I've been doing some genealogical research on my family for the last couple of months. I had a stall at my paternal great grandfather (WFC) for the longest time. Any details I have from that side of my family are pretty sketchy.
Then I had a wacky idea. I knew WFC's mother's maiden name from a verified birth record. I also knew he had been born in Indiana. Ancestry.com has Indiana marriage records. So...maybe I could search for marriages referencing her maiden name in the state of Indiana.
Bada bing!!
I found the marriage record and everything checked out as best as I can figure. Then we were off. Just from that record, I was able to trace a direct line back to my 10th great grandfather (WB), who was born in Burford, Oxfordshire, England in 1602. My 10th great grandmother (AL) was also born in Burford, in 1604 or 1607. I still have to nail down that date, but that's going to take an upgrade to an international subscription.
Searching further, I found a passenger and immigration manifest that says WB arrived in Boston in 1634, and AL arrived in New England in 1635.
Their son, my 9th great grandfather (WB Jr) in a direct line from me to him, was born in Ipswitch, Massechusetts, in 1640.
In all the research I've been able to put together, this is the earliest known record of any of my ancestors stepping foot in what would become the US. I guess that means my DNA has been on the continent for 378 years. Whoa.
My people came from England, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Spain, and Peru. We landed in the east and in the coastal regions of the south. We migrated west with stops in West Virginia, Indiana, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, and Missouri. I'm a 4th generation Californian on my father's side.
And I always thought I came from a small family. Go figure.
Can't wait to see what else I can dig up. I know from stories that I have ancestors who fought in the Revolution and in the Civil War. I suspect I'm just a few mouse clicks away from proving it.
Cool.
