I was fortunate enough to visit my father's sister on Thanksgiving and go through her old family photos. I captured many of them with my cell camera. Some date back to the 1880's, and Peep, as she has always been called, is 85 now. The stories that go along with these photos will be lost some day in the future, and I wanted to know the stories before it is too late.

Too often, we forget to ask while we can, learn while we can, and there is little as precious in the world as one's history, memories of our father, our mother and those before them.

So she told me stories, some I had not heard and some I had almost forgotten.

This photo shows my grandmother, Lucy (born around 1889), circa maybe 1945 with some of her grandchildren. She died in 1961, 21 years before I arrived.

From a farming standpoint, this photo is fascinating, really.

I have a deep interest in Heritage livestock, and if you're unfamiliar with the term, you can learn more online by going to The Livestock Conservancy website.

The laying chickens in this photo, especially when seeing the photo in hand, are really remarkable. Very large and robust, especially considering there would have been NO commercial feed and nothing offered, which I know from talking to my father before his passing, beyond what they found on their own while foraging.

My guess is these are what we know as Dominiques and what my father called "Dominickers," as well as possibly Delawares. I also believe I spy a few Guinea Fowl in there!



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