Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my maternal grandfather taken on the beach in Wildwood, New Jersey in August 1979.  He was 61 years old.

Paul Branyan, Sr.
(1917 - 1986)

Remembrance of First Holy Communion

This certificate was given to my maternal grandfather to commemorate his first holy Communion on 3 May 1925.  It is falling apart, but it is pretty awesome to find something that was given to my grandfather 91 years ago.  It must have been important to him because he kept it for the rest of his life.

Family Tree Rough Draft

My dad remembered doing a family tree project when he was in school, and he thought that it may still be somewhere in his family home.  I have yet to find it among the boxes of stuff I have, but I did find a rough draft that my grandmother wrote for his project.

As I looked over what she wrote, I was happy to see that it confirmed a lot of my own research. There's even some new clues that I am excited to follow.  It is so nice to know that my grandparents knew so much about their family tree and that their family history meant so much to them.

I feel so blessed to have found the this rough draft, but I would love to see the actual family project that my dad did.

One Forgotten Piece of Paper - Three Notes

I found this piece of paper in a Girl Scout Handbook that belonged to my aunt.  It looks like she had to keep track of her activities.  She spent 11 hours shopping at the shopping center at the Cross Road Center.  (That seems like a lot of shopping!)  She spent four and a half hours babysitting at the home of her mother's friend.  She spent one hour cleaning the cellar in her home.  And she spent 48 hours cleaning the attic in her home.  This all came to a total of 64 and a half hours.  I wonder over how long of a period she kept track of these activities.

The first note on the back of the paper looks like it contains a time and place she had to be, maybe for some Girl Scout activity.  The address belongs to a home in New Castle, Delaware.  She wrote Saturday, 1:00 a.m.  I'm thinking she meant to write p.m.  She even drew a little diagram of where she needed to be.

The last note looks like she jotted down some things she needed to do on her own time.  When I looked in the handbook on page 473, she had little check marks at numbers two (Pantomime good posture in several daily activities.), three (Have a health examination.  Make a record of the things the doctor advises and carry out his suggestions.), and five (Discuss what is necessary in a well-balanced diet for a girl of your age.)

I will never know if she even remembered that she kept this piece of paper tucked away in her Girl Scouts Handbook, but I'm glad she did.

Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my maternal uncle taken in his family home in New Castle, Delaware in 1967.  He was killed in action in Vietnam on 10 December 1967.  He was 20 years old.

Paul "Ozzie" Branyan
1947 - 1967

Last Will and Testament

This is a copy of my paternal great-grandfather's will.  A Last Will and Testament is a legal document which identifies those individuals that are to receive the deceased's property and possessions upon their death.  There is very little specifics in this will, but I feel very blessed that my dad gave it to me.

My great-grandfather left everything to my grandmother and her two sisters, and they were to share everything equally.

The one specific in the will is that my great-grandfather wanted to be interred in lot number 495, Garden of Gethsemane at Gracelawn Cemetery, New Castle County, Delaware, next to his first wife (my great-grandmother).  I believe that one of the reasons he was so specific is because he had a very short-lived second marriage and he wanted no question as to which wife he meant.  As a side note, I noticed that cemetery is spelled incorrectly in the will.  Pretty funny for a legal document.

My great-grandfather named my great-aunt (the oldest sister) as the Executrix.  The will states that if she should have died before he did, he would then appoint my grandmother as the Executrix.  Ironically, my grandmother died seven and half years before he did.

There were two witnesses to the Last Will and Testament.  One name is familiar - my great-aunt's (the Executrix) neighbor.

Girl Scouts List

Every once in a while I come across something that gives me glimpse into a family member's everyday life, and I love it.  This is one of those things.  It is a to-do list that my paternal aunt made for a Girl Scouts Christmas party that was occurring on December 20th, probably in the 1960s.

She was going to ask one of her cousins to go to the party with her, so I'm guessing she could bring a date.  She needed to buy one gift for a girl and one for a boy.  Each needed to cost between $.75 and $1.  She also needed to bring a soda and $.20 to a meeting.

I wonder if she had a good time at the party.  Maybe I will come across a picture some day.