More than 3 years of research has gone into creating this single image, which displays the name, year of birth, and year of death for my grandfather's progenitors. This is one quarter of my ancestry.
While none of the names are likely to be familiar to my readers, I could tell a story about each and every person listed there. A shipbuilding sea captain, a United Empire Loyalist, a pioneer missionary, a great granddaughter of the original pilgrims in the 1600s, and so on. Bravery, heroism, perseverance, faith, ingenuity. Mystery, triumph, adventure, and tragedy. My family - like most, I imagine - is rich in history.
But I'll spare you the stories (at least for now). They're probably more interesting to me than they are to you, because they happened to people I'm more closely related to. My main reason for uploading this is to attempt to preserve it for posterity. The blockchain is one of the most permanent repositories for data that I know of, and I'll post this on all three (Blurt, Steem, Hive) to increase the chances it survives. Sure, I'll give the paper copy to my children, but it's good to have backups. Besides, I currently don't have contact with some members of my family. Putting the information online might be a way to get it to them.
The gaps
Yeah, there are some missing people. Unfortunately, I don't know much about my great-great-grandfather, James Bradford Powell. I'm working on an entire post about him, hoping it will help break through the brick wall. In the meantime, here is my post about his son, Francis Metherall Powell, my great grandfather. He's the furthest back Powell we have a good understanding of. My mother, who is alive, remembers him from her childhood. But his father, James? We only know about the latter half of his life, that he came from Ontario, and that he was French Canadian. I will continue to chase down every possible clue. I don't think the puzzle will go unsolved forever.
Besides, the rest of the tree is fully filled out. It may not look impressive, but how many people are able to come up with a similar amount of information about their own origins? A lot of people nowadays barely know the names and dates of their grandparents, let alone their great-great-great-great-grandparents. Some of the data came easily, some took months or years to gather. I personally don't consider rumours and heresy to be confirmed facts, and only allow data backed up by documents to influence my research. I have confirmed sources (several, if possible) for each bit of information. I can go even further back on some of the branches, but I won't display that here.
If you'd like to try doing your own family tree, I uploaded a template here to help you get started. Let me know if you need any help, either general or specific!
My origins
So, where did I come from? Or, to use a term very popular in today's popular culture, where am I indigenous to?
Those are my 12 known great-great-great-great-grandparents out of the 16 on this tree (which is 1/4 of my full ancestry). Above each is a letter indicating their cultural origin, with a key on the right.
5 Irish
3 English
2 French
1 Dutch
1 Manx
Manx is the culture of people from Isle of Mann, which is between England and Ireland. Isle of Mann has had political ties with England over the centuries, but Manx is a Gaelic culture.
The 4 ancestors I don't have names and dates for are French Canadians, so when I finally fill in those gaps, there will probably be a couple more French and a couple more English ancestors, rounding out the 16.
Essentially, my mother's father (my "Grampa") was culturally Irish, English, and French... with a touch of Dutch.
Prior to 2020, my family considered him to be purely English! But he was about as French as he was British - and more Irish than anything! I can't say all of my family has embraced this newfound understanding of their background. But as for me, I'm proud of who I am, and where I came from. I would rather know the truth, and I think the last 3 years of research has been well worth the time and effort.
To my own children and future descendants: I love you. I hope you find this information interesting and useful. Perhaps the research I've done will help you know me, yourself, and our family better.
To everyone else: You are LITERALLY my cousins. Some of you are more closely related to me than others, but we're all part of the same extended family. That's not hyperbole, that's the plain truth. If we all knew and shared our family trees going back hundreds of generations, we would see our most recent common ancestor. That's not theory, it's mathematical fact. So, we are one family. Every single living person is someone you can legitimately call "cousin"!
Genealogy is the study of where we came from. Keep digging.
DRutter
Best blogger on Blurt getting 100% upvote for bringing his relatives onto the blockchain! 👍🏽😉
It takes a long time to get where you've come; For my part, I have to dig a lot because my grandmother was indigenous and my grandfather a captain of her own boat. I only know that my great-grandfather on my grandmother's side was Spanish.
My mother is still alive, so I think I'll have long talks with her to learn a little more about my ancestors.
Hi Ray, your comment reminded me that I could have mentioned something in my post. And that is, some people find it difficult, frustrating, or upsetting to research their family history. I like to encourage others to consider learning more about their past, and the history of their family, but I forget to remind them that it isn't suitable for everyone. For example, people who were adopted, or whose family experienced poverty, violence, war, etc. I don't want to upset anyone with my advocacy of genealogy. Thanks for the reminder.
If your mother is okay with it, I think it would be great if you asked her to talk about her memories, and if she knows of any letters, photos, documents, etc that could be interesting and useful. Most likely, she would be thrilled to have someone interested in it, and may enjoy the experience of going through her memories with you. Put yourself in her shoes - imagine yourself a grandfather, and your children come to you to ask about the history of your family, and about your memories as a boy. I think you would be quite pleased, and happy to discuss it with your children. Perhaps your mother would feel similar.
All the best and thank you for the comment : ))
I'm sure it will.
Your publication has encouraged me to take this step, which will fill me with a lot of information about it.
A hug in the distance, my dear brother.
Wow, you made it! It must be very satisfying on your part coz you have known your family roots. In my case, I only knew my grandfather and mother in both sides. As to their parents, I don't know them anymore. Congrats! Job well done.👍🎉👏
Thanks, Rubelyn! You're right, it is satisfying. Although it is something that is never fully finished, because there is always more information to discover. I have to tell myself to stop, and be happy with my progress, so that I don't constantly continue to look for more things to research. I have to just say "it's enough", or I wouldn't know when to stop.
In your case, are there any other living members of your family, who might remember names, dates, or places? It seems like a difficult task, but sometimes once we begin, the puzzle begins to fall into place, and one clue will lead to more information, and then more... Getting started can sometimes be the hardest part. If you remember the full name of any of your grandparents, and also where he/she lived, or where he/she was buried, or when he/she died, you can probably use that to begin your research. I'd be glad to help if you like : )
My grandfathers are on both sides are still alive they are in their 90's. One grandfather 96 and the other one 94. They have long life. Maybe I could start by asking them when I will be home. We lived in different islands. Thanks @drutter.♥️
That's a good idea! Wow, 94 and 96, not many men live to those ages. Of course I hope they live forever, but chances are that neither of them has many more years remaining. I think they might be very happy that you decided to ask! Sometimes old people, especially as they near the end of their time, begin to value family (and family history) more than before. To many, it becomes one of the most important aspects of their life. Some despair that they will have to go to the grave with their memories and knowledge, and can only wish a younger family member would decide to ask to receive it. Our elders are often the #1 source of information, even better than government documents. And documents can always be found later... people's memories and stories are gone once they are gone. I don't want to pressure you, but only to encourage you. Good luck : )
I was not able to witness my grandparents alive both maternal and paternal side. Tracking down their roots from different generations might be a good thing. Knowing where they came from will atleast give me abit of history to share about my ancestors. Thanks for sharing this idea!
Curiously, I have thought about doing the same, but, it would take me many years since I have no information about my paternal family. I also thought about making a timeline from my grandparents.
The only problem is that I don't know the name of my paternal grandfather.
You're right, this kind of research can take a long time. Many people, once they get into genealogy, say they regret not starting sooner. As the years go by, people leave us, and their belongings and memories do too. Many times, I have said to myself while researching my family history, "if only my grandmother was still alive, I have so many questions I would love to ask her". I know she would have been very happy to answer any question I asked her, especially about where we came from, and about her own childhood memories. Genealogy is a very valuable endeavor, and I think that putting it off can result in loss of knowledge, and regret.
I think a timeline of events is a good idea, too.
If you know the names of any of your other grandparents (aside from your paternal grandfather), and the date of their birth or death, or location of their birth or death, it may be possible to begin from there. I don't mind trying to dig up some documents and other clues, if you'd like a bit of help.
Thanks for the idea. I'll be ready to investigate.
It also happens to me with my father. He passed away a few years ago, and with him he took a great deal of information.
you're looking for your ancestors, great! The further back you go, the more difficult it must be to get information
Dear @drutter, your content was selected manually by curators @nalexadre, @ten-years-before to receive a curation from BeBlurt 🎉