Week 15: #52 Ancestors – How Do You Spell That? By Eilene Lyon “How do you spell that?” “E-I-L-E-N-E” “That’s I-L-uh…?” Names can be such a pain! It’s no wonder that many immigrants choose to “Americanize” theirs. I doubt that my grandma, Reatha Gusso Halse, realized that her Grandpa Charlie Gusso and his siblings changed... 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 →
The Musician
By Eilene Lyon A Photo Restored and Colorized Recently Val Erde made a wonderful offer to do free digital colorization for eight people who use vintage photographs in their blogs. I quickly volunteered, and was so lucky she selected one of my images. I first posted this photo of the Gusso brothers last July in... Continue Reading →
Norman and Delores
Week 7: #52 Ancestors – Love By Eilene Lyon A long marriage doesn’t necessarily an indicate a deep love and respect, but it’s a good start. I chose this couple, my great-uncle and great-aunt, Norman and Delores Gusso, because not only did they have a long marriage, but they also have a large, close-knit family... Continue Reading →
Tale of Two Adas
Week 37: #52 Ancestors – Closest to Your Birthday By Eilene Lyon In my last post in this series, I told you that my grandparents, Reatha Gusso and Everett Halse, were married on December 31, 1932.1 I squelched into existence on what would have been their 29th wedding anniversary, except that Everett had been gone... Continue Reading →
Extending the Family
By Eilene Lyon The “Greats” Getting to know extended family can be challenging. In my case, geographic separation was a serious obstacle to spending time with even closest kin (grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins). Until recently, it was a rare occasion that I ever met any of the “greats”: great-grandparents, great-uncles, and great-aunts. Nor did... Continue Reading →
Stella Braves The Storm
Week 16: #52 Ancestors – Storms By Eilene Lyon Stella Gusso didn’t ordinarily let the farm dog in the house, but something didn’t feel right. The building clouds were ominous-looking. Stella’s husband and the other men of the family were not home that evening, so Stella brought the begging dog indoors. The noise of the... Continue Reading →