Surname Saturday-Salmon

Surname--Salmon

CALIFORNIA
Butte County
Los Angeles County
Sacramento County

ILLINOIS
Bureau County

NEW JERSEY
Essex County
Morris County
Somerset County

NEW YORK
Livingston County
Queens
Suffolk County

WASHINGTON
King County

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ENGLAND

GUATEMALA

We're All Related

Since I've been out of the Geneabloggers scene for awhile, I haven't posted about WDYTYA? I hadn't planned to comment, because it's already been adequately discussed. However, one thing kept sticking in my mind that I wanted to be able to put into words. Wouldn't you know, someone far more capable than I did just that.

In this article, Megan Smolenyak writes, "I suspect that one of the main reasons Who Do You Think You Are? resonates with so many is because we see our own families in the stories of the ancestors of Lisa Kudrow, Emmitt Smith and other celebrities."

Exactly! So many of the stories and the soundbites were similar to my own family stories. I could relate to the feelings and emotions because I've felt them myself as I've been on this journey of discovering my ancestors.

When Sarah Jessica Parker finds that her ancestor, John S. Hodge, died during the California Gold Rush, leaving a young family, my thoughts turn to John Worley Hatley who died, unexpectedly, while serving as an Indian Scout in the Texas Rangers. He left behind a young family, including his young son, Grien/Green Thomas Hatley, my great, great grandfather.

When Matthew Broderick says, "It's funny to know things about your parents' parents that maybe your parents didn't know." I think of the scandalous stories of Albert Barnes Cutler Salmon. He left his wife, Sarah, and seven children and ran away with his brother's wife, Daisy Irene. When my mother found ABC on the census record with his wife Sarah, my grandmother said that her grandmother's name was Irene, not Sarah. As far as we know, she never knew the scandal behind who Irene really was.

When Brooke Shields speaks of wanting to like her grandmother, I remember my own great grandmother who abandoned her young child. Like Brooke, these ancestors are from New Jersey and also like Brooke, I've never really cared for my great grandmother, Mabel Blazier. This same great grandmother lost her mother as an infant, and was a servant in someone's home as a child. The more you discover about someone, the more you can understand who they were and the "why" behind some of their actions.

Just as we feel a connection in sharing similar stories, there's something about genealogy that's more than just discovering your own story. It's what makes this Geneablogging community so great. It's sharing your story with others and being able to share in the excitement of their own discoveries.

Mrs. Smolenyak said it best: "Just as many of us love The Office because we can relate, many of us are drawn to Who Do You Think You Are? because we're all related."

Huge Thank You

As I've read through some of my previous posts, it seems that a majority of my time is spent saying, "I'm back." I never got a chance to get going. With my husband gone, we are definitely staying super busy. I have so missed working on our genealogy, but I love it so much that I can't stay away. I'm hopeful to stick around this time.

In skimming through my posts, a glaring misstep stood out to me. I never thanked a sweet, sweet commenter who helped me so much. Tracy of A Multitude of -sens changed my life. Yes, that's a bit dramatic, but I'm serious.

She helped me after reading this post. I knew about the capabilities of searching records on Family Search, but wasn't as familiar with it and didn't think to search there at the time. She not only gave me more information on that one ancestor that I did not have before, but she opened the floodgates for so many more records. I hit the jackpot, mainly with Texas death certificates and New Hampshire birth records. Family Search is now a guaranteed stop for me in my research.

So Tracy, thank you, thank you, thank you. By taking the time to help me, you've literally changed the landscape of my research. I am forever indebted to you for your kindness.

Isn't the Geneablogging community amazing?!

Wordless Wednesday

Jumping headfirst back into Geneablogland with a Wordless Wednesday post. One of my recent favorite finds is a picture of my great, great grandfather, Edward Alonzo Chapman. I already found some Beautrow ancestors on a wonderful site called Yakima Memory What I hadn't paid attention to was that Edward Chapman had also lived in Yakima. I searched for "Chapman" and was thrilled to find this picture. Such a kind looking man. Brings tears to my eyes to find something so priceless.

Yakima Memory. Photograph. http://yakimamemory.org/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/memory&CISOPTR=5438&REC=15. saved 7 April 2010.

We Can Do It

We can do it. That is my family's motto for the year. It doesn't feel like it now, but we can do it. We've sent my husband off to war. The road ahead feels daunting. My heart is broken and I miss him so much it hurts. I can't explain the agony of saying goodbye to him, and honestly, I don't think you can begin to imagine it. I can't explain the pain our children feel knowing that Daddy isn't coming home tonight. We can do it though. He will come home, and we will make it through.

The pain that I'm feeling has caused me to reflect on our ancestors and their military service. What I take as a fruitful search, more sources to verify the information I have, is so much more than black and white letters on a page. Behind those words you find the story of a family who had to say goodbye to a loved one. Who didn't know when they would see them again or what lay ahead. Who had to live their day to day life without him and do their best to cope in his absence. How grateful I am to these families and their sacrifices. In today's modern world, my road is not nearly as bumpy.

As I'm sure our ancestors did, we find ourselves praying for our soldier's protection -- missing him and loving him and hoping the time passes quickly until we are reunited. I couldn't be prouder of my husband for his courage, valor, bravery and his willingness to serve our country. He is my hero. We're in this together, and we can do it.

Family Tree Magazine Cover

I found this in my inbox this morning. I'm sure most (all) of you have already seen it, but I'm posting it anyway. Your ancestral photo could be on the cover of Family Tree Magazine. Details here.

I love this. Whenever I see photos in genealogical material, I always wonder who they were and where they came from. The various Family Search websites always have interesting photos. There is something so amazing about actually seeing these people that we work so hard to find.

So send in your photos, and if you're picked, please tell me. I'd love to hear about who they were.

Surnames & Places

So, as usual, life seems crazy, and there are so many great genealogy-related finds to share. It's frustrating. I'm literally forcing myself to walk away from the computer because I have so many other things to do. So, in the future I'll be sharing some exciting connections I've been making, but for now it'll have to wait. I have something like over 150 posts waiting to be read in my google reader. So much fun, so little time!

For now, I'll have to be content with something new I decided to start. I keep finding myself scanning through my tree to remind myself which surnames were in which places. To make it easier, I'm going to be posting my surnames with the counties and states where I've found them. Hopefully it will help me organize and possibly help me find some connections.

So when you see Surnames & Places in the title, it's just me trying to keep all these great branches, twigs and leaves straight.