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Topics - RobinBClay

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1
Free Photo Restoration & Date Old Photographs / Alison Grant Morris UK & USA
« on: Saturday 15 July 23 21:52 BST (UK)  »
We have been sent this photo - of a photo in an albun - of a great aunt, Alison Gran Morris ne de Candole.
http://www.spanglefish.com/vullydecandole/index.asp?pageid=717158
It's very lo-res, and a bit out of focus, but I wonder if you brilliant magiccions can improve it = pretty please ?

2
Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition / WW2 letter
« on: Thursday 26 January 23 16:32 GMT (UK)  »
I have tried . . .Page 1 of 4
-------------------------------------------
Tuesday evening
[Probably March 1942]

Woodmuir,
Nether Beacon
Lichfield

My dear Violet
As you say in your
letter "it is lovely to get
good news" and I am so
happy to know the joy it is
to your Gerard to hear
that, that dear Ralph is
fit & ??? & has ???  ???
??? [romotion, he is
young to be in the position
of a Lt. Colonel in the Aemy

3
Free Photo Restoration & Date Old Photographs / Photographer in Chatham, also Johnson
« on: Monday 21 February 22 00:34 GMT (UK)  »
I have found an old photograph that bears the photographer's rubber stamp - I would like an approximate date for it, please ?  When was this studio operational ?
E.A. Low
21 Highview Drive
Davis Estate

I think that is in Chatham, and close to Bluebell Hill (hence the name of the telephone exchange)

4
Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition / Love letter
« on: Wednesday 28 April 21 13:26 BST (UK)  »
My mother kept a Page-a-Day diary almost all her life, so I have 75 of them (be careful what you wish for !)
From my mother's diary for 24 Sept 1940, their 4th wedding anniversary.  She was 23 & a half, he ten years older (they shared a birthday. She died at 87 in 2004; he at 102 in 2009
Her husband had secretly written in her diary beforehand, a "love letter". 
But his hand-writing is TERRIBLE !  Even he had difficulty reading it later ! 
There are just two words I can't decipher - or is it one word ?
Here is the bottom half of the page:-

5
Free Photo Restoration & Date Old Photographs / How to reduce file size
« on: Wednesday 17 February 21 18:27 GMT (UK)  »
Advice, please.

I have just received some "digital images" of ancient photographs - but they are .JPGs  of over 2.5 Mb. each.
Alas !  They were taken using an I-phone, so only 72 d.p.i. "

And Yes, it irritates beyond measure that the sender hasn't got a scanner - but I have to be grateful that she does send these images.

However . . the image size is enormous, e.g. 34 x 45 INCHES.

File type: JPEG

Image :-
Dimensions: 2448 x 3264 Pixels    34.000x45.333 Inches
Pixels Per Inch: 72.000
Pixel depth/colors: RGB -8 bits/channel

Memory used
           On disk    In RAM
Image: 2590Kb   23410Kb

The Rules here specify a maximum of 500 Kb.
My graphics program - PaintShopPro - enables me to reduce the size quite easily,  either "By Pixels", "By Percentage" or "By Print Size"
Or I can reduce the quality by increasing the .JPG compression.

Yes, I have read https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,372537.0.html
but I'm still lost !
That was written 11 years ago, before mobile phones became quite so ubiquitous.   I can't "reply" to that, hence the new Topic. 

Which method is "best" for this purpose ?

6
Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition / Letter from a friend, 1941
« on: Tuesday 09 February 21 16:22 GMT (UK)  »
[EDIT] My deep apologies - I had already posted this last week, but forgot.  So I have now edited the text to incorporate the words already identified.[/DIT]

I found the letter below amongst my grandmother's "things", in a box labelled "Letters to keep" - but many of the words I can't make out.  It comprises four sides, so I shalll post each side as a separate "reply".  Please preface any reply with the Page Number & line number..

She was Violet Clay, her husband Gerard Clay, and they had a son Ralph Clay (born 1908), who qualified as an Electrical and Mechanical Engineer.
He also joined the RAF Reserve and learned to fly, so when War broke out, he was called up.

They came from Burton-on-Trent, where both their families had been for at least 150 years; but when Gerard retired in 1925, they moved away, and now lived in Surrey.
~~~~~~~~-
Page 1

1 Tuesday evening

2 Woodmuir
3 Nether Beacon
4 Lichfield
5 Staffs

6 My dearest Violet
7 As you say in your
8 letter "it is lovely to get
9 good news" - and I am so
10 happy to know the joy it is
11 to you and Gerard to hear
12 that, that dear Ralph is
13 fit & well & has ???
14 good promotion, he is
15 young to be in the position
16 of a Lt. Colonel, in the Army

Page 1

7
Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition / Just a few words
« on: Sunday 07 February 21 11:34 GMT (UK)  »
This is from a letter written to Violet (my Gran) on 22 December 1943 from Cromer.  The writer was 89.

There is just one word in the fourth line I can't understand
--------------------------------
little girl of 5.  Bertram
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Bertram Sargeaunt, 66, Violet's brother-in-law,
Government Secretary to the Isle of Man
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
has done well in the
Isle of Man & I expect
he will ??? giving it
up. Katty
[Violet's sister] has made
him a splendid wife.

-------------------------------------------

It looks like "feels" - but that doesn't make sense.

Perhaps "feel" and she omitted "glad" ?  "sorry" ?  "relieved" ?


8
Handwriting Deciphering & Recognition / Letter from Lichfield, pre-1946
« on: Wednesday 03 February 21 18:09 GMT (UK)  »

I found the letter (below) - one of about 800 ! (be careful what you wish for !) - amongst my grandmother's "things" - but I can't make out many of the words.

She was Violet Clay, her husband Gerard Clay and they had a son Ralph Clay (born 1908), who qualified as an Electrical and Mechanical Engineer.
He also joined the RAF Reserve and learned to fly, so when War broke out, he was called up.

https://unithistories.com/units_index/default.asp?file=../officers/personsx.html

=======================================================

Tuesday evening

Woodmuir
Nether Beacon
Lichfield
Staffs

My dearest Violet

As you say in your
letter "it is lovely to get
good news" - and I am so
happy to know the joy it is
to you and Gerard to hear
that, that dear Ralph is
fit & ? & has ?
good promotion, he is
young to be in the position
of a Lt. ?, in the Army

I feel very ignorant
about the ? & positions
of the Air Force, & your
letters to the ?
? with Ralph
are really quite ?
me.  It is a  ?
terrifying service.  He must
be very clever, I always
remember you telling me,
that some ? looking at a
photo of him, when he was
a baby ? "this boy will

be a great engineer, he
is evidently proving that
to be true.  I will ?
to ? ? fear ?
? ? ? letter
? ? ? ? ?.How ? the Services
were on Thursday, the
Cathedral was more or less
free all day, the evening
service was packed with
people, there was hardly
standing room. My dear
Annie went to it, I said
it was a most ?
sight, & the people joined
in the singing most lustily

I wish people  ?
? the Churches at other
times, without requiring
some exciting attractions
to take them there. The
Bishop is always begging
for money, to build more
Churches & schools, & people
say, as the Churches ???
? are so empty  ?
? more.  Many thanks
for so kindly writing ?
your ? ?, I so
love hearing from you.
  With love, & Congratuations
   on your boy's success
       Your loving
                  Agnes

=======================================================

So I asked Google about "Agnes" and that address, and up came this :-
From
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/37763/supplement/5185/data.pdf

The London Gazette, 18th October, 1946

Name of Deceased,
   Jackson, Agnes Mary  [aged 90, from FreBMD.org.uk, so born 1856, married prob after 1875]

Address,
   Woodmuir, Nether Beacon, Lichfield, Staffs

Description and date of death
   Widow, 16th September, 1946

Names, addresses and descriptions of Persons to whom notices of claims are to be given and names, in parentheses, of Personal Representatives
   Hinckley, Birch & Crarer, 15, Bird Street, Lichfield, Staffs, Solicitors. (National Provincial Bank Ltd;)

Date on or before which notices of claim to be given
   20th December, 1946   (098)

=======================================================

The 1911 Census reveals six married women called "Agnes Mary Jackson" - but none of them was born in 1856.
I would be grateful for a complete transcription - and for any other "background" information that might indicate when the letter was written. Or anything else of interest ?

9
My wife's grandfather, the grandson of Henri Jean de C. and Emilia nee Corry q.v.

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