Napoleon Bonaparte & Charlotte Breeding + Family

I learned about the couple from a history piece on the pavement when we visited La Grange, Fayette, Texas. I thought I would find out more about the couple. The research brought six pages of information related to Napoleon, Charlotte, and their relatives. I decided to break it into a series of posts,, and here is the first one.

Napoleon Bonaparte Breeding came to this world in 1815, in Christian County, Kentucky. He was the third son of David W Breeding (born in 1776 in Virginia) and Sally Davis (born in abt. 1771 in Virginia).

His brothers were 

John, born on 16 October 1807, in Virginia

Richard Landy, born on 15 October 1810 in Kentucky,

Fidelio Sharp, born in 1818 in Kentucky,

Benjamin Wilkens, born on 10 January 1820, in Kentucky,

and Davis, born/died in 1828, in Kentucky.

👉 Mr. David W Breeding his wife and five sons came to Texas in 1832/1833. Napoleon was about 18 then. The family found his home in Mina Municipality along Cummins Creek.

⇒ In the second half of the year 1833, Napoleon’s cousins joined the family in Texas. They were George W., Edward Judson, James, and Gustavus, the sons of John breeding and Elizabeth Russell. John Breeding, the son of David W., passed on 16 July 1833, his wife Elizabeth died earlier, in about 1827.

The boys attended the only school in the area – run in e log cabin on the land that belonged to the breeding family.

👉 In December 1835, Napoleon Bonaparte Breeding was a second sergeant and, together with Thomas  Alley’s Company, he fought in the siege of Bexar. Both Napoleon and his brother John served as Texas Rangers. Later, from 1835 to 1836, the man served in the Texas Army. At first, he was with Capt. William J. E. Heard’s company, however, due to an illness the man did not fight  in the Battle of San Jacinto (*). John, his brother was ill then as well, they both stayed in the camp. In the next year, Napoleon was with Steven Thousand’s company.

⇒ 14 December 1837 – Fayette County was created. Mr. David breeding served on the first Board of the Land Commissioners and was a juror during the first  session of the District Court.

Clipping source: Cruger & Moore. Telegraph and Texas Register (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 1, Ed. 1, Saturday, December 16, 1837, newspaper, December 16, 1837; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth47965/: accessed September 12, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.

⇒ 1 January 1838 – John, Napoleon’s brother, was elected the first Fayette County Sheriff and soon received 1/3 league of land there.

⚭ On 19 January 1838, 23 year-old Napoleon B. Breeding married Miss Charlotte O’Bar  (born on 7 May 1818, in Alabama). It happened in Fayette County, Texas. Their marriage was the first one recorded in the county (1).  Charlotte was the daughter of John O’Bar (native of Ireland, born in 1778) and Mary E Reed (born in Virginia in 1782).

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John O’Bar, Charlotte's father,  passed before 1837. In September 1837, Ms. Mary O’Bar came to Fayette County area, Texas with her children (Lucinda + husband Thomas Hodges, John + wife Nancy, Carson, Alfred, and Charlotte) and grandchildren. 

Charlotte stayed at home with her mother Mary who was granted 1280 acres of land in Warrenton Community.

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⇒ In 1837, Richard Landy, Napoleon's brother,  hauled lead for the government. On 2 February 1838, he received payment from the land Commissioners – 1/3 league of land in the Fayette County.

🔹1838 -  on 5th August, Napoleon and Charlotte’s first son, David S. was born.

👉 22 October 1838 – Napoleon breeding served as a juror during the first session of the District Court. Later, he was also was part of  the first Grand Jury.

👉 1838 – Napoleon  paid taxes (2)  in Colorado County for 1 horse (worth $40) and 7 heads of cattle (worth $100).

🔹Sarah Jane was born to Napoleon and Charlotte a year later, in 1839.

In the same year, Napoleon had 4 tracts of land in Fayette County (3).

Clipping source: Cruger & Moore. Telegraph and Texas Register (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 5, No. 7, Ed. 1, Wednesday, July 31, 1839, newspaper, July 31, 1839; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth48064/: accessed September 12, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.

♦ 1840 – Lucinda, Charlotte’s sister died.

♦ July 1842, her brother John passed.

TBC

Sources:

"Daugthers of Republic of Texas. Patriot Ancestor " Album vol.1 - Turner Publishing Company, 1995

• Fayette County Founders

1. "Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F6YT-RTG : 22 January 2020), Napoleon B. Breeding, 1838.

2. "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJ8P-S3RM : Sun Mar 10 14:13:48 UTC 2024), Entry for Napolean B Breeding, 1838.

3. "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJ85-WYZN : Sat Mar 09 09:51:28 UTC 2024), Entry for Napoleon B Breeding, 1839.

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This post is part of our series "They Lived in Texas"  dedicated to those ones (their families and descendants) who at some point in their lives relocated to Texas/lived in Texas.

V-J Day at Local Museum

on 2 September, we attended a very interesting V-J Day Commemorative Event at the local museum - National Museum of the Pacific War. We were glad we had found out about it and were able to participate.

With the buffet treats and drinks, in a way, it was as if we had celebrated the end of the war 80 years ago (considering that, according to quantum physics, past, presence, and future happen at the same time, now).

The program of the commemoration, with the national Anthem and the Pledge of Allegiance was quite patriotic.

The presence of the two WWII made it all quite special.

From the right (in white shirts) - Mr. Donald Graves and Mr. Ken Jones (USS Colorado veteran).

Introduction by Mr. David Shields, the Museum Director,

was followed by the lecture delivered by Mr. Jonathan Parshall.

During the event, I thought about my grandfather Józef, who was a POW and then a labor camp for five years of WW2.

We were honored to meet Mr. Donald Graves - Iwo Jima survivor.

Corporal Graves was a flamethrower of the 5th Marine Division, 28th Regiment, 2nd Battalion Dog Company. He was 17 when he joined the US Marine Corps in 1942.

An expected survival time of a flamethrower at Iwo Jima was 4 minutes. Miraculously, Mr. Graves lived through the battle with no harm to his body. You can learn more about the man from the interview with Mr. Graves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=N6naKvmyWAw

PS

Listening to the lecture mentioned above, I realized that at the history classes I had attended in my childhood (Easter European block), it was never mentioned  the Soviet entered Japan after the A bombs were dropped on the country by the US. I thought I might be wrong so asked my sister about that. She confirmed that she had not been taught about that either.

Universe Is Speaking Again

We were to watch a movie and I was planning to do some ironing while watching the show. The film began when I was still getting my “ironing station” ready. The very first scene of the movie - the characters of the show exchanged the lines:

- “I am making coffee. Are you coming?”

- “No, thank you. I have some ironing to do”.

How did they know I was about to start doing the latter as well? It was a musical and had nothing to do with ironing. We just laughed and laughed at it.

About General Knowledge

When I was working with students, I often tended to hear their questions or incorrect answer to various questions. That was no surprise – the kids were learning, gaining their knowledge and had a lot to process.

These days , meeting with various people (who are mature, often with college degrees, who have traveled to many places in the world, and, in many cases, held important position at their work places), I am repeatedly stunned with “thunders” our interlocutors throw from time to time. 

Here are some examples: 

- The word "Colombian" relates to a coffee brand (no clue that Colombia is a country?).
- There is no such city in Mississippi as Greenville – from a person who originates in that state and lived in Mississippi for many decades (well, I checked, Greenville is the county seat of Washington County, MS) .
- Yuma? – from a person who has lived in Arizona for some years and still lives there – they did not know what we were talking about – they had never heard of Yuma, AZ.
- A song in English which lyrics mention “Zulu” and “Africa” is a Polish song and relates to Polish traditions – according to a native American-English speaker.
- Chianti? Is it a dance? (no, it is a type of wine)
- “I did not know you have corn in Poland.” (???)

I am aware that no human is all-knowing and I am no different in that matter. No judgment here – I do not write about it to criticize anybody, simply do not know what to think about such peculiarities considering those persons experiences and education.

Talking about general knowledge - I am aware I have forgotten a lot of information we were expected to memorize when I was going to school. In the school system I have experienced, all the school subjects were mandatory – there were no optional ones. Most of them were purely theoretical. Even at Chemistry classes it was all about learning by heart, no practical experiments at all. Although I did not complain about that then, the level of knowledge expected to be digested by us, students, was often beyond general. Since I was not going to become a chemist, I did not have the heart to fill my mind with all the atomic numbers of each end every chemical element  (which was required by our Chemistry teacher). I remembered only a few, the most useful ones regarding solving chemical equations. 

I must admit that my approach brought me some difficulties during written tests - when we were to solve given chemical problems and were not allowed to use any reference resources beside our brains. Anyhow, nowadays, of all the atomic numbers, I can only recall 1 - the atomic number of Hydrogen.

Another example - in Physics, we needed to memorize not only the SI units terminology. The older system of units was preferred by our teacher. Why? Nobody knew. The lady just liked it better.

Within the years, a lot of what I was taught/learned has faded away. Not everything, though. Occasionally, I exercise my gray cells trying to remind myself this and that. An example here are the names of the countries and their capital cities which we also had to memorize when we studied a particular continent. Then, we were expected to recite the names and show those countries and cities on the map. I did not like that part - any hesitation was disapproved by the teacher. Besides that, during tests, we were given a diagram of the continent we currently studied and was told to complete it with the names – countries and capital cities again. 

As I said before, the knowledge that has not been used fades away. However, it does not disappear completely. When I look up the names of capitals cities I cannot recall, they seem obvious and come back again.

Every day, no matter how old we are, learning opportunities come to us. Whether we are or we are not open to them is a totally different matter.

Buford J Ellison

 Today's "They Live in Texas" entry is also our WWII August memorial post.

🎕

Beauford Jefferson Ellison was born on 10 August 1922, in Wichita Falls, Wichita, Texas  His parents were  James Thomas Ellison and Vada Zelma Knight (1, 2).

Later, the original spelling of the boy’s name was changed to Buford.

In 1930, little Buford lived with his siblings and parents in Precinct #1, Wichita, TX. The siblings were Thomas  Jefferson (age 14) and Helen Alene (age 4). Mr. James Buford was a laborer at a stock ranch (3).

Seven years later, Buford’s brother, Marvin Burnell was born.

From the records - it seems that , when he left school, Buford most likely did various jobs. In 1940 census, there is a record of Jefferson B. Ellison who lived in Hartley, Texas, in the house of J. B. Bagwell. Jefferson B. worked as a waiter in a café owned by Mr. Bagwell (4).

27 June 1942 – Buford lived at 600 N. Grant, in Odessa, Ector, TX. He was unemployed. On that day, he was drafted (WWII time). The young man was 5 feet 6 tall, weighted 130 lbs., had blonde hair, and  brown eyes. His complexion was described in the draft paper as ”ruddy”. Buford’s mom lived in Hawley then (5).

Buford J Ellison was enrolled into the Air Force where he became a B-24 J engineer. He served with 866th Bomber Squadron, 494th Bomb Group and was part of the “Lonesome Lady”  bomber crew.

On 28 July 1945, they flew on a mission to the Japan area. The plane crashed on a tree near Hiroshima. All the crew members (besides one) survived. They were soon arrested and taken to the local police station. A few days later, on 6 August, Buford perished  - killed by the A bomb blast.

His fate was unknown for a long time. 

🎕

Sergeant Buford J. Ellison was awarded

World War II Victory Medal,

Purple Heart,

American Campaign Medal, 

 Army Presidential Unit Citation, 

Army Good Conduct Medal,  and Prisoner of War Medal.

We learned about Mr. Buford and other American POW who were imprisoned in Hiroshima in August 1945, at the documentary ("Paper Lanterns") screening event at the local Museum of the Pacific War.

Book by Mr. Mori - the documentary is based on.

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Sources:

1. "Texas, Birth Index, 1903-1997", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VDPK-Q74 : Tue Feb 25 15:36:35 UTC 2025), Entry for Beaufard Ellison, 10 Aug 1922.
2. "Texas, Births and Christenings, 1840-1981", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:4L8F-DY3Z : 14 February 2020), Buford Jefferson Ellison, 1922.
3. "United States, Census, 1930", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HLJK-93Z : Thu Mar 07 03:25:52 UTC 2024), Entry for James T Ellison and Vada Z Ellison, 1930.
4. "United States, Census, 1940", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KWK2-DR8 : Wed Jan 22 08:20:02 UTC 2025), Entry for T B Bagwell and Jefferson B Ellison, 1940.
5. "Texas, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1947", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QL3X-YX61 : Mon Apr 21 20:50:51 UTC 2025), Entry for Buford Jefferson Ellison and Vada Ellison Hawley, 27 Jun 1942.
6. https://valor.militarytimes.com/recipient/recipient-59758/, 
7. Honorstates.org
8. Familysearch.org

About Clouds & More

 The skies looked different on that day. The clouds were lower than usual, and seemed to be placed in void above our heads, just hanging there. 

They appeared 3-dimensional and quite plump. Looking straight at them, you could see all other sides of those cloud formations, as well. In addition to that, unusually bright colors lightened up the clouds of many various, strong shapes.

We were on the road again. It was so nice to stare at those clouds and admire the beauty of the sight.

At some moment, we noticed a pretty rainbow in front of us, in the mist of the clouds. We were driving towards it. Both of us were amazed by the view and the sudden appearance of the rainbow. At the same time, we heard the words coming from our music player,

“(…) Rhymes that keep their secrets
Will unfold behind the clouds
And there upon the rainbow
Is the answer to a never ending story(…)”

The rainbow is hardly visible in the picture - it was much clearer to see in real,  with our own eyes

It all was quite heart-touching. What a breath-taking coincidence it was. We were astonished  – the rainbow just in front of us and then, the lines of the song* played again,

“(...) Rhymes that keep their secrets
Will unfold behind the clouds
And there upon the rainbow
Is the answer to a never ending story (...)”. 

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*The lyrics come from the song: “Never Ending Story”, made popular by Limahl in 1984.

My Polish Alphabet: "S" for Seagulls

 Today, a more down to earth-type topic.

When we came back to Poland  and were staying at my “old” place,  one thing surprised me then – I heard some weird noise outside the window -  again and again. I could hear it even when the windows were closed. To my astonishment,  I realized it was the sound of the seagulls flying around the house. What was strange about that?

The thing is, when I had used to live there, for all those decades,  I hardly noticed the sound those birds made. Obviously, I was aware of the constant presence of those birds in our area, however, I did not hear them that often.  My mind simply learned to not pay attention to that noise.  All in all, at that time, I  tended to notice the seagulls’ calls more often, when I happened to be closer to the sea. 

It reminded me the summer, when my aunt once visited.  I was little then. The lady complained then that she could not sleep in the night. The sound of the trolleybuses going along the street near our house kept her awake. Well, it did not bother us at all. Being used to the trolleybuses, we did not pay attention to the sound they made. Anyhow, strange how the human mind works.

Well, no seagulls where I live now (and no trolleybuses either). 

Another “S” is for seagulls in “My Polish Alphabet”.

Seagulls at the Sopot pier, in Poland

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"My Polish Alphabet" is about things, places, and people that come to my mind when I think about Poland.

James J Harper

 

In the book I have studied*, among many men, James J Harper is mentioned.

James was a resident of Polk County, TX. He enlisted into the CA on 14 May 1862. The man was a Private (1), he served with Company F, the 22nd Regiment Texas Infantry (Hubbard’s Regiment). In November 1862, he was reported sick at Camp Nelson in Arkansas. James did not recover. He passed on 17th November of the same year and was buried at Camp Nelson Cemetery in Cabot, Arkansas.

The note mentions James’ wife Susannah who received $80.42 from the CA Treasure Department after the man’s passing. It was the soldier’s earnings.

According to James’ military record, he was born in 1833 (2). I tried to find out more about James J. Harper and his family. Here are the results of my research.

I did not know where James was born so I looked for him in various states. It appeared the name James Harper was quite common as I found quite a few men by that name, who were born in 1833 in Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama, among others..

However, 3 things needed to add up: James’ estimated year of birth, the name of his wife, and the place of residence in 1862 – Polk County, TX.

The only more clear record was the birth of Nancy Ann E Harper, the daughter of James J Harper and Susanna O’Neal. Nancy was born on 12 August 1862, in Polk County, TX (3, 4).

It led me to James J Harper born in Alabama.

He was the son of Benjamin Hale Harper and Nancy Jane Standley. James’ mother died early and his father remarried. In 1850, the family of Mr. Benjamin Harper, a farmer, lived in Henry, Alabama (5). The family was – wife Elizabeth (age 38, born in NC), Sarah Jane (age 18), James (age 15) + children from the second marriage Benjamin Hale (age 13), Wilson (age 11), Malinda (age 9), Eliza (age 7), Washington (age 7), Joseph (age 3), and William (age 2).

James started his own family in 1859, on 21 March. He married 18-year-old Miss Susannah O’Neal (6), who was born on 19 April 1840, in South Carolina and was the daughter of James Henry O’Neal and Sarah Jane Hill. 

As you can see, the record mentions James S Harper - not James J (?)

James and Susannah’s marriage took place in Henry County, Alabama.  Susanna was the bride’s middle name. Her first name was Charlotte.

Sometime after the marriage, the couple came to Texas. I tried to find him in the 1860 records. However, he might have come to Texas later, possibly in 1861.

James never saw his daughter Nancy, who was born a few months after he was enrolled in the CA.

Sources:

* "There never were such men before: the Civil War soldiers and veterans of Polk County, Texas, 1861-1865". Ruth Peebles, Livingston, TX, Polk County Historical Commission, 1987. 

1. Soldiers and sailors

2. "Texas, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FZ4L-K77 : Thu Feb 13 18:52:41 UTC 2025), Entry for James J Harper, 1862.

3. Findagrave

4. "Texas, Deaths, 1890-1977", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KSBN-P82 : Tue Jun 10 00:01:01 UTC 2025), Entry for Nancy Ann Jackson and James J Harper, 20 March 1937.

5. "United States, Census, 1850", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MH5M-LRQ : Thu Jan 16 23:55:33 UTC 2025), Entry for Benjamin Harper and Elizabeth Watts Harper, 1850.

6. "Alabama County Marriages, 1711-1992", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKZS-FG6K : Tue Mar 05 05:08:42 UTC 2024), Entry for James S. Harper and Susannah O Neal, 21 Mar 1859.

Movies & More

Two days ago, we were watching a movie while our evening meal was getting cooked in the oven. When the sound of the timer buzzed in the kitchen, telling us that the food is ready, a character in the movie we watched said, "Sit down, we'll have dinner."

So I took out the meal out of the oven and we did - sat down and had dinner.

That was some of the synchronicities that have often happened to us.

A few more TV related examples? Here they are:

✮ Once we watched a horror. Well, rarely we do. After that, we switched off the TV set, and I turned the radio on. The first words that we heard were "You just can't kill the beast." It was the "Hotel California" song going on quite coincidently. 

✮ It was an old movie telling the story about Fatima and the Holy Mary appearances there. At some point the crowd in the show was shouting, "Give us a sign, give us a sign!" They gathered at the place where Holy Mary had made herself visible to the 3 children. At the moment when they finished shouting their "give us a sign", a thunder struck behind our window. We were stunned as the skies were perfectly clear on that day.

✮ One day, I looked up the meaning of an old English word which is very rarely used in the spoken language these days. Later, we watched a randomly chosen movie. One of the very first words said in that movie was the one I had looked up on that day.

I could go on and on with that - on my husband's birthday - a randomly chosen movie again - in the very beginning of it, the characters sang "Happy Birthday" to one of the persons in the plot.

Well, does it ever happen to you?

Travel Well

Ozzy has left this world recently. Sad that more and more old cultural "icons" go away.
Travel well Ozzy. 
Thank you for the music.

From my visit in Birmingham, years ago.

More about the photo and Black Sabbath - in "My Music ABC".

🎕

Today I have found out - totally by chance - about another passing. The lady was not a famous one, but of importance as well - to the ones who knew and loved her. 

Ola lived with her nuclear family in Germany. I met her virtually in a Polish Ladies Abroad Club. We exchanged letters for quite a good time. No, we never met personally, but I thought about her as a friend. I always enjoyed Ola's letters and learning about her world and her family. She had mentioned a few times she was struggling dealing with health problems, but never mentioned how serious the matter was. Despite it all, the lady enjoyed doing walks to a German Camino-type place and travelling to exotic countries. 

When I read in her last letter how active she had been in that past year, and about more trips and travels she planned, I was hoping she was improving and her health condition got better.

Today, her funeral service took place in Poland.

Travel well friend.

I am glad to have met you.

Singing and Frequencies

 A few weeks ago, we watched a podcast-type show hosted by two of our favorite personalities. The third participant of the talk was a Mr. C., professional singer and theater actor, whose singing (as it was mentioned in that interview) had cured many listeners. I was curious about it. At some point, after a short presentation of Mr. C. and his career, the man was asked to sing and present his healing voice abilities. 

Yes, it was powerful indeed. The vibration of the sound created by the Mr. C's vocal cords was quite strong. However, my body found it very unpleasant, the least to say. With all the appreciation of Mr. C's talent, the sound frequency he produced felt to me like a very disturbing disharmony attacking my body/frequency zone. It all made me feel like running away from the source of that distressing vibration. I did stay in my place, though because I wanted to watch the show. According to what the hosts of the program said - they found the singing very pleasant. I did not. Perhaps, I was the only person watching the show who had such a bad impression about it? I do not know/do not know why. Later, when I went to sleep, nightmares about singing vampires who were trying to get me/I was fighting them, bothered me all night long.

After waking up, while recovering after the disturbing dreams, I reminded myself what Mr. C. said. He mentioned that he does not do his healing-type singing uninvited, and that he seeks sad persons. Well, I am not one of them. Maybe that was a reason why the sounds the singer created felt to me so very disharmonious?

Coming back to those nightmares - the vampires did not get me. I found a yellow, metal tape that helped me fight them. A curious thing was - the tape activated itself only when the vampires started singing. 

It is said those creatures cannot harm you if you do not invite them in - I did not. They just happened to be at the bed-and-breakfast place where I stayed for a night.

On the whole, I would not want to experience that type of vibration/frequency (as the one mentioned above) again. However, it is good that some people find it therapeutic. What resonates with others does not have to resonate with me.

Fort McKavett

Fort McKavett, built 150 years ago, is one of the most preserved military posts from the old days.

It was quite windy there on the day when we visited the site, and no other visitors besides us.

We were paid our solder's salary - the "money" came from the old safe box.

We spent part of our earnings in the casino. It was interesting to play the Faro game and break the bank, as well. I guess, I have played it in my previous life. The game dates back to 17th century, so who knows...

As you can see in one of the above photos, we spent our winnings at an inn, despite the innkeeper's effort - he tried to convert us to follow the temperance movement and even sang us a proper song.

Finally, we gave him all our casino money and kept on sightseeing.

While visiting the site, we came across an arrowhead diary. Do you know that some arrowheads, spearheads, and knives found in the Hill Country area date back even up to 7,500 - 10,000 BC. It is hard to comprehend how old some of them are.

It was quite sad that we were the only visitors at the place. You need to make a special effort to get there - it is situated rather far from a main road, nearest town.

More about Fort McKavett on their webstite.

Photos: June 2025

Universe is Talking

A couple of days ago, my husband mentioned to me (as he had seen on the news) that soon a new incarnation of Dalai Lama would be searched for. 

On the following day, I saved a random movie for us to watch. I did not have the faintest idea what the film was about - I saved it because the name of the director - Martin Scorsese. Most of his movies were good so I thought it could be an interesting show to see.

Yesterday, we watched the movie. It appeared to be a story of a child found by a Tibetan monk and recognized as a next incarnation of Dalai Lama. We thought, "How funny", considering the synchronicity - we had just talked about that search for another Dalai Lama. 

The movie was actually a kind of biography. While watching it, we realized it was telling about the early years of the current Dalai Lama.

It became even funnier later, after we fished watching the show. My husband looked at the news again - and then, to our surprise and astonishment, there it was - an article about Dalai Lama's 90th birthday. How weird and extraordinary! Considering geography and the time difference between places, at the time when we were watching Kundun waiting for his 18th birthday and the time when he was officially appointed as the 14th Dalai Lama, the same Holy Man celebrated his 90th birthday.

I wish we could synchronize so well with the lotto numbers. Somehow, it does not work in that way, though.

Happy Birthday to Dalai Lama 💮

--

The movie mentioned above: "Kundun" by Martin Scorcese.

About Angels

My aunt once told me, "Angels do not exist because we cannot see them." 

She was then influenced by a religious group that shares such a view.

I replied, "We cannot see bacteria, but it does not mean they do not exist."

The relative of mine continued, "We have microscopes to see them."

I answered her, "There were times when people did not have microscopes, but it did not mean there were no bacteria then."

Not everything can be seen. We cannot see the electric current, but we can see its presence when we turn on the light. We cannot see the air, but we know it exists since we are able to breath.

From our last family-and-food-trip

Nowadays, with the development of quantum physics, the concepts of parallel worlds, non-linear timeline (past, present, and future happening at the same time), it appears there is much more than our eyes can see. So, do not tell me there are no angels. 

Although, they might not be the angelic type of entities as we traditionally understand them. Perhaps, they are beings from another planet, a parallel world, another time line, and (certainly) of another frequency than ours. 

Anyhow, please, do not tell me there are no angels.

Let us seek knowledge in all forms. Let us try to see matters from various perspectives and consider more than one point of view.

John Harris Pickens Davis and Family

John Harris Pickens Davis was the son of William Kinchen Davis and Eloniza Jane Pickens. He was born on 11 February 1851.

Source: [Jane Pickens Davis that is on a page from a book.], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth420/: accessed June 21, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

Miss Eloniza Jane Pickens Davis was the daughter of John Harris Pickens (afarmer and stock raiser) and Eleanor Elizabeth Cooper

🏠1860 - 10-year-old John lived with his father (1) W. K. Davis (age 38), mother - mentioned in the census as Eveline Pickens (age 21), siblings - Elvira (age 8 ), Kinchen (age 5). Other persons recorded at their household in Fort bend, TX were Miss S J. Grun (age 22, born in Texas) and Daniel Davis, stockraiser (age 22, born in Missouri).

Source: [J.H.P. Davis at the age of 16.], photograph, 1867; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1498/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

🏠 In 1870, 18 year-old John lived with his parents and siblings (2) - Eleonora (age 16), Kinchen William (age 14), and Archetta (age12) - in Richmond, Precinct No. 4, Fort Bend, Texas. Johns occupation recorded by a census clerk was "attends stocks" (raised by his father William).

Five years later, on ⚭ 10 February 1875, young John Harris married Miss Susan Elizabeth Ryon (3). She was born on 10 December 1855, to Col. William M. Ryon and Mary Moore Jones.

John and Susan had three children: 

Daisy Belle (born on 22 November 1875/died on 15 June 1878),
Mary Elizabeth - called Mamie (born on 13 September 1877),

Source: [Photograph of Mamie Davis as a child], photograph, [1881..1882]; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8171/: accessed June 21, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

 
Thomas Walter (born on 7 September 1879).

 

 

Source: [Tom Davis as a baby], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth2290/: accessed June 21, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

2 June 1880 - another census in the town of Richmond, Enumeration District #4, Precinct #1 (4).
John H. P. Davis (age 29) ran a stock farm. His wife S. E. (24) was keeping home and looking after their children Mary (age 2) and Walter (9 months old). Two servants lived in the household: Maria Sparks (age 19) and Frank Roper (age 20).

Two prior photos combined together - Source: [Mamie Davis George and T.W. "Bud" Davis], photograph, 1882; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth7087/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

Source: [Photograph of Mamie Davis George as a young girl], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8544/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

♦ 30 October 1884 - Susan Elizabeth died. Tom was 14, and Mamie was 16 then.

Source: [Thomas Walter "Bud" Davis wearing a striped shirt and a hat], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8201/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

 Source: [Mamie E. Davis as a young girl], photograph, [1891..1895]; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8177/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

On ⚭ 27 November 1888, John Harris Pickens remarried.

Source: [Photograph of J.H.P. Davis. Davis is wearing a tweed jacket], photograph, 1879; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8267/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

The marriage took place in Simpson, Kentucky (5, 6). 

John's second wife was Belzora (Belle) Ryon, daughter of James Ryon and Elizabeth Miller, born on 28 October 1850, in Kentucky.

Source: [Belle Ryon Davis.], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1497/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

 

 

Source: [Belle Ryon (Davis) resting her arms on a fireplace mantel], photograph, [1870..1880]; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8227/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

7 October 1896 -19-year-old  ⚭ Mary Elizabeth (Mamie) married Mr. Albert Payton George (7), born in Texas, on 7 October 1873, to Albert Lamar George and Ella Graves.

Source: Morris. [Miss Mamie Davis as a young girl.], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth431/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

🏡 1900 - John (a banker) and Bell lived in Justice precinct #1, Richmond, TX. They employed three servants - Aaron Sherald (age 22), John Spencer (age 18), and George Spencer (age 20), who also lived in their household (8).

Source: [Photograph of Mr. And Mrs. J.H.P. Davis], photograph, 1910; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8236/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

 

Source: [J.H.P. Davis House in Richmond, Texas. Davis standing in front yard.], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth702/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

Source: [J.H.P. Davis bank building], photograph, 1910; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth754/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Fort Bend Museum.

12 September 1918 - WW1 time - Tom was drafted (9).

🏠 1920 - Thomas was recorded together with John H P and Bell (age 64) during another census. Ms. Lolla Scott (age 40) was the family house keeper and Mr. Paris Price (age 20) was employed as servant (10).

♦ 31 May 1922- Tom died at the age of 41.

Source: [Thomas Walter (Bud) Davis wearing a felt hat], photograph, [1915..1922]; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8193/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

♦ 22 May 1927 - John Harris Pickens Davis left this world. In his life, besides running a stock farm, he also owned a bank.

Source: [J.H.P. Davis with gray hair and a gray mustache], photograph, Date Unknown; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8239/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

Mr. Davis very muck resembled his father William 

Mrs. Bell Ryon Davis passed about three years later, on ♦ 4 February 1930 (11).

 Source: [Photograph of Mr. And Mrs. J.H.P. Davis], photograph, [1912..1927]; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth8234/: accessed June 22, 2025), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting George Ranch Historical Park.

Sources:
1. "United States, Census, 1860", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXFB-WPJ : Mon Jul 08 23:08:39 UTC 2024), Entry for Wm R Davis and J H P Davis, 1860.
"United States, Census, 1870", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXGY-BJF : Mon Jan 13 17:08:03 UTC 2025), Entry for William K Davis and Jane Davis, 1870.
3. "Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XLDR-85C : Mon Jan 20 05:25:31 UTC 2025), Entry for J H P Davis and S E Ryon, 10 Feb 1875.
4. "United States, Census, 1880", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MFNC-W72 : Sat Jan 11 08:50:03 UTC 2025), Entry for J.H.P. Davis and S.E. Davis, 1880.
5,6. "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1786-1965", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKJ9-1XH2 : Sat Feb 24 06:39:56 UTC 2024), Entry for J H P Davis and Belle Ryon, 27 Nov 1888.
7. "Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XL88-93F : Sat Mar 09 10:54:14 UTC 2024), Entry for Albert P George and Mary E Davis, 07 Oct 1896.
8. "United States, Census, 1900", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M3G7-R5G : Tue Apr 29 21:15:30 UTC 2025), Entry for John Davis and Bell Davis, 1900.
9. "United States, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZXH-G2G : Tue Apr 29 08:20:38 UTC 2025), Entry for Thomas Walter Davis, from 1917 to 1918.
10. "United States, Census, 1920", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MC9C-4WF : Mon Jan 13 06:50:54 UTC 2025), Entry for John H P Davis and Bell Davis, 1920.
11. "Texas, Deaths, 1890-1977", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K33Y-NHL : Mon Jun 09 23:51:40 UTC 2025), Entry for Belle Ryon Doris and F W Hubbard, 4 February 1930.