2018 4 Davie Dossier page 1
DAVIE DOSSIER
Issued by
Davie County Historical and Genealogical Society
Mocksville, North Carolina
October 2018, Issue 4
Preserving special things
Davie Dossier page 2
DAVIE COUNTY HISTORICAL AND GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY
President, Linda Leonard
Vice President, Marcia Phillips
Secretary, Pat Mason
Treasurer, Marie Craig
Board of Directors, Claude Horn
Dossier Editor, Marie Craig
Webmaster, Marie Craig
Our Website is https://sites.google.com/view/dchgs .
Historical Data to research is http://www.daviecountync.gov/440/Genealogy-Local-History .
Other Websites about Davie County genealogy and history:
http://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Davie_County%2C_North_Carolina
http://ncgenweb.us/nc/davie/
Meetings are on the fourth Thursdays at 7 pm at Davie County Library History Room.
January 25, Bring item related to Valentine’s Day
February 22, Field Trip to Register of Deeds Office, Brent Shoaf, Registrar
March 22, Floods of July 1916, Western North Carolina video, and discussion of Davie County flooding
April 26, Speaker: Ed Southern, The Race to the Dan: The Retreat that Won the Revolution
May 5, Help with Daniel Boone Festival on the Square in Mocksville
June 28, Marcia Phillips description of her new book, Davie County Mavericks
September 27, Lecture by Robert Alvin Crum, “Return to the Land of My Ancestors”
October 25, Marie Craig sharing World War One stories from her book, Davie County in World War One
November 15
FUTURE CONFERENCES
Federation of Genealogical Societies: August 21-24, 2019, Washington DC https://fgs.org/conferences/
National Genealogical Society: May 8-11, 2019, St. Charles MO. https://www.ngsgenealogy.org/
RootsTech: February 27 – March 2, 2019 in Salt Lake City. https://www.rootstech.org/ Talks are archived.
Back issues of the Davie Dossier are online at
http://www.daviecountync.gov/440/Genealogy-Local-History .
More and more research items about Davie County are being uploaded for use on your computer at home.
See http://www.daviecountync.gov/440/Genealogy-Local-History .
Genealogy data in Bibles, Daniel Boone Family info, and Flossie Martin records.
Davie Dossier page 3
PRESERVING
Three Situations
:
1. In the 1980s, a man came into the Family
History Center where I volunteered and wanted to
buy blank genealogical forms, such as pedigree
charts and family group sheets. I knew he had
compiled a big history of his family, so I asked
about the forms and if he was helping someone.
His response: “My house burned and all my work is
gone.”
2. A man, about 65, supervised his aunt’s
stay in a care center. She had stored all her
belongings including very old letters and vintage
photographs of the family in his basement. At her
death, he took them all to the dump.
3. Lois had a valuable piece of furniture that
had belonged to an ancestor. She had two daughters
who both wanted to inherit it. Lois didn’t know
what to do about the problem, so did nothing. One
of the daughters hurried to the house at her mother’s
death and took the item to her house. Her sister was
so angry that she never spoke to her again.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO PREVENT THESE
PROBLEMS?
Discussion in 2018:
1. Luckily, it is easy to make copies of
genealogical data today. In 1980s, not so easy.
Copy machines were just being installed, and the
quality was not good. It was a paper world with a
few extras by means of carbon paper. We live in a
totally different world with most people owning
computers and printers that also serve as copy
machines. External hard drives, CDs, and flash
drives make it easy to create backup copies of data
and photographs. Storing your hard work on the
cloud with DropBox, Google Drive, etc. is a good
idea. If you’ve spent money and lots of effort on
your family history research, you certainly don’t
want to lose it. Other methods are saving your
family trees, photos, videos, and stories to
Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, and/or MyHeritage.
There’s no reason for you to lose all your
genealogical data in this wonderful technology age.
2. If you have drawers of files and boxes of
original photos and a big library of reference books,
you need to decide what to do with those before
your children or executor has to decide. Everybody
is not as zealous and excited about family history as
you are. Don’t assume that the local library would
love to have all your papers. They may not be
helpful to someone else, and the library may be too
full to contain them. If you’d like to inherit papers
and photographs from a researcher in your family,
let the person and the executor know that.
3. Many years ago, in the comic strip For
Better or Worse, the elderly parents were moving to
a smaller home. Their son and daughter flew up to
help them declutter and move. On the plane, they
got into a terrible argument about who was going to
end up owning the old pump organ. They pouted
the rest of the flight. When they arrived, the father
told them that he had already done some of the
sorting and discarding and given “that old organ
that nobody wanted” to the church. So, neither one
of them received it. If you have belongings that are
special, try to decide who will inherit it and make a
note of it, tell all heirs about it, and possibly include
it in your will. Perhaps you can eliminate future
arguments. The nicest people can turn greedy over
property and money.
TOMBSTONES
Special care must be taken when you find an old tombstone that is difficult to read. Very old stones can
be brittle, so they need a tender touch. Pushing on them to do a rubbing, or using caustic cleaning chemicals
can damage them in a hurry. One of the greatest helps to us is the Website www.FindAGrave.com. Perhaps
someone has placed a photograph of your ancestor’s marker on that site that is much clearer than the tombstone
is now. If you have photos you took in the past, you should upload those onto this free site.
Davie Dossier page 4
CONSERVATION of HEIRLOOMS
ENVIRONMENT:
A. Light - Ultraviolet is most damaging (fading, staining);
infrared and visible light are harmful, too.
1. Don't let sun fall on heirlooms
2. Apply UV-filtering solar-window films
3. Use low wattage incandescent lamps
B. Temperature - Each thing has its individual rate of expansion. 70 degrees is best temperature.
C. Relative Humidity - 50% is best.
D. Air Pollution -
particulate: smoke, dust, fireplaces, oil burning furnaces;
gaseous: fresh carpeting, oil-based paints, plywood, adhesives, oak lumber, wool.
You should vent your kitchen and furnace.
Change filters often, and clean the building often.
E. Pests - insects, rodents, birds. Eliminate source. Don't have house plants near your valuables – they
have bugs and spiders. Don't have food near your valuable. It may spill, or it may attract bugs.
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES:
Silver is damaged by tarnish.
Wood and silver don't like each other -- store separately.
Silk and silver don't like each other.
Bronze is tin and copper; brass is zinc and copper.
Iron rusts. To clean it, wear rubber gloves. Use mineral spirits with steel wool. Use good ventilation -- it's
inflammable. Rinse with mineral spirits. After 24 hours, seal with floor paste wax and then buff.
To display an item, you should use low light level and correct temperature and relative humidity. Item should
be placed to discourage handling. Display case should not be of oak. Paint should be latex enamels. Papers
should be acid-free. Fabrics should be plant fibers, but not wool or silk. Special UV-filtering plastics are
available.
Furniture: keep away from vents. Don't use oil to clean. Wax it with paste wax annually. Buff. Vacuum
upholstery gently -- don't pull into vacuum tube. To clean off mildew, use 1 quart distilled water with 1 capful
Lysol.
Textiles: to clean, used distilled water in clean basin with Ivory liquid. Wash gently. Pat between towels.
Store clothes on padded hangers or acid-free paper. Put this paper inside folds. When you open the fabric, fold
it the next time at a different place. It is best to roll instead of fold. Use Lysol with swab to kill mildew.
Books: storage at 70 degrees temperature and 50% relative humidity in low light. Vacuum gently. Store books
so they don't sag or lean at angles to damage pages and covers. Scrapbooks: Use acid-free paper and mylar.
Don't use PVC plastic --it will make photos discolor and fade. Scrap-books should lie flat -- a curved page will
put stress on the pictures and cause them to crack.
Davie Dossier page 5
STORAGE:
Artifacts should be stored clean and dust-free. Containers and wrappings should be acid-free. Do not use
newspaper and old liquor boxes. Shelving used for storage purposes should be firmly secured to the floor or an
adjacent wall. It should not lean or move. Items should be placed on the shelves to avoid sliding and
scratching. They should not touch. When transporting, wear cotton or latex gloves. Hold firmly with two
hands. Have someone open doors for you. Secure in a box with packing material.
CONSERVATION AND STORAGE SUPPLIES
University Products, Inc.
PO Box 101
Holyoke Mass. 01041
www.universityproducts.com/
Light Impressions
439 Monroe Avenue
Rochester NY 14607
1-800-828-6216
www.lightimpressionsdirect.com
Gaylord Brothers
Syracuse NY
1-800-448-6160
www.gaylord.com
FOR MORE INFORMATION -- BOOKS AND INFORMATION:
Caring for Your Collections, edited by Arthur W. Schultz
RECORD KEEPING
Keep good records on your heirlooms by filling out a card or paper form:
where you got them,
who owned them,
your memories of the objects,
who inherits them
Attach a photograph of the object.
If the objects have monetary value, you might want to get extra insurance.
Share the story of the object with your children and grandchildren.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
COCO
Walt Disney created a movie called Coco. At the insistence of a fellow researcher, I checked it out of
the library and watched it. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie as it related to two of my own personal themes:
importance of music and importance of family. It is based on the Spanish custom of “Day of the Dead” or Dia
de los Muertos on November 1 each year. Families assemble a collection of photos of deceased ancestors and
their favorite foods in a display in their homes to honor them. There is a belief that each of them should be
remembered.
What a neat idea to honor the deceased family.
Some Spanish people say that a person has three deaths: when their heart stops beating, when they’re
buried, and when nobody ever says their name again.
Davie Dossier page 6
PRESERVING YOUR OWN PERSONAL HISTORY
You need to write your life history. It could be in two formats (or combined into one):
1.) Diary/Journal/Written Form or 2.) Scrapbook/Souvenir/Photograph form.
JOURNALS:
To begin writing a life story may require time and effort, but it offers many satisfactions. Writing a life story
provides a person with the opportunity to review his own life, the pleasant memories, the difficult experiences, and the
goals he has formulated. In addition, the life story is a means of preserving an individual’s memory for future
generations to appreciate.
If a person illustrates his life story with pictures, it takes on a new meaning for him. He sees himself as he
progresses through each phase of growing. He visualizes himself as a continually growing, progressing human being. If
he provides visual records, his descendants can truly get to know him, and they will appreciate this. If he would desire to
make this life story more meaningful, he will add pictures with narrative statements about each one and the date, time or
event it represents. – from Hearts of the Children by Marjorie R. Judkins.
What to include:
spiritual experiences
important events and accomplishments
traditions
feelings and opinions
reactions and interpretations
How to organize the material: chronologically or by categories
Suggestions and items to consider in writing your personal history:
The history of your family
Parents, brothers, and sisters
Your birthplace
Early recollections
Early church activities
Home tasks, economic and religious conditions in the home
Schools
Youthful association and activities
Military service and job experiences
Courtship and marriage
Your children
Your hobbies
Special celebrations and holidays
Moving
Your plans and hopes for the future
Encouragement and counsel to your descendants
SCRAPBOOKS:
Collect your records and mementoes: birth certificate, marriage certificate, certificates of ordination or baptism, old
photos, programs, honors, awards, newspaper clippings, and diplomas. You might find these in various unrelated places
in your home. Keep these things together and don’t compile them (or copies of them) until you are sure you’ve found all
your papers so that you can put them in order.
Then, make some space on a big table or in the floor. Sort out all that you have collected. Divide your life into three
periods: childhood, youth, and adulthood. Choose one section and box up temporarily the rest.
Start with your childhood section and put these things into order chronologically. Then repeat for the other 2 sections.
When you compile items and photos, label them with names, date, place, and event.
Davie Dossier page 7
BOOKS AND MAPS FOR SALE, check to DCHGS
Title Author Total
Cost # Cost
Davie County. A Brief History, paperback James W. Wall, 128 pages $ 6.50
The Boone Families in Davie County Wall, Howell Boone, Flossie Martin $ 8.00
Davie County Marriages 1836-1900 Nancy K. Murphy $25.00
Davie County Marriages 1901-1959 Nancy K. Murphy $25.00
Davie County Cemeteries, a 2-volume set D.C. Historical/Gen. Soc. $55.00
1850 Federal Census-Davie County Forsyth Genealogical Society $15.00
1860 Federal Census-Davie County Nancy K. Murphy and Everette Sain $20.00
1870 Federal Census-Davie County Nancy K. Murphy and Everette Sain $20.00
POSTCARDS OF DAVIE CO. SCENES, (set of 8) $ 2.50
CD of all issues Davie Dossier since 1987 $ 7.00
Maps: Prices below, postage is $5, mailing tube is $2;
All four maps cost $12, for example
Lagle Land Grant Map, $2
Hughes Historical Map, 1700's, drawn in 1977, $1
J.T. Alderman Map, 1887 , $1
Wilson F. Merrell Map, 1928, $1
Davie County Heritage Book, cost is $45; Make check to Davie County Heritage Book. Use DCHGS address below.
The Historic Architecture of Davie Co., cost is $30;
History of Davie County, hardback, by James W. Wall, 449 pages; cost is $30;
Make check to Davie County Public Library. Use DCHGS address below.
Davie County History Books by Marie Craig. Check to Marie Craig, 276 Park Ave., Mocksville NC 27028:
History of Davie County Schools, 318 pages, has photos, locations, longitude/latitude, names of students, and
teachers. There is an 18 page index of 3,222 names. 318 pages. $43
Davie County in World War One, 670 biographies of Davie men and women who served, photographs, old
letters, description of military bases, and extensive index. 400 pages. $45
Davie County Veterans’ Memorial, has lists of all war deaths, biographies and photos of WW2, Korean,
Vietnam, and Beirut Bombing deaths. Tom Ferebee’s 32 minute talk at the dedication in 1987 is included.
190 pages. $33.
Remembering Davie County Protection and Service Personnel, contains biographies of the five law
enforcement personnel who died on duty and also photos and descriptions of the monument erected in their
memory. The monument also honors all first responders in Davie County. Paperback, 14 pages. $17.
Davie County in the Spanish-American War, contains biographies of the 15 men who served in this war and
the resulting war in the Philippines. 65 pages. $20
Mary Ellen’s Diary, 1924, the fictitious diary of a twelve year old girl in 1924 in Mocksville. Included are
clippings and illustrations to verify the events. Paperback. 49 pages. $15.
Cana Connections, 201 pages, by Betty Etchison West; Life in Cana in the Thirties and Forties and Special People
with Cana Connections. There are many biographies and photos of people and buildings. Order from Betty West, 3532
NC Hwy. 801 North, Mocksville NC 27028. Make check to Betty West for $35, which includes tax and shipping.
Looking Back at Davie County II by Charles Crenshaw and Ron Smith. $45. Mail orders to Charles Crenshaw, 421
Park Avenue, Mocksville NC 27028
Davie County Mavericks, Four Men Who Changed History, the stories of Daniel Boone, Hinton Helper, Thomas
Ferebee and Peter Ney in Davie County, by Marcia Phillips. $25. Mail orders to Marcia Phillips, 315 McClamrock
Road, Mocksville NC 27028.
DCHGS
371 North Main Street
Mocksville NC 27028
Davie Dossier page 8
Davie county historical/genealogical society
371 North Main Street
Mocksville NC 27028
If you would like to receive your Dossier as a PDF attachment in an E-mail instead of a paper copy,
please send an E-mail message to the editor at dchgslist@gmail.com.
Please state “E-mail my Dossier instead of mailing a paper copy” and include your E-mail address. This
saves money, time, postage, effort, and paper.
The number beside your name, above, shows the year for which you last paid $5 dues. Example: if you have a 17 by your
name, you have paid dues through 2017. 2019 Dues can be paid now!
MEMBERSHIP for a calendar year is still just $5.00/year. Life Membership is $100 per person.
We are 501(c)(3) and dues are tax deductible.
Below is a registration form for your use; checks, payable to the Society.
DAVIE COUNTY HISTORICAL AND GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY (DCHGS)
Davie County Public Library, 371 Main Street
Mocksville, North Carolina 27028
NAME ________________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS _____________________________________________________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS ______________________________________________________________
Send my copy by E-mail instead of paper; yes, no