Hoerger1

Kathryn Hoerger

ENG102

7 Elements of Culture

5 November 2017

Who are my ancestors?

Social Organization

My great grandfather was Howard Louis Glover. He was born in the region of Chicago,

Cook, Illinois on July 31st, 1914 (U.S. Social Security Applications and Claims Index). His

parents were Orion Henry Glover and Caroline Carrie Freundt. The Glover family consisted of

three children and Howard was the youngest. They were a middle-class family that worked hard

for everything they had but still lived comfortably.

Howard married Shirley Marguerite Laster, my great grandmother on October 2nd, 1944

(Illinois Marriage Index). They then had four beautiful daughters, one being my grandma,

Deborah Suzan Hoerger. They all grew up in Chicago, Cook, Illinois and eventually moved to

Chandler, Arizona in 1980. They were a middle/upper class family. My great grandfather,

Howard, owned his own business called, Chicago Cork Works. His company made automotive

gaskets for manufactures like General motors, Ford Motors, and Chrysler Motors for their

automotive engines (Hoerger).

Customs and Traditions

While Howard kept his business booming, Shirley was a housewife and stayed home with

their four daughters. This was a tradition in the Glover family and many families back then. The
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men were supposed to work and provide for the family, while the women stayed home with the

children, cooked, and cleaned around the house. My great-great grandfather and grandmother

had the same arrangement. It was important to the Glover men that they provided for their

family.

Another tradition that was kept throughout the years and my family still does today, are

Sunday dinners. Every Sunday, all my family gets together for dinner and shares something

about their week. According to my Grandma Debbie, Sundays were an important day in her

house growing up (Hoerger). It was a day for everyone to take a break from their stressful lives

and enjoy a day together. This tradition is still important in my family today. On Sunday

mornings we all go to church together and have dinner every Sunday night. I hope to keep this

tradition still going when I have my own family.

Religion

Growing up, my great grandfather was raised as a Christian. Every Sunday, his whole

family would get up and go to church. After church they would get brunch and spend the day

together and later that day theyd have family dinner. Sundays are for family, My great

grandfather always said (Hoerger). My great grandmother, Shirley, was raised as a Lutheran. Her

and her family went to church every Sunday as well but did not take Sundays as seriously as my

great grandfather and his family had. When the two got married, my great grandmother became

Christian and started going with my great grandfather to his church. Together, they raised their

kids to be Christian and followed family tradition by spending Sundays with family and god.

Language
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On my great grandmothers side, the only language that was spoken was English.

However, on my great grandfathers side, English and German were the spoken languages. Great

uncles and aunts had spoken German, and some had lived in Germany. So, my great great

grandfather took it upon himself to keep the German language in the family, so he made

everyone of his children take German throughout middle school and high school. He wanted his

kids to be fluent but my great grandfather and his brothers and sisters did not take it as seriously

as my great great grandfather, Orion, and did not continue with it throughout their lives

(Hoerger).

Arts & Literature

My great grandfather and great grandmother did not care for art and literature. They liked

to read and go to art museums but were never passionate about it. However, they were very

passionate about music. When my grandma was little, she said that there was always music

playing throughout the house. Every day, she would come home from school and her mom, my

great grandmother, would be in the kitchen preparing dinner and singing her heart out to

whatever song that was on the radio. She listened to just about everything (Hoerger).

Throughout the 1950s, there many hit artist and songs that came about and are still well

known today like, Ruth Brown, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Bill Hayley, and so many more. One

of the biggest hits in the 1950s, was Jailhouse Rock by Elvis Presley (Best songs of 1950s). It

was a family favorite in the Glover house. My Grandma and great grandmother would dance

around the living room to Elvis every week. Its one of my grandmas favorite memories of her

mother (Hoerger).

Forms of government and Economic systems

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Back then, the federal government sought to accomplish change throughout the U.S.

There was always constant buzz about new laws and new political news. My great grandfather

was a stubborn man and did not like change. However, he still respected the people of the

government and the new laws that came about. Between the years 1944 and 1999, congress had

passed over 500 laws (Governments Greatest Achievements of the Past Half Century). Each law

went into different categories like civil rights, energy and natural resources, wilderness

protection, and nations energy supply. All but a handful had reasoning as to why they came

about. In those fifty-five years, the federal government tried their hardest to identify and solve

problems that America had. Some of those problems back then are still problems we have today

but we now have updated resources and different ways as to solving them.
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Works Cited

Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 [database on-line]. Provo, UT,

USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-

line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA:

Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-

line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-

line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

Best songs of 1950s, Boomerslife, September 16, 2017.

Hoerger, Deborah. Personal Interview. 2017.

Light, C. Paul. Governments Greatest Achievements of the Past Half Century, Broookings,

Dec.1, 2000.