If You Thought Genealogy Was Boring...(Part 3)

....then you:

• Haven't discovered that your father went to school with the genealogy research assistant at the courthouse where you are researching.
• Haven't stood on your GG grandparents' farmland on a beautiful day.
• Haven't wondered who was crazier... your ancestors for what they did or YOU for trying to figure out why!
• Haven't gotten excited to learn your long awaited for microfilmed tax lists have arrived!

Enjoy!

I Had To Read The Directions

My old iron needed to be replaced recently.  It just was not heating up well anymore.  So, DH came home with this.....

My New Iron

....a super fancy iron and I love it. I do admit that the first time I went to use it the family laughed.  I had to pull out the directions to figure out how to turn it to the correct setting!  Adding water for the steam setting?  Back to the directions! Did I mention it came with lots of bells and whistles?

I don't think Grandmom Winnie (my great grandmother) had to worry with directions before she ironed. I also think she had strong arms.

Winnie Haley Carr's iron

I wonder if my Winnie would be offended if I used her iron in my home gym?

Pickles, Books and John White

Last week was an exciting week around here.  It all started with.....

Pickles.  DH found out he won the "pickle guessing" contest at the NC state fair earlier this month.  You know the contest - the one where you guess how many baby pickles are in the enormous jar.  We are all anxiously awaiting the arrival of his pickle prize pack. (Try saying that three times fast!)  I'm just hoping the prize pack does not arrive in an 18 wheeler delivery truck.

The excitement progressed onto....

Books.  I was notified later in the week that I had won a daily prize from BlogHer for participating in the NaBloPoMo.  This is the challenge I have taken to post to my blog every day for the month of November.  I am waiting for books from Penguin (Publishers) to arrive.  I love to read and am thrilled to have won books.

And then....

John White.  You knew there had to be some genealogy in here somewhere.  I was contacted by another White researcher who provided some wonderful clues to research regarding my ancestor John White of Surry County, NC.

Top all of this off with fall leaf color at its peak.  It truly was an exciting week!

A Forgotten Source?

I had the experience of talking with a woman at a local nursing home recently.  She was hard of hearing and difficult to understand at times.  What she said did not always make sense in the conversation. 

Until…..

She started talking about her grandmother.

Her face lit up.  Her eyes became brighter.  And the stories began to flow.

She told me:

·         What her grandmother was best known for cooking. 

·         How many children she had. (A lot!)

·         Twins ran in the family (and who had the twins).

·         Where her great grandmother was from.

 While oral history is often subject to the errors of one’s memories, truth and/or clues to the truth are often embedded within these histories. 

 What this gentle woman taught me was despite her cognitive deficits associated with her old age, she was still a valuable resource to the family historian or genealogist.  Do we sometimes overlook the opportunity to interview a relative simply because her memory is slipping?

 If we do, I think we may be missing out on a lot.

Apparently Someone Has Been Listening!

When I began pursuing my genealogy, I quickly learned that the spellings of names was very inconsistent to say the least.  I began keeping a log of the spelling variations I would find for each surname. I would share some of the more unusual spellings with anyone within earshot.

It would appear someone has been listening!

Recently one of the children was filling out a form asking for your mother's maiden name.  My child looked up and asked "Which spelling should I use? One "t" or two?"

Tombstone Tuesday - Gravestones and Their Stories

On my recent trip to Charleston, SC I spent a lot of time wandering the historic cemeteries.  I was drawn by the stories these cemeteries told just by the gravestones that were there.  The artwork and symbolism can tell so much about the person (and the family) buried there.

 As I wondered the cemeteries, I wondered what I could learn about a person or family by just what was in the cemetery.  No computer look-ups. No prior knowledge of the family.  No other information than what was literally in front of me.

And that's when I found myself in front of the James and Elizabeth Ladson family plot in St. Michael's Church on Meeting Street. This gravestone in particular caught my attention.

This gravestone has six (6) Ladson children listed!  It was a bit difficult to read in the cemetery and in the photograph, but modern technology (i.e. Picasa) helped me decipher it.

• Robert Gilmore Ladson - died 26 May 1828, aged 1 year 53 days
• Frederick Fraser Ladson - died 29 Jun 1830,aged 4 years 6 months
• Judith Eliza Ladson - died 2 Jul 1830, aged 9 years 11 months
• Eliza Caroline Ladson - died 23 Jun 1835, aged 10 months 6 days
• Charlotte Josephine Ladson - died 25 Jul 1837, aged 6 months 2 days
• James Ladson - died 6 Jul 1839, aged 17 years

Five of the children died before the age of 10 years. All died in the early summer months.  

Why?

Here are a few of my theories:

• Charleston, SC is very hot and muggy during the summer months.  It is also very "buggy".  (Wear bug repellent when exploring this city's cemeteries!  I learned the hard way.)  Mosquitoes and other bugs can carry illnesses.  Perhaps this was a contributing factor in these children's deaths.
• With the young age of the the first five children listed, could there be a genetic disorder present in this family? Or at the very least, a genetic predisposition toward weak a immune system.
• Early medicine being what is was, the children may have died from common childhood illnesses.

In addition to the six children above, Elizabeth Ladson lost at least one other daughter in early adulthood as well as her husband.  There is no doubt about it.  Life was hard for this family.  It is hoped that in the midst the grief, joy was also found.

Genealogy and Physical Therapy

As I meet genealogists through my blog or at an event, I am always fascinated by the various backgrounds we bring to genealogy research.  I've met genealogists with backgrounds in business, teaching, law and more.

By training I am a physical therapist.  Specifically, I am an acute (hospital) PT.

Genealogy and physical therapy - an odd combination, don't you think?  Well, maybe not.

As a physical therapist, I evaluate a patient's problem, develop a treatment plan, and carry out that plan. Isn't that what I do as a genealogist?

1. First I identify the research focus. (This would be the patient's problem). 
2. I analyze what is already known about the research question. (This would be the patient's medical history.)
3. I determine what other information is needed. (This would be hands on evaluation of a patient's problem.)
4. I develop a research plan to address the central question. (This would be treatment plan.)
5. I carry out the research plan. (This would be carrying out the patient's treatment plan.)
6. I re-evaluate the research plan and adapt it based on research findings.  (I re-evaluate the patient frequently and make adjustments to their treatment as needed.)

Whether I am working as a genealogist or a physical therapist, I use both my analytic skills and my interview/people skills. "Thinking outside the box" is helpful in both as well.

Meme Take 2 - Tech Savvy Genealogist

Another meme has been making the genealogy rounds.  This one involve genealogy and technology.  I first saw this one over at Long Lost Relatives.net.

The list should be annotated in the following manner:
Things you have already done or found: bold face type
Things you would like to do or find: italicize (colour optional)
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type
Feel free to add extra comments in brackets after each item

1. Own an Android or Windows tablet or an iPad
2. Use a tablet or iPad for genealogy related purposes
3. Have used Skype to for genealogy purposes.
4. Have used a camera to capture images in a library/archives/ancestor’s home
5. Use a genealogy software program on your computer to manage your family tree
6. Have a Twitter account
7. Tweet daily (still working on the whole social media thing.)
8. Have a genealogy blog
9. Have more then one genealogy blog.
10. Have lectured/presented to a genealogy group on a technology topic (does blogging count? Probably not…)
11. Currently an active member of Genealogy Wise 
12. Have a Facebook Account
13. Have connected with genealogists via Facebook
14. Maintain a genealogy related Facebook Page (just started one.)
15. Maintain a blog or website for a genealogy society (Does managing the online book store at Lulu.com count?)
16. Have submitted text corrections online to Ancestry, Trove or a similar site
17. Have registered a domain name
18. Post regularly to Google+ 
19. Have a blog listed on Geneabloggers
20. Have transcribed/indexed records for FamilySearch or a similar project.
21. Own a Flip-Pal or hand-held scanner
22. Can code a webpage in .html  (Not the whole thing, but I can edit in HTML)
23. Own a smartphone
24. Have a personal subscription to one or more paid genealogy databases
25. Use a digital voice recorder to record genealogy lectures
26. Have contributed to a genealogy blog carnival
27. Use Chrome as a Browser
28. Have participated in a genealogy webinar
29. Have taken a DNA test for genealogy purposes
30. Have a personal genealogy website
31. Have found mention of an ancestor in an online newspaper archive
32. Have tweeted during a genealogy lecture
33. Have scanned your hardcopy genealogy files
34. Use an RSS Reader to follow genealogy news and blogs
35. Have uploaded a gedcom file to a site like Geni, MyHeritage or Ancestry
36. Own a netbook
37. Use a computer/tablet/smartphone to take genealogy lecture notes (I'm still a paper and pencil girl with this. Actually, if I physically write it down, I rarely have to go back to my notes.)
38. Have a profile on LinkedIn that mentions your genealogy habit .
39. Have developed a genealogy software program, app or widget
40. Have listened to a genealogy podcast online
41. Have downloaded genealogy podcasts for later listening
42. Backup your files to a portable hard drive
43. Have a copy of your genealogy files stored offsite
44. Know about Rootstech
45. Have listened to a Blogtalk radio session about genealogy
46. Use Dropbox, SugarSync or other service to save documents in the cloud
47. Schedule regular email backups
48. Have contributed to the Familysearch Wiki
49. Have scanned and tagged your genealogy photographs (scanned not tagged)
50. Have published a genealogy book in an online/digital format. (Shh....it's a secret soon to be revealed.)

Are you a tech savvy genealogist?

Musings on a Wednesday

I have recently returned to running.  During our very hot summer here in the south, running was definitely not something I looked forward to.  (Okay, I had a lot of other excuses as well!)  Anyway....I'm back to running.  Running/walking to be more exact.

What does this have to do with genealogy?

I find when I run, my thoughts often drift toward my genealogy research.  Usually to a "brick wall" in my research.  Often I come up with new ideas for research when I am running.

A different database to check.  

A new theory - Jesse Haley might have gone by his middle name sometimes.  Brackett Owen and his son-in-law Jesse Haley may have left the area (Halifax County) only to return back.

New blog posts  like this one.

I'm hoping running will get me and my genealogy into shape.

99 Things

Genealogy bloggers have been participating in the 99 Things meme this week.  I first saw this on Tonia's blog Tonia's Roots and at Valerie's blog Family Cherished.  I don't often participate in memes, but I wanted to get in on this one.  Tonia refers to it as a sort of "bucket list" for genealogists. I think she's right!

So, here goes....


Things you have already done or found - bold type
Things you would like to do or find - italics
Things you have not done or found/don't care to - (or that I know hasn't happened in my family).

1. Belong to a genealogical society (three, in fact)
2. Joined a group on Genealogy Wise.
3. Transcribed records.
4. Uploaded headstone pictures to Find-A-Grave or a similar site.
5. Documented ancestors for four generations (self, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents)
6. Joined Facebook.
7. Cleaned up a run-down cemetery.
8. Joined the Genea-Bloggers Group.
9. Attended a genealogy conference. (Love these!)
10. Lectured at a genealogy conference. Thinking about it.
11. Spoke on a genealogy topic at a local genealogy society/local library’s family history group.
12. Joined the National Genealogical Society.
13. Contributed to a genealogy society publication.
14. Served on the board or as an officer of a genealogy society (I coordinate the WCGS publications on Lulu.com.  Does that count?).
15. Got lost on the way to a cemetery. (Didn't get lost, but came pretty close!) 
16. Talked to dead ancestors. (All the time. Makes people wonder about me!)
17. Researched outside the state in which I live. (Mostly Virginia - My ancestors didn't get too far.)
18. Knocked on the door of an ancestral home and visited with the current occupants.  (Thought about it, but the big dog chained in the front yard convinced me otherwise.)
19. Cold called a distant relative. (I did send a letter ahead of time introducing myself.) 
20. Posted messages on a surname message board. (Frequently)
21. Uploaded a gedcom file to the internet.
22. Googled my name (and those of ancestors – it turns up great info sometimes)
23. Performed a random act of genealogical kindness.
24. Researched a non-related family, just for the fun of it.
25. Have been paid to do genealogical research.
26. Earn a living (majority of income) from genealogical research.
27. Wrote a letter (or email) to a previously unknown relative.
28. Contributed to one of the genealogy carnivals. (Had my own!)
29. Responded to messages on a message board.
30. Was injured while on a genealogy excursion. I'd like to keep it that way!
31. Participated in a genealogy meme. Yay! I just got this one.
32. Created family history gift items: watch my blog for more coming on this.
33. Performed a record lookup.
34. Took a genealogy seminar cruise. Definitely on my list!
35. Am convinced that a relative must have arrived here from outer space.
36. Found a disturbing family secret. Not so far.
37. Told others about a disturbing family secret.
38. Combined genealogy with crafts.  More on this later.
39. Think genealogy is a passion obsession not a hobby.
40. Assisted finding next of kin for a deceased person. (Unclaimed Persons)
41. Taught someone else how to find their roots. (I love doing this!)
42. Lost valuable genealogy data due to a computer crash or hard drive failure. (Don't want to think about that.)
43. Been overwhelmed by available genealogy technology –sometimes it’s borderline but it’s a great way to learn. I find learning new things exciting, but I do get overwhelmed after a day or two of conferences and brain doesn’t fit in my head anymore.
44. Know a cousin of the 4th degree or higher.
45. Disproved a family myth through research. (No, we are not part Cherokee!)
46. Got a family member to let you copy photos.
47. Used a digital camera to “copy” photos or records.
48. Translated a record from a foreign language. This would be hard - I only speak one language.
49. Found an immigrant ancestor’s passenger arrival record.
50. Looked at census records on microfilm, not on the computer.
51. Used microfiche.
52. Visited the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. 
53. Used Google+ for genealogy (still struggling with the whole social media thing!)
54. Visited a church or place of worship of one of your ancestors.
55. Taught a class in genealogy. Hope to do this in the future.
56. Traced ancestors back to the 18th Century. 
57. Traced ancestors back to the 17th Century.
58. Traced ancestors back to the 16th Century.  (I'll get there!)
59. Can name all of your great-great-grandparents.
60. Know how to determine a soundex code without the help of a computer (Does the cheat sheet at the archives count?)
61. Have found many relevant and unexpected articles on internet to “put flesh on the bones”.
62. Own a copy of Evidence Explained by Elizabeth Shown Mills.
63. Helped someone find an ancestor using records you had never used for your own research.
64. Visited the main National Archives building in Washington, DC – so going there someday soon.
65. Have an ancestor who came to America as an indentured servant.
66. Have an ancestor who fought in the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 or Civil War. Yes to all 3!
67. Taken a photograph of an ancestor’s tombstone.
68. Can “read” a church record in Latin. (have managed to decipher some, but only with a dictionary, reference book or Google) So far, my ancestors did not attend churches using Latin.
69. Have an ancestor who changed his/her name, just enough to be confusing. (Two, in fact,)
70. Joined a Rootsweb mailing list.
71. Created a family website. (Part of my blog)
72. Have a genealogy blog.
73. Was overwhelmed by the amount of family information received from someone. I am more than willing to suffer this problem.
74. Have broken through at least one brick wall (but someone keeps putting up more).
75. Done genealogy research at a court house. (Some of my favorite research!)
76. Borrowed microfilm from the Family History Library through a local Family History Center(s).
77. Found an ancestor in an online newspaper archive. 
78. Have visited a NARA branch.
79. Have an ancestor who served in WWI or WWII.
80. Use maps in my genealogy research (how can one not?).
81. Have a blacksheep ancestor. (ahem..."Uncle Pell")
82. Found a bigamist amongst my ancestors. 
83. Attended a genealogical institute. Definitely on my to-do list!
84. Taken online genealogy (and local history) courses. 
85. Consistently (document) and cite my sources. (I'm much better about this!)
86. Visited a foreign country (i.e. one I don’t live in) in search of ancestors. I can't seem to get "across the pond".
87. Can locate any document in my research files within a few minutes (how many is a “few”?)
88. Have an ancestor who was married four times. 
89. Made a rubbing of an ancestor’s gravestone.
90. Followed genealogists on Twitter. 
91. Published a family history book. Just did this, but shhh....it's a surprise!
92. Learned of a death of a fairly close family relative through research.
93. Offended a family member with my research. At least I hope not!
94. Reunited someone with precious family photos or artifacts.
95. Have a paid subscription to a genealogy database. 
96. Submitted articles for FamilySearch Wiki. 
97. Organized a family reunion. Anyone want to help?
98. Used Archives in countries where my ancestors originated.
99. Converted someone new to the love of all things genealogy. Guilty as charged!

What fun to see all that I have accomplished and what all I want to accomplish!  I can't wait to get started on the "blue" list.


Thanks to all those in the blogging community who have participated.  I've really enjoyed reading these posts.

The 1900 House

I have a confession.  Around here we like to watch those historical reality shows.  You know the ones where a family or individuals "go back in time" for three months.  The clothes they wear, the food they eat and even their leisure activities are authentic to the period in which they live.

The latest show that we've watched is The 1900 House.  Filmed back in 1999, an English family lived as a 1900 middle class London family would have lived.  This particular family moved into a Victorian home and for three months lived with gas lanterns, a fireplace and kitchen range for heat, and a "modern toilet" (for the period) located in a shed out back.  The show chronicles the family's journey to live without the technology and convenience of household appliances of today. Quite an interesting show to watch.

This would have been the time period my great great grandmothers would have been raising their families.  The majority of my ancestors at this time were still rural farmers and not living in large cities.  Life often revolved around the seasons of farming. Electricity and indoor plumbing were still a ways off.

The question begs to be asked.  Could I do it?  Could I be successful as a 1900 homemaker? I don't know, but I would not mind giving it a try. As long as it is temporary!

 Could you do it?