SNGF - Pick an Ancestor: What Story Lines Do You Want to Explore?

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:

It's Saturday Night again  

Time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

Our mission from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings, is to:

1)  Pick one of your ancestors that you want to know more about.  Based on your knowledge of their life, what story lines do you want to explore?

Here’s mine:
My maternal grandfather, Tom J. Johnston, died when I was 19 years old. He was born on 7 October 1912 in Comanche County, Texas. He died in his sleep on 11 July 1973 in Contra Costa County, California. We called him Tom-Tom when we were young, and later just Tom.

What I know about him: he was the oldest son of Thomas N. Johnston and Nell L. Hutson, and the third child of five. He worked most of his life as a carpenter, though he was in business with his brother, Hal, in the pool hall and taxi service in Walnut Creek, California, in the late 1940s. He loved to fish and make furniture. I have a couple of pieces, as do my siblings.

As kids, we thought him very gruff and not approachable—certainly not a cuddly grandpa. So, because of this, I am limited to what I have discovered in my research.

What was life like growing up in the rural part of Comanche County?

You were only 7 when your mother died? Who took care of the family?

How did you do in school? What was your favorite subject? Did you like any sports?

What is your version of meeting your spouse? What was the wedding like?

How did you learn to do carpentry work?

Where did you get the ideas for the wishing well lamp, the bar, the picture frames, and other items you built in your shop?

What did you think about when you fished at Clear Lake?

Why did you stop doing business with your brother? Did you have a falling out? Did you need more money because of buying the house in Gregory Gardens? Was that when you started working at the junior college?

Which pet was your favorite?

Well, that is a start. Being able to answer some of these questions would add to his life story. I am planning to write a picture book about Tom-Tom and Mam-ma to give to my siblings for Christmas.

Copyright © 2011-2025 by Lisa S. Gorrell, Mam-ma's Southern Family, All rights reserved.

Comments

  1. Linda StufflebeanSeptember 21, 2025 at 6:51 AM

    That's a varied range of questions. Imagine if we could find the answers. I like your fishing question the best. What do fishermen think about all that time they spend fishing?

    ReplyDelete
  2. TessSeptember 21, 2025 at 7:42 PM

    Great questions - it must have been so hard for him to lose his mother so young...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Janice M. SellersSeptember 27, 2025 at 11:54 PM

    My favorite question is "What is your version of meeting your spouse." That suggests you have Mam-ma's version already?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisa S. GorrellSeptember 28, 2025 at 7:08 AM

      Yes, I have her version. She lived to nearly 100, so I do have some stories from her. She was always interested in what I found about her family.

      Delete

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