By Anne McKee
The Meridian Star
MERIDIAN —
Greetings from Salisbury, North Carolina! This has been a week of digging-up-bones.
Digging Up Bones was a popular country music song a few years back with Randy Travis – a talented bass voice songbird, but that’s not the subject of this column today. Digging-up-bones is a clever reference to genealogy. I know. … I know –you think, here she goes on a tangent with perhaps statements like this. “My g-g-g-grandfather fought in the Civil War battle of Cold Mountain.” No, actually it was my great, great, great uncle who was killed at that battle. Uh-huh, and I just learned about him within the last couple of years.
You see momma and granny were never-ever interested about history, but as a youngster, I was very curious. That curiosity has continued throughout my life. Momma said. “I was raised in an old house.” Today we would call her childhood house a historic home. Then she would continue. “All of the furniture in that old house was old stuff.” We would today term her plight of “old stuff” as antiques and collectibles. After she married, all she ever wanted was the new and modern, and daddy provided. That’s right – nothing old at our house and that included oral histories about family members and events.
Imagine the surprise that was mine when a church lady friend stopped me at the Winn Dixie with this. “Was your great grandmother Paralee Reynolds Harrison?” I mean she didn’t even say hello or anything, but began our conversation with this curious question. I looked Becky Chaney straight in the eye and answered. “I think so.” The most pleased expression played across her lovely face and she continued. “Come to my house. I have a lot of information about your family.” Well, hot-diggity-dog, I couldn’t wait to make the visit to her house. I admit I found her house to be almost an archives – a real archives. Family histories, copies of marriage licenses, death certificates, old photographs, and much more – years and years of digging-up-bones. I was introduced to many new relatives – dead and alive. The best part – I found that Becky was a cousin – a real-live-cousin!
Well, that did it – I was hooked. I have amassed a large amount of information during the last couple of years. I even found my Revolutionary War g-g-g-g-g-grandfather through the information given to me by Cousin Becky and the amazing assistance of the Bobashela DAR Chapter of Newton County, Mississippi – a generous and friendly group of “daughters.” The official name is Mississippi State Society, Daughters of the American Revolution. I found that my patriot mustered into the Revolutionary War at Salisbury, North Carolina in 1781. Thus, my trip to Salisbury became a necessary road trip.
So, this week I’ve had Carolina on my mind and listed on my travel log as well. No, the husband was not as thrilled about the digging-up-bones week as I was, but he went along. All I had to do was remind him of the NASCAR history located in North Carolina, and almost like a race car driver, we were on our way. It was a magnificent week.
You know digging-up-bones can work for both NASCAR history and Revolutionary War history – really, it can. Husband and I hit the walking tours, self-guided tours of museums, local archives, we read brochures, peered at maps – we breathed the air and walked the pathways of the great ones who lived before us. Yes, it was a magnificent week!
Before we took off this week, I researched a few quick facts about genealogy, or as I prefer to term it, digging-up-bones:
1. Prepare (This is a biggy.) There are several online sites available in order to understand the terminology involved. If you do not have a computer, local bookstores such as Books-A-Million or Barnes & Noble can be helpful as well as the local library or archives.
2. Gather (Lots of pertinent info can be gathered right under your own roof or the roofs of close relatives.) Interview parents, grandparents, and other relatives while their memories are intact. Take notes, and if it’s okay with your relative, record or videotape the interview. Locate the family Bible or Bibles still in the hands of relatives. Many families recorded birth/death/marriage family info in the Bible. Also, check out family photo albums, baby books, and newspaper clippings. Attend the next family reunion – many family members bring old photos and additional info to the reunion – an excellent opportunity to gather the information you need.
3. Organize (very important.) Duplicate names, incorrect dates, and so many other facts can be very confusing. Check and recheck, then check again. It is a good idea to complete a generation chart of your ancestors. With this chart, you may really see the “road map” so to say of your family history. For the women, include their maiden name for clarification. When listing dates, record the date of the month first, followed by the name of the month, then the year using four digits. As the generation chart info grows, add old photographs, medical information, hobbies, accomplishments, religious affiliation, or any information to “flesh-out” the relative. There are genealogical software programs available as well, however, an accurate, clearly hand written, correctly documented family history will serve your family with great dignity.
This handy guide for genealogy research was found, in part, on the Springfield-Green County Genealogy Staff web site. Other info included in this column, I learned as I researched my family. I'm happy to share with these research tips with you.
Then, one day – it won’t be that long, you will find yourself on a digging-up-bones road trip just as I enjoyed this week. I say – go for it, and I’ll see you on the genealogy trail as we dig up bones, one family member at the time.
Anne B. McKee is an author and storyteller. She lives in Meridian. Anne is listed on the Mississippi Artist Roster, sponsored by Mississippi Arts Commission, as a dramatic and literary artist and as a Teaching Artist. She is active with the arts and educational communities throughout Mississippi. Visit her web site: www.annemckee.net.
