Happy Thanksgiving!

Good morning,  Family Trails readers. Here are just a few little snippets to encourage you as you prepare for your own special Thanksgiving day. 

Above and below is a sweet card from long ago…. to inspire you for today's Thanksgiving!

 I do not recognize this name inside the card…

 Here is a card sent in 1940, postmarked from Louisville (no state needed on the envelope then, I guess!) It is addressed to Mr. and Mrs. C.S. Weaver, Talladega, Ala. (No street address needed!) From "Circle Four", First Baptist Church, W.M.S.
Look in the list of the ladies who signed the card… a Mrs. C. D. Weaver signed….any clues as to who this is? Aunt Era?
Update on  this: I wrote this last week, and since then I have gone over and over in my head about how Aunt Era's name got on a card from Louisville, Kentucky. here's what I think… I think the card is from "Circle Four" at the First Baptist Church in Talladega. Some of the other last names are familiar names to me through my mother's stories of girls she grew up with, Jenkins, Riddle, and Hall. Maybe Grandfather Weaver saved an envelope from Louisville and slid this card inside.

Surely Grandfather Weaver was receiving mail from Louisville at that time though. I need to check my dates, but his grandson, William Weaver, and his grandson-in -law, Louis Armstrong, studied to be ministers in Louisville.
Oh, the mysteries….

So is anyone looking for some holiday inspiration? How about this Weaver Family classic…

"The 1-2-3-4 Cake with Caramel Icing"

Lora Antoinette Weaver Ragsdale-"Tee"-wrote these recipe cards and gave them to me at my kitchen shower in 1981. Tee's Caramel Cake is definitely a great inspiration for all cooks planning a family gathering. 

Quote by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I am thankful to the readers of Family Trails this Thanksgiving. Our family story is special, and it is  an honor for me to write it. As our readers' numbers grow, I am touched that such a personal story speaks to those who are in other families. I guess the truth is …we all have a family, and we all have a story. I think when someone reads about our family, it helps them connect to their own families just a little bit tighter. If even one little blog post helps any of us in a small way to connect, to reach out, to remember others who may not have such a strong family on which to lean, then this little adventure is on a good path…

So if you are traveling this Thanksgiving or staying home…eating turkey and dressing or Chinese take-out, I wish all of you a very blessed and safe Thanksgiving holiday.

Quote by Charles Dickens

Thanksgiving Treasures

 Good afternoon, Family Trails! This week's Weaver Wednesday edition is a little late today! 

I hope you have all had a great week and that you have stayed warm during this Arctic blast. Those of us here in the sunny South have been taken by surprise… now where did I pack up those hats and gloves? I still have not found them! 

Oh, well, let's "talk turkey"! Or rather,  let's"talk Thanksgiving!" I cannot think about the turkey yet!

Let's get back to the scrapbooks of Grandfather Weaver. Tucked away among many articles that Grandfather Weaver saved are several publications about the pilgrims. This picture above is the front and back cover of a little booklet, "The Story of the Pilgrims." On the back cover can be seen the John Hancock Life Insurance Company logo.  Maybe one of our knowledgable kinfolk can tell us if he had a policy from this company. Anyway, the booklet is very informative about the Pilgrims and their hardships settling in The New World. 

On this page are listed the passengers who lived aboard The Mayflower. So interesting! Wow! Talk about Women's Rights! Check out how the wives were listed. 

There is more in this little booklet than most of us learned in school pertaining to the Pilgrims. After sailing from Southhampton, England on August 15, 1620, the Mayflower sailed for 99 days. After landing in Plymouth Harbor, most of the passengers did not even leave the little ship until 

January 2, 1621. 

As I mentioned above…. this is more news than I ever remember studying. Pilgrims have become charicatured so much over the past almost 400 years, that the true meaning of why they endured these hardships has all but gotten lost in the textbooks.  

This pamphlet, below, was also among the papers that C.S. Weaver saved. I have folded it out to show both sides of the paper. 

 

And here is a card that he saved from Plymouth Co-Operative Federal Savings,

44 Main Street, Plymouth Massachusetts. I am so thankful that my Great-Grandfather saved these mail-outs that he received. I do not know why he was on these mailing lists, but I am enjoying the mystery.

 I hope all of you have a very blessed week as you prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving. 

There are so many delicious recipes in our family cookbook, Seasoned With Love. I would love to hear from you about what you are cooking for your Thanksgiving! 

****Special Correction****

In last week's post, I made a mistake about how to order more family cookbooks. I meant to  type 

Lulu.com

as the online source. Please note this correction. 

Cousins and Cookbooks

Readers, I find it hard to write this "Weaver Wednesday"'s installment of Family Trails without taking a look back at our last week together. Minutes after publishing last week's edition, the "Weaver Family" learned that our dear family member, Robert Cooper Weaver, had passed away. Uncle Robert was an extraordinary man who did ordinary things that changed people's lives. Many family and friends and colleagues came to his service to honor Robert because he had touched their lives, and they are better because of him. His devotion to the children at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind over the years is hard to sum up in a little family blog. 

Robert standing in front of his grandparents' parlor fireplace.

"Mr. Weaver…the Ice Cream Man"

Street sign dedicated in Robert's honor on the campus of AIDB

Uncle Robert was famously known as The Ice Cream Man to the children at the AIDB. We can all imagine the looks on the children's faces when Mr. Weaver arrived to scoop up ice cream for them. But in all the years past, he has met many larger challenges that the children faced every day. He started youth sports leagues; he coached; he traveled with the children so that they could attend a college sporting event; he taught Bible classes and Sunday School lessons. In these seemingly small acts of kindness, what he was really doing was helping children with disabilities realize that they could reach any goal that they set for themselves in life!  

Why then, is the Red Goose shoe sign on this post? Some readers who are new to our Weaver ways may not recognize this sign, but it is an ICON in our family history! This sign has remained lit in the Wood-Weaver Shoes storefront for years! I do not know how many years this sign has been in the shoe store, but in my memory, at least as long as the early 1960's. 

Uncle Robert and his father, Kiser Weaver, owned and operated this shoe store. 

At Robert's funeral, some people in attendance came forward to tell how their parents were never turned away if they could not afford shoes for their children. 

Uncle Robert and his Godchild, Rebecca

So it is a tribute to Robert and his father  that the florist shop owner on the square has offered to keep the sign lit in her window in honor of them. The next time you are in Talladega, be sure to look for Uncle Robert's Red Goose sign lighting up the Talladega Square!

Uncle Robert, below, in front of the entrance to The Weaver Library, First Baptist Church, Talladega
(Future post story, for sure! )

For the Family Trails history enthusiasts, did you know that there was a ship that served in our Navy's fleet, named the USS Talladega! A few years ago, Uncle Robert made sure that all who visit Talladega know about this ship and the men who served our country aboard this ship. Robert designed and had made a bronze monument that stands on the courthouse square in Talladega. I 'll share a few pictures today of us seeing the monument just a few years ago with Robert. But rest assured, readers, I will post more about the USS Talladega in a future post. 

Robert and his great-cousin, Patrick

Lunch on the square in Talladega with cousins! 

**************************************************************

Seasoned With Love

by Lucretia Malone Mount Davenport

Well, Family Trails readers, let's have a short introduction to our family cookbook! What a blessing this book has been to our family for  the past 30 years! Seasoned With Love was written by our Aunt Lucretia. As you can see by one of my copies below, it is VERY well loved! Lucretia put many long hours of love and research into writing this cookbook. Seasoned With Love is filled with generations of favorite recipes, menus from eventful family gatherings, family tree information, and poems and stories about growing up in the young and emerging town of Talladega, Alabama. The cover of the book is Lucretia's own painting of the family home place at 305 Oak Street. 

This may seem very sad to you to see a book in this condition, but I assure you that it is from lots of use. (I have the cover!) I love to try the recipes in this book, but I definitely have my favorite

 "GO-TO" recipes. 

The cookbook has gone through a few revisions, adding new genealogy and recipes. Here are 2 pictures showing new editions. The picture on the left shows the book when it was  bound like a book. This is a great edition for the bookshelf because the title is on the spine of the the book. The picture on the right is the newest edition. We love this spiral binding. This edition can be obtained by going to zulu.com.  INSERT A VERY IMPORTANT NOTE HERE: this is not the website, called Zulilly…. Two different sites! The books are printed on demand and only take about 2 or 3 weeks to arrive at your door. You will enjoy going to zulu.com and reading about Aunt Lucretia too.  I am so thankful that Lucretia has joined forces with Zulu to insure that this book will continue to be available.  (I just have to share a secret! But I can't say too much…not yet… I may have found a bookstore that wants to carry our family cookbook. More to come later….. Shhhh!)

A very big thank you to Lucretia for writing this treasure for our family! And especially for allowing all of us to call Seasoned With Love "our cookbook."

Funeral Arrangements

Funeral Arrangements for

Robert Cooper Weaver

1:00 Graveside service-Oak Hill Cemetery, Talladega, Alabama

Reception Following

Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind Chapel

Oak Street, Talladega, Alabama

Robert Cooper Weaver

Remembering Uncle Robert with a few recent pictures.

With love to you, Uncle Robert!

Sing a Song of the Saints of God

All Saints Day

I sing a song of the saints of God, patient and brave and true, Who toiled and fought, and lived and died for the Lord they loved and knew…" 

Saint Luke's Episcopal Church, Birmingham, Alabama

Family Trails readers, let me share a personal note here as we begin our trail into the month of November. Sunday in church we celebrated All Saints Day, a day in our church calendar where we remember and thank God for the ones we have loved and lost. What better way to celebrate entering Christ's kingdom that with baptisms! This service gives us all hope for the future. Our grandson, Marshall, was baptized during this service, and he was surrounded by all who love him, those who are living and those who have gone before us.  The day was grand! 

Welcome to our newest edition of "Weaver Wednesday." We have so much to cover in this post. As I have written before, Family Trails will recognize the birthdays of the Weaver parents and children. 

Is this getting confusing to you? Let me try to explain how we all refer to ourselves in this family…

The "parents" of this family are Nettie and Sisson Weaver.

The "children" are their 10 children, Cabot, Kiser, Lora, Lassie, Ivera, 

Dewey, Jep, Alma, Nina, and Tenison.

The "grandchildren" are the next generation, (my mother's generation).

I am a great-grandchild of Nettie and Sisson. 

BUT

Here is the clue to reading this blog, and any other family publication about this family: 

We all say, "Grandmother and Grandfather Weaver" when we are referring to Nettie and Sisson! 

Happy Birthday Anniversary to Charles Sisson Weaver, who was born November 8, 1860.
"Grandfather Weaver's" scrapbook is filled with greeting cards! He was quite the "memory keeper", and we are all the better for it!

Below are photos taken in Oak Hill Cemetery, Talladega, Alabama, where many Weavers have been laid to rest. So, do you think it is strange that I take pictures in a cemetery? Sister, Rebecca, and I take pictures any time we are in a family cemetery! This is a good way to remember accurate dates and burial sites. 

Nettie and Sisson Weaver had 10 children. As the story goes, Nettie got to give birth to the children and Sisson got to name them! And name them, he did! Each of their ten children have beautiful, musical names... unique, yet lovely.

We have 2 of their birthdays to celebrate this month.  Cabot Suttles Weaver was born on November 14, 1886. He was affectionately called "Unc" by his nieces and nephews.

Lassie Eudora Weaver Malone was born on November 15, 1893. As her great nieces and nephews, we called her "Aunt Lallie."

Left to right, standing: Uncle Rat and Aunt Nina
Sitting are Ivera (Bo), Tee, and Aunt Lallie

Cabot's obituary is from The Talladega Daily Home, Monday, August 8, 1960. Does anyone know why his funeral was in Tee's house and not a church? I did not know that any funeral services had taken place in her house. 

 This article about Aunt Lallie's service was in The Talladega Daily Home, Saturday, May 2, 1992.

These 2 articles about C. S. Weaver passing away are from The Talladega Daily Home. For the sake of Family Trails readers, I will retype these articles soon so you may read them easily.  

 Look at these 2 cute little boys with their Great-Grandfather! Can anyone name them for me? (I am going to guess…. are they Bill and Gordon Malone?)

I hope ya'll have a wonderful week this first week of November. If you begin planning your Thanksgiving meal, don't forget to use your Weaver family cookbook, Seasoned with Love. Our next "Weaver Wednesday" will be all about our cookbook. So until then, happy trails…….