This photo, printed in Albany, N.Y., came to me from Germany. I’ve identified the handsome fellow as Silas Ballin. I was told the Yiddish/Hebrew (?) writing underneath his name means “groom”. Was this photo taken on Silas’ wedding day? Another detail that caught my eye was his extravagant tie pin. At first I thought it was a symbol of some sorts. But I came to the conclusion that it was a custom-made tie pin bearing his initials SB. That young man certainly appreciated expensive style! And I would soon enough find out how he might have come to own such a precious tie pin. Oh, and please make sure to read till the end of this blogpost, I promise you a juicy twist in the story! Silas Ballin was the youngest son of Samuel (Simon) Ballin, an optician, watchmaker and jewellery salesman in Albany, N.Y. Was the tie pin a father’s wedding gift to his son, who would follow in his footsteps and one day come to run his jewellery business? Silas’ father Samuel (Simon) Ballin had emigrated to the US from Heiligenstedt, Germany (then Prussia) in 1853 together with Levi and Mayer Ballin, perhaps Silas’ uncles. Silas’ mother Sarah née Cohen had been born in Bavaria. I don’t know when she came to the US. In any case, in the 1880s when this photo was taken, Silas probably had relatives in Germany. And maybe this is why Silas’ photo ended up in Germany, How wonderful that someone kept it in almost mint condition all these years, and it survided two world wars... Silas Ballin was born on May 21, 1859 in Albany. He had an older sister Eva, and an older step-brother Solomon. Silas married Bertha née Blum in the early 1880s. In 1883, the couple welcomed their first child Eva Bertha Ballin. I was then to find out that Silas experienced more than his share of grief in his life. His 20-year-old sister Eva died in 1877. Silas’ first son Seth lived only one year and died in 1886. In the same year, Silas also lost his 25-year-old wife Bertha, and a year later his 31-year-old step-brother Solomon. Silas was fortunate to find love again soon, and married his second wife Augusta née Lewi in March 1888. In the same year their daughter Grace Lewi Ballin was born and died. 5 years later in 1894, Silas lost his third child under the age of 1. In 1895, Silas mother Sarah passed away, and in 1898 his father Simon. In 1906, Silas was widowed once again. Of Silas' four children, his oldest daughter Eva was the only one to survive. She married Milton Silas Lowenthal and the couple settled down in Butler, Pennsylvania where Milton was the President of a rubber company. After the end of his military service in the US Army during WWI, the couple moved to South Bend City in Indiana where Milton held a managerial position in a clothing company. A decade later I find the couple and their three children - Milton Jr., Ballin and Betty - in Washington, Columbia, running a shop of Delicatessen together. At the beginning of this blogpost I promised you a twist in the story. I surely did not expect what I discovered next: In 1908, an Albany man named Martin Loonan broke into several houses and apartments in Massachusetts, Ohio and New York states, and stole jewellery, watches and other valuable articles. And guess where he stored the booty? In the jewellery shop of one watchmaker Silas Ballin from Albany! Link: newspapers.com Silas was arrested in the late 1908, and accused of being an accomplice to the crimes committed by Loonan. Silas was charged with criminally receiving stolen goods and he was tried in the Criminal Court of Albany in May 1909. Link: newspapers.com Silas pleaded not guilty, but admitted to having warned Loonan of the police watching him, and therefore helping him to avoid arrest in early December 1908. Loonan admitted that most of the stolen goods were handled by Silas. Silas later confessed that he had melted a large part of the booty and disposed of it. Link: newspapers.com Link: newspapers.com Loonan was sentenced to 10 years in prison. It didn’t take him long to end up back behind bars – he was charged with another burglary in 1921! I don’t know if Silas was sentenced, I don’t think so. He was still listed in the Albany city directories as a watchmaker from 1910-1914. Silas Ballin passed away in February 1915 of gangren. At the time, he was staying with his daughter Eva’s family in Butler, Pa. His remains were removed to Albany where he was probably buried next to his parents, his wives and children at the Beth Emeth Cemetery in Loudonville, Albany. His gravesite is unmarked. According to the newspaper coverage of Loonan's crimes, Silas’ arrest caused quite a sensation in Albany “as he had the reputation of being strictly honest and is considered one of the best watchmakers in town.” The motivation for his participation in the crimes is unclear to me. His father Simon’s last will left him with a substantial inheritance. Or was it the loneliness or boredom that made him long for some excitement. I wish I could read the court ruling of his case. Maybe a mug shot of Silas exists somewhere in his file. I will add his photo to FindaGrave and FamilySearch.

This photo came to me from Germany, labelled "Onkel Oscar Möckel im Jahr 1886" (Uncle Oscar Möckel in the year 1886), but the photo was taken in Buffalo, New York. What was Uncle Oscar up to in America? I checked the Census lists first and indeed I found one 47-year-old Oscar F. Moeckel in the 1900 Census of Buffalo, Erie, N.Y., born in March 1853 in Germany. He had immigrated to the US in 1882, and according to the same Census, by 1900 he had been married for 14 years. Oscar was a cook and a confectioner by profession. Oscar was listed in the City Directory of Buffalo between 1886 and 1903 as a cook. In 1898, Oscar Franz Moeckel applied for a passport, and the application is a true genealogy gem! It reveals his exact birth date and place: March 23, 1853 in Auerbach, Germany. He had been naturalised in October 1887. He had travelled to the US on board the Warren Line SS Victoria from Liverpool on July 2nd, 1882. The application describes him as 5’6” (about 170 cm), with a round face and a high forehead, brown eyes and black hair. Sounds like our guy. The passport application gives us one more important piece of information – Oscar asked for the passport to be delivered to the Kaltenbach Hotel in Niagara Falls, N.Y., that I assume was his employer. And that would fit too. The Kaltenbach Hotel was opened by a fellow-expat from Germany, Mr. Andreas Kaltenbach in 1878. The hotel was famous for its excellent service, beautiful views and fine cuisine. Perhaps Oscar's cooking reminded Mr. Kaltenbach of the delicious meals he had enjoyed in Germany before leaving his homeland in 1848. I found this short description of the hotel and some photos on the Internet: Source: Mediastorehouse.com Perhaps the job was too stressful, or the climate too cold in Niagara Falls, but by 1909 Oscar had moved to St. Louis in Missouri. He can be found in the local city directories, working as a cook. As I was trying to figure out the chronology of Oscar's life, I made another discovery. Seems that Oscar lived in London in 1881, just before he embarked on his journey to the United States. I find one Oscar Mackel, born in 1853, lodging in Marlebone, London. And guess what - his profession: confectioner! I don’t know how long he stayed in London, or how he got there in the first place. I have found nothing about his birth or family in Germany. By the time he decided to take the life-changing journey to the New World, he was 29. He must have had his training in Germany or in London. He was unmarried at the time, so no family of his own to uproot. I find no clues about his wife in any records. According to his passport application, he must have married in 1886, the same year this photo was taken. He was naturalised in 1887. In 1900, he was listed as married, the same in 1920 when he was lodging in St. Louis - his status was listed as married but with no wife lodging with him. In the 1940 Census, he was listed as widowed, lodging in the house of another widowed older gentleman. But I find no marriage record for Oscar anywhere. I wonder about the circumstances of his marriage and if Oscar was only married on paper, but of course it’s none of my business. Oscar died on September 10, 1947, at the age of 94 in St. Louis and his remains were cremated at the Hillcrest Abbey Crematory and Mausoleum. I’m not sure if he ever had a proper funeral. His FindaGrave page says that “These are unclaimed cremains in storage at Valhalla Cemetery. Please contact Valhalla if interested in claiming them”. How sad is that! I wonder why the local German community did not see to that. According to newspaper mentions, Oscar was active in the local German community life until the late 1930s. He would have at least deserved a headstone... Eventhough I can’t give Oscar a proper final resting place, I hope that his soul will find peace as I piece together his story and share it with you. I’d love to think he would appreciate that. I will add his photo to FindaGrave. Hopefully one day a relative can give him a proper send-off and claim this photo.

I found this CDV at my local antiques fair in January and picked it for mainly two reasons. Obviously, it’s really cute and identified, including a birth date and a location. And secondly, I can never resist a photo of my namesake. As Grete I was often called Gretchen myself as a child, so I had to take this lost baby darling home with me. Gretchen is usually the sweet nickname in German for Grete, Margarethe/Margaretha, or it can be a full first name on its own. The birth date scribbled on the back of the photo proved very valuable, too - little Margarethe “Gretchen” Auguste Elisabeth Emma Krause was indeed born on September 14, 1893, in Berlin. She was the pride and joy of her parents Wilhelm Eduard Adolf Krause, a district court secretary, and Marie Auguste Anna Franziska née Nentwig, and the baby sister of Georg Wilhelm Krause. The photo was taken just days before Gretchen’s 1st birthday in September 1894. I was not prepared for the next piece of Gretchen's story. Her mum, who I suppose was holding her in this photo, died less than 4 years after this photo was taken. Mum Marie was just 36 years old when she passed away on June 10, 1898. Heart-breaking! Gretchen wasn’t even 5, and her brother Wilhelm just 11. I don’t know what caused her early death. As far as I could find out, their father Wilhelm never re-married. As WWI raged in Europe and her brother away on the frontlines, Gretchen said goodbye to her 63-year-old father on June 10, 1916. Curiously it was the same date that Gretchen's mother had died 18 years earlier. A coincidence, I wonder? When Gretchen was in her late 20s, she fell in love with a fellow-teacher Erich Ludwig Herwart Grix, and the couple got married on July 10, 1922 in Berlin. I wish I knew if they had any children. In the 1920s and 30s, Gretchen’s husband Erich Grix published several books, specialising in prose on war and history themes, including WWI. His books in German included: Unbekannte Helden des Weltkrieges (1924), Kameraden in Serbien. Eine Erzählung vom Vormarsch des deutschen Heeres von der Donau zur Adria (1937), Die Axt der Alkis. Eine Erzählung aus der Zeit des Markomannenkrieges (166 - 180 n.d. Ztw.) (1938), Die Stadt der Adler (1939). I haven’t read any of those books, so I cannot say what exactly they are about or what views they represent (some of his books are available for second-hand purchase online). And then WWII happened... The horrible senseless war robbed Gretchen both of her husband and her brother. Erich was in active service in 1943, despite his age (he was in his late 40s). He died in August 1943 in the military hospital in Allenstein of tuberculosis. Gretchen’s brother Wilhelm who before the war worked as a pharmacist, died in October 1942 in the Charité hospital in Berlin, also of tuberculosis and sepsis as a result of that. I don’t know what became of Gretchen after WWII, who helped her through the grief. I hope she could find solace in her profession as a teacher. Maybe she and Erich had children? I hope she and her sister-in-law Hedwig got along well and could support each other through the hard times. I wish she was alive to tell her story as she lived it.

Thomas E. Snyder, a kind face from the past. He put on his best (and probably only) suit, tied a flower-patterned tie around his neck and had his photo taken in his namesake photo studio in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. At first I thought he might have been the photographer himself, or a son of his. But Thomas’ story was quite different. Thomas Evan Snyder was born on July 23, 1884 as the third of 14 children of labourer William E. Snyder and Fietta née Everett, a daughter of a stone mason. There is a photo of Thomas' parents in a public tree on FamilySearch. On November 5, 1910, Thomas married Gertrude E. Stitzel, whom he lovingly called “Gertie”. They said their vows in the the St. Luke’s United Chrurch of Christ in Shoemakersville in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Gertie had been born in December 1882 in Albany, Pa., to Ellen née Lewars and farmer Jacob Stitzel. Before her marriage to Thomas, Gertie worked as a seamstress. Gertie had at least 4 older siblings and 1 younger brother Clayton. In 1917, Thomas was drafted to the US Army. He and Gertie were living in Kutztown at the time where Thomas was working on the farm of one Joel Dietrichs. Perhaps Thomas had his photo taken just before his departure and gave it to his family to remember him by. Upon Thomas’ return from service, he and Gertie moved to Richmond 5 miles away. Thomas and Gertie didn’t have children of their own, but in 1920 Gertie’s 9-year-old nephew Ralph Stitzel was living with them. In the 1930 Census, I find Thomas and Gertie in Maxatawny in the same Berks County. Thomas continued to work as a farm-operator. The 1930 Census lists an adopted son for the couple, a 9-year-old Steward Snyder. I believe he might have been the son of Thomas’ brother James Snyder. Stuart H. Snyder had been born on June 5, 1922. James and his wife Edna had two older sons, Kenneth and John. I don’t know the circumstances why the youngest, Stuart/Steward, was adopted by James’ brother Thomas. Perhaps Thomas and Gertie had wanted a child of their own for so long but it hadn't worked out, and with so much love to give, James knew Stuart would be loved dearly by them. And by adoption, they could also make Stuart their legal heir. On November 16, 1933, Thomas and Gertie got into an automobile accident on the highway near their home. Gertie’s clothes caught the flames as she was trying to extinguish fire on the car. Gertie suffered 30 burns and died in the hospital 2 days later as a result of that, just 2 weeks before her 51st birthday. Link: newspapers.com And tragically just a month later, on December 18, Thomas died of an acute dilation of the heart. Heart-breaking! Literally... I believe Thomas died of a broken heart. There was not enough room for all the grief in his heart and it stopped beating. He was buried next to his beloved Gertie at the Zion United Chruch of Christ Cemetery in Perry, Berks County. Link: newspapers.com I have added Thomas’ photo to FindaGrave and to FamilySearch. I don’t know what became of Thomas and Gertie's adopted son Stuart/Steward H. Snyder. He didn’t return to his biological parents, James and Edna, or at least I didn't find him living with them in 1940. I hope he was cared for by another family member since there were so many. Regarding the photographer of this photo, I believe the photo was taken in the studio of Charles Wanner Snyder who was a well-known photographer in Kutztown until his death in 1927. I don’t know if or how the two were related.

These two larger cabinet cards managed to stay together, despite travelling almost around the world from the United States to Spain and then to me in Germany. Luckily, the persons in the photos are identified, how wonderful! Let’s get to work, shall we! The first one shows baby Harry Schachner, 6 months old. The photo must have been taken at around New Year’s, assuming from the text on the photo mount in English and in German, and in Hebrew (I suppose, I can’t read it). This leads me to believe that perhaps the family were Jewish. The second photo, taken in a photo studio in Lower East Side New York, shows the same Harry about one and a half years later, together with his parents Isaac and Sylvia Schachner. I was able to piece together some of this family’s story: Harry A. Schachner was born on April 18, 1921, as the oldest child of Isaac and Sylvia Schachner. I can’t get over how beautiful Harry’s mum Sylvia was! In fact, she reminds me of the actress Rose Byrne. Actually, Sylvia might have been pregnant with her second child in this photo. On October 27, 1923, Harry’s baby sister Tobie/Tillie Sarah Schachner was born in Yonkers, New York. I find the Schachners living in Yonkers in 1925, including Isaac’s two brothers Louis and Nathan. Isaac and his brothers were farmers. The Census of 1925 also says that Isaac, his wife and his brothers had been born in Austria and by 1925 they had been in the United States for 4 years. By 1930, the Schachners had moved to the Bronx in NY, residing at 747 East 181st Street. The 1930 Census gives another valuable clue regarding the “language spoken at home” – which says Yiddish for both Isaac and Sylvia. So that information ties together with the baby photo of Harry: the Schachners were Jewish. By 1930, Isaac had left farming. He would soon take up the profession of an insurance salesman. By 1940, the Schachners had moved to Greenburgh, Westchester in New York. Harry, 18 at the time, was now working in an ice cream shop. Sometime in the 1940s, Harry married Edith Ludmer and the couple settled down in Queens, New York. Harry was a chemist by profession, working for an industrial medical supplier in 1950. I think Harry and Edith had two children, Susan C. Schachner (born in 1953) and Joseph Schachner, who I find living with their parents in Flushing, New York, in 1974. Edith had been born in 1923 in Vienna, and I find her travelling alone from Europe to New York in February 1940 at the age of 17. The passenger list mentions her closest relative one Josef Ludmer in Vienna, and aunt Tilla Hefter to receive her in New York. I found a slideshow about an interview that was done with Edith in 1995. Unfortunately, I cannot access the full interview, but the bits and pieces I gather from the slideshow is that she had to leave her family in Vienna behind as a teenager in order to escape the Holocaust which killed her loved ones. The slideshow shows Harry and Edith together in 1995: Source: USC Shoah Foundation Harry passed away on October 5, 2013. Unfortunately, I have found no obituary for him which could have given us more insight into his long life. I was also curious how it came about that Isaac and Sylvia ended up living and raising their children in the United States, and where in Austria they were born. One public family tree on MyHeritage mentions that the birth place of Isaac was Zmigród, which was located in the northern rural Silesia in Prussia, in today’s Poland. I googled the town and found this information: “Zmigrod was located in Western Galicia that was economically very poor. It had a primitive agriculture that consisted of small and crowded farms. The region boasted excellent air that blew from the Carpathian Mountains and wonderful natural views. The region lacked roads, highways, natural resources and industry. The only area of growth was the population sector.” (LINK) “In the 19th century, many Jews settled in the town (then called Trach(t)enberg), however, from the late 19th century, they emigrated, mainly to the west.” (LINK) “World War I further polarized the existing tensions between the Jewish and Polish population in town. A pogrom began in Zmigród on November 1918. The pogrom started when a local mob with the help of outside villagers came to shop for ” bargains “. The mob broke into Jewish homes and stores and looted and destroyed everything of value. Some Jews were beaten and injured. The Polish population stood by or helped the mob. The local police disappeared and frantic calls were made to Jaslo [district police office] for help. Police units arrived and restored order. They then reported that things were peaceful in Zmigród except for some Jewish troublemakers who disturbed the peace.” (LINK) In 1921, roughly 50% of the town’s 2,000 population were Jewish. “In 1939 there were no more Jews in the town. The 19th-century synagogue was destroyed by the Germans during the Kristallnacht in 1938.” (LINK) I suppose Isaac saw no prospects in staying in Zmigrod, and like many before him and after him, took the leap of faith and moved to the West. I don’t know if he married Harry’s mother Sylvia in Zmigrod or in America. I have found just one clue that Sylvia’s maiden name might have been Satzman (as mentioned in the death record of her daughter Tobie Sarah Schachner Clarke). But I have found nothing on either Isaac or Sylvia after the 1940 Census. Sylvia might have died in 1949, if this is her gravesite on FindaGrave.com. I am not acquainted with Jewish genealogy, so perhaps I am missing some important information in this regard. The same public tree on MyHeritage refers to Isaac as Itsche which was probably his Jewish name if I’m not mistaken. Some other records refer to Isaac as Isadore Schachner. I truly hope that I can return these two precious photos to Harry’s family. I will keep you posted!

Under mum’s protective wing. Unconditional love in that gaze. Lillian & Max Ludlow, mother & son, photographed in the late 1910s. Max Marcus Ludlow was born to the Michigan couple William Joy Ludlow and Lillian née Niel in 1910 as their only child. Will and Lillian had got married on May 15, 1907, in Sandstone, Jackson in Michigan. Lillian had been born in 1882 and was 27 years old when she gave birth to Max. Father Will worked as a grocery store merchant and a cobbler. Father Will was drafted for WWI in 1918. Perhaps this photo was taken for him and he kept it in his pocket at all times? That would explain why the photo is in pretty bad shape. By 1920, the Ludlows had moved to 237 Cutler Street in Allegan. Father Will continued to work as a cobbler. By 1930, the Ludlows rented a house at 201 La Grave Avenue in Grand Rapids. Son Max was 20 years old, living at home. By 1934, Max had been employed by the Tisch Auto Supply Co as a credit manager. He married Dorothy C. Mapier 5 years later in August 1939 in Douglas, Allegan. The newly-weds had moved into 1134 Qickard Hill in Grand Rapids by 1940. They soon became parents to Lynne and William J. Unfortunately, Lillian was widowed in May 1950. And in 1965, she also witnessed the passing of her son Max at just 55 years of age. Max had moved his family to Lighthouse Point in Florida the same year. I don’t know what caused this premature loss. Link: newspapers.com Lillian stayed behind in Grand Rapids until her death in 1972 and was laid to rest at the Chapel Cemetery in Sandstone, Michigan. I will add Lillian's photo to FindaGrave, as well as Max's to the FindaGrave page dedicated to him.

Updated! The photo has been reunited with its family! My hobby really is like a box of chocolates, I never know what I’m going to get! I never ever expected this story to unfold! When I found this CDV in an Estonian antique store, I picked it because it was identified. It was originally in a damaged state, a silvering covered half of little Hilda's face. But I could clean it up. The girl was Hilda-Katariina Kärner, 7 years old in the photo. I think little Hilda was very excited to have her photo taken and she wanted to look extra pretty for the special occasion. She slept in braids, so that she could have crimped hair for her photo. Hilda-Katariina was born on February 26 (new calendar: March 11), 1904, in Narva-Alutaguse in Estonia. Her mother Lisa Kärner was unmarried at the time. In 1908, her mother married Aleksander Säkk and Hilda became an older sister to lots of siblings to play with. Hilda married Nikolai Säkk in the 1920s. Hilda’s stepfather and Nikolai were perhaps distant relatives who shared a surname, and maybe this was how Hilda met Nikolai. Nikolai was 7 years older, born on September 12, 1897. And now get this, Hilda and Nikolai’s three children were born in Brazil! But in 1955, Nikolai passed away in Estonia, and Hilda 24 years later also in Estonia. That’s intriguing, I had to find out more! I found Hilda and Nikolai on a passenger list of the vessel “Formose” in October 1925, sailing from Hamburg in Germany to Santos in Brazil. With them, at least 100 other families from Estonia, all travelling to the same destination. Estonia and Brazil – over 11.000 km apart on opposite sides of the globe, two countries that could not be more different! Climate, temperament, language, food are just a few major differences. Why did the young couple expatriate to Brazil, and when did they get back? I then found an interesting research paper by Sander Jürisson online, on Estonians who had expatriated to Brazil. Turns out that Brazil, especially Sao Paulo, had been a popular destination for Estonians since 1905; 1627 Estonians emigrated to Brazil in 1925 alone, and 60% of all expats in 1925 made Brazil their new home. Land in Estonia was scarce (it’s a tiny country!), but owning land was the biggest dream and motivation for many. And Brazil offered that. Brazilian economy was growing rapidly due to coffee plantations, Brazil was supplying 30% of the world’s coffee beans by then. The Brazilian government looked towards Europe for importing labour force, even offering to pay for their travel expenses. Perhaps this inspired Hilda and Nikolai. Perhaps the young couple dreamt of a piece of land to own, a steady job with income and were curious to see the world. So they set sail in October 1925. In December 1926 their son Juliano Vergilio was born in Brazil, son Pilvo-Dulio and daughter Virve-Ivika followed in 1929 and 1936. But when and why did they come back? The same research paper mentions that homesickness and rough conditions were the main reasons why some Estonians wished to return. But by not having enough means to finance the ocean passage for the whole family, they couldn’t. In January 1938, the Estonian government introduced a special credit line to those wishing to return to help finance their travel costs. And guess what – Hilda and Nikolai with their 3 children were among the first to return in August 1938! There was even a newspaper article about the event, including a photo of the Säkks (the middle photo below) – up to 400 relatives received them and their fellow-returnees that Saturday morning with flowers and hugs and kisses. The initial exhilaration soon wore off as the returnees were confronted with the difficult job market situation, even discrimination on part of the employers. Finding work was difficult for Nikolai as well. But if I’m not mistaken, a new baby arrived soon and that event surely brightened up their days. We know what happened next. In September 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland and WWII began. With a secret protocol to the Non-Annexation Agreement, Germany had handed the Baltic countries over to the Soviet Union. 5 years of war, arrests, executions, deportations, bombings, nationalisations followed, and Estonia lost its sovereignty for the next 50 years. I wonder how Hilda felt in the years that followed their return. The Estonia they had left behind in 1925 stopped existing in 1940. World War followed by a Communist regime under Soviet occupation must have been more than sobering. Did she wish they had stayed in Brazil? I’m ever so amazed the stories these strangers in my photos tell. I have to remind myself, this is not a novel I’m reading or a movie I stream. This was someone’s life, someone’s everyday, their existance. And these little stories of the everyday people should not be forgotten by history, by us. I’ve added Hilda’s photo to Geni.com.

"Dedicated to dentist Wilhelm Dieck from C. J. van Hock, Med. Doct." This photo mystery was solved on Instagram by a reader from Holland. If you are interested in Dutch genealogy and can read Dutch, head over to their blog vergeteling.wordpress.com or follow them on Instagram @vergeteling. Cornelis Jakob van den Hoek was born on May 27, 1857 in Capelle in the Netherlands to parents Jacob van den Hoek and Elisabeth van der Hoeven. He was a medical doctor and a dentist. He dedicated his whole life to medicine. He passed away in February 1911 in Middelburg, Holland, at just 57 years of age after a short illness. He was survived by his brothers Jacob Cornelis and Adrianus Pieter and their families. He dedicated this photo to dentist Wilhelm Dieck, whom he probably met in Berlin where Dr. Dieck practiced. Dr. Dieck was a bit of a celebrity among dentists at the time, he is considered the father of x-ray imagery used in dental care. Perhaps our Dr. van den Hoek had a fan moment and gave this photo to Dr. Dieck as a kind of a business card. I've tried reaching out to his relatives on Facebook, but so far no reply. Hope one day this photo will go home too!

In May, 1908, Rudolf Kruzik-Vogel sent this photo of himself to his brother Karl in Vienna. Rudolf was not in the best mood, in fact he was miserable. He was once again out of job. He had quarrelled with his Berlin host parents and moved out. "We could not stand each other", he wrote. He had got engaged the previous Christmas and was now living with his in-laws. You'd think he'd be over the moon about his engagement. False alarm. He hated that life, "I'd rather hang myself", he wrote to his brother. "I'd like to come to Vienna again, but what would I do there? Please ask mother to put in a good word for me." He mentioned "hanging himself" twice in his short message. Maybe as a figure of speech to add more drama to his misery. Maybe he was a chronic complainer. Or if he was contemplating suicide, I really hope he got help. If I'm correct in my research, Rudolf Kruzik did not hang himself. Rudolf married Theresia née Bayer in 1913 in Iglau (Jihlava in today's Czech Rep). I don't know if she was the fiance in 1908. And looks like Rudolf found work again, his occupation was a state railway inspector. He had been born in 1885 in Vienna to parents Karl Kruzik and Maria née Jerazik. He had indeed an older brother Karl Kruzik in Vienna. Rudolf passed away in 1940 in Berlin from tuberculosis. I wish I knew more about this poor tortured soul!

Julius Carl Haag came from a long line of master bakers and confectioners. His father Julius Haag Sr. as well as his grandfather Johann Haag had been bakers in Vienna. Julius’ parents Julius Haag and Anna née Köllner got married on April 5, 1878 in Vienna. Julius was born on January 5, 1881, his brother Karl on October 2, 1884. Just like Julius, brother Karl also mastered the profession. Fun fact: the Haag brothers went on to marry the Stöhr sisters, daughters of butcher Eduard Franz Stöhr and Amalia Agnes née Wondrasch. Julius wed Hermine Maria Amalia Stöhr on October 9, 1904. And Karl wed Adelinde Josefine Stöhr 3 years later on June 29, 1907. On December 29, 1905, Julius and Hermine became parents to a baby boy they named Julius Eduard. Sadly, the little boy did not live to see his 7th birthday, he died in July 1912 of meningitis. And even more heart-breaking that just 2 days before little Julius passed away, he had become an older brother! Baby Eduard Julius Haag was born on July 6, 1912. July 1912 definitely was one difficult rollercoaster of emotions for the Haag family. Luckily baby Eduard had an older sister Hermine Amalie, who had been born on March 1, 1907. Hermine married Dr. Wilhelm Karl Maria Zavadil, an attorney-at-law and 11 years older than her. They tied the knot on February 19, 1936, in Vienna. In 1920, Julius’ bakery was located at Wipplingerstr. 8 in Vienna. That is one impressive location! The building was the seat of the Vienna Town Council until 1885. Here are 3 photos of the building in 1899, 1940 and today. 1899, Source 1940, Source Today, Source Vienna is known for its long café tradition and sweet pies. Julius was also a confectioner (Zuckerbäcker). I can imagine Julius’ bakery/pastry shop smelled like heaven of fresh bread, of Apfelstrudel and Sachertorte. I haven’t looked into other branches of this family in great detail, but there were more than one branch of bakers among the Haag families of Vienna. In 1938, there were two other baker-confectioners with the surname Haag in Vienna: Karl Haag (Sr. and Jr.) at Landstrasser Hauptstr. 44., who were Julius’ brother and Karl's son; and one Adolf Haag whose bakery was at Schottengasse 2. Also one Julius Hermann Haag from Vienna emigrated to Chicago in 1924, and worked as a baker there. I don’t know if Julius’ son Eduard ever followed his father’s career path, or if the family tradition was carried on in any way. Maybe there is a café or bakery with the name Haag somewhere in Vienna that serves fresh bread and tasty pies to its customers. I wish I knew if Julius’ two surviving children became parents themselves, and if there are descendants who might miss this photo. If you know the Haags from Vienna, please let me know.

Little Margaret had a fun day at the Kirkness Studio in Baltimore. Her mama dolled her up with baby jewellery: a ring, a bracelet, a heart-shaped pendant and a little white bow around her wrist. And someone was probably pulling faces and distracting her behind the camera, making her point her tiny finger in giggles. The distraction was successful – the photo turned out perfect! Margaret was the only child of Harry Underwood Scott (1883-1958) and Flora née LaMotte (1881-1969). She was born on July 8, 1915, in Baltimore, Maryland. Her daddy was a groceries merchant and her mama a homekeeper. Margaret grew up in this street in Baltimore: By 1940, Margaret had married James Oscar Wroten. James was employed by Keuffel and Esser Co., a drafting instrument and supplies and technical lettering company in New York. The couple was living in North Bergen in Hudson, New Jersey, together with Margaret’s parents. In October 1940, James registered for the US Army. In the 1950 Census, I find the couple living in Queens, New York. Looks like they decided to found their own business of lettering. The Censuses do not show any children for the couple. James passed away in 1983, and Margaret at 95 years of age in 2011 in Forest Hills, New York. I wish her obituary gave us a bit more insight into Margaret’s long life, her hobbies and her character: "Margaret S. Wroten, 95, wife of the late James O. Wroten died on January 23, 2011. Born July 8, 1915, she was the daughter of the late Harry V. and Flora E. LaMotte Scott. The family will receive friends at the Eline Funeral Home, 934 S. Main Street, Hampstead on Friday from 3-5 and 7-9 p.m. Funeral services will be held on Saturday at 12 noon at the funeral home. Interment in Hampstead Cemetery." I will add her photo to FamilySearch and to FindaGrave.

This photo is a true gem! Just look at all the writing on the back of the photo – 7 generations of names! Jane Thompson Moore Day Mother of Sarah Rogers Day Peck Jean Clare’s great great grandmother Daughter of Elizabeth Wylie & William Moore, at Washington Pa – in the house of her grandfather William Wylie Great-granddaughter of Jean Thompson and Robert Wylie Great-great-granddaughter of John Thompson of Thompsontown on the Juniata river Pa. Someone made quite the effort to make sure this kind face shall never forget her name and the names of her ancestors. But now it has lost her family. Let’s tell her story so that she can find her way back home! Her family history has been very well researched and there are lots of resources on the Internet, I’m not going to copy-paste it all. Her ancestors founded Thompsontown in Pennsylvania in 1755, according to Wikipedia. The family relations since the American Revolution have been published in the Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR Vol 055 (available on Ancestry): Our friendly sitter was Jane Thompson Moore, born on February 22, 1814 in Jefferson County, Ohio, to parents William Moore and Elizabeth née Wylie. She married a physician, Dr. George Day, on February 2, 1836, in Jefferson, Ohio. By 1850, the couple had moved to Oxford, Cochocton in Ohio, and had become parents to two daughters: Elizabeth and Sarah Rogers. By 1880, Jane and George had moved in with their daughter Elisabeth’s family in Liberty, Guernsey in Ohio. Jane’s son-in-law, Samuel W. Luccock, was a farmer. One of Jane's grandsons, George, was clergyman, and the second one, Howard, a student at the time. Dr. George Day passed away in 1892. His obituary gives us great insight re where the family had lived and worked, and it even shows a photo sketch of Jane's husband: Link: newspapers.com Jane Thompson Day passed away in 1895 at 81 years of age. Her obituary is as thorough as the caption on the photo! Link: newspapers.com I truly hope this gem will find its way back home into the hands of a genealogy loving family member! I will keep you posted!