Family Histories Are Only Part of Genealogy in Your Family Tree ...

I am often asked why I include old history articles and stories on my genealogy website. When I first began compiling my family?s genealogy, I became fascinated with why my ancestors did many of the things they did. Why did they move so frequently? What factors were present that affected their daily lives? How could I really get to know my ancestors?

I have always been fascinated with history. I guess that is one of the reasons I began researching my family history in the first place. As I discovered more and more about my family, I was intrigued with certain aspects of history surrounding the families or the places in which they lived. Soon I discovered that researching the historical accounts and records surrounding a family or place would often yield even more useable information.

For example. My mother was born in 1927 in a little town called Ludwigsruh in what was then Germany. Well, search as I might I could not find this little town. Why? I decided to look at the history of Germany around that time, keeping in mind that WWII changed the lay of the land, so to speak. I discovered that Ludwigsruh was now a sub-division of Gorzow Poland and the name itself was obsolete. I also found some articles that described the invasion of the little town and I discovered that my mother?s homestead became a base for Russian soldiers and that some pretty gruesome things had taken place there. No wonder mother didn?t want to talk about her home!

Reading through old historical records is one thing, but reading literature of the time is another. Literature often reflect the society from which it emerges. You can learn about the way the people lived and in some ways you can walk right into their lives, through the histories left to us.

I recently posted a feature called Women and the War at my genealogy site. Through this accounting I learned a lot about my grandmother and other female family members and the roles they played during war times. I began to understand the frugality of my grandparents generation in a way I never really embraced before.

Not only have I learned a lot about history, I have discovered that my family has evolved into the family it is because of the history they lived through. They were the people of whom the is made. My family helped to shape history, in some cases. This I also learned, not from old documents, but from historical accounts of particular regions where a family member was active in local politics, or perhaps a local church. Their activities, while not notable in a general history, were quite the talk of the town in their day.

Researching the family genealogy, and tracing your ancestry is a wonderful pastime. However, if you are not including research into the history of the times you are researching, you are probably missing a lot of insight into the lives of your family members. It is by discovering how they lived, more than when they lived, that can lead you to a real understanding of who your ancestors really were and why they did many of the things they did. I hope you will take a look at the history, and not just the dates and documents.

I am a teacher and genealogist. I also do internet marketing to support my hobbies like cooking, family history research and more.

If you wish to know more about this topic, check out my genealogy website at http://caglegenealogyonline.com/ and join the forum to connect with others.

I also welcome you to join my FREE membership site. Just click over to http://cagleonlinemembership.com/ where you will find all sorts of content that will help you in your research as well as in your everyday activities. Thank you, Barbara Cagle

Source: http://www.womenfavor.com/home-and-family/genealogy-family-trees/family-histories-are-only-part-of-genealogy-in-your-family-tree-history-brings-your-ancestry-life.html

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