Do you have a diary or journal of an ancestor? If so, you have a treasure full of details that could give you a window into their lives. Because a diary can only be physically in one place at a time, transcribing or scanning the diary and then sharing it with family members is a wonderful gift. My maternal grandmother, Florence Matilda (Creer) Kelsey, was born on on 12 December 1892 in Spanish Fork, Utah, ...
We often think of our ancestors in isolation – focusing on just their immediate or extended family. But our ancestors were members of a broader community. They could have belonged to a church, a club, a fraternal organization, a service group, or a military unit. When we explore their membership in that group we gain more understanding of their lives. In this 52 ancestor’s post, I’ll highlight the life of Daniel Henrie, a member...
Do you have a Christmas memory that stands out as particularly significant? Maybe an incident involving a family member or friend or maybe the year you learned giving was better than receiving? It could be a hodgepodge of memories centering around a family tradition. Have you shared that memory about a Christmas past? We’re reading the classic “A Christmas Memory” by Truman Capote for our December Book Club selection. Capote wrote this short story in...
Do you have family heirlooms hiding away in a trunk or cupboard? Do you know the stories behind each keepsake and have you recorded those stories? One small artifact might be an important key to understanding an ancestor’s life. Here are some simple steps you can take now to preserve the memories behind each heirloom. I am the daughter of a keeper of heirlooms. My mother has kept jewelry, clothes, dishes, books, pillows, quilts, and...
When is the last time you looked at your family tree chart and thought about the dash? The dash as in: Edward Raymond Kelsey 1886-1972 or Rachel Cox 1827-1870. The dash represents everything between birth and death. You might know a lot about your ancestor’s life or you might know a little. Your family tree chart doesn’t know or care how much you know, all it provides is the dash. It’s up to us as family...
In celebration of Utah’s Pioneer Day on July 24, I’ve been studying my Mormon pioneer ancestors and sharing their stories on Instagram tagged with #MyPioneerAncestor. It has been a fascinating study. For some, their travels were extremely difficult and required many sacrifices. For others, it was a joyous journey and they became so skilled that they traveled the route again and again to help other emigrants. I began by checking out the FamilySearch Pioneer campaign, FamilySearch.org/Pioneers. It scans your family tree against the...
“It’s impossible not to love someone whose story you’ve heard.” This truth was spoken by David Isay of StoryCorps during his keynote at the Friday Opening Session of the RootsTech conference. The message of StoryCorps left a lasting impression on me as Isay beautifully illustrated how hearing stories of even strangers creates a connection. Most of my ancestors are strangers to me – but through their stories I feel a deep connection to them. “Every story matters.” -David Isay, StoryCorps...
Do you have a quilt in your closet with no clue who made it or why? Or maybe you have a stack of clothes from a loved one that you’d like to make into a quilt? Either way, a quilt can be a lasting way of preserving memories. I have a rich heritage of quilting in my family. Four generations of women snipped and sewed to create colorful and practical quilts that are a...
After Christmas, my 5 year old was devastated to take down the tree, lights, and ornaments. So we quickly replaced the Christmas tree with our Valentine’s Day decorations! A couple years ago I started decorating for Valentine’s Day with old (and new) family photos of weddings. These are some of my favorite wedding photos from our family: Here’s how I decorated last year: And this is what I came up with this year: I framed a pretty...
Today is Veteran’s Day. This is a simple holiday where all we need to do is honor and remember those who sacrificed to preserve our freedoms. So to celebrate, I am honoring and remembering six of the many men in my life who joined the massive effort known as World War II. Each had unique experiences and each deserves to have their story told. All of them came home from the war and all of them have...
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