Week 4 - My Dinner Date with Great Grandmother Stella Clark Wright

I would have loved to have dinner date with many of my family some for the first time others just one more dinner together. I'd would have been on cloud 9.

May 17 1915 Lynbrook Long Island

This story is about my great grandfather Valentine Wright 1873 - 1940 and Stella Clark Wright 1876 - circa 1916. Family story had Valentine as a drunk and not very nice to his wife Stella. On my maternal side of the family.

Dinner plans with Great Grand mother Stella would be more of a working dinner. I have so many questions for her.

To begin with why were you the one who was put in Jail for 6 months when your husband didn't take care of the family (providing for family).

Second Do you think if Prohibition was law during this time do you think it would have helped you?  Maybe if he wasn't able to drink alcohol things may never have gotten this bad.

Third was any of your family living near you? I'm sure they would have noticed the abuse and lack of your husbanding providing for the family. I understand women had no rights during this time, you'd be surprised things have gotten better since the

 Fourth a story that was past down was that you set him on fire during one of his drunken state, did anything happen like that? My research is telling me something totally different. Valentine  out lived you.

I'm sorry that you experience the abuse that you did. Unfortunately abuse against women is still happening. Law has come around in 1919 women won the right to vote we still need change to make women equal partners. Maybe one day  women will no longer  be abused.


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Week 3 : Longevity

Norman Reising (1935 - 2009)  my father's baby brother out lived his 6 siblings all males. Uncle Normie even out lived his father.

Father      Daniel Webster Reising 1909 to 1941 - 31 yrs old
Siblings.  Ray M Reising.    1927 to 1989 -  61 yrs old
                 Ronald J Reising 1929 to 1974 - 45 yrs old
                 Burton S Reising 1930 to 1977 - 46 yrs old
                 Ollie Reising        1931 to 1981 - 49 yrs old
                 Henry C Reising   1933 to 1989 - 55 yrs old

One more sibling Lester Reising died as an infant.

I'm sure why Normie outlasted all the men in his immediate family. Maybe because he never married  or more likely he never worked for Sid Havey oil burner parts company. Back in the day that was a very dangerous job - chemicals / acid and fumes were deadly.

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My favorite photo for week 2 of 52 Ancestors in 52 weeks

Boy did I have trouble deciding which photo to pick for this 2nd week challenge. 

Then I ran across a photo of My Grandmother Pearl that I used to carry with my as a young teenager after her passing in 1972. I even took this photo with me all the way to RAF Mildenhal England. Grandma Pearl was the most amazing woman I ever knew and ever will know. 

This is Pearl May Combs Reising 25 July 1907 to 25 Oct 1972. A mother of 7 boys widowed to raise 6 of the boys when her husband passed away March 1941. 

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Not knowing much about my father's side of the family

When my father Henry Charles  passed away in January 1989 sparked an interest in finding out about his family. I knew his mother Grandma Pearl and my uncle's. That my grandfather Daniel Webster Reising died when my dad was 7. Grandma Pearl (Combs) Reising raised 7 boys alone with the help of family. Meet a couple of dad's Aunt's from Grandpa Danny side when I was quite young that was about it.

Henry Charles went by the name Charlie he didn't like his first name of Henry at all. Long Island New York was home, born in the town of Islip. He and his family spent much time between Inwood Nassau County New York and Islip Suffolk County New York.

One brother died as an infant Lester. Other brothers are Ray, Ronald, Olis, Burton, and with Norman being the youngest brother.

That was my starting point of what I knew. In 1989 spent many hours in the library with microfilms going through federal and state census's. What a rush with every find! 

I came upon brick walls finding my paternal grandfather side of Reising though I found much on my maternal grandmother side of Combs. Combs family line is confusing as my great grandmother Lulu maiden name was also Combs as her married name.

Now I get to do my research a more modern way I do have to input all I have on paper to computer.

This picture is from 1941 when my grandfather passed away.

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