Betty Hall (1768-1848) Betty Hall was born on 05 Jul 1768 in Uxbridge, Worcester, Massachusetts,…

Hooray! After months and months of effort, the Phillips book has finally been published. Though…

Thomas C. O’Donnell (1810-1894) I think the O’Donnell family might be fascinating. But, because of…

Though the actual fighting stopped in November 1918, it took another six months of negotiations…

Roseanna Fuller (1759-1844) Roseanna Fuller was born on 16 May 1759 in Amenia, Dutchess, New…

Jacob W. Phillips (1781-1847) Jacob W. Phillips was born on 27 Sep 1781 in Claverack,…

John Borden (1729-1801) Two hundred and eighty-seven years ago, John Borden was born on 12…

Elizabeth Linville (~1842->1871) Elizabeth A. Linville was born about 1842 in Callaway County, Missouri, as…

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! According to my Ancestry.com DNA test, I am of 6% Irish…

This is the second post in our series on Women’s Suffrage. The first post introduced…

Philander Baldwin (1809-1876) Arrival at Watertown Two hundred and seven years ago today, 16 April…

Johann Friederick Streich (1784-1852) It is amazing that we know anything about Johann. He didn’t…

In the last post in this series, we saw a letter that Gertrude Lovin Boyce…

What to do with all that beer? A couple months ago, during an extended weekend…

Margaret Fitz Randolph (1744-1833) Margaret Fitz Randolph was born on 01 May 1744 in Essex,…

Elizabeth Bowen Morris (1661-1743) Elizabeth Bowen was born on 26 Jan 1660/61 in Roxbury, Suffolk,…

Emilie Friedericke Luise Draeger (1850-1910) Emilie Friedericke Luise Draeger was born on 12 Oct 1850…

When Bennett and his son Merlin hear a strange scratching sound inside the granary, they…

Hannah Tolman (1642-1729) Hannah Tolman was born on 27 Jul 1642 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts…

Amelia A. Brace (1844-1926) Amelia A. Brace was born on 22 Mar 1844 in Akron,…

Live Y’ers The 27th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos taken…

Joseph Johnson (1676/77-1739) Birth Joseph Johnson was born 339 years ago today, on 09 Mar 1676/77¹,…

Glimpses of Our Trip to Laona, 1920 The fourth page of Sally’s photograph album was…

Rebecca Hallett (1675-1730) Rebecca Hallett was born on 31 Aug 1675 in Astoria, Queens, New…

Barbo Eriksdatter Lostegaard (1807-1899) Barbo Eriksdatter Lostegaard was born on 09 Feb 1807 in Gol,…

DC and a Trip Home The 43rd page of Sally’s photo album featured pictures taken…

Floyd spent another day in the middle of the Atlantic. He ate, rested, and took…

The school picture of this little boy was included in a photo album put together…

Peter Christianson Paaverud was believed to have been born in 1697, but an exact date…

Joy cometh later in the afternoon – helping an adoptee connect Nearly every week, a…

This past week was a continuation of the study of the probate for William McCall’s…

As we have seen in earlier posts, women fought to gain full voting rights, missed…

In this seemingly obligatory letter, Guy Phillips wrote from Canada to his son Floyd who…

Mary Stolp (1871-1915) Mary Stolp. Mary Stolp was born on 06 Apr 1871 in Sandwich,…

Stengrim Halvorsen (1799-1870) Halvorsen or Halverson? It depended on who was keeping the records at…

Abraham Bennett Sr. (1715-1777) Abraham Bennett Sr. was born on 06 Jun 1715 in Fairfield,…

In his last journal entry for many months, Floyd gives a summary of what happened…

Thomas Holmes (1744-1776) This birthday post was originally published in April 2016. Later, while working…

Picnic and Party The tenth page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

Norman Arthur August Krueger (1904-1980) Norman Arthur August Krueger was born on 22 Nov 1904…

Mary Loverin (1792-1884) With the help of a family bible, an application for an 1812…

Old Folks, Relatives, Soldiers, and the Clover Dairy Farm “Meditating” “First Lesson” “Prairie Schooner” “Old…

Who is this man? UnidentifiedMan-03

In the first in what will become a regular series of birthday remembrances, I’m taking…

Mostly Washington The 45th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos mostly…

Charlotte Johnson (1820-1904) Charlotte Johnson was born on 14 Sep 1820 in Genesee, New York,…

Our German ancestors are challenging. The language barrier, changing political boundaries, and lack of records,…

Friedericke Stroede is largely a mystery. We know her name but little else. Even so,…

Step into the long, lazy days of 1940s and 1950s summers in southern Minnesota, where…

George Brownell (1711-1800) George Brownell was born on 21 Jun 1711 in Little Compton, Newport,…

The Lodge The 41st page of Sally’s photo album contained photos of Sally at a…

Gertrude wrote a letter to Floyd on the 1st anniversary of his departure for service…

Jane Elizabeth Cornell (1853-1942) Jane Elizabeth Cornell was born on 17 Jul 1853 in Grass…

Alice Rosalie Fehlhaber (1880-1970) Alice Rosalie Fehlhaber was born on 10 September 1880 in the…

Ragnild Torkjelsdtr Ofstedal (1816-1880) Ragnild was another ancestor without a precisely known birth date, so…

When my parents recently gave me a pretty box full of miscellaneous stuff, I was…

John Frost (1754-1822) John Frost was born on 03 Jan 1754 in Sherborn, Middlesex, Massachusetts,…

When we last left Floyd, he was asleep on board a Norfolk & Western train…

Friedrich Samuel Aschbrenner (1810-1885) Friedrich Samuel Aschbrenner was born on 19 Oct 1810 in Posen,…

James W Huleress “Hugh” Fawcett (1848-1935) James W Huleress Fawcett was born on 12 Aug…

Last week, as I recovered from Thanksgiving and started thinking about Christmas, I was able…

Life in Camp Stuart kept Floyd busy. He didn’t have time to write much on…

Gottfried Friederick Draeger (1821-1899) Gottfried Friederick Draeger was born on 12 Jan 1821 in Dobberphul,…

As August began, Floyd found himself learning the routine of life on board the USS…

Jerusha Bennett (circa 1811 – 1849) Happy Birthday Jerusha! We know you had a birthday…

Frank Palmer Miller (1874-1925) Frank Palmer Miller was born on 12 Feb 1874 in Big…

I am very excited to announce that my book “The Christianson Family” is now available….

Albert “Tom” Aveldo Phillips (1841-1925) Albert Aveldo Phillips was born on 26 Dec 1841 in…

Joseph Frost (1783-1857) Joseph Frost was born on 04 Jul 1783 in Ashburnham, Worcester, Massachusetts,…

People and Indian School The 47th and final page of Sally’s photo album featured many…

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a planner by nature. I like to…

We are back! If anyone happened to notice, we were offline for a while. After…

I was excited a week ago when I started thinking about the event. But now, the…

One of Floyd’s brothers wrote him a letter and signed it “Balsy.” Comparing handwriting and…

John Loverin (1762-1843) It has been written that the most interesting parts of a person’s life…

Camp and Damsels in Distress The 23rd page of Sally’s photo album continues to show…

Welcome! This blog will offer musings on the favorite pursuits of genealogy and drinking. Combining…

Nimrod Charles Canterbury (1778-1844) Nimrod Charles Canterbury was born on 10 Apr 1778 in Wilkes,…

Most days of most lives are “ordinary.” But, our ordinary is likely very different than…

Most days of most lives are “ordinary.” But our ordinary is likely very different than…

A photo of the old family farm came up in email conversation recently. That led…

Edmund Brace (1797-1884) Edmund Brace was born in 1797 in Connecticut. Where? When? To Whom?…

Nearly every week, a mystery is solved or some interesting twig (or nut) appears somewhere…

Philip David Krueger (16 Oct 1990 – 24 Jul 1992) 24 July 2017. This is…

Madison, Dells, Kids The 21st page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

Ingerid Torleivsdtr Imré (1796-1887) Ingerid Torleivsdtr Imré was born about Mar 1796 in Hemsedal, Buskerud,…

Vacation Drinking What better time to drink than on vacation? On a recent trip to…

Jane has been in our family tree for quite some time but her surname has…

Asle Embrickson Torset was born in 1775 in Hemsedal, Buskerud, Norway (Nørde Torset) as the…

We are related to the Estes of Estes Model Rockets Nearly every week, a mystery…

Hiking, Kids, and Madison The 20th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of…

This is the fifth segment in our series about women’s suffrage. In the first, you…

Knut Olson Aldalen (1787-1851) Knut Olson Aldalen was born in 1787 at the Aldahl farm…

Daniel Harris (1653-1735) Daniel Harris was born on 16 Jul 1653 in Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut,…

Camping is always an adventure… especially when raccoons are around! Camping with Raccoons is a…

Cars and Farm The 12th page of Sally’s photo album featured a collection of photos…

DNA and your family history A relatively new addition to the list of tools that…

John Bacon (1721-1775) It seems quite appropriate to celebrate John Bacon’s birthday on Memorial Day….

Thomas Fawcett (1795-1865) Thomas Fawcett was born on 16 Feb 1794/5 in Frederick, Virginia, as…

Nearly every week, a mystery is solved or some interesting twig (or nut) appears somewhere…