Generations Cafe (Amy Johnson Crow) Week 8: Heirlooms
As the family historian, I could open up my basement as a museum and call it “I See Dead People Museum.” I enjoy having the various items in my basement and house since each one brings back memories but it is tough when I think of downsizing and moving to a much smaller abode.
Picking one item to write about has been difficult. For the last week, I considered the following:
- My paternal grandmother’s sewing machine
- My paternal grandfather’s desk
- My paternal grandfather’s baptismal gown
- My maternal great-grandmother’s wedding dress
- My maternal great-grandmother’s Swedish butter paddle
- My paternal great-great grandmother’s teacups from Germany, circa 1850s (maybe)
- Various jewelry items
- Bassinet from spouse’s family
Each item required varying degrees of research in order to write about it and whittling it down by my time restrictions, I decided to write about my grandfather’s baptismal gown. My grandfather’s birth date varies depending on the document. His NJ birth registration states his birth date was June 9, 1904 but this document was filed in February 7, 1923 after a correction was processed. The correction paper states his name was wrong and his name was changed from Francis to John Francis. Other documents put the birth year as 1905 or 1906. My grandfather had a brother, Joseph Patrick Jr. who was born 18 Apr 1902 and died in 1920.
I have the photos of both brothers in the christening gown but I have been unable to locate the baptism documents. My great-grandfather would have been Roman Catholic and my great-grandmother was most likely Protestant. Their marriage church record states they are of mixed religion. In addition, I have a photo of my father in the same baptismal gown. Baptism records are lacking again.
My grandfather’s great-grandchildren have also been baptized in the same gown. What is nice is that each generation has retained this gown. I look at the babies dressed in the gown in these photos and can understand how my great-grandmother felt because I felt the same way with my children in the gown – the bond between mother and child.
Ancestral Currents 