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When Genealogical Evidence is Wrong, Wrong, Wrong
Posted on August 8, 2022 5 Comments
The great thing about having half a century of genealogical research under my belt is that it’s easy to recognize when an official has got it very wrong. But what about when you are starting out and you tend to take these pieces of evidence: birth, marriage, death, census records as pronouncements of truth? Well […]
Genealogy Intersections: Revisiting the 1719 Deed of Little Packington in Warwickshire
Posted on August 7, 2022 1 Comment
You can’t do genealogy for long before you realize what a small world we live in and how everything and everyone seems to have some sort of relationship. I call these genealogical intersections and they often crop up when doing gophering. I wrote about a very important one in my story of A Tale of […]
The Circle Game: Loss and Healing
Posted on July 26, 2022 18 Comments
Dear Readers you may be wondering where I have been. I have been wondering that too. If one has lived a half century or more one has endured loss. Sometimes the losses are monumental like death or war, and sometimes so subtle we may hardly notice them. Then one day you wake-up to the passage […]
A Love Letter to Young Genealogists
Posted on June 11, 2022 9 Comments
Dear Young Genealogist, Once upon a time I was you. I always had an interest in the past and unlike many of my peers I enjoyed hanging out with old people (gray haired retirees). I liked their stories and their points of view. I tried to imagine living through life without cars and planes and […]
Heirlooms: The Family Bible & a Lundberg Coincidence
Posted on May 17, 2022 3 Comments
We all have bits and pieces of the family puzzle that get passed down through various branches of a family
Let’s Talk About Death
Posted on April 11, 2022 1 Comment
Family Historians and genealogists should be ever mindful of what happens to all their hard work and accumulated books and files when they depart this life, for good. Some recent deaths and illnesses of family and friends reminded me the best time to prepare is long before we think we need to.
Endings: A Soprano’s Aria Chapter 36
Posted on March 27, 2022 2 Comments
The above is the last regular entry in the diary. However the page below was from 1913, and it predates the first entry in the dairy which was September 1st 1913. So in a remarkable way we arrive back at the beginning.
Hands in the Mud: Writing Challenge
Posted on March 27, 2022 3 Comments
I was daydreaming about mud which led to this piece of writing. I will have some writing suggestions at the end. “Learn to humble yourself, you are but earth and clay.” Thomas a Kempis When I was a kid we made mud pies. The best mud was made from dirt with lots of clay in […]
Registered at UC Berkeley: A Soprano’s Aria Chapter 35
Posted on March 21, 2022 Leave a Comment
Feb. 14 – Life was some what of a drag all around. I have all my notes to show that I attended class regularly and made good marks. Finished textiles and took up a short course in Psycology Also a few private lessons in dress drafting from Mrs. Percival. Feb. 23 – Jessie went to […]
Catch & Release, Word Fishing: Writing Challenge
Posted on March 20, 2022 2 Comments
“Every man is a quotation from all his ancestors.” Ralph Waldo Emerson If fishing is a metaphor for writing, the title is the bait. I often start with the title. It’s setting the hook, attracting the reader, but it has another purpose. It sets the scope and determines what it is I am hoping to write […]
Wheaton Wood 