Julius Feicke

The Feickes were an older German couple that had five children before they left their hometown of Berlin for America in 1893. A passenger list shows Marie brought four of…

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George Handy Smith

A noteworthy ancestor in this family’s tree was General Lachlan McIntosh, a member of General George Washington’s staff at their Valley Forge encampment during the American Revolution. His great-grand-niece, Margaret…

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Thomas Elwood Valentine

Installing the first lighting system around the Statue of Liberty so it could be seen for miles away at night qualifies as a notable accomplishment, but it never made Thomas…

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Eleanor Alice Bennett Pilcher

Joshua Bennett was Eleanor’s father, a carpenter specializing in repairs. After marrying Alice Carver in 1905, three children were born, of which Eleanor was the oldest. Her brother Clarence arrived…

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James J. Neely

Jim was the last of five children in his family, all Philadelphia natives. His childhood wasn’t a comfortable one. He was closest to his brother Carl who was two years…

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William Bentley Griggs, M.D.

Like his father, William Orlando Griggs, Bill was a physician, but his specialty was pediatrics, children’s healthcare. Perhaps that’s what made him so young at heart, even into his nineties. …

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