Approximately five years ago, a family history blogger, J. Paul Hawthorne, a.k.a. the GeneaSpy, came up with a simple process of keeping track of his family’s birthplaces, using color-coded charts. He posted his idea on his blog, and that idea inspired others. What started as an easy way for him to trace his family places of origin quickly went viral, and amateur genealogists everywhere answered the call to color-code their charts.