Ephemera

Photograph of Native Cherokee woman, Ophelia “Mink” Angeline Snow. Ophelia was my great-great-great grandmother born in May 1847. She married Sylvester Vines (son of Dawson Vines and Mary Faulkner) and she had five children. Ophelia was the resident midwife, and helped with the delivery of the babies in her neighborhood. She passed away in Jefferson, AL in October 1931 and is believed to be buried in the Tuggle Family Cemetery at Pumpkin Center, Alabama. The shells pictured are a culmination of many trips to St. Augustine, Florida where these "souvenirs" were brought back from.

Signed photograph by Henry Winkler, famously known as“The Fonz” in television sitcom Happy Days (1974-1984.) My mother (the Laura this is addressed to) met Winkler in 2014 when he visited Chattanooga, Tenn. for a classic car convention. She had to pay $20 to have her photo made with him.



Ephemera

I’m including the ephemera in my portfolio, because it was one of the most enjoyable assignments of the semester. I think diversity in mediums used in a magazine is important these days, and people like to see the strange or forgotten items from archives or family histories. I talked to my grandfather for this piece and he told me everything he knew about Ophelia. This was an opportunity to make more meaning on this piece. I also enjoyed the opportunity to do some artistic photography. I’m hoping I’ll get the opportunity to do more of this, should I be able to take the class next semester.