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 Confirm that her Parents were James Seth Howard and Harriet C Weeks
A detailed genealogical project aimed at confirming that Mary M. Howard's parents were James Seth Howard and Harriet C. Weeks. Using a combination of DNA evidence and documentary research, the author establishes genetic links between the descendants of Mary and those of Seth and Harriet Howard’s other children. The analysis further extends to relationships between Harriet C. Weeks and her siblings. The project strengthens the case for Seth and Harriet being Mary’s parents through genetic and circumstantial documentary evidence.
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.
DNA Project: Cassa Ann Weeks Descendants
I’m looking for volunteers to particpate in a DNA study. Any descendents of Cassa Ann Weeks should reach out to join.
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!
When ThruLines tells you one thing, but the records tell you another
Right around the time that I first started doing genealogy, Ancestry introduced ThruLines . I can not reiterate enough that I have never attempted genealogy without DNA and I have never confirmed DNA findings without paper genealogy.