We've all had
them.
The deed which
describes the piece of land bought by your ancestor that fits the space in the
map,
The German church
book entry which bridges the Atlantic to your great-grandparents and lists 3
more generations
The discovery of
stillbirths and suicides and divorces which illuminates family dynamics, and on
and on and on.
Everyone who has
done genealogy for more than three minutes knows the joy and the satisfaction
of these finds.
(N.B. -- and… so you
don't end up having to relive that "oh, wow!" moment way more often
than you would wish, strive to develop -- even as that OhWowMoment develops --
a way of recording where the OW was found.
What you record may or may not be ESM, but it should be enough that you
can find the OWM document again, even if the "citation" is not enough
to write an formal citation without looking at the document a second time.)
O is also for
"Oh My…," learning/knowing a
bit more about the actions of your ancestors.
For good or ill, these people 100+ years ago were people. Someone comparing philosophy said that the
major difference between then and now was electricity. True enough, but electricity alone had many
spin-offs, including how far one could travel in a day, how homes were heated
and lit, and how shoes were made…, and where shoes were made.
And so…. I am
circled back to one of my beloved themes… Genealogy/history as time
travel.
Till next time
Liz
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
2018
begins with an "ABC-darium," a walk through the alphabet expanding
into short comments on matters genealogical. Published on most Tuesdays
and some Fridays, a letter may be visited more than once before moving
on.
©
2018, SE Ross