There’s a great genealogy story in the April 26, 2009 edition of the Des Moines Register. It’s the story of the surfacing of a 100 year of a christening bowl, the search by Iowa Genealogical Society staff and volunteers, and the eventual reunion of the artifact with the family. The bowl has ties to the Runyan, Shaw, and Synhorst families of the Des Moines, Iowa area. Following is a teaser from the article:
A century-old bowl sits on the coffee table amid a circle of amazed people. They don’t know all the answers to why, after so many years, it returned, though all played a part. They whisper of its spirit.
The tale of the bowl’s reappearance began with a homeless man known as Turtle. He held it in his camp along the Des Moines River in southeast Des Moines. One day last August, Lyle Danielson of Johnston was paddling a canoe, gathering trash from the river as part of the annual River Run Garbage Grab. He stopped on a sandbar to adjust his unwieldy cargo. Turtle greeted him there and asked his business.
Then, Turtle disappeared into the woods, emerging minutes later holding the circular metal bowl. The silver plating was worn off what is believed to be pewter, engraved with names and dates. He handed it to Danielson without words.
Read the full article titled “Century-old christening heirloom found, returned to family,” by Mike Kilen.
