Marker/Plaque/Monument Monday

New Ebenezer Church Cemetery

Christian County, Kentucky

John William West

And His Wife

Hester Ann Martin

Great Grandparents of John G. West

 I was in the 5th. Grade of school when I first saw this memorial monument to my great grandparents and it and the Civil War marker for another great grandparent in Owensboro, KY was a strong motivator to learn more about my family history!  Seeing their photo made the fact that they once were living and raised a family seem more real to a kid like me.

- Photos taken by JGWest

“So, It Is Really True!”

IT WAS THE SPRING OF 1958...
...when I was in the fifth grade and was made aware for the first time that many, many generations of ancestors came before I was even born. I realized, that year, that the stories of long ago were based upon real times and real people, in spite of the fact that the actual story was fiction. It was truly a difficult thing for me to just accept – although Mom and Dad, my teacher and others were trying to convince me that things actually happened before my time or even my parents' time. So, my parents took me to several areas in Kentucky to visit the graves of some of my more recent ancestors (my great grandparents). They must have existed because they no longer existed. Now, that was hard for Dad to explain, but he said he knew these people and they were his grandparents. I saw no reason for Dad to lie about this. My West great grandparents were John William West & Hettie (Hester) Martin. Whoa! On their tombstone was a picture of them!!! They must have lived because there was their photo and Dad made a positive ID of them... he claimed that was exactly how they looked. Also, I was named after my great grandfather. This was proof that they existed and my father verified that it was true! [Us genealogists call that "documentation," something I needed to have then and still insist upon today!] Dad said boldly and with pride, “These are my grandparents!” I thought that if I had grandparents and Dad had grandparents, did my grandparents have grandparents and did these people (my great grandparents) also have grandparents. Dad said that, indeed, that was true. Well, who were these people; and, sadly Dad said “I do not know!” Well, I have been searching ever since for who these people are. That was over 50 years ago!

By the way, we went to see my great grandfather's grave in Owensboro, Kentucky. It was a Civil War Marker for James Tobias Long. I looked at Mom and Dad and stated with my newfound wisdom and experience - “So, the Civil War really happened!”

- Written & submitted by John G. West

“A Tribute to a Friend”

J. Jeff Hays

1929 - 2008

I want to remember a friend who's funeral is today (27 Dec 2008). In order to make this more genealogically related, I need to first tell you a story about names in my WEST family line (which is connected with my friend).

John William West had 3 daughters and six sons, all of them but one made it to full adulthood. Gaither was only 15 when he died of appendicitis. My grandfather Warner West named my father after his younger brother, Gaither, with the full name of Gaither Glennis West. Dad named my older brother Gaither Glennis West, II who named his first born son, my nephew, Gaither Glennis West, III. I was given the name of John from my great grandfather John William West. I got my middle name from the actor, Gregory Peck. When we had our first son, I did not want him to be tagged as “Junior” - so, I gave him the name Phillip Gregory West. Then came son #2 (I gave him my first name of John) and later son #3 was not named after me... so, we named him after everyone else in the family with 3 given names – James William Warner West. Warner was my grandfather's name (Dad's father).

Now, I can tell you about my friend. J. Jeff Hays passed away on Monday 22 Dec 2008 and will be laid to rest today. Jeff was 78, he had lived a good life serving for about 24 years as an Indiana State Representative. In 1975 Jeff ran for Mayor of Evansville and asked me to serve on his campaign committee along with some very impressive people... I was deeply honored and thought that if he were elected that he would have been a very good mayor. It seemed like everything we saw or wrote around our house was “Hays for Mayor.” My oldest son, Phillip was Autistic and could not, at age 4, speak and did not write, but he ended up using toy blocks to spell out “Hays for Mayor!” That, of course, pleased Jeff and his wife, Mary Lou, to no end! When Jeff ran for office he always used the name “J. Jeff Hays” - most of us wondered what could the initial “J” stand for: Jacob, Jeremiah, Jedidiah, Junior or other unpopular names. None of us had the nerve to ask. But 1975 was the year for us to learn his first name. My #2 son was born that year shortly before the fall election. I had given Phillip my middle name, so I would have to give #2 my first name “John,” but what name shall we give him for a middle name? I really liked the name of John Gaither West, except for two reasons. 1) my brother seemed to be “stuck” with the name as he often said and had named his son, my nephew, the same name. Maybe using the name in my line might be like trying to take it away from his line. 2) Jeff's opponent was the current Evansville Mayor and his City Controller just happened to be named John Gaither (Gaither was his last name instead of a given name). I felt as if using the name Gaither would cast a question of loyalty in my dedication to Jeff's campaign, as was also advised by several on Jeff's committee. I did not want “John” to be a “Junior” so we thought about using his initials like the "Good Times" TV show that had a “JJ” character that often said “Dynamite!” If we had used the Gaither name, he would have been “JG” to avoid the “Junior” designation. We thought a lot about his name... I finally decided to name him after one of my favorite Presidents, Thomas Jefferson. I really liked the sound of “John Thomas West” or “John Jefferson West.” We could call him “JT” or “JJ”... we liked “JJ” the best. Therefore, #2 became John Jefferson West. But, guess what – the “J” in Jeff's name stood for John and Jeff was short for Jefferson. I had accidentally named him for Jeff... who was very, very pleased. My associates thought I was trying to win a high position in the Mayor's appointments if he were elected. Jeff did not win election, but I finally found the courage to tell Jeff the truth about how we named JJ. I wished I had not told him, because he was so sad with the true account of his “namesake!” Jeff continued as a State Representative and was very well regarded in the state, as well as, in the Evansville area. I was always pleased that my #2 son had the name of such a great public servant as John Jefferson Hays.

See Jeff's obituary here:
http://obits.courierpress.com/CourierPress/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=121811007