September 22, 2010

Simply a Southern Belle: Grandmother Putman

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I got the sweetest email the other day and wanted to share it with you. My great-aunt recently visited this blog for the first time and shared with me some stories about my dad's grandmother who I never got a chance to meet. Southern to the very core, Belle was her middle name! Apparently Ms. Martha Belle (Jameson) Putman was quite a lady. I have always heard infamous stories about her formal dinners…tables set with exquisite china and silver, a mandatory water glass for each person, relish trays, etc. Oh how I wish I could have been present at one of those!

My aunt describes her this way:

"She did not aspire to be rich and famous, but she did desire to live in a genteel manner, a gracious manner, a southern manner...She loved hats, was never without her gloves and always had a handkerchief in her purse...she loved having a beautiful table, good food and was a very gracious woman...perfectly coiffed and dressed."

I wish I could have known her. I'm sure we would have had much to discuss!

Is there anyone in your family that you never got a chance to meet, but wish you had?