August 15, 2025

Introducing Lois Catherine Buchanan

Welcome to the Memory Page for Lois Catherine Buchanan

August 14, 1914 – February 15, 2007

Lois’s story is one of quiet strength, deep roots, and the kind of steadiness that anchored her family through nearly a century of change. Born in Ridgeway, Illinois, the daughter of Reverend Maurice Buchanan and Pearl Wilton, Lois grew up in the warm but watchful world of a Methodist parsonage. From her early years in small Indiana towns to her long life in Indianapolis, she remained devoted to family, faith, and the art of creating a welcoming home.

Over her 92 years, Lois witnessed two World Wars, the rise of the automobile and the computer, and the transformation of her city—but her heart stayed firmly grounded in the things that mattered most: the people she loved and the communities she served.

A Few Things to Remember About Lois

The Preacher’s Daughter: She spent her childhood in parsonages, learning grace and hospitality from an early age.
A Long First Marriage: Married to Robert Daniel Boone for more than four decades, raising two children, Michael and Marilyn.
A Second Chapter: At 63, she married James Steven Kiraly, finding companionship and stability in her later years.
An Indianapolis Fixture: From the 1930s onward, she made the city her home—through bustling downtown years, suburban life, and a quiet retirement.

Share Your Memories

Do you remember visiting Lois’s home on East 62nd Street?
Did you know her from church, the neighborhood, or family gatherings?
Do you have a treasured recipe, holiday tradition, or photograph tied to her?

Your stories help keep her spirit alive for future generations. Please share them below so they can become part of her legacy.

📜 Back to the Buchanan Family Page to explore more relatives and history.

Curious about Lois’s place in the family tree?
Return to her Family Page to see how her story connects with generations past and present.

August 11, 2025

Introducing Philip Carlin Buchanan

Philip Carlin Buchanan

Born: January 4, 1913 – Shawneetown, Illinois
Died: January 5, 1967 – Anderson, Indiana
Laid to Rest: Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana

Every life leaves a trail — a string of addresses, occupations, and dates neatly preserved in public records. For Philip Carlin Buchanan, those official lines tell of a preacher’s son who became a husband, father, and typewriter salesman.

Born in the river town of Shawneetown, Illinois, Carlin grew up in a household where faith and family intertwined, his father serving as a Methodist pastor. Life took him from small-town Indiana streets to the busy neighborhoods of Indianapolis, where he built a family with Theresa Louise Owens and raised three daughters.

Yet, beyond the directories and census returns, there are the untold stories — the everyday moments, the quirks, the laughter, and the challenges. Family whispers suggest a more colorful side to Carlin’s life, but without hard evidence, those tales remain in the realm of rumor and imagination.

Want to see the full timeline of Carlin’s life?
Visit Philip Carlin Buchanan’s Family Page for a milestone-by-milestone account, complete with records, photos, and historical context.

Share Your Memories

Do you remember Carlin — his voice, his humor, his habits?
Did he ever tell you a story, teach you a skill, or leave you with an unforgettable moment?

Your memories could help paint the fuller picture of his life for future generations. Please share your stories, photographs, or recollections in the comments below. Together, we can bring Carlin’s story to life beyond the black-and-white of official records.

August 9, 2025

Introducing Elsie Mae Applegate

Elsie Mae Applegate Tudor

27 January 1893 – 24 June 1985

From Crothersville’s quiet streets to the busy neighborhoods of Indianapolis, Elsie Mae Applegate Tudor lived a life rooted in devotion — to her family, her community, and the organizations she poured her time into. The daughter of George W. Applegate and Serilda White, Elsie grew up in a blended household, learned early the value of hard work, and carried that ethic into her marriages, her career, and her civic life.

Married first to Wilford Mann in 1912, Elsie found her lifelong partner in Orval Ray Tudor, a World War I veteran. Together, they built a steady life in Indianapolis, sharing more than 60 years of companionship. Elsie worked for L.S. Ayres & Co. for 24 years, served as deputy assessor for Washington Township for over a decade, and held leadership roles in the Order of the Eastern Star, Ladies Oriental Shrine, and the American Legion Auxiliary.

She was a woman who could manage a household with grace, work the sales floor with charm, and preside over community meetings with authority. Elsie’s life spanned 92 years — years in which she witnessed remarkable change but never lost her steadfast sense of purpose.

Explore Elsie’s full story
Visit Elsie Mae Applegate Tudor’s Family Page for a detailed look at her life, historical records, and the milestones that shaped her 92 remarkable years.

Share Your Memories

If you knew Elsie — as a friend, neighbor, co-worker, or fellow member of the many organizations she served — we’d love to hear from you. Share your memories, stories, or photos in the comments below so her legacy can continue to live on through the people who knew her best.

August 3, 2025

Introducing Charles Arthur Blake

Introduction: Charles Arthur Blake

“Custodian of the Quiet Years”
Son-in-Law of Jacob William Beyl Sr. | Husband, Father, Resilient Soul | 1879–1957

Not every name in the family record arrives through blood. Some are stitched in through time, tenderness, and the kind of steadfast love that doesn’t demand attention. Charles Arthur Blake was one of those souls—woven into the fabric of the Beyl legacy not by birth, but by bond.

Born in West Newton, Indiana, in the final quarter of the 19th century, Charles entered a world still shaking off the dust of war and stepping boldly into modernity. He grew up in a working-class home in Indianapolis, one of eight children. His early life was defined by movement—wagon driver, truck man, grocer—and yet what defined him most was his capacity to stay.

He married Mary Elizabeth Beyl on his 22nd birthday, beginning a chapter filled with both profound sorrow and quiet joy. Together, they bore children, buried one too soon, and built a life on hard work and hope. When Mary died young, Charles honored her memory with a life that kept going—steady, simple, and true. He remarried, raised his daughter, and worked into his seventies, even as the world around him reshaped itself again and again.

There were no parades for Charles Blake, no monuments carved in his honor. But for every record left behind—for every census, draft card, city listing, and death certificate—there is the mark of a man who carried the weight of love, labor, and loss with quiet grace.

👉 Read his full story on the Family Page

💬 Did you know Charles? Did your family cross paths with his milk route, his grocery counter, or his quiet acts of service?
If you have stories, photographs, or even a whispered memory passed down through generations, I invite you to share it in the comments below. These are the threads that keep history breathing.

August 2, 2025

Introducing Grover Thomas Beyl

🧵 Meet Grover Thomas Beyl

1891–1938
The Meandering Butcher of Marion County

Before his name made it into newspapers as a “Pioneer Resident” or onto a death certificate marked “concussion of the brain,” Grover Thomas Beyl was just a boy on Jackson Street—watching his father plane wood, his mother tend chickens, and the world begin to shift around him.

He came of age between horse carts and meat lockers, learning to labor with his hands. He moved often, worked always, and tried to stake out a piece of permanence in a city that never stood still.

Grover was a machinist. A carpenter. A packer. A laborer. A butcher.
He was a husband to Katherine. A father to Elizabeth and Helen. A brother. A son. And by 1938, a man who had been in motion for nearly five decades—until a highway accident brought his story to a sudden, brutal end.

🗺️ We’ve traced his footsteps through old neighborhoods now lost to parking lots, reconstructed his addresses, and mapped the grind of his working-class life.
But there are still blanks. Still shadows. Still pieces we hope you might help us fill.

🕯️ Did You Know Grover?

Have you heard a story about him passed down in your family?
Do you have a photo, a letter, or even a fragment of a tale?

This is the place to share it.

🧬 Leave a comment below, or send us a note.
Even a tiny detail could bring a deeper layer to Grover’s memory—and help us tell the next chapter of a life once nearly forgotten.

🔍 Want to read his full story? You can find it here:
👉 Read Grover’s Family Page ➤

July 28, 2025

Introducing Irvin Benjamin Smith

🕵️‍♂️ Introduction Page: Irvin Benjamin Smith

Born: 15 March 1885, Lawrence, Indiana
Died: 26 January 1947, Indianapolis, Indiana
Known Aliases: Irvin B. Smith, Ervin B. Smith, Tom Smith
Occupations: Drayman, Laborer, Welder, Mechanic, Truck Driver
Possible Marriages: Edna Dugan, Lulu Sanders, Helen Marie Blake, Alsa Mae (unconfirmed)
Children: Mabel Irene Smith, Monty (unconfirmed)

Who Was Irvin Really?

Irvin Benjamin Smith is one of those ancestors who refuses to sit still—even in the grave. His trail winds through multiple marriages, shifting occupations, two World Wars, and census entries that contradict each other just enough to keep you guessing.

We’ve traced his known path as far as we can, but his story still has soft spots—years unaccounted for, possible spouses unexplained, and a son named Monty who may or may not be his. Throw in varying middle initials for his father and the occasional alias (“Tom”), and you’ve got the makings of a real mystery man.

That’s where you come in.

📣 Share Your Stories, Clues & Theories

Did you know Irvin personally—or hear stories passed down through the family?
Do you have photos, letters, or mementos tied to Irvin or his wives?
Can you help clarify whether he really married Lulu Sanders, Alsa Mae, or someone else entirely?
Any leads on what became of Monty?

We welcome memories, documents, DNA matches, wild theories, and respectful speculation. Drop your insights in the comments below or contact me directly. Even the smallest detail might help connect the dots.

📜 Want the full story?
Head over to Irvin Benjamin Smith’s Family Page for a detailed timeline of his life—including census records, marriages, mysteries, and everything we’ve uncovered so far.

Let’s shine a little more light on Irvin’s shadowy corners.

With curiosity and care,
~Kris

July 25, 2025

Introducing Grover Thomas Beyl

🧵 Meet Grover Thomas Beyl: The Meandering Butcher of Marion County

Today would have been Grover Thomas Beyl’s birthday—born July 25th, 1891 (or possibly 1892; the records squabble about it). He was a butcher by trade, a husband and father by heart, and a man whose journey through Columbus and Indianapolis left a trail of addresses, trades, and—eventually—tragedy.

Grover’s life wasn’t grand in the traditional sense. He didn’t leave behind books, buildings, or fame. What he did leave behind were butcher knives dulled by honest work, sidewalks warmed by decades of footsteps, and a family stitched into the fabric of Indiana history.

From carpentry to meat cutting, city directories to censuses, Grover’s story is one of movement—up Jackson Street, down Bates and Cruft, over to Kelly and Tabor. A map of his life reads like a humble heartbeat across Marion County. And his final chapter? A car crash on a late August day in 1938, ending his life but not his story.

This month, we’ve revisited Grover’s life in detail—from census records to draft cards, addresses now lost to parking lots, and one very poignant obituary. You can view the full timeline, explore his mapped journey, and dig into his story in the complete profile post here ➤.

🕯️ Did You Know Grover?

If you’re a descendant, distant cousin, neighbor, or just someone with an old family story tucked away—we want to hear from you.

Did your grandparents ever mention Grover? Do you have a family photo or recipe that might relate to this branch of the tree?

Drop a comment below or send a message. Sometimes the smallest detail—a tool brand, a street name, a whispered memory—can help us bring someone back to life more vividly than any document ever could.

Grover’s story is still unfolding—and you might just hold the next piece.

~Kris
🕵️‍♂️ Someone Peed in My Gene Pool

July 24, 2025

Introduction to Versa Eleanor Buchanan (1910–1998)

Resilient. Graceful. Unforgettable.
Posted by Kris | July 24, 2025 | Introduction Series

Versa Eleanor Buchanan was born on a sunlit July morning in 1910 in St. Francisville, Illinois. The daughter of a preacher and a woman with Missouri roots, she grew up surrounded by sermons, lullabies, and the quiet strength of a close-knit family. But Versa wasn’t content to simply be a part of the story—she became a woman who wrote her own chapters.

She married young, during the uncertainty of the Great Depression, and spent her early years working as a saleslady in Indianapolis, living under the roof of her mother-in-law and helping support the household. When that first marriage unraveled, Versa didn’t crumble—she evolved. She raised a daughter, earned her own income, and went on to forge a career as a photographer, capturing the light in others even as she shaped her own second act.

Versa worked behind the camera for over twenty years. She retired in 1977, long after she’d traded in the roles of wife and salesgirl for that of artist and independent woman. In her later years, she remarried, built a quieter life with Robert E. Laird, and lived out her days in Indianapolis—the same city where her daughter had been born and where, decades later, Versa herself would pass.

She now rests at Crown Hill Cemetery. No grand monuments, no fame. But her story? Her story matters.

Versa Eleanor Buchanan may not have left behind many photographs of herself, but she left behind something just as lasting—proof that a life can be quiet and still powerful. That a woman can live through heartbreak, reinvention, and generational change, and still leave the world a little more luminous than she found it.

💬 Do you remember Versa? Did she photograph you, know your family, or leave behind a story in your corner of the world? Please share your memories or reflections below—we’d love to help keep her story alive, one comment at a time.

With warmth,
~Kris