The following DNA-testing companies are currently offering sales on genealogical autosomal DNA tests this August:
Take advantage of these sales if you have a genealogical puzzle that DNA may be able to solve.
The following is shared by a client whom we helped with finding biological family using DNA:
I only have the faintest of memories of what it was like for my Nana to live close by before she moved out of state. My memories of her stem from our trips to see her in Saint George and her visits nearly every year for Christmas at our house.
One such year, on Christmas Eve, I tried to go to bed early to hurry the arrival of Christmas morning. But the excitement was too much. I found myself lying wide awake in bed, full of imaginings of what would await me downstairs the next morning.
At some point, my Nana came upstairs and found me restless but still unwilling to give up my plan. So she sat with me and we talked to pass the time away. With our large family, I can think of few other experiences where I had her all to myself. I treasure the memory now, most especially because of all I learned about her. Before that night, I had no idea that she had been adopted as a young girl. She told me of her mother and her childhood, and hearing her stories made me feel closer to her and, in fact, part of the story she told.Continue reading “Finding Nana’s Mother: A DNA Story”
Non-traditional family trees are increasingly common. No matter how unusual or un-traditional, genealogists should record all family events and relationships accurately. In this series, you will learn how to record these complex family situations clearly in your family tree. In this post, you will learn about recording homosexual relationships.
Regardless of whether you believe that individuals in homosexual relationships should be allowed to marry or raise children, currently same-sex marriage is legal in the United States, Canada, the UK, and other countries, and same-sex couples raise children. A truly accurate genealogy must acknowledge and record these facts.
The following article discusses how to add a homosexual relationship to your family tree or genealogy database. Other articles in this series discuss adoption and step families, which may also be relevant for homosexual family trees (see below for links).Continue reading “Non-traditional Family Trees: Homosexual Relationships”
Awareness of mental illness has increased dramatically over the years, but how did our ancestors deal with it? This post outlines the kinds of records available for researching mental illness in your family history through telling the mental illness genealogy story of my ancestor, Steadman Gray. Steadman was committed on the testimony of his wife in 1903. His story may help you know where to look to find the mentally ill in your family tree.
Trigger warning: This post talks briefly about suicide.Continue reading “Mental Illness Genealogy: Steadman Gray”
Big news! American Ancestors, a large family history record database run by the New England Historic Genealogical Society, is free to search from July 10-17. This site has many resources helpful to those who may have New England ancestors.
Among the resources available are the contents of the Mayflower “Silver Books,” a research project undertaken to trace five generations of the descendants of Mayflower pilgrims. This collection can be a big help to those interested in tracing their ancestry back to the Mayflower.
Take advantage of this offer by clicking here.
In genealogy, every once in awhile you run into something strange. Sarah E Peck of Lincoln, Nebraska’s entry in the 1910 US Census (above) is one of those things. It’s not unusual to see blanks in census forms, especially in the age column of an entry (though it can be frustrating!) It is, however, odd to see the word “Unanswered” written into the field. What makes this entry even more strange is that other columns are filled. Her occupation, place of employment, place of birth, and parents’ birthplace all contain data. Only her age and marital status are missing (though one can make out a faint “S”).
So what happened, here?Continue reading “Census Weirdness: The Case of Sarah E Peck”
My great-great grandfather, Newell Elijah Gile, was wounded at Gettysburg. I had heard rumors for some time about this wound. Only after doing some research into my own Battle of Gettysburg genealogy, however, was I able to verify it. It seems fitting to honor his sacrifice and service on this the anniversary of the battle, which occurred July 1-3, 1863.Continue reading “My Ancestor was Wounded at Gettysburg”
Fold3 is offering free access to its American Revolutionary War collection from July 1-15. Take advantage of this offer to access millions of pension files, military service records and war rolls that can help you verify the details of your ancestor’s service.
Non-traditional family trees are not uncommon. Although many of us wish for a traditional family, divorce, death, out-of-wedlock births and other circumstances happen to many families. No matter how you feel about what happened or how you feel about the people involved in these events, they belong in your family tree. Your step family genealogy should be recorded to accurately tell your family’s story.
In this series, you will learn how to record these complex family situations clearly in your family tree. In this post, you will learn about recording step family genealogy and divorce events in your Ancestry.com Tree. Continue reading “Non-Traditional Family Trees: Step Families on Ancestry”
Non-traditional family trees are not uncommon. Although many of us wish for a traditional family, divorce, death, out-of-wedlock births and other circumstances happen to many families. No matter how you feel about what happened or how you feel about the people involved in these events, they belong in your family tree. Your step family genealogy should be recorded to accurately tell your family’s story.
In this series, you will learn how to record these complex family situations clearly in your family tree. In this post, you will learn about recording step family genealogy and divorce events in FamilySearch Family Tree.
Continue reading “Non-Traditional Family Trees: Step Families on FamilySearch”
