New Municipal Building of Natchez, Mississippi 1903 - 1924

I've been going through boxes of family photos and documents, and came across this little gem, which is known today as Natchez City Hall.  Two of my relatives are listed herein:  C.F. Patterson, my great uncle, who was a judge, and lived right across the street from where I live now.  We knew him as Judge Charlie Patterson.  Also W.H. Pritchartt, who was my great grandfather and was an alderman.  I've included a photo of him as a young man, taken in 1852 at the Strauss Photo Studio, 1818 Franklin Avenue, St. Louis, MO.

Dream a Little Dream of Me

Civil War Journal of my great, great grandfather, Henry Elias Munger

Last night I dreamt I was out at Daddy's. He and I had gone through the attic and the barn and the basement and pulled out all this old family-related stuff. My grandmother had a brother named Joseph Niebert Carpenter who died when he was two. I dreamed we found his baby shoes and his first efforts at writing and drawing. Silver with his initials on it.

There were paintings of people and places I'd never seen. There was a diary written by someone named Miller from the 1800s. World War I and II guns and photos and letters.

I was just asking Daddy to put stickum notes on everything explaining who these people were and how we were connected to them when Tommy came in to wake me up. It was such a sweet dream, visiting with Daddy and talking about old family stories. I didn't want to wake up. Ever.

I've lost my parents and several of my friends' parents in the past few years.  If you can, try to sit and listen to the family stories.  Record them with your phone and write them down.  Go through the old family albums and identify the people, places and times they were taken.

It is a gift that will reward you and your descendants for years to come.