Our Christmas Eve Tradition
Growing up in my family, I loved Christmas, of course. But what I loved more was Christmas Eve. On Christmas Eve we were allowed to open one…
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A Virginia Goldminer – The Sad End
David Shrum left Virginia in 1855 to mine gold in Grass Valley, California. In September 1858 he wrote back home to his brother, Orlando, who is my…
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A Virginia Goldminer Part 3
While my second great-grandfather, Orlando Shrum, was a young man living in Shenandoah County, Virginia with his parents and siblings in September of 1858, he received a…
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A Virginia Goldminer Part 2
I’m sharing more of the letter my 16-year-old second great-grandfather, Orlando Shrum, received from his 27-year-old brother David in 1858. David left Indiana in 1855 and traveled…
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A Virginia Goldminer Part 1
When I read we had a gold miner in the family, I thought it couldn’t possibly true. We aren’t exactly the adventurous type in this family. I…
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