This month for our kid’s book club we are reading Homeplace, by Anne Shelby, with illustrations by Wendy Anderson Halperin. This out of print gem was published in 1995 and teaches about ancestors, generations, farm life, and the feeling of connectedness we receive by physically being in a place special to our family history. This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission but it doesn’t change...
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...
News 23andMe has a problem when it comes to ancestry reports for people of color by Euny Hong at Quartz Genealogy project delves into early days of Colorado Springs hospital by Carol McGraw at The Gazette What’s New on FamilySearch—August 2016 at the FamilySearch Blog – exciting changes to the mobile app including search records button linking to Ancestry.com. Also the ability to add un-indexed images to a person as a source. Family Roots Expo in St....
Today I’d like to introduce you to my second cousin, Teresa L. Thyden. Although our grandfathers were brothers, we had never met, corresponded, or even known about each other’s existence. Teresa found our blog when she happened to come across my post: The Search for William Henry Kelsey’s Journal. Also a Kelsey descendant, she shares my love of researching family. She inherited photos and documents of the family I had never seen and has been...
I’m happy to introduce a guest blogger today. Mike Gibson is a singer/songwriter who grew up in East Tennessee. As a young boy he discovered an old guitar tucked away in the back of a closet. Influenced by such artists as James Taylor, Dan Fogelberg and Jim Croce, he has been playing, singing and writing for over four decades. He will be sharing his experience writing a song about his grandparents in conjunction with a...
News Human Remains Accidentally Discovered in Iowa Likely from Several Mormon Pioneers by Danielle B. Wagner at LDS Living Bowie’s family, roots provide strength for Olympian by Jason Munz at The Clarion-Ledger Family history moment: Aunt Mandy by Joyce Baggerly at Deseret News Families and Children Our Family History Staycation by Jana Greenhalgh at The Genealogy Kids Giant Family Tree by Jana Greenhalgh at The Genealogy Kids Our ‘Relative Race’: Extended Stay by Melissa Finlay at Finlay Family Our ‘Relative...
Granddaddy’s Turn: A Journey to the Ballot Box is a poignant, true story about a boy named Michael who went with his granddaddy to vote in the civil-rights era segregated south. It’s the kind of family story that gets told and retold because it is filled with joy, excitement, pain, and inspiration. This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission but it doesn’t change the...
If you read just one book this year, read The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown. Since we’ll be cheering on our favorite athletes in Brazil this month, this is the perfect book to get into the Olympic spirit. This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission but it doesn’t...
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...
