Funeral notice W.C. Purdy & E. E. Purdy

Honestly, the Purdys saved EVERYTHING!

Not kidding.

Every single piece of correspondence. Every stamp. Empty envelopes. Old chairs. Bent nails. Empty jars. Most of this stuff is junk and triggers my allergies.

There is an upside to their habit of holding on to stuff. One person's OCD hoarding behavior provides another person's treasure trove.

And that's what all this stuff is to me: treasure.

There are some real nuggets here, including the one below.

I am rich in genealogical treasure.

Asa Best baby photo?

The photo below was identified as Asa Best. Apparently there were at least two Asa Bests. My strong hunch is that this is Asa Josiah Best, but really I don't know.

Asa Josiah Best, born 1859, was the son of Michael Stephen Best and Nancy Ann Purdy. There's also Asa Newton Best, born 1860, the son of William Best and Fredonia Baird. So many Bests and Purdys and they're all related!!!

The young age of this child would put the photo's year taken between 1860 and 1861.

I strongly believe this is Asa Josiah Best because of the Purdy connection. 

Anybody able to say for sure??

Monroe Camp photo

The image below is from a tintype that my dad identified as Monroe Camp. Camp was the first husband of Eudora "Dora" Purdy, daughter of W. C. Purdy and Susan Best. He was father of Winnifred Camp.

They got married in 1884 when she was 19 and he was 22. At some point they got divorced or annulled because Dora married Charles W. Piper in 1898, and Monroe lived until 1917.

Handsome dude, wasn't he?

Photos of Dora Camp

More of the family tintypes. Both of these have been identified as "Dora Purdy Camp."

Here's the younger one:

The older woman:

Certainly looks like the same person, doesn't it?

Assuming that the ID is correct, the girl in the first photo looks about 11 or so. Since Dora was born in 1865, the photo would have been taken about 1875. In the second photo Dora looks maybe 18 - 21 or so, which would date the picture about 1883 - 1887. These are just guesstimates, folks!

Dora married twice, first to Monroe Camp and then to Charles W. Piper. According to the Census, she had four children and two lived. Her surviving child with Camp was Winnie May (b. 1890). With Charles Piper she had Gladys (b. 1899 - d. 1904) and Thelma Fern (b. 1907 - d. 1998).

https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/M-T0627-00851-00230?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.210065239.355251433.1593736074-892951649.1593736074&pId=141581096&backurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ancestry.com%2Fcgi-bin%2Fsse.dll%3Fdb%3D1940usfedcen%26h%3D141581096%26indiv%3Dtry%26o_cvc%3DImage%3AOtherRecord

From the same Ancestry tree—which I have not proven, BTW—here is an image of Dora Purdy Piper and her daughter Winnie Crosby:

Love the glasses.

From the Ancestry tree of Chasedenver, originally posted by Christia Middlestaedt 2008.

https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/16608859/person/1247819040/media/88b18d44-9ff8-4eb9-a0cb-6e8b39302cf8?_phsrc=raz2&usePUBJs=true

If a descendant of Dora contacts me and asks for them, I'd be happy to send the originals out. These are family photos, and photos belong with their families.

More photos soon!