name: Elan Carman
death date: 22 Jun 1866
death place: Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
gender: Male
race: White
death age: 74 years
birthplace: Philadelphia
marital status: Married
occupation: Labourer
street address: Huber Street above Montg.
place of residence: Philadelphia 20th Ward
cemetery: American Mechanics Cemetery
burial place: Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
burial date: 25 Jun 1866

Being the youngest in my family I am sensitive about telling family stories accurately. Growing up it always seemed that everything happened before I was born or was old enough to remember, so everyone else in the room remembered the story better than I did.  So, while I enjoy reporting facts and finds on this blog, I have for the most part avoided telling stories about my family history. I do not want to get it wrong.

I’ve realized however that I do hold some things in my head that possibly no one else still alive knows. Writing family history is in some ways an attempt at immortality for our ancestors. Even if what I remember is not entirely accurate, I can share my imperfect memories of my family and through that they might live on a little longer before fading into that obscurity to which we all will inevitably succumb.

In that spirit, I am going to share what my grandmother told me about the picture below which happens to be my favorite photograph of her. She told me this story many years ago, so my telling is in my words not hers.

My grandmother, Naomi Carman (left) & best friend Marie, 1922

My grandmother and her best friend Marie were hanging out in their neighborhood in Philadelphia. Two young men happened by. They were in a musical group and had their instruments with them. Someone had the idea that it would be fun to take a photo of my grandmom and Marie posing with the instruments. And why not wear the young mens’ hats as well? My grandmother laughed as she told me this story, saying that neither she nor Marie had any idea how to play. This story and the photo gave me a glimpse in to a happiness I did not always see in my grandmother. And looking at that smile, how could this not be my favorite photo of her?

Here’s something I found about Elon Carman (b1829).  I don’t know how/if this Elon is related to my family.

From The Genealogy of the Sharpless family p1217 (1882):  Thomas Elwood Farra was married to Katie Carman in Philadelphia in 1883. She was the daughter of Elon Carman and Mary Lowry.

Not much, but Mary Lowry is new to me, and this will help me track them all down in the census, which I’ve had a fair start at. More on those findings later.

In case you haven’t come across it, the Internet Archive has many old books digitized which may be of interest to genealogists. Their related Open Library site has a “search inside” books option as well. (Warning: it defaults to an “OR” search and I can’t figure out how to get it to search using “AND”; this means if you search for Elon Carman you get matches for Elon College and matches for Carman where there’s no Elon) (Disclaimer: I found the Genealogy of the Sharpless Family via a web search on another site and later searched the title on Internet Archive to find it there)

One of my more exciting discoveries with the addition of the Bridgeton Evening News to GenealogyBank.com, the obituary for my Great-Great-Great Grandfather, Ansel Irelan:

Ansel Irelan, one of Bridgeton’s oldest citizens, died at his home on Atlantic street early this morning, after an illness of several weeks with kidney affection.
Mr. Irelan was born in this city 76 years ago last July and has lived here nearly ever since. He married Elizabeth, daughter of the late Addi Ayars, and six children were born to them, four of whom are living. His wife died several years ago and deceased has since lived in the old home, Atlantic just above Broad street. The children who survive him are Emma, wife of James Garrison; Mary Ann, wife of John Neukirk; Lizzie, wife of Joseph Westcott, and Ansel, Jr., the only son.
Deceased was a ship carpenter by trade and when the gold fever broke out he was one of the original “forty-niners” who left this city to seek their fortune in the Golden State – California. He in company with his brother, William Irelan, Capt. Charles Woodruff, Tudel Clark, the late Edward Collins and others, left Bridgeton for the gold fields.
He came back to Bridgeton and has since resided here, working at his trade of ship-carpentering until within a few years. When the steamer “Golden Gate” which left San Francisco with one million dollars in gold on her was sunk, Mr. Irelan, with his brother William, and others took the contract for raising the gold. This was a thrilling experience in his life and the company came near losing their lives from Mexican bandits.

I was able to confirm that William Irelan did indeed raise some of the gold from the “Golden Gate” steamer, although neither Ansel or anyone else in William’s company was mentioned. Nor were Mexican bandits mentioned in any account I have yet found. I suspect that may have been an embellishment as the story was told again and again back home in Bridgeton.

William stayed in California and his son, William Irelan, Jr., made a name for himself in Mineralogy. He was California State Mineralogist from 1886-1892. He has a biographical essay in A history of the new California: its resources and people (1903), in which his father is also mentioned.

One of my weekend shows that I sometimes watch is “Life After People” on the History Channel. The premise is basically if humans disappeared today, how long would it take for human-made things to break down.

Today I saw an episode that used my great grandmother’s hometown as an example. In the 1960’s a fire started underground and made its way into the abandoned coal mines in Centralia. In the 1980’s most of the residents left in the town were relocated, and the fire still burns. According to Wikipedia, there were still 9 people living in Centralia in 2007. Here’s a Google search if you’d like to read more.

Life After People used Centralia as an example of how a town would look twenty-five years after people. I don’t think it was the best example, since most of the building were torn down after the people relocated. But, it was interesting none the less.

My great grandmother Sophia Levens left Centralia for Philadelphia before the turn of the century, long before the fire broke out. (That would be the turn from the 19th to the 20th) Some of her siblings remained in the area of Centralia, where her father had been a coal miner.

Here is a link to the Centralia section of the episode: Centralia on Life After People (no longer available)