52 Ancestors #4 Overlooked: Hidden in Plain Sight - Discovering Great-Uncle George Delos Peasley

Sometimes the most profound genealogical discoveries come not from hours of research, but from a simple walk through a cemetery. Among the familiar headstones of my maternal ancestors at Masonic Memorial Park in Tumwater, Washington stood a small marker that would rewrite our family history.

In 2018, I traveled back home to Washington state to visit family there. One day in July I visited the cemetery to photograph headstones. Next to my maternal great-grandmother, Mary Etta (Ames) Peasley was an unexpected headstone.

The weathered stone bore the name "George Peasley" with dates that spoke of a heartbreakingly brief life in 1918. This unknown great-uncle would have been ten years younger than my grandfather Frank, making him the fourth and youngest child of Vernon and Mary Etta Peasley. When I called my mother to share this discovery, her stunned silence spoke volumes. In all her years of family storytelling, she'd never heard a whisper about this lost uncle. How could an entire branch of our family tree remain hidden for nearly a century?

A quick search on the free digital archives for Washington found a death record for him and it listed Vernon Peasley and Mary Anies. The certificate shows that he was stillborn on 21 January 1918, in North Olympia. 

With this information, I searched for a birth record on FamilySearch.org where I found a birth record that had the additional information of a second forename of Delos, which was also a forename of his father and grandfather.

The weight of this century-old loss resonated deeply with my mother. While the news brought a touch of sadness, knowing about Mary Etta's hidden heartbreak, it also kindled a sense of connection to our family's past. In honor of this rediscovered great-uncle, I created a WikiTree profile for George Delos Peasley, ensuring that his brief but important presence in our family story would never again be forgotten.

This blog post is in response to this week's #52Ancestors post on WikiTree, by fellow WikiTreer and blogger, Chris Ferraiolo. #52Ancestors was started by another WikiTreer, blogger, and professional genealogist, Amy Johnson Crow. Check out her Generations Cafe Facebook group

* Find source documentation and more information on the linked WikiTree profiles for the members of this family.