For years, well, decades, I’ve enjoyed genealogy, and so has my aunt, my dad’s father. She’s been the keeper of most of their parents’ photographs and has researched–the old-fashioned way, by visiting cemeteries and county clerk offices–a lot of the Wanrow family history. In preparing for an upcoming visit with her, I reviewed sets of photographs I’ve taken from her albums and found a photo I’d forgotten about, my grandfather with his sawmill.
Herb ran his sawmill business from 1918 to about 1946 when he sold his Nebraska farm and moved to Colorado to ease my grandmother’s bouts with asthma. I love the fact that my ancestors used steam power, and used it well into the 20th century, for the simple fact that the fuel was cheap–water and slab (the bark and trimmings from sawing the lumber) kept that engine going when a lot of people had switched to diesel engines. Very efficient!
So what does this have to do with my writing? Lots! I used this family story to clarify a number of details at my fictional farm. Last summer I told that story in two posts for the blog History Undressed, which can be found here:
Steampunk Lessons from a Family History on Sawmill Operation ~ Part One
Steampunk Lessons from a Family History on Sawmill Operation ~ Part Two
I hope to have another story this spring, because I found another item I had forgotten about, a poster announcing that farm sale in 1946. I’ve scanned the fragile poster for my aunt and I plan to ask her about the dozens of items listed from her family home in the 1920-40’s.
Is anyone else a family history buff? Any ideas on where to post or send family history stories that others may use to do either family research or other (writing!) research on the farming practices of those times?
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