Family members of three boys and their grandmother killed in a house fire the morning after Christmas now have hundreds of photos salvaged from the blaze to help preserve memories of their loved ones , thanks to the work of college students . About 260 photos , which were about the only items rescued from the December 26 fire in Washington Court House , Ohio , were painstakingly restored by art conservation undergraduates at the University of Delaware . Many of the photos were charred , covered in soot and stained by the water used to fight the blaze that took the lives of 60-year-old Terry Harris and her grandsons : Kenyon , 14 , Broderick , 11 , and Braylon , nine . Scroll down for video . University of Delaware Professor Debra Hess Norris , left , shows Ricky and Traci Harris some of the more than 300 family photographs that were cleaned , repaired and salvage by her students , during a press conference at The Warehouse Youth Center in Washington Court House , Ohio . The boys ' father , Ricky Harris , told those gathered for the delivery of the photos that he was very grateful to have the photos that include ones of his sons and mother . But after a range of restoration techniques were applied , the images were revealed in their former glory . Police had said the boys wanted to spend Christmas night with their grandmother so she would n't be alone . The state fire marshal 's office said Friday that the cause of the blaze has n't been determined . The restored photos were delivered to the family Friday in a tear-filled gathering in their hometown about 75 miles north of Cincinnati . The boys ' father , Ricky Harris , told those gathered for the delivery of the photos that he was very grateful to have the photos that include ones of his sons and mother . Many of the photos were charred , covered in soot and stained by the water used to fight the blaze that took the lives of 60-year-old Terry Harris and her grandsons : Kenyon , 14 , Broderick , 11 , and Braylon , nine . But after a range of restoration techniques were applied , the images were revealed in their former glory . 'It is hard to see the photos , but it was always hard to look at old photos even when they were here because of the reminder of the time I had already lost with my boys and mom , ' he told the Washington Court House Record Herald , saying he ca n't help but lament all the good times they had gone by . Debra Hess Norris , chairwoman of the University of Delaware 's art conservation department and a photograph conservation professor , delivered the photos to the family . She told The Associated Press in a telephone interview afterward that it was an emotional day and an honor to meet the family after working so long on their photographs . ' I think we all felt so connected to the family , ' she said . Scene of the incident : Police had said the boys wanted to spend Christmas night with their grandmother so she would n't be alone - The fire marshal 's office said that the cause of the blaze has n't been determined . Debra Hess Norris , chairwoman of the University of Delaware 's art conservation department and a photograph conservation professor , delivered the photos to the family . She told The Associated Press in a telephone interview afterward that it was an emotional day and an honor to meet the family after working so long on their photographs . Michael Emmons , a doctoral student in preservation studies at the University of Delaware and a Harris family friend , also helped deliver the photos . Emmons , who found the photos at Ricky Harris ' home where they had been taken after the fire , had sent the photos to Norris . ' I was n't even sure they could be restored , ' he said by telephone afterward . An unexpected result from the restoration work was the development of some new techniques for the preservation of fire-damaged photographs , Norris said . She said the family told her that Terry Harris had kept photos in a plastic bin in her home . 'It was really a miracle that these photographs survived , ' Norris said .
Terry Braylon , 60 , and her grandsons : Kenyon , 14 , Broderick , 11 , and Harris , nine , were killed the morning after Christmas day in a house fire . The state fire marshal 's office said Friday that the cause of the blaze in Washington Court House , Ohio , has n't been determined . About 260 photos , about the only items rescued from the fire , were restored by art conservation undergraduates at the University of Delaware . The restored photos were delivered to the Braylon family Friday in a tear-filled gathering in their hometown about 75 miles north of Cincinnati .