A Trip to the Library

Made a trip to the Denver Public Library while on vacation. Spent several hours searching microfilm for obituaries and found several. Also discovered that the Denver newspapers had few obituaries prior to about 1925. They seem to be a regular news feature after that date.

Among the most detailed obituary was that of Arthur J. Snow, my second great uncle. His obituary is from the 18 October 1927 edition of the Denver Post and gives the name of his surviving wife Katherine, his sons John, Wendell, and Robert, and daughter Hazel. The obituary goes on to explain that his sister, Dorothea died just one month earlier, and that his parents, Christian and Mary Snow, came to Denver in 1880.

Another happy discovery came from the obituary of a great great grandfather, George W. Mathews. One of the great values of obituaries is that survivors are named, and his includes all of his surviving sons and daughters. The happy discovery was a daughter survivor named Mrs. Lyle Gardner. I hadn't hear this name previously, but suspected that Lyle Gardner was the husband of my great aunt Flora. A conversation with her family's informant confirmed my suspicion. Several searches for Flora Gardner provided enough information to document her death and burial location.

George Jefferson Mathews (1823-1862)

Miscellaneous Notes:

• My search for the ancestry of George Jefferson Mathews continues. I read in an online blog that sometimes children were given middle names that matched their mother's maiden names. I'll be giving that a try. 
• Also, with regards to dear George. I reviewed his widow's pension file recently and found that two affidavits therein claim that he was from Virginia instead of Meigs County, Ohio. I've suspected that his ancestors were Virginians given the proximity of Meigs county to Virginia. Another search avenue . . . .
• Finally, via the now defunct Genealogy.com forums I discovered a 2nd cousin who is searching for family information. Scott Mathews is the son of Lyman Mathews, direct descendants of the above mentioned, often searched but always elusive, George Jefferson Mathews. Alas, my efforts to contact Scott have, up to now, been fruitless.