Genealogy is
such an interesting hobby (or profession). There are so many different levels of doing
research and different goals of the researchers. Some individuals pursue researching with a
passion for learning more about their family in general, while others have the
goal of learning about one specific person, line or even one event. Some research is done in an un-organized
manner picking up information with a more haphazard approach. Many will use professional standards in
citing sources and acceptance of facts.
It seems a large number dream of writing a book. There are some that basically hoard their
research for fear that others will use their research for their own or possibly
for a book.
When I see the work of others, I have enjoyed most because
they include iron-clad facts or in some cases pure fiction, but all are stories
(true or not) of people and families.
There are the ones that are like the “begats” of the Holy Bible [King
James Version: Genesis]… you know, “Eber begat Peleg, Peleg begat Reu, Reu
begat Serug, etc.” I have seen a lot of
histories that are simply organized into charts, family group sheets with some
documents and photos. Then there are the
ones that are written in story form with few notes or citations, some with many
footnotes.
But what I find that really makes this hobby interesting,
educational and fun – is that it is YOUR
family and YOU are the one doing it
(even if you have help). Whatever way
you do it, is your business! Now, if you
are doing it for other people, then, you might have to do it in a way that is
appropriate for the intended audience.
This is the history YOU
discovered and report to others.
Now, that I have spent over 50 years of learning about my
family, gathering information and acquiring research techniques to improve my
efforts and increase results; I, now, realize that I am just beginning to learn
about my family. I have researched mostly
with the idea of discovering the parents and siblings along with facts like
birth & death, plus anything else I could learn. However, in the last few years I have been
attempting to answer questions about these families and looking at people that
are not so much in that direct line, like some of the more distant cousins. One reason for looking at more of these
cousins is that I have been finding many “new” cousins learning about how their
families relate to mine. Back to
answering questions… this requires some intensive research into a very large
area of documents and sources. Often, it
leads to new questions and new information that is unrelated to my original
question. This type of research lends
itself well to putting “meat” onto the bones of my history. Now, I must warn you that you might discover
facts that are different than what has been passed down, especially something
that might be considered negative or bad.
Realize that the more people you learn about in the family, the more you
will encounter the ones that are not of the best character along with the
heroes and saints. It’s just family,
YOURS!
Genealogy is the study of families and their stories are
what make up the fabric of the history of a community, a nation and the world… through
the ages. And that is why genealogy is
such an interesting hobby!
Written by Indiana Bones
