The one-room school where my mother, Millicent "Midge" Wiedrich Moore went to school in the 1930s. It was on the Creek Rd just outside of Batavia, NY. My mom is 1st person on the left in the 3rd row up. Her sister, Bonnie Wiedrich Selb is the 1st person on the left in the bottom row. Her other sister, Connie Wiedrich Davis may be the small girl 2nd from the left in the 2nd row up. Later when the school was closed the teacher bought the school and converted into her home.

#Creek Road School, #Batavia, NY, #One Room School, #Millicent Wiedrich, #Millicent Moore, #Midge Moore, #Bonalyn Wiedrich, #Bonalyn Selb, #Constance Wiedrich, #Constance Davis

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #20 John Wiedrich

John Wiedrich

I have a picture of my great grandparents John H. and Sarah Wiedrich on the wall in my living room. I

John and Sarah Wiedrich

love that picture because they look like such a cute couple and full of mischievous fun. I was fortunate that I knew Sarah since she lived to be 100-yrs-old, but John died before I was born.

He was born 14 Sept 1857 in Stafford, Genesee Co., NY to Henry and Margaret Elizabeth (Ditman) Wiedrich. HIs parents were born in Alsace and Prussia making him a first generation American. By 1860 the family lived in Elba where he attended school. By 1875 he had moved to Pembroke and back to Elba by the 1880 census.

On 8 Mar 1896 he married Sarah Angeline (Corsett) Walworth, a widow who had a farm in Pembroke. In 1910 they left the farm and went to live in Batavia, NY. There he worked as a fireman and woodworker for the Wiand Plow farm implement factory. At times he served as a constable and inspector of elections.

During the difficult 1930s depression years he would often cut firewood with his son Edward, my grandfather. I often heard the story of how my grandfather would often tell him to stop wearing a baggy old sweater when they cut but he wouldn’t listen. Then one day when they were out in the woods his sweater caught in the chain saw and it cut his arm almost entirely off. My grandfather used a belt to make a tourniquet to stop the bleeding and get him to the hospital. The arm couldn’t be saved. After that he was very resourceful strapping whatever tool he needed to use to his arm stump and completing the task.

He died on 2 Jun 1942 and was buried in Maple Lawn Cemetery in Elba, NY. He and Sarah had seven children, Edward, Lydia, Helen, Chester, Bertha, James and John.

#Wiedrich, John, #John Wiedrich, #Batavia, NY, #52 Ancestors, #Elba, NY, #Pembroke, NY

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #13 Sherman Grant Corsett

Sherman Grant Corsett

Sherman Grant Corsett was born to Edward Corsett and Matilda Norton Corsett. His birthdate was either May or 1866 or 1867 in Genesee County, New York. His names may be a nod toward the heroes of the Union Civil War generals although a Sherman Corsett is listed in an earlier Michigan census, the birthplace of his mother. In 1870 Grant was living with his parents and younger sister, Sarah in Alabama, Genesee County, New York. By 1875 the family had moved to Stafford in New York. In the 1880 Federal Census the family was living in Pembroke and Grant was 13-yrs-old and working as a farm laborer. He continued to work as a farmer laborer in Pembroke over the years as listed in the federal and state censuses through 1925. Sometime after this date he moved to Batavia and was living with his sister, Sarah. In late winter 1938 he had been in poor health. He decided to commit suicide in the Tonawanda Creek. The creek flowed just across the street from his residence at 1 Pearl St., Batavia. The Tonawanda was a section of the Erie Canal. Grant jumped into the creek and drowned. The cold weather prevented police from recovering his body for several days. He was buried in the North Pembroke Cemetery alongside his parents.

#52 Ancestors, #Grant Corsett, #Sherman Grant Corsett, #Alabama, NY, #Batavia, NY, #Pembroke, NY, #Suicide

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #11 Millicent Wiedrich

Millicent Wiedrich –Growing Up in Batavia

She was born Millicent Arlene Wiedrich in Batavia, NY on May 15, 1928. From a young age she was called Midge. Many people say they grew up poor but in fact most just didn’t have that they would have liked or as much as the neighbors. My mom grew up poor although there were others who had even less than her family had. Her dad had various jobs like ice man, farmer, wood gatherer, junk man, plow

Ed Wiedrich delivering ice.

factory worker. Her mom had her leg amputated up to the hip as a teen but could still help with the family finances by selling handiwork like crochet items and operating her own doll hospital where she repaired beautiful china dolls. While she was still in primary school the family moved to a small family farm on the Creek Road just outside of Batavia. She often recounted happy stories about roller skating in the attic, playing games and more. One thing she didn’t enjoy was going to the creek at the back of the farm to swim. She was severely afraid of the water even though her three sisters loved to swim. Summers they would go to the Coby

Coby Farm

farm to “camp out”. She described it as fun but I’m sure her dad was helping with the harvest when he wasn’t working at his regular job and her mom was working cooking and canning for everyone. The foods they ate much of the year were things canned during the summer and fall. My grandfather would also go to the factory that produced dried beans after work hours and sweep the floor. He would bring home the sweepings and the children would play a “game” of picking out any bean from the refuse to supplement the family food. They ate a lot of beans and it was a good thing mom liked them. In fact it was one of her favorite foods throughout her life. She went to a one room school. She and her girlfriend, Arlene Cook were the only two students in

Creek Rd School, Batavia, NY 1935

her grade. She often took a potato to school and put it on the potbelly stove to bake for lunch. A special treat was when Arlene’s mom brought a pot of spaghetti for all the children to share. Some of the children were very poor and had only black bread and lard sandwiches to eat. The teacher not only had to teach but made sure there was firewood and made a fire in the stove in the morning. Once when my mom was playing baseball and was running the bases her teacher started to run after her and was slapping her on the head. It turns out the teacher had been burning caterpillar nests in the trees and a spark fell on my mom’s head starting her hair on fire. The teacher was only trying to put the flames. Things took a turn for the worse late in the 30s and they lost the family farm.

#52 Ancestors, #Millicent Wiedrich, #Midge Wiedrich, #Batavia, NY, #Great Depression, #Millicent Moore, #Midge Moore

52 Ancestors #2 Sarah Corsett Wiedrich - Bathing Beauty

My great grandmother, Sarah Corsett Wiedrich was a amazing person. She was born in 1868 and for most of her life didn't travel more than 30 miles from home. When my grandparents moved to Gloucester City, NJ during the 1940s she visited and when they moved to Tampa, Florida in 1945 she wanted to visit again. This is a picture of her in September of 1946 in Tampa sunbathing. She's in a two piece bathing suit. Pretty amazing for a 78 year old woman born just after the Civil War during the Victorian Era. She lived a rich life and died at the age of 100.
Arlene

#Sarah Corsett, #Sarah Wiedrich, #Batavia, NY