Great Grandpa Sam, born in 1863, was honored with a party for his 80th birthday. My great grandfather Samuel Brinser Martin’s birthday party was even written up in the Middleton (Pennsylvania) newspaper. I don’t know whether my family was invited to the party, reported on September 15, 1943. I was a toddler, only two. But, lucky me, I have the clipping, retrieved when we cleared out Aunt Ruthie Longenecker’s house!
Grandpa Sam was a character. Though he was short in stature, he was such a towering figure in my early life, that I devoted an entire chapter of my memoir to him and his hilarious antics. He has also appeared as a hoot and a holler in a 2013 blog post.
A fun-loving sort, I had no idea he would spend so much time cutting corn on his birthday. Hard work, a sense of humor. and strong family ties carried him to the ripe old age of 94.
Samuel Brinser Martin 1863 -1957 Victorians didn’t usually smile for photos!
Here he is with wife Mary and his family, including my grandmother Fannie, their oldest daughter.
My grandmother in a plaid dress stands slightly behind her brother Joe in a beribboned shirt of the era
And here is a blurry image of how I remember Great Grandpa Sam living with his daughter, my Grandma Fannie, toward the end of his life. Farmer jeans, jacket and hat, all the way.
Still “snap” from Aunt Ruthie’s movie camera
- Do you have clippings or photos, old or recent, that you cherish?
- If so, do you have a favorite?
- What do you make of the language in the clipping, as in the lines, “Upon investigation, it was found that during his birthday, he spent a good portion of the day busily engaged cutting corn and doing other work about the farm, due chiefly to the scarcity of farm labor.”
News Flash! I’ve just been informed that Story Circle Network has published my story in their September 2020 Journal: Look for Family Secret: Search in the Attic on page 26.
You are so lucky to have such wonderful memories, Marian!
Jack, I never forget that! Thanks for starting us off before 6:00 am today. 😉
Good morning, Marian! It’s so wonderful that you have these clippings, photos, and memorabilia. I know we had clippings and old newspapers of events, but who knows where they might be–if we still have them?😏
I was struck by that line in the article. It’s amusing–“upon investigation. . .” and it sounds funny, but then I realized there’s a shortage of labor because it’s 1943, and the country was in the midst of WWII. Many people who would be working on farms were in the military or doing other war work. I imagine a party such as this raised people’s spirits.
Merril, thanks for bringing an historical context to this. I think it’s absolutely true. Though I’m not certain, I think Great Grandpa’s sons, Joe and Frank, both served in the military when they were young, but would have been immersed in their careers away from the farm at that time. Yes, a party would have raised their spirits, for sure!
You’re welcome. The date struck me. 😀
😉
I appreciate how newspapers chronicled so many important events. What would we do without newspapers? I noted how well written and perfectly punctuated that write-up about the 80th birthday celebration was. “Upon investigation…” I don’t know. Maybe the reporter interviewed the family.
When I started out in journalism back in the 1970s, I worked for a weekly newspaper and we wrote up milestones like that. It’s a lost art, I suppose. I do have an amazing array of old photos of my grandparents and great aunts and uncles, many taken in the 1930s and 1940s in Germantown and the Poconos, where my mother’s family vacationed every summer. I look at them often. They serve as jumpstart to writing about my family and imagining who they were, their lives, their dreams ….oh, how I wish I could ask them questions now! LOL.
As a journalist with the Philadelphia Inquirer, you would certainly notice the clear and respectful prose in this piece.
Our forebears would be appalled at what is termed “fake news” today in an era of multiple media. My family listened to the Lancaster news. Evenings, I heard the voices of Lowell Thomas and Walter Cronkite. And who could forget Andy Rooney and Barbara Walters later on. My parents and the generations preceding had a conservative point of view, but I sense that they could distinguish fact from opinion.
Yes, family photos are great writing prompts. I’m glad you have so many to summon your muse. 🙂
Wow! Those photos are priceless, Marian! What a joy to look back at your grandmother’s dad’s life!
I have old family photos of when I was a kid and my maternal grandmother who died in 2011. I especially like one that was taken when my brothers and I still lived with my parents in Chicago (though my older brother would soon move to Houston).
How fortunate you have family photos to summon precious memories. I can visualize some settings in Chicago because both of our children lived their for work and graduate school for about ten years. The downtown buildings are so sturdy-looking along the awesome Lake Michigan. Our son lived in a Mexican neighborhood; our daughter in the suburbs, but they always came into the city for “fun.”
Thanks for adding to our conversation today, L. Marie! 🙂
What a lovely memento from your fascinating family, Marian! You have such a wonderful family history! What a character your great grandpa must have been. Tending to his crop on his 80th birthday says a lot about how caring and conscious he was.
As for my family, my parents-in-law have a clipping and photo of Quern Elizabeth II visiting their pottery about 50 year ago; it’s framed and proudly hanging on the entrance hall for all to see!
Hi Marian. Your article triggers memories of our Great-Grandfather Sam for me as well. As a child, I remember going to your Grandma Fannie’s place and seeing him. As I recall, he was blind by then, but was still able to give us some of his “pink candies”. That’s a tradition that my Grandfather Joe continued and I still enjoy today. Every time I eat one of those “pink candies” I am reminded of the rich heritage I been blessed with tracing back to our Great-Grandfather Sam. Thanks for the memories your writing invokes.
Howard, you have first hand connection to Great-Grandpa Sam. As I recall, the pink candies had a Pepto-Bismol scent and taste, probably a balm for the belly.
I’m glad this post evokes pleasant memories. Now I’m wondering, did I identify the brothers correctly? Was your Grandpa Joe older or younger than his brother Frank? My sister Jean wondered about this too. Let me know if I need to change anything. And thanks! 😉
Fatima, Queen Elizabeth II is simply amazing. How wonderful you have a clipping and photo of her with Peter’s folks. Thanks for sharing this. I imagine you are the only reader who can boast such a treasure. Rightly so, it should be framed. Thanks for sharing this anecdote! 😉
And, yes, I am aware my great grandfather was a conscientious sort. But, he did make time for play too as my memoir suggests.
Marian — This post brings back the fond memory of reading about your Grandpa Sam’s shenanegans in your memoir. He was quite the character!
I’m sure you remember the eyeball-rolling-on-the-floor and the visits of the preacher with the tell-tale brown paper bag tucked under his arm. Here’s my opportunity to thank you again for visiting here regularly and for reading and reviewing Mennonite Daughter. How fortunate I am to have you in my tribe of readers! 😉
Marian, just before I read your blog post I was reminiscing about a former neighbour of ours (a classmate of my younger brother) who just passed away. Growing up we had some hilarious times with those neighbour kids, playing baseball on a field behind our house. Life passes by in a flash it seems. Lucky you to have had a great grandpa. My grandpas lived through evil times in Communist Russia and I have no memories of them as they died in dire circumstances due to war and disease.
Elfrieda, I’m glad you have pleasant memories of neighborhood play mixed with the other variety, especially those associated with your grandparents. Pennsylvania Mennonite have a similar heritage of persecution. However, I am 6-7 generations removed from the horror. I know we both revere their faith and their sacrifices.Thank you! 😉
How wonderful that you have that clipping! I love the wording, especially the birthday anniversary! I have the clipping of my mom and dad’s wedding which is great. Your great grandfather sounds like quite a character. You and I are fortunate to have known our great grandfathers. I have a picture of my great grandfather holding me as a little girl.
My guess is that because our ancestry stems from the Old Country, where our forebears were persecuted, they had to stick together when they migrated, which could be one explanation for close family ties that continue even today. We are fortunate, no doubt about that, Darlene!
Congrats all around, dear Miriam! How wonderful to have so many memories and family mementos… Love the photos and the news clipping too. 🙂 I too am blessed with many photos and mementos from my mother’s family who immigrated to the US from Sweden in the 1800s. Among them are Grandma and Grampa Lindgren’s wedding silverware and Grandma’s college graduation dress (barely surviving–and the sturdy, yet beautiful camisole and slip she wore under it… We are blessed! <3
I’m gobsmacked at the treasures you list here: the generational silverware is in itself awesome, but a surviving Grandma’s college graduation dress with camisole and slip sound like they belong in a museum. Of course, you’ll keep them though. How fortunate you’ve grown up in a family that values keepsakes, Bette!
I have many keepsakes from my mother and grandmother, and Aunt Ruthie: dishes, sewing notions, and framed art. Once I made a literary-type keepsake for Grandma Longenecker which I described here: https://marianbeaman.com/2017/08/30/grandma-gets-keepsake/
It’s always good to hear from you, Bette, and thanks for your contribution as well. 😉
How lovely to have so mementos of your family, Marian…I have a few treasured photos and some kitchenware which belonged to my grandmother…Some of the photos are tiny though as older images were 🙂 Many of my photos are the same no smiling faces just a stern gaze…
I would be interesting to compare photos. They may be of a similar vintage, black and white too. It’s good to have a visual record of our heritage. Thanks for checking in, Carol! 😉
Lovely to have those memories and clippings Marian of Great Grandfather clipping the corn! The historical context is also interesting. I’ve got plenty of clippings. I’d need a week to go through them, nay a month. I love the old fashioned and courteous way of reporting. My sister gave me a postcard the other day that I’d sent her in 1975 when I was visiting the WH and about to go to Boston. Well, that’s pretty recent I know, but I have plenty that are much older, also of grandparents – those little b & w ones, yellowing and curling around the edges ..
I sense that you value the old-fashioned and courteous style of communication back then, as I do. It seems stilted, but respectful, a tone I wish would return in some measure. It’s lovely to have a sister who helps you revisit the past with a postcard. Funny how we forget important details as life whizzes by.
Earlier today, I re-read a letter I sent to Aunt Ruthie (found in her attic). The old news came back to me: what I was doing in my last year of teaching, premature Ian on a feeding tube (now able to blow a tuba!) and hubby working on a children’s book. It was just 12 years ago, but it seems so long ago.
Maybe you can take the curating in short bits, so you don’t feel overwhelmed. It’s amazing what treasure we find. Thanks for sharing, Susan! 😉
Congrats on the article publication in Story Circle Network, Marian. And, as others have noted, yes, you are very fortunate with all those memories and memorabilia. Your connection to your family and ties to the past are strong and precious.
I used to have grandfathers like Sam – not working on a farm, but dressed similarly and smoking cigars or pipes and telling stories. I just mentioned to Mark how I feel less and less connected to my real family and roots in Belgium by living in the US and not being able to go back. It’s as if that part of my life is vanishing entirely, which is sad. It’s down to memories and photos as well, these days. And, a weekly Skype call with my parents.
Liesbet, my heart dropped when you said “It’s as if that part of my life is vanishing entirely. . . . ” I wonder if you mean you will never return to Belgium, or that travel is restricted because of the pandemic. I hope it’s the latter. I’m glad you can see/hear your parents via Skype, certainly a blessing.
I think of you often in the throes of refining your memoir; you know I know what it’s like. Be good to yourself. 😉
Hi Marian!
Yes, you know what it’s like. I’m putting A LOT of pressure on myself and haven’t been this stressed in many years! All the decisions, second guessing, insecurities, the tinkering with blurbs and titles, the unhappiness about every potential “author photo” (after five photo shots by Mark and a friend), choosing photos for the book, figuring out a cover, thinking about marketing, research, … I have been extremely overwhelmed, but I need to do all this now, because soon we will be on the road again with unreliable internet and little extra time! I will get there. 🙂
The part about the vanishing of my previous life has been a process that has been going on for years and getting worse by the day, as I have adapted to a new country and culture. It’s mostly a mental observation. I will definitely go back to Belgium from the moment I can (and it is convenient enough).Usually, I fly out of Boston as this is the cheapest and shortest distance! Who knows what will happen in the future…
I hope Maya gets you away from the tedium a few times a day on walks. About the author photo: I had one casual and one formal, which I used on Amazon. When I do marketing, sometimes I ask the authors/promoters which one they would like to use. You might consider cropping a photo you already have!
Most of all: You WILL get there even if it takes longer than you wish! ((( )))
Thank you! 🙂
Now I have a story to enter here. Visiting my mother she was remembering how she hated student holidays when teachers had to work and students were home in the fall. They had to work cutting corn Thursday Friday Saturday not Sunday but long weekends and she hated it. So that was very admirable of your Sam to do what he did on his birthday. Birthdays really weren’t such a big deal back in the day at least according to my mom and even my own growing up days . I never had a party until I was probably 10?
Melodie, thanks, always, for news from your neck of the woods. Your family, like mine, was a work-hardy gang, pitching together to get the job done. 😉
The Metzler side of my family didn’t make much ado about birthdays; however, my sisters and I had an 80th birthday party for Mother that meshed with the Metzler reunion. She was SO surprised to see her two Florida daughters!
I love these kinds of photos. Love love love them. On the wall in our hallway I have framed enlarged photos of my great-grandparents and their family. The first one is of my great-grandfather (in his early 40s) and my great- grandmother (in her late 20s?) with their family of seven children. Next to that photo is my great-grandparents at least 15 years later with their brood of 11. They both look a lot older! Quite a family history with them which has been relayed during my youth in hush hush tones.
I love the feisty fun personality of your great-grandfather. And I think it’s important to keep their memory alive, as you do here.
Congrats on the publication of your story!!!
Thanks for the compliment and the comment, Pam!
I can imagine those portraits on the wall in your hallway. I wonder if they are as sober-faced as mine are. Victorians just didn’t crack smiles, which along with their outfits, does make them look older. Also, I wonder if you “talk” to any of them. Sometimes I say, Hi to my brother Mark and Thank you to Mother Ruth. It seems silly, but I like to stay in touch even if they have gone on to a better land – ha!
You probably remember Great-Grandpa from a previous blog post – and from my memoir too. He was a fun guy, his strain of humor passed on to Grandma L. and Aunt Ruthie, Have a great weekend. And enjoy the fall foliage, which should be arriving soon. I do miss the change of seasons in Florida. 🙂
I do talk to my ancestors. Particularly my grandmother on my mom’s side as well of course as my mom and dad. Don’t you feel as if they listen? And I would say your great granddad’s humor passed on down to you also!!
My guy and I just returned from an early morning 50° walk in the woods watching the tops of the trees just turning orange. It is a beautiful season. Come on on up. We have a nice guestroom! Ahhh, if there was only no pandemic.
Honestly, I’d love to take you up on that invitation. Next year, I MUST absolutely see the change of seasons. Although I like living in Florida because my closest relatives live here, this time of year I always think about the brilliant foliage I’m missing.
How lovely to have you in my tribe, someone who doesn’t think I’m crazy talking to ancestors. Do they listen? I’ll have to think about that next time we have a “chat”! Thanks to tuning in – again – Pam!
Hi Marian – these photos are really fun to look at. That ribbony shirt is really wild. Glad you have so many great memories. I knew my great grandmother until I was about 12. She lived to be 98.
Kids decked out like my Great Uncle Joe would certainly be laughed out of town these days when it’s cool to wear torn jeans and over-sized tee shirts.
Thanks for checking in today; I’m glad you have a memory of your great grandmother. Like me, you have longevity in your genes. 😉
I think (hope) so!
😀
Fantastic photos, Marian. I remember your Great Grandpa Sam.
I have a large portrait photo of my Great Aunt Eliza hanging on the wall in my bedroom. It taken when she was 6 years old, the year she was killed in a tornado in central Missouri. I’d have to check, but I think the photo is from 1896. It’s large and she looks so serious and mature. I had it framed with preservation materials with a pocket on the back. In the pocket, I keep the local newspaper clipping telling of her death along with two other little girls her age, all sitting in the same seat in the front row of the schoolhouse. The pocket also has a copy of the letter her daddy, my great grandfather, sent to his dad and family in Kentucky telling them what had happened. My grandpa often told me the heart-breaking story of that day when Eliza was 6 and Grandpa was 16. I’ve written about it but never shared my story. Maybe it’s time. Eliza’s story made a strong impression on me when I was a little girl, partly because Grandpa was so open about his on-going grief.
Thanks for sharing this poignant story of little Great Aunt Eliza. Yes, I think readers would enjoy this story on your blog, told with your penchant for vivid detail.
You probably spent a pretty penny preserving the photo with archival materials. I like your explanation of the “pockets” too. Yes, I can see a future blog post on your website, Elaine.
Enjoy fall on the Finger Lakes. Oh, what a lift it would be to see the change of seasons again. 🙂
Amazing that you kept and found all the rich history from your family. Almost like you’d need it one day to write a book. 🙂
Wry reply, Debby.
You know the value of visuals for story crafting. Actually, I got a copy of the largest, brownish one, when one of Great Uncle Joe’s grandsons visited us just before Christmas this past year.
I’m not sure if you celebrate Rosh Hashanah, but if so, I wish a better year ahead than this one has been, honey sweet, if possible! 🙂
Amazing Marian. The only newspaper clipping I have in any regard to vintage is the article about my maternal grandmother, runner up for Miss Toronto 1926 and the obituary I recently found for my father. But photos galore!
And thanks for the wishes, yes Rosh is my heritage, sadly, I’ve banished most of my family ( a story for one day). So I’m thrilled to be having good friends over tonight! 🙂 Hugs xx
Shalom! Enjoy those friends. 😉
Thank you. 🙂 x
Love that fact that he was working during his party!
I know, Lady Fi. It was during World War II and farmhands were scarce then. Besides, he kept active, perhaps a secret to his longevity! 😉
Hello Marion, I love to read the old newspaper reports of community events. They capture the heart of the people so beautifully.
Thanks so much, Arlene. I believe, stories like these would help readers want to follow the news again.
I always enjoy your family posts, Marian. My family members were not as close as yours has been. I never knew my great grandparents as they all lived and died in Poland. My grandparents never talked about them or shared any family history, which leaves a lot of blank pages in my memory!
The blanks in your family history did not prevent you from writing a compelling memoir though, Joan.
About your comment, my husband too says he too has big empty spaces in his family history. However, a while ago, his sister sent him some neat photos with missing names and dates. Not much good except to speculate – ha!