A few years ago when I started this wonderfully obsessive hobby, I became very frustrated with the difficulty I was having documenting the first generation beyond my grand-parents. I mean, these were people that lived during my lifetime in some cases; but woefully little documentation (let alone pictures) where available for me to put my hands on. Now, if you’ve visited my little space in the world here, you know that I got over it. In fact, recently I documented my 1,000th direct relative.
Pushing ahead through the frustration was due, in no small part, to my old friend Dr. H.L. Gates. I became an avid fan, and purchaser of African American Lives I and II. What encouraged me beyond the fascinating stories and details of lives long past was the fact that, even with extensive research time, funding and dozens of professional genealogists, sometimes there are just ‘blanks’ on your pedigree chart. There just are… and it doesn’t mean you are a bad researcher or something is wrong with your family. It simply means you haven’t turned over the right rock…..yet.
Well, it seems Dr. Gates is at it again…. and this time he’s tackling genealogy beyond black folks.
I’ll certainly be watching, and I hope others are similarly inspired. In case anyone visiting here hasn’t seen AAL I or II, here’s a pre-view of II to get you inspired to watch….
Filed under: Genealogy, Misc. | Tagged: Research | Leave a comment »
My family's journey through time... A work in progress. 