Discoveries

Yesterday, as a project to keep my mind off of my restless leg while heading home from Seattle, I decided to begin working on my friend Robin's family tree.  She has done some of it already, so I made up some rules for the game - she could only tell me her full name, DOB, POB, and ditto for her parents.  From there I had to find her family.

Weird, but fun.

We made it to her greats and then were almost home, so the game worked, and I got to find out things about my friend.

One of the things I discovered is that she had a relative who falls into the category of "liar, liar, pants on fire"  He had a metal that he supposedly earned in WWI.  We discovered that yes, indeed, he did serve in WWI for the US.  In the supply depot.  And no records of any metals earned for bravery or valiant service.  I still have some researching to do, because I wonder if the wrong man was given the medal - there were several gentlemen with his same first and last name, but with different or non-noted middle initials.  Who knows?

When you research your family's past, as I have said before, you risk uncovering things about your family that aren't true.  Or things that you don't like.  I always tell people that they should only engage a genealogist if they are willing to face the truth, are willing to extend some compassion to those long dead, and have a sense of humor about themselves. 

Having a sneaking suspicion that grandpa was less than honest is not the same as discovering he really was an out-an-out liar.  That nagging feeling that somehow grannie's story about how the family bought the farmstead for such a bargain may prove right and there was some legal chicanery involved in that "bargain".

But sometimes simply knowing what life was like in the past helps you to realize that something you found distressing or even shameful wasn't at all like it looks on paper.

That leads me to another friend who loves genealogy but was mourning the fact that there appeared to be a number of births in her family that occurred much too close to the wedding date for the baby to be such a strapping young thing.  But once I explained to her the tradition of publicly announcing the intention to marry, then setting up housekeeping, and THEN going ahead with the ceremony once the circuit riding minister or justice of the peace made his possibly twice-yearly trip through the area, she felt much better about her family's morals.

Is knowing history necessary? No.  But is sure does help us to understand our families and ourselves at times.