Hospitality, Friendship, Encouragement

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Old Family Photos



Family photos are so interesting aren't they?  I just saw these yesterday, my dad got them from his sister when he was visiting her in Hawaii.

This is my great grandmother Minnie Hannah Chandler Alston in San Diego.



Here she is years later already a grandmother.

 She married Walter Alston, my great grandfather, who was a postmaster, and a chiropractor in San Diego.  

This is my dad's mother, my grandmother Catherine.  This is her senior photo.  


 I didn't know her very well, she died when I was a young girl, and I never met my Dad's father, William Monroe McElrath.  He was a WWII Marine Corp vet who saw action in all the major battles in the Pacific.  He won a Silver Star we believe for the battle on Iwo Jima.  He drank too much, and they divorced when my dad was a young boy.  They didn't see their dad again until they were adults.

Here's a photo of them in happier times.  Catherine with baby Bill, Robert (my dad), sister Nancy, and William. (Bill)

This photo was taken in 1937 of my great great grandma Chandler (Minnie's mom), great grandma Minnie, grandmother Catherine, and my aunt Nancy.

My dad and his siblings - Bob, Bill, and Nancy.

There are more photos to share - including one of my great grandma Minnie and her friend in 'harem' pants like Sybil Crawley wore to dinner in Downton Abbey.  That was fun for me to see!

Do you have photos of your grandparents, great grands from years ago?  Did you grow up with lots of family around and cousins to play with?

6 comments:

  1. Love family photos! Both your grandmothers were such lovely women. And, oh my, how adorable was your father when he was a little boy.

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  2. I can spend hours with a magnifying glass examining old photos and training to discern every single detail! I have a lot of old ones from my family and then Louis Dean has a lot from his! Your Grandmother Catherine looks just like she could have been in the cast of Downton Abbey!

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  3. Yes, we have photos. No, I didn't grow up near relatives. As a young adult, I DID have the privilege of living near great aunts and uncles as well as my paternal grandparents. What a joy those years were!

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  4. We had relatives nearby when I was a small child but we saw our cousins at least once a year or more so have strong ties. Our family all were family strong and stayed connected. I seem to be the archivist for both sides of my family so have many photos. I enjoy scanning them and then enlarging them on the computer to see many details that would otherwise not be noticed. Makes me feel like a detective! Your old photos are neat--especially the two tinted ones. They would be fun to do something with.

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  5. There are many old photos in our family. My aunt is the custodian of the majority of them. A few weeks ago, my mom, Bekah, and I visited with my aunt and we looked through several boxes of old photos and had the best time! My mom also has made a scrapbook of family history photos.

    Your "new" old photos are certainly treasures! I believe I see family resemblance there too! Looking forward to seeing the "Lady Sybil" pants! :)

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  6. You very much resemble your grandmother Catherine!

    I was blessed to grow up surrounded by my father's family. I have 11 first cousins on that side and we are all still very close, even though we scattered to the four winds as we got older. We get together once a year at the beach in Southern California (where we were all born). My mother's family was in Iowa but we kept in touch via letters and visits. Family is so important!

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