Comments on: Why is family history work so engaging?

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:03:02 +0000

My great grandfather died before my grandfather was born, so building the family tree has helped discover more about him and his family. There is always something new to discover.

By: Krankenversicherung

Krankenversicherung — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:20:07 +0000

I see that also so. You are right.

By: Sheila

Sheila — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:33:46 +0000

I am particularly intrigued by the family that we don’t know. Both my father and grandmother never met their biological fathers. It has been a fun challenge finding clues about them all over the internet and in obscure books, newspapers, state archives, etc.
The downside is one of my relatives who doesn’t own a computer (doesn’t trust them) and who is not willing to share any information with me about that side of my family. This person is fearful that this information in my family tree can be used for indentity theft or something.
I tried to explain to this relative that all of this information is published somewhere. We just compile it. This relative is my own personal brick wall.

By: Chuck Crannell

Chuck Crannell — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 02:41:36 +0000

I’m finding the activity really interesting. I’ve managed to find actual records of relatives that were rumored to have existed (children dying as toddlers) – now they are real a 100 years later. The census records and city directories with addresses and occupations give insight. It’s more than just a list of names and who begat whom, they become real people. I’ve managed to contact distant cousins and share photos and scans and collect a larger picture of great grandparents. It’s become a way of reconnecting with family (however distant).

By: Tyler

Tyler — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:45:58 +0000

FTM 2009 has been out for half a year now. Though it is a vast improvement over 2008, there are still a number of bugs in it and features missing (I’ve sent in 5 bugs/feature requests this week alone). As we haven’t had an update to this blog in over a month, I was wonderful when the next time we were going to hear about what FTM developers have been working on and when we could possibly expect the first service pack? Also, is the SDK going to be released any time in the near future?

By: maggiemary

maggiemary — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 00:33:18 +0000

I started working on my family history and began using Ancestry about 10 yrs ago. All we knew were my grandparents names on both sides of the family (they all died before I was born). My mom was raised in a foster home, and my dad’s mother died when he was young too so there was little family information. I am so pleased that I have now been able to go back to my great great grandparents on both sides! I was even able to connect with an uncle I had never met. I love following where the trail leads me and the detective work involved. Each “find” is so meaningful for me. It’s like the pieces of a puzzle coming together. It’s so important for me to know where I came from and who my ancestors are.

By: Molly

Molly — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:25:10 +0000

I just started about 2.5 months ago, researching both my father and mother’s side. My husband started on his family about 5 years ago and we went to Germany and met the “extened” family and they treated us as though we were royalty!
My family all hailed from Scotland, Ireland and Canada, so guess were my next trip will be? I find that I can’t stop asking questions of all my cousins who are older than me, I’m the 52 yr old baby. It is sad that none of us had taken an interest while all of our parents were living. I don’t lack pictures, just names to go to the pictures and that is the most frustrating part.
It is also hard knowing whether or not I have the right line of family.
i will keep after it, the more I dig, the more I find out, the more I want to do. There have been many evenings that my family has had to fend for themselves as I couldn’t pull myself away from the computer!
If it weren’t for Ancestry.com, I would not be as far as I am!

By: Joe Connell

Joe Connell — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 09:34:22 +0000

I believe that an interest in one’s forebears is now imprinted in our genes. Until one or two generations ago,(and still today in many parts of the world) everyone could recite the details of their ancestors for many previous generations. For millions of years, in tribal communities, there must have been a survival value in being able to recite one’s forebears and hence prove qualification for membership and support.

By: Sandra Scarborough

Sandra Scarborough — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 04:18:16 +0000

I have only been researching since June 2008, in the first week I confirmed two family fables (one from each side of my family). I was hooked, what was going to be a retirement project for my grandson, turned to passion. I have connected with grand children of my grandpa’s six brothers,on my mothers side. We are hoping to meet in early summer in the last place where our great grand parents lived. So far I mostly have data collected from Ancestry.com and the cousins, with little hard documentation. My hope is to use the data to track down documentation. Ancestry.com has provided me the previlege of making connections I probably would not have had otherwise.

By: Gesunde Ernährung

Gesunde Ernährung — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:21:04 +0000

Although time consuming, still its worth it. The mere knowing of whose who in your generation, already a big challenge. It takes courage to “scan” the whole clan.