when I found my grandmother Pearl Reed Cleage had a singing double.
8.  I was enlightened but frustrated to trace Jacob Graham’s little Bible to it’s first owners and to find his death certificate but I was still unable to connect Jacob with my grandfather Mershell Graham.
9.  I was ecstatic to find photographs of my first cousin once removed,  Naomi Tulane Vincent and her husband using Google.
10.  I was overjoyed when I was contacted by my husband’s cousin who took us back a generation or two on this mother’s side and shared photographs, stories, places… whoo hooo!

Missing Christmas Carols 1944

Advent Calendar, Christmas, Cleages, Grahams, Letters,
"Missing Home at Christmas Collage"

Christmas 1944 was my parents second Christmas together. My father, Albert B. Cleage Jr (Toddy) had taken a year off from the ministry to take classes in film making at UCLA.  He planned to use it later in the church.  My mother, Doris Graham, was working as a social worker and apparently taking a class too.  They were living in Los Angeles, Ca, missing Detroit and their families. In the montage we have in the top/center my mother, below her is my father.  The house my mother grew up in is the big photo of the house on Theodore, below is their Los Angeles apt.  The last photo is my mother’s parents Mershell (Poppy) and Fannie (Nannie) Graham.  This is a letter my mother wrote home Dec. 17, 1944.

 

December 17, 1944

Dear Folks,

 

Just a line to let you know we’re ok.  Hope you all are well

It’s almost midnight and we are both (as usual) trying to get some school work done that we left until the last minute.  Toddy has a paper due – and I have a book report.

Here it is – almost Christmas, but it doesn’t seem like it at all.  No snow – no cold weather – no nothing.  People out here don’t even sing Christmas carols on radio church services or anything.  We heard you all have lots of snow.  Well – guess I’d better go back to my book.  

Merry Christmas

and a Happy New Year.

Love,
Toddy + Doris

Related Posts

Christmas Day 1944 – Part 1
Christmas Day 1944 – Part 2
Christmas Day 1944 – Part 3

Happy Birthday to all!!

Advent Calendar, Cleages, Williams, ,
"December Birthdays"

Photos starting from the top left:  Jim getting ready to blow out the flaming inferno that was the candles on the cake in 2002.  Jim and Warren celebrating together at a surprise party in Idlewild about 1990.  The cousins around the table to celebrate Cousin Warren’s (wearing the lai) birthday about 1958.  That is me at the far end of the table.  On the bottom row we have another table full of cousins (children of those in the previous photo) celebrating the combined party of Jim and Warren.  Jim successfully blowing out all those candles.  Last photo is Jim last year opening his gifts.

When I was growing up my cousin Warren celebrated his birthday with a family party after Christmas on December 30.  There we cousins are on the upper right getting ready to eat cake.  There was always punch, cake, ice cream and chips.  Maybe hot dogs?  Plus balloons and birthday presents.  Being close to Christmas didn’t seem to impact his birthday.  My sister Pearl’s birthday is December 7, which doesn’t seem that close to Christmas.  We didn’t do parties but had a cake and she received presents just like I did for my august birthday.

My husband, Jim, comes from a family with 12 children.  Three of them were born very close to Christmas.  Milton was born on Christmas Eve, Catherine was born on Christmas day and my husband was born on December 30.  He says everybody always had a birthday cake and nobody every got many birthday gifts so that wasn’t different.  Over the years we’ve been together his birthday has become an important part of the Christmas celebratory season.  We have cake, gifts, dinner, a gathering.  Now that the children are grown, some with children of their own and most of us are in the same city we gather for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Jim’s Birthday, New Years Eve and New Years day.  By January we are ready for a break!

Advent Calendar – December 11 – Kwanzaa

Advent Calendar, Cleages, Newsletters, Williams,

"Atlanta Kwanzaa Table"
The Kwanzaa table, minus the fruits and vegetables and plus a globe – 2009

When I was elementary school age our neighborhood was majority Jewish.  We never celebrated the Jewish holidays but we learned about them.  I remember singing the dreidel song in school and learning about the menorah.  I didn’t realize Kwanzaa was in the “another tradition” category until today, so here is my late offering.  Once again I bring you a reprint from Ruff Draft 1991.  We didn’t celebrate it when I was growing up since it didn’t begin until the late 1960’s.  Our children grew up celebrating either at home or in community celebrations.

Kwanzaa

By Ayanna Williams

Kwanzaa is a Black holiday started in the U.S.A. in the 1960s.

This year on the last day of Kwanzaa, which was New Years Day, we had a big to-do and invited Henry over.  We dressed up.  Tulani and I in sarongs.  That is material draped around your body and hung over your shoulder.  James and Cabral wore baggy pants and African print shirts.  Jilo and Ife, who were home on winter break, wore long skirts.  All the girls but Jilo, wore geles (head wraps).  Jilo didn’t want to cover her dreadlocks.

When Henry got there we were downstairs in our regular clothes so we ran upstairs and after much losing of skirts and falling off of wraps, we finally went down.  As we went Tulani played the drum, James used the shakare, Cabral strummed the ukelele and I had to use two blocks.  We chanted “Kwanzaa, First Fruits!” as we came. We giggled a little as we went through the kitchen.  Black eye peas, sweet potatoes and rice were simmering on the stove for us to eat directly after the ritual.  When we got to the living room, all the lights were off except one.  By that light we, in turn, read the seven principles in Swahili and their meanings in English.  The introduction was read by Daddy.  Nia/Purpose was read by Henry. Umoja/Unity was read by Tulani.  Kujichagulia/Self determination was read by Ayanna, Ujima/Collective Work and Responsibility by James.  Ujamaa/Cooperative economics by Ife, Kuumba/Creativity by Mommy for Cabral and Imani/Faith by Jilo.

Then we read the meanings explained in plain English that Jilo had written.  After we read the principles and lit all seven candles, Jilo read a story she had written about Kwanzaa with all of the principles included.  We then ushered everybody into the dining room while chanting the principles and their meanings.  Well, that was the plan, but nobody but us kids knew so the adults just sat there and watched us.  So we finally just got up and told them to come to the table.

After dinner Henry told tales about when he was a kid and about his uncles and cousins.  Some how the conversation went from reminiscing to the state of the world today. He and Jilo had quite a discussion that lasted for hours.  At the end Henry went home and we all went to bed.

Winter of 1949 -Springfield, Mass

Cleages, Photographs, sepia saturday, , , ,

I’m in the front, my mother is propping up my sister Pearl.  My father took the photo in our yard.  He was the pastor of St. John’s Congregational Church in Springfield Massachusetts and we lived in the parsonage/community house right next to the church.  We moved to my parents hometown, Detroit, when I was four where we still had plenty of snow.

These photographs are in a crumpling album that my father put together back in the 1940’s.  He wrote comments on all the photographs. I have to photograph or scan them before they disappear.

Click here to see more sepia saturday posts from around the world.

We never had outdoor lights

Advent Calendar, Christmas, Cleages, memories
"Chicago Blvd. Parsonage"
The parsonage

When I was growing up in the 1950’s lights were rare in my neighborhood.  I remember the first lights I saw.  My family moved into the huge house above in 1952 after a church fight in which my father, a pastor, and 300 parishioners left St. Marks Presbyterian church to organize Central Congregational Church.  During the time before a new church building was found and purchased the church met at Crosman School on Sundays while all other activities were held at the house above.  We lived on the second floor, church activities were on the first floor and in the very large recreation room in the basement.  My sister and I shared the bedroom marked with the red X.  On the side was a window (marked Z) that we could look out of at night and see a house in the next block outlined in multicolored lights.  We called it the gingerbread house and thought it was beautiful and unique. 

I don’t remember ever riding by when the lights were on.  We lived on the west side of Detroit while one set of grandparents lived on the east side.  Driving from one house to the other we would be coming home after dark and I remember looking at people’s lit Christmas trees through the windows, I don’t remember any outdoor lights.  In later years that changed.  I think my west side grandparents eventually had lights and some plastic lit up carolers out in front.  My youngest son always wanted to put lights outside our house but since we lived at the end of a dead end road in the middle of the Manistee National Forest at the time, it never happened. Thinking back, I should have let him do it.

Christmas Cards

Advent Calendar, Christmas, Cleages, Grahams, Williams

Card made by me long, long ago

My family did not send out Christmas cards when I was growing up. Probably because all the relatives lived in Detroit and we saw them during the holidays. We usually had a good number of cards to display across the mantle though because my mother was a teacher and she brought home all the cards her students gave her. I did make some cards in elementary school that I found in my mother’s things. My grandparents aka Nanny and Poppy received cards from friends they kept in touch with from the days they lived in Montgomery. Often these were photograph cards. Because they kept the past years cards in a brass Chinese bowl on a table in the front room, under the table actually, I watched some stranger kids grow up from year to year.

When I grew up and moved out of Detroit I started sending and receiving cards. When we didn’t have a mantle we displayed them across the top of the bookcase that ran across one side of the living room. The years two of my daughters had paper routes we had lots of cards. For some reason I’ve saved these along with the family and friend cards. Every year when I go through them I think I should glean these but I don’t.

"Cards in Chinese Bowl."
Cards in brass bowl
"Ruff Draft Christmas Card"
Ruff Draft Nov/Dec 1994

For five or six years when we were homeschooling our family put out a monthly newsletter. It gave the kids a chance to use their writing skills and gave the family and friends a chance to see that they weren’t growing up illiterate. We would add a Christmas message on the back page. That is about as close to a Christmas letter as I got.

The most meaningful card I’ve saved over the years is the last one my mother-in-law, Theola Davenport Williams, sent me the Christmas before she died. It included a letter on the inside. I re-read it every holiday season. I wish we had traveled to St. Louis that season to visit but we didn’t.

"Inside Theola's card"
"Last card from Theola Williams."
Christmas Card from Theola Williams 1980