52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Week 20 Prompt - Preserve

2024

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

Week 20

Prompt – Preserve

There are a several different things that you can do to preserve your family tree. Let's start with your photographs. Make sure their name(s) are attached to the photograph and then a date that the photograph was taken, if possible. Otherwise you end up with photo albums full of beautiful portraits of people you don't know. My mother-in-law has two photo albums she inherited from her grandmother. I call them Clara's Photo Albums of Unknown People. When I was scanning these photographs I asked Clara to explain who these people were. Unfortunately she did not know. Her comment was “gee, I wished I paid attention when my grandmother showed me the photos”. All she knew were they were family members from Germany. 

 

Clara is related to these unknown individuals.  My guess is the photographs were taken late 1890's to 1910 era. 

 

 

 

 I am now in the process of organizing, dating (if possible) and scanning all of the bags and boxes of photographs, letters and some documents that we brought back from clearing out Clara's apartment. I must admit that it seems monumental. It is also exciting to go through them.

Besides photographs to keep track of, there is the physical things that one might possess that have been handed down through the generations. I believe that most generation-old artifacts come with the story firmly attached. Sometimes those stories are true and sometimes they might be embellished. It would be best if we could write their story.

While Bill and I were helping Clara with her move to the nursing home, we had a chance to go through so many gems. As it turns out it is usually the most unassuming thing that has the best memories. Clara had set aside a dish that she wanted to be sure that Bill got. It was a clear glass divided dish. It is the type that may hold condiments at a dinner table. It seemed like an odd thing to give to Bill. She told us that this dish was a Christmas present that Bill had given to her. Clara told us that Bill was quite proud of this gift because he told her it was the first gift that he had bought for her with his own money that he earned working at McDonald's. Clara was quite appreciative of his gift. She said she used it often and always remembered that it was a gift from Bill. I asked Bill about it and of course he doesn't remember it at all. I remember seeing it at many of the dinners we enjoyed with them. I'm sure we would have given it away during the clean up. Clara made sure Bill got it and why he did. One never knows what is precious and needs to be preserved. 

 

Wendy