With less than a month left before the 100th anniversary of the steamship Titanic’s maiden voyage, I was invited to participate in an event at the Molly Brown House Museum in Denver. “Women of the Titanic” told their stories to those who toured the house museum, while I conversed with interested visitors in the gift shop, formerly the carriage house, behind the Browns’ House of Lions. It was a delightful evening. As usual, the folks…
As the one hundredth anniversary approaches of the Titanic steamship’s tragic encounter with an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean during its maiden voyage, I will provide some details about our heroine, Margaret Brown, who consequently became known to us as the Unsinkable Molly Brown. After all, she is the inspiration for this Unsinkable blog, which celebrates her story and Western history. If you believe in fate, you will appreciate the circumstances that placed Mrs. J.J.…
January has always been a time for me to clean out my desk and my brain as I turn the calendar and make plans for a new year. How timely that the Denver Woman’s Press Club invited Cynthia Morris to coach a group of us through the process of focusing on plans and writing notes to hold ourselves accountable for ideas which will make 2012 Our Best Writing Year Ever. The regrouping, re-evaluating, and re-purposing…
As the holidays dwindle down to a few days until Christmas, in the midst of a beautiful Colorado snowstorm, I am enjoying the many ways in which the season surprises and gladdens me. This photo of a Christmas cactus is a perfect example. It is not just any Christmas cactus. It belonged to my mother, and was adopted by a caring friend, who gave it a good home. It is obviously growing and prospering in…
There is nothing like a weekend in Yellowstone National Park to clear the brain and boost the soul. For me, time spent with friends from Savage Days, when we lived and worked together long ago in Yellowstone Park, made the journey more meaningful and enriching. After this summer, punctuated by loss and sadness, my soul was elevated by time spent with friends in a place where stunning natural beauty and abundant wildlife speaks volumes to…
An opportunity to experience history can be as close as a family scrapbook. While my sister and I were visiting our Mom’s house, we pulled out a scrapbook, an album created by our grandmother, Narcissa Pickrell, during her college days at Northwestern University from about 1916 to 1920. Her collection, combined with letters she had written, gave us a glimpse of her personality and her life. She was clever, pretty, spunky, and talented. While growing…
Midway through the summer is a great time to regroup, and to return to Illinois for a visit. When I renew family ties, I enjoy and appreciate the grounded feeling of walking on the soil of my ancestors and the land of my upbringing. Fields of corn look splendid, far beyond the anticipated “knee high by the 4th of July.” Sweet corn newly arrived at the farmer’s market tastes a little like heaven. Weather was…
As Women’s History Month winds down, census records are on my mind. They are a blessing and a curse to the biographer. Once again, I am researching a Victorian Colorado woman who was fashionably demure about revealing her age and birthdate. Elizabeth “Baby Doe” Tabor was born in 1854. I am not sure of the exact date, because I have encountered negative evidence in that regard. She attained the age of six by the 1860…
During the holidays, we can enjoy many opportunities to revisit and exercise traditions. They provide important links to the past, and a foundation for future generations to relate to their family history. These important historical links take the form of celebrations, decorations, rituals, and routines. When past rituals no longer work, we make up new ones. This year, we celebrated the week before Christmas, the actual day, and New Years weekend with those who were…
While researching a Colorado pioneer character for an upcoming biography, I had difficulty finding her “voice”. Other people had plenty to say about her, good and bad. It was not until the final years of her life that she spoke out for others to hear. Unfortunately, by then, her thoughts were dominated by a spirit and dream world, leaving us with a jumble of disjointed perceptions. As I waded through archival files, I was amused…