Moonwalk

Source: NASA. Buzz Aldrin, 20 July 1969.

Recovering the past

Source: R. Salazar. Campuzano Family, Undated.

This week I received an amazing file from the National Archives, the Alien Case File for Maria Jesus Campuzano de Grijalva, oldest daughter of my 2nd-great-grandfather Vicente Campuzano. The photo above was shared to me back in 2015 by a granddaughter of Maria Jesus, and it shows Maria Jesus on the left, with likely Vicente's second wife Beatris Palacios, then Vicente. The young man to the right of him I think was my great-grandfather Plutarco Campuzano, followed by his sister Concha Campuzano on the end. The photo is undated, but given the age on Vicente's face, I think this is from 1920s, perhaps taken in Arizona or Sonora.

The A-file from the Archives includes two photos of Maria Jesus, one from 1951, and another from 1932. The 1932 photo looks a lot like her in the photo above.

Maria Jesus, A-file page dated 1932

The file includes a wealth of information about how Maria Jesus, as well as her father and siblings, came to the United States. I will be sharing some extracts from the file.

I am also preparing for another business trip, so the follow-up on this amazing story may need to wait a few days. But it's going to be worth it.

Safford Junior High 1935-1937

Source: Safford Junior High Archives. 

While doing some research, I stumbled onto this photo from Safford Junior High in Tucson, Arizona. I think the photo has cousins of my Granny. The photo is dated class of 1935-1936-1937. I know from earlier research my Granny and her sister and cousins were at Safford in 1940. From newspaper archives my Granny and her sister Jessie were at Ochoa School in 1937. My Granny graduated from Safford in 1942.

Either way it is a cool photo. A hopeful and happy looking bunch.

Essaouira

Photo by Patrick Jones. Ramparts at Essaouira, 19 June 2019.

Before the meetings in Marrakech, I was able to enjoy a bit of relaxation in the beach towns of Essaouira and Sidi Kaouki in Morocco. Essaouira was featured recently in Game of Thrones and is also the home of the annual Gnaoua Music Festival. I was in the town during the set up for the stages for the festival, and was able to see live music from some early arrivals doing sound checks.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Sidi Kaouki Beach.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Door in Essaouira.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural in Essaouira. 18 June 2019.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Gnaoua Festival Main Stage. 19 June 2019.

Apollo 50

Next week marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. I'll be out of the country, so I'm marking the anniversary on the blog this week. The photo below comes from the NASA Apollo 11 archive.

Source: NASA. Apollo 11 launch, 16 July 1969.

For those in DC next week, the Smithsonian will be projecting images and video from the Apollo 11 launch onto the Washington Monument. This looks really cool.