Foreword
A picture may instantly present what a book
could set forth only in a hundred pages
---- Ivan SergeyevichTurgeniev
Everyone has no doubt had the experience of hearing all about a relative, or any person for that matter, whom they have never met -- things they have done, what they have said, how they lived their life, and what they looked like. The more they hear, the more they feel they know the person. Yet, something always seemed to be missing in the mental picture of the person. It lacks a face, a placeholder, to go with what is known about the person. If only they could meet the person, they could tie it all together. But since that is not always possible, a picture(s) is the second best thing, for it helps enhance the image of a person
To help provide the missing placeholders for the ancestors and descendants of the Minters of Pine Forest, Texas, Jack Robinson, a Minter Family researcher/archivist, and I have assembled here many pictures. With each picture, where possible, we have identified the person(s), when they were born, and if deceased, when they died. Also, we have put in the date the picture was taken and the occasion, if known. That way when someone comes upon the picture cold, so to speak, they have some information to help them place it.
And as with their kinfolk, Minter descendants have heard about Pine Forest, Texas, and the surrounding area, a place which their ancestors helped found, and to which there are many connections. And to help bring this area alive in the mind's eye, we have also included here many pictures dealing with its history in terms of stores, business people, churches, cemeteries, and other aspects of an earlier time.
Without those people who generously contributed pictures, this site would not be possible. These pictures are little mosaics of the larger Minter story, and in their own way they further the cohesiveness of this family.
If you have not already, you too can be a part of this effort. There is no doubt among the Minters and their descendants some priceless photographs that have been squirreled away in shoeboxes, cheeseboxes, or other little niches. Look and see! Who knows, there may be a picture of "Pappy" Minter out there somewhere. And please, don't let the below pictures scare you away!
Thomas J. Minter
Toledo, Ohio
February 1, 2000
