POTD

Photo of the Day – May 25, 2015

joelowry1982 1890s, Maternal, POTD, Witt

I’m going to get back into the swing of posting here, I promise. I actually enjoy sharing my family discoveries and have been quite active in my genealogy work. I just haven’t been posting anything to the blog. I hope to change that in the coming days and weeks. You can certainly expect some great daily photos in the very near future. Mary Catherine Sanders (nee Witt) provided me some amazing photos of my 2nd great grandfather and his family that I can’t wait to scan and share. I’ve also made some discoveries involving Civil War records and closed a very big loop regarding Edward Lowry, my 2nd great grand uncle from Washington state. So stay tuned, there’s more to come!

Today’s photo of the day is the wedding photo of John Albert Witt and Johanna Thaner. They were married on 22 May 1890 in Saint Mary’s Church in Pittsburgh. John is the brother of my 2nd great-grandfather Joseph Witt. I’ve written about John’s unfortunate death here.

Source:
John Albert Witt (1863-1942) and Johanna Thaner Witt (1862-1949), photograph, taken in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on 22 May 1890; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned by Mary Mathewson; privately held by Mary Mathewson, [address for private use], Rocky River, Ohio. Man seated in suit and woman standing in wedding gown. Provenance is Mary Mathewson to Joseph Lowry.

Photo of the Day – March 23, 2015

joelowry1982 1940s, Groucutt, Lowry, Pepperney, POTD
I can’t put a specific date or location on this photo, but my grandmother Jean Groucutt Lowry and her mother-in-law Margaret Pepperney Lowry look to be on a road trip. They probably stopped for gas or a quick bite to eat and one of their husbands asked for a quick photo. Neither looks particularly happy to be posing for the camera.
Source:
Mary Margaret Pepperney Lowry (1902-1980) and Jean Groucutt Lowry (1924-1986), photograph, taken at unknown location, in late 1940s; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Two women standing in front of a restaurant. Provenance is Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.

Photo of the Day – March 22, 2015

joelowry1982 Lowry, Paternal, POTD

A bright smile and closed eyes greeted my great grandmother when she took this photo on her son’s second birthday. She no doubt wanted a photograph to help remember his big day, but anything taken indoors probably wouldn’t have developed properly. Thus, it was time to bundle up and take little Charles outside for the shot. The more I look at this collection of photos, the more I love the idea of her carrying her camera around, capturing all sorts of images of her son.

Source:
Charles James Lowry (1924-2007), photograph, taken at unknown location, in November 1926; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Portrait of toddler in winter coat and hat standing in snowy yard. Provenance is Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.

Photo of the Day – March 20, 2015

joelowry1982 Lowry, Paternal, POTD

In honor of the Notre Dame men’s basketball team barely squeezing out a victory over Northeastern University in the men’s tourney yesterday, I give this you image of Our Lady’s University. The golden dome atop the Administration Building is one of the most recognizable university symbols in the country. My grandfather Charles Lowry took this photo during a trip to Notre Dame in November 1941. You can see more photos from that trip on this post.

Source:
The Administration Building at the University of Notre Dame, photograph, taken on either 21 or 22 November, 1941; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Provenance is Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.


Photo of the Day – March 19, 2015

joelowry1982 Lowry, Paternal, Pepperney, POTD

My grandfather Charles Lowry is posing in this photo looking dapper in a double breasted jacket and white tie. I seem to recall other similar photos indicating that this his 8th grade graduation in the spring of 1938 or 1939. The timing is right, as I think the little girl is is his first cousin Catherine Pepperney who was born in 1937 and would be 1 or 2 years old.

Source:
Charles James Lowry (1924-2007) and believed to be Catherine Pepperney Campana, photograph, taken at unknown location around 1939; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Young man in dark blazer and white shirt and white pants standing in front of young child on small bike. Provenance is Mary Pepperney Lowry to Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.

Photo of the Day – March 18, 2015

joelowry1982 Paternal, Pepperney, POTD

My great uncle Francis Witt Jr. married Mary Lou Murray on August 2, 1944. Shown in this photo on their wedding day are Francis’s younger brother Howard (my grandfather) and the baby of the family, his sister Helen. It is unknown to me who the woman on the right is. Less than a week prior Francis had returned home to Youngstown after being reported missing in action. According to a Vindicator report, how he arrived home was not disclosed (but I can let you in on the secret).

Source:
Unknown, Mary Lou Murray Witt (1917-2001), Helen Witt (1934-2009), Francis Witt Jr. (1920-2002) and Howard Witt (1929-2001), photograph, taken at unknown location on 2 Aug 1944; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Marie Dockry, [address for private use], Austintown, Ohio. Three women and two men, one in a service uniform, appearing for a wedding. Provenance is Marie Dockry to Joseph Lowry.

Photo of the Day – March 17, 2015

joelowry1982 Lowry, McSweeney, Paternal, POTD

Joseph McSweeney was just 11 months old when his mother Anna Lowry McSweeney died of cancer in March 1920 at the age of 24. Anna was the sister of my great grandfather Charles E. Lowry. After that, young Joseph was raised by his grandparents Michael and Anna Lowry in Salem, Ohio. He died in 1979 in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

Source:
Joseph McSweeney (1918-1979), photograph, taken at unknown location around 1920; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Young boy, approximately two years old, standing in front of Model T car. Provenance is Mary Pepperney Lowry to Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.

Photo of the Day – February 6, 2015

joelowry1982 1940s, Paternal, Pepperney, POTD
The Pepperney family in the summer of 1942. In the photo are my great grand uncle James Albert Pepperney, Sr., his wife Catherine Butsko Pepperney, and their children, Catherine and James Jr. The youngest was born in January 1942, so this photo was no doubt taken sometime that summer.
Source:
James Albert Pepperney, Sr. (1906-1999), Catherine Butsko Pepperney (1910-1975), Catherine Pepperney and James Albert Pepperney, Jr., photograph, taken at unknown location in 1942; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Family of four, including father, mother, boy and girl in light summer clothing standing on grass. Provenance is Mary Pepperney Lowry to Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.

Photo of the Day – February 5, 2015

joelowry1982 1940s, Lowry, Paternal, Pepperney, POTD

Instead of taking a picture of my great grandmother Margaret Pepperney Lowry shovel the snow, perhaps the photographer could have helped her? It was probably either my grandfather Chuck Lowry or great grandfather Charles Lowry who took this image on a wintery day in the 1940s. Fortunately, there’s only an inch or two on the ground so it didn’t take much time to shovel.

Source:
Mary Margaret Pepperney Lowry (1902-1980), photograph, taken at either Thornton Avenue or 50 Bissell Avenue, Youngstown, Ohio in mid-1940s; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Woman in overcoat shoveling snow from a walkway. Provenance is Mary Pepperney Lowry to Charles Lowry to Mary McCaffrey.