Early last November I wrote about discovering Janet Russell Hetherington. She had been a Latter-day Saint in New Zealand for about 20 years before her death in 1917, and her non-Mormon son James Russell Hetherington, a prominent local man in their part of New Zealand, had honored his mother, her faith, and his own association with Mormon elders by writing to New Zealand officials urging that a moratorium on the admission of missionaries be lifted. It was.
The letters I found between the son and the government official show an obvious respect for Janet Russell Hetherington and the missionaries she brought into her family’s home – but the letter didn’t actually mention her name. It took some effort to hunt that out, and to find the basic life facts of this long-time Saint.
You couldn’t convince me if you tried that our desire to find our dead – those ancestors of our bodies and also those pioneers of our faith – isn’t reciprocated. Time and time again, after learning about someone entirely new to me, something happens to bring them to my attention again. They want to be known and remembered as much as we want to know and remember them.
It’s happened again.
You might remember that Keepa’ninny Alison left a comment that not only did she live in the same place in Scotland where the Hetherington family originated, but also that her own uncles had emigrated to the same town in New Zealand where the Hetheringtons had settled. There is a genealogical connection, too, between Alison’s family and the Russells, a generation or two earlier than our Janet. This week, someone pursuing that distant connection contacted Alison to compare notes – and when that contact sent photographs of our Janet and her family, Alison sought and received permission to share those pictures with me and you.
So here, courtesy of Pat French of Auckland, New Zealand, are two of those photographs. One is a photo of Janet Russell and Robert Hetherington with younger family members; the other is a picture of James Russell Hetherington – the son who wrote the letter out of love and respect for Janet – and his own wife. I couldn’t be happier coming face to face with these fine people.
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What a find! Slightly off-topic, but I think one of the great features of Family Search is the ability to link to people in photographs, particularly non-family members. I’ve enjoyed hunting down somewhat random (to me) people in my grandparents’ mission and WW2 photographs, and been rewarded when a commenter indicates that they had never seen a photograph of that relative-of-theirs before.
Fantastic!
It’s so kind of them to find a way to say ‘hello.’
I remember years ago when you said that finding a century-old newspaper clipping from someone that you had written about was like getting a Christmas card from them. I loved the idea then and I love it now.
Ardis, I really enjoyed this amazing story. I believe there are Angels all around us helping things like this to happen. I’ve had a few experiences with my own ancestors. Keep doing what you do. Don’t ever stop. More souls than you know are forever grateful to you!
Wonderful! Yes, they do come after us to be known. It’s happened to me!
Oh, Ardis. I love this. Thank you for sharing.
Beautiful pictures and story. It is amazing how people are found.