Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:
It's Saturday Night again
-
time for some more Genealogy
Fun!!
Here is our assignment from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings:
1) Then and Now - Did you ever conduct oral interviews of family members or friends and neighbors about your ancestors over the years? Who did you interview, how did you record the interviews, and what did you learn from them? Please share your experiences.
Here’s mine:
When I first started, I did ask my mother’s mother and my father
and his sisters, questions about the family. It should be how we all start. I
got names and dates when they remembered them and from there, I began researching
using census records.
Later, after I had received a family photo album, I decided to write a story about the Gleeson, Sullivan, and Hork families. I had photos. I had facts I had gathered from documents I had found. What I didn’t have were the stories. So, I sent out a survey to my dad and his sisters. I asked questions about certain facts, and also questions about what school was like, how they met their spouse, and what kinds of jobs did they have. For the surveys sent to my siblings and cousins, I also asked for memories of their time with Nana, our grandmother. I got back surveys from almost everyone and it really helped me write the short history of the family.
Here is an excerpt from the one my aunt filled out.
Today, I would have a Zoom chat with each person or family group to ask questions. That way I could record it so I get down all the stories they told. I hope to do that with my siblings when working on the story of our parents’ lives.
I actually gave one of my grandmothers a small book with questions for her to answer. She never did, but my mother then inherited the blank book and she answered for herself, which was nice, but I had really hoped my grandmother would share more of her life stories.
ReplyDeleteI forgot that I gave my grandmother, my parents, and my in-laws, a jar of prompts and a notebook in order to write a prompt a day. None of them did it either. It's a shame. Today, someone could at least "talk" into their phone and record their thoughts about the prompt if they didn't want to write.
DeleteA cousin on my mother's side wanted the stories from my grandmother but didn't want to sit down and talk with her, so she gave Bubbie one of those books. Bubbie never wrote anything in it, but she was happy to talk with me and tell me the stories. It's the interaction that's important.
DeleteYou actually created a form and sent it to everyone. That's pretty impressive! I just asked questions and wrote down their answers.
ReplyDeleteBut you were a kid! That's impressive.
DeleteI remember now we did an assignment in 7th grade on our family trees. I don't remember who I asked and my 7th grade teacher had the tendency to lose our papers, so I don't think I still have it.
Delete