52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2019 Week 8 Prompt - Family Photograph

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

2019

Week 8

Prompt – Family Photo

My Great Grandfather - Andreas Krikau and Six of His Seven Children.

Fred, Mary, Lizzie, George, John, Henry and Their Father, Andreas Krikau

My grandmother, Mary McLaughlin (nee Krikau), is standing second from the left in the back row. Lying on the ground is her father, my great grandfather, Andreas Krikau. I received this photograph in the box of “grandma things” from my Aunt Phyllis after her husband died. Phyllis' husband was Wallace McLaughlin and the last surviving child of Grandmother McLaughlin. I don't believe the names were ever on the back of this photo but I have tried to name them.

The two obvious people I know are Great Grandfather, Andreas Krikau and my Grandmother Mary. My grandmother only had one sister and thus the girl standing on her left is Elisa Krikau, AKA Betty. To Elisa's left are the three younger brothers George, John and Henry. The big question is who is the brother to my grandmother's right? She has one older brother, Andreas Krikau, AKA Andrew or Andy.  There is a brother just two years younger than Mary and he is Georg Friedrich Krikau, AKA Fred.  My assumption in the above photograph is that because he is taller he would be the older brother - Andrew.  However I have his name on the photograph as Fred!

I found a second photograph which is taken at the same time. It was labeled as Fred, Mary and Andrew Krikau.  Thus I feel confident that I was correct in naming the taller brother as Fred in the above photo. 

Fred, Mary and Andrew Krikau

I have tried to figure out when this photo was taken and have come up with a  possibility.  They seem to be wearing what I call special Sunday clothes.  Grandma was confirmed April 1, 1917 in Winnipeg. I'm sure that photos were only taken on special occasions such as this. Grandma looks like a 14 year old.  Where is her mother, Maria Krikau?  I know at this time Maria was just pregnant with their last child. (Wilhelm Krikau was born October 25, 1917 and died at 4 months of age of pneumonia on May 20, 1918). Was Mary's mother not well?  More likely she was busy in the kitchen making a special dinner for the occasion.  

I had wondered if it was taken on the occasion of my grandmother's first marriage to Robert Sullivan.

On Back of Photo - Lizzie Krikau and Mary Sullivan

This picture was taken on the occasion of Mary's Wedding and her sister Elisa seems to be wearing the same dress as the family photo above.  Mary's first wedding was April 11, 1921.  As I understand it, Mary's mother and father "disowned" her because she married Sullivan against their wishes.  However her brothers Fred and Andrew were the witnesses to her wedding. Thus I believe the Krikau Sibling photo was earlier than her wedding. I believe the photograph dates to about 1917.
These photographs are the earliest pictures I have of my grandmother and her siblings.  I treasure them and love that I have them. It gives me one more dimension of information to piece together my grandmother's story. 

Wendy