Surname Links

Anders “Andrew” Dalin: A Brief Sketch of His Life and Road to Montana

~ Lark Dalin Robart
Anders “Andrew” Dalin (1859-1919)

This is my paternal great grandfather, Andrew Dalin.  He was born October 21, 1859, in Hudiksvall, Sweden.  At this time, I have no information about his parents.  I do know that he had at least one sibling, a brother Erik.

In 1979, my father told me the story – as he knew it – of how his grandfather came to be in Montana:

Andrew and his wife Brita met and married in Sweden.  Several years later, Andrew – being a sailor – left Sweden to travel, leaving Brita and their small son, John, behind.  At some point in time, Andrew’s brother Erick learned that Andrew was in the United States and set out to locate him.  When the two brothers were re-united, it was decided that Erick would go back to Sweden and bring Andrew’s family back to the United States.  Sadly, Erick returned to Sweden only to find out the son had died, but he did bring Brita back with him.  When Erick and Brita finally caught up with Andrew, he was in Minnesota where he had acquired 800 acres located in the Mesabi Iron Range.  Andrew sold the land and the three set off by covered wagon for St. Joseph, Missouri.  From there they traveled by steam boat on the Missouri River to Ft. Benton, Montana, and then continued by covered wagon to Hassel, Montana.  Andrew timbered the mines in Hassel until 1907 when they moved to Helena.  Continue reading →

When documents “talk”!

~ Lark Dalin Robart
David Lyman Blacker (1829-1911)

My great grandfather, David Lyman Blacker, was born August 29, 1829, in Pennsylvania.  Between that time and 1864, we don’t know much about his whereabouts.  But we do know that in 1864 he ended up in Virginia City, Montana – and from then on, we have a great deal of information due to his success as both a miner and stock raiser.

The main evidence we have as to the specifics of his arrival in Montana is a letter he received from the Society of Montana Pioneers in January 1899 (see below).  The letter asked for specific biographical information which was to be published in an upcoming “Register”.  I think it’s very  likely he filled in the blanks himself – or if not, he probably directed someone on how to fill them out.

Continue reading →

A rose by any other surname

~ Lark Dalin Robart
Kate and Delia Myers_edited
Catherine “Kate” Myers Kieron (left) and her sister Bridget “Delia” Myers Mitschke. Both women were born in County Galway, Ireland. Delia immigrated to the United States in about 1887 and Kate followed in about 1895.

Question: Is the surname “Myers” actually Irish – or could it be that my Myers ancestors emigrated from England to Ireland at some point, since “Myers” is a common English name and not so common in Ireland?  

I did some research and this is what I found.

“Myers” is a surname most common in the Cork-Kerry, Monaghan-Louth, Belfast area.  In Gaelic, the surname would have been “Ó Meidhir” which means “mirth”.  It is now written “Ó Mír” and was originally of County Clare and related to “O’Meara”.  The English name “Myers” may be involved in the case of those found in the Ulster (northern Ireland) and eastern areas. Continue reading →