All:
I do not think that the study is not obsolete. But I do have some
observations:
1. I avidly pursued every lead that I could find to locate family members -
all generations in all directions.
For over ten years I pursued locating information about my ancestors.
After whacking my head on the brick wall over and over, and finding no new
information, I finally grew tired of continuous looking.
2. People seem less willing to share. I have a distant relative in
Tennessee. He has a photograph of the place where my 3 G-grandfather lived at
Athens. I have repeatedly asked him to send it by e-mail or snail mail.
Months later - no photo! For a couple of years I have tried to find someone in
Des Moines, Iowa, to copy and send me a copy of an obituary - no luck! It
becomes discouraging after a time.
3. It seems that many younger people do not have an interest in pursuing
their genealogy. I have two sons and a "ton" of information and photos on all
my family lines. They seemingly have no interest in getting involved or
continuing my research after I am gone.
Just some random thoughts. . . .
In a message dated 7/14/2008 9:26:44 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Eric, I wish I could say the interest was still as high as in the 1990's,
but alas it is not so. The only ones still researching are the same ones who
were trudging to Courthouses, libraries, Historical Societies, etc. Those
seeking easy answers have disappeared.
I think we are all anxious about sharing directly on Genforum or Ancestry
because of both belonging to a paid forum. I dislike sharing info that
could wind up in Ancestry's "pay to use" files. Also the habit of "marrying
families" without research and putting the combined info online is
offensive. (and false many times) Many volunteers removed their information
from Genweb when it became known that Ancestry had also gotten control of
that forum. You will find some of them have removed to new sites such as "
Genealogy Trails." There are several other "start-up sites" working out the
bugs and getting free data online. As I understand it, if you submit
anything to Ancestry sites it is considered permission for them to use it,
paid or otherwise.
That said, I still share directly with anyone when I find something related
to direct research of a line. I submit to any free site.
I just returned from a trip to Kentucky and Southern Illinois, still
searching for my James King's origins. His birthdate is unknown but he would
have been born 1793 or before as his wife, Elizabeth Clemens was born on
that date. I did find a Thomas King, born 1817 Giles Co., Tennessee who
descends from William Waters King (b.1784) Brunswick, Va. This Thomas King
could be a brother to my James King whose DNA matches point to a William
King and Henry King of Virginia as possible ancestors. I am seeking Dr.
Oscar Beasley who submitted the Thomas King data to the Pope Co., Illinois
Historical Society in 1998. Are any of his descendants still researching his
King line in Virginia? If there are male descendants of this Thomas King
line who settled in Pope Co., Illinois and Perry Co., Illinois I would be
happy to pay for a DNA test to prove or disprove whether he was related to
James King b. Virginia in the mid to late 1700's.
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