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Legacy Lost & Found: Dr. Orion Ayer

When I see family history materials out “in the wild,” it pulls on my heart strings. Why? Because I think of that person’s legacy and I want to do my part to ensure they are fully findable in the future!

So, let me tell you about an obit I found for Dr. Orion Thomas Ayer Sr. This is the first in my “Legacy Lost & Found” genealogy series I’m starting.

I discovered the obit while visiting a local record store in October 2021. In the store were several containers of family photos and documents. The store owner shared that the items are sold to them by family members.

And it was in one of those containers that I found an obituary for a Dr. Orion T. Ayer and I noticed that it was not dated. I did not even read it for I already knew I wanted it!

When I did get home and finally read the newspaper clipping, there were a LOT of details about him for he was a medical pioneer in St. Petersburg and among the first few physicians named to the Pinellas County Medical Society.

The first place I searched was the Social Security Death Index on FamilySearch to locate his birth and death dates.
Then, I checked back issues of the St. Petersburg newspaper, the Tampa Bay Times since Newspapers.com has an archive from 1886-2022. I was able to locate the issue with his obituary in it and now, give the clipping an exact date – March 26, 1998. I LOVE newspapers!
After about an hour of quick lookups, I was then able to sketch out a timeline of Dr. Ayer’s life. Including that he was a graduate of Talladega College and Meharry Medical College-two historically black colleges that I know well.

Dr. Ayer served in the US Army and was among the earliest black doctors named to the Pinellas County Medical Society. His dad, Dr. Robert Ayer, was a pioneer in Gainesville, FL. Orion has two children that also practiced medicine. They are all, alumni of Meharry!

So, I’ve now added a profile for him on the FamilySearch Family Tree and included the obituary clipping I found. All in hopes of helping any future people looking for him, to have more information at their disposal.

 

Connecting lost artifacts back to family is a journey I enjoy. And it’s one way I help others too — teaching how to keep family history photos and documents organized and preserved so that their family history collections don’t become lost for the future.

And, if you are on a journey to get your family history and genealogy photos and files organized, consider joining my Organize Your Digital Memories Club. I can help you securely and permanently protect your family history for generations to come.

 

 

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1 thought on “Legacy Lost & Found: Dr. Orion Ayer”

  1. This is so exciting to me as someone who loves mysteries, research, history, and connecting it all through stories. I’m so inspired by what you have begun here. It also makes me hopeful that someday I’ll be reconnected with family photos and memorabilia that were sold off as part of a storage unit full of possessions one of my sisters lost when she got behind in the payments. Thank you for launching this.

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