Family Reunions
It's that time again: The every-other-year gathering of the Miller clan in Vermont. It grew from a gathering of siblings on a family farm in New York state to a cluster of cousins more than 60 years later. My husband's family is dedicated to keeping this tradition alive. Summer is...
Read MoreClothing Clues for Women in Old Photos: Bloomers
In 1849, a group that advocated reform dress for women advised them to wear "Turkish dress." That meant a billowy pant that ended below the knee, worn beneath a shorter dress. This illustration is from sheet music composed by William Dressler in 1851. He called his piece "The Bloomer...
Read MoreOld Family Photos on Cloth
Jeff Fee wrote and asked if I'd ever seen a photograph like this before—it's on silk. The answer is yes. I actually own one, of my paternal grandmother. Based on my grandmother's birth year of 1892 and her approximate age in the photo, it was made circa 1910...
Read MoreWorld War I Women
June 28 is recognized as the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, which triggered beginning of World War I a month later. The United States didn't formally enter the war until April 6, 1917.When men enlisted in the service and left their jobs, women...
Read MoreSolving Old Photo Mysteries: Clues in Curls
Eunice Amelia Paulk (1842-1913)Jana Last knows a lot about her ancestor Eunice. She was born in Ohio, lived in Washington, Iowa, and eventually moved to California. At 19, she was a teacher in common school, a job she likely held until she married in 1876. You can read...
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Mapping the Places Your Old Photos Were Taken
There are so many layers to a photo identification and interpretation problem. A family photograph is a lot more than just figuring out who's in the image. Each photo tells a story. This image of billiard players outside a Mulhall, Okla., pool hall appeared in last week's Photo Detective Blog...
Read MoreWestern Pastimes: Billiards Buddies Follow-Up
In the May/June 2014 issue of Family Tree Magazine is a photo of six men standing with billiard cues. Two of the men are Charlotte Flock's maternal and paternal grandfathers. Instead of a formal portrait, Flock's ancestors posed during a pause in their favorite pastime. On the far left is...
Read MoreCostumed Old-Photo Mystery
Costumed ancestors in photographs often cause their descendants to wonder about the significance of that head-to-toe attire. Cheryl Jackson has one such mystery. She thinks this man is John Hardy Jackson who lived in the Paragould, Green County, area of Arkansas from approximately 1896 to 1942. He's part of a...
Read MoreDaughters and Sons-in-law in an 1850s Photo
Jim TeVogt owns a copy of this gorgeous image, reported to be three of Horace W. Twichell's daughters and their husbands. A cousin told him that his photo was made from a glass negative in the Twichell family. Could this be:Eveline (born 25 May 1824) married in 1840 to Usual...
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