One day in 1940

[Alan Gage]

The day started out innocent enough.



Pose for some pictures.



Pick some flowers.



And then things start to get out of hand.



Before you know it the birdbath is broken



and your white dress is torn and dirty.



Those are pictures of my grandma in her late teens/early 20's. Now that she and my grandfather are both gone my dad started sorting through pictures. The task fell on me to scan them and start a Flickr account so we can share them with the rest of the family. It was a lot of work but it's pretty much done now. A little sorting and organizing left to do on Flickr but the hard part is done.

In case you want to take a peek you can look here.

Alan

[jake]

Hilarious series above. Nice to see someone being themselves and not stiff and starched for the camera. Too bad about the bird bath, but I am betting it was fun while it lasted.

Nice project too. Keep doing it. I wonder if spreading the word around to friends and such in town might get you a few more i.d.s for your shots. Might not be many people who remember back then, but you might fill in a few blanks. Also might be cool to reshoot some of the scenes to compare to the present day if possible.

[Alan Gage]

It's interesting to look at the pictures and try to get an idea of how people were.

My grandfathers side of the family were farmers. His father had two wives die on him before marrying for the final time to the woman who was my granfather's mother. Rarely is there a smile in any of their pictures. They're either working or they look like they're thinking they should be working. Nearly all their pictures were taken at their farm.

This is how I knew my grandpa. A nice, honest, and intelligent man, but hard working and didn't suffer fools. He got stuff done.



My grandmothers family on the other hand always seemed to be smiling with pictures taken in many different locations. Her father was as banker(?) - I forget at the moment - He played Santa Claus in their small town for decades and seemed to have a cigar in his hand more often than not. Lots of pictures of them having fun.

This is how I knew my grandmother. Extremely nice, and excellent hostess, sharp as a tack, and always up for a joke or game.



Alan

[Alan Gage]

Also might be cool to reshoot some of the scenes to compare to the present day if possible.

That should be fairly easy, the nice thing about rural communities. The town of Lester, where my grandfather grew up and raised his family, has about 250 people in it. The old family farm is still in the family, as is the old family house in town. We know well the people who bought his old trucking company as well as the grain business he started which made him most of his money. I was surprised to find out from my dad that some of the trailers that he built back in the 40's are still being used around town today.

Alan

[radiophoto]

Alan, these are great pictures. I love the old ones where people aren't smiling - for some reason they didn't think they should, I guess.
 
My maternal grandfather once showed me a big album of family pics from his childhood. His dad used to take them on long road trips from Illinois to Maryland to see another branch of the family. These pics showed not only the modified Ford touring car (it had wooden boxes strapped to the running boards for storage, and a special canvas tent that could be attached to the side of the car -- this way people could sleep in the car and have privacy), but also pics of the old highways they traveled.
 
I remember specifically a particular crossroads with no signs, only painted posts. Seasoned travelers recognized the patterns painted on the posts and in that way stayed on the right highway. Fascinating!
 
That was when I was in high school, the time he showed me the album. I don't know who has it now, but I wish it was me. Hey! I do have some old pics that I'll scan and post in another thread, I just remembered.
 
Anyway, thanks for sharing these pics, Alan -- love the first set with the two girls having fun. Must have been a good snapshooter, to get them with what was probably a box camera.
 
Pete

[Dennis Gallus]

Alan,

This is really inspirational work.  I like your whole Flicker collection of images.  It seems to be true in most families that sooner or later, someone asks "where did we come from?".  In a lot of families, like mine, it's too late to answer the question, the ones with the detailed answers are already gone.  Your family will have an image-rich heritage to pass along.

Dennis

[Alan Gage]

It's been a race against the weather, knowing that once the ice, snow, and cold are done I will be too. Thought I was done scanning and then then my dad dropped off a few more boxes this weekend, UGH! Supposed to be over 60 today so they can wait a few days.

Thanks for the comments.

Alan