Family Archives

John's father's sister died last year and a cousin has just sent him a box of family letters and pictures from Aunt Nancy's house.  It's a treasure trove --  letters from John's grandmother, father, and mother . . .

Postcards and memorabilia from a year John's grandmother and her children lived in Europe . . .

The story goes that the decision was made that they could live more cheaply over there -- the grandfather stayed in the states and worked while Olive and her children were abroad.

Lots of postcards which I'll undoubtedly be sharing in days to come . . .

There was a picture of Olive's mother -- Kathryn Florence Rakestraw. (I was absurdly delighted at the Rakestraw, having loved the name ever since first seeing a grammar school production of HMS Pinafore in which my brother played Ralph Rakestraw.)

And there was this cheery group -- the photo was taken in London -- Islington.  I believe that Olive's husband's family was from England but shall have to investigate further.

I spent the afternoon reading the letters and putting them into chronological order as best I could and came away with a real feeling of knowing John's family much better -- what his grandmother thought of her daughter-in-law, a hint of an unhappy romance in the aunt's past, my father-in-law's description of his children . . .  this is wonderful stuff!

We'll be sharing all this bounty with John's brother and sister, of course. And I'll be sharing more right here. Stay tuned!