Sunday 9 February 2020

Signature Silhouette #1 ~ Kevin Wynne

For many of my ancestors, we have no photographs, no treasured heirlooms, not even a funeral card to remember them by. But of those who could read and write, a few left their signatures behind. They often signed historical census returns, or their last will and testaments, for example, copies of which still survive. Apart from descendants, their signature may be all that remains of them today.

I've wanted to feature my ancestors' signatures for a while now, to share them with anyone interested, and to store them all together, in one place, in my online family tree. But, I was at a loss as to how best to present them. Then last month my blogging buddy Cathy showcased a Signature Silhouette for one of her ancestors. This is a grand solution to my little conundrum. And, if even one ancestor silhouette a week is created, it won't be long before all their signatures are preserved.

So, to start with, here's a Signature Silhouette for my maternal grandfather, Kevin Wynne:

Kevin Wynne (1909-1960)

How cool is that! 😍

Sources:
Idea courtesy of Cathy Meder-Dempsey at Opening Doors in Brick Walls, and The Genealogy Girl.

Source of Signature: Kevin Wynne, Student 562, 1938, National College of Ireland, Clar-Leabhar na Sgolairi 1937-42', College Student Registers, Ref. IE/NIVAL CR/CR67/561, National Irish Visual Arts Library (NIVAL), accessed 17 Feb. 2015.

20 comments:

  1. Great idea to do one a week, Dara. I'm looking forward to seeing them. I'm glad I shared Amberly's idea on my blog and that it helped with your not having photos for some ancestors. Thanks for the mention.

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    1. You are very welcome Cathy, thank you for the inspiration.

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  2. What a grand idea! You can share and preserve these momentoes of your ancestors.

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  3. This is just great! I have many ancestors with signatures, but no photos. A signature silhouette is the ideal solution.

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    1. It is Molly, and it creates something very personal to them.

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  4. What a fabulous idea I’ll give thought to joining you in this #geneabloggers Sharing

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  5. I love this idea! I may have to do this myself. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. I look forward to seeing your Signature Silhouettes so, Valerie.

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  6. This idea appeals to me very much as I have signatures going back to 1786. I msut give it a try, and thank you for sharing a great idea.

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    1. You are very welcome Sue, sadly copies of my ancestors' signatures only go back to the early 20th century. Story of my genealogy! Still, piece by piece I'm building their story.

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  7. Cathy and Dara, I love this idea! I may have to do this myself. I have also seen where someone had taken several signatures and presented them very nicely laid out/spaced apart going down in a matted frame.

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    1. Ooh! to hang on the wall? that's a wonderful idea!

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  8. Great idea! So many ancestors I have little idea of how they looked. Love the look of this one you did. I'm going to make time to do this too.

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    1. Wonderful, I hope you share some of them on your blog.

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I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!