The Olden Days

Hello! I'm Starr from A Thought is the Blossom here to take over the Sally Jane blog for a day. When Jennifer told me that she was going to visit family in Alabama, I immediately thought of my vacation to Mobile last Fall. My sister and I drove there to visit our family too, though we spent a lot of our time digging through antique malls in the downtown historic district. The place was a gold mine when it came to vintage treasures!

The digging and the buying were both fun, but I think more than anything I enjoyed the time I spent with my grandma. I asked her so many questions about her childhood and her parents childhoods – she must have been so annoyed with me by the end. She told me tales about the gypsies that tried to kidnap my great grandma on her walks home from school –they succeeded in shanghaiing one of her brothers for a number of years before eventually returning him home– and she told me all about my great grandfather and how he used to get in trouble for dipping girls hair in ink and sticking tacks in their chairs when he was in school. She also told me a fascinating story about my great, great grandfather.

80s Coat & Boots: Saver's / Vintage Sweater & Jantzen Blouse: Goodwill / Tights: Zara / 70s Dress: Midtown Antique Mall / Vintage Skeleton Key Charm: Blue Moon Antique Mall, DIY

According to her grandmother (my great, great grandmother), when Vicksburg was being besieged by General Grant, things were going badly for the citizens. They were running out of food and other supplies and had no choice but to eat horses and print the newspaper on the back of wallpaper –the paper was a strong line of support that helped keep the morale of the people. At the age of 13, most likely by the influence of his family, my great, great grandfather rode out of Vicksburg and into Lower Peach Tree, AL on a mule one night, sneaking through the enemy lines that surrounded the city.

It's hard to believe that a story like that is true, but according to my great, great grandmother, it happened just like that. How tragic would it have been if that story would have stopped at my grandmother?

Photos by Corey!