family research
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Oral Family History
Jun 21
The authorities at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D. C. had stated that “it only takes three generations to lose a piece of oral family history.” Our ancestors, especially because they many times did not read or write, had only oral history as a method to hand down family events, names and stories. So it was co...
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Decal Surname on Wall
Jun 9
Such an idea!! Place on a family room wall, in the kitchen, a dining room, the hall way, above the entrance doorway or arch into the dining room - where ever in your house you would want a permanent family seal. In craft shops and online dealers have numerous vinyl decals, in various colors, shapes, fonts and sizes that can be easily arranged on a ...
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Memorial Day
May 26
This Monday, May 29th is the official holiday titled 'Memorial Day' with banks, schools, and the post office closed. But it is not the true original Memorial Day of Saturday, May 30th. It is a Federal holiday to take time to remember the military personnel (men and women) who died in the service of the nation. Its beginnings are after the American...
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Cost of that 19th Century Photo
May 19
Any family historian is always thrilled to have any style photo of their ancestor. With the birth of a photo image with its many different formats over the 19th century it is interesting to see just what our relatives many have paid to have this 'newest' invention capture their image. By researching old newspapers it is easy to see the different c...
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Finding Documents to Photos on FamilySearch
May 15
Using the FamilySearch online database, which is always updated, just might yield some family information (letters, documents, family stories, obituaries) and photos previously unknown to you. Using their 'Find Photos and Stories' you can place a surname and it will search the vast database of submitted scanned documents, stories and photographs. ...
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World War One and other Sources
May 3
The Europeana 1914-1918 web site has gathered a collection of documents and images relating to the 'Great War' - World War One. It is divided into sections; the European continent, American, New Zealand and Australia - each having been impacted by that war a hundred years ago. The American section has some 27,505 resources you can review. The grea...
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Sixty-five Years Ago
Apr 27
On this date, 65 years ago, a Wednesday, my parents were married in Bay County, Florida. The groom was a Captain in the United States Air Force and the bride was a LT in the Women's Army Corps. As you can imagine they met on a military base. It had been November 1948 in Virginia and they both had just voted on the base in that presidential election...
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Women Postmasters
Mar 13
Only until recent decades have women really had opportunities to pursue just about any occupation. For the most part they were expected to be housewives and care for the children. Some jobs such as a teacher were acceptable. We generally don't think of our female ancestors as 'postmistresses' but rather many ladies did hold that position by off...
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Facebook and You
Mar 5
Social media is everywhere and it can truly be helpful if used correctly. One good area is to share ideas, sources, databases, photos and questions with others doing similar research. First way -- after you get your own Facebook page -- is to find out what is there on Facebook to help you. Start with states where your ancestors lived. Put in ...
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How Much African Ancestry Does the Average African-American Have?
Feb 26
Henry Louis Gates Jr. asked, and answered, that question in an article he wrote for The Root. It is an interesting question. There are many genealogists who have African ancestry but have yet to discover exactly which part of Africa their ancestors were from. Henry Louis Gates Jr., for those who don't know, is an American literary critic, educat...