The Story Behind The Sketch

Why would a humble hotel-keeper have his portrait drawn? Why does William's signature appear on the artist's sketch, as opposed to the artist's signature? Because, as I recently discovered thanks to a very-very distant cousin's tip, the pencil drawing was just a sketch for something much cooler!

To diverge a bit: some of the earliest information I read about William was a sheet xeroxed from a book that I've come to discover was the "History of Luzerne, Lackawanna, and Wyoming counties, Pa.: with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of their prominent men and pioneers", published in 1880. But, there was something that escaped the attention of whoever did the copying. Check out page 322, (here) and you'll a familiar face. Or, thumb through the embedded reader below:

In case this link is funky, here's the punchline: The engraver for this book based his work on the original pencil portrait of William, which is the only tangible link to "Our Beloved Head" currently known to exist. And THAT'S the reason for the pencil sketch!

One last thing: William must have been a pretty special guy to be included as one of the county's "prominent men and pioneers", especially since the book was published eight years after his death! What's also interesting is that his portrait is on the same page as an engraving of the house of Joseph T. Jennings, who -- I believe -- was one of Paul B's sons. Perhaps this positions both William and Paul B. as the heads of the two sides of the Jennings families in the county.

The Genealogy God Smiles on Me Again!

Arriving at my house today via UPS was my eBay grab: literally hundreds of newspaper clippings and documents, mostly pertaining to other families from Mehoopany -- not my family. Clipping after clipping contained names that are familiar to me from my research. Every once in a while, a JENNINGS popped out, most from the "other" Jennings family (in other words, not William's descendants).

I was about halfway through the newspaper clippings, when I unfolded a clipping that was about two inches wide and about a foot long. The headline at the top caught my eye:

FIRE AT MEHOOPANY

Could it be? I unfolded it and, once again, couldn't believe my luck:

Hotel, Store and Several

Dwellings Went Up in Smoke

Yes, you guessed it! My own, actual newspaper account of the fire that destroyed Grandpa Will's hotel! What's more, this account differs from the first, giving just a few more details about the fire than I had already known. More details to follow!

One (of Three) That Got Away

Over the past couple days, I've successfully lost an auction featuring a couple photos of old Mehoopany. I know there's someone who is trying to organize a site featuring the history of Mehoopany, and I'm thinking that's who I lost to. Anyhow, I managed to get a couple screenshots of the cards that got away. This one features a little glimpse of the hotel: if you follow the bridge across the creek, then follow the road up the hill and hang a right, the large building facing the road (with the star over it) is the hotel...probably, at this time, the Gaylord Hotel (as opposed to the Jennings House). This would also date the photo as pre-1910.

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night

Well, at least I know it was a cold night -- the night the Gaylord Hotel, formerly The Jennings House -- burnt to the ground. More precisely, it was February 8, 1910. I have a reprint of the newspaer account from the era, but here's a brief account taken from the same article, I presume, from "Wyoming County, 1842-1992", compiled by the Wyoming County Sesquicentenial Committee, copyright 1992:

"The third tavern was part of the Jennings House (Hotel) which was located in the Mehoopany end of town across the big Mehoopany Creek. A part of the front of this building was put up by Daniel Hicks in 1838 and in 1850 John Maynard built the addition.This was known as the Jennings House or Gaylord House. In 1910 on a bitter night, there was a disaterous fire which burned the hotel, the John Gaylord residence, Charles Jennings' store over which the Odd Fellows Hall was located, two dwelling houses owned by Frank Jennings and occupied by Frank Hobbs and Henry June, a house owned by F. C. Dennison estate and occupied by Grant Krewson who was a liveryman, a two-story wash shed, the hotel barn and a barn beloging to Frank Jennings in which a horse perished."

If You Ever Wamted to Visit the (Old) Family...

Here's all I know about the single largest collection of dead Jennings from my line. It's Vaughn Cemetery in Mehoopany, Pennsylvania.

I have two early memories of Vaughn Cemetery. Actually, the first memory is a family legend: that I played dice I brought along with me to Grandma Emma's funeral. I think I was seven years old, so that should excuse that behavior. I believe my father may have officiated. Emma was his mother, and she was the only grandparent I knew. She also lived with my family for a short time. As far as I can figure it, she was the last of the Jennings line to be buried there.

The second early memory is visiting Vaughn's with my parents and Aunt Emma Anderson when I was a little older. She lived in Trucksville, PA at the time, which is about an hour's ride away. We made a day of it, picking up some KFC along the way, or maybe the way back. There's more to that story...ask me about it sometime; it's pretty neat.

Fast forward to the most recent past, when my Cousin Sandy hooked me on this family history thing (thank you, Sandy). She had described the cemetery to me, yet I -- at that time -- had only vague impressions of it, which I shared above. Then, Tom Currier, another cousin (from the Grist line) was kind enough to go there and take pictures, even before we had ever met!

Since then, I have been there twice, in the Summers of '08 and '09. I can't name a more peaceful place on earth. There are people who claim there are nothing but Jennings there, but just a visit there will quickly dispel that belief. However, for those who are familiar with family history, the names read as a "who's who" of the world my ancestors knew. Furthermore, I could safely say that most of my Jennings-side family from my Grandfather Corey's generation and earlier are there. In any case, all my grandparents on my father's side are there.

On the morose side, it's probably not realistic that I should end up there as well, but -- if I had my choice -- I can't think of any place better.

Thank You, Agnes!

With the help of a mom of a friend (who happens to be a very fine genealogist) I might have some interestly leads in finding out who William's pre-America family was. Acting on a lead that our old, elusive friend Jabez could be William's brother, she offers this interesting tidbit:

In the Mehoopany census of 1850, Jabez was living in Mehoopany at the time. "Age 30, farmer; Susan, age 26 and Samuel age 4".

Some time before that, records show Jabez Wallace Jennings was born in 1819 and his chritening was in 1820 in Wesleyan, Bath, Somerset, England. Parents are listed as Samuel Jennings and Martha. The custom then was to name your first-born after your paternal father.

So, if this all pans out, once we get to look at who Samuel's other children were, if there is a William among them, we may have an idea who William's family in England was. That is, if Jabez was his brother.

Included in this post is an image from the Bath Post Office Directory of 1852. It lists Samuel Jennings as a "boot and shoe maker".

Also, if the Samuel was

I Spoke With Mr. B.

Earlier this week, I spoke with a Mr. B., a man who is very familiar with the Mehoopany photographs (these photos include views of the Jennings/Gaylord Hotel, as well as the aftermath of the 1910 fire).

He said that while some of the photos can be attributed to his father, others were taken by a "deaf-mute itinerant photographer"!

When I visited Mehoopany last month I saw the same images in a collection of a Mr. W., who lives in a house that was built on the site of the hotel. I took some photos of these photos; still, I'm hoping to obtain much better copies from Mr. B. The picture of the hotel in a previous blog post is from that colection.

(The names in the story are edited in order to preserve privacy.)