Month: July 2022

Bucklin Brothers Coming and Going in 1925

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Clarence Bucklin, Myrtle Moon, unknown, and Fred Bucklin circa 1925 in southern Louisiana.

I like this pair of photos.  I got them from cousin Carla in 2019.  She let me borrow a whole stack of these old photos so I could scan them.  I’ve shared a few of them with you before.  Many of those photos had my grandfather Fred Bucklin and his identical twin brother Clarence Bucklin – father of Carla – in them.  In many of them I am unable to tell who is who since they were identical.  I keep thinking that at some point I’ll be able to tell them apart.  Because in some of the photos – like this one – you can tell which twin is which by who they are standing next to.

The person that is recognizable in those photos is Myrtle Moon.  Do not confuse her with my grandmother who was also a Myrtle.  My grandmother was Myrtle Phenice.  I have always found it interesting that both of the twins dated and married a woman named Myrtle.  So when I see a photo of the twins with Myrtle Moon, I’m pretty sure that she was likely standing next to Clarence in the photo.  That’s how I identified Clarence and Fred in this photo.  Myrtle Moon had a thin frame and curly hair and I recognize her standing with her arms crossed in front of her.

The other woman who is standing closer to my grandfather Fred is not my grandmother Myrtle.  I don’t know her name and I don’t know if it was a girlfriend or just a friend of the twins.  They took several photos with different friends and family members.  So it could be a friend of Myrtle Moon or a friend of one of their sisters.  At this point it’s not likely to be found out, though  I have found out things about photos from unlikely sources at unexpected times.  I post these photos and never know what kind of information I can get in return.

The foursome suddenly found something really interesting behind them.

The other part of this pair of photos is this one with the same four people with their backs turned toward the camera.  It’s an unusual pose to see in an old photo, yet it shows a playfulness that they must have had.  I really don’t think they were distracted by anything behind them.  And the photo only makes sense if you have the first photo.  If you only found this old photo, it would leave you mostly puzzled.  It might even leave you frustrated because you know they’ll never turn around to show you their faces.

Now that I look at these photos more, I am getting a bit puzzled and frustrated.  It’s like there is an inside joke and somehow I’m missing something.  And why are they hugging those pine branches?  Is that a clue?  Perhaps I am overthinking it.  It’s just a fun front and back set of photos.  Like a before and after photo.

Fred Bucklin with unidentified female in 1925 in southern Louisiana.

While I’m at it, I might as well post this other photo of my grandfather Fred on the same day.  I’m pretty sure it is the same day.  He is wearing the same thing, he is with the unidentified female from the other  photos, and she is wearing the same thing as well.  I’m not exactly sure where the photo was taken.  My grandfather and his brother lived in Hathaway, Louisiana, which is a small town in southern Louisiana in Jefferson Davis Parish.  When we visited my grandparents in Hathaway, we used to go the “Myrie” and play.  That was actually the Bayou Grand Marais, but it was more of a drainage ditch.  It looks like they were near a more substantial body of water.  It could be the Mermentau River near Jennings, but that didn’t have a beach like you see in the third photo.  I’m thinking it is most likely the Ouiska Chitto Creek.  It’s a waterway a few miles west of Hathaway where you can canoe and swim.

Or you can just go there with friends and take fun photos for people to think about 100 years later.  That’s what my grandfather did.  I, for one, am glad he did.

The Real Photo of Ferdinand Patureau Circa 1875

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I’m pretty sure this is a drawing of the original photo that was taken around 1875.

For the longest time I’ve been aware of a “photo” of my great great grandfather Ferdinand Pierre Patureau.  A horrible version of the photo was used back in the 1990s as an invitation to Patureau family members to come together for a reunion.  The image was a Xerox copy of a copy of a drawing of a photo.  At least that’s what it looked like to me.  But it didn’t stop people from coming to the reunion and claiming that they were related to old Ferdinand.  The scan of the image I have here is not as bad as the one used for the reunion.  In fact, I cleaned it up and restored it as best I could.  It was better than nothing.

Then a few years ago I got a better copy of the image from my dad’s first cousin Sis of the Patureau line.  I don’t know where she got her version, because it was definitely better than the one I had.  That one had already been edited.  I think some of the programs that restore photos use some type of algorithm that makes an image look more like a photographic image.  I think that’s what happened to this one.  I was thinking that it was a photo.  It was close enough to his likeness that I was able to recognize him in other photos.

Ferdinand Pierre Patureau in a photo from around 1875 in southern Louisiana.

Last November I went to the Pierre Ferdinand Patureau Collection (AC-824) at the Tyrrell Historical Library in Beaumont, Texas.  I’ve shared some of the photos from that collection already.  My favorite photo from that collection is the Patureau family photo from 1864.  There is no question about that.  It is a definite favorite.  It is a photo of Ferdinand Pierre Patureau with his wife Marie Emma Landry Patureau and their children up to that point in time.  Even though it was before my great grandfather Vincent Maximilian Patureau (Grampa Max) had been born, it’s still my favorite.  Then there are runner-ups to that photo.  The real photo of Ferdinand Patureau is one of them.

As you can see in the photo, he looks a bit different.  Yet you can still tell that it is the same person.  He’s got the high forehead, the thin goatee, and the curly hair around his ears.  Another thing that makes me think the other image is a drawing is the detail shown in the clothes.  The lapel of the jacket is outlined, and the white tie outline keeps it from blending in with the shirt he was wearing.  I wondered if it might have been a crayon treatment of an old photo.

Mirror versions of the two sides of Ferdinand’s face. A very different look from one side to the other.

But then I realized what the main difference is.  His face is very asymmetrical in the photo.  Most people have slight differences on the two sides of their faces.  You’ll notice it more when you look at mirrored images.  There is even an app that will show you what you’d look like with one side or the other.  There’s an app for everything!  So it looks like the old drawing was almost an idealized version of the better-looking side of his face.  You’d think that while they were at it, they could have drawn him with a hint of a smile on his face!

I’m not exactly sure of when the photo was taken.  He was born in LaRoche-Chalais, France, on October 27, 1826.  He died in Plaquemine, Louisiana, on February 25, 1877, after having a terrible accident in his sawmill.  He looks older than he did in the 1864 photo, so I estimate that the photo was taken in 1875.  It was probably taken in Plaquemine.

I’m glad this old photo is being preserved in the collection in Beaumont.  Even though it’s not my favorite, it still ranks pretty high.

Meeting the Parents in 1952

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Betty Lou Bucklin and Bob Landry at the Landry home in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in May of 1952.

Later this year we will honor the 70th anniversary of my parents’ first wedding.   It was their one and only wedding, so don’t think you’ve  missed out on some information.  My mom talked about how they went on a few dates when she first started school.  Then my dad broke it off for a while because they weren’t the same religion.  My mom was a English/Irish/German Methodist and my dad was a Cajun Catholic.  But when Bob Landry realized he couldn’t get Miss Betty Lou Bucklin out of his head, they started dating again.  By the spring semester of 1952 at McNeese State College, they had decided that they were going to get married.

Betty Lou Bucklin in May 1952 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. She turned 19 on the 20th of that month.

One of the things that couples usually do is go back to their childhood homes and meet their partner’s parent or parents.  In their case, all of their parents were alive at that time.  They even took a few photos with some family members at the Landry home.  This must have been when Mama met Mee Maw and Pee Paw.  For those not in the know, that would be Betty Lou Bucklin meeting Erie Patureau Landry and Robert Joseph “Rob” Landry, Sr. at their home in Lake Charles, Louisiana.  I don’t remember these photos when I was growing up.  My mom may have told me that they were from that fateful visit, but I probably wasn’t paying attention.  It’s a good thing she realized this and wrote the information on the back of the photos.  Thanks, Mom.

But I do remember the story she told me about the first time she met the Landry family.  The thing that was the most striking to my mom was the affection that his parents had toward their children.  Her family was a little more staid.  The English culture is more known for having a more reserved manner.  But it was more than that.  When Pee Paw came home from work, he greeted each member of his family with a kiss.  And it was not just the womenfolk. He also greeted his sons with a kiss.  On the lips. 

Marie Therese “Sis” Schafer (my dad’s maternal cousin), Wana Lydwin Landry (my dad’s younger sister), and Betty Lou Bucklin at the Landry home in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in May of 1952.

Now there was nothing wrong with this action, but my mom was definitely not used to it.  Like she would say to me, “I don’t want anyone kissing my lips but my honey!”  Of course her honey was my dad.  I must have heard this story when I was quite young, because I think it might have influenced my own behavior.  I remember discreetly avoiding my Landry aunts who would kiss us kids in greeting.  And we definitely avoided those dreaded kisses from our cousin Tez – she of the bumps.  As I’ve gotten older and have lost those aunts, I sometimes miss those sweet greetings. 

It’s interesting that this was the day that my mom met her future in-laws, but there is not a photo of her with them or of the two couples together.  At least we have the one of mom and dad.  I’ve shared the photo of my mom before, but it is worth sharing again.  It is such a striking photo of her.  I also like the photo of her with Dad’s cousin Sis and his sister Wana.   I asked Sis about the day of the meeting, but she didn’t remember it.  It wasn’t as monumental for her as it was for my mom.

Sadly, we don’t have any photos of the visit to my mom’s parents.  Her parents were Fred Bucklin and Myrtle Phenice Bucklin and they lived in Hathaway, Louisiana.  And again with this story, it is from my mom’s point of view.  The only thing I remember her telling me about was the meal that they had.  I don’t remember what it was that was served.  My grandmother cooked things like chicken-fried steak with white gravy or red beans and sausage.  It was probably something like that.  Something that my mom never fixed because my dad didn’t like them.  I like that kind of food, but we would only have it when Daddy was out of town.

So what happened was this.  When it was time for dinner, my grandmother probably called the family to the table.  I imagine she had tried her best to provide a good meal for her future son-in-law.  But when Bob Landry sat down at the dinner table and looked at the food provided, all he said was, “I can’t eat that.”  He didn’t make up some story about being allergic or something, he just matter of factly said he wasn’t going to eat it.  And he didn’t.  I don’t know what he did for dinner that night.  It was a bit shocking to my mom at the time.  Otherwise you wouldn’t be hearing the story. 

My dad always stood by his behavior and was glad he wasn’t stuck eating something he didn’t like for years to come.  I never heard my grandmother’s view of the story.  It must not have been a deal breaker, because they always seemed to get along fine.  She cooked things he liked from time to time.  She even let him have some of her divinity.

Mary Ann Writes to Her Son Louie in 1893

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Letter from Mary Ann McGrath Bucklin to her son Louis Charles Bucklin in 1893. Louis Bucklin was in school in Ada, Ohio, during this time.

I can’t remember when I took this photo.  I was visiting with my mom’s Bucklin cousin Louise in Hathaway and we were talking about family history and looking at old family photos.  I tend to do that from time to time, so I can’t remember the exact date.  I should be able to tell, because I keep such good track of all of the photos I take.  At least I thought I did.  I’ve found many photos I took when I was younger that don’t have a date on them.  Why would anyone listen to my recommendation to label all of their photos when I don’t do so myself?  Because they shouldn’t follow my bad example!  Do as I say, not as I do.  Label all of your photos!!

Ok.  I got that out of my system.  That wasn’t planned, but none of this post was planned.  I just knew I was going to write something and it was likely going to be about my mom’s side of the family because it’s their turn.  So this old letter caught my attention when I was looking through the folders on my computer about my maternal side.

As you can see from the letter itself, it was written on April 11, 1893.  What you probably do not know is that it was written by my great great grandmother Mary Ann McGrath.   She was the mother of Louis Bucklin.  He was the father of Fred Bucklin, who was my maternal grandfather.

Mary Ann is my closest link to Ireland.  She was born in 1834 in Roscommon, Ireland.  Her youngest sibling was born in Ireland in 1838.  That would mean that Mary Ann was 11 years old when the Great Famine began in Ireland in  1845.  That’s when a blight caused the destruction of a large majority of the potato crop in the country. Since potatoes were a large part of the Irish diet, it caused widespread famine.

James Bucklin and Mary Ann McGrath were married in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1854.

During the six years of the Great Potato Famine an estimated million people died from starvation and hunger-related diseases.  Mary Ann and her family were part of the million Irish people who emigrated during that time.  I have not been able to identify the date of their move to the United States, but know that they settled in Palmer, Massachusetts.  Mary Ann met a local man named James Bucklin and they were married in 1854 in Springfield, Massachusetts.  So we know they were in the US by 1854, but they probably came over around 1850 or so.  I hope to be able to find that information one day.  I will definitely let you all know when I do.

So Mary Ann and James went on to have Jennie in 1855 and Joseph in 1861.  Those two were born in Massachusetts.  The family then moved to Iowa at some point, because they had Edd in 1864 in Sand Springs, Iowa.  They were still in Iowa when our Louis was born in 1873.  But the family moved south to Louisiana and began homesteading in Hathaway, Louisiana, in 1884.  Then in 1893, it was decided that Louis needed a good education and that was going to be done in Ada, Ohio.  So he went off to Ohio Normal University.  He kept a journal about some of the things that were happening when he was there.  He must have also kept some of the letters that he got from home, because the family still has some of them.

In this one, his mother Mary Ann talks about a dream that she had.  In the dream her son “Louie” came to her crying because he had broken his arm.  This caused Mary Ann to worry about her son and she says, “I cannot wrest untile I hear from you that you are alright.”  I’m sure she was missing her youngest son and was concerned about his well being.  I wonder how Louis took this.  He was 19 years old and probably didn’t want to see himself as a child who goes crying to his mother when he gets hurt.  And yet he probably appreciated his mother’s concern and he still kept the letter all through the years.

The big Cry Baby!