Joseph Williams

On this day, 3 March 1851, Joseph Williams passed away. He was my spouse’s 4th great-grandfather.

Joseph Williams was born on 17 September 1767, in Wales. Although his birth was noted in family records, no conclusive sources containing his parentage, hometown, or childhood events have been found to date.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Middle

We are halfway through the year 2020 and midway through the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks writing challenge, which is why this most recent writing prompt, Middle, seems quite appropriate.

Middle? Hmm…What “middle” should I write about? Should I write about Middlekauft cousins or Middleton kin, none of whom are direct ancestors? Perhaps I should feature towns and counties in which our ancestors resided whose names contain “middle”, like Middletown or Middlesex? After much deliberation, I decided to highlight the Middle Colonies and a few ancestors who were some of its earliest settlers.

Strong Women

Wow! It’s already Week 10 in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks’ writing challenge. This week’s theme is Strong Woman. Now, this is a writing prompt that I can get behind! But instead of Strong Woman, I will be writing about Strong Women… plural. (It is Women’s History Month, after all. So let’s hear it for the girls!)

Peter Lang

Brickwall ancestors: We all have them—those predecessors who seem to appear out of nowhere, whose past we cannot trace, whose parents we cannot identify.

Today, I will present one of my dead-end ancestors and provide what little information that I have on him. Hopefully, someone, somewhere, will be able to help me discover the missing pieces of his life.

Long Line

It is week three in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks writing challenge. This week’s prompt is titled Long Line.

I immediately thought of the many lines I have traced back through history the farthest. A few years ago, I became fascinated with identifying and proving lineage for several “gateway ancestors,” colonial immigrants whose ancestry can be traced to Old World gentry, nobility, or royalty. So far, I have determined that the following ancestors are direct descendants of Charlemagne: Edward Foulke (1651-1741) of Pennsylvania, my spouse’s 8th great-grandfather; Lawrence Smith (1629–1700) of Virginia, my 10th great-grandfather; Edmund Hawes (1612–1693) of Massachusetts, my 11th great-grandfather; and Peter Worden (1569-1639) of Massachusetts, my 12th great-grandfather.