What to do When You Hit a Brick Wall

Do you have a “brick wall” in your family tree? You’ve been able to trace most of your family lines pretty far back in time, but there is that one line that you just can’t figure out. You have an empty spot on your family tree. You are just itching to fill it in, butContinue reading “What to do When You Hit a Brick Wall”

The Cliffords, Part 2: Family Scandal

This is a continuation of my account on the Clifford family. For more information, see Part 1. In 1878, Sophia Clifford sold the land that she and Lewis had bought in Iowa. Apparently her sons (Fred was 20 and Charles was 15) wanted to seek more opportunities out west rather than stay and work theContinue reading “The Cliffords, Part 2: Family Scandal”

The Cliffords, Part 1: Brick Wall Immigrants

Featured Image: Hamburger Hafen (Port of Hamburg) by Adolph Friedrich Vollmer, 1840. Ah, yes. Clifford. Kliefoth. The family that made me want to study German Genealogy in college. And I studied for four years and still didn’t find them. But they will be found. Someday. They originated in Germany as Kliefoth (pronounced like “klee-fote”), andContinue reading “The Cliffords, Part 1: Brick Wall Immigrants”