In 1941 an electric power company built hydroelectric dams on the Holston River to produce power. In the process, they displaced many Tennesseans, alive and dead. My ancestors were among the dead.
Family Blog Posts
Unusual Source
While researching a 5th great grandfather, I discovered him in an unusual source, a diary of a historical figure I had never before heard of, Herman Husband.
Valentine
Among my grandmother’s keepsakes is an old Valentine. I wonder who sent this mystery Valentine and why my grandmother saved it.
Namesake
My great grandparents had three daughters: Elsie, Roxie and Edith. For many years I assumed they were namesakes of popular fictional characters.
Beginnings
I have been interested in family history since my paternal grandmother, Pearl Osborne LaFara, shared her research with me when I was a child.
Wedding
I read about the use of wedding announcements as a source of genealogy information. This was an intriguing idea, so I sought out wedding announcements for my family. There were not many, but I will share a few I did find.
Tombstone
My great, great grandparents’ tombstone is not the simple tombstone of a simple farming couple, but a monument unlike anything found at the graves of my other ancestors.
Service
Before Sadie Osborne became a policewoman, she was a deaconess performing social work in the service of the ME Church.
Where There’s a Will
Jesse King left a legacy in his will for his granddaughter Susan Candess King, in 1868
Fire
Family legend holds that my 3rd great grandfather witnessed the famed Battle of Baltimore at Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. Can I prove it really happened?