If someone in your family had fourteen children and seven of them died before the age of two, what would be your first thought?

I discovered two ancestors, my Great Great Grandfather and Grandmother, Joseph Maltby and Anna Simpson, had fourteen children in the span of about 25 years, between the mid-1870s and early-1900s, and at least seven of them died before the age of two, many of them before their first birthday.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.

I was in my bed reading a book when I heard the back door close. It was after bedtime on a weeknight and I was supposed to be asleep. I don’t recall if my mom was in bed or working at the time, but my dad had been out having a couple beers, and when I heard the back door close, I knew I was going to be in trouble if I was caught awake after bedtime, so I quickly reached over and clicked off the bedside lamp.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.

The posts about the haunting in our house don’t come as frequently as they once did, I know, but things ebb and flow and mostly it’s been ebb… until recently.

We’ve been moving a lot of things around at our house as we get rid of a few things, and it seems almost like the activity, opening up new spaces… something has, not to sound ominous, awakened. Lately there’s been a little of this and a little of that. Going back to chapter 5 of this story I wrote about how we frequently get reminders in the form of electrical anomalies — Hey family, don’t forget about me. Recently though, I’ve been getting reminders in light and shadow.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.

Now and then, when I’m reading something new, I say to myself “Holy cow! That should be a movie,” and then I usually add it to a list for some future day when I have time to blog about it. You can read the previous examples, 12 Real Stories Begging for Movie Treatment, and 9 More True Stories That Should Be Movies, or read on for these 7 stories, all prime candidates for the Hollywood treatment. Here are 7 more true stories that should be movies.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.

In 1915, a dozen eggs cost about 34 cents, a gallon of milk was 18 cents, and that pound of coffee you’d pay 8 to 10 dollars for today cost just 30 cents. Dedicated gas stations were a new phenomenon and gas was sold mostly as a side-business by drug stores. Canned beer had not yet been invented and the Star Spangled Banner had not yet been officially adopted as our national anthem. As different as life was in 1915, some things were much the same as today.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.

If you were to ask my mom when was the first moment she worried that I might be headed down the wrong path, maybe to a life of crime, she would have a couple events to choose from. She might tell you about the time in the summer before I entered 3rd grade when I decided to play with fire.

Troy Larson

Troy Larson is a father, author, and photographer originally from Minot, North Dakota, now residing in Fargo.