Idea Time--I need your help

  The number of hits on my blog has dropped dramatically the last few months, with good reason; I haven't been as diligent as I should have been in keeping new things posted. I've discovered that it isn't as easy as it seems to keep cranking out family historical items that interest a large spectrum of readers. For instance, the people in my father's line couldn't care less about the folks in my mother's line and vice versa.

I recently perused the various blogs I have written over the year or so I've been publishing and it started me to thinking about how to make it not only more interesting, but how to make it interesting to everyone who visits the blog. Going down family lines as I have done in the past is okay, if the particular blog happens to be your family line. If it isn't, bye bye, and justifiably so. After a few such visits, you won’t bother coming back and I understand. I don't want that to happen, I want you to find something interesting in each and every new post I make. But how to do that and still be exploring and writing about family history is a real challenge. After all, going back just three generations produces sixteen different family lines. It makes you realize your related to a huge chunk of the world’s population but that there is an even more enormous group out there that couldn't care less about half of those ancestors you are writing about.

I don't know whether I can keep it up but I have decided to try and write and publish two blogs a week, one on each family line. Unfortunately, I'm going to be out of circulation for the next month. Genie and I are heading back across the country to visit family on both sides and to collect as much family history as we can by visiting areas we know where long ago family members lived. I am dedicated to finding and recording as much family history as I can in the time I have remaining. Genie's computer is portable so I'll try to publish a bit now and then as we go along. So, I hope you will stay with me on the journey through our families past.

As an aside, I'm writing about my own life's happenings and find it very difficult not only to keep it on track but to make it interesting reading. Very difficult indeed. So far, I've written 175 pages single spaced. One week ago the program I was using, an old version of Word Perfect, crashed and I thought for sure all was lost. I've been working on the project on and off for eight or nine years. Talk about devastated, I could have crawled under a snake’s belly wearing with a tall silk hat. My wonderful wife, Genie, came to my rescue and has been able to salvage most of that work. For that I will be forever grateful.

 
 

Thornhills at the Battle of the "Cowpens."

The American Revolutionary War was hotly contested from the first battle in 1776 until its final major engagement at Yorktown in 1781 when British General Lord Cornwallis was defeated by General Washington. The conflict, in the late stage of the war, was being fought mostly in the south. American General Horatio Gates attacked the British Army that was ravaging the southern landscape led by General Cornwallis at Camden, South Carolina and was soundly defeated. Gates was relieved of command and replaced by General Nathanael Greene, nicknamed the "Carolina Swamp Fox." At this same time, a ragged band of American militia trapped and defeated a small contingent of Tories at Kings Mountain. The war had now dragged on for over five years but was still being fought with vigor in the South. The British, though, were growing weary of both the fight and the expense. To make matters worse, the French had openly begun assisting the rebellious Colonists and had an Army coming to the aid of General Greene's forces in the South.

On his march south to engage Cornwallis, Greene recruited fighting men wherever he could find them. It was while going through southern Virginia that William Thornhill and his oldest son William joined Green's forces. William Sr. must have impressed General Greene, for he soon advanced him to the rank of Ensign and then Lieutenant. William Jr., after a few months, was promoted to the officer's rank of Ensign.

General Greene soon moved his forces south from Virgina into South Carolina. He purposely avoided any major head-on confrontation with the much larger and better trained British force. He divided his forces  between himself and General Daniel Morgan and the two contingents raided independently   throughout the countryside as they advanced. It must be remembered that much of the South was loyal to the British so Generals Greene and Morgan had their jobs cut out for them.

The Thornhills served under General Morgan and on January 17, 1781, in South Carolina, General Morgan's troops fought and won a significant battle against a large contingent of General Cornwallis's forces. That battle comes down to us in history as the battle of  the "Cowpens"  because it was fought, literally, in a large clearing made for livestock grazing, with an extensive set of cow holding pens.

Serving with the British force was a Colonel Banistre Tarleton, one of Cornwallis's best fighting officers. In an earlier engagement, which Tarleton's forces had won, 120 Continental soldiers had been captured and disarmed. When asked what should be done with the prisoners, Tarleton ordered that they be shot on the spot. No wonder those serving in the American armies hated the British. Unfortunately, Colonel Tarleton was treated much more humanely by General Morgan and survived the Revolution and was able to return to his family in England when the war was over.

The two William Thornhills served on for a few more months under Generals Greene and Morgan. After their agreed upon term of service was  completed they returned home much to the great delight of their families I am sure. William Sr. lived another seven years, dying in September of 1788. William Jr., easily the longest lived Thornhill I can find, indeed the longest lived male in my entire genealogy, lived to the amazing age of 98.  He died in Breckenridge County, Kentucky on December 3, 1855.
     

Hello Folks, I'm Back--Ohh I've been lazy!!!! Yes But----

          I have no real excuse for being absent from the blog for so long--lazy?  No, I think it had to do with the lack of  responders to my output. It's hard to know whether any one is reading the thing or not. I have a lot of  information, and I mean a lot, on the many families and different family lines that make up our heritage. Over many years of research  I have accumulated an enormous amount of data that I want to pass on to other family members. So, I thought of using the Blog format to do that. I had hopes that other family members would add additional information as we went along, but that didn't happen. I know, it's my thing not the reader's, so I should quit belly-aching and get on with it or wrap it up. But what  excites me, is the potential for adding so much more knowledge of our families history through OUR communicating, that I just can't quit.  So if you have taken a peek back to see whether there has been any activity since you last visited, nope, but there will be soon. So I hope to see you soon--and to hear from you.
     Undoubtedly the most difficult thing in writing a family blog is to keep the follower's interest as  the expanse  of family lines that occur within a few generations is mind boggling. If I move back just three generations, to the parents of  my great grandparents, of whom there are eight, my family lines have now expanded to sixteen different family lines. And I have several lines back at least ten generations.  Even my first cousins, the children of my aunts and uncles, couldn't give a hoot about eight of those family lines. They aren't related. So how do I write across this spectrum of  my, our, ancestry and still keep you interested enough to visit the blog  to read about our  ancestors on a regular basis?  I don't know, but I'm going to give it a try. I look forward to your regular visits. Drop in and let me know your thoughts. Lets make this our family blog.

BRRRRrrrrrr! 16 Last Night

OOOPPPS!!!! I wrote that little bit below on the weather about ten days ago. Since then we've had a touch of snow and more cold weather. Nice today though, February 22nd.  

     It's not easy to keep coming up with things to write about our ancestors but there is more out there to be had than you think. For instance, I learned that William Holt, an older brother to our ancestor Thomas, lost his wife, Mary Means, to Rabies in 1788. She was just twenty five years old. I can't imagine such a tragedy.
    
      It was 9* night before last and my water line froze) Guess what, it's still frozen. It's now 11:05 and still only 26*. Yesterday it reached a high of 25---Brrrrr. I was out digging a little this morning but dedided to wait until it gets above freezing at least.  Still no water in the house. Ahhh, 2pm, not even a trickle but temp is 38, maybe by dark---I hope.

     YIPPEEE, I have a volunteer for Beaver County Gravesites for my Gravestone picture taking project. I just tried to add it to my blog but it disappeared. At almost 85--4 more months---I'm not the most accompolished character with the computer, but I'm trying so stick with me.  As soon as I find it I'll add it. Thank you for volunteering. We can have a lot of fun with this project. I'll get busy now and get my site set up---lets hear from volunteers anywhere, we have long-gone relatives all over the place, not just Beaver County, Pa. This could be fun and also informative as too where our roots are. Any of you out there who read this can send pictures of Gravestones of their ancestors graves to be added to the file whether I ask for them or not. In fact, that would be great. Also, any family stories about any of our ancestral lines that you have would be great. I'll publish every one I get. Be sure to give me permission to publish the pictures and/or story when you send it.

Back At Last, also, with a "FIND A GRAVE" proposal

I haven't the foggiest notion whether there is anyone still visiting my blog. I hope there is as I'm finally back---for awhile anyway. Part of the long delay time was the computer and part was just plain laziness on my part. And, part on my reader's shoulders. It's not easy to keep coming up with family data. I'm using what I have and had hoped to get a few followers to participate to enlarge the info about our collective families.
      I've come up with a thought as to how you can participate. My wife, Genie, has begun working as a local picture-taker volunteer with an outfit called "Find a Grave." Upon request by "Find a Grave" she takes photos of  the requested gravestones  in cemeteries locally which are then published on the "Find a Grave" site. It's a large national organization. It's all done on the Internet.  I had a brainstorm the other day: why didn't I do the same thing but getting my blog readers---you know who---take pictures of gravestones of our own long-gone relatives and publish them on my blog site, or on another site with a link to my site as well as a link to the picture providers site if the picture provider so chooses. Crazy? Maybe. But could be interesting and informative.
     It would work something like this: One of you, anyone reading  my family blog, would request a photo of a grave of such and such ancestor who is buried in this or that cemetery in "anytown." Any blog reader who is in the vicinity of that grave site would take a photo of the grave and send it to me on the Internet for publication on the blog.  
     I'll be back real soon with another ancestral family data item. Boy it would be great to have pictures of  at least some or even one of their gravestones to go along with the history. By golly, I have pictures of a few of our ancestors' graves. I'll do one so you can get the idea of what I'm after. I'm not after you to write a blog, although that would be nice. I want to set up an affiliated site with family photos and photos of graves of ancestors---some who passed away long before photography was even invented.
     Let me know what you think.

Computer Problems

This is not an excuse for tardiness, this is actually happening. I'm not sure what's wrong but my computer has been going wacky lately so if the young lady that keeps the thing going can take it, off it goes for a check up.
     With a little luck I'll be back to you in a few days. I know you can hardly wait---hmmmnnnn!!!!!
  To do this upsets me no end, especially with the holidays coming up. Be back as soon as I can, Bob

Christmas Just Around The Corner

It's hard to believe the year is almost over. It's even harder to believe that this will be my 84th Christmas. It seems that it was only yesterday when we kids trooped down the stairs in wild excitement to see what Santa had left us under the tree. Ohh those wonderful tree's. Color beyond belief and packages galore spread everywhere under the heavily decorated branches. Such wonderful memories. Ahh, but there is always a negative side when you are old, you remember those who where there then but are no longer with us. You know though, it's nice to remember them and renew your love for them.
    
I've been pondering about what to put in my blog to commemorate those wonderful  Christmas's past. I'm open to suggestions.   My sister Virginia, Sis, and I are the only two remaining of the immediate family who participated in those wonderful Christmas mornings there at Holtdale so long ago but yet so fresh in my mind. I am working on my memoirs and have put a section in them on those wonderful mornings. I may just use that.

I get quite a few visitors to the blog but very few comments. I'd hoped to work up a dialog with those who are remembering along with me in the blog. Unfortunately and to my great disappointment that hasn't happened. I suppose I'm partially to blame by not being more prompt and prolific in my submissions. I'm going to try and do better next year so stick with me.  Maybe I'll somehow entice you to join me verbally. I hope so.  Bob