Soleman59's Blog

Genealogy Project – William Osterholtz – My Grandfather

soleman59 — Sat, 08 May 2010 23:04:09 +0000

My Grandfather, William “Doc” Osterholtz was born February 2, 1914 in St Louis Missouri. It was always easy to remember his birthday since it was on “groundhog day”. His parents were William Frederick and Johanna Maria Osterholtz. He had a brother Henry and a sister Norma. He always told stories of how affectionate his dad was and he would imitate how his father walked. He had fond memories of helping his father out as a vet.He learned to drive from his father in a Model T. He Was in the army from 1931 to 1935 only in the USA where he started veterinary school. He met my grandmother Doris Hamm in college at a 10 cent dance, My grandmother smoked, which he did not like, so he made it clear he wouldn’t marry a girl who smoked. She quit and they married 2 months later in the army base in Kansas. My grandmother was a wonderful cook but at first she didn’t know how so she learned from grandpa’s mother. She made the best pies I have ever tasted even to this day. He got tired of the army so he kept in veterinary school. His father was a vet as well as his brother.He graduated from Kansas State University with a degree in Veterinary Medicine. His first job was with the Texas Dept. of Agriculture where he tested cattle for TB. One funny story was my grandmother was with him while he tested the cattle and someone told my grandmother to stay away from the bull. She stepped into the cows anyways and the bull started to chase her to the point she had to jump over the fence to get away. To show appreciation for putting him through college he bought his father a 37 Chrysler which he kept until he died. He bought his mother a leather handbag too which she also kept until she died. Two years later he transferred to Michigan. Another two years passed and they moved to Vermont. My grandmother got pregnant in Vermont right before they were to move again to New York. Their first child, my mother was born in Utica, New York April 12, 1937. They decided to name her Wilma. 2 more years passed and he moved to St. Luis as a meat inspector which he did not like. They moved to Oklahoma City where he started working for the Federal Govt.My Uncle Gary was born in 1942. He stayed there 5 years and then moved to Las Vegas in 1945. He met Dean Martin in Las Vegas and told stories of when “Bugsy Siegel” got shot. He didn’t really want the kids to grow up in Las Vegas so they moved to Fresno, Calif. where my mom graduated from high school.My uncle Gary joined the Air Force which my grandfather was very proud of. They visited him while being stationed in Japan many years later. He bought one of the first TV’s and commented in the early years the “tubes” kept blowing out. Growing up as a kid, I remember how special the holidays were especially Christmas. Grandpa would dress in a red vest and each of his grandsons also had the same vest. I remember many years later I surprised him as an adult showing up in an adult version of the red vest and of course he was wearing his still. Grandpa loved telling stories every time we came over. He loved smoking a good cigar and working on cars. I remember my first “fast” car a 1973 Grand Torino he helped me fix up. We had the best time together in his garage and had some great talks about life and the future. We really bonded during those years. He liked to “nickname” people, my grandmothers name was “skip”, my uncle Gary’s nickname was “Bud” and my mom’s nickname was “Sis”. I remember when my kids came over one time he called my son James “Jimmy” and My daughter Jennifer “Jenny”. They were really young at the time and they both blurted out “that’s not my name”. My brother Doug was getting into trouble as a teenager while my parents were going through a divorce so he took my brother away to Texas for a year to straighten him out. I don’t think he liked the music my brother listened to because he commented “how many times can you listen to a song that just says “let the good times roll” over and over. My grandfather was a very warm and loving man, we would go to the store and he would be very friendly with all the clerks. And if they were young and cute he would flirt with them in a harmless way.Always laughed and had a good time. My grandfather retired from the Federal Government and began to work for the State of California. He retired again for good in 1976. He traveled to Europe and Asia with my grandmother. We lost my grandmother in 1999 which broke his heart, they were married for 66 years. Ten Years later my uncle would pass away, June 2009. He was always so proud of my uncle and loved visiting him at his ranch in Crawford Texas.He had four grandchildren Myself, Doug and Dave Normart and Shawna Suggs and her husband Brandon, six great-grandchildren James, Jennifer, Kaitlin, Tony, Dave Jr. and Melissa Normart, two great -great grandchildren Charles and Bradon; three nieces and one nephew. Grandpa passed away this last Jan 26, 2010. I miss him very much…

Facebook

soleman59 — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 01:23:54 +0000

Yesterday, I was thinking about my days at Vinland Elementary school and all the great friends I had there. Well, in this quest to make my family Genealogy, I discovered my class pictures were somehow “lost” when i went to visit my mother last month. I was so bummed out. I had a thought yesterday to put “Vinland Elemntary School Fresno Calif. ” in the search box and low and behold there was a group made on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=543199683&ref=profile#/group.php?gid=68497194353

Yesterday I spent alot of time re-connecting with old friends and seeing what they were up too, it was a great time. In the process I found 3 classes that were “missing”! Thank you Cindy & Rhonda! Thank you Facebook!

Genealogy Project – William Normart Sr. My Grandfather

soleman59 — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 22:09:04 +0000

My Grandfather, William Normart was born on July 20, 1910. His father was Onig Normart. My Grandfather would often tell stories of how when he was only 5 years old that he would go to the firehouse where his dad worked and he would get to slide down the pole to the first floor. When the fire alarm would go off the firemen would light the fire under the steam pumper and then drop the harnesses on the horses and off they would go. His father was the first assistant chief. in 1917 his dad quit the fire department and bought a ranch in Madera so he actually did have to walk a mile to school! Christmases were very eventful and he recalled his Uncle Armen putting 5 dollar gold pieces inside the walnut shells that would hang on the tree and each child would get one. He went to elementary school at the Fresno Normal school which eventually became Fresno State College. In 1920 his father started taking him to the mountains , Yosemite, Sequoia and Huntington Lake. It would take them a day and a half to get there in the Model T they had (as compared to 1 1/2 hours now). He recalls times that they would have a tough time getting the car up the mountain and would have to push a ways then put a big rock behind the tires so they could rest a bit before they started up again. 4 cylinder Dodges would pass them by often so his dad eventually bought one and solved the car problem.They often camped at Will O’ the Wisp store (which I also remember as a child). He held different jobs as a young man and working at a service station he joined a fraternity in which he met his future brother in law Mike Avakian. My Grandmother Sevart (Si) Avakian met my grandfather at her brother Mike’s service station where grandpa asked her to a dance. Grandpa would go to plays my grandmother was in with Mike and soon they found themselves seeing each other more often. After a year of courtship they married November 9th, 1935. Mike Avakian was grandpa’s best man. They went to San Francisco for their honeymoon. My Dad was born October 19th, 1936 and Grandpa was so proud he named him after his name. On May 7, 1942 they had a daughter Linda. Grandpa was learning to become a machinist so he worked 8 hours at one job then another 8 hours learning the trade. He did this until 1944 then having enough money he started his own shop. 6 months later he became the machinist for Sandstorm Mfg. Co. Grandpa would often make his own parts to fix peoples machines. In 1970 the company sold and grandpa retired a few years later. In 1958 My grandmother wanted a cabin at Huntington Lake so they bought a shell of a cabin and the family pitched in and did all the work to get it ready. They travelled the mountains getting various rocks and made a retaining wall and BBQ pit. They travelled Europe,All over the USA and Hawaii. The fondest memories however were from the Cabin at Huntington Lake. Grandpa was a great role model for me, very hard working, and very loyal to my Grandmother. I remember catching my first fish with him and he was so patient in teaching me what he knew. I miss him so much but feel very fortunate to have had him in my life for so long. Grandpa passed away February 2006.

How to do your Family Genealogy

soleman59 — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:00:36 +0000

Just found a great article on About.com on Genealogy research-Interviewing relatives. I believe that the thing that is missing in most cases are the feelings. It’s easy to do the research and collect dates and such but to capture each person and how they felt about things is entirely different. I have decided to start interviewing my relatives and see if I can capture their feelings. This was something I did that helped in my research so I thought I would pass this on to everyone who is interested:

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm

What is your full name? Why did your parents select this name for you? Did you have a nickname?
When and where were you born?
How did your family come to live there?
Were there other family members in the area? Who?
What was the house (apartment, farm, etc.) like? How many rooms? Bathrooms? Did it have electricity? Indoor plumbing? Telephones?
Were there any special items in the house that you remember?
What is your earliest childhood memory?
Describe the personalities of your family members.
What kind of games did you play growing up?
What was your favorite toy and why?
What was your favorite thing to do for fun (movies, beach, etc.)?
Did you have family chores? What were they? Which was your least favorite?
Did you receive an allowance? How much? Did you save your money or spend it?
What was school like for you as a child? What were your best and worst subjects? Where did you attend grade school? High school? College?
What school activities and sports did you participate in?
Do you remember any fads from your youth? Popular hairstyles? Clothes?
Who were your childhood heroes?
What were your favorite songs and music?
Did you have any pets? If so, what kind and what were their names?
What was your religion growing up? What church, if any, did you attend?
Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?
Who were your friends when you were growing up?
What world events had the most impact on you while you were growing up? Did any of them personally affect your family?
Describe a typical family dinner. Did you all eat together as a family? Who did the cooking? What were your favorite foods?
How were holidays (birthdays, Christmas, etc.) celebrated in your family? Did your family have special traditions?
How is the world today different from what it was like when you were a child?
Who was the oldest relative you remember as a child? What do you remember about them?
What do you know about your family surname?
Is there a naming tradition in your family, such as always giving the firstborn son the name of his paternal grandfather?
What stories have come down to you about your parents? Grandparents? More distant ancestors?
Are there any stories about famous or infamous relatives in your family?
Have any recipes been passed down to you from family members?
Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?
Are there any special heirlooms, photos, bibles or other memorabilia that have been passed down in your family?
What was the full name of your spouse? Siblings? Parents?
When and how did you meet your spouse? What did you do on dates?
What was it like when you proposed (or were proposed to)? Where and when did it happen? How did you feel?
Where and when did you get married?
What memory stands out the most from your wedding day?
How would you describe your spouse? What do (did) you admire most about them?
What do you believe is the key to a successful marriage?
How did you find out your were going to be a parent for the first time?
Why did you choose your children’s names?
What was your proudest moment as a parent?
What did your family enjoy doing together?
What was your profession and how did you choose it?
If you could have had any other profession what would it have been? Why wasn’t it your first choice?
Of all the things you learned from your parents, which do you feel was the most valuable?
What accomplishments were you the most proud of?
What is the one thing you most want people to remember about you?

Genealogy Project- Onig Normart my Great Grandfather

soleman59 — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:58:19 +0000

Onig (Nig) Normart was born in Erzeroom Armenia on Jan 22, 1884. He married Mollie Weber (who was born 2-25-1887 in Messer, Russia) December 19, 1906. They knew her parents wouldn’t consent so they eloped to San Francisco. They had three children (the first one died at 6 months old) Doris who was born 7-14-1908 and William (my grandfather) 7-20-1910. When they were courting She lived in “Russia town” and he lived in the part of town where most of the Armenians lived. Because of racial prejudice he got into many fights before he would arrive.

Before they were married Nig would go to the firehouse and train to be a boxer. His favorite training method was running 10 miles on the railroad ties to sharpen his eyes and coordination. He started his boxing career in 1903. His record was 13-4-2. His first fight against George Tubbs was a draw, he was struggling in the fight at first but then held on to the draw. His second fight against Sol Levinson was a 20 rounder and he knocked the guy out in the 17th round. His 3rd fight was against Tubbs again and it was a draw again. Walter Robinson was next and Nig got the decision in 20 rounds. They met again the next January and Nig put him away in the first round. Nig fought Tubbs again a third time but knocked him out in the 9th. Many old timers believed Nig could have been the world featherweight champion but he fought Joe Reilly in 1906 and lost a 40 round decision. Nig always had a good sense of humor, he was to fight Caesar Attell in 1904,(Abe Attell’s brother and favored to win 3-1) and at the weigh in, Caesar showed up all decked out in a derby, striped suit,checkered vest and pearl button shoes. Nig turned to his manager and asked if that was the man he was to fight. He said it was. Then Nig told him: “I don’t want to fight him, I want to kiss him”. Nig knocked him out in the 12th round. Johnny Bryant was next and they fought a draw in the first fight but Nig knocked him out in 12 rounds in the re-match. Nig fought Danny Sullivan next and won by a foul because Sullivan kept hitting him with dirty blows. He was to fight five bouts in Los Angeles in 1907 and if he impressed would get the chance to fight Abe Attell for the world featherweight championship. He had a string of 13 victories but he got talked into fighting Reilly again and lost after another 20 rounder. In the re-match Nig beat Reilly badly for 20 rounds. It was his best fight.A few months later he fought Clarence Ferns and won by KO in the 13th. The next Reilly fight Nig broke a bone in his hand in the 2nd round and continued to fight for 40 rounds but lost in a decision. He announced his retirement after that fight but got coaxed back into the ring in yet another Reilly fight but lost in a 40 round decision. Reilly was the only fighter to beat Nig. In 1910 he was talked into his last fight, for a 10 rounder with Kid Burley that ended in a draw. He quit the ring after that as his wife didn’t want him fighting anymore. Nig fought all his fights with 5 ounce gloves and no tape because it wasn’t used back then. He said he had many fights after that but they weren’t in the ring.

There was a story of a ghost in an old house in Laton. The “ghost” would go to the windows and scare people away. Nig walked into the house and waited for the “ghost”, he showed up behind him and let out a big screech trying to scare him. He grabbed him and marched him outside exposing him to the crowd of people there watching. The “ghost” said he was so mad at him he felt like punching him so Nig beat him to it and knocked him out.

Nig also was a fireman while he trained and rose his way up to Assistant fire chief. He quit the fire dept and went into a ranch partnership with his cousins in Madera, It wasn’t successful so so he moved back to Fresno and started the Valley Auto Wrecking with his brother Armen. Nig Enjoyed Cigars and beer and said he had 8 cigars a day and 4-5 beers. He loved being around his children and grandchildren and commented “my children and grandchildren are so good it’s making it hard for me to die”. Mollie lived until 1966 and Nig followed her in 1969.

Genealogy Project- Johann Osterholtz My Grandfather’s family

soleman59 — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:38:17 +0000

Peter Henry Osterholtz married Anna Katherine Basendorf. They had a son Johann Friederick who was born in Neuhaus Germany 4-20-1852. He met Anna Marie Luehrs and they were married 11-7-1876 in Germany. They immigrated to the USA 2-4-1881 St. Louis MO. They had 6 children And their 4th child William Frederich who was born 4-24-1887 in St. Louis was my Great Grandfather. Meanwhile in Cuxhaven, Germany, Johanna Marie Junge was born 5-25-1885. Johanna’s half brother Charles came to America in 1901 and came back in 1902 to bring the rest of the family. The father got sick so they decided to sell all of the tickets but one and since Johanna was the oldest of the girls she came to America with Charles and lived across the street from the Osterholtz. William Frederich and Johanna met and decided to marry in 1907. They had 3 children, Henry, Wilbert (my Grandfather) and Norma. William was a Veterinarian and inspired both his son’s to follow his path into medicine. He died 7-14-1954. Johanna lived until 8-16-1971.

Hank(Tall one), Wilbert, and parents William and Johanna

William Frederich

Genealogy Project- Pascal Normart, my Great Great Grandfather

soleman59 — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 17:49:17 +0000

My Great-Great Grandfather-Pascal Normart was the 8th and youngest child of Markar and Yakood Yanikian.He was born October 1, 1858. He along with his brothers ran a variety store in Armenia called Yanikian Freres. He came to the United States in 1888 to join his brother Maderos. He married Verkina (Virginia) Kurkjian Feb. 2,1880. Her father died when she was young and her mother re-married to Andrew Antony who was the Consul from Italy for Ezeroom. They were well to do and well educated. When they immigrated to America they brought much jewelry and fine clothing but her family had to sell most of it to help support the family. Pascal and Verkina had 6 children including my great grandfather Onig Normart. Two of the children died early. Pascal’s 5th child, Lily was believed to be the first Armenian child born in Fresno, Calif. Pascal became a citizen three years later. He was a farmer, buying a 60 acre farm and raised Alfafa. He loved politics and a good debate. Pascal died June 27th 1864.

Genealogy Project- Avakian my Grandmother’s side of the family

soleman59 — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 21:42:43 +0000

Peter Avakian was my great grandfather. He lived in Harpoot Armenia which is where he was born.He fought the Turks in the mountains near his village. He joined a rebel army and encountered several battles before he was captured with his companions. They were to be shot the next morning but during the night the Turkish guard, who was an Armenian sympathizer let Peter and his companions escape into the night. He settled in Worcester, Massachusetts and learned english at night while working at factories and a leather shop in the daytime. He would send money to his family in hopes they could join him in this new land. His brothers Sahag and Simon and sister Anna, along with their families soon had enough to make the voyage over. His parents were killed in the Armenian Genocide. He married Dirooh Hagopian and moved to Lowell Massachusetts. Soon after that they moved to Lynn Massachusetts Where their 2nd daughter was born. In 1901 he moved to Fresno,Calif. because he heard it was like Armenia. He bought a 20 acre ranch on Monroe ave but later moved to Fowler, California and bought a 60 acre ranch there. He became a US citizen in 1906. My Grandmother Servart was his last child born in 1914. 4 years later their house burned down losing most of their possessions. They moved to Fresno in 1919 on Thesta St for a few months, then a friend found a 5 acre estate on the corner of Butler and Orange. Peter payed $5,000 cash. Peter died in 1949.

Genealogy Project- Normart name

soleman59 — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 21:40:55 +0000

So for the past few months I have been researching my family history and how the name Normart came about. I am of mixed heritage of German,Swedish and Armenian. Most Armenian names end with-ian. Well the story goes: In Armenia in the late 1860′s much turmoil was going on. There were growing problems between the Armenians and the Turkish government. The “Armenian Genocide” in which over a million people were killed happened around 1915. My Great-great grandfathers brother Mardiros Yanikian was escaping Armenia because of the wars and turmoil and traveling down this road he witnessed many Armenian women being crucified on crosses. He witness many more atrocities of war while fleeing his homeland country. This account was in his journal of how he came over to the USA. He was very sick on the boat ride over suffering from small pox and when he landed in Philadelphia he was so grateful to be free from oppression he made the comment “I feel like a Nor mart which is Armenian for “New Man”. So when he went through the immigration process our family name was changed from Yanikian to Normart. He visited the Fresno area in 1874 and since it reminded him so much of his homeland he praised the Fresno area when he went back to the East Coast. This started a migration of many Armenian families to Fresno which has quite the Armenian population today. He decided to move there himself along with other family members in 1885.
My grandmothers maiden name is “Avakian” and there is an interesting story of how her side of the family came over too, but that will be in my next post…

Genealogy Project

soleman59 — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:18:31 +0000

So on this wonderful Earth for almost 50 years means I should know something by now. I have a lot of things sorting thru my head but will start by talking about my family genealogy. I have been looking through a family history book lately and find it fascinating. So stayed tuned, we will begin with how the Normart name came to be.