For many members of our distant family, they will forever reside as literature since no portrait of them has survived the consequence of time to the present day. They now exist as only words on a page...lacking the visual attributes that make them connectable and fully human. Without being able to look into their eyes, their life story seems incomplete... they are absent and less real...their sufferings and achievements more distant. It seems forgivable for those living prior to the advent of accessible photography (i.e. before the 1860s), but, those ancestors who lived in the era of photography, whos image is now lost...its disheartening. We know there were photographs of them, but where are they now? They are like orphans adrift an endless sea of time and space. If we just had a "genealogy angel" who could locate their picture in time and summon it home... Amazingly, every now and then, one of these lost images of an ancestor is discovered. Its a magical and thrilling moment, a reunion of literature and humanity...like a soul being returned to its body.
A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of being the unexpected recipient of a collection of orphaned Shapard photographs. While I was stunned by the age of these photographs, as early as 1882 and as late as 1910, and the fact that, for many, these were the only images discovered of these ancestors; what really overwhelmed me was the amazing generosity of the "genealogy angels" that sought me out and delivered them back home into Shapard hands after 133 years.
Patty, my first "genealogy angel," contacted me and explained that she has an unusual hobby that she calls "random acts of genealogy kindness" meaning that she finds personal items in antique shops and enjoys the challenge of detective work in seeking out their identity, story and family lineage. Her ultimate reward is the joy of returning these items back to their families. She stated, "The items I find are not my ancestors, but I know they are someone's, and they deserve to be with their loved ones...I don't do this for money, I feel like its the right thing to do."
Patty delivered six amazing, never before seen, pictures of Shapard descendants back to our family. In addition, she provided me with two valuable pieces of information (that came a at great deal of effort from her):
First was the name of the antique store where she found the photographs - after contacting them personally, I was able to recover two additional Shapard images.
Second was that she subtly mentioned that she had seen another image of one of the family members from her photographs posted on Ancestory.com. I found the image she mentioned and contacted a lady, named Annie, who posted the photograph. She became my second "genealogy angel." Annie explained that she purchases old CDV photographs through online auction sites and, like Patty, enjoys discovering their story and family tree to ultimately return the images back to their family. Annie sent me four additional Shapard photographs all from the late 1800s.
Amazingly, when I compared the handwriting on the back of all the images sent from both genealogy angels and the antique shop...it matched perfectly! All these photographs had originally come from a single album yet had been separated and dispersed through the ages, only to find their way back together again by the efforts and generosity of good people pursuing an amazing "hobby". One inscription led me to identify the original owner of the album as Sarah "Sallie" (Shapard) Whitesides. Sarah was the sister of my great-great grandfather, Edwin R. Shapard. She was born in 1848, married Thomas C. Whitesides and moved to California where she died in 1933.
The experience of genealogical research humbles us and makes us better people. By that, I mean that we are not lone selfish warriors on a solitary crusade, but we lean on a community of good people who generously provide historical information and selflessly make it accessible. It is amazing how one simple record or photo made public can literally change the world for another researcher. It can be the missing piece of information of which another genealogist has spent a lifetime searching. It can be the bridge that reconnects families separated by the confusion of time. We do it for the love of the discovery, and the joy of giving that discovery to others. We do it because we know that one day we too will be among the ranks of those that have come before us...and we understand what that means.
Thank you genealogy angels, from the bottom of my heart, you are so appreciated!
