Red Tin Photos

When my Grandma’s sister mentioned that she was sure that my Grandma had a red box that contained many old documents and photos, my ears immediately pricked up and the red box became one of the most coveted items on my family history agenda.

Months continued to tick by and despite my searches at my Grandpa’s house, I found no red box. I resigned myself to the fact that it was obviously exceedingly well hidden and carried on with other tasks. At the back of my mind however I still speculated as to where it could be and hoped that it would one day turn up.

I’ve often noticed that when you stop looking, you tend to find exactly what you’re looking for. On one particular day I detected that hidden behind a door and wedged between other books, was a red tin. I gingerly removed it from its hiding place and eagerly popped open the lid. The musty smell long associated with my Grandma and the house she’d lived in wafted out. To my great surprise, there inside, were dozens upon dozens of photographs. Carefully picking up each one, I became more and more ecstatic as I realised that finally I had found the red box (that was actually a tin) and that I now had photographs of people whose faces I had assumed would forever be a mystery.

The photographs have become my new treasure and I’m absolutely thrilled to be able to share some of them with you.

Corporal John Flynn

To read the blog post about John Flynn, please click here.

Jesse Wallace

Jesse Wallace's wife: Esther Mary Mather

To read about Jesse Wallace, please click here.

Back: Violet Constance Barratt and Mary Priscilla Barratt. Front: Lionel James Barratt, Edward James Barratt, Alfred Dudley Barratt, Frances Maria Barratt, Priscilla Barratt (nee Masters) and Alan Keith Barratt. Photo taken during WWI as both Charles Victor Barratt and Reginald Edward Barratt are absent.

To read about Edward James Barratt, please click here.