August Saapar from Estonia

UPDATED! This photo has been returned to relatives in Estonia!

I found this photo in an antique store in Estonia together with a bunch of other labelled photos which turns out were all related. August Saapar gifted this photo of him to his niece Therese in 1929. As if August knew that one day almost a century later we’d be looking for him in the paper trail of records, he also recorded his birth date (December 20, 1879) to make our “detective job” easier . Later on, someone added “Leida Saapar’s father” to the caption.

So who was August? Perhaps you read my blogpost from May 22nd and noticed the familiar surname Saapar already? August Saapar was the uncle of Amelie Annimäe née Saapar, so these two photos are connected with the same family!

August Saapar was born on December 20, 1879 to parents Hans Saapar and Leen Hinno in Kihlevere, Estonia. Therese was his step-brother Jüri Saapar’s daughter, born in 1896.

August was a farmer. His father Hans, also a farmer, used to hold religious sermons in the local schoolhouse on the weekends. Growing up, religion (Lutheran protestant) played an important role in August's young life.

August and his wife Aline Louise lived in the Pällu farm in Kihlevere in 1919. They had altogether five children: Elarfine, Woldemar, Erni, Leida and Agnes.

Sadly, August passed away a year after this photo was taken, on May 14, 1930, at just 50 years of age. Unfortunately, I don’t know what caused his early death.

I will add his photo to his Geni.com page and hope to make contact with his relatives.