where2look4ancestors

Category: Genealogy

  • My Family History Month 2013

    According to FamilySearch Blog, “October has been officially listed as Family History Month within the US.” There are great ideas there and elsewhere on the ‘net about ways in which we can celebrate or encourage the exploration of family history. Reading some of the tips made me think about my…

  • 23rd Psalm for Genealogists

    In honor of Family History Month, I’d like to share a parody of the 23rd Psalm as recorded by the Minnkota Genealogical Society of Grand Forks, North Dakota: 23rd Psalm for Genealogists Genealogy is my past time I shall not stray. It maketh me to lie down and examine half-buried…

  • Death or Divorce?

    I’m trying to determine if my 1st cousin thrice-removed had been widowed or was divorced before her 2nd marriage. Myrtle H Youngberg and John L Miller were married 01 Jul 1910 in Michigan at a popular destination for elopements: None of the John Millers in the 1910 Chicago city directory seem to be a…

  • Birthday Celebrations

    How does your family celebrate birthdays? How is this similar to/different from the way you celebrated birthdays as a child? My childhood birthdays included party hats, cake and ice cream, and games like Pin the Tail on the Donkey and Clothespin Drop. Relatives joined the festivities until we were school-aged…

  • Ancestral Look Alikes

    With which ancestor do you share the most physical characteristics? What similar characteristics are there and how do you feel about them? I began this quest with a photo of my parents taken in 1956. Searching their faces for specific features that match my sisters’ and mine, I began to wonder where those…

  • Political Activism

    Were your parents or grandparents politically active? What is your first political memory? 4th grade was an election year. Richard Nixon, Hubert Humphrey and George Wallace each hoped to be the 37th President of the United States. Our class held mock elections, following the campaign on TV and in the newspapers.…

  • Reasons to Research

    How many names are in your tree? How far back have you gone? If you’ve ever told anybody that you are climbing your family tree, chances are you’ve heard these questions more than once. The answer I’d like to give? Ugh. Why? Because I’m not a collector of names and…

  • Who was President?

    Do you remember who was running for office when you first became aware of politics? Who was in the White House when you were born? When your parents were children? When your ancestors immigrated? One of my grade school teachers held a mock election during the 1972 United States presidential…

  • Herman Mangels’ Inquest

    My 2nd great-grandfather attempted to take his own life January 7, 1912. Three days later Herman Mangels died in Dunning Hospital after succumbing to lobar pneumonia, the result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Below is a transcription of the inquest record created after his death. “WITNESS SHEET Inquest upon the body of Herman…

  • Family Story Examined

    According to family lore, Herman Mangels drank often and his wife was tired of his drunkenness. She was supposed to have told him that the next time he came home intoxicated, he would be sent outside to sleep on the porch. As fate would have it (the story continues), Herman’s…