Our Family Tree

Genealogies have a way of becoming infinite projects. To limit the scope, I have elected in this work to gather thumbnail information on all our ancestors, as far back as reliable data is available, narrowing the focus on each succeeding generation to those leading directly to our eight grandparents. The work is organized along these lines. From our grandparents, the tree branches outward again, to include all of our aunts, uncles, cousins, their spouses and children, and their children's spouses. For each person, given is their dates of birth, death, and marriage. For our ancestors, brief anecdotal histories are included. (More complete details, including sources for all the following, are kept among our books and papers at home.)

	Select which family you wish to explore.
	Bill's		Cindy's
	Index of everybody charted		Surname Index
Where this symbol appears, look for a photograph.

How did they get there?

I found this interesting discussion on early immigrant migrations and thought it was worth keeping.

How did he do that?

Here's a thumbnail description of how to make your own family tree on a web site.

How did they spell that name?

I found this quick sketch of how the Soundex System works to identify names through various spelling changes.

How can you tell which is their real name?

Here's some cross cultural information that may clarify how families in other places and other times named their children.

What happened to the 1890 Census?

Doubtless, you've heard that the 1890 census was "destroyed by fire." Here's the whole story from those who should know, the U.S. National Archives

What keeps them going?

Why do we do it? Have you wondered about the person who wanders through long-forgotten graveyards, drives to distant counties to spend hours in the library basement, or badgers extended family members for stories from of old? This may help you understand.

 
Genealogist's motto:

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