Ancestry

[CandiCame]

my ancestors owned slaves.

is there a jar someplace to put coins into?

My girlfriend's family owned slaves, and a bunch of land and shit. Her parents have a lot of cash, apparently. But also they WERE slaves, so her ancestry gets really, really rapey AND introduced me to the system of "colorism' that black folk have that I didn't know existed.

 

[Lorilei]

I traced my family tree starting 20 years ago. Starting with almost no information and no photos it now spans 2500 years, and I have 100s of photos and piles of documents. My first American immigrant was Sir William Alexander, Lord Sterling, Viscount of Canada. Jesus of Nazareth is a cousin. Mark Twain is a cousin. We came to the USA in 1607 at Jamestown. My last immigrant ancestor came to New York about 1845 from Ireland. Sixty of my ancestors fought in the Revolution.

I'm tracing my wife's tree. Her mother got as far as all their immigrant ancestors but they were late coming here. Almost all were coal miners from Wales.

That's pretty neat! How did you trace it?

 

[Lorilei]

There were some very wealthy people in the past. Like owned railroads, have towns named after them, etc., mostly in the 19th century. That's what the wealthy do. Very little trickled down to the present.

Pity.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

That's pretty neat! How did you trace it?

I spent $35,000 traveling across the country following hints and clues.

 

[Lorilei]

I spent $35,000 traveling across the country following hints and clues.

Oh. Yeah, I ain't doing that.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Oh. Yeah, I ain't doing that.

It isn't cheap. But Ancestry didn't exist 20 years ago.

 

[Ishmael]

Both my paternal grandparents ancestors migrated out of Virginia through the Cumberland gap with Boone. Later members of the family settled in south central Kentucky with the paternal grandparents side settling in Barrens County whilst the maternal side settled in adjacent Cumberland County. The county seat of Cumberland County bears the maternal grandmothers family name.

The maternal side were slave owners and the paternal side were not and a family feud simmered between the two from before the outbreak of the Civil War. Some on the paternal side fought for the Union, some on the maternal side fought for the Confederacy, most of them staid at home and took pot shots at each other.

The union of my paternal grandfather and grandmother was a "bury the hatchet" event with my father, the first born of the union, being bestowed with both family names and me being bestowed likewise.

Ishmael

 

[Lorilei]

I just found my grandfather's WWII draft card. *teary*

 

[ace195008]

Lorilei:

I traced my father's family to a leg of Scottish royality. I think 14 generations.

 

[Colonel Hogan]

My ancestry is German and my American ancestors came over in the 1920s or a little earlier, I think.

I don't particularly want to know what some distant cousins may have done during either of two world wars.

http://www.kylemitchell.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/46916-doctor-who-shaking-head-gif-ZfKP.gif

 

[Ishmael]

Lorilei:

I traced my father's family to a leg of Scottish royality. I think 14 generations.

Yeah, that was my first wife, House of Stewart.

Ishmael

 

[Lorilei]

Lorilei:

I traced my father's family to a leg of Scottish royality. I think 14 generations.

Whoa.

Did they wear kilts? Do you have pics? *hopeful*

I might have a problem, and LTR knows why.

 

[Mr Noone]

I just found my grandfather's WWII draft card. *teary*

I still have my draft card from 1973. My brother (two years younger) didn't have to get one.

 

[Lorilei]

I still have my draft card from 1973. My brother (two years younger) didn't have to get one.

Daaaang. Really?

 

[thør]

I still have my draft card from 1973. My brother (two years younger) didn't have to get one.

Mine died after my wallet and I took a long wet swim in the river about 8 years ago.

 

[ishtat]

Yup, my father's family traces back to colonial Virginia circa 1640. My mothers ancestry dead ends in Canada circa the early 1880's. I know that they came to Canada from Wales, I just haven't bothered digging into the UK records yet.

Ishmael

Ishmael you are lucky. The first census to be put on the internet was the 1881 British census. It was transcribed by members of the Mormon church and if you access it through their website it is free. The reliability of the 1881 census is good. Later British census' were transcribed for the internet by junior public servants and the quality of their work particularly the 1911 census is all too often woeful.

 

[Ishmael]

Mine died after my wallet and I took a long wet swim in the river about 8 years ago.

I still have mine circa l967 (my 'one' key is giving me probs, time for a new keyboard). IV-A is the classification.

If I had re-enlisted I could have gone to the '68 Olympics. I'm still ambivalent about that.

Ishmael

 

[Ishmael]

Ishmael you are lucky. The first census to be put on the internet was the 1881 British census. It was transcribed by members of the Mormon church and if you access it through their website it is free. The reliability of the 1881 census is good. Later British census' were transcribed for the internet by junior public servants and the quality of their work particularly the 1911 census is all too often woeful.

Thx, I'll look into that.

Ishmael

 

[Wrong Element]

Don't know much about my Irish side, but I know a little bit about my father's ancestors. One of them claimed to be a descendant of John Alden (of The Courtship of Miles Standish fame), but the John Alden Society considers his claim bogus.

There's not a whole lot noteworthy there. Mostly backwoods New Englanders. One of my ancestors (a great-great-great-great-great grandparent) lived in colonial New Hampshire and got the hell to Canada when his side lost the Revolution. Yes, the WEs were unpatriotic even then.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

I do not have to look up mine.

 

[Ishmael]

I do not have to look up mine.

No written history, huh chief?

Ishmael

 

[Lorilei]

I do not have to look up mine.

Why not?

 

[Lorilei]

I just now remembered a family legend that my GGM was descended from Longfellow. I have no idea where that came from, but I should try to verify it.

 

[Sunshine]

I am 100% Italian although when we visited relatives on my father's side in Italy, they had something on the wall that showed our family was originally from Spain. Apparently, when Sicily was ruled by Spain, they sent one of my ancestors to serve as Viceroy of Sicily.

 

[Dream59]

My brother and my wife are really into this. My brother has paid for these ancestry sites but my wife has found just as much information in the public domain without the added expense. Both get a lot of enjoyment out of it, but for me I am not that interested what a family member did 200 years ago.