When I was younger, genealogy seemed like something only parents did in their spare time. I thought it looked pretty boring at first, but more and more, I have begun to realize that genealogy doesn't just have to be dry facts and figures.
My ancestors really had a lot more flavor than what their birth certificates or obituaries can convey. Maybe it was just the remoteness of the past that made me shy away from studying my ancestors; or maybe it was the vastness of the research involved. Either way, I now regret not having taken an interest in my mom's passion earlier, for genealogy has truly been an amazing discovery. The past takes on a vital role in creating our future and our knowledge of all that came before enriches our present. I hope that more young people will take an interest in this fascinating study.
One of the first things I discovered about genealogy was that my ancestors didn't have to be Paul Revere or Thomas Jefferson to be interesting. Even the plainest of people have a story to tell. When I first read about a distant relative Sarah Franks, also known as old Mother Bumpas, she sounded like a pretty uninteresting woman. But then I found a little story about her early life. The story goes that during the Revolutionary War, the Tories came to her hometown and proceeded to destroy everything in sight. Her parents rushed out, twelve children in tow, making a mad escape. In the heat of the action, they left little Sarah behind. Upon meeting a group of Indians, Sarah's mother let out a cry of anguish at the realization that she had left her baby behind. One Indian, miraculously interpreting her scream, rushed through whizzing Tory bullets and rescued the child.1 While the details of this story are obviously exaggerated, there is enough truth in it to bring an otherwise ordinary person to life. Many kids would only expect their ancestors to be worth researching if they were rich or famous. In reality, even a simple farmer could have the most amazing stories about life in earlier times.
One day I noticed some census papers dealing with the Wanderer family laying on the coffee table. Glancing down, I noticed that a fifteen year-old boy called "Lornce" was a bartender. This of course immediately raised some questions. What kind of name is Lornce? And, who would let a fifteen year-old be a bartender? I asked my Mom later and she explained that the census takers did not bother much with accurate spelling back in the 1880s; "Lornce" is just a terrible job of spelling the name Lawrence. Additionally, it was completely acceptable for fifteen year-olds to be handling liquor in Wisconsin in the 1800s. I was amazed that just a couple of words could lead to so much information. That's what genealogy is all about - making discoveries. It's like being a detective of the past - searching for clues and collecting evidence. Eventually a case will be solved, but there will always be another one to take its place in an endless cycle of learning.
Another great reason for young people like me to get involved in genealogy is that it's a great way to spend more time with the older generations. For some, that may mean grandparents, great-grandparents, great uncles, or great aunts. Whatever the case, your older relatives usually love it when someone takes an interest in their stories of days gone by. Those "I remember when" stories can provide great first-hand accounts of what life was like before the interviewer was born. This, believe it or not, is genealogy. Ancestors don't have to be dead to figure into genealogical studies. My Grandpa tells lots of great stories about growing up in Czechoslovakia (no longer even a country) and Iran. My grandparents and great-grandparents all have stories to tell, and I just play the audience and take the time to lend a listening ear. My relatives, especially on my father's side, were, and are, great storytellers. My great-grandfather has even published a copy of his memoirs; unfortunately for me, it is only partially translated from Russian. Just spending an hour a week talking with your grandparents could make all the difference in understanding their lives.
Additionally, genealogy can be incorporated into academic studies. Genealogy can be more than just a hobby - these studies can be a useful opportunity for learning and enhancing schoolwork. Genealogy can teach how social history applies to real people in real places. My great grandmother Babushka lived in Persia at a time when men's education was valued much more highly than education for women. As a result, Babushka had to climb a tree in her backyard to read in secret because it was considered a waste of time for girls to read.
Learning the techniques of genealogy teaches us how to analyze historical documents. Last year my social studies teacher asked, "Who knows the difference between a primary and secondary document?" I was the only one who raised a hand. It's not that I'm a genius or anything - it's just that I was the only one interested in genealogy. Since then, I've discovered that genealogy can really be a helpful tool when doing social studies projects because I already have the foundation for researching documents. Doing a biography on Rachel Jackson is so much easier when you know how to search for information and take notes. Within the first couple of minutes, I will have found several great sources, while my classmates are still trying to figure out what words to type into the Google search.
As the beginning of each school year rolls around social studies teachers will inevitably ask students to bring in something to share about their family histories. Those who have done some research will already be prepared. On that memorable day during this school year, I had so much stuff to show that I had to have my friends help me carry it up the stairs. My presentation left everyone's mouths hanging open. You don't often get that kind of opportunity to impress.
Genealogy is all about learning your own family heritage. Most people wouldn't be able to fill out a fan chart of their own relatives past their grandparents. Some may ask, "Who cares who my seven times great-grandfather was?" Admittedly, your seven times great-grandfather probably won't have a huge impact on your life, but he's still part of you. For those more interested in the scientific side of genealogy, genetic study can identify your ancestors by tracing the direct maternal or paternal lines with DNA testing. No matter how distant, our ancestors are a part of us. If they didn't exist so many years ago, we wouldn't be here today. Everything is woven together as an endless rope, twisting through the past and winding infinitely beyond into the future.
As a young person, I realize that I can play a vital role in the future of genealogy. By starting now I can collect the wonderful old family stories before they are gone forever. My grandparents aren't always going to be around to tell me how it felt to listen to the radio the day Pearl Harbor was bombed. If I don't start collecting this information now, it will be lost forever. First-hand accounts are always the best ones in genealogy, because you get the true "feel" for the time and place - something no immigration records or biographical essays can convey. My Mom's grandfather, Arthur Edmund Stafford, was fond of saying that he had arrived in New York from Ireland on the Titanic. This of course, was a joke, but it had a grain of truth to it. Grandpa Stafford came to America right after the Titanic sank. He traveled with many other Irish farmers in steerage on the Mauretania - and now Mom has lost the chance to ask him for his recollections of this classic steamship. Young people have more opportunities and more relatives than anyone else in the family - they are directly related to both parents' ancestors. The trouble is that we often don't seize these opportunities until it is too late, and the stories are lost along with our relatives.
Just this past fall, I discovered that attending genealogy workshops can really help improve writing and research skills. On the 22nd and 23rd of October, I attended a wonderful workshop at the NYG&B presented by Jim Warren and Sharon DeBartolo Carmack. Though I was the only youth there, I had a great time. We learned how to make our own family history more compelling to read. The first day, we received lots of helpful tips on writing and learned to use active voice by leaving out the "to be" verbs. I learned many new research techniques from Sharon's wonderful book and also learned proper citation forms. This has already come in handy on many of my school projects. The second day, we brought in a written piece and took turns sharing our stories and critiquing them. I learned a lot about family history writing by sharing with a class full of researchers who knew so much more than I did. They were all very helpful in providing constructive criticism and helping me understand how fascinating writing my family's history can be. By participating in this kind of workshop, I think my fellow students would really benefit from the tips experienced genealogists have to offer.
I believe that genealogy is not only a way of discovering your ancestors' stories, but of telling your own - in your own words. Future generations of your descendants will never know how you felt when you broke a basement window or went on a trip to some distant country, unless you tell them. I want to leave behind a record of all my accomplishments and failures so that my descendants will not have to guess at what my life was like. I have already started to document my experiences by writing numerous journals and stories of my adventures (and misadventures). When I traveled to the Ecuadorian Amazon recently, I made sure to keep a detailed journal of everything I saw and felt. It was truly the trip of a lifetime, and I never want it to be forgotten. Experiencing the rainforest cannot be described from secondary sources. One hundred years from now, a relative may write, "It was determined from an old copy of Katrina Malakhoff's passport that she visited Ecuador in 2006 at the age of fourteen." The lack of detail makes for an uninteresting account. Instead, with my journal in hand, he or she may someday write,
Katrina's adventure in the Ecuadorian rainforest was truly a life-changing experience. The remoteness and immensity of the rainforest brought her into a world vastly different from anything she had previously experienced. She saw a myriad of amazing creatures - among them the Anaconda, Toucan, Caiman, Capuchin, and a troop of Squirrel monkeys. She saw her team come together and help each other out when things got rough. She saw the smiles on the faces of the Quichua Indian children as they received simple gifts, and she knew she must do more. Determined to return to this magical place, Katrina became a doctor specializing in tropical medicine. Twenty year later, her dream to return was fulfilled.
When I leave my mark, I want mine to be as deep and as clear as can be, so there's no confusion as to who I was and what I did. Those young people who might try out genealogy must keep in mind how they want their story told. Genealogy isn't just for grown-ups - it's for anyone who has an interest in the people who shaped them and for the stories that will one day be history.
by Katrina Malakhoff
© 2011 The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society
All rights reserved.
1. Extracted from The Bumpass Family from Person County, North Carolina, pp. 73-78. Compiled by Anne Shirley Bumpus and James Richard Townsend.
© 2011 The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. All rights reserved.