Googled and Found: "Hey, that's my house! I'll email you photos!"

There is not a day that goes by that I am not completely amazed by the technology that surrounds us! I am beyond thrilled to live in the Information Age. Access to genealogical information is exploding. Family historians are moving beyond courthouse and census records to paint the landscapes of their ancestors lives with more color and detail than ever. Blogs, message boards, and social networking sites work 24/7 to make connections that never would have been possible before now and at lightning speed!

Last Wednesday I posted a photo of the "American Colony" Aguila, Tampico, Mexico c. 1920-1940. That same day someone living in Tampico Googled "Aguila Colony" and found my blog. There before his eyes was a photo of his house taken 3/4 of a century ago! He wrote to me and said he would send me photos of the houses that were still standing including that of my great grandparents just a half a block away from his.

Can you imagine? This man lives a half a block from the house I have gazed at only through photos of black and white. Unbelievable. What are the odds that our paths would cross the day they did - each holding a piece of the other's puzzle.

With the click of a button I downloaded the photo and linked two places across time.

Corner of Rosal y Encino, Aguila, Tampico, Mexico: Original Owners, William Levis and Lois Warren Judson. Digital Photograph by Javier Herrera. 15 Oct 2009. 

Home of William Levis and Lois Warren Judson, corner of Rosal y Encino, Aguila Colony, Tampico, TAMPS, Mexico. Photograph. c1920. Privately held by Herstoryan. Houston, Texas. 2009

My advice: Blog away because every detail you post is working 24/7 to make connections you may not even be able to imagine. You never know when you will be Googled and found!