THE THOMSON SCRAPBOOK

NARRATIVE OF BOOK 1 OF COTTON'S SCRAPBOOK

Page 1 Cotton's scrapbook begins in the late 1920s amd does have one nice photograph of him in 1939 which was about the time he, Ruth and us kids moved to East Lansing, Michigan from Flint, Michigan. There are two photographs of Ruth's brothers, Watson and James, and several nice shots of cars of that era. Cotton had three brothers, George the oldest, Bob the youngest and Ralph. I believe Cotton was the 3rd boy. It is interesting to note that all the Thomson men always had boys for several generations until Cotton's 2nd son, Jim, had four boys and the 1st girl in three generations. It seems that both the Thomson and Parker boys were into athletics as kids, from football, basketball and golf. This has been true for the since the 1910s.

Page 1a The boys are grown now and they all take part in sports, especially Lester and Watson. At the bottom of this page is a photograph of the house Cotton was born in.

Page 2 Here we see a great photograph of Bompa's Rye Beach cottage before the "Lake Wall" was installed to save the shore line and his cottage from the effect of storms. Some really nice shots of both the Thomson and Parker families, especially of the Thomson brothers.

Page 3 Lots of photographs of Cotton, his parents, and Ruth. Most of the photographs are from 1915 to 1926 or so.

Page 3a Lawrence and Ruth are married on June 12, 1926 in Sandusky, Ohio.

Page 4 Here we see Cotton and family in Baldwin, N.Y. The home there is typical of that era, two story and close together. Several nice photographs of us three boys are here. Tom's first school is shown along with a nice family photograph in the backyard with Tom and Jim on a merry-go-round.

Page 5 Two great photograps of Jim and Dave in Sandusky in front of Bompa's home with the County Court House across the street in the background. Mom with two of her children, the Thomson clan, and the house in Drexel Hill, PA, in 1936 where we lived before moving to Flint, Michigan a year or so later.

Page 6 Some photographs of us at Rye Beach in 1939. One photograph is of Jim and I on the jetty in front of Bomba's cottage where we used to spend hours fishing in during summer vacations. Also, our home in Flint, Michigan, where Jim and I used to suck necter from honeysuckle flowers that grew on vines on the porch supports.

Page 7 World War II is upon us now and Mom's brothers, James, Watson and Lester, all enlisted in the Navy. Watson first born, Watson, Jr. a.k.a Kayo is born during this period. Also shown are Grace, Watson's wife, Flossie, Lester's wife, along with Bomba and Nana.

Page 8 Cotton's brother, Bob and his wife Helen are shown in San Diego, California where they lived. It is interesting that Ruth's brother, James, ended up living in the same town later on. There is an excellent photograph of Bompa on this page, probably the best that Cotton has in his scrapbook. Finally, some photographs of a tradition during summer at Bompa's cottage, a picnic where corn was wrapped in wet newspaper and put in a pit of hot coals, covered with sand and left to cook.

Page 9 The War is over and Lester and Flossie have twin boys, Timmy and Terry. Tom and Jim are young men now and Tom has met his future wife, Marj. We have a dog now, Smokey, a cocker Spaniel, who eventually got away years later and was killed by a car. Tom and Marj's first boy, Douglas is born. Pop sits on the back porch listening to a ball game after working in his beloved garden. He used to spend hours in the small garden, planting, edging and weeding.

Page 10 It is now the early 1950s and Pop and Mom are taking vacations in Leland, Michigan, just northwest of Traverse City in the "little finger" of Michigan. Pop got me a summer job in a summer resort in Leland and asked me to look around for a cottage to rent. I found the "Stier Shack" and they spent many years vacationing there with Mom's brother, Watson, and his family.

Page 1	Cotton's scrapbook begins in the late 1920s amd does have one nice photograph of him in 1939 which was about the time he, Ruth and us kids moved to East Lansing, Michigan from Flint, Michigan. There are two photographs of Ruth's brothers, Watson and James, and several nice shots of cars of that era. Cotton had three brothers, George the oldest, Bob the youngest and Ralph. I believe Cotton was the 3rd boy. It is interesting to note that all the Thomson men always had boys for several generations until Cotton's 2nd son, Jim, had four boys and the 1st girl in three generations. It seems that both the Thomson and Parker boys were into athletics as kids, from football, basketball and golf. This has been true for the since the 1910s.
Page 1a	The boys are grown now and they all take part in sports, especially Lester and Watson. At the bottom of this page is a photograph of the house Cotton was born in.
Page 2	Here we see a great photograph of Bompa's Rye Beach cottage before the "Lake Wall" was installed to save the shore line and his cottage from the effect of storms. Some really nice shots of both the Thomson and Parker families, especially of the Thomson brothers.
Page 3	Lots of photographs of Cotton, his parents, and Ruth. Most of the photographs are from 1915 to 1926 or so.
Page 3a	Lawrence and Ruth are married on June 12, 1926 in Sandusky, Ohio.
Page 4	Here we see Cotton and family in Baldwin, N.Y. The home there is typical of that era, two story and close together. Several nice photographs of us three boys are here. Tom's first school is shown along with a nice family photograph in the backyard with Tom and Jim on a merry-go-round.
Page 5	Two great photograps of Jim and Dave in Sandusky in front of Bompa's home with the County Court House across the street in the background. Mom with two of her children, the Thomson clan, and the house in Drexel Hill, PA, in 1936 where we lived before moving to Flint, Michigan a year or so later.
Page 6	Some photographs of us at Rye Beach in 1939. One photograph is of Jim and I on the jetty in front of Bomba's cottage where we used to spend hours fishing in during summer vacations. Also, our home in Flint, Michigan, where Jim and I used to suck necter from honeysuckle flowers that grew on vines on the porch supports.
Page 7	World War II is upon us now and Mom's brothers, James, Watson and Lester, all enlisted in the Navy. Watson first born, Watson, Jr. a.k.a Kayo is born during this period. Also shown are Grace, Watson's wife, Flossie, Lester's wife, along with Bomba and Nana.
Page 8	Cotton's brother, Bob and his wife Helen are shown in San Diego, California where they lived. It is interesting that Ruth's brother, James, ended up living in the same town later on. There is an excellent photograph of Bompa on this page, probably the best that Cotton has in his scrapbook. Finally, some photographs of a tradition during summer at Bompa's cottage, a picnic where corn was wrapped in wet newspaper and put in a pit of hot coals, covered with sand and left to cook.
Page 9	The War is over and Lester and Flossie have twin boys, Timmy and Terry. Tom and Jim are young men now and Tom has met his future wife, Marj. We have a dog now, Smokey, a cocker Spaniel, who eventually got away years later and was killed by a car. Tom and Marj's first boy, Douglas is born. Pop sits on the back porch listening to a ball game after working in his beloved garden. He used to spend hours in the small garden, planting, edging and weeding.
Page 10	It is now the early 1950s and Pop and Mom are taking vacations in Leland, Michigan, just northwest of Traverse City in the "little finger" of Michigan. Pop got me a summer job in a summer resort in Leland and asked me to look around for a cottage to rent. I found the "Stier Shack" and they spent many years vacationing there with Mom's brother, Watson, and his family.