Monday, March 31, 2014

Monday Memories (March 31, 2014) -- A Youth Soccer Championship



In 1997 our older son was thirteen years old and soccer was his sport of choice after having left baseball behind. Both he and his younger brother were enthusiastic soccer players and they attended week-long soccer camps at Northwood School in Lake Placid during the summers for fun and to improve their skills. 

As the above photograph shows, our older son's team "Big Red" won the LYSA (Loudoun Youth Soccer Association) All-Star Soccer Tournament in 1997. He is pictured (fourth boy from the right in the back row) with his teammates and coaches. It was a thrilling tournament and a well-earned victory.  

The Championship trophy (1997)

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photographs in the personal collection of the author.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _     

Saturday, March 29, 2014

Saturday Serendipity (March 29, 2014)




Saturdays often allow a more leisurely approach to life than work days. I can more easily post links to some blog posts or other materials I have discovered during the week, or even to those discovered during a Saturday morning coffee and extended surfing of the blogosphere/internet. 

Here are a few recommendations for inclusion on your reading list this week .  .  .  

1.  Do you have ancestors or relatives who worked in the wartime factories of Detroit churning out tanks and other armaments for the "Arsenal of Democracy" that was America in the early 1940s?  If so, you should check out The Vault for photos from and information about a book featuring images of Detroit war factories. The images are a stark reminder that those who stayed home to work in these factories to produce the tools of war contributed just as much to the war effort as those who actually took up arms.
     
2.  I struggled for a while to come up with some hook to relate this read to genealogy . . .  and then gave up.  This is just an interesting (and humorous) post on Wait But Why about the world's combined net worth and how to try to conceptualize it.  Check it out if the subject intrigues you as it did me.  

3.  Anyone with Rhode Island roots needs to visit Diane Boumenot's latest post at One Rhode Island Family.  Diane walks us through what can be discovered in the 21 volumes of  "The Early Records of the Town of Providence."

4.  "Knowing where we come from is integral to knowing who we are." We genealogists know this perhaps better than most, but it is always good to see stories and resources that confirm the wisdom of this statement.  The Weekly Genealogist  by NEHGS provided a link to a nice story about a professor who discovered the correct story of her background and created a project and website for others to use for recording their family stories and photos about traveling back to the land of their ancestors.  See the story here and the website here.   

5.  A very popular blogging prompt provided by GeneaBloggers is the "Family Recipe Friday" prompt.  One of the most popular posts here at The Prism turns out to have been a recipe post. Well, we probably all have those recipe cards from ancestors, relatives and friends that over the years have become part of our family traditions and culture. These bits of family tradition are also family history artifacts, as this article points out. As the digital age continues to mature, these treasures are in danger of disappearing . . . so perhaps you want to consider adding their preservation to your list of genealogy tasks.         

6.  We who love genealogy often find losses to cringe about, but perhaps one of the most disturbing is the all too common vandalism of cemeteries.  Here is a wonderful post about a way to help prevent such behavior AND help children learn about death as an inevitable part of life. Read "Take Your Kids To Cemeteries (Please)" by Emily Kowalski Schroeder at Growing Little Leaves blog.   

7.  America's Stonehenge?? I never heard of this site and I lived in New Hampshire for many years growing up. Curious about an American Stonehenge? If so, then you need to see Barbara Poole's wonderful photo tour of the site here at Life From The Roots blog.      

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Friday, March 28, 2014

Happy Birthday Mom! (March 28, 2014)



Today is my mother's birthday -- still cute after all these years!  [The number of which shall remain unspoken.]




Mom!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photographs in the personal collection of the author.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

Friday Fotos (March 28, 2014) -- Lexington Drive Neighborhood (1970)

On Wednesday of this week I posted a photograph of our family home in Cinnaminson, New Jersey.  We moved into that home in July 1965.  We moved from Concord, NH to Cinnaminson, NJ because my father was transferred by Sears Roebuck from store management to the Eastern Territorial Office of Sears on Roosevelt Boulevard in northeast Philadelphia.  Cinnaminson was just across the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge from northeast Philly and so we moved into a brand new development when we left New Hampshire for New Jersey.  The home pictured in Wednesday's post was the third and last home my parents bought.

Today I post two photographs of the neighborhood of Lexington Drive in Cinnaminson.  They are both taken in about 1970, just a little over five years after we moved into the just-built home at 505 Lexington Drive. I find a few interesting things about these period photographs that I took with my Pentax 35mm camera during my first "photography phase." They are black & white photos because I was developing and printing the film myself.  Color film was more popular and common then, but much more difficult and expensive to process at home.

As a little additional background to these photographs and this neighborhood . . . The homes pictured are all only five or fewer years old.  This "development," as these newly created neighborhoods of homes were commonly known,  was called "Ivywood" and was located on the other side of a main road  (Pomona Rd.) from an older development known as "Ivystone." Both developments sat on sandy soil that was previously devoted to peach orchards.  The top soil (such as there was when the development began) was probably scraped off and sold so it could be marketed to new homeowners who need top soil to grow grass.  Many of the new homeowners in Ivywood did indeed buy top soil soon after moving in!

The neighborhood looking from our home to the far end of the street.

The neighborhood shown in these photos was part of the still growing, post WWII middle-class expansion into suburban areas close to major cities. Established, new, and aspiring middle-class families wanted new homes with some small piece of land in neighborhoods where children could play and move about safely.

When we moved into our home on Lexington Drive in July 1965, our home was one of only three or so on the street that were completed.  In fact, we had to move into a motel for several days when we arrived from NH while some punch list items necessary for an occupancy permit were finalized.  The street eventually (and at the time of these photos) had about 13 or 14 homes on it.  When we moved in the asphalt-paved street ended just before our driveway.  The rest of the road was dirt and gravel through what was still an active construction zone. We had no grass, just some raked dirt and we spent time raking and gathering stones from the yard before we had grass seed placed on it.  [That was after we obtained a bit of missing top soil to give the grass seeds a chance!]

One of the things I noted right away when I selected this photograph, is that almost every home has at least two cars. This is a very distinct difference from just a few years earlier when most middle-class families had a single car for the family.  No doubt this was driven [no pun intended] by the fact that there were no grocery stores or other retail businesses within any reasonable distance of these developments and so families had to drive out for almost everything they needed.  Gasoline also sold for less than 30 cents per gallon at the time and there were constant "gas wars" with give-aways and Green Stamps to lure customers in to "fill 'er up" while getting the windows washed, the oil checked and the tire pressure measured.

The neighborhood backyards taken from our backyard and looking in the same direction as the photo above.

A look at the backyards is also interesting. You can see how the backyards from one street back up to the yards on the next street. It would have provided a huge open greenspace, but everyone (understandably) wanted to define the limits of their hard-earned property and make it their own with a variety of "improvements" -- different style fences, pools (in-ground and above), garden sheds, swing sets, basketball hoops with cement dribbling slabs, etc. The variety of plantings is still too immature to make out, but they were there -- from the ornamental to the edible. This was believed to be middle-class suburban life at its best -- and in many respects it was. Kids populated the neighborhood and roamed not in gangs, but as playmates. The outdoors was the place to be whenever school was not in session and as long as the street lights had not come on -- which commanded most kids home.

Perhaps I need to take a trip and record the changes that have been wrought in this neighborhood over the last five decades.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photographs by the author.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _                

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Immortality (March 27, 2014) -- Sarah Etta (Freeman) Carpenter


"Immortality Lies in Being Remembered by Family and Friends." -- John D. Tew 

Sarah Etta (Freeman) Carpenter [1858 - 1945]


Today is the 156th anniversary of the birth of my great grandmother, Sarah Etta Freeman. Sarah married my great grandfather, Samuel Eber Carpenter, on June 15, 1887 when she was 29 years old. Sarah's first granddaughter (my mother) was born on March 28th, the day after Sarah turned 69.

Sarah Etta Freeman was born on March 27, 1858 in East Douglas, Massachusetts to Mason Freeman (1820 - 1898) and his wife, Martha Amanda Shearman (1830 - 1870). Sarah was the third of five children born to Mason and Martha Freeman: Ellen Frances born 1852; Edward Mason born 1854; Sarah Etta born 1858; Caleb Everett born 1862; and Otis Mason born 1868.  By the time Sarah turned 17 her family had moved to Lincoln, Rhode Island and it was while living there that Sarah met Samuel Eber Carpenter.

Sarah had some hard experiences in her life.  Her mother died when Sarah was only 12 years old. Sam and Sarah had two children -- my maternal grandfather, Everett Shearman Carpenter (1891 - 1962), and his older sister, Ruth Ann Carpenter (1889 - 1920). Ruth Ann died at age 31 just twelve days after giving birth to her only child, Richard Carpenter Knight (the first of Sarah's four grandchildren).

Sarah is especially intriguing to me because she is the first ancestor where I have actual documentation to show that she had an active interest in genealogy. Sarah wrote letters to town clerks and other officials seeking proof of her ancestors' births, deaths, and life experiences -- particularly with regard to military service. She was successful in some respects because she was able to obtain C.A.R. membership for both of her children in 1905. [See the post of July 3, 2013 here on The Prism.]

Today I raise a glass in memory of my great grandmother, Sarah Etta (Freeman) Carpenter!


_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photographs from the personal collection of the author.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Wordless Wednesday (March 26, 2014) -- Our Home In Cinnaminson, New Jersey



_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photograph of 505 Lexington Drive by the author (circa 1971-72). 
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Our First Family Dog, Cindy

Cindy is the center of attention (July 1957)

Last week I posted a photo of our second family dog, Missy.  Today I dug into the archives to try to come up with an equally good photo of our first family dog, Cindy -- but I was unable to do so and therefore reprise a photo posted here at The Prism in November 2013. This photograph from 1957 is apparently not only the earliest photograph of our first family dog, Cindy -- it might be the only one I have.  For as long as Cindy was with us, we must have other photos of her so this will become another project for 2014.

This photograph is obviously in bad shape, but it was taken in July 1957 when we were living in Holyoke, Massachusetts. My sister and I are in the center of the picture. The two older girls are neighbors whose names have been lost in time.

Cindy was a great dog and as gentle as could be.  We got her for Christmas one year and she was still a very young puppy. She was part of a litter from a dog owned by a colleague of my father's at Sears in Holyoke. The owners of Cindy's mother were leaving town on a trip for the holidays and so Cindy was delivered a week or so earlier than we probably should have gotten her. She lived with us her entire life from the time she was weaned if not slightly earlier. Our family was all she ever knew. 

Cindy went almost everywhere with us and hated to be left out of anything. If she had to be left behind for some reason (even if for the shortest period of time), we had a strict rule that when we arrived home the door would be opened so Cindy could come outside to greet us and absolutely before any family member went into the house; otherwise Cindy was so excited to see us that she wiggled all around us with her tail going like a fan . . . and in the process she invariably lost some bladder control so that our feet and shins and the immediate area got "baptized" in excited greetings.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photograph from the collection of the author. 
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Monday, March 24, 2014

Monday Memories (March 24, 2014) -- 28 Years Ago Today!

It was 28 years ago today that our younger son, Christopher, was born . . . and now he is a high school English Literature teacher!  Time has certainly gone by quickly, but not without some great times and wonderful memories!

Christopher taking a leap at a Tiger Cub event.



Christopher and O.C. (Outside Cat) taking a rest 


CHRISTOPHER!!
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photographs by the author.


_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Saturday Serendipity (March 22, 2014)




Saturdays often allow a more leisurely approach to life than work days. I can more easily post links to some blog posts or other materials I have discovered during the week, or even to those discovered during a Saturday morning coffee and extended surfing of the blogosphere/internet. 

Here are a few recommendations for inclusion on your reading list this week .  .  .  

1.  When we try to capture an image of what our ancestors everyday life might have really been like, it would help to have some idea about how mundane chores and cooking were really performed -- and to understand what kind of tools were used. There is now a website that will help us do that and Nancy at My Ancestors and Me blog has brought it to our attention.  You can go directly to the site here.     
     
2.  Children used in advertising are not always cute and adorable.  This post at Wait But Why blog -- appropriately and intriguingly titled "Creepy Kids in Creepy Vintage Ads" -- shows us examples of how  children were used to sell some odd products to our parents, grandparents, and maybe great grandparents. Some might shock you!   

3.  The Vault has a wonderful piece about some of the 175,000 photographs of farmers taken around the country during the Depression years as part of the FSA (Farm Security Administration) project to document conditions on America's farms.  Portraits of thousands of people were taken -- some identified and others not.  Read about efforts to identify people in these photographs and some of the stories of people who were successfully identified years later.  Efforts to identify people in the photographs are ongoing . . .  so if you had family members or ancestors who farmed from 1935 - 1945, you might find some photographs of family members in the FSA collection now housed with the Library of Congress.

4.   So did you ever wonder how the age of an ancestor's house would be determined if there were no documents to prove the age? Do you know what "dendrochronology" is? Learn the answers in an Upfront With NGS post and the links provided in it.

5.  You have been looking for a way to combine your genealogy hobby/obsession with your dream of being a songwriter, right?  Well, Bill West at West in New England blog is going to help you out by providing the perfect opportunity for you to show your stuff -- the "Just Make Up Some Lyrics Challenge."  See the rules at the immediately preceding link.  You have until Tax Day (April 15th) to submit your winning effort.     

6.  When I lived in New Hampshire in the late 50s through the mid-60s, we learned in elementary school about the state flower, the state bird, the state tree, and the state motto (of course) -- but I do not recall learning anything about the New Hampshire "state dog."  Heather Rojo's post, The New Hampshire State Dog, explains why. I found it an interesting read and it actually got me thinking about dogs, pets and their role in family histories.  It led to yesterday's post here at The Prism. Read Heather's post at Nutfield Genealogy blog and find out when NH designated a state dog and what kind of dog it is. Do any of your home states have designated state dogs; if so, which state and what dog?  [HINT: Apparently 11 of the 50 states have designated official state dogs.]   

7.  And finally . . . I have already asked, and Diane Boumenot's about to be even more famous "hubby" is NOT -- repeat, NOT -- taking orders for the piece of woodcraft art he made for Diane. It is also called a "book photography stand." Diane posted all about it (complete with photos) here at One Rhode Island Family blog. WARNING!  Reading Diane's post is sure to give you a bout of envy, so proceed with caution.      

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Friday, March 21, 2014

Friday Fotos (March 20, 2014) -- Our Family Dog "Missy," the Rock & Roll Fan!

"Missy" (circa 1972)

When our family was living in Holyoke, Massachusetts, I was about 5 years old and just starting Kindergarten.  My sister was a year younger.  The older of my two younger brothers was just a baby and my youngest brother was not yet born.  And that was about when we got our first family dog, a collie-mix puppy that we named Cindy.

Cindy was a great dog who was as gentle as could be and got along just fine in a household of four children almost constantly on the move. Cindy was a well traveled dog and lived with us in Holyoke and Chicopee in Massachusetts, Salem Depot and Concord in New Hampshire, and finally in Cinnaminson, New Jersey.  She was almost 14 years old when she died and the family was devastated. 

It was when I was off to college, not too long after Cindy died, that my sister brought home a dog that she felt the family just had to adopt. My father still tells the story of the famous dog plebiscite and how he lost when even his visiting mother-in-law voted against him. Since I was away at college, I had no vote and remained blameless! The new family dog was named Missy by my sister and, sadly, she was only with us a few short years; but the truth is (as my father will admit) he was perhaps the most torn up member of the family when Missy got seriously ill and had to be put down by the vet because of the pain she was in. My father and I drove Missy on her final trip and I saw how upset he was.

Missy is pictured above in her younger days.  She is fully grown here though she still looks like a puppy. The one thing I will always remember about Missy was how she had to struggle through two particular nights each year -- New Year's Eve and the 4th of July.  She hated the sound of fireworks and firecrackers and the minute they started going off she began to tremble and whine softly. We finally stumbled upon an effective treatment when we discovered that she didn't mind rock & roll and could be almost completely calmed down if she could be coaxed to snuggle up behind the floor speakers of a stereo system in the house.  Listening to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, and the Doors got poor Missy through the night!   

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photograph by the author.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Treasure Chest Thursday (March 20, 2014) -- Preserving Ephemeral Treasures



Admittedly, not everything can be saved to document one's life or that of ancestors and descendants. Even the most dedicated Pack Rat would run more than a serious risk of transcending into the realm of hoarders if there was an attempt to save every scrap of paper and item owned over a lifetime. 

There are some items, however, that clearly deserve more than an undignified and quickly forgotten trip to the local landfill. Some items are deservedly ephemeral in their physical existence, yet they warrant some preservation for the memories and stories they can unleash -- and so their images at least should be preserved. This post provides a case in point.

Shortly after graduating from the College of William and Mary, our older son decided to attempt a through-hike of the Appalachian Trail with one of his best friends. They started late in the season and so unlike most through-hikers they began in Maine and went north to south rather than the reverse (in order to be hiking away from the oncoming fall and winter). One of the obstacles and challenges in the Maine section of the AT is the so-called "Hundred Mile Wilderness.


A simple and much appreciated pleasure in long backpacking treks is the ability to shed one's hiking boots at the end of the day and let the feet breathe; but safety also requires making sure the feet are still protected -- especially if the closest place for help and supplies is up to 100 miles away! All prudent backpackers will therefore carry some kind of light-weight "camp shoes" to wear around the campsite when not hiking. Crocs have been particularly popular for this use because they are light, easily slip on and off, and present no worries about getting them wet. They are almost perfect for wearing when a water crossing becomes necessary during a trek.  

Unfortunately for our son, his Crocs proved to be easily removed from his feet during the crossing of a fast-moving river -- and they quickly, irretrievably disappeared downstream once they were dislodged from his feet. His Crocs are now somewhere in Maine on the feet of a downstream bear or in the backpack of a lucky hiker who found them jammed between rocks and who also has size 14 feet.

As they say, safety and necessity are the parents of invention (I just made up that little twist!) and so our intrepid hiker found himself having to fashion something to protect his feet in and around each night's campsite as he and his friend tackled the Hundred Mile Wilderness -- because of course the loss of the Crocs happened early in this section of the AT!

The rest of the story of the AT trek can perhaps be told another time, but suffice it to say the hikers survived the Hundred Mile Wilderness and more of the AT, but hiking boots also became a casualty of the trek -- thus leaving only the Crocs replacements for footwear when the hikers arrived in Boston. Our son's trail-made sandals consisted largely of some thick paper, nylon twine, adhesive tape, and the ultra-useful duct tape that is often carried by backpackers. They are pictured below just as they appeared when surreptitiously rescued recently from an undignified trip to the local landfill. 





There is probably no hope that our son's great great grandchildren are going to possess and treasure as a family heirloom these marvels born of necessity (is there JPWT??), but perhaps these images of their ancestor's  emergency sandals will survive and be the catalyst for recounting the story of his AT trek way back in 2006. These images of the ephemeral objects themselves will preserve at least one of those most precious of family treasures -- the stories that make up the highs and lows of our lives and those of our ancestors.
   
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


Photograph of the Hundred Mile Wilderness caution sign by Bob Walker and used under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:100MilesSign.jpg

Photographs of the trail-made sandals by the author and now in the family collection!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Wordless Wednesday (March 19, 2014)


_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

From the original in the family collection -- the Elementary Certificate awarded to Molly's mother in April 1932. 
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Travel Tuesday (March 18, 2014) -- The Walled City of Lucca, Italy

Aerial view of the walled city of Lucca in Tuscany, Italy.

In 2008, Molly and I visited friends in Stuttgart, Germany and then flew to Milan, Italy.  We rented a small car at the airport in Milan and off we went on a touring circuit that took us into Milan and then on to Florence, Lucca, Pisa, La Spezia, and Cinque Terre before returning to Milan and flying back to Stuttgart for another brief visit on our way back home.

One of the highlights of the trip was the walled city of Lucca, which is famous for having its Renaissance-era walls completely preserved and now transformed from defensive military battlements into a tree-lined promenade for bicyclists and pedestrians. The famous wall encircles the city sitting below and gives the impression of a town in a large bowl. The wall is 4,223 meters in length (13,855 ft.), which is about 2.62 miles. We strolled the entire circumference.  


Entrance into Lucca showing some of the wall to the right.

An entrance into Lucca taken from inside the city.

A section of the sloping, tree-lined wall as seen from inside the walled city. 

A section of the Lucca wall and the grassy perimeter zone immediately outside the wall.

The top of the wall is now a tree-lined promenade surrounding the city. 

Lucca is quite an old city dating back to the Etruscan civilization (circa 700 B.C.) in this part of Italy.  The Romans conquered the area and made Lucca a colony around 180 B.C. Some of the vestiges of Roman architecture and city planning can still be seen in modern Lucca in the way the narrow streets are laid out and in some of the buildings that occupy the site of Roman structures.  Perhaps the most distinctive example is the curved Piazza dell'Anfiteatro that sits on the site of the elliptical Roman amphitheater.

The curved buildings of the Piazza dell'Anfiteatro in Lucca (above and below)


Another distinctive feature of Lucca is the "Case-Torri" or Tower Houses of the city.  These structures are brick homes built as fortified towers by the rich.  The higher the tower home the more it was said to represent a manifestation of the owner's wealth and power. 

Molly and I have developed a rule in our travels to always try to seek out the highest publicly accessible structure in a city (a tower, cathedral, or something similar) to get an aerial view.  In Lucca we climbed the Clock Tower and took the photographs that follow and that show some of the Case-Torri of Lucca.

Lucca as seen from the top of the Clock Tower and showing some of the Case-Torri or Tower Houses.

Close-up of the 125 ft. Torre Guinigi (Guinigi Tower) shown in the upper right quadrant of the photo above.



Lucca is the birthplace of Giacomo Puccini (1858 - 1924), the composer of the operas Madame Butterfly and La Boheme among others.

Lucca is also reputed to have some of the best food in Tuscany -- and our culinary sampling while there would certainly give support to that view.  We had some memorable meals, but one in particular -- the Zuppa di Farro (a barley-like soup) -- was so outstanding we went back the next day to have more for lunch.

The restaurant where we had Zuppa di Farro at dinner and again for lunch the next day.

The canal that runs through Lucca.
 
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

All photographs by the author except the aerial view of Lucca, which was obtained at www.picstopin.com.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Monday, March 17, 2014

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (March 17, 2014)

Rainbow over Dublin (July 2009)

Instead of drinking green beer, feast your eyes on some of the beauty of the Emerald Isle. Photos from our trip to Ireland in July 2009.  All photos by the author.

Éire go Brách!


















UPDATE: And we awoke to THIS today -- just three days before the vernal equinox. The schools are closed and so is the federal government!


_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Saturday Serendipity (March 15, 2014) -- Be Aware of the Ides of March!




Saturdays often allow a more leisurely approach to life than work days. I can more easily post links to some blog posts or other materials I have discovered during the week, or even to those discovered during a Saturday morning coffee and extended surfing of the blogosphere/internet. 

Here are a few recommendations for inclusion on your reading list this week .  .  .  

1.  What were they thinking?  Weren't they looking when they shot that photograph? Is that supposed to be creative and artistic? We probably have all committed a family photograph faux pas at one point or another. The website Awkward Family Photos gives people a place to share these moments and to make the rest of us laugh, cry, and cringe as we pray we never have one of our family shots posted here.  Have a look and enjoy (secretly).    
     
2.  Recently I posted a book recommendation (Posterity by Dorie McCullough Lawson) about the importance of writing letters to our posterity. Just a few days ago I came across a wonderful example of a letter from a grandfather to his 4-year-old grandson.  You really must read this humorous letter of love from a grandfather to his grandson on his 4th birthday.  You can see the handwritten 1945 letter at "This I Leave" blog by Donna Catterick. 

3.  Two items of note from The Vault this week: (1) personal ads looking for marriageable men and women in "The Water-Cure Journal" back in the mid-1800s spotlight 19th century vegetarians looking for potential spouses; and (2)  Mark Twain's recommended reading lists for boys and girls along with a list of his own favorite books.

4.  If you have seen or want to see the film "Twelve Years A Slave," then you should meet the historian who found and preserved the true story on which it is based.  Read here the New Yorker article about Sue Eakin who died in 2009 at age ninety.       

5.  The United States Coast Survey produced a map of the slaveholding states based on the Census of 1860. The maps were later sold to benefit the sick and wounded soldiers of the U.S. Army and it was a favorite map of Abraham Lincoln.  He consulted it repeatedly and the map can even be seen in a famous 1864 painting of the President with his cabinet. You can see the map here

6.  I think genealogists are collectors by nature -- and their descendants, relatives, and others are very often glad they are (even if they used to talk about "Old Uncle Wilbur the Pack Rat"). There are several in the genealogy blogosphere who have shared their collections (Heather Rojo's weathervanes; Jana Last's postcard collection, are just two examples) and who knows how those collections might prove useful to grateful folks in the future. But these and other such collections simply pale by comparison to the truly awesome and amazing collection amassed over thirty-five years by Marion Stokes, a former librarian in the Philadelphia area.  You have to read this article to believe that such a collection exists and that it was assembled by a private citizen. You MUST check  out the nature and extent of Marion's collection here

7.  With St. Patrick's Day only two days away, those with Irish roots might want to devote some time on Monday to perusing the new database from the Irish Genealogical Research Society.  Based on the content of IGRS's annual journal, The Irish Genealogist, going back to 1937, a searchable database containing over 250,000 names related to information in wills, deeds, voter lists, etc. is now available on line here.     

8.  And finally, since today is March 15th -- the Ides of March -- perhaps we might all find it interesting (with apologies to Shakespeare) to not just "beware the Ides of March," but for today to  "be aware of the Ides of March" and discover what the Ides is all about.  March 15th is not simply the day in 44 B.C. that Julius Caesar was assassinated. It was also a day of religious observances on the Roman calendar. Read here what the Ides actually is, how it relates to the Nones and the Kalends, and discover if every month has an Ides on the 15th day of the month.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _