Old Family Photos

Order of the Eastern Star, Ripley West Virginia founders - G'grandmother Elizabeth "Bessie" Carson Staats at back center

I have many old family photos and a couple of paintings I'll post here occasionally. I love the contrast between the supercilious expressions on most of these ladies and the warm smile of my great-grandmother Elizabeth "Bessie" Evelyn Carson Staats, daughter of A.M. (Arthur Melanchon) Carson, wife of Cornelius C. "Neil" Staats, mother of Enoch Dwight Staats, M.D.

The Order of the Eastern Star is the ladies' auxiliary of the Masons, and these are the charter members of Chapter #17 photographed on January 10, 1906. (Some additional members have been cropped out so that the picture will show better on the web. The full scan is available on request.)

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Some of my male ancestors were a bit scary-looking.

Jonathan Van Rensselaer Lasher, c.1870

William Carson Sr. b.1800

George Cable, b. 10/20/1803 d.1879

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Some of my relatives were rather cute.

Here are my grandmother Helen Hovey (later Staats) and grandfather, Enoch Dwight Staats (later M.D.):

Here's one of my great-grandmother, Elizabeth "Bessie" Evelyn Carson Staats and her first two children, Enoch Dwight Staats and Theo Carson Staats Maddox: 

He's obviously plotting something.

There have been some beauties, too. Here is Laura Melissa Cable Lasher, who married Morgan Van Rensselaer Lasher:

Eliza Cross Carson, wife of William Carson Jr, and mother of Arthur Melancthon (A.M.) Carson

Susan Lovinia Whittington Hovey 3/28/1875 - 6/10/1940