So here's another part of this that didn't fit. Hamlin studied law under Samuel Fessenden, who was the father of William Pitt Fessenden, the famous Civil War senator. But the reason I'm writing this here is that I was... amused?... to see that if you look up SF on Wikipedia, it says he married... and that he and his wife had several children. And that his children became politicians. All true. But they kind of skip over the fact that WPF was not his father's wife's son.... Funny that that still sticks in people's craws all this time later.
Joanne Freeman covered Fessenden in Field of Blood. I happened to be walking next to his grave in Portland at the time. The dead rise to speak. Kismet.
The Wikipedia entry for William Pitt Fessenden says his father was Samuel Fessenden and his mother was Ruth Greene. "The parents were unmarried." I take that to mean neither was married at the time -- or does it mean they were not married to each other? And the entry for Samuel Fessenden does not name the wife with whom he had several children. Why so vague, I wonder.
The quirks of Wikipedia. You can become an editor, and if you can find reasonable sources, you can edit those historical facts into the Wiki entry, subject to Wikipedia's editorial standards.
Alas, Wikipedia does not want actual experts in the subject of the article to write or edit them. I have experienced numerous instances where I have tried to correct woefully inaccurate information, only to have my edits rejected because I am a recognized "expert." I am also plagiarized all over Wikipedia in my field. Sigh.
Understood and agreed. Sometimes it's a great source - some times it's woefully misdirected by its attempts at egalitarian editing and editorial contribution standards.
I've managed to get my very minor contributions to stick by simply announcing what I know will be considered bias (no matter how well-sourced or well-received) but citing to other sources for authority for my edits.
So I wonder if there is a birth certificate or record of some type that lists the mother. My initial thought was she was perhaps a servant raised by him and his wife.
I have a vague family history but no solid records that my mother, born in 1929, was born to an Italian woman down the street. I did not learn this until both of my parents passed and there was no family to ask. It seems my grandfather was not a faithful husband. Even the woman that was the only grandmother I knew was the sister or half or step sister of my mothers тАЬrealтАЭ mother. This has been impossible for me to research. I am also supposed to be a descendant of John Quincy AdamтАЩs but the family member with the proof of that never shared it.
I love this family history stuff and have spent many days at the National Archives in Kansas City reading microfilm. I could not even find my grandfatherтАЩs birth certificate from 1895.
I shared this post with my 18 year-old grandson hoping to teach him something.
I have to share a true and funny tale with you! My mother was born in 1929 too. She is still alive, but lost in dementia, so there's no retrieving anything these days. However, several years ago I was writing a children's book based upon my grandmother's life (her mother) and I asked her to read it and give me feedback on accuracy, as I was writing about primitive farm life and was out of my league, recalling only bits and pieces of childhood memories. Mama liked it, but whispered (literally - whispered), "don't tell anyone, but (name of uncle inserted here) is really my half brother. Mama was already pregnant when she married Dad...I think his real father was (insert name of Scottish colonel visiting the US at that time.)" This never made its way into the (unpublished) book and has never been shared, except right here with you where it will be buried in that famous Cloud in the sky where all things on social media end up going to rest!
It's those little facts that make history fascinating - reminds me of my HS History teach who was the most interesting history teach I'd ever had the pleasure of sitting in their classroom. It's your ilk of teaching that makes the student listen - the characters of our past become people, not just names and dates that is so quickly forgotten. Thank you for making these history "lessons" come to life as they need to be to appreciate the true meaning.
When "democracy" can no longer in principle degenerate into a food fight, something is terribly wrong. The rebirth-struggle of death defying renewal is a composting process: rot serves to fertilize the inspired life-force powerfully motivated to get some distance on the persistent flies and bad smells. The urge to live is often too focused on running toward, and not enough on the often more credible running from.
With our limited searchability on Substack, we're lucky I remembered Matthew Goulet's name! "Deep gardening" builds on Sadpanic's metaphor about composting to fertilize democracy.
Accepting the truth of that statement, the next upsurge of democratic activism will be powerful indeed because the layer of fertilizer runs very deep right now.
What a great story...I love how you tell them and how applicable they are to current events. Now may we figure out how to reclaim democracy again.
So here's another part of this that didn't fit. Hamlin studied law under Samuel Fessenden, who was the father of William Pitt Fessenden, the famous Civil War senator. But the reason I'm writing this here is that I was... amused?... to see that if you look up SF on Wikipedia, it says he married... and that he and his wife had several children. And that his children became politicians. All true. But they kind of skip over the fact that WPF was not his father's wife's son.... Funny that that still sticks in people's craws all this time later.
Joanne Freeman covered Fessenden in Field of Blood. I happened to be walking next to his grave in Portland at the time. The dead rise to speak. Kismet.
The Wikipedia entry for William Pitt Fessenden says his father was Samuel Fessenden and his mother was Ruth Greene. "The parents were unmarried." I take that to mean neither was married at the time -- or does it mean they were not married to each other? And the entry for Samuel Fessenden does not name the wife with whom he had several children. Why so vague, I wonder.
The quirks of Wikipedia. You can become an editor, and if you can find reasonable sources, you can edit those historical facts into the Wiki entry, subject to Wikipedia's editorial standards.
Alas, Wikipedia does not want actual experts in the subject of the article to write or edit them. I have experienced numerous instances where I have tried to correct woefully inaccurate information, only to have my edits rejected because I am a recognized "expert." I am also plagiarized all over Wikipedia in my field. Sigh.
Understood and agreed. Sometimes it's a great source - some times it's woefully misdirected by its attempts at egalitarian editing and editorial contribution standards.
I've managed to get my very minor contributions to stick by simply announcing what I know will be considered bias (no matter how well-sourced or well-received) but citing to other sources for authority for my edits.
Wikipedia is accurate at least 51% of the time.
This must be a guess since no one knows what constitues 100% wikipedia.
Linda, are you intimating that Wikipedia is run by a bunch of today's Republicans? LOL
ЁЯШТ
So I wonder if there is a birth certificate or record of some type that lists the mother. My initial thought was she was perhaps a servant raised by him and his wife.
I have a vague family history but no solid records that my mother, born in 1929, was born to an Italian woman down the street. I did not learn this until both of my parents passed and there was no family to ask. It seems my grandfather was not a faithful husband. Even the woman that was the only grandmother I knew was the sister or half or step sister of my mothers тАЬrealтАЭ mother. This has been impossible for me to research. I am also supposed to be a descendant of John Quincy AdamтАЩs but the family member with the proof of that never shared it.
I love this family history stuff and have spent many days at the National Archives in Kansas City reading microfilm. I could not even find my grandfatherтАЩs birth certificate from 1895.
I shared this post with my 18 year-old grandson hoping to teach him something.
I have to share a true and funny tale with you! My mother was born in 1929 too. She is still alive, but lost in dementia, so there's no retrieving anything these days. However, several years ago I was writing a children's book based upon my grandmother's life (her mother) and I asked her to read it and give me feedback on accuracy, as I was writing about primitive farm life and was out of my league, recalling only bits and pieces of childhood memories. Mama liked it, but whispered (literally - whispered), "don't tell anyone, but (name of uncle inserted here) is really my half brother. Mama was already pregnant when she married Dad...I think his real father was (insert name of Scottish colonel visiting the US at that time.)" This never made its way into the (unpublished) book and has never been shared, except right here with you where it will be buried in that famous Cloud in the sky where all things on social media end up going to rest!
It's those little facts that make history fascinating - reminds me of my HS History teach who was the most interesting history teach I'd ever had the pleasure of sitting in their classroom. It's your ilk of teaching that makes the student listen - the characters of our past become people, not just names and dates that is so quickly forgotten. Thank you for making these history "lessons" come to life as they need to be to appreciate the true meaning.
When "democracy" can no longer in principle degenerate into a food fight, something is terribly wrong. The rebirth-struggle of death defying renewal is a composting process: rot serves to fertilize the inspired life-force powerfully motivated to get some distance on the persistent flies and bad smells. The urge to live is often too focused on running toward, and not enough on the often more credible running from.
HCR Reader Matthew Goulet offered us the concept of "deep gardening" to keep our democratic process.
pls repost that analogy?
With our limited searchability on Substack, we're lucky I remembered Matthew Goulet's name! "Deep gardening" builds on Sadpanic's metaphor about composting to fertilize democracy.
Accepting the truth of that statement, the next upsurge of democratic activism will be powerful indeed because the layer of fertilizer runs very deep right now.
No s$#t
So to speak.
Amen!