The Brickwall Comes Tumbling Down

Recently my focus has been on my Fitzgerald ancestors, specifically John and Emily (Tennyson) Fitzgerald's family.  I have been doing a lot of collateral or cluster research.  I have been tracing down their children as far as I can chase them....some farther than others.  All this in preparation for the trip to Pennsylvania with my family (the trip has been postponed again due to my recent new job...but that's for another day).  Anyway, this family has been m brickwall for 10 years! 
A few weeks ago I requested a death record transcription from a wonderful volunteer via Random Acts of Genealogical Kindess for John and Emily's youngest son, Edward.  Edward moved to Iowa, had a family, then died in Los Angeles at the home of his daughter.  He and his wife are buried in Inglewood Cemetery in Inglewood, California.  Imagine my joy when, on Edward's death certificate, John's city of birth in Ireland was recorded!  So know I know that my 3rd Great Grandfather was born in the City of Cork, County Cork, Ireland!  Now I still don't have John's parent's names, but I have a great detail about my ancestry!  AND it's a very exciting discovery. 
So maybe the brickwall hasn't come completely down, but I think I have broken a big chunk out of it!
Happy Hunting!

Appologies

I have realized today that it has been over two months since I've written.  I wish I could say it is because of some great genealogical adventure or that I have been neck deep in family history reseach, but, alas, it has not.  I suffer from what many of my classmates also suffer from - not having enough time to do everything we want to do, be a mom and go to nursing school.  In fact, seems we thought we were moving back in September, most of my genealogical materials is boxed up in boxes. 

Since, my computer has also needed a trip to the shop, so I must find in the mountain of boxes in the closet, my legacy program so that I can reinstall my program and load my files back onto my laptop, which I can happily say is like a new computer since the installation of a brand new mother board.

So plans are quickly underway on what has been a long time coming family vacation to Pennsylvani.  We will be embarking via RV on September 10th, with an overnight stay in Lansing, Michigan for my husband's commissioning ceremony for the National Guard at the state capital on September 11th, then off to Pennsylvania, with a couple days at the end of our trip in Gettysburg.  Anticipation bubbles for the trip, but it still seems like such a long way off, but still not so long.

This year I plan to gather the documentation for to earn an Ancestral Certificate from Grand Traverse Area Genealogical Society.  This year I will not be speaking as planned, but committed to being a back up if someone cancels.  The only month available was September and seems I will be in Pennsylvania, it would be difficult to present at the meeting, although with today's technology, not impossible.    Have I mentioned yet that I am really looking forward to my trip?  :D  I can't help it.  The excitement of walking down the same streets my ancestors traveled is exciting for me to think about!

So until next time,
Happy Genealogy!

'Tis the Season

It is the season for family traditions and for celebrations. We have a lot to celebrate this year with the birth of our son and now being a family of 4. Christmas time is always a happy time of year for me and I am thankful to have a little break from school, even if it is only 3 short weeks this year.

I have taken some time to up date my genealogy to-do list and to think about next year's Genealogy goals. We are still planning our Pennsylvania trip for Septmeber. Just me, the hubby and the two kids in a rental RV from our Michigan home traveling the 700+ miles to PA, but we will have the RV, so it should be an easier ride then trying to drive it in the family mini van and jumping from hotel to hotel. This is going to be our first real Genealogy vacation and I'm hoping to discover more about my paternal grandfather's line.

So what is your goal for the new year in your genealogy? You can share your goals in the comments section.

I've taken time to actually do some research to make some Random Acts of Genealogy Kindness requests for some research. With my college graduation right around the corner I'm excited to have more free time to do my research...what will I do with myself? After the first of the year I'm packing up the baby and hitting the local library and family history center to work through some of my research to-dos before the next semester of school starts.

Happy Hunting.

PS Check out my new blog at http://www.scappyalanna.blogspot.com/

It's been awhile

It's been awhile since I've been able to Blog about Genealogy or let alone even work on my genealogy. I've had a few sessions here and there with very brief hits of research, but with school and job and now a new baby, there hasn't been much researching in my Family History. I have been emailing back and forth with my Dad's counsin Linda about the family history and have arranaged to send her printouts of what I have with current information on the family and to be able to update on her family and her sibilings. Hey, at least it is something. :)

Yes, I have finally added another root to my own family. My son was born December 1st. It is crazy and fun to have a baby in the house again.

My plans for Christmas break is to work on some genealogy and I have a lead on another family member to hopefully add some new information to the family tree. We still plan to visit Pennsylvania, but it won't be until September now. But that gives me plenty of time to plan! We're packing up the kids and renting an RV and driving from our home in Northern Lower Michigan to Danville, Pennsylvania where my Great, Great Grandfather was born. I'm excitied for the trip and excited to see what new information that we will be able to uncover when we are there.

Good luck and happy Hunting! Until next time.