Have you ever researched your family history? (WW2, war, bomb)

[Comedyshortsgamer]

I have , and it turns out my grandparents fought in world war 2

[Dd714]

Originally Posted by Comedyshortsgamer

I have , and it turns out my grandparents fought in world war 2

WW2? In terms of human lifespan that wasn't too long ago and for many of us that "research" is simply asking our parents or grandparents if they are still living. WW2 veterans of course are still among us.

Aim for farther back - a couple hundred years back, and further, it's amazing what records you can find online via some of the web sites that work on this - old census and tax reports, marriage and death certificates, etc. You get some clues - names, birthdates, city they lived in, do a search in these records, and just keep on tracing it back.

[brownbagg]

I had a relative hung for treason in the revolution war

[SunGrins]

Well, we should have a thread on our hanged relatives. Mine were hanged in the Hague in the Netherlands on a lamppost.

[theoldnorthstate]

Yes I have researched my family tree and it gave me a renewed interest in history distant and recent.


I have relatives who were massacred by the Indians, fought in the French and INdian War moving to new open areas after the Revolutionary War. Ancestors who were Hessians who deserted to the Colonial cause. Ancestors that fought for the Stewarts in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Some were border reivers some were lairds.


Ancestors who cut down trees, plowed fields, and fought wolves, Indians, and Redcoats for what they held dear.


While I had always liked the school offered history classes seeing my family history lay out on the events caused me to do a lot of source research to the historical events as well as family history.


The big question for me is Why? why did they do this or do that. I find it interesting.

[Grandstander]

Originally Posted by SunGrins

Well, we should have a thread on our hanged relatives. Mine were hanged in the Hague in the Netherlands on a lamppost.

Can we expand it from hanged to general scapegraces? The first on my father's side to America was a deserter from a British Man-O-War. His son fought in the American Revolution, but between then, and the Civil War when the family got respectable, it was a series of claim jumpers, horse thieves and land swindlers.

Four ancestors fought in the Civil War. They were from Missouri, so three of the brothers fought for the North while the 4th, a doctor (the respectable one) was a regimental surgeon for the Confederates.

[Cali BassMan]

I was able to trace my mothers side back to 1690 when the got a ship for America.
We've fought in the revolution for the Continental Army
Had a great great great grandfather killed at the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812
They were in Missouri during the Civil War and were on both sides
My own Father was in the Pacific during WWII

My Fathers side has been more difficult, I've traced it back to the 1830's and he was in Kentucky, they were in Missouri and Arkansas by the time of the Civil War

[fritos56]

I'm trying to start with my dad's side. Now he knew more than i did but i never thought to have him write things down. He did a TDY to Germany and England in the late 1950s for Security Service(USAirforce).He got to Garmisch and visited one of his relatives there. This gentleman had fought in North Africa and the Eastern Front. He told daddy his group or whatever wasn't part of the Africa Corps.And there were other german troops there besides the Africa Corps.Anyhow he told daddy that his cousins in Nuremberg kept the family history book.However daddy didn't have enough time to go to Nuremberg and visit his cousins there and see the book.His grandfather came from Himmelstadt and I found out that early in the 1900s two of daddy's cousins there were burgermeisters.They were father and son;and one served right after the other. Plus Generaloberst Carl Hilpert the commander of Army Group Courland during WW2 was from Nuremberg and grandpa's cousin.And another cousin from Baden General Major Theodor Hilpert was not only a military leader but a politican as well.
I know the family is very old and the state archives in Hamburg has a book on the Hilperts in their archives. Need to see what if anything the Milwaukee Public library might have in their old german books.

[Ariete]

My paternal line comes from bourgeoisie landowners from the Southern Savonia province in Finland, and my maternal line from clergy west of Stockholm in Sweden. In the early 1800's my maternal line decided to leave the cloth and became independent farmers for a reason we don't know. Eventually all of my maternal grandfather's father's brothers emigrated to the US (Minnesota and Illinois), but for some reason my grand-grandfather decided to try his luck in Finland. In Helsinki he started a carpenter's business, aquired some land with his profits and met his wife, a Finnish maid from Karelia maiding for wealthy Helsinki bourgeoisie. My grandfather having the possibility in going to the university became an engineer and met a Swedish-speaking gal in Helsinki who became my grandmother. Ultimately after twists and turns my mother met my father, and gave birth to me in the same hospital in Helsinki where my grandmother was born in.

The history of my paternal line is sketchy to say the least, as all of my grandfather's family, including all four of his brothers and only sister were killed during WWII, on the front or in bombings. He and his cousin were the only survivors, so we lost almost all of my paternal heritage.

[slowlane3]

I'm surprised that none of you realize there's a Genealogy forum, right here on City-data. (Maybe you all don't realize that "Genealogy" means family tree). //www.city-data.com/forum/genealogy