Memory Tree Genealogy Journal

Taking a break from unpacking our household belongings to blog a little about family history.  Always a great excuse for a diversion!  We just completed a transatlantic move from Sicily to Yorktown, Virginia...and I'm so happy to be back HOME. This weekend, FindMyPast is offering FREE access (thanks for the heads-up, Kathy!).  While I wasn't sure exactly what I would find, I'm happy to report my research break definitely proved fruitful. Here is a snippet of a marriage record from the parish records in Thirsk, Yorkshire (North Riding), England from 1799...including my 4th great-grandparents, John SMITH and Jane WAIN : Yorkshire: Bishop's Transcripts of Marriages.  Thirsk, North Riding, Yorkshire, England.  Borthwick Institute for Archives.  Accessed via http://www.findmypast.com While a little difficult to read, here's a transcription of the record: John Smith, bachelor, and Jane Wain, spinster, both in this parish, were married in this chu...

Just yesterday, I wrote about my mother's SMITH family and their Indiana beginnings.  I also mentioned my 3rd great-grandfather George SMITH (1813-1890) , son of John Smith and Jane Wayne (or Wain, as listed in her marriage record in Yorkshire, England).  Here are a few additional images & finds for George: 1.  Photo of George Smith (1813-1890) found on the Ewbank-Smith Family research website.  2.  Burial site for George Smith and wife Henrietta Ferree Smith.  Mt. Hope Cemetery, Lansing, Ingham County, Michigan.  (FindAGrave) 3.  Marriage license and certificate for George Smith and Henrietta Ferree.  1 September 1844, Dearborn County, Indiana.  Officiant - Ezekial F. Stiles of Milan, Indiana. Source: "Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XXTS-186 : accessed 14 Oct 2014), George Smith and Henrietta E Ferree, 01 Sep 1844; citing Dearborn County; FHL mic...

From my mother's SMITH family line: John Smith (1778-1860) and Jane (Wayne/Wain) Smith (1778-1863)  Source HERE   In The History of Dearborn and Ohio Counties, Indiana : from their earliest settlement (1885), there is a short biography of my 4th great-grandparents John Smith (1778-1860) and Jane (Wayne) Smith (1778-1863).  Both are considered some of the earliest pioneers of the State of Indiana, having emigrated from Thirsk, Yorshire, England in 1818.  More information on the early settlers in Indiana can be found on the website for The Society of Indiana Pioneers . Most of the genealogical information about John and Jane smith circulating online stems from a family history book published by Henry Nowlin in 1938 entitled John and Jane Smith Family .  Anyone interested in viewing the original document on microfilm can request it through the LDS library HERE .   Here is an excerpt:  John Smith (1778-1860) was born at Thirsk, Yorkshire, ...

Over the past several weeks, my brain has been immersed in the surnames Smith - Mead - Curtis - Palmer.  Branches of my maternal grandfather's family who trekked from Massachusetts to Vermont to Ohio and finally to Michigan.  More detail than I possible could have imagined - learning about their births, marriages, deaths, estates, land transactions...the list goes on!  Truly fascinating research for a special project that has stretched my genealogical skills to the max. At one point, I felt like a private investigator calling obscure libraries in search of obscure, defunct local newspapers in teeny-tiny local libraries in parts of Michigan I've never even seen.  I owe a debt of gratitude to the power of genealogical serendipity (mentioned before HERE ).  One final, magical detail of this research project emerged last week in the form of a sweet librarian in Coopersville, Michigan who voluntarily found the following obituary on microfilm, scanned, and emai...