All Blog Posts (3,046)

Nestled along the side roads of 19th century America, little schoolhouses dotted the landscape. Their building shapes were as unique as the people entering through their doors. From simple designs to an elaborate architectural theme, these structures defined character and future dreams. The size depended on the need, which…

Nestled between the mountain ridges of eastern Tennessee lies a region rich in history. An area visited by explorers, Native Americans, and early pioneer families, a land that speaks of traditions and folklore, stories, and legends. Sullivan County, North Carolina, was the second county located in present-day Tennessee to exist. After establishing Washington County in 1777, Sullivan County began the journey with North Carolina in 1779. The county’s name originated in honor of …

There is an interesting back story regarding my great grandmother Johanna Slezak. My father; Donald A Schultz, always told me his grandmother was born in Germany, and her name was Johanna Slezak. She came over on a ship.

Ok so the first record found from Geburtenregister der Berliner Standesämter (Bestände P Rep. 100 bis P Rep. 840) 1874–1908. Digital images. Landesarchiv Berlin, Germany was dated 20 December 1877 and says

"Nr. 524

Schöneberg, on the 20 December…

Every once in a while I come back to more recent ancestors. The past few days it's been my great grandaunt; Fannie Slezak.

Fannie was born 4 Feb 1879 in Vienna, Austria to Johann "John" Slezak, and Ottilie Slezak nee Nessel. She first married Paul Loester (born 1867 in Vienna, Austria; son of Josef Loester and Wilhemina Rudish) on 18 Aug 1898 in Manhattan. Fannie and Paul had 2 sons; Paul Loester JR, born 11 Aug 1899, Manhattan, died 16 Dec 1955 in Valley Stream, New York; Paul Jr…

Looking for help, but not quite sure this is the correct way please bear with me and explian if i have it wrong i'll get it right next time. Here we go

I have two Robert Hills one I have connected to my tree quite easily, he was Robert born 1807 in Mariansleigh, Devon and married Mary Ann Cruwys in 1841 then married Jane Greenslade by 1871 bringing daughter Bessie J (b.1865) with her. All good so far.

Now, the other Robert I'm trying to connect, without luck, born 1811 Mariansleigh,…

 Hello

I am studying with NIFGS for my English certificate.  Through my studies this network was mentioned so I am taking advantage of all the new tools I've learned about and are available to me in order to become more informed.

I have been researching my family tree going on 10 years now. At first is was whenever I had the time but now through this pandemic situation I can devote more time to it.

My family name is Bond so I am open to connecting with anyone else…

I never knew my Great Grandpa Hochstetler. My mother never knew him, either. He is a shadowy figure in my mind. I’m not even sure what He looked like. He passed away on March 6th, 1926, before my mother was born.

I’ve always pictured him being stern for some reason. I know he was Baptist. His family was Amish, but I’m not sure when he actually left the church. I know they had financial issues when the last child, my mom’s mother, was born. The census shows he was an engineer at a…

The other day I wrote a report on where one can find more data on the military member in the family now or in the past. 

Yesterday I received another magazine called the Military Officer  Never Stop Serving.  This one discussed underwater discoveries (shipwrecks). It also had article about Major Richard Star's Brave Fight. pg 60. Other articles also. …

I stumbled onto this lovely site that is extremely user friendly, and I imagine may be of interest to those with Texas roots:

Portal to Texas History

Through this site you can search for surnames and specific people, not only in newspapers, but in books and other collections. And it's free!

Over the last few weeks, I have been poking at my brick walls as one does, and a few records have popped up, much to my surprise. 



Still not much luck actually 'proving' W.A. Lavelle's parents, as I am still unable to locate him in the 1860 or 1870 census records. I have found him in theater cast lists in various newspapers which trace him through the 1870s and 1880s, I believe I found him on a Chicago directory living with his mother one year - cannot…

Most people studying genealogy are looking for ancestors.  A family tree of such ancestors is ascendant - it goes backward in time.  Living Family Trees are descendant - they come forward in time.  I have found it interesting to look at descendant family trees from great grandparents forward.  Especially where teaching children is concerned, it is valuable to show relationships in current time.

Living Family Trees

Genealogy is a fascinating subject but first one must understand…

As it is now well known, I2a1 is a typical European haplogroup. It is present all over the continent with maximum frequencies recorded in Bosnia (particularly among Bosnian Croats), Sardinia, Croatia, Serbia (+30%), Montenegro, Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, and Macedonia (+20%). The percentages of I2a1a2b-L621 clade in Slovenia, Ukraine, and Russia available on the Internet should be taken with caution because they are definitely smaller: up to 13% in Slovenia, 16% in Ukraine, and…

   American History

How many of  us really know our American History.  ??? Amazed at how the Genealogical Community is shy of historical information on tracking down the missing pieces.  OOO no not everyone, but we need to get the word out that our history is very important to our research and survival.  

 Younger generations than mine were not given even as much as I was in the 50's regarding our true history and how things began and what was planned and alas…

Charlotta Sofia Andersson/Johansson, born Kils, Sweden 21/09/1859

Married Peter Olaf Jonsson Emigrated to US 5/07/1895 then to Canada 1906.Would appreciate help from Sweden.

Mine come from Norfolkshire, Methodists who married CARTER family members from Cheltenham GLOS

I took a German History course with Family History hoping to find more about my Pust family.  Actually I did find out a few more threads: like Gramma's full name - Johanna Ducette Lucke.  Grampa was born in Zentren, Prussia  which was actually northern Poland as we know it now.

The picture below has Uncle Alfred, Aunt Mary with cousins Joe, Dorothy, Gladys and Lomey.  This was one of their trips to either Idaho or Washington visiting with family.  Haven't been able to find anything…

Cousins have unique relationships in our family history research. When is a cousin more than a cousin? What kind of cousin are they? How do I figure out those specific relationships? With the rise in popularity of DNA testing and the resulting match lists, we need to know how we relate to individuals beyond saying, "This is my cousin."

A good…

Researching the women in our family history can be a challenge. However, don’t leave them out! Our female ancestors often played significant roles in history, both in our families and in their communities.

Researching and writing about the women in our family history can be a daunting task. If you have hit a brick wall in the quest to…