Throw Back Thursday -- Family Photos

Incredible photos sent to me by my Aunt Sue.

My mom's mother's parents, Bernard Connor (1878-1928) and Rose Droppelmann Connor (1881-1960). They don't look very old in this photo. A friend pointed out that this photo must have cost them quite a bit of money back in that time.  Isn't it amazing how their faces are lit up by the fire?

My mom's father's parents, Helena Gaelick Thomas (Elena Gallich) and William Henry Thomas, with their two oldest children, Helen and Bill.  I have a book written by two sister of my great-grandmother Elena Gallich, detailing their travels between Ukraine and Canada.  She met Bill in Calgary, and they moved to Seattle, where he became a street car conductor. She's stunning. The only other photo I have of her was as a child in a family photo.   

Helen and William went on to have more children, including Ellis.   I wrote about Ellis last month here.

I am thrilled beyond words at the gift of these photos!!

A piece of history

My mom's Uncle Ellis.  I remember him coming to visit us in San Jose when he would port in San Francisco (actually it was somewhere further south, I am sure).  He would come in a taxi, and that was the only person I ever knew who'd actually ridden in one. Odd and exotic at the same time to me then.  We also once dropped him off at his ship, if I am remembering correctly.  He brought us gorgeous jewelry/music boxes from China, a big one for my mom and smaller ones for me and Lori, and he also brought us rice paddy-style hats.


There was also that famous family story about him walking down the street in New York City, passing a man, then turning around and asking, "Hey, aren't you my brother Bill?"  Sure enough, it was.  They were not a close family, needless to say.

As a kid, my mom and her sister and brother knew him as Uncle Elly Belly. He would visit sometimes and take them out for ICE CREAM, one of the most magnificent treats they could imagine.  Somewhere out there, he has two children, around the age of my mom, but with a last name like Thomas, I'm not holding out much hope of finding them to share family history.

We knew he was a "seaman" but nothing much more (perhaps older relatives did).  I found this gem about Uncle Ellis on the internet this week.

Amazing things online

My great-grandparents' marriage certificate. You should be able to click on it to make it larger. This is a find that thrills me to no end.

link to page: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-21127-14282-85?cc=1589502