Using Indirect Evidence to Identify a Photo - Summary

For the last several days, we have been examining this photo for clues and researching to see if we can answer the question, "Is the woman in the photo Mary Ann (Ballenger) Woods?" I believe the answer to be yes. Let's summarize and see if you agree.

The clues provided in the photo:

• The photo was taken in Denver.
• The photographer is G.R. Appel, 1579 Larimer Street, Denver, Colorado.
• On the back of the photo, Frances (Robinson) Lowe wrote "Walt Wood's mother." Frances is the daughter of Nancy Robinson mentioned below.

1. Using the prior series, about Mary Ann Ballenger,  I was able to link Mary Ann to her parents, and 2 siblings, Nancy and John via a census record. And have linked her to Boulder, Colorado (the home of the Ballenger family in the 1860's, 70's and possibly early 1880's). Using the previously discussed newspaper article, which is transcribed below, we can link Mary Ann to Boulder, Colorado and to her sister Nancy. 

Returns After Many Years.

Mrs. Milton Y. Woods, of Telluride, is in the city, accompanied by her three children. They are domiciled at the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Dan Robinson. Mrs. Woods is a sister of Mrs. Robinson, and in her girlhood days was well and favorable known as Miss Mary Ballinger. She comes to spend a short time with her relatives and friends, all of whom receive her cordially. It is about fifteen years since the visitor chose the southern part of the state as her home.

2. In Part 1 of this series, we linked Mary and her husband Milton to their son Walter W. Woods(possibly the person named on the back of the photo)  by using the 1900 and 1910 Census. In 1900, they are living in Telluride which is in the southern part of Colorado (consistent with the newspaper article).

3. We tie Walter Woods to Frances (Robinson) Lowe (former owner of the photograph) in Part 3, by using the 1920 and 1930 census and a get well card and note sent to Frances from Walt and Maude.

4. We can complete the circle by tying Frances (Robinson) Lowe to Nancy (Ballenger) Robinson as her daughter. We haven't discussed it in this article so you will have to take my word for it that I have Family Bible photographs showing Frances' birth in Boulder, her marriage also in Boulder, Frances' death certificate naming Nancy Ballinger as her mother, photos of Nancy that Frances labelled with Nancy's name and identified Nancy as her mother, the 1880 census showing Frances with her parents Dan and Nancy, and much more.

Clues from the photo that are important were discussed in Part 2, and the comments through out this series. The fact that the photo was taken in Denver (or at least the photographer had his studio in Denver) links the woman to the state of Colorado. The puffy sleeves date the photo around the mid 1890s. The photographer was in business at the address listed on the card during the same time frame. Thank you to Brett of Photo Sleuth blog and Sue at Family Folklore blog for your assistance in dating the photo!

What do you think? Is the woman in the photo, identified only as "Walt Wood's mother," Mary Ann (Ballinger) Woods?

Links from this series:
Using Indirect Evidence to Identify a Photo:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Elusive Mary Ann Ballenger
Mary Ann Ballenger Woods Continued

Photo Album Archiving & Digital Sorting - Part 1
Photo Album Archiving & Digital Sorting - Part 2
Photo Album Archiving & Digital Sorting - Part 3
Photo Album Archiving & Digital Sorting - Part 4

Sources:

1900 U.S. census, Montrose County, Colorado. Population schedule, California Precinct 10, sheet 13 B and 14 A, dwelling 229 & family 250, Milton Y. Woods family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 21 February 2010), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623, roll 127.

1910 U.S. census, Montrose County, Colorado. Population schedule, Precinct 106 sheet 6 B, dwelling 139 & family 129, Walter Woods; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 26 November 2011), citing National Archives microfilm publication T624, roll 123.
1920 U.S. Census, Rosebud County, Montana. Population schedule, District 121, sheet 1A, family 11, Walter Woods family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 November 2011), citing National Archives microfilm publication T625, roll 975.

1930 U.S. Census, King County, Washington. Population Schedule, North Bend, sheet 4B, Walter Woods family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 November 2011), citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 2490.

Ballenger & Richards, …Annual Denver City Directory…(Denver: Ballenger & Richards, 1892), p. 114, for “Appel, Gustaf R, photographer.” See also Gustaf’s entries under “Appel” in Denver City Directories for subsequent years with varying subtitles, specifically: ( 1894) 120, (1896) 121, (1899) 123.

“Returns After Many Years,” Boulder Daily Camera (Boulder), 7 December 1893, p. 1; digital images, Colorado Historical Newspapers (http://www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.) : accessed 30 November 2011.

Walt and Maude, letter, 14 June 1949, get well card and note; Lowe Family Papers, Privately held by Michelle Goodrum, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] Mesa, AZ.
Walt Woods mother. Photograph. Original, privately held by Michelle Goodrum, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE]. 2010.

© 2011, copyright Michelle Goodrum

Using Indirect Evidence to Identify a Photo - Part 3

We are attempting to answer the question, Who is the woman in this picture? The notation on the back, which was written by my great grandmother Frances Lowe, says, "Walt Wood's mother." In Part 1, I tied Walt and Mary Ann together using the 1900 and 1910 census. In Part 2, with the help of fellow bloggers, I was able to narrow the time frame the photo was taken to the mid 1890s and then locate the photographer in the Denver City Directories to identify a date range.

Moving on to 1920, we find Walter is married to Maud (or Mand) with a son, Kenneth, and living in Rosebud County, Montana. He is 30, born in Colorado with his mother also born in Colorado. So not all of the information is consistent but it is pretty close.

At this point you might be wondering why I believe this Walter W. Woods in Rosebud, Montana to be the same as the one we have been following in Colorado. A little over a year and a half ago, I wrote a four part series, "Photo Album Archiving & Digital Sorting" about one of Mom's very old photo albums. In it is a photo from East Rosebud, Montana. Frances Lowe and her family lived a couple of counties to the west in Stillwater County, so I always wondered why they had this photo. Walter Woods and Frances Lowe were first cousins so that might explain why the Lowe family living in Stillwater County, Montana had a photo of a house in East Rosebud, Montana.

Taking things a step further, in 1930, we find Walter Woods with wife Maud (or Manda, if you believe Ancestry), and son Kenneth living in North Bend, Washington which is where his cousin Frances and her husband Mike Lowe were also living in 1930. When you compare all of the censuses, Walter's info is not completely consistent but it is reasonably close.

Finally, coming full circle, when we examine yet another of Frances Lowe's boxes of pictures and letters, we find a get well card address to Frances. It is postmarked 14 June 1949 in Snoqualmie, Washington just a stones throw up the road from North Bend. It is signed "Maud and Walt" and refers to visiting Kenneth. It starts out "Dear Cousin".

So we have tied Frances and Walt together which explains why Frances would have had this photo and written "Walt Wood's mother" on the back.

Later this week, I'll try to sum it all up and you can decide if you think the woman in the photo who is identified only as "Walt Woods mother" is in fact Mary Ann (Ballenger) Woods.

Sources

1920 U.S. Census, Rosebud County, Montana. Population schedule, District 121, sheet 1A, family 11, Walter Woods family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 November 2011), citing National Archives microfilm publication T625, roll 975.

1930 U.S. Census, King County, Washington. Population Schedule, North Bend, sheet 4B,  Walter Woods family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 November 2011), citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 2490.

Walt and Maude, letter, 14 June 1949, get well card and note; Lowe Family Papers, Privately held by Michelle Goodrum, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] Mesa, AZ.

© 2011, copyright Michelle Goodrum

Treasure Chest Thursday-Time Capsule-Teacher's Certificate #2

Continuing from Saturday's post where I wrote about my great grandmother Frances Lowe's Teacher's Certificate from Boulder County, Colorado. Here is the second Teacher's Certificate that was found in the "Time Capsule."

Unfortunately, there is a small hole in the paper right where the last digit of the year Frances certificate was awarded to her! She and Milton were married 13 March 1895 in Boulder, Colorado[1] so the year would have to be 1895 or later. An account in the local history, They Gazed on The Beartooths, by Jim Annin, place the Lowe’s in Limestone, Montana by 1896[2]. However, Milton's Homestead Entry file states that he settled on his land on 20 April 1897[3].  So that at least gives me a pretty good idea of when the certificate was awarded to Frances.

If you read the small print it’s clear here that the “3rd grade” is referencing Frances’ certificate and not the grade of children she is certified to teach. That makes sense considering the community where they were living was very spread out and sparsely populated.

The only other thing I am wondering about is why it was issued for Carbon County, Montana. My understanding is that at the time, they were in Yellowstone County. The Lowe’s homestead was located in 3 different counties that I know of, during the 30 or so years the family lived on it. None of them was Carbon. Although Carbon County is adjacent to the various counties in which the Lowe's homestead was located.  So I need to double check the county histories and also consider the possibility that Carbon was the closest places for Frances to go to obtain a teaching certificate.

On Saturday we'll move away from paper and start looking at some of the other types of treasures in the Time Capsule.

Here are links to the other posts in this series as well as a couple of related articles:

The Time Capsule
First Steps
The Time Capsule's Top Layer
Part 2
Teacher's Certificate
Teacher's Certificate #2
Baby Shoes
Sewing Anyone?
Help! Do You Know What This Is?
Frances' Necklace
A Bottle of???
Embroidery
More Stuff To Sort
Doilies
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Dress
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Preserving the Time Capsule
Sorting Saturday - The Time Capsule is Sorted. What I learned.
COG-Scrapbooking Your Family History! Frances Lowe
Treasure Chest Thursday-You Are My Treasures


Citations:
[1] Boulder County, Colorado, marriage certificate (1895), Lowe-Robinson; privately held by Michelle Goodrum, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE].


[2] Jim Annin, They Gazed on the Beartooths, 3 vols.( Billings, Montana: Reporter Printing & Supply Company, 1964), 1:336.

[3] Application No. 7063, 8 May 1908, in Milton C. Lowe (Yellowstone County) homestead file bearing final certificate No. 136540, 13 June 1910, Bozeman, Montana, Land Office; Land Entry Papers, 1800-1908; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

© 2010, copyright Michelle Goodrum

Treasure Chest Thursday - The Time Capsule - Part 2

Today I am examining the next layer of my great grandmother, Frances Lowe's "Time Capsule;" specifically some of the contents of the leather case. You can read previous posts about the "Time Capsule" here, here and here.

A partial inventory reveals items relating to the Order of the Eastern Star, including:

• 
  
  Rosters from Queen Esther Chapter No 5, Boulder Colorado for the years 1907, 1914, and 1938. Frances is listed as a member in the 1914 directory only with an address of Nye, Montana.
• 
  
  By-Laws for the same chapter.
• 
  
  Book titled, Ritual of the Order Eastern Star, published by Authority of the General Grand Chapter, Chicago, copyright 1890. The publish date is July, 1904.
• 
  
  2 receipts dated 9 July 1914 and 25 March 1915 stating Frances Lowe had paid her dues.
• 
  
  The "certificate" dated 25 March 1915 and shown below which, if I read it correctly, is saying that Frances was received as a member 24 November 1910 and  is now released from membership.

 

Frances moved with her husband, Milton, from Boulder, Colorado to Limestone/Nye, Montana in the mid 1890's. I can't help but wonder why she joined the Order of the Eastern Star, in Boulder, so long after she had moved from there.  Frances was born and raised in the lovely town of Boulder and moved literally to frontier country in Montana.  I visited their homestead last summer and it is still in what I would consider back country (or very nearly); a beautiful land but remote and harsh in the winters. Talk about going through a lifestyle change.  I would not be surprised if she had hoped to move back to Colorado.

Interestingly, the Ritual of the Order Eastern Star, has a paragraph titled Membership.  It states:

Master Masons in good standing in a Masonic Lodge, and their wives, daughters, mothers, widows, and sisters, who have attained the age of eighteen years, are eligible to membership in this Order.

I have found no evidence, yet, that Frances' husband, Milton, belonged to the Masons (although his father did[1]).  Frances' father, Daniel Robinson, was a Mason in Boulder[2].  So that could have been how she gained her membership. Frances' mother, Nancy (Ballenger) Robinson, was also a member of the Order of the Eastern Star in Boulder (she is listed in the 1914 directory and her obituary[3] mentions it).

If you are interested in the Order of the Eastern Star, you can read more about it here and here.

So far all of the items in the Time Capsule (with the exception of the leather case) can easily be placed together in an archival safe box.  It is done.

Next up are by far my favorite finds to date in the Time Capsule.

Here are links to the other posts in this series as well as a couple of related articles:

The Time Capsule
First Steps
The Time Capsule's Top Layer
Part 2
Teacher's Certificate
Teacher's Certificate #2
Baby Shoes
Sewing Anyone?
Help! Do You Know What This Is?
Frances' Necklace
A Bottle of???
Embroidery
More Stuff To Sort
Doilies
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Dress
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Preserving the Time Capsule
Sorting Saturday - The Time Capsule is Sorted. What I learned.
COG-Scrapbooking Your Family History! Frances Lowe
Treasure Chest Thursday-You Are My Treasures


Endnotes:
[1] The Boulder Daily Camera (Colorado), 3 June 1897, p. 4.
[2] The Boulder County Herald (Colorado), 7 Feb 1900, page 5.
[3] Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Washington), 9 September 1927, section H.

© 2010, copyright Michelle Goodrum

Sorting Saturday-The Time Capsule

Recently another family member made an interesting discovery in the family home.  It started with this very cool old leather suitcase.

Inside was another small, old, cute suitcase.

Tightly packed inside this suitcase is what appears to be a snapshot of the life, memories and some personal items that my great grandmother Frances Lowe held dear.  It has appropriately been dubbed the Time Capsule. Frances lived from 1871 - 1964 in Boulder, CO, Nye, MT and various homes in King County, Washington.

Follow along with me on Thursdays and Saturdays while I sort through the Time Capsule and figure out how to catalog, preserve and archive this fascinating look into the life of my great grandmother.

Here are links to the other posts in this series as well as a couple of related articles:

The Time Capsule
First Steps
The Time Capsule's Top Layer
Part 2
Teacher's Certificate
Teacher's Certificate #2
Baby Shoes
Sewing Anyone?
Help! Do You Know What This Is?
Frances' Necklace
A Bottle of???
Embroidery
More Stuff To Sort
Doilies
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Dress
Pictures, Announcements, etc.
Preserving the Time Capsule
Sorting Saturday - The Time Capsule is Sorted. What I learned.
COG-Scrapbooking Your Family History! Frances Lowe
Treasure Chest Thursday-You Are My Treasures


© 2010, copyright Michelle Goodrum

Madness Monday - A photograph Helps Solve the Question of When Nancy Died

Nancy Ballenger Robinson is my gg grandmother and one of the oldest children of William and Lucinda Ballenger, who I wrote about last week for Madness Monday. She married one of Boulder, Colorado's early pioneers and later in their lives they moved to Montana probably either with their children or to be near them. After Nancy's husband Daniel died, she stayed on in Montana, living off and on with her various children.

My goal was to obtain Nancy's date of death and place of burial. The latest record I had for her was a 1925 homestead file in Stillwater County, Montana. She was not listed in the 1930 Federal Census. It seemed logical that she might have died in Montana, so I sent off to the Montana State Vital Records Office for her death certificate (this was before the index was available online). They were able to search well before 1925 and well after 1930 but she was not in their index. Frustrated, I set her file aside.

At a later point, while looking through some of the family snapshots taken at Alki Beach in Seattle, I notice a woman who looked suspiciously similar to a photo I had of Nancy. Was she visiting her children who had moved on to Seattle? Or had she possibly moved there herself? I was able to check the Washington Death Index and there was a Nancy Robinson with a death date of 7 September 1927. I obtained her death certificate and discovered Nancy had followed 3 of her children when they moved to Seattle and had been living with her daughter Georgie Williams.

I was able to visit the cemetery where she, my great grandparents and my grandparents are buried in Seattle. Sadly, she is buried in an unmarked grave.

So now I have an end to that story and as a result of the research I did trying to find Nancy's death date, I now have names for several more faces that keep showing up in some of the family snapshots.

Copyright 2010, Michelle Goodrum