Genealogy - who are your ancestors?

#1
CSpindizzy

CSpindizzy

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#1
Cotton's line on being a descendant of the 'true king' made me think of this. Anyone else have this interest or hobby? Anyone have any famous relatives in their line?
 
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#2
#2
My grandfather fought on Iwo Jima... that's as close to famous as I get...

:dunno:
 
#3
#3
I've always been very interested in genealogy and trying to trace back my ancestors... unfortunately, my parents never had the same interest, and can't even tell me the names of their grandparents (they're the babies of the family and probably don't remember their grandparents, anyway) so I can get started on looking that stuff up.
 
#5
#5
I love genealogy! My great grandfather was a bootlegger in Memphis/Arkansas and knew Bonnie and Clyde.

My ancestors also got a land grant in Philadelphia from William Penn.

But nobody famous.
 
#6
#6
I did this in MS and it was pretty cool. My mother has actually researched all this and keeps it in the family bible.
 
#8
#8
I've traced my family in every southern state except for AR and FL. Most of my lines were old school arrivals back in the early to mid 1600's in Jamestown.
 
#10
#10
Scots, Irish, and English. Supposedly there are Cherokee traces but nothing has been proven. We have some French Hugenot traces as well. But all southern.
 
#11
#11
CSpindizzy said:
Scots, Irish, and English. Supposedly there are Cherokee traces but nothing has been proven. We have some French Hugenot traces as well. But all southern.
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Interesting, wish I knew as much about mine as you do yours.

But I know my mom's side has a lot of French and my wife on her father's side is Irish with a Cherokee thrown in there somewhere. We are practically just alike Cspinn:)
 
#12
#12
My uncle is into this stuff big time. Best we can tell our ancestors came here from England. I have German and Irish from my mom's side. My great grandmother was a Choctaw.
 
#13
#13
tidwell said:
1960 and 1962

At the time, their parents were both around or over 40 years old
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My Lord, I have a brother who was born in '60. My parents were born in '37 and '39. My mother's father was born in 1888. He died 2 years before I was born.

I wish I knew more about my genealogy. I think I may pursue learning it at some time.
 
#14
#14
Here are a few sites of interest:

RootsWeb: Database Index

Here you can click on the Family Trees link at the top. In the surname and given name fields enter in the oldest relative you can think of. The next page will give you the ability to add dates and states.

Also the LDS is quite active in research. You can go to FamilySearch.org - Family History and Genealogy Records and search for records as well.
 
#15
#15
CSpindizzy said:
Scots, Irish, and English. Supposedly there are Cherokee traces but nothing has been proven. We have some French Hugenot traces as well. But all southern.
Click to expand...
That's about the only thing I have heard, that my grandmother on Dad's side had some Cherokee blood someway or another. Obviously no way of confirming it or anything, but that seems to be a consistent answer whenever I ask.
 
#16
#16
Some of my great aunts on my dad's side traced back along time ago. Ours is actually very interesting. I won't write a book here, but maybe some highlights:

-We go back to Scotland.
-The furthest we could trace was Red Comin (American spellng for us is Cummins).
-He was a king or something. He goes back physically to a castle near/on the deeper section of Loch Ness called Irquart (sp?). Somewhere in there I think is also a French marriage.
-He was knocked off and defeated by one of the bigger names. Maybe Bruce. I forget w/o looking some back up.
-We migrated into North Carolina originally. Almost all moved on into middle Tennessee around Cookeville. We bought a family farm, now called Cummins Falls in Jackson County from Al Gore's great, great grandfather.
-Reese Witherspoon is about 7 cousins out or so. Far enough that I would not consider her incest. Her dad is actually looking at acquiring the farm now.
-My great Aunt's husband, whom I was too young to ever remember was from Hungaria, and a very good artist, and sculpter. Earnest Prehnn. We have an old cello of his donated and on display in the music department at Tenn. Tech.
-During the civil war, the last standing old farm house was still under construction. They left the floor joist exposed and walked on planks to keep the house from being commandeered for quarters.
-My great grandfather also buried a chest somewhere on the property behind the house on the bluff to hide valuables. Died w/o ever telling what he buried or where. That has never been found.
-A Civil War soldier slipped while his platoon was crossing the blff and went for a spill.
-We are fortunate to have a lot of War correspondence and early letters from other times that were saved and gives alot of bearing on family history and the happenings of the times of yesteryear.
-There is a small trace of Cherokee blood remaining. I may have 1/64th. Not enough to notice. One of the ancestors reportedly had a full blood or 1/2 blood wife at one point in time.
-Altough we technically had "servents" as most people in hte mid-1800's did, ours were paid and never "owned". Apparently their christian beliefs actually meant something to them and they would not employ the means of owning servants. When tehy left they took our last name and moved over around Dixon west of Nashville, so there are black Cummins' as well in that area, the great grandfather of which assumed hte name Henry Cummins like my great grandfather.
 
#17
#17
The issue I've had with the Cherokee confirmation is that my g-g-g-g grandfather was an Indian Agent and his wife's lineage cannot be traced. The family assumption is that she was a Cherokee since he was an agent and there are no records of their marriage. Add to the fact that darker skin and hair came down that line.

Another line from the Meigs, Roane, Rhea area has always assumed they had Indian as well but nothing proven. Many areas around here have legends of Dark Dutch or Black Irish lines. Melungeon bloodlines are prominent in these areas according to many. Now THAT is an interesting line of history to research.
 
#18
#18
CSpindizzy said:
The issue I've had with the Cherokee confirmation is that my g-g-g-g grandfather was an Indian Agent and his wife's lineage cannot be traced. The family assumption is that she was a Cherokee since he was an agent and there are no records of their marriage. Add to the fact that darker skin and hair came down that line.

Another line from the Meigs, Roane, Rhea area has always assumed they had Indian as well but nothing proven. Many areas around here have legends of Dark Dutch or Black Irish lines. Melungeon bloodlines are prominent in these areas according to many. Now THAT is an interesting line of history to research.
Click to expand...


I imagine most indian mix lines are hard to trace other than verbal history passed down. The Cherokee, if any amounts of records are available, to me would be the most recorded. They were somewhat more civilized by "our standards" for the time.
 
#19
#19
I am a descendant of Lord Culpepper, Governor of Virginia when it was a colony in the late 17th Century. Also supposedly related to Thomas Jefferson, though the connection is a bit loose.
 
#20
#20
CSpindizzy said:
Here are a few sites of interest:

RootsWeb: Database Index

Here you can click on the Family Trees link at the top. In the surname and given name fields enter in the oldest relative you can think of. The next page will give you the ability to add dates and states.

Also the LDS is quite active in research. You can go to FamilySearch.org - Family History and Genealogy Records and search for records as well.
Click to expand...
I would use the info in the family trees at rootsweb as a guide only. Remember that the data in the family trees was submitted by someone else, so you are depending on the accuracy of their research. I've found lots of wrong info on my family on there.
 
#21
#21
Of course. Rule #1 of genealogy is don't believe it unless you have facts to back it up. Of course even then you're dependent on the writer's spelling. Last names tend to get butchered by census takers. And going down a family tree there can be cousins born about the same time with the same first and last names so tracking which one is yours is always an issue.
 
#22
#22
I've been working on mine since I was a teenager, about 20 years now. I'm Scotish/English on my father's side, and German/English/ on my mother's.
 
#23
#23
Anyone famous? I have a few politicians back in the colonial days and going even further back William Wallace's uncle through his mom is in my direct descent.
 
#24
#24
CSpindizzy said:
Of course. Rule #1 of genealogy is don't believe it unless you have facts to back it up. Of course even then you're dependent on the writer's spelling. Last names tend to get butchered by census takers. And going down a family tree there can be cousins born about the same time with the same first and last names so tracking which one is yours is always an issue.
Click to expand...
I've been trying to help my wife work on her line and it's proving to be a nightmare.
 
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