Family, local history needs to be shared

   The Dyersville Area Historical Society, which is quite active, recently posted to Facebook about the lack of engagement and wedding announcements that are being published in local newspapers. The historical society noted that announcements like these are “very important pieces of genealogy research.” I quite agree!

   If you look back at engagements and weddings in old issues of the Monticello Express, they were full of important information for those researching family history.

   For example, in an engagement, you usually include the names of the couple’s parents, as well as where they reside. You also note the soon-to-be bride and grooms’ education background (typically just college), and where they work. Engagements also note the date, time, and location of the upcoming wedding.

   Wedding announcements, on the other hand, were much more detailed…

   They included: Where the couple resides; the date, time, and location of their wedding ceremony; the location of the reception; who officiated the ceremony; the parents’ names and residences; the names and associations of the wedding party (as in how they’re related or associated to the bridge and groom); the date and location of the rehearsal dinner; the couple’s education and professional information; and the location of the honeymoon.

   Thirty-plus years ago, some details in wedding announcements aren’t as important or included today, such as the style of dress the bride wore, the color and style of dress worn by the bridesmaids, the types of flowers in the bouquets.

   If you go through old issues of the Express, engagement and wedding announcements were plentiful throughout the paper practically year-round. Now, thanks to social media, we don’t see these included in community newspapers anymore.

   Think about your family generations from now… In 75 or 100 years, someone will be researching your family history and have no record of when or where Great Great Grandpa and Grandma got married.

   My grandfather wrote several books about his and my grandmother’s family history and genealogy. He relied heavily on newspaper archives: engagements, weddings, birth announcements, obituaries.

   Speaking of birth announcements, social media has also ruined the publication of those, too.

   Did you know that you can have your engagement, wedding, anniversary, and birth announcements published in the Express for FREE? Why would you pass this deal up?

   The Dyersville Historical Society is now asking people to submit their wedding invitations so they can continue to keep a record of local history. They’re just wanting to “preserve an important part of (their) genealogy.”

   In February/March, the Express publishes its annual “Bridal Edition.” That special section used to be full of local engagement and wedding announcements. The last several years, not so much.

   We’d love to help you and your family “preserve history,” not just your family history, but local history.

   One hundred years from now, those milestones on Facebook and Instagram will be gone. But, newspapers will still be accessible. The 1922 issues of the Monticello Express from 100 years ago are still accessible and available online, that means those public announcements and family and local history still exist.