Two of my blogging friends select twelve different lines of their family to focus on, one month at a time.[1]
I think it is a wonderful idea and perhaps it will keep me from jumping to bright shiny objects (BSO) instead getting some real work done. I will still write my regular features: 52 Ancestors, Genea-pourri, Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (SNGF), and Webinar Wednesday when I have a point to make after viewing a webinar.
However, I need to work on some work samples for my BCG (Board for the Certification of Genealogists) renewal, which will come up in a couple of years. I plan to write some KDPs (Kinship Determination Project) and then choose the one that best highlights my research and writing skills.
Another reason this is a good idea is FamilySearch’s new full-text search feature includes so many more record types besides land and court, that it will be good to revisit some families that I have researched long ago to make sure I have fully done reasonably exhaustive research (RER).
Research Projects
I research both my parents’ lines as well as my husband’s lines,
i.e. my children’s ancestry. So, dividing up the months, I should include both
sides. I have written about the Swedish families, Nilsen and Lundquist already,
so even though I might find more documents, I have other lines that need their
story told.
Now, should I commit to which families now or choose a new one each month as the year progresses? Here are my choices, my daughters' 2x-great-grandparents, all 16 of them. The four lines that are in the red box have been done already. So that leaves 12 lines to work on. The red-shaded lines are my husband’s paternal line. The blue are my father’s lines and the green are my mother’s lines.
Selman-Hutson Lines
Using a random number generator, I got the number 10, so my
first month will be researching the Hutson line. Nell L. Hutson’s parents were
Peter H. Hutson and Sarah Helena Selman. She was born in Texas in 1888.
Besides FamilySearch and Ancestry, I would also use the Portal to Texas History, especially their fine newspaper collection. I would also look for histories of the counties where they lived. Peter was born in Georgia and lived in Cherokee County before moving to Texas.
Stay tuned to see how well I do. Maybe I’ll line a new generation, but mostly I hope to have a story written.
[1]
See Jacqi Stevens, “12 for ’25,” A Family Tapestry (https://afamilytapestry.blogspot.com/2024/12/12-for-25.html).
Also, Linda Stufflebean, “New Year, New Monthly Research Topics: Andrew Bandy
Family: Descendants of George Bandy,” Empty Branches on the Family Tree
(https://emptybranchesonthefamilytree.com/2025/01/page/10/).
I think you will enjoy the format and find it a very productive way to make new progress. Jacqi Stevens outlines her 12 choices in January, but I prefer to go month to month. That allows for some followup when those BSOs appear.
ReplyDeleteYes, I was thinking about how to continue from here, and will choose a new family either randomly again, or what's new database might be helpful for that line.
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