By Eilene Lyon A Place to Start I shop at antique marts looking for 19th and early-20th century photos. We have only one antique store in Durango, which I’ve thoroughly gleaned, so this usually happens when I travel. I look for images that have a name inscribed somewhere on them, first/last or at least the... Continue Reading →
The Company Player
Found Photo Project #8 By Eilene Lyon This portrait of actor David R. Young was taken in Boston in 1896. He inscribed it to his mother, who lived in Connecticut (as did he). How it wound up in an antique store in southwestern Colorado—in the unincorporated, wide-spot-in-the-road known as Gem Village—shall remain a mystery. David... Continue Reading →
The Pomology Prof
By Eilene Lyon I’ve been renewing my interest in botany lately. You may recall this subject is one of my connections to my great-grandmother, Clara Ransom Davis. I recently received communication from the University of Idaho and learned their herbarium contains 144 valuable specimens that Clara collected in her undergraduate years in the 1890s. (She... Continue Reading →
The Palace Hotel—561 Main
By Eilene Lyon A Brick Edifice Durango was founded in 1881. Many original buildings, particularly those built of wood, no longer exist. This is the third in a series of the oldest buildings standing on Main Avenue, originally called First Street. What is now the 500 block abuts the railroad depot. Being the principal method... Continue Reading →
Bio Bite: Myron Leslie Halse
Myron Leslie Halse (1908–1972) Myron Leslie Halse was the 6th child born to Guy and Mabel (Cutting) Halse. He attended school in Dexter, South Dakota, to 8th grade. At age 21, he married Gladys Belle Brown in Rupert, Idaho. Prior to the marriage, he lived and worked at the Brown family dairy farm. By 1935,... Continue Reading →
The Eckermann Addition
Found Photo Project #7-B By Eilene Lyon Last September I shared this portrait of the Eckermann family on their Idaho ranch. I said that I hadn’t found any other images of the family, but I was incorrect. I purchased two other photos in the same store at the same time. The name Eckermann does not... Continue Reading →
WWI Draft by Design
Black History Month By Eilene Lyon Genealogists and historians rely on many different record sets in their research. Often, we focus on the variable information on a form, items that identify our ancestors and relatives: name, birth date, address, occupation, physical description. It’s also important to learn about the record source itself. The World War... Continue Reading →
Farm Boy to Businessman
In all my years of family history blogging, I see I have somewhat neglected my maternal great-grandfather. This is the story of his life from 1867 to 1917, as told by my grandfather. By Laurence M. Smith, edited by Eilene Lyon Charles Edward Smith was my father, as well as the father of four other... Continue Reading →
Alaska in Cleveland
By Eilene Lyon During my recent visit to Cleveland, Little Brother and I spent a morning at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Unfortunately, they are undergoing a renovation and all the major exhibit halls were closed. In addition to the few exhibits in the open hallways, and a small space upstairs, there was a... Continue Reading →