Photos
Teasing the Clues Out of An Old Photo
Larry Calhoun thinks this is a gathering of either the Benfield or the Calhoun family in western North Carolina. Last week, I discussed how Annie Oakley influenced frontier dress for women. This week, let's study the other clues in the same image and see if they help Larry figure out...
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Annie Oakley and Your Old Photos
What does Annie Oakley have to do with your family photos? More than you think. Larry Calhoun sent a group portrait he thinks was taken in western North Carolina. It could be members of the Calhoun or Benfield family. I took one look and said, "Whoa, that woman...
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Mourners in Old Graveside Photo
This old graveside picture is proof that family photographs are inherited differently in every family. Sometimes the pictures go to the oldest, sometimes the youngest, and sometimes they get scattered among descendants. The same can be true for genealogical information. Huge online genealogy databases like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org...
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Graveside Clues in an Old Photo
Our family photo collections are full of pictures of happy occasions, such as weddings, parties and kids having fun. But sometimes the camera was used to document a sorrowful family history moment. Pam Fisher owns this graveside group portrait from the Shepardson family. She thinks it was taken in southern...
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Crowdsourcing an Identity in an Old Vacation Picture
Alex Jenner of Ipswich, Suffolk, England, bought this photo at a "boot sale." He's fascinated by it and he'd like our help figuring out who posed. Crowdsourcing is a way of spreading information on the internet and trying to find answers through the viral qualities of the web. It...
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What Does It Take to Solve a Mystery?
Bet you're thinking this is a good question. Solving an old photo mystery relies on different things. It all depends on the picture but there are certain family facts that help. Denise Valentine submitted this 20th-century picture. She's unsure who's in the picture but she has some ideas. I...
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6 Vintage Photos of Fantastic Facial Hair Premium
Leave the clippers on the shelf. For No-Shave November, we take a look back at some of our ancestor's best facial hair.
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Foolin’ with the Past in Old Photos
At historical sites around the country, it's not unusual to see men and women dressed in fashions of the past. The same is true for parades and town anniversary celebrations. If you have a photo of a relative in historical garb, it can make you do a...
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Proud Mamas in Old Photos: Finding the Clues
What's the first thing you see when you look at this picture? My eye immediately gravitates to the woman and her slight smile. She's one proud Mama seated with her two children and her husband. Your eye might be drawn to the wicker chairs...
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Facebook and Family Photographs
I'm always looking for more family photos, trying to fill in the pictorial blanks in my family tree. There are a LOT of people in my genealogy that fall into that "blank" category. Searching for "new" family pictures means asking distant relatives and trolling the internet. There'ss one very popular...
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