Last fall, the “situation” was hurtling violently toward “emergency.” I really needed a website for my genealogy business. I’d done a project with a local cemetery preservation committee and had a speaking engagement coming up with some opportunities for more. Now, I’d been self-employed for 18 years by that point. One of the lessons I
One part of getting my history degree involved an oral history class where I interviewed several elderly relatives. Recently I went back to my handwritten research notes from that day and discovered something unexpected. First off, I’m going to keep things a little vague here since this was in the 20th century, took place in
Last year, 2023, was the year I got serious about genealogy education, with the ultimate goal of becoming a professional genealogical researcher, writer, and educator. Then last summer, I started implementing my 3-year plan toward pursuing Board Certification. Now, not every genealogist is certified or accredited nor do they need to be. There are plenty
I got interested in genealogy when I was fourteen-years-old and discovered a weathered lime green vertical file in my grandparents’ hutch. This folder of wonders was full of little booklets, family group sheets, and various other scraps of paper of dubious origin. To me, that was like finding a treasure chest. Who are these people?
I’m thrilled to announce that the book I wrote, SALTY DOG GOES TO DENIM DAY, is now on sales at the Cherokee County (Georgia) History Museum! Synopsis “When Mama forgets her lunch before work, her clever canine Salty Dog goes on a journey through 1960s Canton to return it to her. His final destination? The
I’ve been doing genealogy for 29 years and I just made my spookiest discovery yet. And on Friday the 13th! I’m in the middle of the Research Like a Pro Study Group with FamilyLocket (highly recommend), and one of my research plan action items involves Spartanburg District, SC Court of Common Pleas cases for a
That time I became the only genealogist in all the history of all the world to screw up a death date. Oops!
Well this is exciting! The thing about being a genealogist/historian is that there is no way you’re never going to be able to know everything about every location, every time period, or every research methodology. All you can do is attempt to keep educating yourself. And if you stick at it, you can reap wonderful
When I’m not researching history and genealogy, I’m pursuing a career in TV writing. But it doesn’t take a TV writer to tell you that this week’s episode of SUCCESSION was a banger. (Don’t watch SUCCESSION? First of all, do that! Second of all, bear with me.) The main character and monster presiding over the
Came across a funny Ancestry transcription error today that I, clearly a 11-year-old at heart, had to preserve for posterity. Reader, the original record says “Tents, Huts and Shelters.” But this was a chain gang so…