MyHeritage user Julie Mallen, 52, from Canada, was given a beautiful photograph of her great-great-grandparents by her great-aunt, but Julie didn’t think to ask her for the identities of all the people in it until after she had passed. Using MyHeritage, Julie was able to identify every single one of them. Here is her story:
I had some old photos along with some mortuary cards entrusted to me by my great-aunt on my mother’s side of the family in Quebec. My great-aunt knew that I was interested in family history and that I treasured these photos.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get her to tell me who all the people were in a few of the photos before she died.
The photo above was taken circa 1917, of Julie’s great-great-grandparents and family
The years passed, I got older, and I felt the need to start labeling my photos, for my children and their kids. But all I knew about the above photograph was that my great-great-grandparents were in it, seated on either side of the young boy. I asked everyone in my extended family if they knew who these people were and nobody knew. I thought it was sad to have such a great photo and to not know who all the other people were around them!
So I embarked on a journey through time, with the help of MyHeritage. I was able to map out my family tree and then reach out to the descendants of all those in the photo to confirm their identities. My family tree now encompasses more than 2,355 people, and it’s growing all the time.
Thanks to MyHeritage, I now know with certainty who each individual is in this photo!
The photo with all its subjects identified by name
It turns out that this is a complete family portrait of my great-great-grandparents, circa 1917. All their children and their spouses who were alive at the time are in the photograph, including my great-grandparents, who I didn’t recognize because they’re younger than in other photos I have of them.
I now know that this is the most precious relic in my possession. I feel that it’s my duty to share it with all the descendants of Georges Dufresne and Agnes Chamberland!
Here are some of the other treasures in my collection enhanced and colorized on MyHeritage:
Julie’s great-great-grandparents, Georges Dufresne & Agnès Chamberland: a real treasure.
Julie’s great-grandfather, Louis Dufresne, smoking his pipe
Julie’s great-grandparents, Marie-Louise Guay and Louis Dufresne
Julie’s great-great-grandmother, Marie-Louise Guay, hanging laundry
Julie’s great-grandparents Marie-Louise Guay and Louis Dufresne with their oldest 3 children. The girl at the forefront is Claire, the great-aunt who gave her the photos; the baby is Armand and the remaining daughter is Jeannette
I think people should do their best to write details on the back of their photos, to ensure that this information is preserved for future generations.
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Many thanks to Julie for sharing her story! MyHeritage can help you not only identify the ancestors in old family photos, but also improve them: repair, animate, enhance, and colorize them — even make them speak! If you have some fascinating family photos and are looking to solve a mystery, start building your tree on MyHeritage. It worked for Julie; it just might work for you.
The post MyHeritage Helped Me Identify Every Single Person in My Great-Great-Grandparents’ Family Portrait appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.
Source: My Heritage
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