#52 Ancestors in #52 Weeks
“The very essence of genealogy lies in uncovering origins - the origins of individuals, families, and communities. Each person is a culmination of countless tales woven together, stretching back through time. Understanding these origins is like assembling a grand puzzle, where each piece reveals a unique story and contributes to the broader picture." (1)
My Origins
I spend a lot of time working on other people's family puzzles and don’t spend as much time working on my family puzzle as I’d like to. But today, I thought I’d start by looking at my origins as estimated from my DNA. Ancestry says my origins are:
- Eastern Europe and Russia 22%
- England & Northwestern Europe 22%
- Germanic Europe 19%
- Scotland 18%
- Sweden & Denmark 9%
- Wales 5%
- Ireland 3%
- Baltics 2%
These estimates are all borne out by the paper trail except for the
Sweden & Denmark percentages. I’m not sure
where that came from. Perhaps some Vikings who encountered my County Durham
or Scots ancestors? The paper trail says:
- Parents - both born in Illinois
- Grandparents - two born in Iowa, one in Illinois, and one in Eastern Europe.
- Great-grandparents - four born in Eastern Europe, one born in England, one born in Ohio, and two born in Illinois.
- Great-great-grandparents - eight born in Eastern Europe, two born in England, two born in Scotland, and four born in Illinois
- The Welsh comes from a 3rd great-grandmother, as likely does the Irish — which may come from both a 3rd great-grandmother and a 3rd great-grandfather.
I have only one line, my maternal grandmother’s line, that was in the U.S. before 1870. They stretch way back, starting in southern Illinois and going back to Kentucky and Tennessee. Before that, they were from North Carolina and Virginia. All Southerners except for my Denman line, which may have come from New Jersey originally.
I have ancestors who fought on both sides of the Civil War, Revolutionary War patriots and soldiers in the War of 1812 and the Black Hawk War. I have religious ancestors and ancestors who made moonshine on the Sabbath. I have Baptists, Presbyterians, Quakers, and Catholics. I have a variety of ancestors. But one thing that is interesting to me is that my ancestors were either farmers (or ag labs) or coal miners (or both in the case of my maternal grandfather). There weren’t any other occupations in my direct lines that I’ve uncovered.
As I continue to work on the family puzzle pieces, I hope I can honor my ancestors by telling their stories. No matter how simple and common their lives were, they all had one thing in common — they survived long enough to have a family and continue their line from their origins to the present.
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