Community Chat

[Plaid Pants2]

Sometimes I like to delve in to the records that are available on line when I do geneology research, and I like stumbling across little nuggets of information that I didn't know before.

For example, my paternal grandfather only went as far as the 7th grade.

Which makes sense, because his father was a farmer, and I figure that granddad dropped out of school to help out on the family farm.

I mean, they probably thought that he knew all that he would need to know to do that.

He knew how to read, write and basic math. 

Yet, he ran away from home, because his father was so horrible to him, to join WW1, and he served from 1912 - 1919.

My granddad then went on to become a fireman.

He was not affectionate towards my dad, but the way that I figure it is, he probably thought that by being a good provider, he was being a good father.

It never occured to my granddad to do better by my father, than his own dad did to him.

Any interesting stories that you have come across in your family tree?

Geneology can be so facinating!

[Vivian]

There's 10% of my ancestry that remains a mystery. I sent samples to two different places. One said 10% of my ancestry was British. The other said that same 10% was Spanish/Portuguese. I do know that some in my maternal grandfather's family settled in England but who are those Spanish/Portuguese?

[deepwaterdotter]

My paternal grandfather entered the United States illegally as a stowaway on a cargo ship from Great Britain.  He died never having become a citizen of the United States.

[SilleeMee]

I don't know much about my family history except for that my dad's side were Europeans. My mom is from a Samurai family dating back hundreds of years. There is a family crest from that family which was used to designate class, status and clan. I wish I knew more but it is difficult to find info from a foreign country.

Examples of Samurai family crests:

[jubilant]

My great grandmother passed away at 94.  We lived close to her so I knew her well and she was a great inspiration to me. This was a woman who lived through the death of a husband who left her with 6 children.  She took in washings ( which she did by hand) to help support her family and her kids went to work doing odds and end jobs.  She ended up outliving 3 husbands, one the  of which she married only to take care of him till he died  That was husband #2.  In those days a woman didn't go into a widowers home alone so they married and she took care of him for years until he died.   It was a marriage of convenience with no intimacy but it worked out for both their situations.  She married once more and that marriage lasted for many years till he also died.  In her older years (80's and 90's) she lived with her daughter and husband (my grandparents)  I can't imagine outliving 3 husbands!  In all truth.... I can't imagine living through 3 husbands!!  

[Deb665]

I've found lots of interesting information, but my favorite story is that my 5th Great Grandfather took a "4 horse wagon load of beef" to Valley Forge, PA.  For this and other support he is designated a Patriot by the DAR.

One "great" was a Huguenot who came to American by way of Great Britain.  He had lost everything, but came here and made a new life.

For me, it's the stories of the people who make history come alive!

[ROMARY]

In those days, many people were 'sturdy'.  Hard work and resilience. Thanks for your various stories/background(s), etc.. 

[Desertdi]

---

@SilleeMee wrote:

I don't know much about my family history except for that my dad's side were Europeans. My mom is from a Samurai family dating back hundreds of years. There is a family crest from that family which was used to designate class, status and clan. I wish I knew more but it is difficult to find info from a foreign country.

Examples of Samurai family crests:

---

@SilleeMee   Those are lovely.    Perhaps you could have a pendant made..........

[qualitygal]

@Plaid Pants2, speaking of grandfathers, I don't know  that my gf went to far through school, because back then, they had to stop school, to help out with the family farm.  I bet you saw that sort of show on Michael's Landon's show about Laura Ingalls. Same thing.  He too went on to be a fireman, and when he started, the horses drew the setup for the fire engine part, hoses, etc., 

[Moonchilde]

My earliest traceable ancestors arrived on the Mayflower and in the very early 1600s to settle in Connecticut - but I don't know what they "did" - who were farmers, who were shopkeepers, etc. I did have ancestors in both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. A few were involved in State politics. 

My maternal grandfather was a handsome silent film cameraman in Hollywood. Unbeknownst to me, the last area I lived in was where he lived during WWI - we actually shared the same 'hood - and parts of it were not much changed since the nineteen-teens and early 1920s. He had some sort of dispensation from the draft but I don't remember what - feet, eyes, ?

My paternal grandfather was involved to some extent in things that big labor unions and organized crime were also involved in. Not sure how far that went.