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<DIV>This is a good case for using DNA to help find relatives. I am not saying it will work the first time out but as more and more of us have our DNA tested and we make the information available I believe we will eventually find individuals who are our relatives or not. </DIV>
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<DIV>Anyway I recommed going to the Genealogical Forum of Oregon <A href="http://www.gfo.org/">www.gfo.org</A> web site and using there links to Family Tree DNA to order your DNA test and get it at a discount.</DIV>
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<DIV>Eugene</DIV>
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<DIV>-------------- Original message -------------- <BR>From: "karfranw@juno.com" <karfranw@juno.com> <BR></DIV>
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<P>Hello, I guess I might as well try to repost this again. I am, sure, there is nothing to be gained, as everyone that has tried to research our illusive ancestor back beyone himself has come up empty handed. <BR>A cousin of my dad's emailed me with this: they had hired a genealogist to research back and had paid her to do the work. She found something and then refused to give them the information. I would have thought it rather odd. I don't know what she found or anything, and I don't know whether or not they were able to get their money back. My best guess is they didn't.<BR>The following excerpt is from : "The Wasco County History Book", written by Bruce Harris. I don't have any copyright information, however. This was told to Mr. Harris, by my second Cousin, Ella Huston Hovey.<BR> <BR> James and Susan Hurst Gray<BR><BR> Susan Hurst was on eof three children born to James and Malinda Hurst. She was born at <BR>Sodaville on April 16, 1853. <BR> James Jackson Gray, Susan Hurst's husband, was born in Nashville, Tenn, on March 17, 1843. When he was seventeen years old, he took a black stallion that his father had paid $1,000.00 for and joined the Confederate Army, not telling the truth about his age. The first thing that happened, someone shot the stallion from under him!<BR> After the war, he worked his way west at many different jobs, trying to earn enough money to pay his father for the stallion, but never being able to.<BR> James Jacson Gray and Susan Permelia Hurst were married November 1, 1876 at The<BR>Dalles by Justice of the Peace, Charles A. Schutz.<BR> After moving several different times, they worked for James Abbott, then bought some land on Juniper Flat near Wapinitia.<BR> Eight children were born: Louisa (Ella's mother), James, John, Jess (my grandfather), Robert, Joe, Minnie and William. (There were two other children also, first born Mary who died as an infant, from diptheria I believe, and another son who was stillborn).<BR> Grandma and grandpa raised wheat, turkeys, chickens, and ducks. Once a year, they would come to The Dalles to get groceries, and clothing. It would take three days to make the trip. In late summer, they would put the kids in the wagon, and head for Mt. Hood to pick huckleberries. Grandma always canned 20 to 30 gallon jars of berries. She cut the tops off coal oil cans to cook her fruit in.<BR> In the fall, grandpa would take a four horse load of wheat to the McCorkle Mill in exchange for flour.<BR> On July 14, 1099, while moving a new threshing machine to their ranch from The Dalles, they had to stop at Eight Mile Barn to stay the night because of the distance. That night, Grandpa Gray died. He was only 57years old. He is buried in the Kelly Cemetery on Juniper <BR>Flat."<BR> Basically that is the story. I have done a little research through Heritage Quest, and have found him on a census. It is stated there his parents were both born in Scotland. But earlier, several years ago, my husband and I were at the Genealogical Forum here in Portland. I found him on another census, and it stated his father was born in Tennessee, and his mother was <BR>born in Illinois.<BR> My brothers and I have come to the conclusion that this "gentleman", (and I am using that term very loosely, mind you) has lied through his teeth to not only his wife, but to his children about himself. We are thinking there isn't any validity to his name.<BR> Someone by the name did serve in the Civil War, Confederate Army. I think it was the 42nd Regular Tennessee Infantry. Someone by the name of J J Gray was a corporal in that group. My niece sent for a copy of what ever records are there, and I have a copy of those.<BR> Also, a young girl, with red hair, by the name of Lottie Gray, came to Oregon looking for her brother, by the name of James Jackson Gray. She found our James Jackson, but he denied even knowing her. Of course, this was probably quite a few years after the war, and just possibly this "sister" could have been born after the war was over? I don't know. But, from what I have been told, she returned to where she came from. I can imagine she was very disappointed, and maybe even hurt.<BR> A third cousin of mine has genealogy records on a computer that she is in the process of transferring to another computer. She told me in an email that when the transfer process is completed, she will send me copies of the records. <BR> I have an idea, that I haven't as yet, put to her. I am thinking about emailing her and asking her if I sent her a few CD's, if she could burn the records she has to them and then snail mail them to me. That would help a lot.<BR> I wish I had the money to travel to Tennessee and really investigate from that end of things. But that isn't possible. Another cousin of mine, this one from my mother's side of the family, did look into James Jackson Gray, while in Washington DC attending a DAR convention. I don't know where she looked or what, but she couldn't find anything on him either. <BR> So, this is the story. Truth or fiction, I don't know. I have written what I know and that is family stories that have been handed down. <BR> Thank you so much for presenting this forum for us to be able to "vent". To say that I am disappointed in dead ends, is the very truth. All of us want to know where we have come from, and from whom we are descended. I would probably have better luck chasing the antecedents of a common rat as to try to look anymore for this guy.<BR> <BR><BR>Sincerely,<BR><BR>Karla (Gray) Williams</P><FONT face=Times-New-Roman size=2><BR><BR>________________________________________________________________________<BR>Try Juno Platinum for Free! Then, only $9.95/month!<BR>Unlimited Internet Access with 1GB of Email Storage.<BR>Visit <A href="http://www.juno.com/value">http://www.juno.com/value</A> to sign up today!<BR></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></body></html>