Huesca – Page 5 – Many Branches, One Tree

Thankful Thursday: A Priceless Find

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) Joan Joyce (Schiavon) Huesca (1928 – 1987) Alice (McGinnis) Schiavon (1895 – 1963) Fern (Lawton) Waples (1899 – 1961) “She’s too much girl for you.” My father, Gilbert Huesca So said Fern Waples, my father’s landlady and friend, with her sly smile as she watched him look back … Continue reading

Life with the Waples Family

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) Frank Waples (1901 – 1993) Fern (Lawton) Waples (1899 – 1961) My darling father, Gilbert Huesca, at the home of Frank and Fern Waples, Chicago, Illinois. Circa 1952 – 1954. Some time around 1950, my father, Gilbert Cayetano Huesca, set out to find a new room to rent in … Continue reading

Amanuensis Monday: It Came Back to Me in a Dream

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) [Note: Amanuensis is an ancient word meaning one who performs the function of writing down or transcribing the words of another. Derived from the Latin root manu- , meaning manual or hand, the word also has been used as a synonym for secretary or scribe.] My father, Gilbert Huesca, August 2008 My father’s earliest memory … Continue reading

My Father’s Early Days in Chicago: 1948

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) My handsome father, Gilbert Cayetano Huesca, Chicago, Illinois, about 1948. Nearly a year after his first visit to Chicago in 1947, the record of Border Crossings: From Mexico to U.S., 1895 – 1957, of Gilbert Cayetano Huesca’s second trip to the U.S., lists him as “Cayetano Huesca y Perrotin.*” It describes him … Continue reading

Those Places Thursday: North to Chicago

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) My father, Gilbert Huesca, on one of his business trips, climbing up a Pemex Mexican Petroleum oil tank, Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico In 1947, the man who would become my beloved father, Gilbert Huesca, was a 32- year-old commercial artist from Mexico City who was eager to see the world and … Continue reading

Talented Tuesday: Domestic Goddess

Mary Jane (Gaffney) McGinnis (1858 – 1940) My great- grandmother, Mary Jane (Gaffney) McGinnis, wearing a dress she made for her engagement. Conneaut, Ohio, circa 1884. Known for her generous heart and her delicious pies, Mary Jane McGinnis held a special place in the memories of her descendants who knew her. My mother, Joan Joyce … Continue reading

Treasure Chest Thursday: Early Memories

Joan Joyce (Schiavon) Huesca 1928 – 1987 In her own words (Part One) On June 24, 1987, a couple of months before she died of lung cancer, my mother, Joan Joyce (Schiavon) Huesca began writing the story of her life. The following is an excerpt from the first chapter of her book, Joan Joyce Schiavon … Continue reading

Sentimental Sunday: “Do Not Give In”: Part 2

José Enrique Florentino Huesca (1847 – 1919) María Angela Catalina (Perrotin) Huesca (1893 – 1999) Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 – 2009) Full Circle Second in a two-part series – Continued My great-grandfather, Enrique Huesca (about 1850 – 1920) Jose Enrique Florentino Huesca, known as “Enrique,” lost his wife, Maria de la Luz Merlo, whom he … Continue reading

Sympathy Saturday: “Do Not Give In”: Part 1

José Enrique Florentino Huesca (1847 – 1919) María Angela Catalina (Perrotin) Huesca (1893 – 1999) Gilberto Huesca (1912 – 1915) Condolences Cañada Morelos, April 25, 1915 Mrs. Catalina Perroton (sic) Tierra Blanca My Dear Friend, As I send you my greetings together with all the well-deserved attentions to you and your kind family, I want to … Continue reading

Francisco Perrotin: 1866 – 1899

Francisco Perrotin 1868 – 1899 “The first cases (of yellow fever) in Orizaba were all of persons living in a small radius, close around the railroad station. In the next epidemic they spread out a few hundred yards farther and took in another block of houses a little farther off from the railroad station as … Continue reading