When I was 30 my grandmother died. I had spent the first 20 years of my life with her living in my family home along with my parents and siblings. Her death changed me and the direction my life took.
It became an all-consuming passion - family outings at weekends were usually picnics in cemeteries where I would transcribe headstones and take photographs. I probably spent thousands of dollars on certificates and I gave up collecting stamps to collect relatives. Over the years my research was transferred from one computer programme to another starting with a BBCMaster computer in 1984 to now having a tree of over 5000 names on my iPhone. The thrill of the chase was obsessive - the urge to fit the pieces of the jigsaw was all consuming. My siblings feigned interest - my parents labelled me the family historian.
As time passed new ancestors were discovered and the tree grew. But it was more than the names and dates I wanted - I wanted to know their stories, what made these ancestors tick, what made them make the decisions they did? It became more than researching the individual it became about researching the context of the communities they lived in - the parish, the county and the country. These are the communities that have defined me.
Today I carry those ancestors around in my head, they run through my thoughts daily, I can picture them - even those I have never seen a photograph of. I have my favourites. They make me who I am and the knowledge I have of them makes me complete.
I don't expect many of you will ever have the passion I had to get to know your ancestors. Maybe genealogy is not your thing. But do talk to your parents and grandparents before it's too late. Grab the opportunity to ask them their stories, ask them about their daily life as a child and get them to tell you about their grandparents. Everyone has a story and all those stories matter. History only remembers the celebrated but genealogy remembers them all. ~Jane Smallfield
3 Comments
31/3/2017 01:53:07 pm
Thanks for this Jane,
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Rose Gordon
31/3/2017 02:17:00 pm
I am very keen to have my DNA tested to help solve the riddle of my missing quarter - my mum's father. Part of me would love to think it was something amazing and exotic, but I guess it will be largely from Great Britain too.
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Erin Mitchell
31/3/2017 02:29:30 pm
Awesome post. I really enjoyed reading it. Looks like my Mum and Dad are going to be nagged a bit more in the holidays to find out more info about my ancestors.
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