From the First Mate's Photo Album - Zoo Pics

"Lets Go to the Zoo!"

Here are a few pictures taken at the Louisville Zoo on 24 Aug 2012... there are a lot of photos, click on one of them (suggest the bear above) to get another window with larger images of all in this blog.  The duck below was just a few inches from my leg when I took this photo!

The below photo was the best that we saw of the botanical gardens at this zoo on this trip.

Above left is a giant turtle... these guys are big & heavy!  This is a close-up of a sea lion just before the big show.  Upper left shows Becky making contact with this big guy.  Upper right is a very nice looking jaguar... just beautiful!  Below is one of Louisville's young Polar Bears.

 And in the middle of the zoo is a Pioneer Cemetery and here is a list of who is buried there.  An African and an Asian Elephant working together for a very nice show that we were lucky enough to catch.

That cannot be me with angel wings... it is not me, it is Indiana Bones who might be an angel! Wrestling a Kamoda Dragoon is not what an angel would do, but TSGS Director Becky West is not a typical angel... she is my wife!  Below is Evansville's Mesker Park Zoo photos... taken on Monday, 20 Aug 2012.  Look at the botanical garden near the zoo entrance and close to the Amazonia Exhibit.

 Above is some kind of Spoon-billed bird.  Below to the right is a wild snake crawling around in the temporiarily closed Praire Dog exhibit.  And just look at the teeth of that small gator!

 

 One of my favorite exhibits since I was just a little kid when it had monkeys on it, is Mesker Park's "Monkey Ship!"  They use it now for kiddie bumper boat rides.  Great new use for one of the zoo's older great exhibits!!!  OK, how many of you can have a leaf with your name on it as adopting a Zoo animal?  Anyone can... it only takes $25 for the smallest donation.  Actually, I represented the Ohio Valley SAR Chapter in adopting an American Bald Eagle and they put my name on the leaf instead of the Chapter - that will be corrected tomorrow!

 Below is one of the two most playful otters at the zoo... a favorite with the kids and for me and Becky.  The Jaguar is young and not yet full grown, but is a nice looking animal.





 

Above in these last four photos in upper left is a beautiful Tiger, then to the upper right is an old Rhino with missing tusks.  Lower left is one of the Gibbons monkeys that just love to swing around showing off!  Here are two large, but not giant turtles, posing for my camera.

- Photos taken by JGWest & Becky West.

From the First Mate's Photo Album - Counts

TSGS President Don Counts sent this photo for our blog.  John Counts is my Grandpa and served on the Evansville Traffic Squad.  I saw the following article "Evansville Police Department 150th Anniversary"

http://westside.14news.com/news/news/61534-epd-seeking-old-photos-memorabilia and called Brad Hill.  He came by and borrowed the picture.  He couldn't find a scanner big enough then found a person with a hand held scanner that worked.

[Click on photo for a larger image.]

From Left to Right: Gilbert Underdown, John Counts, Norman Clark, Chris Humphreys, George Gamble, William Hudson, John Hamrush, William Schulte, Walter Fisher, Charles Ohning, Clyde Roebling, Ralph Plummer and William S Perrett

My Grandpa is the 2nd from the left on his motor cycle.  My Dad was born in 1920 and he was a policeman when Dad was little so this is probably in the 1920s.

Brad and the police department were impressed and they are going to make this a wallpaper to go in the entrance to the police department.

- Photo submitted by Don Counts.

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Willard Library's Flowers

These flowers looked so nice at the entrance of the library that I wanted to share them with you.  This is sort of my way of "stopping to smell the roses!"  As you well might suspect, I was on my way for some serious genealogical research.  This time researching on my Gardner family in Pittsylvania County, Virginia records... I found a lot in 3 hours!  I will have to return to go through more than just 3 books of the 20 or so books for that county at Willard Library!

- Photos taken by JGWest.

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Five guys take same photo for 30 years...

every 5 years the next group photo is repeated and hung on the cabin wall at Copco Lake!

By Kelly Andersen, Special to CNN

updated 6:37 AM EDT, Fri July 27, 2012 

 Original photo in 1982

 1987

 1992

 1997

 2002

 2007

2012

(CNN) -- When five teenagers sat down and posed for a picture at Copco Lake in 1982, they didn't plan on making it a tradition. But that's what it became.  Every five years for the past three decades, John Wardlaw, John Dickson, Mark Rumer, Dallas Burney and John Molony have been meeting at the California lake and taking the same photo.  The first photograph of the high school friends was just happenstance. Wardlaw, known as Wedge in the group, had a family cabin at the lake where the friends gathered in July 1982.  [See the rest of this story @ http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/26/travel/friends-summer-photo-tradition/index.html]

These 5 friends have such a cool tradition!  The Abram West family of Amo (Hendricks County), Indiana started a family reunion in 1900 and continued every year until 2000 plus a few more years... the reunions lasted for over 100 years.  Abram West was the grandson of Ignatius West of Chatham Co., NC (the brother of my ancestor Thomas West, Jr. who brought his family to Christian Co., KY.  Abram's father, William West died in Christian Co, KY in 1812.). 

Do any of you have neat traditions that you would like to share with the followers of this blog?

- Compiled by JGWest

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Jonas Flatt

1890

Ashland, KY

[Lady unknown]

Does anyone know anything more about this photo, Jonas Flatt or the Flatt family?  I suspect that this might be Jonas F. Flatt b. about 1848 in TN.

1850 Census of Jackson Co., Tennessee

HH #173
Jonas Flatt 40 M Farmer TN
Anna 40 F NC
Elizabeth 12 F TN
David K. 10 M Tn
Ardela 07 F TN
Martha 05 F TN
Jonas F. 02 M TN

Ashland, KY (Boyd County) is not far from the point where Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky meet not far from Huntington, WV on the Ohio River.

- Submitted by JGWest

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Sons of the American Revolution

Revolutionary War Memorial

Unveiling and Dedication

04 July 2012

Kentucky Verteran's Cemetery West

Hopkinsville, Kentucky

[click on photo for a larger image]

The above photo was the very first picture taken when we arrived for this ceremony that featured 71 men listed on the large monument that is covered with the red, white and blue cloth.  Thomas West, Jr. was one of these men.  Due to the heat, the outer edges came out "foggy" with the center clear providing for a very nice effect.  The wreath was placed here from the Colonel John Green Chapter of NSDAR.  Behind it to the right is the NSSAR flag.

- Photo taken by Indiana Bones.

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Oh, Deer!!!

And I do mean deer, White-tailed Deer roaming around grazing in Oak Hill Cemetery!  Superintendent Chris Cooke sent me a photo of these deer that were right in front of the Administration Office Building early yesterday morning.  I went by the cemetery to finish decorating graves for Becky's family.  And, there they were just walking around like they owned the place.  Chris said he had seen some deer over the last few years, but mostly when it was a little colder.  These look like they are young... short and slender.

 They stopped to pose for me and, then, they looked at me as if I was invading their privacy.

 Then they saw the SUV taking pictures of them and decided to run for it.  I was lucky to get this last pic before they were gone!  This was a first for this ol' Cemetery Geek!

- Photos taken and submitted by Indiana Bones

From the First Mate's Photo Album

Sunset over the

Kentucky Veterans Cemetery West

Christian County, Hopkinsville, KY

Sunset at the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery West in Hopkinsville, KY

Don Counts & I as TSGS President & Vice-President and as local chapter & state officers of the Ohio Valley SAR Chapter and the Indiana Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, attended a ground breaking for a large monument in this veteran's cemetery to honor 71 men that provided service to the Revolutionary War.  These men lived or were buried in Christian County.  One of them was my ancestor, Thomas West, Jr.

In the foreground of this photo is the entrance to the cemetery with the tall monument featuring the American Bald Eagle and the large flag of the United States.  The eagle is golden in color and is about 30 feet high.

- Photo taken & submitted by JGWest

From the First Mate's Photo Album

"Adopt-A-Spot" Landscaping

These two spots are in the city right-way in front of Data Mail who addresses and mails our TSGS members' quarterly journal... The Tri-State Packet.

 Roses in the Evansville area look especially nice this year.  This location is near the Civic Center.

- Photos taken & submitted by JGWest

From the First Mate's Photo Album... Master Gardeners

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Photos were taken at the gardens of the Southwestern Indiana Master Gardener Association grounds just south of the Indiana State Hospital and next to (east of) the Buffalo Trace Boy Scouts headquarters off of the Lloyd Expressway. The first photo reminds me of a great calendar photo!

At its entrance is this logo sign below. [Click on photos to get a larger image]
This is the front of the log cabin on the grounds that can be seen from the highway. Yesterday the "Monument Monday" showed the gazebo that is here, as well.

These Verbena "Homestead Purple" flowers send out a super great fragrance that really adds to the entire beautiful gardens. These photos only represents a "teaser" of what is here! I am very much impressed with this group of Master Gardeners!!! Great job, we will visit again and again!
- Photos taken & submitted by JGWest

From the First Mate's Photo Album... Illinois Holland Family

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Who is in this photo is unknown, but it is a great photo to share. They are obviously of Holland heritage wearing bonnets & wooden shoes! The original photo is of better quality than these scanned copies. The original was too large to lay flat on the scanner, but hopefully you can see enough to enjoy it from the two photos scanned.

Oddly there is only one male. He is interesting in many ways. I am not sure that is his mustache or possibly a stain or marking like the mark on his chest by his left arm. The mark on his chest shows like an ink stain on the original and the mustache is just a dark , but normal coloring in the photo. Click on the photo to get a larger image. His pipe is really cool! He is wearing wooden shoes, but notice how he is standing with his toes pointing inward a lot! Check out his hat & what seems to be a polka-dotted tie. The first lady seated on the right side with the very large wooden shoes looks just like my Mom's Aunt Maggie Wood. Nearly every single lady has a different style of clothing and necklaces.

Notice in the lower right corner: "Sandstrom Photo 1913 Moline, Ill" Which makes this photo nearly one hundred years old! The origin of the photo or who is in it is unknown.

The above photo is an attempt to improve the quality of the left side of the photo (and include what was cut-off) from scanning. I really love this photo!

- Photo was scanned and submitted by Mindy Meijer

From the First Mate's Photo Album...

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A few photos from Tuesday night's TSGS meeting with Stan Schmitt speaking on the Civil War in Evansville. Becky West (right - standing) is introducing our guest speaker to those in attendance.

[Photos are kind of dark, click on them to enlarge each one for a better picture.]

Stan with his arms stretched out was saying that at a previous TSGS meeting, he had been interrupted by a new young security guard because it was almost 8 PM, the normal closing time for the library. The guard asked everyone to leave in 5 minutes... the librarian and I quickly informed the guard that we were conducting a meeting and he just interrupted the guest speaker. We also told him that we generally ran over about 1/2 hour over the normal closing time. The security guard was nick-named "Skippy" by several un-named TSGS members! Stan then quickly wrapped up his program in a few minutes, although he had about 15 to 20 minutes more to finish. Everyone present enjoyed Stan's program very much and wanted him to return "to finish the war!"
As Stan is speaking those in attendance were listening very closely. Stan is a good speaker with an interesting subject. He finished the war for us and everyone enjoyed his program very much! We ended with having two very good programs from Stan Schmitt. Thanks, Stan!
Photo of the audience for Stan's program... a few present are not shown (they were seating just right of the edge of this picture). TSGS President Don Counts is to the left of this photo with Mrs. Browning seated at the other end of the same table (lower center).
- Photos taken by JGWest