722 miles

This has truly been the summer of family history travel. Last Friday I drove to far eastern Iowa and visited the small town of Preston, where I connected with a second cousin (twice removed) and explored the photos and history of the Gruver family. Upon returning home Friday afternoon I had completed 722 miles of driving for family history this summer - and summer isn't over yet!

It may seem like a lot, but to me the payoff is well worth the gas and wear and tear (I did have two flat tires this month, but ironically neither were directly connected to family history excursions). I always enjoy meeting new relations and forming new friendships. There are people around the state and the nation who once were only connected by a remote strand of DNA who now are regular email correspondents and even Facebook friends!

Friday's visit was valuable for many reasons, Curt, the distant cousin with whom I chatted, was quite interested in the history and eager to share. I was only to glad to reciprocate, and by the end of our three-hour chat I copied 167 files to his computer and left with about 100 new photos of the Gruver clan. Most were of the "younger" Gruvers - the first cousins of my great-grandmother and their descendants. Some, however, provided photos of family members who until now had been only a name on paper. It is always so valuable to finally see a face. It brings the history to life.

While looking through Curt's albums I noticed several photos I have at home. Neither of us know who are in them, but it's evident they belong to the Gruver family, so the quest continues.

Another positive outcome was the identification of several people previously labeled "unknown" in my collection. One photo, which includes three generations of the Gruver family, was positively identified as containing Curt's grandmother, standing directly next to my great-great-grandmother. Before my visit to Preston I had no photos of his grandmother, so there would have been no way to know who she was.

Inspired by these identifications, I sat down last night with an old photo album that came from the Gruver cousin in Washington State. I had scanned those images a year ago when I first received them, but many photos remained in the large "unidentified" category. After careful inspection and armed with new faces and names from recent visits with relatives, it wasn't hard for me to put names to the faces in at least half a dozen photos and narrow down the faces in dozens more.

I feel like I'm getting closer to understanding who these people are - the puzzle is slowly getting solved. Next: to schedule a trip to Elkader to visit anther Gruver cousin and hopefully answer more questions.

I have four new tires and summer is waning. Time to get moving!

A trip to Aunt Nona's

My summer of family history adventures continue! This past weekend I traveled to visit my great-great aunt, Nona, and learn a little more about my late great-grandmother's family. Aunt Nona was the youngest of eight children and the last of her generation. She was my grandmother's aunt and even my grandmother and her sisters are all gone, so she's really one last great link to several generations of family.

Aunts Ferne (left) and Nona (right) with Grandma Leone
at her 80th birthday party in 1990.

There were four sisters in Nona's family. My great-grandma, Grandma Leone, was the oldest and Nona the youngest. Sixteen years separated the two, but the sisters always remained close. Even after Grandma Leone passed away in 1994 we always saw Aunt Nona and Aunt Ferne at family reunions and different gatherings (the other sister, June, had passed away in the 1970s after battling cancer). Ferne passed away in 2006 and it's been several years since we had a family reunion. I knew from second-hand accounts Nona was doing well, but I wanted to visit her myself. She was always so sweet and kind every time I had seen her before. I also wanted to know if she had any family photos (you know how I am with the family photos).

So on Sunday, with laptop, scanner, and mother in tow (it's her great aunt, so I felt I should probably invite her along), I headed two hours northeast to Elgin, Iowa. Nona was waiting for us when we arrived, as she had decided not to go to church that morning. We headed to downtown Elgin, where we ate at the Elgin Cafe, a regular haunt for Nona, who was called "Grandma" by the proprietor and who comes for coffee with other ladies of a certain age several times a week.

After what I can only describe as a sumptuous meal, we made our way back to her house, where she

My great-great grandfather, Will Kerr (left),
looking rather like a dandy with an
unidentified friend (or relative).

had a box ready. On the phone a few weeks ago when I'd arranged this visit she told me "I don't have many old photos". This was a gross miscalculation. I suppose maybe she didn't think there were that many or, since many were her parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, they didn't seem that "old" to her. In reality, her parents are my great-great grandparents, so it was exactly what I was looking for.

Nona's eyesight is waning, the effects of macular degeneration. Still, she was able to look close to see faces and through teamwork we were able to identify many photos. Some photos held special meaning for her, and she told stories as we perused the images.

"This is me as a young girl," she said, holding a small billfold-sized picture of a teenage Nona. "This is the only picture my dad kept in his wallet and it was in there until the day he died."

There were also some hidden surprises. Behind the photo of one cousin was a folded up teaching contract for Nona's sister, June, from 1936. Their mother, Anna, was listed as one of the school district trustees.

"That's probably how she got that job," Nona recalled. "Dad wouldn't talk to mom forever after that. He was so mad she took on working for the district."

Ella Kerr, my great-great-great grandmother.

These are the kind of stories that make family history so engaging. It makes the faces on an old photo more than just a distant relative. It makes them real people with real lives and real experiences.

We spent nearly four hours going through photos, scanning well over one hundred images. After many Nona would say "Oh, you don't want this one, do you?" at which time I would promptly take it from her hand and press it to the glass. I want them al. ALL!

At the end of the day we hugged and said goodbye, promising to visit again soon. I'm determined to make sure we have more time to visit and see each other outside of funerals (a sad reality of life, I'm afraid).

Nona isn't the oldest person in my family, but she is the last of my great-grandparents' generation living. Years ago I spent time getting to know another great-great aunt and still treasure the times we spent together and the stories she told.

If you haven't done so, think about how many generations you can go back in your family and find a living member. Then, give them a call. You never know what you'll learn.

Several generations of the Kerr family, with matriarch Ella Kerr in the center.
My great grandmother is directly behind her holding my grandma, then just a baby.