Day 1: Starting the Journey

Today students began their genealogy journey by walking to the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research, a top-10 family research center in the United States. The library opened an hour early for us so that we could meet with librarians, Susan Kaufman and Melissa Hayes, and learn about the resources available at the library. We began with a presentation from Ms. Kaufman, the Director of Education for the Texas State Genealogy Society and the Senior Manager of the library. She shared her family research journey, including her first pedigree chart from when she began family research many years ago.

Presentation from Ms. Kaufman at the Clayton Library for Genealogical Research

After the presentation, aided by Ms. Kaufman and Ms. Hayes, students began to look through some of the resources the library houses for preliminary information about their families. Some students were able to find information and some were not at this time. We began the conversation about the limitations of family research which include immigration, socio-economic status, and race.

In the afternoon, I presented my own family history story, highlighting both some mysteries in my family as well as some history I am not proud of, such as many Confederate soldiers and even a plantation-owner and slaver. We discussed how sometimes we find out things about our family that make us feel good about our lineage and also sometimes we find things that we don't feel great about. Either way, warts and all, everyone in our families led to us! The complex nature of families is part of the fun of this kind of research.

Ms. Harrison in 1986 on Dauphin Island in Alabama

Students spent the rest of the afternoon entering the information they gathered on their pedigree chart forms into their new family trees on Ancestry.com. From there, they began to look at public records available through databases on Ancestry and began to find lots of fun documentation, even old yearbook photos and draft cards!

In all, everyone left excited about continuing their research tomorrow.

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Day 6 - A Search for Answers

We began our morning at school, completing our gathering of questions and people to research at the Clayton Library. Once the group and our research questions were assembled we made our way through the Museum District to the library to begin our deep research! Upon arrival we got right to work, most went to the second floor for international research, however, I and a few others remained downstairs to research further into the U.S. I wanted to find some answers to my questions about my Native American heritage. I knew that my great-grandfather is a part of a smaller tribe in Maine, however, he lived with the Cherokee of North Carolina. Thanks to the assistance of the librarians at the Clayton Library and some long reading I was able to find some family names in a Cherokee census, leading me to believe my great-grandfather lived with family within the tribe! After a long morning of research, we set off for the McGovern Centennial Gardens. Ms. Harrison filled us in, upon our arrival,

Day 4 - Ending of the first week

Day 4 - Ending of the first week Morning On the morning of the halfway mark for J-term, we start by sharing new discoveries from yesterday's class on our family trees. After discussion, we dove right into working on our family trees once again. Students who did not get the chance to meet with Ms. Harrison the previous day would now get the chance to. While all the students worked on their family trees some students met one on one with Ms. Harrison to get some help on roadblocks or stumps they may have come across during their time building their family tree. Students are making new discoveries every day and grow ever more excited about learning new things about their families. Near the end of the morning, I was able to sit with Ms. Harrison and talk with her about a serious roadblock I had faced while building my family tree. When sitting down with Ms. Harrison we were able to find some records for my mom's side of the family which I was struggling with. This opened up

Day 3 - Continued Research

Day 3 - Continued Research Morning We began our morning by furthering our research into our ancestors. We looked through further documents, resources, and other primary sources. To keep us on track, each student met with Ms. Harrison to discuss their findings and how they can further enhance their studies. I found that much of my family's history is not located on Ancestry.com and I had to use different sources to track my family's background. Websites such as Family History, Findagrave, Familysearch, and many more are other sources I can use to track the origins of my family. Students using ancestry.com to further their research For the second portion of the day, we watched an episode of finding your roots featuring Nancy Pelosi, Norah O'Donnel, and Zac Posen. All three guests had stories from their relatives that shaped them into the people that they are today. For

"Finding Your Roots" Genealogy J-Term 2022

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