Towns come and go. Names of places change. Different people identify a place with a different name. Catalogers unfamiliar with an area sometimes have a mind of their own. I know exactly where the Immanuel Lutheran Church is south of Carthage in Hancock County, Illinois. I’ve been there many times. The church could be seen from where my grandparents and great-grandparents lived–in fact it’s in the background of the occasional picture. It is not located in any town. It’s been a country church since it’s founding in the late 1800s. It really is closer to Bentley or Basco, Illinois, than it is to Carthage. Bentley is what the pastor wrote for the location of one of the early church books in the 1880s. Others (myself included) refer to […]
No matter what you celebrate or do between now and the first part of 2023, remember that there is never a better time to record and preserve family memories than the present. Asking about holiday traditions, typical foods, weather-related challenges, etc. are all good ways to get memories stirred. Consider asking: Did anyone attend church during the holidays? What food did a certain relative always bring? What relative always arrived late? What was a favorite gift you received? Was there a year weather changed your holiday plans? Was there a gift you wanted but never got? Was there one person who always cooked the meal? Was there one person who always insisted on performing a certain task? etc. The holidays can also be a good time to work […]
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