Newspaper delves into city’s rich past

The Bangor Daily News’ special series, “Ethnic Bangor: Rediscovering the City’s Past,” began in this past weekend’s edition with a jam-packed four-page section – a bird’s-eye map of the city done by Augustus Koch in 1875, keyed to 22 historical points; a timeline and an overview by Wayne Reilly.

I can’t wait to read – and save – the rest of the series, which runs most of this week in the Bangor Daily News.

Information in the first section comes from sources such as “Woodsmen and Whigs” by Abigail Ewing Zelz and Marilyn Zoidis; and from the Bangor Museum and Center for History – formerly known as the Bangor Historical Society.

Upcoming topics, running most days this week and concluding on Saturday, Dec. 8, include Italian, African-American, Greek, Jewish and Irish heritage.

Puzzled over what to get your favorite genealogist for Christmas? You can’t go wrong with a new membership or a renewal to the Maine Genealogical Society.

Just the quarterly, The Maine Genealogist, is worth the $20 a year.

The first article in the November issue is Linda Longley’s “The Parentage of George W. Langley of Somerset County, Maine.” George and wife, Mary (Spaulding) Langley, were in the Maine town of Moscow with children Jonah, George, Mehitable in the 1820s, with David born in 1831.

Longley goes on to prove that George was part of the Samuel and Comfort (Chesley) Langley family with the help of LaDonna Tompkins Simmons, who responded to a query she placed in a genealogical publication. Simmons shared with her genealogy that had been passed down in her family, as well as a 1933 letter written by a Langley relative.

It’s an excellent article, as are others you’ll find in The Maine Genealogist. Editor Joseph C. Anderson II, who is top-notch, requires “a source citation for every fact given in an article,” as he explains on the Editor’s Page in this issue.

So when Longley writes of George Langley’s baptism by the Rev. Obed Wilson, we have a footnote citing “Baptisms and Funeral Services Conducted by the Rev. Obed Wilson of Bingham, Maine,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register, vol. 103: 296-304.

The Register, as we call it, is published by New England Historic and Genealogical Society, and you can find it in such facilities as Bangor Public Library and Maine State Library in Augusta. Maybe one of your forebears was baptized or had a funeral service by Wilson in Bingham or a nearby town.

Other articles in the November issue include:

. “Identifying Sophia (Ridley) Peacock, First Wife of Aaron Peacock of Litchfield, Maine,” by Glenn D. Nasman.

. “Bible Record, The William H. Black Family of Ellsworth, Maine,” with family summary, Leslie D. Sanders and Joseph C. Anderson II. (William was the son of Col. John Black of Gouldsboro and Ellsworth.)

. “The Family of Joseph Hobbs of Berwick and Wells, Maine (concluded),” by Priscilla Eaton.

. “Marriage Intentions of Sumner, Maine, 1799-1853 (concluded).”

. “Marriage Intentions of Sumner, Maine, 1852-1853.”

Membership also includes the MGS Newsletter, a fine publication in its own right edited by Marlene A. Groves.

Members in MGS also receive a discount on special publications it does through Picton Press, such as the “Maine Families in 1790” volumes.

To join Maine Genealogical Society or give a gift membership, send $20 to MGS, Box 221, Farmington, ME 04938. Add $5 to have quarterlies sent first class.

Canadian residents pay $29 for a membership, and those outside the United States and Canada pay $34. First-class mailing is included.

A note about Picton Press in Rockport, which publishes numerous books of interest to genealogists, in addition to the MGS Special Publications.

Picton has put its new catalog of books and CDs online. The catalog will no longer be mailed, but you can print it off from the Web site. The catalog link is:

www.pictonpress.com/downloads/2008MasterCatalog.pdf

3411. TOMKINS. Looking for information from vital records for Tomkins families in Unity and Presque Isle. Harold Kjellman, 131 Wheeler Road, Hollis, NH 03049; hkjellman7784@charter.net

3412. PARSONS-SHEAN-SHANE-REED. Looking for ancestry for Thomas R. Parsons, born about Sept. 8, 1819; married 1842, to Mary Jane Shean or Shane, born about 1822. Thomas was a master mariner in East Machias. They had seven children born between 1844 and 1860 in East Machias. Thomas appears in the 1850 and 1860 censuses, wife only in 1880 census. Buried in East Machias cemetery. Daughter Caroline, also called Lina or Lena, was born 1859-1860, married Alonzo Reed of Alna, Lincoln County, died about 1888. She is also shown in vital records as Arraline L. Parsons. Thanks for any help. Carol Reed Kennedy, 19676 North Shinnecock Drive, Surprise, AZ 85374; Scrapcat2@aol.com

Send genealogy queries to Family Ties, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor, ME 04402; or e-mail queries to familyti@bangordailynews.net.