The English Origin of Henry Luce by Justin (Howery) Durand Copyright 1989, 2006 Henry (1) Luce was an early Massachusetts immigrant and progenitor of a large family on Martha’s Vineyard. His origin is unknown, but it has been suggested that he might have come from Horton in Gloucester. I believe there is some reason to…
Category: Genealogy
Remembering Conrad
Grant, O Gods, that the earth may lie soft and gently upon the shades of our ancestors, and may their urns be filled with a perpetual springtime blooming with the sweet scents of crocus. – Aulus Persius Flaccus, Satura VII, 207-8 On this date each year, I honor the memory of Conrad Hauri, the founder…
Families are constructed culturally
I’m always a bit surprised at the number of people I meet who don’t realize that kinship systems are cultural constructs. There is a biological connection, of course, but order is imposed by systems that vary across cultures. In some cultures, cousins of a certain type are assimilated into the same kinship class as brothers…
One big family
Everyone has trillions of ancestors. If you’ve never thought about this before, it might come as a surprise. Nevertheless, the number of ancestors doubles each generation back. You have two parents, four grandparents, eight great grandparents, and so on. Assuming an average of 25 years per generation, if you were born about 1950 you would…
A Woodruff Connection?
There is a persistent idea among older generations that Wilford Woodruff Luce, Sr. (1838-1904) was a son of Wilford Woodruff (1807-1898), the 4th President of the LDS Church. Others of the same generation find it necessary to vehemently deny the story. This is almost certainly nothing more than a confusion of names, compounded by the…