As part of my genealogy research I often look through old newspapers and magazines. It is always exciting when you find another little piece of the puzzle. I have stumbled across many amazing facts this way. I have found birth announcements,obituaries,wedding and engagements,baptisms and all matter of tidbits. This new technology to search these records is amazing. All I need do is type in a name or search parameter and a list is generated. Decades of information is instantly sorted.
There are times when I find something that leaves me questioning. In the home town paper little snippets of what was considered news worthy, amuse. For instance, just the other day I was browsing a paper when I found this, " Horace Bennett killed a large grey owl in a potato lot with a club. " That is all it says. Horace Bennett is my maternal Grandfather. Why did he kill this owl ? I want more details. Grandfather Horace passed away in 1949 so I'll never know that answer. I found a similar article a year or so ago about my other Grandfather. The only difference was he killed a large black snake, the largest seen in the area in quite some time, according to the paper. Somehow I didn't question why he would kill a black snake. That's just a bias I suppose, but one a lot of us share.
All of this is part of the fascination with the family tree. It is kind of being nosy in a way. We justify it by saying, " hey we're family. " That somehow makes us feel better about prying into the past. For me, and for everyone I know that does this search, it is more than looking for names and dates. It is the details that fascinate us so. Inquiring minds want to know. I have found things that I am sure those involved would be embarrassed for people to know. That situation is only getting worse with the advance of technology. How much of what we do today is being recorded in some fashion ? Can we keep secrets anymore ? Not many I'm thinking. That is one of the reasons I began writing my own story, I want some input here. I'll fill in the details. The thing is the details are often boring and mundane. Consider a question the grandchildren have asked me and some of the locals, why did you move to Greensboro ? The answer, the rent was right and I was going overseas. That then leads to more explanations. I was in the Navy at that time. I didn't want my wife and children in a big city, I wanted a safe little town. Found it in Greensboro. That is how it goes. Questions lead to questions. Why did Grandfather Horace kill that owl ? Was it annoying ? Who,Who,Who. I just don't know and it is forever left to speculation. Another little tidbit that is self explanatory, on May 27, 1903 my Great Grandfathers grey draught horse died at a great loss to Mr. Lester. Read that in the paper.
There are times when I find something that leaves me questioning. In the home town paper little snippets of what was considered news worthy, amuse. For instance, just the other day I was browsing a paper when I found this, " Horace Bennett killed a large grey owl in a potato lot with a club. " That is all it says. Horace Bennett is my maternal Grandfather. Why did he kill this owl ? I want more details. Grandfather Horace passed away in 1949 so I'll never know that answer. I found a similar article a year or so ago about my other Grandfather. The only difference was he killed a large black snake, the largest seen in the area in quite some time, according to the paper. Somehow I didn't question why he would kill a black snake. That's just a bias I suppose, but one a lot of us share.
All of this is part of the fascination with the family tree. It is kind of being nosy in a way. We justify it by saying, " hey we're family. " That somehow makes us feel better about prying into the past. For me, and for everyone I know that does this search, it is more than looking for names and dates. It is the details that fascinate us so. Inquiring minds want to know. I have found things that I am sure those involved would be embarrassed for people to know. That situation is only getting worse with the advance of technology. How much of what we do today is being recorded in some fashion ? Can we keep secrets anymore ? Not many I'm thinking. That is one of the reasons I began writing my own story, I want some input here. I'll fill in the details. The thing is the details are often boring and mundane. Consider a question the grandchildren have asked me and some of the locals, why did you move to Greensboro ? The answer, the rent was right and I was going overseas. That then leads to more explanations. I was in the Navy at that time. I didn't want my wife and children in a big city, I wanted a safe little town. Found it in Greensboro. That is how it goes. Questions lead to questions. Why did Grandfather Horace kill that owl ? Was it annoying ? Who,Who,Who. I just don't know and it is forever left to speculation. Another little tidbit that is self explanatory, on May 27, 1903 my Great Grandfathers grey draught horse died at a great loss to Mr. Lester. Read that in the paper.
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