New night time visitor!

Coyote visiting the yard at 1:30am

At 1:30am this morning, the security camera captured a blurred of an image of an animal moving quickly in front of the chicken coop. After a closer look...it's a Coyote!  This is the first time, that I know of, a Coyote has been in our yard.  Time will tell if it continues to visit.  I am looking forward to what else this sec camera captures.

As of late, I have been hearing a single Coyote howling at sunset in the fields just to the east.  Now, its in the yard and as long as it behaves, I am not going out of my way to remove it, but once it starts after our critters...my patience will end.

However, this time it behaved itself by leaving our cats and the geese, which are in a pen (off camera) just to the right of the coyote, alone.  Don't try my patience mister coyote, cause it will be your doom.  I know! I know! This well behaved coyote will need to move on, cause after all who can resist a goose dinner when its negative 30 below.

A little information about Coyote can be found many places about the web.  This link is to the Minnesota DNR site about Coyotes.

Encounter after dark....a short story!

As the sun sets, a feeling of worry and fear creeps down the middle of your back. A coyote howls and then a scream! The night becomes silent and you're on full alert, feeling and listen to every movement. A branch snaps in the not too far off distance...another snap and then another! ...its getting closer.

The sounds of each foot step is now noticable, but still a fair piece off. You have time to sneak away, but no! No, you want to see what made the coyote scream and silent the night, so you slipping under a bush to watch the darkness and to listen! ...its getting closer.

The sky is now dark and you can't see much past a few feet in any direction! A grunt!  SNAP! Another branch breaks! You quickly get out of the bush and stand quietly on the small path you had been walking. You want to run, but you can't stop wanting to know. Again, the grunting started, and again and again.. Then silence! Nothing is moving! Another grunt and now drumming of somekind comes to your attention. As you listen, the hair on the back of you neck stands straight up! ...its getting closer!

The grunting and soft drumming continues. Suddenly, you remember that you have a flashlight in your pack. You quickly gain access to the light only to find it low on battery power. After a few minutes of cussing, you get the light to work, but the beam isn't strong enough to cut through the darkness that has swallowed the landscape around you. ...it's getting closer!

You are froze in place and dare not move as the grunting and drumming continues to move closer. You shine the dim light right and left to no avail for you can only see but few feet at best. Is it a bear? You've heard plenty of them before moving about. They are mostly quiet but some can grunt plenty. The hairs that were standing on the back of you neck is now joined by the hairs on your arm and back! ...it's getting closer!

You've talked yourself into the fact that this thing that moves in the dark is a bear...you know can't out run or climb this animal, so standing your ground is the only option. Your mind begins to wander about all the bears you have encountered in your travels through the woods... most give ground if the option is there, some just don't care and charge. You attention is brought back by another grunt. The drumming has started again, but its hard to hear. ...its coming!

Grunt, grunt, grunt, and more soft drumming.... this is no bear, none that you are familiar with anyways. Why is it still there? Why hasn't it charged or backed down. A thought comes to you from a memory of a situation you once had!  You start looking hard up into the trees, but can't see but a few feet due the failing batteries. And since you hadn't heard any whining or bawling, the thought of cubs near by fades. Again you start wondering what else this could be if not a bear. A few more grunts come to your ears, there different this time. A bit of impatiences is heard in the grunting!  ...its coming!

You heard the grunt again and realized that sound wasn't coming from afar but rather at you feet. A hard lump has formed in your throat and you try as you might, you can't get it to go down. Slowly you scan you dim flash light on the ground in front of you, not knowing what you will find. At first you don't see a thing, but as you stretch your arm down in front of you, the shape of a large round animal appears right in front of your boots. What the hell! A....a... porkerpine is grunting at your boots and patting his feet on the ground. It was like he was telling you to get out of the way! So you do just that!  Stepping off the trail, the porker waddles slowly down the trail into the darkness with not as much as a look or even a knod of the head to say thanks or good night!

Michigan Ave

1918 Birth Certificate

My cousin Laura asked about a recent post; Where was our grand/greatgrand mother, Grace Whitfield Herrick,  living at the time of her fathers death in 1919?  Well, at the time my best guess was plain ole Illinois, which was based off of census reports for the family.  But, now I have a solid answer for Laura......

I just located the birth certificate for Grace Francis Herrick, first born of Grace and George Herrick.  The address listed for Grace Whitfield Herrick was 6732 Michigan Ave, the same as her father, Frank Whitfield at death.  So, Grace Whitfield Herrick was living with her parents at the time of death or shortly before.

Now that I got you attention, a few things to note from the certificate.  George was not at home at the time of Grace Herricks birth.  He was at  Fisk University, Nashville Tennessee.  He is a Lieutenant, which I am guessing was while he was in the Army.  However, none of his military records that reflects a duty station in Tennessee.  Also, note that his birth place is reported as Port Arthur Washington.  For whatever the reason, he listed a few different places of birth in Washington, but we know he was born in Illinois, and more than likely his mother's birth place of Freeport.  In the 1900 US Census, its reported that George was 8 and born in Illinois.  George's middle name was Francis, like his dad, not Frank.  But, I can see why one would say Frank instead. 

I am only guess here, but I bet these are photo's of the 6732 Michigan Ave houses backyard;  Backyard, Hanging on for dear life, and Give Daddy a kiss.  Now, as I reread these post and consider what I just learned on the Grace's birth certificate,  the Kiss for Daddy is because daddy (George) is away with the Army.

Please see my other post about George Herrick and Frank Whitfield.  And by all means consider following this blog by clicking JOIN THIS SITE to the right and please do leave a comment.

What's in a name?

Another name puzzle has shown up in an ancestral document.  Is it Whitfield or Whitefield?  From the time I started search family history my grandmother surname was known to me as Whitfield.  which includes all the records I have discovered; marriage certificates, census report, etc....,  Now, a question pops up on this recently discovered document for Frank E. Whitfield.  First, notice that the document didn't record a full name, but the state of Illinois has this document recorded against Frank.  Also, the date of death, first name of the parents, the physical address and the first name and middle initial of his wife are all correct.  The question is the recorded last name of Whitefield! So, is it Whitfield or Whitefield?  I am sure it is Whitfield and this is just a record error by Registrar!  I have seen many errors such as this, so it really doesn't surprise me at all.  But, it may explain why I haven't been able to find anything concrete for Elisie Minnie Grothmann Whitfield after 1919.  Oh by the way, Elise's last name was record on the marriage certificate as Grotman, where it should have been Grothmann.  Errors are very common!

Suburbanite Economist Notice

Who is Frank E Whitfield?  He is my great grandfather on my mother side.  You can see more about Frank at his Ancestry.com page;  Frank Whitfield  .  The notice to the right can be found at
the Ancestry.com page for the newspaper Suburbanite Economist, Englewood Times.

This is an update to Frank's blog record as his resting place has been found in the Oak Wood Cemetery, Chicago Illinois lying next for Frank is Elsie's second husband, Orrin P Talley.  Frank Whitfield lived an died in Illinois.  His parent's John and Elizabeth are from England and are still a mystery at this point.

Please find in this blog other posts of the Whitfield family.

Please consider following this blog and leaving a comment.

Loco Wiper



page 1

 This is a display of a railroad employment record for William Dingle Watters.  William lived his life in the Stellarton and Westville area of Nova Scotia.  The record contain the wages, the layoffs, the merits and demerits that Watters experienced while with the Cape Breton and Nova Scotia Railway, CBNS.  Now, I would like to draw your attention to the top right of page #1 of the record.  Notice the wages!  Can you image working for such a way.  Oh, Yes you can click the image to enlargen.

Also found on this record was valuable genealogy data, pretaining to his birth date, the name of second wife; Alice and the reason of his death.

page 2

Take a moment to read down through the second page of the record, where you will find some interesting entries such as; falsify a report, damaging an engine, and valuable assistance giving on righting an engine.

On the final page of the record we learn that William held many positions with the railroad, from Loco Wiper which is a starting position with the duties of wiping down the engine, to Enginmeer.  On the page we  find that William died of a heart attack in 1954. William worked for the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway, CBNS, most of his short life.





page 3



William is a second cousin through Elizabeth A Watters Reynolds.

William Dingle Watters

4 Oct 1894

Westville, Nova Scotia

13 Jan 1954

Stellarton, Nova Scotia