history

On last week's autumn trek, I passed by the family homestead of Roger's grandmother.

It's a few miles from our home but we don't often drive that way.

I've never taken a picture of it before, but the sight of the massive sugar maples stopped my car like magic. The golden foliage almost completely obscured the house  - I'll have to go back in a week or so when the leaves fall and  take another picture just for posterity.

After I parked the car and snapped a few pictures of the tree, I noticed something that I had never noticed before - a long, low, sandstone wall in front of the house.

The stones are old - very old.

Most old Island homes had sandstone foundations. The stones were cut by hand. Many of those foundations have been replaced with cement basements now. Often people will use the old stones in landscaping and garden design.

This wall was most likely made with the original foundational stones of this house.

Foundational stones that were maybe, just maybe, shaped by my children's great-great-great grandfather's hands.

Now that's something to think about.

Comments

[kim from hiraeth]

Wow! So glad you stopped to 'smell the roses.' That is an amazing thought, isn't it? My mother has a wooden hammer of my great-great-great-grandfathers that was used in barn building. The connection I feel with my family is hard to describe when I hold it.

[Judy]

I love the rock wall...a tangible piece of history. And the fall colours...most amazing!

[nikkipolani]

How very interesting! I didn't realize where those picturesque stones came from.

[ellen b]

What a great tree and those stones are very cool.
Have a good week...

[jill]

May I suggest that future wedding include a shot of the couple and the stones?

I have had the joy of placing my hands on the bricks formed by the hands of my greatx12 grandfather, made in Massachusets in 1693, and stood in the house that they formed. Looked out the window that they looked out...and have a brick from the ruins of the house that my husband's 11xgreat grandfather's house, built in the late 1600's also.

I love researching places our families have lived, and even if the house is now gone, I still get a thrill seeing the scenes that they saw, and finding newspapers of the news of their times.

Roots are lovely things to have...and your roots are deep in an especially lovely place!

[jill]

PS: Someday will you post as much of what you know about why and how your family came to live on the island?
I had a great great great grandfather born in Canada in 1811...but he only was there for a year!

[Nan]

I keep thinking I should do an entry on the stones in our cellar. The work those people used to do! The maple in front of our house is much the same as the one in your photo, and the leaves are all gone!

[Jody]

What a spectacular Sugar Maple! Oh my! It would surely cause me to stop too.
It's quite a thought to think that your great great grands might have cut those sandstones.

Jody

[Cedar]

I love thinking about those sandstone blocks being cut by your kids' ancestors... and thinking about what their life was like then. Beautiful pics!

[Josie Ray]

What meaningful insight into local and family history. Don't you just love the ancient stones, and the ones that you know have been touched by hands long gone. What hopes might have distilled into those stones when the original foundation was being built. Can you find one tumbled down off the wall to take home and set by your fireplace?