Transportation by air, car, train, and sea - Ancestors in 52 Weeks

This year's challenge is 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks and is run by Amy Johnson Crow.

Topic Info:
Week 43 is all about "Transportation." Did an ancestor take a long trip? Did anyone have an occupation involving planes, trains, or automobiles?

This is an interesting topic as long trip is like asking how long is a piece of string? Some consider anything outside of the nearby towns as a long trip while others consider going from Europe to the US or going from Europe to Australia as a long trip. Like I said... how long is a piece of string?

Long Trip question
We've had people move from Eastern Europe and go to the US. We've also had people who once they've gone from Europe to the US, then continued onto the midwest, Minnesota, and then turned to go back to New York. We've also had people who were born in New York, then move to Nebraska, before going to California where they finally settled and had their family and then died. Then you have people like myself who was born in New York and moved every 3-5 years constantly until 1997 when I moved from New York to Australia and have only lived in 3 different addresses is over 20 years living here.

Occupations
The planes, trains and automobiles occupations are interesting and I can fill them all! Yep, we're that skilled in my family.

Planes
The planes area is interesting but I can fill this occupation at least twice. My Uncle Louis Gauqie Jr was in the Air Force and chances are high he either flew them or helped get them in the air.

Taken from a Business Directory in Nebraska. Credit

The other person was my mother's cousin Jimmy - or James J. Sherman. He was in the Air Force and died in a training accident in World War 2.

James Jules 'Jimmy' Sherman's High School Yearbook picture in 1942. Credit

Jimmy is circled. This picture was put on Find A Grave. Most of his crew, and himself, died on a training mission in WW2. Credit Michel Beckers

I currently hold his wings he gave my mother right before he shipped out to Europe where he went down with the plane.

Louis P Gauquie worked for ERR for many years.

My grandfather's positions (some) when he worked on the railroad.
Credit: Railway Retirement Board

Trains
My Grandfather, Louis P Gauquie, and his brother, William Gauquie, both worked for the railway. I know my grandfather had a few different positions within the ERR or Erie RailRoad.

His brother worked for them for a short time before getting out and running a farm for awhile.

Automobiles
Yep, here we are with the topic of automobiles. It's really interesting because I had a paternal great grandfather, Adam Wojtkowski, who never learned how to drive. He didn't want to learn, so he would go from NJ to Newburgh, NY and back on the bus. It got to be where the bus drivers knew him quite well.

Then you have my paternal grandmother, Adam's daughter Jean. While she was never scared of the car, she had a bad run in with a car and train when she lived in New Jersey. It was around 1935-1936 when the car she was a passenger in, collided with a train to where my grandmother was thrown through the glass windshield, across the front of the car and into the street and train. The male friend who was driving had knee injuries but mainly was alright.

Note: I've been looking for more information on this train accident in the newspapers, but there had been many accidents around this time and I haven't been able to find it yet.

The bystanders didn't know if my grandmother was alive or not, but they called the 1 ambulance the tiny town had, which they had to wait for, and was new in the town. They got there and Jean was alive, but they didn't know if she'd stay that way. They hurried her to the hospital.

It took her a long time to get better, but mentally they didn't know if she would ever recover because mentally she thought her son, my father Matthew, was in the car with her. No matter who told her he was fine, she wouldn't believe them and thought they were lying and he was dead.

The only way to get to her to believe them was for her to be taken to the window where Jean's husband Matthew was, her son (my father) Matthew who was about 12 months or so old, and her father Adam was.  They wouldn't let her son up to see her because they were worried he'd bring germs into the hospital with him (this was standard policy up until at least the 1980s). After she saw him, she improved.

She had a few scars which were noted on her naturalization paperwork.

Above is a record of the scars on Jean's face from her intention for naturalization paperwork. Credit: Immigration Services

Another record of Jean's scars from her citizenship certificate. Credit: Immigration Services

Also, she had glass shards come out of her skin for the remainder of her life. I used to stay over with her and when she felt them, I used to climb behind her and try and help them come out of her skin and wipe them away for her.

I believe this accident was probably one of the main reasons why she was so cautious when she drove and always drove much slower than the speed limits. It was known to look out the window at one of the main roads and see traffic backed up behind her due to how slow she was driving.

Late 1970s at my father's in Newburgh, NY. My grandmother Jean and I.

My grandmother had one but in bright Robin egg blue. Credit

It always makes me smile when I think of a small 4 foot 10 inch (in high heels) woman driving a Chrysler Charger car down the road in bright Robin egg blue. When she got out, you could see her pillows for both her back and under her butt. She needed the high heels otherwise she couldn't reach the car pedals!





On my mother's side, we have someone who owned a car garage and someone who owned a transport company too. They both lived in Chester, NY. 

My mother's great Aunt Farillda/Pharailde Galloway (nee Gauquie) married Frank Galloway in 1901 who was a farmer at this point. In 1920 Frank went from farming to mechanic with his own garage called Galloway Garage in Newburgh, NY.  

1923 Write up and picture about Galloway's Garage. Credit

1923 Write up and picture about Galloway's Garage. Credit

 Although it did move in 1954 to another spot within Newburgh, NY. 

August 1954. This shows by this point the Galloway Garage had moved. Credit

It was passed down from father to son until at least the mid 1970s.

1973 Advertisement in Valley Central's Yearbook Credit

The next relative of my mother's, I've mentioned above, is her cousin about 3 times removed named Louis Van Rompaye.

August 1936 in the Middletown Daily Times shows relationship to Van Rompay to Gauquie's

Louis came to the US in the early to mid 1890s. I believe this is who my grandfather is named after as Louis and my great grandfather were very close due to my great grandfather's mother being a Van Rompaye.

During the years where Louis was controlling his own business in early 1900s. Credit

Anyhow, Louis opened up a milk transport business which picked up milk from local dairy farmers, like my great grandfather Jules, and transported it to businesses which then sold it to the public. This continued for years until about the 1960s when they branched out to LP and oil, soon stopping the milk transports (I believe).

Shows how transport of milk in 1945. Credit as above.

They are still in operation today (2019) under LP Transportation.

Other - Water
We've even had people travel all over on and under the water.

My father was a US Navy Submariner for 20 years. He went all over in a submarine - both diesel and nuclear. He went to England and Scotland at least.

When Dad got his Dolphins. Credit

1967 The write up in the newspaper regarding Britain's submarines. This is one of the two my father helped deliver. Credit as above.

Then you have my Uncle Louis (Remember the Air Force flying above?) well he served twice. The first time it was onboard a Navy Vessel.

1957 Newspaper article about where my uncle served.  Credit

My nephew, Charles Jr, served onboard a Navy vessel as well. He's now out, and is a veteran. 

My Nephew when he served in the Navy. Credit: C Schmitz Jr

Its reported some of the areas he went to are eastern Mediterranean Sea, Iraq, Persian Gulf, and Somalia. Please find out more about the USS Anzio.

The USS Anzio home for Fleet Week. Credit

Yep, my family gets around that's for sure!