Sunday, January 29, 2017

Mystery Photo- Estey Family- Mason City, Iowa

I forget now, just how I came to rescue this nice little portrait... it comes from a Mason City, Iowa photographer.



On the back side, someone took the time identify the 3 children and list their Father & Grandfather--
"Arthur E. Estey
Sylvia A. Estey
Harold W. Estey
Children of C.L. Estey
Son of Colin J. Estey"



A tiny bit of quick research show that Arthur Estey was born about 1898, Sylvia in 1902 and Harold 1910. They were the children of Clarence Luther "C.L." Estey & Carrie Brown. C.L. Estey was the son of Colin J. Estey & Henrietta Nelson. They families lived in Minnesota & Iowa at various points.

Hopefully someone out there is connected to this family & can claim this nice family portrait from the 1910's 

Thursday, January 26, 2017

TBT- Family of John & Beatrice Sturm

Spotlighting photos from my extensive photo archive
This week it is-

The family of John & Beatrice (Mapson) Sturm

L-R: Arlo, Mava, Beatrice, Ardyce, John

John & Beatrice were my Great-Grandparents, who sadly passed away many many years before I was born. They farmed in Martin County, Minnesota for many years, before moving into Fairmont in the 1940s.

They had 3 children: Mava (my Grandma), Arlo & Ardyce.
I'm not sure when or where this photo was taken, I don't recognize the side of the house-- and estimate it was taken around 1946, based on the appearance of my Grandmother & her siblings. 

Sadly, Beatrice would pass away in 1948, at only 46 years of age. John lived 20 more years, passing away in 1968.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Christmas Presents to Myself!

Even though we're two months beyond Black Friday, The Dead Relative Collector is just getting around to the purchases that were made for the home office!


After years of making do with mediocre printers & scanners, it seemed time to make some larger personal purchases!

Scanning my large photo archive and getting it digitally organized has been a longtime goal, that must be seriously tackled in 2017. And while I hope to limit the amount of printing that happens (too much paper!), I want what is printed to be of high quality.



And while I do have a super handy flip scanner for scanning on the go, it seemed time for a high quality flat bed scanner as well.

With the hustle & bustle of the Holiday Season, I never even got the packages opened up until later... and then a nasty bought of influenza after the New Year, that went on for weeks, delayed the setting up process even further.

Now, home office clutter has been tackled and it's time to get the new gadgets up and running! The Dead Relative Collector is excited for how these may aide in the research process.

Did you get any genealogy related gifts/purchases this last season?

Thursday, January 19, 2017

TBT- Maine Brothers & Sister of Winnebago

Spotlighting photos from my extensive archive
This week it is--
5 Maine siblings of Winnebago


Left to Right:
Ralph Maine [1872-1939] - my great-great grandfather
Spencer Maine [1860-1928]
Selwyn Maine (sitting) [1862-1952]
Olive Maine [1869-1933]
Irving Maine [1958-1928]

Five other siblings are not in this photograph-- 
Spencer & Irving farmed in Winnebago their entire lives. Selwyn & Ralph also lived in Winnebago & later lived in Northern Minnesota. Olive lived with different relatives over the years & also ran boarding houses throughout Minnesota.

They are the children of Erastus Maine [1823-1895] & Eliza Pierce [1838-1880]

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

2017 Genealogical New Year's Resolutions!

Another New Year Upon Us... Hello, 2017!

Another New Year…. My first impulse is to lament what a colossal failure 2016 was, in terms of my genealogical research! I still feel like I’m completely disorganized and wading through mountains of paper. And due to this dilemma, I feel that I’ve not been a very effective researcher—squandering valuable time and energy.

Of course, I know I’m probably just being unrealistically hard on myself. At one time, I was ultra-organized. I knew every single bit of research I’d done and every piece of documentation in my possession. In fact I had large swaths of my genealogy committed to memory. It was great. Fast forward 20 years. Things have changed. Lots of accumulated information, but not always where it needs to be. Brick walls have come tumbling down… but new ones have of course sprouted up. It’s a never ending cycle.

But in reality, if I’m honest, 2016 was a pretty good year for me genealogically speaking. I accomplished quite a few things and while I’m still “disorganized”, I think I’m well on my way to changing that.
Among my “accomplishments” that I can claim for the year
-Organized & launched a successful family reunion over a weekend, for 100 people
- Attended 2 day North Star Genealogy Conference, to further my genealogical education
-Continue to analyze DNA results from myself, father & both maternal grandparents
- A number of new pedigree ancestors & family surnames to research
- And even a few cousin connections

But now to the important part---- 
My 2017 New Year's Resolutions, albeit 3 weeks late...

1. GET ORGANIZED-- so much easier said than done... but I refuse to have this one show up in 2018. I know I can corral my 20+ years of research into something manageable once again!


2. Educate myself on what I don't know that I don't know... or a few things I know I don't, but wish I did! This is an easy one, because I'm already planning to attend a couple of genealogy workshops in person in 2017. There is always something new to educate yourself on when it comes to genealogy!

3. Photo Archive-- while this could fall under a sub-section of 'get organized', I'm giving it it's own resolution! I am lucky enough to have thousands & thousands (yes, really!) of family photos. It's time, once and for all to get them scanned & better organized. And the countless 'unknowns' need to be shared with others for possible identification!

4. Real Kin Connections-- Yes, there are actual living breathing relatives that I rather enjoy, and many of whom have interests in genealogy. It's time share some info & memories over a cup of coffee!

5. Time To Travel-- Yep, The Dead Relative Collector has more than a few road trips to take in 2017! There are records to be searched for, archives to be visited & cemeteries to be tromped through. Now to get planning the whens & wheres! 

And of course, this list could go on and on...and on and on... But I'll digress...  The world of genealogy is ever changing. Every week in fact, there are new resources and information entering our world. If I was lucky enough to be retired or vastly wealthy, I know I would devote many more hours in a week to our craft. Such as it is, neither is the case. And I will plug along, snatching what hours I might here & there... working hard at accomplishing my tasks... staying hopeful...

What's on your genealogical agenda for 2017? Any big goals? Trips or conferences on your schedule? A book to read or a webinar to enjoy? Some longtime brick wall you've finally decided to make a priority and smash down? Whatever these goals might be, Good Luck & Happy Hunting!