Inspiration comes from a lot of sources. For genealogy, it oftentimes comes from others who offer tips and insights on where to turn when you get stuck. In this post, we’re going to refer you to 5 family history blogs that are so good that you ought to read them. Check out the list below.
(1) Linda McCauley – Documenting the Details
Linda McCauley is an independent blogger and family history enthusiast. She is a consistent Tweeter and blogger. She’s currently doing the “52 Ancestors” feature on her blog where she highlights a different ancestor in a blog post each week. She tells real stories from their lives that are charming and heartwarming. In one particularly great post, she told the story of when her dad got a granddaughter a pony because she was feeling home sick when she went to visit. It’s an incredibly cute story that will remind you of what family bonds are all about. Linda is also great at using pictures to tell the story. Adding pictures always helps to make the ancestors feel close, as if you were hearing the story from them. Be sure to check out her blog.
(2) Deb Ruth – Adventures in Genealogy
These are some fun blog posts if history is your passion. Not every post is about family history exclusively, but she supplements her posts with fascinating stories. One particularly great post is about a news article on one of her ancestors, August Eck. In the article they state he, “climbed the statue on the Washington Monument at noon yesterday in order to replace on the lightning rod a cap which had been burnt away some weeks ago.” It’s a funny story and is a great reminder of the hidden gems about our ancestors that are out there. Deb’s a good writer and is worth following.
(3) Heather Dubnick – Little Oak: Roots and Branches
Heather Dubnick shared a fascinating story that traces back to Eastern Europe. Her Jewish family roots head back to Moldova where she shares, as is so common in family history work, a rather miraculous story of finding out about a distant relative, Samuel, and his experiences. Piece by piece the story came together. It’s really an interesting read, particularly if you have roots in Eastern Europe as well.
(4)Valerie Hughes – Genealogy with Valerie
Valerie Hughes is a professional genealogist and writer. She’s even published a couple of books. Her blog is well maintained and she too is doing the “52 Ancestor” challenge. Picking a good post from her blog is difficult because there’s so many of them! She did a wonderful post about the importance of admitting to ancestral slave owners in order to help African-American communities with their genealogy. But a recent post with a great story of a first immigrant to America can be found here. Spoiler alert: this poor ancestor of hers survived a shipwreck by floating on some timber and a couple of casks of rum for several days. Worth the read.
(5) J. Mark Lowe – Keeping the Story Alive
J. Mark Lowe, a Tennessee native, is a great writer and historian. He has a passion for history and genealogy that shines through in his writing. In the linked post, he writes in a compelling fashion of how worlds collided in war. Weaving stories together, he shows how certain catastrophic events can have far stretching impacts even down to our very own ancestors. It’s a good read especially for you history buffs.
Hopefully, these blog posts have been able to give you some inspiration on what to write about next. Documenting our ancestor’s history is an important part of understanding who we are. When it’s time to print your writings into a book, be sure to use MyCanvas.com for an easy-to-use, customizable solution. For more information visit MyCanvas.com or contact us below.
