Print - TGA III, IV and GB IV, V, VI, VII

The Thomas Gardner Society, Inc. publication is available that includes Volumes III and IV of The Gardner Annals which is our means of reporting results of research and review. Included, as an appendix, are Volumes IV, V, VI, and VII of Gardner's Beacon, the newsletter of our organization.

Instructions for ordering copies are available by contacting us at publications@tgsoc.org.

Also available is our print of TGA I, II and GB I, II, III from October of 2017.

Remarks: Modified: 02/12/2019

02/12/2019 -- See our Publications page for more information about our publications. As well, we will be providing a Comment & Criticism facility. For now, please contact us a publications@tgsoc.org. 

Gardner families and Maine

Our goal is to get five generations documented. Actually, coming forward to 1900 would be a better goal. This post looks at the current state of affairs using one state.

There were several Gardner/Gardiner families in Maine, including descendants of other Gardners, such as George of Rhode Island. We have several posts on these, such as Henry D. Gardiner and Gardner CO.

There are, at least, two families that we know about that descend from Thomas and Margaret. This post provides information about them.

• Ebenezer (31 March 2011) -- Ebenezer (#123) left Salem and ended up in Nova Scotia. With the conflict of the American Revolution, he came south and was given land in Maine. He is a descendant of Samuel (#6) in the book through Abel (#59) and then Thomas (#76). There was a book written about the family in 1898: The Gardner Family of Machias and Vicinity. There is a web site based upon 1909 work by G.T. Little,  sponsored by the State of Maine: Genealogical and Family History - Gardner.  
• William -- He is a descendant of Samuel (#6) through Abel (#59), then Israel (#77). There is a book by Stanley Israel Gardner that published in 1986: The Gardner Family of Maine. The book is being digitized.  

These two give us a start on collecting the first five generations. Samuel had several other children, be sides Abel. And, Abel had other children. The following image shows the full two generations from Samuel.

In the image, the red arrows show the Ebenezer line. The blue arrow is for Israel which is truncated. I put in the line for Dr. Frank for reference (green arrow).

 We have our work cut out for us. Dr. Frank only expanded on child of Samuel, namely Abel. I will go to WikiTree and see how many of these I can find.

Remarks: Modified: 10/25/2018

10/25/2018 -- Will be using WikiTree (Samuel/Abel).

CMS and more

That's a use of 'CMS' in the context of content. And, context, itself, has levels. In our case, now, the scaling requires more automation. And, growth will be along the simple format that has been adopted. Yes, we'll provide capability without unnecessary flash.

See this page for some discussion of what has been done since 2010 (TGS - Technology and practice). It provides the stepwise look, from 2010 and seems to be in a two-year step. In that same time period, the content has really grown. We just published the last two volumes of The Gardner Annals with issues of Gardner's Beacon. So, that means that we have four volumes of TGA in print. There are plans for many more.

Note: We are looking for articles.

With the print, we are handling orders and shipping, using snail mail. So, we can look to leverage off of existing work, except we are non-profit. There are many groups that offer to support the non-commercial. Even Facebook wants to help. Who to trust? Yes, indeed. That is a central notion to discuss. The Thomas Gardner Society, Inc. is calling attention the the need. We are not alone, however there is a lot of discussion to happen and work to be done.

Now, one nice little thing found today was something out of MIT (UIkit). We will look further, but this is a needed resource (or something like it). Too, we need ERP or accounting system functions which the 'cloud' seems to have to offer, even for the non-profit. Imagine, even Salesforce.

Just like I did with the move from Microsoft's Office Live to Webhosting Hub, I will blog throughout this process and use a category related to the theme (CMS and more - let's say, squeezing of the jewels).

Since we have manual processes, there is no hurry. I'll be poking around, especially looking at where things might be more awry than not; of course, defining the situation and what might be wrong. But, anyone who wants to weigh in and help (thereby slimming down the timeline) can do so.

Remarks: Modified: 10/28/2018

10/24/2018 -- As said, we started with Microsoft's OfficeLive. MS pushed everyone off in 2012. So, I looked at the industry. Still have the notes. I went with Web Hosting Hub due to several factors, but a huge one was that they were Linux which which I was familiar (long years of Unix). Now, we're going to step up to SSL and handling funds. So, it was nice to read an article that compares Hub with its competitors: Web Hosting Hub Review: The Good, Bad & My Experience. Essentially, the decision of six years ago was right on; going with a larger effort would probably lead to using inMotion which is their compatriot (super dude). We need our own blog. Right now, we're using blogger.com (Google) and Word Press (thomasgardnerofsalem) which we can easily move over to Hub. One reason for this is in the 'free' mode, one has ads to contend with.

10/28/2018 -- Going mobile caused a type of convergence of design. For some of the older sites (who have a long history and adopted the web early), the movement to the newer look has been interesting to watch. Usually, it is portal-level work that has been updated. Once one gets into the guts, it's the same as before. Actually, we (old timers) ought to be thankful for that. Also, the web builders have abounded. I tried some in 2012 and later. Need to summarize this effort, again. Ran into one example today that piqued my interest: Phi Kappa Phi. What got my attention was the contribution page and the on-line store page. Both of these are clean and simple. And, the underlying software is out of Computer Systems Innovations, such as CSiDonate.

A new twist

Note: See Remarks, 11/14/18, for a view of the colonial (via Perley) with the modern (via Google). We will now be able to do a "missing tombstone Tuesday" for awhile.

Sidney comes through, again. First of all, he and Dr. Frank worked together. Then, Lucie picked up Sidney's work and published such in The Massachusetts Magazine. So, expect to hear more about Sidney and his work, such as the following.

Of late, I have been trying to assess what happened to the bodies at Gardner Hill. When I first started this work, the general thing was there was a transfer to Harmony Grove Cemetery. That is, everyone was moved nicely. Re-interned, in other words. But, where in the Cemetery? By the Peabody gate? And, one write up says, well, it was only a handful of yards. In fact, there is misinformation everywhere I go to read on this topic.

So, we'll post an improvement once we know a little more.

Well, let's look at Sidney's map (The Essex Antiquarian, Vol VI, No 4, October 1902, pg 149). He shows the burial plot as being north of the Trask one. Too, it is toward Boston/Main. So, according to the scale, we're talking a couple hundred of yards.

Of course, Sidney did this from the ground, given his times. However, he was thorough so I accept his depiction. According to the satellite map of Google, we are talking almost 1,000 feet (well, 300 yards).

However, there is a winkle. Dr. Frank saw notes from Samuel Pickering Gardner where he mentioned his visit to the burial plot in the 1830s, before the road work, and some stones had already been moved and some broken. In other words, graves were already lost in terms of identification. All for commerce. Of course, Samuel P. was upset.

And, Samuel P. said that the seller was William (Harvard grad, so we're talking a secular influence more than mere money - well, it's a debate that continues) who I am researching further (How close is close?). He is a descendant of Samuel (#6 in the book), son of Thomas. Now, Samuel P. is a descendant of George (#3 in the book), who was the brother of Samuel. In this map, the Samuel who owned the plot north of Abel is a son of George. And, Samuel's plot is right above Abel's who was a son of the original Samuel.     

This re-look came about since I heard this year that stones were moved. What? The bodies were cast into the river? Gosh, the fire? Payback? So, we can say, some. How many? Who was there? We need to research this. Where to start? All sorts of questions.

Well, this is more of a story than the witch thing that is so popular, somewhat. We have culture (Harvard and not), history (the rush to do shoes, etc.), and technology. I'm trying to envision how Gardner Hill was leveled. Too, what was the elevation change? All of this can be answered one way or another.

However, Sidney saves the day. He mentions that some bodies were moved to Trask's plot. That makes a whole lot of sense. So, thank you, Trask family. Their plot was closer, actually, than Harmony Grove. It wasn't commercial (don't worry, I have been gathering the history of the place, before, after and so forth).

So, we now have three classes of people: those whose remains were moved to Harmony Grove, those whose remains went to Trask's plot, and those whose remains were lost due to the stones being removed to allow for industrial expansion. Then, we can talk the different classes of stones. Not many survived. Two trophy stones stand in Harmony Grove (placating the conscience?). We may not be able to identify all who were put into Gardner's burial ground, but we ought to make an effort. Now of those were moved to Trask, did the stones go with them? Of course, many may not have had stones.

At least, we need to get the verbiage in an improved state in order to tell the story a little better.

Of course, the seller did not get the buyer to honor the 'in perpetuity' that was supposedly left behind. Ah, lots of other angles to look at, too.

Remarks: Modified: 06/02/2019

11/14/2018 -- Finally, getting somewhere. Pushed this image up to the New England Family and Genealogy group on Facebook with comments. Too, it shows the deal. In essence? Stones were moved in the 1820s and 1830s and piled. Hence, graves location were lost. One of these was that of Thomas Gardner. We want an inventory of the others. How to do this?

#3 was the burial plot on the side of Gardner's Hill (#4). #2 is Trask's plot to which some bodies were moved in the 1840s. Some graves may have been moved to #6 which is across the river. However, stones were moved as #6 claims. The real issue is that re-internment has become the assumption. Not, people. We need to weed this out. The irony? The current #4 spot is the site of The Holy Ghost Society which was built by Portuguese immigrants.

12/06/2018 -- The Richard III Society reported that a 500 year old body had been found in the Thames. Its skeleton was still there. Too, a pair of boots indicated something of the person's life. Now, the burials at Gardner's plot were from the latter part of the 1600s to the early part of the 1800s. The trashing of the graves was due to commercial interest. Too, the plot was sold by someone in the immediate family, as in a descendant of Abel (Samuel, Thomas). Abel was buried there, too. His stone, and that of his wife, was moved. More coming.

12/08/2018 -- Back in October, this post (Gentleman, every man, and much more) was started as a basis for the discussion and research work. In it are early posts which show the naivete of those times having just started this stuff. Never would have thought that this incident would have been allowed to go under the radar. It's being raised as one of the many oversights to correct in the upcoming 400th.

01/04/2019 -- Starting to pull things together for the next issue of Gardner's Beacon which will deal with the grave deal: 29 December 1674.

02/28/2019 -- Gardner's Beacon, Vol. IX, No. 1 gives an overview of what we know after looking at the issue of missing graves. Then, there are more missing graves, we see.

05/16/2019 -- The map that compares Sidney's walk-about with Google is way off. That is because I was looking at landmarks and not paying attention to details, like distance. So, see this update: How close is close ? II. Here is the updated graphics.

Oh yes, we are now honing into the area. 

06/02/2019 - Profile of Sidney on WikiTree.

Locales and their history

A 100 years ago, there was a huge growth in interest in local history. This was everywhere. At the same time, people got interested, again, in genealogy. If you look at the books written, a slew came out in that period. Some families started post-Civil-War.

Of course, the New England Historic Genealogical Society got its start in the 1830s. They are going strong. Dr. Frank started his The Massachusetts Magazine in 1908. That was right after his 1907 book on Thomas Gardner (Planter) - motivation for this Society - came out. It went on for a decade, covering a variety of subject.

Our theme comes from that, too: culture/history/technology. Now, recall that technology is broad and would include genealogy. As, those slew of books? Many are more misinformation than not. Fortunately, Dr. Frank took care when researching for and writing his.

Nowadays, we see the influence of the web which surpasses what print could do. It can spread mischief further and faster, too. But, it'll be around in one form or another. We are trying to establish a stable, trustworthy presence there, that would get Cape Ann more well known, in all aspects, including, of course, the people: Thomas and Margaret with their cohorts.

A couple of years ago, we adopted an additional view, related to the western movement. New England drove some of that. In fact, before the Civil War there was a partitioning of locales according to which side it was put. Kansas was free; Col. Higginson went there to bring support to the free state'rs. He wrote of his experiences.

Besides the re-look at history and people (families), groups formed. We mentioned the NEHGS. There was the Old Planters Society. D.A.R. formed. All over the country, D.A.R. helped bring a historical focus.

This is one example: Wichita, KS. Note the digital copy is at archive[dot]org. It was published in 1914 by the oldest chapter of D.A.R. in Wichita (formed 1896). The Chapter had daughters of Patriots, known as 'Real daughters' (see related page). Too, the Chapter sponsored research into the Santa Fe Trail (see History&Preservation page).

In 2020, there will be commemorations of the arrival of the Mayflower (400th). The Cape Ann crew came not long after, founding Massachusetts. Virginia already had their 400th in 2007. BTW, Kansas had its in 1941 giving a nod to de Coronado's visit.

For the 300th anniversaries, there were many commemorations. Salem had a historic pageant. Dr. Frank played Roger Conant. His sister was

So, as we explore the spread of Thomas and Margaret descendants (and their collateral families) and look at "All things Gardner" over the next few years, the theme of locales will be constant.

Remarks: Modified: 07/17/2019

07/17/2019 -- Changed to using commemoration.

Gentleman, every man, and much more

Right now, this post has links to posts from several different points in time. We are reviewing the posts as a means to assess the research done so far, to see where we need to put more attention, and to lay out future research.

This is one theme of many that will be of continual interest. It has to do with Thomas. But, we will focus on Margaret, too. For the kids? We need to get the first five generations identified. Then, there are a slew of topics that are general, such as The Massachusetts Magazine, collateral families, WikiTree (technology, in general), and such.

These posts are all from the TGS blog except for the last one. As well, there will be things pulled from work being done on Quora.

This blog shows a recurring theme (or op-eds, if you would):

• True Gentleman (23 Aug 2011) -- Obviously, Thomas had talents and abilities and power (personal); in the longer course of history, the reality is not of those whose stories get told. Hence, our focus will be the rewrite that is necessary as an example of what will become the norm, in the future. 
• Written out of history (31 Aug 2011) -- My first impression was that the whole Cape Ann thing was cut off to be forgotten, after, of course, Rev John (White) raked the reputation of those daring souls through the mud. Pox on him. 
• Backbone and more (2 Dec 2011) -- Many (like Harvard) look to the brain; a human would not be without the substantial backbone. Some now still demonstrate this. 
• No shadow over Thomas (4 Dec 2011) -- Thomas and Margaret needed no sponsor nor special treatment. That story has to be told. 
• Remembering Thomas (28 Dec 2012) -- 29th of December, we remember Thomas; now, we'll have to have some type of recognition of his grave being trashed. 
  
• Cape Ann, of course (17 Mar 2014) -- In a pioneering sense, Cape Ann was thriving. What it did not do was measure up to the rapacious demands of capitalism.  
• Thomas and Margaret, archetypal pair (22 Jan 2016) -- We know so little of this couple, but for their offspring we would know less. 
• American manhood (3 Dec 2017) -- Virginian used as an example of manliness; New England has representatives. 

FEDaerated blog:

• July 6, 2010 - Early Fathers

A related theme deals with Rev. Hubbard who talked to people of the time. And, wrote then, too. He gets no respect (we'll look at that). Yes, the Roger Dangerfield of that era.

Note about genealogy: Old-time subject, basically a service (if one gets away from the enthrallment with one's own ancestors and looks broader as we ought to with collateral families - perhaps, even friends of the family). We have started to use WikiTree (hopefully to pull all of the first few (three or so) generations together.

Remarks: Modified: 01/04/2019

12/08/2018 -- Basically, this post was to lead into the topic of Thomas being lost with dozens (and dozens) of others. As in? Graves disturbed and lost with unknown conditions. See "A new twist" for a start of the necessary discussion. It is about time, Salem and Peabody.

01/04/2019 -- This topic will be followed more regularly this year (344th of 29 December 1674). We will initiate a discussion on WikiTree (see link in sidebar) in support of the research.

Reviews and news

Back in April of 2015, we did a matrix of metrics related to posts per month. The blog started in September of 2010. So, that four complete years and two partial years. The month and year that had the highest number of posts were marked.

It goes like this. Read and read. Then, when some threshold is met, write. Given that the blogger is a novice in this area, there was more reading than writing. Good sign? So, the two years that had a month with a good number of posts were 2011 and 2014. So, what was going on in those months? Well, we can look at the title of the posts and get some idea.

Also, note that the blog uses Remarks which can be quite extensive. So, rather than making another posts, most of the time, there is something added to an existing post. We'll go back and see which of the posts had the most extensions over the years.

So, going forward, here is a report that adds in the other years. It provides the table of counts and then, shows the titles of the posts for the months that were maximum for the given year. 

In August of 2011 (seven posts), the topics covered were contributions by John Goff, mentioning of Isabella of the museum, taking notice of the house built in the first year in Cape Ann, and a few other topics, like Gardner's Beacon, Vol. I, No. 3. But, note that there is a post which is titled 'True gentleman' that will be the topic of a coming post and article. It has to do with the fact that Conant was patted on the back for giving the reins to Endicott when he arrived. He was called a gentleman for letting loose of the power. Well, prior to that Gardner bowed to Conant. And, he and Margaret (we can use that name, folks) moved out of the house. The house? Yes, the one that Higginson, later, exulted about in his writings about New England. It was the fair house where Endicott provided a feast for Winthrop when he first arrived.

Note: all of this was written in various posts and in articles in Gardner's Beacon.

So, we'll get something from that review. Now, going to 2014, there was July and September with six posts each. In July, the posts dealt with John Gardner's early years, the source of the 'first governor' label that someone attached to Thomas, and issues related to Gardner's Beacon (now in the fourth volume) and the website. But, incorporation details were being wrapped up, to boot. So, that was a varied lot.

In September, the topics were The Gardner Annals which was in Volume I and provides our means to report research activities and finding. Guess what? That was the month that John Cook was querying about 'whence' issues and noted that there was a marriage notice that had been digitized. At the time, I posted the news at WikiTree (see the tree for Dr. Frank). This year, there was a discussion about the three wives proposed by Anderson of NEHGS, however we can now show that there were two.

We took these two years, 2011 and 2014, since they were covered in the earlier post. Next up, we'll look at the remaining years. In the meantime, the table is through September of 2018.
 
Note: at some point, will put in links to posts dealing with these subjects.

Remarks: Modified: 10/13/2018

10/13/2018 --