Oops 5/52

 Oops is often exclaimed when an accident or mistake is made.  I've made plenty of oops in my genealogical journey for sure.

In the beginning, I was eager to collect names and build my tree back, and more than once I took what I saw on another's tree at face value and did not validate the information.  I have learned to be more diligent but that doesn't mean that I won't continue to have oopsies happen.

The joy I get from researching is not quelled by mistakes.  This hobby gives me a purpose and is my happy place.  

Education 4/52

 The prompt for week four of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is Education.  I struggled with what to write for this prompt.  

The majority of my ancestors were not highly educated.  Most of my direct ancestors were farmers.  This prompt has inspired me to look further into my ancestors to discover their education level and to document it in my tree.  I haven't really given it much thought.  I know many of my ancestors have proved their abilities without a degree or certification but just by their common sense and hard work ethic.

Out of Place 3/52

One of my Great Grandfathers is John Colvin Bussey.  While doing research on him I was seeking him in the 1900 Census.  I could not locate him or his parents.  He was born in 1892 so he would have been around 7-8 for that census.  I moved on to try to locate him in the 1910 Census.  I searched Atlanta, Georgia first as this is where he was born and raised.  I found his parents but not him.  

I did a broader search looking for a "John C. Bussey" and found him in Oregon!  He is found in Portland City, Multnomah county, Oregon.  

Year: 1910; Census Place: Portland Ward 6, Multnomah, Oregon; Roll: T624_1285; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 0173; FHL microfilm: 1375298

I had no idea he was in Oregon.  I had asked my grandmother about it when I discovered this information years ago and she stated, "I remember him saying something about going out West when he was a young man."  She didn't know why, when, or with who.  

From this Census record, I see that he is living as a boarder in the home of Charles W. Copeland.  There is also a William Bussey from Georgia with him.  John is 17 years old.  They are working at a Box Factory.  

Looking further I found John C Bussey in the City Directory of Portland, Oregon for 1910.

Ancestry.com. U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
Original data:Original sources vary according to directory. The title of the specific directory being viewed is listed at the top of the image viewer page. Check the directory title page image for full title and publication information.

I discovered that John's Aunt Lucy Anne Bussey McDaniel McCaw had moved to Portland, Oregon.  I surmise that John moved out to Oregon for work and he had family in the area.  

John was "out of place" of where I expected him to be at 17 years old, which was with his family in Atlanta, Georgia.  Instead, I found him in Oregon, living with what I assume to be a cousin, William Bussey, as boarders in the home of Charles Copeland.  

This discovery now leads to a new research question to add to my ever-growing list of research topics.  Who is William Bussey and what is his relationship exactly to John C. Bussey?  

Another family puzzle to solve!