I also wanted to add, please consider giving a copy to the historical society - depending on which one on LI you want to give it to.
Its puts alot of pieces together.
You probably did this already, but checking out those time periods within that town or the town the next generation moved to would help fill in info for you.
Send me a message if you need help or want to know more.
Ahh!! I just clicked on the comments to suggest going to ancestry and contacting the family with this info. This is an incredible find, and I’m sure the family historian would love to have it!
So cool! The author was pretty old when they wrote it too. I wonder if their relatives are in the area. They might appreciate this bit of family history.
Well, my granny was 20 and granddaddy 47 when they married. In the next 24 years she had a dozen babies, so I know some of what they must've talked about. He and his first wife had 9, the eldest of whom was older than granny. (First wife died.) He always called granny Miss First Name and kept a shotgun under his bed in case anybody tried to mess with her.
My great grandmother married her best friend's father. There was a 20+ age difference. She had step kids who were older than her, which is wild to think about. I always wonder what kind of conversation went on between her and her friend when she broke the news.
Cool! How about Ancestry.com also if you have an account of course. I know that I absolutely love seeing photos of people. It gives me some depth to the person, a face to look at! 😍
According to the town's website, the land was purchased by three brothers with the last name Lawrence (Alfred, Newbold, and George) sometime in the 1850s.
Edited to add here is a picture of her gravesite:
[Jane Lawrence Arthur](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/43382387/jane-arthur)
Neat old piece about Long Island, Flushing Village found on the Library of Concress
[https://www.loc.gov/item/2008620796/](https://www.loc.gov/item/2008620796/)
There is a Lawrence Street and large plot of land with A. W. Lawrence on it.
“William Lawrence became…the largest land holder there.” But I’m not sure if they are related to this Lawrence. They must be though, Jane was born in Flushing, it would make sense!
She did not have all the dates correct, but she has an amazing amount of detail here.
I am a distant cousin in law to Elbert.
Relationship to Elbert Arthur
My 5th cousin six times removed
For a start her birth and death dates do not line up with death records (year is correct).
I did not go thru date by date after this big discrepancy, as the information was far more interesting.
Great photos and documents, thanks for sharing.
This is so cool! I’m an empath and always see old photos for sale in antique stores and swap meets. I always feel sad, looking at them and wonder who these people were, knowing they’d be deceased by now. It seems so sad that they’re just being sold off and that they’ve been essentially forgotten. This, on the other hand, is so lovely!
I know exactly what you mean! So, what do you do when you find them? Do you make any purchases of these old photos? Then what? Do you display them? Where? For a while, I kept finding old wedding photos and started a collection, but we don’t really have a good place to display them.
Wow! That's so precious!!! I inherited all my family's old photos, documents and letters. Been building my family tree for 3 years now. I foind out so many interesting stuff about my ancestors.
Great discovery! Someone took the time to record the story or you might never have known it. We all should take note and record what we know of the people who preceded us.
How I wish everyone thought to do this for photos and portraits. So often you have no idea who is in the picture and what might be a valuable family treasure can never be appreciated. Great find!
Ask away! This is my husband’s family and this was found at my his grandmother’s house. There is a LOT of history here. His grandfather was big into documenting history, photographing it, and tracing his family genealogy.
I'm doing this with framed photos that I know will remain hanging in my home for my lifetime. What a great idea.
Seems more timeless and personal than putting a QR code on the back or something ( which actually isn't a horrible idea either).
Please tell me you have or have started an ancestry account! Attaching letters and pictures makes them all feel so much more real! But awesome find!
Also, I think I might have to start attaching or writing stuff about great grandparents on the back of photos
>but the brother who was a lawyer in our group
You mean your brother. Here on Earth, to use your scenario as an example, we would refer to such an individual as, "my brother, the lawyer." Okay? Alright, good.
Now get back to your pod and practice that - can't have you out on the surface recklessly blowing our cover like that, we've worked so hard and for so long on this mission to take over this stupid planet, it'd be a shame to throw it all away now that we're in the home stretch...
That is SO COOL! And what a great idea to put a history on the back of old photos!
Family histories are so interesting and fun to research. I'm itching to go through some old albums now lol. Thanks for sharing!
Always look at the back! My GM was famous for “stashing cash” and we found money in photo frames behind the photo, tucked into an envelope of birth/death certificates, used as book marks. Thanks for sharing a piece of your history. I love finding the handwritten pieces❤️.
Oddly enough, 3 members of my family and over 800 people in my city were killed by a W.R. Grace. It seems like his company HQ moved (from Peru) to NYC in 1865.
His mine released tremolite-actinolite into the air. They hid it from the public for decades. Eventually someone released interagency paperwork that showed the coverup.
Now thousands of us have cancer and will die gasping for air. We can’t walk from one room to another without oxygen and eventually even the oxygen tanks can’t help. It wouldn’t have cost them significant money to keep us safe (or at least safer). Little things like using filters on the vented air, providing employees masks, misting water on the mined product to keep the dust down, showers/laundry for the employees so they could get it off vs bringing it home to kill their families, etc. They saved money and now we die.
The EPA didn’t start the cleanup until 1999. Most houses and businesses they came in and took 12”-18” of soil to ‘remove’ the contamination. It didn’t work and it looked like a bomb went off. Trees dead with their roots showing, nothing green just fresh turned ground. We’d already breathed it in for generations so it was decades too late.
My family (dad's side) left similar notes! It was so fascinating when I found them. They left theirs in a bible from the 1800s.
Stuff like this makes me wish I could go back in time and thank people who do this kind of thing. It's such a huge help.
Your heart must have jumped when you found those
It really did! I felt like I was uncovering treasure!
THANK YOU for sharing your family history. I love these kind of stories.♥️
You absolutely did uncover treasure, this is amazing
You did uncover a treasure.
35 or more people on Ancestry.com have her in their family trees! They would loove to have at least good photos of your find!
Oh wow! I’ll have to look that up!
I also wanted to add, please consider giving a copy to the historical society - depending on which one on LI you want to give it to. Its puts alot of pieces together. You probably did this already, but checking out those time periods within that town or the town the next generation moved to would help fill in info for you. Send me a message if you need help or want to know more.
Ahh!! I just clicked on the comments to suggest going to ancestry and contacting the family with this info. This is an incredible find, and I’m sure the family historian would love to have it!
Is this your family? If not I’d try looking up some of the names
It is my husband’s family, we already called his dad to come and look at it
Amazing!!!
That is awesome. They left some family history and a few more photos for others to find. And all the pictures are in really good condition.
So cool! The author was pretty old when they wrote it too. I wonder if their relatives are in the area. They might appreciate this bit of family history.
Wow you’re so right! I didn’t even realize! She was 98 years old when she wrote that letter. So amazing
And 19 when she married a 42 year old. I know it was normal back then, but like, what did they talk about?
Well, my granny was 20 and granddaddy 47 when they married. In the next 24 years she had a dozen babies, so I know some of what they must've talked about. He and his first wife had 9, the eldest of whom was older than granny. (First wife died.) He always called granny Miss First Name and kept a shotgun under his bed in case anybody tried to mess with her.
My great grandmother married her best friend's father. There was a 20+ age difference. She had step kids who were older than her, which is wild to think about. I always wonder what kind of conversation went on between her and her friend when she broke the news.
I just remembered this https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTN6cetwa/
Things moved a lot slower.
She was 88!
As an amateur genealogist, this makes my heart happy
The other envelope contained a whole family tree! Fascinating family history
Coolio
It’s a fantastic voyage!
Amazing! This is why I always tell people to write their names on their pictures!
This is was magical to read, thank you for sharing!!
I need to write some odd letters, stick them in an envelope and hang them behind old pictures. Our grand kids will love that!!! 😁
Now find there most recent relatives and give this treasure to them.
I’m married to him 🥰
Cool! How about Ancestry.com also if you have an account of course. I know that I absolutely love seeing photos of people. It gives me some depth to the person, a face to look at! 😍
Amazing photo
What a great idea. I have a large framed photo of my beloved grandfather. I think I’ll write a letter about him and tape it on the back. ❤️
Please do! Your children’s children and beyond will cherish it
Lucky find!!!
I concur! Luckiest moment to me was the time I won a Sprint-sponsored RadioShack windbreaker at a regional whateveritwas. ;)
Is Lawrence a family name?
There is no one right now in the family with the name Lawrence
Now I have to wonder whether one of the earlier descendants is responsible for the south shore area known as Lawrence.
I hadn’t even thought of that. Could be possible! I’ll look into it
According to the town's website, the land was purchased by three brothers with the last name Lawrence (Alfred, Newbold, and George) sometime in the 1850s. Edited to add here is a picture of her gravesite: [Jane Lawrence Arthur](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/43382387/jane-arthur)
This is really amazing. Family photos should contain at least a name and year on back.
Fantastic find! Someone really thought ahead.
Whoa that is so cool!!
That is amazing!
OP you husband’s ancestor lived on Long Island when it was mainly farms! I grew up there. That’s amazing.
His ancestors were actually one of the first families on Long Island, they’ve been here a very long time
So many old families, so many feuds.
Neat old piece about Long Island, Flushing Village found on the Library of Concress [https://www.loc.gov/item/2008620796/](https://www.loc.gov/item/2008620796/) There is a Lawrence Street and large plot of land with A. W. Lawrence on it.
“William Lawrence became…the largest land holder there.” But I’m not sure if they are related to this Lawrence. They must be though, Jane was born in Flushing, it would make sense!
She did not have all the dates correct, but she has an amazing amount of detail here. I am a distant cousin in law to Elbert. Relationship to Elbert Arthur My 5th cousin six times removed
Considering she was 98 when she wrote this, still astounding! And oh wow! Small world, hello! May I ask what dates were incorrect?
For a start her birth and death dates do not line up with death records (year is correct). I did not go thru date by date after this big discrepancy, as the information was far more interesting. Great photos and documents, thanks for sharing.
She passed on her birthday? 😔
Cool!
Wow, what a wonderful find!
Amazing 🥲
A treasure indeed. 💞
I would be so excited to find this id scream 😂
This is so cool! I’m an empath and always see old photos for sale in antique stores and swap meets. I always feel sad, looking at them and wonder who these people were, knowing they’d be deceased by now. It seems so sad that they’re just being sold off and that they’ve been essentially forgotten. This, on the other hand, is so lovely!
I know exactly what you mean! So, what do you do when you find them? Do you make any purchases of these old photos? Then what? Do you display them? Where? For a while, I kept finding old wedding photos and started a collection, but we don’t really have a good place to display them.
I haven’t purchased any, I just don’t have the space.
What a great thing.
Both of my parents are from Smithtown, that is wild I've never seen it anywhere else before
This family has been on Long Island for generations! People always ask where my husband is from, and I say “from here!”
Mine moved down south right after I was born so all I got is sounding weird my whole childhood lol
This is amazing!
Amazing!! I can’t fathom walking from Lake Success/Manhasset to Smithtown—that’s a hike!!
If you post a page of text as an image, it would be nice if it was large enough to see. Neat find though I have no idea what is is.
Feel free to zoom in. It is possible on the app. Most people have not had difficulty reading it.
Absolutely fascinating!
Oh that is fantastic.
What a gift across the generations and the years.
Wow! That's so precious!!! I inherited all my family's old photos, documents and letters. Been building my family tree for 3 years now. I foind out so many interesting stuff about my ancestors.
Great discovery! Someone took the time to record the story or you might never have known it. We all should take note and record what we know of the people who preceded us.
Amazing treasure about an ancestor!
That is so cool
This is wonderful. I’ve been thinking of just writing everything I can remember about people and putting it into notes on my family tree.
Wow. What a phenomenal woman and incredible find.
She said family squabble 😆
Squabbles are a timeless thing it seems…especially over land and money
She was tough as shoe leather. Much respect.
Wow! That is so cool….I need to go check the backs of old picture frames now.
I wish everyone did this
What did the envelopes say? And that is creepy
It held these letters and pictures. Did you swipe to see the rest of the pictures?
Oh now I see I missed that sorry
That creepy but cool I wonder who where they from
How I wish everyone thought to do this for photos and portraits. So often you have no idea who is in the picture and what might be a valuable family treasure can never be appreciated. Great find!
Noooo. I'm HUGE into Ancestry. Was this a family home? Are you related? I have soo many questions!!!
Ask away! This is my husband’s family and this was found at my his grandmother’s house. There is a LOT of history here. His grandfather was big into documenting history, photographing it, and tracing his family genealogy.
So you have her name? What was inside the envelopes?
Did you swipe to see the rest of the pictures? There’s multiples pics in the post!
I did not. Are you ready for a WTH moment?? My Maiden name is Arthur!!! I was born in NJ. My Uncle lived in NY
That’s an awesome idea!
That is truly awesome!
So do you own this property? Trying to figure out how it ended up in your basement. Is the location of the property near you?
What a find! 😍 You’re lucky, OP.
I'm doing this with framed photos that I know will remain hanging in my home for my lifetime. What a great idea. Seems more timeless and personal than putting a QR code on the back or something ( which actually isn't a horrible idea either).
Please tell me you have or have started an ancestry account! Attaching letters and pictures makes them all feel so much more real! But awesome find! Also, I think I might have to start attaching or writing stuff about great grandparents on the back of photos
SO cool!!!! I love finding included history with pieces like this!
That is so interesting.
[удалено]
>but the brother who was a lawyer in our group You mean your brother. Here on Earth, to use your scenario as an example, we would refer to such an individual as, "my brother, the lawyer." Okay? Alright, good. Now get back to your pod and practice that - can't have you out on the surface recklessly blowing our cover like that, we've worked so hard and for so long on this mission to take over this stupid planet, it'd be a shame to throw it all away now that we're in the home stretch...
Amazing, thank for sharing ❤️ so fascinated by these types of treasure finds 🫠
Don't mind my ignorance, but where is L.I.? 👀
Long Island, New York. It’s an island off to the bottom right of the state if you look at a map. Looks like a fish
Ohhhh! Gotcha, that makes sense. I hear their ice teas are great. 😉 Thanks!
Strongest of all the fifty-three state-named teas, both iced and hot varieties Edit: adjusted to account for The Island, P.R., and Guam.
That is SO COOL! And what a great idea to put a history on the back of old photos! Family histories are so interesting and fun to research. I'm itching to go through some old albums now lol. Thanks for sharing!
Always look at the back! My GM was famous for “stashing cash” and we found money in photo frames behind the photo, tucked into an envelope of birth/death certificates, used as book marks. Thanks for sharing a piece of your history. I love finding the handwritten pieces❤️.
What town was that farm in. My grandmother was born in Alligerville NY
Oddly enough, 3 members of my family and over 800 people in my city were killed by a W.R. Grace. It seems like his company HQ moved (from Peru) to NYC in 1865.
How were they killed??
His mine released tremolite-actinolite into the air. They hid it from the public for decades. Eventually someone released interagency paperwork that showed the coverup. Now thousands of us have cancer and will die gasping for air. We can’t walk from one room to another without oxygen and eventually even the oxygen tanks can’t help. It wouldn’t have cost them significant money to keep us safe (or at least safer). Little things like using filters on the vented air, providing employees masks, misting water on the mined product to keep the dust down, showers/laundry for the employees so they could get it off vs bringing it home to kill their families, etc. They saved money and now we die.
The EPA didn’t start the cleanup until 1999. Most houses and businesses they came in and took 12”-18” of soil to ‘remove’ the contamination. It didn’t work and it looked like a bomb went off. Trees dead with their roots showing, nothing green just fresh turned ground. We’d already breathed it in for generations so it was decades too late.
My family (dad's side) left similar notes! It was so fascinating when I found them. They left theirs in a bible from the 1800s. Stuff like this makes me wish I could go back in time and thank people who do this kind of thing. It's such a huge help.
Thank you for sharing this!
Fantastic idea!
Very cool, what a treasure
Amazing 🤩 find.
So smart they put these notes on the back. So many photos have no labels or stories physically attached like this. And those stories are lost.
Cool! Is the original farm house still standing?
I highly doubt it. Manhasset has been very developed since then.
Definitely no.
I appreciate that someone took the time to type this up and that many took time to keep it. Each of us matters!
COOL!!!
Corwin, thats an old LI farming family! Very cool!
How do you know this?? World love to know more!
Is it your family and your house or are these just simply strangers. There is a difference