Who Were They?

For several years now, I have been tracking the Streeter Family – the subject of the C. Murray Album, which was given to me by a good friend. Little did my friend know I was going to become slightly obsessed with this family in the hopes of figuring out who they were. Sometimes I find new information, sometimes people contact me through Ancestry.com, where I have created a Streeter Family tree in the hopes of connecting with the family. I find people will copy the photos on the family tree, but rarely connect to share information.

Well, my friend C. Murray just the other day found some more information that may shed light on this lost family.

First is this beautiful portrait of Kate Parish Streeter and her child. Originally, I thought this curious baby was a girl because of the delicate facial features. The back of the photo carried a note that the photo was made on May 6, 1892 when the child was 15 months and 10 days old (making the date of birth January 28, 1891.) The child died a mere 22 days after this photo was taken, although the cause I do not know. C. Murray found a memorial on FindAGrave.com indicating that the baby was named B. Alford Streeter, dob January 26, 1891, death on May 28, 1892. B. Alford is interred in in the Riley Cemetery in Riley, Kansas.

Although we know on some level that childhood mortality was much higher prior to vaccinations becoming widely used in the 20th century, it is still sad to see a tiny child, just toddling along and learning about the world around him, only to be stopped short in his tracks. Although the memorial for B. Alford has dates of birth and death, there does not appear to be a photo of his marker. I have requested a photo from a volunteer and hopefully will hear more in the following days.

Second is beautiful little Flora Moses, cousin to B. Alford Streeter.

Pretty little Flora did not survive to have another portrait taken with her family and I really could not find anything to indicate why. Again, C. Murray found a memorial on FindAGrave.com with more detail.

Flora was the second child of George and Abbie Streeter Moses, who lived in Junction City, KS with their entire extended family. This photo is the last in the album to show Flora, and on the 1900 census she was not listed. According to the FindAGrave.com memorial, Flora perished on May 8, 1892 (just two days after the above photo of her cousin B. Alford was made). Her marker indicates she was 7 years, 10 months, 25 days of age at the time of her death. That puts her date of birth about September 14, 1884. And while we still do not know the cause of her death, somehow knowing when helps in processing the emotions. I was truly devastated when I first discovered her death, and the sadness still resonates as my daughter today is about 7 years and 10 months old. Life is fleeting.

For a full summary of the Streeter family, please visit the Streeter Family Overview that I wrote. I continue to be hopeful that someone, someday will find this site and be able to provide more information about the family. I feel like they are my family after all this time.