Anna Josephine and Ginevra

     Unlike five of the seven children born to Sarah and Joseph, two of their daughters lived long lives.  Anna Josephine and Ginevra both lived into their 60's. They married, raised families, and shared the care of their aged mother, Sarah.  I have read in some of the Jefferson historical papers about visits Sarah made to her granddaughters in Jefferson.  These are strangers to me.  The mother of those granddaughters was Anna Josephine. 
     Anna Josephine married Willam Cromwell and raised seven children just like her parents.  I have not done much research on this branch of the family.  In time, I will turn my attention to this branch if one of my third or fourth cousins or anyone else is interested. 
     What I have discovered is that the youngest daughter of Anna and William was born in 1899 and was named Beatrice Ruth. She  married Norval Pound and they had three children.
Alan (1917)
Victor (1921)
Mignon (1922)

     Oh, have my third and fourth cousins perked up their ears?

     When I was a kid, one of my best friends was Margo Pound.  We knew we were distantly related but no one seemed to know exactly how.  Now I know!  Sarah Jane is her 2nd great grandmother and my 3rd great grandmother. We share a common ancestor.  We are third cousins once removed. I am one generation farther removed from our common ancestors, Sarah and Joseph Withrow. 
     Everyone with me? What is this illusive once removed term? We are not of the same generation.  How can this be? We are only one month apart in age.  Let me explain.
     Anna's daughter, Beatrice, was the youngest of Anna's children.  While the daughter of her sister, Ginevra, was the oldest of Ginevra's children. Ginevra's daughter, Estella, and Beatrice, first cousin to Estella, were almost 20 years apart in age. Already the generations are off.
     I tried explaining descendants in paragraph form but it became a little confusing. So, here is a chart which might help.

                                            Sarah( mother)

   Anna Josephine          (sisters)          Ginevra
      Beatrice              (first cousins)         Estella
         Alan/Victor      (second cousins)        Nina&siblings
            Jane/Margo/Vic/etc. (3rd cousins)     Mary&siblings
              Michelle, Mike, Todd, Jane's girls (4th) Margie

Because I am one more generation removed from Sarah Jane, I am a third cousin once removed of my friend, Margo, her siblings, and her first cousins.

     Here is my paragraph. You might want to skip it or muddle through to see if your head spins or you might find it clarifying.

     Beatrice and Estella were the grandchildren of Sarah Jane and Joseph.  They were first cousins. Beatrice's children and Estella's children were great-grandchildren to Sarah Jane and Joseph. So, Sarah was great grandmother to Alan Pound, Victor Pound, my grandmother Nina Smith Grisso, and many others. Alan and Victor were second cousins to my grandmother, Nina, and her siblings.  The children of Alan and his brother, Victor, are third cousins to Nina's children one of whom is my mother, Mary. The generations are not aligned. So this is where the once, twice, etc. times removed comes in. Margo is my mother's third cousin and my third cousin once removed. Her children are my fourth cousins. (Got that Michelle, Mike, and Todd)
     So, there you have it. My third and fourth cousins share a common ancestor with me. We have all descended from Sarah Jane Swartzel Withrow and her husband, Joseph.
     My first and second cousins branch off with Ginevra and John Mac Vorhies.  There is much more to come with them.