How did you get 'addicted' to Family History / Gen

[marjon]

Over 20 years ago, I was talking to an acquaintance who regularly got my train to work, saying I didn't know anything about my maternal great grandfather David Brown. She used to be the a genealogist at the LDS in Christchurch NZ and showed me how to organise my paperwork, look at microfiche, and how to use the IGI. I made the big mistake (we all seem to) in that I opted for the first David Brown I found. Took me a year of searching on the wrong one. I had more luck with my Dad's side (Burn) and found 3 generations in a couple of hours! After looking at the family bible we brought over from UK, I was absolutely hooked! Had the disease ever since, to the point I'm now the Secretary of a FH Group and helping others to research! Absolutely LOVE looking for dead people !

 

[jay]

Hello Marjon,
You sound to be very organised ... any tips? I feel sometimes quite submerged under all the paperwork not to mention photographs which fill a few cases. But I don't want to destroy any in case a "cousin" gets in touch and I have some evidence more relevant to them than to me.

I am researching: Stretton; Bowden; Wolliscroft; Hopley; Barker; Phillips and Morris.

 

[Rune Mussett-Sharp]

Yes Marjon share your tips please.
Yours truly,
Drowning in Bits of Paper

 

[windy]

Got started some years back but cant get past my own grandfather as all old relations has passed away or had alzemiers, so started to do my wifes despite her grandfathers name being John Brown have been able to get her g/g/fathers name, Also tired her grandmother but only got as far as great grandfather and have hit a brick wall as on wedding cert he has signed as Curry but on 1901 census he signed as Currie? Despite this have found her mothers cousin in Australia.

However as I live in Northern Ireland all records apart from a few where either tottally or partially destroyed so it really is an uphill struggle

windy

 

[desrae11]

When I was a child I asked my grandfather how he met my grandmother. I was told by him never to ask questions like that again.

That stuck in my head most of my life. I now understand why he said that.

My addiction comes from that statement he made to me.

I found out that he and his 4 brothers were abandoned by their mother. Two of the brothers were adopted. My grandfather and his two brothers were indentured to farms in South Africa.
Their father (british) was in the army and fought in South Africa, he ended up in the hospital in England and died there in 1928.

Once I learned of this, I understood why my grandfather was such an angry man.

 

[aussieStPat]

Good morning all, back in the 1960's my great Aunt handed me a letter from a distant cousin in Utah and asked could I fill in the blanks.As all great Uncles and Aunts were alive it was easy and so I filled in the forms and that was it.18 months ago I was on Facebook and pottering around and Tensmeyer popped up and this person was the daughter of the woman I did the tree for over 50 years ago.She is in her eighties now but has given me a lot of information about my ancestors. Genealogy did not have much of an effect on me then but I really have the bug and the best thing is now I have found family Cheers

 

[Marcene Varwig Wheeler]

I am new to this site so I hope I am posting this correctly. In response to how I got addicted to family history: as a little girl I remember sitting with my Mom and other relatives she was talking to in effort to put the information into a tree. This was what started my interest. I would also love every word of stories as told by my grandparents. Years later after I was married I talked to and gathered information from my Dad and started in on my own quest to put together family information. EDITED I love the puzzles of genealogy. welcomewelcome to all who want to stop by. I have never before been a part of a forum and would be grateful for any input so I can keep my posts helpful to all. Marcene

 

[davelambert271]

hi Marcene

welcome

to the forum

dave

 

[Scratch And Patch]

My addiction came to me naturally!!!!!!!! The further back in time I went, the further back in time I had to go. I am back to Phillippi Dodeman & wife Joane, Bacton, Norfolk, Eng. That I have est. around to 1538. I have est 1538 through the birth of their 1st daughter Cyclia Dodeman b. 09 Feb
1564. Dodeman is the 1st variation of Dodman that I have found. Johannes
( John ) Dodman, my direct-line-of-lineage was b. 10 Nov 1568. The 3rd child Willimus Dodman was b. 01 Mar 1572. Their last child Susanna
Dodman was b. 31 May 1576.

I have learned the Dodeman name goes as far back as the year 1050
in the Domesday Book. These Dodeman's my vary well be my " Ancestors " as well!!!!!!!!!

Genealogy can go as far back as you are willing to take it. My advice is to keep plugging away & do not be afraid to ask this forum for help!!!!!!!!!

Scratch And Patch

 

[trinni]

I see no one has written on here for a while but as I'm new here I thought I'd reply.
First of all I grew up in Trinidad in the West Indies . Dad was British and went out in the forties to work in sugar, mum from a mixed colonial background of settlers from England, France and Spain from the very early 1800's
I first started being interested in my early teens and via word of mouth from my maternal grandmother and wrote out on scraps of paper her nine siblings,their spouses and children and the same with my grandfather. It was one of the few non essential possesions that I brought with me when I travelled to UK to study.

After that there was a lull in my research until two of my uncles began to research the British line of mums family and I asked for a copy of the pedigree chart which they followed back to the thirteenth century. After their deaths all their research papers came to me and - enough said. I've made tons of silly mistakes but nothing can top finding that little piece you were searching for.

 

[Juniper95]

I got interested when my granny ( born in 1883) used to look after me a couple of times a week as a child. She used to tell me all kinds of things about her life. She told me about Stevenson's Rocket, the Suffragette movement, Halley's comet (the one she saw) and many many more things.
But it wasn't until I was researching a portrait of a lady that i didn't have any info on after 1912 and thought she could have possibly gone down on the Titanic that I became interested in doing my own family search.
I have learned a lot in the past 2 years and have loved finding out.

 

[Ladybird1300]

Well, we had lots of old black and white photos, I didn't know who most of them were, but I loved getting them out. I used to nag my mother to look at them, my g aunt managed to tell me who some of them were others my mother helped me with and others I worked out for myself.

Amongst these photos, someone had drawn a small tree with hands shaking and beautiful handwriting. I still don't know who drew it, they died before my grandfather was born, but I used this when I started to research on t'internet.

It was quite accurate and went back to 1798, I thought that was amazing so I knew quite a lot about my mother's family as we had original certificates, that look nothing like the ones you send for.

Sadly, on my father's side, I never even knew my grandfather's first name, so I'm glad I started this journey and now I know both sides very well.

It seems the more I records that become available, the more I want to know.

 

[Ellie7]

I got hooked when my son gave me his old computer. My husbands Father died when he was (Husband) 4yrs,so the question was, what was true and what was heresay.I have a wide range of Shires/Counties on my tree.

Ellie

 

[popsit]

I got addicted around 1997.My aunt was making noises about her trip back to England and wanting to find out stuff about her grandmother. I didn't really take it all in as I wasn't interested in "dead people". Genealogy was for old people lol. When she came back she hadn't done very much and through talking I thought I wonder if I can find anything out nonchelontly. So I started with my father and the rest is history. I had a little office in our very large bedroom that I worked from with an electric typewriter, before this I wrote letters by hand and waited weeks for replies. My husband who is in IT one day said why don't you try emailing, me at a computer, never I wouldn't be able to do it. Long story short I sent my first letter by email, absolutely impressed by the thought that I had pressed SEND and it was there where I had sent it. I never looked back and have my own computer now. I have done all families in our family and also try to help others.This is one addiction you would never wean me off.I don't go forward in time as I think young people coming up behind me can do that, I go back in time.


Popsit

 

[MountainGuardian]

My mom and dad married and had me, then my little brother and then our sister. My dad was a buckaroo, he worked on ranches training/shoeing and working with horses and cattle.

Driving home one night my Aunt Rose Taylor rolled our car, this knocked me out and killed my mother and my sister. Rose Taylor was actually my mothers foster mother, my mom's adoptive parents had died in a car accident when she was about 16 and she went to live Rose.

This was a month before my fourth birthday and my little brother was 2 at this time. As one would imagine my dad was devastated and left with two young boys to raise by himself.

Dad eventually remarried and also became a severe alcoholic. Rose Taylor who hated my dad went on a warpath trying to get us taken from our father in any way that she could.

Eventually we were removed from our father and put into foster care, under the reasoning of being fearful for our safety. They left our then 16 month old brother with our stepmother who was extremely abusive toward us. Our 1/2 brother died a month after we were removed from the home, without to abuse she abused him. After Glenn died our case worker showed up quite nervous and told us about our brother and then waited for a long time to see what we might say. I was a bit worried it all and motioned my brother to silence and we said nothing making him feel much better and then he left.

We were then moved to another foster home on a huge ranch in the middle of nowhere and everyone lost track of us, we effectively disappeared. We were then adopted out 2 years later and were forced to change our names.

I did not want to change my name or be adopted but I was given no choice on these things, so I just kept every memory I had of my family and names places etc.

At age 17 I graduated HS and went looking for my family, I was unable to find them and then joined the US Navy at age 18. When I got back from Desert Storm my enlistment was up and I came back to Oregon and went to work. At that point I was over 21 and my dad could legally contact me then and sent me a letter through children's services. My adoptive parents held the letter for about 6 months but finally gave it to me.

I have been learning everything I can about my family ever since, once it has been ripped from you I guess it makes all of it seem much more important...

I want my children to know all they can about their family..........

 

[bluey]

As a child i spent lot of time with my grandparents and i couldnt understand that my grandparents were my mum and dads parents,trying to explain family connections to a child is hard.

Once i got the hang of it i asked where is your mum grandpa,to which the reply was she died when i was a baby,i asked questions about her and obviously got no replies.

Fast forward to when my grandfather died, the paperwork showed he was born in a different place from the family stories and the paperwork was all there minus his mums,strange for a family who kept every birth,death and marriage certificate and photos of the family,and my search was born.

 

[Mattygirl]

Hi I got addicted to Family History about twenty years ago, it really started long before that when my Mother-in-Law used to tell our 9 year old Daughter about her family and in Laws and they wrote it down in a small book.

Years later I had this information with names and dates to start me off even into research in Donegal Ireland and I am still struggling with that branch of the family although I have found that they did come from Donegal. Not like my Mothers side "born in Ireland"!

 

[leslee]

I started researching my side of my family after my father died he didn't know much about his family and after his death I felt quiet alone in the world. That was probably me grieving but I felt I needed to know where my father came from and I wanted to know my family and feel connected again.

My search started in 2008 for my Scottish ancestors I have found some wonderful connections in my family, some sad, some funny and I do wish I had started sooner to share everything with my father.

Now I have started on the outlaws side..... They sure are turning out to be an interesting lot and hard to find some of them but that's part of the fun of it all. Trying to track down those elusive family members who don't want to be found.

 

[Theories of Mankind]

I got into family history research mostly, because I never knew my entire life what my heritage consisted of, besides only what family told me.

That and history was my favourite subject in high school and the one thing I really excelled at.

So I decided to search through some names from what my gran told me and I found some amazing and interesting people and ever since that time, I've been totally addicted, as one would say!

 

[jen2]

I have been tracing my family for 40 years. Love it but keep reaching dead ends and give up for a few months at a time. Very frustrating at times when you live 3 - 4 hours away from major cities to research. Owning a business can not take 2 days off at a time for researching but have found this site extremely helpful.