I spent this afternoon in the library working on Mom’s family history. I mostly focused on my great-grandparents Charlie Daniel and Mary Jane Privott. I’m lucky to have a photo of them thanks to a family cookbook. Genealogy finds come in all kinds of places!
I spent a large part of the day combing through the census … finding little bits of information here and there. Dan as he was known, was a farmer and never served in the military. I might have noticed in past when I first discovered the census records for him that he did not know how to read or write and had never attended school but I didn’t remember those details.
I did remember that my Mom and 2 of her sisters were living with him at the time of the 1940 census. (Her mother had died and her father had not yet remarried.)
I also started pulling some other photos. This was the house they’d lived in at that time and I’d snapped a photo of it on one of my trips to North Carolina with Mom.
And on another visit, we found their graves.
Tonight I loaded my Aunt’s queen size top on the longarm and it’s ready to be quilted tomorrow. I’ll be glad to check that one off the list!
Simple additions to the known history can make a very big difference in someone’s life. A picture that sparks a memory or realizing how amazing a person is by surviving in a world where he can’t read rewrite what you knew. It is so difficult to live in our society without being able to read. I found out after my children were born that my MIL was functionally illiterate which allowed her family to take advantage of her. Respect your grandfather and know he worked harder than his peers to make s home for his family.
My Mom and Dad loved genealogy and I am blessed my sister picked it up when they passed. My daughter assists by digitizing photos from old albums or piles of photos.
Have you tried Family Search? I have my family tree on it and it has some great records. I started using it during the pandemic. It also helps it is free.
What little nuggets of info you’ve uncovered. The stories and the photos are such treasures. And it reminds me that I have a bunch of old family photos that need scanning.
Familiar history searches can reveal such interesting and weird details, can’t they?