52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 45. Prompt - Bearded

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

Week 45

Prompt – Bearded

I have referred to Bill's sister's “Oral History Report” that she did as school report in 1976.  17 year old Elaine Hoffart interviewed their maternal grandfather, Arthur Johann Jahnke.  Arthur would have been 82 when Elaine did the interview.  In my opinion, the report is one of the most valuable genealogical pieces for Arthur Jahnke and family.   Bill's mother, Clara Hoffart and her cousin (Delpha Smidt) read it many years later and they said that their were many stories in it that they never heard about.

The report is more than facts about births, baptisms, confirmations, death and burials.  It is the incidental stories that make it so special.   The seemingly trivial stories told by Arthur Jahnke and the decision of Elaine to include them in her report to flesh out the family history.

Arthur (40 Years Old) and his brother, Leonhard (about 43 Years Old) and their Uncle Henry Fesser (about 46 Years Old) were at the time orchard farming together in Yakima, Washington. In the report is a photograph of the three men with their beards.   The photograph alone would not have told the whole story and why the men who were usually clean shaven had beards.  Elaine thought to include a few words that Arthur told her about why they were bearded.

 To me it is an interesting piece of information that tells me more about the character of these three men than the photograph alone would have. Arthur, Leonhard and Uncle Henry were civic minded by getting into the spirit of celebrating the 50^th Anniversary of Yakima, Washington.  Arthur and Uncle Henry were relatively new to the city of Yakima and it seemed that they took to their new home rather quickly.

It is my hope that someday in the future; some family member will say that they learned new things about our family from my genealogical blogs. 

Wendy