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From: <>
Subject: Re: [APG] Photographs
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:31:59 -0500
References: <3AA88348-A606-4247-A5C9-305A271058EC@copestoneresources.com><COL117-DS10F27C2AD86E93C8A89C9AC070@phx.gbl>
In-Reply-To: <COL117-DS10F27C2AD86E93C8A89C9AC070@phx.gbl>


When one of my father's cousins lost both his mother and a brother the same
year, he came to the family reunion with a box of photos that were
duplicates of those he already had. He invited all of us to take the ones
that had meaning for us. Amazingly, no one was greedy but nearly all of us
found two or three photos. It has become a family custom and, now many of us
bring digital cameras so we can photograph photos the owner wants to keep
but also wants to share.

This year I shared CDs of letters written to my dad by his parents and
siblings in 1937 when he was turning 20 and on a harvest crew in a
neighboring state. Only one of the letter writers is still living. The
letters are a wonderful glimpse into the life of a depression-era family,
into family relationships that repeat generation after generation--siblings
teasing one another, brothers commenting on the pretty girl someone brought
to the party and mothers worrying when the postman didn't bring a letter.

So, while I'm a fan of scanning as well as keeping originals whenever
possible, I also advocate sharing with family members who may not be
genealogists--yet.

Barbara Brixey Wylie
APG Member

-----Original Message-----
From: [mailto:] On Behalf
Of Melissa Barker
Sent: Tuesday, August 11, 2009 4:55 PM
To: Barbara Ball;
Subject: Re: [APG] Photographs

Barbara,

I am sure you will get several replies to your question. First, let me say
how envious I am of you!!! Due to numerous house fires and other disasters,

my family as well as my husband's family have very few photo's dating back
80-100 years.

I would definitely not throw anything away!! But then again, I keep
everything family related and have made room for it.

I agree with what others have said so far. Do not rely so heavily on the
digital formats as they can be lost as well.

I would suggest scanning them as you have indicated and then if you truly
just don't want them, why not donate them to a county archives from where
the family was from? Or to a state archives where the family was from? Or
advertise them on family message boards, etc. and see if anyone would like
to have them for the cost of postage.

Please, I beg you, don't through them away. There is so much of our
history, ancestors history being destroyed every day.


Sincerely,
Melissa Barker
Genealogist for Tennessee and Kentucky
My Website: www.freewebs.com/genealogyservices/

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Barbara Ball" <>
Sent: Tuesday, August 11, 2009 3:44 PM
To: <>
Subject: [APG] Photographs

> Hello Experts,
>
> I am beginning the task of scanning all my thousands of old family
> photos. I have a great new scanner, am pretty conversant with image
> manipulation, and so forth. My problem is that hesitate quite a bit
> when it comes to disposing of these (sometimes) 80 - 100 year old
> photos. But to continue to store them defeats part of my purpose in
> scanning them, that is to recover some space. Are there some
> guidelines I could follow telling me what to do with these old
> prints? Thank you!
>
> Barbara
> ----------------------
> Barbara J. Ball, MS, GISP
> GIS Analyst
>
> "From nowhere we came, into nowhere we go... What is life? It is the
> little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the
> sunset." - Chief Crowfoot
>
>
>
>
>
>
> .
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
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>





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