Messages from a cousin of ours

Message from Eleanor Grotjahn, July 5, 2010

Hey, Doug! I just ran across a note from Christine, dated June, 1978, from Pasadena, CA. She commented on the visit she'd once made to see my mom, in the Bothell days, but probably was responding to some earlier family question of mine. I quote:"I couldn't remember Grandfather Clarke's name. I visited my youngest brother Maxson, in San Marcos recently, and he had this information from Mary--Chester Sterman (?) [but we know that's not right!} married Ophelia Stillman." She goes on: "I remember him speaking to me in front of Grandmother Clarke's house in Alfred and being told by my family to stay indoors! He used to write me and send poems." Could he have been considered a possible child-abuser???

At the time she wrote, she was getting ready to head for a visit to her daughter's home in Westboro, MA: Dan and Mary Anne Button, with a son Daniel , who had just graduated from Cornell, was about to get married, and then attend MIT.

Just thought it might have some interest for you. Cheers, Eleanor

Message from Eleanor Elder Grotjahn, from June 12, 2010

Hi, Doug, Thanks for your response to my recent query. Yes, I have a copy of that book, but it wasn't until last evening that I took your suggestion. Son Doug had jotted down that Henry's middle name was Brown, which was of great help, and if I had read more closely the print-out I'd made on the Clark Museum, I would have seen that for myself. So there he is, on p. 157 (#244). Doug got to work figuring out what the connection might be between Chester Smedley and Henry Brown. Doug believes the common ancestor to have been Joshua, which would have made them something-or-other cousins, I guess.

At the time Doug was visiting in Chicago, and had asked the museum curator for info, she'd gotten quite intrigued by the whole idea his question raised. He picked out about 10 pages of particular interest, and took off for Kinko's (at 10:00 p,m, last night) to photo-copy to send this gal.

Email addresses you're interested in:

Douglas Grotjahn: grotjahn@sundown.sdsu.edu
Bonnie bgrotjahn@googlemail.com

During this past week, I had the pleasure of Doug's company; his trip north was actually my "Christmas gift" from last year, but it had taken him this long to figure out how to fit it into his busy schedule. He travels out and about a bit, giving presentations at various colleges (for ex., Marquette, and U of Ill-Chicago)
That trip was last month. Then he's collaborating in a couple of projects, one with a friend at the U. of Pittsburgh Med. School (they communicate via weekly telephone conferences, Doug, on one end, and his friend + his lab group on the other). This week's conf. lasted three hours!

Another project is with an oncologist at the UC San Diego who's trying to develop a vaccine for cancer. Doug's specialty seems to be catalysts--developing something that will work with what those other guys are working on, to produce desired results. Suppose there's a Nobel-prizewinner in there somewhere?

Doug's visit also brought me the good news that Bonnie will be coming to Bvue in mid-August for her 25th high-school reunion. (AOL had me all screwed up, and B's emails to me weren't getting thru, so Doug had to forward to me what she'd sent him. All cleared up now, though I am so pleased she's able to come. (The big stumbling block for awhile was the much higher airfare of this summer., but she's somehow bitten the bullet, and is able to work it out.)

Summer seems finally to be slowly working its way here. Highs in the 70's today--which is good.

Enuf already. My regards to your family. Eleanor