Welcome to my website! Over the years I have collected information on over 14,000 relatives of varying degrees. I believe that gathering information on the branches and twigs, as well as the roots, only helps in furthering my research.

I hope that you find the information useful in your own search. If you have any  pictures or information to add that will help keep the legacy alive please share. I'm always interested in making any data included here as accurate as possible, but I am certain that there are unintentional mistakes, so please check any facts for yourself. Where possible I have listed sources and I am constantly adding information.

To get started you can read the articles below about a few of my ancestors. On the top menu are links to my grandparents. On the left hand menu you can search by a surname, by a location, look at some photos or leave me a message. This website was created in Joomla and uses a great genealogy program called phpgedview. While it may take a short time to load a page, I believe the benefits of this new software are worth the wait. On each page are many options that will change the views to pedigree charts, descendant charts, etc. Feel free to try these out. There is also an option to take 'clippings' of the data for use in your own genealogy programs.

Last, but not ever least, this site is dedicated to my two beautiful aunts that left us way too soon. Carole & Barbara Lavoie, we love you and will miss you every day.

Askel, my 2nd great-grandfather, was born in 1837 on the farm Ersland in Hordaland, Norway and shortly thereafter moved to the Lio farm. In 1854 he sailed to Canada and made his way to Lisbon, IL where many Norwegians had settled. On arrival he took the name Lein, derived from the Lio farm name.

in 1858 he married Lisbet Thorsdotter Handerland and they became the parents of 13 children, including three sets of twins. Unfortunately, two of the sets died within four years of being born.

Sometime around 1860, before the Civil War began, they moved, as did many Norwegians, to Iowa in search of good farmland. They settled in Roland. Askel died in 1902 at the age of 75.

William Herwerth, my 2nd great-grandfather, came over to the US in 1849 from Germany at the age of 23. He came over alone and arrived in New York. He first went Schenectady, NY and worked at the Schenectady Locomotive Works and then he went to Scotia and worked at the Scotia Steam Mill. Sometime around 1852 he moved to Redford, NY, married and they had two children. It’s not known what happened but Ann and the two children died on April 2, 1860 and are buried in the Redford cemetery.

On November 9, 1860 in Redford he married Mary Jane Hooey, Mary Jane was born in 1842 in Redford. She was the daughter of John Hooey who came to America from Ireland in the late 1820’s and was a metal mixer at the famous Redford Glass Factory.

My 2nd great-grandfather, Rene, was born in 1830 in Petite Riviere, Quebec, Canada. He was a descendant of Captain Rene Delavoye, who was one of the original French settlers of Quebec around 1650. In 1855 he married Delvina Bouchard and they had at least 14 children together.

Sometime around 1885 they moved to Burlington, VT where Rene became the sexton at St. Joseph's Cemetery, a position he held for a decade. In 1902 he died of heart disease and is buried in Mount Calvary cemetery although his grave has not been located.

John Davidson, my fourth great-grandfather, was born around 1779 in South Shields, England.  Known for its glassmaking since the early 1600's, there were many glassworks in the area in the 1800's. It's not a stretch to imagine that John learned his glassmaking skills in the UK. When he arrived in Boston in July of 1825 he listed his occupation as glassblower. He brought with him his wife, Judith and their nine children. It is thought he worked in one of the many glassworks in Boston.