African-Americans
On this King Holiday, Some Personal Memories
Half a century ago, in 1961, my family lived in West Germany (a name of a state now washed away by history), as my father, an Army captain at the time, finished a tour of duty there. It was time for him, in Armyspeak, to “rotate back to CONUS” (i.e., to return to the continental United States). By early summer, …
January 17, 2011 Monday at 8:52 am
A Little Bit Closer to Charlotte Manson
Sometimes it seems as if ancestors choose to reveal themselves a little bit at a time. The records and evidence may be out there somewhere, but they may not be apparent for years. We have noted in this space several times before that I trace my paternal lineage to a Scots woman named Charlotte Manson. But she remains a figure …
January 13, 2011 Thursday at 9:55 pm
I Never Knew . . . .
As a kid growing up, I knew very few of my cousins. In fact, I can recall meeting just three of them, all on my mother’s side, before I turned eighteen years old. This was a consequence of the fact that our military family lived in places far away from where my parents grew up. I used to wonder sometimes …
December 31, 2010 Friday at 4:25 pm
Kudos: Michael Hait
Our motto here at GeneaBlogie is Learn, Share, Enjoy, Appreciate! And we also say give credit where credit is due. So at the head of this year’s honors list for achievement in the field of genealogical writing, we recognize Michael Hait. Michael writes for Examiner.com as the national African-American Genealogical Examiner. His highly readable posts are rich in information. There …
December 6, 2010 Monday at 8:33 pm
California Family History Expo is Great Success
But Our Hero has some Personal Travails! The California Family History Expo at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton wrapped up Saturday evening with a lesson on breaking through brick walls by FHE President and founder Holly Hansen. Although figures were not yet available, the conference appeared to have been well attended on both days. California Genealogical Society communications coordinator …
October 10, 2010 Sunday at 12:52 am
Grand Genealogy Journey: My Kansas City Families
The Gines Family My closest relatives in Kansas City would be in the Gines family, descendants 0f Richard and Sylvia Gines of Shreveport, Louisiana, (who, as far as anyone knows, never set foot in Kansas City). Two of Richard and Sylvia’s sons, William Edward Gines (1898-1955) and Henry William Gines (1903-1980) left Shreveport in 1920 and headed for Kansas City. …
September 27, 2010 Monday at 7:06 pm
Grand Genealogical Journey: Kansas City, Here I Come!
We’ve had a great trip aboard the California Zephyr from Sacramento to Denver. But in Denver, we part ways with the train, which goes on to Chicago, bypassing our next destination, Kansas City. The quickest way to get to Kansas City from Denver is by air — a one-hour flight for about $149 on all the major carriers except US …
September 11, 2010 Saturday at 7:48 pm
Grand Genealogy Tour: Denver!
Editor’s Note: It doesn’t usually take nearly 30 days on Amtrak to get from Salt Lake City to Denver. A funny thing happened on our virtual tour: real life, i.e., work, family, health. But we expect t continue the tour, with interspersed other stuff. We’ll make it to our next stop, Kansas City, a bit quicker! The California Zephyr rolls …
August 8, 2010 Sunday at 7:10 pm
The Grand Genealogy Journey 2010 (Virtual Edition) Starts Anew
Believe it or don’t, but it’s been three years since the Big Train Trip. I’m really ready to go again, but circumstances currently won’t allow that. So we started to lay out our virtual genealogical dream trip traveling via Amtrak and other conveyances. We ran into a set of difficulties soon after the beginning of the trip. As a result, …
June 30, 2010 Wednesday at 2:34 pm
So Whatever Happened to the Grand Genealogy Journey?
We started on our Grand Genealogy [virtual] Journey several weeks ago. It was to take us from Sacramento to Georgia and back. We made it as far as Nevada. What happened? 1. Life Itself (75%) 2. Technical Difficulties (software issues) (13%) 3. SCGS Jamboree (12%) So what now? Well, the Journey returns this weekend, starting from the beginning and going …
June 24, 2010 Thursday at 4:48 pm
