11.2 Living Memory
The average lifespan of a human being is 73 years,1 so living memory can take family history back many years through the twentieth century. A person who is 50 years old has his or her own memories back to the 1970s, but they may also have been taught by great-grandparents who were born in the 1800s or grandparents who remembered the stories their parents told them and passed those memories on to younger generations.
Han Henry Peterson was born in 1875 and died in 1936. He told his daughter Wanda the story of what happened when he bought his first automobile. No one had explained to him about the brakes so when it was time to stop, he was at a loss not knowing what to do. Hoping to slow down the car, he did what came naturally to a person who had been raised with horses and yelled out, “Whoa whoa!” Grandma Wanda told this story to her grandchildren who now tell it to their grandchildren, spanning six generations.2
CHICAGO STYLE:
The note for oral communications should include the name of the person speaking, a description of mode of communication such as telephone call or in-person interview, who was interviewing the person, and the date in written out month, numerical day, followed by the year3
TaschaMarie Burton Jeter, telephone interview by author, January 2025.
EVIDENCE EXPLAINED:
Person interviewed and identifying information, (location) , type of interview by interviewer, date of interview; current forma of the interview, privately hed by interviewer, location of interviewer, standardized date.4
TaschaMarie Burton Jeter, great-grandaughter of Hans Henry Peterson (Cheyenne, Wyoming), telephone interview by author, January 2025; handwritten notes of interview, privately held by interviewer, Provo, Utah, United States, 2025.
SENSIBLE CITATION:
Explanation of the subject of the oral memory with family and person in parenthesis year born or died, then detail who was sharing the memory followed by the standardized place where the person lived, and then the standardized date of the conversation.
Peterson Family Tradition about Hans Henry Peterson (born 1875), as told by TaschaMarie Burton Jeter of Cheyenne, Wyoming, great-granddaughter, January 2025.
Memories of the stories told by their loved ones can reach back to the days of horse and buggies. Older family members may have information going back even further. Living memory is one of the most interesting and valuable possessions a family has, and making use of those memories to begin creating a family archive gives future generations personal connections and understanding that can come no other way. The first assignment in this course was to write a personal biography, which was meant to illustrate that preserving memories, so they can be passed on, is an important part of family history. Autobiographical writings are not the only way. Preserving memories can be done through activities like journaling, scrapbooking, or expressing interests, talents, and hobbies in a visual or audio media that can be preserved. Remember what American writer and spiritualist Luisah Teish once said: "We are the ancestors of the future, and what we do now will have an impact."5
FamilySearch distributes an app called “Together” that is designed to be “a new and exciting way for youth to connect with their parents, grandparents, and other family members. Users will find ways to build stronger family connections and make unforgettable memories.”6 While technology offers many ways to preserve and share living memory, old-fashioned modes like keeping a journal, scrapbooking, creating family newsletters, and printing photobooks are enjoyable ways to create a legacy out of a life story. Putting living memory into some form that can be passed on to future generations is the key. This can be accomplished in a variety of enjoyable ways.