Mental Meanderings

Genealogy and Family History.

With the hopes of my own credit card arriving in the next week I'm back on the trail of my ancestors. I love genealogy, it's exciting to find links to my family and learn the paths we've taken through time.

Much of my family came from England on my father's side and England and Ireland on my mothers. It was wonderful to be able to confirm my Irish heritage because I've always felt very Irish. I think a big part of my heart belongs in Ireland although I've never been there. I do plan to visit at some point so hopefully a holiday in Ireland can go on my budgeting plans some time in the near future.

I have a feeling I might be able to trace a line on my fathers side back to Ireland too however it's been illusive and the road is a tough one. Many of the names on my tree are very common, and one name is so uncommon that I suspect it's either been recorded incorrectly in the past or had been changed from something else.

Just on the rare hope that any of you might be interested my current names of research are WINKWORTH, HIGGINS, LAFFAR, BARKER, and CARPENTER. If any of you have connections to these names be sure to drop me a line, the chances of a link are rare but not unfathomable.

I've been lucky enough to come up with a solid link to the Winkworth line thanks to GenesReunited. In fact, GenesReunited also got me in touch with my paternal Grandmother Brenda, we are rather distant despite living in the same state. My father and I rarely connect with each other so most of his side of the family aren't in contact either.

Anyway, I connected with a distant cousin who lives in the UK and is in contact with a Great Great Auntie. Jo is so warm and friendly and it was wonderful to know that others in our family tree are also doing family history research. She was able to give me some details I didn't have about the Winkworth line, particularly information about my Great Great Auntie Gretta. She was glad to find a connection to my Grandfather Percy and we were both able to confirm a few details. It's also wonderful to hear about her life now days and the life she's had in the Police Force.

For those of you who don't know, there is a difference between Genealogy and Family History. I do both technically because to do your Family History you need to do your Genealogy. Genealogy is specific only to names and dates (and sometimes places). Your family tree is genealogy because it doesn't list any details. Family history gets into things like occupation, appearance, friends, and basically anything to do with history. Genealogy is the Who, When, Where and Family History is the What, Why, How.

I'm looking forward to my credit card arriving because it will allow me more research freedom. You need a credit card to subscribe to the information on Ancestry.com or anywhere that gives you an index on the UK census. You can also use a credit card to order birth, death and marriage (BDM) certificates from the General Register Office in the UK. I have a few certificates in my basket at GRO waiting for credit card details.

Well, another love of mine revealed. And an interesting (hopefully) journal entry for a change. Do any of you enjoy looking into your family's past? I recommend giving it a go if you have even an inkling of interest, I can't promise you won't be sorry that you started because it's not easy and it certainly takes time but you will love the information you can reveal and the stories within the stories you will find.