Jul 2
It was 236 years ago that things in the colonial America changed forever. Those events in turn changed the lives of so many of our ancestors. Not just those who lived the times of 1776, but the thousands who were born afterwards in a new country, the United States. Even greater were those ancestors living in another country who would themsel...
Jun 20
Keeping journals and diaries besides the countless letters written by the soldiers, both Confederate and Union sides during the American Civil War, has been an excellent resource for researchers which can cover information about a soldier’s life, including the battles and camp life. If you have located such a journal written by a relative, you ...
Jun 16
No, you didn’t forget dear old Dad. Father’s Day in the United States is a day to appreciate and let your Dad know you care about him and all the things he does for the family. He might not be a biological father, in modern families today he could be a step-father, an adoptive father or even a grandfather taking on the father figure, which ...
Jun 10
If you have some extra time this summer, a genealogical project you should seriously consider starting is writing some key, important or meaningful moments in your own life. I know as a family historian you are always looking to uncover as much information on ancestors, both direct blood lines as well as collateral relatives. However, who would be ...
May 31
The web site, GermanRoots has a listing of many individuals and families who left different sections of Germany and resettled in other parts of the world; some in America, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. It is call emigration when a person selects to leave their homeland. The records in the various databases can provide information on the perso...
May 1
The first day of May, the date traditionally recognized by many cultures as the beginning of the Spring season. However, there are many other events noted for the first of May, most which comes from other ethnic groups. See if you recognize any of these May 1st celebrations? The traveling circuses around the globe traditionally started their seaso...
Apr 18
The recent coverage of the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic with books, magazine articles, news reports, documentaries and movies has reminded everyone how certain historical events can play such important defining moment in nearly everyone’s lives. Certainly those survivors of the Titanic, the descendants of those who did n...
Apr 11
Look at the year 1850 in the United States, a young nation; no American Civil War yet, the Gold Rush just began, many of our ancestors were starting to move further west to the Great Plains in the covered wagons, the Industrial Revolution was just getting started, travel on the rivers was by steamboats and there was approximately 23.2 million peopl...
Apr 5
Two of the greatest military conflicts during the 20th century were the ‘Great War’ - later known as World War I and then less than 20 years later the second great war, this one being World War II. No one can say they did not have a relative or ancestor involved somehow in either of those conflicts and in some cases served in both. Now it ...
Apr 1
The first of April is April Fool’s Day, that special 24 hours for those individuals who love to trick or get the best of someone with a special hoax or ruse. You may have already discovered an ancestor; usually it seems to be a great uncle, who loved practical jokes or fooling people. By all means do include stories of some of their mischievous ...