Ancestry
I've subscribed to both Ancestry.com and 23andMe. I planned to find lots of information about my ancestors and my DNA. The general information from both services wasn't surprising; I already knew that my mother's side of the family was German and my father's side was Irish. Both Ancestry and 23andMe confirmed that I am what I thought I was in my genetic composition. Here's what I didn't expect: I can spend hours and hours going down various unproductive rabbit holes in Ancestry.com.
There are a couple of real challenges in my ancestry search: my father's surname is Kelly and my mother's is Smith. Right. There are LOTS of Kellys in Ireland, and Smith was not my mother's actual surname. For whatever reason, my mother's father changed his last name from Meyer to Smith. I don't know why, but I'm working on that. Oh, how I wish I had asked my mother more questions about my ancestors before she passed away. I wish I had paid more attention when she did talk about her family. As for my father, I vividly remember asking him about his life. He didn't want to talk about it, and he was quite adamant. I found out later that my grandfather on my father's side had committed suicide at the age of 31; no wonder my father didn't want to go there.
I've given myself a deadline for the research on my Irish side. My husband and I are planning a trip to Ireland and Scotland and I would love to know where in Ireland I can find some of my roots. In the family tree that I've created so far, I've found a few more surnames to track down: Brown (yes, Brown), Bryan, Crowley, and Hallahan. This might take a while.
One of the things that can help searchers in the Ancestry.com site is the ability to share trees with other members. I've tracked down a few relatives through communal generosity. I can also access military records and newspapers, for an added fee of course. It's amazing what I've found in those newspapers! My father's entire high school graduating class, all 202 of them, were listed in The Pittsburgh Press. Details of my parent's attendance at charity ball in New Jersey were recorded in the Courier-Post. Given the mysteries surrounding the true identity of my Meyer/Smith grandfather, I'm almost afraid to delve further. Right now, my Irish research is the priority. I'll tackle the German side after my trip.
There are a couple of real challenges in my ancestry search: my father's surname is Kelly and my mother's is Smith. Right. There are LOTS of Kellys in Ireland, and Smith was not my mother's actual surname. For whatever reason, my mother's father changed his last name from Meyer to Smith. I don't know why, but I'm working on that. Oh, how I wish I had asked my mother more questions about my ancestors before she passed away. I wish I had paid more attention when she did talk about her family. As for my father, I vividly remember asking him about his life. He didn't want to talk about it, and he was quite adamant. I found out later that my grandfather on my father's side had committed suicide at the age of 31; no wonder my father didn't want to go there.
I've given myself a deadline for the research on my Irish side. My husband and I are planning a trip to Ireland and Scotland and I would love to know where in Ireland I can find some of my roots. In the family tree that I've created so far, I've found a few more surnames to track down: Brown (yes, Brown), Bryan, Crowley, and Hallahan. This might take a while.
One of the things that can help searchers in the Ancestry.com site is the ability to share trees with other members. I've tracked down a few relatives through communal generosity. I can also access military records and newspapers, for an added fee of course. It's amazing what I've found in those newspapers! My father's entire high school graduating class, all 202 of them, were listed in The Pittsburgh Press. Details of my parent's attendance at charity ball in New Jersey were recorded in the Courier-Post. Given the mysteries surrounding the true identity of my Meyer/Smith grandfather, I'm almost afraid to delve further. Right now, my Irish research is the priority. I'll tackle the German side after my trip.
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