I’m having some Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (#SNGF), with help from Randy Seaver and his prompts! Feel free to join in.
Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: October 24, 2026
Prompt: “An Ancestor Who Lived Through a Major Historical Event — Pick one ancestor who was alive during a war, pandemic, natural disaster, or economic upheaval. What do the records tell you about how it affected them?”
Introduction
My dad loved to talk about his grandfather – by the way, both of them were born on the date of this SNGF, October 24 – and all the changes he’d seen in his lifetime. It took me some time to really appreciate that, but now it awes me.
A Lifetime of Change
Francis William Carey (1881-1975) certainly saw a lot. Dad would talk about how he was born in an age where horses carried people around – in fact, an early job of Great-Grandpa’s was in a stable in Manhattan. He lived to see all six crewed Apollo moon landings. How does one person fathom such change? I wish he was around for me to ask that question and more.
Here is a fascinating written account my father left about his grandfather: “He said his first job in NY was as a busboy in a place called “The Millionaires’ Club”, and, in fact, that’s what it was. This was most likely in the mid 1890’s. He said it was located in a mansion on Park Avenue, somewhere in the 50’s; …He said though all members and most guests were rich, you could tell the really rich ones: they pulled up in carriages drawn by four horses, not just two. Only a few of the members’ kids, and some ‘new money’ upstarts drove those new horseless carriages.”
A Cool Timeline
I created a timeline for Great-Grandpa’s life. It’s fascinating, a school year of history to be sure! Here are some snippets:
| 1881 | President is Chester Arthur; 38 states in the union; Francis William Carey born. |
| 1886 | Geronimo surrenders; Statue of Liberty is dedicated. |
| 1888 | The Kodak camera was introduced. |
| 1892 | Ellis Island opens. |
| Mid-1890s | Frank has left his native New Jersey and is now living and working in Manhattan. |
| 1903 | Wright brothers achieve the first successful powered, controlled flight. |
| 1908 | Ford Model T automobile is introduced; Francis William Carey marries Mary Agnes Hart. |
| 1911 | A fire kills 146 employees of the Triangle Shirtwaist Company. |
| 1912 | British ocean liner Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic. |
| 1914-1918 | World War I, called the Great War. |
| 1918 | Francis William Carey marries Mary Agnes Hart again. (More about that here.) |
| 1926 | “Frank” and “Aggie” have their last child, before the Great Depression. |
| 1939-1945 | World War II. |
| 1946 | The ENIAC computer is built. |
| 1951 | President Truman speaks in first coast-to-coast live television broadcast. |
| 1954 | The Supreme Court orders school desegregation. |
| 1961 | The Berlin Wall is built. |
| About 1964 | Frank retires at 83 and moves out of New York City to a northern suburb. |
| 1969 | Apollo 11 reaches the moon. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin make the first moon landing. |
| 1975 | Francis William Carey dies. |
The Personal Effect
I can document the enormous changes that took place during Great-Grandpa’s lifetime, but I know far less about how he felt about them. My father’s recollections give me a glimpse of the young man who watched automobiles begin replacing horses. I wish I knew what he thought when men first walked on the moon.
How to Choose Just One? I Couldn’t
I know that the prompt said “a major historical event” but there was no way I could select just one. When you see all that Great-Grandpa experienced in his lifetime, I think you’ll agree! When I was younger, I don’t think I fully understood why Dad was so fascinated by everything his grandfather had witnessed. Now, looking at this timeline, I understand a little better. And I wish I could sit down with both of them and hear what they remembered.
The lovebirds at their 60th anniversary.
AI Disclosure
This post was created by me with the help of AI tools. While AI helps organize research, the storytelling and discoveries are my own.
