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The image at left is of a Belgian “livret d’ouvrier” issued to my great grandfather in 1874 by the province of Hainaut. Livret des ouvriers were official “work booklets” issued by the local government in France and Belgium throughout the 19th century. Workers were required to submit these booklets to their employers, who used them to confirm …
The following is an account of an event involving my second great grandfather (or his brother-in-law, see below) assembled from a series of articles in Laramie and Cheyenne newspapers. Links to sources appear below. Laramie, Wyoming (July 24, 1889) — At 9 p.m on July 23, Mike Coughlin, a rolling mill man who is really a responsible …
The rolling mill where my great grandfather, Irish immigrant Michael “Cush” Coughlin (county Cork) worked alongside his father-in-law Joseph Stroebel and his brother-in-law named Michael Coughlin (no relation). Credit: http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/ (Great stuff!)
I’ve been tracking down dead relatives for the better part of 20 years now. Understanding my ancestors — who they are, how they lived, and what happened to them — has provided me with many insights into the choices and character of my family and others like us. What has really been driving my persistent …
I’m not a pilot but for a time I had an office in a regional airport. During this immersion in pilot culture (and eau de jet fuel) I learned a thing or two about aviation. For example, there are two sets of regulations governing the operation of civil aviation aircraft. One is visual flight rules …
Motivational science has been around for a century, but after having been out of the spotlight for some time, the study of motivation has regained attention and is now at the center of the work of research psychologists such as Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson, author of the book Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals. The following …
Being from Detroit imbues you with a special kind of grit that never leaves you. And in any business, in these times, grittiness is essential. When I say Detroit grit, I mean it literally, as in under my fingernails, from hours spent in the garage handing my dad, a Ford engineer, tools while he worked on …
My father started saving toward my college education the day I was born. The sun came up in the morning and set in the evening and with just as much certainty my sister and I knew we were going to college. So we could get good jobs. Most men of my father’s generation (b. 1927) would have …
In case you haven’t yet been badgered inspired by my incessant appeals lately for your contribution to Lemonade Detroit, here’s what you need to know for this post to make sense. “Lemonade Detroit,” is an inspiring film project conceived by Erik Proulx that aims to focus the world on the cool and amazing things people …