Little Book of Family History
By Chris Mason
()
About this ebook
Chris Mason
Chris Mason is a software engineer who would rather have been a writer, but he is addicted to coding and couldn't figure out how to support himself writing obscure novels. He worked as a programmer and programming manager for 18 years -- including 10 years at Microsoft, where he was involved with Word and Office for Macintosh. He has three software patents stashed in the back of his closet. After leaving Microsoft for good he founded GrowlyBird Software, which develops free Macintosh applications. He has written ten novels, four of which are available here. Three of his other novels are for sale on Amazon (as ebooks and paperbacks, at the link shown below), and another will be available there soon. Because he's a workaholic curmudgeon with hermit tendencies, he doesn't engage in social media. But you can contact him at chris@growlybird.com.
Read more from Chris Mason
The Mega Box: The Ultimate Guide to the Best Free Resources on the Internet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5App Store in a Box: A Guide to the Best Free Applications for Mobile Devices on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Draw P is for Phoenix: An ABC Book of Mythical and Legendary Creatures Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsResearcher in a Box: A Guide for Students Both Young and Old on How to Research and Write a Well Thought Out Paper Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFalling From Grace: The German Airborne In World War II Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJazzberry and Fidget Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsArcade in a Box: A Guide to Free Video Games on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTen Terrific Monsters Spot the Difference Activity Book Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBook Store in a Box: A Guide to Reading and Listening to the Best Free Books on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsVideo Store in a Box: A Guide to Free Television and Movies on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTutor in a Box: The Guide to the Best Free Education Resources on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEntrepreneur in a Box A Guide to the Best Ways to Make Money on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Many Marvelous Mazes of P is for Phoenix a Maze Book Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Draw The Ten Little Monsters Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe 12 Days of Christmas, Geek Edition Teacher Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsP2: Phoenix Squared Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCenter Fire Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsProduction Studio in a Box: A Guide to Free Production Tools on the Internet Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Maxine’s Happy Trails: A Truck Story Teacher Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsP is For Phoenix: An ABC Book of Legendary and Mythological Creatures Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRecord Store in a Box: A Guide to Free Music on the Internet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSuper Study Twin Pack Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWild Sands Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Little Book of Family History
Related ebooks
Your Family Tree: Discover The History Of Your Family Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFind Your Roots Now!: A Step by Step Guide for Beginning Genealogists Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTracing Your British and Irish Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Genealogy: How to Trace Your American Family Tree Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIn Search of Our Ancestors: 101 Inspiring Stories of Serendipity and Connection Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Trace a Pedigree Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDare To Discover...: Who, What, Where, When, and Why Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGrandpa’s Soup: A Motivation to Excel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAn Owl in the Kitchen: The Discovery of My Italian Heritage Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMore to Life: A Personal And Prejudiced View of Life's Subjects Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Eighth Chop from the Top Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAncestral Quest Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStuff Every Grandfather Should Know Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lost Family: How DNA Testing Is Upending Who We Are Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5From Past to Present: A Guide to Interviewing Elders & Preserving Family History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDig up Your Roots and Find Your Branches: A Child's Guide to Genealogy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings¡Gracias Abuela! Thankful for Grandmas and Grandpas - Family Books for Kids | Children's Family Life Book Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsNick Barratt's Guide to Your Ancestors' Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Autobiography of an Old School South African Son Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Beginner's Guide to Tracing Your Family Tree Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings2000 Questions for Grandparents: Unlocking Your Family's Hidden History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Triumph of Persistence, Determination and Preparation: If I Could Do It, You Can Too Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSex Instructions for Farmers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings"Family" Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBelly-Ache’s Roots: Budding, Blossoming, and Flourishing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGenealogy X What to Expect When Researching Family History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFinding Your Italian Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Kids' Family Tree Book Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Blind History Lady Presents; The First Things I Learned Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTo Whom Do You Belong: A Family Historian’s Tale Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Genealogy & Heraldry For You
Ancestral Grimoire: Connect with the Wisdom of the Ancestors through Tarot, Oracles, and Magic Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Family Tree Toolkit: A Comprehensive Guide to Uncovering Your Ancestry and Researching Genealogy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Complete Guide to Heraldry - Illustrated by Nine Plates and Nearly 800 other Designs Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Henrietta Lacks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOfficial Guide to Ancestry.com, 2nd edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5101 of the Best Free Websites for Climbing Your Family Tree: Genealogy Tips, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Find Almost Anyone, Anywhere Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Collins Dictionary Of Surnames: From Abbey to Mutton, Nabbs to Zouch Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Finding Your German Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Genealogy For Dummies Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Story of the Irish Race Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Researching Your Family History Online For Dummies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDNA and Genealogy Research: Simplified Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAdvanced Genealogy Research Techniques Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Genealogical Standards of Evidence: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow Our Ancestors Died: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Researching Scots-Irish Ancestors: The Essential Genealogical Guide to Early Modern Ulster Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tracing Your Ancestors from 1066 to 1837: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Write Your Personal or Family History: (If You Don't Do It, Who Will?) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tracing Your Family History on the Internet: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTracing Your Ancestors' Childhood: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTracing your Ancestors using the UK Historical Timeline: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Writing Your Family History: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Reunited: An Investigative Genealogist Unlocks Some of Life's Greatest Family Mysteries Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tracing Your Ancestors Through Death Records: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finding Your Irish Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tracing Your Ancestors Through Local History Records: A Guide for Family Historians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Irish Names Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Little Book of Family History
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Little Book of Family History - Chris Mason
Chapter 1: Introduction
Why do people want to start delving into the history of their own family? It’s probably got a lot to do with wanting to know why we are the way we are and where certain traits in our own character come from. Whatever the reason, almost everyone who investigates their family tree soon finds that the whole business, while it can at times be a little frustrating, is nevertheless extremely fascinating. Many people do not start to take an interest in their roots until they are getting on in years but, increasingly, younger people – many of whom naturally have access to computers – are also becoming involved.
3063820.tif*A Victorian family at leisure.
Whether you are young, old, or somewhere in between, if you are considering investigating your family history, then the best advice is to make a start as soon as possible. Your ageing relatives will not live forever and if you don’t ask them questions about their childhood and their own parents and grandparents, their memoriets are likely to die with them. Most of us have regrets about not asking enough questions before it became too late.
Of course, people have always been interested in the history of their own families and have always asked questions of their relatives. In times past however, more detailed research was not all that easy. For one thing, the material was often widely scattered and not easy to locate. For another, so-called ‘ordinary people’ had neither the time, the money, nor perhaps the education to delve very deeply into the life and times of their ancestors. Many people knew, or believed they knew, about their antecedents, but family history was largely a matter of oral tradition, with stories handed down from generation to generation. In some communities this is, of course, still the case.
3429829.tif*Several generations of a family on their way to church.
Further research could normally only be undertaken by those with the time and financial resources to undertake it. Elderly vicars from ‘good families’ might spend years trawling through the various records and they often had old family papers to help them. While those middle or upper class amateur genealogists often did sterling work, they tended to look only on the bright side of their families. Every family has its ‘black sheep’ – people who refuse to conform to the moral climate of the day – but the perceived dirty deeds of the black sheep were largely ignored by earlier generations of family historians. They preferred instead to concentrate on those who had toed the line and maintained the honour of the family, followed their forebears into one of the respectable professions, or generally bettered themselves.
3134627.tif*A parson with members of the congregation.
Early family historians would sometimes behave like historians in the former Soviet Union, by either completely ignoring someone’s existence, or by simply making a vague passing reference to them. Women who gave birth out of wedlock would be subjected to such treatment as, during their lifetime, they would have been very much despised. Such women were considered to be ‘no good’ or ‘a bad lot’ and their offspring would be ignored by the rest of the family. Mind you, if a young gentleman got a household servant ‘into trouble’ that was deemed rather more acceptable. More acceptable, perhaps, but not to be written or talked about.
Things are of course very different today. Attitudes have largely changed and, with far more resources available to everyone, researching the history of one’s family is a lot easier. It is no longer the exclusive province of the middle classes or the idle rich and most of us will be more than happy to discover the previous existence of the odd black sheep or ‘fallen woman’. Research can however still be very time-consuming and you will, from time to time, come up against a brick wall. A lot will depend on just how much time you have available and on how far back you wish to go. When you start out, however, you will probably make quite a bit of progress in a fairly short period.
57217422.tif*Jeremy Paxman featured in the popular BBC 2 series.
The hobby of tracing one’s family history has increased in popularity to a quite remarkable extent in recent years. This increased popularity is reflected in the amount of television time now devoted to the subject. Family history seems to be taking over from gardening, cooking, moving house and buying and selling antiques and collectibles. Our so-called ‘celebrities’ are now in on the act and their reactions to finding out about their ancestors can be quite fascinating. Early in 2006, in the B.B.C. series Who Do You Think You Are? notorious softie Jeremy Paxman was almost reduced to tears on learning about the poverty and deprivation suffered by some of his forebears. When asked at the beginning of the programme if he was excited by the thought of delving into his family’s past, he had replied that it was a stupid question; of course he wasn’t excited. Interested, yes – but not excited. He seemed to feel differently half an hour or so later.
If only we all had a team of researchers employed by the B.B.C. to do the work for us. On the other hand, that would take a lot of the fun out of it. Sorry, Mr. Paxman, but as you now know, it really can be fun as well as, at times, emotionally exhausting. Many of us will find that we have paupers, rogues and even outright criminals in our family tree. Most of us won’t find members of the aristocracy hanging from a lofty branch, but we are all likely to discover people from more than one social class amongst our ancestors and it is this mix of people, their living conditions and their occupations, which can make it all so fascinating. As Stephen Fry said in another edition of Who Do You Think You Are? It makes you realise how intimately interwoven with history we are
.