Finishing up Methodology Part 1
Shannon Bennett, Student I came to the world of genealogy just over three years ago. That is not to say that I was not interested for years before that, but that is when the stars finally aligned and lead me to this path. My little girl dream of participating in the “grown-up” world of family story telling (aka genealogy) had come true. For years I listened to the stories of my family told by my grandmother’s generation to my parents, their cousins, and siblings. Sitting around card tables, in boats, or while sipping homemade wine on the back porch. No matter where I was, the stories always poured forth. As a child I had no reason to question my elders, they knew everything it seemed, and those stories just captivated me. Even though I was not really allowed to be part of many of these adult conversations, I became adept at hiding in the right places so I could listen. Amazing how few adults actually look under a kitchen table. What did I learn? Well, we were descended from people who came to the U.S. on the Mayflower. There was an Algonquin Indian Princess in the family. I heard how my great-grandfather held his mother’s hand while they watched his older brothers in their Union blue march off to the Civil War. The tragedy of accidental deaths and Indian raids on the railroad. The plight of Irish and German immigrants. There were so many stories. But were they true? As…