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Wasn’t Expecting This

Adding newspaper articles to my collection of photos and documents about one of my forebears is like…

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New Year’s Day 2021 marked the beginning of a family history experiment on Instagram. I had tr…

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artofrecollection

🌱 Planting seeds of family history - one photo, one story at a time. #artofrecollection 📃 "In the end, we'll all become stories.". ~M.Atwood

This was a sweet find in the midst of my aunt's ph

This was a sweet find in the midst of my aunt's photos. Just a little snapshot, but packed with significance.

The majority of pictures we have of our parents - pictures taken when we were old enough to remember - all carry with them an uncomfortable tension. The tension was an ever-present undercurrent, existing to varying degrees throughout our lives.

Being the oldest of 4 girls, I remember having family fun. I remember when we would get together with aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. I remember young parents, making ends meet, working hard, enjoying extended family. But by the time I was 8 the fun was replaced by a family feud.

My sisters grew up in the midst of the feud, so they have no memories of anything other than backbiting, undermining, restrained anger and frustration. If I could take my sisters back to "before", I would.

Oh, if only "before" was a real place.

Well, pack an overnight bag, because this picture captures a moment of "before".

Before extended family got in the mix. Before stress and worry and disappointment and frustration crowded out everything else. Before sides were taken. Before trusts were broken. Before.

Fact: My parents divorced after 28 years of marriage. But there was a "before". A "before" in which my parents chose one another. When they made plans and laughed and, yes, even loved. A "before" that provides a little balance to the memories my sisters and I share.

Family history is a lot of things. It is research, family trees, family photos, memorabilia, and stories. It is collecting, organizing, preserving, and sharing. It is also an opportunity to find balance. To visit the times and lives that lie outside our memories. To take a little trip to "before". 🥰

I do love a road trip. 🚗 ❤️

(l 2 r: Grandma (Bessie), Daddy and Mama)

telltheirstories #familyhistorian #savefamilyphotos #memorykeeper #familiesareforever #familyhistory #familystories #familyhistoryresearch #oldphoto #familysearch #ancestors #vintagephoto #artofrecollection #genealogyphotoaday #myheritage #research #genealogyresearch #genealogyphoto #heritage #familytree #ancestry #sisters #sister #memorykeeping #familyalbum #photomemories

Sometimes I think I should have named this account

Sometimes I think I should have named this account "She Stumbles Upon" - because often that's exactly what happens - I stumble upon information. ⁠
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My starting point for family history research is usually a photograph. I will scan photos from a family member's collection and then spend hours trying to identify the persons, places, and things captured in those vintage images. This is one of several of my grandma's (Bessie's) photos that had no caption written - sigh, I love captions. ⁠
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But a lack of caption just makes me broaden my circle, reaching out to other groups, hoping against hope that someone can help. In this case, a post to a FB group has opened a world of information that was completely unexpected. ⁠
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A member of that group suggested Bessie's photo of this banjo man might be Dick Burnett. Hmmmm...Burnett is a familiar surname. My great-great grandmother, John Cooper's mother, was Louisa Burnett. Is there any connection?⁠
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Turns out, Richard Daniel "Dick" Burnett was Louisa's nephew, first cousin to John Cooper, Bessie's father. Born in 1883, Dick became a traveling musician, recording with Columbia records. ⁠
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Blinded by a gunshot wound sustained during a robbery, Dick traveled with a young fiddler, Leonard Rutherford. "Burnett has been described as one of the great natural songsters, a man who collected, codified, and transmitted some of our best traditional songs. Dick was also a skillful composer ... his 'Man of Constant Sorrow' remains one of the most evocative country songs."⁠
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That's right, my 1st cousin 3x removed is credited with writing a song that was performed in the movie "O Brother Where Art Thou". ⁠
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Yep, "She Stumbles Upon" would have been a good name for this account. ⁠
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More about Dick Burnett - link in bio.⁠
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#telltheirstories #cooper #burnett #savefamilyphotos #memorykeeper #familiesareforever #familyhistory #familystories #familyhistoryresearch #oldphoto #familysearch #ancestors #vintage #vintagephoto #artofrecollection⁠
#genealogyphotoaday #myheritage #research #genealogyresearch #genealogyphoto #heritage #familytree #ancestry⁠
#memorykeeping #familyalbum #photomemories

This sweet set of little girls were born within 2

This sweet set of little girls were born within 2 weeks of one another. 💞

We were gearing up for the birthday celebration of the youngest of the set. We had...

✔️Cake 🎂
✔️Ice cream🍦
✔️Balloons 🎈
✔️Peppa Pig Party Paraphanelia🐷
✔️Birthday dress 👗
✔️Presents 🎁

... when a bout of food poisoning 🤢 altered plans. Fortunately Pop to the rescue! He will be making a delivery to the birthday girl, taking everything to her while Mimi continues to rest and recover.

Sometimes making memories doesn't go as planned, but it doesn't mean the party has to end. In this case, the party has been taken on the road and the birthday girl will be delighted when she sees her Pop and the surprises he is bringing. ❤️

Truth be told: Those birthdays occurred over the span of 64 years. But still, a sweet set of little girls.

🎶 Happy birthday! Happy birthday, hap-py, hap-py birthday to you! 🎶🎉💞

#telltheirstories #makingmemories #grandchildren #grandparents #savefamilyphotos #memorykeeper #familiesareforever #familyhistory #familystories #familyhistoryresearch #oldphoto #familysearch #ancestors #vintage #vintagephoto #artofrecollection #memorykeeping #familyalbum #photomemories

🎶 "Yes, we'll gather at the river, the beautifu

🎶 "Yes, we'll gather at the river, the beautiful, the beautiful river. Gather with the saints at the river, that flows by the throne of God...." ⁠🎶
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These photos were in my grandma's photos album (Bessie Cooper Denney). Her sisters-in-law, my great aunts, are on the back row. Gertie (born 1892) is on the left, and Mertie (born 1895) is 3rd from the left. ⁠I don't know the other people so I have done the today-version of phone-a-friend - I've shared the photos in two Wayne County KY FB Groups. 🥰
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While we wait for my post-a-FB-friend to return some answers, let's just have ourselves a little morning "hymn sing".⁠
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"Shall we gather at the river,⁠
Where bright angel feet have trod;⁠
With its crystal tide forever⁠
Flowing by the throne of God?⁠
⁠
Refrain:⁠
"Yes, we'll gather at the river,⁠
The beautiful, the beautiful river;⁠
Gather with the saints at the river⁠
That flows by the throne of God.⁠
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2 "On the margin of the river,⁠
Washing up its silver spray,⁠
We will walk and worship ever,⁠
All the happy golden day. [Refrain]⁠
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3 "Ere we reach the shining river,⁠
Lay we ev'ry burden down;⁠
Grace our spirits will deliver,⁠
And provide a robe and crown. [Refrain]⁠
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4 "Soon we'll reach the shining river,⁠
Soon our pilgrimage will cease;⁠
Soon our happy hearts will quiver⁠
With the melody of peace."⁠
~Robert Lowry ⁠

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#telltheirstories #denney #familyhistorian #savefamilyphotos #memorykeeper #familiesareforever #familyhistory #familystories #familyhistoryresearch #oldphoto #familysearch #ancestors #vintage #vintagephoto #artofrecollection⁠
#genealogyphotoaday #myheritage #research #genealogyresearch #genealogyphoto #heritage #familytree #ancestry⁠
#memorykeeping #familyalbum #photomemories

Adding newspaper articles to my collection of phot

Adding newspaper articles to my collection of photos and documents is the icing on the cake. You glean facts about people from vital statistics records, you identify faces and places in the photos, but having an opportunity to "hear" their voice is quite simply amazing.

We most often hear their voices in letters, journals, and diaries that have been passed from one generation to another. We sometimes see their names in newspaper articles recording land transfers, court proceedings, or being quoted during a reporter's interview.

However, to find a series of op-ed pieces written by one of our folks is truly the icing on the cake.

This is John Washington Cooper with his son, Tony. After reading the articles he wrote, I have begun to suspect that his nickname of "Big John" resulted from his personality even more than from his physical stature. (He was 5'11")

The articles he wrote were articulate and well-researched. He included facts about the economy, world events, and statistical information. He had very strong opinions with a writing style that takes you along for the ride - whether you agree with his position or not. (He would have been a fabulous blogger or podcaster.)

It's a treasure to find marriage, birth, and death certificates. It's a delight to identify the people and the settings in our photos. But stumbling across articles written by my great-grandfather was beyond my wildest imagination. (and I do have a rather wild imagination).

Rather than including excerpts from his articles, I have simply added them to the link in bio. I have a nephew who is an investigative reporter for NPR. I thought he, my sisters, and my kids would enjoy seeing the articles, reading the words crafted by their great-great-grandpa, and "hearing" his voice for themselves. ❤️

#telltheirstories #lifestories #savefamilyphotos #memorykeeper #familiesareforever #familyhistory #familystories #familyhistoryresearch #oldphoto #familysearch #ancestors #vintage #vintagephoto #artofrecollection #genealogyphotoaday #myheritage #research #genealogyresearch #genealogyphoto #heritage #familytree #ancestry #memorykeeping #familyalbum #photomemories

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