Unsolved Avard mystery to be focus of genealogy society meeting Oct. 13

 

October 12, 2018



The Northwest Oklahoma Genealogy Society October program will be, “The Old Avard Road Unsolved Mystery of 1956.”

The Oct. 13 meeting will be at 10:30 a.m. at the Alva Public Library. The guest speaker will be Alica Hall who is a 2017 graduate in American Studies from Northwestern Oklahoma State University (NWOSU) and a graduate of NWOSU's theatre program in 2012.

Growing up, Hall learned about local history and World War II from her grandfather Boad Steward of Alva and she learned about the Civil War after her mother introduced her to the movie “Gone With the Wind.” In 2010 Hall discovered there were parts of Alva history that were unfamiliar and she embarked on an adventure uncovering the stories of Mable Oaks and Mildred Reynolds, which led to searching local graveyards for other unusual stories. After all, some of the most interesting mysteries can be discovered in your own backyard.

Some say 1956 Northwest Oklahoma was a time of innocents in a rural community. Death happened, but only by accident or disease. The death of Mildred Ann Reynolds happened on Tuesday, March 13, 1956, on the Old Avard Road. Was it an accident? Was it murder? People who were living in the Alva area may well remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard about the death.

Geologists deal with sensitive issues all the time. Family secrets may cover many subjects – bank robbers, murder mysteries, out of wedlock births, a story George Washington spent the night with one of your great grandparents, a story your family weren't just slaveholders but were slave traders.

Don't perpetrate a family myth just because it's one of those feel-good stories that everyone wants to believe. If you find information to discredit a myth, share that research.

It isn't easy to navigate the ethical challenges involved in trying to solve family historical mysteries. But there are three basic rules we all learned in kindergarten that will keep us on the ethical straight and narrow. Tell the truth, play nice with others and don't tell tales out of school.

Every ethical code for genealogists says it's wrong to share information about living people without their consent. That extends to those living people who are close relatives of a person who is deceased, as well. You have an ethical obligation to protect the privacy and personal rights of your living relatives. You can't be an ethical genealogist if you're telling tales out of school. Family tales and mysteries can add a great deal of interest to your family genealogy when presented ethically.

The November meeting of the Northwest Oklahoma Genealogy Society will be held on Nov. 19 at 10:30 a.m. at the Alva Public Library. The guest speaker, Virginia Downing, will present a program called “Backing up Census.” Guests are welcome.

 

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