Home Movie Archive

Keyword Description:
The videos were primarily taped by the contributor's grandfather, James Marshall from 1953-1965. Her grandmother, Constance Marshall, and her great uncle, Bishop John Marshall, also taped a few parts. The events were filmed mostly in and around the house except for a few scenes that took place at Cape Cod beaches, two separate Christenings at the Blessed Sacrament church in Worcester, and short vacations. The videos capture the lives of the children, their parents, aunts and uncles, and grandparents. Many Christmas mornings were taped showing the children opening presents. Another recurring event in the films were the children's birthday parties. Vacations at the beach showed the children making sand castles and the mother sun bathing. A trip to Storyland in New Hampshire was another event filmed. There the children visited the petting zoo. The outside ceremony of two of the girls First Communions were also taped. The remainder of the films showed the children playing outside and swimming in the summertime, and in the winter playing in the snow or skating in a homemade rink in the backyard. Distinctive clips show young boys playing with toy guns and also baseball. There is also a short battle reenactment scene at an unknown location.