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!

Who are these dudes?

One of the scrapbook's tintypes is these two spiffy dudes. The tintype has fallen out of its position and doesn't seem to fit any label at all. The best clues: in the same scrapbook as the earlier tintypes of Purdys, so most likely Purdys or Bests or associated families. Probably taken around 1865 - 1875, but that's not for sure. Probably from IL.

Here's the image:

Any ideas? All comments welcome!

Tintype of WCP3?

Below is a photo of a tintype. The name attached to this image is William Collins Purdy III. I have not independently verified this and may never be able to. However, my father IDed this photo as WCP3, and I have no reason to doubt the identification as my father knew him.

Here's the image:

 



































William Collins Purdy III was born in 1853 about "3.5 miles south of Staunton, Illinois." He worked on the farmhand and in a sawmill. My dad recalls Uncle Col never having being married or even having a girlfriend. As far as I can tell, he never had children. He died in 1928 and was buried in Staunton City Cemetery. Known as "Collins" or "Uncle Col."

I am guesstimating this photo was taken between 1865 and 1875. Collins could be 15 (1868) or 20ish (1873). Note the slight pink coloration in the cheeks, and extra fee effect, indicating that the Purdys were comfortable if not well to do.

1860 Census:

https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7667/images/4213711_00547?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.176323941.153770080.1593380886-234541386.1593380886&pId=37438363&backurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ancestry.com%2Fcgi-bin%2Fsse.dll%3Fdb%3D1860usfedcenancestry%26h%3D37438363%26indiv%3Dtry%26o_cvc%3DImage%3AOtherRecord

Death Certificate:

https://www.sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1928/1928_00002633.PDF

Well, here's a mystery~! The death certificate says that Collins was "widowed." THAT bears looking into!

Burial:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/50788316

The more I dig, the more skeletons I find—if you can count an unknown marriage as a skeleton. I'll let you know if I find anything more.

Correction: new oldest photo

In digging through old and new family photos, I found a forgotten tintype today. At least 20 years ago my dad named the photo's subjects. The label is in my own handwriting. There's really no other way of verifying his identifications than to say that he was an extremely (extremely) precise man, and he always identified these subjects with these names. And so awaiting further proof, I must conclude that these photos are:

Susan Marie Best and William Collins Purdy II

And as the subjects are much younger than the first photo I have published, though it's new to this blog, it's the oldest one I have of them.

Here it is:

Note the curtain backdrop and the two chairs. Very typical of an itinerant photographer.

I scanned this at 1200 ppl for lots of detail, which doesn't show up here.

Though I'm anxious to dig into this photo a bit more, other duties are calling. So I'll catch you later. Y'all come back now, hear?