South Dakota

South Dakota prairie, about 1932. My mother, Mary, is second from left, middle row. She has the same big smile (see PiP). The ghost-baby in front belongs to the teacher. Taken with an obviously shaky Brownie camera. I don't know where the boys are, maybe there weren't any that year. I'll ask my mother.

Identical twins John and Bill Burkholder, about 1938. My mother had 5 siblings, Bill is deceased. In my mother's family, I had twin great-great-uncles, twin great-uncles, twin uncles and twin brothers. When I was pregnant in 1969, I was relieved to find out I was having only one!

White River near the town of Interior, South Dakota. My grandparents' ranch was a few miles from this spot. That's my grandmother, I'm sitting in front of her (dark hair) One of my twin brothers is crawling away with plans to drown and another brother is far right. AA253 Relax.

Visiting grandparents. Mother on the left, Grandmother on the right. Probably before or after church. AA327 Photos of me.

After she bought the dress from the Montgomery-Ward catalog, quite an expense for her parents, the Senior Prom was cancelled because of strict WWII gas rationing. This was in a tiny berg called Interior, South Dakota. Before moving into town for a couple of years, the family lived on a cattle ranch about 10 miles away. Mom grew up on the ranch and daydreamed about moving to a big city. This is truly in the middle of nowhere. AA274 Special times/customs

At my grandparents' ranch. From left: my twin brothers, Mom, Dad, me, my uncle, another brother and my aunt. The two kiddies in red are cousins. Does anyone else remember those "circle pins?" I've got one on my collar. The back rooms of the house were built into a bank for additional warmth in winter, cooling in summer. It was demolished by new owners about 25 years ago. I've placed the photo where the house used to be. AA225 December customs

At my grandparents' ranch. Dad, just another day of shoveling snow. The back rooms of the house were built into the bank for additional warmth in winter, cooling in summer. It was demolished by new owners about 25 years ago. I've placed the photo where the house used to be. AA225 December customs

One of many summer family reunions at the ranch. Relatives in my mother's huge family would come and go all summer, probably to the exhaustion of my grandparents. (Grandpa, Rolla Burkholder, is in the back, far right.) We had lots of group portraits in front of these same trees when the sun was at maximum blinding level. For the kids this was the worst possible activity. The four kids here are my brothers and me. It would be fun now to see all the aunts' and uncles' collections of these standard yearly shots. The Burkholders had six children, 21 grandchildren and, before they died, one great-grandchild - my son. I was their oldest grandchild and, because the families lived all over the country, some cousins have not known each other very well.

Mary (left) is my mother, Pat is her sister. Mom is nearly 93 and Pat is 95! Check out Mom's gigantic hair. ;-b Grandparents' cattle ranch, Interior, South Dakota.