A to Z Challenge: Yearbook Photos

Hello and Welcome to Y Day!

Welp, we’ve made it almost to the end of the challenge and so, to celebrate, I’d like to share a few class/yearbook photos for three of my direct lineage kin: My mom, my bio-father, and my maternal grandma.

Class photos are such amazing time capsules and though I haven’t found many (yet) online, I feel such excitement when I do find one! I can only hope that people will continue to digitize yearbooks so that more magic can be shared in the near future.

My Mom, Kerry

These two photos are part of my personal collection and were taken in NYC about 1960. I love how similar and how very different my mom looks in each of these photos. What a difference a few years can make, no?

My Bio-Father, Michael

Michael is pictured here in the center of the bottom row, #80. This was one of the first photos I found of him when I really started looking and I was intrigued by how stern he looks in this photo. Though it is grainy and hard to see details, there are smiles, awkward faces, and blank looks, but he looks rather serious. Maybe it was just a moment, but there he was, a broody teenage football player 😉

Connecticut? About 1960.

My Maternal Grandma, Eve

Of the three people I’ve found yearbook/class photos for, Eve has the most photos/yearbooks digitized. I have worked with the Marion Public Library on a few of my research projects and I wonder if these digitizations are due to their hard work or that of others. Regardless, I am grateful.

I love the write up about this Club and find that Eve’s expression in this photo is quite funny. Either she was caught unaware or was having a moment 😉 She is in the front row, second from the right.

Her class photo is typical Eve with her slightly crooked smile and slightly raised eyebrow conveying just enough sass to know her blood runs thick in me.

Marion, Indiana – 1932

In Your Research…

Have you found any class or yearbook photos of your ancestors? Have you gleaned any insights into their interests through such publications?

Housekeeping

My theme for the 2025 A to Z Challenge is Kin! The first names of direct lineage kin, to be more specific.

I’m spending the majority of the month focusing on the first names of many of my direct lineage kin. I’ll include their full names, any vital information I’ve found in my research, their relation to me, any fun tidbits/characteristics/experiences, and any commonalities I may have gleaned between myself and them.

In a couple of cases, where I have not identified an ancestor whose first name starts with a particular letter, I will choose a unique middle name, a direct line surname, and/or ancestral lands/places of significance.

Pop over here to read my full theme reveal: A to Z 2025 Challenge Theme Reveal: Kin

Pop over here to visit our host and see what they’re up to throughout this year’s challenge: A to Z Challenge

If you’re visiting from the A to Z Challenge please leave a comment so I can visit you, too! If your comment bio doesn’t link back to your site, please feel free to add the link to your most recent post to the comment field so I can be sure to find you.

Thanks for being here! See you again soon!

Onward,

Melissa