My cousin Suzanne got me thinking about my family heritage sometime last year. As we began re-connecting and acquainting ourselves and our families, a common bond was certainly our shared legacy and family history. She has done some wonderful and extensive work on Ancestry.com, tracing our Cornish family back to the earliest days of America at Plymouth. With the passing of my grandmother last week, and a visit to family grave sites in Muskogee, Oklahoma, my curiosity was re-stoked as I got busy updating the maternal side of my family tree. The data available online is quite extraordinary really. To date, I have traced the Parker family line all the way back into the 1200’s, when King Richard II deeded property to a monk named Robert LaParker. There are still plenty of leads to follow up on, and items to analyze, but the initial findings are amazing. Interestingly enough, finding the details of the family from abroad, even dating back several centuries proved far more reliable than some of the more recent family facts from the last century or two.
Here is a bit about what I have learned in my own search, I am sure most families boast such a wide range of personalities and character. I found several faithful ministers, and I found more than a few deadbeats and scoundrels. I also found at least one deadbeat scoundrel minister. I found college educated, white collar professionals and self-educated entrepreneurs. I found hard working blue collar workers and farmers. I found men who fought honorably in Vietnam, World War II, World War I, both sides of the Civil War, and the American Revolution. I also found record of at least one resident of Fort Leavenworth, which leads me suspect there was some less than honorable military service. I also found lots of men and women who served in our nation’s military during peace time. I found bleeding heart liberals, along with crooked and greedy conservatives. I found wealthy landowners and hard-time farmers. I found women forced from their home during wars and Indian raids, while their husbands and fathers were off fighting. I found family in the Cherokee Indian rolls that indicate their birth was in the Cherokee Nations of present day South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. Their death occurred in the Oklahoma Indian Territory, alluding to their “immigration” along the Trail of Tears. Immigration was, I thought, an interesting word and perspective used to describe the Trail of Tears in official documentation.
I didn’t find a key to the Rockefeller estate, or my long missing account number and PIN to untold fortunes. But what I did find was a connection to a family that I would characterize as tenacious. I saw stories time and time again of rebuilding from the curve balls that life can throw. Forced moves across country, away from a home that had been in the family for several generations was not the end of the story, it was just another chapter. Indian raids on the homestead in Fort Gibson, while brothers and fathers were fighting against each other in the Civil War, was not the end of the story. That chapter was a 4 year span of time that altered the histories of more than one family. Likewise military victories during the World Wars were chapters that shaped men and women who poured their lives into the family when they returned from battle.
On a broader sociological perspective, I see stories of families who fought untimely illnesses and social injustice. I saw men who abandoned their wives, and women who were unfaithful to their husbands. I also saw an inner-determination to make “their” family better than the generation before them. I saw men forsake their hard fought personal freedoms to become slaves to debt and professional endeavors. I also see amazing compassion and generosity. I see faithful service and I see loving fathers. In reality, I see that life centuries ago was not all that different than today after all. The technologies are newer, and the world may be smaller, but life has not changed so much. Throughout it all, because of the family tree structure of Ancestry.com, it becomes obvious that the key to survival and success was family. Certainly brothers and sisters, parents and children have been bickering and arguing for centuries, but the truth is that the family moves forward, the line continues. For me, it has made for some pretty cool personal discoveries, and I am sure I will enjoy the process of uncovering more.
Here is a bit about what I have learned in my own search, I am sure most families boast such a wide range of personalities and character. I found several faithful ministers, and I found more than a few deadbeats and scoundrels. I also found at least one deadbeat scoundrel minister. I found college educated, white collar professionals and self-educated entrepreneurs. I found hard working blue collar workers and farmers. I found men who fought honorably in Vietnam, World War II, World War I, both sides of the Civil War, and the American Revolution. I also found record of at least one resident of Fort Leavenworth, which leads me suspect there was some less than honorable military service. I also found lots of men and women who served in our nation’s military during peace time. I found bleeding heart liberals, along with crooked and greedy conservatives. I found wealthy landowners and hard-time farmers. I found women forced from their home during wars and Indian raids, while their husbands and fathers were off fighting. I found family in the Cherokee Indian rolls that indicate their birth was in the Cherokee Nations of present day South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. Their death occurred in the Oklahoma Indian Territory, alluding to their “immigration” along the Trail of Tears. Immigration was, I thought, an interesting word and perspective used to describe the Trail of Tears in official documentation.
I didn’t find a key to the Rockefeller estate, or my long missing account number and PIN to untold fortunes. But what I did find was a connection to a family that I would characterize as tenacious. I saw stories time and time again of rebuilding from the curve balls that life can throw. Forced moves across country, away from a home that had been in the family for several generations was not the end of the story, it was just another chapter. Indian raids on the homestead in Fort Gibson, while brothers and fathers were fighting against each other in the Civil War, was not the end of the story. That chapter was a 4 year span of time that altered the histories of more than one family. Likewise military victories during the World Wars were chapters that shaped men and women who poured their lives into the family when they returned from battle.
On a broader sociological perspective, I see stories of families who fought untimely illnesses and social injustice. I saw men who abandoned their wives, and women who were unfaithful to their husbands. I also saw an inner-determination to make “their” family better than the generation before them. I saw men forsake their hard fought personal freedoms to become slaves to debt and professional endeavors. I also see amazing compassion and generosity. I see faithful service and I see loving fathers. In reality, I see that life centuries ago was not all that different than today after all. The technologies are newer, and the world may be smaller, but life has not changed so much. Throughout it all, because of the family tree structure of Ancestry.com, it becomes obvious that the key to survival and success was family. Certainly brothers and sisters, parents and children have been bickering and arguing for centuries, but the truth is that the family moves forward, the line continues. For me, it has made for some pretty cool personal discoveries, and I am sure I will enjoy the process of uncovering more.
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