Before I write on today's chosen topic, I just want to say that I am not loving blogger. It did some update thing, and I followed directions and did what it asked me to do, and then I did not like it, so I chose the stay with the old option, but now it loads really slow, and only shows one post at a time, and it makes me not want to use it. I do wish computer program developers would leave well enough alone, but I know that they are completely mystified by such statements, which do not compute in their brains. So.
Family History! Well, I have been having the most interesting time. So a few weeks ago, I posted a little article about our great uncle Louis's murder, in the interest of preserving history. And then his great-great-step-granddaughter asked me to please take it down, because the perpetrator, who is a member of her family and is still alive and well and a nice man in his 80s, is still alive. I did what she asked. But then this week, another random family member posted something about that again. Since I now think of this girl, JS, as a friend and almost-family, I wrote to the guy who posted and told him that the guy is still alive and that his family would really not like these things posted. And also asked about how we are related--he was a Conrad, so I knew he was. Well, the next day JS messaged me and we had a long conversation over several hours and that was so interesting. From talking to her, and talking to him, TC, it became clear to me that there is some bad feeling that needs to be dissipated.
So I am writing an essay about the incident in which I plan to be compassionate to both sides, and I am hoping that JS can help me to learn more about her ggm, who was our great uncle's wife for 11 years, and yet we as a Conrad family (and I am assuming some of the guilt) were not very accepting of his marriage to her. Like, even, what was her name? For 11 years, she was our great aunt, but we did not know her. As for me, I just thought Aunt Leona was the only wife, and was almost more flabbergasted to learn that Aunt Leona was divorced, not widowed, than I was to learn that Uncle Louis was murdered. Our family KEPT Aunt Leona and her children; but we did not do a good job of keeping Uncle Louis. Apparently. Like, TC told me that after his ggparents' divorce, the family knew nothing about Louis. And some of them, I think, put some blame onto Helen, the second wife, which I think is misplaced. I think, based on JS, that Helen was devastated and this was another in a long list of devastating things she had lived through already. She was only 42 when he was murdered, and her life had been no picnic. I think, but am not sure, that her 11 years with Louis were good. But I could be wrong. I will keep digging.
Anyways--TC posted a link to a book called "Wicked Lewiston" so I bought the book. In the section for 1953, which is Louis' murder, there is a picture of him lying there dead, from the police investigation records, and that was a gruesomely unexpected thing to find. The book also has a quote about the 1982 complete exoneration that was granted to the perpetrator. But the book had no citations! No footnotes! Lots of quotes, but not any information about who said what. So I of course found the author, who is the institutional historian for Lewis-Clark State College in Idaho. He is a distinguished scholar, so I couldn't believe that there were no citations. Turns out, he has all the citations, but the publisher didn't want to waste paper on them. He says this is happening to him more and more. And, to quote him, "I have finally talked the county historical society into including them with their articles. Otherwise, future historians will be forced to reinvent the paper trails. The notes are not for my benefit, or even the current readers." Seriously!!! And the publisher of this book is called "The History Press." And he is going to send me a PDF of his entire research on that chapter, with all the pictures, all the words on all the documents! Treasure trove!!!
Family History! Well, I have been having the most interesting time. So a few weeks ago, I posted a little article about our great uncle Louis's murder, in the interest of preserving history. And then his great-great-step-granddaughter asked me to please take it down, because the perpetrator, who is a member of her family and is still alive and well and a nice man in his 80s, is still alive. I did what she asked. But then this week, another random family member posted something about that again. Since I now think of this girl, JS, as a friend and almost-family, I wrote to the guy who posted and told him that the guy is still alive and that his family would really not like these things posted. And also asked about how we are related--he was a Conrad, so I knew he was. Well, the next day JS messaged me and we had a long conversation over several hours and that was so interesting. From talking to her, and talking to him, TC, it became clear to me that there is some bad feeling that needs to be dissipated.
So I am writing an essay about the incident in which I plan to be compassionate to both sides, and I am hoping that JS can help me to learn more about her ggm, who was our great uncle's wife for 11 years, and yet we as a Conrad family (and I am assuming some of the guilt) were not very accepting of his marriage to her. Like, even, what was her name? For 11 years, she was our great aunt, but we did not know her. As for me, I just thought Aunt Leona was the only wife, and was almost more flabbergasted to learn that Aunt Leona was divorced, not widowed, than I was to learn that Uncle Louis was murdered. Our family KEPT Aunt Leona and her children; but we did not do a good job of keeping Uncle Louis. Apparently. Like, TC told me that after his ggparents' divorce, the family knew nothing about Louis. And some of them, I think, put some blame onto Helen, the second wife, which I think is misplaced. I think, based on JS, that Helen was devastated and this was another in a long list of devastating things she had lived through already. She was only 42 when he was murdered, and her life had been no picnic. I think, but am not sure, that her 11 years with Louis were good. But I could be wrong. I will keep digging.
Anyways--TC posted a link to a book called "Wicked Lewiston" so I bought the book. In the section for 1953, which is Louis' murder, there is a picture of him lying there dead, from the police investigation records, and that was a gruesomely unexpected thing to find. The book also has a quote about the 1982 complete exoneration that was granted to the perpetrator. But the book had no citations! No footnotes! Lots of quotes, but not any information about who said what. So I of course found the author, who is the institutional historian for Lewis-Clark State College in Idaho. He is a distinguished scholar, so I couldn't believe that there were no citations. Turns out, he has all the citations, but the publisher didn't want to waste paper on them. He says this is happening to him more and more. And, to quote him, "I have finally talked the county historical society into including them with their articles. Otherwise, future historians will be forced to reinvent the paper trails. The notes are not for my benefit, or even the current readers." Seriously!!! And the publisher of this book is called "The History Press." And he is going to send me a PDF of his entire research on that chapter, with all the pictures, all the words on all the documents! Treasure trove!!!
