School Picture Day
An important day in the calendar of public school life was “picture day.” Having taught elementary school and serving as an elementary principal, all told for 35 years, that special day was filled with...
Tagged: Pennsylvania
Family On The Move: 1500–1800
Like many American families, our Hagenbuch family story is one of movement. It began in Switzerland sometime before the 1500s, migrated to what is now Germany in the 1600s, and finally came to America...
‘Reney, Get Your Hiney Down Here!
School days, school days, Dear old Golden Rule days ‘Reading and ‘riting and ‘rithmetic, Taught to the tune of a hick’ry stick! —Will D. Cobb and Gus Edwards, 1907 Dotted across Pennsylvania are one-room...
Old Newspaper Advertisements
Old newspaper articles and clippings are a great source of information for family research. Sometimes these have been saved in scrapbooks preserved in the Hagenbuch Archives. Other times, they are discovered using online research...
Three Things: Blessings for the New Year
Before I even read Andrew’s Christmas article entitled “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” I was thinking along the same lines for my New Year’s article. With a little help from him, we continue to...
I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Lately, we’ve heard the advice to “stay home for the holidays” and help prevent the spread of Covid-19. While many bemoan being stuck in their houses this year, let’s remember that for some being...
What Caspar Wistar’s Story Tells Us About Our Own
Today we know substantially more about our common ancestor, Andreas Hagenbuch (b. 1715, d. 1785), than was understood even a decade ago. Below are a few articles that capture some of this knowledge. Yet,...
Two Little Girls
It began with two photos. Two little girls dressed in the 1940s fashion—hooded coats, snow pants, and woolen leggings. The girls, Kathleen Hagenbuch and Joan Hagenbuch, were somehow related, and the photos were probably...
Mangoes and Molasses, Or Maybe Not!
Here is a riddle: When is a mango not a mango and a bottle of molasses something else entirely? Earlier this month, I was on a video call with my good friend, Clint Shearer,...
A Box Full of Goodies, Part 2
Readers may notice that Andrew and I attempt to write meaningful articles. It would be easy to scan a few photos or letters, describe them, and leave it at that. Instead, we strive to...
