Genealogy Chat

Do you ever get engrossed in researching a family you're not closely related to, or even not related at all? I remember hearing of a man who was doing the Bronte sisters tree, because it was more fascinating than his own. I think its actually really interesting; just another way of researching history. I have one particular family my husband is distantly related to, one of the girls married into a very interesting lot! And I've found THEY married into my ex mother in laws tree. (I have a very good relationship with her, by the way!) So onwards and backwards, hey ho.

Oh yes! I get completely engrossed in other people's trees on this site. When someone asks for a look-up, I will sometimes work for hours on it, tracing the family back through the censuses. It's just so interesting! Guess there are those who would say "Get a life, Margaret!"

lol :-)))

I'm the same on this site. I haven't done any of my own family history for about 18 months now, but I still come on here most days rummaging about other people's ancestors just out of interest.

I'm another one who should "get a life", lol.

Kath. x

Happens to me all the time!

I've done a lot of research as favours for family members or friends and I always get really interested and attached to the people.

But I do find that within days of passing on the information I've forgotten who is who. I think it's enough of a problem trying to remember the complicated branches of my own tree without remembering someone else's.

The difficulty comes when weeks or months later they come back to me all excited because they've found out something else and they expect me to know exactly who they are talking about! LOL

I'm helping a friend do her tree at the moment and she is having 4 certificates delivered to my house because she doesn't want her husband to know how much she's spending! My husband thought that was funny............that made me smile as he doesn't know how much I spend on my family history either!

:)))
Sue
x

Heh. I know more about the Lovett Camerons than any Lovett Cameron will ever know.

My mother's father's father's sister's husband's sister married one.

I want to know what became of my gr-grfather's sister's two surviving children, born 1881 and 1882.

So I figured maybe descendants of her husband's sister's children -- i.e. her own children's first cousins -- would know something. After all, each set of cousins could have living grandchildren today.

The results are here:

http://www.clan-cameron.org.au/descend_mdvp.php?personID=I12709&tree=cameron1
(expand to max number of generations)

Not *all* of the info was contributed to me -- there was some info on the site that helped me get started, and some living descendants found the site once it had been built up and added 20th century members.

Cousins have found cousins, in Australia and Scotland.

Me, I've found nothing except that one of the three children in question was killed in WWI ... and neither of the daughters seems to have reproduced.


But yes, it's all one great big jigsaw puzzle, and it staves off Alzheimer.

Oh here we go, confessions of an addict! Yup I'm hooked, I see it all as a good cryptic crossword puzzle with really obscure clues, with a few logic games thrown in for good measure.
I'm not sure if it staves off Alzheimers as I've been known make coffee by pouring hot water into the sugar bowl!
As far as getting involved,it is far easier to develop a raport with the enquirer as they often start to remember facts they had previously forgotten, although it can be like pulling teeth sometimes.
Rewarding, definitely as you never know the reason why someone is searching. I had a lovely phone call from a gentleman who had been abandoned with Barnados and I had found several generations of relatives, his story was so sad.
As for the daft questions like ...looking for uncle Fred who was known as Fi fi with a glass eye,was a miner...., you know not to lose your sense of humour!
If you haven't seen yet what Kathryn B has invented, clever girl, her new "posting tips" catagory, its well worth a read. If we point newbies to that site first, wherever thay ask for help, it may help us all.
Yes I.m looking at the time thinking what am I doing up at this time? Addict?? Maybe!

Im the same a Margaret & Kathleen..I couldn't tell you the last time i did any to my own

I must have this 'bug' too.

I find myself noticing unusually named road signs and think....Wasn't someone on GR looking for that surname?

I've trawled parish registers looking for my folk and kept an '..also found' list of surnames I know others here are looking for.
Once in my head, I find it hard to dismiss names that I have researched for people.

.....not the DAVIES or JONES....I've got too many of them myself.

Gwyn

Yes, me too! Sometimes when I start helping someone on here I get totally engrossed and if there's a brick wall they need knocking down I get quite determined to do all I can to give it a good shove in the right direction!

Sometimes people come back to me weeks or months later letting me know of their progress, or asking for more help.

I find it extremely rewarding! If I'm at a lull with my own research, I still like to keep my brain cells active by helping others. So it's not just researching my own family tree that I enjoy, it's the whole concept of genealogy that fascinates me and has me hooked!

Regards - Athena

Well I am supposed to be doing my coursework, yes a genealogy course, so I am not really here and I haven't been since 9 o'clock this morning :)))) lol

Chris

Yep and I thought it was only me who got involved in the research of other peoples trees, but I find it just as exciting when I turn up something for someone else than I do when I find one of my own relatives

I've got so many brickwalls in my own research...enough to build at least a small village I should think, ....that it's great to be able to help and get results, instead of huge barriers.

I keep hoping for breakthroughs with my own searches and would be despondant if I thought it was my way of searching that was a constant failure.
Finding people for others at least gives me hope....

Gwyn

Lol, its not just me then. Sue, I was recently waiting for 5 certs to come...and they had to turn up on my husbands day off, lol. I sneaked into the kitchen with them to 'hide' them in my Genealogy drawer (diner part of kitchen is my office!) and he said, 'I dont mind babe, honest...'. In that case I've got a couple more I need to order, have to keep the ball rolling lol.

I am glad its not just me!! Sometimes if I am looking for my own ancestors in the census I might see an interesting name and end up following it to see what happens to them.
One I remember was a youing boy who had an unusual name and was living with adults of a different surname ( he was named as a lodger). The lad worked in the docks in London but died at a young age. I felt really sad !! I hope he had a happy life although it was short.
Elaine

That is sad Elaine, I wonder if he was named after someone in his own family. My husbands lot fostered a 4 month old baby with the surname Spraggett, someone on here has her in their tree so I messaged asking what happened to her, got no reply tho.

LOL! That must make for a fantastic tree though.

Modesty doesn't prevent me from following up on Lindsey's mention of my brilliant idea -- the Posting Tips surname. ;)

Go to Trying to Find, filter the board by surname Posting Tips. And please add yours!

Now, getting newbies to look there ... I'm going to have a "sig line" that explains how to filter the board by surname Posting Tips ...

My DIL has just started hers, and I can't leave it alone, every spare minuite, I'v got to stop or i will end up doing it for her.
Gill

Yes Romany ! I did my family tree over 35 years ago in the old fashioned way !
long before computors and the internet.
In those days you could handle the original registers etc, of Orphanages, Cottage Homes, Workhouses, and other Institutions. Over those years I have researched hundreds of peoples trees, from here and abroad, mainly people tracing their roots in Liverpool and local areas. I have come across many fascinating stories, but also many sad ones which would bring tears to your eyes. One such family came from Ireland about 1838 and settled in a slum area of north Liverpool, father died, mother and children placed in Workhouse Fever ward, there the mother died, but thankfully the children survived, I am still in touch today with a descendant of one of those children.
I always tell people starting out on Genealogy "It is like a drug " once you start you are hooked !