Who are they?

I don't know who they are, but sweet ride!

I researched the scooter and it is made by American Moto-Scoot Co., 

between 1937-1947 in Chicago, Illinois 

*on the back it's stamped Ray's Photo Service, La Crosse, Wisconsin*

Random Snap from the Past

Grandma Singer

Puerto Plata

Gift of Gab

Dina and Rose Marie in high school.

Our two favorite ladies are definitely award winning conversationalists.

Always look before you toss

I never really spoke to Dad about his father or grandparents, or maybe I just don’t remember him talking about them. His father left when he was a very small boy so we never saw or knew any of the Ryan side of the family. However we always talked about the fact that we kids were 1/8 Irish and 1/8 Luxembourgian and ¼ Norwegian (and 1/2 Spanish, from Mom). It never occurred to me that Dad might actually have any family history written down. Today I was sorting through old boxes of Dad’s stuff to organize and toss some “unimportant” papers, like envelopes and old tax returns etc. My Dad liked to write cryptic, esoteric notes on pieces of paper and in notebooks. Some notes I think were solutions to word puzzles, on others I think maybe he was in a drunken stupor. Hard to say. Mostly I just set them aside because I keep thinking I am going to discover he really was a spy and had to communicate in secret code.

The point of this post is an old envelope I found in a box of papers from Bangkok. Inside the envelope are negatives from Korea and Thailand. To be clear I could have stuck the negatives in the envelope on one of my previous sorting binges. What is in the envelope has nothing to do with notes written on the back of the envelope. On the top portion of the envelope he wrote all the dates of different places he lived. Some are abbreviations for States, some are street names in St. Louis.

47 - IL (Illinois)
49 - Keesler (no idea where this is?)
53 - S.Dak  (South Dakota I guess?)
54 - Cleve  (this is his first house after he married Mom, Cleveland Place in St. Louis, Mo.)
57 - Maple (Maplewood Avenue in St. Louis)
63 - Dover Place (street in St. Louis)
64 - Switzerland – Bel. (Belgium)
68 - US  (United States)
76 - K  (Korea)

The bottom of the envelope is more interesting. These numbers, or rather dates, are what really caught my eye. If I had not been doing genealogy research for the last few years and just happened to have certain dates stuck in my head I may never have figured out what this series numbers meant.

1868 – Lux
1873(5) US
1885 to MHd (17)
1887(19) married
1905(37) widow
1944

1944
1868
____
76

My great grandmother (Dad’s grandmother) Lena Steichen was born in Luxembourg in 1868. She immigrated with her family in 1873 (when she was five years old). The Steichen family moved to Moorhead, Minnesota in 1885. Lena married James Ryan in 1887. My great grandfather James Ryan died in 1905. Lena died in 1943. Ok this last date does not quite match but it’s close enough. Where did he get these dates? When and why did he write them down on the back of an envelope? I found all the dates through census, death records, obits etc! If I had only known that he had all this information all the time!! What else did he know?

1934 La Sociedad Espanola

Soccer mania is over but here's one more photo of the Spanish Soccer Club

Top Row: far left  - Benito "Chic" Fernandez, sixth over from left Henry "Eggie" Fernandez, and second from right Prudencio "Pete" Garcia

Spanish Soccer Club, St. Louis, Mo.

1929-1930 City Champions

Uncle "Eggie" (Enrique Fernandez) is the tall boy in the back row.
It's hard to see, but there is writing at the bottom of the photo.
(I think the city is East St. Louis)

Lazy Days of Summer (circa 1968)

At the Singer's Farm 

Pana, Illinois

God Bless America

God Bless America from Wela

Independence Day, St. Louis 1963

Top: Jim E. waving

Bottom: Tio ?, Welo, Barb, Ken and MB

July 4th Parade

St. Louis, Mo. 1963

Father Ryan

 

"While it is often exhilirating to know one-of-a-kind persons, it is also sadder when they go because you know how unique and rare they are. And in their own little corner of the world there will always be a little vacancy - they can never be replaced."

... quote from Jim Ryan in a condolence note to a friend.

Summertime is finally here!

Summertime Snackin' circa 1970 from Marybeth on Vimeo.

(Sorry it's a bit out of focus. I just couldn't get a clear copy and gave up.)

In Memory

Douglas on the far right smiling

 

Dina at the Wall

http://www.virtualwall.org/dg/GonzalezDD01a.htm

In memory of our cousin Douglas D. Gonzalez 

 "...I also remember Aunt Mildred's grief ...and a line that I will never forget.  She told her sister Dora that she had cried so much she knew she didn't have any more tears left...though the next morning she cried as if it was yesterday.  I was very young at the time, but I understood the magnitude of this loss."     Barbara R.

Before the WWW there was BBS

Autobiography of Jim Ryan (1994)

In 1994 Dad was stuck at home sick with cancer. But he found ways to occupy his time setting up his DimNah Bulletin Board System.  He would really be having a ball if he could see what's out there on the interweb now.  One thing for sure, he would have a lot more "friends" than I have on his Facebook page.

Yesterday was Samtastic day!

Beauty in the World from Lucy Sunshine on Vimeo.

Downrating Patriotism (Post Dispatch July 1961)

 

Dad was a visionary

Happy Mothers Day (I always knew she had three hands)

  You light up my life (David sings) by Milsapy

In which Mom is very patient with a temperamental artist.  (1977 St. Louis)

And Ladies of the Club

Group Photo!

I am going to post some of my favorite old group photographs.

I am sure dad took this via automatic timer.

Look how happy everyone is!

(circa 1958)

Dear Mr. Hoover

 

"And he's investigated me a few times, too. J. Edgar and I are on the best of terms, I hope." James P.Ryan (quote from a letter to a friend November 21, 1961)

Dear Mr. Ryan

My father used to get a lot of "form" letter responses to his numerous letters to his representatives. But sometimes he riled them up to the point where they addressed his concerns directly; and my husband wonders where I get my "flaming liberal" tendencies.