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Roots
How much do you know about your family history? Are you fortunate enough to have had it passed down to you, complete with documents, photos, family tree, heirlooms, etc?
Have you or someone in your family have had to do all the research?
If you are someone with one, or maybe both biological parents absent from your life, have you attempted to or want to discover your roots?
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| October 11, 2006, 08:43 |
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Re: Roots
Some of y'all already know that I'm a huge genealogy buff. I've traced my grandmother's family (on my dad's side) back to Scotland in the early 18th century. My mom didn't tell us anything about her parents, unfortunately  I do know a little bit about them from what my dad, brother and sister found out when they visited her family in Germany. I wish I knew more but it's proving to be rather difficult to find out anything! 
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| October 11, 2006, 10:00 |
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Re: Roots
My father immigrated to Canada from Romania after the 1st world war. My mother was born here but her father was from Austria and her Mother is of Polish decent but born and raised in Austria. There is some Ukrainian on my fraternal grandfather's side. I just know things from what my parents have told me. I have not tried to trace the families' histories. I do know that both of my parents have relatives scattered around the world. There are several in Europe and many of course in various locations in Canada and the United States.
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| October 11, 2006, 10:52 |
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Re: Roots
I have a wonderful picture of my mom and her sister back in the.... 40's, I believe. Black and white... I cherish that picture and will pass it down to my daughter some day 
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| October 11, 2006, 10:56 |
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Re: Roots
My mother's side were "town people"...they were all business owners, held public office, community centered so it's pretty easy to find allot of photos, news clippings, documents and records on them...but my father's side, were all "hill people"....lived in isolated rural areas, not many photos exist, and so much of their history if recorded at all, was done in the family bible, which has long been lost.
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| October 11, 2006, 12:50 |
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funlovingpair
59 / couple
Frozen Tundra, Minnesota, US
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Re: Roots
Most of you also know that MA and I are deep into genealogy.
I have about 4,000 names in my data base, and right now we are really focused on the documentation. That's expensive, and it can take a very long time to locate. On my side, I've been able to trace back to the 1600's on my paternal side, on my maternal side, I've traced it back, on one of the lines to year 80, but most of the lines it's to 1500-1600's. In fact we are taking a trip to Illinois next week for this very reason, getting more records, photo's of old houses, and photo's of grave markers. Still have to get down into Iowa, South Dakota, Florida, and Maryland, as well as several other states. Hoping in the next three years, need more time so I get the time off and need more money, to head to Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and the UK, for more records. In fact just a month or so ago, I was able to tie into two more family trees in the Maryland area. That added about another 200 names to the list.
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| October 11, 2006, 14:46 |
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funlovingpair
59 / couple
Frozen Tundra, Minnesota, US
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Re: Roots
On MA's side we only been able to trace it back to the mid 1800's, so that's a big reason to hit Sweden. Her family only immigrated here in the late 1800's and early 1900's. So there's not much here.
It was funny, MA and I had just found here GGgrandfathers intent papers, I was saying that I need to look for the same thing for my side. I was commenting to how a lot of names of towns where the same from the UK and here in the US. Then it dawned on me, duh, that was before the states was the states, they were still part of the UK.
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| October 11, 2006, 14:51 |
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Re: Roots
took me a few years to get back just a couple generations.. but once i got past the "outlaws" who actually tried to remain unknown, it was easy to trace back to scotland/norway/etc.
too bad the one line i have yet to crack is the most colorfull one and the one whose name i actually bear.
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| October 11, 2006, 15:55 |
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Re: Roots
Would that name be the "bored" part or the "boy" part?
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| October 11, 2006, 17:16 |
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NRG4U
63 / male
Beaver City, Nebraska, US
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Re: Roots
I was fortunate to have a grandad that loved to talk about his childhood & his family, & also a mother that not only was interested in finding out everything she could about her roots, but she loves research, & she has a photographic memory. She traced both sides of my family & published enough books of them for the family members. She has her side traced to Germany to the 1200's , There were dukes, & lords, & other people of stature. My grandads cousin was Adolf Hitlers right hand men, just behind Goring when Hitler first came to power. Unfortunately for him , he stood in the way of any chance for Himmler to advance in Rank, so Himmler "removed" him. Dad's side was traced to Switzerland to the 1400's. His family built castles there, so I guess I come by my job honestly.
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| October 11, 2006, 18:13 |
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Re: Roots
Know more on my paternal side than the maternal side. Maternal side doesn't talk much, paternal side talks too much.
Need I say more?
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| October 11, 2006, 19:53 |
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Re: Roots
No Castles or Kingdoms in my blood line so I guess I really never gave it a thought.
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| October 11, 2006, 22:11 |
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RebelRoka67
57 / male
Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia
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Re: Roots
Im with hothands.
Dont really give a shit 
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| October 12, 2006, 03:14 |
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pepper
56 / female
daytona, Florida, US
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Re: Roots
I know a lot about my maternal side, hardly anything about my Paternal. It used to drive me crazy, but once I married Warren, I took his family and it's history as mine.
If I find out more about my paternal side, that's fine, but I don't have time to stand in a court to open adoption (adopted by my stepfather when I was 9) papers for my biological father's name. It used to be a driving force, but with age came the wisdom that if I am meant to know, then I will find out, if not, well, I have a family who loves and cherishes me, what do I need him for? He obviously wasn't interested enough to make sure I knew him, now was he?
**side note, I have been told I have half brothers and sisters from him, would love to meet them, being an only was LONELY!**
  
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| October 12, 2006, 05:56 |
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Re: Roots
Actually..My 2nd cousin on my Father's side wrote the screen play for the movie ROOTS.. William Blinn.. He' a producer/director in Hollywood. I met Him once when I was a kid. As far as real family lineage.. My uncle on my Dad's side traced our name back as far as 1860's and found a horse thief who was hanged... Gave up after that bit of info. ... LMAO...!!!   
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| October 12, 2006, 06:20 |
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Re: Roots
after lil red was born i got into looking at my family history. (so i could tell her about her family one day) i was lucky enough to know just enough to start my quest. (mom didn't talk to her family, and i haven't seen my dad's since i was 8) it has been a struggle, but in the last 2 years i have learned so much. i have a book that i am putting together for lil red. in it i have also done research on rhyun's family for her too.
leeuh
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| October 12, 2006, 08:42 |
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Re: Roots
For those of you with an "I don't give a shit" attitude about your lineage, that's all fine and well for some.
As for me, I'm curious to know where my ancestors came from. And it's not just a matter of finding out.... It was very hard finding any information when my parents didn't do any research themselves. Luckily I have a few cousins who I research with. We pinpoint things and find more information to confirm that way.
My point is this. For my family it's a matter of my kids not having to go through the mess I'm going through now if they ever want to venture into genealogy themselves. They're very young and have already show major interest about where their ancestors are from. They've even done "cultural" activities at school. I was proud that they were able to share even a little bit in that aspect.
I search now, they won't have to search in the future. Unless they want to go back even further.
Just my 2 cents 
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| October 12, 2006, 11:41 |
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funlovingpair
59 / couple
Frozen Tundra, Minnesota, US
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Re: Roots
Moon, I agree. For me its more about who my family is. What is it that makes us who we are today. What did they do, what did they they have to struggle with. I found that on my mothers side, they moved to the Dakota territory, now its actually South Dakota, where they had to start from nothing. They had to build their own house, start to plow the land. And to see what all that hard work pay off, as now they have a very large farm that actually makes a profit. The same for my paternal side. They had to cut the trees and form them for a house, which is now part of the Historical society in Kansas. The stories that become part of your history. Its all fascinating.
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| October 12, 2006, 12:06 |
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GG317
60 / male
Bowl of Granola, Massachusetts, US
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Re: Roots
My moms been doing her family tree for years now. Until recently, she been finding one after the other, relatives. She said she's hit a snag in the 1800's. Apparently, in the late 1700's it was not uncommon for inter-marriages to take place. As the blood lines thin, children born in those days were lucky to make it past five years old. The parents, didn't give it much thought and just had more. She's been pulling up ten to twenty death certificates per relative. It's an uphill battle at best. Some of the relatives had the same name as their sibling that past away too...
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| October 12, 2006, 16:48 |
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