Mapping Project

Cassandra Alexander; The process of creating a book project on the theme of mapping in the third year of the Image Arts: Photography program at Ryerson University.

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Work in Progress (unprocessed)

Photographs to be used in final book

Carp

Top left: Weedmark Garage to be paired with image from opening of garage with Alton

Top Right: Alton and Hazel's second home in Carp

Bottom left: Close up of Hazel's dress to be paired with photograph of her wearing the dress

Bottom right: Hazel's bracelette

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Just starting to mess around with images and text, getting a feel for how I want my book to progress while I wait to return to Ottawa to shoot the rest of the images.

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Photographs to be taken this weekend

Beachburg:

Rephotographing homesteads

Carp:

Rephotographing mother's original home land and Grandmother's current home

among others

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Works in Progress

Photographs to be used in final book

Own photographs to be taken this weekend in Beachburg

Top Left: William Ambrose Weedmark's home in Beachburg

Top Right: Archibald Weedmark's home in Beachburg

Bottom Left: Archibald at Saw Mill

Bottom Right: Alton and Hazel

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More work in progress

Photographs to be used in final book

Found media regarding early Weedmark's and original place of settlement.

Left: Frederick Alfred Weedmark burial record

Middle: Map of Marlborough County

Right: Frederick Weedmark Jr death record

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Works in Progress

Photographs to be used in final book

All taken in Merrickville regarding early Weedmark's and original place of settlement.

Top left: McGuigan Cemetery, burial place of Phoebe Weedmark and most likely Frederick Weedmark.

Top middle: Current Weedmark mailbox off of Weedmark Rd.

Top right: Missing Weedmark Rd. sign

Middle left: Weedmark Rd. sign

Middle middle: Original location of Weedmark settlement

Middle right: Original location of Weedmark settlement

Bottom left: Locks located on the canal, built around the time when Frederick was living in Merrickville

Bottom middle: Current map of Burritt's Rapids

Bottom right: Burritt's Rapids sign

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Proposal for Mapping Project

I am going to be exploring the history of my mother’s side of the family through old photographs. I chose my mother’s side of the family, the Weedmarks, because they have lived in the area that I have lived. It is not the say that I have a deeper connection to my mother’s side, as opposed to my father’s side. I mean to say that not only am I related to these people but we share the same land, just at different times. The concepts of time and memory really interest me and by living in the same area, I have to capability to explore those concepts through my own family history. The first Weedmark in Canada lived about an hour away from where my family lives today, and that’s over 150 years ago.

The plan I have put in place is to go as far back in my lineage in photographs and documents as possible and then work my way through them by visiting the locations in which they were taken or perhaps recorded. I am going to begin when the first Weedmark came to Canada just after the American Revolution using documents such as the census.

 This project will be an exploration of my personal history through the use of something that is also dear to me, and that is photography. I want to go to the places my family has been, see them for myself and capture these experiences myself through photography. A lot of this project will revolve around experiences; being in these places, seeing them and capturing them.

The book will take the mapping form in two ways. It will map my family history from past to present, as well as map my experiences as I discover my past. It will be a combination of photographs, old and new, census, birth and death records, memories as recorded from relatives as well as any other forms of memory that can be physically seen and placed on paper. The book will be laid out in a chronological order, as a sort of journey. I plan to rephotograph these areas in the order they were taken and get a sense of the movement of my family through time.

Through this project I hope to gain a deeper connection with my past. I want to use the photographs that I take as memories of memories. I wish to create my own relationship with these people who I call my family. The book will be documenting the process of creating memories of things that are only now remembered through the images that were taken or the records that were kept.

Again! Don't be shy! Any comments/suggestions/etc would be appreciated  either through reply or ask box! Any thoughts?

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This is where much of the media and information I use is found.

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Oral Family history about Alfred and Frederick Weedmark

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Frederick William death record, 1899

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William Ambrose Weedmark family photograph, Beachburg, Ontario (c. 1902)

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Great grandma Ruby with Lizzie and Great Grandpa Archie

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Top left: Alton and Hazel Weedmark, wedding day.

Top right: Great Step Grandma Lizzie and Alton Weedmark

Bottom left: Darwin, H.R., Helen, Alton, Gillen Weedmark

Bottom right: Helen and Alton Weedmark

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Top left: Great Grandpa Archibald's home in Beachburg, 1951

Top right: Edna Trick, Arnold Weedmark, and Archibald Weedmark on far right, Montreal

Bottom left: Ethel Wilson Walsh and Hazel Walsh (Weedmark, grandma)

Bottom right: Home of Darwin Weedmark

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Sept 25th

I've started to look at as well as map out my family tree.

I think the 1st decision I need to make is who is going to be included. I am thinking I will make the book regarding my grandma and grandpa's sides. This will be the Walshs(grandma) and the Weedmarks (grandpa).

I think I want this book to be an exploration of my Mother's side of the family. Visiting locations, where my family once lived and rephotographing these places.

In the book, I could perhaps combine past and present photographs, marriage certificates, census records, memories, perhaps use the "memories" written on the backs of the photographs.

I have access to a good amount of images as well as information due to my parents genealogy research they have already done.

Any thoughts?

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Sept 20th

Some ideas are brewing, I jotted some things down during my photographic production class after looking at some work by professionals and previous students.

Mostly just jot notes and incoherent words, but progress is progress.

I feel like I want to map out my families history. My mom has been working on her genealogy for a while now, and I think it would be interesting to make a book that has to do with that.

One idea was a sort of "Places We've Been" as a family. Perhaps photography where my relatives have lived paired with a portrait (if available) of them. 

Second thoughts were about the medium I would use, I could either make digital shots of the areas or places, or perhaps (since my dad has taken an interest in old cameras) take photographs of the places with the camera that would have been plausible for that relative to be using in that time period.

Another thought I had was perhaps pairing my family history with that of the history of photography. Perhaps just pairing together a photograph from my family archives, with my own photograph of the camera from the time, and perhaps a little blurb about when the photograph was taken, who it is, the camera that would have been used...

I think that last thought could be interesting, anyone have any ideas?