Lost & Found

Almost 13 years ago I became an "Adult Orphan" when my father passed away at the age of 72. My mother had preceded him in death by 5 years. I remember an overwhelming feeling of loss. Not only did I lose a parent, I suddenly felt the loss of a resource of my family history.

When my parents were alive, I never thought much about my ancestors. I knew if I ever had a question about my heritage, my folks were a phone call away.

A few weeks ago, I watched Rosie O'Donnell trace her Irish roots on "Who Do You Think You Are?" with my youngest son. Afterward, I was badgered to go visit the sponsor of the show's website, Ancestry.com. I signed up for a free 14 Day trial. While Colin thought we'd instantly receive our family tree, complete with famous relations, I knew there would be a bit of work involved.

I spoke with both of my uncles ( my mom's brother and my father's brother) as I was getting started. I was surprised at how little they knew about their aunts, uncles, grandparents, great-grandparents.

The Age of Information
On Ancestry.com's website, I found a distant relative's family tree which helped fill in some of the blanks on my tree. I also was able to view census records for my grandparents as well as some of the great-grandparents on both my side and my husband's family.

I amazed both of my uncles as to how much information I was able to find in a short time. It was fun helping jog their memories and to help fill in the blanks.

I never thought of myself as a history buff. I now have a new hobby. Although my 14 days are now up, I have just started finding out "who I am".

The nice part of this project is that I was able to help add to the data bases of Ancestry.com. In return, even though I no longer have access to their records, I still have an account and can continue working on my family tree.