Author Topic: Death clean  (Read 2889 times)

Offline ThrelfallYorky

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #9 on: Thursday 25 January 18 18:00 GMT (UK) »
It would be wonderful if every ancestor and relative we had would make sure that clearly in pencil, when they got the little paper envelope of prints and negatives back from the film processors, they wrote on the back of each and every photograph the full and proper names of the subjects, the dates, the occasion, - even the place it was taken...
Ah well, I can dream, can't I? I have a large cardboard folder and a tin full of unknowns dating way back when, and I simply can't "dispose" of them... just in case I ever manage to find who they are. I have scanned most of them onto my p.c., but will they even be "readable" a few machine generations on? (Remember the "Domesday Project", and "Betamax"?)
Threlfall (Southport), Isherwood (lancs & Canada), Newbould + Topliss(Derby), Keating & Cummins (Ireland + lancs), Fisher, Strong& Casson (all Cumberland) & Downie & Bowie, Linlithgow area Scotland . Also interested in Leigh& Burrows,(Lancashire) Griffiths (Shropshire & lancs), Leaver (Lancs/Yorks) & Anderson(Cumberland and very elusive)

Offline Mart 'n' Al

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #10 on: Thursday 25 January 18 18:09 GMT (UK) »
I've got a drawer full of USB drives in much the same state, and you can't even see the pictures until you insert the drive.  I've started tying big yellow luggage tags on to each one, duly annotated.  The only other option is to have a database listing what is on each drive.  They are all backups, the data is also on the hard drive and on DVDs and on cloud drives.

Martin

Offline Guy Etchells

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #11 on: Thursday 25 January 18 18:48 GMT (UK) »
It would be wonderful if every ancestor and relative we had would make sure that clearly in pencil, when they got the little paper envelope of prints and negatives back from the film processors, they wrote on the back of each and every photograph the full and proper names of the subjects, the dates, the occasion, - even the place it was taken...
Ah well, I can dream, can't I? I have a large cardboard folder and a tin full of unknowns dating way back when, and I simply can't "dispose" of them... just in case I ever manage to find who they are. I have scanned most of them onto my p.c., but will they even be "readable" a few machine generations on? (Remember the "Domesday Project", and "Betamax"?)

May I suggest you don’t write in pencil on the back of photos, not only can this damage the face of the photo but also the writing can easily be erased by rubbing over time.
Instead scan the photo, or if it is already a digital image enlarge the “paper” and add a key or information to the photo below.
An extreme example may be seen here
http://www.anguline.co.uk/Ryder_Family.jpg

A simpler example would just show the name of an individual  in the photo.
Cheers
Guy
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Offline mike175

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #12 on: Thursday 25 January 18 19:43 GMT (UK) »
While, in principle, I agree with Guy about writing on photos, I have seen many old ones with notes on the back in pencil which have not damaged the image in any way. I would suggest that a soft pencil is far safer than any sort of pen and, if they are stored in a box they are unlikely to be rubbed often enough to erase the writing. Obviously you shouldn't be too ham-fisted about it  ::)

Surely it is better to identify them in this way than not at all. Many people do not have a scanner, many do not have the time to go through possibly hundreds of photos using Guy's technique, excellent though it is.

If they are a valuable family record, the best practice would be to store them in archive quality albums with notes written either on the page or on a separate sheet of paper slipped in the pocket behind the picture. But again many of us do not have the time to follow best practice.

Mike.
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Offline groom

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #13 on: Thursday 25 January 18 20:12 GMT (UK) »
Quote
May I suggest you don’t write in pencil on the back of photos, not only can this damage the face of the photo but also the writing can easily be erased by rubbing over time.

Most sites that talk about writing on the back of old photos recommend using a soft lead pencil and pressing lightly. I have some photos that my grandparents labelled in this way over 100 years ago and the writing is still very clear.
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Offline Westoe

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #14 on: Thursday 25 January 18 20:28 GMT (UK) »
Well ... that newspaper article expresses one point of view. It's not mine. And I have had to singlehandedly clear out two homes of deceased family.

Someone in an earlier post mentioned "disconnected families" and I think that phrase fits like a glove. Disconnected families who don't want to deal with emotions, just wait for the lawyer to hand them their cheques.

Yes, it was a difficult and emotional job, but I took joy in it - the last actual service I could render my beloved family - and was flattened when it was all done. And so very many times while I was sorting and making piles, I felt so very close to them. Happy memories came back. That's part of what made it take so long - I'd pick up something and just sit in the chair for a while remembering.

Grief is individual. Coping mechanisms that work for some people are no use at all to others. I'm keeping my lifetime accumulation of momentoes and memories and my family will just have to deal with it.

Cheers,
Westoe

Offline groom

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #15 on: Thursday 25 January 18 21:00 GMT (UK) »
I feel much the same as you, Westoe. My sister, brother and I cleared out my mother's house after she died and yes, it was difficult but in a way it bought closure. We found lots of things we'd forgotten about but which she'd kept - our old school reports, letters we'd written to her when we were at Uni, photographs to name a few. I'm glad that she didn't get rid of those to save us grief, as in fact finding them had the opposite effect.
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Offline Ruskie

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #16 on: Thursday 25 January 18 21:21 GMT (UK) »
The article made me angry so I didn't finish reading it. I think I disagreed with everything she said. She lost me at the part where she said she sold a bracelet she had inherited. This astounds me. How could you do such a thing, unless you were so broke that you had no choice?

No, I think she lost me before that when she said how busy her children were that they wouldn't have time to sort through her stuff when she was dead. Who is that busy? (and too bad anyway)

If someone feels that they want to sort through their possessions and dispose of things they no longer want, then that is fine. I would advise giving family first refusal before dumping anything though.

What a horrible woman. Even the term "death clean" (which she claims to have coined) sounds dreadful.

Offline panda40

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Re: Death clean
« Reply #17 on: Thursday 25 January 18 22:20 GMT (UK) »
I agree Ruskie that her view was very harsh but I feel the younger generations have a different view on life to what we had. My daughter chose to throw the 18th birthday cards away, whereas I kept mine until they were damaged in a flood. I had to respect her decision. I still have my mothers first birthday cards and my children’s. But will they want these when I’m gone?
Regards panda
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