Do you have a large collection of heirlooms that you’ve inherited? Have you considered a plan for passing those on to your posterity? Heirlooms have a great potential to connect our children and grandchildren to their ancestors. There is something special about trying on the dress your grandmother wore for her wedding or serving dessert out of your great-grandmother’s compote. Add a story to the object or experience, and the heirloom becomes even more memorable. In this blog post, I’ll share some ideas for making connections.
What is an Heirloom?
First, what do you consider an heirloom? Is it the pair of navy pants your dad wore in World War II? What about the quilt that your mother made from fabric scraps of dresses she sewed for you? Although an heirloom is often defined as a valuable object that has belonged to a family for several generations – I would propose that both of those examples are heirlooms. Heirlooms can be any size or shape and made from any tangible substance. Letters, documents, photographs, art, collectibles, furniture, quilts, and clothing are all examples of items that could be of value in preserving a family’s heritage.
When determining if an item should be classified as an heirloom, ask if it contains vital genealogical information, adds interesting information to the family story, or is of sentimental value. Consider giving yourself the rule: “If the story isn’t attached, it has to go.”
Planning for the Future of Your Heirlooms
Fellow genealogist and author Marian Burk Wood has written a useful book that gives us many considerations for the family history and heirlooms we have acquired. Planning a Future for Your Family’s Past has the subtitle, “How to organize your genealogy materials, curate your collection, and keep family history safe for future generations.” The description states the following.
Keep your family history alive for future generations! Old photos, genealogical documents, ancestors’ stories, and artifacts are vital to understanding your family’s past, and they belong to your family’s future. This concise step-by-step guide will help you organize and pass your family history collection to future generations. Follow the PASS Process: (1) Prepare by organizing materials, (2) Allocate ownership, (3) Set up a genealogical “will,” (4) Share with heirs. Whether you’re new to genealogy or have years of experience, you’ll find practical ideas and learn how to: sort your genealogy collection into logical categories . . . safely store and label your materials . . . inventory and index for new insights . . . decide what to keep and what to give away . . . write instructions for your collection’s future . . . and bring family history alive now. Includes sample forms and links to online resources to help you put a personalized PASS plan into action.
Recording and Sharing the Story of Your Heirlooms
If we want to ensure that our posterity will want our heirlooms, sharing their stories will create interest and connection. If we choose the stories carefully, they have the power to strengthen our children and grandchildren in their own challenges. In 2016 Nicole and I attended RootsTech and heard author Bruce Feiler discuss the importance of stories. Nicole shared the crux of his talk in her blog post, Strengthening Children Through Family History: Bruce Feiler’s Tips from RootsTech 2016. I especially like the idea of the campfire test. Feiler asked, “Do your stories pass the campfire test? do they have the motion, the passion, the pain in order to endure?”
When I considered stories that have been passed down in my family, those that I remembered definitely passed this test. When considering what story to tie to an heirloom, we may want to review our family stories and carefully choose those that pass the test.
What if you haven’t inherited any heirlooms from a particular ancestor? On my paternal line, I have just a couple of actual items from my grandmother, Ettie Belle Harris Shults, and my great-grandmother, Alice Frazier Harris. What I do have, though, is a legacy of stories told by my grandfather and father about their years in Texas and Oklahoma. I turned those stories into my “Adventures of Cowboy Bob” series – fictionalizing them based on the histories. Those stories survived because they were dramatic and perfect for making connections.
Discover the Story of Your Heirlooms
Perhaps you have inherited an heirloom but don’t know the story behind it. You may have to ask other relatives or research the history of the item to discover its story. You’ll also want to include the provenance – who originally owned the heirloom and how you came to own it. Consider the purpose of the heirloom and how it connects you to your ancestors.
When my mother was downsizing and clearing out her home of over fifty years, my sister and I had the privilege of going through her hope chest and hearing the stories of each item. Some of them I knew, but many I didn’t. I pulled out a beautiful red knit dress and asked my mother about its significance. I was surprised when she answered that it was her wedding dress. In photos of my parents on their wedding day, the dress appeared gray since it was a black-and-white photo. I had never questioned the color – for some reason just assumed it was gray! My daughter tried it on, and it was a perfect fit. What a fun connection for her to her grandmother.
Once you’ve discovered the stories and the provenance, be sure to record those somewhere. Here are some ideas:
- Write a list of all the heirlooms in your trunk, hope chest, or home, and include a brief statement about the provenance. Use double tagging. Put a number on the heirloom and a corresponding number on your list.
- Make a video record of your heirlooms. Briefly discuss what you know about each item as you film.
- Create an heirloom book with a photo of each item and its provenance.
Share the Story of Your Heirlooms
We have many options for sharing the stories of our heirlooms. After we’ve written the story, we can take a photo of the heirloom and upload the ancestor’s profile on FamilySearch. That will preserve the story and the heirloom for all the descendants. Only one person can have the actual physical item, but everyone can view the photo and story.
Another one of the items I found in my mother’s home was my grandmother’s bowl. This is the only thing I have that belonged to her. Ettie Belle died before my birth, and I never met her, so it means a lot to me to have something of hers. I don’t have a specific story about the bowl, but I wrote a little about it based on what I’ve been told about Ettie. I took a photo of the bowl and uploaded it to Ettie’s profile on FamilySearch. Then I added my story. The neat thing about FamilySearch is that this will be preserved for posterity and viewable by any of her descendants.
Another idea for sharing the story of an heirloom is to post photos on Instagram or Facebook and include a little story with the post. Sharing in small bites can be very effective. You could also create experiences for family members with the heirloom. Whenever I use a certain fancy serving bowl, I like to tell my family about the salad that we always made for holidays and served in that bowl. I generally make the same salad, and it’s a fun connection to my past and their grandmother.
Perhaps you could display heirlooms in your home or bring them out for holidays. You could also consider giving them away for special gifts such as graduation or a wedding. My great Aunt Cal gave me my great-grandmother’s glass compote for my wedding, and it is a treasure. I wrote about it in Honor Your Heritage with Heirlooms.
However you choose to share your story, your posterity will thank you. Making connections doesn’t have to be difficult, it just takes some effort on our part.
Best of luck in all your genealogical endeavors.
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