Genealogy Books

For those interested in Cincinnati history or the names and former addresses of family members who came from there, this book can be a valuable resource. Includes maiden names, clubs, ancestral Societies, Debutants and "other matters of Social Interest" according to the book itself

Donald Monro, Archdeacon of the Isles before the Protestant Reformation, wrote the first known description of the Western Isles of Scotland from personal observation. Written in 1549, Monro's work has been highly valued for the light it sheds on the history, topography, and philology of the Hebrides. This fuller and more accurate edition of the Archdeacon's account, prepared by R. W. Munro, features descriptions of forty islands never published before. In addition to his description of the islands, Monro's Genealogies of the Chief Clans of the Isles traces the descent of the five chief branches of the Clan Donald. Yet another important feature of this edition is the inclusion of Donald Monro's account of the "Council of the Isles," a unique body of Scottish leaders that met at Finlaggan in Islay. With careful attention to sources and containing a glossary of terms, bibliography, and subject index, R. W. Munro's edition of Monro's Western Isles of Scotland is essential reading for anyone seriously interested in the history or genealogy of the Scottish Highlands.

Return Jonathan Meigs Ward had killed before. Having gone undetected the first time, the temptation to do so again was irresistible. "I was myself surprised that a life could be taken with so little disturbance," Ward confessed.

However, in 1857, when he murdered his wife Olive in their small home in downtown Sylvania, it became quite clear to him that covering up this crime would not come so easy. He busied himself with destroying any sign of her and came up with a story that he ultimately could not keep straight. While he butchered her up and burned pieces of her in his stove, residents became suspicious.

Author Gaye E. Gindy spent many hours transcribing old documents and newspapers to bring the story of Ward's life and Olive's grisly murder to light. Olive was clearly a victim of domestic violence. She put her children under the care of others because of Ward's ill-will towards them and having left Ward, she confided in friends and family that Ward was surely going to kill her if she returned. Indeed, upon hearing that she would return for her trunk and clothing, Ward confessed that he fully resolved that Olive would never leave his house alive.

Murder in Sylvania, Ohio: As Told in 1857, is a true account of this murder, committed by Return Jonathan Meigs Ward. It chronicles how a small community in Northwest Ohio brought justice to a man the Toledo Blade believed to be "one of the most hardened criminals that ever stretched hemp."

Probably more than 8,000 mounted knights fought for Duke William of Normandy at Hastings in 1066, but only a very small number of those can actually be identified. In 1931, a bronze commemorative tablet was erected at Falaise in Normandy which included the names of 315 men who were claimed to be proven Companions of the Conqueror, but even that number turns out to be too large by more than a factor of ten. The names were taken from several sources: Guillaume de Poitiers, who was William's chaplain; Bishop Guy of Amiens, almoner to Queen Matilda, who wrote a Latin poem on the battle; Guillaume de Jumieges, who dedicated his _Gesta Normanorum_ to the Conqueror; Roger du Mont and Robert Torigny, who continued that work; Oderic Vital, a monk born nine years after Hastings, who spent several years in England collecting evidence on the battle; and Wace, a Jersey-born poet born in 1100 who mentions 118 knights by name in his _Roman de Rou_. The Bayeux Tapestry is another source which names a very few of those present at Hastings. The principal source for the list of Companions was for many years the Roll of Battle Abbey, but that was shown in the past century to be very unreliable. Dr. T. R. Thomson, spurred by the Falaise celebrations, re-examined the sources in a key article late in 1931, and the following year Geoffrey H. White read an important paper before the Society of Genealogists confirming Thomson's conclusions. Prof. David C. Douglas went back to the beginning in another major paper in 1944 and White published an extensive commentary on that effort, as well. And how many Companions' names have survived this rigorous academic process? Nineteen -- fifteen of them certain and four others highly probable. All, of course (with the exception of Bishop Odo), were founders of great noble families in England.

All the articles mentioned above have been conveniently reprinted in this slender volume, together with a list of all the names claimed by all the sources, including six variant copies of the Battle Abbey Roll, the Falaise Roll of 1931, and Leopold Delisle's Dives Roll, published in 1863.

This book is a key source not only for sorting out the claims of various ancient families to ancestral presence at Hastings, but also as a nearly complete list of all those families whose progenitors showed up in England anywhere from a year to several generations later.

It's great for children to fill in the blanks. Has a line for step relatives and even the pet. Very helpful for children to understand who everyone is in the extended families.

Dr Olive Banks taught at the University of Liverpool in Britain and first published this book in hardback in 1968. Her book is of historical value to those wanting to trace the growth of the sociology of education in modern sociology. Here, in what no doubt became a standard textbook, is a general picture of the field during the 1960s with particular reference to research and trends. Although written primarily for the sociology student rather than the intending teacher (and presuming some basic familiarity with sociological concepts), this book is valuable to teachers wanting to trace the evolution of the sociology of education.

The first half of the book is concerned with education in the context of wider social systems. Banks wrote "The wider social structure in which the educational institutions are enmeshed must . . . be seen . . . as the expression of manifest or latent ideological conflict" (p12). She discusses current developments of that time period in such traditional topics as education and the economy, social stratification and social mobility, and family values and achievement, the socialization process, and educability.

In the second half the author comes to grips with the developing field in her day of the sociology of the school. Banks discusses the influence of the State in schooling, the teaching profession, the school as a formal organization, and the school as a social system. A final chapter considers the issue of education and social change, and reviews some of the recent innovations in the field of education and social policy. Althought British education and British society is the starting point of the analysis, comparative data with American research have been introduced throughout. She concludes by stating that "the educational system is itself a part of the society which is changing"(p217) and makes a call for further research.

Knowing the early history of the sociology of education helps teachers, educational anthropologists and sociologists to focus more clearly on contemporary research into current schooling practices and educational alternatives. This book works well alongside Dubay's "Philosophy of the State as Educator".

Just quick and easy here.. My family came to this country and settled in New York in the past 4 generations (my fathers side being 2).. I have been reasearching my family history for many years (Mr. Marlin might be acquainted with Mrs' Willis and Ward from the Orlando Public Library who would remember this brat from the past!) I found his book very informative to give me a couple of more avenues to explore.. Very well written! I hung on every word! Thanks Mr. Marlin!

Matthew Barrett, Fairfax, Va

This book is an excellent example of what dangers are present when people don't use names that they control.

diifferent definitions

In brief, then, it is my opinion that this neat . . .onomastic anthology is indeed very readable.

Karina van Dalen-Oskam, as reviewed in the Autumn 1998 issue of VERBATIM, The Language Quarterly