I live in Memphis, TN. Both my parents were born in the area around the very small town of Finger in McNairy County in West Tennessee. I became interested in my ancestors in January 2010, when a church friend sent me an old family photo which was taken about 1892. Her great grandmother was in the picture and she thought one of the younger brothers in the photo might be my grandfather. He was!

The photo was my great-grandparents and their 10 children (before the 11th was born) and all the names had been written on that old photo! That photo really got my attention and I wanted to find more about each one of my grandfather's siblings. Sadly, I did not get to visit with my grandparents very often and I am the only OLD person left in my family : ) so there is no one to remember, no one left to ask questions. So I started researching. I am so thankful someone had the wisdom to write all the names on that old photo. Without those names I would have had no place to start.

It is so important to write names and dates on your photos!! I have tried to do this through the years – regretfully I have missed many and have had to estimate or guess about them. I am in the process of scanning all my pictures to make a ‘family photo journal' CD so each of my children and grandchildren can have a copy. Now I will add our family genealogy records so they will know about their ancestors.

I was excited to learn about Findagrave where I can make lasting memorials to my ancestors so they will not be lost and forever forgotten to the ages. I am so thankful for Findagrave and Family Search, and all their wonderful volunteers who have helped so much in my research.