You may be surprised to learn that William J. Dumes started filming the family in the 1930s, and every branch of the family is represented in his collection. His films make the basis of what is presented here.
Early reels were 8mm black & white, with occasional splurges on color stock. In the 1950s he moved to 16mm, and some of those clips are remarkably sharp. These movies are a vivid record of the Sadie Silk Dumes family in America.
For me, this completes an assignment my father gave me over 50 years ago: to find a way to share these films with the whole family.
We start with Mildred and William J. dressed up very fancy. I think they were in NYC. Then we see Dave and Mildred at the train station, Dave in uniform, where he appears to be leaving for the Army.
This clip is 1m 33s long.
This war time clip is another good 8mm color one. Fun and frolics at the home of William J. Dumes.
This clip is 4m 6s long.
This looks to be a get-together in Jeannette Karp's back yard in the mid to late 40's. It features the usual suspects.
This clip is 2m 31s long.
This clip features Bill Dumes of Tucson with his father Arthur, along with Bill Dumes of Vincennes and his wife Freda. Dave and Mildred Dumes Dansker join them. They are on the grounds of the George Rogers Clark memorial in Vincennes.
This clip is 1m 59s long.
The families of Bill Dumes of Evansville, brother Sol Dumes and sister Jeannette Dumes Karp gather. Mildred and Dave Dansker make an appearance.
This clip is 3m30s long.