A few more items on the Caroline page

What better way to spend (Utah) Pioneer Day than to add information to our family website? I'm finishing up with the information so graciously passed along by cousin Rob McIntosh.

As mentioned in the previous blog post, in 1977 Rob solicited some recollections from Clover, Utah, resident Irene Russell about our ancestors, and she wrote three brief pieces:

• About the Grand T Ranch, which was the home of William Abram McIntosh.
• And brief sketches of Gertrude Christensen Johnson, half sister of our great-grandmother Nancy Lena Guhl McIntosh, and Carl Marinus Christensen Guhl, half brother of Nancy Lena.

Each sheds a little more light on the previously dim corners of our family's history. With everyone chipping in, a clearer narrative emerges. Also, thanks to Sue McIntosh Adams for sending along the photo of John Willard McIntosh to use with his history of Caroline.

Caroline, revised and expanded

Cousin Rob McIntosh sent along more -- great -- information about one of our most interesting and impressive ancestors: Caroline Elizabeth Caldwell McIntosh. I've revamped the main page, providing links to the sometimes lengthy content that was there previously, and links to some of what Bob just sent along.

In addition to the pair of histories we've had up for a while -- one by Ann Neddo and the other by John W. McIntosh -- Bob has sent along two letters written by Caroline to her son, and our (cousins) great-grandfather William Abram McIntosh (1859-1903).

Now, not only is the fact that we have letters written by her interesting, but the timeline makes it even more odd, as Bob pointed out:

Looks like while he was a student at Brigham Young Academy in 1889. Note: he was married with children at the time. Not sure how that worked out (family in St. John; him in Provo?).

Indeed, "Willie," as Caroline calls him, was married to Nancy Lena Guhl in 1883, and they had children. Be nice to know the story behind that.

Interestingly, Caroline spends a lot of time admonishing her son about "drinking and smoking." It's actually pretty funny.

I've also posted a link to a pdf document of the original aforementioned letters -- but in that same file there also are letters from a nurse in Billings, Mont., who, according to Bob, "cared for Aunt Roah [our Grandmother Mary Anne McIntosh Henderson's sister] when she had typhoid fever, and from Gertrude Amelia McIntosh (d. 1918)."

Still to come: Bob sent along a letter/oral history from Irene Russell, of Clover, Utah, who died at age 97 in the early 1980s. She wrote some sketches of a few family members that I'll transcribe as I get time.

Once again, thanks to Bob for this great information about our family.

New photo book identifications

I'm not even going to bother making an excuse for my absence on this blog. It is what it is.

But I have good news: One of our far-flung (second) cousins, Rob McIntosh, was introduced to The Henderson Reunion website and he was able to identify a few people in Grandma Mary McIntosh's 1910 photo book. So, in Rob's own words:

No. 1c is most definitely Nellie Elizabeth Hibbert (married Orin Packard, who died, then James R. McNiven). 7d is Caroline McIntosh (Neves) and sister, Gertie. 7e I am quite sure is Gertie. I believe 7f is her brothers, Lester (left) and Fon (right). I believe 8a is Nellie Packard (same as no. 1c) and Sylvia Griffin (wife of Henry Griffin). The person you have identified as Nancy Henderson looks exactly like a person identified as Dora Isabell Henderson on a funeral card (she died in 1912) that was in my Grandmother's (May McNiven Partridge) records.

I have never seen pictures like the ones you have in that album--so many smiles, which you almost never see from that time period.

As I told Rob, it is so nice to know someone is reading and exploring the website, and also quite a thrill that we're filling in a few more blanks.