Genealogical research is a collection of historical events and the more in-depth roles played by individual families. Exploring the past reveals many unknown facts and wonderful stories!
One of the most exciting feelings for the genealogy researcher is when they publish their book after years of research! The immediate family is happy, but this great accomplishment will serve genealogists and historians for generations well into the future. You may have gotten the DNA test. However, that test does not compare to the discovery of great family stories or the realization of their accomplishments throughout every historical era. Your families risked their lives on the high seas, fought Indians while crossing the western plains, were heroes in the Revolutionary War, and virtually built communities, towns, and cities across America. They were strong, daring, and brave people. Do you think that your ancestors did not fit this mold? With every generation traced, names in the family tree double, and one is taken into a plethoral universe of relatives! Here is an example of this truth — a 25th cousin five times removed discovered during the Medieval era of traceable nobility.
Although the standardized works publish historical information, they do not include the wonderful stories of the families who faced persecution, sorrow, turmoil, and war and risked everything for their new home.
Anthony Lewis of the Isle of Wight County, Virginia, was published by J. William Lewis. He credited Georgia Pioneers.com and other resources for supplying information and records to publish his book, which contains over 700 pages! This fabulous history dates back to 1642; I felt truly honored when Mr. Lewis graciously sent me a copy of his great accomplishment.
Other members have also used Georgia Pioneers.com to find data to assist in writing their books for ancestors in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Users may download copies of essential documents, such as old wills, and copy and paste information from the website.
The outstanding accomplishments of genealogists who have used Georgia Pioneers to collect data since 1995 are an acclamation of success. It is making my dream come true insofar as the preservation of genealogy and historical data is concerned.
One icy cold February day, I took my sister to the site of my ancestor’s plantation. Although the old house was gone, bricks from the cemetery lay conspicuously in the field across the street from the cemetery. As had happened so many times before in other research areas, I was approached by an old gentleman farmer wearing blue coveralls. He was the self-appointed keeper of the cemetery. I will never forget that day because it seemed to explain the difficulties and struggles of plantation life in Georgia.
Jeannette Holland Austin