Here's A Tip

[DJHawkes]

if you have any old family photos from way back, or not so way back, that you have inherited over the years, please make time at some point to put a few notes on the back, like, who the person is, what relation, how they fit in your family. I've been given a bundle of photos, some will be over 120 years old, but no one knows who they are of. very frustrating they could be my direct family, or some in laws or outlaws. not being american I am not just going to allocate them at will.

[boxtops]

Good point, dotty - I have several of my dad's family - I'll do that.

[wolf63]

I believe that my brother got my dad to give more information about old photographs not long before he died (my dad, alas little brother is still around).

It isn't until after a generation dies that we realise what we should have asked.

[DJHawkes]

yes do boxy, the next. generation may be apathetic about their ancestors now, but when they cotton on they'll finally get it.

[boxtops]

My sister in law has done most of our trees on both sides back for a couple of centuries (they trek about the county "looking at dead people", as my brother puts it), so I'm giving copies of most of my identifiable stuff to her, to put in the archive :-)

[Connemmara]

Awww - I have a lovely one of my mum aged about 3 and her mother. They say I am good looking after her mum LOL LOL LOL big time.

[carolegif]

I type the names on the back, but putting other info is a really good idea.

[Rose Maybud]

Amen to all that, Dotty!

My grandmother was a right hoarder of photographs - there were loads passed on. She was actually very good in that many of them did say who the subjects were and sometimes where and when the photo was taken. One trick is to get to recognise particular people and spot them in other photos. Many subjects weren't family at all: she had masses of friends over the years. I made my Dad go through them all and he filled in some more gaps. If you can get a senior member of the family to do that, you often get little anecdotes which are very valuable. Sometimes not accurate, can be 10 years adrift or even a generation, but usually there's a grain of truth in family gossip. Trouble is, that I am the senior member these days.....

[Old_Geezer]

Too late. I already don't know many of the folk on family photos. And the new electronic versions are difficult to write on the back of.

[DJHawkes]

if there is a problem writing on the back of a photo first write the details on a plain white sticky label and then put that on the back of the photo. what do you mean by electronic ones? if they are ones you upload then rename them individually and put them in a file on your computer dedicated to one surname.

[Old_Geezer]

Aye. Betcha the data file gets separated from the picture one ;-)
But the main point remains. On many normal photos I have anyone with any chance of identifying folks are no longer here :-(

[Shawy]

I have some of my late nan's old photos, there are some really good old b&w ones. It's very frustrating indeed not knowing who they are and having nobody to ask.

:-(

[TheOtherHalf]

Good advice Dotty, thanks. We came across some old photos when clearing out my late MIL house. No idea which side of the family they are let alone who they are. The women are beautifully dressed. My guess is early victorian but would love to know if they are which would give some idea of possible dates at least

[DJHawkes]

the problem is that old photos are invariably passed on to the next generation and that means they come from at least 2 different families, but if they are passed on again that means they are from at least 4 sides of a family, and who knows what in laws etc can be included, it's like a pyramid, identifying them and putting them in context of your family and time is important.

[TheOtherHalf]

Ive still put copies on my husbands side of the tree.Ive examined them against photos of his grandparents and see a slight resemblence. Im presuming they are his mums side as they were a bit more `well off ` than his dads who were mainly from the coal mines in Durham.

[Polly1958]

I too have a stack of photos from 1860 onwards,not a clue who they are, as you said Dot they could be from any side of the family,my Grans or my Grandads,we just don't know.I've been trying to pick out family likenesses but not really found any.The thing is too some were taken in London,Bristol,York and not just in the towns the family came from.