This is a picture of Darke County Infirmary as it looked when Annie stayed there, years before it burnt down and they replaced it with the one identified in a postcard in a previous posting.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Darke County Infirmary...
This is a picture of Darke County Infirmary as it looked when Annie stayed there, years before it burnt down and they replaced it with the one identified in a postcard in a previous posting.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
An article on Annie's Dorchester Home.
Widely regarded as the only existing home Annie used as a primary residence, her home in Cambridge, Maryland was featured recently in a Washington Post article.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
With luck...
...I'll be going back to Ohio soon.
...I'll be looking for assessed tax discrepancies in chattel holdings in Eaton for a family of interest.
...I'll be conducting at least 1-2 interviews in person.
...I'll be revisiting an interesting home... ...maybe.
...stopping by Blair County, PA, for research.
...I'll meet up with fellow researchers and telling them, perhaps, which of the things they've been seeking that I've since found.
...contemplating how to secure an historic home for preservation and restoration.
...scanning pictures, if they exist.
...and more. :)
...I'll be looking for assessed tax discrepancies in chattel holdings in Eaton for a family of interest.
...I'll be conducting at least 1-2 interviews in person.
...I'll be revisiting an interesting home... ...maybe.
...stopping by Blair County, PA, for research.
...I'll meet up with fellow researchers and telling them, perhaps, which of the things they've been seeking that I've since found.
...contemplating how to secure an historic home for preservation and restoration.
...scanning pictures, if they exist.
...and more. :)
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
So...
It's been altogether too long since I've updated this thing, but I've been insanely busy after my research vacation. So much to be thankful for on that trip -- meeting new contacts and such -- but here's a little tidbit I'll elaborate upon later:
^ That's my guy.
^ That's my guy.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Pics.
The following are postcards from the area and near the era I'm studying. They prove invaluable points of reference for understanding what ones' characters might be seeing and hearing...
Above is the Darke County Infirmary in Greenville, OH. The original measured but 48' X 80', and was expanded, doubling its capacity. It burnt down and this was built in it's place, and a separate Children's Home was built to better serve the population.
The present structure occupying the site bears no resemblance to the original, nor to the one pictured here.
Greenville City Hall pictured above.
Broadway, looking north to City Hall off in the distance.
Arcanum is a small town in Twin Tmp. once fed commerce via the Dayton & Union Railroad. The D & U long since dissolved, Arcanum has fallen into disrepair. People still live there, but it's littered with abandoned buildings and an empty church not yet modified for residence. Elsewhere nearby, you can find at least two churches that have been converted to residences as the population base that once sustained them dissipated, likely following employment into larger urban centers. It is the primary cause of most modern "Ghost Towns".
An old Opera House from Arcanum in its heyday.
Here's how it appears today.
I plan to pick up more postcards, especially of the RPPC (Real Photo Post Card) from neighboring Lewisburg, and the surrounding area if I can find them. They're not only great pieces of Americana themselves, but great reference for the historical writer to get their head in the proper time/space.
Above is the Darke County Infirmary in Greenville, OH. The original measured but 48' X 80', and was expanded, doubling its capacity. It burnt down and this was built in it's place, and a separate Children's Home was built to better serve the population.
The present structure occupying the site bears no resemblance to the original, nor to the one pictured here.
Greenville City Hall pictured above.
Broadway, looking north to City Hall off in the distance.
Arcanum is a small town in Twin Tmp. once fed commerce via the Dayton & Union Railroad. The D & U long since dissolved, Arcanum has fallen into disrepair. People still live there, but it's littered with abandoned buildings and an empty church not yet modified for residence. Elsewhere nearby, you can find at least two churches that have been converted to residences as the population base that once sustained them dissipated, likely following employment into larger urban centers. It is the primary cause of most modern "Ghost Towns".
An old Opera House from Arcanum in its heyday.
Here's how it appears today.
I plan to pick up more postcards, especially of the RPPC (Real Photo Post Card) from neighboring Lewisburg, and the surrounding area if I can find them. They're not only great pieces of Americana themselves, but great reference for the historical writer to get their head in the proper time/space.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Acquisitions.
I’ve doubled-down on my research investment, purchasing several items, including a surprisingly clean copy of a rare atlas from 1875. There's a lot more to it than what historicmapworks.com shows, and I really can't be arsed to get to NYC or Philly (if Philly even has a copy) just to get glimpses at the data I want. Besides, they have all sorts of limitations on the material's use, but now that I have an original copy, I can decide my own limitations, and have all rights. It cost an arm and a leg, but it was worth it. It falls neatly between Federal Census years, and lists landowners, names of businesses and restaurants, and has a number of other intriguing details to help fill out the portrait...
An idea of how rare this atlas is? I have it, but ancestry.com does not, and I come up empty when Googling for auctions for it. The crazy stuff you'll turn up on ebay on a lark. :)
I also picked up a copy of "Missie" (1947) by Annie Fern Swartwout -- a niece of Annie Oakley's who traveled with her for a time as her assistant. It's said to be fact and myth in equal measure, but it may provide some good flavor. I'd tried to get a cheap copy, but someone sniped me, so I bit at a signed copy w/dustjacket. Probably didn't get any other bids because the seller labeled it poorly, not even mentioning Annie Oakley in the heading, so even if it's absolutely horrible, I can turn it around for an easy $25-50 dollar profit when I want, likely more. Similar copies have gone for more than twice what I paid, so I'm pleased.
I’d only received Walter Havighurst's book the week prior but it has probably proved the most useful when looking for a style from which to take inspiration. The man's got a way with words and really nails dialect and accent. Plus, he cites Annie talking about a family she’d stayed with in terms I’d not heard before, reminding me that there’s still some personal writing of hers I’ve got to track down.
An idea of how rare this atlas is? I have it, but ancestry.com does not, and I come up empty when Googling for auctions for it. The crazy stuff you'll turn up on ebay on a lark. :)
I also picked up a copy of "Missie" (1947) by Annie Fern Swartwout -- a niece of Annie Oakley's who traveled with her for a time as her assistant. It's said to be fact and myth in equal measure, but it may provide some good flavor. I'd tried to get a cheap copy, but someone sniped me, so I bit at a signed copy w/dustjacket. Probably didn't get any other bids because the seller labeled it poorly, not even mentioning Annie Oakley in the heading, so even if it's absolutely horrible, I can turn it around for an easy $25-50 dollar profit when I want, likely more. Similar copies have gone for more than twice what I paid, so I'm pleased.
I’d only received Walter Havighurst's book the week prior but it has probably proved the most useful when looking for a style from which to take inspiration. The man's got a way with words and really nails dialect and accent. Plus, he cites Annie talking about a family she’d stayed with in terms I’d not heard before, reminding me that there’s still some personal writing of hers I’ve got to track down.
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