Delk Family History (and more!)

While I have been waiting for some new material from my father, who was out spending my inheritance. I decided I should better organize myself. In doing so, I have changed all the photos to the jpeg format and have internally renamed them. I would say 90% of the photos have been updated, and with the jpeg format comes the ability to save the tags that I have embedded within them. I have also watermarked all of the photos. Why did I watermark the photos you may ask. Because I am tired of people taking them and posting them on Ancestry.com without permission. I know that technically I do not own the photos, but, if I take the time to scan them and clean them up, plus pay for the web hosting, I should at least get some credit. Ancestry.com is a paid site that is supported by advertising and membership; they make money off of the members who put legit photos on their site. Please do not steal, but if you want a copy please let me know and I will email you a higher quality scan without the watermark.

With that said, here is a link to a list of all of the photos on this site. The xx’s indicate that the photo is actually up on the site for each individual person. The documents are also going to be treated the same way. I will also be trying to get the my cousins listed and linked so I can start adding even more photos and documents. Until then, enjoy.

Brian

In terms of my family line, I know where I came from. I can show who was my Grandfathers’ Grandfather. I know some of the basic facts of there lives. What I do not know is who they were. But I am finding out. And that is what this website is about. I may have never known my Grandfather Charlie Delk, but I do know he played cribbage and he taught my Father, who taught me and who has taught my son. I am learning more about him through the letters he wrote home to his parents during WWI. I know that his Mother was distraught over the death of her children and wrote poems to get through the tough times. And lucky for us, her daughter Mary May saved almost everything, and now we are able to share that with you. And getting to know who our family was and what their lives were like is just as important as the 1900 census. The story of our family starts to develop as we gather the photos, letters and documents that were left behind. We begin to learn that Russel Delk was at Camp Dodge on Thanksgiving day in 1917 and that his brother Frank was getting to know the women in Germany. Charlie was at Camp Pike, while his future wife Bernice Butler was studying to become a teacher at Drake University. There are new photos, documents, and letters for all of these family members, and as we uncover more, we will get to know who they were. Have a safe and prosperous 2012. Brian

My Great-Grandmother was a poet and she did know it. We are currently going through her poems and transcribing them. Seven pages have been added to Martha Maitlen Delk’s page, along with some more photos and two more letters. Some of the poems are Christmas poems that she wrote to friends and family. I will also have some pictures of her and Elmer, Mary May and others, along with some more documents by the end of next week. Until then, Have a Merry and Safe Christmas Holiday.

Brian

I do not know everything there is to know to be a parent. I have been a parent for over fifteen years and yet I am still learning the art of parenthood. But what I have come to learn is that a parent such as myself, will treat each child differently. I know how each child will react to events that are mundane, exciting or tragic and will handle each child accordingly. I am sure my parents did the same thing with my two sisters and me and their parents with them. Which is one reason why when it comes time for families to get together and reminiscence of days gone by and how everything transpired, there will be multiple versions of the past. Which leads me to the biographies.

I am sure when it comes time to write out each biography, there will be suggestions that they are not quite right, that somethings did not happen this way or that. This may be the case, but, the purpose of this site is to provide information about John Delk’s descendant’s and if we can, his siblings and ancestors as well. If something is factually inaccurate, please respond in the comments section. But remember, our individual recollection of the past will be different from the collective recollection.

With that all written, biographies of Charles Wesley, Franklin and Martha Maitlen, have been posted. there are also three new letters that can be found on Martha’s page.

Brian

I am the youngest of the first cousins. This is not a statement, just a fact. My grandfather, Charles Wesley, passed away before I was born, and my grandmother, Bernice, a year and a half after I was born. So instead of grandparents, I had lots of aunts and uncles. We were a big family and we had huge family gatherings. The annual Christmas get together was at my Dad’s sister Marge’s house and it was by all accounts a big deal, even though we had just saw everyone a month earlier at Thanksgiving. I was spoiled with cookies that Aunt Marge had prepared and stamps that Uncle Warren had gathered for me. I was also schooled in cribbage and tolerated by the older cousins. Those times are long past. The big family Thanksgiving diner and Christmas gatherings eventually stopped and three years ago the family reunions also came to an end.
My aunts and uncles have grown old and sadly, they too, are passing away. Aunt Marge passed away on Friday, February 24, 2011. She will be missed by many, but, her cookie making will live on. For my wedding 20-years ago, she gave me a cookie cookbook, which to this day is still being used. And I am passing what I know about making cookies, on to my daughter, who is one of the many cousins and grandchildren who will carry on the traditions and values that the children of Charles and Bernice have passed along to their children.

The diary is done with an index, of sorts. I have coded it so one can jump to the beginning of every month. Since I now know how I am laying the diary section out, the other diary’s will go a little faster. As I have mentioned before, this diary holds some interesting tidbits about what was going on, from where everyone was to the weather. Please take some time to go through it and let me know what you think.

Brian

Aunt Mary’s diary has been updated, it is now complete through October. Interesting stuff going on in Weldon, Iowa. Peggy is crazy on a couple of days, they listened to King George IV speech, canned a lot garden goods for the cave, spent time in the cave because of a bad storm, and a lot of people visited. This is good stuff for researchers of the Great Depression era house holds. Will have the rest of the diary and an index later in the week.

Brian

The months of April and May, 1933 through 1937 have been posted, with the April links fixed. After I get all of the pages posted, I will make an easier index for people to jump around the diary. Dad is also preparing a book a poems that Martha Maitlen Delk had written through out her life. These poems detailed the times, both good and bad in her life and give a good account, just like Mary’s diary, of what was happening in the world around her. Look for them starting next month.

Brian

Mary May Delk’s diary has been updated. The months of February, March and April have been added. Also, I fixed the first link. Should have the rest done by the end of the week.

Which is what I should learn to do. I was given four cloth samples from Martha Maitlen. I only posted three. The fourth one is now posted and can be seen here. I must say, the story of how Martha and Elmer met should be told, especially after looking at the swatches of dresses that Martha saved along with notes for each one. Look at the dates. First date with Elmer, April 6th, engaged four days later, and married two months later. How well did they know each other before dating? Since they were first cousins, what did their parents, who were brother and sister, think? And, we know that Elmer’s brother Fernandis Orien, had been in communication with Martha before the marriage because of the letters that Martha had saved. Could he have gotten them together? Just speculation. Will post more soon.

Brian