Week #20 Textile

The past few years I've been super lucky to find some quilts that my Great Grandmother, Great great aunt, and even Great Great Grandmother had a part of making. 3 of which my mom and I stumbled upon unexpectedly!! 

This first quilt we found while visiting the church my Great Grandmother attended. They had recently remodeled the church and during memorial weekend they opened it up for people to see inside. When we got inside we found baptismal records for several of my great aunts and uncles and then on display in the front of the church was this beautiful red and white quilt. When looking at the names we came across my Great Grandma Blanche Walter and Great Great Aunt Amy Miner. We were thrilled. 

Then just last year we were visiting the county historical society where my Great Grandma lived and we found 2 more quilts that she and my aunt and their church helped make! 

This next quilt below was gifted to my Aunt when she graduated nursing school. My family knew about the quilt but didn't know where it ended up. When my Aunt passed and we were going through her things I went to throw away an old pillow and luckily my cousin checked it and turns out the quilt was folded up and stored in the pillow case! Thank God for my cousin who checked or I would have hated myself forever! Turns out this quilt was pieced by my 2x great grandma Louisa Walter and then finished and quilted by my Great Grandma Blanche Walter. It's such a pretty tulip pattern. 

This last quilt is one that I made a few years ago. I made 2 of them, one for my aunt and one for my mom. It is a photo collage of my immediate family. They were surprise Christmas gifts for them. If you're wanting to make something like this I used Spoonflower to create the center panel. It's a unique way to display family photos! 

2022 Week #19 Food and Drink

Food is such a powerful thing and it's one thing that can keep us connected to loved ones who've passed on. I come from a long line of good cooks on both sides of my family and have to say when we get together we definitely eat well. There are a few dishes/foods that stand out that when eaten bring on the nostalgia and a few great cooks I want to highlight. 

On my moms side the most famous dish would have to be chicken and noodles, and I'm not referring to the soup. Chicken and noodles consists of homemade noodles cooked in broth and thickened and then served over mashed potatoes. If I ever had to pick a last meal this would be it along with my mom's hot rolls! When we would go visit my grandma Carolyn we would arrive Saturday around lunchtime and as soon as we got in her house the smell of chicken and noodles greeted us. She knew they were our favorite. Even though my grandma has passed my mom still makes them and we have them at family reunions. 

My all time favorite meal in the world. 

I made noodles using my grandmas recipe one year. 

Another one of my grandmas specialties was her gooseberry pie. She would take it to church functions and it was always a hit. She grew gooseberries in her yard so she always had a good supply. One of my least favorite things to do is stem gooseberries. I was lucky enough to obtain the recipe she used and have made it several times. A few years ago I entered it in my grandmas hometown festival where I got a blue ribbon. It was so special to be able to enter in an even that my family has been competing in for generations. I'm not necessarily a gooseberry fan but I love making them. 

My blue ribbon Pie from the Moravia Fall Festival in 2016

In that same family group the Walter's, each year for our family reunion the theme has been watermelon. My great grandpa was know for growing watermelons. I've tried my hand at it but never had quite the luck. My Cousin on the other hand has won awards with hers! 

My Great Grandpa (Far right) and great aunts and uncle and cousins.

My cousins blue ribbon watermelon. 

On my mom's dads side my great aunt Cleo was known for making good pies. After she passed away my mom snagged some of her pie plates to have since I too LOVE making pies. I also came across this photo of her in front of several pies. It's one I definitely treasure.  

One last thing I wanted to talk about that I feel only Genealogists would appreciate. In April of 2020 everyone was in the thick of Covid and everything was shut down. My mom, Aunt, and I were going to go visit a few cemeteries and we knew we couldn't go out to eat anywhere. So we packed a picnic and ate in one of the most beautiful little cemeteries. It's off the beaten path and has trees all around and a beautiful view. It made the prettiest spot for a picnic. After that I was talking to some other family members and they talked about how they would do that when they would go put flowers out for memorial day or when they were visiting graves. 

Under the tree in the top left corner is where my 4x great grandmother is buried. 

 

Week #18 Social

Today it seems that it's harder and harder to get groups together, especially family and extended family groups. People seem to be busier than ever and kids are involved in 100 different activities. Yes we may be connected on social media and know what's going on in each others lives, but it's rare that we ever get together. Sometimes the only time I see my extended family is at a funeral. 

One of the biggest things I envy about my ancestors is their ability to always gather together as a family. I've found newspaper articles & photos and heard stories from my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles about gathering with their families for Sunday dinners, birthdays, holidays, family reunions, and just for fun. Family was a priority and they always made time to gather together. 

One of my favorite photos that  I have is the one below. It's of my grandpa Sylvan's brother and cousins showing off their ice cream makers at a 4th of July party at my Great Grandparents House! The original I have is black and white but I colorized it and it turned out awesome!

L-R: Dallas Faber, Don Lockman, Eddie Pollard, Max Lockman, Troy Lockman, Clell VanDorin

I've always enjoyed the photo but recently I was on Ancestry and turns out I had saved a newspaper clipping that I believe goes along with the photo!! It describes them gathering at my Great Grandparents house making 11 gallons of ice cream!! This was an awesome find as it helps describe what is happening in a photo.  

I love how newspapers use to include articles like this about family gatherings, reunions, who was visiting who from out of town and so much more. You can truly find some gold scanning through old newspapers. 

I believe that through these social gatherings of families that is how the stories of our ancestors were passed down and can continue to be passed down. Each person has a different perception and first hand knowledge of certain relatives and it's a great way to keep their memories alive when they are passed on. I'm hopping that future generations realize the value of gathering with extended family. I know I will do my best to pass on what I know to younger generations.