I got a lot of family photos to put over the last week, and a one Picture of the Week for family to try and identify who's in it. You can see it above.  In addition, Jill send in a really fantastic old recipe for Macaroni and Cheese that can be found in The Stone Cookbook.  Make sure to check it out, along with the story that goes with it.

There are also more mid century photos of the Stone daughters, Hazel and Pauline, and their husbands, as well as a baby photo of Linda from 1915.  Check them out on the Snapshots and Photo Album Pages.

We're still in need of photos and info from a lot of our cousins.  The majority of the photos of earlier generations so far have come from Jill.  In addition to old photos, we need photos of the younger generations as well.  (... says the Webmaster who actually hasn't gotten a photo of herself, or her husband up yet either. :-/)  I know that photos can be something that not everyone is keen to show off (including me) but then I look at this wonderful collection of our parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents and more, and I realize that if they thought the way I did, we wouldn't have these memories to share with each other. Our children wouldn't be able to relate to the family members they've never met, and that makes me sad.  So look through the old scrap books, go process that film that's been sitting in the freezer for ages, or even break out your smart (or not so smart) phone and capture some memories.  Doesn't matter if it's a serious portrait, or a funny candid photo, please send it along.

- Kathryn (Katy) Dodd

What great news, Katy:  58 individual hits on the website in one day.  We are up and running! 

Ah, yes, the old sayings and superstitions.  (See blog entry below) I miss the old sayings.  There may be some truth to them.  I try to eat an apple a day, and so far it has worked for me.  All of the sayings Carol mentioned are ones I grew up with, too, including catching flies with honey instead of vinegar.  How true that is!  Another superstition to add to the list is don’t put your hat on the bed or you will have bad luck.

On Tuesday I will be traveling to Rockland to look at the function room of the Rockland Congregational Church and to meet with the owner of the Brown Bag to see about catering for Saturday night.  If there is time, I hope to look at a couple of restaurants that are possibilities or catch up with one or two other caterers.  Aunt Mary and Uncle Emery have invited me to lunch, so my motivation may evaporate if the day is as lovely as today was.  We are having a true and rare spring here, and sitting on their deck, enjoying the warmth of the sun, watching the pines and oaks, and chatting with them may prove to be too relaxing.

Today’s photo is of our cousins in England.  I had the privilege of meeting them when I was only 12.  We were on our way home from Ankara, Turkey, and stopped in England for a 2 week visit as my mother (Pauline) knew it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the family to see London, the countryside, and the relatives still in Bournemouth.  This photo was taken by Uncle Bill when he and Aunt Linda visited England in April of 1973.  I don’t know much about the women in the photo except Renee rode her bicycle to her work every day and they had a beautiful cottage garden filled with flowers.  I don’t know their last names, how they were related to Grammie (Linda Slack Stone) or each other, or if there are any other relatives still living, but these women are (left to right):  Phyllis, Renee, Marjorie, and Aunt Aimee.  The one on the right is (Aunt) Linda Eaton.  I hope to ask Aunt Mary if she has any information.  Perhaps Linda Jo has?

All the best,

Jill Martel

Stone Family Sayings and Suspicions

It would be fun to share family sayings that have been passed down.  Our family had some sayings that are pretty common.  My mother (Linda Eaton) often told us, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away."  My husband's family had one: "You attract more flies with honey than with vinegar." 

Ma enjoyed funny little suspicions which I assume were passed down to her.  One was, if you spilled the salt you had to throw a pinch over your left shoulder (to keep the devil away).  I had left for school one day and realized I had forgotten something.  I ran back in the house, got the item and was about to leave when Ma said, "Sit down first!"  It was bad luck to go into a house and then leave without sitting down! 

Any others out there!

Carol Kramp

Hi, everyone,

I am beginning to look at menus and such for our dinners.  Do you have any food allergies or intolerences that I should know about?  What are they?  Do you know of any allergies among the folks who aren't getting this message?

As a side note, there will be vegetarian choices available.

Love to all,
Jill
PS:  Photo of the day:  Can you identify who these youngsters are?  (Hint:  three of them are sisters and the fourth is their older cousin who, along with her 2 brothers, lived with them after their mother died).

Check out this wonderful photo that Jill found and sent in!!  She wrote the following about her discovery.

"Today let’s take a stroll down memory lane for Linda and Bill’s family.  Here is a picture that was evidently sent from Aunt Linda to my mother Pauline of the Eaton family celebrating Uncle Bill’s birthday.  Aunt Linda wrote on the back of the photo, “Bill’s birthday, without Bill.  He’s the official photographer.  Next time I’ll have some pictures of him- by hook or by crook.”  Seated around the table are Linda Jo, Tony, Aunt Linda, Carol, and Doug."

A bit of chatting with the kids in the photo came up with even more information.  This photo can be dated to 1957 and was taken after the Eatons had moved to Cranford.  Linda on the lefthand side, would have been in 9th grade, and Carol, the youngest, is 4.  On the far right is Ruth Stone, aka Grammie Eaton, who was called The Mater by Linda and Bill.

Another photo we didn't have previously is this VERY old photo of Mater Litchfield/Barringer, Linda (Slack) Stone's Grandmother. She is not technically a part of the Stone family, but she is part of our family history.  Per Jill,

"The story goes:  Linda's mother died young of tuberculosis, when both Linda and her brother were quite young.  Her grandmother raised her and her brother because their father was unavailable.  Linda's grandmother was both a Litchfield and a Barringer.  Aunt Mary thought she may have married twice.  Litchfield relatives of hers lived in America.  Twice, she and Linda sailed to America to visit the Litchfields, which is why I have photos of Litchfields.  On the second trip, Linda did not return to England with her grandmother as she had fallen in love with Ward and would remain in America to marry him.  Nice story, huh?  I don't have great-great-grammie's first name yet but hope to get it.  She did sign the card "Mater" which of course was a formal term for mother in England."

These photos are a treasure trove of family history and memories.  Please send in clean, uncompressed scans to post on the website with stories we can share about them.

In other page updates, there are more photos on the Photo Album page, and I've added a Snapshot page, where this and other group photos will go.  The Lineage page continues to be updated as additional family members, corrections, and additions are made.  Please feel free to email Jill or myself, or reply to this blog with your updates.

- Kathryn (Katy) Dodd