Lost and Found

Sometimes you find people where you least expect to find them! 

Martha Olivia (Ganus) Howell (Original photo in my possession)

While helping a friend do some research, I spent some time searching the Utah Death Certificates. While I was at it, I couldn’t resist putting in a few of my own family names into the search box just for fun. I really didn’t expect to find anyone because the majority of my ancestors lived in the southern states. 

Imagine my surprise when I typed in McCleskey and up popped Green Russell McCleskey. Although not a direct ancestor, Green Russell McCleskey’s family lived near my family in both Georgia and Oklahoma and with the name of McCleskey (my brick wall) I’ve kept my eye on this family for some time. 

Russell’s mother, Lillian Howell, was a sister to Henry Edgar Howell, who married Martha Olivia Ganus, my grandpa’s half sister. Martha Olivia, or “Ollie” was William Franklin Ganus’s daughter with his first wife, Mary Matilda Roberts.

Just to make sure that this was the same Green Russell McCleskey, I double checked my database and confirmed that, yes, parents and his birth date were the same.  

Since my grandfather’s half sister, Ollie (Ganus) Howell was Green Russell McCleskey’s aunt and they lived in the same area of Oklahoma, I felt sure that the families interacted. Below are the Howell, McCleskey and Ganus families and the red helps to clarify the link. 

Henry Harrison Howell b. 1840 IL d. 1928 Ok
married Amelia Louisa Turner b. 1852 IL d. 1928 OK

Children of Henry and Louisa


   1. Katherine Anne Howell b. 1873
   2. Henry Edgar Howell b. 1875 Il d. 1951 Ok marr. Martha Olivia Ganus b. 1880 GA d. 1916 OK
   3. Elroy Howell b. 1878
   4. Lily Howell b. 1883 TX d. 1899 OK
   5. Lillian Howell b. 1883 TX d. 1974 Ok married Benjamin Green McCleskey b. 1871 Tx d. 1932 OK

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