DESCENDANTS OF ALBERT LATTA (BRANCH 1)

By Jeannine Latta Noe, JNoe1936@aol.com

    I am delighted to have been put in touch with the Latta Family Groups and wonder if you are familiar with the book one of my cousins, Jacqueline Testerman, produced on our family lineage. It starts with Lawyer Robert Latta's research and traces our direct line back to William Latta, who immigrated from Ireland in the mid 1700s.

    My particular ancestry travels thusly:

    William Latta

    Andrew Latta, April 29, 1969

    Robert Robertson Latta, August 13, 1811

    Albert Latta, July 4, 1839

    Edward Ford Latta, April 16, 1877

    Lloyd Alfred Latta, July 21, 1908

    Jeannine Latta Noe

    It has been quite thrilling to read about the people who came before me, and I wonder if some of the prominent traits that travel our line go back to our ancestors. The traits that I refer to include skills and abilities in building, architecture, drafting, engineering, and other precision work.

    My father was a professional letterer all of his life, and partnered with his brother Silas, who was also gifted artistically.  As teen-aged boys they painted the ceiling of a country church in Kansas, doing the artwork on their backs. As a teenager I visited the church and saw the paintings, but do not know if the church still stands.

    During that 1950s visit to Kansas I also saw a house built by Albert Latta, my father's grandfather, who was a stonemason by trade.  We marveled that the two story structure was still standing straight and square.

    Those kinds of skills seem to be prevalent among the male members of the family.  The female talent seems to be in needlework and painting. It seems as if we have to have a needle in our hands or we feel unclothed.

    Our other family trait is the regular appearance of bright red hair. Sometimes it skips a generation or two, but then suddenly pops up in a new member's birth. One of my sisters is a Latta redhead, but I alas am not.  I always hoped one of my children would have red hair, but now must look for it in a future grandchild.  Our larger family reunions were always a time to check out all the new redheads and marvel at that beautiful distinctive color.

    Please let me know how I can share some of this extensive information with other members of Branch 1.