Ghost Found

(Post number 4)

Well, it seems as though I have had a breakthrough. A distant cousin (we have no idea how we are related yet) sends out a newsletter every month that deals with genealogy, what others have found about our family and things that might tie the families together. In THAT newsletter of this month was the information I was looking for about my paternal grandfather. It appears that the county recorder misspelled his first name and that is one reason I couldn't find him.

Caleb F. Stinsman turned into Calef Stinsman, wow just a small mistake like that. Anyway I thought they may have misspelled his LAST name, but of course I was wrong (which happens a lot in genealogy). He died in Chicago, Cook County Illinois as my mother had heard, in 1970. BAM!

My mother tells a story about my father's last interaction with his father. "Your father and grandfather met on the street and Caleb asked your father, 'Hey buddy, you got a light?' Your father gave Caleb the light and then Caleb said, ' See that guy over there? (pointing to one of my father's brothers) He's my SON!
 My father in turn replied, 'Well what the hell do you think I am?'" His father didn't even know him. There was no love lost, and according to family, my father never saw Caleb again.

So, all that said I now know where he died and can get the death certificate when I am able.

Onto the next!