Family Artifact Challenge

10 Lessons From One Month of Daily Genealogy Writing

10 Lessons From One Month of Daily Genealogy Writing

In May of 2020 I challenged myself and others to write every day for a month about a family heirloom or artifact. Here are 10 lessons I learned from this genealogy writing experience.

The Future of Your Digital Family Heirlooms and Artifacts? - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 31)

The Future of Your Digital Family Heirlooms and Artifacts? - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 31)

This will be my final contribution to the May, 2020 Family Artifact Challenge! Thank you to everyone who participated, whether a lot or a little, or just followed along.

The Reverend Esper Brothers and Their Club - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 30)

The Reverend Esper Brothers and Their Club - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 30)

In a previous post I wrote about the history of The Leaning Tree Lodge and its importance to my family for several generations. Before it became The Leaning Tree, it was known as “The Esper Club”, named after three Esper brothers, all Catholic priests, two of whom were twins. This is the story of their club.

"Granny" Paints Her Great Granddaughter - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 29)

"Granny" Paints Her Great Granddaughter - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 29)

How old does an item have to be to be considered and artifact or heirloom? I would argue that is painting, done in 2011, already meets the requirement. It is a watercolor of our daughter, painted by her great “granny”, Muriel Joy Gregory Petit (1930-2014).

Charles Henry Schmidt (d. 1899), My 3rd Great Grandfather - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 28)

Charles Henry Schmidt (d. 1899), My 3rd Great Grandfather - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 28)

This is the original newspaper clipping of Charles Henry Schmidt (d. 1899), my 3rd great grandfather’s obituary. It was affixed to sturdy paper and laminated. He lived and died near Houghton Michigan, in the Upper Peninsula. It appears that it was clipped from The Mining Gazette.

The Photo Album of My Great Grandmother, Ida Rhoads Sears (1900-2002) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 27)

The Photo Album of My Great Grandmother, Ida Rhoads Sears (1900-2002) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 27)

This is the gem of my family history archives. It is the photo album of my great grandmother, Ida Rhoads Sears (1900-2002). I wanted you to see the album as it is, every well loved tattered page of it. You can also view the gallery for individual images and notes.

Professor John M. Harrington (1893-1967) of Michigan Technological University - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 26)

Professor John M. Harrington (1893-1967) of Michigan Technological University - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 26)

Professor John M. Harrington (1893-1967) was my first cousin twice removed. As the obituary states, he was a well known professor at the Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan and a former head of the Department of Mathematics there. By some he was described as, “one of the greatest teachers to serve on the Michigan Tech faculty.”

My 3rd Great Grandfather Rhinard Rhoads (1833-1920) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 25)

My 3rd Great Grandfather Rhinard Rhoads (1833-1920) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 25)

My 3rd great grandfather was Rhinard Rhoads (1833-1920) of Dunlo, Cambria County, Pennsylvania. This photo of him was taken in the later years of his life. Rhinard and I share a birthday, 143 years apart. Here are some more photos of him.

Michael John Hanley Jr. (1924-2015), Letters of Recommendation (1944) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 24)

Michael John Hanley Jr. (1924-2015), Letters of Recommendation (1944) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 24)

I always knew my grandfather, Michael John Hanley Jr. (1924-2015), to be an outstanding person. These letters of recommendation from 1944 are evidence that this was a life long quality of his.

The Leaning Tree - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 23)

The Leaning Tree - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 23)

It is impossible to overstate the multigenerational prominence The Leaning Tree Lodge has in the collective memory of my extended family. Affectionately known as “The Cabin”, it sits on the Au Sable River, east of Grayling, Michigan and has been connected to our family since the 1960s.

Flint Flood Photos (1947) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 22)

Flint Flood Photos (1947) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 22)

These are the personal photographs of my great grandfather, Michael John Hanley (1890-1960), of the Flint flooding of 1947. Some of the information in the notes were provided by my great aunt, Michael’s daughter, Beverly Hanley Mansour (1929-2009).

Birth and Death Records of Irene Alexiou Halvatzis (1864-1929) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 21)

Birth and Death Records of Irene Alexiou Halvatzis (1864-1929) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 21)

These are said to be the birth and death certificates of my 2nd great grandmother, Irene Alexiou Halvatyis (1864-1929). I am grateful to Antonis Chaldeos of Trace Your Greek Roots for finding them.

Schmidt Family Land at Elm River Township, Houghton County, Michigan - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 20)

Schmidt Family Land at Elm River Township, Houghton County, Michigan - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 20)

These documents pertain to a parcel of land in Elm River Township, Houghton County, Michigan originally owned by my 3rd great grandmother, Ernestina Zenner Schmidt (died 1922). The process of writing about them has helped me discover some new information and tell my Schmidt family’s story.

The Dresden Rose (Windsor, Ontario, Canada) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 19)

The Dresden Rose (Windsor, Ontario, Canada) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 19)

The Dresden Rose Stitchery Collection was owned and operated by mother-in-law who, you recall, comes from a line of talented needleworkers. Her store was in business from about 1988-2004 in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Sweethearts in Summer - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 18)

Sweethearts in Summer - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 18)

Of the hundreds (thousands?) of family photographs I’ve gone through (multiple times) this one struck me this week because I don’t recall ever seeing it before. It shows my paternal grandparents, Michael John Hanley Jr. (1924-2015) and Betty Grace Hanley Sears (1924-1981).

1951 Jeep Willys Station Wagon - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 17)

1951 Jeep Willys Station Wagon - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 17)

This 1951 Jeep Willys Station Wagon has a unique history in our family. For many years it sat, unused, in the garage of the Leaning Tree Lodge, a family cabin on the Au Sable River in Grayling, Michigan.

My First Family Tree, 1986 - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 16)

My First Family Tree, 1986 - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 16)

Perhaps this is when it all started — November, 1986 in Mrs. Hanby’s 5th grade class at Fairfield West Elementary. A lesson on genealogy led to this family tree, my first, that I have held on to ever since.

Nomnie’s Dress for Muriel - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 15)

Nomnie’s Dress for Muriel - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 15)

This beautiful dress was made for “Granny”, Muriel Joy Gregory Petit (1930-2014), my wife’s maternal grandmother. Elegantly framed, the dress and its story have been lovingly preserved by my mother-in-law. It now hangs in our home.

1930s and 40s Funeral Costs - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 14)

1930s and 40s Funeral Costs - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 14)

How much did a funeral cost in 1930s and 1940s? These documents from my 2nd great grandparents, Henry Peter Ratz (1867-1934) and Fannie Schmidt Ratz (1870-1944), give us an idea.

Funeral Prayer Card for Marianna Grzeskowiak Pawlowski (1879-1941) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 13)

Funeral Prayer Card for Marianna Grzeskowiak Pawlowski (1879-1941) - Family Artifact Challenge (Day 13)

This is the funeral prayer card for my great grandmother, Marianna Grzeskowiak Pawlowski (1879-1941). I don’t have it in my possession, but the image was shared with me by a cousin several years ago.