Beyond the Names - The First Post

Families reflect a very personal aspect of history:  its impact on individuals.  Some people have family trees that can be traced to historical figures deemed sufficiently important to be included in books and films.  For others, like mine, ancestral figures took part in historical events as merchants, farmers, bankers,
manufacturers and servants.  Researching a family tree helps understand those historical events from a perspective that is more rooted in the reality of every-day lives, rather than the perspective of the people about whom movies are made.

I started my family tree journey decades ago while a student at Mount Allison University, in Sackville, New Brunswick.  I knew I shared this alma mater with my mother, and my grandmother and grandfather, and I knew that I must be linked in a familial way somehow to its founder, as the name reflects my mother’s maiden name.  I discovered that, indeed, there was a link.  I found lots of information on my family history at the university.  As part of a school project, I did a little digging and discovered some interesting stories.

Over the years, I have delved from time to time into that history, when I uncovered a photo, a story, or a memory that deserved further research.  However, until recently, resources that make genealogy accessible were not available.  So, my interest has waxed and waned with my time and my pocketbook.

Some weeks ago, my mother came by with a box of memorabilia which she thought I could have a look at.  It was a treasure-trove of information that lit my genealogical fire once again.  I soon discovered that with a little investment (primarily in ancestry.com) I could uncover primary and secondary research that could open my eyes to my family history in ways I could have never imagined.  I started re-building the dusty family tree that I had kept in a binder.  Soon it became so large and unwieldy that it covered a 4 foot by 4 foot square on the wall by my computer.  I kept adding and adding, finding more and more people to whom I was related.  I discovered story after story, and made a lot up from the facts at my disposal! 

I have been checking and re-checking facts and sources.  Where I base my understanding on secondary research, I dig and dig until I find some primary sources which can support my understanding.  Even then, some of what I believe is based on supposition.  Still, history has come alive for me: from the Loyalist exodus to the Maritimes, to the Civil War, from farmers to merchants, from soldiers who died at Gallipoli to those who died in the fields of France. 

This blog is about sharing what I know and encouraging others of my family to share as well.  We can build these stories together and really and truly understand our family tree.  Discovering these stories is part of the fun, but sharing is the best.