Sunbonnet days

Well, here it is noon already and I'm playing on the computer when I have lots of other things to do! I have dozens of old family photos stored in the computer, and this is another one that I really like. I believe it was taken in the San Jose or Mountainview area of California, about 1904. The first five people are my great-grandparents Silas and Ellen Grable, and their children. The little girl is my grandmother Gladys. Silas and Ellen were born in KS and IN, and settled in California around 1900. The bought several acres of ranchland and planted orchards. In fact, it looks like there is a small seedling just in front of them, if you look closely. (Photo will enlarge if you click on it.)

Old photos can give us a glimpse of life in the past. The hills in this photo is pretty bare, but today the California hills have beautiful oak trees generously scattered around. I would guess that at the time of this photo all the trees would have been cut down for the wood, or perhaps the cattle had eaten the seedlings. Today, this same area is probably dense with housing developments.

This is a close up of the same photo. I just love the photo of my grandmother, the little girl in the white dress. With the sunbonnet hiding her face, she looks just like Sunbonnet Sue! Her parents look so proud of their little brood.

Well, back to my chores! I'll reward myself with some sewing time tonight and will try to get something quilt-related posted next time!

Louise