Hi, welcome to the A to Z Challenge. I am Ann Eliese. That's the name my mom gave me after her best friend, Anneliese Pulverman. Because she didn't want to add a middle name to it, she made it two words. That's a little tidbit of family history that might be lost if I don't write it down. It's those little tidbits that make family history interesting and compel those of us who track our ancestors to continue. (BTW, I am called Ann most of the time. No one can spell Ann Eliese.)
Family history is a very small niche audience. My apologies to those who will not find my ancestors fascinating. I completely understand. However, for those whose passion is genealogy, other family histories may lead to discoveries and that's why so many blog about it. It's quite amazing what I've found on the family history blogs of others.
I am just starting to explore the Yeakley/Jones side of my family. The Rhea/McCollum side started out as dates and facts and after several years, turned into real people. I am hoping as I go through this, I gain a deeper understanding of who the Yeakley/Jones ancestors were as people.
Part of the A to Z will be devoted to my aunts and uncles. They are all gone now but live on in my memory. Everyone deserves to be more than just a page of birth, census, and death dates. That takes care of eight of the letters.
I started writing about the ancestors I'm researching but had a change of heart (mostly because my pesky ancestors aren't cooperating). Really, how hard can it be to live in the same place forever, use the same spelling each time, and participate in every census? So I've changed my focus and will turn this into a hodgepodge of miscellaneous family information but not necessarily my family.
My mom had pictures of family friends and coworkers from the 1940's. They're not my ancestors but they have family somewhere. I firmly believe that all information should be shared so there will be some days of photos of people I don't personally know. I don't normally self-promote my blog posts but in this case, I am going to tweet, post to facebook and google plus hoping that someone in their family will find it and ask for the original photos.
And for those pesky ancestors who won't stay in the same place, I will get you...it just won't be in April.
This is such a fun first opening for your A - Z Challenge :) It's going to be fun reading your posts, because your writing is so creative and your style is a blast :)
ReplyDeleteMJ, A to Z Challenge Co-Host
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You're so right. People deserve to be honored with stories about them. How great that you're doing it.
ReplyDeleteI, for one, LOVE genealogy and family history! The name I go by (LuAnn) is actually a combination of my given and middle names - I suppose that's why there's a capital letter in the middle of it.) Originally, my father wanted to name me Caroline. But the names I wound up with are nods to ancestors on my mother's side of the family.
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Hi Ann...How fun to find you on the AtoZ Challenge again this year. I remember our friendship and visits from last year. You got know how much I loved seeing your vintage family photos and reading about your genealogy research and writing. It's my thing, as well, and this year I am AtoZing with my collection of Vintage Photos with the theme of 'fiction from forgotten fotos'.
ReplyDeleteLove your middle name Eliese. I was named after a friend of my grandmother...Sandra Sue...have never gone by Sandra. The three letters of Sue must have been easier for everyone to spell and remember.
Adding you to my AtoZ BlogRoll so I don't miss any of your posts. See ya tomorrow for Letter B.
Sue at CollectInTexas Gal
G'day! Thanks for stopping by our blog earlier. I was not big into family history until quite recently. I think its something that grows on you until one day it really becomes interesting to you. I would like to research my mum's family sometime when i get some spare time (my dad has his side completed so I am good on that part).
ReplyDeleteSean at His and Her Hobbies
Returning the favor. Family genealogy is actually a blast. I may not do it, but I used to work at a library that specialized in it. Very interesting to watch what people researched and what they used to get what they needed.
ReplyDeleteI love learning about family history...whether it's mine or someone else's! It's just fascinating!
ReplyDeleteI researched my roots a few years ago...it was fascinating. Cool topic!
ReplyDeleteA woman after my own heart! We share the same passion and you are performing a great service in many areas: putting the information out there for someone to find their family (be sure to put all the family names in your tags!), recording your information for your posterity, and honoring your ancestors. Extremely cool.
ReplyDeleteAloha from Hawaii! I'm glad to see you're doing A to Z this year. Mahalo for stopping by. I think it's great that you're sharing your family history and research with the world. Since my mom passed away, I've learned so much from relatives - and it's answered questions that I didn't even know I had.
ReplyDeleteI think it's wonderful that you're noting down these tidbits, and committing your memories of your family members to paper. I tried so hard to get my grandmother, and then my mother, before they died, to make some notes but they found it too hard (both in terms of the activity of writing as well as emotionally). My mother and her cousin made the decision for the family that we would no longer dig into the family history because it was too sad. But, if I have the money, I will go digging one day.
ReplyDeleteElle
My Yeakley/Jones family is the run-of-the-mill basically nice Christian folks, ministers, and farmers. However, my husband's family is full of lies and deceit which I will do on "H". I am tired of lies and deceit and truly believe the only way to deal with it is to put it out there. I hope you will find a way to dig into your roots. Things that remain hidden only fester. Things always look better in the light of day.
DeleteUsually people are named after relatives, not friends. Your mom and Anneliesse must have been really close. And what an honour for your namesake!
ReplyDeleteHi, Ann! Thanks for stopping by. I've enjoyed reading about your family in the 52 Ancestors challenge. It may be a small niche, but those of us who enjoy it, love reading about everyone's families!
ReplyDeleteHere's to more cousins. :-)
Hi Ann - what a sweet story about the origin of your own name. Such an interesting passion you have. Several family members have traced parts of our past, but I haven't participated in the searches. I do like looking at the information they've uncovered and hearing older relatives tell about their earlier years. In the end, we're all related. From what I hear about DNA testing those connections between all humans aren't too far removed from each other!
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