Archive for family history

Luminarias at the Cemetery

I would love to know who took this photo of the luminarias at Mt. Calvary, the cemetery next door to Sunset Memorial.

(This story originally appeared in a Facebook Note on December 24, 2012.)

Luminarias are a New Mexican Christmas Eve tradition with religious origins. (Scroll down to learn more.)

They are also one of my favorite family holiday traditions.

But… in the cemetery? Let me explain.

(more…)

What’s a photo without the story?

UPDATE #1: Mystery solved! (scroll down)

UPDATE #2: I was so taken by my grandmother’s “bathing beauty” photograph that I used it on the cover of my 2021 book — What’s a Photo Without the Story? How to Create Your Family Legacy (click to learn more). The book is not about my family, per se, but I do use my own photos and stories as examples of what you can do, too. This is the longest story in the book. Most are one image plus a paragraph or two.

Who is this saucy young woman? Don’t know? Don’t care?

She looks like fun, though, doesn’t she?

What if you found this photo in a bin at Goodwill? For sale on eBay?

Would you buy it? Would you feel vaguely sad that somebody got rid of it, and move on?

What if you found her in your parents’ stuff and didn’t know who she was?

Would you keep, or toss? Would you try to find the story behind the photo?

(more…)

Mom’s Boxes Part 8: The Gangster Hideout

The “farmhouse” after being painted white, pillars added, and lower windows remodeled into new front doors.

READERS: This is the sort of story I intend to write more of over the next few years to share with my family. It’s also the sort of story I encourage you to write about your own family! It doesn’t have to be fancy, with links to articles and such. Just capture the memories for future generations.

(more…)

Climbing your never-ending family tree

7 Generation Pedigree Chart with sample projects indicated.

Your family tree is never really finished! It is forever growing on both ends. New descendants of your ancestors are continually being born (even if not to you, personally), and no matter how many branches and leaves you’ve added in the past, there are always more for you to discover.

(more…)

Thornton Family History Lost & Found

My grandpa, dad, and brother

My grandpa, dad, and brother.

Have you ever lost part of your family history and found it again? Do you still have unsolved mysteries that intrigue you?

In Puzzling Out Your Family History I talked about the joys and challenges of doing one’s own genealogy research. In The Gift of an Organized Family Tree I describe one of the several types of projects I can do for you. My Family History Research Services web page includes Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), the first of which is, “What the heck does genealogy have to do with organizing?” In Gifts I Got from Mom, I shared more of my story. And in the Mom’s Boxes series, I share more of hers.

And here’s how it all began…..

(more…)