Monday Musings

So why did I start this blog anyway?

I think it goes back to who I am and the influences my family has had on me.  It also has to do with the many moves my family has made.  Then of course, there are the family reunions we went to when I was younger.

I was born in West Virginia, lived in Lory, WV for a couple of years (I don't remember it), then moved to North Carolina.  After a couple of years we moved back to West Virginia and lived in Danville.  From there we moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa and then to Albuquerque, New Mexico, before coming back to Danville, WV.  All of these moves gave me a sense that I needed an anchor.  I found that anchor to be family.

Except when we lived in New Mexico, we would always go to the KEENER family reunion.  It was for the children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren of E. H. KEENER, my great grandfather.  He and his wife Nettie raised five girls and a boy.  Every year we would gather at my great aunt and uncle's house in Greenbank, West Virginia for a weekend of catching up.  It was great for us kids, too, because there were a lot of us and we were all about the same age.

I really miss those reunions.  We haven't had one in about 15 years or so.  I think the younger cousins who have never been to the reunion are missing something.  One of the highlights was always the "home movies".  It was fun to see our parents and grandparents when they were younger running around and carrying on.

So I guess genealogy is for me, a way to connect to those relatives and ancestors I have never met.  And this blog is hopefully a way I can stay connected.  What does genealogy mean to you?  Does your family hold reunions?

Why Not Add Everything?

A few years ago, my mother found some websites dedicated to the KEENER surname.  There are a lot of KEENERs up in our family tree, so it wasn't unusual that my mother was searching.  She copied out the information into three Word documents.  She said she did not have time to go through them and verify anything and emailed copies of them to me.

I looked them over at the time and found a KEENER that was familiar.  "Great!," I thought, "I can add this now."

Then I remembered something I learned at the Boone County Genealogical Society meetings when I first got interested in family history.

NEVER add to your tree if you can't document the fact for yourself.  It doesn't matter if you are handed a chart or file with tons of sources.  Someone, somewhere could have made a mistake, been in a hurry, made a typo, or in some cases even made up facts so the person "fit" into their tree.

I want my genealogical charts and research to be very well documented.  Not only because it helps prove I am related to the people I say I'm related to, but also, to leave behind a clear trail for other researchers and (hopefully) my children.

Be especially wary of "family tree files" you find at some sites on the web.  Most I have seen are not documented and have no sources for you to check the facts they are presenting.  While this may be good for opening up a new line of your own research, it is not good to just cut and paste it into your tree.

Some trees I have seen online show parents having children after they (the parents) have been dead many years.  Does that make sense to you?  I didn't think so.

Back to the KEENER documents my mother gave me.  I did not have a chance to really look them over thoroughly until this past week.  I don't think that two of them pertain directly to the KEENER line I am following.  The third looks to be a goldmine.  I may, once I have verified it, be able to take my branch of the KEENERs back three (yes, 3) generations.  And the best thing is the document has an extensive list of sources at the end -- a map to the goldmine.

When I add this information to my tree, you better bet my mother and the person who put up the web page will be getting credit in my documentation and source listings.

In the words of a former President: "Trust, but verify."

Talk About It

The second best source (see the best source here) for finding leads for you family tree is... your family.  Talk to them.  Ask them questions.  They may have information on certain relatives that you don't have.  Do it now.  You are getting older and so are they.

This has been one of the research areas in which I am a poor example.  Until now, I have based most of my current research on what I have found on the Internet and at libraries.  I know that many of my older relatives have information and stories.  I have, until now felt that is was a bit intrusive to ask family questions.  I am getting over that.  I am starting to get into contact with relatives I haven't seen in 15 or 16 years.

When talking with relatives about genealogy it is good to prepare ahead of time a list of questions to ask.  Make sure to record the conversation - either audio or video so you can remember what was talked about.  Don't worry if you get side tracked.  Sometimes those off the subject topics tie into your family history.  Don't try to get answers to all your questions.  Leave something for the next time.

Once you have finished the conversation and are back home you will need to do two things.  Make a transcription so you know what information you have.  Then look for questions you did not get to ask, questions for which you did not get a clear answer, and new questions raised by the conversation.

Make sure you thank the relative and offer a copy of the audio or video and the transcription.  Also, see if you can set up another conversation to talk about your new set of questions.

As an alternate, you could have your conversation either by email or Facebook.  While both are good for a question/answer format and allows time for the person you are talking with to think about the questions, be careful not to overwhelm them with too many questions at once.

Who knows, maybe your conversations will spark something and you will get information about your relatives you didn't know still existed.

Start asking questions now.  Before it is too late.