From Daguerreotype to Digital: Dating and Preserving Family Photographs

Lew & Susan Wallace Descendants pose for a family photo.
Come to the Carriage House for a closer look!

Is your family photo album neatly organized with all the names, dates, and locations written on the back? Even more organized, is it in archival scrapbooks with appropriate labels in chronological order? Or is it more like mine--a few haphazard scrapbooks and albums with photos that may or may not be labelled, with the extra photos shoved in boxes that aren't organized by...much of any criteria?

Whatever the answer, you may be interested in popping in for our upcoming genealogy lecture. If you're uber-organized, you can sit there and feel smug. If you're like the rest of us, you can learn how best to preserve your family photographs. And if your photos are unlabeled, you can learn how to be a photographic detective and figure out a little bit more about those unlabeled, undated, unidentified photos!

Join us September 12 at 7 p.m. at the Carriage House for this free lecture. Joan Hostetler of Heritage Photo and Research Services will discuss photographic processes and formats from the 1840s to the present. She will share clues for dating photos and techniques for preserving them. Bring your own family photos to learn more about them!

The lecture is free, but we do like to have a head-count beforehand, as space is limited. Please RSVP by emailing us at study@ben-hur.com or calling us at 765-362-5769.

If you're unable to join us that night, you can always follow us on Twitter, where we livetweet tidbits from the lecture with the hashtag #genealogy.

Moat Garden Magic

Grounds Manager Deb King has been hard at work on recreating Lew's Moat Garden. After filling in the moat, he had a round garden, and we're lucky enough to have pictures of it. Take a look at the original and all the progress Deb has made this year!

The Reappearance of the Reflecting Pool

Thanks to heavy rainfall this past week, Lew's reflecting pool has made a brief reappearance behind the Study.

Take a look at this historic photo of the reflecting pool...

Lew and grandsons sitting beside the reflecting pool

...then compare it to a photo taken this morning.

Reflecting pool filled with rainwater

You can almost see it, can't you?

2012 Holiday High Tea a Grand Success

The Holiday High Tea came off beautifully. Here are a few photos of the fun our guests had and the beautiful decorations and delicious delicacies!