Spring Finds

Spring is showing its ability to bring a smile to my face here.  It is nice to make the mile walk after work back to our apartment.  The weather did warm up enough for us to walk a few days, but the rain did come also.  I am happy to see the trees come out a little.  It was the Cherry Blossom Festival all week last week but we didn’t have the time to attend any of the festivities, just enjoyed the blossoms.

We had our Zone Leaders, Elders Moench and Palomby, for dinner again last Friday.  It is always a fun time with these two.  They are great missionaries and love the work.  Elder Moench was so excited about the tablecloth they had decided to make to attract attention to a table they have set up to share the Prince of Peace message with people.  

Elder Palomby, who had requested spaghetti for dinner, decided he wanted to eat as much spaghetti as he possibly could.  He has been challenged by a member to eat a combination of 1 lb of past, 1 lb. of meat and 1 lb. of sauce all at one sitting.  Elder Palomby thinks he can do it, but it was hilarious to watch him try to tie his shoes after eating at our place and I don't think it was 3 lbs of food!  We will be interested to hear the rest of the story for him. 

Today we drove out to visit the Jerrettown Ward.  When our family was young and we came to visit Ed's mom we would take our family to the Jerrettown Ward.  Our friends in Salt Lake, the Thuesons, asked us to check on their good, young friend who is serving as a missionary here, Sister Adakhari. We found that she was serving in the Jerrettown Ward so we met her and her companion (Sister Prince) and visited briefly before the meeting. 

We have been working hard to catch up on our scanning since we have had so many down days in our first month.  We are back up to almost 100% now so we both feel almost obsessed with keeping the scanners working.  Having said that, occasionally the odd thing will come up and I just have to share it and then keep it for my own memories. 

This week I found family history information recorded in some unique ways. We are used to letters in all shapes and sizes; Christmas cards with a tidbit here or there; Valentines cards with some bit of information; funeral announcements and sympathy cards with a story or sentiment; even a small little paper bag that was used to record some info as seen here:

However, I was surprised to open a small folder piece of paper to find “Lindas hair June 1890”. 

Yep, there is her hair: 

I actually decided to scan the hair in color because it was a light, reddish brown color still. 

I have found again that the most difficult part of this assignment is to not stop and read the stories behind the people in these histories.  Obviously there isn’t any time to do this and it makes me sad.  Some of the photos, for instance, make me so curious.  I am past thinking that I may find connections to my own family.  I am just interested in these families.  

This photo is so curious to me.  I am not sure which of the women in this photo is Catharine (Haycock) Wright….the child or the grandma (great grandma?).  

Very few of the photos have dates.  Most have a name, and some a better description of what it is.

This photo caught my attention because I recognized the place.

Font Hill, in Doylestown, is now a museum.  Years ago when I was visiting Ed’s mom she suggested that I might enjoy visiting this place.  We went together and I was fascinated so it was fun to find in the file I was scanning this photograph which must have been taken shortly after the construction was finished in 1912.  I was able to contrast the photo I scanned with another more recent photo.  The foliage around the “castle”, as it is now called, much improves the look of the place.

Another bit that I found was this certificate from Niagara Falls.  I have been to the Falls, but have never seen this tour advertised.  

Maybe the Canada West side still does this, but it was so fun to see that this was a unique piece of memorabilia for someone to keep with other family things from 1847.  The date was not lost on me.  This man “…passed behind the Great Falling Sheet of Water…” about the same time Brigham Young was entering the Great Salt Lake Valley.

But by far the most unique record of historical notes was this one:

Really?  

Who would keep a flattened cigarette package to record historical family information. Maybe it says more about the individual who recorded it than the information he/she recorded!  

I was flabbergasted, but I suspect this may not be the last of startling things we find.  

What will be next???