Leftover Ancestors Anyone?

As I am sitting here feasting on a turkey sandwich with cold stuffing, I wondered if there were any odd “leftover” names via Ancestry.com. Here’s a sampling:

Thanksgiving Day

• You knew there would be a family Gathering, and it is inevitable that there would be some family Feuds as well as family Fight.

• And I also found a Bernard S. Turkey Day in the California Voter Registrations – that’s a way to get into the holiday spirit, no?

Turkeys

• Do you think there would there be Turkeys in the US Census? But of course! But not as many Tom Turkeys as you might think – although in 1920 there is a Big Turkey in Todd, South Dakota and a Primo Turkey in Franklin, Illinois.

• There’s a John Turkey Legs along with his wife Lydia Turkey Legs in Big Horn, Montana in 1920! And even a Wish Bone in the Washington State and Territorial Census in 1887. Well, who doesn’t have a few turkeys in their own family tree, right?

Side Dishes

• Side dishes are well represented this holiday season as well, with various Cranberrys although I can’t verify that any were sauced. Casseroles are covered as well.

• There’s a bumper crop of Potatoes and while some might be sweet, a Sweet Potato could not be found. Plenty of Yams, my favorites being Yostus Yam and Stray Yam. I would avoid Harry Yam however.

• In case you were wondering, there was no Mashed Potato but plenty of other people who are Mashed, including Mashed Carpenter, and Mashed Noggie. Another fave: Mashed Clampit, from North Carolina, of course. One note: scrolling down through the Masheds you come upon many listings for nuns, such as Sister M. Joseph, Sister M. Elise. Is there some order of the Masheds that I missed out on?

• Plenty of Stuffings and Stuffins with some Dressings as well. Also, you may call it Corn but some call it Maize. You’ll find most of the Green Beans in the South but not living anywhere near a Casserole (see above). Anyone for Beets? Not sure if any of them went to Harvard.

• And finally, you just can’t eat all these good dishes without gravy. I present Gravy Cooks – from the 1930 US Census, Phoenix, Arizona. In case you were wondering, yes, there are several that arrived by boat.

Desserts

• For dessert there are the usual Pies but which do you prefer? If you aren’t sure there is a Trial Pie and for those who’ve overeaten, a Minnie Pie or even a Zero Pie. There are also those who just want Cake.

Cleanup

• Eventually you have to deal with the Dishes as well as the Silver Ware – why she was bland, I know not except that may have been her maiden name. Wash the Glasses, even the ones that are Chip and gather up all the Napkins.

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And if we’re lucky and fortunate, we’ll all be back to do it again next year! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Photo: Thanksgiving Leftovers via Flickr, used under Creative Commons License 3.0.

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