Sharing case studies, methodologies, and resource materials. I’m working to add generations to my tree using full documentary evidence confirmed by DNA analysis.

Welcome!

I started this blog because I was frustrated with having to “reinvent the wheel” —- mothers and fathers are attached to trees in ancestry.com with no sources. The familysearch.org One-World Tree is riddled with folks attaching whole generations of people with no sources. Even my family lines within Wiki-Tree are filled with errors and sources that say, “Personal knowledge of Joe-Shmoe”.

And most of the time, once I put in the work and pay for the records, the random mothers and fathers listed end up being correct. So, listen, I’m not pretending that I’m up-ending long-held beliefs about family lines or anything. However, I am providing direct evidence of family relationships or strong circumstantial cases along with DNA correlation to confirm family lines. And yeah, sometimes I break down a brick wall and discover a new grandfather or grandmother and those are fun too. And I provide the documentary evidence for all to read and review.

Please browse around a bit. My posts tend to be quite Florida- and Georgia-heavy because, well, all the branches of my family have been in Florida since the early 1900s and most of them came from Georgia before that. But there are a few things sprinkled in there from Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina as well.

If I run across a really fun resource, I like to share that here as well. My case studies are presented informally and every detail presented is sourced by documentary evidence that I provide directly to you, the reader.

Please follow along to read stories of discovery and heartbreak, to learn tips and tricks, organization and research strategies, and (if you are a cousin) to learn more about the details of our shared family lines.

Recent Posts

Join me in my adventure in family discovery!

Mary M Howard: DNA Project to Support that her Parents were James Seth and Harriet C Howard
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Mary M Howard: DNA Project to Support that her Parents were James Seth and Harriet C Howard

My 3rd great-grandmother, Mary M Howard, was born May 1, 1848, in Hillsborough County, Florida. She married Wilson Elihu Stephens on March 25, 1869, in Manatee County, Florida. She died April 12, 1879, in Manatee County, Florida. She and Wilson had at least eight children before her death.

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Using Excel as a Research Log
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Using Excel as a Research Log

There is no right way, wrong way, or best way to keep a research log. There is simply a way that works for you. I have managed my research in many sloppy ways over the years, but I finally hit upon one that works well for me. I use Excel to organize my research and log my findings.

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When it Appears No Records Exist for an Ancestor, Research Possible Father Candidates Instead
Military Records, Pate Family, Probate, Case Study Sunni Mohammadbhoy Military Records, Pate Family, Probate, Case Study Sunni Mohammadbhoy

When it Appears No Records Exist for an Ancestor, Research Possible Father Candidates Instead

One of my 3rd great-grandfathers on my maternal line was a man named Daniel Pate. He lived a relatively short life. According to his gravestone, his middle initial was “S” and he was born February 18, 1856, and he died March 8, 1904. He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Arcadia, Florida.

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My Two-for-One Grandpa: A Tale of Pedigree Collapse
Hays Family, Case Study, Pedigree Collapse, Probate Sunni Mohammadbhoy Hays Family, Case Study, Pedigree Collapse, Probate Sunni Mohammadbhoy

My Two-for-One Grandpa: A Tale of Pedigree Collapse

Years ago, I was communicating with someone that I had contacted through ancestry.com. She was helping a cousin of mine build out her family tree. She noted, “My family tree is more like a family bush.” I absolutely adored this statement and I have adopted it ever since then. I, too, have a family bush.

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The Lost Female Ancestor: A Case of the  Double “s”

The Lost Female Ancestor: A Case of the Double “s”

I am currently working on a project to determine my 4th great-grandfather’s parentage. His name was Aaron Weeks and he was born in South Carolina around 1825 and died in Lafayette County, Florida around 1878. Circumstantial evidence leads me to believe that his father was a man named Thomas Weeks.

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County Tax Rolls
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County Tax Rolls

One of my favorite record sets for 19th-century research is county tax records. There is no doubt that this process can be a bit tedious, but very few items can give us such a clear picture of a person's movements and life events year-over-year than tax records.

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Index of Settlers’ Land Applications in Florida through the Armed Occupation Act of 1842
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Index of Settlers’ Land Applications in Florida through the Armed Occupation Act of 1842

I have been using the Bureau of Land Management website to look for land patents for my Alabama and Florida settlers almost since the beginning of my genealogical journey. One of the first classes I took described this resource and taught me how to use the site.

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Why Does There Always Have to be “Smith” in the Family?
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Why Does There Always Have to be “Smith” in the Family?

How I used contextual clues and cluster research to determine the identity of an unknown man with the last name of “Smith” in bag of old photographs. One of my maternal great-grandmothers was born a Smith. Ugh. Dorothy Elton Smith married Harold Daniel Garner and she was the daughter of Amos Leonard and Artie Lenore Smith.

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Identifying a Neighbor on a Census Helped Me to Break Through My Brick Wall
Montgomery Family, Case Study, DNA Sunni Mohammadbhoy Montgomery Family, Case Study, DNA Sunni Mohammadbhoy

Identifying a Neighbor on a Census Helped Me to Break Through My Brick Wall

When dreaming and planning to start this blog, one of the genealogy adventures I most wanted to share with everybody was the journey to find my third great grandfather, George Montgomery. I have composed this story in a thousand different ways in my mind, but I have realized that this story is made up of many different adventures and is too big for one condensed post. Just when I think that I've learned everything that there is to know about George Montgomery, I stumble across another incredible find!

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