I was excited to find among my mother's picture, this photo of Archibald Douglas Van Pelt.  He was one of my great-grandfathers and he was captured at Gettysburg during the Civil War.  He was the only one of my great-grandparents for whom I did not have a photo.  So this completes the set! 

After the Civil War, he helped build the Big Bend Tunnel in West Virginia.  According to family legend, his wife, Annie Lettie Swain Van Pelt, returned to Richmond for the births of their children; but they lived in West Virginia or western Virginia for much of their lives.  They eventually returned to Richmond and are both buried in Oakwood Cemetery. Here is their tombstone (Kate was one of their daughters).

These are pictures of my Mom in her wedding gown in 1944.  The picture in which she is sitting appeared in the Richmond Times Dispatch with the write-up of her wedding. And this is her wedding invitation. 

 

Considering that World War II was raging at the time, the picture, invitation, and wedding announcement in the paper seem incredibly normal. There were some differences, however.  For example, Dad requested some time off in-between duty stations to get married.  Actually, his file just shows that he was granted time off but doesn't say why.  And the wedding party consisted of those who were around--especially the groomsmen,  They were not necessarily the groom's closest friends. A special occasion nonetheless.