TravelGenee #atozchallenge K – KITTO

TravelGenee #atozchallenge K – KITTO

KITTO, it’s my name. I did not change my name when I got married.  Partly because I am a bit feminist and partly because I rang the bank and they wanted all the vital records under the sun to change my name. (Two actually – birth and marriage.) I had to actually go into the branch. I was busy. Gosh, I opened the account with practically no ID back in the day. I thought if I have to go through this with the bank what about my passport and I was going overseas soon.

So I decided to own my name – KITTO.

It’s caused two minor issues over the years. Our son’s kindy teacher struggled and kept calling me Mrs Reade. Number two was at the hospital where our son was born. They called me Mrs Reade. Mr TG made me a pretty Kitto name card for the door. They refused to let us use it because of the “Ms” on the name tag. It did not bother him I had kept my “own” name. They kept taking the card away. Apparently, it embarrassed all the other unmarried mothers who are trying to hide that they were not married. Everyone had to be called Mrs and by a married name. Married or not. What is odd is that they kept calling our son, who was in an incubator, Baby KITTO. Apparently, he had to be called after the mother. Go figure. We kept changing his name tag too as he is named after his father.

So that is my story about KITTO. I do answer to Mrs Reade and correct at a convenient time and in a polite way.

Tips on Taking Cemetery Photos

Now that I have shared a story about me, here are some things to watch for when taking photos at cemeteries.

Sun Direction

The direction of the sun can make a big difference in the quality of your images. Here is one for Herbert Cleveland Eric KITTO (1894-1939) at the Taita Cemetery in New Zealand. It also mentions his second wife, Ivy Alice and two daughters, Irene and Erica. Can you see me in the photo? As you may not know which way the grave will be facing it might be not easy to select a time to be taking photos. Take many images at different camera settings. If you have help, someone could shade the gravestone with a blanket.

Adjust when you get home

Here are a few I played with adjusting them in photoshop. Click to see larger images.

Gravestone or not?

Sometimes there is not a gravestone to photo. If you are just walking around looking you will not be able to find unmarked graves. Here is one for my great grandfather, Francis KITTO (DOD 1853) and his second wife Esther ROWE (DOB 1867). I finally found the location of their burials by checking with the office. Francis is not even on the database but the old map on the wall helped locate the site. (Taita Cemetery – Old Section)

Go Back a Second Time

I found Frances Irene KITTO (DOB 1892) and Olwen Zoe KITTO (DOB 1908) and it was covered in moss. I resisted the urge to scratch and clean.  Next time I visited to check out some new Kitto finds and found a clean and shiny gravestone. Most of the stones in the area had were cleaned so I assumed it was the cemetery that had done the cleaning. Did you notice my photography skills have not improved and that I am featured in the second image? I must improve my photography skills.

 

Take Photos Without Distractions

I went to search out my grandfather and grandmother’s grave marker at Karori Cemetery. I took some everlasting flowers, as I had never visited the grave before. I was just new at this cemetery stuff. When I was about to go I thought – take a photo. Problem is the flowers cover part of the name and date information. The best part for a family history researcher.

Any photos you wish you had taken? Any tips for taking photos? Leave a comment.

Sources:

1. Taita Cemetery
2. Karori Cemetery

TravelGenee #atozchallenge K – KITTO

This is part of the A to Z Blogging Challenge for April 2016: Letter K for KITTO. You can read more about the A to Z challenge and my other posts. Or search on social media with #atozchallenge.