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We Can’t Write What We Don’t Know: A Journey from the Fjords of Norway to the Shores of New York Mid 19th Century
Posted on August 8, 2023 2 Comments
If you decide you want to write about an ancestor be prepared to go down many gopher holes you never dreamed of visiting. Almost every time I decide to dig deeper into an ancestor’s story I end up researching things I never knew anything about. My last blog post Deep Diving: Water Wheels and Papermaking […]
TACKLING TRANSLATION: Helpful Hints
Posted on July 21, 2023 1 Comment
If you don’t have any non-English speaking ancestors you can skip this Blog post. However if you are like me you you will encounter French, German, Swedish, Norwegian and Dutch records in researching your ancestors. In Junior High and High School I took Spanish—and the truth be told I was never very good at it […]
If Lodvor Wasn’t Lazy, Would I be here?: Stories from Vinje, Telemark, Norway
Posted on July 16, 2023 1 Comment
It seems our destiny hinges on a billion decisions made long before we were born. The Story of Lazy Lodvor(sometimes written with a final d) who literally squandered and lost his farms, is not just the story of my 5th great-grandfather—it is likely the reason that my 2nd great grandmother Asloûg Eilefsdotter (Elizabeth OLSON VANSTRUM) […]
NICHOLAS BROME & the Three Murders: Part Four
Posted on March 3, 2023 2 Comments
When last we left Nicholas BROME we had fixed on the approximate date of the murder of the priest as about 1485. One of the challenges of trying to understand Nicholas is to understand the time and the circumstance in which he lived. Trying to do so with someone who lived 500 years ago presents […]
Photos and Postcards: Now and Then Part Two
Posted on January 27, 2023 1 Comment
This is the second post as a follow up to the first Photos and Postcards: Now and Then. I just keep running into more examples in my photo and postcard collection. This one it will take 3 to illustrate as I obviously wasn’t matching up angles. These are of St. Nicholas Church in Henley in […]
Just Say NO to Favorites! Writing challenge
Posted on November 26, 2022 4 Comments
I can’t be the only one who cringes everytime I hear the word favorite. No offense intended, but asking me for my favorite ancestor or heirloom is like asking a mother to choose a favorite child. Reminds me of those moral dilemma stories they gave us in high school, where you have to pick who […]
Unexpected Roman History Lesson While Traveling in France
Posted on November 7, 2022 3 Comments
I recently spent a couple of weeks in France. I was there to visit my son and grandson who are living there while my son is on sabbatical. Most of my travel in the past decade has been genealogy related (both in the US and Europe). Pre-trip I checked out where I would be and […]
Justus Warren SHELDON in Eaton Rapids, Michigan & the power of Colorized Photos
Posted on October 22, 2022 2 Comments
I have written posts about my great grandfather Justus Warren SHELDON before but this one is going to focus on his time in Eaton Rapids, Eaton County, Michigan. It seems that Matthew LaRue “Rue” PERRINE owned a large 472 acre farm on the banks of the Grand River but he died of Typhoid fever in […]
Property Map Treasure Hunts: Finding the Places Your Ancestors Lived
Posted on August 29, 2022 6 Comments
One of the many wonders of Google Maps is the ability to travel down many streets and roads via “Street View.” And then of course there is aerial view that allows you to locate your ancestors properties of a bygone area by comparing old Platt and Ownership Maps with current ones. I am always amazed […]
Comfort Laps: Writing Challenge
Posted on August 8, 2022 3 Comments
Our reminiscences are important parts of who we are. As we stitch them into narratives they connect us to our ancestors, sometimes in unexpected ways. I urge my readers to not shy away from writing about uncomfortable and challenging topics. My mother, for reasons that remain somewhat of a mystery, did not like to be […]
Wheaton Wood 