Each of us is the sum of the past of our families – culturally, historically, and genetically – going back generations and generations. Quite often, however, we have no idea of what, exactly, that past encompasses. Now two television series on two different networks are focusing on using genealogy to trace family history and make discoveries about our past.
Faces of America, broadcast on PBS during February and March and hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., featured a dozen Americans, such as Meryl Steep, Stephen Colbert, Louise Erdrich, and Kristi Yamaguchi, and told the stories of their ancestors and the challenges and struggles they faced. Gates presented each participant with a scrapbook of their family history which highlighted particular individuals from their past.
The scrapbooks held surprises for all of the participants, as they read about a great diversity of ancestors. Perhaps the most surprising part of the series was when they revealed that a significant number of the participants were related to each other!
The NBC series, Who Do You Think You Are?, airs on Friday evenings. Each episode focuses on a celebrity and, as with the PBS series, uncovers secrets about their family history. In the first episode, Sarah Jessica Parker learned that one of her ancestors was accused of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials.
This all may sound familiar to those of you who remember the mid-1970’s, when author Alex Haley and his bestselling book, Roots – as well as the subsequent television mini-series by that same name – ignited public interest in genealogy and family history.
One thing that has changed since the 1970’s, however, is the tremendous amount of genealogy information now available online. Research that previously would have consumed days can now be undertaken in a few hours, if not minutes. That said, most people who are serious about tracing their roots usually end up sending in queries to archives, visiting libraries, making contacts, and traveling to sites.
If you are interested in discovering more about your family history, visit the McPherson Public Library and consult our many genealogy resources. We are happy to assist you.
Volunteers from the McPherson County Genealogy Society are in the McPherson Room every Wednesday afternoon from 2:00 until 4:00. They can guide and advise you in your search. The Society meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the Cedars Wellness Center. These people are the genealogy equivalent of the Green Berets, and they can lead you to success.
At this point, you may be thinking that you are not a celebrity nor do you have a team of professional genealogists working on your case and that the odds of finding anyone interesting in your family tree are slim. But with the number of direct ancestors doubling with each past generation, I think the odds are in your favor. Just remember that whoever you find, they are all part of the past that made you who you are.
|
|
|
Each of us is the sum of the past of our families – culturally, historically, and genetically – going back generations and generations. Quite often, however, we have no idea of what, exactly, that past encompasses. Now two television series on two different networks are focusing on using genealogy to trace family history and make discoveries about our past.
Faces of America, broadcast on PBS during February and March and hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., featured a dozen Americans, such as Meryl Steep, Stephen Colbert, Louise Erdrich, and Kristi Yamaguchi, and told the stories of their ancestors and the challenges and struggles they faced. Gates presented each participant with a scrapbook of their family history which highlighted particular individuals from their past.
The scrapbooks held surprises for all of the participants, as they read about a great diversity of ancestors. Perhaps the most surprising part of the series was when they revealed that a significant number of the participants were related to each other!
The NBC series, Who Do You Think You Are?, airs on Friday evenings. Each episode focuses on a celebrity and, as with the PBS series, uncovers secrets about their family history. In the first episode, Sarah Jessica Parker learned that one of her ancestors was accused of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials.
This all may sound familiar to those of you who remember the mid-1970’s, when author Alex Haley and his bestselling book, Roots – as well as the subsequent television mini-series by that same name – ignited public interest in genealogy and family history.
One thing that has changed since the 1970’s, however, is the tremendous amount of genealogy information now available online. Research that previously would have consumed days can now be undertaken in a few hours, if not minutes. That said, most people who are serious about tracing their roots usually end up sending in queries to archives, visiting libraries, making contacts, and traveling to sites.
If you are interested in discovering more about your family history, visit the McPherson Public Library and consult our many genealogy resources. We are happy to assist you.
Volunteers from the McPherson County Genealogy Society are in the McPherson Room every Wednesday afternoon from 2:00 until 4:00. They can guide and advise you in your search. The Society meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the Cedars Wellness Center. These people are the genealogy equivalent of the Green Berets, and they can lead you to success.
At this point, you may be thinking that you are not a celebrity nor do you have a team of professional genealogists working on your case and that the odds of finding anyone interesting in your family tree are slim. But with the number of direct ancestors doubling with each past generation, I think the odds are in your favor. Just remember that whoever you find, they are all part of the past that made you who you are.
