Gravestone Girls Tonight!

As a last minute reminder to anyone who lives anywhere near Chicopee, Massachusetts, if you're a family researcher amateur or professional and your interests lie in the burial of our ancestors, this might be for you!

The Gravestone Girls are presenting a virtual tour of the cemeteries in Chicopee which will include some surprisingly

[caption id="attachment_3493" align="alignleft" width="86"] John Chapin, a descendant of the prominent Chapin family of Springfield, Mass, died in Pennsylvania as indicated on the stone.[/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="75"] English: MacArthur's Ball, Monument to Lt Gen Arthur MacArthur in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

interesting famous personalities who were born here or lived here and certainly who died here. Well, mostly who died here.  For example, John Chapin was 44 years old when he died in 1749.  His grave stone indicates that he died in Pennsylvania.  So the question may be whether he was buried in Chicopee or was this simply a "cenotaph" honoring his memory as he was buried in Pennsylvania.  A cenotaph is exactly that; a memorial marker with names, dates and often other information of an individual who died and was buried far from their home.

All in all feel a little bit a part of this one.  I toured all the Chicopee cemeteries with one of the Gravestone Girls, Brenda a/k/a Sophronia  while giving her a thumbnail sketch of the history of Chicopee including some of the "rich and famous" from Chicopee's past.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="350"] English: Image of Chicopee Public Library (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

The event, which is supported by a grant from the Chicopee Cultural Club, a local agency, which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, takes place at the Chicopee Public Library, 459 Front Street, Chicopee, Massachusetts from 6:30 to 8:00 PM.

See you there!

 

 

 

 

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25th Anniversary Polish and Eastern European Genealogy Roadshow

June 21, 2014

25th Anniversary Polish and Eastern European Genealogy Roadshow

Polish Genealogical Society of Massachusetts

Polish Center of Discovery & Learning,   33 South St. . Chicopee, MA 01013

10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

 Come help PGS-MA celebrate our 25th Anniversary with a genealogy roadshow! For both beginners and experienced researchers, this will be a day of fun and learning featuring four speakers, one-on-one consultations, and great displays and help stations.                Cost is $15 members/$20 non-members if you register before May 21.    ($5 additional if after this date or at the door)

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="350"] English: City Hall, Chicopee, Massachusetts, September 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

 Topics & Speakers

Uncover Your Roots in the Lemko Region of Southeast Poland - Mike Buryk

Beginning Your Genealogy - Alan Doyle Horbal

Naturalization & Related Records - Walter Hickey

Poland - What's That?? - Staś Radosz

 Displays & Highlights

. Translation Stations (Polish, Russian, and more)

. Free Scanning Station (scan your family documents and photos to computer media)

. "Ask a Genealogist" One-on-One Session with Experts (first come/first served at mailed registration)

. On-line Search Guidance at LDS Family Search.Org Stations

. Find and Map Your Ancestral Village

. Polish Lunch by Bernat's

. Genealogy Raffle

. . Plenty of Chances to Meet & Mingle!

 For more information and a registration form please visit <http://www.pgsma.org>

Or call Ed Dzielenski, Board Member, 413-567-3132.

Click here for a registration form: http://bit.ly/1s5iASz 

This program is supported in part by a grant from the Chicopee Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

Lincoln's Gate, Ames Manufacturing Co, Chicopee, MA

One of the most important manufacturers of swords and canon before and especially during the Civil War was Ames Manufacturing.  The company had its origins in Chelmsford, Massachusetts where blacksmith and founder John Ames made some of the first manufactured shovels beginning in 1774. Ames The Manufacturing Company was founded in 1791.  The company continued under the son, Nathan Ames who was lured to its current location along the Chicopee River in Chicopee, Massachusetts for the availability of cheap water power provided by the river.  Ames was granted the "privilege" to take advantage of that power and since thus, its name, "Ames Privilege".

Ames soon became the premier manufacturer of swords for the US Government starting in 1832.  The complex of buildings were added to the National Historic Register in 1983.

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln was scheduled to visit the factory and in his honor, a special "gate" was constructed through which it was planned Lincoln could enter the grounds.  "Lincoln's Gate" is still a part of the property although the once bustling factories have been in the process of conversion to apartments.



Due to subversive activities in the area in 1864, Lincoln's trip to Chicopee was cancelled and never rode through the gate. The "gate" is now a huge window that, due to reconstruction and remodeling, sits at the end of one of the lobbies and looks out into what was once the entrance to the grounds where wagon loads of raw materials entered and finished goods were shipped.

A very informative book about Ames Manufacturing can be ordered at Amazon.com.  "The Ames Manufacturing Company of Chicopee Massachusetts" by Jacqueline T Lynch contains the stories of three men who were all associated with Ames Manufacturing. One was a founder of the company; another a machinist who went off to war and left a leg on the battlefield and received the Medal of Honor; a third who worked the foundry left the company and became a world renowned forger of bronze statuary.

Chicopee will be the site of the semi-annual Ames Society Convention October 4 and 5, 2014.  Members of numerous branches of the Ames, Amos and Amis families will gather for speeches, a tour of the factory complex and general camaraderie.