Back soon! (Just kidding -- I'm actually snorkeling.)
In the Name of …
Week 10: #52 Ancestors – Worship By Eilene Lyon There’s no question that my ancestry is steeped in Christian culture. Though there is some hint of Ashkenazi Jewish DNA from the wayback, my heritage is very much white Protestant European. For myself, I choose “none of the above” with regard to deities. I confess that... Continue Reading →
From the Vault: Fishing
By Eilene Lyon The “From the Vault” series features an artifact or family photo from my collection to illustrate a tale from my distant past. Bluegill The photo I posted recently of Ward Cutting with his trout catch made me think of other fishing tales. My father isn’t much the outdoorsy kind of guy. My... Continue Reading →
Mabel and Her Mom
Week 9: #52 Ancestors – Females By Eilene Lyon I’ve written briefly about my great-grandmother, Mabel Pearl (Cutting) Halse, in relation to her husband and children. It’s a case of having a lot of photographs, but not really knowing her. Unlike her mother-in-law, Lucy Halse, Mabel didn’t get her name in the papers or history... Continue Reading →
Where He Landed
Week 7: #52 Ancestors – Landed By Eilene Lyon Great-granduncle Ward Arthur Cutting sure landed quite a few trout in this feature image. The only information on the label is his name. My guess is it was taken in Oregon about 1940. Ward must have been a sporting kind of guy, as I also have... Continue Reading →
South Dakota Scenes
Week 6: #52 Ancestors – Maps By Eilene Lyon Back in the late 1870s and early 1880s, promoters encouraged people to move to Dakota Territory. Naturally, land speculators played up the rich farmland and other selling points, not necessarily squaring with reality. My father was born in South Dakota, though he grew up in Oregon.... Continue Reading →
Heidi’s Home
By Eilene Lyon While my Colorado Rocky Mountain home is fabulous, something about the Old World charm of the Swiss Alps has always called to me. We took this dream vacation in 2014. We flew into Zurich, visited Luzern, Lausanne, and Bern, but we spent the bulk of our trip in Lauterbrunnen. You will see... Continue Reading →
Parentless
Week 5: #52 Ancestors – Branching Out By Eilene Lyon The genealogical aspect of family history involves sprouting branches on the family tree by adding another generation of ancestors. My tree has robust limbs, at least back to 4th great-grandparents on nearly every line, and much further than that on most. The Putterer’s tree appears... Continue Reading →
The Wanderer
Week 4: #52 Ancestors – Curious By Eilene Lyon The Putterer’s maternal great-grandparents, Arthur Lewis Gee and Mary Frances Stephens, have intrigued me since I came across their (separate) photographs. I knew that Arthur farmed in his early life, but wondered why he roamed around so much between 1900 and 1920. In looking closer, I... Continue Reading →