A different kind of treasure hunt....

[BigWaveDave]

My wife and I hit the road today, just to get out of the house, and see what kind of fun we could get ourselves into....

One of our tangents brought us to an antique store, looking for nothing in particular. We found an old box, hadn't been gone through in 50 years...packed with thousands of old photographs, family archives, postcards... All from one family, and the marriages that brought the families together....

The earliest photos are from late 1880's... and the heaviest concentration of detailed history is from about 1910 to about 1925... there is a few tidbits about WW2 service, and Christmas greetings from friends and family up into the early 60's... and that's it.

A total drop-off from there, like the family "ended" at that point... We know this isn't the case, family has to remain somewhere, and we would really like to reconnect these photos to their heirs.

I would like some advice as to how to connect with the lost family, as Ancestry.com seems to be the logical place to start, but there has got to be an easier way.

My wife is under the impression that we will find an old guy, who will yell at us and say "I sold that box of crap to an antique shop last year, and I still don't want it!"

 

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[Peyton Manning]

did any pics look like me?

 

[bigfoot1]

or me ?

 

[SusanMN]

If you have any names with the photos then Ancestry is the easiest way to track down relatives. Unfortunately, it does cost to join and look up info, I think about $20 or $30 per month if I recall. But then it is just a matter of entering a name, finding your person and connecting to related individuals.

 

[BigWaveDave]

I am on the cusp of doing that, in the mean time, we have built quite a family tree, with pics.... we are pretty close in being able to communicate with a grand daughter.

Also...very cool...the lot has several pics, like 10 of them, of houses, with addresses. As you know, a google search shows what the houses look like now, and I so want to send those pics to the current residents. What a thrill that would be, to get a random pic of your house from 75 years ago!

 

[SusanMN]

I am sure the family members are going to be so thrilled to get this treasure back.

 

[Peyton Manning]

I am on the cusp of doing that, in the mean time, we have built quite a family tree, with pics.... we are pretty close in being able to communicate with a grand daughter.

Also...very cool...the lot has several pics, like 10 of them, of houses, with addresses. As you know, a google search shows what the houses look like now, and I so want to send those pics to the current residents. What a thrill that would be, to get a random pic of your house from 75 years ago!

Dear Davo,
you are so sweet, you certain you are not female?
( ok in reality you are ok)

 

[BigWaveDave]

So then my wife digs a little deeper into the relatives of the family...finds a grandson, who.....wait for it....



in 1991, in South Dakota, he was sent to prison for life...convicted of kidnapping, along with other hard core crimes....

 

[DeepseekerADS]

in 1991, in South Dakota, he was sent to prison for life...convicted of kidnapping, along with other hard core crimes....

Yeah, you really want to connect with him!

 

[RustyGold]

or me ?

View attachment 1210341

They're so cute when they're young! Oh and the girl is too!

 

[BigWaveDave]

Ok...things are going well....

In 1946, a family, not seemingly associated with the family we are researching, began sending Christmas cards to their friends.
It was common to send pics of the kids, along with a note updating the previous few months. Well, that family has been successfully contacted. This old Betty in Texas is locked in on Ancestry, and is excited to get pics of her Uncles, when they were children. We don't quite know the connection between the families. My theory is that they were neighbors at one point, and got separated.

The pics/cards are a solid run from 1946, all to 1960...pretty cool

 

[BigWaveDave]

Great news! We found the direct connection to the Sievwright family, along with gratitude from the family historian, who now lives in Idaho!!! My wife was on the phone with her for like an hour, and was able to get some insight as to how this trove of pictures could have ended up in an antique shop. We got everything as organized as possible, and will be spending a fortune in postage!!! HA! its ok cuz we had a good time with this adventure.

There will be family reunions in the months and years ahead, that this collection will truly be treasured.